Chapter Eleven: A Few More Hours


Edward's POV

Saying goodbye to Emmett and Rosalie was proving to be a lot harder than I had originally thought. I knew they had their life in Seattle and weren't going to uproot that like we had, but it still sucked seeing them go, knowing we wouldn't be seeing them until at least Thanksgiving. I was just thankful they were able to come for even a short time.

But, once they were gone, it was time to get back to reality. I went back to doing all kinds of research and making calls to try and find someone...anyone who would do Dad's surgery. No one knew I was going it, but it really wasn't doing any harm and I was determined to have my Dad around for as long as possible. Plus, I knew everyone was under the illusion that nothing could be done and I refused to have that mind set.

But, as the days went by, Dad just got sicker. The cancer continued to slowly spread and the chemotherapy just made him feel nauseous. I hated seeing him like this. He'd never looked so small to me before, and it was unsettling. Plus, we had managed to narrow down the new practice owner to three people. That was also just so strange to me. Dad had worked his entire life to own his practice and now he was practically giving it away to some stranger.

Finally, after months of contacting different surgeons, I finally found one who was willing to meet with my Dad. He told me he couldn't make any promises, but he would do a consult with him. He was the best oncologist in Pennsylvania, and when I looked up his work, he had graduated top of his class from Yale. I made the arrangements for him to come to Chicago and just went about my life as normal as possible.

Ava had decided that when she got to high school next year, she wanted to play soccer. She told us that she wanted to adjust to this school before doing any sports, especially since the girls on the team had already bonded over their years on the middle school team. And, because I was the one who'd encouraged her to do sports, I went with the field with her at least once a week to help her practice.

"Dad, can I talk to you about something?" I asked as we sat together on the back deck at his house. Fall was definitely close and the Chicago air was crisp, and it was really nice being able to sit out here with him. I knew this was his favorite spot in the house.

"Sure." He sighed, looking out to our huge backyard.

"I've been doing some research,"

"Edward," He warned.

"And I found a doctor who is willing to come and give you a consult and see if he can try to operate."

"Why can't you just leave this be?" He asked, turning to look at me.

"Why can't I just sit and watch you die?" I asked, taken back. "Because you're my Dad and I don't want to lose you yet."

"Eventually you will lose me, Edward." He shook his head. "People don't live forever."

"It doesn't mean that you should have to die so young!"

"Son," He whispered. "I've lived a good life. I've come to peace with this, why can't you?"

"Because it's really hard watching your hero withering away to nothing." I admitted. "Just meet with the guy, what could it hurt?"

"Edward,"

"Please." I begged. "Please do this for me. It could work, Dad. You don't know. He could be the miracle everyone has been praying for."

"Okay," He reluctantly agreed. "I'll meet with him and see what he has to say."

"Thank..."

"But you are not coming with me to this appointment." He ordered. "This will be just your mother and I."

"Dad,"

"That's the deal I'm making, Edward." He shrugged. "Take it or call the doctor and cancel the appointment."

"Okay, deal." I sighed, looking back out to the yard.

When I got home, I told Bella the good news. However, just like my Dad, she didn't take it particularly well. She told me that I needed to start respecting my Dad's wishes and I just told her that she'd do the same if it was Charlie who was sick. She couldn't deny it and she just told me she didn't want to keep getting into arguments about this. So, the subject changed to what Ava had done in school earlier that day. Apparently, she got into a verbal fight with one of the girls who was taunting her about Jake.

"How do they even know?" I asked as I knelt down next to the tub while Bella gave Paige a bath.

"She probably was telling someone and the girl overheard." She shrugged. "God, I do not miss middle school one bit."

"I kinda liked it..."

"Of course you did." She giggled. "You were probably one of those kids who actually looked good and had everything he wanted."

"Not everything." I argued. "I didn't get the newest version of the Game Boy since my old one worked perfectly fine."

"Poor baby." She nudged me. Once our daughter was clean, I pulled her out of the tub and wrapped her in a pink, fluffy towel. I carried her into the nursery and got her in a diaper and a pair of PJ's before sitting down in the rocking chair.

"Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high." I softly sang, rocking her back and forth. "There's a land that heard of, once in a lullaby." I heard her softly yawn as I continued to sing and rock her back and forth. Once her breathing was heavy, I kissed the top of her head and gently picked her up, placing her in her crib.

I looked down at her and couldn't help but smile. Even after all these months, she still took my breath away and I was still completely captivated by her. I watched her sleep for a few minutes before tiptoeing to the door and carefully shutting it. I walked down the hall towards the stairs and when I passed Ava's room she had a book open on her lap but she wasn't reading it.

"You okay?" I asked as I walked into her room. She broke out of her trance and nodded, trying to pretend nothing was wrong, just like her Mom. "Hey, I know you pretty well, kid. What's going on?"

"I guess..." She trailed off. "I'm just kind of starting to miss home."

"I miss Seattle too." I told her.

"But, this is your home?" She questioned.

"This is where I grew up, but I have always consisted Seattle my home." I smiled. "That's where I really started my life."

"It was really nice having Rose and Emmett here, but having them here made me want Pap and Grandma here." She turned away from me. "And Dad."

"You know, we aren't keeping him from you." I reminded her. "You can call him..."

"I miss the Dad who came to visit me all the way from Florida and who told me I was his entire world." She snapped. "I don't miss the Dad who forgets about me and cares more about that pitiful girlfriend."

"Okay," I said, raising my hands up in defeat. "I'm just reminding you, you don't have to cut yourself off from him."

"Thanks," She nodded, picking up The Giver again. Just as I was standing up to leave, she spoke up again. "What would you do?"

"What do you mean?" I asked, sitting down again.

"If this was you and your Dad." She whispered. "What would you do if your parents had never been together and your Dad was kind of a jerk?"

"I'd be angry, just like you." I told her. "But, I think there would come a point where I realized that..." I stopped, wondering if Bella would want me to say this. "That when I was born, he could have had nothing to do with me and went on his way without ever knowing me."

"You think my Dad was going to do that?" She asked sadly.

"I think thats always a possibility with any parent." I assured her. "I think your Dad is an asshole who has made some major mistakes when it came to being your Dad."

"But?"

"But I also think he loves you a whole lot and misses you like crazy."

"So you think I should call him?"

"I think you should do whatever you want." I winked. "But, don't let what you think your Mom and I want stay in your way." I winked, leaned over and gave her a kiss on the forehead and got up to leave.

"I love you, Edward." She whispered, picking up her book again.

"I love you too, kiddo." I said and shut her door.


A week later, I went into work but didn't really pay attention at all. I spent the say teaching, but if you asked me at the end of the day what I taught, I wouldn't have been able to answer you. It was the day my parents were going in to see the surgeon from Pennsylvania and every time the phone rang, I prayed it was them calling with the good news. I could tell my students knew something was up, so I ended up giving them a lot of busy work since I clearly wasn't up for teaching.

When I got home, Bella told me there hadn't been a call yet. I took Paige into the living room and absentmindedly played with her on the floor, but I was even distracted with her. Finally, right after dinner time, the phone rang and I was so excited to answer it, I dropped the pot that I was drying on the floor, causing a huge bang.

"Hello?" I asked over Paige's screams since I'd scared her when I dropped the pot.

"He said he is going to try surgery." Dad cried and I felt my knees go weak and I fell to the floor. "He can't promise anything, but he said he was going to see what's going on."

"So, it might not work still?" I asked.

"Right." He sighed. "But, he's the only one who wants to get an actual look and not just look at the PET scans." He explained.

"When are you scheduling the surgery?" I asked as Bella came over to me with Paige in her arms. I reached out and grabbed her little hand and kissed it, apologizing for scaring her.

"Next weekend so that no one has to take off work."

"What time?"

"I'll go in for surgery at ten in the morning." He explained. "Please, don't get your hopes up."

"Dad, this is good. He must have seen something that other doctors didn't, which means he's probably a better doctor anyway.

"Yes, well I'll see you all for dinner tomorrow night." He said and hung up the phone. Bella looked at me and I just smiled at her. For the first time since June, I had hope that my Dad could make it through this cancer.

Bella and I both put Paige to bed that night and let Ava stay up late to watch a movie with us. Knowing someone was at least willing to give my Dad a chance just gave me this unbelievable energy and I just wanted to celebrate. But, in the back of my mind, I knew there was still a chance this doctor couldn't do anything. I didn't want to celebrate too early, but I just couldn't help but feeling helpful.

After checking on Paige and making sure Ava was asleep, I headed to our bedroom where I heard Bella showering. I smiled to myself, undressed myself, and headed into the bathroom. She was singing softly to herself like she always did when she was in a good mood, and I pulled the shower curtain back causing her to jump.

"Umm, hello." She smiled as I stepped in with her.

"The girls are asleep." I smirked, leaning down and pressing my lips to hers. She moaned in my mouth as she wrapped her arms tightly around my neck and I pushed her up against the tiles. My hands roamed up her naked stomach and when they finally got to her breasts, she whimpered.

"Yes," She sighed as I gently rubbed my thumbs over her nipples. I started kissing my way down her jawline, to her neck, and finally I let my mouth gently bite down around one of her nipples, while my other hand gently kneaded the other. She was started to squirm, making me impossibly harder.

"You're so fucking hot." I told her as my hand traveled back down her stomach and finally reaching her clit. She gasped as my thumb started making slow, circles around it and it didn't take long for her to come. I picked her up by her shaky legs and pinned her to the shower wall.

"Please," She begged and I knew just what she wanted. I gave her a wicked smile as she reached down in between us and grabbed my impossibly hard cock. She positioned me at her wet entrance and I thrust in, making both of us moan in pleasure. It had been way too long since we we re together like this. Don't get me wrong, we had a pretty healthy sex life, but we hadn't been this passionate and raw with each other for a long time.

"I'm gonna come, Bella." I moaned into her mouth as my thrusts became more demanding. I reached down and flicked her clit and that was all she needed. She screamed as my lips met her and I came inside her. It took a few seconds for us to both come down from our highs and when I put her back down, she had a hard time finding her footing. I caught her before she fell backwards and held her up until we were both able to move.

I reached behind me and turned the shower off and picked her up in my arms. I carried her to our bed and gently sat her down before grabbing us two towels. We quickly dried off, got into our PJs, and climbed into bed.

"I'm sorry if I haven't been supportive." She whispered as I brought her close to my side.

"What?" I chuckled. "Moving here was plenty supportive."

"I know, but I keep telling you to basically give up." She said. "And I don't want you to ever give up on your father, but I just don't want you to go crazy trying to keep him alive."

"If this surgery doesn't work..." I trailed off. "I'll calm down. I'll try harder to accept what's going to happen."

"I love your Dad, I hope you know that."

"I do." I nodded.

"And, I love you."

"I love you more." I smiled, leaning down and kissing the top of her head.

The next week passed by full of tension between my parents and I. Mom didn't like the fact that Dad was hopeful again since they'd both come to terms with his illness. Dad was mad at Mom for not having more hope about what the new doctor was telling him. And they were both pissed at me for going behind their back and making the appointment without either of them knowing about it. But, I couldn't be mad at myself. Dad was my hero and there was no way in hell I was going to let him die without doing everything I could.

When Saturday finally arrived, Alice and Jasper came over to take care of the girls so we could with my Mom. Once they got to the house, we said our goodbyes and headed to the hospital. Since we'd gotten a late start since Paige refused to eat, Dad was ready to go down to surgery by the time we'd gotten there. He reminded me not to get my hopes up and I just told him to keep the faith, which is something he always told me when I was in high school.

Mom was fidgety the entire time we sat in the waiting room. She knew as much as I did that this could be the miracle we'd been waiting for. She was trying not to get her hopes up, but I knew she was praying for this work just as much as I was. I tried to calm her nerves, but after a while, my nerves were also running high. Bella did what she could, but eventually just gave up and held my hands.

After what seemed like forever, the doctor came out of the double doors, looking defeated. I knew before he had said anything that it didn't work. Surgery wasn't going to work and he was going to die in a year and a half. He apologized again and again as he lead us back to the room Dad was recovering in. He was sleeping and when I looked at him, I knew it was my fault. It was my fault that I had pushed and I was overcome with this sense of guilt.

"This is my fault." I cried as Mom sat beside him, holding his hand. "I shouldn't have pushed."

"You were just trying to help." Bella soothed, rubbing my back.

"But I got everyone's hope up for nothing."

"You're right." Mom snapped and I could see my Dad's eyes fluttering open.

"Esme," He croaked.

"You did get everyone's hopes up for nothing." She said. "Why couldn't you have just left it alone?"

"Why couldn't I have given up on him like you did?" My words cut like a knife.

"Edward." Bella whispered.

"I'm sorry I'm just not as okay with him dying as you are, Mom."

"You think I'm okay with this?" She asked, standing up and crossed her arms. "You think I'm okay with the fact that I'm going to lose the love of my life?"

"Well, you weren't doing anything!"

"We did everything, Edward." She told me. "Before we told you we did all kinds of research and went to all kinds of doctors." She explained. "Just because we eventually accepted what was going to happen doesn't mean we were giving up."

"Stop," Dad huffed under his breath.

"This is not my fault." I argued.

"If you would have just listened for once in your life, we wouldn't be reliving the worst day ever again." She seethed. "Because you couldn't listen, we got our hopes up again and now we're back to square one."

"This is not my fucking fault." I growled.

"Edward, let's go take a walk." Bella tugged on my arm, pulling me out of the room.