hunnyfresh - Letters from War

"I'm gonna wait till it clears out a bit, okay?" Emma asked as she reached for the empty Skittles and Junior Mints bag, stuffing them into the empty popcorn bag.

"It's still your turn."

"I have a good one," Emma said excitedly. "Any piercings or tattoos other than your earrings?"

Regina bit her lip in contemplation.

"No way," Emma grinned knowingly. "Where is it?"

With deft fingers, Regina silently unbuttoned the last few buttons of her silk blouse and pulled apart the cloth to reveal her stomach and a small lavender piercing just above her navel.

"No fucking way," Emma laughed excitedly and turned on her car light, ducking her head to Regina's stomach to get a closer look.

Regina blushed as passing cars peered into the bug, clearly seeing Emma duck down behind the dashboard. She tapped the blonde's shoulder, prompting her back up.

"When did you get that?" Emma asked amazed as Regina hastily buttoned her shirt back up.

"I believe that's a question, and if I'm not mistaken it's my turn," Regina said shortly. "Do you have any body modifications?"

Emma snorted and lifted her fingers to show air quotes. "'Body modifications.' That sounds morbid. But yeah, I've got a tattoo."

Pulling back her sleeve, Emma revealed a tattoo on her left wrist of a simple flower with six petals.

"Oh," Regina said as she leaned closer, taking Emma's arm in her grasp for closer inspection. "I never noticed before. What does it mean?"

"Ah," the blonde smirked. "My turn."

Regina rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair. "When I got my piercing, yes?" At Emma's nod, Regina continued. "I was seventeen, and it was shortly after my father had passed away quite suddenly from an aneurysm. I took it very hard since he and I were close, and there was just a moment there where I went on a downward spiral. It was that time where I hid a boyfriend from my mother, but it was then on a whim I passed by a shop and got it done."

"Your mother must have had a field day when she saw that."

Regina shook her head solemnly. "Her heart gave out just before my eighteenth. I swore she knew what I was up to, so I ended my engagement and tried to do my best by her."

Emma frowned and wrapped an arm around the brunette, squeezing her shoulders affectionately. "I'm sorry."

Regina breathed out a chuckle, shaking her head again. "It's fine. But you, what's your story behind your tattoo?"

"It was at the house before the Johnson's, actually. I was thirteen or so, and I promised myself that I wouldn't be passed to more than six group homes," she explained fingering each petal. "The Johnson's was the sixth, and then I went to boot camp."

A thick silence came over them before Regina let out a breath. "I think we've sufficiently fulfilled tonight's quota of tragic back stories."

Emma laughed, but her smile was cut short when the sound of a gun went off, and Emma's eyes widened. She grabbed Regina and tugged her down onto her lap, splaying her torso over the brunette's head, cradling it protectively.

It sounded again, closer this time, and it took Emma peeking over the windshield to see that it was just the engine backfiring of an old car. She winced and slowly got up, blushing at Regina's now-mussed hair. "I, uh, I'm sorry," Emma stammered, avoiding eye contact. "I thought it was...something else."

Regina edged closer in her seat and used her thumb and forefinger to tug Emma's chin back to her. Despite the momentary shock of being pulled down, she smiled softly, letting her thumb stroke a path along Emma's jaw to soothe away the tension there. "Don't be. You're safe here," she whispered reassuringly. Waiting patiently for Emma to realize that Regina understood her reaction, the blonde nodded, leaning into Regina's hand for comfort. Quietly, the brunette asked, "do you need to talk?"

Emma shook her head hastily. "Not tonight. I promise."

Regina nodded knowingly and removed her fingers. "One more and we'll go."

"Hmm," Emma tapped her chin in thought, the last of her nerves leaving her as she scoured in her brain for a good question. "Would you have still written to me if that reporter guy didn't ask you to?"

Regina bit her lip and shook her head. "No," Regina admitted, watching Emma deflate. She added earnestly, "but I'm so glad I did."

Her clarification made Emma feel better, and Emma found herself taking the brunette's hand again. She was never a touchy feely sort of person, and she was banking that Regina wasn't either, but there was something drawing Emma to her that made it so easy to be this comfortable. "I'm glad you did too."

Their eyes locked for a moment as they continued to smile shyly at one another, palms pressing hotly in their own familiar embrace, and Emma swore, Regina's eyes were like the deepest pools of chocolate she could drown in. A nervous tug fluttered in the pit of her stomach as she forced herself to turn away and gauge at the field, now scarce with vehicles.

Without another word, Emma started her bug and pulled onto the gravel road, exiting the drive-in and turning onto the old road back to the interstate.

It was nearly eleven by the time the beetle entered Storybrooke again. The moment they had shared in the car was put behind them as they easily slipped back into casual conversation, though Emma was slightly unnerved by the fact that Regina had somehow successfully commandeered the radio. She pulled up into the mansion's driveway and took a moment to allow the final minutes of their alone time to settle in. They would have to do this again sometime, and hopefully soon. Maybe when Emma came back they could make some sort of tradition out of this.

"So," Emma grinned, waggling her eyebrows, "was this 'date' satisfactory?"

"I believe you're forgetting something," Regina retorted, rolling a shoulder coyly as Emma's eyes widened at the insinuation.

Clearing her throat, Emma licked her lips slowly and lowered her voice. "Something to give this town gossip to talk about."

"Perhaps," Regina whispered, her eyes darting to Emma's newly glistened lips.

They held each other's gaze, and Regina swore her heart beat loud enough for Emma to hear. The air inside the Volkswagen was thick and hot, though it had nothing to do with heater since Emma had regretfully informed her earlier it was broken. No, this heat was coming off both of them, and Regina couldn't find it in her to tear herself away. Her eyes darted from the green of Emma's eyes to her pink lips. God, why was she so focused on her lips? They were just friends, that was all. Their jokes were simply playful after all. But Regina wet her own lips and swallowed sharply, unconsciously closing the space between them.

Her heart thumped in her ears as Emma moved closer and closer, and Regina was vaguely aware that a few of Emma's fingers were dancing on her knee.

Regina gasped suddenly pulling back and scowled, immediately releasing herself from the seat belt and storming out of the bug with a purpose.

"Regina?" Emma called, slipping out and slamming her own door shut, jogging to catch up with the suddenly fired up Mayor. "I'm sor-"

Regina let herself into the mansion, Tina's name on her lips, and it was then Emma realized that despite the late hour, a majority of the lights were still on in the house.

"Mommy!" Henry's quick pitter-patter sounded from the play room as he slid along the hardwood in his footie pyjamas and launched himself into Regina's legs. "I stayed up!"

"I can see that," she said disapprovingly, glaring at the haggard looking Tina who exited the play room with her hair up in a haphazard bun. At least she had the decency to look a little frightened.

Emma took a knee beside Henry, and the boy immediately began climbing into Emma's lap and weaving his way onto her back. "It's way past your bedtime, kid."