Chapter Text
Emma rolled over in bed, snuggling deeper under the covers and trying to block out the incessant beeping sounds that were filling the room. She threw out her arm, hoping that her hand would land on the terrible little alarm device. The room plunged back into silence. Success, she thought.
Oddly enough, however, she could still hear the repetitive beeps of the alarm. Or maybe that was simply her head. She realized now that it seemed to throbbing. She pressed the tips of her fingers along the length of her forehead in an attempt to relieve some of the pressure. The throbbing remained.
“Great,” she muttered. Time to find some Excedrin or Advil or a cool washcloth or something.
With that thought in mind, she tried to sit up and was hit by a wave of nausea. The room began to spin and so she quickly lay back down, wishing away the dizzy feelings and blurring room.
These migraines seemed to be hitting her more and more frequently since their return from the Underworld. It was stress, she assumed. And perhaps a bit of exhaustion and feeling resigned about the fact that their trip was entirely unsuccessful given that they hadn’t rescued Hook. But these migraines were absolutely the worst things ever and typically left her unable to function or work or…
“Crap!” she exclaimed, sitting up again and immediately regretting it as the room tilted wildly. Henry. She had to take Henry to school today, per Regina’s request. Apparently the mayor had some big early morning meeting and it was Emma’s job to drop the kid off at school on this particular morning.
Blindly, she reached for her phone on her nightstand. The movement caused the pounding in her head to increase tenfold and she moaned in pain, clutching her head in her hands once more. Fuck.
But somehow, Emma managed to press Regina’s speed-dial number and she tentatively placed the ringing phone near her ear.
“Hello,” Regina answered.
“mmmm,” was Emma’s grumbled reply.
“Emma?” Regina spoke.
“Yea, hey,” she mumbled. “Head…pounding…Henry,” was all Emma managed to get out. But Regina seemed to understand her drift.
“These migraines are really getting out of control. Perhaps you need to see a doctor,” Regina said.
“No. Whale’s scary,” Emma replied. Was the pounding this bad when she woke up? It only seemed to be getting worse as the minutes ticked by. “It hurts,” she cried out softly.
“Ok.” Emma heard some rustling on the other end of the phone. “I’m going to drop Henry at school and come over.”
Emma’s eyes opened. “Meeting?”
“Don’t worry about that,” came Regina’s short reply. “I’ll be there in 20.” The phone clicked. Emma rolled over, shoving the phone away, and tried to block out the pain in her head.
It seemed only moments later that Emma heard the front door downstairs open. The soft clicking of Regina’s shoes followed shortly.
And then a soft, cool hand grazed Emma’s forehead and she leaned into the touch.
“Mmmm, that feel’s nice,” Emma whispered. She felt the bed dip down as Regina settled next to her, perched on the edge of the mattress.
“Have you had any water or taken anything for the pain yet?” Regina’s fingers continued to brush Emma’s head as she spoke.
“No, couldn’t move.” The pounding was only increasing since Emma had awoken and the thought of rising from the bed seemed simply dreadful. Regina sighed slightly and stood up. Emma heard the en suite bathroom door open and the tap turning on. Regina returned moments later with a full glass of water and two white pills.
“For the head,” she explained when Emma eyed the pills wearily. Regina helped Emma into a sitting position, her hand gently grazing Emma’s back and sliding unintentionally underneath Emma’s thin t-shirt. Emma shivered at the touch, the pleasant feel of Regina’s fingers stroking her bare skin giving her goosebumps. She craved more contact and scooted ever-so-slightly closer to the brunette.
Emma reached for the water, but the movement forward made the room twist roughly and her stomach lurched. She barely managed to push Regina to the side and rush to the bathroom before her stomach emptied into the toilet. Her stomach muscles contracted painfully and her blood pumped roughly in her head. Sweat prickled at the back of her neck. But she felt a soothing hand run up and down her back, comforting her and calming her anxiety as she choked, sputtered, and emptied last night’s dinner into the bowl.
“Shhhh, it’s ok,” Regina murmured over and over, gently grasping Emma’s long blonde hair in her hands and pulling it away from the toilet. “It’s ok,” she said again. Emma leaned into Regina’s body, weak and spent.
“I hate this,” Emma moaned.
“Me too.” Regina leaned forward and placed a soft kiss to Emma’s temple. She grasped Emma’s arms and helped her over to the sink to rinse her mouth, the whole time running her fingers reasurringly across Emma’s back and head. “Let’s get you back to bed.” Emma nodded.
The two women moved back into Emma’s dark bedroom and Regina helped Emma under the covers, smoothing the blankets out over the sick woman.
“I’m sorry you have to take care of me. Please feel free to go back to work,” Emma mumbled.
“No way, Ms. Swan. I’m staying,” Regina replied.
“Kay,” came the quiet response. “Stay with me?”
“I just said that I would,” Regina answered, rolling her eyes slightly.
“No, I mean…” she tapered off, patting the spot next to her in the bed. Regina quirked her eyebrows. Yes, they had become quite close the past few months, but neither had crossed any friendship lines, preferring to remain safely behind the friendship boarder so as to avoid any further emotional turmoil. They’d each had enough of that to last a lifetime.
Nonetheless, Regina scooted under the covers, turning on her side to face the blonde. Emma smiled, eyes still closed, and snuggled closer to the brunette. Regina leaned closer, her chin resting on top of the blonde’s head and her arms sliding around the small body. She kissed the top of Emma’s head.
“Love you,” Regina heard whispered into the dark room. She inhaled softly as she felt Emma’s fingers tightly grasp her shirt. Beautiful words that she did not hear often. Emma’s breathing was slowly evening out and Regina could tell the blonde was falling further into sleep. And only the security of a half-asleep and sick Emma allowed her to do what she did next.
Although they were already so entwined, legs and arms wrapped in each other, but Regina still moved even closer to the blonde. And she pressed her lips against the blonde’s cheek, and then her other cheek, and then ever so slightly against the corner of Emma’s mouth. The blonde sighed happily in her sleep, her mouth turning upwards into a soft smile.
“I love you too, Emma,” Regina whispered, her breath brushing lightly against Emma’s face as they momentarily shared the same air.
The late morning sun seeped lightly into the room from underneath the shades, and yet the two women rested soundly, safely entwined in the other’s arms, bodies pressed tightly together. This is home, Regina thought happily as her eyelids closed and she succumb to a late morning sleep. You’re my happy ending.