𝑺 𝑾 𝑨 𝑵 𝑸 𝑼 𝑬 𝑬 𝑵

~7~

Emma woke up way earlier than she wanted to because her arm was numb.

Regina must have tossed and turned within the sheriff's arms sometime during the night because when Emma finally managed to open her eyes, she found herself face-to-face with the Queen. Regina's nose was mere inches from her own; her heavy eyelashes brushed at her cheeks and her lips were slightly parted, blowing warm air over the blonde's chin with each little breathy exhale. The brunette had one arm draped possessively around her waist while the other was pushed up against Emma's chest, her hand resting delicately over the sheriff's beating heart. Their legs were twisted together like wet spaghetti.

Emma's arm was numb because the Queen was sleeping on it.

Regina was still (uncharacteristically, she correctly assumed) out like a light.

Emma just stared at her for a while. Regina was unabashedly beautiful: always when she was primped and haughty and tailored to a fault, but especially so when her guard was down, all fresh and unassuming and remarkably human. The sight tugged at Emma's heartstrings and she was suddenly filled with the urge to bury her face in the brunette's hair and pull her closer. Or at the very least place a reverent kiss on the sleeping Queen's forehead... but she did neither. Regina just looked so blissfully peaceful when she was asleep that Emma didn't have the heart to wake her.

So instead the blonde slowly disentangled herself from their intertwined limbs, painstakingly trying to extract her deadened arm from underneath the mayor without jostling her too much. There was a moment of panic when Regina moaned a little at the loss of contact and teetered on the edge of consciousness, but then she rolled over and buried her face into the pillow, once again completely dead to the world.

After tucking the cocoon of covers back around Regina's drowsy form, Emma slipped quietly out of the room and regrettably changed back into the clothes she's worn the day before, or the weeks before if she really thought about it. They still smelled like Fairytale Land... which consisted mostly of damp campfire, ogre spit, and crow droppings.

Thank god I can rock the 'I just got out of bed and I don't give a shit' look.

But as Emma had her hand on the door handle, ready to leave the mansion, she stopped. Something just felt incredibly wrong about trying to sneak out of the mayor's house like some kind of shamed whore after a one night stand.

This was not a one night stand... and she didn't want Regina to see it that way either.

So the sheriff busied herself in the kitchen, trying her best to put everything back exactly where she found it, until she had concocted the best pot of coffee she knew how to brew. Then she even went so far as to fold the mayor's pajamas before laying them out on the guest bed for the brunette to find later. She really didn't want Regina to feel abandoned; particularly if it was going to make her burst into flames in a fit of Queen-like rage.

Still, Emma felt that something was lacking... so she decided to leave Regina a note.

Regina,

Don't freak out. I went to go see Gold to get some answers. Meet me at Granny's diner at noon and I'll tell you what I found out. We can figure this out together.

-Emma

P.S. Hope the coffee's not cold when you wake up.

Emma read over the note too many times, suddenly irrationally nervous about leaving it for the mayor. What if she thought it was stupid? Or what if the whole thing was just too much? But she had already gone through the trouble of writing the damn thing, so the blonde steeled her resolve and dropped the note on the nightstand next to the cup she'd brought with her.