"This is Belle," Emma told her foster family, who were gathered in the living room. "She's going to be helping me with English."
"That's great, Emma! We're proud of you!"
"Thanks," she mumbled, turning to Belle and gesturing towards the stairs. "Coming?"
"Mhmm," Belle answered, following Emma up the stairs to her bedroom.
"I've only got one chair, so you can sit in that at the desk. I'll sit on the floor next to you."
"No way! I'll sit with you."
Belle sat down beside Emma and leaned against the bed frame, looking over at her.
"Where do you want to start?" the brunette asked, pulling out her own copy of the novel from her backpack.
"I guess from the beginning. I got lost right away. I had trouble following."
"Did you read?"
"Actually, yeah. I did. I struggled though."
"That's okay, hun. We'll work through it."
Emma gave a weak smile, not comprehending why the girl would be so exceptionally nice. To Emma, it didn't make sense. The two worked for hours, pouring through page after page, one by one, until they reached the end of the book.
"What do you think?" Belle asked. "Do you feel better?"
"Much. It makes way more sense when you explain it. Dickens is a douchebag."
With a laugh, Belle wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"Yeah, he is. But you did it! We got through it."
Emma cringed when they touched, unsure of what to make of the gesture. Fighting the impulse to pull away, she looked over at her new tutor.
"Thank you so much. I really appreciate this. I'd probably fail without you."
"You won't fail. You're going to do great."
"I hope you're right. I really need to pass this class."
With a sigh, she pushed a hand through her hair and shut her eyes, leaning her head back against the side of the bed.
"Are you having trouble in the rest of your classes, too?"
"Yes."
"Maybe I could help with those. What else are you taking?"
"Chemistry and French."
"I'm pretty decent at chem, and my family is from France, so I'm actually fluent. I'd love to help you with those, too, if you want."
"Why are you being so nice to me?"
"Because you seem nice, and I can tell you need some help."
"Is it that obvious?" Emma sighed, rubbing her eyes.
"No! Emma, it's not like that. You just look super depressed, and I want to help."
Emma rubbed her left arm and averted her gaze, but Belle still hadn't pulled away. The girl gave Emma's shoulder a squeeze.
"Honestly, Emma. It's okay."
"Thanks. That means a lot."
But Emma doubted the girl's sincerity. What was her real motive? She wasn't sure.
"Anyway, just let me know when and where, and I'm there, okay?"
Emma nodded weakly and wrung her hands.
"What's the matter?" Belle asked, concern all over her face.
"I'm just not used to people being so nice to me."
"Maybe what you need is a friend."
Not knowing what to say, Emma refused to raise her eyes.
"I'd like to be friends," Belle said softly, slowly slipping her arm away.
"Me too."
"So how was your study date, sweetie?" Regina asked.
Emma shrugged and said, "I guess it was okay. It really helped. I think I might actually pass."
"That's good, honey! That's really good. I'm proud of you."
"For what?"
"For studying."
A smile appeared on Emma's face as she kissed her lover's lips slowly.
"Thanks," she said. "I needed that."
At Regina's apartment, the two of them sat on the couch with their feet up on the coffee table.
"So, is she pretty?" Regina asked, turning her head to face Emma.
"Regina! What the hell? You're being ridiculous."
"I'm just asking," the woman said nonchalantly.
"Yes, since you asked," Emma admitted. "She is."
Regina said nothing, gripping a couch pillow.
"Are you jealous because I'm finally getting a little attention?" the blonde asked bitterly.
"Honestly?" Regina responded. "It makes me nervous. I want to feel needed by you. That's sick, I know. It's the truth, though, and I promise to always be honest with you. Always. I'm scared that you won't need me anymore."
"You don't want me to get better, do you? You just want me to stay sick so you can keep my attention and devotion."
"No!" Regina yelled. "That's not it. I'm just scared, Emma. Please understand. Don't take it the wrong way."
"I don't know how else to take it. You say you want me to have friends, but you really don't. You want to be the only one in my life."
"I want to be your only lover."
"You are."
With a sigh, Regina said, "I guess so," and went quiet.
"Regina," Emma said softly. "I love you."
The next night, Emma found herself alone in her room.
'I miss you,' she texted the doctor. 'Call me.'
But the call never came. Instead, to her surprise, she got a text message from her new friend.
'Do you want to come over and study for chem?'
It took Emma a while to respond - she wasn't sure what to say, still astounded by the idea that someone actually wanted to spend time with her - even if it was just to study.
'I don't have a ride. Really sorry.'
'Thats okay. I'll come get you! See you in a few?'
'Sure.'
Emma watched intently out the window for Belle's car, and when it arrived, she ran down the stairs, happy to be leaving the house of her foster family.
"Hey, Belle," the girl smiled, sliding into the car.
"You look relieved. What's up?"
"Just glad to be out of there. Not a big fan of my foster family."
"Yeah, I can tell. How's your face? It looks a little better now."
"Yeah, it feels fine. Honestly, I stopped feeling it a long time ago."
Belle bit her lip and looked over at the girl.
"I wish I could help, sweetie."
Sweetie? Emma was thinking. Why is she calling me sweetie?
"You can't," the blonde responded coldly.
She immediately regretted her reaction.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I just... It's not that simple."
"I know."
The two drove in silence until they reached Belle's house, where they both got out of the car and made their way up to the girl's bedroom to put their things down beside the bed.
"Want a snack?" Belle asked. "I'm starving."
"I thought we were studying."
"Doesn't mean we can't take a break. Are you hungry?"
"Honestly, a little bit."
"Cool. Let's go get some cheese and crackers or something."
Downstairs, Emma sat at the counter while Belle prepared the snack, feeling awkward doing nothing. She looked around, taking in the beauty of the room. Elegant wood furniture adorned it, making Emma uncomfortable.
"Your place is really nice," she mumbled, lowering her eyes.
"Um, thanks."
Belle looked at her, a wrinkle forming between her eyes.
"So what's up with your foster family?" the brunette asked as she cut a few slices of cheese and put them on a plate.
"What do you mean?"
"Why do they beat on you?"
"Huh? I don't know. I guess they don't like me. I'm a loser."
"You're not a loser, Emma. You're really smart. You just don't apply yourself. You're also very sweet. There's nothing not to like."
"Thanks, Belle, but you're totally crazy."
The girl laughed and shook her head.
"Maybe, but that doesn't change the fact that you're a sweetheart."
Rolling her eyes, Emma stood up from the table. The two made their way up the stairs to Belle's room and then sat down on the bed.
"You look tired, Emma," Belle said. "Are you sure you want to study? I'll understand if you don't."
"I'm fine. I came all the way here. We should study. I really don't want to waste your time. It's not fair to you."
"Hey, listen... We're friends, okay? Have you thought about that? We could watch a movie or something. Want to?"
Not knowing exactly what to say, Emma muttered, "Actually, yeah. That would be kind of great."
"Kind of?" Belle giggled. "How can something be kind of great?"
Emma laughed and said, "I dunno. You tell me."
"You're silly," the brunette said with a smile, popping a disc into the Blu-ray player.
The two sat on the bed, and Belle flopped back until she was laying down.
"Why do you think people are so cruel to people who don't deserve it?"
"What? Um... Shit... I don't know. Most people do deserve it."
"You think so?" Belle pressed, sitting up as the movie started to play in the background. "Then how do you explain rape and child abuse?"
"Don't fucking talk to me about rape," Emma snapped, turning her head away from Belle.
"Oh, Jesus... I'm sorry."
The blonde continued to look away, wringing her hands. When Belle was silent for too long, Emma looked back at the TV and pretended to watch the film. After a while, Belle noticed the girl was falling asleep, leaning back on her hands as her eyes struggled to stay open.
"You can sleep here, you know. It's really okay. I'll bring you to your house in the morning to get your clothes before school, if that's alright."
"Huh?" Emma said, her head snapping up. "No, it's fine. I should head back."
"Come on, hun. You're obviously exhausted. Just stay. I'll crash on the couch and you can take the bed."
"No way!" Emma cried. "I'll stay, I guess, but I'm taking the couch."
With a sigh, Belle nodded in agreement.
"You wanna crash now?" the brunette asked.
Emma finally looked up and her and replied, "Let's finish the movie."
Before it was over, Emma had passed out on the bed, with Belle sitting beside her.