A/N: I hope you all enjoy.

Mint-Chip Comfort

The glow of the refrigerator illuminated the kitchen with an almost hypnotic glow. At least, Connor considered it hypnotic. It had to be the reason he had been standing here for five minutes staring blankly at the half-empty milk bottle.

Why had he come into the kitchen?

He sighed and made a mental note that they needed to buy eggs when he decided his answer would be in the freezer. A glint of green caught his attention, and he raised an intrigued brow as the familiar shape of an ice cream carton registered. He quickly pulled out the pint and then realized the brand... It was Sarah's ice cream. This was one of her splurge buys. He bit the inside of his cheek and peered at the entry to the kitchen, almost expecting his wife to be standing there with an unimpressed glare.

It was late though... both the kids were asleep, and he was sure that Sarah was already in bed herself –likely dosing off with the television on. He turned his cerulean gaze back to the pint...

Fuck it.

Connor twisted and deftly pulled open the cutlery draw to snag a spoon as he popped the lid on the ice cream. It was Sarah's go–to comfort flavor, mint chocolate. Before he even pressed the spoon into the pale green cream, he knew that he'd be making a separate trip to the store in the morning to replace his wife's treat, but as that fresh, subtle minty taste touched his tongue he knew it was worth it. He got maybe another three spoonfuls in when he was caught for his thievery.

"Daddy?"

Connor froze, spoon in his mouth before he swiveled to meet a familiar set of drowsy blue eyes. His boy. His normally sleep like the dead, wouldn't even wake up for the smoke alarm boy was staring at him like a creepy ghost from the kitchen entrance.

He pulled the spoon slowly from his mouth and winced at the slight brain freeze he received as he swallowed the ice cream a little too fast, "Hey Buddy, what are you doing up? It's way past your bedtime."

Callum sniffled and quickly shuffled over to his father, seeking his warmth and protective touch, "I had a bad dream."

Immediately, Connor slid the carton onto the counter as bent to embrace his son. Callum sniffled again and buried his face into Connor's shoulder as he was lifted. He was starting to get a little big for such gestures, but Connor would cradle his son for as long as he was able to.

"You did? What was the dream about?" Connor asked quietly as he tried to get Callum to lean back and look at him.

"I couldn't find Mommy." Callum whispered, clinging tighter to his dad, "It was dark, and I was calling for her, but she never answered. Mommy always answers."

"And she always will." Connor assured, rubbing comforting circles into his little boy's back. He was mildly surprised that Callum hadn't gone straight to their bedroom to wake Sarah, "Mommy's not going anywhere, Bud."

Callum sniffled again as he quietly asked, "What if... what if she goes away like your mommy went away?"

Connor swore his heart stopped with that timid little query. There had been a couple of times when Sarah had nearly left his side permanently and he hated entertaining the thought of it happening, let alone the memory. Yet, it killed him even more that Callum was pondering that question – developing that fear.

He bit back a weary sigh and set Callum onto the counter as he bent to catch his eyes, "Mommy loves you so much. She loves you and Ellie so much more than she loves even me and she loves me a lot. And one day, Mommy and I will go away... but that day isn't going to happen for a very, very long time." Not until they were old and grey if he could help it, "What made you think Mommy may go away?"

Callum looked decidedly guilty as he avoided his father's stare. He couldn't avoid it for long, however, as his chin was tipped up and Connor arched a brow at him. He carefully warned, "Callum."

Callum seemed to curl in on himself, but when he realized that his father wasn't budging and would wait him out, he huffed and tearfully confessed, "I heard Mommy and Aunty Claire talking."

And suddenly Connor understood the guilt he was seeing. Callum had been caught eavesdropping on more than a few occasions. His little boy hated not knowing what the adults were talking about, but he also knew that such behavior generally wasn't tolerated. Connor sighed, "And what were they talking about?"

"...Me." Callum whispered, "About what happened to Mommy when I was in her belly like the new baby."

Callum still had a hard time wrapping his head around the fact that he had been in his mother's stomach. He didn't really remember her being pregnant with Ellie, but both her and Daddy said that a baby was inside her now. He was going to have another brother or sister. He wasn't sure he wanted another sibling.

Connor closed his eyes briefly as the cold memory of Sarah's first labor and the complications that arose fell upon him like a waterfall. Sadly, the day of his son's birth was not a good memory for him, "You're scared about what's gonna happen when the new baby comes?"

Callum nodded.

"Me too." Connor murmured, smiling at the surprise that peered back at him. He had practically been a headcase when Sarah had gone into labor with Ellie, he hoped like hell that he handled this kid better, "It's okay to be scared, Cal. It's okay to worry. I worry about you and your sister and Mommy all the time. And it's okay to be scared about the new baby, but you know what?"

"...What?" Callum responded quietly.

"Mommy's strong. She's made of the toughest stuff this world's got and she's a fighter. So, you better believe that she isn't going away without a big fight. And we're going to be there cheering her on. We're her guys. She needs us to help her, support her, protect her, but mostly she needs us to love her. Same goes for your sister and the same will go for the new baby. And I think you already do a pretty good job of all of that." Connor said sagely as he reached around Callum to the sleeve of wet wipes they left on the counter. He drew one of the dewy clothes out and carefully wiped away the traces of his son's tears. Callum continued to stare dolefully at him and Connor smirked, "No more tears tonight. You want some ice cream?"

He was his father's son.

Quickly, Callum nodded finally spying the sweet treat his father had been indulging in as he whispered in a scandalized tone, "That's Mommy's ice cream."

"Shhh." Connor hushed as he divvied a couple spoonfuls into a small bowl for Callum, "Don't tell your mother."

He received a solemn nod before a sly smile spread across his son's face. The duo enjoyed their late night snack together in silence. Though Connor made sure to stay within arm's reach, recognizing the clingy glint in Callum's features... it was the same as his. Callum finished quickly and Connor knew it was time for him to get back to bed. He placed his treat to the side and cleaned up his son's face one more time before picking him up and he carrying him back to his bed.

Callum clung to him like a barnacle, but despite the small batch of sugar and the lingering air of fear, he allowed himself to be tucked away.

Connor smiled fondly at him, "You want me to stay?"

There was a long pause as Callum seriously thought about it before shaking his head.

"You sure?"

Callum bit his lip before quietly uttering, "Yeah."

"Aright." Connors switched off his nightlight and turned on the stargazer machine, lighting the boy's room up with a facsimile of the Northern Lights. He knew it would be a little bit before Callum actually slid back to sleep, "Goodnight, Bud. I love you."

"Love you." Came Callum's instant response.

Connor left the door cracked as he returned to the kitchen. He stared at the pint of ice cream for a long time. Fear had settled into his veins a long time ago and it had never quite dissipated. He hadn't lied to Callum. As excited as he was for the new baby, and he was excited, he was scared too. Once bitten – twice shy was a good descriptor for him. It didn't matter that Sarah had made it through Ellie's birth just fine, the memory of how close she didn't make it through Callum's birth burned like an eternal warning in the back of his brain. He couldn't bear something like that happening again.

Before he knew it, Connor had powered his way through the rest of her mint-chip ice cream and was discarding the carton into the trash. Restless anxiety pulled at his limbs, and he washed Callum's bowl and wiped down the counter before heading to his bedroom.

Sarah was awake. He was startled to see her watching tv still. It was almost midnight, "Babe?"

"Hmm." Her gaze flickered lazily from the screen to her husband as she slowly registered his presence, "Did you leave me any ice cream?"

Unconsciously, he reached up to touch his mouth, wondering if he had left evidence of his thievery on his face. He felt nothing, "How?"

Sarah snorted, "Your son was making a ruckus in the bathroom brushing his teeth. He got worried about sugar bugs coming to crawl in his mouth during the night because he had Mommy's ice cream with Daddy. I'm surprised you didn't hear him."

Connor blinked, surprised he had missed it as well... but Sarah had the hearing of a damn bloodhound when it came to the kids getting up to something. Her spidey sense always went off before his did, but then he had been pretty lost in his thoughts, "Ratted out by my own son. He doesn't even like brushing his teeth."

Sarah couldn't contain her laughter as she reached out for him. He slid into her embrace with practice ease and felt some of his knotted anxiety unravel.

It settled further under her fond stare, "I'm a fighter, huh?"

Connor stilled, somehow unsurprised that she had heard him and Callum, "You always have been. How much of that conversation did you hear?"

"All of it. You two aren't as quiet as you think you are." Sarah answered as she caressed his cheek. His scruff tickled her hand, but it was the way he nuzzled the plush of her flesh before twisting to place a kiss on her palm that made her smile.

"Eavesdropper." He accused teasingly.

"Thief." She retorted just as quickly before she asked quietly, "Do you think I should talk to him too?"

There was a long moment of silence from Connor before he eventually sighed, "It probably couldn't hurt. He's going to be your little shadow for a while though."

"Just like his father.' Sarah murmured dryly before giving into the urge to press a kiss to his temple, "I promise, I'm not going anywhere. I'm gonna be okay, Babe. We're gonna be okay."

His hand slid to her small bump. She said it with such confidence that he couldn't help but believe her. He would still worry, there was no getting around that, but he wasn't going anywhere either. However she needed him, he was there.

"Damn straight." He shifted and claimed her lips in a sweet kiss.

Sarah pulled back humming, "Mmm minty."

Connor rolled his eyes, "I'll get you another pint."

"Damn straight." Sarah uttered back, making him laugh.

He wrapped his arms around her, ensuring her precious cargo was snugly placed between them. She would have a little shadow for a few days, but tonight... Well, tonight she would endure her big one. Connor didn't think it would be too much of a burden for her as she nestled into his chest with a quiet sigh.