They're In Love, They Just Don't Know It Yet.

Standing in front of the mayor, Emma felt breathless. They'd been playing this dance for weeks. Emma would come to Regina's office, lunch from granny's in one hand, a drink tray in the other and a stack of paper tucked under both her arms.

They met under the towns prying eyes as Regina was helping Emma with all the paperwork seeing as she was the new Sheriff and didn't have to do all this paperwork before now. But what really happened, is they talked. They ate lunch together, and they were each other's so-called therapist.

They talked about Henry, about work, about everything else that fell in between, about their lives growing up and their parents, or Emma's foster parents.

Regina had caved weeks before letting her know the curse was real. She let it slip after one too many ciders after hours. Both of them barefoot and exhausted.

To Regina's surprise, Emma laughed and said she knew. It definitely wasn't the reaction that the brunette was expecting.

When Emma returned the next day with a hardened look in her eyes and a small scowl, Regina had feared that Emma had changed her mind about not caring about the curse and was here to hurt her for it. But Emma flipped open a messenger bag and pulled out a stack of papers, dropping them on the desk in front of Regina. "I need your help."

They both sat down at the large table on one side of the room that was usually used for a board meeting, and Regina helped Emma through all the paperwork that she struggled to understand.

When Emma finished it, Regina had already returned to her desk to do some of her own work after Emma said she'd gotten the hang of it after the first few documents, she lifted the stack and brought it over to Regina who glanced at it before looking up at the blonde. "Good girl, would you like a lollipop?" Regina teased, making Emma roll her eyes before smirking.

"Only if it's red or green."

The monthly budget meeting with other people of the town rolled around quickly, and Emma was waiting outside the large room they usually held meetings at. Coffee's in both hands and a stack of papers under her arms.

The doors opened, and she was surprised to see Regina finishing off a doughnut that had sprinkles on it as her assistant rushed out of the room.

Emma moved into the room and sat in the seat by Regina, setting a coffee down in front of them both before putting the papers on the table too. "Sweet tooth or they ran out of apples?" Emma asked playfully.

"Tell anyone, and I'll make sure you never speak again," Regina grumbled, and Emma's smile dropped at the actual harsh tone in her voice. One she hadn't heard since she first met the woman and chopped down her apple tree.

"Relax. Who am I going to tell? My mother?" Emma's smile lifted slightly, and she looked towards Regina with a hesitancy. "Snow White? Oh, I know. How about Jiminy Cricket?"

"Emma-" Regina sighed and was about to speak up when a few other people entered the room making Regina sit the doughnut on a napkin and lick her fingers clean quickly, brushing her face to make sure there was no evidence.

"I got you a coffee," Emma whispered, nudging the cup closer to Regina who looked thankful and carefully took a sip, happy to find out it wasn't scolding hot. It was just right.

Emma looked up at the clock as the meeting came to an end and chewed her lip nervously as the last of the people exited the room. Regina had stayed in her seat signing a few papers, so Emma didn't move either.

"I need to ask you something." Emma shifted, turning her body towards the woman who only made a noise of acknowledgement that Emma was even there still.

"What is it, Dear?" Regina asked, glancing up as she heard the doors shut behind the last person. She swiped the doughnut quickly, eating the last two bites in one go, frowning at how it now tasted stale and unappealing, she downed the last of her coffee and swallowed the cold liquid along with the mouthful of food and looked towards Emma.

"Will you..." Emma looked down at her hands before looking anywhere but at Regina.

"Spit it out, Miss Swan."

"Regina Mills, please... Let me take you out on a date?"

"Is that a demand or a question?"

"What's the answer to that that will get you to go out with me?" Emma asked, playing with the lace from Graham's work boot that she tied around her wrist as a memory of him. Emma shook her head before speaking again. "I'm going to ask you to go out with me tomorrow night. And I'm kinda nervous about it."

"Oh. Well, if it helps at all, I'm going to say yes."

"Yeah, it helps. It-It creates a comfort zone." Emma breathed out gently, gathering her strength. "Regina, do you want to go out with me tomorrow night?"

"Oh, I can't!" Regina said after a moment of thought.

"Well, see. I like that you're unpredictable." Emma smiled sadly and gathered up the empty coffee cups and the stack of papers.

"I want to, I do. It's just. Henry has been asking for help on his science project, and this is the only chance we both had to work on it. I'm sorry, Emma. What about Saturday night? Henry can spend time with Ruby. They get along well, and he has been dying to play his new Xbox game with someone."

"Saturday works alright for me." Emma smiled, her happiness coming back. "I'll pick you up at six thirty?"

"Don't be late, Emma."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Emma said as she walked towards the exit, her heart skipping happily.

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AN: This has been published on Fanfiction .net also

Sadly, it's only a one-shot.

I only just remembered I had an account here and never posted anything.

Please let me know what you think of it. I'll slowly add more stories to my profile here if I remember I have it.

Have a good day :)