***Author's Notes: We're getting close to the holidays portion of this story and I'm not sure if this is a huge spoiler but the story is going to end on Christmas morning (I feel like I've written my very own Hallmark movie). I think that I want to post the final chapter the weekend before Christmas because that just fits the timing very well. What do you think? Let me know your thoughts!***
"Hey Mare, sorry I missed your call earlier. I am just getting out of my kickboxing class now. Is everything alright?" Regina asks, slightly worried because Marian hardly ever calls until it is well after Roland's bedtime.
"Everything is fine. But I do have something that I need to ask you…" Marian says hesitantly.
"What's up?" Regina asks still very much concerned.
"Well, you know how Robin and all of guys from the high school football team always tries to arrange a get-together before Christmas? Well, this year, it was Rob's turn to plan it and he was supposed to book out a place for the reunion. But, he totally forgot all about it." Marian explains.
"So…" Regina says urging Marian to continue.
"So, I was thinking that you might let me talk you into letting us throw a Christmas party at the bar?" Marian says shyly knowing very well that Regina dislikes the idea of reuniting with the people they went to highschool with.
"Mare, that's a horrible idea!" Regina says as she starts laughing. "I'm sure that our old high school football team would prefer some place with less lighting and more young women that they can hit on. From what I hear, most of them are still bachelors."
Marian sighs. "Rob has been calling around everywhere and everything is booked already. Believe me, if he wasn't so desperate, I wouldn't be asking you."
"So, my bar is basically a last resort then. That makes me feel so much better about the idea." Regina adds sarcastically with slight irritation in her voice.
"That's not what I'm saying, Regina, and you know it. What I meant was, I know how much you hate these things which is why I wouldn't be asking you unless we really didn't have anyone else to turn to. Excuse me for thinking that my best friend would actually want to do me this huge favor. And not to mention that I would be able to see and hang out with you rather than be stuck at another random bar as Rob's plus-one." Marian sighs when all she hears is silence on the other end of the line. "Nevermind, just forget I said-"
Regina sighs. "Mare, when does this party need to happen?"
"The sixteenth of December..." Marian says hopefully.
Regina considers this for moment before replying. "Can I think about it? I promise you that I'll really consider it and I'll let you know before the weekend is over."
"Yes! Of course. You're the best." Marian says.
"Uh huh." Regina replies as she shakes her head and smiles into the phone. Then, she changes the subject. "So, what are you guys doing for Thanksgiving tomorrow? Whose house will you all be at this year?"
Marian groans. "It's at ours. Mom and dad got here yesterday and Rob's parents get here tomorrow morning. It's been busy." Marian says.
Regina chuckles. "Wow, yeah, I can only imagine. Will you give your mom and dad my love? It seems like it's been forever since I've seen them."
"Of course, I'll tell them." Marian agrees. "But also, you should stop by if you have time to. What are you doing tomorrow anyway? You're not spending it alone, are you?"
"No, actually Killian and Emma are going to come over. I got a small turkey and I'll probably just make a few other things so that we won't be stuck with leftovers for weeks."
"Emma, too? Well, that's nice." Marian says lightheartedly.
"Mare…"
"I know, I know. You're just friends." Marian chuckles. "Just promise me that you aren't saying that just because you're really trying to convince yourself."
"Whatever. If you don't have anything else important to say or ask of me, I'm hanging up. I'm almost home." Regina says trying to get Marian off the phone because she sees Emma's car is already in the parking lot of her complex. If Marian were to ever find out that she let Emma talk her into a slumber party on Thanksgiving's Eve, her best friend would likely hound her for every detail.
"I should probably get going, anyway. I have to finish up with preparations for tomorrow. So, I'll hear from you before the weekend is over, right?"
"Yes, I promise." Regina says.
"Okay, love you. Happy Thanksgiving."
"Love you, too. And Happy Thanksgiving. Give Roland a big kiss for me!" Regina tries to add before she hears Marian hang up the phone.
Regina shakes her head and walks over to Emma's Bug. Emma is sitting inside on her phone and when Regina taps in the window, she jumps.
Emma turns the engine off and steps out of the car. "You scared the crap out of me."
Regina smiles. "Sorry. And I'm also sorry that my class ran over a bit. Have you been out here long?"
"Nah. Maybe ten minutes or so. But Ruby and I were chatting so it's fine." Emma says.
Emma gets her overnight bag from the back seat and they walk up to Regina's apartment together. Once they are inside Regina tells her to entertain herself while she jumps in the shower. Emma takes this time to change into her pajamas, which consists of a pair of shorts and tank top, and then proceeds to make herself comfortable on the couch. She turns on Regina's television and flips through the channels quickly realizing that Regina only subscribes to the local channels. Relieved that she will at least still be able to watch the Thanksgiving Day parade in the morning, she opts for Netflix instead. She enters in her username and password since Regina is not signed in and puts on a movie that she started the other night but has not had a chance to finish.
When Regina is back, she sits down on the opposite end of the couch leaning on the arm rest. She studies Emma for a second and then turns towards the television. "What are you watching?"
"Just some cheesy horror flick that is on Netflix. It's more funny than scary."
"Oooh, I hate horror films. I think that I'm just going to leave you to it." Regina says as she starts to get up.
"Noooo." Emma whines. "We can watch something else. I just started this the other night and put it back on while I was waiting for you." Emma pauses a moment before adding, "I really want you here with me." She adds her signature pout for dramatic effect.
Regina bites the inside of her cheek to keep the butterflies in her stomach at bay. She cannot seem to say no to Emma when she has that pleading look in her eyes. "Do you want to watch The Temple of Doom?" Regina asks, the question coming out quieter than she anticipates.
Emma widens her eyes and smiles brightly. "Do I? Is that even a question?"
Regina chuckles. She finds the DVD and puts it into the player before she hands Emma the remote and makes herself comfortable again.
Emma remembers that Regina keeps an extra blanket inside the ottoman so she pulls it out and wraps herself in it. She looks over and sees that Regina is staring at her. "Oh, sorry. Did you want some of this?" Emma says laughing.
Regina smiles. "No, I'm fine. I was just going to ask you if you were cold. You're barely wearing anything and it's forty degrees outside. Do you want me to turn on a heater for you?"
"Nah, my body is like a furnace when I sleep. If I wear too much clothes to bed, I always end up naked in the morning." Emma laughs nervously, a little uneasy now as she realizes that she may have said too much.
Regina feels her face get hot at Emma's comment and just hums in response before turning back towards the television.
They spend the rest of the evening watching the movie in silence. Every once in awhile, Emma would look over discreetly to check to make sure Regina was still awake and to her surprise, she stays awake through the entire film.
Emma yawns and stretches dramatically once the ending credits start rolling and when she's done, she looks over at Regina playfully and then pokes her in the arm. "Hey."
Regina turns to look at Emma who has a goofy grin on her face. "Yes?" She asks laughing at the blonde's expression.
"We actually finished a movie! You didn't fall asleep. Can I tell you how happy that makes me?" Emma says still grinning.
"You just did." Regina says with a lazy smile. "So, are you ready for bed now, Miss Swan?"
Emma scrunches her face and shakes her body feigning chills. "It always sounds so weird when you call me that." Regina just smiles and gets up as she gets ready to head towards the bedroom. Emma thinks about following her but instead decides that she should ask first. "So, should I just sleep on the couch tonight?" Emma asks timidly.
Regina turns to look at Emma and raises her eyebrow inquisitively. "If that's what you want." She shrugs.
"Well, I don't want you to think that I expect you to share your bed when I've practically forced you to let me stay over." Emma says.
"Emma, don't be silly. We've shared a bed before. Unless it made you terribly uncomfortable last time, you are more than welcome to sleep in the bedroom." Regina says as she feels her pulse start to speed up.
"No! It wasn't uncomfortable at all!" Emma states as she thinks back to the last time she woke up next to Regina. "I would prefer that if you are sure it's alright with you."
Regina returns her smile. "I'm more than sure. Now, c'mon, let's go to bed. I expect you to be fully alert when you're helping me with the cooking tomorrow." Then she turns and walks towards the bedroom.
"Wait, what? Was that a part of the plan? I have to help cook?" Emma asks as she follows.
The next morning, Emma wakes up to the smell of coffee and no sign of Regina. She panics for a moment and rolls over to grab her phone so that she can check the time. She is relieved to see that she has not missed the beginning of the parade. She gets out of bed and walks slowly into the main room to find Regina sitting with a newspaper and a cup of coffee. Regina's short hair is pulled back into a small ponytail and she has her glasses on. Emma smiles to herself thinking about how much she would love to wake up to this version of Regina every single morning. After a few more seconds of staring, she finally speaks up. "Hey, you're up early." She says, her voice still a bit hoarse from sleep.
Regina smiles. "Good morning." As it turns out, Emma was not wrong about her body being warm while she sleeps. Regina does not have any recollection of this fact from the first time they shared a bed, but maybe because it was so cold last night, she found herself shifting towards the heat that was radiating off of Emma's body all night long. At one point, she found herself right next to Emma with their bodies just inches apart, and when she woke up about half an hour ago, Emma had her arms wrapped around her stomach and she could feel the rise and fall of Emma's chest against her own back with every breath was taken. Even though it was an incredible feeling, in order to save both of them any awkwardness, she carefully maneuvered herself out of Emma's arms and forced herself out of bed. "I wanted to make sure that you didn't miss your precious parade. That's all you've been talking about for days. I was going to wake you in a little bit. Did you sleep well?"
Emma yawns. "Mhmm. Did you?"
"Very well." Regina says with a smile.
"That's good." Emma rocks back and forth awkwardly on her heels still smiling at Regina. Finally, she says, "So, I'm gonna go wash up a bit and get some coffee. Then, I fully expect us to veg and watch the Thanksgiving Day parade together. Any objections?"
Regina laughs. "Am I allowed any objections? Or are you just asking to make me feel like I have the option?"
Emma pouts. "C'mon, it's a tradition!"
Regina rolls her eyes. "Fine. Go clean up and I'll wait for you here."
They spend the morning watching the parade and Regina is genuinely astonished by how excited Emma is about the television special. She finds it quite endearing that Emma's face lights up more and more with each passing float or performance. Regina gets up intermittently during commercials to start preparing some of their meal. She had mentioned to Killian that lunch would be ready around one so she knows that she should probably put the turkey in the oven soon.
When the show has ended, Emma gets up and sees that Regina is already mostly done with the preparation of the large bird. "Aww, I thought you said that you wanted me to help."
"You looked so happy over there in front of the TV. I didn't have the heart to pull you away from it. Anyway, it's all finished. You can help me with the sides a little later, if you want." Regina says.
"Oh okay. Can I use your shower? As much as I want to stay in my pajamas all day, I don't think that it's really appropriate." Emma aks.
Regina laughs. "Yes, go ahead. You remember where the towels are?"
"Yes ma'am!" Emma says and then turns and walks off.
When she is finished with her shower, Regina takes one as well and before too long, both women are ready for the rest of the cooking.
By the time Killian is knocking on the door, both Regina and Emma are in the kitchen, Emma with flour all over her face and Regina holding her stomach while laughing hysterically. Regina walks over and opens the door. "Hey!"
"Hello!" Killian says as he leans in to give his friend a quick peck on the cheek. "I've brought some friends." He says as he holds up a bottle of bourbon in one hand and a bottle of gin in the other.
"Ha!" Regina says. "Good job! Come in. Emma is finishing up the dessert and we can eat while that is in the oven."
Killian sees Emma and chuckles. "You get into a fight with the cookies, Swan?"
Emma pouts. "Regina doesn't play fair." She looks at Regina and sticks her tongue out at the woman.
Regina laughs and shakes her head. "Let's clean up and get ready for lunch, shall we?" Regina pulls out the turkey that is warming in the oven and suddenly the whole apartment is filled with the wonderful scent of the holidays.
They decided since there is very limited space that they would just each make their individual plates in the kitchen instead of putting everything on Regina's small dining table and go back for seconds if they want. Both Killian and Emma are on their second plates when Regina opens the oven again to check on the homemade apple pie that Emma helped her with. When she sees that it is done, she turns the oven off and pulls the pie out.
Emma looks over as Regina is pulling out the pie and she is super excited to have dessert. She was so happy that Regina actually let her help make the pie and at one point when Regina was next to her showing her the best way to roll out the dough, they were so close to each other that Emma felt she was getting dizzy just taking in the scent of Regina's perfume. There really is no denying the fact that she is not only falling for Regina, but she is falling quite hard. So much for suppressing it and keeping a low profile. She shakes herself out of her thoughts when she realizes that Regina is talking to her. "Huh?"
"I asked if you are ready for dessert. Don't tell me that you're going to have a third plate first." Regina teases.
"Oh, no. It is all so good and I probably could eat more but I'm so ready for the pie." Emma says as she rubs her stomach.
"I would like some pie as well." Killian says with a smile. "You make the best apple pie that I've ever had in my life. But I have to say that I'm sort of worried since Emma helped with this one."
"Hey! I'll have you know that I followed all of Regina's instructions to a T." Emma says while poking Killian in his shoulder.
Regina shakes her head as she plates a slice of pie for herself. "You two are seriously like children sometimes. Now, come get your own pie."
Once they have eaten as much as they could, Emma and Killian volunteered to clean up while Regina sat in on the couch looking through text messages from friends and family that she has yet to reply to.
Killian walks over and sits down next to her. He puts a hand on her knee and squeezes it. "Hey, so, Rob called me yesterday and said that he wants me to talk to you about throwing a party at the bar for some high school friends?"
Regina groans. "Yeah. Marian called me about it last night as well."
Killian raises his brow. "Am I sensing some hesitation on your part?"
Regina sighs. "I don't know. I don't feel very festive. A Christmas party just sounds like so much work. And you know, with everything that happened last year, I just don't know if my heart will be in it."
"Heart will be in what?" Emma asks having just caught the tail end of the conversation as she sits down as well.
Emma looks to Regina but Killian answers instead. "Rob and Marian asked Regina if she would allow them to throw a Christmas party at bar for some high school friends that were on the football team with Rob. But she doesn't want to do it."
Emma frowns but she understands. Her and Walsh ended things around the holidays and this year, everything just feels so strange and new. "So, I get why you don't want to do it but I think that you should anyway. If you think about it, you can really turn it into a party for all the people close to you. We can tell some of the regulars that come into the bar, you can invite neighbors and friends. It doesn't have to be exclusively for a high school reunion. Because that would be lame."
Regina smiles. "I suppose that wouldn't be so bad. I mean, if we opened it up more." She turns back to Killian. "Do you think that Rob and Marian would be alright with that?"
Killian shrugs. "I don't see why they wouldn't. A party is a party and beggars can't be choosers." He laughs.
Regina sighs. "Fine. I guess that I'll call Marian and let her know that it's a yes from me." She gets up and walks to the bedroom to make the phone call before she changes her mind.
Killian looks at Emma and winks. "Thanks, Swan. I should have known that you'd be able to talk her into it."
"Whatever. I didn't do much. I was just being honest."
"Ah, quite the contrary. You did it all." Killian says. "Now, if only you can convince her to actually put up some holiday decorations as well…"