Under Lock and Key #Wattys2016

Chapter 38

"Brother, I have exciting news!" Liam exclaimed as he walked into the office he and Killian shared.

Killian spun around in the swivel chair. "What is it, Liam?" He asked, excitement lacing his words as well.

"I joined the Navy." Liam saw Killian's face fall. "Don't worry, little brother. I'll be back in three months time."

Killian let out a breath of relief. He rolled his eyes at his brother's foolishness. "I think you mean younger brother."

Three Months Later

Killian grabbed the mail, hoping for a letter from Liam. They had been sending letters back and forth, updating each other on how their lives were going. Killian was talking about how he met a woman by the name of Milah, and Liam was talking about his time on the sea.

As Killian got back inside, he sorted through the envelops, until he came across one from the base the Liam was in. He threw the pile down onto the counter and ripped it open. The smile on his face vanished as soon as he saw the words were typed instead of handwritten. Tears swelled in his eyes and streamed down his face as he saw the words 'Liam Jones' and 'MIA'. He fell to his knees holding the letter to his chest.

His brother was gone.

The only family he had was gone.

He grabbed a suitcase and started filling it with clothes. He sent a text to Milah saying that he was leaving town and that he didn't know when he'd be back. He then called his best friend David Nolan, telling him what happened. David immediately told him that he could stay with him for a little while, but Killian already knew that he was allowed to, because that's where he was headed. He was headed out of Storybrooke, Maine.

Killian sat straight up in bed. Sweat slicked his forehead and dampened his chest hair, causing it to stick uncomfortably to his chest. Emma turned over and her hand made its way to his chest. It surprised him that even while she was sleeping she would always take care of him. He laid back down and she curled up into his side. Emma put her head on his chest and held him tightly.

'You have to talk to her. You know she can help you.' He told himself as he drifted off to sleep again.

When he woke up again, Emma was still snuggled up to his chest. He scooted her off of his body successfully without waking her up, and slipped into the bathroom to shower.

After emerging from the shower and going into the bedroom, he noticed that Emma wasn't in bed. He heard movements in the kitchen though. He snuck down the stairs and saw her making breakfast. Her back was towards him. He smirked to himself as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, and laid gentle kisses on the back of her neck.

"Good morning, Swan." He whispered.

"Morning. I was a little disappointed this morning. I didn't get to wake up next to the most amazing man in the world."

"Well the most amazing man in the world was in desperate need of a shower." He spun her around and pulled her flush against his chest. "I have to talk to you."

"Okay." She said hesitantly.

"Last night, I had this dream. Only it wasn't a dream. It was memory. Like the ones you get with your past with Walsh. How did you deal with them?"

"I told you about them."

Killian sighed. "I had one about Liam. When he told me he was going to the Navy. It felt as if I was reliving it all over again, Em. How did you get through yours?"

"They didn't come to me every night. But yea, I understand what you mean by being real." She didn't want to tell him how she could almost feel everywhere the belt came down onto her skin. She didn't want to remind him of how miserable she was when she was with Walsh. She was happy now that she had Killian. "You just have to hope that they are going to pass. I don't think yours will be bad as mine." She turned back to the stove and moved the eggs around so they would cook evenly.

He wrapped his hand around her wrist. "What do you mean?"

"Killian, all of my memories that came to me in the dream state was when Walsh would beat me or yell at me. I remember feeling the fear and feeling relieved when I woke up. It's okay. Mine are gone now."

"I'm so sorry that you had to feel that way, love. I'm so so sorry."

She smiled and kissed his cheek. "Don't be. I'm okay."

Killian smiled and watched as Emma finished making breakfast.

It was mostly a lazy day. Emma laid back on the couch, looking through wedding catalogues and Killian watched television. She often caught her hand resting on her stomach, and she smiled every time. Killian would often glance at her when she wasn't looking, just to see what his Swan was doing. He smiled as he saw her ring on her finger. And traveled up to her face where she stared intently at the catalog. Her tongue would poke on the inside of her cheek. Her brows would furrow and her nose would sometimes scrunch up if she didn't like something or if the price was too high. He noticed that Emma was never a big spender. He wanted her to have the perfect wedding, no matter how much it cost or how big or how small it was. All that mattered was if she thought the day was as special as she always hoped her wedding would be.