A/N: I have no words for the finale. So I will give you words here instead. Your feedback is, as always, amazing. Also, the M rating is FULLY necessary now. Enjoy.

Henry's small and bald and sleeping in my arms and I know he's five but he feels like a baby. I'm overcome with responsibility for him. Love for him. The little shit, worming his way into my life after less than 24 hours. I can see Regina talking to his doctor; when I'm sure he's sleeping and Regina seems to be finished, I go out and without really thinking about it, give her a hug. She relaxes into my arms.

"It's strange to have someone here," she says. "This is usually the point where I give myself a talking to, whip out my laptop, and start grading papers."

"No wonder you're a harsh grader," I respond. She laughs.

"I have to eat. The cafeteria will be open, I must have a good breakfast and lots of fluids."

I look at her, considering her thought process.

"Let's get breakfast then," I say eventually, unable to come up with any response to her ridiculously pragmatic attitude.

We go back to Henry's ward first, to find clothes and clean up a bit. The three other kids in there are all awake, being fed their unappetising hospital meals.

"Henry's back already?" one of the girls asks.

"He missed you all too much to stay away," Regina said with a smile. "I should introduce you. Emma, this is Paige, Ava, and Peter."

I guess that Peter is the bad influence one. They all seem about Henry's age.

"We're the Leukemia Squad," Paige says. She sounds tired.

"No we're not," Peter says. "I told you, we can't be called that unless we're the only Leukemia room. But half the floor is Leukemia."

Ava looks between the other two, then at Emma, but doesn't speak.

"She doesn't know much English," Regina explains. "Children come from all over the world to be treated here. Ava is from Russia, but she and her baby brother Nikolai are living with a foster family here. It's a complicated situation, but in short, their parents brought them here and left them. They wanted Ava to be treated, but they couldn't afford it. There is no contact information… Luckily, the hospital's charitable nature means there was never a question of Ava receiving treatment. And I've met the foster family, they seem lovely. They're even learning Russian from the interpreter."

The story is a strange interlude in all the worrying about Henry. It's sad, but I find myself thinking, if Ava and Nikolai's parents would abandon them, the children are probably better off with their foster family. I remind myself repeatedly that not every child in the foster system has experiences like mine. I catch the Russian girl's eye and smile at her. She smiles back.

"Henry talks to her a lot," Regina tells me. I go through her bag and find a tank top. I hesitate to borrow underwear but she practically shoves some into my hands.

"They're panties, calm down," she mutters in my ear. It's the opposite of calming. I go into the bathroom and change into my shorts and the tank top, then put a fresh gown on like a cape.

"Will this pass Henry's standards?" I ask. Regina laughs and goes to change. She returns wearing leggings and a long sleeved shirt with a gown over the top. She's copied me, she hasn't done hers up either.

"I feel like a wizard," I decide.

"I am definitely a witch," Regina says firmly. She grabs her purse and we go in search of food.

The day slips by, we eat in the hospital cafeteria, talking like old friends. I suppose we are, in a way. We've known each other for close to six months. We go back to see Henry. We aren't allowed to go into his room but I have the bright idea of grabbing Jet and putting on a crazy mime show for him. I'm very impressed when Dr. Robbins shows up and joins in, gamely allowing Jet (controlled by Regina) to attack her. She's very sweet, but smart, too. Regina goes to scrub for the transfusion, Robbins is about to leave but I call her back.

"What's up?" she asks, smiling.

"I… I don't even know if he needs it yet but I'm the same blood type as the kid and I was wondering if you'd test to see if I could…" I trail off. She looks at me carefully.

"How long have you known him?" she asks.

"A day," I admit. "But I've known Regina for six months."

She nods. "And you only found out about Henry by chance?"

"How did you..?"

"She is the proudest mother I've ever met," Robbins says firmly. "But he's been abandoned before, by his father. And she doesn't see it that way, but she was abandoned too."

"Will you test me?" I ask, feeling guilty for talking about Regina behind her back.

Robbins smiles sadly. "No," she says. "For a start, the chance that you'll be a match is miniscule. Secondly, Henry is not at the point where he needs a marrow transplant. While he is looking as if he might get there soon, the risks of a non-perfect match are very high, and we want to try as many other things as we can first. There are a lot of other treatment options. And even if we were looking for a match… You're emotional, you're young, and I'm in no position to judge but from what I've seen, and guessed, your relationship with Regina is complex to say the least. If you really want to do this, you have to do it through her."

"But if the chances are so low-"

"Then she still has a right to know you're getting tested. It means something about you, Emma."

I stare at this doctor who doesn't know me and yet seems to know everything.

"I have to help," I say weakly. She brushes my arm with her hand.

"You are helping. You're the first person to ever be here with them. The first person to ever stay. She's smiling, and not just when she's with Henry. I have to go scrub. Do you want to come in too?"

"Will Regina mind?"

"No," Robbins says, giving me an encouraging smile.

I end up talking to her after the transfusion too. Regina falls asleep on Henry's bed, they break the rules and leave her there, the two of them are so cute curled up together. I go out to the waiting room and try to get comfy on the chairs. Robbins comes in.

"I've been looking for you," she says.

"Dr. Robbins," I say groggily.

"Call me Arizona. Henry does. And I'm not even your doctor."

"What's up? Did you change your mind about me being tested?"

She rolls her eyes. "No. But I was thinking about what I said to you earlier. I should have added… Emma, you don't have to stay. Regina will be fine. You seem like a very kind, protective person. But you don't have any responsibility for her or her son."

"I want to stay," I say. I'm sure. I'm also missing work right now. I haven't called them, I don't have my phone and I don't know the number to use a different one. As much as I hate to admit it, I have my own life. I have friends, M's probably going crazy, I'm aching to go for a run…

"I know," Arizona says. "But a part of you wants to leave, too."

"How can I leave? He's… She's…"

"Going to be okay. I wasn't suggesting you leave forever. But maybe go home, grab a shower, see your friends."

"What about her?"

"She'll go when she's ready. She's used to this, she knows her limits. You're not, and you don't. And you don't want to be another thing for her to worry about."

"And Henry-"

"Should understand that the whole world doesn't revolve around him, even though he's sick."

I sigh. "I don't want to go."

"I know," she repeats. "But you're not doing anyone any good taking up three of these horrifically uncomfortable waiting room chairs."

"If I don't stay, it's like I'm abandoning them," I protest. "She'll think I'm scared, she'll think I don't want to be here anymore, she'll think I'm running."

Arizona chuckles. "So talk to her before you leave. I think… I'm making a lot of assumptions here but I think right now, you're trying to prove to yourself that you're not scared, that you won't run. But taking care of yourself isn't running. It's not even selfish. It's like on airplanes. You put on your own oxygen mask first. Because you can't save anyone if you can't breathe yourself."

I'm beginning to think Arizona's my guardian angel. I tell her so. She laughs.

"I'm touched. Emma, just… Just be honest with her, okay. That's the only way."

She sounds like she's speaking from experience. She plays with her necklace. It's small, silver, with a little heart.

"Do you think it can work?" I sigh. "Is there any hope?"

She takes my hand. "Where there's love, Emma, there's always hope."

I go to Henry's room and tap lightly on the window. Regina's awake, stroking Henry's forehead. She catches my eye, gives him a kiss, and comes out to meet me.

"Hey," she says. She seems surprised to see me. "I thought you'd gone," she explains.

"Why?" I ask. I can't help it. I want her to say things.

"Why would you stay?"

I shrug. "I wanted to. I… I do have to go now."

I see her face fall. I curse everything. Everything that's made her react in the way I feared, everything that's made her assume I mean forever and not for a few hours. I take a deep breath, steadying my own wild emotions, then press a kiss to her lips. Her eyes widen.

"I thought-"

"You're an idiot," I tell her. She glares at me.

"Okay, you're not an idiot. But I'm not going. I'm just going, home, to wash my hair and get some clothes and go for a run and see my roommate and grovel to my boss so I don't get fired. But I'll be back."

Regina's grinning when I get to the end of my speech. "Okay," she says softly.

"Okay," I reply. She mock-punches my nose.

"Not funny."

"Sorry. Oh, I think my phone is at your house. Also my backpack." I remember the book I put in it. It feels like a lifetime ago.

She thinks for a moment. "Spare key. You go around the back and there's a flower pot, if you move that you'll see a combo lock, the code's 4747, and the key's in there."

I have never met anyone who keeps their key so safe. I giggle, but commit the information to memory.

"You can use the shower at my place if you like. I'll probably go home in the evening, if Henry's settled in his usual room. He sleeps better if I go, he feels more normal. Not "normal". But-"

"I get it," I tell her. "Well, in that case… I'll go do my stuff. And if you like, you can give me a call when you get home and we can go for a walk or something. So you're not by yourself. Not that you wouldn't be fine by yourself, I-"

We're as bad as each other. Regina laughs. "Okay. I'll call you later."

There's a taxi rank outside the hospital. Regina walks me down there and presses $20 into my hand.

"You're only here because of me," she reasons.

"Actually, I'm here because of Henry." I'm attempting a joke but it comes out awkwardly. I'm thinking too much, I don't want to leave, and Arizona's speech keeps replaying in my head. Especially the last part. Where there's love. Love? Love?! This isn't love, it's a crazy crush and a friendship and a wild college thing and getting to know someone… It can't be love, it's not love, it's nothing like that. We just kissed. There's way too much, I'm supposed to be making up credit for her class, she's supposed to be taking care of her son. Neither of us can do this. Why did Arizona say love? What gave her that idea?

Maybe she meant Regina and Henry, maybe she had changed the subject back to Henry getting better and was talking about how loved that little boy is and how no one should give up hope on him. I groan at myself.

"What is it?" Regina asks.

I shrug. "I just… I need to go," I say firmly.

"You do," she agrees. "I… Emma, I will call you later, but you don't have to meet me or even answer the phone if you don't want to. I'll understand. This is not what you asked for."

She's right. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I wrote that essay and showed up in her office. But I'm no angel either. Nobody has a perfect life, everybody has issues and secrets and things they need help with. It seems to me that Regina's spent way too long feeling sure she can't accept help from anyone, that she has to be Henry's saviour, that her whole life is about him and that she has nothing else to offer. Suddenly I see her austere teaching style in a different light. She doesn't want to be liked because she doesn't see why people would like her. She doesn't see what is so damn obvious. And my essay… She still thinks I was taking the piss. I can tell. But it meant something to her because she's so starved of affection.

It wouldn't be enough, I realise. I couldn't be there for her just because she needed it. But I need it too. She's the first person to see me without judgement, to notice that there's someone underneath the role I play each day. She knows what it's like to hide huge parts of yourself, she knows what it's like to feel pain. Somehow, when she looks at me, I can feel that, all of that, and it's like… Like there's somewhere I fit, where we both fit, and that's how I know I have to come back. I have to leave, I have to clear my head. But I have to come back because we're drowning, she and I, and we have to save ourselves, but maybe we can save ourselves by saving each other, too.

"If I don't answer, call again," I tell her. She smiles. I press a kiss to her dry, tired lips.

"It has been a pleasure," she says. I raise my eyebrows. She shakes her head with a laugh.

"Of course, not a pleasure that Henry is sick. But a pleasure spending time with you. I had fun. I laughed so much I had tears in my eyes when you fell out of that chair. Henry appreciates it too. He said so. And he said…" she trails off into a pause, seemingly embarrassed.

"What?" I ask softly.

"He said I am happier. He said he was glad you were here because he has his friends, Ava and Paige and Peter, and it was nice that I had a friend too."

"He's a perceptive guy."

"He has had to grow up too fast."

"Nah, he's still your little kid. Talk to him about dragons, he'll remind you."

She smiles. "I know. He… Whatever he is, whatever his health, his age, his dreams, he is my beautiful, wonderful son, and I love him with all my heart. I've known that even before he was born. I could never understand how Robin could leave."

"Does he visit?" I ask.

She nods. "Once a year. The flight is expensive, he still lives in Maine. And he has a family, a new baby. A healthy baby."

I grit my teeth. "No baby is better than another," I say. "No person… I'm sorry I asked about him, I don't really want to know."

She kisses my cheek. "I… I'm not sorry. It is something of a novelty to have someone so interested in me."

"Do you… Do you mind that I'm a student?" I blurt out. I have to go, I know, but I can't help it. My mind's burning with questions and fears. This is the least of them. I can only ask it because I'm so confident of the answer. And yet, it's an answer I'm still desperate to hear.

"No," she says firmly. "You are an amazing woman. Being my student complicates things. It is unfortunate, perhaps. But your academic status has no influence on my feelings for- my feelings about you," she corrects hastily. I grin at her like a maniac. She opens the door to my taxi.

"Have a nice day. I'll talk to you later."

"I look forward to it."

The cab takes me to her place and I find the key without any problems. I hunt around a bit and finally find my phone under one of her couch cushions. As expected, I have dozens of missed calls. I ignore them and shove the phone in my backpack. I'm about to leave but… I can't resist. It's the daredevil in me. I have no desire to snoop through her belongings. I don't go anywhere she hasn't taken me before. But I have this urge to see her room again. I go upstairs, opening the door, my heart racing as if the cops are going to show up at any moment. I have a brief flashback to when that happened, once, but I pull myself back into the present. I'm allowed to be here. I have a key.

I tiptoe into the room. The bed is made up, the whole room is perfectly tidy. I don't open her closet; her outfits look way better on her than on hangers. I do open the drawer to her nightstand. It's a moment of weakness, okay! I grin at the purple vibrator. She really is human. I close the drawer, blushing a little. Maybe she'll show me herself one day.

That delicious idea still on my mind, I go into her bathroom and look longingly at her shower. It's huge, big enough for two people at least. It looks very high-tech, with steam vents and a giant shower head so you don't even have to move, you get water everywhere. I think of the dorm showers, and then how much I need to wash my hair. I sniff her apple scented shower gel. Her shampoo and conditioner bottles promise a silky softness I could never afford. There are fresh towels on the shelf, it's like it was meant to be…

Dammit, she'll never know, I mutter to myself as I strip my clothes and turn on the heavenly appliance. I even remember to put on the extractor fan. I give myself a mental pat on the back, then step into the shower. It feels fantastic. The water pressure is perfect (and adjustable, but Regina's taste in settings suits me just fine). I wash every inch of my skin, savouring the moment for as long as I can. I decide borrowing her washcloth would be weird, so I'm touching myself with my hands, running them over my torso as I imagine the owner of the shower engaged in similar activities… I gasp, shaking myself back to reality. I can't. That would be so… So bad. But living in dorms is torture. I'm so rarely alone. Truly, blissfully, nakedly alone.

I groan as I slip a finger between my folds, feeling the wetness already pooling there as a result of my Regina-in-the-shower fantasies.

And then she's in there with me, shucking her clothes and sliding the glass door, stepping inside, parting her lips as water rains down on her skin. She's gorgeous, her toned curves, her full, inviting breasts.

"I was hoping I'd find you here," she says, her voice deep and hungry. She runs her hands up my arms, grabbing my shoulders and pulling me in for a passionate kiss. She takes the lead, her tongue pushing past my welcoming lips, caressing my mouth. She tugs gently on my bottom lip with her teeth. I hum with pleasure. The shower continues its assault on our skin, making all my nerves stand to attention as Regina pushes me against the wall, moving her hands around to fondle my breasts.

"Do you like that?" she mutters into my ear as I let out a strangled moan. She chuckles, kissing my neck, pushing her body against mine so our breasts jostle together as she moves her hands lower. She finds the base of my diaphragm, I gasp as she runs her fingers along it, then try not to scream as she lowers herself to her knees and replaces her fingers with her mouth.

Her hands run up my calves, the backs of my knees, my thighs… She gently edges my legs apart, looking up at me as she does so.

"Watch me, Emma," she breathes. She kisses my inner thighs, then lifts my left leg over her shoulder, gripping my hips to keep me steady.

I watch as she moistens her lips with her tongue. She catches my eye, then leans forward, opening me up to her, and kisses my clit. I cry out with pleasure. She's still looking at me. I struggle to keep my eyes open as she dips her tongue into my sex, licking out my essence, murmuring with enjoyment.

"You are delectable," she says, her mouth still pressed into my folds. She has to use both hands to keep me from falling, but her wicked mouth is more than enough.

She massages my most sensitive area, kissing me, enjoying me… Her tongue traces patterns on and around my swollen bundle, tortuously and wonderfully slow. I feel myself rising and rising. We're still making eye contact and the look in her dark, lustful eyes deepens as I scream her name amongst a stream of curse words. She holds me more tightly, her nails digging into me. I have one hand pressed against the wall to keep me steady; I use the other one to massage my breasts. Her eyes twinkle in approval and she dips her tongue inside me again.

"Fuck, Regina," I pant. She swipes her tongue back out, then takes my clit into her mouth, sucking on it until I come apart, a shaking mess of ecstasy in her arms. She holds me up, her tongue guiding me through, collecting another rush of my juices which she takes into her mouth with relish. She sets me on my feet and stands flush against me, still looking right into my eyes, then she kisses me, hard, and I can taste myself on her. My knees are still wobbly; she holds me firmly as she takes up a washcloth and begins to clean my body with apple-scented soap.

"Shit," I say, grabbing Regina's shampoo and washing my hair vigorously. I force myself to stand, ignoring the aftershocks still trembling through my lower body. I thought it would release the tension, and it has, the immediate kind, but now I'm even more desperate for the real thing. I have a great imagination, there's no denying it, but I have a feeling Regina's a powerhouse in the bedroom that my mind and fingers are no match for.

I hurry to finish showering, clean up the bathroom, and get out of her house. I leave everything where I found it. I'm pretty sure she won't notice. And even if she does, I used her shower, it's not like I did something criminal. She let me into her house, she wouldn't even mind. I wonder if she'd mind if she knew exactly what I used her shower for. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe she'd show me how she'd really do it.

I groan at myself as I return her key to its hiding place and go in search of a bus stop. I'm so screwed. Not literally though. Because fuck my life. And my stupid professor. That has feelings for me. I grin. Feelings for me. I am not going to worry. This is a good thing, an amazing thing. I am not going to mess it up. I am not going to freak out.

A/N: Reviews are love...