Thanks again for the reviews. You don't know how much they mean to me.
Disclaimer: as before none of it is mine.
I was supposed to update yesterday, but something came up. I'm so sorry!
The darkness of the night slowly faded into morning. Killian stood at the helm, watching the sun rise, the beams reflecting in the ocean. This was it. He had stolen some magic beans from the giant and was ready to set sail into the unknown. He wasn't sure which way he was heading yet, as long as it was far away from Storybrooke, from her. He hadn't seen much of this land yet, so he thought he could sail this world for a bit.
Killian sighed staring out in front of him, the sound of the waves calming him.
It was time for him to leave Storybrooke. His heart couldn't take it anymore. After Milah, he didn't think he could love again, but then there was Emma Swan. Fate was playing a cruel joke on him, letting him fall in love with a woman who would never be his. He felt a tear roll down his cheek and he quickly wiped it away. Captain Hook didn't cry, especially not over a woman. But then again, Emma Swan wasn't just any woman. She had slowly crept into his mind and his heart, before he had even realized it.
-Flashback-
They had been in Neverland for four months already and it was beginning to show. The atmosphere on the Jolly Roger had shifted from hopeful to heavy and fearful. The night was falling over Neverland again and still they hadn't come any closer to finding Henry. Killian stood at the helm, steering them to their next adventure, hopefully one where they would find Emma's boy.
In the corner of his eye, he saw a figure approaching. He immediately knew who it was.
"Can't sleep, lass?" he asked, taking in her appearance. She looked as if she hadn't slept in a while, but as always she had her brave face on.
"Yeah, nothing new," she said and shrugged. It certainly wasn't the first time she paid him a visit while she was supposed to be asleep.
He always looked forward to these little moments with her. She finally trusted him and it made him feel all warm inside. Yes, Captain Hook was totally smitten by her.
"We will find him, love," he said, knowing her mind was in overdrive again. "I promise." He shifted a bit closer to her as he saw a single tear rolling down her cheek. He wasn't sure how she would react if he'd pull her close to comfort her, but he figured he'd rather try. He tentatively moved closer and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him. He was surprised when instead of pushing him away, she leaned into him and let him comfort her. They stood like that for a while, her head cradled into the nook of his neck. His good hand was rubbing circles on her back and she sighed before looking up at him.
"Thank you," she said, inching even closer to him. Her gaze flickered to his lips. Killian's breath hitched as he leaned forward a bit.
"Emma?" someone behind them said. Killian silently cursed as they moved away from each other and saw Charming coming towards them, glaring at Killian.
"Dav- Dad? What are you doing up?" Emma asked embarrassed.
"I could ask you the same question," David said.
"I couldn't sleep," Emma said and shrugged. "So I figured, I go and talk to Hook about the plan for tomorrow." They were going back to the island in the morning. They had been searching for Henry for five months and they finally had located where he was kept.
"Talking, huh?" David asked.
Emma rolled her eyes and walked away, leaving David and Killian alone.
"You stay the hell away from my daughter," David said, glaring at Killian.
"I think she can decide that for herself," Killian answered and smirked.
David took a step closer, fully pissed off. "Don't make me kill you, Hook, because I will."
With that David turned around and went to find Emma.
-End of flashback-
His hope had sparked up because of what almost happened. They had gotten pretty close during their journey and he knew the feelings weren't entirely one sided. Killian didn't want to bring it up with them being so close to finding Henry and when they did, he didn't want to be in the way of their reunion. He had broken up a family once and he wasn't about to do it again.
He thought back to the conversation he had with Snow White the day before.
-Flashback-
He heard the bell of the diner, signaling someone had come in, but he didn't bother looking up.
"Hey Killian," he heard someone say. He slowly looked up and saw Emma's mother in front of him smiling at him.
"Your Highness," he said and nodded.
"Do you mind if I sat down for a bit?" she said gesturing to the seat next to him.
He shrugged and looked down at his plate again. He wasn't hungry, but he figured he had to eat something, since it had been a while.
"You okay?" he heard Mary Margaret ask. To say that he was confused would have been an understatement.
"Why do you care?" he asked quietly. He heard her sigh before reaching for his arm.
"You saved our lives, Hook. I'm forever indebted to you. And you're not a bad guy so why wouldn't I care?" she answered.
He met her gaze and was dumbfounded to see she wasn't lying.
"I also see how you have changed, in the best possible way. I'm really glad you did." she continued.
Killian frowned and shrugged again. Her daughter was the reason he had changed. He wanted to be a better man because of her, but alas it wasn't meant to be.
"David saw you stack your ship today. Are you heading off?" she asked.
"Yes, you're quite right. There's nothing keeping me here anymore." He said without even bothering to keep the sadness out of his voice.
"What about Emma?" Snow asked and frowned.
"What about her?" he asked.
"She cares about you," she answered.
Killian nodded slowly, "But not in the way I want to. I'm sure the lass is grateful like you for getting everyone home safe, but that's all."
"I'm sure she-," Snow started as the bell of the diner went again. This time Emma, Henry and Bae walked in.
He saw the way they looked at each other. He couldn't and wouldn't stand in the way of that. Bae deserved happiness and Killian was ready to step aside this time. He was ready to swallow down the pain stirring inside of him. He loved Emma, more than he ever thought was possible, but he was willing to rip his own heart out by leaving her. Bae had hurt her, but Emma seemed to have forgiven him.
-End of flashback-
He heard the water slosh against the ship. He looked back at Storybrooke one last time and sighed. His heart was beating furiously in his chest, shooting pains through his body. He would never see Emma again, but his heart was irrevocably hers. He looked back at the ocean and prepared to set sail.
"Killian!" he heard someone shout. His mind was playing tricks on him for sure. "God damn it! Killian!" he heard again. Her voice made his breathing stop and his heart clench. He heard footsteps coming towards him, but he didn't move. He knew that when he looked back, he would see nothing but air. Fate was, yet again, playing a cruel joke on him. He gritted his teeth and looked back anyway, preparing to see nothing.
However, his heart fluttered when he saw someone he didn't expect to see, Emma. He casted his eyes down and sighed, not believing what he had just seen. "You're not real, are you?"
His voice sounded foreign to him, as if it was someone else speaking.
Before he knew it, she had wrapped her arms around him. Silent tears were running down her cheek. "Don't leave," she whispered. "Please, don't leave me."
He frowned and moved his hand to her cheek, wiping away her tears.
He held his breath again, realizing she was really there in his arms. "Emma," he said with a hoarse voice, wrapping his left hand around her waist and pulling her closer.
"I'm sorry, so sorry," she said softly. "I just wanted Henry to have a normal functioning family. I wanted to try for him, even though I didn't want to. I don't love him anymore, Killian. I wish I had chosen you from the start. I wish I had avoided this heartache I've been feeling ever since we came back."
"Shhh, love," he said, holding her tight. "I understand. I just didn't want to break up your family. I didn't want to cause pain to you, Henry, or Bae-Neal."
She looked up at him and he could see her walls crumbling down one by one. Her lips were only inches away from his. Looking into her eyes, he could see she wanted it as much as he did. He closed the gap between them and poured all of his love into this kiss, letting go of his fears. He felt her hands trailing over his back, pulling him even closer to her. He wanted to stay like this forever and never let go. He could feel their kiss going through his whole body. It was as if there were fireworks going on inside.
As they both had to pull up for air, he rested his forehead against her and smiled, his hand cupping her cheek lovingly.
"I love you, Emma Swan," he whispered and brushed his lips over hers. "I love you so much."
Emma smiled up at him, giving him a soft kiss. "I love you too, Killian Jones. I chose you and I will always choose you."
This was it. I hope you liked it.