Thank you to the ones who had encouraged me to write this :)

Enjoy and make sure you have some tissues

Epilogue

The last time she had worn white she been in a very dark place. The last time she had worn a wedding dress was when she was marrying the King. It was a time when she thought her life was over. Back then she had been forced into a marriage that had felt like a prison for years. When she became the Evil Queen she thought she had gotten her life back but really she hadn't. She didn't know it then but the darkness had taken over, leaving an angry heartless person in her place but now as she stood in a beautiful white gown she felt as if she were living for the first time. This time her life felt right. This time she wasn't being forced into marrying a man old enough to be her father or casting a dark curse just to start over, no… this time she was doing the right thing and marrying the man she chose.

This was her true second chance and she couldn't be more happier.

It did take a while to get here and she couldn't help but smile fondly at her reflection in the full length mirror. Her eyes were distant as she thought about the three different attempts that Jason took in trying to propose to her. The first time he had tried making it romantic by taking her out of town but she had gotten sick once they crossed the town line. Her magic had simply switched off making her severely nauseas so he turned back and decided to hold it off. The second time he had decided to take her camping in their favorite spot, the place where the trees hid a small clearing in the woods. Unfortunately it was so cold they had to leave and he once again had to postpone it. The third time, well he just did it. He got tired of holding it off and he just simply asked her one Sunday night in front of her family during dinner.

They had been talking about their days and nothing important like they do every Sunday night at the mansion and then before she knew it Jason was quieting everyone at the table. She looked at him in confusion as his eyes locked on hers.

"Twice Regina," he laughed affectionately. "I've tried twice because I wanted to make it special and romantic for you but now, watching you in this moment and seeing how happy you are, it made me realize that it doesn't matter where I do it as long as you're happy and we're together."

"Honey, what are you talking about?" she asked from her end of the table. Her family watched just as confused as he only shook his head in amusement and simply stood. He walked up to her and she turned in her seat so she could face him. He got down on one knee and took her hand and she didn't even hear the gasps of surprise from her family. In this moment her whole world was the man in front of her and what he was doing.

"Oh my god," she whispered, her heart racing and she could feel herself shaking.

"When I met you Regina, I knew that I had to get to know you. There was something about you and I know it was hard to let me in but you did. You gave me that chance to see you for you, not the Mayor or the Evil Queen, but you. I love you. You matter to me and I know you say villains don't get happy endings but you see, you're not a villain. You're my Gina and you're my happy ending and I would be honored if you let me be yours by becoming my wife." Tears were streaming down her cheeks at this point and to be honest there wasn't a dry eye at the table even if a certain blonde tried to hide her tear filled eyes. He pulled out a small black velvet box and opened it, revealing a beautiful engagement ring.

"Regina Mills, will you marry me?" He watched as a smile brightened up her whole face, the love radiating from her whole being.

"Jason, I… yes… yes of course," she stammered, unable to get the words out.

"My god, you made her stutter," Emma said in amazement, watching the tough mayor she knew so well instantly become undone by this man.

"Shh," Snow shushed her, lightly slapping her arm making everyone laugh. Regina smiled at her family and turned to Jason just as he was sliding the ring on her finger. He pulled her into his arms, kissing her sweetly on the lips before pulling away and wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"I love you," she whispered.

"Regina," she suddenly heard Snow gasped and instantly snapped out from the memory. "You look so beautiful." She was standing behind her and Regina turned to face her.

"Do you think he'll like it?" she asked, suddenly sounding shy as she turned to look back at the mirror. They were in Boston to make it easier for Jason's family to attend and plus the chapel refused to marry them. So after creating a potion to keep her from getting sick, she was able to cross the town line with her family now that they were allowed to leave.

"Oh, honey of course he'll like it," Snow said. They were in the bride's dressing room in the church. She hugged Regina from behind, resting her chin on her shoulder. "He won't care what you're wearing, just that you're walking down that aisle towards him." Regina smiled softly, her hands holding Snow's that were resting on her abdomen.

"What is it?" Snow asked, seeing the stormy eyes of her stepmother in their reflection.

"It just seems so surreal," she answered. "This is it. This is my happy ending."

"And you deserve it Regina, despite everything that has happened, you deserve this. You deserve love and a fresh start. Don't listen to what the nuns said back at home." Regina scoffed at those words, remembering what the priest and nuns had told her back home in Storybrooke when they refused to marry her and Jason. They had said she was a villain and wasn't welcomed in such a sacred place. The Evil Queen didn't get a happy ending and that Jason had no idea who we was really marrying.

"They're not even real nuns," Regina mumbled as she pulled away to pick up the bouquet of flowers. She turned facing Snow once more.

"And they are not going to ruin this day," Snow said, smoothing the front of her dress before stepping back to look at her. "Are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," she smiled and let Snow lead her out to her waiting fiancé.

He wasn't even nervous, in fact he was anxious as he stood on that alter in the church gardens in front of his family and friends as well as Regina's. It hurt to see that there was only a few people here for her which was why he kept his side of the guest list short. He had only invited his family and a few close friends. The ceremony was small but sweet and after they were taking the reception to a hall they rented that Emma had recommended.

It was a beautiful afternoon for a wedding but the moment the music started and everyone stood, the bright scenery around him faded into the background because there stood his soon to be wife dressed in white and God was she gorgeous.

Their eyes met and they simply smiled at each other as if they were the only two people standing there. She walked down that aisle, his heart clenching as she came closer with each small step until she was finally standing right beside him.

"I love you," he mouthed the words as they joined hands.

"I love you too," she mouthed in reply, barely even paying attention to what the priest was saying and after what seemed like eternity staring into each other's eyes, it was finally time to say their vows.

"I've only been in love once and when it was taken from me my whole world had plunged into darkness. I became someone I never wanted to become. I became dark. My heart became dark and love wasn't an option in my life anymore but then I got Henry and the family that I had always had but was too blind to see it. They showed what love was and then you came and you just… You showed me it was never too late for redemption. It's never too late for love and I thank you for that Jason. You saved me in more ways than one. You healed my heart and I will always love you for that." This was just the edited version since she knew she couldn't say much about the curse and their world in front of Jason's family and friends and with tear stricken eyes she slowly slid the ring on his finger. She was gentle and her touch was loving and she could sense he was barely keeping himself from kissing her right there and then. He took a deep shaky breath as he took in her words and just by looking at each other she could tell he was touched by her vows.

"The moment I saw you I thought you were beautiful but then when I first spoke to you were rude and mean and maybe even manipulative," he said, holding both of her hands in his and the audience chuckled at his words. "But you were mysterious. You grew on me and I couldn't stop thinking about you. I needed to get to know you and when you finally let me in I saw you. For the first time I saw the woman you were behind that tough façade. You're a person that loves fiercely because when you love, you love deeply. You say that your heart is small and dark but from where I'm standing, it looks quite the opposite. I love you Regina and I know you still have trouble believing that all of this is true but it is and I will never ever stop loving you."

The tears were streaming down her cheeks as he slid the ring on her finger, his eyes never leaving hers. She had never felt so whole and loved and when the priest finally allowed them to kiss, he pulled her into his embrace and poured all of his love in that one single kiss. She could feel her heart melting, the last of the darkness fading into nothingness. With the help of her new family and her son, he had healed her. He showed her what it was like to truly love someone and to truly be loved. And as they pulled away and looked into each other eyes, smiles brightening both of their faces, she knew this wasn't the end. There was so much more to come.

This was just the beginning to her happily ever after.