The sun was now setting, casting an array of colours across the sky and reflected in the water of the ocean. They were sitting on Killian's jacket, their feet buried under the sand as they watched the day draw to an end.
'So your first crush was a bad boy who wore leather, you certainly have a type don't you, Swan?' Killian teased her, bumping their shoulders together.
'Well, technically the first guy I ever had a crush on was Bobby Fairman when I was 7. This really horrible girl at the orphanage stole my crayons and he got them back for me. He was 9 and I was besotted. I drew a picture of farm animals with the crayons for him but when I went to give it to him, he was drawing with the other girl so I ripped the picture up and burned it in the fire. It seems I already had a rejection complex at 7, but that's what being an orphan does to you I guess.' Emma laughed at the memory. Her days without a family still hurt, but at least the pain had lessened since finding her parents.
'Then came the bad boy wearing leather. I was 14 and just started high school. He was older and walked around like he owned the place. He was arrogant and he ended up being a total jerk. He pulled a prank on one of the teachers so as a punishment he had to tutor freshman in History. I pretended to suck at it so I would get to talk to him, and it was one of the stupidest things I've ever done. After he mocked me for being an orphan I told myself I would never change myself to impress a guy. If he's not interested in the real me then he isn't the right one.' She tilted her head thoughtfully as she watched the sun dip lower along the horizon, and she felt Killian shift beside her.
'Too right, lass. I was actually in a similar situation when I was young, all those hundreds of years ago.' Killian joked, and Emma laughed before turning to him with a smile. ''Oh, do share, old man.' She teased, and he gave her a quirk of his eyebrow before talking.
'Well, my brother and I, although a few years apart, looked very much alike. So much so that we were often mistaken for each other. My parents did not want us to have any relationships with girls as they feared we would impregnate them and have to serve our duties as a father rather than as naval officers for the King. Liam was 19 and going through a rebellious phase, so one night he went to the local tavern and picked up a woman. He couldn't stay the night as our parents would get suspicious, so he told her to meet him in our stables the next day. I'm sure you've figured it out already, but when she arrived, it was I who was in the stables. She launched herself at me, kissing me and running her hands all over me. Of course as a 15-year-old boy who rarely had contact with women, I was taken aback but quite enjoying myself. She whispered my brother's name and I realized what had happened, but I went along with it anyway.' Emma gave him a disapproving look and he shrugged his shoulders and grinned.
'She later found out I was 15 and slapped me, and neither my brother nor I saw her again. Liam denied it but I knew that was the reason he wouldn't help me meet women when we were older.' He laughed and she smiled at the way his eyes crinkled and cheeks dimpled slightly as he recalled the memory of a life long ago.
'Isn't it amazing how different our lives are, how we're from completely different worlds and time periods and life experiences and yet we've found each other?' Emma asked with wonder in her voice. Killian's expression sobered up and he looked at her with an intensity that made her stomach flutter.
'Aye, love, it's quite a tale. But what amazes me the most, is that for so long I was a bitter, vengeful, empty man, whose only goal in life was to take someone else's. And then I met you, and everything changed, I changed. You helped me see that I didn't have to be alone, that I could be a part of something. That there is hope for everyone, even a pirate who had lost his way.' Before Emma could react, his hand was in her hair, his thumb brushing her cheek and his lips bruising hers.
She whimpered and kissed back, bringing her hands up his back and into his hair, and they moved together so effortlessly that her whole body felt simultaneously relaxed and on fire. Killian moved his hand to her shoulder and gently guided her down onto her back, their mouths never parting. She didn't care that her hair was tangled in the sand because Killian's hand was on her waist, the heat from his skin burning through her dress. The heat spread all over her body, and the tingling sensation between her thighs intensified.
'Gods, Emma, you're amazing.' Killian whispered against her cheek as he pulled away to breath. 'You're beautiful and brilliant and...glowing.' He had pulled further away so he could see her face, and it took her a moment to realize the last part wasn't his intended compliment. She came out of her kiss-infused haze to notice his wide eyes before looking down at her arm. A soft white light was emanating from her skin, and she sat up to get a better look, shocked to find the light was all over her body, pulsing with her heartbeat.
'It's my magic, its back.' She whispered, a smile tugging at her lips. 'We did it.' She said, looking up at him in awe.
'We definitely make quite the team, Swan.' He chuckled, and she was suddenly overcome with emotions as she flung her arms around his neck.
'We're going home.' She whispered with a thump in her throat. Killian was silent but he pulled her closer to his body.
They were both aware of what had happened, what is was that brought her magic back, but neither of them mentioned it. In Emma's reality, people didn't get curse-breaking kisses to confirm their love for someone, and even if it was now very clear how they felt about each other, she wanted to keep the words inside until she was ready to say them.
She did love him, she knew it by the way her heart rate increased at the thought of him, the way her skin tingled when he looked at her, the way everything had become just right with him. But most of all, she knew she loved him by the way her thoughts would entertain images of them together in the future. Her walls had always been so high that such thoughts had never even entered her mind with anyone else. 8 months with Walsh and the most she thought about was where the would go out for dinner that night (pre-simian reveal of course).
She had believed she loved Walsh, but now everything about their time together was tainted; he was just pretending the entire time, taking advantage of the fact that she had allowed him into her life by monitoring her for the Wicked Witch. She had every right to be wary of letting people in, but Killian was someone she knew she wanted in her life, and her heart. She hugged him a little tighter and sighed happily. The future looked pretty good with him by her side.