Christmas in Storybrooke: 7/11
Another chapter that justifies the M rating, and it's Henry, so . . . be prepared. This is also where the angst begins, so buckle your seatbelts. You may have noticed that each of the chapter titles is a Christmas song. This one is probably a little obscure. It's a song by Matt Wertz. I don't even know who he is, honestly, but they play this song on the radio station my kids and I listen to. It's super cheesy, even my kids think so, and its peppy fluffiness clashes with the angst of this chapter. However, the title and even the lyrics fit the idea of Henry's crazy life. You'll understand I think after you read the chapter.
Summary: My Hallmark Christmas movie fic in which flights get cancelled and Henry’s “best friend’ gets snowed in with him in his quirky hometown for Christmas. Only with magic and fairy tale characters.
Rating: M for suggestive scenes and adult situations, not smut
Trigger warnings: Henry is an adult. Read that again: Henry is an adult. Look at the picset: that’s Andrew J. West. If Henry actually behaving like an adult makes you feel icky, the don’t read this.
Can also be read on Ao3
Tagging @snowbellewells @kmomof4 @kday426 @bethacaciakay @snidgetsafan @teamhook @whimsicallyenchantedrose @delirious-latenight-laughs @jennjenn615 @winterbaby89 @yohoyohoafandomlifeforme @distant-rose @let-it-raines
Chapter Seven: Snow Globe
Henry slept better than he had the entire time he’d been back home. Partly because the guest bed was far more comfortable than his old futon and partly because his activities with Evie left him thoroughly spent in the best way. He had fallen asleep with her in his arms, and he was pretty sure the loss of her soft curves pressed against him was what had awakened him now. The bed was also creaking with her movement, and he rolled over to see her swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Her hair, beautifully tousled and wavy, fell over one shoulder, leaving her back bare. He slid over to slip his arm around her waist and press kisses to her shoulder blade. The sun was just peeking through the window, so he knew it was early.
“Where are you going?” he whispered against her skin. He ran his hand down her spine. “Waking up to this sight makes me realize how many freckles I missed. I didn’t explore your back.”
“Henry,” she sighed with a hint of irritation. Yet she leaned back into him anyway and came willingly as he pulled her back down and into the circle of his arms. She shuddered as he trailed kisses down her back, his fingers tracing her freckles.
“You know this can’t go anywhere,” she said, turning in his arms with her eyes shut tight.
Henry felt as if he’d gotten emotional whiplash. Had he been misreading her all this time?
“Look at me,” he whispered as he traced her cheek with his fingertips. Reluctantly, she did as he asked, and he felt his heart stutter at those beautiful, mysterious eyes of hers. “If you think this was some friends with benefits fling, you’re wrong. That's not me.’
She gave him a tremulous smile. “I know that.”
He let out a relieved breath. “Good.” He swallowed down the nerves that came before he spoke again. It was risky, but she had to know. “And to be completely clear – I love you, Evangeline.”