The Pornstar Martini

Chapter 19

Regina wasn't trying to impress Emma with a pretty dress anymore. She knew going in this was not just a dinner. She didn't know what it really was, but regular dinners with colleagues didn't make her this nervous.

"How was your day?" Emma softly inquired. She was wearing a white blouse and a blue, leather jacket. Her hair hang in loose curls down her face and she wasn't wearing a lot of makeup.

"Quite the same as usual," Regina replied and picked a piece of cucumber from her salad. They'd barely had any conversation. There had been a constant tension bubbling around them and Regina didn't know how to cope with it. "Paperwork on top of more paperwork. How about you?"

Emma's face showed a hint of a smile. "I've been sending off papers to the mayor all day." Regina let out a soft chuckle in response. "I'm forcing myself to meet up with my mother tomorrow. I'm actually going to do it."

"Really?" Regina's face turned serious and she watched as Emma nervously cut a piece of her hamburger. "How do you expect it to go?"

Emma met her gaze and shrugged, desperately, while shaking her head. "I have no clue. I don't.. I don't know what kind of woman she's become. All I know is she still lives there and I have no idea whether that's something good or bad."

"Do you want to go alone?" Regina asked, her voice soft.

"Are you offering to come with me?" Emma sounded confused. Regina shrugged in response. She was willing to do that, though she wasn't sure why. "I guess it would be nice to have someone next to me, someone who knows my past. It would also be motivation to actually do it, because last week I was convinced I had the courage to ring the doorbell, but I didn't."

"I'd be happy to accompany you." Much to her own surprise, it was the full truth. Regina looked forward to spending more time with Emma and once again, she realized Kathryn had been right. Emma was her weakness.

Though, maybe that wasn't a bad thing anymore. Now that Emma didn't need to survive by stealing or soliciting, Emma was her best self. She'd grown into a full woman, a good one, so why couldn't she be Regina's weakness? Why couldn't Regina give her a second chance?

"Truly? Because if you don't, you really don't have to. I'm not.. I'm not saying that to pressure you into anything and I don't want it to come across that way, I.."

"Emma, shall we just forget the past?" Regina bluntly suggested. Emma looked at her, very much dismayed, and cocked an eyebrow.

"What?"

"I want to start fresh. I want to take this moment as an opportunity to forgive each other for everything that's happened, so we can move on from it. You don't need to explain you're not pressuring me into it, because I understand. I see you're different than you used to be and I know you've never purposely intended to cause any harm. I'm over it. It's been a decade, let's let it go. I'm tired of hating you. It was fun for a while, but now the thought of starting anew is much more thrilling."

Emma looked at her in utter dismay for a moment, but then quickly nodded. "Yes, uh, of course."

Regina smiled widely and gave her a nod. "Good. At what time did you plan on going to The Alley?" she asked. A part of her was secretly very curious to see what kind of woman Mary Margaret had turned out to be. She wasn't very familiar with most of the people living in The Alley.

"I haven't thought about it all that much. When I get the motivation, I think."

"You just told me that's taken you weeks, so far. I'm going to pick you up after work. The Sheriff Station is on the route."

Emma seemed hesitant, but she gave in without complaints. "Alright," she muttered. She took a big bite of her hamburger and Regina saw sauce spilling onto her plate.