Chapter 6

David quietly makes his way through the apartment door. It is very dark now as it is just past midnight. He spares a quick glance to the bedroom he and Mary Margaret had been sharing and sees that the lamp in there is off.

He makes his way over to a lamp in the living room and switches it on. It sheds enough light in the general area of the bedroom for him to pull the curtain back to see that Emma has come home and is fast asleep in the bed next to Mary Margaret.

It made sense that they would comfort each other as it was their shared conversations this very morning that started them on this emotional family rollercoaster.

He stands in the entryway of the bedroom torn between wanting to wake the two women or allowing them to sleep. He had so many things to say to the both of them. Maybe it can wait until morning. He thinks to himself turning to walk away.

"Charming?" Mary Margaret whispers as she sits up in the bed.

"Yeah." He whispers back as he watches her lean over to look at Emma. She runs a hand through Emma's hair before she slowly gets out of the bed and makes her way to him.

"Charming... I'm sorry..." She starts to say quietly as to not wake Emma.

"No. Don't apologize Mary Margaret." He whispers back. "I..." he sighs, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything." He says as he takes her hands in to his. "I was a fool to go on this way. I was so busy trying to make myself feel better... trying to figure out where I belonged. I was tired of feeling so useless around here. I wanted to go back home so badly that I didn't stop to consider how this might affect all of us. It just felt like... like the more you both needed me the less I was there for you. I couldn't keep you both safe. I couldn't get you both back home when you went through that portal to our old world... I... I missed being able to take on the challenges of that world. At least that was familiar to me. I felt like that was where I needed to be but I was wrong."

Mary Margaret smiles warmly allowing him a moment to gather the rest of his thoughts. "I don't even know what I was thinking. Emma... she's... she was so angry with me and..." he laughs uncomfortably, "I took it out on you and the anger I was harboring really had nothing to do with you telling her about me. I was mad at myself for not being able to handle her reaction to it. Honestly I didn't think it would affect her the way it did. She was basically accusing me of being a coward and wanting to run away. I was and she called me out on that." He shakes his head. "I was ashamed."

"There is no shame in any of that. I know... I know all of this is new to you but you don't have to feel helpless. You don't have to try and fix things on your own. Whatever the obstacle... we take it all on together like we always have and always said we would." She says reaching up to cup his face with one hand.

He smiles and pulls her into his arms. "I'm sorry." He whispers placing a kiss to the top of her head. He holds her a moment longer before he pulls back to say, "You should get back to bed. We all have a lot to talk about in the morning."

Mary Margaret looks back in to the bedroom at Emma and faces her husband once again but before she can speak he already knows what she is thinking. "It's alright." He says quietly. "Let her sleep. I'll take the couch tonight."

"Are you sure?" She asks timidly.

"Yeah. I'll be alright. You rest." He says placing a kiss to her cheek. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight Charming." She says with a small smile as she watches him walk to the couch and sit down. She switches the lamp off in the living room and manages to make her way back to the bed through the darkness.

She settles in to the bed facing Emma and is a little startled when she feels a hand grasp her wrist in the dark. "He came back." She hears Emma whisper sleepily.

"He came back." Mary Margaret repeats and Emma can hear the smile in her mother's voice.

"Good... because we a have a huge mess to clean up." Emma adds.

"Yes, but we can do that in the morning. Rest now. He'll be here when we wake up. He's isn't leaving." She says as she reaches out to run a comforting hand down Emma's arm. He's not leaving. She reassures herself.