Not a Kiss fan? Not that kind of kiss.
She pushed down the memories, reminding herself they were a thing of the past and she was getting better now, making new memories.
Neither August nor Regina talked about when he would leave, but when she caught him looking at the Real Estate section of the newspaper two months later, her deep-seeded anxiety took control of her in a fiery blaze.
"What the hell is that?" Regina snapped when she detoured away from the stairs and entered the dining room.
"Mommy!" Henry gasped trailing behind her, his hands over his mouth. "That's a swear."
A mixture of frustration and anger crossed her features before she took a breath and bent down to Henry. "I know, sweetie. I'm very sorry. Can you go upstairs and change into your swimming trunks please?"
He nodded eagerly before running off, leaving a fuming Regina and a befuddled August in his wake. The Sergeant looked as if he wanted to follow the six-year old to his room and hide for his crimes he wasn't sure if he actually committed. The man sat at the side of the dining table, his elbows on the table with the paper out in front of him, but his eyebrows were raised in confusion. "What?"
"This," Regina hissed, snatching the paper away only to slam it back down with disdain.
The few circled vacancies stared up at her mockingly though it only made August scratch his head.
"A newspaper?"
She rolled her eyes. "I can see that, Mr. Booth."
"Mr. Booth—?" he began baffled. "What the—"
"Were you planning on telling me that you were moving out?"
"Jesus, Regina," August huffed, straightening out the paper, "I haven't even found a place yet."
"You promised Henry to teach him how to play soccer, and who's going to pick him up when he starts school again?"
Scrunching up his face, August stood, holding up a hand to collect his thoughts. "Who did it before I was here?"
"That's not the point!"
"I can still do all those things even if I live across town—are you really fighting me about this? Did you think I was going to move into your guest bedroom forever?"
"Well, I had no idea what to expect until you showed up on my porch!"
"I appreciate you taking me in, and I love you and the kid, but I need my own space."
"Fine." She grabbed the newspaper and thrust it at his chest. "Go. That's what you're good at."
"Wha—Regina?!" He walked after her when she stormed out of the living room, but he didn't get far when she slammed her office door shut and barricaded herself in there.
"Regina?" Archie crossed his legs as he sat back in his office chair. "How has this week been?"
"August is planning on leaving," she stated factually, though the twitch in her hand said otherwise.
"Where does he plan to go?"
"He's looking to rent his own place."
"That's great news," Archie praised.
"Great?" She drawled dryly. "Once again, the balance of my household is disrupted."
Archie squinted and leaned forward in his seat, planting both feet on the ground. "How so?"
"Everything was going well. I was adjusting. Henry was adjusting. I even enrolled him in horseback riding again," she explained moving her hand with every addition to the list. "Now he's going to lose Uncle August too."
"Regina," Archie said carefully. "August isn't going anywhere."
"He's leaving."
"He's moving out," the therapist clarified. With a sigh, he leaned back into the chair. "I actually think this might be good for you. With August out of the house, you'll be granted more space."
"I just told you I was in a better place, yet you want me to return to where I was? Waiting for—" She scoffed and smacked the cushion beside her with a palm. Pongo raised his head at the noise and sneezed. "I'm fine."
"You're holding onto Emma," Archie stated simply. "You cannot use August as a means to have her back."
"If you're insinuating there is any inkling of a romantic relationship going on between myself and Mr. Booth—"
"I'm not," Archie quickly reassured. "I doubt your heart would allow you that just yet. But you said he and Emma are foster siblings. There's evidently a piece of Emma within him that you're keeping close that finds comfort in the fact that he's physically there. He's not leaving, Regina. He's establishing roots in our town. You said yourself that he's got himself a job with Marco. Do you think that those are signs of his abandonment?"
"I don't understand his need for space,"she replied haughtily, ignoring his question entirely. "I have more than enough rooms to accommodate."
"He's an adult and very capable of making his own decisions."
"So was—" she stopped herself and focused on a piece of loose string stemming the stitching of the cushions. The doctor really needed new furniture.
"Regina." She looked up at his soft voice and frowned. "You've made progress, but at the same time, there's a part of you that's holding yourself back from ever fully healing."
"I'm doing everything you tell me," she sighed exasperated.
"And I'm proud of you." He leaned forward in his chair to place a palm on her knee before lowering his voice as if his words were some hidden secret. "You can say her name."
Her eyes flashed and she sat back, her breathing increasing just a second faster than average. "I do."
"Do you?" He asked. "With Henry or August? The few letters you've shared with me, I know you have no problem thinking it. In the seven months you've been coming here, you've only said her name twice. How come?"
"I can say her name." With a deep breath and heavy concentration, she spoke. "Emma." She tilted her head in minor victory.
"How was that?"
"Forced," she answered through gritted teeth.
"In more than one way?" He asked knowingly.
At Regina's pointed glare, he moved on.
"How about your friends?" Archie questioned. "Kathryn, Ruby, Tina—has your relationship with them improved since that day you admitted Emma's disappearance?"
"We speak." When Archie was silent, Regina subconsciously tugged on her necklace, her thumb circling the pendant. "I don't understand why I need to expand my social circle right away when I'm perfectly content with my life right now."
"Your social circle is your support system," he explained, though Regina internally rolled her eyes. How many times had the doctor told her that? "From my standpoint, the only thing that has changed in your life is Mr. Booth's presence, and I'm not saying that's bad. Not at all. You've still mentioned that it's difficult for you to enjoy time out with your friends, that you worry whenever Henry is out of your sight, can barely talk to him whenever he brings Emma up, and now you're scared August is going to leave you. What do you think that tells you?"
"Trust and abandonment problems?" she guessed with haughty distaste. "Unless of course you're referring to parental problems and hints of OCD."
"The former, most definitely, though we can re-visit the latter," he chuckled hoping to ease the scowl on Regina's face then cleared his throat when it only worsened. "But I think the superficial problem is that while you're happier in your home with August, you need to remember that he's not Emma."
"I know he's not," she nearly growled. "I am very much aware of the fact that although he may act as childish as his sister, he is not her. Is it a crime that I find a person whom I can stand to be around for more than a few hours at a time and be disappointed if they go?"