Chapter 12

                                    

                                          
"Don't wait up for me, it'll probably get late," I said and kissed Robin's lips briefly. He nodded, but I could see he wasn't content. I wondered if he was ever going to approve of Emma and my friendship. "I know you don't like the fact that I befriended Emma, but she's really nice and I really like her."
"I know," Robin replied and moved his hands to my collar. His fingertips moved down my deep neckline and tickled my cleavage playfully. "You're dressed provocatively."
"It's a shame not to ever wear this dress," I said. "Are you afraid I'm going to try and seduce Emma?"
He chuckled softly and I did the same, hoping that he didn't notice my nerves. I had hit on Emma and I still daydreamed about her smooth skin against my own.
"No, of course not," he said and wrapped his arms around my waist. "But there'll be a lot of men staring at you tonight."
I laughed it off and kissed his cheek, before I turned around and left the apartment, grabbing my coat and purse on the way. Fortunately, I didn't have to walk far to get to Emma's apartment and I knocked softly.
This dinner had been planned for over two weeks and I'd been looking forward to it. I didn't go out to dinner with friends very often, and it felt like a whole new experience.
Emma opened the door. She looked classy, in her black suit, and my heart fluttered for a moment. I really should take friends out more often, because I already loved it.
"You look great," I said with a smile.
"Thank you. You as well," Emma replied and stepped outside. "Gotta admit I almost forgot about our appointment, though. I started making myself ready fifteen minutes ago."
"If only I could be so fast," I said and hooked my arm in hers. "I got us a reservation for seven p.m., so we're gonna be right on time."
Emma closed her door and looked at mine. "Is Robin okay with this?"
"Don't know, don't care," I replied with a shrug. If Robin didn't want me to be friends with Emma, it was his problem, not mine. I liked Emma, a lot. I understood why Robin didn't appreciate that, because I liked Emma more than I should and every time he climbed on top of me, I thought of Emma, to keep myself distracted.
"How are things between you two? He wasn't very happy to see me at the party," Emma said as we stepped outside. It was quite cold, but my coat kept me warm and I hoped Emma's was doing the same for her. 
"He seems to like you more now that he knows Zelena likes you," I said. "I still find it a big coincidence that you knew Zelena before she and you both knew me."
"It's really strange," Emma replied. "I knew Zelena had ended up in a nice family, but she'd never told me where. She wrote letters to me for a while, when she lived with your family."
"I remember her doing that," I said. "Zelena has been very open for as long as I know her, but she never told anything about her time in the foster system."
Emma moved closer to my side and sighed softly. "That's because it was sucky. I wouldn't wish it on anyone. The few lucky people out there are nothing compared to the miserable children in families who see you as nothing but a check from the government."
She stayed silent for a moment as we walked through the dark evening. There were still a few people on the streets, but Storybrooke was quite calm, in general.
"I think Zelena and I lived for about two.. or three years in the same home. She was older than I was, but the rest was at least five years younger than me. I grew up taking care of those children since I was eight years old, together with Zelena, because the foster dad was always away. We handled that house as well as we could, so when she left it was quite hard for me."