This story deals with a sensitive topic that I felt needed to be addressed because so many stories make light of the situation. This story is a slow burn so please don't write any negative comments regarding this. This story is one hundred percent Swanqueen happy ending and all the reviews I have received on another site for this story all said it was well worth the wait. I hope everyone enjoys this story and makes it to the end, because I tried really hard to build a beautiful relationship between Emma and Regina that was true to life. So, here it is, enjoy!

Life. Something we have no control over. We are brought into this world without a say in the matter. We all endure heartache, suffering, love, joy and excitement. Even when life has tossed our world upside down, I'm a firm believer in knowing that it's not always as bad as it seems. We will survive as long as we push forward.

A wonderful tactic I always clutch onto when things become a little too much, is wondering what high waters other people maybe drowning in. We never truly know what our neighbor is experiencing in their life. Is the lady at the supermarket with a cart full of wine, hosting a party tonight? Is she a functioning alcoholic? Maybe she never drinks but is stocking up for when her friends visit. Is she attempting to drown her sorrows from a traumatic event in her past or her present? Maybe the woman is just a good time? There's so many assumptions that can be passed off when people only see the surface of our lives.

For instance, divorce, such an ugly word that forms automatic frowns on any person's face when they hear that word, but again that situation doesn't always have to be so sorrowful.

Being a woman who just turned thirty and has been divorced for four years is just another frown waiting to happen. Even though, my divorce is not worth the permanent lines that will be embedded around one's mouth. On the contrary, I've never been happier.

"Momma!"

"Regina!" My ex wife's voice booms through my townhome as my daughter's shoes clunk against the hardwood floors. My lips morph into a smile as I wait for my raven haired beauty to round the corner. "Regina, please kindly explain to your daughter that she has to wear a light jacket to school."

The front door slams shut while I roll my eyes and my daughter makes her appearance. Long, jet black hair sweeps down the middle of her back only being contained by a ruby red headband. Her chestnut colored eyes flick to the ground as she hears her other mother's words.

The soft clicking of heels resonates through my kitchen and I chuckle to myself. I still find the humor in my ex's new wife. Apparently she has a type.

"Good morning baby girl," I coo as my daughter wraps her arms around my waist. I brush back her dark strands and kiss the top of her head, taking in her wonderful scent of lavender. "Did you have fun with mommy and Ivy?"

"Mmhmm," my daughter grumbles, sending a wave of vibrations against my abdomen.

"Evie, are you fighting with your mother this morning?"

My daughter tightens her hold on me expressing how ashamed she is of her actions. Although Evie is an angel, sometimes her smart mouth runs without thinking first, which is expected for a seven year old. Her other mother and I only have ourselves to blame. Evie's sarcastic tongue could be inherited through my DNA or maybe my ex's nurture. Either way she didn't seem to stand a chance.

"Your daughter, understands that according to the calendar we are now in spring, which means warmer weather, in which results her into not needing a jacket."

I twist my lips as my ex brushes passed me. She places a quick peck to my cheek before she makes her way to my cabinets to pull out three travel mugs. One for her, one for her wife and one for me as well.

"Hello Regina," Ivy smiles brightly as she lightly squeezes my bicep on her way to the refrigerator.

"Hello Ivy." I greet the brunette and turn my attention back to my daughter. "Evie, really? This isn't something you should be arguing about. What is the point? Just go grab a jacket."

"But momma, it's spring!"

"I don't care if it's summer. It's forty degrees out, that temperature requires a jacket. Now go upstairs and grab one before school."

"But momma..."

"Eve Marie, stop arguing! Get your butt upstairs!" My ex interjects my daughter's insistent whining, raising her voice to a tone she hardly ever uses.

Eve grunts, pushing away from my embrace and stomping away with rage pounding against each step up to her bedroom.

"She's just like you!" My ex and I accuse in unison, pointing our fingers at one another with smug smirks across our faces.

All three of us laugh while Ivy prepares the coffee and my ex slides her long limbs onto the counter behind her.

"She's the spitting image of both of you," Ivy deadpans while attempting to keep a straight face. The younger woman rolls her eyes and blows inside her cup to cool down the steaming beverage.

I hug the younger woman from behind and rest my chin upon her shoulder. "That means my daughter is just like you as well." Ivy shakes her head in defiance while I chuckle. "Ruby, honestly, we divorced and you ran out and brought home the younger version of me."

"What can I say, I like sassy brunettes in heels," Ruby shrugs while kicking her feet like a small child.

Ruby and I stumbled into each other's lives freshman year of college. Our relationship was doomed from the start. We were young with only one thing in common, sex. We had both mistaken our wild throws of passion, lust and our ever pending high from orgasms as love. All four years of college were a whirlwind of sex, parties and lectures. Neither one of us had any true responsibilities so how could we understand what was waiting for us after graduation?

We barged our way into my parent's home after we graduated and insisted we were in love and ready to take the next step. My mother begged me to slow down but I refused to listen to reason. Ruby and I married three months later in my parent's backyard with only our family members present.

"Evie turns eight in two months, who's more nervous?" Ivy teases with her big brown eyes peering over the top of her travelers mug acting all innocent but I see her devious smile.

"I am. I'm physically nauseous. How is my baby almost eight? Ruby, was I not just pregnant with her?"

My ex nods with a heavy heart and slips off the edge of the counter. "I don't understand where the time has gone Regina. I'm so glad we were young and stupid though, she's the coolest kid ever." Ruby sweeps past me again and gently kisses my cheek, just as she always does.

"Is this fine moms?" Evie questions making her presence known once again. All three of us snap our heads up to assess Evie's purple, fleece North Face zip up. My daughter crosses her arms over her chest silently rebelling against our jacket request.

"See was that so hard?" Ivy asks playfully, heels clinking away as she steps in front of my daughter. "I have to leave for work little one," the other woman bends down and kisses my daughter's temple. "I'll see you Thursday for dance, bug."

"Bye Ivy."

"Are you ready baby girl?" I hold out my daughter's straps on her backpack and wait for her to slip her arms inside. Once the bag is resting upon her shoulders, I pull out her long black hair and watch as she skips to the front door. "Look at her bouncing away as if we weren't just arguing. Now who does that remind you of?" I imply with a knowing smirk as I press my side into Ruby's.

"Love you too Regina," she mocks through twisted lips before she shoves me toward our daughter.

"Come along dear," I chuckle wiggling my index finger suggestively for the childish woman to follow.

My ex and I walk our daughter to school just as we do every morning before work. We started this routine when Evie turned three and we enrolled her in preschool. After our divorce we agreed to continue this act to reinsure Evie that we still loved her and not much would change, besides two separate homes.

As we approached the school yard of overly enthusiastic children, who were jittery in their own skin like they each drank a pot of coffee this morning, Ruby knelt down in front of Evie. My ex readjusted our daughter's jacket and beamed from ear to ear with love.

"I have an early meeting this morning so I have to take off, alright?"

"Okay mommy."

Ruby presses her lips to Evie's forehead and nods as she stands from the ground. The tall, lanky brunette pecks the corner of my mouth before saying goodbye to both of us.

My ex wife was always an affectionate person and I believe that's why I found myself trapped in our marriage. I couldn't decipher between being in love with the woman or simply loving her as a dear friend.

As I watch my ex walk away, I notice a flustered blonde woman jogging toward the school with a little boy around Evie's age in tow. My lips curl to the side as I attempt to control the smirk that's quickly forming from the blonde's frazzled state.

The low hum of the first bell rings outside the cool morning air, signaling for the small children to line up.

The blonde huffs and puffs as she slows down her speed and turns to who I can assume is her son.

"Whoa kid, we made it," she pants as they come to a stop right next to my daughter and I.

"Hi Henry," my daughter politely greets the young boy with a shy wave.

My daughter is not one to be timid in any way. Ruby and I are both loud spoken and have no problem expressing ourselves in anyway. Yet, as I inspect my daughter carefully I can see how nervous she is around this young boy.

"Hi Evie!"

I turn my attention back to mother and son and tilt my head as my brain tries to play catch up. I don't ever remember seeing them here before. My daughter is at the end of second grade and I thought I knew all the other parents by now.

"Baby girl, you should be heading in for class." I inform my replica just as I bend down to kiss her forehead. "I'll see you after school."

"I know momma! Come on Henry, we can't be late."

The blonde woman ruffles her son's shaggy brown hair and smiles affectionately down at the little boy. His eyes frantically drift back and forth in hopes no other boys were around to see the affection from his mother. I smile at the interaction and find myself drawn to the sparkling green eyes next to me. Henry's are a darker shade of green than the blonde but he still resembles his mother in other ways.

"I'll pick you up after school Henry. I love you."

"I love you too mom," he responds with his little hands gripping the straps to his backpack nervously. "Let's go Evie."

The woman hooks her thumbs into the back pockets of her dark denim and watches intently as her son enters the building. Her style is...unique to say the very least. She's sporting brown riding boots that tie just below her knees, covering most of her impossibly tight skinny jeans. A tacky red leather jacket, covering most of her plain white tee, which is highly distracting from the loud color.

Her blonde hair is curled at the bottom and falls a few inches below her shoulder. Somehow I'm sucked into those piercing green eyes again but I'm desperately trying not to stare.

"I'm sorry, have we met?" The words are spewing from my mouth before my brain as time to register them.

The blonde slowly turns knowing that I am speaking to her. A small smile, that doesn't quite reach her eyes, forms around her mouth until her eyes lock onto mine. This woman is rather stunning and I know I would have remembered her. Besides, my ex wife would have definitely commented on this woman if we had met her before.

"No. Uh, hi," the woman's hand flings from her back pocket and jabs into the space between us. I hastily switch my coffee mug into my other hand so I can accept the gesture. "Emma."

"Hello Emma, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Regina. It seems our children are acquainted," I allow the words to dangle in the air, waiting for the woman to add to the comment but she doesn't. "I thought I knew all the mothers by now."

Our hands are still bouncing up and down between our bodies awkwardly. Both our eyes seem to drift to our locked hands and that's when we both realize this handshake has gone on longer than necessary. We both snatch our hands back as if a bolt of lightening zapped through our fingertips forcing us apart. Emma tucks her thumb into her back pocket again whereas I curl my fingers around my warm mug.

"I...uh...we just moved here from Boston," Emma stammers with a crooked smile that forces my lips to mimic hers. She's quite adorable.

"Well welcome to Schaumburg. It's a lovely town full of activities and we are only forty minutes from Chicago. Well that's if you don't drive during rush hour."

"Yes, we actually looked at some places in Chicago because we lived in the heart of Boston. I'm used to the city life, but damn."

"I know," I shake my head and fumble with my coffee mug. "The areas that are respectable enough to live in are way over priced, unless you don't mind a studio where you eat, sleep and pee all in the same room. Otherwise, there are some very sketchy neighborhoods."

"Yes!" The blonde exhales appearing a little more relaxed with me than a few moments ago. "Our realtor suggested this area."

"How come the long move?" I question while sipping my now lukewarm coffee forcing a frown upon my lips. I absolutely hate when my coffee turns cold.

"I saw a job opportunity that I couldn't pass up. This hospital was paying a lot more than I was making in Boston."

"Oh what do you do?" I inquire finding the conversation between us is rather easy and she seems like a sweet woman.

"Shit!" Emma jerks her phone from her back pocket, pressing the side button to illuminate her screen. "I'm sorry I have to go, work. Very nice meeting you Regina."

"I'm sure I will see you around Emma."

The anxious blonde flashes me a weak smile before she spins on her tip toes and jogs away from the school. My first impression of this newcomer is that she's flakey, but who knows she might just be having one of those days.