A/N: So I've been working on this fic for a really long while (since the summer) and I'm only now publishing it because it's gonna be a multi-chapter fic and I am notorious for not finishing fics and I wanted to wait until I had gotten most of it written out. So, I hope y'all enjoy :)

Mary Margaret had been the first of Emma's friends to finally see colors.

It had been a random Friday afternoon and they were walking across campus to head back to their dorm room. It was their freshman year at NYU and Emma was already close to her roommate, spending nearly every moment together. They were just chatting away, complaining about an upcoming test for their English class (which was twice as important for Mary Margaret since she was an English major) when it happened. Mary Margaret had met eyes with a guy across the quad and just stopped walking. Emma had continued walking for a few more steps before she realized Mary Margaret wasn't beside her. But when Emma had turned around, all she could see was how Mary Margaret's face was so alive.

Instantly, Emma knew what had happened.

The black and white (well, more like a grayscale) of the world had faded away and Mary Margaret could finally see the bright and vibrant colors.

The guy who Mary Margaret had looked at had swiftly made his way over to Emma and Mary Margaret. He instantly introduced himself as David Nolan, first year politics student. Emma saw the look in Mary Margaret Margaret's eyes and knew that she, indeed, had met her one True Love.

Over the years, as life continued and Emma allowed more people into her life (which had shocked her more than anything else, really-a life in the foster system taught her not to allow people in ever, even her adoptive parents), more and more of her friends had met their soul mates. Ruby had met hers when she had to go to the ER after cutting herself on broken glass and Dr. Victor Whale had been her attending physician. Anna had met Kristoff when she went to a nearby animal shelter to find a dog and Kristoff was working the front desk. And well…Mulan's situation had been more complicated than Emma could've ever thought soul mates could be.

But, Emma had been twenty-six when it finally happened to her. After she had lost faith in soul mates after the Neal debacle and lost faith in the idea that anyone would ever love her. After she had decided to shut her heart and lock it and swallow the key, never to allow anybody in.

And, well, she hadn't exactly been expecting it with this one.

Emma was going to tear her hair out of her head. Ruby and Mary Margaret were cooing over stupid little baby clothes at Target, which they had so rudely dragged Emma to after their usual Wednesday lunch. Both Ruby and Mary Margaret were pregnant, so literally all they discussed were babies and baby clothes and strollers and Jesus Christ Emma wanted to kill herself. But Emma guessed that that was going to happen when her two closest friends had met their soul mates and were stable in their lives, very much unlike Emma's current situation.

"Ooohhh, look at this one, Ruby," Mary Margaret said excitedly as she moved to the next aisle, looking over tiny onesies with little hearts on them.

Emma rolled her eyes so hard that she could feel them almost disconnect and roll across the floor. "Guys, why the hell are we here?"

"Oh come on, Emma," Mary Margaret whined as she picked up an onesie and held it over her barely-there baby bump. "This is fun."

Emma sighed and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, shuffling on her feet because she just wanted to get the fuck out of there. "Mary Margaret, you are literally three months pregnant. And Ruby"-Emma looked over at her other friend, who was holding little baby booties (alright, those were adorable)-"you literally just had a baby shower last week."

Ruby sighed as she looked down at the knitted booties. Emma secretly wondered what color they were and felt a flare of jealousy for those who could see the colors. "I know. But, just look at them."

Emma took a deep breath to focus on not rolling her eyes again. She didn't know what could set of Ruby's hormones, so she didn't want to tempt a breakdown in the middle of Target. "Fine."

Ruby giggled excitedly as she moved to stand beside Mary Margaret, who was now looking at the various blankets hanging up. They chatted about the beautiful blues and reds and yellows and Emma just wanted to get the hell outta there. She hated being constantly reminded that she didn't have the life that Mary Margaret and Ruby had, the life that Emma desperately wanted.

But she was too damn afraid to go for it, to unlock her heart and allow someone else in again.

"Oh Emma, how did that date go with Walsh?" Mary Margaret asked as she placed a blanket into the basket she was holding in her hands.

In Mary Margaret's language, that meant "Do you see colors now?"

Emma sighed and crossed her arms, leaning against the shelves. "I would've told you if I could see them now. So, what do you think?"

Mary Margaret looked at Emma with those fucking eyes and Emma could practically feel the pity rolling off of Mary Margaret in waves. "It'll happen someday. Probably when you least expect it."

Emma couldn't help but roll her eyes at that stupid pep talk. God, she had heard it all before: you'll find them someday, it'll happen when you aren't expecting it, you just need to go out more often. Ugh, Emma was so sick of all the stupid reassurances.

"Yeah, okay," Emma said with sarcasm. Mary Margaret and Ruby picked up on it and both raised their eyebrows at her. "What? Spit it out if you wanna say it."

Mary Margaret sighed and looked over at Ruby, who then wobbled her seven-month pregnant self over to Emma, holding the booties that she had first picked up. Emma knew that she was about to get a real serious talk because Ruby had those eyes turned on her and shit Emma hated it when Ruby turned serious.

Ruby pushed her long hair back over her shoulder. "Emma, you know it'll happen someday, right?"

Emma groaned, throwing her head back to stare at the tiled ceiling. "Oh my God, I am not having this conversation right now."

Ruby sighed and placed her hand on Emma's shoulder, her nails painted some kind of lighter color, as the gray is lighter along her fingernails. "Emma, have faith. You know how I was before I met Victor. I slept with any guy who paid me any attention 'cause I didn't believe this would happen to me. I thought that that was all I was gonna get. And look at me now." Ruby broke into a wide, blinding smile. "I'm going to be a mother. I'm married to the man of my dreams, my soul mate, and I'm gonna be a mother. And I promise, it'll happen to you someday. You just have to be patient."

And Emma couldn't help but roll her eyes. She knew her friends were just trying to help, but Emma was just tired. Tired of their sickly sweet lives, tired of their unwavering belief that Emma would find her true love, tired of all of it.

"On that note, I'm gonna head out," Emma announced, clasping her hands together. "Have fun shopping for your babies and having fun with your soul mates."

Ruby sighed as Emma turned away to walk back out of the store. "Emma."

Emma ignored her friend's pleas and continued to march toward the exit. She tried to ignore the niggling feeling in the back of her mind that she shouldn't be mean to them, that they're were telling the truth. But she was just too done with the whole stupid idea of stupid soul mates. Ugh, it was just so stupid.

Emma marched out of the Target with purpose, taking out her wallet and keys as she searched for a free cab. And of course, right outside of the store, there were zero, given that it was a Wednesday at lunch time in the Bronx. And it was a humid early July day.

Fuck.

Emma huffed as she walked down the crowded streets, avoiding the rude businessmen on their lunch breaks who clearly were not paying attention to where they were walking. She just wished that her fucking life was easier. She was underemployed as a waitress at two different restaurants (which is not what she wanted to do with her music degree), she lived in a small ass studio apartment that she could barely afford, and she had zero love life. Well, she had plenty of one-night-stands, but she would always sneak out at the first morning light. That way, she never had to open her heart and allow disappointment and heartbreak back in.

She didn't want a repeat of Neal.

Emma looked up from the sidewalk and could see a barrage of paparazzi chasing down some Hollywood starlet. Emma rolled her eyes, not even excited about the fact that some celebrity was just down the street from her. She lived in New York City, for fuck's sake; she always had random celebrity encounters. Actually, just the other day, she spotted Lindsay Lohan hailing a taxi. So, she didn't really acknowledge that paparazzi were coming closer and closer and not paying attention to anything.

Well, until one of the paparazzi in a rush to get a photograph backed into her and knocked her over, sending her falling onto the dirty concrete sidewalk.

"Bloody hell, mates. Could you pay attention?" Emma heard a somewhat familiar accent as she slowly began to turn onto her knees to get back up.

She saw a pair of motorcycle boots appear in her vision and then a pair of rough, callused hands gripped onto her hands. Emma looked up to see who the celebrity was that was helping her up and holy shit.

The very first color Emma Swan ever saw was blue.

Emma gasped audibly as she took in the face of the infamous Killian Jones, heartthrob actor and most recent guest in Emma's fantasies. And God, the way he was looking at her. It was as if she lit up the stars at night and was the reason for the sun and the moon. So, Emma naturally did what any other normal girl would do if she just found out her soul mate was the very man she dreamed about quite often.

She stood up, turned on her feet, and booked it the hell outta there.

And if she heard him calling for her, she just ignored it.