Roni

Chapter Nineteen

As Emma drives down the streets of their small quaint little town, she can't help but feel empty inside. This place feels all wrong without Regina or Henry here by her side. This place would be nothing if it weren't for either of them. Regina created this town whereas their son granted everyone in Storybrooke their happy endings.

How did I not notice this uncomfortable, eerie feeling before?

Just outside of Granny's, Emma spots Belle reading a book with the sunlight shining down upon her. She assumes the woman is on her lunch break from the library and is getting lost inside a book, just as she always does. Emma wants to pull over and speak with her about some concerning issues, but she knows that before anything else, she needs to speak with Killian first.

A little further down the road, Emma notices Gideon through the window of Gold's pawn shop. Since Rumple left on his quest to find Henry, Belle couldn't manage both places. Gideon is only sixteen, but he's very smart for his age, just like both of his parents. He's perfectly capable of running the small town shop after school and on the weekends.

As Emma approaches the edge of Main Street, she finds Zelena in the passenger seat of her bright green vehicle while Robin drives. Zelena still won't put in the effort of driving after all these years. In fact, David is the one who taught Robin how to drive.

As the sheriff reaches the edge of town, she discovers herself parked outside of her parent's farm house. Neal is outside tossing a stick for their golden retriever to fetch and Emma isn't sure if her dad is home or at the station, but she takes a minute to watch over the house. She knows she's stalling and she has to go home, but she's a nervous wreck right now and just being outside of her parent's house is calming her back down.

She slowly drives away after a few minutes and heads home. The sound of rocks crunching beneath the rubber tires is the only noise to be heard as she pulls up to her house. She gently eases the car in park and turns off the engine. She's so nervous that she doesn't even notice the marks she's leaving in her hands from clenching her keys so tightly. She takes a moment to peer up at the home her and Killian have shared for eighteen years. Her stomach turns in despair and she fights back the urge to empty the contents of her stomach outside of the car.

What the hell do I even say to him?

She stiffly climbs out of her tiny bug and takes her time walking up the pathway. She places the key inside the lock and sighs when she realizes it's already unlocked. He'll never learn. Emma shakes her head in disappointment and walks straight into her home with a heavy heart.

"Killian?" She calls out, shutting the door behind her. "Killian are you home?"

The heavy sounds of boots banging against the hardwood floors echo through the house. Killian was always like a small child as he stomps his way down the staircase.

"Emma? Is that you?" He shouts back completely ecstatic that she's actually here. However, when he reaches the bottom of the stairs, he frowns. "Where's our daughter?" He tentatively questions, slowly stalking his way closer to his wife.

"She's in Seattle with my mom," she blurts out to inform her husband as she fiddles anxiously with her keys.

"Why the bloody hell didn't you bring her home?"

"I'm going back there, I need to finish helping Regina and Henry, we are so close to breaking the curse. Besides I just signed her up for school out there and she wanted to stay," Emma nervously explains the truth, hating the awful tension pulsating between them.