Nick knocked on the door, lured over to Regina's by the promise of lasagna, even if he wasn't sure that he wanted to tell her anymore than he had regarding the future. He knew he definitely didn't want to add in details of his own actions, because how could he? How could he put that on anyone else? How could he trust anyone else to know that his choices in his own world did not reflect who he was here?
Especially when he was not sure he could trust himself.
It was Regina's general attitude that had led him to reach out in the first place. She seemed well versed in knowing when to step back and when to join the fray. And he needed Sabrina to learn that, because there was no way he was going to lose her here. Not when they had a chance for a future.
When she had a chance to live.
As the door opened, he took a deep breath, before greeting Regina. "Hi?" he said, not meaning for it to come out as a question but it did so anyway.
Regina hadn't had too many interactions with Nick yet, having mostly dealt with him through Sabrina. She had actually been trying to do her best to stay away from the two because she really didn't need to ingrain herself with other people and open herself up to losing more loved ones yet again...but Sabrina managed, for the second time, to weasel her way into her heart.
So at the implication that the young witch died a second time, information that she had to pry from Nick, well, she stepped in and did what she did best: make food.
She did other things well, but Regina's love language was feeding people, her skills in the kitchen growing as she opened her heart more. And when she came across a situation like the one they were facing now, well, everyone felt better and thought better on a full stomach. So lasagna it was.
It had already been prepped and was cooking away in the oven, when the knocks on the front door reached her ear. It was something of a trek from the kitchen to the front door, but she made it in record time, opening the door and completely unsurprised to find Nick there. All young people were easily lured in by the promise of food. God, she felt like the Blind Witch.
"Hello," she said, trying not to give away how concerned she was about this whole thing by asking about it right away. She opened the door further and allowed him in. "Come in, it shouldn't be long before the food is ready."
How he even had an appetite was a mystery to Nick, but once he stepped inside he could smell the food and it became clear to him he was hungry. "Thanks," he said quietly, looking around and taking the place in. "This is from your world?" he asked.
Sure, he was delaying the matter at hand, at least for a moment.
Homecooking had a way of making people hungry even if they weren’t. It’s just how it worked. And if there was a little magic to it, Regina wasn’t telling. Giving the lobby a quick glance over, she smiled at it and turned back to Nick. Some of her happiest memories were with Henry in this house. Even when she hadn’t been a good person, this place was still a home to her. “Yes, it is. It’s where Henry and I lived while we were in our world. It showed up in the last reality we were in and has modifications from that place, but the bones of this place are still the same.”
She nodded down the corridor where the kitchen was located. “Come on. The boys are out for the evening, so it’s just us for now.”
"It's very welcoming," Nick commented, heading toward the kitchen. "And the lasagna smells amazing." Regina's house was grand but still felt like a home. Light and airy, opposite of the mortuary. He would have felt it intimidating otherwise, not unlike its owner who had somehow had an air of intimidation to her in spite of never having been anything other than polite and even friendly to him.
Once in the kitchen he decided to just be blunt, as he needed to face the issue at hand. "You want to know what happens to us back home?"
The sentence was no sooner out of his mouth before he regretted saying 'us' instead of 'her' and revealing more than he wanted to, if Regina even noticed
Regina had been getting out plates for them to eat with, when she heard Nick speak again, startling her because she very distinctly heard the word us. She calmly turned and placed the two plates on the kitchen island and faced Nick again.
Push or not push? She thought to herself. Actually speaking, she asked, "Are you sure you want to tell me what happens? Because I don't think I can keep that from Sabrina."
"You can't tell her," Nick said. "If anyone does, it should be me. But Sabrina has a future here. She has a family she created for herself and members of her own family. We've already decided this is our future. Knowing… would be devastating."
He'd talked to Ambrose, both of them reaching the same conclusion. "You don't understand." She couldn't, unless he told her. Now he doubted whether or not he should.
"What happens if she gets the memories you clearly just got?" Regina asked, trying to get him to see that it was never a good idea to keep things from your loved ones, not when they had the possibility of finding out in another, much worse, way.
God, she really needed to work on that memory stoppage potion here. Before someone lost a goddamn eye again or worse. "I won't tell her, but I think you should."
"Then she'll know everyone in her life let her down," Nick said. "Including me." Especially him. "And she'll know she gave up her life at seventeen for what? To save the world? Because only she could? What kind of bullshit is that?" he asked, the questions flowing freely even though he knew there were no answers. "You can't tell her that, Regina. I don't know that I can, and I at least need to deal with it more before I do."
Regina could detect the hint of mania in his questions as they all came out at once. She resisted the mother in her and stayed standing where she was, while she actually wanted to go over and maybe hug Nick. Stop that, self, she thought, hands fisting at her sides to stop herself.
She nodded, not happily, but agreeable to that much. “I won’t tell her,” she repeated, fighting a losing battle and reaching over for one of Nick’s hands. She squeezed it. “Process it yourself first. I’m sorry you had to make that same sacrifice, it sounds like.”
Nick was grateful for the gesture, foreign as it was to be coming from someone other than Sabrina, and he relaxed slightly until Regina's last statement. Then he stiffened, pulling his hand back and looking away, because no, he hadn't made a sacrifice.
The room spun for a second, and he gripped the counter to steady himself before he finally spoke. "I should go," he said quietly. Because he couldn't tell her. He couldn't admit that while Sabrina had sacrificed herself to save the world, he had thrown his life away. He definitely couldn't admit that to Regina, who seemed to have nerves of steel like she could face anyone or anything.
The older witch realized she had messed up the second that look crossed his face. Like she had said something so incorrect, he couldn’t even look at her. “No, wait,” Regina said, coming around the corner, but keeping a bit of distance between them. He looked a little fragile at the moment, she didn’t want to upset the balance even more than she had. “We can drop it. Just stick around and appreciate my food, okay? We don’t have to talk about anything else until you want to. If you ever want to.”
Nick took a deep breath, before he forced himself to look up, where Regina was looking at him, concerned. He didn't know why she even cared enough to get him to stay, but something about that look kept him in place and he nodded. "Okay," he said, before feeling compelled to add, "I'm not a hero." He didn't want his name mentioned in the same sentence as Sabrina's when it came to sacrifice.
“Okay,” Regina said, not agreeing or disagreeing because she clearly didn’t know everything that Nick was going through at the moment. “Well, sit down at least so I don’t have to worry about you running away.”
Once he did, she went to the oven and removed the lasagne, which had been cooling in the shut off oven for the duration of their conversation. It would be cooled down enough to eat now. Busying herself with portioning and plating, she sat across from him with her own plate. “Alright, if you have any negative opinions about this, you can just keep them to yourself, thanks.” Trying for a small smile, she added, “Eat up.”
Yeah, there was little chance that Nick was going to have a negative opinion of her cooking if it tasted half as good as it smelled. The plate placed in front of him provided a welcome distraction from the conversation they'd been having and he took a bite, which proved even better than he was expecting.
"This is delicious," he said, and those were the only words he spoke as he worked to clear his plate. Yeah, Nick was easily won over by food.