Lithium (Once Upon a Time)

Chapter Nine: Swans and Lies

Regina: I ran back to the woods as fast as I could, didn't want anyone to miss me or wonder where I might be.

My stomach was hurting, my heart racing, I couldn't stop thinking about Hamlet's words, and how dangerous he could be.

I was so used to be in peace with my past, with the darkness within, and now, all the trouble came swooping back into my life, and I wasn't sure I'd find happiness ever again. Damn it, was this supposed to be my life? Always facing curses, past troubles? When would I get a time to just sit back and relax? When would I be truly in peace?

"Regina, where were you?" Emma asked, when she found me.

I was surprised by her.

"Oh...I was planning our date, like I promised." I lied.

"Well...It's been a few hours and you haven't come back, I started to grow worried. Where were you?"

"I was trying to find a good place for our date, wouldn't want to spend it on the woods, now, would you?" I asked, covering the truth with my terrible lies.

"Regina! Come on, what's going on? You've been acting weird ever since we arrived to the land of untold stories, something is going on with you and I wish to know what."

It was pointless to lie to Emma, she knew me too well, and even though her lying detection superpower was flawed, it always worked with me, it was as if her emerald hot eyes could scan my soul.

I gasped, intensely, and placed my hand on my stomach, worried about having to be honest about my past with Hamlet.

"Fine...You're right...I wasn't planning our date." I confessed, ashamed of myself.

"So, what were you doing? Does this have something to deal with Hamlet and Ophelia? Did you have history with them? Talk to me, you know you can trust me. I know that everything that happened when you were the Evil Queen remains in the past, so you can be honest about it."

Oh, her words melted my heart, sobbed me in tears, as she placed her hands above mine, and I sought comfort in her speech.

"Emma..." I whispered, placing my head down.

"Gina..." She whispered.

"You're right..." I couldn't believe I was about to be honest about my past with Hamlet...about...my greatest sin. "I had a dark past with Hamlet, that's why I know he is too powerful, and we may not have a chance!"

"What? You honestly believe that? We faced so many villains, this is nothing, come on!"

"No, it's different, Emma, this isn't a fairytale anymore!" I screamed, calling her to reason.

"Why are you so afraid? Who exactly is this Hamlet? Why don't you just tell me what happened between both of you?"

"Because..." I was breathless, once again.

Emma nodded, again, and again, but I just couldn't be honest about it.

"Hamlet is my greatest sin...I hurt him in an unspeakable way..."

As Emma's eyes grew frightened, my heart raced faster, and as I needed to come terms with my darkest tale, I was afraid Emma was going to leave me, after all, the real darkest of "me" was the worst in all the realms, and what I did to Hamlet made me think of me as selfish and naïve for believing in having a happy ending.