Darkened Love

Part Two

As the day turned to night, Emma found herself dreading it. She had spent all day with her friends in hopes of distracting herself from the strange things that she had woken up to, and it had worked for the time being. But, as she walked home alone and in the darkness, all her thoughts rushed back to her. It made her question what the hell had even happened but now, she knew to keep her guard up. To look out for whatever had brought itself into her home. Invaded her privacy. Her space. Why this person would think it would be okay to do so!

Emma shook her head violently to get those thoughts out of her head. She was scaring herself and she didn't need to be stressed before she went to bed. As she stepped out onto the road to cross the street, there was a blinding white light and a horn honking. Someone shouted her name, but she wasn't sure if that was her brain playing tricks on her or not. Suddenly, someone tackled her to the ground and the honking passed by continuously as it turned a corner and the lights disappeared.

When Emma's brain registered the events that had just taken place, she realized she was laying on something. No, no, not something- someone. She looked down and was met by shining, bright blue eyes and a head full of dark hair. The man was built beneath her, and then it clicked. She was laying on top of him.

She scrambled to get off of him but he seemed to be faster and helped them both up at the same time. The man brushed off his pants as Emma brushed off her shirt.

"You need to watch where you're going, lass. Wouldn't want someone getting hurt, now would we?" He asked with a slight chuckle.

Emma found herself chuckling back. "No, I guess not. Thank you for saving me. My head has just been in the gutter lately. That's all."

He waved it off. "It's not a problem. We all have those days." He flashed her a smile. His pearly white teeth sparkling even in the low light of the street lamps. He held out his hand. "Killian Jones."

Emma met his hand and he didn't shake it, but instead laid a gentle kiss to her knuckles making her blush and smile at his gentlemanly gesture. "Emma Nolan."

"What a beautiful name," he replied with another smile.

As reality slowly returned to Emma, she found that his touch was extremely cold. His skin was as cold as ice, and she found it odd. It was a warm summer evening, after all. The only wind that passed by was the occasional breeze. But, she shrugged it off and released his hand. Killian didn't force her to stay, but instead flashed her a smirk.

"I suppose I should let you get on your way then. Wouldn't want your friends getting worried," he said.

"Oh, no. I'm going home. But, yeah. You're right. I should go. My parents will send out a search team for me if I'm not home by curfew. See you around, Killian."

"See you soon, love," he mumbled, knowing she wouldn't be able to hear. He watched as she walked along in the darkness. He knew that it wouldn't be the last time they would see each other again.

Once she was out of sight, Killian turned around and straightened his jacket out and continued walking in the opposite direction from Emma. He went down the road and stopped in front of Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop. He snuck around to the back door and kicked it open. He crept in and looked around the shop, looking for his ring. The magic ring that would allow him to walk in the day. He had been drawn to this place all day, and had been waiting for the right time to strike.

As Killian scanned the shelves, his eye caught on exactly what he was looking for. He swiftly walked over and picked up the ring. The red and blue stones on the top contrasted with the gold of the band. He slipped the ring on his finger and felt a wave of energy flow through his veins. He groaned and rushed out the back door.