Ugh…this chapter actually takes place in the middle of the last chapter, sorry about all the confusion. I'm going to work in the last part of the last chapter into the end part of this chapter so that we can make things a little simpler. I will try and update again tomorrow since I don't have to work, but there are no promises to that!

Oh, and the big show down with Carlisle and Esme will take place next chapter, so be looking forward to that! Right now, I'm estimating this story will be about thirty average sized chapters, but please realize that the whole timeline can change very easily.

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BPOV

When the doctor told me that I had cancer, I knew that things were going to change, and fast. There were the things you would expect: being tired all the time, losing my hair, becoming almost scarily skinny…things like that. But there were other things that had changed as well; things I hadn't expected to.

I hadn't expected complete strangers to look at my scarf covered head with so much pity, I hadn't expected my children to be so…afraid of hurting me, and I hadn't expected my husband to be fighting so hard for me. I was supposed to be the one who was sick. When I woke up in the middle of the night to throw up, Edward was always right there beside me, holding back my hair and comforting me. When I had no appetite and was too sick to eat, Edward would stay with me and try and find some kind of food that I would be able to keep down. Honestly, him doing all of that for me didn't make me feel any better. It made me feel guilty. I was supposed to be the sick one. I had brought this plague into our home. We were struggling because of m. My children were afraid because of me. And my husband was desperate. Because of me.

But we avoided all of these issues. Instead, we pretending that everything was okay. These moments, the ones in which we could ignore my illness, were precious and rare, and we took advantage of them.

Tonight was no different. Edward had cooked dinner- which I was feeling well enough to keep down- and Alice and Emmet were prattling on about school and friends; the trivial things that children take for granted. At the moment, Emmet was going on and on about football, and of course, Edward was egging him on. I knew that it had been an extremely hard decision for Edward to give up football, such a promising career for him, but he always said that he didn't mind so much, because him going to Chicago instead of Stanford was what brought him to me. But when it came to Emmet…football was important- it was supposed to be his ticket to a successful life.

"…and then Coach told me that I could be the starting quarterback for next week's game." Emmet was explaining.

Alice looked up, her tiny nose scrunched up. "Why do you play football? It sounds boring to me!" She exclaimed.

Emmet rolled his eyes at his baby sister, and Edward and I exchanged a small smile. "Because that's what I want to be when I grow up. A football player." He informed her, and Alice brightened.

"Oh! Well, when I grow up, I want to be mommy." Alice said seriously, looking over at me with an adorable smile on her face. Edward chuckled and I smiled back at my light hearted daughter. Then, the illusion of normalcy and safety was shattered by my oblivious son.

"No you don't, dummy." He said calmly, shoveling a forkload of food into his mouth. "Then you'd be sick, and you might die."

We were all awkwardly silent for a moment, Alice and Emmet totally unaware of the tension building in the room. "Emmet Anthony Cullen." Edward said in a steely, tense voice, and I bit my lip.

"Edward, he doesn't know-" I said softly, but he cut me off.

"Your mother shouldn't be defined by the fact that she is sick- she's a wonderful, interesting woman, and Alice should look up to her." Edward's jaw was tense, and he was obviously clenching his teeth tightly. "Anyway, she's going to be fine." He added, but I noticed that his voice wasn't as strong and confident as before. There were tears in Emmet's eyes, but Edward's stern look didn't falter. "Go to your room." He said in a firm voice, and Emmet shoveled the last of his food into his mouth before standing up and running upstairs.

I narrowed my eyes at Edward, and he sighed heavily, pushing his chair back and standing up from the table. "Yeah, I know." He grumbled, and then followed our son upstairs.

Alice and I continued to eat dinner and we talked about school, and our upcoming trip to visit Edward's parents. Despite my feelings for Carlisle and Esme, Alice and Emmet adored their grandparents and loved visiting them. They always got spoiled rotten by their grandparents and came home with loads of new presents.

Carlisle and Esme had been surprised when Edward and I had told them that we were coming for another visit, with the kids this time, especially because of how our last visit had ended up. Eventually, Emmet and Edward came back downstairs. Edward had his hand on Emmet's shoulder, and they were speaking quietly. Emmet walked right up to me and threw his arms around me, burying his face into my shoulder.

"I'm sorry, mommy." He said in a small voice. "I love you."

"It's okay." I whispered, kissing the top of his head and running my hands through his silky smooth curls. "And I love you too, Em. Always."

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"Don't be so nervous." Edward said gently, squeezing my thigh. "It's going to be fine."

"That's easy for you to say." I grumbled, looking out the plane window and then looking away quickly. I had never been too good with heights, the nausea that came along with the chemo treatments wasn't helping any. "Your parents actually like you." I hissed, casting a look at Emmet and Alice, who had fallen asleep in their seats.

Edward sighed noisily, cupping my chin in his hand and forcing me to look him in the eyes. "Bella, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks of you." He said in a low, serious voice. "You mean the world to me. Nothing will ever come between us. No matter what anybody says or does, you will always be in my heart. Forever and ever, Bella. You're spot never can and never will be replaced. You have my heart and have had it for ten years now. And no matter what demons come into our life, things will be okay." Edward looked deep into my eyes, and then kissed me softly on the lips. "Like I said, baby…forever and ever."

"I love you." I whispered to him, kissing him again and then wiping tears out of my eyes. "Thank you so much." I added, holding his hand tightly. "You're doing everything you can to make things normal for the kids, and you're trying to take the pressure off of me…I really appreciate it."

"I love you too, Bella. And it's not a problem. I'm your husband, I'm supposed to be here for you, whenever you may need me."

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Okay, I'm going to try and update again tomorrow. Please review!

Xoxo- Melodyella aka Mellie