troubled teachers

Chapter 6

A/N: let's have a party ... And perhaps it's time for one of the mysteries to be uncovered. But whose is it?
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The music was quieter than Ruby would had wanted but Emma insisted she did not want to piss off her neighbours this early in their relationship. She, Rose and Emma had just finished laying out the ice bucket and stacked it full of beers. Emma had stuffed what little food there was in the fridge (it was time for the weekly shop) into the vegetable drawer so bottles of wine, Coca Cola, lemonade, tonic water, cranberry and orange juice could fill the rest of the shelves.

The three of them were all sat on the sofa, feet resting side by side on the coffee table and beers in their hands. Ruby had doubled down on her bet even after Emma had told them about her conversation with Robin and Regina earlier that day.

The doorbell rang, interrupting Rose and Ruby's tactical planning for approaching their crushes that night as Emma went to greet their first guests.

Emma quickly realised she had over-ordered on the alcohol. Apparently people in the south were far more generous than people in the north. Every guest had appeared with copious amounts of booze: the Nolans had brought four bottles of wine, August carried a bottle of gin, Sebastian was already ploughing his way through the crate of beers he and Killian had arrived with, and Ashley and Sean had brought even more beers. The spirits had also been topped up by Phillip and Aurora Morris who favoured vodka and whiskey respectively, and a science teacher named Victor Whale had arrived with some sloe gin he brewed himself. A late arrival, Elsa carried in more wine, along with her younger sister Anna who had just broken up with her boyfriend and was feeling depressed. Ruby was looking rather disgruntled as she chatted to Elsa with Anna hovering nearby. Emma thought she deserved the cock block for forcing her to throw the party in the first place.

By nine o'clock, there was no sign of Regina. Perhaps Ruby was right after all, Emma mused. She unlocked her mobile and her finger hovered over the message icon. Should she say something? Just as she was debating this, the doorbell rang for the umpteenth time.

"Sorry I'm late," Regina said with a slight smile, holding up what looked like a very expensive bottle of red wine.

You made it!" Emma exclaimed, opening her arms wide in welcome and sloshing some of her beer over the wall. Regina raised her eyes at the drunken gesture and stepped neatly into the house.

"I did," Regina nodded. "Where do you want this?"

"Hidden in the back of a cupboard somewhere. That stuff looks way too good for the rabble destroying my living room right now," Emma joked, leading the way into the kitchen and grimacing slightly at the debris which was already mounting. "What can I get you?"

"If I'm not allowed to drink this, is that a bottle of Victor's sloe gin I spot?" Regina teased.

"It is," Emma nodded. "Any mixer?"

"Tonic if you have it, please," Regina said, shrugging off her coat and draping it on top of the pile which had developed on a chair.

Emma raised her eyebrows slightly as the sleek black dress was revealed. "Um, tonic, right," she said, turning to the fridge and opening the door. If possible, the space was even more packed than it had been before the party began. Locating a tonic water, she began to hastily make Regina's drink before grabbing herself another beer from the fridge and turning around.