Hook was starting to understand the appeal of this place. This small little dinner Swan and the lad referred to as Granny's. The name still didn't make much sense to him. As far as he could see the angry old woman had no relationship to either Swan or her boy. But he supposed he could forgive that, mainly for the wonderful smells floating through the air and the left overs young Henry often snuck him when Swan wasn't looking.
Henry wasn't with them now, however. No it was just Swan and himself, passing through more than anything. Henry had left a something or another at the diner the last time they were in, and Swan had taken him along for the ride. It took an embarrassing amount of what Henry called puppy eyes before she did though.
Trotting by Swan's side they passed the Sheriff, the same man from only a few nights ago whom had made Swan so upset. There were no tears now, but the lass did pull up to a stop at the sight of the man who now held a dart in front of them.
"Emma," the wild haired waitress smiled. "What can I get you?" Hook was surprised by the lack of an innuendo in his mind, especially considering the skirt length the lass wore.
"Nothing." His Swan said coolly before pulling him along passed the pair and toward the door, sparing not even a glance for the man behind them.
Just as they reached the door however, the dart in the Sheriff's hand landed in the soft wood of the frame, close to Swan's face.
The whole diner went quiet, all turning to look back at the Sheriff. Hook felt the hair along his back rise ad a low growl came from his chest. His Swan, on the other hand, was not quiet.
"What the hell?" She demanded. "You could've hit me. Or him." Emma gestured down towards Hook.
"I never miss." Cocky bastard, Hook thought, imagining how well his new teeth could rip through flesh. "You've been avoiding me since you saw me- "
"Leaving the mayor?" At girl, Hook bared his teeth as Graham walked closer. "And yes that is a euphemism." Hook had to admire her spark, even more so than when it was directed at him. "I'm not avoiding you Graham I just have no interest in having this conversation. It's your life, and I really don't care."
Hook could hear the lie in it, but he ignored it. Just as he ignored the sudden drop in his stomach. It didn't matter anyway, as Swan swooped both of them out of the diner and out onto the wet sidewalk.
"If you don't care then why are you so upset?" Bloody well give up already mate, Hook snarled to himself as the man raced out of the door behind them.
"I'm not upset." Another lie, another drop. Hook wondered if his claws could hook the ground hard enough to pull Swan far, far away from this conversation.
"If that were true you'd be at the bar with me having a drink and not running away." He skidded to a halt in front of them, Swan only paused for a moment though, sweeping by him again.
"It's none of my business, really." There was less anger this time, more resignation.
"Can we please talk about this," How about not? "I need you to understand."
"Why?" Swan did stop this time.
"I don't know, maybe so I can understand." Bad line mate, bad line. Hook's fur had yet to lie flat along his back, and at this point he wondered if it ever would again.
"You need analysis go talk to Archie." Bloody brilliant Swan, send him somewhere else, anywhere else.
"I want to talk to you."
"Well your bad judgement is your problem not mine." His stomach lifted a little at that, and Swan started walking again, a little faster this time.
"You don't know what it's like with her. I don't feel anything. Can you understand that?" He caught up again, damn him.
"Bad relationship? Yeah I understand a bad relationship. I just don't want to talk about yours." She pulled tighter on Hook's leash, keeping him in pace with her.
"Look I know you and Regina have your own issues and I should have told you about that before you took the job." Hook wanted him gone, but he still found himself cringing at the fury that rolled off of Emma at the declaration.
"Yeah why the secrecy?" Emma stopped walking again. Were they ever going to make it down this road? "We're all adults, you can do whatever you want!"
"Cause I-" the Sheriff faltered for a moment. "I didn't want you to look at me the way you are now." He was getting desperate. Hook could see the same puppy eyes that had got Swan to open the car door for him reflecting off Graham's face.
"What do you care how I look at you?" Not a real question, even if she wishes it were.
"Becauseā¦" Hook didn't like where this was going.
"What?" Swan asked with a shake of her head.
Before either him or Emma could move, Graham did. The bastard swept forward and pressed his lips against Swans.
Hook wasn't quite sure who broke off the kiss. All three of them seemed to move at the same moment. Swan took a step back just as Hook launched himself away from the Sheriff. Had he been hoping to pull Swan away using the leash? Maybe. But it was purely because he was tired of standing there. Obviously it had nothing to do with the rock in his stomach. Nothing at all.
The Sheriff, Hook realized, had moved away too. As if something shocked him. As if he had been pulled out of his body for a moment only to be launched back in a moment too quick.
"What was that?" Swan cried out.
"Did you see that?" The look of shock was back on the man's face.
"How much have you been drinking?" Emma demanded, once again tightening the hold on Hook's leash until his side was pressed firmly against her leg. "That was way over the line."
"I'm sorry." You will be, Hook thought baring his teeth once more. "I just-"
"What?" Swan yelled. "You what?"
"I need to feel something." The sheriff said while shaking his head and stepping closer.
"Listen to me Graham," Hook didn't particularly like when Swan said the man's name. "You are drunk and full of regret. I get it." Hook would ponder that statement later, when the man step back from Swan. "But whatever it is you're looking to feel I can tell you one thing, you're not getting it with me." Swan pushed around him for what Hook hoped would be the last time.
The ride back to swan's place was quiet. She left the music box off, and the windows up. Hook could still feel the tension radiating off of her.
As she turned the wheel in front of her Swan glanced at him for the first time since leaving Granny's. "Easy boy." She muttered, running her hand down his back. It was then that he realized the hair along his spine was still raised. He tried his best to flatten it.
"Poor thing." She kept stroking his back. "All that yelling probably wasn't fun for you was it?" She reached up to scratch behind his left ear. Oh how he wished he could stop his hind paw from thumping in rhythm with her fingers.
"It's all okay." She soothed. "It's fine."
It didn't feel fine. Not Graham, not Swan. Not himself.
