Hey guys! I'll leave my rambling for the end. Except for this; HOLY SHOOT! We passed 900 reviews! Thanks so much for everyone that reviewed the last chapter!

A very big thank-you to the wonderful Fran, who beta'd this crazy fast for you guys! Any mistakes are my own!

. . . Bella . . .

I waited anxiously in my room, staring at my phone, and trying not to expel the butterflies in my stomach.

I wasn't sure which made me more nervous; the unknown Esme Cullen, or the well-known Doctor Cullen.

Nevertheless, Edward wanted me to meet his parents, and that was amazing. I needed to do this, and I needed not to be a complete spaz about it. It didn't help that after missing a few pills, I got my period a week and a half early and felt as though I was bleeding to death and being beaten from the inside. Knowing my luck as soon as I'd step into his house I'd probably get a horrible case of IBS.

He said I didn't need to bring anything, but I broke out one of my better recipes. I'd ruined two batches before getting my apple turnovers perfect, but no one needed to know that.

When I heard the knock, I pulled in a shaking breath as I opened it. The wave of calm that settled over me when I saw his smiling face was euphoric.

"You're totally freaking out, I told you not to freak out," he teased, and I laughed nervously. "Are you ready to go? Shit, what's that?" He asked, inhaling deeply.

I smiled before leading him inside and his face lit up as he swiped one off the plate in the kitchen. He took one bite, and then stuffed the rest of it in his mouth. I worried that he might choke, but he didn't seem to care and took another one. I shook my head with a smile, sliding the closed container away from his grasp. He reached for it, his hand stopping in mid-air when I gave him a warning look, and the most devastated look took over his face as he gazed longingly at the closed container. I slipped on my coat, then my boots, and looked up to find him staring at me. I lifted an eyebrow in response.

"Sorry," he said with a grin. The fucking liar. "You look gorgeous today."

I bit my lip before mouthing a thank-you. I relaxed a little too because I had no clue what one was supposed to wear to meet their boyfriend's parents. I settled for a warm, knitted, sweater dress in a pale gray color paired with tights. I left my hair straight. It was getting long, but it wasn't as if I could go to get a haircut. And I wasn't desperate enough yet to cut it myself. My black, sparkly scarf completed my outfit.

I grabbed my purse and walked out to the car with Edward. He got my door for me again, making me grin, but hesitated before closing it.

"Close your eyes," he said. It got easier to trust him every time he asked this, but I knew it was usually for tiny things that he thought would only make me panic if I saw them. And sure enough, all he did was sit my container in my lap, knowing he couldn't hand it to me. It was over before I could react, and he shot me a wink, looking pleased, before closing my door and walking around to his. He sat in his seat but didn't start the car.

"You know, if you don't want to do this we don't have to," he told me gently. "I hate seeing you look so nervous."

I shook my head quickly because I did want to do this. I didn't want to tell him I was feeling sick because of my period, not his parents. And I was more excited than nervous, I think. It had been a long time since I'd been in someone else's home besides Charlie's. The last house I'd been in before his, was my own when I packed up my things.

"Okay, but you're sure? Really?"

I nodded with a smile, and he gave me a bright one in return before starting up his car and backing out of my driveway.

"Okay, so, you already know my dad, and I hope that's not too weird. But he's a pretty quiet guy. My mom makes up for his silence in spades. It's rare that she's not talking, and she's kind of easily excited. And nosey. You don't have to answer anything you don't want to, and don't feel bad for it. For everything you don't want to answer, she'll just have two more questions. And if you need her to back off, just let me know. Okay? Don't feel bad about it."

I grinned. Apparently, I wasn't the only one who was nervous, but I knew he was just worried about me.

I brought my Ativan, though I really didn't want to take it. It felt too much like what they'd given me before, but it felt better taking it on my own terms. I hadn't taken any yet, I just remembered them. Besides, the majority of my episodes came on too quickly for me to even bother.

It only took minutes to get to his house and for the second time I just kind of gaped at his Mc Mansion. Who needed that much space?

"I know, it's kind of ridiculous," Edward muttered, making me grin. He parked his car in a spacious garage that had a black Mercedes and a silver BMW inside. Jesus. He cut the engine and looked at me nervously. I bit my lip to restrain my grin as I took out my book.

I swear, if I can't figure out which fork to use, I'm leaving.

He read it and then laughed loudly, looking much more relaxed.

"I'll be leaving right with you if that happens, don't worry," he said with a smile. He got out and frowned when I opened my door and got out as well.

I froze.

What? I mouthed.

"No, it's nothing," he said, his ears turning red. Was he upset that I didn't let him get my door for me? I didn't know whether to laugh or blush at the thought, and just shook it off.

"Do you want me to take those for you?" He asked carefully, and the idea of having to hand them to Mrs. Cullen almost had me reaching for the pills. I bobbed my head quickly in a nod, and he gave me a reassuring smile before waiting expectantly.

He never made me feel weak having to do this, it just seemed completely normal to him. But I closed my eyes again, my heart stopping for a second when it was plucked out of my hands. It took me a minute to calm down, and when I opened my eyes there was nothing but pride in his.

My accomplishments just felt fucking sad to me, though. I returned his smile anyways, before following him over to the door, and he waved me in ahead of him.

I froze, sucking in a sharp breath when I stepped inside. Not because of his ridiculous house, but because of the woman who was waiting excitedly, practically vibrating and looking like she was going to lunge at me.

Edward definitely took after his mother. They had the same dark green eyes, the same copper-coloured hair, and even her smile reminded me of his. She was tall, gorgeous, and curvy, her shoulder-length hair was in artful waves, and she was wearing a beautiful silver blouse with a black pencil skirt, and had a frilly white apron on over it all. And pearls, she was wearing a fucking pearl necklace.

Every single thing about this woman screamed 'Mom.'

Edward sighed as he closed the door behind me, and instead of tensing when he moved closer to me, I relaxed.

"You seriously had to wait here and ambush us as soon as we walked in? You're being creepy, Mom."

"Oh, hush. I heard the door open, I was just walking by." Even I saw that she was lying. "Bella! I can't tell you how happy I am to finally meet you!" She said happily. She still seemed to be vibrating and looked like she wanted to pounce.

But she didn't. I had no doubt that Edward gave her a heads-up about my…issues, and I was grateful.

It's nice to meet you too, I wrote, turning my book to face her. She didn't read, though, she reached for it, and I automatically dropped the book as I pulled in a sharp breath, taking a quick step back.

She froze, looking at me in horror, and my eyes watered in mortification. Jesus, I didn't even last five minutes.

Edward acted like nothing happened, though, just picked up my book, found my page, and smiled in triumph when he did. He held it out to his mom, and her eyes watered too.

"Don't you dare apologize, either of you, or we'll be here for an hour in a constant loop. Mom, Bella doesn't like to be handed things, or vice-versa."

Esme stared at him in shock, but I was quite fond of his no-bullshit approach to things, and I smiled. She gave me a hesitant smile back.

"Mom, Bella made these for you," he said, stuffing the container into her hands. Her face lit up when she opened it.

"Oh, that is just too sweet! Thank you, dear, they smell delicious. And they're Carlisle's favorite! He's absolutely crazy about anything with apples in it."

Well, that was a nice fluke, I guess.

"Come, let's go sit in the kitchen, he should be home in a few minutes," she said easily.

"Here, give me your coat," Edward said, and I noted then how different his voice was when he spoke to me. It was softer, gentler, and he had that faint smile on his lips. I slipped off my coat, and he watched his mom walk around the corner before turning to me. I knew what he wanted me to do by the look on his face, and I took a calming breath before closing my eyes.

It was getting easier every single time, and I knew by his grin that he knew that too.

I looked around as he hung up our coats, taking in the polished, pale wood floors, the marble tiles, the tall white walls and stunning paintings. It was a little ridiculous in a place like Forks. Edward looked a little embarrassed, so I made no comment, just smiled at him. He led me over to a gorgeous kitchen that belonged in a cooking show on Network television.

And it smelled amazing.

"What's for dinner?" Edward asked, pulling out a stool for me before sitting down in the one next to it. I smiled, once again curious about how today it felt more relaxing to be closer to him than further away. I wasn't complaining, though, our arms were almost touching. I set my book and pencil down in front of me and hung my purse off the back of my seat.

"Chicken Kiev and roasted veggies," she said, and saliva pooled in my mouth. "Can I get you something to drink dear?"

"We have Coke," he said knowingly, and I smiled as I nodded. I'd been so drowsy lately; I needed the caffeine and sugar.

Mrs. Cullen smiled happily, and she added ice and a lime wedge too. It was very sweet, but it reminded me a lot of my mom too. She'd gotten excited like this whenever I'd brought friends over as well.

"So, what were you up to today, Bella?" She asked curiously.

Well, I wasn't going to tell her I wasted over four hours trying to perfect those damn pastries. Just some schoolwork and regular work. And baking. Nothing too exciting.

"Oh, you go to school?" she asked curiously, and I fought against the urge to wince.

Correspondence.

"Oh! That must be nice. I know Edward would rather work from home if given the choice. What are you taking right now?"

Environmental Sciences and Social Studies. After those, I only have two more credits left before I can get my diploma.

"Wow, that's great. And you work as well?"

I work from home for the Police dept. I'm converting their old paper records to electronic files.

She froze for a moment, no doubt wondering if I had seen the report of her citation for public urination. Looking at her right now, I couldn't believe she had it in her, but I guess when you've got to go, you've got to go. I wasn't going to say shit to her, though, no pun intended.

"Oh, well, that must be convenient," she said, her face glowing red, and Edward looked between us in confusion. She looked panicked for a moment, looking at her son, then at me, and I gave her a subtle shake of my head to reassure her.

It is. I only do a couple of hours a day, but it pays well. It was a little crazy how many non-disclosure forms I had to sign before I started.

She relaxed, going back to busying herself with her food.

I heard a door open and tensed. Edward felt it of course and gave me a reassuring smile.

"Honey, I'm home!" He called, and it was a little too 'I Love Lucy' for me. I tried to hide my snort with a cough. Edward's face lit up with his smile.

"We're in the kitchen!" She called, and he walked in, only freezing for a moment when he saw me before giving me an easy smile.

"Hey Bella, how are you doing today?"

I gave him a hesitant smile and a thumbs-up. I worried for a brief second that he'd go all 'doctor' on me, but he didn't.

"Excellent. Dinner smells lovely dear," he said with a smile, kissing his wife's cheek.

"Thank-you. You have twenty minutes to wash off that horrible hospital smell," she teased, and he grinned sheepishly before ducking out of the kitchen.

Huh. Well, that was painless. I relaxed.

"Are you cold dear?" Esme asked, pulling my attention back to her. I shook my head in confusion. She opened her mouth, and it snapped shut quickly as she nodded, eying my scarf.

I felt my face pale as I tensed, but she didn't say anything else.

"And how was your day at school today, sweetie?"

I grinned, seeing how uncomfortable he was with the affectionate term. His ears turned red as he scowled, and it was absolutely adorable.

"Fine, the usual," he muttered, playing with the condensation on his glass. "I can't wait until this semester is done, my calculus teacher is still out to get me, and now my Spanish teacher is hovering like a hawk."

"Well, you shouldn't have been playing with your phone in class," she chastised gently, and he just grumbled in acknowledgment.

Why is your math teacher out to get you? I asked in amusement. He pulled a pen out of a drawer beside him, taking my book and writing.

Because I'm smarter than she is, and giving me shit makes her feel better about herself.(E)

I made a wheezing sound with my laugh to my own embarrassment, clapping my hands over my mouth, and Edward was grinning at me in amusement.

It's true. She's horrible at trigonometry. I proved her wrong once in class like two years ago, and she still hasn't let it go.(E)

You broke her confidence, how else is she supposed to build it back up without trying to find some sort of flaw in you? (B)

Maybe you could help her? And then this feud will finally come to an end.(E)

No, I couldn't help even if I wanted to. I've yet to find one.(B)

Bullshit. I can be an asshole, you're well aware of that.(E)

Everyone has asshole moments, yours are nothing special, I wrote with a grin, making him laugh.

"Well then, it seems as if I must suffer through without resolution until the end of the semester," he said dramatically, making me smile.

Esme sighed, and I jumped, because I had completely forgotten about her. She was watching us with the happiest smile, and I felt like my face would just melt off.

"Ugh, cut it out, Mom. You're acting weird," Edward said uncomfortably, and she laughed before ducking out of the room again. "She likes you already," he said with a grin. My face was starting to hurt. "Are you okay?"

I nodded because I really was. He opened his mouth to say something, but changed his mind. He took my book, looking for a new page, and wrote something before closing it.

I reached for it.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Later."

I nodded warily. I did not care for suspense.

Doctor Cullen strolled back into the kitchen wearing a pair of jeans and a khaki pullover. It was weird seeing him dressed so casually, but relieving at the same time.

"Ooo, what's this?" He asked curiously, finding the container I brought over. He opened it, and his face lit up as he smiled excitedly. "Did you bring these?" He whispered, taking one out almost reverently. I nodded warily.

"Carlisle! You better not be eating any of those pastries, you'll ruin your appetite!" Mrs. Cullen called, and then I was blown away as he stuffed it into his mouth and booked it out of the room. Esme came in a few seconds later, saw the open container, and sighed in irritation.

I couldn't stop laughing; it was so strange seeing my composed, serious doctor running away like a five-year-old after stealing a cookie.

"God, they're so weird. I'm sorry," Edward said, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation.

No, they're awesome, really, I assured him, bumping his elbow with my book. He sighed in relief.

"Want me to show you around a bit before dinner?" He asked shyly, and I nodded excitedly. I wanted to explore this museum.

He took me out of the kitchen, and we passed through a dining room where Esme was setting the table. That giant table made me nervous, but it was gorgeous. He pointed out his father's office, where he grinned up from his desk, wiping crumbs off his sweater and telling me that the turnover was the best he ever had. I blushed before running after Edward to keep up. They had a giant living room that had this huge, luxurious, white leather squared-sectional. A big glass coffee table, a huge fireplace, and an even bigger flat-screen above it. A fancy-looking bar, and more artwork.

What really sucked me in were the pictures, though. School pictures in particular. There was one of Edward in every grade, and holy shit, he was an extremely cute kid.

As was his brother. Whereas Edward took after his mother, Jasper took after his father. Blond hair, blue eyes, and kind of lanky. He didn't have the same lean, yet strong build that Edward did, but he was still very handsome.

"Oh God, don't look at those," he pleaded, but I shook my head with a grin and ran over to inspect more closely. The whole wall was filled with pictures. Them as a family, them separately, holidays and other seemingly random pictures. It was amazing to see their entire lives out on display like that. I looked at Edward with a grin.

What, no naked baby pictures? I teased.

"Hell no. She tried, and that shit was not going on the wall."

I grinned, looking back.

"She's always been a little trigger happy with her camera, she loves taking pictures," he said quietly, and I nodded.

Must be a mom thing, mine was the same. She reminds me a lot of Renee.

Edward tensed, and I cursed.

I meant that in a good way. The hovering, pet names, over-accommodating. She was a great mom, before she lost her marbles. I didn't mean it as an insult, sorry.

"No, it's okay. You just don't talk about her often."

I nodded, not knowing what to say.

I hate her a lot, which makes it hard. I haven't forgotten what she was like before everything happened, though. She was trigger-happy with her camera; she loved taking pictures, making videos. Either she or Charlie had recorded every single show or play I've ever done, and the amount of photo albums and scrapbooks she made are ridiculous.

I was kind of hoping he'd ask to see one of them. I'd seen him checking out the case of some of my home movies the other day, but he just put it back without saying anything. I was having a lot more fun than I thought I would, trying to learn sign language with him. I was relieved he'd wanted to try that, and not one of those stupid voice apps like Charlie had tried getting me to use when I was still in the hospital. The other girls had mocked me in that robot voice every chance that they got.

But, most of them had been mentally unstable, and it was the only voice of mine they knew. I tried not to begrudge them for the brief entertainment I'd given them in that white prison.

I wondered how Edward imagined my voice used to sound. I'd love to show him, but at the same time, I didn't want to seem conceited by making him watch a bunch of videos of me.

He just gave me a sad smile, looking kind of uneasy, and I felt bad bringing it up at all. Luckily the moment was broken before it could get awkward when his mom called us for dinner. He nodded me along, and my nerves kicked back in as he pulled out my chair for me at that intimidatingly large table.

I had one of the ridiculously long sides all to myself. Edward was sitting across from me, and looked even more displeased about that than I felt. But the food looked amazing, and it was hard to be upset while my stomach was growling. I was a little relieved that they weren't one of those families that said grace, because all religions just seemed like big, fucked-up cults to me now and I wanted no part of it.

There were two forks, and I gave a mock glare to Edward. He laughed, ducking forward and swiping one of my forks.

W-H-A-T? He signed, and I rolled my eyes. His mom gasped.

"Edward! I didn't know you could sign," she said gleefully.

"Err…yeah. Just the alphabet so far. We're kind of learning together," he said with a shrug.

"That's lovely. How long have you known how?" She asked me curiously.

I don't know much besides the alphabet either.

"Oh," she said in surprise. "How long have you been without your voice?"

"Mom!" Edward hissed, and Esme paled.

"Shit- I mean shoot. Damn it. I'm sorry dear, I didn't mean to be insensitive," she said worriedly. I gave her a reassuring smile, shaking my head. I held up all ten fingers. "Since you were ten?" She asked curiously, and I shook my head.

About ten months.

"Oh…so that's fairly recent," she said softly. I shrugged. "So, what sort of things do you like to do in your spare time?"

I sighed in relief, glad that the previous topic had been exhausted.

I'm trying to get my diploma early so I spend a lot of time studying. And then there's my work. I like to read, though, and draw.

God, I sounded boring. I missed my old hobbies like crazy, but I couldn't sing without a voice, and I couldn't cheer or dance when I couldn't touch someone else.

What about you? I asked, hoping to get the ball out of my court.

And it worked. Mrs. Cullen was a talker, and she easily filled the silence as she told me about her job, which led to how she and Dr. Cullen had met. Then her hobbies; home renovations, gardening, and cooking. Her book-reading club, the pottery class she was taking. Then it was talking about her other son's classes, who was studying in Washington to be a psychiatrist. All she needed were a few encouraging nods, and she just kept going.

But Jesus, the apples didn't fall far from the trees. I'd walked into a family of doctors. A surgeon, a nurse, a psychiatrist, and I knew Edward wanted to be a pediatrician. It was kind of intimidating.

And when we all finished eating, I thanked the higher powers for the timing. Because I'd seen the question on her lips after Edward's college applications came up, and I had no answers for her. I thanked her politely for the lovely dinner, making her smile brightly before Edward cut in with a, "We're going upstairs," giving me a look that pleaded urgency.

I followed after him.

"Keep your door open!" His father called, and I swear his face was even redder than mine.

"Jesus. I seriously thought they made all that angst up in TV shows. The Chief wasn't anywhere as bad as she was."

I looked at him in confusion but waited until he stopped on the third floor to write. She wasn't like that with any of your exes?

He scoffed. "Like I would have brought Tanya over to my house? No. I don't think she even knows I have exes."

I looked at him in surprise, and he shrugged. "What about yours? What was it like meeting that other fucker's parents?"

I grinned. It was kind of cute how jealous he was about Demetri, and totally unnecessary.

I wouldn't know. No one has ever introduced me to their parents before.

He looked at me in shock. "Seriously?"

This seems to surprise you?

"Well, yeah. You're kind of like, the golden unicorn of girlfriends. A mom's dream. You're all fucking polite and shit. I'm surprised they didn't use that to their advantage," he said with a grin.

How would that be an advantage?

"Now that my mom sees how good of an influence you are on me, she'll want me to hang out with you more," he teased, and I rolled my eyes. "Seriously, I thought she might try to trade me in for you for a bit there, she's crazy about you."

I barely said anything.

He snorted. "Yeah, I noticed. You played her too easily."

I smirked. You weren't exaggerating at all when you said she was a talker.

"Nope."

I finally took a minute to look around the room we were in, and a bright smile split my face.

Edward's bedroom.

It was probably any teenage guy's dream room. Movie and band posters covered the walls; he had shelves of video games, CDs, books, and trinkets. Action figures, trophies, those sorts of things. He had a decent sized, flat-screen with an X-Box, and a few beanbag chairs. It was fairly clean too, much more than I'd been expecting.

I like your room, I told him, and he seemed relieved.

"Thanks," he said, dropping down into one of his beanbag chairs. I went to browse his shelves like I'd been wanting to for so long. He had no problem looking through my stuff, so I didn't feel rude. He didn't have many books, they were mostly comics, and I made a mental list of ones he might like based on what he did have.

I grinned when I found his Star Wars movies. The first three were on fucking VHS. I laughed, pointing to them, and he shrugged with a grin.

"I have them downloaded too. But that's what started the craze, I had to keep them. Dad was going to toss them out."

I was getting all sorts of Christmas present ideas and then chastised myself for maybe planning a little too far ahead. It was hard not to with the way he smiled at me.

A/N: Hey guys! So, Bella finally got to meet Esme, what did you think? She also got to see a different side of Carlisle.

Don't forget to hit the review button! Thanks for reading, lovelies!