A.N. Hello again! Sorry it's taken so long for an update, I had typed one up, and then like half got deleted and then I lost the inspiration. Hopefully that will not be the case with this one. Thank you to all the reviews, you guys keep me going and you're all honestly like my fanfiction heroes. Also, Ed is hard to write! But hopefully I did him some justice. Sorry for the unhappiness, it just happens :/ Please review!

Ed shot straight up in bed, drenched in sweat and clutching at his chest. It took him a moment to realize he was awake, and that the bullet that pierced his chest in his dream had remained in the dream. Taking a few deep breaths he looked over at Sophie sleeping soundly on the other side of the bed. Having an infant in the house left everyone tired and exhausted night after night. He brushed a strand of her hair away from her face and watched her instinctively lean into his touch, it brought a smile to his face to know that through everything she still wanted to stay with him.

He wasn't thick, he knew had hard it was to be married to a cop who was married to his job. Deciding he wasn't going to get anymore sleep he slowly and quietly got out of bed and left the room. The cool of the hallway met him as soon as he left the room and padded barefoot to the washroom where he pulled his sweat-drenched shirt off. Hands resting on the counter he looked at his reflection in the mirror, tired and a little on the thin side. Muscles built-up from over a decade of policing and scars from the hard work that entailed.

He ran a hand over his head and splashed his face with water. It was just past midnight and he didn't think he was going to get back to sleep anytime soon. He could take a shower but he'd rather Sophie didn't wake up if Izzy woke up. It wasn't worth waking her up if he was already awake.

As if on cue, he heard his daughter's faint whimpering from the nursery. He quickly put on a fresh shirt before going to the nursery. Upon walking into the room he wanted to take his shirt off again.

"Oh wow, thermostat's broken again. Sorry Izzy, guess that's not too comfortable."

Approaching the crib he lifted his infant daughter out of her crib tucking her in the crook of his arm. When they'd moved in it had been a blessing to have a room with a separate thermostat, especially after Clark was born. However, it had a tendency to break down during the night which left him or Sophie trying to make a quick fix until they could fix it properly the next day.

Deciding he was never going to get back to sleep that night anyways he grabbed Izzy's blanket and left the room. He sought refuge in the living room and curled into the couch with his daughter safely in his arms. When he looked down the eyes looking back at him were his own. He wasn't used to that yet, Clark had Sophie's brown eyes, buy Izzy's eyes were blue.

He watched as she slowly drifted off to sleep, the temperature in the room comfortable enough for her to do so. She was so… peaceful, so innocent and it made Ed wish that he could make her stay that way. So that no one could ever hurt her and that she would never have to feel any pain.

"You know Izzy, you should really try to stay this young. It's so much better this way. Just stay this little, I'll take care of you, deal? No, I guess not eh?"

He continued to watch her; it was calming to watch her just breathing. He knew he was talking to himself, that she couldn't really understand him just yet but he was afraid that when she got older he would chicken out. He wouldn't be able to say all the things he wanted to because he would seem weak.

It was completely new to him though, it hadn't been easy with Clark but at least Clark was a boy. A girl, he didn't know how to deal with a girl. All the… hormones and mood swings and clothes, make-up and, he shuddered, boys. It made him wonder how Wordy made it work with three.

He was so lost in his musing he didn't notice Sophie when she padded barefoot into the living room. He glanced up after a moment and smiled.

"Hey"

"Hey there daddy, whatcha doing?"

He shrugged as Sophie came over and sat next to them on the couch. She rested her head on his shoulder glancing down at their child with love-filled eyes. They sat like that for a long time, quietly watching their baby, occasionally stealing a glance at the other. It wasn't that long ago when they both would have cringed at the idea of having to be intimate. It seemed like their whole world had been consumed with tension and stress and unresolved anger.

"You know I love you right Soph?" There was a sort of hopeful vulnerability in his voice. He needed to know that she knew that his feelings for her had never wavered; they'd only been strangled into submission with everything that had gone on.

She looked up at him and the world seemed to fade away. When was the last time they'd been able to just sit with each other and just be husband and wife? For so long they'd just been Ed and Sophie; two separate individuals sharing the same life.

"I love you too Ed, I know things have been hard but-"

"We'll work them out."

"- together."

Ed smiled as he leaned down to kiss his wife. Their daughter still nestled safely in his arms, all her features peaceful and innocent. He pressed his forehead to hers and even with his eyes closed he could tell Sophie was smiling. It was evident in her shoulders and the way she traced circles on his chest.

"You would tell me if something was bothering you right?... Right Ed?"

He could tell she was talking about the fact they were sitting in the living room instead of lying in bed. He briefly thought back to the nightmare he'd had, the fear of not being there for his family. To see Clark get married, or see Izzy say her first words.

That was the reality of the job though, every day when you walked out the door to go to work there was a chance you wouldn't be walking back through the door that night.

"Ya Soph, it's just work and stress and… the usual really"

"Your usual is kind of extreme though Ed, maybe you should talk to Greg or someone if you don't want to talk to me."

Ed frowned, "It's not that I don't want to talk to you Soph. It's just that I want to keep my job away from here. From you and Clark and Izzy."

He felt her pause in her designs on his chest before she started up again. The repetitive movement calming his frayed nerves.

"We're your family Ed. We're here to pick you up when you fall. And yes Clark and Izzy and young but they're here for you too, in the ways I can't be. You need to realize that."

He leaned in for another kiss before he considered his answer. It wasn't natural for him to feel vulnerable; he was supposed to be the one in charge. Yet, what Sophie was offering sounded so good to him. He wanted nothing more than to just let his family and friends support him for a bit so he could rest for a bit.

"Let's go back to bed okay? Get some sleep, you need your sleep. Ed?"

Ed looked from his wife to his sleeping daughter in his arms. He doubted he'd get any more sleep tonight and the only thing keeping the demons away was Izzy. But Sophie words made more sense. Slowly he rose from the couch and walked with Sophie to the nursery where he put Izzy back in her crib.

He crawled back into bed and felt the mattress dip slightly when Sophie got in the other side. Felt her snuggle into his chest and wrap her arms around him and felt the kiss pressed to the column of his neck.

"I love you Ed Lane."

Ed felt the knot in his stomach loosen at her words; everything would be okay, in time. After all, miracles were slow too weren't they?

As he felt Sophie drift back off to sleep he couldn't help but smile in spite of himself.

"Love you too Soph."