The Girl Next Door

Part Thirty-Seven

"Stupid fucking door!" She screams out all her frustrations while jiggling the handle and slamming all her weight against the heavy wood like a child in the middle of a temper tantrum.

Her arm throbs with pain as she releases all her anger against the door, but she keeps going, until one of them gives, whether it's her or this damn door. Finally, the door flies open, taking her balance along with it and she ends up stumbling over the threshold before she angrily kicks the door shut behind her. She tosses her keys onto the table and sighs.

The house is way too quiet.

"Regina?" She calls out through their tiny apartment as she kicks off her shoes, but there's no answer, so she tries again. "Regina?" She shuffles her heavy feet to their bedroom, only to discover the door firmly shut, and it's never closed. Slowly, she turns the knob, coming face to face with a pitched-black room, which is odd, considering it's the middle of a beautiful summer day. However, the shades are all drawn with their blackout curtains, something they never really use. "Regina?" She timidly whispers into the shadows.

Green eyes finally drift to the silhouette of her girlfriend's body curled up on the bed. Regina's back is facing the door and she pauses for a moment, observing the steady rise and fall of her tense shoulders. She assumes her girlfriend is sleeping, so she quietly tiptoes across the room and gently crawls onto the bed behind the brunette. She sneaks a peek over her girlfriend's shoulder and if her heart weren't already shattered into tiny little pieces, she swears she would feel it breaking all over again.

Regina's face is buried in one of Henry's plush, Mickey Mouse toys, desperately hiding away from the torture of reality. Her usual flawless tanned skin is blotchy and stained from all her salty tears. Her breathing is still erratic and Emma's honestly not quite sure anymore if she's up or has cried herself to sleep.

Emma lightly presses a kiss to Regina's shoulder and scoot in even closer, playing the big spoon's role. She squirms as close as humanly possible, embracing the warmth that is emitting from her girlfriend's bare skin. And then there's a soft exhale that reveals the truth, Emma is soothing her pain.

"I love you," she whispers as she squeezes Regina tight.

Her girlfriend doesn't respond though, except for a soft hum that vibrates in her chest and rattles against Emma's arm. She knows now that she must be asleep and all Emma wants to do is hold her to make sure she feels safe.

Henry has been gone for two days now and it's honestly been the worst two days of their lives. They filled out all the necessary paperwork against Milah as an unfit parent. They proceeded with even more paperwork to adopt Henry and sent in all their information for their background checks. Now, all they are waiting on, is a home inspection and as soon as they can pass that, the closer they will be to getting their baby back.

Henry right now is with a foster home in the city. Miss Matthews informed them that they could visit Henry tomorrow at his new home, and she will be present for the visit as well. The woman did say that Henry is having a hard time adjusting. Luckily, he's still eating, but he's not sleeping very well. There are two other children in the home, one boy who is eight and a little girl who is six and Miss Matthews told them that Henry has been the little girl's shadow the past two days.

Unexpectedly, Regina begins to stir in Emma's embrace, so she pulls the sleepy woman closer to her chest to keep her calm. The brunette slowly spins in her arms and buries her face under Emma's chin, still hiding away from the world she refuses to exist in without Henry. Emma gently run her fingers through those dark inky tresses and drops a small kiss to the top of her head.

"Regina?" She tentatively whispers, testing to see if she is actually awake or teetering on the edge of dreamland.

"Hmm?"