"So, what do you do with your free time?" Regina asked casually as they walked into Emma's room together. "I mean, other than…"
"That's pretty much it, really. Everything else just bores me. Except video games. I like video games."
"Yeah?"
"Mhmm. Grand Theft Auto for the win!"
"Isn't that… like… all about stealing cars, killing cops, and beating up hookers?"
"Something like that," the blonde replied with a grin.
"That's… just… barbaric."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Well… I like it. So…"
"You actually enjoy stealing cars, killing cops, and beating up hookers?"
"Well, sort of. I mean, I don't beat up the hookers."
"What do you do with them then?"
"What do you mean what do I do with hookers? What does anyone do with hookers?"
"Oh… Oh, gosh. That's… You do that in the game?"
"I do that in real life too," Emma shot back, winking at the horrified brunette. "What else would I spend all my money on? Certainly not food."
"Emma…"
"I'm just playing. Relax, would you? It's a good thing I don't actually own a console. That way, you won't have to watch me play."
"How do you play then?"
"I play at Will Scarlet's house sometimes. He hooks me up."
"Sounds like a drug deal," Regina chuckled, sitting down on her companion's bed.
"It kind of is."
"What…?"
"I'm just kidding. God, you're so uptight! I don't do drugs."
"Neither do I."
"Have you ever?"
"No."
"Neither have I. Everyone says I'm lame because of it, but they pretty much get over it when I bring home a handful of diamonds to pawn."
"Emma…"
"What? At least I'm not totally lame."
"And I am?"
"No. You're cool in a different way. You're popular. I'm just in with a niche crowd."
"I'm not popular…"
"Yeah, you're right. I only saw you stop and talk to seven or eight people walking down the hallway to my locker."
"Oh, come on, Emma. They're not real friends. They're acquaintances."
"Well, you sure as hell have a lot of them. I've got a handful, but they're a miserable lot and definitely not loyal."
"I could say that about my acquaintances as well."
"But you're different?"
"I didn't say that, but yes. I'd like to think I'm loyal and honest, whereas the kids I know… They're not… exactly… nice people…"
"Then why do you spend time with them?"
"I'm spending time with you right now."
"What does that even mean?"
"It means don't worry about who I spend my time with or why. I'm here with you now, and that's what matters."
"That's hella gay, man."
"Oh, for Chrissakes, Emma. You're impossible."
"You said that once today already," Emma retorted with a grin.
"Shut up. You're such a little punk."
"Yeah, well… You're a prissy little Barbie."
"Whoa! What the hell, Emma?! That's bologna!"
"Bologna? I'm just kidding, Regina. Jesus."
The blonde's face fell as she looked away, but Regina's softened from one of irritation into one of playful amusement as she saw the look that appeared on Emma's face.
"I think you just said that because you felt the need to come back with something."
"Of course I did!" the other girl cried. "You insulted me!"
"Well, it's kind of true. You are sort of a punk. And not the alternative kind. You start fights, you break into houses, you-"
"Hey. Don't judge my lifestyle, okay?"
"You judge mine, and you don't even know me."
"You don't know me either!"
"I know a hell of a lot more about you than you know about me."
This hit Emma hard, and she was silent as she stood in the middle of the room, watching the girl who was sitting on her bed with a sudden look of seriousness. What was she supposed to say to that? With a sigh, she shook her head and approached the bed, sitting down beside Regina and staring down into her own lap.
"I'm sorry. You're right. I know very little about you, and I shouldn't judge. I don't mean to. I just…"
"You just?"
"It doesn't matter," Emma sighed. "But… I would like to know more about you… I'd like to get to know you better."
After blinking a few times in confusion, Regina replied, "Why?"
"Well… Because… Because you're… intriguing, I guess. I'm very… interested. In your life, I mean. In who you are."
"That… doesn't make sense… You said we were nothing alike and that-"
"I know what I said. The point is… You… You kind of amaze me, with how much you care. And honestly… I know it's not just your guilt that's bringing you here. It's not just about you feeling bad about what happened. I can tell that you actually care about what happens to me, and I've never felt that from anyone before. It confuses me, and I feel very… conflicted about it… so… I'm interested in what's made you the way you are, and why you feel what you do."
After the long-winded explanation, Emma immediately felt a wave of embarrassment that brightened the color of her cheeks as she kept her gaze down. Obviously, she couldn't really take back what she'd said, and there was certainly no explaining it away. She was going to have to live with the truth of her words, and the fact that her companion unfortunately had heard them. Regina, upon hearing this explanation, was left completely in awe of both the fact that Emma had shared her thoughts with honesty and the fact that she clearly felt so deeply about what she'd said.
"I…" the brunette started, her mouth hanging open just slightly. "I'm… I'm not sure what to say to that. No one's ever really be interested in who I am as a person before. They just… care about… my family's money. And my looks, apparently, if they're guys."
Emma couldn't help but laugh at this as she replied, "It's not just guys who care about your looks, honey."
Regina stared at her, not comprehending the message the blonde was trying to send.
"I don't get it," she finally confessed. "What does that even mean?"
"It means that you're beautiful, and it's not just the guys who notice."
"Well, it would be lovely if a woman would notice now and again," Regina said, rolling her eyes. "Unfortunately, it's all sloppy, cheesy, one-track-mind boys who seem to be interested, and… Wait, what?"
"What do you mean 'what?'"
"What you just said."
"What about it?"
"What… Why did you say that?"
"Because it's true, obviously. You're gorgeous, Regina, and everyone knows it."
An involuntary sigh escaped the blonde's lips as she lifted her eyes from her lap and began to stare at the wall, her brow furrowing in frustration.
All Regina could come up with for a reply was, "That's a silly thing to say."
"It's really not," Emma protested firmly.
"Alright, fine. Let's pretend, for just a moment, that your outrageous claims are true. Why have I never been asked out by a woman?"
"Well, firstly, you hang out with a bunch of girls, not women. Secondly, perhaps it's because you're too beautiful, and that makes you a bit intimidating. You're also incredibly popular and wealthy, which is also intimidating. Maybe the women, unlike the boys, are scared to put themselves out there and make themselves vulnerable to you when they don't feel worthy."
"What do you mean by 'worthy?' What do you mean by any of that? You're not really making any sense."
"I don't know how to make it any more clear. You are beautiful, popular, and wealthy. Women find this intimidating and are scared to pursue you. Also, most women are self-conscious, and probably would feel like you're out of their league. Which would be true for most of them."
"Oh, my God, Emma. Just say it straight out. You're making me feel like a dunce.""
"I mean that you are out of the league of most women. You're not just beautiful and popular and wealthy. You're smart, and you're kind, and you're caring. I don't know anyone good enough to deserve someone like you."
"I…" Regina started, her mouth hanging open once more. "I'm… That's… That's an incredible compliment, Emma…"
"Well, it wasn't intended to be. I was being honest. You asked me a question, and I answered it."
"I didn't ask you to call me beautiful, or kind, or caring, or smart. But you did."
"Yes, I did."
Regina bit her lip and looked at Emma, who was finally daring to look back at her, even though her cheeks were pink.
"You're embarrassed," Regina blurted, suddenly having the realization that this was true.
"No, I'm not!" Emma shouted back, a little louder than she'd intended. "I… Why would I be?"
"I don't know," the brunette lied, reaching out and tucking a piece of Emma's hair behind her ear. "Why would you be?"
Oh, my God, Emma's mind raced. Is she fucking flirting with me? But when Regina dropped her hand to her side once again, the blonde immediately told herself, No way, and nearly shook her head in response to her own thoughts.
"I'm not," she ended up repeating, the lie nearly causing her to choke on her words.
"Alright. Anyway, we should probably do some homework, huh?"
"Ha-ha. Yeah, right. Like that's happening. You feel free to use my desk, but I ain't doin' shit for any of those classes."
"Emma, come on. Just do the freakin' homework already. It's not going to kill you."
"Like you almost did?"
"Stop it!"
"I'm not doing it, okay? Just drop it. Do your own homework and keep your nose out of mine."
"How are you even graduating without doing the work? I mean, honestly."
"I'm not," Emma said shortly, quickly looking away towards the window.
"Oh, shit… I'm… I'm sorry… I didn't realize… I thought…"
"It's fine. You shouldn't be sorry for my lack of effort. I honestly just don't give a shit."
"You should, though. Don't you want to get out of this god-forsaken school already?"
"I do, but it's not happening this year. It's too late. I don't even know why I bother showing up to class."
"Well…" Regina started slowly. "Think of it this way: the more material you soak up in class now, the first time you're doing it, the easier it'll be the second time around."
The blonde blinked a few times before answering, "You're kinda right, I guess. I probably should do the work…"
"What if… What if I help you? I mean, there's only another week left of school, but I can help you study for your exams. It'll make next year a lot easier if we review what you've done in class this semester."
"Regina… No. You need to focus on your own shit. You're actually going to a good school next year, and your grades matter."
With a sigh, the girl reached over and put her hand on top of Emma's, saying, "I'd be happy to help, if you'd let me."
"Well… I dunno. I mean, I let you help with my head… I should probably let you help with my defective brain too."
"Your brain isn't defective, Emma," Regina laughed. "You just don't give a shit."
"True, true. Anyway, you do your homework first, and I'll see how far I can get with mine."
"Alright."
It wasn't long before Emma gave up on her share of the homework, but luckily, it didn't take Regina long to finish hers. They spent the next hour working on Emma's math problems before Regina started to notice the girl getting uncomfortable and beginning to fidget.
"What's the matter?" she asked, looking into Emma's eyes as she watched her companion's brow furrow in frustration.
"I don't get this, and my head hurts. Inside and out."
"Did you take your meds?"
"You think I'd be able to hold a coherent conversation for this long if I'd taken my meds?"
"Emma! You said you'd take them!"
"They're gonna make me pass out, or if I take a lower dose, they're gonna make me all silly and stupid."
"It's getting late anyway," the brunette tried to reason with her. "Just take them. I don't want you to be in pain."
"No pain, no gain, princess."
"What exactly are you trying to gain?"
"I dunno. Life experience?"
"Hilarious. Seriously. Take your meds."
"Fine. But I'm not ready to sleep yet, so I'm taking a lower dose."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Twenty minutes or so later, Emma was laying down on the bed, rather than sitting, and laughing at the way Regina held her pencil.
"Oh, my God," Emma howled. "You hold it like it's a small child that you're scared to break. It's so dainty. Like a princess!"
"Jesus, Emma. You weren't kidding. I mean, I know pain meds make people loopy, but it's really not that funny…"
"You know what's funny?"
"The way you smile."
"What the hell! What's wrong with how I smile?"
"No, no, no, no, no. I mean funny. As in… as in…" Emma tried, but forgot the word she wanted to use. When she finally found it, after seeing the look of annoyance on Regina's face, she said, "As in, it's funny how amazing it is."
The brunette's eyes went wide as she stared at Emma, whose head was on her pillow.
"You need to sleep," she said shortly, once she finally collected herself enough to respond.
"But I don't wanna sleep."
Rolling her eyes, probably for the hundredth time that day, Regina reached over on Emma's nightstand and grabbed the pill bottle, then opened it and tapped the bottom until one pill fell into her hand. She held it out to Emma and waited.
"What? Why?"
"You're acting ridiculous and saying things you don't mean, and it's late, and I know you're still hurting because you keep touching the bandage and squinting every few seconds."
"Well, it hurts," Emma pouted, reaching up to rub the swollen spot on her head. "I can't help it."
"Just take the meds and get some sleep, champ. I'll see you at school tomorrow."
"Alright," the blonde sighed heavily, taking the pill from her companion. "I'll see you tomorrow." Just as Regina stood up to leave, though, she added, "Hey Regina?"
"Hmm?"
"Thanks for coming over and helping me with stuff. I'm pretty much useless on my own."
"Yeah, you are," the girl replied, winking in Emma's direction. "But you're also very lucky."
"Why's that?"
"'Cause you're growing on me."
With that, Regina grabbed her bag and left the room, leaving Emma to wonder exactly what she'd meant.
The next morning, Emma found the girl's notebook open on her desk. As she looked at it, she marveled at the neatness of Regina's handwriting, and the perfect organization of her notes. Everything was color-coded with highlighters and different colored pens. It was sort of an academic masterpiece, the blonde was thinking. Not fair, she whined silently. Why can't I be that smart? But she was quickly cheered up – she wasn't sure why – by the realization that having the girl's notebook meant she would have to see her before homeroom that day, rather than waiting until after school.
She met Regina at her locker and held the notebook out to the girl with a smile, saying, "You have very pretty handwriting."
"Emma! Hi!" Regina cried, taking the book from Emma's hand. "I was wondering what I'd done with that! Thank you so much for bringing it to me. It's got all my notes for history and English in it."
"Well, I'm happy to help," the blonde replied, still wearing a broad, sly smile. "Thanks again for last night. Sorry I got so dumb and loopy. Told ya that would happen."
"It's fine... You just… needed some rest…"
When she heard the pauses between the brunette's words, Emma asked, "What? Did I do something weird that I don't remember?"
"No… I mean… you said… some stuff…"
"What stuff?!"
"Nothing. It's nothing. You should get to class. I'll see you later, okay?"
"Yeah… Okay."
With that, Emma turned and walked away.
That afternoon, the two met in the hallway after their classes to discuss their plan for studying and homework. After deciding collectively to meet at Emma's house again – Emma wasn't exactly comfortable being in the house she'd broken into – they took the bus back to her place and set up their work at Emma's desk.
After about fifteen minutes of Regina lecturing Emma about the math terms 'sine,' 'cosine,' and 'tangent,' the girl dropped her head onto the desk and reached into her bag. Pulling out a small bag of dark chocolates, she groaned and unwrapped one, then popped it in her mouth. With a scowl, Regina quickly grabbed the bag and tore it away from the unfocused student.
"Pay attention," the brunette scolded. "You've only got six more problems left."
"Hey, man! Give me back my chocolates or I'm gonna go ape-shit on you!"
"You get one piece for every problem we get through."
"What am I? Five?"
"You're not five. You're unfocused and unmotivated, which I completely understand. But you need to get through this. You said you wanted my help."
"I do! I just… I'm…" Emma started, then rubbed the front of her head. "Dammit, man. Shouldn't have done that. I'm gonna get some serious permanent brain damage if I'm not careful."
"Exactly. Now finish the problem."
"I don't know hooowww," the girl whined. "Can't you just do my homework for me? I'll share my chocolates!"
"Oh, come on, Emma. You wanted my help, and if you really didn't care about learning the material, you just wouldn't do the homework at all."
"That's true. Alright. Show me how to do this one, and I'll do the rest."
"Good deal. Now hush up and listen so we can get through this."
After the first problem Emma completed on her own, Regina handed her a single piece of chocolate, saying a simple, "Nice work."
Emma shrugged her shoulders, popped the chocolate into her mouth, and stared down at the page.
After a while, she asked, "How about two for every problem I get right?"
"I don't understand your diet. Honestly. Chocolate, but nothing with real sustenance?"
Again, the blonde shrugged, then picked up her pencil again. She got half-way through the problem before asking Regina for help. Five pieces of chocolate later, they'd managed to work through the rest of Emma's math homework.
"Well done," Regina told her with an encouraging smile. "I'm proud of you."
Rolling her eyes, the student pushed the textbook away until it fell off the side of her desk. Emma laughed when it hit the floor with a bang.
"Emma!" the brunette cried, exasperated by the girl's attitude. "For crying out loud!"
"Aw, c'mon, Gina. It's just a book."
"Gina…?"
Regina looked both confused and horrified by the new use of a nickname.
"What?"
"You called me 'Gina.'"
"Oh… Um… Well… Is that… bad or something?"
"No one calls me 'Gina.'"
"I think it's cute."
"It's not cute!"
"It is, but anyway, thank you for helping me get through this. I actually learned a lot more from you than I learned from Mrs. Silver."
"That's because you sleep through her class."
"Yeah, whatever. The point is, you were very helpful, and I appreciate it. Even if you did withhold my chocolate."
With a triumphant grin, Emma snatched the bag away and popped another piece slowly into her mouth. Without meaning to, Regina began to stare as she watched the girl slide the chocolate between her lips.
"What?" the blonde asked, as soon as she'd finished eating it. "You want a piece?"
She didn't think much of it as she unwrapped a piece and held her hand out, hovering the chocolate in front of the girl's lips, but Regina's eyes went wide as she watched Emma's fingertips.
"Try it! It's good," Emma promised.
With a small blush, Regina parted her lips slightly and allowed the girl to carefully place the piece of chocolate in her mouth.
"Oh, no shit," Regina sighed happily as she finished eating it. "That is some good chocolate."
"It's just Dove. It's crap, really. It's just cheaper than the good stuff."
"I never eat candy or chocolate. My parents don't like it."
"Do you always do what your parents like and avoid what they don't?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Alright, well… Maybe you should make an exception for chocolate."
"I think I probably will from here on out."
The girls smiled at each other before sharing a few more pieces of the chocolate and finishing the small bag.
"So you ready for graduation?" Emma finally asked, once they were sitting empty-handed in silence.
"Not at all," Regina laughed in response. "But I'm definitely ready for summer. You?"
"Definitely not excited for summer at all."
"What? Why? No classes, no homework… Sun, heat…"
"Yard work for you, apparently."
"Oh, come on. It won't be so bad."
"Do you know how many better things I could be doing?"
"Like what? Stealing from shops and breaking into people's houses?"
"Yeah. Exactly that."
"You're such a little punk," the brunette chuckled.
This time, though, the statement had no frustration or anger in it. It contained something else that Emma couldn't quite recognize: affection.