The sound of a car pulling up woke Paul from his dozing. "Sounds like Mummy' s home," he said to the infant in his arms. The baby stirred. "Hush, Leo." Paul stood up and gently rocked the baby back into calm. The door slammed and Paul started, the baby waking up again, this time crying.

"Paul? That you?" Grace came in, carrying a stack of papers and wearing a work-induced scowl.

"Yes Grace, it's just me and the baby," Paul replied, looking down at the baby in question. He looked back up at Grace.

"Sorry... did I wake him up?" Grace dumped her papers on the coffee table and slouched down on the couch, looking equal parts harassed, exhausted, and crabby.

"I think he was done with napping," Paul said, sitting down next to her. "However, Daddy wasn't."

Grace cracked a smile and Paul took advantage of that moment to kiss her. "Here, you hold him. Holding babies usually makes people happier." He handed her their baby.

"You give Daddy a hard time?" Grace asked, looking down at the little bundle.

"Leo was perfect. We discussed thermodynamics. He was asleep by the second law." Paul put his arm around his wife and leaned his head on her shoulder. She was in need of a good cuddle, which he'd provide once their work was done and the two-month-old Leo was asleep again. Between Grace's work at the hospital, Paul's teaching and now the baby, neither got much rest.

"Another case?" Paul asked.

"Yeah. Lots of work, and guess who it's dumped on," Grace replied, handing the baby back to Paul and straightening the papers on the coffee table. "How's this week shaping up?"

"I suppose it's going well. I have a test for them to sit tomorrow," Paul replied. "I sometimes get the feeling that the tests I write are too simple. What do you think, Leo?" In response, the baby gripped his father's finger. Paul smiled. "Good enough for me."

-

A quick supper of takeout Chinese was eaten over term papers and lab reports. Leo was put to bed and was finally asleep. Paul and Grace were lying on the couch, their arms around each other and both falling asleep. Grace could hear his heart beating, such a calming sound. Funny how they met. She'd saved him in surgery and he'd struggled with amnesia until things finally made sense. His name was Dr. Paul Bowman, and they'd soon become friends. He had a terrible memory but was a genius, and Grace couldn't help but love him, even when some days it felt like he was from another planet.

Puccini, one of their mutual favorites, played in the background. Paul shifted and wrapped his arms around her tighter. He always had this fear of her falling. He wasn't sure where it came from, but he always reacted by pulling her closer. A lot of things seemed to have no beginning, memories that didn't happen. Paul was always forgetting something- sometimes something as small as his keys, once he got lost in the science block of the University and the faculty had to call Grace to collect him. It often seemed that there was something he was missing. But at this point, with his amazing Grace and his life... he found reality just as wonderful as dreams.