Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or the characters. Thanks a million to my beta, CrystalRaindrop!

A Child of the Night — Chapter Thirty-Five

Previously ...

I smiled softly, and leaned back into Edward's chest, wondering silently if I would ever be able to hold my and Edward's child. If I would ever be able to see my and Edward's child. And I realized, in that moment, how truly badly I wanted a family.

A family with Edward.

I had never thought of the possibility of seeing. I had always been too frightened to. I knew that, like Edward had said, it had been a very long time since I had asked about the possibility of regaining my sight. Perhaps things had changed. I knew that it would hurt if I was told, still, that there was nothing that could be done. But I knew that it would hurt even worse if we never tried, if we never asked. Because if we never tried, we would live in constant regret, and we would never have the family we both wanted so badly.

Soon, he had said, and I smiled as I remembered his words.

It was a frightening possibility, I knew that much. But as tiny Sarah Isabelle wiggled in my arms and gippedmy thumb in her tiny fingers, I realized that it would be worth it.

And, I knew, Edward would be by my side through everything. He would be with me if the doctor told me nothing could be done. He would hold me as I tried to take it in, as I cried. He would be with me if something could be done. His face would be the first I would see.

And that, I realized, smiling ... would be worth everything.

August 18th, Monday - 6:30 AM - Edward POV

I yawned before reaching over to slap the snooze button on my blaring alarm. I tensed, though, when I heard Bella, beside me, groan. Had I woken her up? I hoped not. It was far too early for her to be awake, especially considering the time we had gone to bed. We'd been home by eleven, but hadn't gone to sleep for quite a while afterwards. Apparently, Bella was more than just excited about talking to someone about her sight.

She was terrified, too.

I had spent a very long time with her, comforting her, and reassuring her of the love that I held for her. And every word I had spoken was true. I would never love her any less. I wouldn't love her less even if she decided to do nothing about her sight. Honestly, though, nothing mattered to me except for the fact that my Bella was happy. Because as long as she was happy, I was, too.

I yawned again, and moved slowly, carefully, from the bed. Bella whimpered as I did, though, and I tensed, waiting anxiously to see if she'd woken up. She hadn't.

I smiled, and kissed her forehead softly before moving silently from the room.

I walked down the stairs, and into the kitchen. The whole house was silent; my brother and sister were still sleeping, as was my mother. I was sure my father was up by now, but he was probably in the shower.

I shrugged, and walked over to switch the coffee maker on before turning to the toaster. I threw two pieces of bread into it, and pressed the button down before pouring myself a glass of milk. I stifled another yawn, and gulped down the cold liquid before turning the stove on and heating up some butter. I knew Alice and Emmett would be up soon, and it was the first day of the new school year. I wanted them to have a good breakfast. And, if I was being honest, I wanted to create just a few more memories with them before leaving for college. I wanted to remember them as clearly as possible. I knew, of course, that Bella and I would visit every single chance we got. But it still wouldn't be the same.

I smiled sadly, and caught my toast as it popped from the toaster. As I chewed absently on it, I mixed together pancake batter and started a batch of chocolate chip pancakes — Alice's favorite. I knew Emmett would rather have blueberry, though, so I mixed up a separate batch, knowing that, between the four of us younger ones an my parents, they would all be eaten.

"Edward?"

I jumped slightly, splattering pancake batter all over the stove. I turned around quickly to see my father smiling at me. He was running a towel over his wet, messy hair. I grinned, and turned the stove down low before turning back to the coffee machine.

"Morning, dad," I said, and he smiled as he eyed the pancakes hungrily.

"Good morning, son. Pancakes? Yum."

I grinned, and brought several plates out of the cupboard. I poured two cups of coffee, and handed one to my father as he took over monitoring the pancakes for me. I turned to put more toast into the toaster and pour several glasses of orange juice.

"You guys got in pretty late last night. How are Jake and Angela?"

I smiled, and shrugged. "Angela was wiped out. I can't blame her, really. Jake was just about glowing with excitement. He really loves his little girl."

My father smiled, too. "Sarah Isabelle, is it? She was in the NICU when I made my rounds. Cute kid."

I grinned, and nodded. "Yeah. Adorable. Jake and Angela made me Godfather, you know."

"Congratulations."

My grin grew wider, and my father and I worked in silence for several moments. Soon, there was a large stack of golden brown pancakes sitting in the middle of the table, and a pile of toast. Three kinds of jam surrounded the pitcher of juice, and each plate was set carefully with both a fork and a spoon surrounding them.

"We should get Emmett and Alice up," my father observed randomly, glancing at the clock. It was almost seven, and the bus would be here by eight. I nodded, sighing. I knew he was right, but ...

"Can I talk to you about something first?"

My father turned to face me, and when he saw the serious expression lighting my face, he nodded, his own expression turning serious. "Sure, Edward. What's wrong?"

We both sat down at the table, and as we did, I ran a hand through my hair nervously. I knew that I had to ask this — for Bella's sake — but I was still anxious. What if my father said it was impossible? Had I built Bella's hope to impossible heights? What if I only hurt her?

"Bella wants to talk to someone about her sight," I finally mumbled, my voice quiet but strong. "She wants to know ... if there are any possibilities. It's been so long ... since she saw a doctor about her eyes. We thought that maybe ... "

I trailed off, feeling no need to continue. I could see from the light that lit my father's eyes that he understood.

"She wants to see again," he said, and it wasn't even a question. Merely an observation. I nodded, and he smiled. "Well, you're right about one thing. It has been a long time, and medical knowledge has advanced by leaps and bounds. The knowledge of the human eye, though, is very limited. While there are treatments and surgeries, I highly doubt that she will ever regain the full use of her eyes. Perhaps she would gain back partial sight, but ... "

"But that would be enough," I whispered, and I smiled. "Do you ... know anyone we could talk to about it? Before we leave? I know it's very short notice. But I figured, since you're so high up in the hospital and all ... "

"I can pull a few strings," my father noted absently. "And get you in to see Dr. Ross by ... tomorrow, maybe? I'll have to call and ask. But I think I can do it."

I smiled, but it wasn't simply happiness that raced through my veins. There was fear, too ... but the hope seemed to drown it out completely.

"Thank you, Dad," I whispered, and though I had uttered only three simple words, they seemed to mean the world to him. He smiled, and the wrinkles were barely visible became aparent as he grinned brighter than I'd seen him grin in a long time.

"You're welcome, son. Now, go wake Bella up. I'll see to the children and your mother."

I smiled and nodded before turning off the stove and walked up the stairs. I opened the door of the room that Bella and I now shared, and smiled very softly as I took in the sight before me. Bella looked like an angel, surrounded by the pure white blankets. Her hair, still so short, spiked around her head in a beautiful mess, and her soft, pink lips were parted slightly as she slept on. The expression that lit her beautiful face was content, and she seemed so free as she curled her body closer to my pillow. She smiled in her sleep, and I smiled, too.

"Bella," I whispered, and I walked to the side of the bed. I laid down beside her, and pulled her softly into my arms. The tender movement seemed to wake her from the gentle slumber she had fallen into so many hours before. She smiled before opening her beautiful, blind eyes.

I kissed her softly, and she seemed to glow with happiness as she snuggled further into my embrace. "I love you," I whispered, and her smile grew as she pressed her face into my shoulder.

"Good morning, Edward," she whispered, and I smiled before kissing her softly on the forehead and sitting up.

"Breakfast awaits, my princess," I whispered, and I kissed her neck softly before taking her hand in mine and kissing the ring that sat motionlessly on the third finger of the left hand. She smiled very softly — yet still sleepily — at me before she, too, sat up. The soft nightgown she wore rippled in waves across her gentle curves, and I grinned as I realized how lucky I was to have such a perfect angel to call my wife.

"Yuuum ... breakfast," she mumbled, and I laughed before kissing her again.

"Be sure to take your pill this morning," I whispered, reminding her as I always did. I knew neither of us were ready for children, and with recent developments ... might never be. It was more important now than ever to make sure we stayed protected.

I could see the smile slip from her face, though, as she, no doubt, realized the reason I was reminding her yet again. So, desperate to see that beautiful smile grace her perfect lips once more, I kissed her, and quietly whispered words of love to her.

Finally, though, we both moved from the bed, and I walked into the bathroom to try in vain to control the mess of fuzz I called hair while Bella got dressed. Soon, we were walking down the stairs hand in hand. We entered the kitchen, and I chuckled lightly to myself as I realized that my father had managed to wake Alice, Emmett and my mother in less than the time it took for me to wake Bella.

We sat down, and a sleepy Alice relocated herself to Bella's lap before yawning and shoving a bite of chocolate chip pancake into her mouth.

"I'm sleeeeeepy," she complained, and Bella kissed her forehead, which seemed to brighten her mood considerably. "I don't want to go to school. I hate school."

"Jasper will be there," I reminded her, and though I knew they were in different grades and thus didn't have any classes together, they would see each other at recess. And, as I predicted, this trivial fact brightened Alice's outlook on the day.

"Jazzy!" she exclaimed, hurrying through her pancakes now. I laughed as I turned to Bella.

"Blueberry, or chocolate chip?"

"Blueberry," she whispered, and I placed two of the pancakes on her plate before drowning them in syrup. I grabbed a few of my own before I moved quickly from the table to grab my coffee.

We ate in silence for a very long time, and soon, Alice and Emmett's bus arrived. My mother left the room, saying something about it being a perfect day to garden, and my father left for work soon after. Bella and I, however, continued to sit in silence long after the plates had been cleared from the table. Eventually, though, we moved to the living room, and I sat on the couch before Bella climbed into my lap.

"My father said he'll talk to Dr. Ross — the eye specialist — today," I whispered finally, breaking the silence. "He said he can probably get us an appointment for tomorrow. How does that sound, love?"

Bella stiffened in my arms, but she smiled. "So soon?"

"I thought that was what you wanted," I whispered, and my smile turned to a worried frown. Had I done something wrong? Did she want to wait? But she kissed me softly, and wiggled further into my embrace.

"No, it's all right. The sooner the better. I ... I want to know if it's possible. I simply want to know if it's possible," she repeated softly, and her smile grew as she continued to whisper. "That's all. If it is, we can wait, so do some research ... simply look into things. I'm content for now. I just want to know for the future. And the sooner we talk to someone, the better I'll feel."

I smiled, and wrapped my arms tighter around my personal angel. "I love you," I whispered, and finally, she whispered the words back. She might not have noticed, but I sure did. Over the past twelve hours, every time I had whispered my love for her, she had said nothing back. I hadn't been worried — I was sure in the love I knew she felt for me. But hearing her say those words ... nothing else compared.

"I love you, too," she breathed, and I captured her into a deep, seairng kiss. I tried to pour every single ounce of love I felt for her into that kiss, but it was impossible. As I'd noted before, it was impossible simply because the love I felt for her was endless.

August 20th, Wednesday - 7:12 AM - Bella POV

As it turned out, Carlislecouldn't get me in to see Dr. Ross until the morning that Edward and I were supposed to leave for New Hampshire. I was worried that we couldn't both make the appointment and our flight, but Edward had encouraged me to try. To help manage time, though, we had already said our goodbyes and packed the car.

So here I was, fidgeting nervously in the waiting room, trying to concentrate on the wonderful man holding me rather than the anticipation that was building up so quickly that it was very nearly painful.

"Isabella Cullen?" a soft voice finally spoke, and I jumped in my seat, smiling unconsciously as I heard my new name. Even after two months, I still wasn't used to it. I loved it. But then I remembered the reason I was here, and my smile fell. I bit my lip as I tried to hold the fear in. But as Edward helped me to my feet, I noticed that my whole body shook, and I realized that the fear was painted very clearly on my face.

"Shh, Bella ... " Edward whispered, and his warm lips rested softly on my ear. "Everything will be fine. No matter what, right?"

I'll love you no matter what.

I finally smiled, though the fear didn't completely leave me.

"No matter what," I agreed, and we walked hand in hand through the halls. The helpful nurse guided us to what I assumed was the conference room, and then left us alone after telling us that Dr. Ross would be in shortly.

"Are you nervous?" Edward whispered, and his warm breath made me shiver. I nodded, but smiled very softly as Edward lifted my lightly trembling form and placed me in his lap. He buried his head in the soft skin of my shoulder, and breathed out deeply.

"No matter what," he whispered once more, and then the door opened. I jumped in surprise, and looked around frantically even though I could see nothing. I heard a soft, inviting chuckle, though, and I calmed down immediately. Did all doctors have such calming voices?

"I'm Dr. Ross," the man introduced himself, and he shook hands with Edward while I pressed myself further into the warm embrace of my husband. "Edward and Isabella Cullen, correct?"

Edward nodded. "She likes to be called Bella, though."

"Ah. Well, we'll get right into it. I understand you're short on time this morning."

I smiled, and relaxed a little as Dr. Ross pulled a chair across the floor. He sat in front us, and I listened intently to the sounds of paper rustling. Was he looking at my file? I was sure it included a note from my previous doctor — a note saying that nothing could be done about my sight. Would I be turned away immediately? I felt my heart clench painfully at the idea.

But then Dr. Ross spoke again, and his voice was still happy. "So, Bella, how old were you when this happened?"

"Five," I whispered, and my voice was so quiet that I was afraid he hadn't heard me.

"Ah ha. And, it happened as a complication of your XP, correct?"

I nodded again, not trusting my voice. But then I realized that I couldn't make it through this meeting without speaking, so I tried to force the tears back and I spoke anyway. "I was outside in the sun ... for a long while. I sat in the shade, and tried to keep my body away from the direct sunlight as much as I could. Even as a little child, I ... I knew that the sun was bad. My father eventually found me — I'd run away from him — but it was already too late. I got sick from the sun exposure, and that was when it ... when it started happening. Slowly ... my world grew darker. Eventually, I couldn't see anything. It happened very quickly, actually, but I thought for sure the light would come back. But it never did."

I felt Edward's arms tighten around me, and I was very thankful for his silent support. I turned to him, and smiled, and he kissed me gently. I blushed, of course, and buried my head in his chest. Both he and Dr. Ross laughed softly. Finally, though, Dr. Ross spoke once more.

"I can't be sure without running some tests, but it's quite possible that the damage to your eyes is simply superficial. Not to say that it isn't serious, of course," he added, and his words made my heart beat fast. "I'm simply saying that it seems as though only the surface of your eyes were damaged. Your body is like it's own doctor — and while we can't always heal ourselves, most of the time we can protect ourselves. There is growing evidence that Lutein, a carotenoid that functions as an antioxidant for the protection of cells, is deposited in the areas of the body that are most prone to free radical damage. This includes the macula — the part of the eye that enables accurate vision. Lutein helps prevent harmful blue light from reaching – and thus causing damage – to the sensitive back tissue of the retina."

Dr. Ross paused, and took in a deep breath. I could hear the papers in his hands rustling, and I bit my lip as I tried to hold the panic in. He continued, though, and the calm tone of his words helped to relax me.

"Since you have XP, your eyes as well as your skin, to put it simply, have no natural protection. In XP paitents, the amount of Lutein is drastically reduced — and thus, your eyes had no protection from the sun, and the tissue of the retina was damaged. Your eyes changed color when this happened, correct?"

I nodded, and I noticed that my hands were shaking. My voice shook, too. "Y-yes. From b-brown to blue."

Dr. Ross made a small 'hmm' noise, but didn't speak for a very long time. I heard papers rustling, and I heard Edward's erratic breathing. I turned to him, and placed a hand on his face. His skin was warm, and he seemed to tremble under my touch. Was he as nervous as I was? It seemed impossible. Yet at the same time, it seemed as though we were simply one person. His feelings were my own, and my own feelings his. We were connected in ways I'd never thought possible. I smiled, and kissed Edward's cheek softly before whispering in his ear.

"No matter what," I murmured, and in that moment, Dr. Ross spoke again.

"I would like to take some tests now, Bella. Is that all right?"

I nodded, and stood to my feet. I nearly collapsed, though, and Edward let out a shaky breath as he steadied me.

"Sorry," I mumbled, and he captured my hand in his as we began to walk from the room. I leaned into his side, and sighed.

"Is something wrong, my love?" Edward whispered, and I shook my head.

"No, not wrong. I'm just ... nervous. What if it's something so simple? What if, all these years, it was something so simple? Have I been living in darkness for no reason? And then aagin ... what if it's irreversible? As much as I've been trying not to let myself hope ... I want to see, Edward. So badly."

I knew that Edward didn't have the words to respond. Instead, he gripped my hand tighter, and kissed my forehead softly.

"I love you," he whispered, and I smiled.

We stopped walking then, and my heart began to beat fast once more as Dr. Ross led me through set after set if tests. Some were physical, some were simply questions. Some, though, required large machines that made my heart fly.

When it was over, though, we were led back to the conference room. We sat in silence for nearly forty-five minutes, and then Dr. Ross walked back in. Normally, he said, it would have taken several weeks for my tests results to return. But he believed that we only needed some of the basic tests to confirm his suspicions, so he rushed those and put the more complicated ones on the back burner for now.

"Well, Isabella ... "

I didn't even notice that he had used my full name. I just gripped Edward's hand tighter, and tired to calm myself down.

Don't let yourself hope, don't let yourself hope ... I chanted over and over again. But I couldn't help it! I'd barely ever even thought of the possibility before, and now it might actually become a reality!

Dr. Ross spoke again, and my heart cotinued to beat fast.

"The tests we just took have confirmed my suspicions. The sensitive tissue at the back of your retina was severlydamaged. A transplant ... would be possible. But you have to understand the risks. If something goes wrong, you could lose your sight forever, withno chance of recovery. Yet another complication would be that it simply doesn't work — that the new tissue doesn't bond with the retina. And you have to remember ... this is still a new surgery. We can't guarantee full recovery of your sight. Results are mixed so far, but approximately ninety out of a hundred recipients of the surgery recover at least thirty percent of their vision. Still legally blind, but ... "

"But that's enough," I whispered, and I could feel my heart soaring. I turned around to face Edward, but not even a single word could slip past my lips before he caught me up in a passionate, searing kiss.

Finally he pulled away, and I knew he was happy. I could hear it in his voice! The joy saturated every word that he spoke.

"I love you, Isabella. But ... is this what you want?"

I barely had to think about it.

Edward ... a family, with my Edward.

And I knew I wanted it more than anything.

"Yes," I whispered, and Edward held me closer than ever.

"Then that's all that matters, my love."

This IS NOT a miracle cure. Believe it or not, I've been planning this since the beginning. I just like to taunt you guys. Mwahaha ... ? I was laughing when you freaked out about me not giving Bella her sight back. But I promise this: This was not a sudden idea. I've been planning this just like I've been planning their family ... er ... other things.

NOTE: I don't think the whole "eyes changing color" thing is possible. So sue me. But the rest of it is. If anything is wrong, though, and you happen to be an eye specialist, don't flame me, K? I got all my information on the Internet, and we all know that the Internet can be flawed. SO! Not my fault. Lol! Also, I'm sorry if this seemed rushed. But if it seemed rushed, it's because it was. Edward and Bella wanted to see someone before they left. And that's all there is to it. Lol!

See you on MONDAY! ... maybe.

Please Review! ( I also accept Anon. reviews. So you don't need an account to review. )

NEXT CHAPTER:

"And this is our bedroom," Edward murmured quietly, his lips right up against my ear. I smiled, and briefly wondered if he had already gotten a bed. But then my bare feet hit into the soft mattress that decorated the floor, and I burst into happy laughter.

"An air mattress, Edward!? Oh, I love you!"

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