Emma Swan had always been an artist, whether it was painting, sculpting, drawing, writing, playing musical instruments, or singing. Her strength, however, was paint on canvas. Her only artistic weakness seemed to be photography. That being the case, it was a little ironic that her new roommate's specialty was exactly that.

Regina Mills was an elegant, beautiful girl, with long, dark, wavy locks of hair that reached down to her shoulder blades, and as soon as she walked into the dorm room, Emma felt her mouth water.

Of course, she pushed this aside and managed a quiet, "Hey," before turning back to her suitcase and continuing to unpack her clothes.

Given that they'd received minimal information about each other before they moved into their dorms, they knew each other's names already and didn't have to exchange them. After a while of silence from Regina, the blonde looked up from the mess she was making and decided to make an attempt to end the awkwardness.

"Jesus, kid," Emma commented, seeing several camera cases in various locations on the other side of the room. "How many cameras you got, anyway?"

"Six cameras and several more lenses, if you don't count my pathetic little point and shoot."

"I take it you're a photographer then."

"Oh, well… I mean… I, uh… I dabble."

Emma laughed and shook her head, her curls bouncing around her shoulders.

"I doubt someone in art school with that many cameras is just 'dabbling.' You're probably not paying the obscene tuition here just to practice a hobby. I bet you're really good."

Regina blushed and dropped her gaze. She was more than modest about her skills as a photographer, but she certainly did have a passion for it. That was why she was in school in the first place. No matter how hard she tried to let it go – she'd been told my her parents that it was silly and a waste of her time – it was like a good book she couldn't put down.

"What, um… What do you do?" Regina finally asked, sitting down gracefully on her bed and tucking a bit of hair behind her ears.

"I paint, I guess," Emma told her with a shrug. "Not great at it, but I love it. It's my out, you know? My escape from… well… everything."

"You must be pretty good if they accepted you here."

"Eh. I think they just agreed to take me because I got relatively acceptable grades in high school, and I'm not really a one-hit wonder. My portfolio included several different types of media. None of which were all that spectacular. I think they just thought my being somewhat well rounded was enough to take me. But you know what they say. Jack of all trades, master of none."

"I'm not sure that's true."

"Anyway," the blonde coughed. "Enough about me. What kind of music do you like?"

"Oh, just… heavy metal and stuff like that."

Emma laughed and shook her head, saying, "I call bullshit."

"Yeah," Regina chuckled. "I'm mostly into classical and jazz."

"I love jazz."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I was in a jazz band in high school."

"Seriously? What did you play?"

"Trumpet," Emma answered slowly. "And… a few other things…"

"Holy… You play more than one instrument?"

"Er…"

"Wow."

"What?"

"That's just… impressive. You paint… you're a musician… What else?"

"I, uh… really like Pokémon?"

At this, Regina burst out laughing, unable to hold it in as she processed the joke.

Then, eyes slightly wide, Emma reached into her backpack and pulled out a binder, tossing it on Regina's bed. When the brunette opened it, looking confused until she saw what was inside, her eyes went wide too.

"Oh. Shit. I'm sorry. I just…"

"Yeah, man. That's only a fourth of my card collection. The rest are at home. There's a holographic Charizard in there."

"A holographic… uh… what?"

Laughing brightly, Emma answered, "It's a Pokémon. Forget it."

At the sound of Emma's laugh, Regina couldn't help but smile. The lightness of it was almost angelic, and it was infectious.

"Oh, wow," Regina said suddenly, glancing at the clock. "It's ten already."

"Uh… so?"

"It's… It's kinda late."

Again, Emma laughed.

"Not a night owl, huh?"

"No, not really. More of an early bird, to be honest. I know that's kind of lame, especially as a college student."

"Yeah… I'm… definitely one to pull all-nighters. I like to leave everything to the last minute."

With a yawn, Regina stood and passed the binder back to her roommate, then lay down on her bed.

"I'll be quiet though," Emma clarified. "I won't keep you up. I'm not a shitty roommate like that. I just… kinda… uh… my room is usually pretty messy. But I'll keep it to my side! Promise."

"That might be an issue," Regina confessed, looking a little concerned. "I'm a neat freak."

"We'll figure it out. No worries. Sleep tight."

"You too, when you get there."

In the morning, Regina was surprised to find that Emma had already made a mess of her side of the room. What really caught her attention, though, were the numerous paintings that scattered the area, some on her desk, some propped up against the foot of the bed, others set up on the dresser. They were stunning, and Regina was captivated by there beauty. Next, she noticed the beauty of their creator, sleeping peacefully on her side with her lips slightly parted. She raised her eyebrows involuntarily and stared for a minute or two before she was able to tear her gaze away.

When she left the room around nine in the morning, Emma was still sleeping soundly.

Later that afternoon, Regina reappeared in the room and found the blonde sitting on her bed, a pencil in her hands as she sketched in her notebook. Emma was too distracted to notice the girl coming in and didn't even raise her head as the sound of footsteps grew closer.

Finally, Regina coughed and said, "Hey," feeling awkward in the silence.

"Oh, shit," Emma gasped. "I didn't even hear you come in. Hi."

"How was your day?"

"Huh? Fine. It was fine."

"Alright. Cool."

"Yours?"

"Eh. My Intro to Photography teacher assigned a boatload of homework, and my sketching 101 class is a total bitch."

"Not a big fan of drawing?"

"Not at all. Actually, I suck at pretty much everything except photography. But – Oh, wow."

"Wow what?"

"That's… Wow."

"What?"

"Your… Your drawing. Who is that?"

"That's kind of a personal question, isn't it?" Emma chuckled, closing her sketchbook quickly.

"Oh, shit… I'm sorry," Regina blurted. "I was just curious. I didn't mean to pry. Please, forgive me."

Raising an eyebrow, Emma told her, "It's fine. I was just joking. It's stupid, though."

"Why?"

"It's just a celebrity."

"Well, it's coming out really well. Looks beautiful."

"I, um… Thanks…"

They went quiet after that. Emma opened her sketchbook again and resumed her artwork while Regina pulled several prints out of an envelope and spread them over the bed. Eventually, Emma looked up from her work and noticed.

"Those… Those are really nice," she said. "You've got quite an eye for color. I can't shoot a camera for shit."

"Oh, I'm sure you can," Regina told her with a shrug. "Besides, these aren't the best. I was pressured for time this afternoon. I had to get them developed right after, so I rushed."

"They're beautiful. Can I come take a closer look?"

Hesitating, Regina replied, "Um… Sure."

Emma stood slowly, pushing her sketchbook and pencil aside, and walked over to Regina's bed.

"Wow," she breathed. "These are really incredible."

"Nah."

"No, really. Wow."

Regina was blushing, and when Emma saw it, she felt her own face grow warm.

"Anyway… I should get to bed," the brunette said abruptly, collecting the photos and carefully putting them back in the envelope.

Emma nodded and sat back down on her own bed, trying not to watch as Regina turned away and wiggled beneath the covers.

They spoke little over the next few days, just missing each other when they were in their dorm. Emma made a habit of coming back late, long after Regina was asleep, and Regina was usually gone in the morning before Emma woke up.

One night, though, Emma returned around three in the morning and accidentally tripped over a stack of textbooks on art theory – which she'd never bothered to read – and nearly went flying across the floor, waking the sleeping brunette with a start.

"Holy shit!" Regina cried, flicking on the light and scrambling out from under the covers. "Are you okay?!"

Emma gasped, rolling onto her back and holding her knee to her chest as she squeezed her eyes shut to fight back tears. The pain was blinding, so she did not reply.

"Emma?"

"Mmm."

"You okay? Can I get you some ice? Are you-"

"Fine," Emma ground out. "I'm fine."

But Regina caught the lie and touched her shoulder, saying, "I'll be right back. Don't move."

She pulled an ice pack from the tiny freezer of their mini fridge and held it against Emma's knee, causing the girl to hiss in pain.

"Fuck, man!" the blonde cried. "That fucking hurts!"

Instinctively, Emma tried to pull away, but Regina quickly slipped her hand behind her calf and held her still.

"Hey," she said softly. "Be still. It'll stop."

The gentleness in the girl's voice made Emma pause as she looked into her eyes. Regina's gaze was soft, her face full of genuine concern.

"It's okay," Regina whispered. "It'll stop. Lie back on the floor. I'll hold the ice pack."

Emma shook her head, but when the brunette pushed lightly on her shoulder, she obeyed, lying back and shutting her eyes as Regina carefully held the ice pack to her knee. After a few minutes, the pain did numb.

"Feel better?" Regina asked, when Emma started to sit up.

The girl nodded and sighed, "Yes. Thank you. You should get back to bed. I'm really sorry I woke you."

"What do you even do when you stay out this late?" Regina chuckled.

Emma shrugged.

"Ruby and Belle throw parties a lot."

"Oh…"

"Not much of a party animal yourself, are you?"

"No. Definitely not."

With a smile, Emma rose to her feet (with some difficulty) and made her way to her bed.

Once she was under the covers, she yawned and said, "Goodnight, Regina. Thank you."

With a nod, Regina lowered her head onto the pillow and shut her eyes.

The next day, Regina was surprised to find her roommate leaning up against a wall in the hallway of the campus' main building, talking to another girl. At first, she considered simply walking away, not wanting to disturb them, but Emma turned her head at exactly the right moment, just as her hand dropped to her side after tucking a bit of hair behind her companion's ear. The blonde noticed her roommate and offered a wave and a bright smile.

"Hey, Mills," she greeted her. "What's up?"

"I, um… I…" Regina started, but couldn't help but stare at the blonde and her beautiful brown-haired companion. "I'm s-sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt."

With a laugh, Emma stepped forward and told her, "You didn't interrupt. It's fine. I said hi to you, remember? Besides, you're not bothering me. It's good to see you. Thanks for last night."

At this last comment, Emma's companion cocked a curious eyebrow. When Emma noticed it out of the corner of her eyes, she spun around quickly.

"Not like that," she asserted.

Regina instantly began to blush.

"Hey, sorry," Emma said to her roommate. "She's just-"

"I'll see you around, Em," the girl standing beside Emma told her. "Later."

"Shit, I'm sorry," Regina blurted, as soon as the girl turned to leave. "I didn't mean to-"

"Shh. You didn't. It's fine. She's just jealous."

"Uh… What?"

"You're pretty. She probably thinks we're sleeping together."

You're pretty. Regina repeated the words in her head, her blush brightening.

"Is… Is she your girlfriend?" the brunette finally dared to ask.

"Um… Not… Not really."

Looking confused, Regina asked, "Not really?"

"I mean, we… we're not…" When Regina blinked a few times and said nothing, Emma sighed, pushing a hand through her hair, and clarified, "We have fun. That's it."

"Oh."

So Emma was the type for casual relationships. Or… non-relationships. Whatever. Regina looked away. As a virgin, it was difficult for her to imagine sharing herself with multiple people at the same time, but it didn't surprise her that Emma wasn't limited to one woman. At the very least, Regina was glad that her suspicions about Emma liking women were correct. It made her feel like a little bit less of an alien for her own sexual orientation.

"Anyway… I gotta get to class. I'll see you later, yeah? If you're not asleep, I mean."

With a wink, Emma turned and walked away.

Emma was surprised to find Regina sitting at her desk, awake, when she returned to the dorm around two in the morning.

"Whoa," Regina commented, noting that the girl was covered and sweat and looked red in the cheeks. "What happened to you?"

"Oh, my God," Emma laughed, falling onto her bed. "That was wild."

"Huh? What happened?"

"She was pissed, man."

"What do you mean? Who was pissed?"

"Ruby."

"The girl you were talking to today in the hallway?"

"Yeah."

"Why was she pissed?"

"She's convinced that we're sleeping together," Emma told her, still laughing.

"But I thought you said that you weren't…"

"We're not. She knows we're not exclusive. She's pissed that I totally just walked away from her to talk to you. Ridiculous, right?"

"I, um…"

Utterly confused, Regina stared blankly as Emma continued to smile brightly.

"Hate sex is the best sex," the blonde finally explained.

Then, it made sense. Too much sense. Regina blushed and immediately turned back to her homework.

"Oh," she muttered, still facing away.

"Ha. Sorry. I'm wiped, dude. Think I'm skippin' class tomorrow morning."

"You should really-"

"Hey, if you'd been railed like that, you'd skip too. I'm gonna be bruised for a week!"

Swallowing hard, Regina nodded her head to signal her understanding and remained silent. Emma never asked why Regina was up so late, and Regina didn't bother to explain that she was drowning in homework already. By the time she was finished, it was around four in the morning, and she could barely function. Still, as she collapsed in her bed, she was kept awake by obtrusive thoughts of Emma getting "railed" by the beautiful girl she'd seen in the hallway. To her horror, she felt her arousal pool between her legs as she listened to the beautiful blonde's moans in her mind, her imagination taking over.

"You okay?" Emma mumbled, hearing Regina frantically scrambling around the room and knocking books off the desk.

"I can't find my room keys and I'm late for class! Fuck!"

"Hey. Hey. It's fine. Take mine. I'm definitely not leaving any time soon. I'll be here until five, then I'm meeting Belle for dinner. I'll look for your keys if you want."

Regina looked at her dumbly, not comprehending the kind gesture until Emma grabbed her keys off the nightstand and tossed them to her. Of course, Regina missed when trying to catch them, and they fell on the floor behind her. When she bent over to pick them up, Emma stared.

By the time Regina had gathered the rest of her things and said, "Have a good day. See you later," the blonde was nearly drooling.

"Damn, she is hot," Emma sighed, as soon as the door closed.

"What are you doing?" Regina asked, upon opening the door to their room and finding Emma on the floor, doing push-ups in a tightly fitting tank top.

"Huh?" Emma asked, nearly falling face-first to the floor as she scrambled to her knees and turned around to face the voice. "I was, uh… you know. Exercising."

"I see."

"Gotta stay in shape for the ladies, ya know?" Emma chuckled, pushing a hand through her hair, which was matted with sweat.

"Um… Yeah," the brunette replied, looking away shyly.

"Should I, uh… not do it here? Is it going to bother you while you study?"

"What? Oh. No, it's fine. I just… uh… was surprised to find you on the floor, I guess."

"Don't lie, Mills. You love the sight of a muscular girl, all hot and sweaty, on your bedroom floor," Emma teased with a bright smile.

Clearly, she was joking, but Regina's eyes raked over her skin anyway, noting her thick biceps and the sweat dripping from her forehead.

"Seriously, though. What don't you do?" Regina finally managed, as she realized staying silent was far too awkward, given that they were staring at each other.

"Well, since you asked, I'm not really into anal."

Emma's grin (and her words) made the brunette blush brightly as she looked away again, unable to face the blatant vulgarity of the joke. She wasn't sure whether to laugh or cover her face with a pillow to hide her obvious embarrassment.

"Uh… Sorry," Emma said, as soon the girl dropped her gaze.

Something about the redness in her cheeks made Emma warm, though, and that she enjoyed, so she was grateful for the sight of her. Still, she felt badly about making her uncomfortable, so the apology slipped out easily, and she quickly became embarrassed herself.

"It's fine," Regina said hurriedly.

But it was obvious that the image had affected Regina, so Emma decided to change the subject.

"So, how was your day?"

"It was alright."

"I found your keys. They're on your desk."

"What? Really?" Regina asked, sudden excitement in her voice. "Where were they?"

"Under your gigantic pile of textbooks," the blonde chuckled. "I think you study too much."

"Yeah, probably. Anyway, thank you so much. I was a complete wreck this morning. I didn't even have time for coffee, so I was an absolute monster until I had lunch around one. Also, speaking of homework and studying, I should probably get to it and leave you to your… uh… exercise."

It was Emma's turn to blush as she turned away and resumed the position to perform more push-ups. She did these in silence as Regina sat down at her desk, but after four or five minutes, her effort and vigor increased, until she was sweating more and breathing heavily.

When she heard the noise, Regina turned around in her chair. Instead of speaking, she simply watched in awe as sweat glistened between her roommate's shoulder blades. She continued to stare, until Emma collapsed and let out a long sigh.

Without speaking, the brunette stood up and walked over to their mini fridge, then walked back over to where Emma was lying on the floor.

"Hey," she finally said softly, holding out a water bottle.

Emma looked up slowly, clearly exhausted from the exertion, then smiled as she reached gratefully for the bottle.

"Thanks," she said, then took several large gulps of the liquid. "Fifty more to go."

"You should rest," Regina quickly countered. "You look exhausted."

"I know, I know. I look like shit when I work out. Sorry."

"No, no. I didn't mean like that! I just meant… You're working hard. You should take a break before you push yourself too far or get dehydrated or something."

The care with which Regina spoke surprised Emma, and her tenderness was touching. She sat up slowly, then crossed her legs.

"You're a really sweet kid, Mills."

Regina blinked a few times before responding with, "Um. Thanks."

Being called 'kid' wasn't exactly the most dignified way of being addressed, but Emma said it in such a casual way that it didn't really bother her. It just made her feel a little strange. Besides, they were the same age, in the same year of school.

"No, really. You're a sweetheart. Thank you."

Regina shrugged her shoulders and sat back down in the chair, turning away slowly, leaving Emma to wonder what she was thinking.

"So, I heard you got a new plaything," Belle told Emma as they sat down at a table in the dining hall.

"What? No. And why does that matter to you, anyway?"

"It doesn't. I'm just repeating gossip, which I really shouldn't. But I was curious, because Ruby seemed really pissed yesterday."

"Oh, I think I smoothed that over," Emma said with a sly grin, then looked down at her plate of food and took a few bites.

"Ohhh," the brunette laughed. "Well, I'm glad you two made up. I know you're just friends, but seriously, it would be a huge pain in my ass if you guys kept fighting."

"She can't flip her shit every time she thinks I'm sleeping with someone," Emma sighed, her tone becoming serious. "We're just friends."

"With benefits," Belle corrected quickly. "Lots and lots of benefits."

"What the hell do you know about it?"

"Oh, you've given me plenty of details."

"What? When?"

"Uh, last weekend, when you were tripping balls?"

"I wasn't tripping balls," the blonde grumbled, digging angrily at her mashed potatoes with her fork. "I was just a little… Whatever. Anyway, I probably made it all up."

"I doubt it," Belle replied dryly.

When Emma scowled at her, she cocked an eyebrow.

"What exactly did I say then, smartass?"

"Things I daren't repeat."

When Belle laughed, Emma shoved her shoulder.

"Knock it off."

They were quiet for a while as they ate, but eventually, Belle spoke up again, asking, "So… Why weren't you ever freaky with me?"

Emma's eyes went wide as she lifted her gaze to meet her friend's. They'd had several sexual encounters since meeting in their first year of college, but they'd all been relatively mild and had lacked the excitement that Emma so desperately craved. How could she explain that, though? How could she tell Belle that she was just… sort of… vanilla?

"What does that even mean?" Emma finally huffed, clearly already in a state of agitation.

"Do you really want me to spell it out for you?"

When Emma snapped, "Are you really upset about this?!" Belle looked away. "Come on. We were just fooling around. We're friends, right?"

"You're friends with Ruby too."

"It's different."

"How?"

"You and I have known each other for two years. My relationship with Ruby is just… not the same."

"How? How is it not the same?"

"Oh, come on. Stop it."

But Belle was clearly upset, so she pressed, "No, really. What does Ruby have that I don't?"

"Why are you pissed right now? We're not even together and you're getting jealous? Like, seriously? I expected this from Ruby, but from you?"

"Nevermind. Anyway, I hope you give your new toy a good ride."

With that, Belle stood up, shoved her chair back in, grabbed her tray, and disappeared into the throng of people that were trying to find tables in the crowded dining hall.

When Emma dialed the girl's number as soon as she got to the dorm that night, her hands were sweating from frustration. She gripped the phone tightly and tried not to grind her teeth.

"What the hell was that?" she spat into the phone, as soon as she heard her friend answer.

"What was what, Emma?"

"Your little temper tantrum in the dining hall! What else?"

"Temper tantrum? Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously! You flipped your shit over nothing."

"You're a fucking player, Emma. And that's fine. But if you're going to play, you should play everyone the same."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say. How can you possibly have your panties in this much of a bunch? And why didn't you said anything to me before now, if it bothered you so much?"

"Because it felt stupid, until I heard that you got a new addition to your little harem."

"Oh, my God," the blonde groaned. "I do not have a harem. They're just friends, for fuck's sake."

"Yeah. Friends. Like we're friends. Like you and Ruby are friends."

"Okay, first of all, I don't have a new addition to-" Emma started to protest, but the door to the room opened with a loud creak, and she jumped from being startled. "Jesus! You scared me!"

"What?"

"Gotta go."

The call ended with a click, leaving the girl's friend even more furious and upset than before.

"Hey," Emma greeted her roommate, forcing a weak smile.

"Um… You okay?"

"Yeah, of course. Why?"

"You sounded pretty… agitated…"

"Oh. Just a, um… a little tiff, with Belle."

"You seem to have several tiffs with your… friends."

"Well, maybe as of recently," Emma muttered in response, lowering her gaze as she shuffled her feet on the floor while she sat on her bed.

"Why recently?" Regina asked, with concern in her voice.

"I don't know. Women are just crazy."

Raising an eyebrow, Regina sat across from Emma on her own bed, then asked, "All of them?"

"All of them," the girl confirmed with enthusiasm. Quickly, she added, "No offense."

"What's so crazy about me?"

This, of course, put Emma on the spot, and she blushed brightly, feeling like a fool for opening her mouth.

"Uh… I mean…"

"Go on."

"Well… For one thing…" Emma forced herself to reply. "You study like mad. I mean, what art student actually does their work?"

"I do."

When Regina moved to stand, Emma quickly stood as well (though she wasn't sure why) and blurted, "Wait. I'm sorry. I just meant-"

"No, it's cool. I get it. It's dumb. Whatever, though, because it makes my parents happy, and I guess that's what matters."

This rendered Emma silent. What twenty-year-old gave a shit what their parents thought about their grades? Apparently, her roommate.

Desperately trying to beck pedal, she finally said, "It's not dumb. I didn't mean it that way. I meant, like… surprising. Out of the norm."

"Gee, thanks."

"Shit. I'm sorry. I just meant-"

"Oh, my God, Emma. Just stop."

Gulping down her embarrassment, Emma nodded her head and sat back down on the bed, then pulled her sketchbook from the drawer of her nightstand. After folding her legs beneath her, she opened the book and began to draw. This lasted a few hours, until Regina wiggled beneath her covers and rolled over to face the wall. It wasn't long after that that Emma heard her breathing become slow and steady, telling her that the girl had fallen asleep.

A few hours after that, Regina woke from a dream with a start and sat up in bed. Emma was awake and sitting at her desk, even though it was well past two in the morning.

Regina blinked a few times in the dimness of the nightlight, then looked over at her roommate. Emma forced herself to keep her focus on the keyboard of her laptop, rather than turning around to look at Regina, who she heard sitting up and pushing her covers down. Her typing stopped though, even though she stared at the screen with intensity. Only when the silence continued for another solid minute was she able to resume pressing the keys with enthusiasm. She didn't notice Regina staring.

After she spent a few minutes listening to Emma's fingers falling heavily on the keys, the brunette finally stood up slowly and left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her. Only then did Emma lift her gaze, but by the time she looked, the door was already closed, and Regina was gone.

It wasn't long before the girl returned to the room, and by then, Emma was typing again – so loudly, in fact, that she didn't heard the girl open or shut the door. It was only when the girl coughed as she sat down on her bed that the blonde realized she was there. Still, she didn't turn around or open her mouth to speak.

Regina tried hard to fall back asleep, but she found it too difficult a task, and eventually, she sat back up in bed and looked around the room. It had been almost an hour since she'd woke up, and Emma was still vigorously banging away at the keys.

"What you writing?" Regina asked shyly, unable to maintain the silence.

Regina was surprised when Emma laughed nervously and said, "You don't want to know."

"Huh?"

"Let's just say that it's definitely not an essay."

The brunette remained quiet for a while, but eventually, curiosity got the better of her, and she pressed, "How do you know that I don't want to know?"

Emma chuckled and replied, "Because it's porn. There. Ya happy?"

Regina's eyes went wide. That certainly hadn't been the answer she was expecting.

"Like… Like a romance novel?"

"No. Like slutty, smutty, dirty, nasty fanfiction."

"Oh," Regina said, blushing.

When the girl went quiet, Emma turned around. Finding her red in the face, she smiled.

"Not at all what you expected me to say, huh?"

"Um… No. Not… Not really."

"What did you expect me to say?"

Clearly curious, the blonde kept her eyes focused on Regina, who was nearly squirming with discomfort.

"I'm not sure. I guess… not that. I shouldn't be surprised."

"And why is that?"

"Well, you've got experience, right? So why wouldn't you write about what you know?"

The words weren't filled with judgment. They were genuine, and Emma smiled, realizing that she wasn't being looked down on.

"I guess you're right. I mean, I gotta tell you… I don't have experience with everything I write. Sometimes, you just gotta use your imagination. It's all about channeling your own fantasies, you know?"

"Oh."

Regina hadn't sounded like she was judging, but the sudden silence made Emma uneasy.

"You're totally weirded out, aren't you?"

"No. Not at all. I've just… never actually… read… fanfiction. Or any erotica, really."

"What? Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"Not even when you masturbate?"

"Whoa. You can stop right there. And no, because… well. Nevermind." When Emma raised an eyebrow, Regina snapped, "What?!"

"Nothing. I'm just… I mean… I don't know."

"I don't masturbate, okay? Jesus."

"Never?"

"Don't you think this conversation is getting a little personal?"

"Sorry," Emma mumbled quickly, turning back around to face the computer. She couldn't bring herself to type though. She'd lost her focus.

With a sigh, Regina said, "It's okay. And no, never."

"I don't either," Emma replied, not turning around. "At least, not anymore. But that's just because… Well. You know."

"Uh… not really."

"Not to brag, but I get enough action that I don't really need to. I'm kind of a slut."

"It doesn't make you a slut. You have a right to express your sexuality in any way you see fit. It's your life. Your body. Your choices."

"Wow, Mills. That's very open minded of you. Most people don't see it that way. Thanks."

"You're welcome, I guess. I was just saying." There was a pause before Regina added, "So… Do you want to talk about what happened with Belle? I mean, you seemed really upset when I came in. You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but I figured I'd ask. If you want to vent, I'm here."

Emma sighed and replied, "It's nothing, really. Belle's just a bitch."

"Yeah?" Regina asked gently.

It was her way of carefully inviting Emma to say more, without actually initiating a game of Twenty Questions or the Art School Roommate Inquisition.

"Pretty much," the blonde huffed, shutting her laptop and turning her chair around to face Regina. "Well, I mean… I guess she's not a total bitch. At least, not all the time. She's just wigging out because… because… Ugh. You probably don't need to hear this."

"It's okay. Whatever you want to share, I can handle."

Regina wasn't sure if this was true, but she definitely wasn't going to miss an opportunity to be supportive.

"She's upset because I have more exciting sex with Ruby than I ever had with her. Which is stupid, because Belle and I don't even sleep together anymore. I mean, we used to bang a lot. We haven't since the end of last school year. And that's just because we were… Well, Nevermind."

"So… You told her you have better sex with Ruby than you do with her?"

"No! And I didn't say better. I said more exciting."

"Oh. Okay. Well… Why would she think that then?"

"Because I've told her about my sex with Ruby. I mean, she's my friend, right? We've talked about this forever. I didn't think she cared. I guess when she heard I was sleeping with you, she kind of snapped."

"Wait, what?"

"No, wait! I mean. Ruby said that, not me."

"Oh."

"Anyway, she's heard some of the stuff I've done with Rubes, so she can compare and is smart enough to put two and two together."

"So… If the sex was so bad… or mediocre… or whatever… why did you sleep with her so many times?"

"It wasn't bad, okay? It was just… a little… vanilla. I mean, she liked it rough enough, but it never got kinky. Which is fine! I mean, she never initiated anything kinky, so I never thought she… but now… now, she's acting like she wanted it crazy the whole time and I just never delivered, and now I'm giving it hard to Ruby, and she's jealous."

It was a lot to digest, and she'd said it very quickly, but once Regina had fully processed – or at least mostly processed – she said, "It makes sense."

"Wait, what? What makes sense?"

"That she'd be jealous. You talk about your sex with Ruby because it's good. And now you're not sleeping with Belle anymore, so naturally… she'd think sex with her was bad. It doesn't really matter if she's into you or not. I don't think that's the point. I think the point is that it hurts to have you be so into sex with someone else. Without you saying otherwise, it implies that sex with her was less than what it is with Ruby."

Blinking a few times before speaking, Emma replied, "I guess that makes sense. Now, I kinda feel like a jerk. But, like… I don't even know if she's into me or not now. She got so wound up. Like, why would it matter that much if she didn't want to sleep with me again?"

"Maybe it's a self-esteem thing. Or maybe she does want to sleep with you again. It doesn't necessarily mean she has feelings for you. Maybe she just wants those benefits again."

"She's the one who said we should stop. That she didn't want it to – and I quote – 'ruin our friendship.'"

"Well, how did you feel when she said that?"

"What are you, my shrink?" Emma laughed, shaking her head and walking over to her bed where she sat down slowly.

"No. I was just asking."

"Alright… Well… I mean… It felt kind of shitty, because the sex was good, and it did sort of feel like a rejection, even though it wasn't a romantic relationship. But I mean… to be fair… I started sleeping with Belle at the very beginning of Freshman year. We hit it off right away. But I never thought she'd be into… well… whatever. She didn't seem like the type."

"I guess you can't judge a book by its cover."

"Guess you're right."

"What do you think would happen if you explained that to her?"

"Um, nothing. She's a grudge-holder if I've ever met one. She's gonna stay pissed forever."

"No one, except super villains, stays pissed forever."

"Eh. You don't know this girl."

"It might be worth it to at least give it a try. I mean, you care about your friendship at least, right?"

"Well, yeah. Of course. She's definitely my closest friend."

"Then you should probably talk to her, especially if she's hurt and upset."

"Yeah… You're probably right."

With a sigh, Emma collapsed backwards on the bed, on top of the unmade covers, and shut her eyes.

"Thinking about this is exhausting. I think I'm gonna crash. Thanks, Mills."

"Any time, Swan."