I'm back again friends, and as promised, I give you the Killian and Emma reunion! Write some cool reviews and I'll do my best to throw out a new chapter tomorrow!

The next time Emma opened her eyes, David and Mary Margaret were gone. A quick glance at the clock told her she had been out for the rest of the day and the whole night. It was ten am the following day, meaning someone had probably told the nurse she needed medicine and knocked her out.

She was glad David and Mary Margaret had finally gone home. They needed a good rest and a shower no doubt.

Actually, she could really go for a shower too. Especially before Killian inevitably showed up at her hospital door.

"Hey."

Emma's head darted to the right, her eyes wide, looking to the chair at the right of her bed. There, sitting casual, was none other than Killian Jones.

Too late for that shower then.

She hadn't seen him in days, and yet, he was still just a gorgeous as she remembered. It made her angry.

Really, the first time you see a guy after he cheats on you, you definitely don't want to be laying in a hospital bed, bruised, tired, and gross after not showering for days, and Emma was all of those things and more.

But there he sat, completely gorgeous. There was not a single part of him that wasn't perfect.

No, that wasn't true. If she looked at him closely, she noticed his hair was more unruly than usual, suggesting he had been running his fingers through it incessantly. There were slight bags under his eyes from worry and a lack of sleep, she guessed, and his clothes were wrinkled as though he'd been in them for days.

Now that she was paying attention, he was kind of a mess.

And somehow he still managed to pull it off. He could still make any girl swoon with one look.

"Well," Emma started, ready to call him out on his ragged appearance, "you look how I feel."

He gave a hollow chuckle and nervously rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah well, I've had other things on my mind more important than my looks."

"Like what?" She teased.

He gave her a shy smile, looking away.

The silence dragged on, slowly replacing the lighthearted atmosphere from moments ago with tension and awkwardness.

"I don't know what to say," She admitted, looking at the wall, refusing to meet his eyes.

Killian sighed, "You shouldn't have to say anything. I'm the one who owes you a huge explanation… and an apology."

Flashes from New Year's Eve came back into Emma's mind. The last moment she was truly happy, surrounded by her friends, the warm fire crackling, wrapped in the arms of the man she was afraid to admit she was falling for. Right before it all fell apart.

She remembered the doorbell ringing, Killian untangling himself from her, promising to be back for their New Year's kiss, and then he was gone. By the time she found him, he was lip locked with a beautiful brunette, breaking her heart.

Finally, she remembered the last words she heard him speak. The one sentence he used in his defense.

"Milah please just listen, I can explain everything, I promise."

He had been begging Milah for forgiveness. Begging her to let him explain.

He had chosen her.

Of course he had. Emma had been nothing more than a secret. She was a dirty little orphan, why would he pick that over a gorgeous brunette who was in college?

It made her wonder what he was doing here. Had he managed to get Milah to forgive him? Or was he coming back to Emma, begging for forgiveness because Milah wouldn't take him back? Was she being chosen by default?

With everything that was going on with her foster dad, and running away, and the whole freezing-to-death-in-an-alleyway thing, she had pushed down the pain of Killian's betrayal. But now it was all rushing back up to the surface.

She wanted to tell him to get out. To get the hell away from her before he could do any more damage to her fragile heart, and then…

Then she remembers sitting on the floor of an alleyway, thinking she was going to die without ever seeing her family again.

Without ever seeing him again.

She remembers promising herself that she would take down her walls. That it was too late. She had a family and a home and all the potential pain and happiness that came with it. Had she not just promised David and Mary Margaret yesterday she was done running? Not just physically, but emotionally?

She couldn't run away from this conversation. She was going to face it head on.

Her jaw clenched and she glared and Killian, "Yes, you do."

Killian reached forward to take her hand but she quickly recoiled, snatching her hand away from him. His eyes looked raw and hurt at her anger, fearing she would completely reject him.

He sat back after a moment, knowing he had to do things her way if he ever wanted a chance at winning her back.

"First of all, I want you to know that I never intentionally lied to you about anything, and I never lied about how I felt about you."

Emma opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off, "Let me finish and then you can yell at me all you want, deal?"

She didn't look happy, but begrudgingly nodded in agreement.

"Okay look," he took a deep breath, preparing his speech, "I met Milah at the beginning of the year. I was absorbed in this world of college and parties and at that time, Milah seemed pretty great. She loved parties and having fun, but that was really all we did. We never went out on dates or labeled ourselves as boyfriend and girlfriend. It was a few drunken kisses here and there. I considered the idea of labeling it after Christmas break, but I wasn't really passionate about either option. My feelings for Milah were lukewarm at best. My entire life was lukewarm, but at the time, it felt wild and passionate, lost in the drunken college haze."

He paused, looking at her reaction. She still looked upset, but the anger seemed to have faded slightly, he hoped.

"Then… Then I met you Emma Swan."

He stared into her beautiful eyes as they grew wide, locked on his. So much passed between them in this moment, and he saw all the vulnerability and pain Emma worked so hard to hide.

He continued on, "I met you and from the moment I saw your face, Milah's vanished forever. And I know how that sounds. It makes me sound like a vain asshole, but it's true. I completely forgot she even existed. I looked in those wild, emerald eyes of yours and I knew what real passion was. I knew what it was to be truly wild and breathtaking and real. No one else could ever measure up."

"And then I got to know you. Watching the pain you suffered, and the weight you carried on your shoulders everyday was the most incredible thing. You've been through so much and yet you kept going everyday. Not only that, but you would smile and laugh with me while bruises marred your face, as though a man hadn't taken his fist to you. Then I knew what real strength was. "

He smiled, recalling those first few weeks with her before all the hurt and pain. He remembered being destroyed by the force that was Emma Swan. He remembered standing in the living room the day he met her as she went to bed, wondering what beautiful hell she would bring into his life.

"Every time you walked into a room, I had to take a minute to remember how to breathe. Whenever you would smile at me, or look up at me with those eyes, I didn't think I could ever stop looking at you. And when you came down the stairs for that first date, I knew what real beauty was."

He paused, taking a moment before continuing, "And when you kissed me, and gave me that compass, sitting together in the cold on Christmas Eve, I knew what real love was."

He heard her breath hitch and he looked into her eyes, the same ones that not one day ago, he feared he might never see again. He reached forward to grab her hand and this time, she didn't pull away.

"I know true love because of you Emma. Because I love your bravery, and your heart, and the way you would do anything for those you love. Because I love your hair, god do I love your hair, and I love that I can see your every feeling through those endless eyes and I just - I needed so badly to tell you that you were the single greatest thing that ever happened to me and then… Milah showed up. She showed up because I had completely forgotten her existence. I had forgotten what lukewarm had felt like. I had banished the memories of every lukewarm moment I lived before you came into my life, and consequently, forgot to end whatever Milah and I had. And because of that, I hurt you. I hurt you and lost your trust and I will never forgive myself for that because -"

He held her eyes, never looking away, " Because I love you, Emma Swan."

Emma didn't look away, as he held her shaking hand, "You love me?"

"More than anything."

It was the way he said it. The way he looked at her with such certainty and awe, never doubting the words he spoke, never hesitating.

How could she hate him for forgetting he kind of had Milah, when he gave her a speech like that? He forgot Milah existed because he was too in awe of her to see anyone else. No one had ever said anything like that to her before.

Tears spilled from her eyes before she could stop them. She looked away from Killian and sucked in a deep breath.

"Shh, love it's okay don't cry." His hand curled around her cheek, moving to wipe the tears away, softly rubbing his thumb across the fading bruises that covered her face.

Her instinct told her to pull away. He was too close too fast and she had to fight with everything in her not to recoil backward.

The last time someone had held her face like this, it was much less gentle.

Memories of Phil grabbing her head and throwing punches flashed through her mind and her soft tears turned into panic.

Killian, seeing the conflict and fear in his eyes, quickly pulled his hand back and muttered a soft apology.

Emma pulled herself back together, remembering this was Killian sitting in front of her and he would never hurt her.

She shook her head at him, "No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak out like that, I just - the last time someone touched my face was when Phil was beating it up."

She watches as Killian's eyes darken as though he is just now remembering why she is sitting in a hospital bed having this conversation with him.

There's a long silence that follows, filled with tension so thick, it threatens to suffocate them both.

After a few minutes, Killian finally speaks, his voice low and dangerous, "I'm going to kill him."

Emma's head snaps over to him, "No."

She doesn't even want to think of the possibility of Killian coming face to face with Phil. Sure he's a drunk, but he's a strong and dangerous drunk who could do serious damage to Killian.

Emma herself wasn't by any means weak. Growing up she had been in a number of fights. Fights with kids at school, fights with foster siblings, foster parents, creeps on the street… she could certainly handle her own.

She hadn't stood a chance against Phil. Though to be fair, she was also freezing and suffering a recent heartbreak.

Still, Killian wasn't going near him.

Killian looks shocked, "How can you say that? After what he did? Look at you, Emma!"

She's getting irritated with this conversation very quickly, "Let it go, Killian. I'm fine and he's lost his license as a foster parent. It's over."

"Fine? You have bruises covering your face, a head wound, broken ribs, a collapsed lung, and internal bleeding! He beat you nearly to death!"

They're yelling now and she isn't even sure how they went from talking about his love for her to talking about murdering her foster dad.

"Yeah and if you go near him, he'll do the same to you!"

"So that's what this is about, you don't think I'll be able to do it. You don't think I stand a chance."

Emma shakes her head, trying to calm down, "That's not it."

Killian doesn't buy it, "Then what's it about, huh?"

"I'm scared to lose you, you idiot!"

Killian's eyes grow wide, the anger gone from his features.

"Whether Phil kills you himself, or you go to jail for assault, you're guaranteeing that you're going to leave me. And you can't do that, not when I'm still working on forgiving you for being an idiot the first time around!"

She takes a deep breath, calming herself down, before looking over at the man sitting next to her.

His face has softened, love and understanding filling his eyes. His hand moves back to take hers again as he nods in acceptance.

"Okay, I won't go after Phil. But you're going to have to at least fill out a police report. He has to pay for what he did."

"Okay." She agrees.

They sit in silence for a few more moments before Emma shuffles to the right side of the bed, a clear invitation for Killian to climb in on the left.

He looks thrilled, but hesitates, "Are you sure? We don't have to rush back into things."

She rolls her eyes, "I'm not going to jump your bones, Jones. I just - I missed you and I've been through a lot. I want my not quite boyfriend to hold me. Especially after he gave me a beautiful speech."

Killian smiles before climbing in the other side, tucking Emma under him. She turns on her side, choosing to ignore the slight pain coming from her wound, and throws an arm over his waist and resting her head on his chest. His of his arms goes around her shoulders while the other holds her to him.

They lay in peaceful silence before Killian interrupts, "Not quite boyfriend?"

"You still fucked up, Jones. So until I forgive you and learn to trust you again, I can't call you my boyfriend." She teases.

He nods in acceptance.

"I'll win your trust back." He swears.

When she replies, her voice is soft, telling him she's falling asleep, "I know."

He drops a kiss on the top of her head before closing his eyes himself, content to lay in bed, holding the woman he loves.

Whatever came next, he could deal with as long as he had her.

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