Nick arrived home at ten after eight that night. He was right about it being a long day. The Vic of his latest homicide case he was a child. It did things to his psyche he'd never imagined. He was shaken to his core. All he wanted was to see that Noah was alright.

He walked through the house like a zombie, heading up the stairs where he knew Noah'd be sleeping. Gently, he wrapped on the door twice in case Adalind was inside. When no answer came, he cracked the door open and stuck his head inside.

The lights were off and all was calm. He stepped inside, silently padding over to the crib. Nick felt a flood of relief as he looked down at their sleeping infant, tiny breaths visible in the dark with his enhanced vision. Nick smiled down, resting his hands on the side of the crib as he watched his son sleep.

A barely detectable sound, the rustle of fabric, sent Nick into high alert, reflexively jerking his head toward the sound. It was only Adalind. Standing in the open doorway, her golden locks of hair backlit by the hallway light reminded him of the dream he'd had last night. He couldn't control the blush that crept into his cheeks at the memory, making him grateful he was mostly in shadow.

"Hey." She cocked an unsure smile at him. He gave her a half smile back, but couldn't muster anything more. His heart still ached from the case. Looking back down at Noah, it started to soak in just how many odds were against Noah. It was dangerous enough growing up in a normal family, let alone one that hunts monsters of the night. And how would his mixed heritage work? Half grimm, half zauberbiest? Hope the kid doesn't end up suicidal from internal conflict, Nick thought trying to lighten his mood albeit in the most morbid way possible. Being a cop was hard enough, adding in the Grimm factor and his personal life spinning out of control left him teetering on the edge of insanity lately.

Lost in thought, he hadn't noticed Adalind join him until she brushed her hand down his arm. He supressed a shiver and tried not to flinch away from her. She still gave him mixed feelings. It wasn't all her fault, and he tried to remember that.

"Long day at work?" She asked in a quiet voice. Nick sighed, might as well be honest.

"A kid," he warred with how much he should share. "His body was found on the side of the road off the highway." He finished quietly. He felt her flinch when he elaborated, but she didn't take her hand away. Maybe he should have kept it to himself. Then, she squeezed his arm reassuringly.

"I'm sorry." He could see her schooling away her emotions into what she wanted to show him. "Come on. You should eat something."

"I'm not really hungry." Nick spoke in a low voice as he followed her out of the room, watching the ground in his depressed state. He pulled the door shut behind him gently.

When he looked up again, Adalind was facing him with both eyebrows raised and her chin down in a look that said you're going to eat whether you like it or not.

"Well, somebody's perfected The Mom Look already," he joked.

"Of course, I've perfected The Look, I've been cooped up in this house for a month. What else am I gonna do with my time?" A genuine smile crept across her face before she turned to head down the stairs. Nick took a moment, She really is beautiful when she's not concocting dastardly plans.

Nick followed her down the stairs and into the kitchen expecting her to pull out some sort of sandwich meat and bread. Instead, she pulled out a bottle of sparkling water and told him to go pour them each a glass in the dining room while she warmed up dinner. Huh.

"Ok," Nick quirked his eyebrow up before heading into the dining room. He nearly dropped the glass bottle when he walked into the room. The table was set in a casual, yet elegant look for two, fresh linens and thankfully, no candles. It made him feel at home for the first time in nearly five months since his relationship ended with Juliette. In the rush of grimmwork, murders, and a baby, he hadn't even realized that he was missing the every day life he use to have. It was wonderful.

He heard Adalind switching plates in the microwave. Quickly, he poured two glasses of sparkling water and couldn't quite help the smile off his face. A minute later Adalind came in with a plate in each hand. He took one to lighten the load and sat down in his customary seat at the head of the table. Adalind sat in the seat to his right.

Nick stared down at his plate full of steamed vegetables, mashed potatos, and an overcooked steak. It made him so happy, he could cry.

"Nick?"

"Hmm?" Finally looking up at Adalind who held a fork full of green beans.

"Are you ok?" She looked like she was holding back laughter.

"I... yeah," Nick bobbed his head. "Yeah. Thank you... This looks delicious." Then, promptly dove in. The steak was as dry as it looked, but it wasn't fast food or from a vending machine, which was a great change of pace.

"You're welcome," Adalind took a sip of her water. "I thought it'd be nice to have a real meal for once." Nick nodded enthusiastically.

"Definitely." He chuckled softly. Adalind joined in with her own soft laughter as he stuffed his face like a starving animal.

"Hey, tomorrow makes 4 months old for Noah." Adalind piped in after they finished most of their meal. "I thought we'd celebrate."

"Oh. Well, I have the day off." Scooping up the last of his green beans. "What did you have in mind?"

Adalind snorted and started laughing. I'm not sure what was so funny about that... It was that full body laughter that's infectious and he found himself smiling without even knowing what was going on.

"Oh god, sorry. I talk to the baby a lot." I noticed, Nick thought, as Adalind continued laughing under her breath. "I told him mommy would eat a cupcake for him." As soon as she completed her sentence she started laughing again. The infectious laughter rolled on and before he knew it, he was laughing along with her.

By the time he could talk, his eyes shined with unshed tears of laughter. "Ok, deal. I'll pick up cupcakes." Adalind covered her mouth in an effort to stem her laughter. Nick found himself giving her a full, toothy smile with the promise of cupcakes. "But you're making diner." He pointed at her with his fork and Adalind nodded her assent.

That night, they each went to bed with a grin on their faces in their respective rooms.