Chapter Text
Democratic National Convention, Philadelphia, July 2016
Dr. Archie Hopper, Governor of the state of New York, stood at the podium with Regina, raising their joint hands to raucous cheers as Regina announced him as her running mate. Dr. Hopper was highly regarded by both parties as a good bipartisan leader, tackling issues that were important to him, mainly environmental and educational causes. Regina made her selection after meeting a few times with Dr. Hopper, and he won her over with his calm demeanor and realistic ideas of what they would be able to achieve together. They were a good pair, and he was incredibly popular with the young voters, which Regina had not entirely locked in prior. Dr. Hopper was also from a state with a large number of electoral votes, and it was smart for Regina’s campaign to choose him. They were a complimentary match, and their appearance at the DNC to accept their party’s nomination was must-see television.
Emma watched from her computer, streaming the convention online and texting Henry, who was sending her pictures from the event. He and Cora joined Regina on stage on the final night of activities, and Emma couldn’t help but wish she was there. She and Regina still had not spoken, neither one of them reaching out, despite both wanting to. Emma had cut and run on Regina, something she had wished never to do, and Regina felt like Emma left her when she needed her most. Emma couldn’t shake her jealousy, or her feeling that she was never going to be good enough for the politician. What sense did their getting together make? At best, it was going to be a relationship held in secret, and though they had started with the idea of keeping it casual, that just wasn’t how things turned out. Despite their best intentions, feelings got in the way, and Emma found she missed Regina, and their son, every single day.
Later that night, alone in bed and desperately missing the woman who held her heart, Emma sent Regina a text: “Congratulations,” it read, with a purple heart emoji.
Regina sat alone in her hotel suite, the cheers and applause still ringing in her ears, as she took a sip of her tea. Weeks ago, she imagined sharing this moment with Emma. She pictured Emma with her, calming her, giving Regina advice in her straightforward manner, making sure she had enough to eat and drink, taking care of her. Emma always looked out for her. Regina remembered how during their campaigning on the west coast, Emma would wordlessly hand her opened vegan protein bars she picked up in Oregon, making sure Regina wasn’t skipping meals as she was prone to do while working, and then walking out of the room, August and Mary Margaret watching the scene with equal parts worry and amusement.
Regina had never wanted to be involved in politics. She got her law degree and passed the bar with the intention of opening a small practice and being a wife. Daniel had his own horse veterinary practice that was thriving. After his death, she was aimless for a while before discovering the Storybrook mayoral office election deadline was approaching and Cora and her father encouraged her to go for it. On a whim, Regina began a campaign and that was the beginning of her political career. Her mother encouraged her run for senate and then the presidency, and Regina, thinking there was no way she would even make it through the primaries, was more than shocked to find herself leading the race. Now here she was, on the verge of something truly amazing, and she could only think of the one person she wanted to share it with. Her pain and sadness was doing no one any good, she thought, and Regina needed to get her mind back in the game, quickly.
Regina looked at the message on her phone and thought about responding, but her pride, hurt, and especially her anger kept her from doing so. Emma could not just come in and out of their lives when it was convenient for her to do so. Regina had opened so much to Emma, had given her part of herself that she had kept since Daniel died, and the other woman had left her as soon as things got tough. Regina felt the pain of losing Emma every time she went to bed alone, every time she looked at their son, every time she looked at the pictures they took together in bed during their time on the road- cuddling, kissing, even a few naughty pictures and videos that Regina hid on an app on her phone. She would look at those ones on occasion when she couldn’t sleep and remember how Emma touched her, how she looked at her, how she felt and tasted and smelled.
This wouldn’t do, Regina thought. Being sad and broken-hearted in the middle of a presidential election was no good for anyone. The text stayed on read, but Regina did not respond. Broken hearts were for fools, and Regina Mills was no one’s fool.
***
Maine, Late July 2016
“Mom, we need to talk,” Henry folded his hands as he sat in front of his mother, shirt ironed and tucked in, bow tie straightened multiple times to his satisfaction before stepping into the study, his hazel eyes boring into Regina’s curious gaze.
“What is it, son?
“Emma.”
“What about her?”
“I want her to come to my birthday party next month.”
Regina shut her laptop and gave Henry a thoughtful look before pursing her lips, “Fine.”
Henry pumped his fist, causing his mother to laugh. “Was that all?”
“Are you still not talking to her?”
Regina sighed, “Henry, this isn’t something you should concern yourself with.”
Henry banged his small hand onto the desk, doing his best impersonation of a businessman taking over a company he had seen once in a movie. His eyes widened in fear for a moment, but he kept up the act and went with it, noting that his mother only seemed slightly taken aback and mostly impressed.
“Mom, I am concerned. I have a right to be, don’t you think?”
“Of course, I wasn’t trying to negate your feelings.”
Henry nodded, appeased at once. “I know you care for her, and I know she cares for you. Why can’t you just makeup and be happy again?”
“Henry, Emma is the one who left here, I didn’t force her out.”
“But didn’t you? What reason did you give her to stay?”
Regina stayed silent, thinking back to the night Emma left. Should she have done more? Told Emma she was in love with her? She rubbed her forehead, thinking that yes, maybe she should have.
“Mom, I know that grandma made you go out with that guy, but imagine how that made Emma feel? She probably felt like she was hidden, like she was your secret.”
“We had an agreement, Henry. You’re still a child, and I don’t need to explain more than that. Emma and I had an agreement.”
“You let grandma ruin things, you understand that, don’t you?”
Regina immediately felt her eyes tear up. Her relationship with her mother was good for the most part, but Cora did not take no for an answer, especially when it came to matters of this campaign. Regina listened and took direction without a fight, but she should have fought this time.
“Henry, you’re right. I should have done things very differently. I got very caught up in being happy and didn’t think of the consequences of my actions. If I could go back and change things, I would. However, this is real life, and things don’t always work out the way we want them to.”
“Do you truly believe that? I don’t. I think you and Emma need to talk, and that if you just explain things, it might help.”
“I think that we may be beyond that point, to be honest. She is upset, and so am I. But, I am willing to have her here for your birthday, so let’s start there, shall we?” Regina stood and smoothed her dress, signaling that the conversation was now over. She reached for Henry to embrace him, which he enthusiastically returned.
Henry smiled, and decided now was not the time to push his luck by pressuring his mother any further. Emma would be coming to his party. That was as good a start as any.
***
Maine, August 2016
Emma stood on the porch of the Governor’s mansion, nervously rocking back and forth on her heels as she lifted and dropped her hand numerous times to ring the bell. Henry had insisted she come up for his birthday party and she could not say no. Even Cora had called to make sure Emma was coming. The one person she had hoped to hear from never bothered.
She had only seen Henry via their many Skype sessions and had only kept up with Regina via news from Henry and the internet. Many blogs had commented on the fact that Emma was no longer around, and reading through some of the comments as to why that was kept Emma entertained on many a lonely night. It was fun and made Emma sad for what might have been. She wondered if Regina had seen any of it.
“Emma, why are you standing on the porch, please do come in,” Cora opened the door and ushered Emma inside.
“Where should I leave this?” Emma gestured to the package she held in her hands.
“There is a gift table out back,” Cora said, as she led Emma through the house to the backyard.
“Regina, darling, look who’s here,” Cora announced, as Regina turned from the table where she was busy arranging cupcakes.
“Emma. Hello,” Regina said, polite in a way Emma had seen before, no feelings behind her actions or words, only cold detachment.
“Can I help?” Emma asked, nervously shoving her hands in her back pockets.
“Sure, open a box and stack the cupcakes on the holders.”
Emma did as she was told, noting that Regina hadn’t said much else to her except to give directives. Regina looked amazing, wearing a form-fitting maroon dress which accentuated all the places Emma had missed so very much. Her hair was a little longer, and her makeup was perfect, as usual.
“How have you been, Regina?”
“Miss Swan, let’s skip the small talk, okay? You’re here because Henry wanted you to be, and I can deal with that, but you don’t get to pretend like we’re good. We aren’t.” Regina had underestimated how it would feel to be around Emma again, and the stubborn part of herself wouldn’t allow her to make things easy on the blonde, even though she desperately wanted to do nothing more than kiss and hold her again. It was maddening.
“Fine.”
“Fine. I have things to do in the kitchen,” Regina slammed the empty box she was holding down onto the table and stormed off.
Emma continued her task and Henry came running over to give her a hug and thank her for coming. “Did you see Mom?” he excitedly asked.
“Yup.”
Henry grimaced, “It went that well?”
“Something like that, but hey, don’t worry. It’s your day, Henry. Go play with your friends, and have fun.”
Regina continued to ignore Emma throughout the day, which in turn exasperated the blonde woman. Regina wouldn’t acknowledge her, wouldn’t speak to her, and went out of her way to avoid her.
After lunch, and before serving the cupcakes, Regina went back inside the house, and Emma took a break from tossing balls with the kids to follow her. Emma over the tension that had messed with her head all day, and yes, she knew she fucked up, but did they have to keep up with the games? Couldn’t they be adult about this for the kid?
Emma washed her hands in the kitchen sink and set off to find Regina, who was in her study, sitting down and rubbing her temples. She hadn’t realized how it would feel to see Emma, to have those feelings, which had not gone away, so close to the surface again. Her head was pounding.
“Hi,” Emma said as she closed and locked the door behind her.
“Hey,” Regina answered.
“Can we talk?”
“No, Emma, we can’t talk. Unless it is about Henry, we have nothing to discuss.” Regina was frustrated; she did not want to deal with this, not when she had worked so hard to move past it. She thought she could do this, but she had been wrong.
“I’m sorry. I need you to know that Regina,” Emma stood in front of Regina, wanting to grab and hold her. She had missed her son and his mother and regretted her decision to leave moments into doing it.
“Great. Thanks. I feel loads better,” Regina practically growled, resisting the urge to lash out further against the woman who had broken her heart.
“Is that necessary?”
“What?” Regina looked up at Emma, seeing the hurt in her eyes and she looked away. She didn’t want to see it. Emma had done this to them. Emma was the one that bailed.
“The snark. Is that necessary?”
“I owe you nothing, Miss Swan. Nothing. Henry asked that you be allowed to come today, and I agreed, but that is it. It doesn’t mean that we have to be friends, or get along, or anything else,” Regina lashed out, feeling shitty for doing so but unable to stop herself for the time being.
“I fucked up by leaving; I get that. But what was I supposed to do, Regina? Us in a relationship was not going to work out, and I didn’t want to watch you be with someone else. I’m a jealous asshole; I readily admit that. I was stupid and childish, and I wish I had just used my damn words instead of running. I wish I could have spoken to you about how afraid I was of losing you.”
“I wasn’t with him, not like that. You never gave me a chance, Emma. You never gave me an opportunity to show you we could make it work. You cut your losses and ran.”
“I know, and I was wrong.”
“Fine, you were wrong. What do you want, forgiveness?” Regina asked.
“No, I just wanted you to know that I regret what happened. Everything, including what happened in the closet before I left. You didn’t deserve that. Our relationship is just something on an extensive list of somethings I have failed at I will have to live with.”
Emma began to walk out of the room until Regina spoke again, so small, Emma had to strain to hear her. “Emma, wait.”
“Yes?”
“I, I’m sorry, for everything. I have my regrets as well. I should have stood up to my mother, and I should not have taken your friendship or our relationship for granted. I realize that was incredibly selfish of me. I was angry because I felt that you left when I needed you most.”
“I know,” Emma turned back and walked over to where Regina sat, kneeling in front of her, “I think about how stupid that was every single day. We had something as close to perfect as I have ever come close to, Regina,” Emma grabbed Regina’s hand, kissing her palm. “I’m so very sorry, and if I live to be one hundred, I will spend each day of my life regretting that I walked out on you.”
“You didn’t just leave me, Emma,” Regina’s lips trembled. She was so close to losing her composure completely, and she struggled to keep it together.
“I know. I quit on Henry a second time after I promised I wouldn’t. I left both of you.”
Regina could feel the thudding of her heart, the anger, and sadness that had consumed her for the weeks since Emma had walked out giving way to something else, the acceptance that she had to let go. A new pain settled in her chest, taking residence there and grabbing hold of her. “I care for you, Emma, I do. I am afraid of being hurt again, and even more afraid that me being in this race is going to hurt you. As much as I don’t want to, I fear that I will hurt you, Emma. I don’t want to have to explain to Henry again why you’ve left or why we aren’t speaking. He doesn’t deserve that, and he doesn’t deserve having to deal with us being angry and hurt because of what happened. Us breaking up has been hardest on him, I think. We are adults, and adults adjust. Kids don’t always do the same.”
Emma smiled sadly, her eyes watering as she considered Regina’s tearful ones. Hearing Regina refer to them as breaking up deeply affected her, as Emma had felt the loss of their relationship as if it were a breakup. Even though they kept telling themselves it was causal, she and Regina had fallen for one another. Of that, Emma was sure. She could not remember a time she felt as horrible and lost as she did at that moment. “Okay, Regina. I understand. I will honor and respect your decision.”
Emma stood and walked towards the door, “The kids are ready for cupcakes. Don’t make them wait too long unless you’d like Cora and me to handle it.”
“I’ll be out shortly, Emma. Let my mother know, please.”
Regina sat silently for a few moments after Emma left the study, wishing once again that they had the courage to face things together, no matter the cost.
***
“Are you driving back tonight,” Henry asked later that evening after the cleanup and all of the guests had gone home.
“No kid, I rented a room at a hotel.”
“Emma, no way, that is not cool. Mom, can Emma stay?” Henry shouted towards the general area he believed his mother to be.
“Henry, it’s fine, I already paid for the room. No worries. I will come see you before I go, ok?” Emma ran her fingers through her son’s hair, trying to offer him some comfort but knowing it was not helping at all.
Shoulders slumped, Henry mumbled, “Fine,” and walked Emma to the door.
“I’ll see you, kid. Tell your mom I said thanks for everything.”
“Are you guys going to be friends again?” The hopeful expression on Henry’s face ripped Emma’s weak heart in two.
“We are working on being the best mom’s we can be to you,” she diplomatically answered.
That answer did nothing to appease Henry, and so he mumbled, “Yea, sure, glad you could make it.”
Emma dejectedly walked to her car, realizing that navigating these visits in the future was not going to be easy, for any of them.
***
Maine, September 2016
In the months that followed, Emma would continue to analyze the events of this particular day, trying to determine if she could have prevented it had she done just one thing different. It kept her up some nights, which occurred more often than she cared to admit to her therapist. A therapist she had been forced to visit, but that was neither here nor there. The basic facts remained the same, regardless of what Emma believed: it had happened, and there was nothing she could have done to prevent it.
***
“Emma, you have to go see my mom speak, it’s going to be epic!”
“Every speech she gives is epic, the way you tell it,” Emma bumped shoulders with her son as they played a video game. Epic was one of his new favorite words, that and “bro,” which she secretly thought was funny. She was in town again visiting, as she had done in the weeks since Henry’s birthday. They had come to a truce, Emma was able to see and spend time with Henry, and things were almost normal again. With Regina’s busy campaign schedule, they frequently managed to avoid one another, except for this weekend.
Henry smirked, his face all Regina, Emma thought. “She is speaking at a high school; they just added it to the schedule. She’s going to talk to kids, people who can’t even vote yet. How awesome is that?”
“Wow! That is great. Are you going, too?”
“She said I could, but I have to stay on the bus, security risk, or something.”
“Then why is she going?”
“The school class president asked her to, and she accepted last minute.”
“No, she can’t just do that,” Emma felt her concern growing. Unscheduled stops were never accepted, and the secret service needed enough time to comb each premise before allowing Regina in. She had seen their work while out on the road and knew the precautions taken for each event. This one seemed rushed and gave her a bad feeling.
Emma rose from the couch and went straight to Regina’s study. Knocking once, she opened the door to find Regina pacing while reading some notecards. Emma cleared her throat, trying not to get riled up by Regina and her glasses. The glasses she had once insisted Regina wear as she bent her over the desk in her suite in Arizona…
“Hey, you busy?”
“Only prepping this speech for my event this evening, did Henry tell you about it?”
“He did, and I don’t think you should go,” Emma closed the door behind her. She didn’t want Henry to hear should an argument ensue.
Regina folded her arms over her chest, “Why not?”
“When did you add this event?”
“I think yesterday, why?”
“Look, there is no way they had time to check that place properly; you don’t know what you’re walking into.”
“I have secret service and my security team. Security will have metal detectors set up for everyone that goes inside. It’s perfectly safe.”
“I don’t like it, Regina. Not one bit.”
“Miss Swan, I appreciate the concern, but-”
“Cut the Miss Swan bullshit. I think we’ve been through enough to have you call me by my first name. If you can’t give me anything else, at least give me that,” Emma sighed. It always came back to how they had hurt one another.
“Emma,” Regina sighed, “We agreed…we said our timing wasn’t right. If either of us could have given more, we would have, right?”
“We did agree, but I didn’t expect your timing to be right with someone else.”
“That didn’t last, and it wasn’t my idea. Nor was it a relationship, or even close to what you and I shared.”
“No, but you didn’t exactly put a stop to it either.”
Regina sighed and sat at her desk. “No, and I’m sorry for that. I never intended to hurt you. We both screwed this up.”
Emma thought of a few comebacks, about how Regina had hurt her and how she hadn’t put a stop to the farce that was her fake relationship with Robin, but what was the point of saying anything, she thought. Nothing was going to change. Their dealings often dissolved into zingers at one another before one of them apologized and got back to whatever their conversation was about, usually about their son. It was their new normal, though neither woman liked it, neither knew how to fix it.
“If you’re certain you’re doing this, I am going with you. Henry said you’re making him stay on the bus?”
“Yes, secret service asked me to do that, they have enough with making sure Archie and I get protected.”
“Fine, he can stay on the bus, but I won’t.”
Regina smirked, “Of course, I wouldn’t expect anything less from you, dear.”
Emma backed out of the room, her stomach nervous not only from being around Regina and her damn glasses but knowing that keeping Regina and Henry safe remained the most important thing to her. Period.
***
After Archie’s speech to the crowd of young high schoolers, in which he encouraged them to become involved in causes they believed in, he waved and was immediately taken off stage to wait in a separate room. He would return to the stage to stand with Regina when her speech ended. Emma held the side of the stage of the high school’s auditorium; the secret service cleared the area and allowed her to remain. Glancing out at the crowd, she noted how many young people, especially girls, seemed enraptured with the dulcet tones of the lady of the moment. Some of the girls held up signs, calling Regina their Queen, which Emma had to admit was cute.
Regina was poised, charming the crowd as she spoke from the podium, telling them about her background as a Latina, how being different was hard, but ultimately it pushed her harder to pursue her ambitions, how being a single mom had not been an ideal situation, but still, she accomplished her goals. She told of having a support system changed so much for her, and she encouraged each of them to be of support to someone else who needed it. Some girls down in the front row yelled, “We love you!” and Regina looked over towards them and waved. “I love you, too,” she chuckled, and Emma couldn’t help but smile. The fangirls were endearing, she thought, and Regina knew how to work a crowd of them, that was for sure.
Emma noticed movement towards the back of the stage, one of the curtains rustling, and no one else seemed to notice as it was dark, and the agents were standing facing the opposite way. Two agents were down in front facing Regina, and Emma attempted to motion to them without alerting anyone else. They couldn’t see her, and Emma was now desperately trying to decide what to do, realizing that the noise and the dimmed lights were a major safety hazard, and whoever was overseeing the security for this event had failed in a major way.
Emma stepped forward, her eyes never leaving the curtain, realizing that whoever was behind them only had two to three steps before coming to the opening in the center, and they would be out. Maybe it was a kid, Emma thought, or maybe it was one of the secret service agents, and that was why none of them seemed concerned. Of course, Emma thought, that had to be it.
Only, when the man’s face came into view as he exited the curtain, Emma knew he was no secret service agent, nor was he with Regina’s team. His face scrunched in anger, he stepped forward, and Emma saw what was in his hand. Without thinking, and with no hesitation, she rushed forward to where Regina stood in front of her, grabbing Regina as she fell on top of her as the shot rang out.
Regina felt Emma’s body jerk, and then Emma raised her head and asked her if she was okay. Regina nodded, not trusting her voice as chaos and screaming followed. Her secret service surrounded them; guns were drawn on the man now on the floor and in cuffs, agents shielding her and Emma with their bodies.
Emma rolled off of Regina, who was yelling at the agents, asking if Henry was safe, Emma heard confirmation that her son was fine and closed her eyes. They were okay, Emma thought, everyone was okay.
Regina glanced down and saw blood all over the front of her shirt, instantly she knew it was not hers. With a sick feeling in her gut, she sprang into action.
“Emma’s hit,” Regina was screaming, and someone shouted for an ambulance.
Regina leaned down to Emma and the blonde hair out of Emma’s face, “Stay with me, damn you, do you hear me? You aren’t leaving us again,” and Emma did the only thing she could at that moment: she closed her eyes.
***
“Bullet wound to the left side, no exit, we need to get her into surgery immediately,” the attending doctor shouted, as Regina and her secret service detail stood outside the door. The chaos of the emergency room after all of them entered was like nothing Regina had ever seen. She refused to be looked at until Emma was taken care of, and August did not leave her side, guiding her inside flanked by secret service agents, reporters desperately trying to get pictures and statements from them about what had happened.
After making sure Henry was all right and learning he had been able to watch due to a glitch in the internet feed, Regina sent him home with Ruby and even more security and followed to the hospital. She told him Emma was hurt, but Regina did not want him to get specifics just yet. Ruby was instructed not to allow Henry to watch television or be on the internet. Regina would tell him what had happened as soon as she knew more herself.
No one could explain why that area of the stage was unmanned. After checking the school, the decision was made for agents to be in different parts of the scene. No one thought to recheck the small storage closet, or they would have found the school janitor with a personal issue with Regina Mills and her liberal-minded bullshit that was tearing the country apart. She wasn’t going to live to be president, as far as he was concerned, and it was that focus that had made his plan come to fruition. People who knew the man said he hated the candidate and had been talking about the damage Regina Mills was going to do to the country if she won. He wasn’t going to allow it to happen, he told the feds when they interviewed him later that night, and if he went to jail, then so be it. He believed it was worth it.
Only, he hadn’t hit Regina. Emma jumping in front of her had saved her life, and since he hadn’t been all that good of a shot, no one had died, they told him. His demeanor had shifted, if only for a moment, and he had let out a bitter laugh, and then asked for a lawyer. In the meantime, he was charged with two counts of attempted murder.
“How in the hell did this happen?” Regina screamed, and each agent had taken turns looking at one another, none willing to tell her exactly how they had failed.
“This is completely unacceptable. I’ll destroy all of you; you can protect spelling bee contestants from now on for all I care. Get Graham Humbert in here and inform whoever the hell you must that I don’t want any of you protecting me anymore. If I am to be forced to deal with secret service agents, someone better send me capable ones,” Regina shouted, dismissing all of them with a wave of her hand.
One of the agents took note of the vein protruding in the brunette’s forehead and bravely spoke up, “Ma’am, we are sorry. It is evident we have failed in this instance, but until we know for sure that he acted alone, we can’t leave you. I won’t leave you.”
“What is your name?”
“Agent Prince, ma’am, Eric Prince.”
“You’re in charge until your replacements come,” Regina decided.
“Yes, ma’am,” Eric smiled and turned to his colleagues, “Alright men, listen up…”
***
Regina paced the waiting room; keeping constant contact with Ruby to make sure Henry was all right. She spoke with him briefly, only telling him that she was fine and Emma was in surgery. Hearing the stress in his mother’s voice, he knew this was not the time for questions, but he was aware that it was bad if Emma was in surgery. Cora had come in an hour prior, sitting with her daughter as she ranted and cried, blaming herself as well as everyone else, for what had happened to Emma. August sat in a nearby chair, watching the candidate, fearing what would happen if Emma did not pull through.
Cora listened, watched as Regina nervously fidgeted with her hands, still covered in blood, she had refused to wash them or change her clothing. Her fidgeting was a habit Cora used to call her daughter on any time she saw her do it. Cora didn’t have the wish to draw attention to it today, not with Emma lying on a table having an operation, after saving her only child’s life. How could she ever repay such an act? Did Emma realize what she was doing? Of course, she had, Cora realized. The woman had been in love with her daughter since first meeting her. Cora knew, had seen it happen, and she had been in support of it, even if the support was silent. It had been in front of her the whole time, and when she threw Robin into the equation, she had hoped it would make both women take a step towards one another, not apart. Cora had to admit it hadn’t been one of her prouder moments, the whole Robin fiasco, but Cora was not a patient woman, and she wanted Regina to be happy. Campaign or not, love was love, and who was she to stand in the way of that?
The door opened, and the doctor stepped in, nodding at Cora and then speaking, “Governor, Emma is out of surgery. We removed the bullet, and it missed any vital organs. However, she has lost a lot of blood, and we had to remove her spleen and part of her liver, both of which the bullet hit. We have given her multiple blood transfusions, and we induced a coma. The coma is to assist her in healing.”
“Is she going to be okay?” Regina shakily asked, feeling her knees grow weak.
“The next 48 hours are critical, Governor Mills. The shooting is a traumatic injury, but our hope is that she pulls through it. She’s young and healthy; have faith.”
“Thank you, doctor. Please take me to her,” Regina demanded.
“Governor, she is sedated. She is hooked up to a breathing machine and doesn’t look as you expect her to. Why don’t you go home, and our nurses can call you with updates?”
“You will take me to her. Now. I will not be leaving her side. Mother, go home with Henry, please.”
“I’ll send a bag with your things back with my driver, darling. I wouldn’t argue with her, doctor. My daughter will find a way around you,” Cora advised.
The doctor sighed and then nodded. “I’ll take you to her room.”
Regina hugged her mother, “Thank you.”
“Go to her, darling; tell her she has to pull through. Tell Emma we need her.”
***
“Miss Swan, I could kill you for putting me through this.” Regina sat in the chair next to the hospital bed, grabbing Emma’s icy hand, rubbing her fingers along the veins that mapped the surface. Regina finally noticed that her hands still had dry and caked blood on them, so she went to the small bathroom in Emma’s room to scrub her hands. It took longer than she thought it would and seeing Emma’s blood run down the sink caused her to gag, and she spit up the bile that rose from her empty stomach. Looking at herself in the mirror, Regina finally allowed herself to cry. Quiet sobs wracked her body, as she would not allow herself to scream the way she truly wanted to. No, Emma and Henry needed her to be strong for all of them.
Later that evening, after she had been there for hours watching the machine breathe for Emma, holding her hand and talking with her, she called Henry, telling him Emma was out of surgery, and they would be watching her for the next few days. Henry had not asked to see Emma; he knew his mother would take him only when Emma was better, or if things got worse. Henry trusted her and didn’t want to cause her any further stress. He could hear in her voice that she was worried enough as it was.
Regina returned to Emma’s side and held her hand again, holding to her face and kissing it.
Emma, you have to make it. You can’t leave me again. I love you.
***
And so, it went, for the following three days. Regina continued talking to Emma, telling her stories about her youth, her father, even Daniel. Regina telling her about Henry as a baby, how he liked to wear her heels as a toddler, and the higher they were, the more he wanted to wear them. Regina had pictures she would show Emma that hadn’t been included in the photo album they had given her, even though Henry would probably be mortified. She could picture his face in her mind, red and embarrassed, yet wanting Emma to see so that she could know so that she could have those memories as well.
They had given Emma a medication in her IV that would assist in her in waking from her coma. The doctor told Regina it was up to Emma now, but so far, nothing had happened. It was now four days since the shooting, and Emma had not opened her eyes or even squeezed her hand when Regina asked her. Regina kept up her one-sided conversations, even when barely eating the meals Eugenia was sending for her, describing them to Emma, holding them near her face, hoping that maybe the smell would pull Emma back to her.
On the fifth day, Regina was pacing the room, talking to herself, frustrated. Why had Emma not woken? The doctor had no answer, only that they needed to be patient and let Emma dictate when and if she would wake since her body was required to heal itself. It was not alarming that she was still sleeping, the doctors told her. There was no reason for concern just yet, they assured her, but Regina was beginning to crack from the stress. Regina refused to leave the room, but the walls were starting to suffocate her.
Emma’s breathing tube was taken out early that morning, and Regina was comforted to see Emma’s chest rising and falling in a natural rhythm. Placing a hand on her belly, as she often did when troubled, Regina again spoke to Emma.
“You’re a damn fool, Emma. You’re an idiot for jumping in front of me the way you did. Who does that? Henry told me you did it because you’re my white knight. Imagine that? You’re my hero, he says. Our boy has always had quite the imagination. When he was little, he had an imaginary friend. I was so worried; I took him to the pediatrician because I knew something was wrong, that was the only logical explanation.”
Regina turned, and walked towards the door, looking out of the small window into the hallway. “The doctor called me a helicopter mom. ‘How dare you,’ I said, and then asked what that was. It turns out, he was right. I was a helicopter mom. Imaginary friends are part of being a kid, he told me, stop worrying, Henry is going to be just fine. Now, look at him? He’s smart, well-adjusted, and he knows how much we love him.”
“Name?” Emma struggled to rasp out, voice thin from disuse.
Regina turned, then ran over to the bed and grabbed Emma’s hand, kissing it again and again as she began to sob after hearing Emma speak for the first time in days.
“What was his imaginary friend’s name?”
“Henry the Fifth,” Regina choked out through her tears.
Emma chuckled, “Of course.”
“We have less than a minute before they all come in here since your heart rate has spiked. Thank you, Emma. For saving my life, for everything you did for me that day.”
“I thought I was an idiot and a fool?” Emma smirked.
“You’re my idiot and fool.”
“I like the sound of that. Yours.” Emma felt herself growing tired but struggled to stay awake.
“Mine.”
“White knight, huh?”
“I told you, he has a vivid imagination,” Regina said.
“I love you. I couldn’t let another minute go without telling you that, Regina.”
“Emma, you fool, I love you, too.”