Around midnight, Emma jumps when Henry shakes her awake. "Kid, you have got to stop waking me up like this."

"She's still awake," he spits at her.

"Dang, Henry. Calm down."

"Don't tell me to calm down. I got her here for you. I made up a story to bail on you so you had time to be alone."

Emma sits up. "Really? There wasn't a concert?"

"No, there wasn't. I just went to the dorms to hang out with the few people left around here so you could make up. Now I have to be on damage control. How can one person be so incredibly bad at this?"

"Hey, you can back off, mister. I'm not exactly happy either."

Henry drops onto the chair across from her. "What did you do? She's really upset. She was obviously crying."

"I kissed her."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Oh it was very much a bad thing. She was mad at me and practically yelling at me, and I just dove in to kiss her."

"Why?"

Emma shrugs. "Seemed like a good thing to do at the moment."

"You watch way too many movies. Have you not realized you need to be delicate with your intimacy?"

"I sure as hell have now."

Henry rubs at his eyes. "So what now?"

"I don't know."

"Well, figure it out," he snaps at her.

She stands and points a finger at him. "This was your master plan, Henry. What did you think was going to happen? Think I could just take her on a date, spill my heart to her, and then get on one knee?"

"I thought maybe you could at least try. Did you spill your heart to her?"

"No."

"Maybe you should. Maybe for once, Ma, you could tell her the truth. Maybe for once you can look her in the eye and tell her how you feel about her instead of beating around the bush."

"You don't know what happened tonight."

Henry crosses his arms. "Am I really that far off?"

Emma huffs and sits back down. "I think this was a mistake. All I manage to do is hurt her."

"She has high expectations."

"Maybe too high."

"Or maybe you could just try to meet them."

Fiddling with her fingers, Emma looks up at Henry. "She's still awake?"

He nods so she slowly gets up. She takes a deep breath before entering her bedroom.

"Regina?"

"Get out," Regina bites through the darkness.

"Okay." She quickly closes the door and turns to Henry. "I think I'll wait til the morning."

Henry rolls his eyes and moves toward his room. "You're pathetic."

Emma grabs his arm and spins him around. "You need to chill, Henry. You're pushing your luck with that attitude. I don't need both of you attacking me. You want your plan to work so well, then stop criticizing me and get in my corner."

Henry stares at her, looking back and forth between her eyes, before relaxing a bit. "I'm sorry. I just really don't like you upsetting her so much."

"I'm not trying to, Henry. Please understand that. I want nothing more than for this to work out, but I'm just sucking wind at every attempt."

Henry nods. "Keep trying. Let's go out as a family tomorrow and have a good time. I'll go off and play with the sting rays or something while you try to talk. Maybe a big public space will keep you both in check."

Emma nods back. "Hopefully. Thank you, Henry. Don't give up on either us, okay? You're our rock, and you're supposed to have an unwitting amount of hope in that heart of yours so be nice to me," she jabs him in the chest, "and let's make this work."

He rubs at the spot on his chest then pulls her into a hug. She gasps at the sudden movement then lays her head on his shoulder and squeezes him back. "I love you, Ma." He releases her and goes into his room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

"I love you too, kid," she whispers into the door. She turns and stares at her bedroom door. She takes one step forward then shakes her head and goes back to lie on the couch.

Acting as a barrier, Henry walks between Emma and Regina as they enter the aquarium. Regina smiles when both Henry and Emma's faces light up at the grand dome.

"Hey, sting rays!" Henry shouts and runs over an open tank designed for patrons to interact with the animals.

Emma rolls her eyes. "Smooth," she mumbles.

"Pardon?" Regina asks walking next to her but certainly not close.

"He's just a goof."

"Takes after his mother."

"Which one?" Emma teases.

Regina just raises an eyebrow and meets Henry at the tank.

Emma's shoulders sag and she trudges behind. She laughs when she sees Henry trying to shove Regina's hand in the water.

Regina manages to yank her hand back just as a ray swims by. "Thank you, Henry, but I think I've had enough of this little experience." She steps away from the tank and moves to sit along the wall and wait.

Henry looks over his shoulder at Emma and winks.

She smiles back at him. "Smooth, indeed," she mumbles, more proudly this time. Taking a calming breath, she takes the seat next to Regina, careful not to sit too close. "Can we talk?"

Regina keeps her eyes on Henry. "Would you not rather enjoy our son's experience?"

"I think we can do both."

Regina hums doubtfully. "Our track record proves otherwise."

Emma grits her teeth. "Please, Regina, I know you don't see it this way, but I am trying. I want to get through to you. Please just talk to me."

Regina finally looks at Emma. "You have my attention."

"First off, I'm sorry for kissing you. It seemed like a much better idea at the time."

"You were mistaken."

"I panicked." Regina just cocks her head and waits for Emma to continue. Trying to feign confidence, Emma turns fully to Regina, gripping her pant-leg for comfort. "You know how I feel about you-"

"Actually, Emma, you haven't said anything beyond you care about me. That's quite obvious, and you know that I care about you too."

"Okay." Emma looks around at the massive crowd. "Maybe this really isn't the best place."

"I'm leaving that decision up to you, Emma."

Frustrated, Emma responds, "You know what? You haven't exactly been- Nevermind." Emma turns away.

Regina reaches out and turns Emma back to her. "Stop. Stop turning away from me. Stop tuning me out. And stop giving up."

"You're a tiny bit frustrating, Regina."

Regina shrugs. "You've had years to learn that, dear. I don't foresee a change."

Emma runs a hand down her face and turns back to Regina. "I'm gonna say something that's kind of a big deal, and I don't want you to say anything back until you've thought about. I'm just gonna say it and then let's get Henry and go through this aquarium as a family. Okay?"

Regina nods slowly. "I'm listening."

"For a long time, like a really long time, you've held a special place in my heart, and not just because you're Henry's mom who raised my son to be an incredible young man. That certainly helps though."

They share a quick smile before Emma continues. "I realize this is likely one sided, and that's okay. I really just don't want to ruin things, and I'm really scared which is why I have been a complete and utter ass."

Regina nods in agreement. "Look, I'm just going to say it. Henry told me to spill my heart, so here it is... Regina, I am deeply and honestly in love with you, and I have been for a long time, and… And that's basically my burden to bear. I don't know what else to say. I don't really have any excuses for my behavior. Just know that- just know that I will always be here for you, and I will always do anything for your happiness."

Regina stares at Emma with wide eyes. Emma looks away nervously. She takes a deep breath and stands holding her hand out to Regina. "Shall we?"

Regina smiles at her softly and takes her hand. Emma drops her hand as they walk to Henry, but Regina quickly takes it back in her grip, stepping close to Emma so that their shoulders are touching.

Once they are behind Henry, Regina gently touches his shoulder. He turns and immediately grins when he sees their hands together.

"There are no promises here, Henry," Regina warns.

Emma shifts uncomfortably but nods in agreement.

"Well, if you don't mind, just for now, I'm going to pretend we're a real family," Henry says.

"We've always been a family, Henry," Regina argues.

"Feels a bit more complete right now," he adds with a kiss to each of their cheeks. "Come on." He grabs their joined hands and drags them to another area of the aquarium.