AN: Thank you for the reviews, they motivate me to make more time to write.

It seemed as though he was under a spell. He did not feel himself want to leave. It was as if he could stand vigil all night as the boy slept, just watching him. 'Wait,' he thought, 'why do I want to watch him?' That's a little bit too stalkerish for his liking. Sesshomaru didn't realize just how normal it was to watch your child sleep. Mostly when they're babies, although Kenichi did not exist to him before the previous day. So he still had the newborn affect on the man.

Sesshomaru turned to leave the room and Kagome smiled at her sleeping child before following him out. They both walked back into the living room and Sesshomaru sat back down in the corner he was previously in. This time, Kagome chose to sit on the loveseat.

Sesshomaru was busy trying to access his feelings for the bonding moment he just had with Kenichi, while Kagome tried figuring out what to say. Without Kenichi there, it was terribly awkward. Though, they still needed to finish their discussion from the afternoon.

"So," Kagome finally decided how to break the ice. "What did you think about the movie?"

"I did not care for it," he answered truthfully.

"Really?" Kagome tilted her head. "Everybody loves Shrek. I mean, even if you don't like story line, the moral of the story is something you can't disagree with."

"An overweight, green monster and a princess fall in love." He said matter-of-factly. "Oh, and let's not forget that a talking donkey and a dragon also get together."

"Okay the donkey and dragon thing is weird." She had to agree with that. "But how often does a beautiful princess fall for an ogre?"

"Yes," Sesshomaru smirked, "and then she also becomes fat and ugly." Kagome's mouth dropped open at his harsh words.

"You- Fiona is not fat," Kagome defended. "She's perfectly average for an ogre."

"I do not see the appeal in being an ogre, although the short man did not look much better himself. It's a shame the lovely princess had such a poor selection."

"The whole point of the story is that you're not supposed to judge people on how they look," she explained. "You judge them by how they are on the inside."

"Hn. Their offspring will be ugly too." Kagome's mouth dropped open, again! This time she threw her hand over her mouth.

"You are wrong." She shook her head. "You can't talk about people like that."

"I am not talking about anyone," he tilted his nose up. "This is a children's movie. I am talking about fictional characters."

"Fictional babies though! You just don't call children ugly."

"They will be ugly. Would you want a child looking like that?"

"Well- not exactly." She began to feel frustrated. "I mean, I'm not an ogre! If I was an ogre then yes, but I'm not… I want my kids to look like me." She pointed her thumb to her chest.

"How unfortunate for you that he looks like me." Sesshomaru smirked. Their debate was over.

Kagome's lips parted at the statement. It made her feel some kind of way, she didn't know what exactly.

'What just happened?' she asked herself.

"Well," she tried to catch her bearings, "Kenichi is perfect anyways, and he has my smile." Kagome smirked at least gave one physical feature to him.

Kagome and Sesshomaru just looked at each other. Neither knew how to continue. They were having this strange moment of pride over their son, but before this they had no relationship, yet it seemed as if Kenichi was a bridge between them. Yet, it wasn't love, it wasn't friendship. Maybe it was appreciation. Maybe it was this familiarity because they both cared greatly about this child and they would forever have that special bond that would be shared with no one else. Whatever it was, neither of them knew what emotion they were feeling nor what to say to the other.

"So…" Kagome said uncomfortably. She started the last conversation, it was his turn.

"I suppose it would be wise to finish our previous discussion."

"Right," the corners of her lips bent upwards, "the one about you trying to make me quit my job?"

"Yes."

"I'll make this easy. I'm not quitting. Although, you'll be happy to know I will take a break for the time being. At least until my wounds heal, but I will be returning." She was determined, Sesshomaru could tell.

"Kagome," he decided to try a different way, "how much are your monthly expenses?"

"Oh," she wasn't expecting that so soon. "Well, I did calculate what I spend on Kenichi earlier. Let me grab the paper." She lifted herself off the sofa and rushed away towards the hallway so she could take the paper off her nightstand.

She took her time returning, as she checked on Kenichi and was trying not to wake him up as she left. This time she sat on the same couch as Sesshomaru, on the opposite end though. She looked down at the paper in her hands.

"Well," she explained, "I tried to add up what I spend on food, clothes, entertainment, and his miscellaneous expenses."

Sesshomaru nodded and she continued.

"I figured between two and three hundred."

"How much do you spend in a month?" he asked.

"Why?" Kagome scrunched her face.

"Just answer the question."

"Okay," she tilted her head to think. "Well, Sango and I split the rent, utilities, and bills by half so usually for me with both of those together it's like three hundred seventy five. Um," she placed her thumb and index finger on her chin, "then we split groceries and that's anywhere from one to two hundred total. Oh and my phone bill is eighty. Plus my car payment and insurance and," she shook her head. "Why do you even want to know?"

"I'd like to make a proposal."

"For what?" she was utterly lost and confused.

"I will give you the money for rent, all your bills, food, and Kenichi's expenses."

"What!?" Did she hear him wrong? 'Did he just say…? No!'

"Must I repeat myself?" he was getting annoyed. It's one thing to offer so much but then to still be refused?

"I just find this hard to believe. You can't be serious."

"All I ask is that you quit your job." How could she refuse, what she was giving up compared to what she'd be getting. There's no way she tell him no. "You can go to school, get a different job; do whatever the hell you want. Just as long as you stay out of the strip club."

"Sesshomaru…" she trailed off. ' Will he really do that? That's a lot of money.' She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. She'd love to quit her job, but she wanted to be independent, and the most money she can get would be from dancing. Then again, don't most girls quit when they have a guy who can take care of them? Although, this situation is different; Sesshomaru was not her man. He had no reason to be giving her money and taking care of her. Sure he has a lot of money but it's not right for her to take so much from him.

"No." She shook her head. She would feel too guilty taking his money in exchange to not work, as if she was manipulating her way into his wallet like so many of her coworkers try to do.

"Kagome," now he was getting very agitated. Was she dense?

"This is crazy," she threw her hands up, "I can't accept that."

"Any woman wanting to get out of that business would accept my offer in a heartbeat." He glared at her. "It is now apparent that you don't want better for yourself nor Kenichi."

"Excuse me?" she craned her neck to the side. "Everything I do is for him!" From the moment she found out she was pregnant everything she did was for her son. 'How dare he?' she fumed inwardly.

"I am willing to do this all for my son and for you as well. I am going to fly out here every month just to spend time with him. I do not ask for much on your part and yet the little I do ask for is too much."

"…" Kagome did not have a response. The truth was, Sesshomaru had asked nothing from her except to quit the job that she hated. Well she didn't hate it, but she only did it out of necessity. Nobody grew up with the goal of being an exotic dancer.

Sesshomaru stayed silent, letting his words sink in to her thick skull.

"Look," she said after a minute passed by, "let's say I was to accept your offer. What's going to happen when you get a girlfriend? I'm pretty sure she won't like you spending so much money on me. I'd feel so much more secure being independent." Sesshomaru almost snorted at her outrageous theory.

"As if a female would have any input on what I do with my money. I already suggested before, get another job then, do something with your life."

Kagome looked away; her eyes were brimming with tears at his insult.

"I am doing something with my life," she whispered harshly. Her voice raised as tears began to flow. "Did you see that healthy child in my room? I have been raising him by my fucking self this whole time. I do have goals Sesshomaru. I'm sorry that I couldn't go to school when I graduated college because they didn't want newborn babies in their dorms. I wanted to go to college but I had to stay and work my ass off to pay for Kenichi's medical bills! Then I started dancing and I wasn't late on all the bills for once since he was born." She stood up as he sat on her couch, so she could look down to him.

"Alright," he said, standing up. Their discussion was spiraling out of control; he was ready to end it.

"No," she held her hands out. "I'm not done! Do you see me struggling Sesshomaru?" It was a hypothetical question. "Nope. I have nice things and my son never has to go without. I have plans to go back to school when he's in kindergarten because he's only had one parent his whole life and I already was away from him enough with work. I-" he interrupted her, leaning close to her face.

"It is not my fault he had one parent this whole time." She would not insinuate that it was either.

"That doesn't matter," she yelled into his face. "The point is that all he had was me. So don't sit here and insult me." She shoved her index finger into his sternum as she spoke. "If the roles were reversed I would have already graduated college by now and have been working in a dentist office and you," she pressed harder, "would be stuck in your hometown doing whatever you could to provide for my son and make as much as you could without sacrificing time with him. I think I'm doing a pretty fucking decent job if I say so myself!" Her finger was sure to leave a bruise on his chest and she felt like she'd break it if she poked him any harder.

"You," he grabbed her hand and lifted it away from himself as he spoke calmly, "are lucky you aren't a man." Sesshomaru would never hit a female but if he ever was going to do so it would be now. This woman had been screaming inches from his face, spewing out insults, and actually poking him!

"Fuck you." She spat out. As far as Kagome was concerned he had crossed the line. She had made so many sacrifices for her son and Sesshomaru obviously didn't appreciate a damn thing. Kenichi was amazing and he didn't have anything to do with it, so he had no right to insult her about anything.

"I see Inuyasha has had a considerable amount of influence on you." He took a step back, with a haughty smile.

Kagome just glared at him. He returned the gesture.

A small noise caught their attention and they both turned to the source of the sound. Two sets of eyes landed on a sniffling three year old, peeking around the corner with wide teary eyes.

"Oh no," Kagome said to herself. All of her anger was gone and replaced with guilt.

Sesshomaru was beyond frustrated. Who knows what the boy witnessed. Although Kagome did almost all of the yelling he was sure that Kenichi wouldn't like that his father upset his mother so such an extent.

"Honey." Kagome gently called out to the boy, none of the three people moving from their spot. "Did we wake you?"

Kenichi did not answer; he only looked at them with wide eyes. He had never heard his mom yell before. She had raised her voice at him, but he was a good boy and never pushed her to where she was now.

"Kenichi," Sesshomaru said. "Why don't you sit on the couch? We can all talk." During his early childhood, Sesshomaru had dealt with his own parents arguing. He was always scared, just as his own son now was. His parents would then bring him into the room and apologize, then calm him down; eventually he'd get put back to bed.

To Kagome's surprise, Kenichi slowly stepped out from the hallway. His eyes were glued to the floor as he shuffled his feet along the carpet. He climbed onto the sofa and sat with his knees pressed against his chest, his arms wrapped around his legs, and his head between his knees. Frightened tears still escaped his eyes.

Sesshomaru was happy that his son still listened to him instead of hating him. He took that as his cue to mend their situation.

"Son," he started, "I apologize for waking you up." He eyed Kagome, who quickly caught on. She'd never been in a situation like this. Her own parents rarely argued, and never where she could hear. She followed Sesshomaru's lead. The fire in her was long gone and her only concern was her child.

"Me too," she said, "I am so sorry for waking you up and upsetting you."

Kenichi only nodded at his parents words. He continued his sniffling, but he wiped his eyes with an arm. He still did not look up at either of his parents.

Sesshomaru continued as he moved to sit down next to his son.

"Sometimes, adults have disagreements." He noticed Kagome nodding in agreement as she moved to sit on the floor in front of Kenichi. Her hand reaching around his side to his back. "We raise our voices when we shouldn't." He eyed Kagome, since it was mostly her who was yelling.

"It's true, honey." Kagome rubbed small circles on Kenichi's back. "Everyone makes mistakes, but it's okay because it's over now. We're not gonna yell anymore."

"I… I was," he paused to wipe his runny nose, "scared."

"I know," Kagome cooed, "and we are both so, so sorry."

"There is nothing to fear, Kenichi," Sesshomaru said, "nothing will ever happen to you. Your mother and I will protect you from everything." Including themselves; if the occasion were to ever arise again, Sesshomaru planned to take his leave as soon as things started to get out of hand like it just did.

"Pwomise?" He finally chose to look up, uncertainty shone in the small boy's eyes.

"I promise." Sesshomaru nodded to the boy and turned to Kagome. "Do you have anything for him to snack on before he goes back to bed?"

"I do," she answered, determined to make it better for her son. Kagome stood up and rushed to the kitchen. She returned moments later with a couple of cookies in hand and a small cup of milk. "Here Kenichi." She handed him the cookies and then sat next to him, opposite of Sesshomaru, to hold the drink for him.

He dipped his cookie in the glass and took a bite. It had been awhile since he had a cookie and it was sweet, chocolaty, and delicious.

"Mm," he said, grinning at his mother and father.

Sesshomaru smiled back at his son, happy to calm the boy's fears. He felt as though he had just accomplished one of his first milestones of fatherhood.

Kenichi broke the second cookie in half. Kagome held herself back from chastising him about the crumbs he just made fall.

"Here," the boy smiled and held out a half for each parent. Kagome's heart melted at his actions.

"Oh Kenichi," she gushed, taking her half, "you are so sweet. Thank you."

"Thank you." Sesshomaru was surprised at how thoughtful his son was. He watched in amazement as the boy hugged his mother.

Both parents slowly nibbled on their small cookie half as Kenichi just enjoyed their presence and that they were no longer fighting.

After a few minutes of silence the situation had completely diffused itself. Sesshomaru was slightly frustrated that he was still unsuccessful in his attempt to sway Kagome's career decision but he would try again some other time. Maybe when she realized just how much help he would be it would change her mind. He was mentally exhausted with how much of an emotional rollercoaster his visit had been. First the awkwardness of eating dinner, then the boring movie followed with a heartwarming experience of tucking his son in bed, next was the heated argument with Kagome, and worst was getting caught and scaring his child. He was ready for the night to end, not willing to find out what would happen next if he stayed. Although, it couldn't get much worse.

"I think it's an appropriate time for me to leave." He said softly while standing up.

Kenichi's smile disappeared and he left the cocoon of his mother's arms to stand on the couch. He didn't notice her frown.

"Stay here." Kenichi said.

Sesshomaru sighed and Kagome flinched. It was obvious that their son did not realize that his parents were not together. Although, neither would want to ruin his idea of a family.

"Honey," Kagome said causing the boy to turn and look at her. "Your father lives somewhere else, he going to his own house to sleep. So he can sleep in his own bed."

Kenichi paused to think. His mother had her own bed, Sango had her own bed, and he had his own bed. But sometimes he would share with his mom. He smiled, he had an idea.

"Daddy, you sleep in my bed." He said happily. He could just sleep with his mom.

"Hn." Sesshomaru smirked at his son's tenacity. "I do not fit in your bed."

"Oh," the boy frowned.

Kagome let out a breath she was holding in. Crisis avoided, there was no way Sesshomaru would be spending the night there.

"Then sleep in mommy's bed." He told his father. His mother's bed was much larger, they would both fit easily.

Sesshomaru looked at Kagome. Not to ask for permission but to ask for help. He raised an eyebrow at her, 'Say something.'

She understood his expression and quickly thought of an excuse.

"Kenichi…" she started, unsure of what to say. She paused for a moment as the two males stared at her, both waiting for the explanation.

Sesshomaru realized that she couldn't think of one just as an idea came to him.

"I have to go to work." He quickly stated.

"Oh," Kenichi frowned. "Okay." He was not happy, but he understood that when his parent had to go to work, they had to go to work.

Kagome was happy with Sesshomaru's quick thinking.

"Kenichi," she said kindly, "why don't you give him a hug before he leaves?"

The small boy hopped off the couch and Sesshomaru bent on one knee to get down to the child's height. Kenichi wrapped his arms around the man's neck and Sesshomaru pulled the boy closer into his chest, holding him tightly.

A few moments passed and Sesshomaru gave his son a quick squeeze before releasing him. He stood to his full height.

Kagome also stood up from her spot on the couch and began to walk Sesshomaru over to the door as Kenichi climbed on the couch to watch the exchange from across the room.

They had less than a minute to either apologize to each other about earlier or just pretend it never happened.

Both opted for the latter.

"Kagome," Sesshomaru said, before stepping into the hallway. "I will give you a call tomorrow. If you need anything you know my number."

"Okay," she nodded and gave him a small smile, trying to be civil. "Have a good night."

He nodded as he began to walk away. "You as well."

AN: Tell me what you think :)