A Hard Choice

Chapter 1: Just Going To School

The mayor of the unique town of Storybrooke was getting ready for her morning, so was her son; Henry Mills. He was a quiet child and really had no friends. The mayor was really his only friend, but he constantly implied that she was the 'evil queen'.

Since this town was in the state of Maine it was very cold out especially in the winter. So she was wearing a big black coat over her blazer and button-down shirt. Henry was wearing his black coat as well as a scarf to keep his scrawny neck warm.

He walked down stairs after he had gotten ready. The mayor or what her real name was Regina Mills was making pancakes for each other to eat for breakfast. She was the best cook, perhaps better than Granny at the diner.

...

It was now time to leave for school and her job at the office. She put his lunch in his TRON lunch box which clanked if it hit anything. He was never really that appreciative of her or anything she did for him. She'd do anything for him; to save his life she'd give up her's in a heartbeat. She grabbed the keys to her black Mercedes and her purse. They walked outside and to the car in the driveway.

"Henry I'm going to drive you to school today, not the bus and I'll pick you up." She smiled at him, but all his focus was directly on his book.

She put the car into gear and backed out. She looked at Henry studying his book and frowned. She knew he wasn't happy with her, he wanted to be with his birth mother, Emma.

"Why are you taking me to school?" He grumbled, but still looked at his book.

"Because, I want to spend more time with you even if it's very little." She smiled and said with a weary voice; she didn't get much sleep last night.

Regina pulled a corner and continued on. Her car was about to pass by Game of Thorns when a car jumps forward right in the path of her car. The store hadn't quite opened yet, but the owner was watering the plants. She saw something coming at her in the corner of her eye. She looked over to see a car heading right for her. She nearly froze, but she had to do something she slammed her foot on the brake and held Henry down with her right arm trying to protect him for possible shrapnel and if the airbag deployed.

The other car slammed into her car and smashed it into the store. The drivers-side door was crushed and the window was shattered. The car crashed into the store obliterating the brick walls, pulverizing pots and spilling soil and fertilizer. The hood of her car was crushed and bent upwards, and something punctured the engine and fuel tank and pesticide spilled into it. The engine was getting hotter as more pesticide and fuel spilled into heating metals.

She was out cold. Henry was awake though and he witnessed every second. He was regretting giving her attitude and disrespect. She was bleeding from her forehead, a small cut, but she hit the dashboard so hard it could've killed her or had given her a concussion.

The car was starting to smoke when a figure appeared beside the crashed car.

"Henry! Henry! C'mon I've got you!" Emma unbuckled his seatbelt and grabbed him out of the car.

Henry was trying to run back to the car; he was worried about her.

"Please someone save her please!" He yelled and was restricted by Emma's arms.

"Henry I..I can't-". The car burst into flames, it was either life or death for Regina.

"Now I really can't." She said under her breath.

Mary Margaret, Emma, David, Ruby, Henry, and Archie all witnessed the crash. They were horrified, they all stood there in shock of what just happened. The dark yet fiery smoke got thicker and covered the scene. Mary Margaret called the fire department, which this being a small town would get there quickly.

...

"David! Wha-it's gunna blow up get away!" Mary Margaret yelled as she still had her phone in her hand.

"Someone has to save her!" He said as he was running towards the burning car.

He ran to the battered front door of the car and threw it open. He reached over and unbuckled her seat belt. The fire truck arrived, but took a look at the car and realized it was going to blow up.

Emma continued to hold back Henry as they all watched in horror of what was to come. Would David die? Would Regina? Or both? Mary Margaret was in tears as she watched the scene. She couldn't even see him or the car through the smoke.

She was still unconscious and was inhaling smoke, but she couldn't do anything about it. He had to act fast, really fast. He was sweating bullets and was jittery because he knew that he could die or she could, or both.

He grabbed her right arm and wrapped it around his shoulders and neck, he picked up her legs and ran. He couldn't see anything and was coughing and running out of time.

He ran much slower, because he was carrying dead weight. The flames were building up and more and more smoke as rising. Everybody still watched in horror as this event unfolded.

As David was running with Regina away from the car then, a blast went off. The car erupted with flames and shrapnel. The fiery red-orange flames spread out into rising smoke and burned out into new smoke.

Everybody nearly fell as the car exploded and Emma held on to Henry with all her might.

David and Regina got about 10 feet away from the blast, just out of the blast radius. As it happened he covered the back of her head as they fell onto the pavement. When they fell they slid just a few inches, enough to scratch up David's hands.

Regina was still unconscious and was covered in black dust from the smoke. She still had the gash in her head from hitting the steering wheel. He sat up and looked at her. He was sweating and his palms were bleeding. He sat to the left side of her and continued to look at her, hoping she'd wake up.

Mary Margaret ran as the smoke cleared and she broke the frown on her face as she saw that David was alive. But, what about Regina. Henry struggled and finally got loose and ran to the scene, Emma ran after him.

"Regina? Wake up-". He shook her to possibly wake her up. "C'mon wake up!" He said out of breath.

"Mom?!" Henry ran to her side and was crying. Emma stood right next to Henry then crouched down to comfort him.

Regina slowly opened her eyes and looked at David then at Henry. It was hard to see because her eyes were burning from the smoke.

"David?-" she struggled to say, then turned to Henry, "Henry?" She smiled.

"Mom!-". He hugged her even though she was on hard pavement.

She looked back at David, then looked at his hands. She grabbed one his hands and looked at the palm of his hand.

"Your hands, they're bleeding." She looked puzzled as for what happens to his hands.

"I'm okay Regina... Don't worry." He smiled and looked at Henry.

The ambulance now moved in and set up a gurney for Regina. David helped her up and so did Emma, the paramedics strapped her into the gurney. They put her into the ambulance.

"Wait, I'll go with her, my hands are all, you know-". He was walking towards the truck and looking at his hands.

He saved her. He put his life at risk for her, but why? So Henry wouldn't be upset? Just out of being a Good Samaritan? Or was it something else?