juliet •peter pan•

TWENTY-ONE

Jade was in her room doing homework when Henry burst into her room. "Henry, what did I say about barging in when I'm doing homework?" Henry nodded, and Jade could see how excited he was. "I'm sorry, but you need to come help. Charming woke up." Jade smiled. "That's great. How's he adjusting to the hospital?" Henry shrugged. "That's the thing. He's not there." Jade stood up, grabbed her bag, and started to walk out. "Where are you going?" Jade pushed Henry out of her room. "To help look for him."

Jade stepped outside into the cool autumn air. She took a deep breath. "Where are you?" She started to walk into the woods. With every step she took, she could feel the air getting colder. She regretted not wearing a sweater of some sort. She rubbed her arms. Eventually, she tripped on something. She looked behind her and saw a person lying face down in the water. Her breath started getting faster. It was the comatose patient. Shakily, she reached for her phone and dialed the number. "Hello?" Jade shakily said, "Emma? Hey, it's me. You know the comatose patient who escaped? Yeah, I just found him." There was silence on the other end. "Where are you?" Jade looked around. "The toll bridge." Emma sighed. "I'll be right there.

Jade hung up, and sighed. She lifted the man onto his back and dragged him out of the creek. By that time, Emma, Mary Margaret, and Sheriff Graham were all there. "Oh my god." Jade stood up and looked at them. "Is he going to be okay?" Graham turned on his walkie talkie. "I need an ambulance. At the toll bridge, as soon as possible." It was at this moment that Jade noticed Henry was there. She walked over to him. Mary Margaret started CPR.

Eventually, it worked. His eyes opened and he gasped for air. He looked at Mary Margaret. "You saved me." Henry was beaming. "She did it." Jade looked at them. "She did it."

Later, at the hospital, Jade stood with Henry by the door. The man was being treated. "Maybe we're closer than we thought." Jade nodded. "Yeah, maybe." Then, a blonde lady walked in. "David? David, is that you?" Jade gulped. "Or not." She noticed that Regina walked in. "Who is that?" Regina smirked. "His wife." Jade and Henry exchanged nervous glances.

"His name is David Nolan. And that's his wife, Kathryn. And the joy on her face, well, it's put me in quite the forgiving mood. We'll talk about your insubordination later. Do you know what insubordination means? It means you're grounded." Henry nodded, and walked away. Jade walked towards her. "Aunt Regina, how did this happen?" Regina sighed. "I don't know." Her expression shifted. "Can you walk Henry home?" Jade nodded, and followed Henry out the door.