For all the times you were sick
A guest asked for a oneshot of Emma taking care of a sick Henry and being sad because she never got to do it when she was little. Going to try something a little different and go for first person…
I sigh gently as I carefully shut Henry's bedroom door behind me. He'd been throwing up most of the day and the previous night; this was the first proper rest he was getting. Since he'd been throwing up I hadn't had any real sleep either, but I couldn't sleep. I had to clean the sick bucket and wash all the clothes he'd thrown up on. Besides, I was too worried to sleep- what if he choked on his vomit? What if he cried out for me to help him and I was asleep and couldn't hear him? No, it wasn't worth the risk, I would just take a double dose of caffeine and stay awake. I did wonder how Regina did it for all those years as I scrubbed and bleached the bucket ready for if he needed it again (there was currently a sandcastle bucket by his bed on standby in case he woke up needing to be sick). I didn't mean the gross stuff like this, that I could handle. Growing up in group/foster homes puke, blood and boogers were all common place so you just got used to them. I meant the worrying. For years of various illnesses Regina must have sat by his bedside all night to make sure he was ok. That caused a pang in my chest. She did it- not me. I know Regina is his mom too but only because I was foolish enough to give my wonderful boy away. If I hadn't it should have been me soothing him through all the sicknesses. I could see him holding his tongue a few times a day. He didn't need to say the words; I knew exactly what he was thinking: "that's not the way my other mom used to do it". I wished more than anything it had been me. I feel like such a cheater swooping in after thirteen years and getting a much easier time to deal with him being sick. I feel like I don't deserve to be his mother, I haven't earned that title. Well, not yet, anyway. A small part of me hopes that if I deal with this tummy bug well then I might have begun to earn it. I need to earn that title, for my son. He deserves that from me.