Chapter 18: Welcome to Storybrooke

"Help!" she shouted as she woke up and sat straight up in her bed, searching for air. One of the volunteers came into her room.

"Are you okay, Taylor?" miss Blanchard asked.

"I… I had a nightmare."

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"It wasn't very special miss Blanchard. I was drowning, but it was a younger version of me I guess. Because I didn't look so old. A boy grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the water…"

"Well then, you're safe now aren't you?" miss Blanchard came to sit on her bed to grab Taylors hand. Yes, she laid in the hospital. The nurses told her that she had fallen down the stairs and broken a rib. But she didn't remember anything, so she trusted the nurses.

"Yes I am…"

A few weeks later

Taylor got dismissed from the hospital, her back had healed. It felt like she had laid in the hospital for years. But then this woman called Emma Swan came into town and things seemed to progress more. At least the clock tower worked again.

"Taylor!"

"Oh hello Henry, how are you?"

"More than fine. Why are you here, don't you have to stay in bed?" he asked her.

"Oh Henry, I got out of the hospital a few days ago. I'm doing very well." She smiled at the little boy. Henry was the mayor's son, a very sweet kid.

"It must be because Emma drove into town, you know, my real mom. Now the clock tower is working again, she is gonna break the curse!"

"Henry, Miss Mills is a really good mom to you, oh, wait do you mean you found your birth mom? And what curse are you talking about?"

"It's all in the book Taylor, and my mom? She is the Evil Queen, really. Emma will save everyone, and she is my real mom!" He kept talking about this book. Taylor heard that miss Blanchard had given it to him, she's his teacher. And her teacher too, but she's not in his class. Taylor got given private lessons.

"Hey Taylor... Would you mind walking me home?" He asked.

"Sure, Henry."

So they walked to Henry's home together, the mayors house. Taylor knocked on the door as miss Mills opened it.

"Good morning mayor Mills, I just walked Henry home for you, if you don't mind."

"Taylor Allingswood." The mayor said grinning, "What a pleasure to see you here, I thought you were in hospital?"

Allingswood, that wasn't her full name… It was meant to be Taylor French Allingswood. But Taylor didn't know that. She didn't know the Evil Queen Regina casted this curse. Everyone out of the Enchanted Forest was sent into this new world, without magic. No one knew who they were, they didn't know they once lived in Mist Heaven. The fact was, only the Enchanted Forest was hit by the curse, except for Safe Haven. Time stood still for 28 years, only Henry knew because of his book. And now time started ticking again, because Emma Swan, the saviour, had come into Storybrooke. Ironic how that was the name of the place, 'Storybrooke'.

"Thanks to Emma she got out, thanks to my real mom!" Henry shouted before he ran through the door, up to his room where he locked himself in.

"I'm sorry miss A… He sees me as this evil character. I can be strict sometimes, but evil is a big word isn't it?"

"I think he misunderstands you mayor Mills, everyone has a pure heart. Maybe he's just a bit tired." She had said that earlier 'misunderstood'. When Regina cast the curse, Taylor told her that she once thought the Evil Queen was misunderstood. It made Regina think about it for a brief moment.

"You get on quite well with Henry, right?" miss Mills said.

"I do, yes, he came to visit me once in a while and now he's kind of my little buddy." Taylor said smiling. Henry was more like a little brother to her, she really wanted the best for him.

"What if I take you on as my assistant. You can keep an eye on Henry and help me with stuff in the office." Miss Mills kindly smiled at Taylor who was stood in her doorway.

"Really? It would be a pleasure mayor Mills!"

"Then I'll see you at 9 AM tomorrow, be on time." She closed her door as Taylor thanked her, walking over to the same apartment building were miss Blanchard lived. She opened up the door of her own apartment.

"I'm home!" she yelled.

"Taylor! Oh Tay, I'm so happy we live together now, aren't you? It's so much better now you're out of that creepy hospital." Alison was her name, Taylor's best friend. Yes, Alison and Taylor met earlier in the Enchanted Forest when Alison had stolen Killian's bag. But of course they didn't remember any of that.

"I'm glad to be here with you." Taylor hugged her best friend as they walked over to the living room.

"I got a job at the mayors office." Taylor said as she took her seat.

"Wow stop, you what?"

"Yes I'm miss Mills' assistant now."

"What do you have to do as her assistant?" Alison asked curiously.

"I have to keep an eye on Henry and just do stuff for her like sort out paper work and those kind of things. I have to be at her office at 9 AM tomorrow."

"Sounds early… I don't know if we can trust her, Miss Mills keeps all her secrets to herself. We don't know what she could be hiding." Alison briefly stopped, "But hey, let's celebrate! I'm gonna order some pizza for us, this is a good thing right? Now we both have a job!"

Alison worked as a waitress at the bed & breakfast called Granny's. It was a lovely and nice place to sit down and enjoy a meal or beverage, everyone who came there knew each other.

"It's worth a celebration, yes, let's order that pizza right away!"

"Hey have you heard about this new one in town, Emma Swan?" Alison asked.

"Henry talked about her earlier yes, she seems to be his birth mom."

"Ouch… Poor miss Mills, she won't like that. Oh well, I think we will get to know Emma Swan better in the next few weeks. No one ever comes to Storybrooke."

"We'll see, now call that pizza man, Allison!"

"Yes Tay! Already dialling."