Scheduler wouldn't answer any of Edward's calls.

It wasn't really a surprise to him, but Edward was still immensely frustrated, and a little concerned, too. After Scheduler's breakdown in the hypnotherapy room, she had disappeared again, but Edward couldn't even go looking for her as he needed to possess Jasper again before he could wake up.

Thankfully, that was the last of the day's drama, and today, Edward was determined not to have more.

"That's it," he declared loudly as he shoved his phone into his pocket. "If Scheduler isn't here to help, then I'm doing this on my own." He decided that it was high time he took control of the situation, and his first goal was convincing Carlisle to go through the surgery.

As sweet as Edward found it that his father wanted him alive and well first, he wasn't so sure if he could get the two tears before Carlisle's condition gets worse. Edward didn't want him to suffer because of him, and so he had to come up with a plan to make him say yes to the procedure even without Edward being back to his own body.

"Jasper?" Bella's soft voice registered immediately in his ears despite how distracted he was. "Hey, um, you're on break, right?"

"Yeah," Edward smiled at her. "Is there something you need?"

"Um, yeah. I kinda need your help," she lifted a plastic bag. "I'm about to drop off some lunch the Cullens ordered, but I wanted to bring them a cake, too. Would you mind carrying it for me? It isn't that large, but with –"

"Sure," Edward cut her off as he agreed quickly. This was exactly the opportunity he'd been waiting for. "I'll come with you. It isn't a problem."

Bella smiled back at him, and wordlessly turned to head back inside the café. Edward followed her in, taking the cake box she gestured to with much enthusiasm. The small talk between them was not uncomfortable as they walked to Bella's car, but as soon as they were in the confined space, it began to grow stifling.

That confused Edward for a second. Conversations with Bella had always been so easy that this strange awkwardness was a foreign concept to him.

But then he remembered that he had kissed her then bolted, and he hadn't really had the chance to talk to her properly since.

"Um, hey, Bella?" he asked after gathering enough courage to talk about it.

"Yeah?"

"You remember what happened the, uh, last time I visited your apartment? You know, the day before you left for Forks?"

"I remember," Bella's cheeks darkened to a deep red.

"Oh. Okay. Um, good," Edward chuckled, a little ill at ease. The car was engulfed in stillness as he thought of what to say next.

"Why do you ask?" Bella finally asked a beat later. "I mean, do you…regret it or…?"

"No! Not at all," Edward hurriedly dismissed her suggestion. "I was just…wondering what you felt about it. Because I liked it. A lot. I mean…shit."

Yeah, Cullen, just stop talking for the love of pizza.

Bella looked over at him, a glint of astonishment in her eyes. "You did?"

"Yeah," Edward nodded. "I mean, I still do, actually. But…yeah, you get the point."

"I liked it, too," Bella whispered so softly that Edward almost didn't hear it. He did, though, and his answering smile was brilliant.

Maybe I have a better chance with her than I thought.

Slow down there, bud. How about focusing on the task at hand first before doing anything with Bella?

Sadly, Edward had to agree with the logical part of his brain just as he the hospital entered his line of vision. He exited the car, and dutifully followed Bella up to his room.

"Hi, Esme," Bella greeted when she saw the woman. "I brought lunch."

"Thank you, dear," Esme wore a smile on her face, but it her sadness was obvious. Her hair wasn't as well-kept as it usually was, her eyes were listless, and Edward wanted nothing more but to hug her.

He didn't, though. Instead, he simply placed the cake on the table when Bella did the same with her bag of food.

"How is everything?" Bella asked softly.

"As well as we can hope at this point, I suppose," Esme sighed. "Would you like to see them? Carlisle just woke up five minutes before you arrived, and Edward's still…well, he's still resting."

"I'd love to," Bella said. "Oh, and this is Jasper, by the way. He's an old friend of Edward's and mine from back in high school. I hope you don't mind that he came, but I needed someone to help me carry the food. Jasper, this is Edward's mom, Esme."

Edward tamped down his surprised expression as he looked at Bella. He knew perfectly well that Jasper was never close to either of them and he knew that Bella wasn't aware of the lies he'd been saying to cover his possessing, so she didn't really have a reason to cover for him.

He wasn't complaining, though, especially now that his mother was approaching him.

"It's no problem at all," Esme assured Bella. She turned to Edward with a warm grin, squeezing his hand with both of hers. "Hello, dear."

"Hi," Edward's voice broke a bit when he spoke. It had just been so long since he'd last touched either of his parents physically. "It's great to meet you, Mrs. Cullen."

"We'll be having none of that. You can call me Esme," his mother patted his hand once more before letting go. "Would you two like to stay for lunch? I ordered family size so there's enough to for everyone. "

"Sure."

"That would be great."

After assembling plates of Heaven's lasagne with garlic French bread, the three made their way to the area of the suite where Carlisle and Edward's body were staying.

Edward had to put in an effort to conceal his true emotions when his father came into view – the man looked like a shadow of himself with his pale skin and tired eyes.

"Carlisle," Esme set the plates she was carrying down on a nearby trolley. "Bella's here to pay us a visit. She brought one of Edward's high school friends, too."

"Bella!" Carlisle greeted, gesturing her to come closer. "It's so good to see you again."

"You, too," Bella smiled at him. "How are you feeling?"

"A little under the weather, but I'm alright," Carlisle assured her. His gaze went from her face to Edward's, who was standing quietly behind them.

"And who's this?"

"I'm Jasper, sir. Edward's friend," Edward stepped forward as he introduced his current body. "I-It's a pleasure to meet you."

"There's no need for formalities here, son," Carlisle chuckled weakly, and Edward almost dropped to his knees at the mention of the word 'son.' It felt like forever since he'd last heard his parents refer to him as that. "Carlisle's perfectly fine."

"Bella and Jasper brought lunch, dear," Esme brought an over-the-bed table closer. "It's lasagne, your favourite."

The discussion that transpired as they ate was…easy. Well, in the sense that none of the major issues like Edward's coma or Carlisle's tumors were brought up. Edward stayed quiet for the most part, simply enjoying his interactions with his parents.

When Bella and Esme left to get everyone a slice of cake, however, he decided to speak up and carry out the main reason why he wanted to visit in the first place.

"Mr. Cullen," he began, but was cut off when Carlisle reminded him again to just call him by his first name.

"Right. Um, Carlisle," he started over. "I don't mean to be nosy or anything, but I've heard of your…condition."

"What, my tumors?" Carlisle asked dryly. "There's no need to beat around the bush, son. It is what it is."

"Yeah, your…tumors," Edward had to swallow hard before saying it out loud. "I was just curious, sir. Why won't you have the surgery done to remove them?"

Carlisle sighed. "It just…it doesn't seem fair. Here I am, already accomplished with a beautiful family and a successful business, and yet, I'm the one who's given a chance to live while my son still isn't awake. It isn't fair." he repeated, glancing at Edward's sleeping body in the bed next to his.

"I see your point, and I hope you don't think I'm speaking out of line here, sir, but don't you think Edward would want you to go through the surgery?" Edward leaned forward on his seat. "And with all due respect, you denying yourself the chance to be healthy again won't speed up his recovery in any way."

"You just don't understand," Carlisle rubbed his temple. "To see your own flesh and blood like that while you can do nothing but just sit and wait...and then the opportunity to give someone life isn't even offered to him…no, I need to know that my son is alright before I agree to go through anything."

Dammit, Dad, why'd you have to be so stubborn? "Look, sir, I…I'm no mind reader, but I'm a hundred and ten percent sure that Edward wants you to live. Imagine how happy it would make him to wake up and see his parents healthy and well? Put yourself in his shoes. After such a long period of sleep, wouldn't you want to open your eyes to a world where your family is whole?"

Carlisle didn't respond; instead, he stared Edward right in his eyes as if he was looking for something. The moment was only broken when Esme and Bella returned with plates of cake and apologies for taking so long to return.

Think about it, Dad, Edward pleaded mentally. Please, God, make him do the right thing.

…

"Bells, what do you think of this get-up?" James placed his hands on his hips as he struck a pose. Heaven wasn't open yet, so he confidently displayed his outfit for the day without the judgement of customers.

"Uh…" Bella tried her best to smother her laughter as she assessed her uncle's choice of clothes. He looked ridiculous in his Zoolander-inspired suit and disco-ball covered tie. "It's..ah, really interesting, Uncle Pete."

James frowned for a second before he shrugged. "Not what I was aiming for, but much better than your aunt's comment so I'll take it."

"Why are you in that, anyway?"

"HR decided to celebrate Halloween a couple days earlier this year. Plus it's Casual Tuesday, so I just decided to mix the two together."

"I see."

"Yep. Well, I'm off to work. Don't let the place burn down, alright?" James kissed his niece's forehead before marching proudly out of the café. Bella chuckled, and returned to sweeping behind the counter.

The café wasn't necessarily dusty or unclean by any means, but Bella needed something to keep her hands busy. She didn't think she could concentrate enough to bake or decorate, so cleaning under the counter shelves was her next best idea.

Things were just becoming more and more complicated that she found herself questioning her every decision. She knew in her heart that bringing Edward with her to see Carlisle yesterday was a good idea, though, and so was her impromptu plan of keeping Esme distracted as they cut the cake. She figured that Edward would want to speak to his father alone about his choice to boycott the surgery.

The sound of plastic scraping the wood floor distracted Bella from her thoughts. Confused, she lifted the broom she was using to see what she had swept, and saw a small, plastic rectangle.

Upon closer inspection, she realized it was actually a flash drive.

"What are you doing under there?" Bella murmured at the same Charlotte yelled at her from the back to open Heaven's doors for the day. She placed the USB in her pocket before opening the café, deciding to further investigate the small device later.

…

The day was going fine so far, which made Edward all the more suspicious. He just wasn't used to normal anymore that he was actually expecting trouble now – perhaps Rosalie hiding in the bushes waiting to ambush him, or Alice walking in and seeing him.

Neither of those happened, though, and Edward's morning carried on peacefully.

Until Jacob Black stumbled into Heaven a little after noon.

Quite frankly, Edward thought the man looked like shit. His polo wasn't tucked in properly, his hair wasn't in its usual gelled style, and he just generally looked like he had been run over. And of course, he just had to sit in Edward's area.

Fucking great, Edward thought before beginning his usual diatribe.

"Hi. Welcome to Heaven. What can I get for you today?"

"Another waiter," Jacob told him bluntly. "This day has been shitty enough, and I don't need your face ruining it some more."

Edward blinked in surprise. He knew Jacob didn't like him, but he wasn't expecting such an antagonistic reaction from him.

"Uh, okay. I'll have Carmen come –"

"You know what my problem with you is, Whitlock?" Jacob interrupted. "You talk too much. And you don't know when to butt out of someone else's business."

"Sir, I don't –"

"I know you went to see Esme and Carlisle. What, you're worming yourself into their lives now, too?"

"Bella asked me to help her deliver their lunch," Edward finally lost what the professionalism he had been forcing. "And what's it to you, anyway? Edward is my friend, too. Unlike some people, I'm actually concerned about what's happening to him and his family."

"Please," Jacob snorted. "You and Edward, friends? I've never seen him speak to you once, and he's never talked about you. You expect me to believe that shit? And let me guess, that's the same bull you fed Esme and Carlisle, too."

Edward wasn't sure how to respond, but he certainly wasn't going to back down. Before he could open his mouth, however, Bella stepped in.

"Okay, I think we need to calm down for a sec," she placed her hand on Edward's chest, gently pushing him back a few steps. "What's going on here?"

"What's going on is that Whitlock here's a poser," Jacob stood up as he seethed. "A loser who's pretending he's someone when he's clearly not."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Jacob, but I think it's high time you left," Bella's tone was stern. "You're disturbing the other customers, and like I told you before, I won't stand for people talking down to our employees."

The glare Jacob shot Bella's way was deadly, but not as hostile as the one he gave Edward. With a huff, he gathered his belongings, and stormed out of the café.

"My hero," Edward chuckled awkwardly a second after the fuming man left. "I think that's the millionth time you've saved me from a crazy customer."

"It's nothing," Bella blushed as she smiled. "I just don't take well to people attacking my friends. Besides, we both know you aren't a poser, Jasper. It was him spouting the bull."

Edward grinned back at her, though it wasn't as enthusiastic.

Oh, Bella. If only you knew…

…

"It was good seeing Bella again," Carlisle remarked as Esme tucked him in for the night. "I wish she would visit more often."

"Well, she's certainly good company," Esme agreed. "And the young man she was with, Jasper, was nice, too. Perhaps just a little on the quiet side."

"Mm."

"I wonder, though. Why hasn't Edward ever introduced him to us? Bella mentioned they were friends in high school…I mean, I certainly wouldn't have minded having him over. He would have been preferable to the rowdy jocks your son would invite sometimes."

"That's true," Carlisle chuckled, but immediately sobered. "He's very…insightful. Reminds me a lot of Edward, actually."

"What makes you say that, dear?" Esme asked. She moved to Edward's bed, adjusted the sheets, and kissed her son's forehead.

"I…well, when you and Bella were off getting us dessert, he and I had a little chat."

"What about?"

"My tumors," Carlisle said, which made Esme turn to him swiftly. "Don't worry, he didn't offend me or anything. We just had a very…frank discussion about it."

"Oh. How did it go?"

"He thinks I should go for the surgery," Carlisle smiled wryly at his wife. "I guess word's got around that I'm refusing to do it."

"What did you say?"

"I told him the same reasons I told you – that it didn't feel right to get a second chance at living while our son isn't even remotely close to waking up."

"Edward's doing perfectly well, dear," Esme's smile was watery. "You've heard his doctor – he can open his eyes any day now."

"I know. And Jasper told me that when that day comes, it would be better if the first thing Edward sees is his family happy and healthy."

"He's right, sweetheart."

"I'm beginning to realize that now," Carlisle admitted. He hesitated before speaking again. "He also raised a very good point about how me not getting the tumors removed won't be helping Edward wake up any quicker."

Esme reached for one of his hands, hope tentatively building in her heart. "So what are you saying, Carlisle?"

"I'm saying that you and Jasper are right. Just waiting on my deathbed won't do anyone any good. I'll go through the surgery, Es. I won't leave you, or our son, without a fight."