Is It Too Late? - Swan Queen AU

Chapter 6

Author's Note: 

Regina discovers a few things, uh oh. Leopold is in this one, but there isn't violence. Some Regina/Leopold fluff if you can call it that. Also, it isn't super long, but I am getting more into the writing groove. Hope you enjoy!

Later that night, Regina found herself tucked away in the study, sitting in the cream colored chaise lounge, letters in hand. The seal on one envelope was broken and a knot formed in the woman's throat. Someone had read this letter... Her shaking fingers pulled the pieces of paper from their home for twelve years, unfolded them, and held them at an angle so the fireplace illuminated the pages.

Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes as she clutched the papers to her chest, holding onto the letters as if they were really Emma. Every memory and promise she'd shoved back into the dark depths of her heart resurfaced while her eyes clung to every word scribbled on the pieces of paper. She loved her, truly, deeply, wholeheartedly loved Regina. All those years ago, and somehow it all changed a few days after they broke up. Emma shipped off to Oklahoma, and never spoke to her again. The muscle that had lain dormant for so long began tightening into itself, causing regina to clutch at the area above her heart, crying quietly at the pain she felt. It was not just pain, it was every feeling she had not let herself feel for the past decade as she put the blonde out of her mind and life.

Her jaw clenched as her emotions changed to those of anger, rage taking hold of her heart and roaring it into motion. The letter in her hands was quickly placed back in the envelope and tucked into a desk drawer. Her hands clenched and stretched out multiple times, the need to hold the letters, to trace the ink words within the envelope overwhelming her mind. She couldn't, not when someone else had read the contents.

The letter had been opened when she took it from her closet, if Leopold has read it... He would have seen that she hadn't yet, and maybe would understand why she hadn't just tossed it in the trash, or he would have realized she hid it from him, and be angry. Would he have confronted her right away or would he wait for her to explain herself or tell him about the letters. He would know she had received them at the Reunion. Fear prickled under her armpits, filling her stomach with nausea.

Fear — an unpleasant feeling triggered by the perception of danger, real or imagined. Fear — distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc. Fear — when your heart leaps to your throat, constricting the airflow to your lungs. Fear — the prickling of perspiration beneath your arms, the ability to focus on anything else disappearing. Fear — when all rationality flies out the window.

Fear is what consumed Regina completely.

The woman frantically made plans for herself and Leopold to have a day off the next day, for Henry to stay the night with Mrs. Nolan, and for the couple to go out to eat at one of the nicer restaurants in town. She messaged Leopold's secretary to inform her that he would not be in the next day, and to ask her to make reservations for the two.

After ensuring their plans would be upheld, Regina took a breath. She would just talk to him, he had been in a rather positive mood lately, and he had seemed very level headed. Everything would be fine. Her skin was tingling over her arms, the hairs felt as if they were on fire as her breathing was still quick and uneven. Shakily, she stood and downed the rest of her glass of red wine, the empty glass finding its home on the desk where she would take care of it later.

She made her way to bed, silently creeping through the dark bedroom and to the closet where she changed into a silk nightgown. After washing her face and brushing her teeth, she found herself in bed beneath the few thing covers Leopold had been adamant about. He refused to have thick blankets and no more than the sheet and comforter for he grew too hot in the night. Regina measured her breaths as she tried to calm herself, counting down from 100. The man lying next to her slept like a bear, his large body causing the bed to sink significantly on his side compared to her own. The woman curled into a ball, making herself smaller as she closed her eyes, begging her mind to sleep.