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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄

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When they were first dragged to Hyperion Heights, Everly remembered everything that happened so vividly that she thought everyone did as well. That was until she called her eldest daughter by her real name, only for the young girl to look at her mother like she grew a second head. From there, the blonde woman found Austin and his son before literally running into Katherine and her son on the other side of town to find all four of them had no idea who she was. This was the same for Sam and his daughter when Everly saw them outside the grocery store the very same day. A few days later, the blue-eyed woman walked by Felix and their two youngest children, only for them to greet her as "Ms. Emeron."

No matter how much all those interactions broke Everly in ways she could never attempt to explain, what hurt the most was seeing Roland living by himself in the apartment across the hall. It was as if the curse was showing her she failed to protect him like she promised Robin she would all those years ago.

It had been almost a year since this new curse was cast and no matter how many times she tried, Everly never came close to freeing everyone. Because of this, she decided to put a halt on trying to break it and tried to enjoy what she had until she found someone who remembered as much as she did. The only option Everly didn't try was true love's kiss, but she always knew that wouldn't work. How could it when your true love didn't even know who you were?

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The sun shined through the curtains as the sound of music mixed with laughter and the smell of eggs and bacon filled the halls of their small apartment. While the eldest daughter of Everly and Felix cut up some fruit to go with the food Everly was making, the two of them danced around singing along to the song that was playing on the radio.

Saturday mornings were always like this, so carefree and full of happiness. But no matter how much the blonde woman enjoyed that time with Cassie, Everly's mind always wandered to the rest of her family members. The ones who had no idea that the lives they'd been living in that neighborhood were nothing but lies. Once they finished breakfast, the two of them cleaned up the dishes before grabbing their bag and heading out to start their days.

When they got down to the street, the two of them were greeted by Marci and Jasper before Everly shared a quick hug with Cassie then the latter left with her two friends. The blue-eyed woman's feet stayed glued to the sidewalk as she watched the three teens walk down the street until they disappeared around the corner. As soon they were out of sight, she hopped into her red Jeep before starting the car and pulling onto the road.

Just as she parked her vehicle right outside her first destination, a small gray car came driving toward Everly before coming to a stop at the intersection right in front of her. Her eyes stuck to the unfamiliar car for a moment before brushing it off and digging through her bag to see exactly what she needed to pick up. Once she got the list Regina gave her the other day, the Purest Heart hopped out of the car and headed toward the entrance of the restaurant, completely ignoring the feeling in her gut telling her to turn around.

"Morning, Jo!" a voice called as soon as Everly entered Ablaze, causing her to walk in the direction where her cursed name came from to see Austin and Lucas finishing up putting together the order she was picking up.

"Good morning, Newmans. How are the two of you this morning?" the blonde woman asked with a smile as she took the large box of food into her hands once the younger Newman completed preparing it.

"We're doing pretty good. Just getting ready for the lunch rush later today," Austin responded before slinging an arm around his son's shoulder and pulling him closer to his side, "how about you? Got any plans for today?"

"Just my usual Saturday morning of running errands for Roni. Picking up her lunch and some supplies from the grocery store. Probably help her out a bit before heading home to make dinner. Not much else for me to do," Everly told the two boys while adjusting her hands on the handle of the box to get a better grip, "better get going before I drop your amazing food all over the floor."

After saying her goodbyes to the Nova boys, she walked out of their restaurant and back toward her car to put the food in the trunk. Once it was secure, she jumped back into the driver's seat and made her way to the grocery store on the other side of town. The happiness that was one in Everly quickly faded as she parked in front of the store before she made her way inside.

Laughter filled her ears as soon as she entered the building before a pair of blonde children came running down one of the aisles and up another one. A sad smile appeared on Everly's face at the sight of her two youngest children before she made her way toward the counter. As soon as she reached the front of the store, the man standing in front of her turned around to greet her with one of his signature smirks. Like every other time she came into his store, Everly found herself staring into the gray eyes she fell in love with an eternity ago.

"Hey, Jo. Nice to see you. I got Roni's order all ready for you," Felix told her before he bent down to grab something below the counter then came back up with two bags in his hands, "is there anything else I can get for you?"

"No, this should be it. But thank you," she responded while taking the bags from him just as the sound of her name being called filled her ears. The smile on her face quickly turned into a genuine one as she turned around to see the twins running toward her. "It's so good to see the two of you. Are you being good for your father?"

"Of course we are, Ms. Jo," Dawn greeted before the two of them stopped a few feet in front of her, "we even helped Dad restock the candy aisle!"

"But we had to taste test some of the candy to make sure it was okay to sell," Fletcher added with a sheepish smile on his face while rubbing the back of his neck.

"You have a pair of hard workers, Cal," Everly laughed while the smiles on their faces grew before she said her goodbyes and made her way out of the store.

Once she was back in her car, Everly let her joyful facade fade as a single tear ran down her cheek and headed toward Roni's. Memories of watching Cassie playing with the twins while she and Felix watched with smiles on their faces filled her head as she drove through Hyperion Heights.

When she reached her final destination of the day, Everly parked her Jeep right outside the building. She sat there for a long moment to gather her thoughts before she got out of her vehicle to grab everything she picked up that day.

"Morning, Roni," Everly greeted the brunette woman standing by the counter as she entered the bar before placing the food she picked up from Ablaze on the counter while keeping the grocery bags in her hands, "want these in the back?"

"That would be great! Zach should be back there already if you want him to help you," Regina responded then went back to drying the newly clean glasses on the counter.

After sending the woman one last smile, Everly turned and made her way into the storage room to see Roland writing their inventory down on his notepad. Her attention just stayed on the focused boy for a moment, taking in the scene before her as she thought back to the time he barely came up to her waist. With a shake of her head, the blonde woman quickly snapped out of her daydream and continued into the small room to place the bags on the table next to the boy.

"Morning, Jo. Hope Roni didn't ask you to pick up too much stuff this morning," Roland said with a small smile while writing something down on the paper in his hands.

"Just a few things from the store and lunch for you and her from Ablaze," she responded, earning a small "yes!" from the boy next to her as she began to place what she picked up on the empty shelves.

The two of them continued doing their tasks in comfortable silence before she finished placing the contents of the bags on the racks. "Looks like you're gonna have to add a few more things to that list of yours. I'm gonna go see if Roni needs help with anything else before I head out."

After receiving a nod in response from Robin's son, Everly sent him one last smile before making her way back out to the main room. Just as the drinks on the shelves came into view, the sound of the front door closing cut through the silence before a male's voice called out asking if he was in the right place. The blue-eyed woman's ears picked up the start of a hushed conversation between Regina and the newcomer before she turned the corner to get a better view of the customer. Right as she saw the man sitting at the counter that the brunette woman was talking to, Everly's whole body froze.

"Henry?"

Everly's voice drew the attention of both brunettes sitting at the counter before her nephew sent her a confused look. His brown eyes studied the blonde for a moment before they came back up to meet her blue ones. The two of them just stared at each other for another moment before his eyebrows scrunched together to match the look on his face as he cleared his throat to cut through the awkward silence.

"I'm sorry...have we met before?" the Mills boy asked while Regina looked back and forth between the two adults in front of her with a blank expression on her face.

"Uh, no. I'm a police officer when I'm not earning a few extra dollars running errands for Roni. A lot of the kids here have read your book. Including my daughter," the Purest Heart lied while trying to keep the emotions within her contained before letting out a silent sigh, "I just wasn't expecting to find the author of that book at a bar in Hyperion Heights."

"I didn't expect to find myself here either. Does one of those kids happen to be named Lucy by chance?" Henry questioned, causing Everly to nod in response as he wrapped his hands around the coffee cup in front of him once again, "yeah, she is the reason that 'the author of that book' is in Hyperion Heights."

Before she could respond to the man in front of her, the door swung open once again to reveal Ella walking in with a laptop in her hands. After sending a smile the brunette woman's way, Everly's eyes went back to Henry, only to find him staring at the brunette woman with an awestruck look on his face as he got to his feet. A hint of hope flowed through the blonde woman at the sight of his dazed look before Lucy's mother walked over and came to a stop in front of Henry.

"Oh, hey, Jacinda. How's it going?" Regina greeted the woman while Everly walked over to stand next to the former Evil Queen behind the counter before grabbing a water bottle from under the counter and taking a long sip to calm her nerves.

"Great. Lucy's stealing computers now, so that's new," the brunette woman responded with a smile before turning her full attention to Henry, who was still staring at her with wide eyes.

"Never a dull moment with that kid," the Purest Heart chuckled while thinking back to the time last year when she and Dawn splashed glitter paint all over her desk and called it "Sparkle Splatter."

"Speaking of my little felon, you must be Henry," Ella sighed as she turned back toward the man next to her before placing the laptop in his hands, "I'm so sorry about all this. I don't know what's gotten into her, but I promise you, it won't happen again."

The only immediate response she received was a blank stare and a slack jaw from the man standing in front of her. His actions caused Regina and Everly to exchange an amused look before turning their attention back to the pair. At the sight of Ella's confused look, Henry snapped out of his daze before clearing his throat to break through the awkward tension as the grip on the laptop in his hands tightened.

"Oh. Oh, oh. Uh, nothing. Nothing. I'm just, uh, relieved," the brunette man stuttered while holding his laptop up in the air, "you know I was starting to wonder if I really did have a kid, but clearly, I don't because meeting you, I would definitely remember."

While Regina placed glasses in front of the pair to break the ice between them, Everly bid the three farewell and made her way out of the building toward her car. Silence surrounded the blue-eyed woman once again as she drove home, her mind racing with different ideas to get Henry to remember everything that happened. To get him to break this curse and get them home.

After about five minutes of driving through Hyperion Heights, Everly pulled to a stop in front of her apartment building before sliding out of her car and heading toward the door. Just as she was about to walk up the small set of stairs, barking cut through the stillness. Everly instantly turned her attention toward the sound to see a dog coming to a stop in front of her with its tail wagging and its tongue sticking out. A smile made its way onto the blonde's face as she squatted down to pet the golden retriever just as someone stopped a few feet away from them.

"I'm so sorry, Ms. Jo. He just got away from me," Will told the woman as he picked up Knight's leash from the floor before Katherine came out from around the corner then stopped right next to her son.

"I told you to keep a better hold on the leash," the redhead scolded then turned her attention toward the blonde woman, "I'm so sorry, Jo."

"It's no problem at all," Everly responded as she stood back up to her full height to address the mother and son, "you two have a nice rest of your day."

The pair sent her a smile in response before continuing on their walk while Everly made her way up the stairs and back into her apartment building.

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Hours passed since Everly got home from Roni's and all she could think about was Henry appearing in Hyperion Heights. Relief flowed through her body the moment she saw him and every part of her wanted to pull him for the biggest hug she's given in a very long time, but that would only confuse him even more. As she lay on the couch and stared up at the ceiling, the blonde woman silently prayed that Lucy would come up with a way to get her father's memories back.

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