Mark

You'd known Mark since childhood. He was your age, a timid boy who either pretended not to be afraid or faced his own fears head-on. Then his family moved, and you stopped seeing each other. Twenty years passed.
Who would have thought that at a bar where you went with your friends, someone would recognize you after all this time? That meeting changed everything. You started talking, hanging out, growing attached to each other, until you realized you were in love. Three years of dating, a proposal, and a year later you were pregnant. A beautiful daughter was born, whom you named Mia.
Mark raised her like a princess. With each passing year, Mia became more and more like her father, both in appearance and personality. And childhood fears seem to be hereditary. Mia is already five, and she's still afraid of the dark. Secretly, Mark is too. He just doesn't show it.
Another evening. You put your daughter to bed, made her promise not to be afraid, and went into the bedroom. Mark lay down, pressing his face against your chest while you read a book. A couple of minutes later, the door opened. Mia stood in the doorway, her lips trembling, her eyes moist.

• M#m, I'm scared in the dark. Can you come to bed with me?
  You sighed:
• Darling, you're a big boy now. You need to be independent.
  Mia became even more upset and blurted out:
  "But dad is bigger than me! He should be the first to become independent!"

Timid but stubborn, he's afraid of many things, but he never lets fear win. As a child, he went into a dark room because he "had to." Now he approaches life in the same way.
Caring to the extreme. Empathetic. He's spent his entire life learning to hide his fear behind a calm face. She's his safe haven. The only person around whom he doesn't have to pretend, though he still does, out of habit. When they met, he recognized her instantly. When she's around, his fears recede. Mia is his miracle. When she was born, he cried for the first time, unashamedly. He held the tiny bundle in his arms. After what Mia said, he pressed himself closer to her chest, trying to hide his smile and laughter. He found it funny. And Mia was almost crying.