A/N: Thank you for your patience! If you follow my other stories, you may already have read this, but I took an unexpected hiatus from writing and am still kind of working my way back into it, so hopefully updates will not come quite as monumentally slowly from now on. Thank you so much for reading and for your feedback, and I hope you will continue to share your thoughts! I don't usually write children, so if you have thoughts about Henry, I'd be especially interested to hear them!

Chapter 3 — Confrontations

[11:34 AM] hey
[11:35 AM] can we talk?

Ruby had sent those texts almost three hours ago. It was a slow day at the diner, which allowed her ample time to stare pathetically at her phone in hopes of a response.

This morning, she had realized something really, really awful. Maybe Lacey French was the kind of person who could hop into bed with anyone she thought was cute after a couple of shots. Maybe Ruby thought she was that sort of person, and maybe she could sometimes do a pretty decent job of pretending to be that person, but she absolutely, positively was not.

The idea that she'd spent the night (even if the actual contents said night weren't exactly scandalous) with someone who probably didn't really care about her as a person bothered her. And though it made her stomach turn to think about it, she knew she had to tell Lacey that before she let herself fall deeper into an illusion.

The fact that their torrid affair had lasted a total of two and a half days, and that it consisted of nothing more than making out a little and the removal of only the outer layer of clothing already meant to be revealing, made Ruby all the more certain that she could not handle anything more.

The bell on the door mercifully jarred Ruby from her thoughts. "Hey, Carrie."

"Slow day?" Carrie wondered, looking around at the empty diner.

Ruby rested her head on her hand. "Oh yeah."

Carrie took a seat at the bar, and in doing so got a closer look at Ruby. "Are you okay?"

Carrie was another person close to Ruby's age that she didn't know that well. She had always seemed in Ruby's mind to be one of those people, not unlike Mary Margaret, who had her life together in a way Ruby couldn't even conceptualize. Then again, Ruby could really use a friend about now, and she realized with a kind of sad surprise that she didn't have very many actual friends. She had people she went out with, but they weren't the kind of people she'd talk to about real problems. She had Ashley, but Ashley had her own set of issues that kind of made Ruby feel like anything she shared would seem trivial by comparison.

And while Ruby thought of Carrie as someone who had her life together-and as a result might think Ruby's life decisions were stupid at best-she definitely wasn't on the same level as Emma or Mary Margaret. She worked a lot, but that was mostly because she didn't want to live with her crazy, overbearing aunts. And it wasn't her fault that she seemed to like her job.

"Uh..." Ruby began at last, "I've been better."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Carrie asked.

Ruby smiled, "Sure, but it's pretty stupid. Let me take your order first."

"Oh, just a coffee and a piece of apple pie. Extra whipped cream."

Ruby raised her eyebrows. "Yikes. Are you feeling okay?"

"I've been better," said Carrie with a shrug.

"Swap stories?" Ruby asked hopefully as she put on a fresh pot of coffee.

Carrie smiled, and the expression lit up her eyes. "All right."

Ruby returned the smile, cut two pieces of pie, and doused them in whipped cream.

"So there's this...person," Ruby began slowly. She had never given very much serious thought to her bisexuality. It had only just occurred to her that she might not want to broadcast the news to someone she didn't know very well. "We met a couple of nights ago, and really hit it off. But...I think maybe...I think I'm making more out of it than it is. So...I think I have to end it before I get myself hurt over something stupid."

"Oh," said Carrie quietly. "Well, that's...very sensible." She looked like she wanted to say more, but instead, she took a bite of pie.

"But?" Ruby prodded.

Carrie shrugged. "But maybe you're not? Making more out of it than it is? I don't know. I don't want you to get yourself hurt for no reason, it's just..." she frowned and took a sip of her coffee "...well, isn't that the risk you take? For a chance at...you know, romance?"

Ruby cut herself a piece of pie and stabbed at it a few times. "I guess. But it's...we kind of...moved a little too fast. For me, at least. Or no...I mean...not that I didn't want to...and not that I haven't before..."

"Maybe you should just tell them you want to take things slower," said Carrie, when Ruby had finished floundering for words.

Ruby frowned and bit her lip as she struggled for a way to put her thoughts into words. She couldn't just do that. Who would want that? She didn't want Lacey to think she expected her to put out any kind of special effort before she put out again, or something. She didn't need that, and Lacey wouldn't want to give it to her, and that was fine, because she didn't...

"I'm sorry...did I say something wrong?"

Ruby blinked back a surprising onslaught of tears and turned away to collect herself. "No, no," she said, with a thin, high-pitched laugh. "God, I'm being crazy. I'm in way over my head. I don't want to subject anyone to this. I just have to end it."

"Subject anyone to what?" Carrie wondered.

Ruby waved her hands dismissively. "Oh, me. Being crazy."

"I don't think you're being crazy."

"Really?" Ruby's confusion distracted her from her minor emotional outburst, and she turned to meet Carrie's eyes.

"Of course not," said Carrie with a small smile. "I don't really know anything about relationships, but...people are hard." She shrugged. "That's why I think it's good to be straightforward."

Ruby returned Carrie's smile and took another stab at her untouched pie. "Huh. Thanks." Maybe she wouldn't end it just yet. Maybe she could somehow express her concerns without seeming needy. "Anyway, your turn."

"Oh..." Carrie took a long sip of coffee before she continued. "So, a few days ago, there was this patient in the hospital who was injured in the mine explosion. Nothing serious, but she was kept overnight for observation. We had sort of a strange interaction, and ever since then, she's sort of..." Carrie shook her head "...haunted my dreams? That sounds weird. It is weird. They're these really intense nightmares. I always wake up...screaming." She averted her eyes.

"Wow. I'm really sorry to hear that," said Ruby after a moment's silence.

Carrie looked up again, wide-eyed like a doe. "The strangest thing is that I feel like I know her somehow. But I hardly know anything about her. And anyway, I doubt I'll ever see her again."

"Well, maybe you should try," Ruby suggested with a shrug.

"You think so?" Carrie rubbed her arm uneasily, but there was a hint of interest in her voice.

"Or, you know, try to find out more about her some other way," Ruby amended. "Maybe it would take some of the mystery away."

"Huh," said Carrie, and it was her turn to stab ineffectually at her pie. "You know, maybe you're right." She smiled, the same way as before. It was a small, melancholy sort of expression. "I'm really glad I came here today," she said.

Ruby returned her smile ten times over. "So am I."

Emma slammed the door to her yellow bug closed, leaned back in the seat, and heaved a long sigh. Why the hell was she doing this?

She tried to think of a way to rationalize it. The way the mayor had put it, it didn't sound like she was trying to get this lady in trouble. It sounded like she was...concerned? But that didn't make any sense. Who could she possibly be concerned about, besides her son? Her cheerful disposition didn't exactly invite camaraderie.

Then again, maybe Emma was allowing Henry to influence her opinion. Maybe she just wanted to hate Regina and she was ascribing less desirable traits to her to aid in that analysis. She was friends with Kathryn Nolan, wasn't she? And Kathryn seemed like a perfectly nice person. Henry thought she was Midas's daughter, but that was neither here nor there.

Emma pushed her hair out of her face and shook her head. She was doing this, she decided, because she wanted to figure out why she felt like she needed to do it.

As she reached over to turn on the radio, a piping voice from behind her scared her in ways she hadn't thought possible. "So, where we headed?"

"What the hell are you doing back there?"

Henry grinned and propped himself up on the back of the passenger seat. "If there's someone you're supposed to find, maybe I can help."

Emma took a few calming breaths. "Uh, thanks, kid," she said, "but I've got her address and everything, so..."

But of course the kid was not to be deterred. "Come on, maybe I know something about her!"

"Like what, her secret identity?"

"Exactly."

Emma floundered for an excuse-shouldn't you be in school, doing homework, plotting against your mom, anything? And while she could have probably found a way to get rid of him, she didn't exactly want to. So she sighed, taking great pains to highlight her exasperation, and started driving.

"So, what kind of trouble have you gotten up to today?"

"Nothing much. Did you know that until you came, all the teachers at school taught the exact same class every day?"

Emma frowned. "What?"

"Yeah," said Henry. "I didn't notice it 'til second grade. When I told my mom, she said I was just advanced for my age and got the school to move me up a grade, but the same thing happened in third grade. And fourth."

"Maybe you're just a genius," said Emma with a shrug.

"Yeah, I don't think so," said Henry. "I looked some stuff up online, and we were supposed to be learning all kinds of stuff I never heard of."

So, what, this was his explanation for his suddenly horrible grades? This kid might need more help than Emma thought. "You know, I'm sure Miss Blanchard would be happy to-"

"She is. But four and a half years is a lot to catch up on."

"Right," said Emma, biting the inside of her mouth. This was not her kid, not her problem, she reminded herself, but every time, it got a little harder to do. "Of course it is."

The street Mayor Mills had written down for her was absolutely beautiful, like everything in Storybrooke. Everyone had a perfect lawn with a perfect garden and trees and children playing on the lawns, and the whole scene made Emma a little bit sick to her stomach. Couldn't she go back to chasing assholes around the worst parts of Las Vegas?

But of course the prettiest and most perfect lawn of all belonged to Emma's target.

"What's this lady's name?" Henry wondered.

Emma, who was too distracted by her general sense of self-hatred to consider whether she ought to be including Henry on this strange little field trip, simply answered him. "Belinda Irving."

"Oh. Yeah, I know her."

The sudden change in tone was enough to draw Emma out of her personal storm cloud. "What do you know about her?"

"She looks really sad all the time. Her husband here is definitely not her real husband. He's mean to her."

Emma squeezed her eyes closed. "Trust me, kid, real husbands are mean to their real wives all the time."

"My mom knew her before the curse. She always watches her in the grocery store, but she only talks to her when she thinks I'm not around."

Huh. Well that was kind of weird. But a far more reasonable explanation would be that Regina only talked to her when abusive husband wasn't around. If she was so worried, couldn't she just put a hit out on him or something? Drive him out of town, like she kept trying to do to Emma?

Was that what this was really about?

The woman who opened the door was not exactly what Emma had been expecting, to put it lightly. Wild blonde curls spilled out of a messy bun, framing a long, regal face with cold blue eyes. She was very tall and she seemed to peer down her nose at Emma. "Can I help you?"

"Hi, Belinda Irving?"

The woman's lip curled into a sneer. "Who wants to know?"

"Emma Swan, deputy to the sheriff."

"Ah, yes, the newcomer," Ms. Irving replied. "I imagine you're accustomed to being recognized by your unfamiliarity, yet I fear I don't get out much, and there are many faces in this town which are unfamiliar to me. As such, I can't imagine how I could possibly be of assistance to you."

Emma blinked a couple of times. For a housewife who looked like she hadn't gotten a full night of sleep in a couple of decades, she spun an awfully eloquent turn of phrase. "Oh, uh...no, Ma'am. I was actually hoping I could be of some help to you. I heard you were injured in the mine explosion."

Mrs. Irving quirked one perfectly arched eyebrow. "Kind thanks for the offer, Deputy, but the hospital staff provided me with all the help I required. Is there anything else?"

Faced with an impossibly cold stare and a rebuttal the likes of which she'd never heard, Emma silently shook her head.

"Good day, Deputy Swan," said Mrs. Irving before slamming the door in Emma's face.

Emma rubbed her forehead. "Any thoughts, kid?" she murmured, half as a joke.

"Obviously a bad guy."

The comment stunned Emma into chuckling. "Come on, you don't know that. These people are cursed, right? Not everyone can just grin and bear their pain."

"Well, I don't have a lot to go on," said Henry pointedly.

Against her better judgement, Emma offered a few more details as they walked to the next house. "Housewife, no friends or family, married to some guy named Philip."

"Philip?" Henry perked up and Emma mentally berated herself. "Like Sleeping Beauty?"

"Well, she is blonde," Emma shrugged. "But I thought Philip was Sleeping Beauty's true love or whatever."

"These stories aren't always what you think they'll be," said Henry, shaking his head.

Emma gave him a look. "Yeah, I guess you're right about that," she said.

"Good afternoon, Lacey."

It took everything Lacey had not to jump out of her skin. She clutched her little basket of groceries and turned around. "Hello, Mr. Gold."

"It's good to see you," he said with a tilt of his head. "Haven't in awhile."

"Yeah, well," Lacey shrugged awkwardly, trying to think of something to say other than get lost. "Such is life," she settled on at last, then turned to continue her shopping.

"It seems we always meet by accident," said Gold, and Lacey's shoulders tensed. She really, really just wanted to finish her grocery shopping, go home, and put on pyjamas for the next 24 hours or so. "I wonder, would you do me the honour of going on a date someday?"

Lacey tried with everything she had to keep her expression neutral as she pretended to contemplate the pasta selection. "Uh..." She thought of the text messages she had yet to answer and the urge to cringe grew even stronger. Can we talk sounded a lot like this needs to end, but Lacey couldn't think of a better excuse. "Thanks, Mr. Gold. That's very kind of you, but I'm kind of seeing someone."

There was an awkward silence. "I see," said Gold quietly, and Lacey suddenly wondered whether what she had said had been such a good idea after all. "Well then. I wish you all the best."

"Right," said Lacey to her bag of pasta. "Thanks."

When she got back to her apartment, she put some water on to boil and grabbed her phone off her bed. Might as well get everything unpleasant done at once.

[4:56 PM] Sure. When/where?

Her phone buzzed not a minute after she had put it down.

[4:58 PM] the diner within the next hour or two?

Lacey threw her phone on her bed, heaved a deep sigh, and went back to preparing her lunch/dinner. While she had already resigned herself to the inevitable, a part of her wondered how she could have fucked everything up so quickly.

"Mayor Mills."

Regina looked up from her desk in surprise. She hadn't heard anyone enter. "Belinda," she said, raising her eyebrows.

"Do you care to tell me what the hell is going on?"

"What do you mean?" Regina asked, standing.

Belinda did not move from her position at the doorway, feet firmly planted, arms crossed. It was an old habit of Maleficent's, blocking the easiest exit. "First I end up in the care of what must be the most incompetent hospital staff in the universe because of some freak accident, now you're sending some stranger to, what? Check up on me?"

"No, Belinda, I-"

"I'll have you know, Mayor Mills, that I have quite enough to deal with every day without your bullshit." Belinda's tone remained low and calm, the only evidence of any emotion at all a slight edge to her voice. "If there's something you want from me, I don't see why you can't just take it. You have that kind of power and I don't have the energy to fight you."

Again Regina found she had to swallow a surprising urge to cry. "Is it so difficult for you to believe that someone could be genuinely concerned for your well-being?"

Belinda laughed, but it was a harsh, mirthless sound. "You've picked a fine time to be concerned for my well-being!"

"I've tried to talk to you before!" Regina snapped. She fully realized that twenty-eight years of frustration were a lot for someone who couldn't possibly understand to handle, but she had to try harder and harder to restrain her tears. "You never wanted to talk to me!"

Belinda remained unmoved. "I don't particularly want to talk to you now, but you've gone to a lot of trouble. What is it you want to hear, Madame Mayor? That I'm unhappy? That my entire life feels like one long, complicated lie? Is that something you fancy yourself capable of understanding?"

"Yes!" Regina shot back, and apparently the tear that managed to escape from her eye caught Belinda by surprise, because her expression changed abruptly from one of barely-contained fury to one of slightly uncomfortable bewilderment.

"Yes," Regina said again, quietly, as she allowed her tears to fall where they might. "I have no friends because I thought for a long time I didn't want any. My son openly despises me, so much so that he got himself to Boston and back to bring his birthmother here. As if it isn't enough that Henry worships her, everyone in town seems to think she's the best thing since sliced bread. I could get a restraining order or have her forcibly removed from the town, but if I did, Henry would never forgive me. The only thing I do well is my job, and now even that has come into question." She held out her hands as if to say and there you have it, then turned away to hide the next wracking sob that overcame her.

After several minutes, during which time Regina was convinced Belinda had left just as quietly as she had arrived, Regina felt a long-fingered hand lightly resting upon her shoulder.

"For as long as I can remember, I've wanted a family. I've wanted to be a housewife and raise children and do the cooking and tend the garden. Philip and I have been together since high school, and as if it weren't enough that I could never get pregnant, I don't want to. I don't love him. I have to talk myself out of hating him every single day. And of course he knows. He's sleeping with my neighbour." Regina turned around abruptly, but Belinda's expression was neutral. All the sadness was contained in her eyes. "And there's not really anything I can do about it, because I have no job, no money, and no useful skills, and the prospect of attempting to start a whole new life absolutely terrifies me. Because I still feel like this is what I should want because I've always wanted it."

And it's all my fault, Regina's brain added unhelpfully. If this were Maleficent, Regina would embrace her. Maleficent had always been a bit uncomfortable with people getting too close to her (physically and emotionally), but she had always allowed Regina to hug her, awkwardly patting her back until she had finished her senseless display of emotion, and Regina liked to think that somewhere, deep inside, Maleficent appreciated the thought behind the gesture.

But Belinda's arms were folded defensively across her body. Regina was no longer in the business of wearing ridiculously high heels, which meant that Belinda seemed to loom over her even though she wasn't all that much taller. And in this world, they were not old friends. Regina had just barely managed to get through to her after nearly three decades of trying.

If this were Maleficent, she would realize that nothing she'd just said was anywhere near true. She would blast her faux husband into oblivion, enact some dreadful and horrifyingly creative revenge upon Regina for subjecting her to such a miserable existence, and then proceed to help Regina with her problems.

Wasn't there any way of just waking up one person? Even just a little bit?

Regina finally looked away from Belinda's piercing stare. "Just because something has been a certain way for..." she nearly choked on the words "for as long as you can remember... that doesn't mean it can never change."

"Do you think so?" Belinda asked, genuine interest in her voice. "Suppose...ah!"

And then something strange happened.

Belinda held a hand to her temple, as though she had suddenly gotten a splitting headache.

"Are you all right?" Regina asked, more than a little alarmed.

But as soon as it happened, it was gone. Belinda folded her arms and regained her neutral expression and cold gaze as though nothing has happened. She shook her head and scoffed. "Well, you've always been a visionary, Madame Mayor," she said. "I wish you luck in your venture to turn the world upside down, though your zeal is about twenty years too late to be cute."

Without waiting for Regina's response, or really even looking her in the eye, Belinda turned on her heel and left the office.

Regina bit the inside of her mouth, walked slowly over to her desk, and picked up the phone.

Lacey had never darkened the doorway of Granny's Diner, which was actually kind of surprising, considering that it was one of only a handful of restaurants in town. She pushed open the door slowly, giving herself some time to survey the room so she didn't end up standing awkwardly at the entrance.

There were only a couple of people eating, and they seemed to be finishing up. Lacey caught sight of Ruby washing the countertop and took a deep breath before she walked over and sat on one of the stools. "Fancy seeing you here."

Ruby started a little bit. "Hey," she said by way of response. Lacey was slightly comforted by Runy's nervousness. Maybe the foreboding texts didn't spell doom, after all.

"You know I've lived here all my life, and I've never been in this place?" Lacey rested her chin on her hand.

"Really?" But Ruby kept fussing with condiments and menus, and she didn't seem to want to meet Lacey's eyes. "I'd say you're missing out, but after all this time, there's barely anything here I can stand to eat," she said with a stiff shrug. "Oh! Do you want anything?"

Lacey hid her smile behind her hand. "You've made such a convincing sales pitch."

This finally caught Ruby's attention. She looked up in wide-eyed surprise, then relaxed into a sheepish grin. "No one ever said I was a good employee."

Lacey picked up one of the menus to keep her hands occupied, and after a moment's awkward silence, she determined that it would be up to her to speak first. "So...what did you want to talk about?"

"Oh. That."

More silence. Lacey tried to focus on reading the menu, but her brain wouldn't process the words.

"I was just...thinking...the last couple of nights...have been great, don't get me wrong." Ruby spoke in small, short bursts broken by long, uncomfortable silences, but Lacey wasn't quite ready to look up from her non-distraction. "But I think...maybe...I might be...I don't know, more into it than you are?"

At this, Lacey looked up, too surprised to be nervous. "What?"

Ruby quickly averted her eyes and went back to fiddling with a salt shaker. "I, uh...I just think if we kept...you know, hooking up like that, I'd probably just get all clingy. So..."

Ruby wasn't really making a lot of sense, but Lacey figured it was probably her misunderstanding. As far as she could remember, she had never hooked up with the same person more than once, nor had she ever wanted to. When people talked to her about their feelings, they were three sheets to the wind and spilling their woes about some other girl. Lacey had never given much thought to how those entanglements began. She'd never wanted a real relationship, in part because she didn't really have any idea what they entailed.

Was that what Ruby wanted? Or was she just trying to let Lacey down easily? If it was the latter, Lacey was about to make a huge fool of herself, but she was willing to risk that on the off-chance that it was the former.

"Ruby..." she began, brow furrowed, "...are you saying you'd like to...I don't know...date?"

Ruby looked up again, wide-eyed and panicked. "Oh, I wasn't...I mean, I wouldn't expect that from you..."

Lacey tilted her head. Ruby had avoided her question. "But do you want to?" she repeated.

Ruby averted her eyes. Her hands grasped the corners of her apron and she fiddled with the fabric for a moment. Lacey thought there might be the tiniest hint of a smile playing at the corners of her lips.

"Are you offering?" she asked quietly.

A thrill ran through Lacey's entire body, and she grinned foolishly. "Sure!" she said cheerfully. "I mean...I've never really, uh...dated anyone before, per se, so I can't promise I'll have any idea what I'm doing, but..."

Ruby met her eyes and she stopped rambling. Slowly, that tiny hint of a smile began to match Lacey's huge grin.

"But sure," Lacey finished breathily.

Violet collapsed onto her bed without even bothering to change clothes and contemplated just staying there until she fell asleep. She knew if she didn't take a shower, she would not only wake up feeling disgusting, but sore. Apparently, that wasn't a compelling enough argument to get her to move. Two full days of feeling profoundly lonely and directionless had taken its toll on her.

Fortunately, she was saved from further fatalistic ruminations by the sound of her phone vibrating.

"Hey, Carrie."

"Are you okay?"

"Fine," said Violet. "Just tired."

"Oh...well, I was going to ask if you wanted to get dinner before my shift, but if you're tired..."

"No, that'd be great, actually," Violet said quickly. "Let me just...what time?"

"I work at 8."

"Right. I need to shower. Granny's?"

"Exactly what I need. See you soon!"

Violet smiled and held the phone next to her ear for a second after Carrie had hung up. It was just what she needed, too. Ten minutes later, she was clean, changed, and out the door. She met Carrie on Main Street and they finished the walk to Granny's Diner together.

"What have you been up to?" Violet asked, hoping to avoid talking about herself for as long as possible.

Carrie shrugged. "More weird dreams. Talked to Ruby for awhile earlier. Did you know she's saving up to go to college, too?"

"Really?" Violet swallowed uncomfortably. "I guess I don't know that much about her."

"Anyway, do you know what she suggested?"

"What?"

"That maybe, if I find out more about that woman in the hospital, it would take away some of the mystery, and I'd stop having nightmares about her."

Violet frowned. That sounded kind of risky. Carrie had always been a trusting person. She tended to want to see the good in everyone, even when there wasn't much to see. Violet, on the other hand, preferred to trust her instincts about people. If she was having nightmares about someone, she certainly wouldn't go chasing after them.

"Well?" Carrie prompted. "What do you think?"

"I..." Violet averted her eyes. "I don't know, Carrie...don't you think it might be dangerous?"

"I'm not going to just go chasing after her," said Carrie. "I just want to figure out who she is. She's probably just some regular person."

"Right...well..." Violet picked at her food uneasily. "If you think it'll help you with the nightmares, I guess it's worth a try," she said at last. "I'll help if I can. Do you remember her name?"

"Oh, I didn't tell you before?" Carrie wondered. "Belinda Irving. Tall, blonde..."

Violet raised her eyebrows. "I know her. She was in that 6 A.M. class I cancelled."

The way Carrie perked up made Violet feel slightly queasy. "Really? What's she like?"

Cold. Intimidating. "I don't know...people aren't exactly at their most personable at that hour."

Carrie relaxed back into her seat and sipped at her water. "I don't suppose you'd tell me where she works, or anything?"

"I think she's a housewife."

"Really?"

Violet shrugged.

"Do you know where she lives?"

"Carrie, you said you weren't going to go chasing after her."

Carrie bit her lip. "I'm not," she said slowly. "I just...need a lead, that's all."

"Right," said Violet skeptically.

Carrie sighed, and her eyes took on that wide, searching quality that never failed to make Violet's heart flutter. "Please, Violet? These nightmares are driving me crazy!"

Violet rolled her eyes in an attempt to cover for the short-circuiting in her brain. "Fine," she huffed. "I don't know her address offhand, but she lives on Elm. You know, the really nice street with the big houses and perfect lawns and whatnot."

"Like, where Ashley's ex's dad lives?"

"That's the place."

"Wow..." Suddenly, Carrie started and looked down to check her watch. "Thanks, Vi. I'd better pay so I can get to work." She stood and grabbed her jacket.

"Carrie?"

"Mhm?"

"Be careful?"

Carrie's smile lit up her face, but it didn't quite banish the sadness from her eyes. She leaned down, squeezed Violet's shoulders, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I promise," she said.

While the sensible part of Violet's mind was wholly unconvinced by this promise, she had a hard time concentrating on anything but the lingering warmth on her cheek and the erratic beating of her heart.