Much to my surprise and enjoyment, I actually had some compliments on this short little clip and I was asked to extend it a bit. I thought why the hell not. Well, to answer that question, I'm a PhD student with very little time on my hands. That's why not. But then I felt so terrible for leaving it all hanging like that. So here we go. I promise this will not be a long story: maybe a few more chapters at most. I just want to tie up the loose ends and make sure no one hates me!

I'm sure Ms. Meyer is a very nice lady and I have no intension to steal her intellectual property.

Edward and I were walking through the woods behind our little house holding hands. I stumbled a little and had to cling a little to his arm, but I didn't mind. I cuddled in close to his arm and felt him sigh in return. Up ahead, I could see the opening in the trees that would lead to our meadow. We had discovered it only about a week after getting married and moving in to our cozy little place, but we hadn't been there together since we had found out we were having a baby. I was so excited to see the meadow that I broke away from Edward, skipping and hurrying to the clearing. I heard Edward behind me jogging to catch up. All of a sudden, as I reached the edge of the meadow, I froze. I couldn't move. I stretched my arms out to reach the sunlight, but my feet were glued in place. I looked over at Edward, who had come to a stop beside me, and he looked so sad. It was heartbreaking to see him look like that. I opened my mouth to say something, ask why he was sad or why I couldn't move, but the only sound that came out was…. A door slamming? I tried again and this time it sounded like feet running up the stairs.

My eyes popped open and I was suddenly hit with the reality. Of course it was a dream; I couldn't skip through the woods toward the meadow. Hell, I couldn't even get out of bed to use the bathroom. However, Edward was still beside me and I was still cuddling into his arm. He didn't look sad at all. In fact, he had his eyes open and he was looking at me with a small, sleepy, but very loving smile.

The next thing I knew there were voices coming from down the hall. I heard Carlisle first. "Mary Alice Whitlock, what on Earth are you doing here! It's 4:00 in the morning!" A couple things struck me as odd about that sentence: first and most obvious was that Carlisle had called his daughter "Whitlock" instead of "Cullen." The second was that Carlisle would actually be surprised that Alice had shown up at 4:00 am, most likely to drown me in five years' worth of designer clothing and try to stuff me full of her famous blueberry muffins.

I looked back at Edward and he was smiling. "I'd explain about the new name, but I'm sure Alice would castrate me if I didn't let her do the honors herself." I smiled, knowing full well that she would not castrate him, but that she would certainly threaten to.

The voices coming from down the hall were low murmurs now. Most likely Alice was calmly explaining to Carlisle all the logical reasons why she should be able to see me now. I'm sure she was also finding out if I was allowed to eat muffins yet.

I heard the front door slam and a voice called out as large feet were heard pounding up the stairs. "I'm sorry Carlisle! I tried to stop her! She looks small but she's really quite stro…" The voice trailed off as it must have approached the top of the stairs. Oh good, I thought to myself, another new voice for me to be confused about.

Edward brought my attention back to the room by leaning in to place his lips on mine. He hummed in satisfaction, making my lips curl into a smile against his. "Are you feeling up to having a visitor? I'm not sure what will happen if I tell Alice she can't come in." He faked a frightened grimace at the thought of telling his little sister no.

"Sure, she can come in. I'd like to see her," I whispered, unable to make my voice cooperate fully. Edward gave me one more quick kiss and slid out of bed. He wobbled groggily to the door, threw it open, and poked his head around the corner. Edward was adorable when he was sleepy…

"Hey guys," he said, directed toward the end of the hall. "We're awake thanks to all the shouting. Bella said she'd be open to having visitors if you're interested." I heard a squeal and it was seconds before I saw Edward being shoved away from the door frame and Alice standing in his place, practically vibrating with excitement. "Hi, Alice," I whispered.

"Oh, Bella!," Alice screeched. She ran toward me and practically threw herself onto the bed beside me where she proceeded to hug me tightly and kiss both of my cheeks. She had the largest grin I had ever seen plastered onto her face. "I knew you would wake up. I told everyone that you would. I'm sorry you can't have any of the muffins I brought, but dad says you can work your way up to them within the next week or so!" I laughed at her exuberance and at having guessed correctly about the muffins.

A voice cleared behind us and we looked to see Edward standing at the door with his arms crossed. Standing next to him was a very good looking man about Edward's age with dirty blond hair wearing flannel pajama pants and a white t-shirt.

Alice hopped out of bed and ran to flannel-pants-guy's side. "Bella," she said with a huge grin, "this is my husband, Jasper Whitlock. And this," she said while pointing at her abdomen, "is either Benjamin Carlisle or Tia Emse Whitlock."

My chin must have hit the floor. When my voice finally came back it was with a vengeance. "Good Lord, Alice! You're married and having a baby? What else could I have possibly missed out on!"

"Hah," Alice snorted, unwilling to give me time to process, "Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have, like, twelve kids together, a hurricane destroyed New Orleans, Michael Jackson is dead, and we finally have a Black president. Oh! And there are two more Harry Potter books you have to read before you're allowed to see the movies. And don't even get me started on technology, because it baffles me that you have never watched a Netflix instant play movie before."

Thank goodness Jasper stepped in and covered her mouth with his big hand, because my head may have quite literally exploded with all the information. After a long pause in which my brain tried to catch up with 5 years worth of Alice-worthy information, I let out a long sigh and looked up to see my family grinning at me. The next exchange between Alice and I could only have been shared between two people as close as we always had been.

"That many kids?"

"Most are adopted."

"Mardi Gras?"

"Still as popular as ever."

"The king of pop?"

"It was a sad day."

"Black president"

"Barack Hussein Obama"

"Did Harry die?"

"Not telling."

Tears started to well in my eyes as I looked at my best friend. I could see that she was near tears as well. "What the hell is Netflix?" I whispered. Finally the tears spilled over for both of us. Alice came to my bed and held me while I cried into her shirt. I cried for the joy of being awake and seeing my family again, I cried for all the things I had obviously missed out on, and I cried for the pain my family must have gone through at not having me around for all those years.

When my tears finally dried out I looked up and realized Alice and I were alone. "Alice, I want to know all the important parts of our life that I've missed. Obviously, I've missed so much with Edward and Carlie, but what else have I missed out on?"

"Well," Alice started, "We should probably have a big family meeting for that information. There's a lot. Esme told everyone they could come over for lunch and see you, if you're ready for that."

"And who is everyone?" I asked.

"Edward and Carlie, of course, Jasper and I, Jake and Leah, and… well, Emmet and Rose," she grimaced on the last couple of names.

"Emmet and Rose? Emmet as in the gym teacher at Forks High? And who is Rose?" I was confused as to why these people would be considered family. Emmet always seemed like a really nice guy, but he was never more than an acquaintance, really.

"Well, some things have happened, and they're like family now. They have two little ones, and their oldest is just a few weeks younger than Carlie." Alice answered.

"Ok," I replied, "Would it be possible to get the basics from the four of you here before all the others arrive? Especially Carlie. I want to be well informed when I meet her."

"Oh, Bells, that's a great idea!" Alice bounced a little on the chair she had moved to. "It'll be like 20 questions or something!" Leave it to Alice to make this into a game. "In the mean time," she said, "One major development that you might be interested in hearing is that I'm a nurse now."

My mouth popped open in shock. I had never thought of Alice in such a serious medical profession. "What happened to your fashion design degree online?" I asked.

"Oh, I finished that, too. It was fun! But I spent so much time at the hospital while you were there and I saw how amazing your nurses were. I decided I wanted to do that! So I enrolled at Peninsula State that next fall, finished in 4 years, and I've been working at the hospital with dad for about 6 months now." Alice explained it all with a huge smile on her face. I could tell she was really happy with herself and with her job. I imagined my little friend sitting at her sewing bench working on fashion-forward nurses' uniforms and suppressed a chuckle.

"Alice, that's amazing! I'm so proud of you!" I exclaimed.

"Thanks, Bells! But that means that I've been helping take care of you for a long time now. I KNOW you have some medical questions that you want to ask me about. And I'm sure there are some you'd be more comfortable talking with me about than with my dad." Alice made a face to emphasize the embarrassment of asking Carlisle some of the questions I had.

Relieved that there was someone I could trust who was willing to answer my questions, I spent the next 30 minutes grilling Alice about my condition. I learned that I would have to keep the catheter until I could walk to and from the bathroom on my own. However, in a few days I would probably be able to change the bag on my own. Alice also took out my feeding tube and said I would start a diet of liquids, working my way up to solids over about a week. I would start physical therapy in a couple of days and there would be a counselor coming to the house to talk to me about everything I was going through. Until my body got back to where it was, I would be able to get around the house in a wheel chair so I could sit with the family. She said I could probably move back to my house with Edward and Carlie sometime in the coming week, as soon as I could eat a regular diet again. Alice was an angel.

At around 7:00 am, there was a knock on the door and Edward peeked around the door frame. He let out a visible sigh of relief when he saw me sitting up in bed and laughing with my loving sister-in-law. "Have I given you two enough bonding time yet? I'd really like to spend some time with my wife, if that's ok," he asked sheepishly.

Alice and I smiled at each other. "You two should try to take a nap," Alice said. "I woke you up kind of early and I'm sure you're tired, Bella." I smiled at my best friend and nodded, though I was tired of missing out on my time with Edward. I didn't intend to sleep ever again unless he was sleeping also.

Alice excused herself and Edward came in. He sat down next to me and immediately enveloped me in a tight hug. "Alice said I could probably go home with you sometime within the week," I informed him. His answering smile was dazzling.

"That's great, baby," he answered. "I can't wait to have you back in our house. We really need you, Bella." He looked at me with that cocky smirk that he knows makes me crazy and in a sultry voice, whispered, "I need you." Well, now I at least knew my lady parts were working as normal. Unable to resist, I reach up and planted my hand in the hair at the base of Edward's neck, pulling him in for a needy kiss.

Instead of taking a nap like we were supposed to, Edward and I made out like teenagers for a full thirty minutes. His mouth was warm and covered mine completely. I could taste his breath deep in my throat and it awoke a primal need in me to be connected to my husband as completely as possible. I urgently pulled him closer and explored the inside of his mouth with my tongue. It felt familiar and safe to be with him like this. Our mouths danced together, exploring, until we eventually had both fulfilled our need for intimacy from the other. Finally, the kissing slowed until we were simply staring at each other, the occasional chaste peck passing between us.

Eventually, I gathered my courage to ask something that I had wanted to ask Edward all morning. "Edward," I whispered, "will you tell me about Carlie?"

Edward's face lit with a heart-melting smile. "I would love to, baby. Carlie just happens to be one of my favorite subjects. Let me help you work your leg muscles while we talk."

I had learned from Alice that part of my daily routine was having my muscles "worked" to avoid atrophy as much as possible. Edward helped me adjust my body so that I was sitting with my back against the headboard. He sat at the foot of the bed and very slowly, lovingly held my right calf in his hands while bending, raising, turning, and generally moving my leg any way it would go. He then meticulously massaged every part of my leg, working into the muscles thoroughly but somehow gently at the same time. Then he switched legs. This exercise took my breath away. It was not only the most romantic thing I had ever witnessed, but watching him work my body with such concentration was a huge turn on.

All the while Edward was working my legs, we talked about our daughter. She loved spaghetti and pizza, but hated pepperonis. She ate fruits and veggies better than most kids her age, but she refused to touch any kind of squash. It was general knowledge in the family that no one was to ever tell her that pumpkins were a type of squash or she would forever refuse Alice's pumpkin muffins. She hated to get dirty and sweaty and thought sports were boring, but she also didn't like baby dolls or playing dress up (much to Alice's disappointment). She liked to read and draw and play the piano with her dad. Her favorite color was yellow, but she wouldn't wear yellow clothes, claiming they made her look like a bumble bee. Her recent 4th birthday party was Dora the Explorer themed, but when she turned five she adamantly professed that Dora was for babies and insisted instead on a "proper tea party" like she had read about in one of her books.

Our daughter was fascinating.

I sat in front of my husband, trying to ignore the way he caressed my calves as he worked, and absorbed as much information as I possibly could. I asked any question that popped into my mind. What was her favorite movie? (The Princess Bride) Who was her best friend? (Max, Rose and Emmett's oldest boy) What was her favorite book? (At the moment, anything in the Henry and Mudge series) Had she ever been on vacation? (Only to First Beech and to Seattle twice) Had she ever been seriously hurt or seriously sick? (She spent the night in Forks General when she was 4 for a bronchial infection)

I needed this information, craved it like a drowning man craves air. As Edward revealed more and more tiny details of our baby to me, I began to panic. I didn't know her at all! Everything I knew about the small person who called me mommy had been gleaned second-hand over the previous 14 hours. Edward must have seen my panic and, as always, knew exactly what I needed.

Taking my hand in his, Edward said, "You know Bella, last week Alice and Mom took Carlie to the mall for spring clothes and after they went out to eat. When she got back she told me that Aunt Alice had ordered them all cheesecake for dessert. When I asked her how she liked it, she rolled her eyes at me and said, 'Daddy, I hate cheesecake. I thought you knew that!'"

I narrowed my eyes, confused as to why this story was significant, besides the fact that I now knew she didn't like cheesecake. Edward kept on. "The point, sweetheart, is that I've been spending all the time I had with her for the past 5 years and there are still things I don't know about her. Soon the two of you will talk and you'll learn things about our little girl that I never knew. Bella, you're her mother. She will always need her mother, no matter the circumstances."

I took a deep breath. I was a mother and I had to be strong for my baby. I was scared, yes, but I was also so excited to begin my life again with my family. "What time is it, Edward? When will she get here?"

Edward chuckled and moved some hair from my face behind my ear. "It's almost 10:00 and she'll be here in about 2 hours, along with everyone else. Let's get you ready and head downstairs."

I had forgotten about everyone else. While Edward, Alice, and Carlisle bathed me, dressed me, and fed me, all I could think about was Carlie.

I like to call this chapter "lookalittlegreen completes an exercise in character development." To be honest some of Carlie's story is my own. I absolutely hate squash (but love pumpkin muffins) and I was in the hospital with a bronchial infection when I was little. Sorry this story is turning into a completely boring, fluffy dialogue. I guess that's what my subconscious wants right now.