Dr. Hopper squirmed, his gaze darting between the open door and the papers scattered across his desk. At least someone is more nervous than me, Emma thought.
A little boy entered. Dr. Hopper smiled. "Good morning, Henry!"
A sharp click of heels echoed through the school corridors as Regina Mills followed. Dr. Hopper rose from his seat as if royalty had entered, and Emma hastily followed suit.
"Good morning," Dr. Hopper choked out. He gave Emma a pleading glance. Help me, his eyes said.
"Good morning, Mrs. Mills," Emma greeted awkwardly, extending her hand. "Glad to meet you."
Regina's dark eyes scanned Emma from head to toe, analyzing Emma's every weakness. "Ms. Mills," Regina corrected. She didn't shake Emma's hand. Emma let it fall stupidly to her side. Despite her pounding heart, Regina captivated her.
Regina approached Henry, her demeanor shifting to one of gentle encouragement. "Henry, why don't you show Ms. Rose your new lunchbox? This won't take long."
Henry glanced at Dr. Hopper, their silent exchange laden with apprehension. With the resignation of an old soul trapped in a child's body, Henry relented. "Alright, mom."
Regina gently nudged Henry out the door, her smile fading as soon as he was out of sight. Dr. Hopper wilted under her gaze.
"I'll be brief, Hopper," Regina said. "Henry needs to be switched to Mother Superior's class immediately."
"May… May I ask why?" he stammered. "Ms. Swan's a wonderful teacher. She received glowing praise from parents last year."
Emma couldn't believe it. Dr. Hopper was trying to defend her? Though the praise was validating, she subtly signaled to him that in no way did she want to deal with this parent.
"Wonderful though Ms. Swan may be," and Emma nearly flinched hearing the poison of Regina's sarcasm, "she lacks the experience that Mother Superior offers. I had counted on Henry being in that class all summer—what happened?"
Dr. Hopper's mouth opened to answer, and he frowned, hesitating.
"I happened," Henry's voice piped up from the door, catching them all off guard.
Regina's tone became stern. "Henry, what is this?"
"I emailed Dr. Hopper and asked to be in Ms. Swan's class," Henry explained. "Remember? My therapist says I do better with more unconventional methods."
Regina stiffened. Something about the way her eyes filled with grief made Emma want to intervene.
"Henry, I'd love to have you in my class. But maybe you should listen to your mom." Emma gestured to Regina, who looked grateful. "She knows what's best for you."
Henry met Emma's gaze, undaunted. He had to raise his chin to do it, but the effect was the same. Emma couldn't help but like him a lot. "Actually, I know what's best for me. If school is too easy for me, I get in trouble. I heard you do projects and field trips in your class. And lead the school play. That's right up my alley."
"That is true," Emma couldn't help quietly agreeing with him, and she could feel the heat of Regina's wrath from a pace away.
"That's all well and good, but Henry needs structure and discipline. Harvard is only eight years away. Mother Superior's test scores are phenomenal." Regina waved her hand dismissively, clearly used to getting her way. "I don't have time to debate. I have a meeting in half an hour."
Dr. Hopper and Emma both made the mistake of gauging Henry's reaction and received the full force of his puppy dog eyes. "Please," Henry begged. "I want to be in Emma's class."
"Henry!" Regina started to scold him, but Emma interjected. "I let students call me Emma or Ms. Swan. It doesn't bother me."
"You allow first name basis?" Regina's voice dripped with disapproval.
"I pick my battles," Emma replied, meeting her glare. A tense eternity passed before Regina finally looked away.
"Henry, I don't understand why you're fighting me on this."
Henry looked at the floor. His shoulders slumped, and his expression wavered, on the verge of tears.
Then, the morning bell rang, jolting them all back to reality. The sounds of students flooding into the school echoed through the corridors.
The first-day jitters hit Emma like a ton of bricks, and she needed to get to her classroom. Henry still wouldn't look at any of them, so Emma knuckled his hair in a playful noogie.
"Hey, kid. Let's compromise. You can try my class for a week, and if your mom isn't satisfied, you can switch," Emma suggested.
Regina crossed her arms, contemplating the proposal. "I'll need to observe your class."
"Well, I still need a room mom," Emma offered. Dr. Hopper gave her an incredulous look, and Emma could hardly believe what she was saying either. Something about Regina made her speak without thinking.
"Yeah! That's a great idea," Henry chimed in eagerly. "Mom, they go on field trips and help in the class. With like, cutting out paper and making copies and bringing snacks. Stuff like that. You honestly do all that already."
Regina relented, albeit reluctantly. "Fine. I accept the compromise. But I reserve the final right to decide what's best for you."
Henry extended his hand, sealing their bargain with a firm shake. "Deal."
Their interaction, though unusually very business-like, was heartwarming to witness. David's assessment of Regina as an incredible advocate for her son was starting to make sense. Henry was clearly extraordinary.
"Mom, we need to get to class, or we'll make Emma late."
"Please call her Ms. Swan in front of the other students," Regina reminded him, looking at Emma. Her dark eyes had lost a little bit of their earlier dislike and were now curious. "She needs to earn their respect."
As Henry departed, leaving Dr. Hopper and Emma behind, Regina leaned in closer, her lips curling into a smirk. "You're going to need all the help you can get, Ms. Swan."
With all the grace she could muster, Emma hurried to her classroom, weaving through chattering, animated students in the halls. Snow was waiting outside her door.
"Well?" she pressed.
Before Emma could respond, Henry Mills flashed them both a bright smile and sauntered into her classroom. They smiled big teacher smiles as a few more kids trickled in. Most of them paused to give Mary Margaret hugs as they passed. When the coast was clear, Snow gripped Emma's shoulders.
"What happened?"
"It's a long story," was all Emma could muster. She still had no idea what the hell happened back there herself. "She's gonna be my room mom too."
Snow's fingers tightened on Emma's shoulders. Her eye twitched. "What?"
"Tea—cher!" a tiny voice sang, interrupting them. "Lilo put a sandwich in the gecko cage."
"Say what?" Emma blinked at the tattler.
The student pointed inside the classroom. A small crowd of students had gathered around the classroom pet setup. A girl stood on a chair while the crowd giggled mischievously.
"Gotta go." Emma squeezed Snow's hand on her shoulder, and she nodded.
"Text me as soon as you can," Snow pleaded.
"I will," Emma promised, sprinting inside. "HEY! BACK AWAY FROM THE LIZARD."
The giggling students dispersed. Emma fished out the peanut butter sandwich from the lizard tank and secured the lid. The soggy sandwich disintegrated on its journey to the trash. Lilo hadn't budged from the tank.
"Lilo, why did you do that?" Emma asked, approaching her.
"I don't know. He looked hungry, I guess."
Emma knelt to her level. Lilo refused to look at her, gripping her dress so tightly her knuckles paled. Emma realized she needed to be gentle.
"That was nice of you to think of him, kid. But, yeah. Geckos can't exactly eat sandwiches. Do you know what they can eat?"
Lilo shrugged.
"Bugs!" Emma said, smiling.
"EWW!" a few students cried. Some had gathered around, watching their interaction curiously. Henry was among them.
"That's nasty," another student remarked, wrinkling his nose.
"Bugs aren't disgusting," Lilo said. "We need them to help plants grow and eat pests."
"I agree," Emma said. The other students quieted at that. "Bugs are incredibly important to our ecosystem. That's smart of you to know that."
Lilo shrugged again.
"Would you help me feed him some cockroaches this week?" Emma asked.
"Sure." Lilo nodded, finally looking up. "Can I sit down now?"
"Yep," Emma said, pushing herself up. She straightened her red leather jacket, already feeling the weight of the day.
As the students found their desks and settled in, Henry caught Emma's eye. "Thanks for being nice to Lilo," he said. He jabbed a thumb towards the tank. "What's his name?"
"Killian," Emma replied without hesitation.
"Ms. Swan," Violet Morgan's hand shot up. "Can I read the date on the board?"
Emma laughed, tiredly. "When the final bell rings, yes."
Scanning the rows of desks, grouped into fours, Emma searched for latecomers. At the back of the classroom sat Regina, her shapely leg crossed over the other. She caught Emma staring, smiled, and tapped a pen on her clipboard rather menacingly.
Emma hurried over, feeling her voice betraying her surprise. "I thought you had a meeting." Immediately, she felt self-conscious. "How long have you been here?"
"Long enough," Regina replied, not looking up from her clipboard. Regina had filled half a page of notes in elegant, sprawling cursive. "Will you be writing up Miss Pelekai?"
Wait, how did— but then Emma pushed the question aside. Of course, Regina knew all the students too. She probably knew everything there was to know about the school.
"No," Emma said simply.
Regina raised an eyebrow. "And you aren't going to call her guardian?"
Emma had spent the weekend combing through academic files, IEPs, and 504 plans for every student in her class. At only ten years old, Lilo Pelekai's file already bulged with discipline and suspension records, as well as several CPS entries. Like Henry, she too had an IEP. Why would I write up an already traumatized little girl on her first day of school, Emma wanted to say, but she let her "no" speak for itself.
Across the hall, Mother Superior's fifth graders lined up outside her classroom. She was lecturing them on how to enter the class, and the children all stood silent and rigid. Mother Superior would have sent Lilo to the principal, Emma realized with dismay. And she would have called Lilo's older sister in front of the whole class. With resignation, Emma knew there was no way that she would last the week before Regina moved Henry to Mother Superior's orderly class. However, Emma wasn't going to change her teaching style just to put on a show for Henry's mom.
"No," Emma confirmed it. "Lilo didn't mean any harm, and her sister has enough to worry about."
"Hm," Regina remarked noncommittally. She jotted something down. Emma immediately regretted asking Regina to be her room parent. In fact, she regretted becoming a teacher altogether. Nevertheless, something deep inside Emma craved Regina's approval. Oddly enough, she wanted her feedback. Her fear warred with her fascination.
"Maybe… Uh. Can you maybe go over your notes with me at the end of the day?" Emma asked, uncharacteristically shyly.
Regina's fingers froze around her pen, and her gaze locked onto Emma. Emma couldn't help but notice her beauty—the graceful cascade of black hair, the faint silver scar accentuating her lips. Regina reached for her Blackberry phone, tapping away briefly. Eventually, she nodded. "Looks like I have some time. Sure, why not?"
Regina's expression was hard to read. Somehow though, Emma felt a glimmer of hope that her request had intrigued her.
The final bell rang. Emma forced calm into her frazzled nerves and did her very best to ignore the beautiful but terrifying woman watching her every move.
Despite the early morning meeting, the gecko incident, and Regina's presence in her class, the students and Emma enjoyed a great morning. She planned fun icebreakers to help them get to know each other, and by lunchtime, they were smiling and relaxed. Emma kept an eye on Henry, who seemed fascinated by her interactions with Regina.
After lunch, though, things went downhill.
Scheduling math right after lunch ended up being disastrous. The students were either hyper from recess or sluggish from food. Ten minutes in, Emma had to adjust the activity on the fly because so many students were below grade level. The lesson fell apart. Frustrated students with raised hands, bored advanced students wandering around, and Regina Mills noting every misstep. Emma even had to assign the first demerits of the year to two boys who flooded the bathroom by flushing a hallway poster down the toilet.
When Miss Fa cheerfully arrived to take the students to gym, Emma nearly hugged her in relief. Several kids squealed with delight at her appearance. They all agreed math time was over.
"Thank God," Emma muttered as Miss Fa lined up the students. Mulan quirked an eyebrow at her, her handsome smile as unyielding as ever.
"Why is Regina Mills in here?" Mulan whispered.
"She's my room mom," Emma whispered back. "Long story. I'll fill you in at PD." Regina was watching them, so Mulan smiled brightly at her.
"I'll pray for you," Mulan said sympathetically. "Alright kids! Let's enjoy this nice weather with some kickball!"
The students cheered, and Mulan led the class outside. As Henry passed them, he said, "Good luck with my mom."
The door shut, leaving Emma alone with Ms. Mills, who was already snooping around her desk. Behind it hung a wall of student drawings from last year—anime characters with massive eyes and postcards from winter break travels. Pinned up next to her class phone was a rainbow flag.
"Who's this?" Regina asked, her eyes landing on a photo of Killian and Emma at the beach. With a pang, Emma grabbed the frame and dumped the photo in the trash before the hurt could settle in.
She brushed the dust from her hands. "An ex."
"Oh," Regina said, clearly startled by her nonchalance. "Sorry to hear that."
"Don't worry about it," Emma replied, sidestepping a deep dive into her personal life with Regina Mills.
Emma pulled a student desk over to hers, the ancient metal legs screeching against the tile. She sat down, annoyed by the butterflies in her gut. Regina eyed the desk with disdain, pulled a packet of alcohol wipes from her purse, and wiped the desk down before sitting. She tossed the crumpled wipe into the trash, landing it on Killian's face.
"Well," Emma began with a forced smile. "What did you think? I know the math lesson was a disaster, but I have some ideas for tomorrow. And—"
Regina interrupted. "Quite frankly, Ms. Swan, I have no idea how you've made it this far."
Emma's mouth snapped shut at her brutal honesty. Heat rose to her face as she glanced down, spotting graffiti carved into the desk: This class sux. The fog of impostor syndrome rolled in.
"I'm not sure what you mean," Emma managed.
Judging by her pitying expression, Regina had noticed the graffiti too. She gestured to the hallway. "They're doing sixth-grade math in there. Did you know that?"
Emma believed it. "I can't help that my students are behind," she said. Frustration and defensiveness stiffened her jaw.
"Ms. Swan, you asked for my notes," Regina said, picking up on Emma's tone. "I'm not here to kiss your ass. If you want my feedback, it's not going to be pretty."
"I can take it," Emma said, her competitive nature igniting. "If I'm not doing my best for the students, I need to improve." She let out a breath and unclenched her jaw. "I'm sorry for getting defensive. I've never been in this situation before. But I want to do my best, and I want to help Henry. Please give me your feedback, and don't hold back."
"Well, okay then," Regina said, returning to her notepad. "That's better."
"Before you start," Emma interrupted, "I have to ask—are you going to move Henry?"
"Why are you asking?" Regina's voice sharpened with protectiveness as they finally broached the topic they'd been avoiding.
Emma thought of Henry's face as he watched her talk to Lilo. The cruel note his teacher from last year had written in his file lingered in her mind: Henry would fare better in school if he stopped talking so much.
Choosing her words carefully, Emma said, "I think I can reach him."
Regina scoffed. "What do you even know about my son?"
"He's wonderful," Emma blurted. "He's smarter than me, probably smarter than most of his teachers. He has a good heart and cares about others. Did you hear him thank me for being lenient with Lilo? Not many ten-year-olds are that aware of how often kids like Lilo are mistreated."
For a moment, the icy edge in Regina's eyes softened as they both thought of Henry. Her voice warmed with adoration. "Yes, Henry is wonderful. He's all those things and more, and I'm proud to be his mother. But tell me, Ms. Swan, why didn't you discipline Ms. Pelekai properly?"
Emma thought of her own scrawny, hardened teenage years, bouncing from foster home to foster home, unwanted and unloved like an ugly duckling. "Her therapist wrote in her file that Lilo used to feed a fish back home every day because she believed it controlled the weather," Emma explained. "Her parents both died in a car crash during a terrible storm."
Regina's expression shifted from confusion to a spark of sad realization.
"Some kids just need a little more love," Emma said quietly. She hesitated briefly, then decided to be honest. "Kids like Henry, too."
Regina studied Emma, clearly hating every aspect of her—from her roommate, Mary Margaret, to her leather jacket and jeans.
"You asked me if I plan on removing Henry from your class? Yes, absolutely," Regina snarled. "And if you're not careful, I'll see to removing your job too."
"Go ahead and try," Emma countered. "I'm not scared of you."
Regina stood up abruptly, and Emma did too. "Good afternoon, Ms. Swan."
"Good afternoon, Ms. Mills," Emma replied through gritted teeth.
Regina tucked her clipboard under her arm and stormed out.
Emma collapsed into her chair, rattled and furious, hands still shaking. She ripped open her laptop and typed a hasty email. Dr. Hopper, David— I plan on keeping Henry Mills in my class this year. Thanks, Emma.
"Game on, Ms. Mills," she muttered, and hit send.