A/N: So another idea hit me and I had to write it… This will be my first AU story, so I would love to hear what you think!

Disclaimer: I do not own OUAT, its characters, or its storylines.

SwanQueen AU. (No curse or magic.) Emma is a writer looking for inspiration. Regina recently lost her husband, leaving her and Henry to go on a planned family vacation without him. Both women sit next to each other on the plane and end up staying at the same hotel in Florida. During their stay, they grow closer, leading Emma to find her inspiration and both women to find the family that they both need.


~Kind Of Like Fate~

Chapter One: As Luck Would Have It

Boston Logan International Airport

You never know what life has waiting for you around the corner.

Like literally.

Emma Swan turned the corner and had just glanced briefly to the right of her only to find herself come crashing down to the ground with two suitcases. She had also managed to take down the person standing next to those suitcases, who was talking on the phone at the exact time she tripped over the baggage.

It had been like dominos. She was the first one in the line, tipping over the first suitcase, which then tipped over the second suitcase, and finally, that suitcase tipped over the person.

And he did not look pleased at all.

At least, that was what she could tell from the now blurry world around her. Her glasses had fallen off of her face at the moment of the impact.

"What the hell?"

If his expression didn't give away his anger, his voice certainly did.

The phone had dropped from his hands and slid across the floor. And somehow her glasses had managed to projectile their way near his phone, only a few inches away from the thing. She blinked a couple of times and registered that he had also been holding a cup of coffee, which had spilled all over his business suit with the empty container and lid on the floor with the rest of them.

Shit.

He continued to yell at her. "Do you even watch where you're walking? Look what you've done!"

Emma scrambled to her feet and began to pick up the suitcases. "I am so, so sorry." She put out her hand to help him up, but he didn't take it and instead got up on his own.

Asshole.

"You're lucky I have another suit, lady."

"Again, I'm really sorry. I was just in a rush to get to my gate."

"Let me guess. It's because you're late?" He shook his head in disgust as he went to retrieve his phone, but he did not bother to pick up her glasses.

Seriously? Show me some respect, dude. I picked up your suitcases and offered to help you up.

"Lucky you didn't break my phone either."

I could break that and your nose with my fist.

"Try not to be late next time, lady. That way you don't go running into people and damage their property." He held the phone back up to his ear and started talking to the person on the other end. "Sorry. Some klutz just ran into me and knocked over my things."

Actually, I ran into your things, which happened to knock you over.

Also, did I mention this guy is an asshole?

She was glad her backpack had stayed on her shoulders during the crash. She was sure he wouldn't have picked that up for her either if it had fallen to the floor. She let out a frustrated sigh, picked up her glasses, and went on her way. She would have given the man a piece of her mind, but like he had pointed out, she was late. Very late.

Her flight was scheduled to leave out of Boston at 8:50pm. It was now 8:45. And of course, A-11, the gate where her plane was currently residing, had to be sectioned off from most of the other gates in the terminal, down a long hallway where she'd collided into those damn suitcases.

She took off in a sprint again when she was far enough away from the guy.

When she finally arrived at the waiting room, she saw that it was mostly empty and that the flight information had already changed to the next departure. She looked out the window in panic, fearful that she'd see the plane strolling away from the gate. But it was still there, and she could even see the workers throwing the last of the checked luggage on to the plane. She ran up to the check-in desk and practically threw her boarding pass at the woman, who quickly checked the ticket before handing it back to her.

"Cutting it a little close, aren't we?"

Emma refrained from rolling her eyes. She didn't need anyone else reminding her of her lateness. "Yeah."

"Have a nice trip."

She forced a smile and hurried on to the plane.

And as her crappy luck would have it, she almost stumbled into one of the flight attendants as she stepped inside the plane. She mumbled an apology to her and walked around her before she could say anything about the time. She was thankful that Southwest didn't assign specific seating, as she didn't want to waste any more time trying to figure out where she needed to sit. Once she spotted an empty seat (which to her surprise was not all the way at the back of the plane), she sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. And what was even more comforting? She had found an aisle seat, so she didn't have to cause any more commotion with the people around her since that seemed to be something she was doing a very great job at that day.

Alright. I'm ready for this damn thing to leave so I can just sleep until we arrive…

"First time flying?"

Emma glanced at the woman sitting next to her, studying her expression before answering. She didn't appear to be irritated like the man she'd encountered earlier. Rather, the brunette was smiling kindly at her. And those brown eyes of hers… They were absolutely beautiful. She could get lost in those chocolate depths if she let herself. "Yeah. What gave that away?"

The woman laughed sweetly. "Hey, don't worry. I've been on flights where we waited thirty minutes after our scheduled departure time for people to show up. But you?" She glanced down at the watch on her wrist and then looked back up at her. "It's 8:50. You've made it just on time."

Emma felt herself ease up at the brunette's friendliness. "Yeah, that whole show up three hours before your flight thing?" She pulled off her backpack and pushed it under the seat in front of her. "I didn't exactly do that."

"That's definitely something you want to do. Especially nowadays."

She buckled her seatbelt and settled back into her seat. She looked back at the woman when she began to talk again.

"I'm Regina."

She put out her hand, and Emma shook it. "Emma."

"And this is my son, Henry."

Emma watched as a little brunette-haired boy peered around his mother and gave her a wide-tooth grin. "Hiya, Emma!"

"Hello, Henry. It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you, too." His green eyes flashed brightly as he asked her a question. "Are you vacationing in Florida, too?"

She smiled at his excitement. "I am. Is this your first time?"

He nodded vigorously. "I can't wait to get there. There's so much I want to do. I have a whole list and everything."

Regina smirked at Emma.

"How long is the flight again, Mom?"

"About two and a half hours."

Henry let out an exaggerated sigh. "Really? That seems like forever on a plane."

"It'll go by fast, dear. I promise."

"Okay," he said in a quiet, but unconvinced tone. He turned his attention to the window, leaning so close to it that his nose almost touched the Plexiglass surface.

Regina looked back at her and lowered her voice. "I hope you don't mind that he took the window seat. I know it's your first time flying and all…"

"It's completely fine, Regina. I can see out the window perfectly fine from here. Besides. I'll probably end up falling asleep at some point and miss anything worthwhile to see as we land."

"After we take off, he'll be out in ten minutes."

"You think so?"

"Oh, I know so. It's almost his usual bedtime, and it's been a long travel day for him."

Henry was completely oblivious to conversation they were having, his eyes still searching the outside world around the plane. Once the plane began to move and the flight attendants started explaining the safety procedures the passengers should be aware of, Regina redirected Henry's focus back to the inside of the plane. But as soon as the last word left their lips, he resumed his previous activity, surveying what was happening outside.

Cute kid.

"How old is he?" Emma asked suddenly.

"He'll be ten in three months."

It was currently July, which meant the kid had a birthday during the same month as her. "Oh? So he's got an October birthday then?"

"Yep. The twenty second, actually."

And apparently his birthday was on the same day as hers as well. "Wow, really? That's my birthday, too."

"We share a birthday?" the boy exclaimed, whipping around to face Emma with wide eyes. The very mention of his birthday had clearly piqued his interest enough to pull him away from the window.

"What a coincidence, huh?" Regina asked with a smile.

"I mean, it's only like the best birthday out there," Emma said jokingly, which earned her a nod of approval from Henry.

"Sorry, Mom. Guess you're not cool like us."

Regina pretended to be upset with this, frowning as she snapped her fingers at this sudden "realization". "Darn February birthday."

"How old are you, Emma?"

"Henry, you can't just…"

Emma interjected, putting out her hand. "It's okay. I don't mind answering that question. I'll be turning twenty eight this year."

"You're almost my mom's age. She turned thirty two this year."

The plane had begun to move again after taking a brief stop to wait for the other planes to move out of the way, and before Regina could comment on Henry sharing her age with her, he abruptly turned back to the window, wanting to view the plane's travel across the runway.

"I'm sorry about that."

Emma shook her head. "It's fine! He's curious, that's all. Especially since we happen to share the same birthday."

"He's sometimes a little too curious for his own good."

"Aren't all kids?"

The brunette chuckled. "That is very true."

Emma watched in amusement as Henry called to his mother, talking eagerly and pointing out the window as he waited in anticipation for the plane to takeoff. And if he wasn't already talking enough, he was talking nearly a mile a minute as the plane ascended into the air.

"Whoa, look at that! Mom, Mom. Look! You can see everything from up here! I bet we can see our house from here."

Regina glanced at Emma, grinning.

Would this have been what her life would be like if she had a kid? Going on family trips, laughing together with the person sitting next to them on the plane, watching him get excited at the sight of the scenery below him as he looked out the plane's window…

The imagined thoughts made her eyes glistened a bit. She was glad Regina had turned back to her son, as she did not want to explain the sudden display of sadness to the woman.

That was not a topic she was willing to discuss with anyone. She didn't even like to dwell on it too long herself, otherwise she would end up losing it.

She quickly pulled the sleeve of her jacket over her hand and dabbed at her eyes before either of the two noticed anything.

Regina ended up predicting it right.

Ten minutes later, once the plane was in the air and everyone was settled down, Henry had completely passed out, his head resting against the wall next to the window. Regina looked at her and nodded her head towards him. "See? I told you he'd be out in ten minutes."

Emma smiled.

"So, Emma. What brings you to Florida?"

"Well, I lived in Tallahassee for a while before moving to Boston, and I guess I felt something pulling me back to the state. I'm hoping to find a little inspiration while I'm here."

"Inspiration?"

"I'm a writer."

"Really? I have a friend back home who's a writer, too. Well, she's aspiring to be a children's author. She's a fourth grade teacher right now, but she told me she's always had a passion for writing."

"That's really cool. You'll have to tell her good luck for me. It can be tough to get anything out there, but it's worth it in the end."

"You've gotten something published before then?"

The part about it being worth it in the end? Emma didn't really know. She imagined that having her own book finally published and out on the shelves would be something big to celebrate, but she was nowhere near that goal yet. This was why she hated telling people that she was a writer sometimes. The first instinct was always to think that she was an accomplished writer with a few award winning books out there. And why was that? Because if you weren't award winning, then you must suck at writing.

"Like New York Times Best Seller?"

Regina shrugged. "Like anything."

"Does a few pieces of poetry in a magazine count?"

"I think it does!"

"Thanks, Regina. But in all actuality, I haven't had too much success. I've had a few works in the making, one draft in particular that I felt pretty good about, but after sending it out to a few publishing companies and getting rejected by all of them, I knew I needed to start over. Otherwise, you may have recognized my face from the inside flap of a book cover."

"I'm so sorry to hear that, Emma. Please tell me you didn't abandon that story after all the work you put into it?"

"No, I still have it. I just need to look at it from a new perspective. That's actually what inspired this trip. I started that story back in Tallahassee, so I figured, why not come back to place where it all began?"

Regina smiled.

"The way I see it, you have to fail so many times before you succeed. Maybe while I'm here, I'll find that exact inspiration I need that will lead me to a published book in the future. So tell your friend to never give up. That if it doesn't work out at first, just take some time and rethink the story through. Because who knows? Maybe the story won't be bestselling, but maybe it will really connect with some people out there and impact their lives in a positive way."

"It sounds like you write from your heart, Emma."

"I like to think that I do."

"Well, I'll be on the lookout for your first book. Maybe even be the first in line to purchase it. But in order to do that, I'll need to know the rest of your name. Unless you write under a pseudonym, of course."

"No pseudonym. It's just Emma Swan."

"Emma Swan. I think I can remember that."

Despite the string of bad luck she'd had leading up to the flight, she found it all to be silly now if that bad luck meant her sitting next to this woman. She was so kind, and Emma never felt so comfortable with talking with someone at first glance. Making friends and talking so openly with people wasn't really something that went so well for her. She would much rather hide behind her computer and absorb herself in the world on the pages that she created than interact with the real people around her. But Regina was different. There was just that instant connection with her. And Emma didn't know if that was a good or bad thing.

Well, it was certainly a bad thing if she never got to see her again. That was the other problem. Any opportunity for a friendship or relationship with anyone always ended up slipping away from her because their stay was usually temporary. Maybe she would run into this woman and her son in Boston sometime? It was a big city, but stranger things had happened in her life before.

"So you're from Boston, too?"

Emma's heart sunk when the brunette shook her head.

Damn it. There goes that chance for anything. Bad luck again.

"No, actually. We're from Maine, but we were scheduled to meet up with... Um…" Emma watched the woman uneasily as she looked down for a moment. She'd caught it before she turned away. Those brown eyes glistened, and she knew something unexpected, and clearly devastating, had happened before this vacation. When Regina spoke again, her voice was quiet, and she couldn't look at her face. "Family. Because of that, I planned to have us fly out of Boston."

Emma nodded. She didn't know what else to say, not wanting to push Regina into tears about the sudden loss of a family member. At least, that's what she assumed had happened. So much for that comfortability…

But to her surprise, the hint of sadness the brunette exhibited faded as quickly as it came, as she started to laugh. Emma looked at her questioningly.

"You want to know where we're really from?"

"Now that you're laughing, I would like to."

"Seriously, you're going to get a kick out of this one."

"Why is that? The name can't be that bad."

"The name's not bad, it's just… Slightly unbelievable."

"Try me."

Along with being a writer, she was an avid reader, and the unbelievable didn't exactly faze her. She had probably come across more ridiculous names in the books she had read, and even though they were fictional names, she highly doubted that the town these two were from had a far worse name than those.

"Storybrooke."

Whoa, whoa, wait. As in a storybook? Not ridiculous, but it actually did seem unbelievable. Did they misspell storybook by adding in the "r" and the "e"? Moreover, did a group of writers name the town? That seemed highly plausible to her more than anything else.

Emma couldn't stop the look of shock on her face. "Wait… What?"

"Yep. Storybrooke, Maine."

"Okay. I know I'm a writer and would probably be more believing than most people with this one, but Storybrooke? Like the town came out of a storybook? You must be joking."

Regina shook her head, laughing.

"Your friend name the town?"

"No. I swear that's the name, and everyone always thinks I've made it up to be funny."

"It is a rather unique name. I've definitely never heard of it before."

"Not many people have. It's a quaint little town. I happen to be the mayor."

"Oh, I see. So you named the town?"

The brunette smirked. "I promise you that's been the name since I was baby. And there are town records that date back years ago that show the name has been quite real for some time."

"Okay, Madam Mayor. We'll go with that."

Wait. Did I just call her that?

Shit! Why did I say that?

But Regina didn't comment on the name and instead grinned at her.

"Thanks for not giving me a hard time about being late, by the way."

"It's your first time flying. It's no big deal. I didn't know how to navigate an airport the first time I flew alone. Someone could tell I was a bit lost that day, so he approached me and told me all I had to do was look up." She paused, reflecting on the memory and shaking her head at what she deemed to be foolish behavior. "I was so nervous that I didn't look at the signs above me."

"Really?"

"Ha, yeah. Pretty bad, huh?"

"How old were you?"

"Twenty one. Which is even worse. Think I'd have enough common sense by then to know to follow the signs."

"If I've learned anything from today, airports are massive and even signs can lead you in the wrong direction. But hey, at least you didn't have any run-ins with anyone."

"Security give you problems?"

"No, and thank God because I may have actually missed my flight then. But I did trip over some suitcases and caused a guy to fall over and spill his coffee on himself. He was pretty pissed after that." She raised her hand in front of her mouth as soon as she registered what she had said. Henry may have been drifting in and out of sleep, and if he had heard that… "Crap. I probably shouldn't have said that so loud in front of your kid."

"Don't worry about it. I told you he's out. Watch." Regina turned to him. "Henry. First one to the room gets to have dessert for dinner for the whole week."

Emma waited, but the boy never stirred.

"Pretty generous offer there."

Regina turned back to her. "Oh, I'd never let him do that. But if he was awake, he would have jumped at that one."

She grinned.

"So let me guess. This guy? He was a complete…" She lowered her voice to a whisper as a joke. "Asshole…" She raised her voice back to a normal level. "To you afterward?"

"Yes. I apologized, picked up his suitcases, and was even going to help him up but he refused my offer and got up on his own. And he was even arrogant enough to tell his buddy on the phone how much of a klutz I was."

The brunette shook her head. "Some men."

"Tell me about it."

They continued to talk for a little while more until one of the flight attendants came to their row, giving them each a small bag of pretzels and asking them if they wanted anything to drink. They both declined, neither of the two really thirsty or even hungry at the moment.

"Got to love the snacks they give you," Regina said as she placed the pretzels in a small tote bag she had under the seat in front of her.

"Midnight snack? I know I'll be hungry later."

She chuckled.

Emma decided to pull out her phone then, turning it back on after powering it down minutes before takeoff. It hadn't seemed like much time passed since leaving the airport, but it was already 9:51. She figured they had probably taken off around nine o'clock, and then there was the ten minutes of silence between the two of them… Had she really been talking with this woman for nearly forty minutes? This had to have been the longest conversation she had with someone she'd just met.

She was beginning to hit a wall, though. It would be a matter of minutes before she resembled Henry.

"Hey, Regina? Do you mind if I close my eyes for a while?"

"No, no, of course not! I'm sorry. I know I talk a lot…"

Emma shook her head. "It's okay. I've really enjoyed this. Us talking. I'm just starting to get tired."

"Please don't let me keep you. If you want to sleep, that's okay with me."

"Thanks." She leaned back slightly in her chair, trying to get comfortable.

"And Emma?"

She turned her head to look at her.

"Thank you for this conversation. I really enjoyed it, too."

Emma nodded before turning her head away and closing her eyes. She felt herself drifting rather quickly, the sounds of the airplane soon disappearing until her head began to fall forward, causing her to open her eyes and snap back to life almost instantly. She glanced around her, seeing that Regina now had her own glasses on and was reading a book on her Kindle. The scene made her smile, and she found herself settling back into sleep.

The same thing happened to her again.

She was tempted to pull the tray table down and rest her head on that instead. But she figured she would look rather odd doing that, so she did the best she could to reposition her head and closed her eyes.

A few minutes later, she heard Regina's voice.

"You can rest your head on my shoulder."

The brunette had clearly noticed her struggle to stay asleep. Emma opened her eyes and glanced at her. There was that kind smile again. Beautiful brown eyes staring into her green ones. She had known this woman for a little over an hour, and she was offering for her to rest her head on her shoulder as she slept. The gesture was so nice, but it made her feel somewhat uneasy. Wasn't that rather… Intimate? Or at least reserved for family members?

Emma really did want to rest her head on Regina's shoulder, though. Be close to her, breathe in her warm scent…

Emma! Why are you thinking this? She's attractive, sure, but you just met her. Plus, you're never going to see her again after tonight, so don't even indulge yourself!

"It's okay. Really. I'll be fine like this."

Regina was persistent, though.

"You're never going to fall asleep. Trust me. I've been on enough flights to know. You'll almost fall asleep, and then your head will start to roll to the side or fall forward and you'll open your eyes, having to change positions to get comfortable again." She smirked. "Kind of like what's been happening already."

"Yeah…"

She patted her shoulder. "Go ahead, Emma. I don't mind."

Emma, don't…

But how she could argue with her? Especially as those brown eyes of hers continued to stare at her?

Her lips turned upward into a smile.

"Thanks, Regina."

Emma let her head fall on the woman's shoulder, and she slowly closed her eyes.

"Emma?"

"Hm?"

"Glasses, dear. You don't want them on, do you?"

Dear. She heard the brunette say the nickname once to her son, but hearing her say it now to her made her heart flutter. She quickly opened her eyes and reached up to take her glasses off, but Regina caught her hand and stopped her. The touch caused her heart to pound even more.

"I got them. You just worry about sleeping. I promise to keep them safe. I'll put them with mine."

"Okay."

She leaned back, letting Regina take off her own glasses and store both of theirs safely away. When she settled back in her seat, Emma rested her head back on her shoulder.

"I'll wake you before we land."

"Thank you again, Regina."

"Of course, Emma."

And she finally fell asleep, the slight smell of apples and cinnamon from the woman's perfume relaxing her into a pleasant sleep.

Regina didn't wake her. The woman ended up resting her head on top of hers and falling asleep herself. It was only when the pilot announced that they'd be landing soon that both of them jolted awake. They glanced at each other sleepily and backed away. They waited for the pilot to finish before they said anything.

When Regina looked back at her, her cheeks were a slight tinge of red. "Um… I guess I was tired, too."

Emma bit the tip of her fingernail and grinned.

"I should probably wake Henry." The brunette began to turn away, but she stopped suddenly and went for her bag. "Your glasses. You probably want them back."

"I mean, living in the blurry world isn't always so bad."

She laughed nervously as she brought the bag closer to her. Once she found her glasses, she held them out to her, and Emma saw that her hand was shaking slightly. She took them quickly, and the woman immediately pulled her hand away.

She's actually nervous.

She wanted me to rest my head on her shoulder because…

Because she feels something, too.

That instant connection. She felt it just like I did.

She adjusted her glasses and fell back into her seat, unable to keep the smile from forming upon her lips.

"Wha…?" Henry rubbed his eyes and yawned. "Wait. We're almost there?"

Regina nodded. "We'll be landing in a few minutes."

"Really?" He bounced in his seat. "Awesome! Emma, Emma, did you hear that?"

Emma looked in his direction, noticing that Regina was avoiding her eyes. "I did, Henry."

"I can't believe we're almost there!" He turned to the window, talking with so much energy as he filled them in on what he saw. It was almost hard to believe that he had woken up only moments ago.

And then came the landing.

Emma gripped the armrests when the wheels first made contact with the ground, so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Regina looked her way at that exact moment and must have read the panic on her face, as she took hold of her hand.

"Hey. It's okay."

Emma squeezed her hand as the wheels hit the ground fully this time, screeching loudly as the pilot began to brake.

"I promise. It'll be okay."

She let out a shaky breath.

"Almost over, dear."

When the plane finally came to a halt, some of the passengers clapped. Emma turned to look at Regina with a frown.

"They're usually that rough."

"And people applaud that?"

Henry giggled.

She faced him with a serious stare. "How did that not scare you, kid?"

He shrugged. "I dunno. I guess I was too busy looking outside."

"I think that would have made it worse for me." She shuddered at the thought of watching the scene unfold before her.

Regina squeezed her hand gently. "The first one's always the worst since you don't know what to expect. It'll be better next time." She smiled. "Just think of me when you land back in Boston."

Emma's heart skipped a beat at her suggestion.

I'll be thinking of you more than just then…

The brunette pulled her hand away, reaching for her bag as the plane began its trek towards their gate.

No, no, no!

Her hand fits perfectly around mine…

Emma gave Regina a weak smile when she glanced back at her.

Why do you have to go?

There's a connection between us. You know it!

Regina smiled at her before looking towards Henry, who had started to talk excitedly again.

Why does this always happen to me?

Why do I always end up forming a connection with someone who leaves me?

Not that this was Regina's fault. It was Emma's own fault for even letting herself feel any connection with her. She tuned out the two's conversation, and she tried to forget that last two and a half hours of her life.

The two and a half most wonderful hours she'd had for a while in her life.

What a way to start my trip.

Once they got off the plane, Regina invited her to walk with them on their way to baggage claim since they would both be heading that way.

Emma couldn't help herself. "Need someone to help you with following the signs?"

The brunette grinned. "Yeah. Something like that."

They went on their way, looking up at the signs every so often to check that they were in fact going in the right direction. They made it to baggage claim successfully, retrieving all of their luggage without any problems. Emma further accompanied them when they went to get the cars they would be renting on the trip. She even decided to take over wheeling Henry's suitcase when she noticed he was falling behind.

"Here, kid. I've got it."

Regina looked at her. "Oh, Emma, you don't…"

"It's no problem." She took the handle of his suitcase. "I can tell you're pretty tired, Henry."

He stepped away from the suitcase. "Thanks, Emma."

She nodded at him. Regina smiled in gratitude at her.

By the time they had both gotten their cars and were in the parking lot, Henry was dragging his feet. Emma joined the two by their car, helping them with putting their suitcases in the trunk.

"Bye, Emma," Henry said as he opened his door, waving sleepily at her before jumping inside.

"Bye, Henry."

Regina chuckled at his behavior, shaking her head as she closed the trunk. She turned to her, fumbling with the car keys in her hand. "Well, I guess this is it."

She tried her best not to look disappointed. "Yeah."

"It was really great to get to know you, Emma. I wish you the best with your writing. I do hope you find that inspiration you're looking for."

I hope so, too. "Thanks, Regina."

The brunette smiled. "Goodnight, Emma."

"Goodnight, Regina."

And with that, she walked away.

But she wasn't ready to let go. Not just yet.

Maybe…

She stopped and turned around abruptly. "Regina?"

The woman was just about to get in her car, but she popped her head over the side and looked up expectedly.

Ask her for her number.

It won't hurt, right?

She shifted uncomfortably. "Um…"

"Yes, Emma?"

Just ask!

She opened her mouth, but she couldn't bring herself to ask the question. She settled for the easier option instead. "Have a good trip."

"You too, Emma."

She gave her a quick nod and hurried to her own car. As soon as she slid in the driver's seat, she pounded her fists on the sides of the steering wheel. "Damn it, Emma Swan. You just blew your chance. Way to go." She shook her head. "Why the fuck am I always so shy around people?"

She hadn't been shy around Regina, though. She was just scared to act on her feelings.

And things had really felt right with her. She could be herself around her.

When Emma arrived at the hotel, she was completely disheartened and couldn't wait to just end her day.

But then she heard a familiar voice.

She glanced behind her, and she felt the world melt around her.

Regina.

The woman was approaching her in the lobby, her half asleep son walking beside her.

"Emma?"

"Regina?"

"You're staying here?"

"No, I'm staying at the hotel next to here. I just wanted to get a feel for the other places around me, so I decided, why not walk around the lobbies to judge whether I'd made a good choice in hotel?"

The brunette laughed.

Henry tugged on his mother's hand, too tired to say anything about running into her again. "Mom, can we go to the room? Please?"

"Yes, dear." She smiled at Emma. "Guess we'll be joining each other in the elevator?"

"I suppose we will."

They headed to the elevator. Henry leaned against the wall and immediately closed his eyes.

"What floor, Emma?"

"Three."

Regina gave her a disbelieving look. "Are you serious?"

"Um… That's what my key says."

She shook her head. "We're staying on that floor, too."

"Oh. Wow. What a coincidence."

"It really is."

"It would be even more of a coincidence if we happened to be staying in the same room. Weird and kind of creepy coincidence, but a coincidence nonetheless."

"I'd almost believe anything after tonight."

Emma held up her key. "302?"

"Well, looks like the hotel didn't try to shove two parties together. But we're very close to each other. We're in room 308."

"Right down the hall, then."

Regina smiled. "Yeah. Right down the hall." When they got off the elevator, she gave Henry the key and let him go open the door to their room while she lingered in the hallway with her. "So…"

"So…"

"I assume we'll be seeing more of each other?"

"Probably."

"Well…"

"Goodnight for real this time?"

"That, and…" She glanced away briefly and then looked back up at her when she'd found her words. "Don't be a stranger. Feel free to stop by and visit us. We enjoyed your company today."

"So I take it that means I'll see you around then?"

She beamed, her brown eyes glowing with happiness. "Yes."

"Goodnight again, Regina."

"Goodnight again, Emma."

And in that moment, as she watched her walk down the hall and wave at her before she went inside her room, she knew there was a reason why neither of them had said goodbye to each other at the airport. It was never meant to be a goodbye. Rather, it was a mere hello, a start to something…

Well, she didn't know what yet, but she could wait patiently for it.

Emma rolled her suitcase to her room, smiling wide.

What a coincidence.

Maybe she didn't have as bad of luck as she originally thought.

She walked inside the room and went straight for the bed, collapsing on to it and gazing up at the ceiling above her. She closed her eyes for a few minutes, thinking over all of the crazy events that had led up to this evening's end.

"I can't wait for the rest of this vacation."


Should I continue? Leave a review and let me know what you think :)