Henry's Adventures in Fairytale Land

Happily Ever After

Henry felt groggy as the light died down. The beeping continued and he when he went to move to silence it, his left arm felt weighed down. An ache also spread through his body and he groaned.

"Henry?" Regina asked. No, not Regina. Mom. It was his mother. Her voice was deeper and warmer. "Henry, can you hear me?"

Opening his eyes, he blinked a few times as Mom came into focus. There were tears in her eyes though she smiled at him. "Hey there, sweetheart."

"Is he awake?" Robin appeared behind Mom, resting his hand on the blankets covering Henry's leg. "Good to see you, Henry."

Henry tried to glance around but the room was too dark for him to gather where he was. All he knew was that it wasn't his room at home. "Where am I?" he asked.

"You're in the hospital, sweetie. There was an accident. Do you remember any of that?" Mom asked, running her cool hand through his hair.

He nodded. "I remember bright lights and yelling at Mom to watch out. We span around and then there was nothing."

"You hit a tree. The person who hit you drove off but a neighbor saw the whole thing and called 911. Emergency services got to you and Emma very quickly," Mom explained.

"How is she? Mom, I mean?"

Mom smiled. "She's fine. She has a broken leg and suffered a concussion, so the doctor kept her overnight. They released her this morning. She's staying with Mary Margaret and David while she recovers."

"What about Killian Jones? Has he seen her?"

"Captain Jones," she stressed, eyebrow raised, "has been by her bedside since the storm subsided."

Henry smiled. "I'm glad. He likes her, you know."

"I know," Robin said, chuckling at Mom's surprised face. "We're drinking buddies, Regina."

Mom looked between him and Henry. "Did everyone in this town know before me?"

"Pretty much," they said together.

Robin smiled, rubbing Mom's arm. "I'm going to let them know at the nurse's station that he's awake. They'll probably want to examine him."

Once he was out of the door, Henry turned to his mother. "How long has Robin been here?"

"He's been here since the ambulance arrived with you," she replied. "He's left a few times to get us fresh clothes and food, but otherwise he's constantly here. He cares about you, Henry."

"He cares about both of us, Mom."

She sighed, fixing his blankets in what he knew was a way to distract herself. "We're not starting this again, Henry. Robin loves Ms. Greene."

"But Mom..."

"No 'buts,' Henry." His mother was firm. "I know you view Robin as a father and I love that you have a father figure. But I don't want you to keep hoping for something that will never happen."

"Even though you love him?"

A pained and haunted look came to his mother. "We've discussed this. Just because I love him doesn't mean Robin is obligated to love me back. Nor is he obligated to spend time with us. I've told you, we can't be..."