A/N: Hello there, all! This is a new thing for me, a multi-part fic! I know, I know. You're probably shocked. This started out as a one-shot, but the more I kept writing, the more I realized I wanted to keep going with it, especially with how it ends in this first part. So, this is the usual Leeham pairing, and takes place after 3x20, 6:02AM. There are spoilers. Please review, they're the only thing that keeps me writing! Especially with this one, because how fast I add more chapters depends on the reviews that I get! For now I have planned this to be presented in three parts, but that could change! Bear with me, since I am working a full-time job and am very busy with that. x

Disclaimer: I still don't own Fringe, or any of the characters. I own the plot and the ideas presented in this fanfic.

He was frozen, rooted to the spot. He knew she could take care of herself, but he couldn't let her do this, not this time. He ran to the door and opened it and saw that she wasn't to the elevator yet. "Liv!" He yelled, and she whirled around, jogging back towards him.

"What? Is something wrong with Henry? What's-"

"I'm not going to let you do this." Lincoln said.

Her face drooped, "God, Linc, don't do this. I told you. I need you here, for Henry."

"What about you? Who's going to be there for you?"

"That's not important right now."

"Like hell it isn't… Olivia. I can't let you do this." He stared at her, steely determination written across his face and she knew he was going to be stubborn about this. "You can't do this alone. You need help, my help. And I need to go with you, okay? I need to make sure you're okay."

"Lincoln." She said softly, and reached for his hand, "I appreciate it, I do, but I know what I need to do, I just need to get it done. Alone."

"What about Henry? What if something goes wrong and there's no one there to help you? Did you ever think about what's going to happen to your son?"

"Don't do that, Lincoln. Of course I've thought about that. That's why I left him with you, that's why I told you to take him to my Mom's. I've thought these things through; I've made the decisions that are best for him." Anger flashed across her face.

"What about the other people in your life? What about your Mom, and Charlie and your friends? What about me?" He asked, desperation lining his voice. He couldn't stand the thought of not going with her. If something happened to her, he didn't know what he'd do with himself. He can't just sit by idly and watch her walk away from him and into what was almost certain danger. Not only was she going to break into Liberty Island, but she was going to cross universes for Christ's sake.

Her face softened, and he could see the conflict written there. "I can't let you come with me," she said, "because if anything happens to you, then Henry won't have a parent. And I need that for him."

"You're making it sound like you're not coming back." Lincoln said, and he felt as though he couldn't breathe.

"I don't know what's going to happen, Linc. I'm going to be careful, I swear I am, because I can't stand the thought of not seeing him or you again, okay?" It was as if they were preparing for the worst. All the things they had been afraid to say before were coming out now, like this was the last time they'd be together.

Lincoln took a step closer and cupped her face with his hands. "Look at me." He said, and she met his eyes with her own, "I love you." He said, and she swallowed thickly. He hadn't said that to her since the night Henry was born and neither one of them had brought it up since then. "You have to come back. Promise me, you're not going to do anything too dangerous."

She was almost at a loss for words as she stared at the man she had long considered her best friend. He was becoming much more than that, and part of her was angry. Angry that it was taking her almost dying and a war to bring them together. She was angry with all the time they had wasted, because she knew now that she felt much more for Lincoln than she had previously thought. "As long as Peter Bishop doesn't try to kill me, I have everything under control." Lincoln's eyes darkened at the sentence, and she put a hand on his arm to calm him down, "He hates me, Lincoln. He's going to do whatever he can to make sure that his Olivia and his world are safe. I know this. But I need to do this, I need to try."

Lincoln was quiet for a long time. "You're a hero, you know?" He asked her, "You're stepping over a lot of boundaries here, Liv."

"I have to do this. If there are going to be millions of people killed… at least if I try and fail, I'll still know that I tried. That I didn't just sit by and do nothing."

"… Are you going to tell him about Henry?"

"No." She shook her head.

"Why?"

"It would distract him. If he knew he had a son, he'd want to come here immediately; he wouldn't be able to think about trying to save his world. Maybe after… when all this settles down, there'll be a way he can find out. But for now, I…." She trailed off, "You're his father, Lincoln." She said, and he was stunned. Absolutely stunned.

"Wh-what? Liv…"

"You've been there for him from the beginning. His father never really was an option. Like I said before… you're the only one that I trust."

"You have to come back, okay?" He was getting a little choked up, and was embarrassed because he knew she could tell. But for right now, he didn't care. He needed her to know how much she meant to him. "I'm not going to say goodbye to you. Because that's just depressing."

She laughed, and he smirked at her, his trademark smile. "I promise I'll be careful. I'll be back, hopefully with good news."

"Liv… if they… if they don't take you coming back there so kindly… how are you going to get in touch with me? If you need help…"

"I'll find a way. But I'm going to be okay."

"I don't really feel like traversing universes to save your ass, so you better be." He teased, and she rolled her eyes.

She didn't say anything, but instead reached up to wrap her arms around his neck and hug him again. She breathed in his scent, and he did the same, both of them unwilling to let go for the time being.

They heard a noise in Henry's room, and both of them instinctively bolted for the door. Henry was standing in his crib, holding onto the side carefully, as his legs were barely used to the weight he was putting on them. Olivia breathed out a sigh of relief and Lincoln put a hand on her shoulder, as if to tell her that he had been worried too.

"Mama." The baby said, clear as a bell. Olivia's eyes grew wide as she looked up at Lincoln, who couldn't stop smiling.

"He's… he's only a few months old!" She said incredulously, and Lincoln laughed.

"Must have got that Dunham intelligence in him." He said, and she let out a laugh of disbelief. "See? You've got a lot to come back for, now." Lincoln said, and Olivia nodded.

"I had a lot to come back to before." She murmured, and grabbed Lincoln's hand and squeezed it. "Take care of him for me."

"I will." Lincoln said, and he found that he was unable to look at her. He hated goodbyes.

"Hey," Olivia said, moving back into his line of vision, forcing him to make eye contact with her, "This isn't goodbye. I swear. I'll find a way to let you know I'm okay."

"Liv…" Lincoln said quietly, sounding so much like he had the night Henry was born. He was both protesting her leaving and pleading with her in the same syllable. "Just… be careful. Please." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

She nodded and straightened up, and he could have sworn that he saw tears in her eyes. She looked at him one last time before leaning in to kiss Henry, and then she was gone.

"You have to come back." He whispered at the door after it closed, and shut his eyes briefly. His attention returned to Henry after a minute, and he picked him up, cradling him in his arms. "It's just you and me, little man."

Henry let out a little noise, and Lincoln frowned. "I know, I miss her too."

To be continued…