Emma glowered at Rumpel as she stood across from him in the shop in Storybrooke, "How dare you say something like that! I'm going to make you wish you were dead." She grit out.

"Oh dearie… I already do. It happens to all dark lords, but the thing, we can't die unless someone kills us with our own dagger… would you like to do the honors?"

"You have no fucking idea." She stormed to the door of the shop, "Regina loves me!"

"Do you really think that?" He cackled, "She's only with you because I asked her to." He took in Emma's horrified look, "Yeah, I even used my manners… I said please." His nose twitched as he blinked before he smirked when she slammed the door shut.

~0~0~0~0~0~

Emma barged into the mansion. She didn't find her anywhere so she went to the garage. After finding an axe, she walked out the back door to get to the next thing that Regina cared about… the only thing she probably genuinely cared about: Her beloved apple tree.

She stared at the tree for a good ten minutes. She wanted to beat the living hell out of it, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Just as she raised the axe over her head to give the tree a wound, Regina came storming out.

"What the hell are you doing?... Again?" Her voice was rough, her eyes were fearful and demanding.

Emma's anger spurred at Regina's anger—that woman had no right to be angry. She struck the tree with all her might and the axe firmly planted inside the tree's trunk.

"Picking apples!" Emma yelled at her.

"Oh are we really going to have this conversation again?" Regina's voice rose as well.

"I don't know!" Emma spat then got all up in Regina's business, "Are you really only with me because Rumpel-fucking-stilskin said, 'Please?'" Emma swallowed the hard lump in her throat, but that didn't stop the tears from surfacing.

Regina stared at her, caught off guard, "Emma… where did you hear that?" She sounded offended.

"Don't fuck with me, Regina! I know it's true! I know what his one condition was for the curse to be cast! I know it all! So don't act all holier than thou because you think you can get out of it!" Emma turned around and took a step back then turned back around, "I'm fucking in love with you! Do you know that? And you…" She shook her head, "You're probably laughing at me on the inside. We both know that if he hadn't of said anything, you wouldn't have ever gone with me on that date. You wouldn't have ever flirted or kissed me… And we wouldn't have…" She turned back around and let her tears fall for a moment, "How could you do that? How couldn't you have told me? I mean, I really have to fucking find out from him?"

"Emma, I—"

"NO! You don't get to talk! You don't get to do anything!" Emma screamed. She took in a deep breath, "How's it feel being on the receiving end of those lines?"

Regina shook her head, "It's like cotton candy, dear…" Her sardonic tone cut Emma's last thread of sanity.

Emma couldn't have controlled herself if her life depended on it. She punched her lover in the nose and tackled her to the ground. Regina struggled with her at first. They rolled around and Regina tried to get on top of her to hold her down, but then stopped when she realized that Emma wasn't going to let up, and let the blonde do what she was going to do.

Emma punched her again, then reared her hand back for another blow. When all Regina did was tilt her head a little and stare at her, Emma opened her palm and slapped her with no vigor, "Fight back!" She slapped once more, but again it wasn't painful… it was a pat… a love pat even, "Fight back you stupid fucking wicked witch! Fight back!" Emma collapsed on top of her and started crying.

Regina wrapped her arms around Emma and pulled her close. She rubbed her back soothingly and kissed Emma's cheek despite the blood she tasted inside her mouth… she didn't matter at this moment, only Emma.

"Fight back." Emma tried again through the weakest cry Regina had ever heard come from anyone, let alone her strong, independent, loner, tough, scrappy girlfriend.

"No." Regina whispered out and held Emma tighter.

The blonde wracked with the tears that over took her body, "I hate you." It was barely recognizable and there was no volume to it at all, but the words left her and Regina heard them.

"I know you do." Regina held her tight as she moved them to the apple tree and propped against it so they were sitting up, "I know you do."

"I hate you so bad!" The blonde mess of a balled up woman said.

"I know my darling."

"I don't ever want to see you again!" Emma pulled her close and kissed Regina's neck, "I don't ever wanna touch you or kiss you or feel you…" She took in the most ragged breath Regina had ever witnessed. She watched intently as Emma put her hands on either side of her face and started soothing the swelling cheek and nose. Emma wiped the blood from Regina's nose and stroked her thumb along the brunette's bottom lip, "But it's all I want too." She leaned in and kissed the brunette.

Regina pulled away, "I need to know what he told you he said 'please' to." She whispered.

"Everything." Emma wiped her own nose with her sleeve and looked away.

"That's just not true, my love." Regina cocked her head to the side and waited for Emma to look her in the eyes once more before she continued, "He told me to say 'yes' to the date the first time you asked… He didn't say I actually had to go, he didn't say I had to have fun…. And he didn't say I had to kiss you… He didn't ask me to pursue you, or to fall in love with you; he didn't ask me to make love to you… Those were all my choices…."

"You're choices?" Emma asked like a toddler would… her eyes big and willed with wonder, her head slightly tilted… the epitome of cuteness.

"Yes my darling… my choices… and even if they weren't—which they were!—they would have been my choices anyways…"

"So… you love me because you want to, not because you were asked to…?"

"Yes." Regina gave no hesitation with her answer and Emma's eyes filled with tears again.

"The only three people that have ever voluntarily loved are you, Henry and Mary Margaret… but I think she did because she just had a gut feeling that I was her daughter that's the same age as her…" Emma looked up into the deep brown, moonlit orbs; they were filled with amusement, "What?"

"You…" Regina grinned, "You are the only person that could take an axe to my apple tree, punch my face multiple times and then curl up into me, letting me end the night with a smile."

Emma grinned, "What can I say… I'm just that good." She leaned in and kissed Regina once more.

"You really are, my love." Regina said into the kiss.