ASL Chapter 1

Rain, Rain Go Away!

It was raining again. The constant rain was the only part of living in Seattle that I hated. There was nothing else about my life that I didn't love. I had a wonderful, adoring husband who, finally done with his residency, had joined his father's private practice just as we had planned. Our son Ethan was going to start preschool in the fall and it would be perfect timing, too. School would start right before the new baby was due. We had been trying to get pregnant for six months with no luck until now. I still had not told Edward. I was waiting until we were alone tonight.

Ethan had been a complete surprise, but a welcome one even though being pregnant while Edward was in his last year of medical school and had three years residency terrified me. He was so happy when I told him. He had arranged for his parents, Esme and Carlisle, to be there for me as much as they could when he couldn't be there. They even insisted that we come to stay with them for the last month of my pregnancy and for the first month or so after he was born so I wouldn't be alone. My in-laws were the absolute best. Tonight was my Edward's 29th birthday. He wanted to keep it low-key and have it be just the family. Rose was bringing the cake but Esme and I were doing the dinner. He promised me that next year he'd let me throw him a huge bash for his 30th birthday.

I continued to move through house cleaning as I went. Our house wasn't messy, but you could definitely tell that a three-year-old lived here. I made my way to the kitchen; Ethan would be up soon and would want his lunch. I adored being a stay-at-home mom and being there to care for our son, and I would be there for our newest edition. I was planning to tell Edward after everyone left tonight and we were alone.

The phone ringing interrupted my internal musings. I smiled when I looked at the caller ID. Edward. "Hello sweetheart."

"Hey love, I was just about to take my lunch and wanted to see if you needed me to pick up anything for tonight so you don't have to drag Ethan out in the rain?"

"No, I'm all set. Having a good day?"

"Pretty good, but it'll be better when I get to come home to you and Ethan tonight."

"And our family."

"And our family. Is Mom coming over to help you cook?"

"Yes. Oh that reminds me. You're supposed to follow your Dad home and drive him here so that they only have the one car."

"Ok. I can do that. I"d better go grab something to eat. I love you."

"I love you too. Always." Then he hung up and was gone.

I had just finished putting the sandwiches and fruit on the plate when Ethan came padding into the kitchen and wrapped himself around my legs. I handed him his sippy cup of milk and he walked over to the table and struggled to crawl up into his booster chair. He was going through this "I can do it myself" phase that I now found absolutely adorable. Even if I did cry my eyes out the first time my baby told me he didn't need my help.

As I watched my baby eat his lunch, I could help but be amazed at how much he was like his father. He not only inherited his father's hair and beautiful green eyes but his mannerisms as well. They were both calm people. Ethan rarely ever cried as a baby, unless you counted that horrible period where he suffered from colic as an infant. That was a heartbreaking time for me as well.

After Ethan and I were done eating our lunch and were cleaned up, he and I started making Edward's birthday dinner together. I gave him the lettuce and a bowl and showed him how to tear the lettuce in small bits. That should keep him occupied for awhile. He loved to help me cook even if he couldn't do much. I was working on mixing the dough for the rolls when I heard the front door open and Esme call out to me. I yelled to her that we were in the kitchen and waited for her to join us. She came with her arms full of gifts for Edward and a couple for Ethan. Edward may be a 29-years-old doctor who was married and a father, but he would always be her baby boy. He was her first-born baby, too. Ever since Ethan came into my life, I find that I completely understand that.

Esme grabbed some vegetables and the cutting board and went to help Ethan make our salad for dinner; I set the dough to rise and started working on the main course, Lasagna. I'd been simmering the pot of homemade sauce most of the morning. By the time I had the sausage/hamburger mix cooked Esme had moved onto the parmesan garlic butter mixture that we would brush on top of the rolls. I looked over and stifled a laugh at my son who was trying to toss the salad with the tongs like Grandma did. He nearly upended the bowl before I went over to stop him. I gave him some paper and crayons and told him to color Daddy some birthday pictures we could use to decorate the walls.

Esme and I talked about our plans for the upcoming summer. She and Carlisle were taking the cruise around Greece and Italy that she had always wanted to go on. I told her that Edward and I had decided on a beach house in South Carolina for a couple of weeks. Then we talked about how I really felt about Ethan starting school in the fall. She already knew that I wasn't going to go back to work. I loved being a stay-at-home mom and Edward preferred that I stay at home like his mother had. I didn't have to work so why add that stress on the family. Don't get me wrong. I'm not a Stepford wife or anything like that. Most afternoons I spend sitting on the couch watching TV while Ethan and his cousin Kara, who I watch while her parents worked, ran around and played with their toys. There are many days that the house looks like a tornado hit it and days I just don't care.

After the Lasagna and rolls were ready and waiting to go into the oven, we moved onto decorating the house for the party. We were about halfway done hanging the streamers when Alice and Jasper showed up with their daughter Kara. Kara was just about the same age as Ethan, only three weeks older, and they were best friends. Alice was currently pregnant with their second child, this time a boy they were naming Aiden. She was nine months along and looked ready to pop at any moment.

It was right after Alice announced that she was pregnant that Edward told me he wanted us to have another baby also. It didn't take much for him to convince me that it was a great time to start trying. Edward and I had always talked about having a large family. Ethan was already three and if we waited any longer the age gap between him and his siblings would be huge, and neither of us wanted that.

The only concern was my mood swings I had when I was pregnant with Ethan. Nearly every day, I got angry at something that Edward had said to me and he ended up wearing his dinner as I stormed off. I was not the happiest pregnant woman. I was so uncomfortable but Ethan was worth all of it; he was an exact replica of his father in every way.

Alice, on the other hand, was amazing when she was pregnant. She glowed, she smiled, and where I looked like and felt like a troll for nine months, she looked like a goddess. She came into the living room and dropped into a chair. She also looked like she was ready to fall asleep at any moment. "Alice, are you ok?"

"I'm fine. I'm just tired because he was moving all night and I didn't get much sleep."

"I told her that we should have stayed at home. Edward would have understood." Jasper hastily added.

"Of course he'd understand but I'm here now and I'm staying."

"Alice, is the baby moving around right now?" I inquired.

"No. he's finally resting."

"Then why don't you go upstairs to our room and lie down for a bit, maybe get a nap in?"

"That's sound like a great idea. I think I will." Jasper rushed to her side to help her as she attempted to stand up.

The afternoon went by quickly after that. We had just finished the decorating when Rose and Emmett showed up with the cake. Rose was Edward's youngest sister. She and Emmett had only been married for a few months. They met at university when they both took the same English class. Emmett came from some small town a few hours away from here called Forks.

Jasper went upstairs to wake Alice right before Edward and his father were due to arrive. I had wine chilling in the fridge for those that wanted it. I didn't have to worry anyone wondering why I wasn't drinking as I very rarely drank. I just didn't like the taste of alcohol.

I was in the kitchen opening a bottle of the wine to let it breathe when I heard Edward come home. I couldn't help that automatic smile that always donned my face when my husband walked through the door.

"Hey there, beautiful! Love of my life, I missed you today," he said as he entered the room. I turned to greet him and found him holding out a bouquet of roses and a box of my favorite candy.

"It's your birthday! You're supposed to be getting the gifts not giving them."

"I know. But you always were the best gift that I ever received. As long as I have you, I'll never want anything else."

"You really are a dork. But I love you anyway."

"I love you too." Then he wrapped his arms around my waist and said, "Besides, you can't blame a guy for buttering up his wife in hopes that he'll get to unwrap her later when they're finally alone."

"There's a good possibility that could happen. Happy Birthday my love."

"Thank you," he replied with a kiss that was cut too short by a squeal of "Daddy!" from the doorway.

Our family dinners were always such boisterous affairs. Alice and I were talking about the baby and the newest outfits that she had bought for him, while Edward and Esme laughed at Emmett and Jasper acting like fools to keep the kids entertained. After dinner was done and the table cleared, we went back to the living room to talk and relax until it was time for cake. We gave the kids each half of a piece since it was getting late and close to their bedtime. The last thing that any of us wanted to deal with was a hyperactive child on a sugar high that wouldn't go to sleep.

Edward was about to open his presents when Alice got up to take her plate into the kitchen. Jasper tried to stop her, saying that he'd do it for her, but she said that she had to pee again anyway. She barely got through the kitchen door when we heard the sound of glass shattering. We ran to find her doubled over in the doorway clutching her stomach.

"I'm having a contraction." She gritted out through her teeth.

"How far apart are they?" Edward, Carlisle, and Jasper all asked simultaneously.

"How the hell should I know? That was only the first one," she snapped at them. Ok. Maybe she wasn't a goddess all the time when she was pregnant.

Jasper and Esme helped her to the bathroom while Edward and I took the kids upstairs to clean them up and get them ready for bed. Alice had asked us to keep Kara for them when she went to the hospital and had luckily brought over a bag of clothes and necessities for Kara last week. She said she didn't want to have to worry about remembering that along with her own bag when the time came.

By the time we finally got the two children in bed and made it back downstairs only Rose and Emmett remained. We found them in the kitchen washing the dishes that had been accumulating all night. "They left for the hospital. You guys go on ahead; we'll stay here with Ethan and Kara," Rose offered.

Rose barely got the offer out of her mouth before we took off running out the door. We forgot all about the presents that were on the card table in the living room. Or that special gift that was upstairs on our nightstand that Edward was supposed to open later that night when we were alone.

When we arrived at the hospital we joined Carlisle and Esme in the waiting room. At about eleven, Jasper came out to give us an update. She was still at about four and a half centimeters and it was going to be a few hours before she delivered. None of us were about to go home though, so Esme started a fresh pot of coffee and I scoured the magazine rack looking for something half decent. By one o'clock I was lying on a sofa with my head on Edward's lap with him stroking my hair. It wasn't long after that that I fell asleep.

"Sweetheart? Wake up. Aiden's here." I sat up rubbing my eyes.

"What time is it?"

"It's five in the morning."

"Did you get any sleep?"

"No. I'll be fine. Luckily, I'm still used to resident's hours."

"How are they?"

"They are fine. They had to take Aiden out by C-Section though."

"Why?"

"Apparently my nephew has a really big head," Edward laughed.

Edward helped me up off the sofa I was lying on and we made our way down the hall to join the rest of the family in Alice's room. Aiden was so gorgeous! He had Jaspers blonde hair and Alice's nose. I had missed holding a little baby in my arms so much. I was very excited to tell Edward our news, but not right now. He looked so tired. I was about to ask him to cancel his appointments and stay home when Carlisle spoke up.

"Son, I'm dead on my feet. Think you can manage the morning and I'll come in later this afternoon and let you go home early to get some sleep."

"I'm fine, old man. Take the whole day off and spend it with Mom. Get used to semi-retirement."

"I'm going to take you up on that. And watch who you're calling old! I'm still your father and your boss."

"Yes, sir" Edward replied with a laugh. We spent another hour there before heading home. As soon as we got there Edward ran upstairs to shower and change while I went to the kitchen to start some breakfast and coffee for Edward. I made him a breakfast sandwich and a bowl of fruit he could take with him and had Rose rummage through the cabinets to find the thermos that I knew we had, but never used. Rose and Emmett left shortly after Edward did to head home to change before heading up to the hospital to meet their nephew.

I spent the day at home playing with the kids. Unfortunately, I slipped in the kitchen and spilled what little bit of milk we had left in the house. I decided that, even though he was exhausted, it would be easier for Edward to stop at the store for milk than for me to drag the two children out for only that one item. So, reluctantly I called him to ask for the favor. He kept assuring me that he would be fine and had caught his second wind.

By dinnertime, it was pouring rain and Edward wasn't home yet. The children were happily eating their supper with juice to drink instead of the milk that Edward was supposed to bring home. I was standing at the window watching the rain and the empty driveway waiting for him to pull in. He was an hour late and wasn't picking up his cell phone. I had turned to answer a question that Kara had asked me when I heard a car pull up and let out a sigh of relief. But that relief was short lived when I turned as the kitchen door opened and it was Emmett and Rose standing there instead of my husband.

"Tanya, Edward has been in an accident."

Then everything went black.

A/N:

I got you, didn't I? Hee hee hee. Take a deep breath, relax, and trust me! I have a plan. Tanya's are always so evil and horrible in fics and so much fun to hate that I wanted to try my hand at writing another good one! This WILL be an E/B fic. It will come. And no, Edward will not be having an affair. Thank you to Sweetpea123 for beating this for me. Enjoy! I am off to lunch and the art gallery where my son has one of his photographs displayed.