It was 2:43 in the morning when the piercing cry woke it's intended victim. It took the man only a moment to recognize the sound that had woken him and he was throwing back the covers and pushing his exhausted body out of the bed it inhabited. Stalking to the room that held the cries inside he opened the door slowly and poked his head in.

"Button, baby, what's wrong? Dad's here." The little girl was curled up in a fetal position on her bed, tears streaked down her cheeks. She couldn't bring herself to move even enough to look at the man as he heaved his weight down next to her on the bed. Reaching a hand out to touch her cheek, she flinched.

"It hurts. It hurts sooo bad," the small child cried throwing her arms over her face. Though he was almost convinced, to be sure he asked if she was refering to her head and the sniffling nod that came was answer enough. He let out a sigh of relief. At least it wasn’t worse, he thought with only slight shame. This was something that he was equipped to handle, a regular thing. He always lived in fear of something new. Things had evened out as the girl got older, but he was always on edge in regards to his only child.

Picking up the girl he curled her up in his lap and held her. “How long has it hurt?” she whimpered and told him forever. An exaggeration of course, coming from a seven year old, but clarification came when she told him the clock beside her bed read one three two when she’d woken with the pain. "You should have said something, you know that."

"I thought it’d go away. Why doesn’t it go away? I don’t want this Daddy," she protested though her voice was weak with defeat. Being lifted up in one swift motion, he took her out of the room and down to the kitchen. Setting her down on the counter he kissed her forehead. "Other kids don’t have to go through this. Why do I?," she asked with naive lack of understanding. He grabbed the milk from the fridge and a packet of cocoa and set about making his child her favorite drink.

"Other kids didn’t go through what you did when they were born. It’s not fair, I know sweetheart," he predicted her words before they came. Going into the cabinet he pulled out a bottle and twisted the cap, pouring two pills out into his hand. He repeated it with another bottle before he handed the three pills to her with the cocoa. Without word she downed the pills then stared at her father, her little hands wrapped firmly around her cocoa as if it were her salvation.

Using her little fist she wiped the tears that stuck stubbornly to her eyes and sniffed her nose clear. "They make fun of me," she confessed with steel in her spine. "Johnny said I’m just a freak, without a Mom. That makes me really mad. I know you say they just don't know, but it still makes me mad. Why do they get to be normal and mean?"

At those words he stopped cold and looked straight at the face that looked so much like his. "Oh Button, you don't ever believe those words okay? There is nothing wrong with you just because you're different. Remember what I told you, everyone has their own struggles. Johnny will one day, if he doesn't already. Always fight the hate with compassion." He said softly giving the top of her head a kiss as he soaked a washcloth under hot water.

"Besides, does Johnny get to say he was in movies?" Button shook her head. "And who does?" Enthusiastically, with a toothy grin she declared that she did. "Exactly, so you're lucky in ways he isn't." Ringing out the washcloth he picked his daughter up effortlessly and carried her back to her bed. Laying her down he tucked her in then pressed the warm towel to her forehead.

"Daddy?" She said looking up at him. "Can I get contacts? Dr Schmidt talks about them. Then I won't have to wear my glasses any more and maybe the kids won't be able to make fun of me for that too." She said softly, biting her lip. It was clear she was upset, but her face had on a brave facade blanketed with the physical pain she was experiencing.

"Absolutely. We'll go visit him soon and look into it, alright? And if your head still hurts in the morning you can stay home from school today, okay baby girl?" He offered but he knew his daughter. Sure enough. within seconds of his offer she was looking at him with astonishment and vehemently refusing to miss school.

"Alright, well try to get some sleep. I'll stay right here, okay?" He promised as he brushed curly locks of darkening blonde hair out of his daughter's face. The young girl just nodded and whimpered. The pain was still strong, but it was far more tolerable than it had been and coupled with the sheer exhaustion her little body was enduring, she found some solace in sleep.