When Emma reached the downtown area, Ruby was waiting for her in front of the café.

"Hey, kid," she greeted Emma with a smile. "You ready to cause some trouble?"

"What are we doing, then?"

"Like I said, whatever you want. I know you love the breaking and entering gig."

"I…"

Emma slowly looked away, feeling ashamed of her less-than-lawful tendencies for the first time. She was thinking of Regina. Thinking of how disappointed she'd be if she found out. But at the same time, this was something she had to do. She had to prove to Ruby – and herself – that she hadn't gone soft. Even if she was going to make better choices in her life, it didn't mean she had to be soft. She could still maintain her rep and be a good girlfriend at the same time.

Right?

"Hey. You with me?" Ruby pressed, putting her hand on Emma's shoulder.

The blonde just nodded and asked, "Where to?"

"I dunno. Mifflin Street is always a score."

Face draining of color, Emma quickly blurted, "No. Not Mifflin."

"Jeez. Alright. Sixth Street then. Those houses are pretty big."

"Yeah. Fine."

As they approached the back door of the first house, which was completely dark, Ruby was grinning. Emma, on the other hand, was wearing her distress on her face.

"What's the matter, Champ?" the brunette asked with confidence. "Gettin' cold feet?"

"What? No! I'm just… No. Just shut up and pick the lock."

Just as Ruby was inserting a paperclip into the keyhole, though, Emma saw the sticker on the window of the door that informed her that the house was protected with an electronic security system.

"Ruby, wait!" she hissed, jerking back on the girl's shoulder. "It's rigged."

"Fuck!" Ruby cursed, straightening up and looking around. "No video cameras though. Just electronic locks on the doors and windows. Whatever. Let's find another-"

"I can hack it."

"What?"

"I said, 'I can hack it.'"

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Killian taught me."

"Wow. Alright. Do it, then, hot shot."

After much careful maneuvering, Emma disabled the alarm and slowly opened the door.

"Jack the jewels and get out?" Ruby asked with a grin.

Emma nodded, suddenly unable to contain the rush she felt as she stepped silently into the quiet house.

They didn't steal much. Instead, they took a few small, valuable items and left the house quickly. Given that it had been so long since she'd felt that level of adrenaline, Emma's head was spinning. Once they were safe outside, Emma re-enabled the alarm system. A few blocks down, they sat on the curb and looked at each other.

"You're sweating," Ruby commented with a satisfied smile, wiping some stray hair out of her partner's face. "Fun, right?"

Emma blushed and nodded.

"You missed it, didn't you?" the brunette asked, her smile turning into a smirk. When Emma didn't answer, she added, "Guess you're not so soft after all. Wanna hit another?"

After a moment of hesitation, Emma shook her head, saying, "I should get back. It's late."

"Aww, c'mon. Don't be such a pussy-whipped bitch."

"Listen, I told you to fucking stop that!"

"What are you gonna do about it if I don't, hot shot?"

As if she wasn't enraged enough, Emma's blood began to boil when the grin on Ruby's face seemed to grow nearly tenfold.

"Shut the fuck up, Ruby. I'm warning you."

"What are you gonna do? Hit me?"

"Ruby…"

"C'mon, then. Show me what you've got. Those muscles have grown since I last-"

She was quickly cut off by Emma's palms shoving against her shoulders, pushing her backwards until she fell over. When Emma stood up and glared down at her, she simply smiled back.

"Now, that's what I'm talkin' about. That is sexy."

"I'm leaving," Emma said shortly, turning to walk away.

"Hey, wait!" Ruby cried, jumping to her feet and grabbing the girl's hand. "We had fun, didn't we? I was just playin' around. You know I love to get you riled up."

"That's enough, Ruby! Yes, it was fun. And we're done now. So I'm leaving. That's it."

Looking surprised, Ruby sounded concerned as she asked, "Well… Do I get to see you again?"

Emma hesitated before answering, "I don't think it's a good idea."

"Come on, Em. Why not? I know you had fun with me tonight."

"Yeah. And that's it. That's all it was. A little bit of fun. And I'm done now, so I'm leaving."

"Fine. Your loss, kid. We make a good team."

Shaking her head, Emma turned and walked away.

"Where the hell did you go that you're soaked in sweat?" Regina asked her lover, as soon as she walked in the door.

"What? Nowhere. I'm not… I'm fine."

"I didn't say you weren't fine. I said you're sweaty as hell," the brunette retorted seriously. "And what do you mean 'nowhere?'"

"I mean nowhere. Let's drop it, okay?"

"Are you serious right now? You're gonna lie to me and then tell me to drop it?"

Emma felt her own lie hit her like a falling anvil.

"I'm not… I… I just…"

"I think you should leave, Emma. And when you're ready to tell me what the hell you've been doing, call me."

"Regina, come on. We were just…"

"I trust you, Emma. I do. But now you're standing here, refusing to tell me what you two were doing, and it looks really bad."

"Gina, I… I would never cheat on you. Please, don't think that."

"Then why are you hiding whatever you were doing?"

"I'm…"

When Emma couldn't finish the sentence, Regina sighed and held the front door open.

"Get out, okay? I'm not going to fight with you."

Heart dropping as she nodded weakly, Emma turned and left the house.

Back at her apartment, Emma cracked open a beer and sat down on the mattress that was still set up on the floor without a box spring. Crossing her legs, she looked out the window. The view was less than scenic. The apartment was in a shitty part of town. She hadn't minded or even considered it when she'd signed the lease, really, but suddenly, sitting alone in the nearly empty apartment, she felt a wave of guilt wash over her as she realized that it probably wasn't the safest place for a young woman to walk around, especially at night. This wouldn't have bothered her, except that she felt badly for exposing her lover to the potentially hazardous situation.

"The fuck," she cursed. "How could I have picked this place?"

It was cheap. And there was no credit check required. That was how.

Emma sighed, setting her second bottle of beer down on the floor next to the mattress and rubbing her temples. The headache that was setting in nearly made her head spin. She dulled it with a few more drinks. If you can count the rest of the six-pack as a few more. She could usually hold her liquor, but after downing all six beers in such a short amount of time, she was drunk.

"Fuck," she swore. "This fucking sucks."

She didn't know whom she was talking to, but saying it out loud made her feel a little better. No one was listening, and that was almost better. She didn't want anyone to hear her distress, or see her as drunk as she was. She knew she was a mess. It didn't take long for her thoughts to boil over, and when they did, she chucked one of her empty bottles full-force at the wall and let out a frustrated scream. Then, once the bottle had crashed and shattered loudly, she went completely silent, hanging her head in her hands.

After a while, the haze of the alcohol dulled her inhibitions, and she reached for her phone. This normally would have been against her better judgement, but given that her judgement had mostly gone out the window, there was nothing left to stop her from texting her former friend, regardless of the fact that it was nearly four in the morning and that they'd left things on poor terms.

'Wat u doin?'

At first, after five minutes had passed, she was irritated at not having received a response. Her anger grew over the next twenty minutes. It only subsided when concern slipped into her jumbled collection of thoughts. Finally, she had the thought that something might have been wrong, so she sent another message.

'U k?'

Just a minute later, she received the answer she was so anxiously and drunkenly awaiting.

'Yeah, I'm good. Just walking around. You?'

Emma blinked a few times as she processed the response.

'Y u awake?'

As she sat down on a curb in front of the barbershop downtown, Ruby sighed. Conflicted about her next answer, she considered it carefully. Maybe not as carefully as she should have.

'I miss you.'

The distressed blonde sighed too. What was she supposed to say to that? Being drunk didn't exactly help her decision making process. In fact, the fog saturating her mind only made her more confused and anxious.

'idk wut u want me to say'

Ruby set her phone down in her lap and rubbed her tired eyes. Her mind was racing too fast to sleep, and she knew if she tried, she would fail. Getting this reply from Emma didn't help. Knowing full well that, even if she didn't spell everything correctly, Emma usually typed in full sentences, she started to worry, so she texted back quickly.

'Are you alright?'

Emma answered just as quickly.

'totaly fine y?'

Eyes widening as she realized why Emma might be typing like a middle schooler, Ruby sent another quick reply.

'You're drunk, aren't you?'

The blonde scowled at her phone and was momentarily tempted to throw it across the room. She was unable to rationalize this sudden wave of intense emotion, which only heightened her stress as she felt herself rapidly losing control.

'So fking wat?'

Ruby sighed again, knowing full well just how messy things could get for Emma when she was drunk. She knew the girl could hold her liquor well, but if she was barely able to type, Ruby also knew that things must be bad.

'What happened? Do you want me to come over?'

Emma considered her options. Why did I even text her? she wanted to know. What the fuck is wrong with me? But she was unable to process it fully, and no filter was able to catch what she was about to say.

'reginas pissed cuz i wouldn't tell her were we went come ovr if u want.'

As soon as Emma texted her the address, Ruby texted back.

'On my way.'

Emma stumbled to the door of the apartment and unlocked it, then stumbled back to the mattress and sat clumsily back down on it.

When Ruby knocked on the door, the blonde called out, "It's open."

The brunette stepped inside to find Emma leaned back, her hands supporting her and just barely keeping her upright, face bright red and sweat forming on her brow.

Seeing how red the girl's face was, Ruby commented, "Damn, you're a mess." Ruby sat down beside Emma on the mattress and added, "You gonna be alright, kid? Your face is wicked red."

When Emma said nothing, she reached out and pressed the back of her hand against Emma's cheek to feel the heat radiating from it.

"Yep. You're drunk, girly."

"I know," Emma whined. "But I… I…"

"It's alright, honey. I'm sure things will work out."

As Ruby wrapped an arm around her shoulders, Emma stiffened at first, but when she didn't let go, the blonde relaxed slightly and allowed herself to lean against the girl's side.

"I should have just told her the truth," Emma choked out, her voice cracking as she started to cry.

"Oh, honey," Ruby whispered, wiping away a few tears that had slipped from her companion's eyes. "It's alright. You're gonna be alright."

Without thinking, Emma fell into the girl's arms and let her head drop to Ruby's shoulder. Soon, Ruby was rubbing her back lightly, and the haze surrounding Emma's mind began to dissipate.

About an hour later, after very few words had been exchanged, Ruby asked, "Feeling any better?"

Emma stiffened again, pulled from her stupor, beginning to feel uncomfortable with the lack of distance between them.

She managed to reply, "A little," before pulling away.

"Hey," Ruby said gently. "It's alright. It's just a hug, okay? It doesn't have to mean anything. I'm just trying to help."

"Yeah, well… I…"

"Does it mean more than that to you?"

"Well… N-No…"

"Then it's alright. You should lay down and get some sleep. It's six in the morning."

"Fuck! I have to work. God, I'm gonna be so hungover."

There was still a slight slur in her voice, but her vision and her mind were less clouded, and it was easier for her to process the situation.

"Call out?"

"I can't. I can't…"

"Alright. I'll walk you to work then."

"But, I-"

"No, really. It's alright. Get a couple hours of sleep. I'll wake you. What time do you need to be up?"

"I work at nine, so… Seven-thirty?"

"That's not enough sleep, Em…"

"It's gonna have to be."

With a sigh, Ruby stroked Emma's hair back and nodded her head, saying, "Lie back. Get some rest."

Reluctantly, Emma lowered herself back down onto the bed and tried to relax. She spent the next thirty minutes trying to calm her thoughts, but the headache that was forming made it difficult for her to let them go. Eventually, she fell asleep, and Ruby sat beside her the entire time, just waiting to wake her.

When she did, Emma rubbed her temples, groaning, "Fuck. This is going to suck."

"Yep. But you'll get through it. C'mon, soldier. Uppy uppy."

Emma nodded weakly and rose clumsily to her feet, then stumbled to the shower.

Once they'd arrived at the girl's work, Ruby turned to her and said, "Try to have a good day, champ. You want me to pick you up after and we can hang out?"

"Nah. I'm gonna need a nap. Anyway, I should try to talk to Gina…"

"Yeah…"

"I'll text you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Really. Thank you for last night. I'm sorry I was such a mess."

"It's alright. I'm here for you."

But inside, Ruby was aching. Comforting Emma while she was processing a fight with her lover was the last thing she wanted to do. She wanted to tell Emma to leave Regina. To be her lover. But she knew better than to push the issue. She also knew that being a good friend was the only way to keep Emma in her life, and that she had no chance to win her over as anything else.

After standing awkwardly in silence for a few moments, Ruby leaned in and embraced the blonde, kissing her cheek, then turned and walked away.

It was a tough decision, but by the time Emma left work, she was determined to win back Regina's affections, and therefore determined to tell her lover the truth.

After a few hours and three beers, she texted the girl what she'd been so afraid to say to her face.

'We did some breaking and entering last night. That's the truth. I was scared to tell you because I knew you'd be pissed. I'm sorry.'

A few more hours passed before Emma received a response. Finally, though, Regina replied.

'I can't fucking believe you. Thank you for telling me the truth, Emma, but honestly… I'm going to need some space.'

"FUCK!" Emma screamed, throwing her phone across the room.

Only once she'd calmed down some did she send a reply.

'I understand.'

She spent the next four evenings with Ruby. Of course, at that point, she refused to do anything illegal, but she made it clear that, as long as they were just hanging out, she was willing to spend time with her former friend.

On the fifth evening, though, Emma was startled to be met by her lover as she left her place of employment.

"Regina," she gasped. "Hi."

"Hi."

There was an awkward silence before either of them spoke again, but after a while, Regina broke it.

"What are you doing tonight?"

"Whatever you want me to," Emma replied, looking serious.

"Anything but breaking and entering," the brunette shot back, sounding bitter and slightly angered.

"I'm done with that. Done. Completely done."

"You haven't been with Ruby this whole time?"

Emma paused and began to look guilty.

Finally, she replied, "We didn't get into trouble."

"You mean you didn't get caught?"

"No! I mean I stayed out of trouble and did what you would have wanted me to. We just hung out around town and at the apartment. I swear."

Deciding whether or not to believe her lover's words, Regina told her, "I hope you're telling the truth."

"I am."

Another silence fell between them before the brunette asked, "Do you want to come over?"

"Of course I do."

"I miss you."

"But you were-"

"I know. I'm still pissed. But I do miss you."

Emma couldn't help but smile as she stepped slowly forward and held her arms out. She was unwilling to force the embrace onto her lover – especially when she seemed so upset – but she wanted to offer it, just in case it would be reciprocated. Luckily for Emma, it was. Regina hugged her tightly and let her head fall to the girl's shoulder.

Back at Regina's house, the two sat quietly on Regina's bed.

After a while, Emma said, "I'm really sorry, babe. I know I fucked up. I guess I just wanted to prove that I wasn't soft."

"Yeah. I get it."

"She said I was whipped, and I just-"

"What?"

"She said I was whipped, because I told her I didn't want to do anything."

"And that motivated you to break the law and almost get yourself arrested?"

Looking ashamed and embarrassed, Emma turned her gaze away, mumbling, "Yes."

"Alright."

Then, the blonde looked up and asked, "What do you mean, 'alright?'"

"I mean, 'alright.' I get it. You felt the need to establish your independence from me. It makes sense. I'm still upset about it, but I get it."

"But I-"

"No. Emma. I don't want to argue about this, okay? Let's just leave it alone. I took time to myself. I think you learned that what you did was fucked up. That's what matters. There's no reason to stay pissed."

"What? Really?"

"Really. I love you too much to stay mad."

After a pause, Emma took her hand and asked softly, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"No, really. Talk to me."

"I've been so angry. And I don't want to be angry. But it's not even about what you did. It's the fact that you basically lied to me and wouldn't tell me what you were really doing with her. Like, how do I know you haven't been lying about everything else? It's just going to be so hard to trust you now…"

"I know," Emma sighed. "I don't blame you. I don't deserve your trust. I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. I'm going to trust you anyway. I'm going to choose to trust you, even though it's hard. Because I love you, and because you deserve a second chance."

"Thank you, Gina… I just… I just want to be a good girlfriend for you… And I'm not. I mean… Maybe you should just…"

"Whoa. Don't. Don't even say it. I'm staying with you. I love you, Emma. People make mistakes. It doesn't mean you're a bad person."

"I feel like it does."

"Well, it doesn't," Regina asserted sternly. "You're a good person, Emma, regardless of the trouble you've gotten in."

"I love you, Gina…"

Looking into her lover's eyes, Regina said, "Kiss me, Emma."

With a blush – she was surprised at the sudden request for affection – Emma obliged the command and kissed Regina softly on the lips, grateful for the forgiveness she'd received.