Playlist: Daughters, John Mayer; You, Fisher; Breakaway, Kelly Clarkson; Higher Ground, Alexz Johnson;

Edward spent the next three days running between his insane sister telling him to get stuff for the baby's room, the hospital, and bringing Nessa to and from school. He had to return paint because the paint mixing person got the wrong shade, and he had to argue with the poor man even though he couldn't care less about what shade of pink his daughter's room was as long as she had a place to rest. He went to the Next Day Floors people and bought some nice soft carpet for the room, which previously had wooden floors. He helped Nessa with her homework, fed the baby, fed Bella, and ran back to the house when Rosalie fell off a ladder, causing her ankle to swell up in pain. He rushed her back to the hospital only to find that Rosalie was going to have to sit this one out due to her broken ankle. He then had to pick up her slack for the next two days, while still helping Nessa and helping with the baby…

It was the most stressful three days he'd ever had to live. But he did it all with a giant smile on his face because at the end of those three days he was going to bring Bella and his baby home. He was going to get his family settled and he was going to take care of them as best as he knew how. He was determined to make this as stress free for Bella, Nessa, and Carly as possible. Even if it meant he had to go out of his mind over it.

At night Bella slept and he sat in front of the window to the nursery, keeping a vigilant eye on his daughter until he could hardly keep his eyes open. He'd never had so many coffee drinks and energy drinks in his life as he did in those days because he fell asleep at four in the morning and was awake again at five-thirty to feed his baby and get Bella comfortable for the day before going to the house to work on the nursery. He would have lunch with Bella before running off again to pick up Nessa or pick up supplies or whatever deliveries the girls had ordered for furniture or accessories.

And he still did it all with a giant smile on his face. The nurses would joke, saying "Here comes Smiley face Cullen" and other things of that nature. He just grinned and winked at them before ducking into Bella's room to kiss her because he missed her insanely in all the time he was gone.

He had just ducked into her room to find her curled up on the bed sound asleep. She looked so beautiful that he thought his heart was going to tear a hole in his chest so it could get out and run to her. She winced slightly and he realized she was still in pain from the rather frightening delivery, and he frowned. He knew that would slow her down for some time after he was gone.

Sorrow clawed at him and he toed off his shoes and slipped into bed next to her, burying his face in her hair and trying to stop tears from overflowing. He wanted so much to be with his family that his other dreams meant nothing to him. He could forget the fame and the money. He could forget the travel… it was exhausting anyway, and he never got to do as much of the touristic activities as he wanted because he was always rehearsing. Besides he was so lonely after it never mattered that he was sold out or that there were crowds surrounding him and people who wanted to just be seen with him. At the end of the night, he was always alone…

"Edward."

"My Bella," he whispered his voice raw.

He saw the concern in her eyes when she turned to look at him. "Baby what's wrong?"

"It's nothing really… I'm just… not looking forward to going back to tour."

"Edward, this is your dream, you wanted this so badly-"

"No," he shot off the bed so fast she flinched. "All of it! The money, the traveling I always wanted to do, the fame, the glory, whatever it all was… it means nothing to me anymore. Don't you understand? The only thing I'll ever want that badly again is you! You, my daughters, my home. That's all I want, it's all I need…"

"Baby, I understand. I understand that it has all taken a sort of back seat to your family, but I don't want that. I want you to continue this for us. Because we need the money now. We need you to be a man of your word and finish what you started. You should see Nessa talking to her friends about you…"

Flashback, four months ago

"Momma, I'm home! I brought Marcella and Courtney."

"Oh," she said in surprise. Marcella and Courtney were two of her friends from school who also were on her Gymnastics team. Marcella was a genuine friend, but Courtney reminded her a lot of Edward's ex, Lauren, and Bella despised her superficiality and attitude."Do you girls want me to get a snack for you?"

"Cookies please, momma," grinned Nessa before dragging her friends upstairs.

"No cookies for me, Ms. Swan. Those make you fat," the eleven year old huffed.

Nessa raised an eyebrow. "Really? I saw the coach on the cheerleading team tell you that if you wanted to be a flyer still next year you had to lose weight. I don't ever see you eating cookies." Courtney glared at her, but she just rolled her eyes. "Let's go upstairs. I have homework to do before gym."

"So," Bella heard Courtney ask as they headed to Nessa's room, "My father says his company is going to be a sponsor for our team in the next gymnastics competition. Are your parents coming?"

Bella seethed at the low blow.

"Why the hell would you ask her that Courtney? You know her dad isn't around, what is wrong with you?"

"What? I was just asking. Besides he's not really her dad. He could just not come back; he's not obligated to stay here."

"Seriously, I'll see you both at gym. I'm not standing around for this crap." Marcella stomped down the stairs.

Bella hustled to pretend she was working on a snack for them but she paid close attention to what Nessa said next. It brought tears to her eyes.

"He is my dad," she hissed, "and he's only gone because he has to work to take care of us. My father is one of the most popular pianists in the world and he is much cooler than your dad because he teaches me the things he knows and he takes care of me. He WILL come back and when he does he will be so famous that your stupid dad won't need to sponsor us."

End flashback

"She said that?"

"Yeah. She is so proud of you, baby. I'm so glad my daughters have a dad they can be proud of. There's nothing I want more in my life."

Edward felt his heart warm. He hadn't realized Nessa thought so highly of him.

"Edward you need to finish this tour off. You need to be the man you daughter wants you to be."

He sat down on the bed, studying his hands which were in his lap. He could do this, he thought. He could do this for them. They were his life and he had to sacrifice his feelings for just a few more months so that he could be the husband and father they needed him to be. They were what brought him back to life. They made him so happy he could hardly breathe from it sometimes.

And he now had a new muse for him to compose about. He was going to play and sing for his baby. He had made Bella's Lullaby quite popular. He would make a song for Carly and Nessa too.

E|B

She worried about him constantly. The thought of leaving made him so depressed that she was pretty sure he'd do something as drastic as pretend to have a bomb or something in order to not have to leave.

He confessed to her that his views on life had changed. That his focus wasn't that of fame and women and money. In those moments he looked so vulnerable that she wished she could jump out of bed and into his arms and just hold him. As far as she could remember, she never saw Mike look as full of love for her or his daughter, as Edward had then. She'd never seen him lay all his heart on the line and be so willing to give up anything. Edward on the other hand had pretty much said that he'd rather be a broke nobody than be without her.

She was always comparing him with Mike. Honestly she had no clue how or why, because there was no comparison.

I don't want competition that's dead. Edward had said that. And she'd sworn that Mike was no competition, but everything that happened was compared to her past with him.

She looked down at herself. She had Edward's engagement ring on her finger on her left hand and it didn't feel heavy, like it did when she'd had Mike's wedding ring—

Enough! She painfully slid out of bed and went to the little cabinet where her personal belongings had been stowed. Pulling out her purse, she dug through it, taking everything out and replacing it, dumping it out on the floor and searching, until she found the simple gold band. She didn't know why she'd kept it for so long. Yes, Mike was Nessa's father. Biologically. But he would never be half the man or half the father that Edward had been, not just today, but in all the time they'd been together.

Standing, she moved toward the trash can. Taking one last look at the ring, she said goodbye. Goodbye to Mike, goodbye to the anger and pain she had felt because of him. Goodbye to the lies, the wasted time, the wasted tears, the lonely nights, the devastation she'd lived in after his death. Goodbye to the betrayal, the fear, the loss. The awful feeling of being used by someone you care about.

The ring was swallowed up by the empty white trash bag, and she smiled, squaring her shoulders. She was going to be with Edward forever. She was going to higher ground.

"I love you, Bella baby," said Edward from the doorway. He had apparently been watching the whole thing, but he had not so much as breathed, so she didn't know he was there until he spoke, scaring the bejesus out of her.

"Edward! What the-?"

He cut her off by pressing his lips urgently against hers. "God I love you," he whispered between kisses. "I love you, I won't let you down."

She was still dazed from his lips. He had that effect on her. But she had to know, "how long had you been standing there?"

He beamed again, lifting her up and spinning her around before placing her on the bed to kiss her more. "Long enough, Bella baby. Long enough."

B|E

All this time he knew that she'd been holding on to her past. All this time he'd wondered if some part of her was still in love with that prick. All this time, almost two years, he'd been afraid that she would let him go because of her old life, just like Lauren had. All this time he'd wondered if there was another man in her life, one he could not compete with because he had sunk his filthy claws into her and then passed away.

All this time he'd been one hundred percent wrong. All this time he'd been the only one for her, the only one for her daughter. All this time, he had been away and not realized what he had in front of him. All this time he'd missed her because of the fear that she'd leave.

Now he knew. He watched her dig through her purse and pull up the most important reminder of his existence. He'd asked her so many times why she kept it. She always shrugged and said, "As a reminder." Reminder of what? He'd ask, but she'd change topics or stop talking all together and stare out the window. But today, she'd said it all. It was a reminder of the bitterness and pain and loss. It was a reminder of the betrayal, of her wounded heart and pride. It was a reminder that she had clung to him even though he had left her. And she was done clinging.

She'd smiled, and her chin had come up, and her shoulders had squared. She was determined to move forward with him. She loved only him, and in return he loved her with every fiber of his being. Together they would make it to higher ground.