Henry's view
We finally arrive at the house. As soon as Ruby has stopped, I jump out of the car and run to the door. I knock stormily and I suspect that my mom's now know that I'm at the door. The seconds I wait for the door to open feel like an eternity. Then finally the door opens and I see Emma coming out from behind Mom. As soon as I see her, I jump into her arms.
Hey little one, don't be so rough or we'll fall over," she says laughing. It's so nice to hear Mum laugh.
I loosen my grip around her waist and put my arms around her neck, forcing her to make herself a little smaller, so I can put my head against the crook of her neck.
Mom, I was so worried about you, are you okay?" I finally want to know for sure.
Yes, little one, I am fine now. I'm happy to see you, I'm sorry I ran away." I hear my mum say.
It's okay mom, I understand and I know you didn't mean to leave me, you just needed a break. Mum explained that sometimes adults just need some quiet time to think and that it had nothing to do with me or the others, but you just needed to get clarity in your emotional chaos without worrying that you might burden one of us with it" I hear Mum exhale in relief after I say that.
"Thanks kiddo." Emma whispers so that only I can hear her and hugs me a little closer.
It's good to see Emma, I knew I was very worried, but I don't realize how much of a burden it was until now, when all the tension falls away from me. I stay in the embrace for a moment and cuddle up to my mom.
Hey Ruby, good to see you, do you want a drink?" I hear my mom say.
"Well Regina, nice to find you here unharmed, yes coffee wouldn't be bad." Ruby answers my mom.
"Come with me then, I'll show you around, let's give these two a moment alone."
So mom and Ruby go into the kitchen while I continue to stay in mom's arms. I'm just not ready to let her go again.
Mom keeps stroking my head, she seems to know exactly what I need right now. Emma, besides being able to recognize lies, also has the gift of instinctively doing the right thing, it's like she can't help it. That's why she was the only one who stood up to Mom back then. Not once had Emma backed down, even though Mom had tried to run Emma out of town with nasty tricks back then. If only Mum would take care of herself the way she takes care of me or Mom, she would be much better off and wouldn't always be trying to sort everything out with herself... At least Emma is letting mom stand by her, now they just have to realize that they belong together.
Ruby's view
I follow Regina into the kitchen. Once there, Regina puts on a cup of coffee and I take the opportunity to talk to her.
Tell me, Regina, what's been going on? It's not like you not to get in touch. Is everything okay?" I ask her directly, I hadn't wanted to bring it up in front of Henry, because I know he was very worried, like the rest of us.
Regina exhales deeply.
I'm sorry Ruby, I just didn't think to contact you. When I got here, Emma was in a very bad way, we didn't even talk that night. After she opened the door I just pulled her into my arms, then moved the hug inside until she fell asleep. I didn't let go of her until morning. When I woke up, Emma was gone and I thought she had run away again. I went to take a shower and then was outside for hours until Emma found me there. She had only been shopping. I fainted outside next to Emma, probably had a high fever, Emma told me. She brought me here and brought my temperature down, but I didn't wake up again until 10:00 this morning. Emma and I then talked about it because I couldn't remember, then had breakfast and Emma then went to take a shower when I turned on my cell phone. I didn't realize it had gone off, so I saw all the missed calls and unread messages and then texted you when you were almost here." Regina explains.
I let her words run through my head and come to the conclusion that I wouldn't have thought of getting in touch if I had been in her place, even though my feeling tells me that that wasn't the whole story. I am sure that my feeling is deceiving me, she has no reason to hide anything from me.
Oh, man, you guys had a lot going on, how are you doing now? And how is Emma?" I want to know.
I'm fine, I think Emma is fine too, but we haven't had a chance to talk about what exactly happened. I think it's still very much on Emma's mind. Maybe you can take Henry for a walk tonight, and then I can talk to Emma about it." Regina says, but seems to be lost in her own thoughts. I think her idea is a good one, Henry would love to go for a walk with me and explore the area.
I am glad that you are well again! I can well imagine that Emma is still very busy, I would love to punch her parents. First they give Emma away, then they throw the worst things at her, and now they show up again, when Emma has her life so far under control. I hope Emma talks to you about it and of course I'll take Henry for a walk, I'm sure he'll have fun exploring around here, you know how much imagination he has. He'll probably make up some story about it." I answer Regina, which makes her smile.
Immediately I think of how Henry met a friend of mine. He said to me at the time 'Ruby, your friend Killian looks like Captain Hook, are you sure it's not him?' I had to try very hard not to laugh at the time, which I didn't necessarily succeed in doing. Of course, I told Henry that I was sure Killian wasn't Captain Hook, but he wouldn't be convinced. 'Ruby, I just can't believe that, look at him, he with his black clothes, black leather jacket, all the rings on one hand and a blunt on the other, he lives on a ship and wears a pirate hat!' Had Henry just said. I explained to him that he only lives on the ship because he wanted to sail around the world and that he had a stump because he lost his hand in an accident earlier, but Henry just had his own story to Killian. Well at that time Henry was only seven years old, but it was still very amusing and I could not help laughing.
Regina seems to have thought of the same story, because we both start laughing and say "Captain Hook".
After we finally stop laughing, Regina turns her attention back to the coffee, it's finished by now and she pours us both a cup.
"And was there anything new with you or Henry in the last two days?" Regina asks me as she hands me one of the cups.
I think about it for a moment. Nothing exciting or new happened with me and Granny, but there was this thing with Henry. I start to grin.
Granny and I are still the same, but something has happened with your son. I say and take a sip of coffee. Regina raises her eyebrow and looks at me questioningly. I grin even wider.
"Guess who finally had the guts to ask a girl to the prom?" I say.
Regina's questioning look changes to an amused one.
Oh well, you're not there for two days and Henry finally finds the courage to ask her. Did she say yes?" Regina wants to know.
Well, what do you think? Of course she said yes, but she giggled before she answered him, because he really blushed at the question. He only told me reluctantly because he wanted tips from me about what he should wear," I reply. Regina has to laugh now and I happily join in.
How can he be such an open and direct person and at the same time so shy when it comes to girls? Comes from Regina, which now smirks. I shrug my shoulders, because I really don't have an answer to that.
Let's go back to those two, I think they've had enough time and so I can tell Emma about it and annoy Henry at the same time." I suggest and Regina agrees with a nod of her head.
Regina's view
While Ruby brings Emma up to speed, I sink once again into my thoughts. Even though Ruby and I aren't really the closest of friends, it felt weird not telling her the whole truth. I mean, I didn't lie to Ruby, I just left out part of what happened. For example, the kiss between Emma and me, or almost the entire situation this morning.
For a split second I thought Ruby wouldn't believe me, but seriously, what reason would she have not to believe me?
Before Ruby and Henry got here, Emma and I decided not to tell them about it for now. It's just too fresh and we don't want Henry to get hung up on it until we've talked about everything and are sure.
- one hour earlier -
Regina, can we talk about us before they get here?" she asks me quietly, looking down at the floor.
Sure, I'd like to talk to you too!" I reply and she looks up. I smile at her, even though panic is spreading inside me.
I would like to talk to you alone and in peace about how to proceed. Until then, I would rather not tell the two of them. Don't get me wrong, I would love to tell the whole world, but it's all still so new and I can't really believe it all yet, but I just want to enjoy this feeling inside me for a while without telling the two of them and being pestered with questions..." Emma says so quietly that I have to strain to understand her. I understand Emma, even though I don't like keeping secrets from our son, I still agree. And having the conversation now doesn't feel right, as it would be more under duress.
I agree with you Emma, I don't want to have this conversation with you just so we don't have to lie to Henry. We should take our time for the conversation. Emma, you told me you love me and that's all I need to know right now. I'm just glad I didn't lose you by my rash actions yesterday, because that's what I've been afraid of ever since I fell in love with you. What the future holds for us is not important right now, we are both here and should just enjoy the moment for now." I say what I'm feeling right now. Emma gives me a smile and a kiss. I was just about to speak again when there was a stormy knock on the door.
I guess that's our son," Emma says with a laugh. Emma says with a laugh. I agree and go to the door to open it.
- back in the here and now -
What do you think of that, Regina?" Emma asks me. I look at her, irritated, because I hadn't heard anything at all.
Mom, haven't you been listening to us?" comes a playfully annoyed Henry. I give him an apologetic look and shrug my shoulders.
Mom, where were you again with your thoughts? Ruby suggested we go for a walk and explore the area a bit. Mom agrees, so can I?" He repeats for me. I try to suppress my grin and look at Ruby, who winks at me.
,Yes my dear, you are welcome to do that, but listen to Ruby." I answer him playfully sternly, where Ruby and I have to suppress another laugh.
Henry's view
"Thanks, Mom." I say enthusiastically. I jump up and get my jacket, because I can't wait to explore the area around here. More importantly, I want to talk to Ruby. Mom is kind of weird, something is different than usual. Mom is more cheerful, almost seems happy, while at the same time she is even more absent than usual and I want to know if Ruby has noticed this too and if she knows anything. I quickly put on my jacket, take Ruby's jacket and go back to the others. Ruby is still sitting on the sofa, so I take her hand, pull her off the sofa and press her jacket into her hand.
Come on, let's go," I say, and my moms and Ruby start laughing.
"Kid, why are you so impatient, you have plenty of time to explore the area?" Emma asks me, still laughing.
Mum, you can't know if we'll have enough time, you don't know what we'll find". I answer her question with the only explanation I can think of, without mentioning the other reason. I don't even wait for a reaction from my moms, who are still busy laughing, but just pull Ruby along with me.