The Other Swan Sister: The Sequel

Chapter 8

"Mom's making lasagne!" Henry squeals as he rushes down the stairs.
"Henry, you know the rules." Regina gently scolds. "No running."
"Sorry."
"You could hurt yourself, kid. Again." You pitch in softly, backing Regina up so she doesn't look like the bad guy.
She quickly shoots you a grateful smile.
"It's like having two moms." Henry whines, not realising the weight of his sentence.
You blush into your cider.
"Oh, hardly, Henry." Regina purses her lips.
"Come on Henry let's set the table." You change the subject.
Regina observes you as you take him over to the drawer and teach him how to set it; slight astonishment across her features.

"How's your head?" You ask the little guy as he sits at the the table.
"It's ok." He shrugs, seemingly dissimilar to any pain.

"I'm nervous to ask if you want help now." You stand next to Regina as she begins taking the food out of the oven.
She smirks slightly before Henry's voice booms between you.
"Mom never likes people to help."
You look at her with a smug smile, her eyebrow is lifted at Henry's pitch and you can't help but chuckle.
"I know." You smile at the little boy.
"Sit down and be quiet, both of you." Regina teases.

"This lasagne is so good." You compliment the older woman's cooking. "I feel like I've had it before in my dreams."
"You have had it before, you just forgot." Henry adds.
Regina looks uncomfortable for a moment, unsure whether to address the comment or not.
And frankly, you don't know whether to either.
You just smile at the little boy.
"Did you get all your work done?" You ask Regina politely.
"Almost." She sighs. "I'll do the rest tomorrow morning. Did you do your work, Henry?" She pointedly asks him.
"Yep!" He grins. "I left my book out so Ivy can read it to me before bed."
"Oh-" Regina starts. "Well- I'm not sure if Ivy will want to stay that long, Henry."
"I don't mind." You pitch in, smiling at Regina so she knows. "As long as you don't."
She pauses for a moment.
"Of course not." She smiles back, still seemingly shocked by this.

"Henry it's time for bed." Regina calls from the dining room.
"Just 5 more minutes of tv!" He whines.
Regina looks stressed and so you pitch in to try and help.
"But I thought we were gonna read your story, Henry?" You perch in the doorway, watching his reaction of delight.
He jumps up and rushes up the stairs.
"Make sure you brush your teeth first!" Regina calls after him.
"Thank you, for this." She smiles softly.
Your heart begins to race slightly.
"Anytime." You smile back. "I've really enjoyed myself."
"You have?" She frowns briefly.
"Is that so hard to believe?" You chuckle, somewhat worried.
"I hate to say it but- yes." She admits.
A vulnerable side.
You feel honoured.
"I'm beginning to doubt everybody else in this town if their opinion of you is so low..." you attempt to joke.
She looks away for a moment and you're unsure what is going through her head.
"Do you really think that I'm one of the good guys?" She turns back to you, her eyes looking deep into yours. 
She heard you speaking to Henry.
She seems moved by the statement.
Suddenly you feel as if you might as well be naked in front of this woman and your mind spins at a million miles per hour.
"O-"
"Are you coming or what?" Henry calls from the top of the stairs.
You look at Regina for a moment, before letting out a laugh and rolling your eyes at the boy.
What a cockblock.
"Coming!" You call back as the boy peers his head around the corner.
Before turning toward him you give Regina a smile and a slight wink.
A risk.
And god you know your heart knows it with the way it's still pounding.
"Your cheeks are red." Henry points out, rather loudly, on the stairs.
The statement causes you to blush further and you can only imagine the satisfaction Regina is getting right now.
"They are not." You defend weakly, hearing a distant chuckle.

"Which part would you like to read, kid?" You smile as he snuggles under the blanket with his plethora of stuffed animals.
"Do the bit where they get sent to the Enchanted Forest!" He grins under the duvet.
"Where is that?"
"Near the start."
"Okay..." you drawl the word as you look for the chapter. "Got it."
"Wait..." you scan over the characters within the book. "Emma. Ivy. Snow White. Prince Charming. Evil Queen..." you read them out. "That's a pretty cool coincidence. Did Emma get you this book for Christmas or something?"
"No! It was from Snow White."
"Who's Snow White, Henry?"
"You know, the Princess! Your mom!" He clarifies.
You attempt to hide the confusion on your face and smile.
"Right. Of course." You shake it off and begin to read.