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Chapter 8

She woke by people bouncing on top of her. She sat straight up and waved her hands around frantically, trying to smack whoever was disturbing her.

"Emma! You have to tell us about your date!" Ruby said excitedly.

"Some people I didn't want to see showed up at the restaurant, so we went to a carnival instead. That's all that happened," Emma said and turned back over onto her stomach. "Now let me sleep."

Ruby groaned. "You are no fun." She got off of Emma's bed and went back to her own. After realizing that she wasn't going to sleep anymore, Emma got up and got dressed. She put some makeup on and went downstairs.

"There's my girl!" Killian exclaimed as she came into sight. She waved lazily and yawned. "My sleepy Swan." He wrapped his arm around her as she sat down.

"What did you guys do last night?" Will asked, turning to Killian and Emma with a smirk on his face. Emma blushed and buried her face in Killian's shoulder.

"We went on a date," Killian said plainly. "It was a plain first date."

Emma watched tv with the guys for a little while until Liam and Elsa got home. Not wanting to be in the way, she ran up to her bedroom. Ruby had disappeared an hour ago, taking Mary Margaret with her. Emma was glad that she was able to get the room to herself for a little while. She grabbed her special memory box out from under her bed and looked through it. Inside of it, was the newspaper article stating when and where she was found, and that a seven year old boy was the one that brought her to a roadside restaurant nearby. Inside the box was also her baby blanket. The only thing she had that was from her birth parents. It was made of white yarn and written in big, purple letters, was her name. Emma. She held it close to her chest and felt the familiar lump forming in her throat. She jumped up onto her bed and laid down, clutching the blanket in her arms. A few tears slid down the side of her face. She often wondered why her parents had given her up. What was so wrong with her that they couldn't even take her to a hospital? She wondered what she had done to make them hate her. Was she just a mistake? An accident that was never supposed to happen? Were her birth parents just scared teenagers who didn't want anyone to know that they were expecting a baby? So many thoughts ran through her head. She hated the fact that she didn't know anything. She wanted to know what it felt like to be put first, and not a second choice or a backup plan. She wanted to know what it felt like to be loved. She sat up and looked at her blanket. More tears streamed down her face as she ran her hands over it. Her blanket was the only thing that she held on to. The only thing that she kept throughout the years.

"Hey, Swan-" Killian began as he jogged up the stairs. She fumbled around to put the blanket back in the box and hide it under her bed. She wiped her tears and grabbed a book, opening it and waited for him to come in. "Liam wanted me to get you because it's time for supper."

She glanced over at the clock, and it was 5:00 on the dot. 'Damn. I really did get lost in my thoughts.'

"Alright. Tell him I'll be down in a few minutes."

"You okay? You look like you've been crying." He sat down on the bed and put his hand on her knee.

"Just thinking."

"Don't get lost in your thoughts, love. It won't make your parents change their mind. They are bloody fools, just like my father. Just because they are our blood relatives, doesn't mean they actually mean something to us." He grabbed her hand and kissed it in the way he knew she liked. "Wash up and we can eat."

"Wait, how'd you know I was thinking about my parents?"

"You just have that look, love." He pulled her off the bed and wiped the remaining tear streaks off her face. "Do you wanna eat?"

She nodded and went into the bathroom to fix her makeup. She came out and he was standing by the door. He smiled and grabbed her hand. They both walked into the dining room where everyone was patiently waiting. Elsa looked at Emma and cocked her head to the side.

"You okay, snowflake?" Elsa asked.

Emma smiled at her nickname. Elsa had given it to her when they went out shopping for the date with Killian. "Yeah, I'm okay," Emma said, her voice barely cracking. She sat down next to Killian and he gripped her hand under the table. She looked up at him and he gave her a reassuring smile. She ate her food and actually talked, not just replying when spoken to first. She laughed at the jokes and stories that were told. Killian smirked at her while she wasn't looking. He was glad to see that she was happy. He was glad to see her smiling and joking with the rest of them. That night, Emma did the dinner dishes with Ruby. He stood in the doorway, laughing to himself as he watched her and Ruby splash each other with the soapy water.

Emma knew that Killian was watching her, but she didn't mind. She liked knowing that someone was there for her, looking out for her. As Ruby blew a handful of suds into her face, she couldn't help but feel like this is what home felt like. Being with the people that looked out for her and cared about her. She didn't think that they could ever really and truly love her, but that they would definitely notice if she was gone. These people weren't like the rest. She glanced over at the doorway and Killian had a big smile on his face. He blew her a kiss and walked into the living room. A thousand butterflies flew around in her stomach and as she walked him walk away.