Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or Once Upon A Time, they belong to Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis.

Notes: when au week happened, i thought about how cool a greek/cs mashup would be and after screaming with friends about it and the news of scott michael foster aka cappie had joined the ouat cast, voilà. to those familiar with the show, there are some things you'll recognize (as in, a lot of scenes from the pilot and campus and houses names because i didn't feel like changing them) - but then the story goes its own way. enjoy!

Holy freaking hell, she was so gonna murder somebody that night if they spilt something over her shirt. She should have known better, after all - it was the week before the semester got started, which meant no classes to attend yet and days filled with last shopping sprees, night parties at the dorms and house hunting trips after discovering your assigned roommate was more resembling to an axe murderer that you were used to.

Oh, and of course drinks at the Emerald City, aka holy ground on campus.

Which equaled basically everybody attending CRU - except whoever felt like not socializing or drinking was up to their alley - was cramming the lively bar.

And that, of course, included Emma and her friends.

Ruby had dragged her there after an exhausting meeting with their sisters teaching them the ways of alluring newbies to joining the sorority. Though, sadly, not all of them would be considered ZBZ material: legacies, cute and hopefully with spirit; that was the motto Regina, Emma's big sister and current ZBZ president, had drilled into her head since Emma had joined the sorority two years prior. Emma hadn't really considered rushing at first. She hadn't really thought she'd fit at all - she had never thought she'd fit anywhere, period, until Henry happened, that is. Alas, fate had intervened in the form of Ruby Lucas and her screeching when they bumped into each other while doing the laundry and bonded after discovering a mouse on the loose

(A mouse that, apparently, someone had explained to them later, only responded to the name of 'Billy'.)

Ruby had convinced her that it would be fun to rush together and if something caught their eye, they could try pledging.

She would have never thought she'd actually find a second family in the ZBZ house, but she had. A dysfunctional, messed up family, with relatives that she only spoke to a handful of times a year and others whom she could not live without, but a family nevertheless that she was proud to be a part of.

A house that, it seemed, had decided to join the rest of the Greek system and half of the university to go to the same bar and push her while she tried to navigate in between the tables and please, please, please don't drop anything over my shirt.

She got to her seat - alcohol spills free, thank God - by Ruby after she spied her friend furiously typing on her phone. Mary Margaret would be joining them later - if there was any room left at the bar - while Aurora and Mulan had left in search of Philip. Emma sat and shoved Ruby's drink in front of her, quirking an eyebrow at the new decorations over the summer. The yellow brick road painted on the floor leading to various spots where the tables were set was quite charming, if she said so herself.

(It reminded her of the first time Regina had brought Ruby and the rest of the ZBZ pledges to the bar. When Emma had laughed at its name and 'understanding that reference', Ruby had clapped excitedly, squealing about how great it was to have a friend to watch Grey's Anatomy with.)

(She had looked too cute to break to her Emma was not talking about the TV show at all.)

Ruby finally lifted her eyes from her phone and smiled as she picked up her glass, clinking it with hers before taking a sip. "It tastes like home."

Emma huffed. "And like waiting for ten minutes straight for the bartender to spot me."

"Someone's grumpy."

"I'm not - have you seen this place? And of course Mary Margaret won't be here until at least an hour because we know she's taking advantage of David having his own room at Omega Chi. Not that I can blame her."

She really couldn't. Neal, being Robert Gold's only son and heir of his empire - and practically owner of half of the campus - had had assigned a room his second year in the house. 'Perks of being made of Gold', as he always joked.

She sighed, passing a hand through her hair tiredly. "And Regina won't shut up about this Tamara chick who we just need to join the sorority or she'll have my ass."

Ruby pursed her lips. "Well, to be fair, she is a senator's daughter."

"I know, I know - she just - ugh." Emma thumped her head against the cool surface of the table, praying as she did so of it being at least half clean.

Luckily for her, she avoided any other stains. For now.

Ruby snorted under her breath. "Regina's testing you before she decides to leave you her perfect little ZBZ empire."

"Pretty much."

It was no secret in the house that Regina intended to assign Emma as the new president once she graduated at the end of that year. She had earned it, mind you, - she was pledge educator, she had come up with an insane amount of ideas to help with their philanthropy hours to fill, fought against silly clichés for their themed parties (really, 'what dreams are made of' and 'a night to remember'? Really?) and had organized so many events through their social calendar she sometimes marveled at how she had been able to pass all of her classes. Not only Regina favored her for being her little sister and friend, she knew she had what it took to be a leader. But Ruby was right: she was testing her, and she only feared she'd be put through a lot more during the rest of the semester.

The brunette bumped her shoulder with hers playfully. "Hey, cheer up! It's rushing week and soon we'll be having mixtures with the Omega chis, and parties, and the CRU fair, and Greek Week, and Spring Break…"

"You're too fond of parties," she muttered, sipping from her beer decadently. How she loved the drama queen act here and there. Ruby had never appreciated it, though - just as right then. She just shook her head at her, dark curls bouncing in front of her face.

"Whatever you say. At least I'm not moping over my pledge educator duties."

Emma groaned under her breath once more before going back to thumping her head over the table. Ruby was already patting her back comfortingly - or at least Emma hoped that was what her supposedly best friend was planning on doing, - when a gasp interrupted her. "Oh my God."

She had no energy or will left to raise her head. "What?"

Her friend snickered. "Look."

She grumbled, already annoyed though too curious not to check out what had her sister so amused. The scene she took in was, by far, something she hadn't been prepared to see.

"Oh God."

Killian Jones, current president of Kappa Tau, in all his bare-chested glory and sporting a fedora, strutted around the bar, ridiculously large pint in his hand as he went over groups of students huddled in their seats , taking selfies with whomever looked his way.

What an attention whore.

What a ridiculous, idiotic, attractive attention whore.

As if he had heard her, he turned and his eyes found hers, a smile lighting up his entire face and his feet already carrying him towards their table. Idiot. Idiot. Idiot. "Hey there, Swan. Fancy seeing you here."

She managed not to scowl too hard. "Jones, what the hell are you doing?"

He looked down at his very naked chest, as if he had just noticed he was, indeed, missing a shirt. "Oh, this?" He winked at her. "Feeling something, aren't you?"

Typical Jones. She rolled her eyes. "Yeah - nausea. Why are you going around half naked?"

"Simple: I refuse to give up the opportunity to sunbathe. Let's make the summer last. You are more than welcome to lose your clothes too, of course, and join my cause."

"You are making a fool of yourself," she pointed out, putting her hands over her hips. He just ignored her, shrugging off-handedly.

"Everybody seems to be okay with it."

"I'm not everybody else."

His face softened at that, and she felt her chest constrict a little at the way that he looked at her and his voice dropped. "That, I know."

Her breath caught for a second, but she promptly shook her head, ignoring the prickling sensation that had come over her. Nostalgia. "Seriously, can't you just put a shirt on? Or, you know, grow up?"

He stepped towards her, his feet - which were thankfully covered, thank God for small mercies - barely touching hers. "Why, Swan, if I didn't know better I'd say you cared."

Where the hell was Ruby and why wasn't she doing anything. "I care about my puking reflexes over drunk fratboys who suffer from an oversized ego," she said. He didn't seem the least affected by her spitting words, though: in fact, they had the opposite effect, his smirk widening.

"Or you care about me getting cold. Or about the attention I may get from other pretty lady."

Her lips curled into a grimace. "You're disgusting."

"You used to enjoy this disgusting idiot," he commented, lifting an eyebrow, challenging her to deny it.

The thing was, she couldn't. Because she had. She had loved the disgusting idiot standing in front of her, the stupid smirk and the soft smile, the twinkling blue eyes and the rough stubble against her skin, the encouraging words whenever she was down and languid the kisses, the drunken nights and hangover mornings with takeaway on his bed, the yelling matches and the make up sex, the hours laughing at his horrible, horrible jokes and made up nicknames, the wild adventures spent together. It all seemed like an eternity ago, something from another life, different people who had fallen for the other.

"People change," she finally managed, gaze unwavering as she stared back at him. He cocked his head to the side, studying her, and she felt naked under his stare, that too-blue-to-be-true gaze focused intently on her.

"Sometimes. Have you, Swan?"

"Yes."

There was a pause in which they kept their stare-down, as the proud idiots that they had always been, not wanting to show weaknesses, especially in front of the other. Finally, admitting defeat - or not - the corner of his lip curled into a small smirk, and there was that glint in his eye again. "Keep telling yourself that, darling."

She jumped as an arm snaked around her waist, pushing her against a solid chest. "I should've known it'd be you making a scene."

Killian's earlier mirth vanished in an instant, a cold detachment replacing it as he acknowledged the new arrival with a nod. "Keeps the game interesting. Gold."

Neal nodded back, dismissal written all over his face. "Jones. Now, care to leave my girl alone?"

She was about to mention how she was standing right there and that she could pretty much tell the idiotic Kappa Tau to leave all by herself thank you very much, when the idiotic Kappa Tau in question rushed to interrupt her. "I'd say she can speak for herself, but sure, I'll move along." He tipped his fedora in their direction. "Have a gold night, Neal. You too, Swan."

With a last lingering gaze in Emma's direction, or so she believed, he left in direction of the back of the bar along with his brothers. She spied August, Victor and Jefferson at the table where they usually hung out, where she herself had spent more evenings she could count during her freshman year. With them she thought she could make out Ruby seating with Aurora and Mulan, who had their heads all together and had clearly been taking in the scene. (She confirmed it when Ruby just gave her a thumbs up, to which Emma just scowled back, still pissed at her for leaving her to deal with her ex on her own.)

She was brought back to her own table when Neal left a kiss over her temple, scoffing softly and making her rearrange a rebel curl that insisted on escaping her ponytail. "I can't believe you two dated."

She would swear over a hundred Bibles that she didn't blush.

"I was young and naive. And you have no room to talk," she commented smugly, poking him in the ribs. Not many people on campus knew that sworn enemies Neal Gold and Killian Jones had once been best friends. Long-life almost since nappies best friends. Summer camp buddies best friends. Freshman year roommates best friends.

And now they barely could stomach the other. Not only that, but the usual rivalry between their houses was off the roof since they had both joined, making everything a competition between them and their brothers.

Not many people on campus knew that the reason they hated each other now was a girl.

Neal's expression turned wondering for a moment, but was short-lived. "True. He hasn't changed at all since then."

"It's not like you'd know that," she commented.

"Nor do I want to." Neal shrugged, and snatched her beer with an easy jerk of his hand, sipping the rest of it before she could protest. Someone called his name then, and he dragged her with him to his friends' table. While he bumped Robin's back warmly and asked him about his summer, Emma couldn't help but look back at the Kappa Taus, where she had once belonged. She saw Ruby flirting shamelessly with Victor - they had been an on and off thing for years yet had never decided to make it official, which in Emma's opinion was ridiculous, but whatever, - while Aurora kissed Mulan's nose affectionately, ignoring Philip and Jefferson's catcalls with identical eye rolls.

(She still remembered how hard it had been for Aurora as a pledge to come to terms with her having quite the big fat crush on her big sister in the house. How relieved she had been when she and her high school boyfriend Philip had broken up in good terms and he had supported her through it all. How Killian and his brothers had been an source of comfort and laughter when things became difficult at ZBZ with snide comments from other sisters or people from other houses came up with lame names to dub them or the entire house.)

(She remembered a time when all of them could go out together, no matter their house; Neal and David and Robin hanging out with Killian and his friends, Regina not being so cold towards them, Mary Margaret and David's relationship first steps.)

(She remembered seeing Killian for the first time. The first lame joke he used to try to charm her. The way he laughed at her sassy answer.)

(She remembered him laughing.)

And now, above all in the scene at the other side of the bar, she also saw Killian laughing. August chuckled at something, shaking his head exasperatedly, but Killian was doubled over in laughter, bumping the table with his hand, the rough and warm timbre of his voice clear over the raucous room no matter what.

(She had always loved his laugh.)

And a tiny part of her craved belonging there with them again.

During rush week, Emma was about to pass out on her feet due to sheer exhaustion. Not only had she stayed up extraordinarily late for several nights covering every single detail in the house - from the decorations settled at the common rooms where they'd be meeting the new crop of freshman girls to the appetizers they'd be serving around. She also had spent quite some time helping Henry get settled on campus. She had showed him around, and kept giving him tips about the places where the food was good and cheap (student life and all), informing him of campus royalty who he should preferably avoid at all costs, and telling him about some classes he could take his next year in case he needed more credits with his honor program in engineering. She also encouraged him to call her whenever he was in trouble or just wanted to hang out and talk.

She had missed his little brother.

(Of course, they weren't technically related. Emma had befriended him years ago, when she realized the gangly, younger boy was being made fun of by the jocks in their rather quaint high school back home. Apparently carrying around a fairytales book was considered some crime in those assholes' eyes, who made it their purpose to mock Henry for it. Emma had had quite the reputation of not being messed up with, and as soon as she had stood up for him, they stopped bothering him altogether. Emma and Henry became inseparable after that, seeing as he had been quite the loner - just like Emma had been at that time. She discovered that Henry had been give up too at birth, but, whereas he had been adopted soon after it happened, she had been bounced from one foster home to another for years. Henry's parents, when they realized how Emma being in his life had improved their son's, offered to become their foster parents permanently and welcomed her to join their family.

At their offer, on another time, Emma would have bitten and barked at such a proposal just on principle - because such things just didn't happen to her, not now and not ever, - but Henry's eager face changed her mind.

She hadn't looked back since then and hadn't regretted it ever since.)

(Who would have told her back then that some day she'd have a great group of friends, a perfect boyfriend, a house full of girls who respected her, a family.)

She had been the most surprised when she saw that Henry had texted her that morning. She was certainly exhausted after rush the previous night, but made a point of curling her hair and putting on a nice sundress and meeting him at one of the cafes near his dorm.

"Henry, I have a really busy day ahead, I hope this is important," she rushed in between pants as she climbed the last steps to join him. He shuffled on his feet, careful not to meet her eyes, and she couldn't help but frown. What was with him?

"It is."

She inspected him more carefully and noticed the dark circles under his eyes. She put a hand over his forehead, feeling it, but he wasn't warm. He slapped it away.

"What did you do last night? Have - have you slept at all?"

He winced, and she grew even warier if she could.

"Not really. I met your boyfriend at the Omega Chi house," he admitted in a soft voice, and she felt her eyes grow wide.

"Wait, you - you rushed?" Oh God, this was a real nightmare. "Henry, I don't…"

He cut her before she could go on, putting his hands in front of him in a placating gesture. "I know. You think I am not fratboy material but I can be, I promise."

She felt a pang of pity surge through her for her brother. He thought she believed he didn't fit somewhere, and the fact that he did hurt. "Henry, it's not that. Well, maybe a little bit is, but I'm just afraid you won't be able to juggle both frat life - not to mention pledge life - and your engineering program," she explained, taking his hand in hers, lacing their fingers together.

He looked up at her face, poking her in the arm with his free hand. "You're being overprotective."

She smiled a little at that. "Nothing new there."

They stayed silent for a little while, and she guided him towards a nearby bench. They sat down together, and she saw his shoulder drop. He finally inhaled, meeting her eyes, and she saw the hope in them.

"I - I just want to be a part of your life here."

Her hands gripped his even tighter. "You will always be in my life, no matter where."

He smiled at her, that toothy grin that had always managed to lit up his whole face and make her smile back in return, just like a mirror. He patted their joined hands, his face softening, before he went on.

"But this is just not about me and you. I don't want to be a loser. I want to have friends, and be a part of something, you know? This is about me."

Oh, God. He was looking at her with the big puppy eyes. It was so not fair.

She didn't want to encourage him to do it, but she also knew he'd resent her if she didn't support him on it or would consider that she really didn't him to be a part of her life in college. Of course it wasn't like that at all - she would have done anything to have Henry with her as soon as she set foot in CRU, she had missed him that terribly; but she also wanted everything for him. She wanted him to have the best in life, and she knew from experience that fraternity life led to trouble, - as in, party and distractions galore trouble - and with such a demanding major, she was worried.

But he was her brother. And he was giving her the puppy eyes. And she wanted him around so much more.

She sighed.

"Okay."

And the lit-up-face grin was back, just like that. "Okay. Cool."

She smiled at him, ruffling his hair and hugging him to her side. "Now - which houses did you visit?"

He scratched the side of his head, and the troubled expression that she had spied earlier on him was back. "I met a friend of yours - Killian Jones, the president at the Kappa Tau house. He was cool."

"Stay away from the Kappa Taus, please." Of course Henry would think her ex was cool. God. She facepalmed, and suddenly his earlier statement came to the front of her mind. "Wait, you said you met Neal too?"

He was purposefully avoiding her eyes now, and there was a sudden feeling creeping up her back while she looked at him wringing his hands nervously. "Yeah. That's what I actually wanted to talk to you about."

She waited for him to continue, but he didn't look so eager to share. She finally gave him a little shove. "What is it?"

Purpose stealing his features, he met her eyes straight on. "Neal told me to meet him after I was done rounding the houses. I - I saw him."

"And?"

"He was with another girl."

She nearly choked on her own saliva, closing her eyes. "Henry…," she started, but he ignored her.

"They were kissing. And… their clothes were half gone," he half-stammered, and she did gag a little at that.

Her head snapped up to stare intently at him. His expression slipped from wary to pitying, and she felt her insides churning in shock and revulsion. She shook her head - this could not be happening, not to her, not now, not when everything was perfect in her life for once.

So she held onto the thing that would make it better.

Denial.

"Henry, you must be mistaken."

It was him who gripped her hand in his now, and she raised her gaze to meet his. "Emma, I wouldn't tell you this if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. The least thing I want to do is hurt you."

Her jaw quivered - she really wasn't sure if with rage or confusion or the unbidden urge to cry. She felt dizzy, she thought she was ready to faint, or scream, or shout, or curse. Anything.

"But…," she tried to speak - to deny what he was telling her, to explain herself, to explain Neal's actions, she didn't even know what at this point. Everything was crumbling down around her and she didn't know how to make it stop.

The pity in his eyes almost did her in. "I'm so sorry."

Before she realized what she was doing, she had let go of his hand and jumped to her feet, slinging her purse over her shoulder and whipping on her heel. "I gotta go."

"Emma…," he tried, but she was already leaving, doing what she did best.

Run.

She threw over her shoulder in a strangled voice, "I'll call you later," and went back to the house in record speed.

She had switched off her phone, put on her rattiest t-shirt and headphones, and had been playing Taylor Swift's entire discography on loop for the past two hours while she laid in bed. (She had also spent a good chunk of the evening playing Adele's, but that was besides the point). As she curled into a fetal position, she ignored pretty much everybody who tried to talk to her: she was sure the news was out already - the stupid campus felt like a Gossip Girl episode, and the name Neal Gold was big enough to gather any listener mildly interested in idle campus gossip.

She guessed Henry must have tried to go check up on her, and even if it broke her heart to ignore him, she couldn't face him right then. She was too embarrassed, too frail, not at all like the tough sister he'd always known and loved.

Thankfully for her, Ruby wasn't at the house either - Emma suspected she was at Victor's, but who knew with her roommate, really - so the room was all hers. That didn't stop Regina from barging in after a loud knock on the door before Emma could even bark at whoever dared to interrupt her Taylor Swift induced pity party.

"I don't want to see anybody," she whined, hiding her face in her pillow. Regina approached her, sitting gingerly on the edge, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I guessed that, but as president, I do whatever I want." There was a pause, and Emma waited for her to state the obvious. "So. Neal fucked up, huh?"

Even if she tried, she couldn't help but wince. It was official, then: everybody knew it.

"How did you find out?"

She heard Regina snort - which didn't happen that often, seeing as she considered it un-ladylike. "Seriously? Gossip Girl episode, anyone?"

Emma groaned for what felt like the thousandth time that day, and burrowed her nose further into the pillow. Regina's hand turned gentler, patting her softly.

"I'm sorry Emma."

Emma gulped down a fresh new wave of tears. God, would she ever stop crying? "I don't want to see him."

Regina sighed. "I know, sweetie. And to think it was with one of our pledges. What a douchepants," she added bitterly, and Emma jumped, startling her friend to the point that she almost fell from the bed.

"With one of our pledges?"

Regina looked back at her, startled at the rage in her voice. "Well, kinda. She will be anyway. Tamara."

Emma felt like passing out right there. This could not be happening. Not only had Neal cheated on her - but he had done it with the senator's daughter whom Emma had been fawning over in order for her to join their sorority?

Was this some sort of sick joke?

"Tamara?! Are you fucking kidding me?"

Regina grabbed her hands, which were shaking frantically despite herself. "Emma - focus here."

She stared back at her friend, confusion, hurt and pain squeezing her chest. "What?"

"I know you're mad, and you have every right to be. But what do you plan on doing?," Regina inquired, arching an inquisitive brow at her.

"Putting my fist on both Neal and Tamara's faces."

Regina shook her head adamantly. "You can't fight with Tamara, we need her to join the sorority."

Was she actually serious? This was unbelievable! How was she supposed to coexist with the girl her boyfriend had cheated on her with without expecting the house to implode?

"Are you serious? She slept with my boyfriend!"

"I know, but we can't lose her as our pledge. She's a senator's daughter."

Emma averted her gaze. She felt horribly betrayed. She knew Regina was trying to look out for what was the best for the house, and she knew having Tamara in their ranks would gain points with Nationals and whatnot, but God, she didn't want to see the girl, needless to say become her sister.

Regina tried to appease her by putting an arm over her shoulders. "Hey, you can always make her life hell when you're her pledge educator."

She choked back a laugh, but it sounded more like a sob. "That doesn't sound so bad."

As a pledge educator, she so could use it as an advantage to use her as her slave. Make her fetch her lattes and do her laundry. Anything she could come up with.

The thought brought a tiny, vengeful smirk to her lips.

"About Neal though…"

…and there went her earlier smile.

"Do you want to slap him too? I'm just calling dibs on the first punch," Emma offered, cracking her knuckles. She still couldn't believe Neal had betrayed her like that. After Henry had told her his piece, she had tried to convince herself that it had to be a mistake. Neal wouldn't do that to her, he wouldn't outright go behind her back and sleep with another girl, right? He loved her. They loved each other. They were happy. It had to be a mistake, Henry must have confused him with another guy from Omega Chi.

But then, a soft voice in her head teased her. Are you sure? Why would Henry lie to you?

Regina turned warning eyes on her, and for a moment Emma thought she could see doubt creeping in her friend's eyes. "Emma, I don't think you want to lose having Neal Gold in your life."

Emma stayed quiet for a moment, waiting for the following 'gotcha'. (Regina had always had a really sick sense of humor, so it wouldn't have surprised her that much.) When it was clear Regina was, for once, not joking, Emma bristled. "He cheated on me. And he wasn't even drunk or whatever. He just… he did it. He betrayed me."

"I know. But wouldn't you want to talk to him first? Hear him out?"

Emma frowned. Why in hell would she ever consider doing that? "Why? I don't want to hear what he has to say."

Regina shook her head, sighing heavily before staring at her evenly once more. "Emma. Neal Gold by your side is one of your best assets. I wouldn't throw it away just for this."

Emma bit her lip. Could she do it? And would he even want her back, for that matter? As a kid, having been passed from one family to another had taught her that there'd always be someone better than her; that she'd never be chosen over them. Even if she considered the chance of taking Neal back after this, would he want to, after having been with the senator's daughter?

But how could she make herself try to trust him after this anyway? He knew how easy it was for her to close herself up, he must have known something like this would break her. Had he done it on purpose? How could he?

Didn't he care for her at all?

"I can't trust that he won't do it again, though," she finally muttered, meeting Regina's gaze. She was met with steely dark eyes, and red lips curled in a vengeful smile that sent a shiver through her spine.

"Then do whatever you need to call it even and move on."

"Well, this is most certainly a surprise. What are you doing here, Swan?" a taunting voice she found disturbingly familiar said behind her.

She whimpered. Someone had to be having a real kick right now at her expense, she just knew it. Couldn't a girl get wasted on tequila shots, play darts and wonder when her life had turned into a cheesy flick in peace?

(At least there were no zombies, vampires or werewolves. For now. That she knew of.)

She was already feeling the buzz of the alcohol in her veins, God bless.

Emma turned to face him, hoping her suspicions were wrong. Unfortunately they weren't.

Killian had a point, though. It had been him who had brought her to that bar in the first place years before. She had never told any of her friends about it, though, even if she quite liked it: the pirate-like style of the place, with its wooden croaking floors resembling the deck and quarters of some old ship, the heavy scent of rum coating the air, the soft background music that almost sounded out from another century. But even if she loved the place, it felt… rude bringing somebody besides him there, like inviting an stranger somewhere he wasn't supposed to be.

Bad form, as Killian used to say.

"Oh. You put a shirt on," she commented with a fake smile, as she went to take a sip of her glass of beer.

"Sadly for you." He arched an eyebrow. "Now - why are you at my hidden spot, may I ask?"

She snorted into her glass, a coughing fit delaying her chance at responding. "It's not like you have some sort of claim over it or something," she finally choked out.

"Stop deflecting."

She turned to him, and, picking up her glass, she practically shoved it into his chest, not breaking eye-contact as she did. "I'm here to drink."

"You're here to hide, you mean."

She resisted the urge to sigh. Instead, she avoided his all too knowing smile, and jerked her chin in the direction of the dart board. "I'm here to play…," she turned to him, tauntingly licking her lips and far too pleased by the way he stared at her mouth, "and to kick your ass."

He smiled, surely amused by her sudden bashfulness. "Wanna bet on it, darling?"

She gulped, but nodded, all business. She was anything but confident in her darts skills. "Sure."

He swaggered towards her - because there was no other word to describe how he approached her, dammit, - until they were almost touching, the hard planes of his chest nearly brushing hers. He tilted his head, waiting for her to declare the conditions on their bet. The thing was, she hadn't had real time to think her plan through, so the first thing that came to mind, she said.

"If I win, you have to streak down campus."

Oh, that could be fun alright.

He grinned wolfishly at her, tongue pressing against his cheek in amusement. "To your greedy lustful eyes, huh? Naughty, Swan."

She ignored him. "And if you win…"

"I get something. Anything I want," he rushed to say, and her eyes sought his immediately, startled.

"Anything?" she asked, trying not to grin like an idiot.

"Anything," he echoed, and she nodded, pleased.

"Okay. Let's play, then."

It was a fair match, full of teasing and bantering and innocent - and far from innocent too, mind you - touches between the two of them. But, even if Killian was a decent player, Emma had the advantage, and both Killian and she realized that. The last throw was hers, and they both knew after checking their scores that, as long as she got at least 10 points, she'd have it in the bag.

And that's when she missed.

Like, throwing the dart out of the board, leaving a tiny mark on the wooden plank at the wall and falling to the ground with a snapping sound to the bartender's dismay, who glared at her and muttered about fratboys and sorority girls ruining his bar at last.

Killian turned to stare in disbelief at her. "You missed. Did you do that on purpose?"

"Maybe," she stammered, avoiding eye contact and fixing her gaze instead on her feet as she got to stand right in front of him. Her hand came up to rest on his chest, her fingers going to the charms that he wore and tugging on them lightly until his own hand wrapped over hers.

"Why?"

She saw the confusion in his face. He had been sure she would win, and he appeared to be okay with it - the guy didn't have a shame bone in his body, that was for sure, and streaking was probably something not entirely challenging for him to do. But she had blown it off on purpose.

And he deserved an explanation, even if she thought it was pretty obvious by the way her own gaze lingered on his lips and flitted briefly to his eyes.

"Anything you want, right?"

She was already surging to claim his lips with hers when his arms came to rest on her shoulders, keeping her pretty much literally at arms' length. She felt briefly mortified at such blatant rejection - she had thought he had implied earlier by that breathless 'anything' that had what he wanted was her. Now she was pretty lost, and her cheeks flamed in embarrassment and God could she leave there already?

Instead, he tilted her chin up so she'd meet his eyes. "Okay. I want to know why you're here upset and clearly throwing yourself at me."

Was he actually using his reward to know why she was upset?

She didn't know if she should feel touched or angry. She chose not to really think, instead shutting her eyes closed and exhaling sharply.

"Neal slept with one of our pledges," she finally admitted, and kept her eyes closed in mortification. It was one thing that her friends knew, that Henry knew, that the entire campus knew. But somehow, telling Killian - it was even worse, saying out loud how the guy who she had left him for had cheated on her. She half expected him to point at her and go all 'I told you so', or something equally douche-y, - and hell, she wouldn't even hold it against him at all. She had always been a firm believer in 'you brought this to yourself, so suck it up' and karma. Maybe if she hadn't broken up with Killian and chosen Neal instead of him, things wouldn't have been like this.

Maybe.

Yet Emma wasn't really a fan of 'what if's and whatnot.

Instead of laughing at her, or asking for details - or with who was it that Neal had slept with, - he just stared harder at her, trying to read her expression. "And you wanna get back at him."

"Yeah."

"And if it had been other guy, it'd have been cool too."

Damn him. "I'm upset and a bit drunk, so yeah, pretty much," she claimed, waving her free hand in the air languidly. She knew she wasn't fooling anybody, and the least of all him, but she had always been proud as hell, and she would not admit the truth.

She had come to his stupid secret bar in the hopes that she'd run into him. If she had to get even with Neal, it'd be with no one else but him, dammit.

As she had expected, he just smiled knowingly at her, inching closer until his lips were by her ear. "Liar."

She gritted her teeth, letting her back hit the wall beside the dart board with a sigh. Even if it was true that he had expected to see him, and if she went through with her 'plan' of taking it out of her system and whatever crap Regina had insisted she did in order to be able to move past the cheating incident, she didn't want to get Killian's hopes up. "You and I - we, we were a mess, Killian."

She saw him letting out a long breath from the corner of her eye, as she was far more interested in picking at her nails at the moment. "Well, do you still want this mess, Swan?"

…did that mean what she thought it did?

"Really? You want to?," she asked as she carefully tucked a strand of hair that had managed to flee her bun behind her ear. Killian flashed her a grin, big and honest, - even though a part of her that she tried to shut up and ignore screamed that it really wasn't one of Killian's real smiles.

"I get to spend the night with you, and piss off Gold in the process. Win-win," he sing-songed, and stepped until his nose was brushing hers, that stupidly confident smirk of his taunting her and screaming at her to wipe it off his face. "What do you say. Do we get messy?"

She didn't let him finish, her arms wrapping around his neck and holding him as close to her as she could, breathing him in. He didn't waste any time at all either, one hand burying itself in her hair and the other gripping her hip tightly, and she gasped into his mouth at the feeling of his hands on her again. It had been so long, God.

His lips tasted of rum, and she tilted her head back, baring her neck for his kisses.

(She had missed him.)

She woke up with a pounding headache, the smell of pancakes and rum engulfing her and a warm body glued to her back. For a guy with such a manwhore reputation as his, it surprised her that he was still so partial to sharing body heat by keeping arms and legs as entangled as possible with each other's. She winced when a sudden flash of pain went straight to her head - those shots of tequila had seemed like a great idea at the moment; and even sharing Killian's flask of rum, which he never parted without, had too.

Oh, and jumping into bed with him, of course.

Yeah, that had happened. Boy, it had happened several times through the night, she was pretty surprised she was even able to move at all. The flashes that came and went through her mind were brief - them kissing at the Golden Compass, her taking off her bra under her shirt and throwing it at him during their walk back to the KT house to get a rise out of him, Killian throwing her over his shoulder and practically sprinting until they got to his room, almost tearing their clothes off in their haste to feel skin against skin at last. Killian's eyes shining with a hunger she had almost forgotten as he loomed over her, her own need to have him touch her, the utter feeling of completion at finally, finally having him inside of her. The amazing realization of knowing that it was because of her, because of Emma Swan, that he was completely wrecked, ruined beyond repair, aching for her. Neal might have had to go to some other girl, might not feel what she had felt, but Killian for sure did, and had never missed the chance to tell her - nor did he hide his feelings, specially in the cocoon they had built between his sheets, the circle of his arms a safe net she had always known was still there, no matter what, just in case she ever wanted to go back to them.

Something gripped at her heart thinking about it. She knew he still had feelings for her, and even if he had known what she was doing the previous night and what it was all about, she wasn't the kind of girl who enjoyed taking what she sought and leaving them high and dry. Especially to him. Even if Killian and she were over, she still cared for him a great deal: he was a part of her life, a very important one at that, someone who had wormed his way through the armor built around her heart and made himself at home in it. It was hard to forget.

(She didn't know she even wanted to forget.)

She crept out of his sheets - she muffled a laugh behind her hand when she realized he still had the Spongebob Squarepants ones, Goddammit, why was he such a kid? - and tiptoed to where her tank top and shorts were - not before picking up her panties from literally the other corner of the room. Her bra was missing in action, and she internally winced at her own stupid drunk self. It had been quite expensive, and now it was gone.

"You used to be sneakier."

She rolled her eyes, even if a part of her shivered at the roughness in his voice.

"Shut up," she growled as she fished her boots from under his bed, not caring anymore about the noise. He was awake now.

She could hear the smirk in his voice as he kicked her side lightly with his foot. "But still as grumpy in the morning."

She slapped his foot away with a squeal - he knew she had a weird thing with people's feet - and stood up in search of her purse. "I'm trying to do the whole walk of shame with some self respect here."

"Too bad."

Fighting unsuccessfully another eyeroll, she finally located her purse - hanging from the lamp? Really? - and with a last check up on his mirror, she turned to finally look at him, all rumpled hair and dimples.

"See ya, Jones."

He blew her a kiss, putting his arms behind his head and lounging like a king on his bed. "Bye, sweetcheeks."

She scrunched up her nose, unsettled, a hand gripping the handle on the door and ready to leave, but something was… not feeling right. She bit her lip and whirled around, looking back at him accusingly.

"That's it?"

He had the decency to look at least confused. "What?"

"Aren't you… mad at me?"

Now he just looked curious, arching an eyebrow as he inspected her like she was still drunk. She might be, for all she knew. "Why would I?"

Fighting a groan, she leaned against the wall, passing a hand through her unruly hair - which was in dire need of a hairbrush, but she was not going to ask Killian Jones for one, that was for sure. "Because I'm not cuddling and kissing you? Because I may even plan on going back to Neal?"

Why was she telling him this?

His expression sobered, though he didn't move from his place on the bed. He just cocked his head to the side, looking at her as he always did, as if she were an enigma he couldn't figure out - even if he always did, no matter how hard she tried to fool him into thinking he couldn't. "I know when I'm being used, Swan, as much as I would like not to."

Ouch.

She grimaced, and without almost noticing what she was doing, her feet moved on its own accord to come closer to the bed. "Killian…"

He sighed, dropping his hands in front of him and rubbing them together distractedly. He met her eyes, and she stopped herself, almost afraid of his next words. "As for doucheGold… he doesn't deserve you." He nodded at her, waving a hand in her direction with his trademark smirk. "Nice day, Swan."

She knew when she was being dismissed, and without a word, she left his room, quietly closing the door behind her, the accusation in his words ringing in her ears. She felt both ashamed and angry - he had known what she had been looking for, he had no right to be mad at her, but she also felt guilty for going through with it anyway.

The turmoil of feelings inside of her were pretty much overcome by the embarrassment of finding the entire KT house clapping and hooting at her as she made her way down the stairs, ignoring her weak protests of 'we fell asleep while we were studying!'. Eventually, she forewent any attempt at excusing herself, and took a bow instead to Victor, August and Jefferson's delighted guffaws.

Idiots.

(there was a ton of enya involved in writing this? and maroon 5's 'maps'?) (random music choices guys)