Emma stood outside of the prison with a bag containing all of her belongings. She had to borrow clothing from the prison; her old stuff was still a bit tight even after losing some weight. Luckily it wasn't orange; it would be less noticeable. They found a white T-shirt instead and a good pair of jeans. Emma also had some extra cash from Neal and her yellow Volkswagen.

She was waiting for Sky to pick her up, Emma had learned to drive under Neal's care, but she never got a license. Emma wouldn't risk being thrown in jail right after getting out. So Sky would be driving over with her mother, and one would take the yellow Bug back.

It felt so strange to be free, no...it felt so weird to be away from Neal. Emma wouldn't be living in stollen hotel rooms; she'd have her own room and possessions.

Before Emma could get nostalgic, a car drove up and parked. Both Sky and her mother exited the vehicle. It was easy to see that they were related, similar bold clothing choices and physical features. Sky ran up to Emma, she didn't give her a hug; instead, Sky held out a bag.

"What's this?" Emma took the paper bag with curiosity.

"Open it in the car, I want us to have time to celebrate once we get home." Sky gave a big smile, "My mom made a cake."

Emma gave Sky a slight hug, "It's been a month, and it feels like a year."

"Was it that bad without me?" Sky asked, walking with Emma to the Bug.

"I had a bad roommate for a while...then one day I woke up and she wasn't in the room. I was alone for the last two weeks, except for group activities. Felt strange to be alone again, fending for myself." Emma got into the front seat next to Sky and handed Sky the keys.

Sky began to drive to her home, "Open the bag. I'm sure you'll love what I have packed."

Emma looked inside the bag and laughed, "This is amazing. How did you even remember all of this?"

"Luckily, your cravings seemed to stay the same for the most part, I even put in some saltines for you." Sky joked with her, "I know you love those."

"You got me a burger, hot cocoa, pop tarts, mint ice cream, and pickles. I doubt I'm eating any saltines anytime soon." Emma smiled, "thank you."

"You have no need to thank me, it was literally the least I could do for you. This month has been pretty strange for me as well. Missed having you around." Sky beamed, "I missed hanging out with someone who wasn't my mom."

"Glad to be of service," Emma took the burger out of the bag and took a bite. "I could get used to real food that's not mush or saltines."

~~~

Sky stood beside Emma's bed and began to sing very offkey, "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Emma, happy birthday to YOU!"

Emma smacked Sky with her pillow while her eyes were still closed, "What time is it?"

"Time for you to get out of bed; we have a whole lot of plans for today. We are going to be regular teenage adults!" Sky sounded way too excited for eight in the morning.

Emma slowly sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes, "How much coffee did you have?"

"Only 1 cup, and it was decaf. Get downstairs, we start off the day with birthday breakfast." Sky did her signature jazz hands and closed the door.

Emma slowly got out of bed, she was having some cramping, but she was getting used to the pain. She went to the bathroom, took care of what she needed to, and put on a robe. Emma tried to remember what happened on her birthday the year before, but multiple yawns kept her distracted. To get some caffeine, she headed downstairs to see balloons and streamers everywhere.

"Sky? Do you ever sleep?" Emma made her way through the balloons to the kitchen, where Sky had the table set and food cooking on the stove.

"I'm a morning person; get used to it, Emma. Not all of us function at 2am." Sky was flipping pancakes that looked partially burnt, "I hope you like them well done."

"I'll eat anything that's not mush, you know that." Emma sat down at the little table and noticed the collection of medicines and vitamins that Sky put next to her plate. "You do know that most of these are only things people who keep their babies are meant to take, right? I don't have any child that I'm feeding, I'm eating normally for one person."

"I just want to make sure you don't have to nap today, that you have enough energy for us to hang out from now until tonight." Sky brought two plates of food to the table, with eggs and slightly burned pancakes.

"All I need is a constant supply of hot cocoa with cinnamon, and I'll be up," Emma yawned, putting food on her plate. "Is there a reason you want me awake for that long?"

"Obviously, but I wouldn't want to spoil it. I'm not going to even bother telling you anything because you are way too good at reading people." She sat down across from Emma, "I'm surprised the police didn't get you to work for them."

Emma took a bite of the burnt pancake; it really wasn't so bad after she added syrup, "I wouldn't work for them anyway, not voluntarily. Bad pay, and I wouldn't be able to stand office hours." She got up, made some hot cocoa, sprinkled some cinnamon, and sat down, "I don't know why I can tell when someone is lying, it's not like I can tell by visual cues. It's like I hear it in their voice and know how genuine they are."

"Have you always been able to do it? Imagine winning trivia shows because you could tell what's the right answer by the announcer saying it." Sky poked at her eggs, "Imagine how well you'd be doing."

"It started when I met someone...it was strange. The person I met left me by a bus station, and after that, I could just tell. Like some sort of magic or superpower." Emma went back to her food, "I know that sounds insane..."

"Not at all. I think there must be some sort of magic in this world. We happened to meet each other. Before you came, I was nervous to talk to anyone." Sky grinned

"Well, I don't know where I would be if you weren't there, most likely back on the street living in my stollen car." Emma finished off her eggs, "What's our next activity for the day?"

"Go shower. After, I'm doing your makeup and nails. Before you object, while you are naturally beautiful, I know you used to do your makeup every day, and I want to give you that confidence back." Sky gave her a questioning look, "Please?"

"Nothing shocking, alright? I don't need black nails and neon eyes. Let's keep it simple. I kind of miss my red lips," Emma ran her fingers over her mouth.

"So, get upstairs." Sky began to pick up their plates, "I'll clean up."

~~~

"What's taking so long, Emma? It's just a dress." Sky called from the living room. Emma was upstairs getting ready to go out for the night.

"I can't find my glasses, which means I can't see as well," Emma called from the second floor. Sky would have to ask her mother to get Emma some contacts, if they could afford to, of course.

Sky went into the kitchen, where she saw her mother trying to nail on a new shelf. At this point, there were more holes in the wall then nails available. "Need help?"

"I don't want you to get your party dress dirty; you both need some time to hang out with kids your own age. Enjoy it." Sky's mother gave Sky a makeshift hug before getting back to her task.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, "Did you invite someone?" Sky looked over at her mother. "Could be the mailman, I don't know, Sky. Just go open it," her mother mumbled while concentrating.

Sky lazily walked over to the door and opened it; she felt her heartbeat speed up, "You can't be here. You really can't be here."

Neal stood at the front door in his signature flannel and jeans; he remained calm and put his hands in his pockets. "I didn't mean to crash your fun. I have Emma's boxes in the car. With her clothes and other items."

"Neal, today is her birthday. She is happy, having you here will just ruin that." Sky whispered, "Please leave before Emma sees you."

"Sky, I can't zip the dress." Emma quickly walked barefoot down the stairs. Her body turned to stone when she saw Neal.

Neal looked over at Emma with hope in his eyes, and that wasn't just because she had on a small black dress that hugged her curves and natural yet bold makeup. She was alright. After looking closer, he could see the differences, she seemed to have slightly gained weight, and that everlasting smile was gone.

The Sky looked between Emma and Neal. The tension was getting to her; it was uncomfortable seeing how Neal and Emma looked at each other. Neal looked like he just won the lottery, and Emma looked like she was trying to escape her body. She quickly walked up behind Emma and attempted to zip up the already tight-fitting dress, it was Sky's, but Emma didn't really have her clothes here. Until now. "The zipper can't close, how about you go upstairs and I'll get rid of him?" Sky whispered calmly to Emma

Emma broke out of her daze and walked right up to Neal, "You have no right to be here, I want you to leave now." She held her voice at a steady volume.

"I came to bring your stuff, I'll be gone as soon as you want. I'm very sorry, Emma." Neal looked down at the ground, shame all over his face.

"I'm going to go upstairs and change; when I'm back, I really hope you are gone." Emma turned around and slowly walked upstairs with her arms crossed. She didn't care that the whole back half of her dress was open; Neal had seen much worse.

"You are such an idiot." Sky said once she heard the slam of Emma's door. "Bring the boxes in and then leave. You heard the woman."

"She's different. Is she the same with you?" Neal was concerned, had he ruined Emma's chance at happiness just so she could wake up her parents from a daydream?

"Emma isn't the same person that I met when she first came to prison, Emma's become tougher. But I can't blame her for that." Sky crosses her arms, "Just bring her stuff in and let Emma live her life."

Neal nodded. It wasn't his place to go and check on Emma anymore. So he went out to the car and slowly brought the boxes in. He considered giving Emma their dream catcher, but he couldn't do it. He needed something positive to remember her by. Neal doubted that Emma would ever bump into him again.

When Neal got back to the house with the last box, he looked over at Sky, "Did she mention the Lily problem?"

"She did. Emma hasn't figured out that I know, I've made sure to chose my wording carefully. I feel like Pinocchio, trying to make sure my nose doesn't grow." Sky chuckled.

Neal laughed with her. August would definitely find that ironic, "I guess I'm done here."

"Wait, young man." Sky's mother came out of the kitchen, "Sky, who is this handsome man bringing boxes inside?"

Sky's face turned red, one of the problems of having a mother who wasn't even 20 years older than her, she would hit on everyone. "Meet Neal, Emma's ex-boyfriend."

"Neal, any chance you know how to put in a shelf? I've been trying for hours." Sky's mother gave Neal a seductive smile.

Neal cleared his throat, "Sure, I just have to get going afterward. New York isn't the closest drive."

"You drove here? You must be exhausted. Forget about the shelf. Anyone who would drive that long just to drop off boxes deserves a break. Especially the father." Sky's mother gave a sweet smile, "I'm going to get you some tea." She headed into the kitchen.

Neal looked over at Sky, "The father?" He looked baffled.

"My mother is a very religious woman, mentions church people all the time. Come this way." Sky awkwardly led Neal into the living room and had him sit on the couch. She hoped Neal wasn't a human lie detector like his ex.

"Strange habit." Neal rubbed his hands on his jeans, nervously, "I really don't think I should be here when Emma comes back down, think I can skip the tea?"

"Nope, she would chase after you with a pitcher. Let's just hope Emma can't find a different dress to wear." Sky kept her eyes on the stairs, no movement so far. Her phone began to ring, "I'll be back." Sky slipped out the front door to take the phone; she didn't want Neal to overhear.

So Neal waited for his tea until he heard a loud thud from upstairs. Whatever restraint he had earlier disappeared, he ran up the stairs.