A/N: So here it is folks, I hope ya'll enjoy. I know, I know, it's not Sunday, and technically it just became Tuesday about 17 minutes ago, but I can't help it this week. I haven't been around internet. On the really bright side, guess who scored the role of Dorothy in her school's musical? Anyways, I apologize profusely and hope you'll all forgive me since I love you all.
~R.
Maybe I'm dreaming, Regina wondered. Maybe the most wonderful woman I've ever met didn't make a pass at me tonight, and if she did, maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and go make it right with her. I really hated turning her down when she was so wonderful and so attractive and so… Emma.
Emma stood in the middle of the office, wondering if and where she had made such a crucial mistake. Regina was giving her all the go-ahead signs. Wasn't she? Shaking her head, Emma walked out of the room at a slow pace, eyes never straying from the floor.
Maybe this is all just a dream, she thought. Maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and realize that I actually didn't make a pass at the most beautiful woman I know. And get rejected. Maybe it can all go back to normal. Maybe.
When Regina arrived home that night, she was met with a small, giggling body slamming into her knees, and two tiny, pudgy arms circling around her knees.
"MOOOMMMMAA!" the small child yelled. "I MISSED YOU!"
"Hello, baby boy," the brunette replied, bending down and encircling her tiny boy in her arms. "How was spending the day with your abuela, mi amour?"
The small boy smiled wider than any outsider would think possible as he answered, "We maked cookies, and drawed dinos, and watched Scooby, and we even had nap time, Momma!"
Regina widened her eyes in faux shock, "My gosh, Henry! It sounds like someone had a very busy day!" She brushed her hand through his hair. It was getting too long for his small forehead, and the bangs were starting to sweep in front of his eyes. "I bet you're really tired!"
The small brunette narrowed his eyes at his mother, a look Regina remembered sending to her own mother many, many times as a child. "Nope. Not tired, Momma. No bedtime for Henry!" The child spun on his toes and ran the other direction.
"Henry!" Regina called after him. "You know better than to run in this house!" But it seemed the brunette was too late, as she could no longer see nor hear the boy as he disappeared further into her house.
The professor's house was large. I wasn't the largest house Regina had ever seen, but it was close, coming second to only the mansion her parents currently owned. Even if Regina didn't think of the house as large on a regular basis, the fact became glaringly obvious whenever her son decided to play hide-and-seek-so-I-don't-have-to-do-what-Mommy-says.
"Henry," she called sweetly. "My friend, Emma made you a sweet, my sweet." She walked down the hall further before turning a corner and adding, "It's our favorite."
Soon after, the mother saw the short brunette locks of her son come around the corner before he peeked out only his eyes, which were narrowed at his mother. "Cupcakes?" he questioned, trying to feel out the situation, as his mother had tricked him with promises before.
"Yes, my handsome boy. Cupcakes," Regina confirmed with a smile.
"And I get to eat it before bed, Momma?"
Regina raised an eyebrow in contemplation, "You can eat it before your bath."
The brunette tried to hold back a smile as the little boy's eyes widened comically.
"REALLY, MOMMA?! YOU MEAN IT?" he shouted, clearly seeing that this was a special situation. It was not every day his healthy mother allowed sugar after nine pm.
"On one condition, my sweet," Regina replied, "You must do as mommy tells you- without whining- for the rest of your life. Do you understand, Henry?"
"I understand, Momma!" he shouted, running towards his brunette mother, and agreeing to anything that would get him the delicious treat.
Just then Regina felt a hand on her shoulder, "Really, my darling daughter? The rest of his life."
Regina just chuckled along with the woman behind her and sent her son to the kitchen before answering, "I'm just trying to make the future easier, Mother- at least until he realizes that sometimes promises do get broken. Until then, I'll try to keep him reminded that breaking a promise to Mommy is like breaking a promise to Santa when you tell him you'll put out cookies and carrots, but you don't really do it."
"I wish I had thought about that when you were a child," Cora retorted wistfully.
"Don't be silly, mother. You know I never believed an overweight man in a big fluffy suit could make it down our chimney."
"Ah, yes," the eldest brunette responded. She looked off into the distance, as if the memory was playing out in front of her. "What was it you told me? 'We shouldn't leave cookies for an old guy who is clearly to big to make it inside the chimney.' I believe you even suggested Weight Watchers."
"What can I say, mother? I always was a healthy child."
Cora laughed before flashing a very wicked-and knowing- smile at her daughter. "So I know, which brings me to question: Why are you offering Henry a cupcake this late at night, dear?"
"I thought he could use a treat, as he doesn't get them often." Regina tried to deflect the question, but Cora was having none of it.
"Come on, dear. We both know Henry gets plenty of treats and sugar when I'm around."
"Speaking of which," Regina reprimanded, "you need to stop feeding my son future diabetes. He's with you every day, and you give him sugar every day."
"I'm his grandmother." Cora replied with a smirk, "It's part of the job."
Regina narrowed her eyes at her mother, "It's part of your job to-"
"Regina, my love," Her mother interrupted. "Stop deflecting and answer the question."
"Well, mother, if you must know-"
"I must know."
"MMMMOOOOOOOMMMMMAAAAA!" came a bellow from the kitchen.
"I believe that's my cue," Regina laughed running towards her awaiting son.
"This is not over, dear!" The promise followed the professor retreating back, accompanied by her own melodious laughter.
"If it isn't the one-the only- EMMA SWAN!" Ruby announced in her best ring-side voice as the blonde entered their dorm room.
"Cut the crap, Rubes." Emma grumbled. "I'm in no mood to deal with a loud, borderline lunatic roommate."
The brunette cringed at the blonde's cruel words and upset tone. Ruby wasn't actually hurt by the blonde- she could tell Emma wasn't actually upset with her, but just misplacing anger. What make the woman cringe, though, was the thought of someone hurting her best friend.
The brunette stood up and wrapped her arms around Emma, knowing as soon as the blonde melted into her instead of pulling away, that this was a very rough day for the blonde.
"You wanna talk about it, babe?" She questioned, but was only met with wetness as her best friend silently leaked tears upon her shoulder. "Girl trouble, I'm guessing."
The blonde sniffled, "It's so stupid, Ruby. It's stupid and I'm even more stupid."
"You're not stupid, sugar," the brunette rubbed her back. "Let's go lie down, okay? We'll share a bed and talk about all of life's problems. It'll be just like old times, yeah?"
"I don't know," Emma joked. "What if your secret girlfriend you won't tell me about comes and sees us? She might get a bit jealous."
"I can invite her to listen, too, if you want." Ruby offered. "More support is like quicker healing, or some philosophical shit like that, right?"
"Nah, Rubes. You're enough. I don't want your girlfriend thinking you room with a whackjob."
"Well, there's where you're wrong, hot chick." Ruby replied. "My girlfriend already knows I live with a lunatic." Judging by the look said lunatic was giving her, the brunette decided she should continue sooner rather than later, "AND… She happens to care for that lunatic just as much as I do, even if she hasn't met her yet. She knows you're like family to me. If you just want it to be us tonight, though, I totally get it, and so will she."
"It'd be nice."
"Then it shall be so, blondie."
"So you're telling me that this woman- who is willing to cook dinner for you and spend time working with you without complaint- is just a person to you and absolutely nothing more?" Cora asked, shocked.
"Absolutely nothing more." Regina repeated.
"I call bullshit, my love."
After spending an hour completing Henry's usual bedtime ritual, Regina found herself and her mother in her study, reliving the night's events.
"Excuse Me?!" Regina exclaimed. "When exactly did you develop a profane mouth, Mother?"
"When you started lying to my face, daughter," Cora laughed.
The younger brunette looked away, "So I may feel a slight attraction to her, but it will not go any further than that."
"Why not?" Cora asked, then noticing Regina's look, continued, "Oh, sweetheart. Don't look at me like I just told you your great aunt Tilly just came back from the grave. I just stating the simple facts here. She's of legal age. She's obviously attractive and well-fit. She can cook better than Paula Dean. She's intelligent. You're attracted to her, and you deserve to be. You'd never go for anything less than what you absolutely want in a person."
Regina stared at her mother in a moment of silence before suddenly breaking it with a groan, "She's a student, mother."
"I am perfectly aware."
"I never told you that part, mother? How are you perfectly aware?"
"I'm not an idiot, my dear," Cora answered, smiling and reaching over to take her daughter's hands. "I see you really like this woman, but I see you're holding back. From the description you gave me, all I could see wrong is that she might possibly be a student."
Regina put her hand that wasn't being held over her face, "So now you see my dilemma."
"No, dear, I don't believe I do."
Regina pulled back, eyes widening, mouth hanging open in shock.
"Look, Regina," Cora started. "I was in your place once. No, I was never attracted to a student, but before you became head administrator, dear, that was my position. I was constantly having to choose between work and other things. Then, one day I chose both. And your father and I ended up with you."
Regina stared at her, not exactly getting how it all fit together.
"What I'm saying, dear, is that you can't let your job stop you from making decisions in other parts of your life. Would dating this woman be unethical? Yes, but plenty people in your position have done it, and continually do so, even when there is much less attraction between them than what is obviously between the two of you. Plus, who's going to fire you? You are the head administrator, my love. You can make exceptions if need be.
"I just really don't know, mother. It's not right," Regina argued.
"I'm not telling you to sleep with every student, Regina. I'm telling you that if you think it's worth the risk- even slightly- you should go after her before you lose her." Cora encouraged. "If you're not at all okay with that option, though, you can wait until next semester when she's no longer your student."
"I just don't know if it'd ever work, Mother," the professor replied. "She's so young and she has so much going for her. I have Henry and you and baggage."
"As I said before, my daughter, sometimes you have to get over yourself, take a chance, and start making exceptions."
"You fell for the biggest stone-cold bitch of a teacher in less than two days."
Emma reached out and smacked the brunette lying next to her in her bed, "You don't know her."
"It's been two days, Emma. Are you sure you know her?" The brunette tried to reason.
"I know she likes to make jokes. I know her favorite dessert is a cupcake and she loves lasagna. I know she has a son. I know she loves and cares for him more than anything in the world. I know she hides her emotions behind what you so politely call a stone-cold bitch facade. I know I can read what's going through her mind just by looking into her eyes, and I know she's been through so much more than some people would even consider possible."
"You've really got it bad for Mills, eh?" Ruby asked.
"Yeah, Rubes. I may have it bad for Regina. I kissed her, and she kissed back, and she left, and now we're here and I don't know what to do. So yeah, I might have it bad."
"But I thought you never fall for your teachers."
"Me too, but I've never taken a class with a female teacher for this specific purpose and the one time I make an exception, POOF! Everything I've ever gone against is knocking at my front door, and I'm inviting them all in for cupcakes!" Emma raised her voice until she was practically shouting at the end. "I mean, I don't fall for people, Rubes. I have one night stands and I move on. I don't want that to happen here."
"It looks like you're just going to have to keep making exceptions, Em." Ruby replied. "I mean, you obviously care a lot about Mills. You wouldn't be able to hit it and quit it. I can see it in your eyes."
"So what do I do?" Emma asked desperately, trying to think of anything that could possibly work.
"You do what any self-respecting gay woman does when trying to catch another self-respecting possibly, possibly not gay woman. You woo her."
"Rubes, I would have no idea how to 'woo' a woman if you gave me a For Dummies book about it. I've never been the type to 'woo.'"
The brunette smirked at her roomate, "I thought we were making exceptions, here."