Thanks to oncer4life11, Emilee Amethyst and Araya for the reviews!
"Are you sure you don't mind me going?"
"For the thousandth time, Killian, I'm fine!" I cried out, rolling my eyes in annoyance because of so much caring. "You have the right to go and have some fun, and beside, it's a special occasion. I promise you nothing is going to happen to me while you're gone. I can still take of myself, thank you very much!"
"But I don't want to leave you all alone here with Liam." He protested, looking very worried, without even paying attention to the vehement tone I had used to talk to him.
"You know my mom and Regina are coming as well." I sighted, realizing he was worrying for real and getting mad wasn't going to solve anything. "I won't be alone. I swear I'm going to survive this."
He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes, still frowning and not looking convinced at all. He was looking like he was fighting against contradictory feelings, as if leaving me for a couple of hours was an insurmountable ordeal. Since what had happened with Zelena a little less than a month ago, he was only leaving me when he was absolutely forced to, as if he was scared I was going to disappear if he was looking away from me for a couple of seconds. But I knew he didn't have any reason to worry : everything was more than fine in Storybrooke. I was safe. I then pouted at him, which made him smile a little bit, and resumed to try and convince him completely :
"My dad and Robin are so happy about this evening, and you know it. You can't let them down at the last minute!"
He was looking very focused, and I guessed he was intensely thinking about my words. I couldn't help myself but laugh at how adorable he was looking. We were both sitting on the living room couch, one of my leg underneath me so I could look at him more easily, and I was trying to convince him to go to the party my dad and Robin had planned for so long, but he didn't seem ready to listen to me. I was taking this evening as a bachelor party, even if I knew they would probably only go for a drink at the Rabbit's Hole. With my dad, Killian had to be careful if he didn't want to hear a speech about how he had to be good for me for the umpteenth times. But Killian was unwilling to go and leave me at home while he was out, having fun. For as far as I was concerned, it wasn't bothering me at all. He had the right to go out with the boys. But he was seeing this as unfair, because as I was pregnant, I couldn't myself go out there and drink my life away.
"Killian." I added more gently, aware that I was using the wrong tone to make him understand everything was all right for me. "Seriously, go. I want you to. I really want you to spend the night with your friends. You don't have to worry about me, I swear, everything is going to be okay. And if it can make you feel better, I promise to call you if I feel like the slightest thing is wrong. So, what do you think?"
"Well, okay then." He surrendered after one last wavering. "You won. But I promise you I won't be back late. I really don't want to stay away from you for more than I have to."
"You come home whenever you want, babe, as long as you don't get here completely drunk." I laughed, even if I was a bit touched by his declaration, telling myself that he was definitely very good for big romantic speeches.
"With your dad, there are no risks." He stated, raising an eyebrow at me.
I giggled once again, amused by his words. It was true that, even if the two men were now getting along more than well and that someone from the outside would have called them friends without hesitation, my dad sometimes had these sorts of paternal impulses that were pushing him to give a so called threatening speech to his future son-in-law. It was actually making us laugh a lot, Killian and I, because we knew David was aware that Hook would never hurt me purposely, and he was liking him too much for his words to have a real impact. I then looked at Killian while shaking my head, but quite quickly regained seriousness and ran my hand down his arm to say in a low voice :
"Go and have some fun, okay? And don't worry about me, I just want you to spend a good night out."
He opened his mouth, as if he was still hesitating a little bit, and I decided to take control over the situation before he could change his mind. Without giving him the time to answer me, I leaned forward for a kiss that lasted for a few seconds, as his hand was starting to gently run through my hair and I was finally feeling him relaxing against me.
"If it's asked so nicely." He answered once I had pulled away from him.
I laughed once again, and he kept his arm around my waist to pull me closer to him and extend our embrace. Liam, who was quietly playing with his Lego block on the floor in front of us, suddenly got up to rush toward me. I took him on my lap, and he screamed in excitement.
"I want a kiss too!"
I smiled, tenderized by this unexpected demand, and answered him by kissing him all over his face, what made him burst out laughing. He freed himself from my grip to flee into his father's arms and escape my attack, and I giggled as well, snuggling into Killian's arms, who was looking quite amused by the scene he was witnessing.
"You'll have to be a good boy tonight, little mate." He gently resumed. "You're going to stay with mommy, grandma, Regina and your friends."
"Yeah, and you're going to go to bed very early." I added to tease him, knowing all too well he was going to react to this.
"No, I'm not tired!" He vehemently protested.
"But you have to feel good for the wedding, it's in three days!" I replied with a big smile on my face. "It's going to be a beautiful party, but you'll be very tired afterward."
"No!" He said once again with the snotty look he was taking when he wanted to seem older than he actually was.
"No?" I repeated, laughing, surprised by this answer.
Before I could add something, the doorbell rang into the house, announcing my parents' arrival. I glanced at Killian and stopped him as he was moving to get up, not wanting to break the hug he was sharing with Liam.
"Stay here, I'll go."
I got off the couch before he could protest, and pressed a quick kiss on his cheek to stop him from trying to hold me back. I could already imagine him saying that I was supposed to rest as I was pregnant. Laughing as he was looking too touched by my tender gesture to react right away, I quickly walked toward the front door and greeted the guest with a big smile, stepping away so they could come in.
"Emma!" My little brother immediately yelled when he saw me, wriggling in my dad's arms.
As soon as he got on the floor, he rushed toward me and grabbed my leg with a big grin. Giggling at his reaction, I told my friends to go into the living room and knelt in front of Neal. As always since the baby had started to move, he placed both his hands against my stomach, waiting with a focused wince for his little nephew or niece to kick. After a minute, seeing that nothing was happening, I gently said so he wouldn't be too disappointed.
"Maybe it's tired right now, you know..."
I barely had the time to finish my sentence that, as if it was trying to prove me wrong, I felt a kick in my lower stomach. I sighted, telling myself that this kid was definitely never listening to me. I was perhaps carrying it inside of me, but it was only when Killian was talking to it that it was actually calming down, during those nights it was forbidding me to fall sleep because of its kicks. The only thing that seemed to ease it was hearing its dad telling stories about the sea and treasures, as Killian's voice was rocking me as well and I was finally finding the sleep that was escaping me. But this baby definitely already seemed as stubborn as its parents, and I was wondering how it was going to be like when it would be born. My baby brother cried out, looking overexcited and driving me away from my thoughts :
"It moved!"
"Yeah, it did." I laughed. "It's kicking a lot, you know. Sometimes it even stop me from falling asleep."
"Really?" He asked, his eyes widened in surprise. "And you don't get mad? Mommy isn't happy at all when I don't let her sleep!"
"Peanut is still too young to know that." I patiently explained. "And I like feeling it move. It means it's all right and healthy, you know?"
"When could I see it?"
"You need to wait a little bit longer for that, sweetie." I answered with a smile.
My brother let go of a little frustrated sight, and that made me giggle. He was definitely so adorable, and it was hard to keep a straight face seeing his disenchanted expression. I put my finger under his chin to lift it up, and said to help him regain his smile :
"But the wedding is in three days! You're excited about it, aren't you?"
"Oh, yeah!" he cried out. "Mommy said you look like a princess in your dress!"
I smiled at him and opened my mouth to answer him I was finding this comment adorable, but my dad's voice rang from the living room, interrupting our little moment :
"What are you both still doing there?"
"We're coming!" I answered, before getting on my feet, winking at my brother while getting up.
He offered me a huge smile and turned back to hop toward the living room and join our family. I followed him, amused by his good mood, and walked into the overcrowded room. Robyn, Roland and Liam were already sitting on the floor and playing together, and Neal joined them with a cry of joy. I sat back down next to Killian to face my family, that was settled on the couches placed in the room.
"So, what's planned for tonight?" My mom asked with curiosity.
"Oh, you know, not much." My dad answered in a falsely innocent way that alerted me a bit. "We're just going out for a drink, you know what it is… what about you?"
"Nothing much either, you know, we have to watch the kids..." She replied with the same mysterious tone her husband had used.
"Okay." I started, puzzled by their strange behavior. "There is something you're not telling me."
"Not at all!" My mom defended herself in a high-pitched voice, and I gave her a skeptic look.
"Don't forget I know when people are lying to me..." I said, raising an eyebrow at her in a falsely annoyed way.
"Yeah, right." Henry intervened, helping my parents and that made me think he had also something to do with whatever was going on. "We should go, don't you think?"
"Very well." I said, my lips pressed together as my dad and Robin were getting up, obeying to my son. "You take it that way. It's good for now, but don't think you'll get out of this that easily."
My dad laughed as an answer, and that made me even more perplexed than I already was. I looked at Killian, who didn't seem to know what was happening either, but he shrugged and got off the couch to follow my dad, Robin and Henry. I imitated them to escort them out, as they had already started a lively conversation. Hook leaned forward for a gentle kiss to say goodbye, as always when we were leaving each other, and placed his hand on my stomach for a tender stroke.
"Be safe, okay?" I said, my hand running up and down his spine.
He nodded and smiled at me, leaning one last time to press a kiss on my forehead. He then pulled away from me to follow the others, who were already almost out of our yard.
"Be good, guys!" I said as they were walking away in the darkness.
Only the wind gusts answered me.
"Good night, baby." I whispered, pressing a kiss on my son's forehead after hugging Neal, who was sleeping in his nephew's bedroom for the night. "Sweet dreams, you two."
"And no mischief, understood?" My mom added to my brother, who nodded to show he was getting her request and looking a bit sheepish seeing my mom's bossy look.
I smiled at them and winked one last time before turning off the light, and the space got only enlightened by the little pilot light laying in a corner of the room. I left the door half-opened to be able to hear them in case there would be a problem, and followed my mom to go downstairs. Regina got out of the spare room in which she had rocked Roland and Robyn, and we walked down the stairs without saying a words in order not to bother the kids.
"Very well" my mom started, glancing at her watch once we were arrived in the living room. "I think it's time."
"Huh?" I answered without understanding anything, even more destabilized by Regina's reaction, who nodded as if what my mom had just said was perfectly logical.
"Now that the kids are in bed, we should go." She added without answering my question.
"What the hell are you talking about? Going where?" I asked, wondering what in the damn hell was happening to her and if she was running a fever of some sort to act that way.
She glanced at Regina with an amused smile, as if she was finding this entire situation really funny. I raised an eyebrow at her, more and more intrigued by her strange behavior. I had guessed that she was engineering something earlier, and her overexcited look was worrying me a little bit. Before I could ask for more precision, she turned back to me and stated :
"I have a surprise for you."
"A surprise?" I repeated, shaking my head in disbelief with a little wince, asking myself what she could have in mind again. "What kind of surprise?"
"Do you want me to remind you of the definition of this word?" Regina jeered, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "If we tell you what this is about, it's messing the entire concept up."
"To know what's going on, you'll have to come with me." My mom resumed, grabbing my wrist to take me with her.
"But… Huh… And what about the kids?" I stuttered, utterly disoriented, trying to free myself from her grip but it was looking like her playfulness was heightening her strength.
"I'm staying here." Regina explained. "If there is the slightest issue, I promise you I'll call you right away."
"But..." I started, not knowing if I was liking the twist this evening was taking.
"No, don't you dare discuss." My mom cut me off, forcing me to put on a sweater in order not to get cold. "Stop this right now, and come with me."
I raised an eyebrow, surprised because of this bossy impulse, as it wasn't like her. Getting advantage of my stupor, she tightened her grip around my wrist and I let her take me outside without understanding anything about what was happening.
"Damn, mom, are we there yet?" I moaned, shuffling behind my mother, who was still looking overexcited.
"We're almost there, the surprise is in the loft." She informed me, starting to walk even faster than she already was.
"And we couldn't get the car to come here?" I asked, keeping the same pace to force her to slow down a bit.
"Stop moaning." She said with an amused smile. "And be patient."
"Where is it coming from, this idea of making me a surprise, anyway?" I asked, suddenly curious to know more about what was going on.
"It's your wedding, honey. It's normal for me to offer you presents."
"But you've already given me the dress!" I started, before she stopped all at once to cut me off, and, surprised, I almost ran into her.
"Because you thought I was going to stop there?" She asked, looking genuinely surprised by my statement. "Baby, I have 28 years of gifts to catch up, I'm not going to deprive myself."
"I…" I started, touched by these words I hadn't expected to hear. "Thanks, mom. I really like the fact you want to make me happy. But I don't want you to feel forced to do anything. You don't owe me anything, you didn't need to do all of this..."
"Emma, you're my daughter, of course I needed to do this. Now, stop protesting and come with me." she ordered.
I didn't even think about protesting again and started walking at a faster pace. I had never imagined this night could take this twist, and I was feeling a bit perplexed. My mom was acting like she wanted to fill these 28 years we hadn't spent together, and I didn't really know what to think about her behavior. I didn't want her to feel forced to offer me stuffs, I was happy enough to finally have my parents by my side, but she was looking sincerely happy to do this kind of things. I then kept quiet, getting in her words than spoiling me was making her feel better about herself, and after a few more minutes of walking in silence, we arrived in front of her building. She rushed into the stairs, as if she wanted to go ahead of me. She then gave me a strange look I wasn't able to decode before opening the loft's door, and she announced in a clear voice, thing that made me frown :
"We're here."
That meant her surprise was actually a person, and I was feeling so lost I didn't know what to do anymore. Who the hell could she have brought here? Still frowning, I walked into the apartment to finally discover what my mom was hiding from me, and was greeted by a blond head, who literally jumped into my arms to pull me into a tight embrace.
"Emma! I'm so, so happy to see you again!"
I stayed quiet and still for a few seconds, confused, before freeing myself from the embrace to look more carefully at this stranger who had run toward me. I had thought I had recognized this voice, but I needed to make sure of it. It couldn't be real, it was too good to be true...
"El… Elsa?" I stuttered once my eyes met my friend's gaze, and I was sure I wasn't dreaming. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Well, let's say that I've learned you're getting married, and I didn't want to miss that." She said with a huge smile on her face, her hands still in mine, and I turned back to look at my mom, my lips parted without understanding how my friend had arrived here.
"Now that we have the apprentice's wand, traveling between realms is child's play." My mom explained, as she was looking pretty proud of her idea. "I told myself it was a good idea for your friend to be at your wedding."
I felt a huge smile spreading on my face without being able to control myself. I couldn't believe it. Of course, I had friends in Storybrooke. But no one aside from Killian was getting me like Elsa did. She had helped me so much when I was scared of myself, and I probably wouldn't have been where I was at this exact moment without her. The last time I had seen her was three years ago, while I was pregnant with Liam, and I had missed her so much. So, happy beyond words to see her, I broke the distance between us to wrap my arms around her.
"God, Elsa, I'm so glad you're here! You have no idea how much it means to me..."
She giggled at my comment, and held me tight against her. Feeling my friend beside me was making me so happy I was feeling like I could start crying. My mom definitely knew what to do to touch my heart. We stayed in each other's arms for a few seconds, before she started talking again with laughter in her voice :
"Wait, let me look at you." She said, pulling away from my embrace but keeping my hand in hers. "Wow." She added with a playful smile. "It looks like every time we see each other, you're pregnant."
"Hey, it's not my fault if we meet once every three years." I laughed, staring at her as well.
It hit me all at once how much she had changed. I hadn't shared more than a few sentences with her, but I could tell without a hesitation she was less afraid of herself, she was looking way more confident. Maybe being a queen had helped her, but her eyes were shining with an all new light : she was looking genuinely happy. Her evolution was amazing, and I couldn't help but say :
"You're glowing, Elsa."
"I could say the same thing to you." She replied with a big smile, looking touched by my words.
"Stop it, I'm not stunning, I'm knocked up." I said, and that made her laugh.
"Don't say that, you're gorgeous. And talking about kids..." She changed the subject, taking me to the couch so we could sit next to each other. "How's little Liam? I can't wait to finally meet him."
I glanced at her in surprise, before understanding that my mom had probably talked to her about everything that had happened during her absence. I then smiled back at her and answered :
"He's more than fine, and he's a little angel. Killian and I are absolutely in love with him."
"And what about the little one? Is it a boy or a girl?" She asked, looking down at my stomach. "How far are you into the pregnancy? Five months?"
"We don't know yet for the gender." I said, mechanically placing my hand on my stomach, and the baby kicked as an answer to my stroke. "And I'm six and a half month pregnant."
"Wow." She said. "Already. Now that we've found a way to cross realms, I plan on being in Storybrooke quite often. I could meet the little one in that case."
"That'd be awesome!" I cried out with a big smile, feeling a little pinch of happiness in my chest, realizing my friend and I wouldn't be separated for that long anymore. "Anna isn't with you?"
"No, but her and Kristoff will be there in time for the wedding. We didn't want to leave Arendelle without a ruler for longer than necessary."
"I get it." I said, before placing my hand on my friend's, still not managing to believe she was actually there in front of me. "Gosh, I'm so, so glad you're here, Elsa. Now that we're at it..." I wavered a little bit, even if I knew deep down I was taking the right decision. "Do you want to have a part in the wedding? I think there's still a place of bridesmaid available."
I glanced at my mom, who was holding a bit back to give us some privacy, and she nodded with a huge smile to encourage me. I hadn't wanted to take a bridesmaid for the wedding ceremony : I didn't have a real best friend, and I hadn't wanted to choose between my mom and Regina, who were the most suitable for the job. But now that Elsa was here, I didn't have any doubt left. She was the one who was going to stand beside me at the altar, and I couldn't have been happier about it.
She accepted my offer with a big smile, looking very touched by this idea, and we carried on talking for half an hour in the loft before deciding to go home so we wouldn't left Regina alone with the kids for too long. I had never imagined my mom would give me such a gift, and I was feeling grateful beyond words for this surprise. Having my friend, the one who had helped me accept who I really was, beside me was making me so happy. And deep down, a little voice was telling me that this wasn't the last surprise I would get from my parents.
"Girls, we're home!"
My dad's voice had rung into the hall. He had spoken quite lowly, certainly in order not to wake the kids up. I smiled and glanced at Elsa, who was sitting beside me on the sofa. We were talking for hours, my mom and Regina holding back to leave us alone, aware that we were catching up after years spent apart. It was feeling like we had left each other the day before, and our friendship hadn't suffered from our long separation. I was so happy she was there for my wedding. I couldn't have asked for a better gift.
"I'm going." I decided, getting up to go join Hook, Robin, Henry and my dad.
My mom had explained to me that the latter had participated to the surprise, but Killian had absolutely no idea Elsa was in town. I smiled, eager to see his reaction. He had always gotten along with my friend pretty well, and I was sure he was going to be surprised, but very glad to see her.
I walked into the hall to find the four men enthusiastically talking with each other. I approached them to announce myself, but Killian saw me first, and a big smile appeared on his face. He walked toward me and passionately kissed me, which allowed me to realize he had forced on the alcohol a little bit.
"Oh, captain, you've drunk." I said, placing both my hands on his chest, amused by the situation.
He was far from being completely drunk, but he was looking a bit tipsy, and I tried to hide my smile by biting the inside of my cheek. I had never told him this, but I was always finding him really funny when he had drunk. It was making the defiant side of him stronger, and he was even more flirty with me than usual, and deep down, I was liking this very much. Especially because it was reminding me of all those nights spent at drinking rum together, when we were alone at home. We were always having so much fun, and I ended up smiling anyway to show him I wasn't annoyed by the state he was in.
"Hey, if I had listened to your father, it would have been much worse." He defended himself, wrapping both his arms around my waist to pull me closer to him.
"Dad." I grunted, turning to look at David, a bit annoyed by this childish behavior.
"I just wanted to know how well he could hold his rum." He informed me with an innocent smile.
"Yeah, right." I said with one of my eyebrow raised. "Meanwhile, babe, I'll advise you to pretend you're sober, because we have a guest." I added to Killian with a smile, placing my head on his shoulder for a hug.
"What do you mean?" He said, surprised.
I shared a smile with my dad behind Hook's shoulder, and took Killian's hand to guide him to the living room, where my friend was awaiting for us. Seeing us coming in, she got up and, without paying attention to Killian's astounded expression, she hugged him to greet him.
"What… How did you..." He started when she pulled away from him, looking completely confused.
I went to stand next to my friend, and giggled seeing Killian's reaction. His surprised was foreseeable, but with the alcohol in addition to all of that, he was looking utterly lost. Compassionate, I placed my hand on his shoulder to explain :
"Elsa has come for the wedding."
"but… How?" He asked, my brief explanation not helping him to understand what was going on.
I laughed once again, and took him to the couch to make him sit down and tell him everything. As time went by, he looked less and less lost, and nodded several times to show us he was getting what we were saying. I looked at him during the entire time, and ended up cuddling against his chest, as he was absent-mindlessly wrapping his arm around my shoulder to make his fingers play against my side.
"I'm so happy for you two." Elsa finished with a big smile. "For the new baby and for the wedding. You deserve to be happy more than anyone after everything you've been through."
I turned to look at Killian, who was also staring at me, his eyes sparkling with pure happiness. He ended up leaning forward to press a kiss on the top of my head, and I snuggled a little bit deeper into his arms. Elsa was right. We were deserving this happiness, and we were going to enjoy every bite of it. Because, if I was referring to my experience, I knew it could break at any moment.
and... next chapter is the wedding ceremony! Hope to see you Friday! :)