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Chapter eight

By the time she got home, Emma was on autopilot.

She walked to her room and reached out for the small flask of fish food on her bedside table. She looked down at the tank, and watched the fish swirl around agitatedly as she dotted the water surface with ration.

After that, she plopped on her bed dramatically.

She wanted Regina more than she thought that it was possible to want her.

She had wrongly thought that kissing her would be enough and wonderful, but it wasn't enough, and it was more than just wonderful. They might yet come up with a word to describe what it felt like to kiss Regina Mills.

Her heart felt warm, and her whole body was bursting into flames.

She tasted like…

Heaven.

Emma could still feel her warm, shaky breath against her cheek, and her scent was everywhere in the room.

She just couldn't sleep.

Ingrid arrived home by midnight and stopped by her daughter's bedroom with leftovers from Granny's on a paper bag.

"Hey, kid," she said, waving it in the air. "I got your special."

"I'm not hungry, mom."

"Oh wow!" Ingrid chuckled.

"Mom, don't start-"

"I won't," she waltzed inside her room, planted a kiss on Emma's forehead and dropped the paper bag on the desk. "Sleep tight, kid."

"Night, mom."

XXX

"It's eleven o'clock," Cora said closing the front door.

Regina sighed with a tiny smile. "Yes, I know."

"You almost missed curfew. I won't be tolerant next time. And why are you smiling?"

Next time they would go to prom. The butterflies in her stomach were going wild with the possibilities, and her mind was still trying to absorb the emotions from the kiss that happened less than five minutes ago.

"I'm sorry, mother. I just had a good time," she said, barely able to refrain from rolling her eyes as she stopped by the bottom of the staircase.

Her father showed up behind Cora; he was holding a cigar and the newspaper. She could have sworn he winked at her.

"Let her be, Cora. Have a good night, sweetie," he told her, waving her off to bed.

Regina almost ran upstairs; she was not inclined to a full interrogatory from her mother in case her giddiness looked too suspicious, so she climbed the stairs at normal pace. It seemed to take forever, but when she got to her bedroom, the rest of the world simply disappeared.

She rested her back against the door after closing it. The timid smile that was gracing her lips minutes ago turned into a fit of giggles and sighs that she was not aware she could produce. That felt like the proper reaction for a first kiss, not that ridiculous tongue fight that Robin offered her three years ago.

Regina sat down on bed and carefully removed her shoes. As she lay down and closed her eyes, Emma Swan's face was all she could see and think about.

Her silly smirk, the way she insisted to pay for the tickets, the way her lips grazed hers for half a second before it turned into a fierce kiss…

Regina could still taste the nicotine and spearmint on her lips, and some parts of her arms and shoulders still burned with the memory of Emma's fingers.

She stared at the ceiling for a while, smiling. She closed her eyes again, imagining Emma standing there, watching her as she removed all her clothes. She always slept on her underwear, but the sudden sense of exposure made her quickly pull a coverlet over her body.

Regina was shy, but the thought of Emma Swan seeing her like that…

Her cheeks burned.

She laughed at herself as she picked a book on her bedside table and tried to read. Two paragraphs later, she gave up. It was impossible to concentrate with an invisible Emma Swan trying to spy on her naked.

It was then that she saw a piece of paper poking out from the final pages of her book. It was scribbled in hurried and crooked letters that Regina knew very well by now.

CALL ME SOME DAY, MILLS 555-3274

Regina grinned; she had no idea whether this was old or recent, but either way it was very sweet, like most of the things Emma did.

Her former nemesis, the school greatest bully and full time delinquent was sweet.

And an amazing kisser.

Who would have thought?

XXX

The next morning, Regina took extra care to comb her hair, pick an outfit and apply lipstick. Cora spent breakfast frowning at her, but apparently Henry being there was enough to keep her quiet about it.

Regina jumped from the chair when she heard the familiar roaring engine sound.

"I gotta go," she kissed her parents goodbye and hurried out of the kitchen, picking her bag from a chair as she run towards the front door.

Emma smiled when she came outside.

On the back seat, Ruby looked more disgruntled than ever. Killian was smirking and Mary Margaret looked like she was about to explode.

"Charming asked me to go to prom with him!" she exclaimed when Regina closed the door.

"Who?"

"She calls David Charming," Emma said with an eye roll. "As in Prince Charming. Yeah, MM… I would've kept it a secret if I were you. It sounds even lamer when said out loud."

"Oh he did?" Regina grinned at her and turned to Emma. "That's great, isn't it? We can all go together-"

"You're going with her?" Ruby scoffed incredulously. "As in a date?"

"Yes, I am," Emma said quietly.

"I thought you said proms were for losers and whores."

"I didn't say that," Emma said, looking apologetically at Regina.

"Stop being so cranky," Killian intervened, poking Ruby. "Come to prom with me. I can be the whore and you can be the loser, if that bothers you."

"I'd rather have a truck run over me than go to prom with you-"

"Oh, shut up, everyone," Mary spat, producing a cardboard crown from her bag and placing it on Regina's head. "Here. You're officially the GTI Queen."

"You promised me you wouldn't do that!" Emma snarled at her friend.

"C'mon, you can be king," Regina winked at the blonde, placing one hand on her thigh in a soothing way, which instead of helping, ended up by turning Emma on.

"You're gonna cause an accident with that hand there," she muttered to the brunette, who blushed and chuckled.

XXX

All in all, life was pretty much the same in Storybrooke High, except for a major change the week after their first date.

Whenever you wanted to find Emma Swan, she would no longer be in detention, making out with Ruby in the bathroom or smoking pot under the bleachers. If you wanted to find Emma, you should look for Regina Mills first. And then you would probably run into them in the last row of the library, making out furiously against a bookshelf.

Some people found it strange to see them hanging out in perfect harmony instead of the usual mayhem. It was sickening sweet the way they kept grinning at each other.

That week almost made the teachers call for an extraordinary board meeting. Emma Swan was sitting next to Regina Mills in classes, and she even paid attention, sometimes.

Prom was coming up in a month, but Emma and her friends were more interested in celebrating Halloween. They waited until all the kids went back home to start their own celebration since fifth grade, and no matter how childish it looked, they did it every year.

Killian usually was the first to leave his house in the middle of the night. He would go to Mary's and scare her to death as he made ghostly sounds on her bedroom window. Every year. Then they would wake up Emma, usually throwing suspicious mud chunks at her. And finally they would break into Granny's and drag Ruby out of bed.

The four of them would wear bedsheets and scare unfortunate passersby, startle dogs, ring doorbells and finally hide in the cemetery, where they would have a picnic.

This year, Emma was excited with the perspective of initiating Regina on their little ritual.

Not to mention that she was going to be in the haunted grounds of Cora Mills' house after midnight to get Regina without being noticed. On Halloween.

When the four of them arrived on Mifflin Street, Emma took the lead towards 108. They threw hissed instructions at each other and gestured frantically as they tiptoed across the front lawn.

When they were protected by the darkness of the Mills backyard, Emma realized that she had no idea which one was Regina's window.

"I don't recognize you," Killian whispered. "You don't know where a girl's room is?"

"Shut up," Emma hissed back. "Turn that shit off," she smacked his shoulder, indicating the flashlight he was holding. "I'm going up."

They followed her solemn gaze and gasped. She was looking at the roof of the mansion.

"Emma, no!" Ruby hissed. "You're gonna wake up everyone and the Evil Witch will lock you up in the dungeons!"

Years ago, Emma made up that rumor that Cora Mills had a dungeon instead of a basement in their house, and that was the place where she locked up Regina without food until she learnt how to become a great and evil witch like her mother.

It was heartless, and she knew it now, but she never had the courage to tell Ruby the dungeon part was a lie, too.

"Stay cool," Emma whispered, gesturing for them to quit protesting. "I got this."

There was a tall apple tree next to the house, whose highest branches would give access to the roof of the back porch, allowing Emma to check all the windows on the first floor. The tree climbing was uneventful, until a soda can fell from Emma's backpack and hit Killian on the face.

His "OUCH!" was accompanied by three desperate "Shush!" and a distant bark.

Emma held her breath as the kitchen lights went on. She watched all her friends scatter and flee as quietly as they could. Assholes. By the time Mr. Mills decided there was no intruder in their back yard and closed the door, her friends were probably many blocks away.

They were walking to school after tonight.

When Regina's father disappeared and the lights went out again, Emma resumed her climbing, cursing now for keeping the backpack in the first place. When she finally managed to set foot on the roof, a tile creaked slightly with her weight.

She set another careful step, and then another, and then she finally reached the first window.

The image was worthy of a Halloween celebration. Mr. Mills was returning to the room in stripped pajamas, while Cora slept like a corpse, her face covered in green plaster and a purple mask covering her eyes.

Jesus.

Mr. Mills was probably the bravest man alive she knew.

Emma crouched and crawled slowly on her elbows and knees until she was out of sight. With luck, Regina's bedroom was the next one. She took a deep breath, doing her best not to pant too loudly, and reached out for the window sill.

It was open to the air of the night, and silky curtains fluttered softly with the breeze. Emma quickly took in the room's interior – many books and wooden decoration, a fluffy rug next to the bed and shades of red everywhere.

Maybe she was crazy, but the room smelled like Regina, too. Emma was distracted by the empty bed, when an adjacent door creaked open and Regina came out of her bathroom wearing nothing but a pair of panties.

Emma's loud gasp made Regina quickly spin around and gasp too. She reached out for a pillow or blanket to cover her breasts, but the arm stretching only made the scene even more explicit.

"YOU SLEEP NAKED?" Emma gasped, hitting her head on the window frame.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?" Regina shrieked, bending over to hide and making it all a lot worse.

She heard the loud rumble of roof tiles and then Emma slipped and fell. Regina grabbed her goddamned robe and covered herself as she hurried to the window. Her heart was on her mouth, and she almost screamed when she saw Emma immovable on the ground.

"Emma!" she hissed desperately. To her utter surprise, three shadows creeped out of the bushes and she recognized Killian, Mary and Ruby. Relief fell over her when Emma sat up, groaning as they pulled her up by the arm. "Are you okay?" she whispered.

"Happy Halloween!" Emma mumbled.

"Please, run!" Regina hissed at them. "My mother's going to kill you!"

She didn't wait to see if they were actually moving; Regina tied her robe and left her room, stomping hard on the corridor. Her parents were already on the stairs. When they saw her, they hurried back up, and she hoped that would buy them some time.

"What's wrong, dear?" Henry asked with a worried voice. "Did someone get inside your room?" he advanced to her bedroom and hurried to the open window, finding nothing on the backyard.

"Is there anyone hiding here?" Cora asked, adjusting her mask on the top of her head as she noticed her daughter struggling to keep her robe close tightly to hide the fact that she wasn't wearing any clothes. "I hope you're not this indecent-"

"I heard noises in the backyard, Cora," Henry said with a serious voice. "Can you worry about your daughter like a normal mother? Don't you see she's scared?"

"I think it was just a cat," Regina gasped. "It scared me, so I ran-"

"Of course dear," Henry patted her head. "I'm not sure about a cat, but you're safe now, anyway," he shut her window and closed the curtains. "It's probably a Halloween prank. They're gone, now."

He kissed her forehead and went back to his bedroom. Cora stayed a while, looking suspiciously at Regina; she was a second away from accusing Emma Swan, when Henry called her to go back to bed.

Regina let out a sigh of relief after she locked the door behind her. She went to the window and reopened it, checking her backyard. They were gone.

"God…" she breathed, resting her forehead on the glass, wondering what had happened to that beautiful imbecile.

XXX

They were as far away as possible, with Emma limping and groaning about her arm. It looked weird, crooked in a strange angle, and they were sure it was broken. No one said anything to avoid startling Emma, but they knew they had to take her to the hospital. But in order to do that, they needed a car, and they needed Ingrid.

They took Emma home, and as silently as possible, the trio dragged her to her bedroom. Ingrid showed up two seconds later, turning on the light and looking a mess in old pajamas.

"What the hell is going on here?" she asked, squinting because of the sudden brightness.

Ruby took a step forward. "I think we need to take her to the emergency room, Mrs. Swan…"

"We were having a sleep over and she fell from her bed," Mary said. Ingrid turned to look at her with the exact eye roll Emma did.

"Give me a break, MM," she sighed. "You're all sweaty and covered in dirt and grass. Do not insult my intelligence."

"Ah well, I had to give it a shot," the girl shrugged.

"Well, thank you all for-" Ingrid looked around, spotting all the muddy footprints and hand marks on the bedsheets. "For the love of God, get out!"

The three of them waved guiltily at Emma, but she smiled encouragingly at them. She thought they had left her behind, but she was glad they came back for her. When the house was silent again, Ingrid threw Emma a look of disapproval before helping her out of bed so they could get in the car.

"What the hell happened?" she asked.

"I fell from a rooftop."

"Please tell me this wasn't the Mills' rooftop. That old bat is breathing down my neck in every PTA meeting since you stopped using diapers! She's dying for a reason to get you kicked out of school, Emma-"

As Emma remained silent, Ingrid smacked the back of her head. "Emma!"

"What? My arm is broken and you smack me?"

"You deserve more for messing with the Mills daughter! There are a thousand girls in this town, why is it you have to fall for the most out of bounds person in Storybrooke?"

"Because she is the prettiest," Emma said with a shit-eating grin to mask the pain in her arm.

Ingrid chuckled. "You're impossible. I know she's the prettiest, but c'mon! You wanna have Cora Mills in the family for the rest of your life?"

"Mom! My arm!"

"Okay, okay… We're nearly there, kid-"

"Mom?" Emma said quietly.

"Hm?"

"I'm sorry about this… all the trouble I cause."

Ingrid smiled. "Don't tell anyone I said that, but I know my life is the best in this shit hole," she made a turn and parked on the nearest spot she found. "So… what, in the name of God, were you doing on the Mills' rooftop?"

"I was just going to invite Regina for Halloween night out, mom," Emma said with a sigh as Ingrid helped her out of the car.

"Couldn't you do it at school and then she could wait for you on the sidewalk?"

"The fright is part of the fun and the only thing that counts, really. I don't want her to think I'm lame, like, Hey, wanna come to a safe picnic by the cemetery with me?"

"You have picnics on the cemetery?"

XXX

It was very early when Killian, Mary and Ruby showed up. Emma was still under the effects of the painkillers, and she was babbling a lot of crap about Regina's beautiful naked body. It was an actual relief that Regina showed up when it started to wear off.

"Good morning, Mrs. Swan," Regina said timidly as she approached. She was holding a plastic pot like the time she had stopped by their house, and Ingrid wasn't surprised when she saw Mr. Mills waving from the far end of the corridor.

"Hey, Regina. How are you, sweetie?"

"Worried," she said with a sigh. "Aren't… Aren't you mad at me?"

"I'm mad that I'm not younger to live life the way my daughter does, Miss Mills," Ingrid said it with a fake serious tone that made Regina laugh. "Go ahead, she asked for you in her sleep-"

Regina felt her cheeks burn with the blunt statement. Clearly Emma got that trait from her mother – Ingrid was smirking at her, glad that she was embarrassed.

Killian and Mary waved at her as she walked by; Ruby acknowledged her presence with a shrug. Regina entered quietly, closing the door behind her.

Her heart dropped to her stomach when she saw Emma's right arm enveloped in a cast up to her armpit. It already contained all sorts of indecent scribbles and drawings made by marker. She smiled crookedly at the sight of the brunette.

"You came."

Regina seemed at the verge of tears; she held them back and placed the pot by Emma's foot.

"Is that apple turnover?"

Regina ignored the question and moved closer to the headboard. "Are you in pain?"

"Not anymore."

"Good," the brunette said, smacking Emma's uninjured arm.

"Ouch!"

"That was for scaring the hell out of me –" she smacked her again "-And that was for spying on me!"

"Ouch! Hey!" Emma used her free hand to hold Regina's. "Hey. I'm sorry I scared you, and I'm sorry that I saw you… you know… I was just going to ask you to come with us for a picnic at the cemetery to celebrate Halloween. I never meant to… you know-"

She sounded so embarrassed and looked so cute that Regina's reaction was to tiptoe and kiss her.

Emma grinned against her lips. "That's better."

"I can't believe I'll have to go to prom with you wearing a cast-"

"I can't believe I survived the fall to go to prom with you, Mills-"

"I would've killed you again if you didn't," Regina said, leaning forward to kiss her again. "Idiot."