Mike grabbed his crayons and put them back in his pencase before zipping his bag and putting it below his desk.

He loved being alone and doing activities such as playing legos, drawing etc but now that he was eight and a half, he tended to like playing outdoors too, specially because he made great friends over the last few months since they had moved to Chicago with dad and mom, away from Jacob..

He proudly tied his shoelaces, dad had taught him to tie them and mom had been so proud, grabbed his ball before knocking on the door of his parents bedroom.

"Mike ?" Sara called out knowing Michael wouldn't knock and Mike walked in to see his mom working on some work related papers, with specs on, Mike always found mom funny with specs, she reminded him a little too much of his first grade teacher.

"Can I go to the park play with Ben and James ?" Mike asked politely and Sara raised an eyebrow.

"Done your homework already ?" She asked suspiciously.

"Yes, there was only one exercise." Mike promised and Sara smiled caressing his chin, she knew Mike was so passionate about school work he'd never lie to her.

"Alright baby, you can go. But take some water with you it's quite hot outside for an early spring and be back before dinner time." Sara instructed and Mike nodded running from her room.

"Thanks mom!" He yelled back exitedly and Sara smiled and shook her head before adjusting her specs back and focussing on her medical repports.

Mike ran down the stairs and was about to open the front door when Michael who was making some coffee for him and Sara called out to him.

"Mike ? Where are you going ?" He asked putting the mugs of coffee down on the counter.

"To play football with James and Ben dad." Mike replied stopping and holding his ball in both hands while Michael walked to him.

"Wha- ? Where ?" Michael stumbled on his words a slow gasp leaving his lips as he bent and held Mike's shoulders gently.

"At the park, just on the corner of the street." Mike let out.

Mike loved dad, he was so much better than Jacob, he cared for Mike for what Mike was, loved him deeply, made him feel special and unique, taught him a lot of things, gave time to him, he had grown so attached to his dad he probably wouldn't know how to live without him anymore, but he was a little bit overprotective; Jacob wouldn't get involvded in any of his activities while Michael rarely did not know what Mike was doing.

"Alone ?" Michael repeated trying his brain to stop picturising Mike walking on a road on his own, being followed, being caught and...

"No...with Ben and James dad." Mike stated, not the least annoyed but trying to understand why his dad was making it such a huge matter and trying, to explain to him calmly like an adult.

But to Mike's utter incomprehesnion, dad frowned and gasped while looking down and trying to digest this information.

"You can't go out alone Mike...it's not safe." Michael gasped out in a strangled voice.

Images of Mike being beaten up and tortured, and calling for Sara, crying...god...Michael had to close his eyes.

"It's just at the end of the street..'' Mike elaborated once again.

"But...uh why don't you call your friends over to play ?" Michael suggested, making his utter panic with a gentle voice.

"Because we want to play out dad." Mike stated obviously, starting to be a little bit on edge.

"There's the backyard." Michael emphasized enthousiastically.

"But the playground is better dad, mom said I could go." Mike argued.

"No...you can't Mike, they'll catch you, they'll catch you.." Michael shook his head and repeated over, drops of sweat forming on his forehead.

MOMM! Pleaseee stopp! Noooo! Michael squeezed his eyes and tried to breath but everything was spinning.

"Who?" Mike asked, dad was scaring him now ? Who would catch him and why ?

Michael inhaled sharply running his hand up and down Mike's body as if to make sure if he was still here and had not vanished from under his eyes. "They will hurt you Mike.." Michael almost wailed now, holding onto his son's neck.

"Who dad ?" Mike asked, upset by his dad's worries. Dad was the most intelligent and rational person he knew, and he never lied to him.

"Michael!" A voice startled Michael and he looked up the stairs to see Sara's shock covered face.

She walked down the stairs in a rush and held Mike's shoulders.

"Mike, you go baby." She nudged but Mike stared at his father's panick striken face with a worried look. "But dad.." he stated with concern.

"Dad is okay.. go Mike." Sara repeated shifting her attention to Michael and grasping his forearms to ground him while Mike left his touch and turned to leave hesitantly, moved by his father's words and afraid himself, what if dad was right ? what if someone would really catch him ? Mom had let him go.. but mom was wrong about Jacob, he was bad and mom had let him near him, what if mom was wrong again ?

"Sara..don't let him go.." Michael's voice broke as the door shut behind Mike.

Sara held his shoulders and rose him from his crouched position on the floor.

"Michael, Michael you're okay..." Sara calmed holding onto him and Michael held onto her shaking his head. "But..." Michael protested.

"Michael!" Sara raised her voice sternly and that's when Michael's eyes shifted from the closed door to her.

"You're okay..breath with me...inahle, exhale..come here.." Michael closed bis eyes and followed her instructions while Sara gently made him sit on a chair by the kitchen counter and kissed his shoulderblade.

"You're okay..." Sara soothed caressing his shoulder and Michael held onto her and embraced her. His breathing slowed and he calmed down.

Sara swallowed, realising her own heartbeat was frantic, did he just had a panic attack ?

She fetched some water and handed it to him. "Here, better ?" she soothed and Michael nodded, never letting go of her.

"What happened ?" Sara asked fear in her own eyes.

"How could you let him go alone Sara ? He's a child." Michael lamented.

"He's past eight years old Michael, you scared him with.." Sara stopped seeing how upset Michael was.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry...I didn't meant to...I'm just.." Michael put his head in his hand and Sara's eyes softened. She kissed the top of his cropped head and held onto him.

"Sshh..it's okay, I know I know." She reassured. "But I need to know what happened.." Sara met his eyes and pointed.

Michael hid his face against her biceps. "I don't know, just the idea of him alone on his own...I love him so much Sara, if something happens to him I-"

"I love him too Michael, he's been my universe for a long time. But he's now reached an age where I want him to be responsible."

"But if something happens to Mike.." Michael shook his head and sighed, he know he was parnoid, but he had craved to be with Mike for so long, to know him, to be with him, and when he finally had, Mike quickly became one of the most precious thing in his life and at times it was hard actually believing he could have everything, what if his freedom's price was Mike ? God knew he'd go back to Ogygia right now if it meant Mike would be happy and safe and sound all his life.

"Nothing will happen to him Michael, you're free, we're safe, we're far away from Ithaca and from Yemen and from all the atrocities you might have seen.." Sara's own voice broke as her eyes became glassy for her husband's pain, if imagining what was done to Michael during these seven years hurt her so much, she couldn't fathom how hard it must be for Michael to relieve those memories and be haunted by them all the time.

Michael nodded and looked around himself, as if to make sure he was home and safe and Sara's heart crushed in her chest.

"Im sorry, I'm sorry.." Michael apologised with a hint of embarassement in his eyes.

Sara squeezed his hand. "You don't have to be, that's why I want you to share things with me Michael, tell me when it's too much." She whispered with concern and Michael nodded, knowing there was no world where he'd tell Sara tales of his nightmarish ordeal, of being beaten and hit and tortured, of seeing children killed in front of his eyes, of seeing wifes and gilfriends brutally raped and killed. Of Abu Ramal and his goons, of the paranoia he felt all the time, of the loss of identity LLI had played with his mind, of how Sara's sole name was the only thing to keep him grounded at times.

Sara left his side to hand him some more water. "Here" she handed gently. "Thanks." Michael drank steadily and looked at her.

"But don't you think Mike is still too young to go out on his own." Michael asked more calmly.

Sara sighed. "He is and will always be my baby. But..what I always wanted was for Mike to never feel how much impacted we are, how much broken specially, I was. I want him to be normal Michael, I want him to make friends, have fun, I was planning him on sending him to do such things you know, buy some groceries, eventually come and go to shcool on his own by bus a couple of times a week." Michael's eyes widened.

"What ? That's not safe Sara, he could have an accident or get lost or-"

"Michael, at least half the kids of his age go to school by bus everyday."

"But they-" Michael protested.

"They haven't got Scofield as last name?" Sara completed.

"That's not what I meant Sara, I'm just worried, he's so small and I don't want him to feel we've let him all alone." Michael explained and Sara nodded understandingly.

"I want to show him we're there for him, we'll always be, but you can't frame him and put him away in a locker Michael, I don't want us to suffocte him. You know his nature, he's a quiet child, always plays alone, never sociabilise, it's making me happy that he has friends since we're in Chicago, that he's starting to play with others instead of figuring out complexe maths theorems in his room all day."

"Myabe we should wait some more, till he's in high school?" Michael suggested and Sara shook her head.

"Michael..." Sara began. "Don't you think I have a say in his education too?" Michael cut in.

"I..when have I ever made you feel that Michael ?" Sara asked hurt in her eyes as she backed from him.

"Now. We should have discussed this together." Sara shook her head, Michael knew he was hurting her but maybe for the first time, the worry and concern he had for his son was more important than Sara's momentary feelings.

"What are you implying ? You're his father Michael, and trust me if anyone is happy that he has his daddy back it's me. I longed for this Michael, for you to come out of nowhere and tell me how do do things, for us to figure out things together..god." Sara closed her eyes trying not to let her tears fall.

"Sara..I didnt' meant...I'm sorry." Michael's heart bled at seeing the pain in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, if you feel that's good for him then it is, you know better." He held her shoulder and Sara turned to grasp both his hands.

"It's not that, I want you to take decisions with me and you're right, I should have discussed it with you, if you're scared Michael then I won't let him go to school alone, not till you're ready.''

"I guess I just have to get my mind to be used to it.."

"You know he's gonna grow up someday...and uh...Michael, if we want to have another baby, we have to responsabilise Mike and stop treating him as one, I mean, can you imagine, there will almost be a decade gap between Mike and his younger sibbling if not more.." Sara elaborated.

It had been a little past a year since Michael was back and they were recently discussing having a second child, after all, Sara had advanced she wasn't getting any younger and Michael too had embraced his role of a father so wholeheartedly, he was more than eager to experience the hapiness of another child, of him and Sara, be there since the start this time, and they both wanted Mike to have a younger brother and sister, to play with, to share things with, now or when they were older.

"Yeah, yeah you're right. But uh..can we do one thing ?" Michael asked finally mustering a smile, Sara was right, they had to move forward, and if he had to take responsability of another baby, he had to be well and whole.

"Yeah ?" Sara asked intrigued.

"Can I follow him, follow the bus in car for the first time, I promise he won't see me, I'll go straight to work afterwards." Michael insisted and Sara smiled fondly, how could she refuses such an innocent request from a Michael that looked utterly scared of letting his son out alone for the first time. If it wasn't for their past, she'd have almost found it cute.

"Sure.." She pecked his lips tenderly. "As long as it only happens once, he's your son Michael, he's as clever as you, he'll notices someday." She caressed his chest with her fingers throught his shirt.

Michael nodded, psychologically preparing himself to know his son in constant danger. "So uh..how much time till dinner ?" He asked.

Sara chuckled and smiled tenderly to him. "Only a couple of hours Michael, it will pass in a whim, you won't even notice his absence."

Michael kissed her smile putting a hand on the small of her back and pulling her closer. "That should be plenty for us to practise making that little sibbling of his.." Sara laughed against his lips and leant in his embrace.

"See, it has pros for you too." She held his neck and pressed his lips against his.

Michael relaxed and forgot about his worries for a couple of hours, but it took him a while to get used to the idea of Mike being alone on his own, even if things had all went smoothly and that Sara was glad and proud of Mike, he still felt that little pinch in his heart whenever he saw Mike leaving or coming back home, he still felt dizzy and anxious whenever he glanced at the clock in his office or his watch anywhere else and it showed him the schoolday's end, Sara did message Mike too, quite often, but Michael wouldn't breath untill Mike texted him back that he was home safely or that he had reached school.