We Can Love Again

Something to be Thankful For

The house had transformed into an array of heat and delicious smells in the matter of hours. Regina was excited to finally get to use the kitchen as an actual member of the house. She was determined to make this dinner the best yet; after all, dinnertime was the time families were supposed to come together. Now they were a family- or, starting to become one at least.

"Is it done?" Roland's eager voice asked, poking his head up above the counter to observe Regina's cooking.

"Almost," she replied, keeping her eyes on the pan as she stirred the contents with a wooden spoon. "Why don't you help Henry set the table?"

The four year old obeyed, going other to the silverware drawer and pulling out handfuls of forks and spoons. Robin came down the hall and entered the kitchen with a smile on his face.

"Smells absolutely fantastic," he told her, leaning over her shoulder to see what she was making. Regina had to smile back; he was acting like he had never experienced good food before.

"You've completely given up on cooking, haven't you." She mused, giving him a tap on the nose with her finger.

"Completely," he conformed, "now that we have you here all the time, there will be no excuses."

"I didn't know I was signing up to do slave work," Regina said sarcastically, rolling her eyes. In all honesty though, she didn't care. Working was her thing, she was used to it.

"The food is just about done, you want to help me get all of this on the table?" She asked. Robin was already on it, eager to start eating it all.

"This is sure a lot of food," he marveled as he set it on the wooden table, the smells all too overwhelming.

"I know, but I want to make our first dinner together something special." Regina told him, untiring the apron from behind her back.

And it definitely was something special. Placed before the four of them was a roasted ham, corn on the cob, and most enticingly, a pan of chocolate cake baking away in the oven. The scene was something precious, two children on the edge of their seats, light from flickering candles bouncing off their grinning faces.

"Before we dig in to all this, I'd like to propose a toast." Robin said, earning a surprised glance from Regina.

"I'm so glad you and Henry decided to stay with us. Thanks to you two, we can be a family."

Henry and Regina exchanged smiles towards each other. "Now, let's eat all this food." He announced, wanting badly to give into the temptations placed before him.

They spent the next half hour eating as they jumped from one conversation to the next, all enjoying themselves more than they thought they would. For a moment, Henry forgot he was still in the Enchanted Forest, remembering all the meals he had shared with his mom in the past. Sometimes he forgot how great she was at cooking.

"Okay, I think it's time for you to get to bed, Roland." Robin said, as kindly as he could towards the boy. Despite his tone, though, Roland let out a whine as he looked back down at his cleaned off plate.

"But I don't want to!"

Regina came up behind him and picked up his plate and his glass, taking it back to the sink. "How about I tuck you in?" She proposed, instantly wiping the pout off his face.

"Okay..." He admitted to feeling a bit tired. Maybe he wasn't too old to be missing naps after all. Roland took Regina's offered hand and gave one last look to his dad before starting off for his room. The woman couldn't help but recall the first time she had put him to bed; it was when she and Emma had stayed the night to babysit. She had no idea that in just a couple weeks later, his house would also become hers.