Emma's eyes shot open as Regina's lips pressed against hers. She relaxed into the kiss then tensed up soon after. She pulled back, her eyes meeting Regina's.
"Regina," she stopped to catch her breath. "Regina, what just happened? What are we doing?"
Regina sighed. She didn't know why she did that. Her mind was racing and she couldn't get the words out and Emma was looking at her with those puppy dog eyes. She contemplated running but, where would she go? This was her house, after all.
"Oh God, Emma." She put her hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry. I-I don't know why I did that, Emma."
Emma studied Regina's face and sighed. "Regina," she stepped back even further from Regina. "I have loved you since I was 14. Pretty much since I figured out what love was. If anyone asked me who I thought the love of my life was, the answer would be you. But I don't want to be this thing you do because you're upset. I want to be more than just that to you. I want you to love me."
Regina closed her eyes and shook her head. "Emma, I loved you. So much. I tried to ignore it for so long. I used Daniel to try to get over you and it worked. It actually worked. Then you left and I thought maybe I did something and I," she sighed. "I stopped caring. About anything. I just wanted you to come back. Then Daniel died and I forgot about loving you for a while, honestly. Then you came back and you brought back all these feelings with you."
Regina opened her eyes and stepped toward Emma. "I'm scared, Emma. Of you, of myself, of Mary Margaret, of everything. I want it all to stop but somehow in between all the shit I've been through I still love you. I love you with all of my heart and I don't even remember at all how it happened."
Emma smiled. "You really love me?"
Regina nodded. "I really do."
"God Regina, I love you so much it's not even funny." Emma flew forward and kissed Regina again. She caressed Regina's cheek and smiled against her lips.
"I love you, I love you, I love you." Emma said in between kisses.
Regina could feel tears streaming down her cheeks because this moment was all she ever wanted. Regina loving Emma and having her love Regina back and kissing her with all she had. She knew in that moment that no one could ever love someone more than she loved Emma.
Mary Margaret sat with David in a booth at Granny's. Regina had asked her to meet her there. Mary Margaret kept fidgeting in her seat.
"Stop worrying, Mary Margaret. She already said she would work on forgiving you. It's okay now." David rubbed his wife's back and smiled.
"It's not okay yet, David. I think Emma hates me for what I did to Regina."
David's eyebrows furrowed. "Why would Emma hate you for something you did to Regina? That doesn't make sense."
Mary Margaret sighed. "It makes a lot of sense. We were best friends, David. And Emma...well, Emma fell in love with Regina. She told me the same day that Regina told us that she was dating Daniel. It was heartbreaking. Since then, Emma's stood up for Regina no matter what. So yes, David, it makes perfect sense."
David sat back in his seat. "Do you think Regina knows?"
Mary Margaret shook her head. She looked down at her hands. "Emma told me that she would never tell Regina how she felt. She said their friendship was too much to risk."
Suddenly, the bell at the door jingled and Regina walked in. She smiled slightly at Mary Margaret and sat down across them.
"Hello Mary Margaret, David." Regina nodded at them.
"Hi, Regina." David said.
"Do you have something in particular you wanted to talk about with me?" Mary Margaret asked nervously.
Regina smiled brightly. "I kissed Emma."
Mary Margaret's eyes widened. "You kissed...Emma?"
Regina nodded. "Right after you left last night it seems that I lost my impulse control. I've been holding that back for so long, you'd think I'd need more than Emma defending me to make me snap."
Mary Margaret smiled. "Emma's been wanting to kiss you since we were teenagers."
Regina laughed. "I know, she told me. Almost as long as you've been wanting to kiss this one." Regina pointed at David.
David chuckled. "I heard that there were weekly meetings about me."
Regina rolled her eyes. "In my backyard. Although, I never paid attention through the whole thing. I would find myself thinking about Emma and then about Daniel."
Mary Margaret tensed when she said Daniel's name. "I'm still so sorry, Regina."
Regina held up a hand to silence Mary Margaret. "Stop. This," Regina gestured to all three of them. "what we're doing here, it's good. It's enough for now."
It feels so right being back with Mary Margaret. Regina hadn't realized how much she truly missed spending time with the other woman. It's been so long since she's allowed herself to look past their differences and see the girl she used to be best friends with and who she loved so dearly.
"I really missed you." Mary Margaret said quietly.
"I've been here the whole time." Regina said, confused.
"I know you've been there, you just haven't been my Regina. We never talked, at least not civilly." Mary Margaret smiled.
Regina saw how David looked in awe of how his wife spoke to Regina. She supposed he didn't think she deserved being missed. Regina sure knows how to hold to a grudge.
"I missed you, too. More than you know." Regina whispered. "I really needed a friend this whole time and I never got one."
David smiled. "Now you have three friends. Me, Mary Margaret, and Emma."
Mary Margaret perked up. "Speaking of Emma, what are you guys going to do?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, are you going to date her or what?"
Regina's eyebrows furrowed. She hadn't even thought of that.
"I suppose if that's what Emma wants, then yes."
"Is it what you want?" David asked.
Regina smiled brightly. "It is, yes."
Regina was sitting at the counter at Granny's, sipping her coffee. Mary Margaret saw her walked up to her slowly.
"Regina," Mary Margaret said.
Regina turned to look and her and sighed. She was holding her newborn baby boy. Regina was not interested in seeing any child that came from David Nolan and Mary Margaret. She rolled her eyes.
"Is this the baby Nolan?" Regina asked, uninterested.
"Yes, his name is Daniel." Mary Margaret told her slowly.
Regina frowned as images and flashbacks raced through her mind. Images of her and Daniel hugging, kissing, smiling. Images of the woods where they would meet. Images of Daniel's lifeless body.
"You named him after Daniel?" Regina asked, suddenly feeling very small.
Mary Margaret nodded, smiling. Smiling as if it wasn't the worst idea in the world to name your child after your ex best friend's dead boyfriend. Smiling as if this moment hadn't brought back memories that Regina had tried so hard to forget. Smiling as if she wasn't breaking Regina all over again.
A tear slid down Regina's cheek. "How dare you? It's your fault he's dead and you have the nerve to name your son after him? I can't believe this!" Regina stormed out of the diner, leaving a very confused Mary Margaret behind.
Emma and Mary Margaret sat on a park bench, talking. Regina had been watching them for felt like hours but was more like twenty minutes. Emma had said that she needed time to talk to Mary Margaret and explain herself. That left Regina and David and Little Daniel on the other end of the park. Daniel was running around with another little boy and David sighed.
"She really did think it was a good idea naming him Daniel."
Regina knew this moment was coming. She took a deep breath. "I know she did. I probably could've taken the news better." She chuckled lightly. "It just took me by surprise, is all. And it brought back memories I had wished to forget."
David nodded. "I understand. I wanted to name him James."
Regina rolled her eyes. "What a charming name."
"I thought so." David said, laughing.
Regina couldn't remember the last time she had a real conversation with David. It was nice. He turned out to be a pretty decent guy. He treated Mary Margaret right, and that was enough for Regina. When did you start caring so much about Mary Margaret's happiness? Regina thought to herself. She rolled her eyes internally. Mary Margaret might be the most annoying woman Regina had ever known, but she couldn't stop herself from wishing her to be happy. She had been her best friend for pretty much her whole life.
Regina looked up and saw Emma and Mary Margaret approaching. She smiled at Emma who kissed her forehead when she reached her.
"Did you guys have a good talk?" David asked.
Emma nodded and smiled. "I just had to explain why I was being a little evil to her the other day. I just hope we can all be friends now."
Regina's eyebrows shot up. "You want to be friends?"
Emma rolled her eyes. "Not you, Regina. I don't want to be your friend. I thought I had made that pretty clear by kissing you."
Regina smiled and nodded. Mary Margaret was beaming at her two best friends.
"What?" Regina asked, annoyed.
"I'm just so happy for you guys!" Mary Margaret squealed and hugged the both of them.
Regina rolled her eyes but returned the hug. Emma smiled at her mouthed one simple sentence. A sentence that always melts Regina to a puddle. A sentence that Regina doesn't think she'll ever get tired of hearing.
"I love you."