Whatever This Is (Once Upon a Time; Regina/Emma)
TITLE: Whatever This Is
CHAPTER 7: Lessons
FANDOM: Once Upon a Time
PAIRING: Swan Queen (Regina/Emma)
SPOILERS: AU from early in “The Cricket Game”
RATING: PG
SUMMARY: The first part is easy enough. She and Regina chop vegetables side-by-side in the kitchen. They open the wine halfway through and toast to Emma's first cooking lesson. The atmosphere is pleasant and light, and no mention is made of the heavy topics they discussed the last time they were together.
*****
On Sunday when Emma returns to the mansion, Regina's happy to see her. It's still an unusual sight -- Regina beaming at her and inviting her inside. But Emma decides to enjoy it while it lasts. Sure they're friends now, but they'll get tired of each other eventually, or revert to their old ways. It's kinda inevitable.
But for now, Regina smiles when she sees her and it's kinda nice. She heads inside and Henry is upstairs getting his things together.
"I was wondering if you were free for that cooking lesson tomorrow night?" Regina asks, offering her a glass of lemonade.
Emma passes on the lemonade, but accepts the offer for the cooking lesson. "Yeah, tomorrow sounds great. David's got the night shift at the station, so that'll work out perfect."
"Wonderful!" Then, Regina heads to the fridge and grabs a thin strip of paper. "Here's your list."
Emma groans, looking over the list of groceries, in Regina's distinctive scrawl. "Aw man, I have to go shopping?"
Regina rolls her eyes. "Not to worry, dear, I'll be supplying all the cookware and spices that we'll need. I would just like you to bring the vegetables and pasta."
Her brows raise in appreciation. "Pasta, huh?"
Regina hums her affirmation. "Is that alright?"
"Yeah, that's great. Maybe I'll take Henry shopping on the way home." On a whim, she suggests, "Hey, why don't I bring a bottle of wine tomorrow."
Regina looks thrown off for a second, blinking a few times, but then she nods, another smile making its way out. "Sure, yes. That sounds lovely." Then, in her usual bossy tone, she tells her, "Make sure to bring white. It will complement what we're eating."
Emma smirks, rolling her eyes, "Sure thing, Your Majesty."
*****
The next day, Emma arrives promptly at five, struggling to hold on to the paper bag of groceries with one hand, while the other is busy trying not to drop the bottle of wine. After a big of juggling, Emma gives up and knocks with the toe of her boot.
It takes a bit before Regina reaches the door, and she's all but lost her grip on the groceries when it finally swings open, greeted by Regina's soft, "Oh!"
Then their hands touch as she passes the bag off; Regina hefts it in her left arm and flicks her hair out of her eyes with her right.
Emma exhales a grateful smile. "Just in time."
"Indeed." Regina turns and heads for the kitchen. Emma's invitation inside is now silent, apparently. She's not sure whether to be alarmed by that or relieved.
She follows Regina to the kitchen and it looks like the contents of her cupboards have exploded. Her usually-immaculate counter-top is now scattered with cutting boards, mixing bowls, pots and pans. Small containers of spices and an olive oil drizzler are scattered within the mess, and Emma can't help but raise her brows at the sight.
Then the brunette clears enough space at the edge of the counter to set the bag of groceries down, standing on tiptoe to peer inside. Whatever she sees, she smiles in approval. "Looks like you got everything," she says, and looks up at Emma with a smile. "I'm impressed."
Emma smirks, taking off her jacket and draping it over a nearby chair. "I can follow directions, you know."
"Mmm." Lifting one perfectly-defined eyebrow, Regina returns the smirk. "History would beg to differ."
Emma folds her arms, grinning. "Well that was before. Before, it was fun to defy you and piss you off."
"And now?" Regina asks, cocking her head, and the implication is clear.
So Emma softens her smile. "Now, I like that we get along."
"Good." She seems genuinely happy about that, but before Emma can wonder what that means, the moment is over and Regina is all business. "Now - first things first, you'll need to put something on over your clothes."
"What, like a hazmat suit?" she quips.
Regina purses her lips and bends down to another cabinet, pulling out a couple of cloth items. "No. An apron will suffice."
"Oh." Emma takes the item from Regina and looks it over - it's oddly floral and girly, even for Regina.
As if able to read her thoughts, Regina's deadpan snark hits her. "I realize something so feminine is beyond your grasp, but don't worry - I'll help you with it in a moment."
Emma glares, though her glare meets Regina's grin as she snaps open the folded apron with one hand and slips the knot over her head, tying the sashes at her waist behind her. The movement is fluid and fast; she realizes Regina has probably done it dozens of times before. And then it leaves her wondering how often Regina is home alone here in her apron, cooking and baking things for a son she rarely sees anymore.
For some reason, the idea makes her kind of... sad. This house is so incredibly big, and so cold. The idea of Regina being here, all alone with no one to talk to... well, it's not a fun one to think about.
"Something wrong?" Regina's voice draws her from her thoughts, and she looks up to meet her eyes. She's leaning on the counter, head tilted and eyes showing faint concern.
Emma nods. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry. Was just thinking."
"Ah." Regina makes her way around the counter to where she's standing, taking the apron from her hand and snapping it open. She slips the top knot over Emma's head and gives her a little grin as she teases, "I imagine that hurts you, hmm? Thinking?"
"You know, I could just leave right now if I wanted to," Emma tells her.
"You could," Regina agrees with a small nod. Her hands find Emma's hair and sweep it out from under the knot of her apron before she slinks behind her. Then she whispers in her ear, "But I don't think you want to."
Emma stays stock-still and startles slightly when she feels Regina's hands on her lower back, knotting the sashes for her. And, wait a minute... did Regina just flirt with her? Or was she teasing? Either way... "You got me there," she sighs, and turns over her shoulder to watch Regina finishing a bow at her lower back, patting it once when she's done.
"There!" Regina steps back, proud of her work, and then returns to the other side of the counter. "Ready to cook?"
Emma plasters on her best enthusiastic smile. "Ready as I'll ever be, I guess! Let's do it."
**
The first part is easy enough. She and Regina chop vegetables side-by-side in the kitchen. They open the wine halfway through and toast to Emma's first cooking lesson. The atmosphere is pleasant and light, and no mention is made of the heavy topics they discussed the last time they were together.
Emma manages not to cut her finger or Regina's while they chop vegetables, but Regina's bamboo cutting board acquires a few extra gouges that weren't there before. When that's finished, Regina brings a saute pan over to the stove and fires up one of the burners, drizzling olive oil in the pan. Once it warms, she directs Emma to bring over all the freshly-chopped vegetables, and together they dump them in the pan.
"Now here's the tricky part about sauteing," Regina instructs, and takes a sip of white wine as she stirs the vegetables with a wooden spoon. "You want to get the vegetables soft with a little bit of brown, but not burn them."
"No burning," Emma nods, "Got it."
"The key is to adjust the temperature as needed." Lifting the pan, she shows her how to turn the flame down. "See what I'm doing?"
Emma can't help but throw her a look. "I know how to work a stove, Regina, but thanks for the vote of confidence."
"Alright." Regina holds up her hands after setting the pan down. "I was going at this assuming you had zero experience. Can you oversee the rest of the sauteing process then?"
She shrugs. "I guess, sure."
"Great. I will begin working on the pasta."
And believe it or not, Regina actually has a pasta maker. It's insane. So she starts throwing stuff together to make pasta, and Emma stands there staring. "Uh... y'know, you could've just told me to pick up a box of linguine or something."
"Where's the fun in that?" Regina asks, quirking a brow. "Besides, there's nothing like fresh, homemade pasta."
"When the hell, in between being the mayor and being a mom, did you learn how to do all this stuff?" she can't help asking, one hand on her hip and the other braced on the counter.
Regina's smile softens, and Emma regrets asking a few seconds later as she replies, "You find you have a lot of time on your hands when you have no friends."
Oh. Crap. "Regina, I didn't mean--"
"It's alright," Regina replies, the look in her eyes kind of sad as she shakes her head. "I know you didn't mean anything by it."
She goes back to making pasta and Emma watches, studying the lines around her eyes now. She gets them when she's sad or upset, and right now Emma has the weirdest pang in her stomach. She wants to take those lines away.
So she makes her way around the counter, watching Regina prep the dough to go in the pasta maker. She sidles up so quietly, Regina doesn't notice until she's standing right next to her. Then, she startles, and gives Emma a 'what the hell?' kind of look.
Emma's expression remains solemn, sincere, and she reaches out a hand. It covers Regina's, sitting on the counter. "You know that's not true anymore, right?"
"What?" Regina's eyes bounce back and forth between hers.
"That you have no friends. It's not true." She gives her hand a squeeze and tells her, "You've got me."
To her surprise, Regina squeezes back, twining their fingers and shaking their interlocked hands lightly as she smiles. "Thank you."
And for a moment they just smile at one another. Emma thinks of everything they put each other through last year and how different things are between them now; how they went from hating each other to actually enjoying each other's company. And then, what she does next is instinctual.
Maybe it's because of Henry. Maybe Mary Margaret and her affectionate tendencies have had an effect. Whatever it is, Emma finds herself reaching out and tentatively hugging Regina. It's light, and she barely touches her for fear it's going to... who knows, maybe send her flying into a magical rage. And then she just waits for Regina to push her away.
Instead, she feels Regina's hands on her back. She feels her take a step in. And then they're just honest to God hugging, and she thinks it's the craziest thing she's ever done. Sure she's killed a dragon and climbed a beanstalk with an eyeliner-happy pirate, but this is still the craziest -- standing in the kitchen of a former queen, the woman she tried to destroy all of last year, just freaking hugging her. And the worst part is that it actually feels good.
Warmth spreads all over her chest, and her scalp tingles a little when Regina's fingers catch in the ends of her hair. She feels the push of Regina's chest against hers as she breathes in and then sighs out, stepping back.
Regina's smiling at her, though her brows crinkle lightly in confusion as she says, "Thank you, Emma, I... I think I needed that."
"You're welcome."
One more smile is exchanged, then they return to their respective duties -- Emma heads to the stove to check on the vegetables while Regina finishes up with the pasta.
*****
All-in-all, her first time cooking is a success. She only managed to burn a few of the veggies, and Regina had taken care of the rest -- boiling the pasta, chopping the parsley, and then throwing the veggies and olive oil in with the cooked pasta. So granted, she didn't do much, but she still considers it a success.
"Next time, I'll show you how I cook," Emma tells her, draining the last drops of wine from her glass.
Regina chuckles. "Oh? And what does that involve?"
Emma grins. "Calling the pizza place."
Regina rolls her eyes. "A culinary delight, I'm sure."
"Just you wait."
"I can't say I've ever had the pleasure of eating that greasy mess."
At that, Emma's eyes almost bug out of her head. She waves her arms in the air, "Whoa... whoa, hang on a minute." She stares at Regina incredulously. "You've never had pizza?!"
Regina shrugs, swirling her wine glass in front of her. "Should I have?"
"Uh..." She can't believe what she's hearing. No wonder Henry ran to Boston looking for her. "It's only the best thing ever."
Regina takes a sip of her wine and sets the glass down, then gets up to collect their dinner plates. "Isn't that a little bit of hyperbole?"
"No. It's not." And Emma's not completely sure what hyperbole means, but it probably means exaggerating. "I mean it actually is the best thing ever."
With a sigh, Regina takes their plates to the kitchen, and Emma follows. "I suppose I'll have to be the judge of that, won't I?"
She can't help the grin. "Yeah, you will."
She helps Regina clean up after dinner, taking over the task of scrubbing the dishes while Regina stands by to dry them. By the time they're finished, she glances at the clock and decides she should head home. But it's weird... she kinda doesn't want to.
"Guess I should get going," she sighs, and Regina glances at the clock too.
"I suppose," she sighs back, and it kinda sounds like Regina doesn't want her to leave either.
With a smile, Emma tosses the dish rag in the empty sink and heads to get her things.
"Em..." Regina calls after her, and Emma stops in her tracks, slowly turning on her heel.
"Did you just call me 'Em'?"
"I did," and Regina looks bashful for a moment, dipping her head. "I meant to say 'Emma.' I'm sorry."
She waves off the apology. "I don't mind a nickname. I'll call you tomorrow, uh... Reggie?"
Off Regina's sharp glare, she raises her brows. "No to 'Reggie,' for you? No problem, we'll figure out something else."
Regina chuckles. "Goodnight, Emma."
Emma gives her a wave over her shoulder and says, "Call ya tomorrow!"
And she finds herself smiling all the way to the car.
*****
The next day, she decides to surprise Regina by picking up a pizza - a large pepperoni, just to start her off. She hadn't wanted it to be too bland, like cheese, nor did she want to scare Regina off with a full-on "garbage" pizza.
She rings the bell at the mansion, holding up the pizza box with her fingertips like a delivery girl. When Regina swings open the door, she grins. "Look what I got!" and she heads inside without waiting for an invite.
Regina watches over her shoulder, shutting the door and following her to the kitchen. "What is that? I can smell the grease from here."
"I know," Emma sighs, setting the box on the counter and flipping open the lid, "Isn't it a great smell?"
She doesn't miss the way Regina's nose wrinkles. "Not particularly."
Emma gives her a nudge. "C'mon, quit being a snob. Also!" She points toward the door. "I brought beer, and movies. I thought we could have a night in."
Regina raises her eyebrows, sarcasm dripping from her tone. "As opposed to last night, when we painted the town red."
She shrugs, playing it off as no big deal. "Alright, fine." She shuts the lid on the pizza box. "I'll just take this home with me then, and leave you to your--"
"Em." Regina's hand clamps over her wrist, and it's the second time in just as many days that she's bestowed the nickname of sorts upon her. "You're welcome to stay."
"Okay." She gives her friend a smile, and nudges her once more. "But only if you stay open-minded. You've never had pizza, I would be willing to bet money that you've never tried beer, and you don't seem like a cinephile."
"A what?" Regina raises her brows.
Emma just grins, grabbing a slice from inside the box and biting off the point. "This is gonna be fun."
TBC
{x-posted to onceupon_fanfic and regina_emma}
CHAPTER 7: Lessons
FANDOM: Once Upon a Time
PAIRING: Swan Queen (Regina/Emma)
SPOILERS: AU from early in “The Cricket Game”
RATING: PG
SUMMARY: The first part is easy enough. She and Regina chop vegetables side-by-side in the kitchen. They open the wine halfway through and toast to Emma's first cooking lesson. The atmosphere is pleasant and light, and no mention is made of the heavy topics they discussed the last time they were together.
*****
On Sunday when Emma returns to the mansion, Regina's happy to see her. It's still an unusual sight -- Regina beaming at her and inviting her inside. But Emma decides to enjoy it while it lasts. Sure they're friends now, but they'll get tired of each other eventually, or revert to their old ways. It's kinda inevitable.
But for now, Regina smiles when she sees her and it's kinda nice. She heads inside and Henry is upstairs getting his things together.
"I was wondering if you were free for that cooking lesson tomorrow night?" Regina asks, offering her a glass of lemonade.
Emma passes on the lemonade, but accepts the offer for the cooking lesson. "Yeah, tomorrow sounds great. David's got the night shift at the station, so that'll work out perfect."
"Wonderful!" Then, Regina heads to the fridge and grabs a thin strip of paper. "Here's your list."
Emma groans, looking over the list of groceries, in Regina's distinctive scrawl. "Aw man, I have to go shopping?"
Regina rolls her eyes. "Not to worry, dear, I'll be supplying all the cookware and spices that we'll need. I would just like you to bring the vegetables and pasta."
Her brows raise in appreciation. "Pasta, huh?"
Regina hums her affirmation. "Is that alright?"
"Yeah, that's great. Maybe I'll take Henry shopping on the way home." On a whim, she suggests, "Hey, why don't I bring a bottle of wine tomorrow."
Regina looks thrown off for a second, blinking a few times, but then she nods, another smile making its way out. "Sure, yes. That sounds lovely." Then, in her usual bossy tone, she tells her, "Make sure to bring white. It will complement what we're eating."
Emma smirks, rolling her eyes, "Sure thing, Your Majesty."
*****
The next day, Emma arrives promptly at five, struggling to hold on to the paper bag of groceries with one hand, while the other is busy trying not to drop the bottle of wine. After a big of juggling, Emma gives up and knocks with the toe of her boot.
It takes a bit before Regina reaches the door, and she's all but lost her grip on the groceries when it finally swings open, greeted by Regina's soft, "Oh!"
Then their hands touch as she passes the bag off; Regina hefts it in her left arm and flicks her hair out of her eyes with her right.
Emma exhales a grateful smile. "Just in time."
"Indeed." Regina turns and heads for the kitchen. Emma's invitation inside is now silent, apparently. She's not sure whether to be alarmed by that or relieved.
She follows Regina to the kitchen and it looks like the contents of her cupboards have exploded. Her usually-immaculate counter-top is now scattered with cutting boards, mixing bowls, pots and pans. Small containers of spices and an olive oil drizzler are scattered within the mess, and Emma can't help but raise her brows at the sight.
Then the brunette clears enough space at the edge of the counter to set the bag of groceries down, standing on tiptoe to peer inside. Whatever she sees, she smiles in approval. "Looks like you got everything," she says, and looks up at Emma with a smile. "I'm impressed."
Emma smirks, taking off her jacket and draping it over a nearby chair. "I can follow directions, you know."
"Mmm." Lifting one perfectly-defined eyebrow, Regina returns the smirk. "History would beg to differ."
Emma folds her arms, grinning. "Well that was before. Before, it was fun to defy you and piss you off."
"And now?" Regina asks, cocking her head, and the implication is clear.
So Emma softens her smile. "Now, I like that we get along."
"Good." She seems genuinely happy about that, but before Emma can wonder what that means, the moment is over and Regina is all business. "Now - first things first, you'll need to put something on over your clothes."
"What, like a hazmat suit?" she quips.
Regina purses her lips and bends down to another cabinet, pulling out a couple of cloth items. "No. An apron will suffice."
"Oh." Emma takes the item from Regina and looks it over - it's oddly floral and girly, even for Regina.
As if able to read her thoughts, Regina's deadpan snark hits her. "I realize something so feminine is beyond your grasp, but don't worry - I'll help you with it in a moment."
Emma glares, though her glare meets Regina's grin as she snaps open the folded apron with one hand and slips the knot over her head, tying the sashes at her waist behind her. The movement is fluid and fast; she realizes Regina has probably done it dozens of times before. And then it leaves her wondering how often Regina is home alone here in her apron, cooking and baking things for a son she rarely sees anymore.
For some reason, the idea makes her kind of... sad. This house is so incredibly big, and so cold. The idea of Regina being here, all alone with no one to talk to... well, it's not a fun one to think about.
"Something wrong?" Regina's voice draws her from her thoughts, and she looks up to meet her eyes. She's leaning on the counter, head tilted and eyes showing faint concern.
Emma nods. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry. Was just thinking."
"Ah." Regina makes her way around the counter to where she's standing, taking the apron from her hand and snapping it open. She slips the top knot over Emma's head and gives her a little grin as she teases, "I imagine that hurts you, hmm? Thinking?"
"You know, I could just leave right now if I wanted to," Emma tells her.
"You could," Regina agrees with a small nod. Her hands find Emma's hair and sweep it out from under the knot of her apron before she slinks behind her. Then she whispers in her ear, "But I don't think you want to."
Emma stays stock-still and startles slightly when she feels Regina's hands on her lower back, knotting the sashes for her. And, wait a minute... did Regina just flirt with her? Or was she teasing? Either way... "You got me there," she sighs, and turns over her shoulder to watch Regina finishing a bow at her lower back, patting it once when she's done.
"There!" Regina steps back, proud of her work, and then returns to the other side of the counter. "Ready to cook?"
Emma plasters on her best enthusiastic smile. "Ready as I'll ever be, I guess! Let's do it."
**
The first part is easy enough. She and Regina chop vegetables side-by-side in the kitchen. They open the wine halfway through and toast to Emma's first cooking lesson. The atmosphere is pleasant and light, and no mention is made of the heavy topics they discussed the last time they were together.
Emma manages not to cut her finger or Regina's while they chop vegetables, but Regina's bamboo cutting board acquires a few extra gouges that weren't there before. When that's finished, Regina brings a saute pan over to the stove and fires up one of the burners, drizzling olive oil in the pan. Once it warms, she directs Emma to bring over all the freshly-chopped vegetables, and together they dump them in the pan.
"Now here's the tricky part about sauteing," Regina instructs, and takes a sip of white wine as she stirs the vegetables with a wooden spoon. "You want to get the vegetables soft with a little bit of brown, but not burn them."
"No burning," Emma nods, "Got it."
"The key is to adjust the temperature as needed." Lifting the pan, she shows her how to turn the flame down. "See what I'm doing?"
Emma can't help but throw her a look. "I know how to work a stove, Regina, but thanks for the vote of confidence."
"Alright." Regina holds up her hands after setting the pan down. "I was going at this assuming you had zero experience. Can you oversee the rest of the sauteing process then?"
She shrugs. "I guess, sure."
"Great. I will begin working on the pasta."
And believe it or not, Regina actually has a pasta maker. It's insane. So she starts throwing stuff together to make pasta, and Emma stands there staring. "Uh... y'know, you could've just told me to pick up a box of linguine or something."
"Where's the fun in that?" Regina asks, quirking a brow. "Besides, there's nothing like fresh, homemade pasta."
"When the hell, in between being the mayor and being a mom, did you learn how to do all this stuff?" she can't help asking, one hand on her hip and the other braced on the counter.
Regina's smile softens, and Emma regrets asking a few seconds later as she replies, "You find you have a lot of time on your hands when you have no friends."
Oh. Crap. "Regina, I didn't mean--"
"It's alright," Regina replies, the look in her eyes kind of sad as she shakes her head. "I know you didn't mean anything by it."
She goes back to making pasta and Emma watches, studying the lines around her eyes now. She gets them when she's sad or upset, and right now Emma has the weirdest pang in her stomach. She wants to take those lines away.
So she makes her way around the counter, watching Regina prep the dough to go in the pasta maker. She sidles up so quietly, Regina doesn't notice until she's standing right next to her. Then, she startles, and gives Emma a 'what the hell?' kind of look.
Emma's expression remains solemn, sincere, and she reaches out a hand. It covers Regina's, sitting on the counter. "You know that's not true anymore, right?"
"What?" Regina's eyes bounce back and forth between hers.
"That you have no friends. It's not true." She gives her hand a squeeze and tells her, "You've got me."
To her surprise, Regina squeezes back, twining their fingers and shaking their interlocked hands lightly as she smiles. "Thank you."
And for a moment they just smile at one another. Emma thinks of everything they put each other through last year and how different things are between them now; how they went from hating each other to actually enjoying each other's company. And then, what she does next is instinctual.
Maybe it's because of Henry. Maybe Mary Margaret and her affectionate tendencies have had an effect. Whatever it is, Emma finds herself reaching out and tentatively hugging Regina. It's light, and she barely touches her for fear it's going to... who knows, maybe send her flying into a magical rage. And then she just waits for Regina to push her away.
Instead, she feels Regina's hands on her back. She feels her take a step in. And then they're just honest to God hugging, and she thinks it's the craziest thing she's ever done. Sure she's killed a dragon and climbed a beanstalk with an eyeliner-happy pirate, but this is still the craziest -- standing in the kitchen of a former queen, the woman she tried to destroy all of last year, just freaking hugging her. And the worst part is that it actually feels good.
Warmth spreads all over her chest, and her scalp tingles a little when Regina's fingers catch in the ends of her hair. She feels the push of Regina's chest against hers as she breathes in and then sighs out, stepping back.
Regina's smiling at her, though her brows crinkle lightly in confusion as she says, "Thank you, Emma, I... I think I needed that."
"You're welcome."
One more smile is exchanged, then they return to their respective duties -- Emma heads to the stove to check on the vegetables while Regina finishes up with the pasta.
*****
All-in-all, her first time cooking is a success. She only managed to burn a few of the veggies, and Regina had taken care of the rest -- boiling the pasta, chopping the parsley, and then throwing the veggies and olive oil in with the cooked pasta. So granted, she didn't do much, but she still considers it a success.
"Next time, I'll show you how I cook," Emma tells her, draining the last drops of wine from her glass.
Regina chuckles. "Oh? And what does that involve?"
Emma grins. "Calling the pizza place."
Regina rolls her eyes. "A culinary delight, I'm sure."
"Just you wait."
"I can't say I've ever had the pleasure of eating that greasy mess."
At that, Emma's eyes almost bug out of her head. She waves her arms in the air, "Whoa... whoa, hang on a minute." She stares at Regina incredulously. "You've never had pizza?!"
Regina shrugs, swirling her wine glass in front of her. "Should I have?"
"Uh..." She can't believe what she's hearing. No wonder Henry ran to Boston looking for her. "It's only the best thing ever."
Regina takes a sip of her wine and sets the glass down, then gets up to collect their dinner plates. "Isn't that a little bit of hyperbole?"
"No. It's not." And Emma's not completely sure what hyperbole means, but it probably means exaggerating. "I mean it actually is the best thing ever."
With a sigh, Regina takes their plates to the kitchen, and Emma follows. "I suppose I'll have to be the judge of that, won't I?"
She can't help the grin. "Yeah, you will."
She helps Regina clean up after dinner, taking over the task of scrubbing the dishes while Regina stands by to dry them. By the time they're finished, she glances at the clock and decides she should head home. But it's weird... she kinda doesn't want to.
"Guess I should get going," she sighs, and Regina glances at the clock too.
"I suppose," she sighs back, and it kinda sounds like Regina doesn't want her to leave either.
With a smile, Emma tosses the dish rag in the empty sink and heads to get her things.
"Em..." Regina calls after her, and Emma stops in her tracks, slowly turning on her heel.
"Did you just call me 'Em'?"
"I did," and Regina looks bashful for a moment, dipping her head. "I meant to say 'Emma.' I'm sorry."
She waves off the apology. "I don't mind a nickname. I'll call you tomorrow, uh... Reggie?"
Off Regina's sharp glare, she raises her brows. "No to 'Reggie,' for you? No problem, we'll figure out something else."
Regina chuckles. "Goodnight, Emma."
Emma gives her a wave over her shoulder and says, "Call ya tomorrow!"
And she finds herself smiling all the way to the car.
*****
The next day, she decides to surprise Regina by picking up a pizza - a large pepperoni, just to start her off. She hadn't wanted it to be too bland, like cheese, nor did she want to scare Regina off with a full-on "garbage" pizza.
She rings the bell at the mansion, holding up the pizza box with her fingertips like a delivery girl. When Regina swings open the door, she grins. "Look what I got!" and she heads inside without waiting for an invite.
Regina watches over her shoulder, shutting the door and following her to the kitchen. "What is that? I can smell the grease from here."
"I know," Emma sighs, setting the box on the counter and flipping open the lid, "Isn't it a great smell?"
She doesn't miss the way Regina's nose wrinkles. "Not particularly."
Emma gives her a nudge. "C'mon, quit being a snob. Also!" She points toward the door. "I brought beer, and movies. I thought we could have a night in."
Regina raises her eyebrows, sarcasm dripping from her tone. "As opposed to last night, when we painted the town red."
She shrugs, playing it off as no big deal. "Alright, fine." She shuts the lid on the pizza box. "I'll just take this home with me then, and leave you to your--"
"Em." Regina's hand clamps over her wrist, and it's the second time in just as many days that she's bestowed the nickname of sorts upon her. "You're welcome to stay."
"Okay." She gives her friend a smile, and nudges her once more. "But only if you stay open-minded. You've never had pizza, I would be willing to bet money that you've never tried beer, and you don't seem like a cinephile."
"A what?" Regina raises her brows.
Emma just grins, grabbing a slice from inside the box and biting off the point. "This is gonna be fun."
TBC
{x-posted to onceupon_fanfic and regina_emma}