February Part 2
Monday, February 12th
"I'm serious, Mary, I've left her for good!" The shouted words caused both women to come to an abrupt halt in the teachers' mailroom.
"Was that Shepherd?" Emma asked no one in particular.
"Yes. Romeo came prancing in here carrying a huge bouquet of roses about five minutes ago. They've been yelling at each other behind the closed door ever since," Judith Hopper quipped, rolling her eyes at all of it. "I swear the adults act more like horny teenagers than the kids do."
"So, I guess it wasn't you that found Lilac Hayes and Yolanda Parks 'in flagrante delicto' on Friday afternoon." Emma's pursed lips and raised eyebrows demonstrated that she knew the woman had indeed interrupted the duo.
"Really, Emma?" Regina shook her head at her girlfriend's childish teasing.
"Something you can't erase from your brain no matter how many bottles of whiskey you introduce to it," Judith muttered. "But, there isn't enough money in the world to get me to knock on the principal's office door anytime soon." She turned her eyes on the janitor leaning casually against the wall. "Sorry, Trice', I don't think you're going to want to clean in there this morning."
The older black woman shook her head. "Nope. That one's for the younger folks" Her head cocked toward the door. "It's bad enough her grandaddy was a horny bastard. I'm told to deal with her pulling the same shit he did. I ain't putting up with rich assholes anymore. I have twelve days until I retire. I'm not dealing with this shit again." She handed her broom over to a sheepish man who looked ready to run for it.
Judith eyed the heavy wood door separating them from whatever the two inside engaged. "I hate to admit it, but I'm still trying to figure out if they are going to get fired or promoted from this crap."
Dr. Mills' eyes lifted from the documents she'd found in her mail to gape at the woman before a realization dawned on her. "They're both politically connected to the old families."
In sync, they both said. "Promoted."
"It can't be that bad," Gaston chimed in while he dropped a few documents with Belle.
"It is," the principal's secretary responded. "Coach, you forgot to sign here and here. Again." She smiled at the group. "You should know by now that this county, like most small communities, runs off old money and nepotism. The smart people are here for window dressing."
Emma shook her head. "Speak for yourself. I'm here for a laugh."
*****
Thursday, February 15th
"Hi," Fiona Bartlett waved to Emma awkwardly. "Are you alright?"
Emma laughed. "Never better. And, my personal life isn't your business."
The older woman's appearance went from benign to dangerous, then back again in little more than the blink of an eye.
"Shit," Emma muttered under her breath, walking toward the other woman as she leaned against the blonde's somewhat eccentric choice of vehicle. "This one is yours, right?"
Emma dropped her chin to her chest and took in a deep calming breath before speaking. "What do you want, Fi? I thought I was pretty clear months ago when I made sure you knew I wasn't interested." She moved to the trunk of her car, opening it to drop in her school bag.
The woman pushed the long straight strands of her hair behind her ear in an uncharacteristically timid move. "I need your help." She held up her hands. "I know I have no right to ask this, but you are the only choice I have."
The history teacher looked around the parking lot. She hoped Regina would come sprinting out the doors to rescue her, but her girlfriend's car wasn't in the parking lot. "Okay. I'll bite. What is it that you think I can help you with that no one else will?"
"Daphne," Fiona said. "Her father and I are having a rough patch. He's locked me out of the house, and I--Well, he's preventing me from seeing the kids. I was hoping you could tell me how Daphne is doing? I'm worried about her. She's always been my velcro monkey, attached to my side. Since he denied me access--I can only imagine how she's coping."
"You're worried." Emma replied. "Right. I get that. But, I can't invite you to my class. Have you tried checking her out of school before the end of the school day?"
"Ford's removed my name from the contact list with a restraining order. And, he's blocked my cell number from their phones."
Emma's eyes narrowed. "Uh, Fi. What did you do?"
Losing confidence and raking the ground with the toe of her shoe, Fiona avoided eye contact with her. "I--uh," she blew out another breath. "Nevermind. You wouldn't believe me either." The older woman grabbed her purse from the hood of the car and began to stalk away, but Emma stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.
"Stop it. If she's important enough for you to show up here, then you need to remember that she's why you are here. Tell me, why can't you see her?"
"Do you remember when we met?" Fiona looked off into the distance; her eyes lost all focus. "That morning, we met on a run. It was my first day out of the hospital. I'd been suffering from postpartum depression, and I was still uncomfortable with being a mother. My first child, well, as you know, she's perfect, but her little brother, he's not. Ford blamed me from the beginning for having preeclampsia, for his low birth weight, for the umbilical cord being around his neck. Everything. Ford said that if I'd listened more to what the doctors said rather than still working as a medical transcriptionist from home, that I'd be fine."
Emma pulled the woman in for a side hug. "You know he's wrong. None of that is your fault."
"I know. It took me some time to figure that out, but I did." The two leaned on the yellow car. Emma let the other woman gather her thoughts before she continued.
"After you left, my depression." She paused and gave Emma a facial expression she'd never seen before from the woman. "I realized that I'd used you to hold me together. And, I fell apart. That time he had me committed for a few months. I had to earn my right to come home." She wiped at tears rolling down her face." I know you have no reason to believe me, but I promise that he's portraying me as crazy. I'm not. I'm really not crazy. This time I found out he's cheating, and we had an argument. I decided to take a drive to cool off instead of creating a scene in front of the kids. I drove over to the diner, had dinner while I tried to decide what to do. I love him, but he's gotten more controlling over the years. I'm not sure if we're happy together anymore. So, I just sat thinking. I didn't do anything else. I swear it." Large tears filled her eyes as she looked at the school building. "When I returned home, I was met in the driveway by two patrolmen. He had told the police I pulled a gun on him. I don't own a gun. I have no access to a gun. I don't know why he's doing this." Fiona cried quietly, letting Emma take in the circumstance.
"I can't make any promises, but I'll talk to her. I'll make sure she's okay, but I cannot get involved in this fight. I won't," Emma stated with a heavy heart. "We both know that I could only make this situation become more explosive if he figures out who I was to you in the past."
Fiona nodded. "That would be disastrous. He has no idea." Then, her face paled. "Or, maybe he does. My diary disappeared not long ago. It's possible that if he read it, he knows."
"That would have to be an ancient diary as you and I haven't--"
"No, I was so happy to see you when I first arrived. I wrote you a letter that I never intended to send."
Emma glared at her.
"Not like that! I was glad to see you were happy and that you had found your place. I may be selfish, but I never wanted anything bad to happen to you. I just wanted you to be mine without giving up my life. I know it's selfish, but it's no less true."
*****
Emma flopped back onto her bed, concerned. 'What if Regina's angry because she saw me speaking to Fiona?'
Emma's attempt to call Regina as soon as she left school went straight to voicemail. The blonde had spent most of her early evening hours talking to Dr. Andersen or alone working through some of her emotional issues, trust, and faith in other people--something that Ingrid and Fiona destroyed without breaking stride. Emma refused to live with her heart behind a protective wall; she couldn't live like that anymore. With that thought, she redialed Regina for the final time for the evening while a knot of dread bubbled.
"Hey, Regina, it's me again, and this is my first and last call for the night. I'm a bit worried here. I know that you've rejected my call. Part of me wants to run over to your place and demand answers, but I don't think I'd be welcome. I don't know. Please let me know that you are okay, and if I did something wrong, I'm sorry."
Her mind wandered back to the night before, where Regina delivered the Valentine's Day she'd dreamed about forever.
Emma took a deep breath and stared at Regina's door. The woman had reminded her at least once a day for the last five that tonight she wanted to romance the blonde. On one hand, Emma hated that Regina felt like she needed to prove something to her once she had admitted how much the rejection last year had hurt her. On the other, no one had ever cared enough to try to sweep her off her feet. She took one last chance to adjust her silky button down and tailored slacks before her nerves quelled. Clutching a floral arrangement in one hand and a bottle of Regina's favorite wine in the other, she wrapped on the door with her knuckles.
"Coming!" Regina shouted. Emma had no doubt the woman had an elaborate meal planned. The brunette pulled open the door excitedly. "Darling, why didn't you let yourself in?"
Emma shrugged. "Special occasion and all. I wasn't sure what you'd prefer. Better safe than sorry." She held out both her offerings hoping her girlfriend would be pleased.
"Oh, you shouldn't have." Regina grinned, accepting the flowers. She brought them to her nose and took a sniff. "I need to put these lovelies in water."
"You don't want the wine?" Emma asked, following behind her, still carrying the bottle.
"I love the wine. But, these are special. You bring the wine every time I cook, but flowers--I don't receive these very often, now do I?" Her smirk dissipated as she watched the blonde's shoulders droop. "What I meant to say is thank you. They are lovely." She laid them on the cabinet and pulled her girlfriend into her arms. "I promise that wasn't intended as a slight."
Emma nodded, bumping their foreheads together. "Sorry. I'm nervous. I've never celebrated Valentine's Day. I don't want to mess this up."
"You won't." Regina assured her. She captured pale lips in a chaste kiss before stepping back. "For the record, I haven't done this much either. I have had a series of first dates on this day. Absolutely none of them were worth a dessert course."
"Good to know." Emma's eyes darted around the kitchen, taking in the large pot bubbling on the stove, the two long-stemmed wine glasses sitting on the bar, and how everything else appeared clean.
The oven timer dinged, making Regina grab her mitts and pull away.
"Be a dear and please, put the flowers in water for me."
"Someone's been cleaning as she cooked." Emma pulled a few cabinet doors open before closing them again. "I think in all the times I've been here, I've never seen a vase. Do you have one?"
"Under the kitchen sink. It's too tall to stand anywhere else." Regina pulled french bread from the oven.
"Wow." Turning from where she grabbed the item, she caught sight of Regina's taut, muscular ass; the perfectly fitted dress accentuated her luscious curves as she bent to extract part of their dinner. Chocolate orbs caught her staring and licking her lips. "Umm. You went all out. Homemade bread and --"
Emma's eyebrows crinkled as she shifted her eyes away and landed on the mysterious pot boiling. "What is that? She asked while she filled the cut glass vase.
"Coq au vin. I thought I'd make you one of my mother's favorite dishes. It's special to me, and so are you." At the admission, Regina's cheeks took on a pinker hue. "I wanted to share it with you."
Seeing her girlfriend eyeing her strangely, Emma carried the flowers into the dining room and placed them on the table before returning. "I see you have the table set. Is there anything I can do?"
Regina turned off the heat to a small pot that resembled a syrupy fudge. The blonde lifted a linen cloth covering a silver bowl. She smiled, seeing fresh whipped cream with the whisk still in it.
"Yes, pop the cork on the wine so it can breathe."
Emma grabbed the corkscrew from the drawer and began the process as she watched the woman plating the food. "So, what's for dessert?"
"You," Regina answered without skipping a beat.
A banging noise woke her. Bleary emerald orbs took in the glowing numbers on the clock. "Who the fuck would appear at my door at 2:15 in the morning?" she asked herself out loud, her voice gravelly and tender. Her lips quirked up remembering why her throat still felt strained.
"Em, let me in. I can't find my keys." Augie's muffled and tired voice floated through the door.
"Fine." She opened the door to lay eyes on her brother for the first time in almost a month. She gave him a quick hug then pointed toward her room. "No offense, but I have to work tomorrow."
His eyes fell on a bruise glowing on her shoulder blade where it stuck out of the wide neck of her sleep shirt. "Where did you get that bruise?" His voice sounded concerned.
She grinned over his shoulder. "That's a holiday trophy. We played in Regina's kitchen."
His eyes flew wide. "I wish mental floss was a thing. I so wish I could retract my question."
Emma laughed as she walked down the hall. "Quit being a prude. It's not like you have room to talk."
"I don't fuck where I cook."
Emma paused in her bedroom doorway. "Ahem. November. Dani. Christie. Ready Whip. Need I say more?"
He flushed red. "I'll shut up now."
With an incoherent grumble, the blonde pushed to her feet and stumbled back to bed, face planting on what she considered Regina's pillow. She reached out to check her cell. Regina's name shined at her.
RM: Home. Tired. Talk tomorrow.
"Really, Gina," the blonde exasperated, then thought about her own delicious fatigue. She rolled onto her side and smelled a hint of chocolate sauce in her hair, and let out a snort before replaying the evening in her head.
"I can't believe you went all fifty shades on me," Emma teased; Regina eclipsed her vision, tying a silk scarf around her eyes.
"Is that too tight?" Emma giggled, feeling the other woman's nails tickling her abdomen. She jerked against the other scarves holding her arms in place.
"No, I'm fine." The blonde couldn't control her nervous snickering.
"Can you hold still, or do I need to restrain your legs too?" Regina's eyes darkened, watching the blonde shift in excitement on the bed.
"That depends," Emma attempted to calm her voice, though it squeaked anyway," what do you plan on doing to me? Hey, wait a minute. I thought you said you didn't like to play this way."
"Wouldn't you love to know, Em-ma," the husky voice tickled the shell of her ear, then sharp nails skated down her long leg, then the crisp sound of velcro broke the silence. "And, I'm learning." She planted a soft kiss on a pale shoulder.
"What's that?" A soft fabric wrapped around her ankle. "I thought you weren't going to restrain my legs."
Regina scoffed. "You jumped when I touched you. That won't do." The brunette hummed in approval as she finished by repeating the process to Emma's right leg.
"I must say that when Mal gave me these as a gag gifted, I never thought I'd find a use, but here you are. And, my, do you look beautiful." The brunette let her hands delicately skate across pale skin, teasing and raising the blonde's awareness of the sensations.
"You are listening too hard." The velvety rich sound of Alana del Rey filled the room. "Now, you can't hear me move." Her sultry evil laughter brought chills to the blonde's spine. The fine hairs on her arms stood in salute.
"Cold!" Something cold and satiny slipped from Emma's breast bone, dribbling toward her navel at a glacial pace.
"Do I need to warm you up, dear?"
"Yes, please?" Emma flinched, arching her back bowing out her chest when something tantalizingly warm drizzled across her nipples.
"How perfectly tasty?" Regina hummed.
"Umm. What am I missing?" The blonde whined, reminding the English teacher of her freshmen. She shook the negative association away.
"Would you like a taste?"
"Yes, please?" Ever hopeful, the blonde licked her lips.
The brunette scooped up a swirl of chocolate sauce and fresh whipped cream onto two of her fingers. "Open wide, my love."
Showing no reservation, Emma opened her mouth, feeling the fingers plunging in and delivering a divine hint of chocolate sweetness.
The bed dipped. Emma failed to suppress a moan when a warm, wet muscle lapped at the numbing liquid, dipping in and out of the blonde's belly button where it pooled.
Occasionally, Regina's tresses teased at her sides as plump lips caressed and tormented the blonde's body, her muscles quaking as she tried to hold still and prevent whatever the English teacher had poured on her skin from getting all over her lover's sheets.
"Do you remember this summer? We were on the Cape and were sitting on the beach eating ice cream cones, and yours dripped and landed right about here." Plump lips pressed into the rapidly heating flesh. "I wanted to taste it on your skin more than I remember wanting anything else in my life."
"Why didn't you? I wouldn't have complained." The history teacher's voice had deepened with her arousal. "We were already fucking like bunnies at it was."
Quick fingers pinched a sticky nipple. "Ouch!"
"We never fucked," she rasped. "We enjoy." She kissed a trail along a pale breast bone. "We caress and tease." She demonstrated using her tongue to titillate a stiff peak and soothe the ache her fingers had wrought. "We've loved and chased climaxes, but, my dear, you and I have never been so careless with each other to just fuck."
*****
Friday, February 16th
Emma marched into the teachers' lounge. As usual, her freshmen left too slowly for her to be on time for lunch. She heard gentle laughter coming through the door, but it in no way prepared her for the sight of Regina Mills cuddling a baby. She gently pat the little bundle on its while whispering conspiratorially to it. "Are you going to miss your daddy when he comes back to work next week? I bet you are." A series of little burps punctuated the air making all of them laugh. The brunette sat on the aged sofa between the two proud fathers, Thomas and Pierce.
"I can't wait to be back. It's been wonderful being home, but I miss my bigger kids." Thomas said.
Pierce rolled his eyes at his husband. "As long as you don't intend on bringing one of them home to raise."
"Hello, my little one," the woman cooed, baffling her girlfriend. Regina shifted the little bundled girl from where she'd burped her on her shoulder back to her lap. "Hello, my little one," the woman cooed, baffling her girlfriend. Emma gawked in awe as a tiny hand clutched at one of Regina's fingers. "What do you think about all this, baby girl? Hmm. Are all these people too scary?" She whispered in a voice that could only be reserved for babies.
Thomas noticed Emma awkwardly standing near the door. "If you had arrived earlier, you would have heard Elise screaming her little head off, but Regina worked a little magic, and now she's happily checking out the room." His words appeared semi-true as the little girl blew a spit bubble and looked up at the English teacher like she held the secrets to the universe. Her tiny brow scrunched in concentration as she grunted.
"She's not used to this much noise. I'm sure she's a pleasant little thing at home."
Pierce snorted, "Except at 2 a.m. when she needs a diaper change."
"Speaking of, I believe this one and that absurdly stinky diaper belongs to you," Regina stated, handing the precious bundle back to Thomas then flinging the damp burp rag to his husband. "I am all for entertaining the cutie, but the toxic waste is not for me."
The blonde looked down at her beaming girlfriend. "Are you getting baby fever?"
"Nope. Not now, not ever." Regina grinned, popping up from where she sat. "Lunch should be in the microwave."
Pierce lifted the little girl in his arms. "I'll go take care of this."
"Thomas?" Mal exclaimed, coming in the door and hugging the man. "It's so good to see you. I've got to run, but I wanted to say hello before you disappeared." She grabbed a drink from the machine and headed for the leaving as quickly as she arrived.
Emma took the distraction as a way to sneak over to where her girlfriend sat with their lunch at their usual table.
"They look happy." The blonde said after a few minutes of quiet.
"Yes, they do."
Emma could feel the same tension growing between them that had appeared in the parking lot yesterday afternoon. "Would you please tell me what's wrong?"
"Whatever do you mean, darling?" Regina's sarcastic tone intensified Emma's worry.
"I don't know exactly. I thought that we were great after Valentine's." The blonde took a bite of her food and chewed slowly. "You let my call go to voicemail last night. I know you texted back that you were tired and would see me today. But then you arrived as the bell rang this morning. I didn't have an opportunity to say good morning, share a coffee, or anything."
Regina raised an eyebrow and rolled her eyes, but the corners of her mouth ticked upward at Emma's words but made no comment.
Emma sighed. "Talk to me, Regina. You are sending me mixed signals. Are you upset about something?"
The brunette sighed, reached across the table, and entwined their fingers. "I'm frustrated, angry, hurt, and disappointed, but none of it has to do with you. I'm trying not to take it out on you. I'm sorry."
Emma pushed her chair closer to Regina's. "If I am not allowed to shut you out then, you can't do it to me either." The blonde squeezed the other woman's hand in hers affectionately. "Tell me. What's wrong?"
The brunette tortured her lower lip with her teeth coming close to splitting the delicate skin. "It's about Dani. She's gone missing. She ran from the facility. Since she checked herself involuntarily, there isn't anything we can do about it. But, I won't lie to you. I'm worried. I think it's time to tell Augie and Christie what we know."
Emma wrapped an arm around the other woman's back. "Augie's arrived last night, but I think he left again this morning. I'll call him tonight. If you want, we can get Christie to come over for dinner. We can explain it to her."
Regina nodded. "Her temper is lethal. Or, at least, it used to be. I don't know how well this is going to go over with her." Her shoulders slumped as she dropped her head onto the blonde's shoulder. "I hate being the bearer of bad news. I keep thinking about when we were in school, and I had to tell her that her grandmother died."
"How was that your responsibility?"
"She'd been out drinking all night and passed out when her mother kept trying to call. Eventually, she gave up and called me since I was the most likely to be awake at 10 a.m on a Saturday."
Emma rubbed circles into the smaller woman's back in an effort to calm her fears." Well, we honored Dani's request. She can't be mad about that." Although Emma's words sounded confident, her tone told her lover the truth.
"I wouldn't be too sure." Regina poked her lovingly in the stomach. "But, if we tell her the whole truth, I think she will calm down once we get started with how our visit went."
The blonde nodded, but her eyes crossed the room to see the happy fathers playing with a cooing baby.
"You really don't want one?" Emma watched them, not feeling an ounce of envy.
"No, I wouldn't object to adopting one old enough to wipe its own ass." Regina grinned, feeling her girlfriend relax. She poked the blonde again. "Wait. Did I worry you by holding little Elise?"
Knowing she couldn't avoid the truth any longer, she answered. "I can't stand babies. They drool and they smell bad."
The brunette burst out laughing and shaking her head. "You had me worried that might be a deal-breaker for us."
"Nope. Not even close. I don't want to take care of anyone who can't wipe their own ass."
CODE BLUE, I REPEAT CODE BLUE. CAFETERIA STAT.
Regina's giggles stopped abruptly at the overhead announcement.
"What does that mean?"
"That's the emergency command for the security team."
Gaston dusted the crumbs from his shirt. "Anyone else want to go with me? I'm not going to help, but I'd hate to miss this shitshow, whatever it is."
Mal threw open the door. "You don't want to miss this. James Shepherd's wife came back."
As Regina and Emma slipped out the door, the brunette caught her friend by the arm. "What were you doing in the cafeteria?"
"Mandatory lunch duty. I made M&M mad, so now I have to spend the next month preventing food fights." The older blonde sniffed in irritation. "I'm more likely to critique their skill than stop it. If I'm being honest here. Kwame has a good throwing arm. He should consider baseball the way he can chuck an apple."
"Genital warts. After all, I've done for you!" The voice boomed and echoed in the hallway.
Emma snorted and shook her head while Mal and Regina exchanged satisfied grins. By the time they entered the cafeteria, two officers held Mrs. Shepherd and were attempting to lead her from the room. "I'm going to take everything. Everything!"
"Is it just me, or is James using Blanchard-Nolan as a human shield?" Emma asked, looking at the man skulking behind the petite raven haired woman.
Regina and Mal turned their heads in time to see the principal snap to her sense and turn on her lover.
None of them heard the words that fell from MM's lips, but the cowardly man disappeared from the room.
"Things are certainly getting more interesting. County office has to do something now, right?" the younger blonde asked.
An apple flew above them.
"That's not a good sign."
A handful of mashed potato smacked the principal in the shoulder.
"Nope."
"Everyone calm down, or we will take action." an officer shouted.
"Eugenia won't stand for this," Emma said, unsure.
"I wouldn't count on it. Like it or not, our school board is run primarily by the descendants of the first families of Blanchard County. And, I bet you can guess who is a member of that group." Regina's condescending tone demonstrated her fondness for the group.
"Should we pretend there isn't a Mills in that mix?" Mal's smirk brought a quick slap to her forearm.
"Shows over people. Return to your classes." The school resource officers shouted while absolutely no one listened.
"I'm going to politely suggest that we all leave because Templeton is fingering that taser on his hip." Mal's eyes scrutinized the hotheaded deputy. "I don't want to be a witness in court any more than I want to on somebody's social media page."
The three power-walked out of there. Before they left the hall, the student body began hollering. "Fire in the hole," Emma shouted, shaking her head at the entire stupid thing.