Carlisle POV:

There was a huge puddle on the ground as Renee fainted into her husband's arms. It was extremely hectic as everyone was trying to quickly get their stuff and take off. The Swan children ran after their parents and jumped into the car as Renee and Charlie zoomed away. Esme grabbed her mom's hand and was out of sight as her mother pulled her along with the rest of her family. Every family got into their respective vehicles, but since Lily couldn't drive and her husband passed out from heatstroke, Dad offered to take her and Rosalie. Naturally, she agreed happily. I was crammed in the backseat with the kids while trying to put my shirt back on. I helped the others after getting myself situated.

"Is Charles gonna be okay?" Dad asked Lily, concerned. I was wondering that myself. What if he fainted in the shower while he was trying to cool off? He was a very heavyset man and his excessive weight combined with the fact that he just got overheated could possibly lead to terminal illness or death.

"Oh, don't worry, Edwin. He'll be fine. He's always getting these little spells, but he never faints. He's a strong man. He can lift two-hundred pound weights without getting tired or sweating too much. He just gets overheated when he's out in the sun too long, or in that stupid hot tub, and he never drinks anything, not even soda, just plain old alcohol,"

"Maybe that's the reason why he's so weak looking. Has he gone to a doctor lately?"

"Yeah, but nobody's said he's weak. He showed himself off in the speedo. I told him not to do that, but he did it anyway. He tells me he's proud of his obesity, but I said, 'get rid of that beer belly or I might have to pop it myself and see all the food that comes out! And if you got bigger boobs than me, I'll start calling you Charlotte Evenson instead of Charles Evenson,'" I saw Lily rolling her eyes in the mirror and my dad was laughing out loud. He looked over at her chest, got distracted, and swerved a little. It was only when Kate, Jasper, and I all shouted, "DAD!" that he got himself back on track.

"Oh, Lily, you diverted my attention from the road! You remind me so much of Elizabeth. Not only do you look like her, but you act like her as well. She would always find a way to make me laugh, even when I was in one of my darkest moods. She was my sun,"

"That is so touching. You're a spitting image of William, and I swear, I see his personality in you. You seem like you're the kind of guy that would jump into a burning building to save the woman he loved. A knight in shining armor, in other words,"

"Thank you, Lily. You're a very kind lady,"

"As are you,"

"Hey, what if Will and Elizabeth got together in heaven? Kinda like Pirates of the Caribbean, eh?" I wondered aloud. Jasper and Kate hi-fived me.

"I'm sorry about my son. He's got a bit of a smart mouth," Dad muttered, but Lily started giggling.

"Come on, you have to admit he was very clever for saying that. We miss our deceased spouses dearly, but would you respect it if Will and Elizabeth started dating up in the sky?"

"Yeah, I would want my wife to be happy,"

"Same goes for my husband. You're much too tense. You need to relax,"

Lily was right. Dad was gripping the steering wheel so hard his knuckles were white.

"What's wrong, Dad?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, Daddy, what's the matter?" Jasper repeated his sister.

My father unclenched his jaw from gritting his teeth so hard. "I'm driving my children to see a woman give birth for the fourth time in a row after years of not marrying her husband,"

"Renee is a nice young woman. She and Charlie knew they were meant for each other since they were fourteen. She's Esme's best friend, so something must be good about her," I shot back and gave my dad a pointed look.

"Sex before marriage, especially when you're underage, is unethical,"

"Well, just forget about that part. All the kids look up to Esme as their role model anyway," I assured him. He seemed to forget about it when Lily massaged his arm that was sitting on his knee. He put his arm around Lily's seat and rested his hand on her shoulder. She leaned into his touch and sighed. I sensed there would be a break-up between Rosalie's parents sometime soon. I looked at the little blonde girl who sat beside Kate, not saying a word. I wondered how this was going to affect her. She had now gone through her real father's death and her mom cheating on her stepfather, making her have to have a new stepfather. She was only three, but she probably did remember her birth father. So what if Charles was a fat guy? Lily shouldn't leave him just because he's overweight. My father was slightly a heavier build himself. He didn't have a beer belly, but he did have a tiny bit of a soft stomach. Lily did too, it seemed. I just couldn't understand how they could fall in love this quickly. I guess I would have to be neutral because it was clear she didn't like her husband at all. I thought Charles was nice, but she seemed friendly as well. I decided to give her a chance. As we got out of the car, we rushed to the hospital where cars were starting to park in the huge driveway. Soon, we were walking down long, white hospital corridors until we got to the Labor and Delivery room. I saw Renee in a hospital gown, sitting up in her cot with her legs spread open. Charlie was helping her with her breathing and contractions. Esme was in there with them, watching a miracle take place. I wanted to join them, even though everyone else wanted to wait until she was finished. I knocked on the door and poked my head in. Esme waved me inside. "How's the baby doing?" I asked.

"Doc says Renee's eight centimeters dilated. Apparently, two more until she's gotta push," Charlie reported.

"Ooh ooh hee, ooh ooh hee..." Renee panted to the tune of 'We Will Rock You', or so I thought.

"We will, we will, rock you-"

"Carlisle!" she hissed through the pain. "YOU'RE NOT HELPING!" I shut up instantly. It wasn't a good idea to even tease a woman in labor. Esme hit my shoulder.

"You know better than that,"

"Forgive me?" I asked.

"Don't I always?" Esme rolled her eyes. As I looked at her eyes, they glistened, like she was about to cry. There were some tearstains on her cheeks, and although her voice was bright, it sounded hoarse underneath all the layers of her normal pitch.

"What's wrong, Esme?"

"Carlisle, don't worry about me. Renee is our main focus of concern right now. I want her and the baby to be all right,"

"But you were crying earlier,"

"It's just PMS and my emotions are going crazy, that's all," She shrugged and wiped her eyes. "Besides, I'm crying of joy because another baby is being born,"

I knew she loved babies, and that seemed like a logical reason for her to cry. I just couldn't help looking out for her, like a protective older brother.

"CHARLIE!" Renee yelled, and all of us spun around to face her. Her face was red and tears were streaming down her cheeks. "I GOTTA PUSH!"

"You gotta push...okay, okay...damn doctor is taking too long! Just push, baby, la push that baby outta there!"

"SHUT UP! AAAAAAAH!" Her belly clenched, and she squeezed Charlie's hand tightly. Esme took hold of Renee's other hand, and Renee arched her back as the crown started to appear.

"I see the head!" I called out, amazed.

Another shriek erupted from Renee as the eyes, nose, mouth, and pretty soon, the whole face and neck broke through.

"Come on, you can do it," Esme gently encouraged her best friend. "Come on, big sis,"

"Little sis, thank you!" Renee panted. She let out a third gut-wrenching sound as the shoulders followed and then the rest of the tiny body slid out. When the wailing started, we knew we had a happy, healthy baby. Renee lay back on the bed, totally wiped out and sweating. I got some tissues from the nightstand and handed them to her so she could clean her face a little.

"Oh, the baby...we missed it!" Dr. Gerandy said, shaking his head. "You guys should have called us in,"

"It was too late," Esme explained. "Sorry, sir,"

He called in some nurses to help clean off the baby. Pretty soon, little Cynthia was resting in Renee's arms and she was sitting in Charlie's lap. The two kissed, and Esme and I turned our heads to give them some privacy.

"Hi, Cynthia," Renee cooed to the little girl with barely there black hair. She looked like a miniature version of Alice.

"Our tiny daughter," Charlie murmured.

"Oh, god, she's so cute," Esme whispered. Renee kissed the baby girl's head and handed her to Esme. "Hi, sweet baby girl. Hi, there. I'm Esme. It's nice to meet you. I'm your mommy's best friend in the whole wide world," Esme touched Cynthia's little button nose, and the baby stopped her crying for a second. She started back up again until Esme kissed both her cheeks, her nose, her forehead, and then her bellybutton. It was the cutest thing I ever witnessed. Esme passed Cynthia to me and I bounced her a few times in my arms.

"I was supposed to have a pool party after the baby was born, but Lily and Charles hosted it already!" Renee said, almost regretfully.

"Are you still gonna have one?" Esme asked her.

"I'm gonna be very busy with the baby, you know. You could always help me, Esme, and even take her to Rosalie's house. I know Rosalie would love her. She's so good with babies, I can just tell,"

"She does treat her dolls like they're her own children," Esme agreed.

"I feel sorry for Rosalie, though," I said sadly. "Lily really likes Dad, and he likes her back. It looks like she's gonna dump Charles. I like her, but I like him too. I guess everyone's gonna be in the middle of their fight, and Rosalie's gonna be devastated by their divorce,"

"They're not fighting. Maybe Lily just stopped being interested in Charles," Esme said softly. "Lily talks to me a lot, you know. She's like my mentor, in a way. She's very much like Elizabeth. I would have thought she was a reincarnation of your mom if your mom had died a generation ago,"

"I don't know her well enough to determine that,"

Renee and Charlie didn't intervene because they were busy with their new child.

"I've known her for just a week,and seven years of knowing your mom, those two are a lot alike,"

"I suppose you're right. I can't replace my mom, though,"

Esme put her hand on my arm soothingly. "Of course you can't. But she would want your dad to be happy, and even though Lily would never replace Elizabeth, she would bring love to him and light to his eyes again. Lily's lost her true love too before. Will must resemble your dad a lot,"

"I guess so. Maybe Lily will help my dad see that he doesn't have to be a religious freak," We all laughed at that.

"So, Renee, what brought on that sudden need to give birth?" Esme asked.

"I have no idea. I'd like to blame it on the hot tub and the baby got too hot, but I think it was because Alice was hollering at me to check up on you because of that silly dream she had, you know...and I told her to please stop since it was only a dream, and you're just fine, aren't you?" Renee went on.

"Yes, I am. So you think stress from Alice's constant warning about me made you go into labor a little early?" Esme asked.

"That's right,"

A few minutes later, everyone exited the room to let Renee get her dress back on. Charlie carried the baby outside and all our friends and families immediately fussed over baby Cynthia.

"She's so adorable!" squealed Carmen. "Muy linda bebe, pretty baby,"

"She loves my finger," Eleazar joked as Cynthia grabbed his finger in her little fist.

All the couples took turns holding her, and Lily kissed Cynthia on both cheeks and on the forehead. Then, she gave her back to her mother, Renee. It was different seeing Renee with a flat belly again. I wondered if she would ever want a baby after four painful births, although they were totally worth the discomfort. It was up to Renee and Charlie, though. I didn't want to pry in their personal business.

We all went home, ending the pool party on a good note. Renee and Charlie took their kids to the park, and Charles invited us guys for a night out on the lit up basketball court after eight at night, when he had fully recovered. I was glad it cooled down so he wouldn't get too hot. I didn't know how to tell him Lily was cheating on him with my dad, because that would make him hate me. He was my new friend, and I didn't want us to be enemies.

"So, Charles, how did you meet Lily?" I started. I wanted to know exactly how close they were. I wanted to know why he chose a flirty girl who just picks up any guy she feels like and then dumps him on his ass whenever she pleases, so the same thing wouldn't happen to my dad. I still loved my dad, even though he acted like an annoying Jesus freak.

"Good question, son. Very good question. Sit down, boys, and I'll tell you the whole goddamn story,"

I loved that he swore a lot, just like my Esme. It made him sound cool. We boys sat on the bench and listened to him as he explained it.

"Now, when I first saw Lily, she was a pretty fine girl-she still is-I met her when I was thirty-eight. She was thirty-one and had a cute little daughter named Rosalie. Rose was three. Anyway, I saved Lily. She was mourning over her husband, who was killed. But when I researched him, I found out that he was an abusive drunk! She was faking her sadness, and when I asked her what was wrong, she said nothing. I looked closely at her and spotted a black eye that was slowly fading. As I scanned her up and down, she had bruises and scrapes all over herself. 'I guess I should be grieving over his death,' she sobbed out loud. 'But I'm not, because he hurt me bad, Charles,' She was an easy target for all those bad people out there. Some rapist almost got her, but I beat the shit out of him, knocking him unconscious. Another asshole got a little rough with her, but I stepped in and she called me her hero. I was with her for two months and then we got married. It was a beautiful wedding, and she loved me for being her knight in shining armor. Of course, her daughter was the apple of my eye, and Rosalie has loved Father's Day with me so much more than with her own evil daddy. I love taking her out for ice cream on that special day, and on Lily's birthday, I decided to propose to her. Other years, I have brought her gifts, like expensive jewelry, and other things she's fascinated with. On Rosalie's birthday, I take both her and Lily to Disneyland, and those rides are so much fun. Obviously, the nights with Lily in our hotel room is fun as well, while our dear little Rosie is sleeping. These four years with Lily and Rose have been wonderful, and I hope to celebrate many more years of marriage with my darling wife and steppdaughter. Rosie loves me so much, she doesn't even call me Charles anymore. She calls me Daddy, and I'm damn proud of her for it. If that's not father-daughter love, I don't know what is. As for Lily, well, I love her more than words can express. We're two halves of a whole. The perfect match. You get it. We're also the coolest parents in the universe. We would protect our kid and any other kids from danger because we hate the evil that is done to children in this world. I thank God every day that the kids I know, plus Rosalie, are in safe families and a friendly neighborhood. Also, the domestic violence has got to stop. Some sickos do S&M on their wives, but I would never do that shit. I would never hurt my wife on purpose in any way. I've never cheated on her or even been tempted by other ladies. Lily's the one, and I knew it when I saw her, about to jump off a bridge. I was just walking by her, taking pictures, and I passed her. We got to talking...and now we're back to where I started. I love that family, and they love me!" Charles declared. "Sorry if I'm so loud," he unnecessarily apologized.

"It's cool, bro," the guys murmured.

"Wow, dude, that's so romantic, you saved her," I replied. I would totally do that for Esme. I would shoot anyone who tried to hurt her. Now, I really felt guilty for Charles. Here was a kind and loyal man, and his wife was seeing another man behind his back. Maybe I should wait until I tell him the terrible, sad truth.

A smile curled on his lips as he clapped me on my back. "True that, buddy boy,"

He was going to be in for the shock of his life if I ever told him about Lily and my father. He was going to be so heartbroken. He put the broken woman back together when she was about to kill herself, and she had betrayed him. I had to warn my father before she played the dead husband card on him.

Please read and review! Thank you to reviewers TeamCarlisleandEsme8, Just4Me, LaurenFacinelli, k8lin713, cuddyannie, and that kiwi chick! And yay my school schedule isn't murdering me quite yet! So I still can update maybe twice a weekend! YESSS!