Chapter 2
To say 'panic attack' was minor in comparison to what Emma was feeling now. She had just learned that the one man she had ever been really in love with, Neal, was the son of Gold, one of her greatest enemies, well frenemies, and that Neal also was from the Enchanted Forest.
She had to take a break from her family, now even more extended than before. Not only that, but add in that Neal, aka Baelfire, had a fiancé, and everything just got much more complicated. Would this outside woman Tamara try to become Henry's new mom once she married Neal?
Emma left her apartment and headed out into the woods. When she used to live in cities, back in the real world, she had never been fond of nature. But since all her adventures in Storybrooke and the Enchanted Forest, she began to go into the woods to find a sense of calm, a sense of relief within the quietude of nature. She sat down in the roots of a tree, breathing slowly, trying to relax. She couldn't let all this craziness get to her head.
Okay, thought Emma, this isn't working. Even though she did her best to meditate, she still couldn't stop thinking about Neal. She was still inevitably in love with him, no matter how hard she tried to deny it. Feeling around in her purse, she located her object of desire.
"Aha," she said aloud, pulling out a flask filled with whiskey. She took a long sip, and then lowered the flask. "Ah what the hell," she then said, and took a much longer sip. She shook it, and nothing swished inside, so she held it upside down. Nothing came out. "Looks like a fun evening is ahead me," she said, holding back a hiccup.
She heard a twig snap and all at once she was up on her feet with her gun out of its holster.
"Who's there," she said.
No answer.
Before she could say another word, she felt hands cover her eyes. Spooked, she shot her pistol into the sky.
"Guess who," said a silky voice in her ear.
"Damn it, Hook, you scared the hell out of me," said Emma.
"You're easy to scare then, lovey," said Hook, coming into her view. His outfit was tattered, and he still had bruises and cuts from his most recent battles with Gold.
"You look great," said Emma, "you know there's this thing in this world called a shower. You should test it out."
"I know you can't resist me, don't pretend lassie," he said, moving forward toward her.
Emma shoved him backwards, and he tripped over the tree roots, sprawling on to the ground ungracefully.
"Do you want to know the real reason I slept with you Hook?" she said.
"No, not really," he replied.
"Good," she said. And then it hit – the whiskey had been absorbed and she felt it run through her veins like a delicious poison. She lowered herself onto his level, lying down on top of him, and kissed him lightly. "Hi."
"Someone's had too much rum," he said, tossing her to the side.
"Whiskey. I'm half American, remember? Americans drinks whiskey," she said, giggling a little.
"What is an American?" he asked. "Slang in this world for wench?"
Before she knew what she was doing, she slapped him hard across the cheek and watched a red mark grow on his face. He drew his sword, but she kicked it out of his hand, and then waved his hook away when he tried to draw it toward her face.
"You know I'm a better fighter," she said, swaying a little.
"You would make an incredible pirate," he said, and then kissed her feverishly. She dropped her gun in surprise, and they stood there, alone in the forest, kissing while their surroundings grew darker with the end of the sunset.
"I really don't like you," she said, breaking off the kiss.
"I would kill you if I could," he responded.
She started feeling a little light-headed, and drooped over the tree trunk.
"It's been a while since I've had that much to drink," she said. "My ex-boyfriend is in town and it turns out that he is – " she stopped talking, realizing that Hook didn't know Gold was still alive.
"I'll take you home," said Hook.
"Who knew you could be decent," muttered Emma.
Hook walked her as far as the edge of the forest, but when they neared the town, he edged back.
"This is as far as I can go for now," he said and gave her one last look with a little longing, wandering back into the depth of the woods. Emma made her way, stumbling a little, back to her apartment, and collapsed on her bed.