Chapter 2

Alright kiddies, here it is, courtesy of Rasberry Girl! Birdie Num Num, this is for u! Same disclaimer applies.

A steady stream of light poured through the French doors, filling the
kitchen with warmth. Turning the heat off of the oatmeal I'd prepared for
Rae's breakfast, I inwardly hoped the beautiful weather would reflect Jake's
prospects for finding a job.

I wasn't thinking about income; I only had two more years till I completed
my bachelor's for pre-med, plus my current job already paid more than
necessary (not that I was complaining TOO much). I was worried that Jake
felt he wasn't taking good enough care of us. It was useless to tell him
otherwise, because I knew the only way he'd believe it was if he proved it,
in his own way. No matter how backward it might be.

I'd just taken one of Rae's little plastic bowls from the dishwasher when
Jake came into the room. His brown hair was mussed and he needed a shave,
but somehow that made the sight even more appealing to me. More real.

"You finally got up," I said. Instead of replying out loud, Jake held a
finger to his lips and gestured down at the baby, who I quickly noticed was
dozing in his arms. Frowning, I pushed a chair away from the table in the
nook so he could push his wheelchairnext to where I'd just sat.

"She was out like a light right after you left the room, it wasn't even five
minutes. It would've been kinda funny if it wasn't so strange," he answered
quietly what would've been my next question.

He was right. We both knew Rae never slept past 6 in the morning, EVER. Her
system just isn't wired for long nights. Even when she was a newborn, I
could count on her tiny cries to wake me minutes before my alarm went off.

I held a hand to her smooth forehead, and waited.

"She isn't running a fever," I said after a few moments.

"Yeah. I don't think she's sick, she seemed okay right until she fell back
asleep," Jake mused quietly, and he gently brushed a few light brown curls
from her peaceful face.

"Poor girl is probably exhausted from that awful nightmare. It just isn't
right. Rae is way too young to be dealing with that kind of fear."

Jake shifted slightly, allowing Rae's body to curl further into his chest.

"Well, Crayak loves preying on the defenseless. In fact..." he trailed, as
we both saw our daughter's tranquil expression twist into discomfort. She
whimpered, beginning to grip Jake's t-shirt tightly. Despite the sudden
movement, she still slumbered. Jake worriedly glanced at me.

"Should I wake her, Cass?" When Rae's soft moans failed to cease, I nodded,
rubbing the little girl's back comfortingly after Jake woke her.

"Hi, baby," I said softly, as Rae peered at us silently.

"Bad dweem," she revealed, her big, dark eyes shiny.

"Wed eye. He say daddy hate me and hate mommy. He say daddy die!"

With that, she buried her little tear-streaked face into Jake's chest again.
He sighed.

"Sweetheart, the bad monster lied. I love my babygirl, and her mommy. And
I'm not going anywhere without either of you," he added, kissing the top of
her head and looking at me at the same time. I reached for his free hand and
said, "That's right. When you're in a family, they love you, no matter what.
We'll always be family." Rae glanced up for a second to give us a watery
smile.

"Be famly," she repeated, and almost immediately fell back asleep. I settled
back in my own chair, and sighed, staring out of the open window above the
sink.

"Just when I thought he couldn't go any lower..."

"Damn him for messing with her," Jake sighed, "he won't get away with this."

"Agreed," I replied, and began to stand when Rae's little moans started
again.

Oh no.

"I feel so helpless, Cass. She's so vulnerable against all this."

I knew he was becoming more guilty by the second, and realized he would
probably never leave the house again if he thought it would help our
daughter. Not that I could blame him. I was having similar thoughts, only
for slightly different reasons. I needed to spend more time with Rae. It's
not that I don't already, or even that I'm inadvertently neglecting her, but
she was getting so big, so FAST. And I was taking for granted that she would
always be a little girl. Not to mention I missed her terribly while I was at
work, especially considering we never left each other's sight the entire
first year of her life.

"Here," I held my arms out to him, and he gently gave me the baby, "I'm
gonna stay home with her. We could use some time together, anyway."

"Are you sure?" Before I could answer, Jake went over to the ringing phone
as I lay a dozing Rachel on the sofa.

I waited until he was finished speaking to whoever was on the other end
before to ask who it was.

"Dominik, he said it was something about school-some lab," he said, and I
frowned.

"What? Oh!" I exclaimed, remembering the semester long organic chemistry lab
that was due at the end of that week. "We have an important assignment to
turn in soon, he was probably wondering if I'd be on time today."

Jake grinned at my blush, knowing exactly what I was talking about.

"Maybe you wouldn't be late if you could show a little restraint,
sometimes," he said dryly. I just rolled my eyes.

"Right. Because I just happen to trap myself in bed every morning..." My
thought was lost as I noticed Rae stirring beside me. Looking into her face,
it seemed she was okay for the moment. I sighed, regretting what I was about
to do next.

"I have to go. This lab is worth 25 of both of our grades, and I can't
afford to take any more blows in Organic chem," I said, and Jake only
shrugged, grabbing some juice out of the refrigerator and filling one of
Rae's plastic cups.

"You do what you have to do, Cassie. Rachel's got me." Something about the
way he said that annoyed me, as if I was purposely putting other things
before our daughter. But then again, it was probably nothing. I'm pretty
sure Jake understood how hard it had been for me to attend college and take
care of a baby full time for two years, how hard I'd worked to keep things
together.

So instead of starting an argument, I walked over to Jake, sat in his lap,
and buried my face in his chest, just as Rachel had done moments before.

"Yes, she does."