Title: Teach me gently,how to breathe

Pairing: Stable Queen.

Daniel and Regina fall in love, and experience true love for the first time.

A/N I hated how the show didn't dive any deeper and merely portrayed young Regina as sweet and innocent,as I see it a child raised by a literally heartless and abusive mother would be at least a little troubled and tormented. I hope you enjoy this, and I would love it if you told me your thoughts in brutal honesty. I can take it ;)

** Review if you would like me to continue with this story,I think with these two there's always a lot more to tell.

Disclaimer:Don't own them. Wish I did

And now I cling to what I knew
I saw exactly what was true
But oh no more.
That's why I hold,
That's why I hold with all I have.
That's why I hold.

And I won't die alone and be left there.
Well I guess I'll just go home,
Oh God knows where.
Because death is just so full and man so small.
Well I'm scared of what's behind and what's before.

And there will come a time, you'll see, with no more tears.
And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears.
Get over your hill and see what you find there,
With grace in your heart and flowers in your hair."

(Mumford & Sons)

It was one of those nights again. Regina woke up at 3 am with this intense uncharted feeling. She couldn't really name it or describe it. But it surrounded her; she swore she could almost see its silhouette, although the room felt darker than it ever was. This intensity hovering over her little bed stuck between the particles of air and with every inhale breathing it in entrapping it forever within her lungs, growing more and more aware of its existence. It demanded to be felt, answered and acknowledged as it slowly crept down through her chest, as if it was one of her mother's dark spells.

She shook her head trying to push it aside and disregard it, but not this time ,no this time it consumed her senses ,she was no longer in control and her body rebelled against her, helpless against its restrains . Darkness reigned and woke her up.

There was something different about her slumber that night it was tiring. She actually grew more restless when she drifted asleep that evening it didn't bring her the sense of comfort and peace she usually felt, instead she just shifted from side to side falling in and out of nightmares. All of a sudden this feeling no longer felt psychological, it transformed into dreadful physical chest pain .she freaked out and rid herself of every piece of clothing weighing over her now vigorously pounding heart assuming that maybe her clothes were just too tight, that was why she was gasping for air, maybe she just needed some oxygen, but shortly she realized that wasn't it.

This heaviness felt agonizingly real, and it was right there plunging fiercely into her bare chest. She clawed her nails onto it panting frantically while her mind played a thousand and one twisted images of a bloody ripped out heart in her trembling little hands. Those images were her mother's gift, ever since she started blossoming into womanhood her mind was plagued by them.

It was her mother's sick way of telling her love was weakness, that it will only leave her with a broken heart and pain too unendurable that she'll willingly rip out her own heart. "Get out my head! I'm not broken" she cried as if her mother could hear her. It was true, her heart wasn't in pieces. It was just full of cracks, it wasn't in perfect shape but still not broken, which was much more crucial, she was stuck in the fine line between an apocalyptic earthquake and the excruciating agony of frozen time.

She tried to squeeze a couple of tears thinking maybe crying would let those entrapped emotions erupt out of her body and detoxify her diseased soul ,but failed at every attempt of achieving a familiar breakdown. She paused for a moment to take it in, when did a breakdown become the simpler goal?

She failed to apprehend how to rid herself of this sudden intensity. She dug deeper into her mind and saw a kaleidoscope of neglected wounds and bruises, thinking for a second she figured it out, but the second passed and another realization unveiled, and then another, and another, until she was completely overwhelmed and morosely aware of all the million wrongs in her life. Where were all these things buried? no wonder the reaction was severely drastic .

This intensity was her mother's dark magic, a small curse she enacted to ensure that Regina was constantly reminded of her path. for Regina It felt like sudden lacerated flesh leaving the nerve bare and highly affected by the smallest stimulus, exposing and commanding her to feel all the things she refused to acknowledge before.

The things she convinced herself were long forgotten, things she assumed she had already gotten over, things she shoved aside to asses later but carelessly dismissed. Things she claimed didn't hurt or bother her, parading that she was tougher than that. The regrets that she pressed way down with all her worth.

Her mother's piercing and cruel words continually reminding her of what a disappointment she was in her eyes. The intense hunger for acceptance, the sense of worthlessness, the what-ifs and doubts she ignored. The fear of missing out on her dreams on what she secretly wished her life could be. The secrets and lies, the weight of everything she couldn't say, everything she bottled up and leaving it forever suppressed and unspoken.

The things she assumed she had under control, and could easily escape with a simple distraction. Thinking she could fool her mind to indulge in a book, horse riding lessons or even masturbation and forget the small pains those implanted images caused. She even thought she succeeded, that the distractions over shadowed these allegedly "silly" cuts and bruises and it wasn't a big deal after all.

Not knowing that she was basically a walking ticking bomb, a ship wreck waiting to happen, and a small nudge would easily drive her over the edge. Ironically the distractions turned into little addictions giving her a false sensation that she was in control, but her obsessions slowly grew knots and roots forever poisoning her innocent brain not fully understanding the reality behind those obsessions.

Failing to see that it was just her miserable attempt of running from herself and her circumstances, refusing to turn the lights on to clearly look her demons in the eye and face the heartache. She just naively chose denial because in her little head she speculated that it was all she could handle. That she had no fight left in her, although her beloved Daniel kept reminding her of her strength and in fact it was what drew him to her. The truth was that she never really believed him. She basically just spun her own web and got caught in it lying perfectly still as the monsters she left untamed kept approaching to destroy and devour her whole. As all those wretched emotions floated to the surface she sunk down an ocean of tears sweat and depression, burdened with the weight of the discovery. Knowing that she really did build up her own prison; when she let her mother take over her thoughts with her darkness. She really was the architect of her own destruction.

Regina survived by seizing every tiny drop of love she could find anywhere, and milking it, relishing it, for all it was worth. And as she grew up, she sought love, anywhere she could find it, she sought those tiny droplets of love, basking in them when she found them. They sustained her. For all these years, she has lived under the illusion that somehow, she made it because she was tough enough to overpower the abuse, the hatred, and the hard knocks. But really she made it because love is so powerful that tiny little doses of it are enough to overcome the pain of the worst things life can dish out. Toughness was a faulty coping mechanism she devised to get by. But, in reality, it has been her ability to never give up, to keep seeking love, and her resourcefulness to make that love last long enough to sustain her. That is what has gotten her by.

As a child, she felt in her heart two contradictory feelings, the horror of life and the ecstasy of life, she was a wounded child, a girl who was taught from early childhood that she must become something other than herself, denied of her true feelings, in order to attract and please others. she had always believed she needed to lie to get the love and acceptance she so desperately craved. She was taught that Love was like going to war; you never came back the same. that it was a struggle and lovers emotionally manipulated one another until one of them completely disarmed and conquered the other.

Her mother's small crimes caused the light in her heart to grow too dim;she was always at her back, breaking every vow that she made to protect her. When she noticed her wings were peeking out from beneath her shirt collar, she rushed and clipped them, and gathered every rope to tether her ankles to home.

Regina's faith was just hanging on a limb and her heart was starting to doubt if she'll ever make it through, all the lies have got her under their control and her mind was just too confused to see , what was true she longed for love, but at the same time a part of her battled against letting it in completely.

In that moment fear rolled like thunder in her soul she felt the one emotion she despised the most, she felt helpless . she could handle anything but not that. She absolutely hated to succumb to her mother's vision of her own life. It made her sick, she suddenly felt lonesome. She never longed for Daniel more than this moment, she longed with all her heart for someone to wrap and envelop her with his warm and muscular body, just to hold her till the tears finally fade.

Her relationship with Daniel was the one thing that held her together; he made her feel safe, loved and understood. Although they knew each other their whole lives, their love was still young and new. There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment, and their moment was when he first saw her sneaking out riding her horse through the woods, her eyes seemed overjoyed ,the freedom satisfied and thrilled her,he remembered thinking it was the prettiest sight yet. She struggled at the beginning, she wasn't sure if it was going to be be worth all the trouble of sneaking around ,not to mention her mother's wrath if she ever found out, but shortly the blissful paradise within Daniel's embrace took over her ability to rationalize and be objective. She was simply hooked. To be fully seen by somebody, and be loved anyhow was something she couldn't bear walking away from.

The desperation drove her out of bed; she couldn't think of a better way out from this state she found herself drowning in than to seek shelter within her lover's eyes. She needed to see him. Luckily for her his bedroom was in the little cottage up the hill near the stables.

Sneaking out was an art that was second nature to her by now, it was the only way they could be together, away from prying eyes, and most importantly away from her mother's eyes.

- " Regina?! What are you doing here?" Daniel's vision was still blurry, he was barely awake ,he stood confused by the door in only his cotton pants.

"did I forget that we're supposed to meet at the stables or something? What time is it anyway?"

Regina assured him that he didn't make a mistake and it was in fact very late ,he invited her in realizing she must be freezing wearing that mid-thigh length silk nightgown, it was black and with lace decorating the top . They stood by the foot of the bed silently, she didn't say much, couldn't find the right words and just looked at him in a way he didn't recognize, he never saw that look before. It looked something close to defeat. It broke his heart.

"Regina my love, what's wrong? Your eyes are slightly red, have you been crying?" he cupped her cheeks and caressed the bags beneath her eyes tenderly with his thumbs. She closed her eyes and a few teardrops trickled down his fingers, overtaken by his delicate touch. Her eyes stayed shut as she whispered too softly barely audible "Kiss me".
He leaned in closer very slowly as if approaching a bird scared that she might flee. He gently nipped the teardrop that rested on her upper lip then entrapped her bottom lip between his as he dragged his hand down from her cheek to the back of her neck, while his other hand went from her shoulders down her back, feeling her tremble as his hands rested on her lower waist. He pulled her body closer to his deepening the kiss. She parted her lips to allow his tongue entry .Daniel was a phenomenal kisser, gentle yet firm, skillful yet explorative, sensual and hungry yet full of love. She could just forever drown in his kiss; those lips were her remedy, her escape.

It might have been her previous state of mind, her need for a distraction, the fact that his bare chest was pressing against the thin silk materiel barely covering hers, his wide broad shoulders surrounding her, or that this was their longest make out session yet, but the moment felt too steamy and she couldn't bring herself to back away, neither could he. Their lips stayed locked for the longest time, their tongues danced in harmony and their heartbeats were loud and almost in sync, as soft hungry hums escaped their lungs.

Regina gasped as she felt Daniel's hand subconsciously sink even lower down her waist and rest on her rear, the gasp broke their kiss and Daniel backed away "Regina I'm sorry, I got carried away we should probably stop"

"Didn't complain now did I?" she leaned in back to their previous position and placed his hands back on her rear, and kissed him forcefully ,he couldn't but succumb to the sexuality oozing out of her . He tightened his grip on her and pressed her even closer against him, as their hips met strenuously she involuntarily let out a stifled moan. He must have overestimated his level of self control because he instantly got harder at the sound she made. Their kiss broken once again this time by Regina's pleased grin at the sensation of the hardness pressing at her lower abdomen, she tried to resume their previous position only to be pushed back. "Daniel, it's okay!"

-"Regina,stop it! We can't do this, you should probably leave now before they notice your absence" then he backed away from her entirely.

-"don't you want me?" she looked at him with wide eyes and something similar to a bruised ego.

He quickly realized the effect of his action and how hurt she looked in that moment, he hugged her, cupped her cheeks while gently rubbing his thumb across her swollen full lips and told her "of course I want you! And if I'm not mistaken you felt it yourself".

He managed to bring the same shy grin back to her face before a confused one shortly replaced it. "Then what's wrong!"

-"As tempting as it is, I love you too much to take advantage of you like this Regina, You obviously went through something tonight and you're not thinking straight, and I can't have you regretting your first time, I want it to be special "

In contrast to what Daniel thought his words would do, he got her angry and stiff and she backed out of his embrace "Daniel when will you stop looking at me like I'm a sheet of glass too fragile ,like I might pop any second, you know exactly what I endured so far. You know that I'm full of wounds yet I'm still standing on my feet. I can make my own decisions can't I? I came to you in the middle of the night because of all people I thought you understood that. Yes I went through something tonight. But nothing I haven't been through before over and over and over again. The same familiar breakdown, the same images, it's always the same; she will never let me be! But this time I thought I had you to ease my pain ,that I can finally let you in, I came to explain how exhausted I am. Even in my dreams. How I wake up tired. How I'm being drowned by some kind of black wave that only you can shelter me from .Daniel I love you and I'm not the innocent little girl everyone's determined to see, I'm more ,I'm ready, please Daniel I need you". Her face displayed various ranges of emotion more than he ever saw all at once, from anger to determination, to pain and eventually vulnerability.

Nothing melted Daniels's heart more than the sight of a broken woman, the sorrow he recognized in her eyes, it was the most painful yet beautiful thing he had ever seen.

-"Daniel do you love me?"

-" With all my heart"

She walked towards him slowly, her hips swaying from side to side as she let the nightgown strings slip down one shoulder then the other pausing for a second and letting it completely fall to the floor and whispered "then love me…"

Regina might have enormous strength yet in that small moment it all seemed so fragile, in that small moment Regina was bare ,exposed and oh so beautiful ,and what made her even more dazzling was that small flicker of light in her eyes.

Daniel's eyes traveled from her eyes that glowed as the dim light of the lamp mixed with unshed tears, and kept his gaze traveling down to her full lips, neck, collar bone until it reached her now bare chest, her breasts were everything he had craved all those times before, oh how he wanted to touch them back in the rain all these days ago when the water soaked her shirt. His eyes continued to finish the path all the way down to her toes. There she was, the girl he loved so deeply, the girl who managed to get him addicted to everything she was from the sound of her laugh to the scar on her lip. She was standing a few inches away in nothing but laced black panties asking him to love her.

Neither his mind body nor soul could turn down such a beautiful and tender request. Seeing how vulnerable and self conscious she suddenly looked, he understood that she never exposed herself like that to a man, she never let a man hold all the power, he knew her very well and knew exactly what she just handed him, this gesture wasn't about seducing him it was about disarming herself of all her defenses and surrendering to his love, in that gesture she was silently telling him I'm now ready to give you all of me.

Any other man would have missed the unspoken plea, but not her Daniel he loved and understood her extensively, and he also understood how drastic the damage would be if he backed away from her, not that he was able to anyway. His body wasn't complying with his orders and he found himself standing millimeters away from her lips, their noses and foreheads touching, as he breathlessly whispered never breaking eye contact "you're beautiful from the tips of your toes to the depth of your soul" he gave in and crashed their lips together, their kiss kept growing more passionate from soft and tender to steamy and rapid, exploring every corner of their mouths. Their hot breaths mingling and their lips traveling between pulse points and earlobes. Regina placed her hand over his still covered hardness before she slipped two fingers between the top buttons of his pants and Daniel groaned at the sensation and decided to discard the pants completely exposing his erect member to Regina's virgin eyes, she examined how big he was shyly, while she felt a slightly familiar throb between her thighs it wasn't too long before their knees grew weaker and needed to move towards the bed.

Regina was crazed out of her mind with passion, she attacked his body with all her strength ready to claim his lips, she wrapped one leg around his waist, and then Daniel hoisted her up and wrapped the other one surprising her with his sudden movement and strength, he made it seem effortless as he walked to the bed moved the covers and gently placed her down on the soft sheets. He took a minute to admire all the beauty lying in his bed and smiled before he landed smoothly on top of her.

He leaned in and gently tucked a strand of chestnut silk hair behind Regina's ear, and placed the softest kiss on her lips while trailing the tips of his fingers along the side of her torso barely touching the side of her breasts. Regina's body was covered with goosebumps as a respond to the heart melting gesture, he smiled warmly as he saw the effect his touch had on his lover's body, as their lips lingered for a painfully extended moment, Daniel's hand hungrily cupped Regina's breast while his mouth slowly traveled down placing moist kisses along her jaw line, neck then down the valley of her chest noticing the neglected erect nipple and rapidly devouring it whole within his lips sucking it vigorously causing the brunette to let out a chocked moan and thrust her hips upwards eager for some friction.

Daniel pressed his knee between her legs as he kept sweetly torturing and fondling her breasts, shifting from one to the other, enjoying how sensitive it got, the throb between Regina's thighs was becoming almost unbearable. Her moans got louder, more erotic, more confident as opposed to the suppressed choked ones at the beginning. He enjoyed the sounds she was making deciding this was his favorite noise to ever come out of her lips, making a mental note in his head to tell her later.

As he noticed how she was grinding against his knee, Daniel decided it was time to move lower; he trailed open mouth kisses all the way from her chest over her pounding heart down to her belly button circling it with his tongue as two fingers stroked her panty covered clit enjoying how she squirmed beneath him.

Regina's eye's followed his every move as he placed his hands on each side and started lowering her panties with tormenting slow movement until she was completely naked ,he threw them across the room without breaking eye contact.

At a moment of sudden shyness Regina pushed her thighs together even tighter, and Daniel immediately caught on the stiffness of her muscles, he smiled at her with those beautiful blue eyes that she adored and said "do you trust me Regina?" and she simply nodded.

He parted her thighs ever so gently switching between gazing into her eyes and her now beautifully revealed and vividly soaked center. With a moan of approval he sunk in to relish in the taste of her wetness on each of her inner thighs moving closer to where she was most sensitive guided by her needy moans. he placed a kiss on her clit then sucked skillfully his tongue dancing torturing Regina's core while she arched her back and held on to the sheets with her fists. She was burning with desire and desperation, as she got closer to the edge she uttered Daniel's name seductively making it impossible for him to ignore his own arousal anymore.

She whimpered and groaned desperately at the loss of his mouth right when she was on the verge of her delicious release. He climbed over her nipping her neck while positioning the tip of his member on her entrance; she needed him in her, her body couldn't take much more foreplay, she tried to force him in herself but he didn't oblige, he was in control he sucked her ear lobe and whispered in her ear "patience my love" she continued her attempts at getting more satisfying friction and breathlessly answered "I'm all out". He smirked and told her "I know, we need to slow down this may hurt you a bit".

-"I can take it" she puffed out impatiently

-"Gina dear I'm serious" he looked at her genuinely before kissing her and applied a little more pressure on her center.

-"Daniel ,I …I need you ,now" she couldn't handle the separation any longer.

He slowly but forcefully drove his member into the length of Regina's entrance, making the brunette and himself gasp for air and groan in pleasure as she dug her nails deep into his back in both satisfaction and pain. It was indeed painful but nothing she couldn't handle, he pulled in and out of her easing himself on top of her until she stretched and adjusted to his size.

The pain eventually got bearable as they established rhythmic harmonious movement and slowly it was overshadowed by the intensity of her arousal. She desperately widened her legs, bringing him deeper inside her as she met his hips with every thrust. It was almost all too much and Regina went light-headed her clit was obviously engorged, so Daniel pressed harder skillfully stroking it in circular motion with his index finger. With every stroke, kiss and thrust he brought her close to the edge more times than she could count, Regina was gloriously moaning with ecstasy she pulled him closer, kissed him deeper her kiss turning needy and insistent as she couldn't hold her orgasm any longer. Every moment of it was heavenly the slow delicious pace of his hips ,the way he looked at her ,his firm hands massaging and stroking both her nipple and clit simultaneously ,the way his lips buried her moans, her mind experiencing true love for the first time .

Their thrusts turned faster as they both felt the build up rapidly reaching the peak of their climax "oh …Daniel…" a moan of ecstasy tore through her as she came undone. He heard his name and felt her inner walls contracting and spasming around him ,he erupted inside her filling her with his juices. Regina's eyes met her lover's as he completely lost control. Stars and fireworks appeared behind her eyes bringing their intimacy to a new level. All Regina could feel was Daniel against her, around her, inside her, surrounding her. In that small moment nothing really existed outside of her beloved and tender lover Daniel.

"I love you."

Despite the lust still clear in her dilated pupils from her orgasm, the vulnerability was very visible.

"I love you too," Daniel whispered back.

Regina immediately felt the grip dark magic had on her heart was being released, her heart no longer felt heavy. She felt complete. The sharp gasp and sudden tears confused Daniel a bit. "Regina?"

She laughed and cried at the same time her eyes were full of joy and love "her magic, I no longer feel it anymore!"

Daniel understood what she meant and wrapped his arms around her tightly as he whispered in her ears "Regina, Love, true love is magic, it's the most powerful magic of all"

They remained locked in an embrace, their mouths never moving off each other's lips, jaw or neck as they kissed passionately and possessively they could do this every day all day till the end of time and it'll forever bring them undeniable satisfaction and love.

The couple stayed latched on each other's figures for what seemed like hours, not really needing to say anything moving in perfect harmony as if the other was merely an extension their own body, another piece of their soul erupted then enveloped in this miraculous posture. They breathed each other in and held in the scent, tangling their fingers together and gazing at each other's overwhelmed eyes as a few tears of bliss escaped down their cheeks. It was the first time they understood how unequivocally powerless they were in the other's presence.

In those divine hours the couple felt how much deeper their unspoken bond evolved, transcending reality, and finally experiencing pure intimacy.

-"promise me you won't ever leave me to face my battles on my own" Regina's eyes suddenly filled with tears realizing the extent of her need for his love to keep her sane.

-"Regina I'm right here a few feet from your house, and as long as this heart is still beating you will never have to face anything alone" he grabbed her hand and placed it on his chest giving her a sense of relief .

The couple felt a small sting in their hearts as the dawn broke and the sun slowly grew brighter reminding them that it's time for Regina to head back home, that it was time to play the uninterested stranger, pretending that they don't know each other as much as they truthfully do, that it was time to forbid their eyes to linger.

Regina's grip on Daniel's body grew tighter with every passing moment. And Daniel finally spoke what neither of them wanted to admit.

-"Regina you have to head back"

-"I hate that I do"

-"I know, me too"

-"I don't know how long I could keep this cold mask when she's watching, I wish there was a way to see you and not have your presence affect me and the things I do. I want my heart calm; un-nervous. I just really want to see you and not have every fiber of my being pine and ache for you with each glance you throw at me, I don't think I'm capable of treating you horribly anymore"

-"hey one day years from now we will look back at this and laugh, I promise. How about we turn this to a hidden secret language, whenever you're mean to me it means you're telling me you love me, and when I run my hands through my hair it means I love you too"

Regina's smile turned brighter than the morning sun as she kissed him and stood to put her nightgown back on while he admired how comfortable she seemed as he studied her gorgeous nude body in the sunlight.

"Where did you throw my panties?" she asked playfully as she sat on the bed next to him after getting dressed and kissed him.

"You don't need it you have plenty at home, I'm going to keep it" he winked and kissed her back.

"You want me to walk all the way back with no underwear, what about the wind this nightgown can easily lift" she giggled and rested another kiss on his lips.

"I'm sure the trees would enjoy the view as much as I did last night". He rolled her over on top of him and bit her lower lip and squeezed her bottom before lustfully kissing her one last time.

Daniel stood by the door and held her tightly before unlocking it and sending her on her way.

-"see you in a few hours" she said reassuringly after noticing the sadness creeping up to his eyes.

-"try not to wear something too sexy, after the visual it won't be easy pretending not to notice"

-"I make no promises" she winked before running towards her house, reaching her bedroom without getting caught.

Regina rested her body on her bed and drifted into blissful sleep; she left a virgin in a miserable and dreadful state and now returned a woman with a clear head and a heart too big, too free. No shackles or walls, Regina was miraculously in love.

"One word
Frees us of all the weight and pain of life:
That word is love."
― Sophocles