Chapter Nineteen: Thousand Times

Bella's POV

5 Years Later

Sighing as I bent down with the broom and dust pan in my hands, I knew the problem was getting bigger. Aiden had been in a weird mood for...the last five years. After hearing about Emmett's death and going to his funeral, he never bounced back. Emmett was the only father he knew, and he'd been taken from him in the blink of an eye.

I swept up the glass of the broken mug before grabbing a rag to wipe up the hot chocolate. He threw yet another temper tantrum, and I was beginning to think he was going through his terrible two's all over again. Nothing I did was right, and he was beginning to act up in school as well. This was the second day this week he had a note with him that I had to sign, saying he'd been acting up that day.

I didn't want to be harsh on him. I couldn't imagine what he'd been feeling ever since Emmett died. It was hard to lose him as my boyfriend, but I couldn't imagine losing my father so young. Jasper kept reminding me to be patient, but as his tantrums got worse, I found it harder and harder to keep my cool with him. Just as I was putting the rag down the laundry chute, the phone rang.

"Hello?" I asked as I picked the phone up.

"Hi, Miss Bella." Melody said cheerfully on the other line. "Is Aiden there?" Melody and Aiden continued to stay close as they grew up, and they were lucky. None of the boys made fun of him for having a girl for a best friend, and none of the girls accused her of having a crush on him. Melody was the only person who Aiden talked to...really talked to. The only problem was Melody kept his secrets and wouldn't tell me or Jasper what he was saying to her.

"Mel, he's here but he's cooling off in his room." I sighed into the phone. "I'll have him call you back."

"Okay." She said. "Miss Bella?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Don't be too hard on him...the boys in his class aren't very nice."

"I'll keep that in mind, Melody." I smiled. "Thanks, kiddo." I hung up the phone and washed my hands before going upstairs to try and get him to talk to me. I knocked on his door, even though he probably couldn't here me with his music playing so loud. I frowned when I recognized the popular Green Day song...and it wasn't one of their happy songs either.

"Aiden?" I asked, popping my head in the door. He looked up from his sketch pad and reached over to turn his stereo off. "Can we talk?"

"About what?" He asked, looking down at his sketch pad. After Emmett died, Aiden didn't wanna look at a baseball, and I bought him his first pad and a box of colored pencils. He'd come a long way since then and his art teacher said he was 'going places'

"What happened in school today." I sighed, sitting down on the bed. "Melody said the boys in your class are mean?"

"When did you talk to Mel?"

"A few minutes ago." I told him, and I didn't miss the role of his eyes. "I told her you'd call her back. Aiden?"

"What?" He asked, the annoyance clear in his voice.

"Are they bullying you?"

"No!" He breathed exasperated. "I just..blew up. I told you that."

"I know." I nodded. "But, I don't believe you."

"Why?"

"Because, you don't just 'blow up' Aiden."

"It's never too late to start." He mumbled, standing up and walking over to his desk where the painting he was working laid. I walked over and looked over his shoulder. He was painting a picture of the old baseball field Emmett used to take him to when he was little. I didn't even realize the picture had been taken out of my room.

"Where'd you find this?" I asked, picking up the photo he was using for referace. I looked closely at it and smiled. It was from Aiden's third birthday, and Esme and Emmett were both standing with Aiden as Emmett taught him to hold a bat.

"I found it." He shrugged. "It was in your room. I'll give it back if you want."

"No, you keep it." I said, putting it down. "Aiden?"

"What?"

"Do you want pictures?"

"Of?"

"Emmett. Esme." I sighed, and I saw his body tensing up. It didn't matter how little he was when he lost them, he remembered them for the most part and he was still grieving.

"Nope. I'm good." He lied. I sighed, taking the paint brush out of his hands and taking his hand in mine. "Mom." He wined. "I was doing something."

"This won't take long." I told him and pulled him into my bedroom. After Emmett died, I moved into the guest room. It was smaller, but too many memories were held in the master bedroom, and I couldn't sleep in there. That door hadn't been opened since Jasper helped me move my things. I went over to the foot of my bed was, where I had a small chest.

I took a deep breath, opening the box. It was where I kept all the photo's of Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett. I needed to keep them, but I didn't want them sitting out everyday, I didn't need another reminder they were gone. I shifted through the albums, and found the one dedicated to just Emmett and Aiden.

"Here." I whispered, handing him the book.

"What is it?" He asked, touching the leather cover with his hands.

"It's a picture book with most of the pictures I took of you with Emmett." I told him as he sat down on my bed. "I want you to have them."

"Why?"

"So you'll always remember him." I said, pushing the hair out of his face. "So you'll always have something."

"Mom, this is yours." He said, shoving the book back in my hands.

"Not anymore, buddy." I smiled, and he eagerly took the book from me and opened it up, looking through the pictures.

"Where were we here?" He asked, pointing to a picture of him and Emmett standing on the beach together, and sand castle at their feet.

"That is in Santa Cruz California." I said. "We went there when you were three years old. Emmett had to go down there for work and invited us along."

"It looks like we were having fun." He mused, looking at the other pictures from that trip. "Do you miss him, mom?"

"Very much."

"More than you miss dad?" He asked. Aiden asked a lot of questions about Edward still, even though it was Emmett he missed. I didn't blame him. He never knew Edward, and I would never ask why he didn't cry as much when he found out Edward had died.

"No, not more than I miss your dad." I said, hugging him tightly. "I miss them both very much."

"Do you have pictures with dad?"

"Yeah." I nodded, going over to my closet and pulling out a photo album of when Edward and I were still in the early age of our relationship. "You wanna hold on to this one, too?"

"Really?" He asked, trying to contain his excitement."

"Really." I smiled and he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Did you see the new forth grade teacher?" Lauren asked me in the teachers lounge the following week during lunch.

"New teacher?" I asked. "I thought Tina was coming back?"

"She was going to, but she told me she didn't want to leave Cole." She shrugged. "I don't think I'd want to either."

"Believe me...the break is good." I laughed. "I love Aiden and it was hard to leave him when I went back to work...but I was grateful for the time apart. It gave me time to miss him. Trust me, once you have her...you'll see what I mean."

"We shall see." She laughed as the bell rang. Aiden stopped by my room on his way to lunch and I handed him his lunch and he was off with his friends. I smiled as he rushed out of the room to find Melody and Luke. The last week had been easier at home. Giving him those albums seemed to help and he hadn't had a note sent home...yet.

"Make sure you finish your multiplication tables for tomorrow!" I called as the kids filed out of my room. I sighed as I sat down at my desk. As much as I wanted to go home and spent time with Aiden, I had a lot of work to do and he was going home with Melody and Lucy so I wouldn't get distracted.

I was halfway through my grading when there was a knock on my door. I mumbled a come in, not wanting to break my concentration and I heard to door open and close shut before someone began talking.

"Miss Swan?" An unfamiliar voice asked from my doorway. I looked up and my mouth dropped. The most gorgeous man I'd seen at a while was standing in my classroom and I had no idea who he was. He had short brown hair, green eyes, and a scruffy. He reminded me of both Emmett and Edward, and then I realized been staring for too long.

"Yes?" I asked, removing my reading glasses.

"Hi, I'm Mr. Cooper." He said, walking further into the classroom. "The new forth grade teacher."

"Oh, you took Tina's spot." I said, standing up and extending my hand. "And please, call me Bella."

"Well in that case call me Adam." He laughed, but then his face turned serious.

"Why do I have a feeling your here because of Aiden?"

"Because I am." He told me sheepishly, stuffing his hands into his pocket.

"Oh, jeeze." I sighed. "Please, have a seat."

"I think it'd be best if you came with me to see yourself." He said, stepping aside. I stood up and followed him down the hall to the forth grade wing and followed him into his room. He flipped on the lights and my breath caught. Paper, pencils, books, and even water was everywhere. "Aiden had a...melt down...to say the least."

"Oh god, Adam. I am so sorry." I sighed as I continued to survey the damage. "I'll call Alice and get him back here immediately.

"No, that's okay." He told me. "I'm just worried about your son. He's very...angry."

"I know." I sighed. "What set him off?"

"We were discussing the book we were reading...Matilda...and Aiden had a thought."

"And?"

"It was...odd." He laughed. "But, it wasn't wrong. Anyway, one of the boys turned around and told him to shut and called him a...dad-less moron."

"Oh," I sighed. I didn't realize kids could be so cruel until now.

"I understand it must be difficult for a child to watch their parents get a divorce, but there are ways to..."

"Aiden's father and I aren't divorced." I cut him off. "He died before Aiden was born."

"Oh," He sighed awkwardly. "I'm...I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"It's okay. Neither of us talk about it much." I told him.

"What happened?" He asked after a few minutes of awkward silence. "To his dad?"

"He was murdered...two months before my due date." I whispered, not wanting to go into details. "Aiden never even met him."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." I nodded. "That isn't the reason for Aiden's attitude." I told him without thinking. I didn't want to get into this with him, but I could tell he was curious and decided someone should know what happened to Emmett that night. "I had a...a boyfriend a while ago. He was the only father figure Aiden ever knew and he was very...very attached to him."

"Did you two break up?"

"No, he...he was also killed." I told him. "By...the same person who killed Edward...his dad."

"I get it." He sighed, leaning against one of the desks. "I know how hard it is to deal with a child who's lost a parent."

"You...you do?"

"Yeah. I have a little girl, Olivia, she's a year older than Aiden." He told me, a smile on his face. "Her mother left when she was only two and doesn't remember much about her."

"Why'd she leave?"

"She didn't want kids." He told me. "She told me that from the beginning. I was hurt, but I still loved her, ya know? I was hoping after a while she'd change her mind and want them. But, she never did."

"But, your daughter?"

"Was conceived by accident." He almost laughed. "She hadn't been taking her birth control for some reason and didn't tell me to use a condom. Anyway, she was really angry with me and if I hadn't stopped her...she would have gone through with an abortion."

"Oh," I sighed.

"She tried." He told me. "She stayed two years longer than I thought she would. But, it didn't hurt less when I walked into our bedroom after taking Olivia to visit my mom and found that all her clothes were gone and her wedding bands were setting on the dresser."

"Anyway, I told Olivia that her mother just wasn't ready to have such a wonderful girl and she had to leave us." He explained. "One day when she was nine, she snapped...pretty much like Aiden did this afternoon. They were making mothers day gifts and everyone had to make one for points. The teachers told them it could be anything they wanted it to be.

"Oliva put together this...piece of junk." He laughed. "And one of the girls came up to her and said 'look at that...that's probably the reason your mom left.' Olivia...snapped. She threw all of the art supplies all over the room and flipped her desk over and stormed out."

"Wow." I whispered.

"But, she got better." He assured me. "It took a while and countless sessions with the school therapist...but she got better. She's not angry anymore."

"You think I should take Aiden to see a professional?" I asked, even though I've known he'd needed it for a while. Adam only met my eyes and nodded. I gave him a weak smile, knowing it was what I needed to do. "I'll have Aiden write a letter to apologize."

"Don't worry about it." He shook his head. "No one was hurt, nothing was ruined. I just want to make sure...he's okay."

"Thanks, Adam." I said as I made my way out of the room.

"I'll see you around Bella!" He called after me and I found myself blushing for some reason. I hadn't blushed in five years...not since Emmett.

2 Years Later

"Mom!" Aiden called up the stairs. "Adam's here!"

"I'll be right down!" I called, grabbing my earrings and putting them on. I took one last glance in the mirror and smiled. Adam and I had come a long way since we met. It took a while for me to say to a date with him, but I was glad I ended up saying yes. He was amazing. He was kind, funny, smart, and Aiden really liked him. Olivia was also a really sweet girl. She'd become best friends with Melody in no time, and now it was Aiden, Melody, and Olivia hanging out. It seemed neither of them were really interested in being friends with others, but I wasn't complaining...I was just happy Aiden had friends to be with.

Aiden had grown up a lot in the last two years. He was now a proud sixth grader and doing a lot better. He no longer threw glasses at the wall and hadn't had a melt down in class since I met Adam. I figured it was cause he finally had a 'father' to look up to, and I thanks Adam everyday for what he'd done for my son. He thanked me in return for giving Olivia the 'mother' she'd always dreamed of.

"You look beautiful." Adam gushed as he took my hands, kissing me gently.

"Get a room." Olivia snorted as she and Aiden came downstairs. "Can we go to Melody's?"

"Really?" Adam asked. "Can't Melody just come here?"

"No." Olivia huffed. "If she's here Aiden is gonna be macking all over her."

"Excuse me?" I asked, trying to stifle my laugh. "Macking?"

"You know...kissing and crap."

"Kissing, huh?" I laughed and I saw Aiden's face turning bright red as Olivia talked. "Well then, yes, we'll take you to Alice's. Get your coat." I laughed as I heard Aiden mumbling as he walked to the coat closet to get his coat, and then the look he gave Olivia was priceless. It didn't take long to drop them off and the get to the restaurant he was taking me to.

"Is this new?" I asked as he helped me out of the car.

"Yeah, it's grand opening is tonight." He told me, opening the door for me. "And we have it all to ourselves." He told me when I saw the place was completely empty.

"This...is the grand opening?" I asked. "Wow."

"Well...pre-grand opening." He laughed. "The owner is my neighbor and I asked if he needed a test drive. He willingly gave it to us."

"Remind me to send your neighbor a Christmas card." I laughed as he led me to a table. We talked for what seemed like hours before the waiter came to take our orders. Time literally flew by when I was with Adam, and I was so thankful to have him in my life. After Emmett, I was afraid I'd never find anyone else...or want anyone else. But, Adam had a way of showing me the light and I loved him. So much.

"So, what will it be for desert?" The waiter asked as he took our dinner plates away.

"One cheesecake please." Adam ordered for us. The waiter smiled at us before walking away. Adam reached across the table and took my hand, and my eyes shifted to meet his. "I love you."

"I love you too." I whispered, squeezing his hand. Suddenly, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small box. I gasped as he stood up and walked to kneel down beside me. "Oh...god."

"Bella, I love you so much." He told me. "And I know I'm never going to love anyone more than I love you."

"Adam..."

"Isabella Swan...will you marry me?"

"Yes." I gasped, and I saw him close his eyes in relief. "Yes!" He slid the ring on to my finger and kissed me deeply.

I was finally going to have the wedding I'd been wanting for so long. Was going to be Mrs. Adam Cooper.