My head was pounding when I opened my eyes. I had that single moment where I forgot about all of the shit going on in my life. It was close to bliss.

And then it hit me like an 18-wheeler semi carrying a ton of bricks.

Jacob was cheating on me, the girls had a shit for a father, and Edward was back.

Edward was back. That one realization kept running through my head repeatedly.

At the thought of him my headache immediately got worse. I heard a loud banging in the kitchen and sat up in the bed. I knew Jake wasn't home because – let's be honest, I'm being a realist here - he's never home anymore. I got out of bed and ignored my headache as I slipped into the hallway. I didn't need to go far before I heard a loud clang and an exclamatory "FUCK!"

I relaxed at the sound of my brother's voice as I turned into the kitchen. I laughed at the image of him huddled over picking up a large array of my different colorful pots and pans.

"That stuff is all really expensive, Emmett." He jumped at the sound of my voice and banged his head on an open cabinet door.

"Damn, Bella. Don't sneak up on your big brother like that. Scared the shit out of me," he said rubbing the back of his head where he'd collided with the cabinet. He turned back around to picking the pots and pans up. "What are you doing up anyway? It's like, 4 AM."

"Great question my dear brother," I said sarcastically, "but the more important question here: What are you doing in my kitchen at 4 AM?" I looked at him waiting for a response.

"Well…" he said turning around to face me. "Alice called and said that you were really upset when you left her house. She didn't say why but she said that someone should check on you and make sure you were doing alright."

I counted for a moment in my head before replying, "I left her house at like 12… 4 hours ago. So why are you just now here?"

"Rose and I were a little…um…" he coughed, "otherwise occupied."

"YOU WERE WHAT?! MY GIRLS ARE IN THAT HOUSE YOU DUMBASS!" I yelled going in to slap the shit out of him. He knew me well though, and ducked at the last second.

"Dad came and picked them up Bells yesterday afternoon… calm down, calm down!" He said throwing his hands up to block me. I stopped and crossed my arms over my chest.

I shook my head in response. "Well, I'm fine. So you can leave."

"Are you sure?" He asked skeptically.

"Yes, Emmett. Now go and I'll call dad in the morning." I knew I could only lie to him for so long before I broke down and told him everything. But I wasn't ready just yet. I started to push on him in an attempt to get him out but of course, his size made my efforts futile. He pulled back to get a good look at me.

"I don't believe you Belly. We both know that you're a horrible liar," He dipped his head closer to my level. I could see the sympathy in his eyes and it was only pissing me off… I hate pity.

"Leave."

"You and I both know that I'm not going anywhere, Bella." I huffed in response. My stubbornness runs deep but my façade was falling and I knew it. "Now will you tell me what's wrong? Cuz I'm not leaving until you do."

"Fine, you can stay but I'm going back to bed," I said waving him off and turning around. I didn't wait for a response and instead walked back into my room and shut the door behind me. I collapsed into my bed. Not seconds after my face hit the down comforter I wrapped my arms around myself and began crying.

"See," Emmett said as I felt the bed dip beside me, "I know when my little sister isn't okay. Now will you just tell me what's wrong, Belly?"

I crumbled at the sound of his childhood nickname for me.

And then I told him everything that was on my mind- Jacob, Edward, the girls. Everything.

I guess Emmett and I had fallen asleep as we talked. He was currently sprawled across my California King sized bed and I was curled up close to his side. My head was resting on his arm and I could feel the slow vibrations of his snores from my position snuggled into his side. My cell was rattling the bedside table loudly; in hindsight, that was most likely what had awakened me.

When I reached over to pick it up I noticed that the caller ID read Charlie. My dad's burly voice was on the other end of the line as I answered.

"Hey, dad."

"Hey, Bells. I was just calling to see what time you wanted me to drop of the girls. I have a hot date with Sue tonight."

I laughed into the phone.

"You can bring them over now if you want. I was just about to get up and fix something to eat," I said sitting up.

"If you say so. I'll be there in a little bit." Just as he was hanging up I heard Allie in the background screaming about her favorite show, Yo Gabba Gabba.

I was sitting on the edge of my bed trying to motivate myself to get up when I heard a groan behind me.

"Is it morning yet?" Emmett said in a groggy voice rubbing his eyes.

I said nothing and laughed to myself as I got up and left the room. I was in the kitchen putting up the rest of the pots and pans Emmett had missed earlier. I was just shutting the cabinet when he stumbled in and sat on a bar stool.

"What do you want for breakfast?" I asked him leaning against the counter on my elbows.

"Edward and Jacob's asses on a plate," he said glaring at me.

"Emmett… Let it go." I sighed.

"No! I can't let it the fuck go! This kid is cheating on you… and then Edward- the guy who left you in pieces that I was there to pick up- shows up thinking shit can go back to being the same." He stopped and shook his head. "This is not something I'm just gonna let go of, Bella."

"I can handle it." I gritted my teeth in anger.

"Oh yes. Because you handled it SO well last time." I knew his tone was meant to be sarcastic but I couldn't help but feel a tad hurt. I didn't respond and instead started pulling out everything I needed to start making waffles. I didn't even hear Emmett get up and walk around the Island until he was hugging me, his voice in my ear.

"You know I didn't mean it like that, Belly."

"Yeah. I know," I said into his chest. After a minute or two just standing in his warm embrace I wriggled free and went back to what I was doing. He sat back on his stool with my iPad and started playing Angry Birds. We worked in comfortable silence until there was a knock at the door. Emmett went to answer it.

Under normal circumstances it would have pissed me off that he was opening my door like he owned the place but at the time I just let my brother go, absorbed in my own thoughts. I was so absorbed that I almost didn't notice the two sets of tiny little arms wrap around my legs.

"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Alison yelled at the top of her lungs. Her vice grip on my legs was only reinforced when Jaspen squeezed me.

"We misseded you mommy," she said in a much more subdued tone than her sister. I put down the bowl I was stirring and my whisk to pat their heads.

"Did you have fun while you were gone?"

"Yeth but we mitheded you," Allie said with her adorable lisp. I bent down to pick both of them up. It was pretty difficult because they weren't babies anymore but I managed.

"Well, mommy had some things to do so I needed you to be with someone else for a while."

"But mommy ith been…" Allie held up her hand and started to count out her fingers. She settled with three chubby little fingers and put them up to my face. "… Two dayth!" she exclaimed with her three chubby fingers hovering an inch from my nose.

I sat them both down on the granite countertop of the kitchen island and tilted my head back laughing.

"MOMMY! Thath not funny!" Allie yelled her bottom lip sticking out in a pout. "I mitheded you for two dayth and yous laughing at me!"

"Aw, baby," I said looking back at her with a sorry expression. "I'm not laughing at you."

"Then wath you laughing at?" she asked.

"Don't worry about it baby, but I wasn't laughing at you."

"Mommy… where's daddy?" Jazz asked me.

I swallowed. I really didn't want to open that door yet.

"Um… Daddy has been at work." Dumb answer, I know.

"But mommy, you comes home everyday. Why daddy don't comes home?" Jazz questioned.

Shit.

Emmett had the absolutely perfect timing as he walked through the kitchen booming with laughter with Charlie following closely behind. I saw Charlie's ferret looking mustache twitch with laughter as well. Glad for the distraction I walked over and gave him a hug.

"Hey dad. Thanks for watching the girls for me."

"Don't thank me, Bells. You know I love taking those little angels everywhere," He said walking over to stand in front of the twins. "Did you tell mommy what we did yesterday?" he asked them.

"Mommy! Popth took uth to thee a batheball game!" Allie yelled jumping up and down excitedly.

"Oh really? Did you have fun?" I said. I had that "I'm the mom so I have to act excited" attitude as I walked back over to stand in front of them, I playfully pushed dad to the side. In reality I was trying to come up with an excuse for Jake's absence. I pasted my perfected fake smile on.

"We gots to eat ice cream and cotton candy, mommy!" Jaspen said excitedly. "We gots these too!" She waved her little arm in my face to show me the multiple handmade bracelets.

"Oh, how pretty," I said taking both of their chubby wrists and looking at the bracelets. They were made of simple woven threads with beads on a few of them. They both had many of varying vibrant colors but most of Alison's were shades of green and most of Jaspen's were shades of purple. "Where did you get these?"

"A old lady said they was made just for us and then she gived em to us," Jazz smiled at me.

"Well, wasn't that nice of her. I hope you said thank you." I looked at both of them. They shook their heads up and down fervently. I smiled at them, picking them up and standing them on the floor. I knelt down to their eye level. "I'm about to make breakfast so why don't you go put your things up in your room and it'll be ready when you get done."

"But we ates something at pops's house," Jazz said to me.

"Oh, well," I sighed dramatically, standing up. "I was gonna make your favorite waffles…but if you don't want any I guess I won't make them." I walked towards the counter where everything was set up and pretended to put things away, instead turning on the waffle iron. I'd almost forgotten Emmett and Charlie were there until Emmett spoke up.

"They might not want the waffles, but I sure as hell do!" He guffawed.

"No, mommy, no, no, no! We wants the waffles mommy!" Jaspen said quickly, pulling on my leg. Allie was too busy staring at the counter that held the ingredients of her and Jazz's absolute FAVORITE food. I laughed at both of their reactions.

"Well go put your stuff up and I'll make you some. Now go. You better hurry back before Uncle Emmett eats them all," I said patting their butts to get them moving. They ran out of the kitchen in a hurry.

"They sure love those waffles don't they?" Charlie said with a chuckle.

"Yeah… they are practically obsessed with cinnamon flavored ones." I started pouring the batter into the double waffle iron. I closed the lid and flipped it so they could begin cooking. I turned around to face my brother and father. Their expressions were both unreadable.

We stood in silence for a moment before Emmett walked over to the cabinet and brought out four cups- two glass and two plastic. He then proceeded to pour orange juice into them. He hesitated over pulling out a fifth glass eyeing Charlie.

"You staying for breakfast, old man?" He asked.

"No. I have to get home. Got to get ready for my hot date," Charlie said smiling smugly. He started patting his pockets for his keys.

"It's definitely 11 A.M. dad. What kind of 'Hot Date' do you need to get ready for right now?" I asked as the timer went off on the waffles.

"Don't patronize your old man, Bells," he joked as I plated the waffles. I started to cut them into smaller pieces for the girls. I was just setting them on their miniature table when they ran back out of their room. I caught them before they got to their seats and told them to give pops a kiss bye. They rushed to give him a hug and kiss before running back to the table to eat.

"I'm hurt… they love those waffles more than me," he joked. I laughed and walked him to the door after pouring more batter into the waffle iron. He gave Emmett on of their 'man hugs'- AKA a pat on the back- and pulled me into a tight bear hug. Emmett didn't get his suffocating hugs from nowhere.

He was gone before the timer went off on the waffles again and I was plating them for Emmett. I made my own and we sat in the stools at the island eating in uncomfortable silence. It wasn't long before he started speaking what I'm sure he was dying to say while Charlie was here.

"I just want to know why." His tone told me that he was attempting to tread lightly.

"What?" I said quietly, swallowing a bite of waffle.

"Why now?"

I was spared having to respond by a knock at the front door. I got up to answer it dropping my fork on the plate. I made my way to the door stopping at the girls' table.

They were arguing as always. Jazz wasn't going to finish her waffle but she wouldn't let Allie have it. In true form Allie was throwing a fit because she couldn't get her way. She still hasn't learned that Jaspen may be the one person in the world who can say no to her. Jazz was too smart not to see through Allie's games unlike everyone else, myself included most of the time.

My little diva and my little genius.

"Girls… stop arguing and finish eating," I said in a warning tone.

"I AM done mommy! I juth wanna finith that one!" Allie yelled exasperated, pointing at the leftover pieces on Jaspen's plate.

"Its mines and don't wants her to have it! She eated all hers!" Jaspen said.

"Well settle it or you both are going in time out." I laughed as I walked towards the door. Just as I was about to open it I heard crying and Emmett trying to diffuse the situation.

"You better not be arguing," I said pulling the door open. "If I come in there and that's why one of you is crying you are BOTH going into time out!"

I wasn't even paying attention to who was on the other side of the door until I turned around fully.

He was so close I smelled him before I saw him.

Twice in twenty four hours I was caught off guard by Edward.

A/N: Hello there! Thanks again for reading my story. Muchas gracias to my betas Princess Moon Shadow and Melodramatic Destiny. Next chapter is in the works.

Don't forget to tell me what you think!