A/N:
Hello.
I feel embarrassed it took me so long to update and I didn't even notice it's been almost a month. I'm a terrible author, but I promise it won't happen again (at least I hope so).
I want thank, and at the same time apologize to everyone who followed, favourited and reviewed. I feel bad that you had to wait so long, but I'm finally back.
II
Yesterday, after the interview (interrogation), Emma went to her new room. It was fairly big and really cozy, like the rest of the house. It was situated in unused part of the house and separated from the rest by a long corridor. The girl's and the parent's rooms were upstairs, so she was the only one living on the ground floor. She liked that option, because no one would be disturbing her. She also had a bathroom for sole use that was just opposite her room.
Emma was exhausted after the tiring day, she still felt the nervousness buzz inside her, and upon entering she threw herself on the bed. She finally could be alone.
Despite the exhaustion she couldn't sleep. Million thoughts were racing through her head and even counting sheep didn't help.
Was she making the right choice? Shouldn't she be home with Neal and not in Maine? He told her he'll come and visit, but will he?
And the most important - was she able to take care of two kids? She didn't know a first thing about children. What if she'll fail? What if the kids will hate her? Ruth didn't seem to like her even before they properly met. Will Emma's hidden fears get the better of her?
There was no answer. She lay on the bed, not noticing when she finally managed to fall asleep. When a morning sun rudely woke her, she felt like crap.
It was Sunday morning - Emma's first day at the Charmings.
Emma knew, she had to look presentable on her first day, so she took a shower, dressed herself in jeans and a green shirt and put a light make-up on.
She was just combing her hair when she heard a bearly audible knock. Emma pulled the door open and looked down to see little Eva, hugging a stuffed teddybear that was almost as big as her.
"Breakfast..." she whispered and Emma knelt down to hear her better.
"What was it...sweetie?" said Emma smiling. She added the last word not sure if she should, but people talked like that to children, didn't they?
"Breakfast is ready," repeated the girl a little louder this time.
"Oh, okay. Thank you for telling me."
Eva hasn't answered or made any movement so they just stared at each other. What to do now?
"Mmm, who is that?" asked Emma pointing at the teddybear and congratulated herself, because Eva smiled brightly, clearly happy with the topic.
"This is Teddy." A really original name indeed. "He's a bear." Yeah, she could see that. "He's my favourite. Killy gave him to me, because he likes me the best," said a proud Eva and hugged the bear closer.
This Killian guy didn't seem as bad as Mary Margaret and David described him. He sounded nice.
"He must like you very much to give you such a beautiful teddy,"said Emma.
"He do." Eva stepped closer and whispered in Emma's ear. "He adores me."
Emma laughed at the girl's words. She was really adorable.
"I'm sure he does, who wouldn't?" That made Eva giggle.
The girl then grabbed Emma's hand at started to walk. "Come, breakfast is ready," she repeated dragging the blonde out of the room.
.
.
When they reached the kitchen the rest of the family was already seated at the table.
"Oh, finally," exclaimed Mary Margaret. " Sit, sit, pancakes are ready," she said putting a plate full of pancakes at the middle so that everyone could easily reach them.
"I love pancakes," said Eva, dragging Emma to sit next to her.
"Me too," echoed Emma.
Emma was situated between Mary Margaret, who sat at the top of the table, and Eva who was currently trying to climb onto her chair. In front of Emma sat Ruth and David was next to her.
Upon tasting the pancake, Emma's mood jumped up instantly. "Mrs. Charming, this is truly delicious," she praised, already taking the next bite. She thought she was pretty good at making pancakes, but she evidently wasn't. These pancakes were heavenly.
"Thank you. And please call me Mary Margaret," answered the woman.
Emma could only nod, because her mouth was filled with food.
"It's true, mom makes the best pancakes on earth," said Ruth sweetly.
"Thank you, honey, but you won't escape your punishment," said the girl's mother with false sweetness, not even raising her eyes to look at Ruth.
"It was worth a try," mumbled Ruth and went back to her plate.
"Ru stole my pancakes last time, so she has to be punished," Eva informed Emma, who hummed in acknowledgement. She then looked at the girl sitting in front of her, but when she met Ruth's glare she quickly averted her eyes, not wanting to be killed on the spot by the seven-year-old.
They all ate their breakfast in silence, only interrupted by some light chatter. Emma usually ate alone, or with Neal, not being used to eating with so many people she felt slightly awkward. Her main rule was to just eat as fast as she could, not talk during the meal. Plus, she felt like an intruder, not fitting into the whole family breakfast picture. She never had a real family she could share a dinner or breakfast with, and it was sad that the first time she could truly experience it was with people she only met yesterday.
"So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?" asked David.
It was Sunday, the Charmings were at home the whole day, so they told her she could do whatever she wanted today and will start her job tomorrow.
"I don't know to be honest. I thought maybe a tour around the town would be nice. I could grab a map and just visit interesting places," she answered shrugging her shoulders and playing with the last bite of pancake on the plate.
"There's nothing interesting to see. This town is boring," said Ruth.
"Nonsense. You can go to the beach, or visit the centre of the town - there is a small squere, and you should go to Granny's too, my friend Ruby works there. They serve the best food in town," suggested Mary Margaret.
"Sure. I have a lot of time today, so I hope I'll be able to see everything."
"You will. Storybrooke is so small that you could walk around it in only one hour, or less," said Ruth. It looked like she didn't like her town at all.
When everyone had finished their food, Mary Margaret took all the plates to the kitchen. Emma decided that it was only polite to offer her help.
"I can help with the dishes," she offered and stood up to join the woman.
"Oh, it's not a probl-," she was interrupted by a phone ringing. Everyone stared at the phone like it haven't ringed ever before. Emma stood motionless too, waiting for someone to finally take it. Unsure, she asked if she should to do it, as she was the one that stood right next to the phone.
"Yes, please Emma. My hands are wet," said Mary Margaret apologetically.
Emma picked the phone and said "It's the Charmings residence. Who would you like to speak to?" Only silence greeted her, so she repeated. "Hello?" She glanced at the family, who stared back at her.
"Well, hello there, lass." Sounded an accented voice.
"Hi. Can I help you?" she asked.
"Hmm, I'm fine for now, but I'll remember who to call when I'll need a hand." She could hear the man smirking at the other side of the line.
"Right." She wanted to ask again why was he calling, but the man was faster and continued.
"How did they welcome you? Did you went through the tests yet?" he asked suddenly serious.
"Tests?"
"Oh, they do it with every nanny that they hire. But don't worry sweetheart, there won't be any lasting damage on your body... but I can't guarantee you will come out of it completely sane."
Was he making fun of her? She looked at the Charmings and saw everyone still staring at her, so she turned slightly away from them.
She tried to sound polite and said. "Would you like to speak to someone from the Charming family, or should I just put the phone down?"
There was a pause and then, "You're no fun, lass." He sighed dramatically. "Fine, tell David I can't come today."
"Who should I say is the message from?"
"He'll know." Was his answer.
"Okay. Goodbye," said Emma and without waiting for response hung up.
She turned back to look at David.
"Someone called and said he won't be able to come here today. He also said you'll know who he is," said Emma.
David nodded. "Thank you Emma."
She smiled and after excusing herself went to her room to get ready for the day.
.
.
.
As it turned out Ruth was 100% right - Storybrooke was really not that interesting. The town square was small and nice, but nothing more. Emma spend half of the day just wondering around without purpose. The town was a total oposite of Boston - quiet, clean and quite lovely all in all. People were walking slowly, chatting with each other, laughing and not rushing anywhere - Emma guessed it was every small town's feature. It seemed like the time wasn't moving at all and you could do everything without worrying about looking down at your watch every now and then. She liked that - the peace.
But she was cold and her legs hurt like hell, and walking without purpose has finally bored her to death, so she decided to take a rest.
She found herself inside of Granny's B&B, instantly feeling famished. She could smell some delicious food and couldn't stop her stomach from rumbling. She sat at one of the booths and a minute later a tall brunette dressed in a really short skirt approached her.
"Hi, are you her?" she said with a wolfish grin, completely confusing Emma. What was the girl talking about?
"Excuse me?" asked Emma with raised eyebrows.
"Are you her?" The brunette leaned forward, clearly expecting Emma to answer, but she still didn't follow. "Oh, you know what I mean."
"No, I don't. Who am I supposed to be?"
"Oh, come on city girl." She looked at Emma expectantly and waited with bated breath. " Are you the new nanny?" the girl finally asked exasperated.
Right. That's what she means. Does everyone know already? Well, she shouldn't be surprised, it's a small town after all.
"Yeah," answered Emma.
"Ha! I knew it," she clapped, grinning like crazy. "I'm Ruby, it's really nice to meet you."
"Emma." They shook hands. "How did you know I was a nanny?" asked Emma scrunching her forhead.
"I know Mary Margaret and David found a new nanny and I've never seen you before, so it was really easy to guess who you might be. Also I can tell you are a nanny," explained Ruby.
"You do? How?" Emma was sure she didn't look like one, far from it. There was no long skirts and pink v-neck sweaters in her closet.
"I have the sixth sense," Ruby told her with a wink. "Plus, I was a nanny too, so I know my kind of people."
"Wait, Mary Margaret told me about you - you're her friend." The girl nodded. "So, were you their nanny before me?" asked Emma.
"Yep, that's me. I had to resign, because my granny insisted I come back to waitering, so I had no choice. I miss the girls though. They were the little devils, but I loved them." She sighed and her eyes turned sad.
"I wish I could be as good as you. I'm not a real nanny and I don't know how I'll manage. Eva seems really sweet, but Ruth hates me from the moment she laid eyes on me," admitted Emma and after a moment of consideration she added, "or even before that."
Ruby laughed out loud. "She can be rude, but she's a nice kid. I think you'll have more problems with Eva anyway."
At the sight of Emma's widened eyes, Ruby grinned wider and said. "How about I'll finally give you something to eat 'cos that's probably why you came here, and then share some nannying tactics with you?"
"Sounds good, but please hurry up with the food," pleaded Emma. It was a good thing she came here. She'll get food and hopefully useful advice on nannying - the two things she needs the most right now.
.
.
.
It was Sunday evening and everyone in the Charming's house was in their own rooms.
Well, almost everyone.
Little Eva was tip-toeing through the dark corridor, clutching a big teddybear to her chest. When she reached her destination, she stretched her hand up to grab for the doorknob and opened the door to her sister's room. Ruth was sprawled on the bed, her her feet lay on the pillow where the head should be, turning the pages of the big book. Upon hearing the door opening she looked up to see Eva sneaking in.
"What are you doing here?" Ruth whispered, not wanting to alarm their parents whose bedroom was nearby.
"I can't sleep," whispered back Eva and clumsily crawled into her older sister's bed.
After a minute of silence Ruth asked. "What do you think of the new nanny?"
"She's pretty," answered Eva with wonder in her voice.
"Maybe, but that's not the only thing that matters," reasoned Ruth as she was the older one.
"No?" asked confused Eva raising her head and swatting away the hair that's covered her eyes.
"No. She should be smart too. And funny. Like Ruby for example." She looked pointently at the three-year-old.
Eva agreed nodding her head vigorously.
"She's pretty, but we'll have to find out if she's smart. If she's not, she can't be our nanny." continued Ruth.
Eva nodded some more, always agreeing with her big sister.
"We'll just wait and see. She looks smart enough for me, but I wouldn't be giving her a chance yet. She has to prove she's worthy."
Eva yawned, not listening to Ruth anymore. "Can I sleep here Ru? I'm tired." asked the little girl.
"Fine." Reluctantly agreed Ruth. It wasn't the first time the sisters shared a bed. Eva visited her sister's room quite often when she couldn't sleep. "But don't kick me like you always do, because I'll kick you out." She said and continued to read her book, while Eva was already fast asleep with her teddy under her head.
.
.
In another room Mary Margaret laid on the bed with a book in her hand. Instead of reading, she was just staring at the page deep in thought. She was pulled out of her musings when her husband exited the bathroom. He then joined her on the bed and pulled the quilt up to his chin mumbling a quick goodnight. Mary Margaret without a word fallowed his example, putting the book away and turning off the light.
David was facing away from her and she watched how his breathing was slowing down. She kept her eyes open, not wanting to go to sleep yet.
"David?" she whispered suddenly. When there was no answer she reapeated her husbands name only louder this time.
"Mhhmmm," was the only answer she received.
"David," she shook his shoulder not too gently.
He jerked awake and turned to see her. "What?"
"Do you think we made the right choice?" she asked quietly, uncertainly.
"What choice?" he said, not really knowing what she was talking about, still half asleep.
"It's just that... I'm thinking about... was it a good decision we made. What if-" her rambling was stopped by David's voice.
"Are you talking about Emma?" he asked.
"Yes. I was just wondering if it was wise to hire a woman we don't know. I mean, she will be staying alone with our children, a complete stranger," answered Mary Margaret looking into David's eyes, her own full of worry and conflict.
David smiled at his wife and pulled her closer to him until her head was laying on his chest.
"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter if she's from Storybrooke or not," he said, stroking Mary Margaret's short hair.
"But if she was from here, I wouldn't be scared to leave her alone with the girls. We know everyone in the town and-"
She felt David kissing the top of her head. "In my opinion Emma seems great. Eva likes her already and Ruth will too."
He was right, she couldn't say anything bad about Emma either.
"I think she's perfect." David added and Mary Margaret raised her head looking at him sternly.
"What?" he asked in confusion.
"She's perfect?" mocked Mary Margaret. "Maybe you'd prefer if she was your nanny."
David stared at her and after a moment chuckled. He pulled her even closer than before and whispered in her ear. "I don't need a nanny. I already have you - my one true love." He kissed her head again and said. "Go to sleep, and stop worrying."
She settled against his chest and closed her eyes. A minute passed when she broke the silence once more. "Maybe we should have hired Belle?"
"No. She's busy. Sleep. Now." Commanded David and she could only sigh, knowing the conversation was over. She still couldn't help but worry about tomorrow.
.
.
Emma was in her new room. It was late, but she wasn't tired. She laid on the bed, looking blindly at the ceilling and playing with a strand of her blond hair.
She had a suitcase to unpack, but she couldn't make herself do it for some reason. Maybe she didn't want to do it in case she changed her mind and left (because it was an option she was still considering).
Today was a really nice day - maybe the last one she could enjoy, before the hard work will begin. The best part of it was meeting Ruby, who gave her a lot of tips and Emma couldn't help, but instantly like the girl. She was fun and really friendly, and Emma thought it would be nice to have someone she could hang out with. Ruby was younger than her, only 19 years old, but they immediatelly found out that the slight age difference wasn't a problem at all. They talked about the Charmings, especially the girls, and the town and its peoplein in general. Emma also told Ruby about her live in Boston, because Ruby always wanted to visit the big city. She said she was sick of the thought that she will spend the rest of her existence here, in Storybrooke, working in her granny's bar.
Thinking about their conversation Emma could admit that she missed Boston, even though it was only a day away from home.
As if on cue Emma's mobile rang and it was her friend from Boston, Tamara.
"Hello?"
"Emma! It's good to hear you," said a cheerful as ever Tamara. "How are you doing in this shith- I mean town of yours?"
She only rolled her eyes at the phone.
"I'm fine. Storybrooke is lovely and people are really nice too," she answered.
"I hope you haven't found a new friend to replace me yet?" Tamara asked in mock sadness.
"You know I don't like to make new friends. You are enough for me." Emma said, deciding to not mention Ruby.
"I know I am. But enough about me! How did Neal take your decision to leave him? I haven't heard from him in a while," said Tamara.
"I didn't leave him, we are together. I just left Boston for some time to rest and see how it's to live in a small town. I will be back soon," answered Emma. It was mostly the whole truth.
"So it had nothing to do with your relationship?"
"No!" She responded too quickly.
"Emma, stop lying to me and especially to yourself." She could see Tamara shaking her head disapprovingly.
"I'm not running away from him or anything. I just- I wanted to breathe a little. I'm with him since we were teenagers, we went through a lot together and..." Emma sighed. "Am I a bad girlfriend? Maybe I should come back and quit that job."
Emma usually didn't want advice from anyone. She could make her own decisions, but lately, when it came to her and Neal, she was battling with herself. Neal was her first love and Emma was afraid of the prospect that he could also be the last. How could she be certain if it was true love if she never experienced anything else? At the same time, the thought of loosing him and the comfort he provided scared her.
"Stay."
"What?" asked Emma, not understanding what Tamara meant by that.
"Stay in Storybook, or whatever it's called. I think you made a good choice leaving Boston for some time," said her friend.
"Why? I thought you disapproved of me leaving Neal." Tamara always told her that she and Neal were perfect for each other, so Emma was a little astounded that she suddenly changed her mind.
"I don't. I think it will be good for you. In my opinion, you'd have left him a long time ago, but you're afraid. Face it,you're stuck with him. You both became so boring, not like you've been a few years ago. You just got used to the routine and you don't want to leave it, because it's comfortable."
The words coming out of Tamara's mouth were surprisingly accurate. Emma didn't know it was so obvious.
Tamara was waiting for Emma's response, but Emma couldn't answer. She could feel tears gathering in her eyes.
"Emma, are you there?" Her friend's question pulled her out of her state.
"Yeah, sorry." She shook herself out of the sadness. "I have to go, I have a big day ahead of me," said Emma.
"Okay, sleep well. Call me when you can."
"I will. Bye." She hung up and threw her head onto the pillow.
Emma needed to sleep, but how could she when she had so many things on her mind.
To make matters worse, she dreaded tomorrow morning.
She didn't get much sleep that night.
I didn't even check the chapter for mistakes, so forgive me if there are any. I was just trying to get it out quickly and decided to not change it, although I planned to.
Thanks for patience and it's the last chapter before Emma's job begins, so I think next chapters will be more interesting (this one was kind of a filler really). Also, Killian comes to the picture soon.