(sorry it has been so long since I have written but I needed to figure out what direction I wanted to go and have time to actually write…so here we go….)

Two Months Later….

It had been a difficult few months for Eddie and Janet. Although the birth of Aiden went smoothly nothing after that did. Janet and Eddie were so excited to bring their boy home but they were not prepared for what would come next. They knew there would be sleepless nights but Aiden was a colicky baby and often cried much of the night. Janet always took care of him because Eddie was working and she felt badly for him to be up so much during the nights. Janet was becoming overwhelmed very quickly with motherhood and being a wife and tending to the house with little to no sleep. Hannah would come and help when she could be it really wasn't helping much as Janet continued to function on such little sleep it made the rest of her life so much more difficult. Over time, Eddie and Janet's relationship suffered due to her lack of sleep and stress over a very challenging baby. Eddie would try and help where he could be felt so out of his element. He always envisioned sitting holding his baby and playing with his son but he never imagined listening to hours of crying with little to no success of getting him to stop. Janet's growing frustration was also difficult for him to manage. She had always been so upbeat and happy that this side of her was one thing he had not seen. When ever she was able to get Aiden to sleep or calm down she just wanted to sleep so there was virtually no relationship intimate or otherwise between her and Eddie. He tried a few times to talk to her about it and she reacted negatively each time as if he was criticizing her or putting pressure on her, at least that is how she felt. Janet had spoken to Aiden's Peditrician for some advice on how to calm Aiden but none of the suggestions were working. Janet and Eddie had both reached a breaking point. Eddie began spending more time at work where it was peaceful and quiet and he didn't have to deal with Janet's constant unhappiness with just about everything he did, in his mind. Janet could sense that things were going badly with Eddie but had her hands full with Aiden and just didn't know what to do. She went to talk with the one person she thought may be able to help her out.

Janet walked into Hannah's house with little Aiden tightly wrapped in his car seat, for the moment he was sleeping, finally.

"Hey girl, how are you doing?" Hannah said hugging her friend

"I don't know Hannah, things are not good with me and Eddie. Aiden is so cranky most of the time and I just have to spend so much time tending to him that I can't tell you the last time I even got a hug from Eddie. He seems so distant and now he stays at work later and later at night…I feel like I am losing him, Hannah." Janet said with tears brimming in her eyes.

"This is completely normal Janet. Every new parent goes through this adjustment period where the baby is your focus…I promise you it will settle down…Eddie is probably just trying to stay out of your way. The two of you worked to hard to find each other again there is no way that Eddie would leave you. It will pass Janet I promise." Hannah said reassuringly rubbing Janet's hand.

"It doesn't feel normal though. I am stressed all the time because I feel like I can't do everything with Aiden constantly crying and not sleeping. I don't want Eddie to get up with him because he is the only one working but when he wants to spend time with me I just want to sleep and I get so frustrated with him for not understanding that. He has no idea how hard it is the listen to Aiden cry all day and sometimes most of the night with no breaks and not be able to do anything to get him to stop. I feel like I am losing my mind. And now he stays away longer and longer…you don't think he found someone else do you?" Janet said so quickly as if a lightbulb went off in her head.

"That is just crazy Janet. This is sleep deprivation talking. Eddie would never find someone else…he loves you and Aiden. Maybe he just thinks he is doing you a favor by staying out of your hair…you know men they don't want to rock the boat. If you are really worried about it why don't you drop off Aiden by me and go surprise Eddie one night with dinner and you two can try and reconnect…then you'll be able to talk and work it all out…how does that sound?" Hannah suggested.

Janet sat and thought about it and said, "you know that does sound like a really good idea. You wouldn't mind?" Janet said hopeful

"Not at all…Sam and I would love to watch our favorite little nephew." Hannah said looking at Aiden now awake in his car seat.

"Great. How about tomorrow night? Would that work?" Janet said really excited about the prospect of being able to spend some time with Eddie alone.

"Perfect." Hannah said as the two continued to talk a bit and then Aiden got fussy so Janet went on her way home.

That night Janet was hopeful for the first time in weeks that she could get her relationship back on track. She didn't hear Eddie come home during the night and when she woke in the morning he wasn't there. She didn't know if she just hadn't heard him or if he never returned home. She tried not the let it bother her because she knew that tonight was the night that they got back to being husband and wife.

Eddie had opted to stay at Best Friend Windows that night. He had a very early job and didn't feel like dealing Aiden crying or Janet ignoring him to tend to Aiden as she had been doing or just frustrated or irritated with everything he tried to do to help. He didn't get much sleep though because his mind kept trying to figure out a way for them to get back to where they were but he wasn't seeing how they could. He was wondering if this new relationship was one he could actually live with. He had heard having a baby is challenging but this really wasn't what he thought they meant by that. Eddie went to his job site and had returned to BFW to drop off the supplies and stuff before heading home. He was just double checking his calendar for the next day when he heard the bell.

Eddie looked up from his desk and was shocked to find the one person he least expected to be there standing in front of him. Rory.

"What are you doing here Rory?" Eddie said rather startled.

"Well hello to you too. We actually have a job here…we are shooting a spread for a magazine and they are using some of the beautiful scenery around the Ridge as the back drop so I thought I would stop by since I saw the lights on. Well aren't you going to give an old friend a hug?" she said with a big smile.

"Oh, I'm sorry it has been a long day and I was just finishing up." Eddie said as he walked towards her and embraced her. He found himself lingering a bit longer than he should have but he hadn't had any physical contact in a while and a hug felt pretty good.

Janet was walking towards Best Friend Windows and stopped briefly to look at herself in the reflection of the window to make sure she looked nice. She had dropped off Aiden at Hannah's for the night so her and Eddie could spend some seriously needed time together. As she looked at her own reflection her eyes focused suddenly on what was happening in the shop. Eddie was hugging Rory. RORY! Her mind was racing. Was this the reason why he didn't come home last night? She stopped herself before she got to out of control. This is how things got so out of hand the last time and she was not about to let that happen again.

Janet walked through the door and stood there as Eddie was still in an embrace with Rory. Eddie focused on Janet just then and immediately let Rory go and started to walk towards Janet. Janet looked at him and said, "Am I interrupting something?"

Eddie stopped abruptly slightly taken aback by her tone. "Janet, what are you doing here? Rory, she just stopped by…what can't two old friends hug?" he said and with a slight harsh tone that Janet wasn't expecting.

"No Eddie by all means please continue…I am sure the two of you have much to talk about I have to go get Aiden anyway." With that Janet exited quickly before he saw the tears in her eyes. She could not believe that he was taking that tone with her like Rory is there all the time and it meant nothing. From her viewpoint they hugged a little too long for just "old friends."

Eddie stood there as if he was frozen. He knew he should go after her and straighten this out but there was something that was holding him back and he couldn't figure out what it was.

"umm, am I missing something here?" Rory said having looked at the scene in front of her and tried to figure out how these two could be in this place.

"I don't know Rory. Janet has not been the same since we had Aiden. She is upset all the time, Aiden has colic and cries all the time. I just don't know what to do. I love her but this side of her I just don't know if I can spend the rest of my life like this." Eddie said somewhat forgetting that Janet just left and got more caught up in his own issues with the bigger question that was on his mind and that was what would happen to their relationship if things didn't change.

Rory looked at him and realized that clearly he needed someone to talk to so she sat down on one of the office chairs and said, "ok tell me what exactly is going on…you obviously need to talk about it."

And that is how Eddie spent the next few hours - talking about the last few months since Aiden came home. He also told her about how he and Janet found their way back to each other and how he promised God he would never let her go again if he got her back. "I just don't get it…we were so happy and now everything is a mess. I don't even know how I am going to deal with this when I get home. Aiden will probably be crying and she will think something is going on…I just can't do this." Eddie said dropping his head in his hands. "The thing is I love her Rory more than anything I just want my Janet back not this person who can't find the joy in anything and doesn't want to have anything to do with me." He said sadly.

Rory sat and thought for a moment and then said, "Eddie why do you think she came here tonight? Maybe she is feeling the same as you and she was trying to make the first move. You are both new parents and that comes with challenges. I have heard that colic is horrible and can drive you batty. If she isn't getting to sleep and dealing with a crying child all day that is bound to make her upset and edgy…it would anyone. But I have also heard that Colic goes away so just look at this time as a period of adjustment and when the crying passes you will get your Janet back but you need to keep trying to reach her and listen to what she needs to be able to support her…don't stop trying Eddie because then she may feel that you are rejecting her and that is how the gap begins to widen…it widen's too far and you may lose her." She said matter of factly.

Eddie thought for a second and what she said made sense. He loved Janet and would anything for her and now he is being tested and already throwing in the towel. "Your right Rory, I am just being a Jack ass here aren't I…it was good to see you but I think there is someplace I need to be." He smiled and stood quickly. He kissed Rory on the cheek and turned to leave to go home to his family with a new resolution to find a way back to his wife…to his Janet.

Janet left the store and sat in her car for a few minutes. He never even came out looking for her. She was absolutely stunned, it was as if he wanted to stay with Rory more than he wanted to be with her. Maybe she was right all along, this time she confronted Eddie when Rory was there and she was the one who got the attitude like she was the one who was unwelcome. She didn't know what else to do. She went directly to Hannah's.

"Hey, Hannah, can I pick up Aiden?" Janet said trying not to appear upset.

"why aren't you and Eddie spending the evening together?" Hannah said surprised to see her.

"No apparently he has to work on a project for work so we'll just do it another night. No biggie." Janet played it off as if it wasn't what she walked in on.

Hannah looked at her but saw something much different in her eyes. "are you sure, you don't look so good Janet." She said skeptically.

"Yeah, one more day isn't going to hurt right? Now where is that beautiful boy of mine." Janet said.

Once Janet had Aiden strapped into his seat and had made a stop at her bank she headed out onto the main road, headed for the highway. Janet was so upset not knowing what Eddie was doing but the one thing she knew was she couldn't face him telling her that he didn't want to be with her anymore. Not now.

She wasn't sure exactly where she was going to go but she wanted some distance and some time to think. Her grandparents were out because that would be the first place everyone would look for her. No she needed some place that no one would find her. Suddenly she got this idea and headed to the one person she knew would help her and give her exactly what she needed.

Eddie strolled into his house so excited to talk with Janet but nervous as well. He had this new resolve and fire within him that he just needed Janet to remember him and how he felt and how they felt about each other. He thought it was strange that the house was dark but as he turned the lights on his heart began to sink. He found Janet's cell phone on the kitchen table which was strange because she always took it with her. What was more strange was the house was completely quiet. Normally something was running or happening and it was silent. He moved from room to room and nothing looked different other than there was no sign of Janet or Aiden. He walked into their room and all her clothes were all still there and nothing looked like it had been touched but it was strange that she wasn't there. So he decided to call the one person who would know.

"Hello?" Hannah said answering her phone

"Hey Hannah is Janet there by any chance?" Eddie asked hopefully

"ahhh, no Eddie she left here a few hours ago, why?" Hannah was surprised

"A few hours ago, where did she say she was going?" Eddie was now concerned

"She said that you had to work late so her plan of spending the evening with you was put off until tomorrow, why what is going on? Where are you?" Hannah asked now concerned herself.

Eddie sat there not knowing what to say. The feeling in the pit of his stomach was beginning to grow…the feeling of dread and worry that Janet was gone, that Janet left again. "She isn't here Hannah and I didn't have to work late, she came to see me and Rory had stopped by. I said something I shouldn't have and I haven't seen her since." Eddie said slowly and softly.

Hannah just stood there knowing that she sensed something was wrong with Janet but she wouldn't have dreamt it was that. Rory what was she doing here…again. "maybe she took Aiden somewhere…maybe to visit her grandparents…Eddie why was Rory there?" she said wondering if Janet's suspicions were right.

"Rory came in to say hi because she saw the lights on…she is working at some shoot here and thought she would drop in to say hi. Janet saw us hugging and she apparently once again freaked out." Eddie said frustratedly.

"What did she say to you Eddie? Or more importantly what did you say that you shouldn't have to her." Hannah inquired.

Eddie told Hannah the details of the evening and what had transpired. He didn't realize that Janet was so upset as he was about their relationship but after talking with Hannah he knew that he had made yet another monumental mistake in regards to Rory with Janet.

"What am I going to do Hannah? She is gone and now she has my son too." Eddie said near tears.

"well don't panic Eddie we will figure it out. Let me make a few calls…" Hannah said already trying to figure out who to contact and try to think like Janet.

"She doesn't have her cell phone…she must have forgotten it on the table." Eddie said

"Ok well I know some people to call, just sit tight." Hannah said doubt already creeping into her mind.

Janet made it to the shore within three hours. She remembered this place that Dwayne would go when he needed to get away from everyone. It was a little bed and breakfast right on the beach and was literally out in the middle of no where. Unless you knew it was there it would be pretty hard to find. She never told anyone about it because she just remember it as she was driving. Luckily for them both, there was a room left for rent. She reserved the room for the whole week so she could have some time to get her thoughts together and figure out what she is going to do with the rest of her life. Not really knowing what was happening back in the Ridge she decided for tonight she would put it out of her mind and concentrate on her son and his needs.

As Janet got herself and Aiden tucked away in their beautiful room, she noticed he had been sleeping for quite a long time. Turns out that long car rides must help with the colic. She prayed for a peaceful night sleep and a nice walk on the beach with her baby boy in the morning.

Eddie had just gone over to Hannah's house and started calling everyone they could think of who would know where she would have gone. No one had a clue. With every phone call Eddie grew more hopeless and upset. "Why does she keep doing this?" he thought. "Where could she be? its good that she didn't take any clothes right? That means it will be just a small amount of time…maybe over night." He thought. Then on a whim he called and checked their bank accounts. He wasn't exactly sure why he chose to do that but something told him too. When he checked her "Dwayne" account, the place where she kept the money he gave her, he noticed there was a huge sum missing, his heart sank.