Thank you so, so much to anyone who's still with me!
And a billion thanks to MelissaMargaret for making this pretty and to anhanninen for prereading.
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or these characters.
Esme POV
"Esme . . . Es? Sweetheart, wake up for me."
My sleep-filled mind wasn't sure if I was dreaming Carlisle's voice or if he was really trying to wake me. But as soon as I felt his lips on mine, I knew.
"I know you hear me," he said, chuckling as he kissed me again. "I see that smile. I have to leave for the office soon."
My smile quickly turned to a frown as I rolled over to look at the clock. Alice would be awake soon if she wasn't already, but the early hour still didn't make me happy. Neither did the fact that Carlisle would be leaving, if only for a few hours.
We'd talked about it and agreed that it was a good idea for him to return to work this week but only part time. Leaving everything to Peter wasn't fair, though we knew he'd do it for us without complaint. And of course, Carlisle didn't feel right abandoning his patients, especially the ones who couldn't afford to go anywhere else. Our compromise was for him to work until lunch for the next few weeks or until we were sure our family was adjusting well. I felt comfortable having all five kids on my own for four or five hours, but that didn't make having to say goodbye to Carlisle any easier.
"I'll miss you," I said softly as I sat up and reached for Carlisle's shoulders to pull him down for a hug. He didn't fight me, readily leaning over to put his arms around me.
"I'll miss you too, sweetheart. Hopefully the hours will fly by."
I wasn't so sure they would, but I knew I'd enjoy the time with the kids. Still, I couldn't ever be excited about Carlisle leaving.
"I love you," he said as he pulled back and kissed me quickly.
That wasn't enough for me so I held him in place, for once not caring about morning breath or anything else except the taste and feel of my husband's kisses – which were growing exceedingly deeper and longer.
"I do need to go soon," he eventually mumbled but didn't make another move to part from me.
"You have fifteen more minutes until you have to leave," I pointed out between kisses. "We can make the most of them."
That made him stop, move back, and smirk at me. "Is my lovely wife suggesting we have a morning quickie?"
"Is Alice still asleep?" He glanced over toward her bassinette and nodded. "Are the other kids still asleep?" He nodded again. "Is the door locked?" This time, he had to leave my arms to run across the room. I giggled as he locked it as fast as he could and ran back, resuming our position.
"It's locked now."
"Good. Then, yes. Your lovely wife is suggesting we have a morning quickie."
"And that's why I married you," he said, raising my arms to take off my nightie. "You're the perfect woman for me."
"Mmm. I love you." I quickly pulled his tie off and started unbuttoning his shirt. It might have been a quickie, but that didn't mean I was going to miss out on feeling his skin against mine.
As soon as all our clothing was scattered all over the floor, I lay back, pulling Carlisle with me.
"Wait," he whispered, his hands slowly moving down my body. My skin pebbled with goose bumps under his delicate touch. He knew exactly how and where to touch me, and I closed my eyes to enjoy it.
But as soon as he reached my thighs, he quickly pulled them toward him, hitching them over his hips.
"Oh," I gasped, opening my eyes to find him smirking again. "Like this?"
"If you can scoot over a little . . ." He laughed as I moved before he could even finish speaking. We rarely had a chance to get adventurous like this, so I was going to take advantage. "I guess that answers that."
"Mmhmm. Now come back and kiss me."
Instead of going right to my lips, he started a bit lower. I couldn't even think of complaining as he lavished attention on my breasts because it felt so good. And when his thumb started making magic circles between our hips, I couldn't think of anything.
Just as I felt the pleasure building, he shifted and joined us together, making me moan much too loudly with a sleeping baby in the room we did not need to wake.
"Shhh." Carlisle moved his mouth higher, trailing kisses over my neck before reaching my lips.
"So good, Carlisle," I mumbled before kissing him back. It was the only chance of keeping me quiet.
With him standing and me lying back on the bed, he hit every perfect spot in me, plus the incredible friction every time he swiveled and moved our hips together.
It didn't take long for the familiar building to return, and this time Carlisle made sure it didn't stop. Even his kisses couldn't keep me quiet as my body spasmed and jerked as only he could make it. Only a few thrusts later, he found his own released with a low moan and lay against me.
"That was a good idea, Dr. Cullen." I kissed his temple and ran my fingers through his hair.
"Why, thank you, Mrs. Cullen. That was really good, huh?"
"Amazing," I agreed. "Aaaand," I glanced at the clock, "you have four minutes to spare to get dressed again."
He laughed and pushed himself off of me, much to my regret. "I'm sure Peter won't mind if I'm a few minutes late. I'll see you at lunch, okay?"
After kissing me again, he headed to the bathroom to clean up and redress. I wanted to follow him but wasn't sure if my jello legs worked quite yet. Hanging halfway off the bed wasn't comfortable anymore, but the tingles I was still feeling definitely made up for it.
Eventually, I dragged myself out of bed and headed to the bathroom, deciding to go ahead and shower. Alice was miraculously still asleep, and I knew to take advantage of it.
I took my time showering and getting ready, enjoying the few benefits of being up early. It was rare that I didn't get every last minute of sleep possible before Alice woke to nurse. We had been spoiled with Pumpkin since he slept all night and usually woke happy. Alice was not a patient baby in the least and usually woke crying. I never minded tending to her needs but I did miss my full night of sleep.
True to her personality, Alice began crying just as I was finishing my hair. Her cry had evolved a bit from the pitiful one in the hospital to a very irritated one. This cry was a blessing in my eyes because it always ended soon after either Carlisle or I picked her up. It meant she recognized us and that her irritation was due to wanting us. It was so incredible.
"I hear my love bug," I cooed as I walked over and lifted her from the bassinet. "Mommy's sorry she wasn't here right away. Did you sleep good?"
She answered by pushing her head against me and rooting around, making me chuckle.
"All right. Breakfast is coming right up."
After unlocking and opening the door in case anyone else woke and came looking for me, I headed to my glider rocker with Alice and my nursing pillow. She barely held off her irritated whimpers long enough for me to get us comfortable but I managed to get her settled without too much of a catastrophe.
"You're my eager girl today, aren't you? You've been eating so good for mommy. I bet we can talk to someone about getting that tube out soon because I really don't think you need it."
We hadn't had to use the NG tube at all since we'd brought Alice home. There was a comfort in knowing it was there if we needed it but I just wasn't sure if we ever would. Alice was eating regularly, and I almost had her on an unofficial schedule like I'd used when Edward was a newborn. She ate every two or three hours and sometimes just for comfort. That was even more special to me. The scale going up every day was a good sign of her healing but the bond we had already was truly amazing.
Alice grunted as she ate and moved her hand to rest on my chest. I ran the back of my fingers over hers, letting her grab onto them.
"Getting that tube out sounds like a good idea, huh?" I smiled as she squeezed my fingers. "Yeah, I think so too. We'll have to tell Dr. G tomorrow."
I was a little apprehensive about Alice's upcoming appointment. There was really no reason for me to be with the progress we saw every day, but I still worried whether or not we were doing everything needed for her. Logically, I knew we were doing all we could – Siobhan even confirmed as much – but as a mother, I was always trying to do more for my children, trying to be the best I could for them. With four healthy, happy, and loving children it was much easier to push the doubts away than with Alice. Though slowly getting better, she still didn't look like the version of a healthy baby in my mind.
"We can't rush perfection, can we sweetheart?" I kissed her forehead, making her look up at me. "There's those pretty eyes again. Mommy's so happy to see them more. Are you going to stare at me a while?"
She did just that, showing off one of her areas of small progress. Compared to the first day when she'd barely looked at us at all, we were leaps and bounds ahead. I'd been catching her watching Carlisle while he changed her diaper and when she nursed, it now wasn't unusual for her eyes to drift to mine for much longer periods.
This morning we seemed to be having a staring contest until little feet in the hallway caught my attention.
"Sounds like at least one of your siblings is awake now. Who do you think it is?"
Alice grunted again but didn't have an answer for me. We didn't have to wait very long before the door opened wider, revealing Edward and Rosalie.
"Oh, it looks like it's Rosalie and Pumpkin who came to see us, Alice. I bet they came to give us lots of morning love." I held my free arm open for them, and they came running over, Pumpkin settling right into my lap and Rose between the chair and the ottoman.
"Mommy, I'm awake!" Rose said, giggling at herself. "And so is Pumpkin. We had another sleepover!"
"You did, huh? How was that, Pumpkin? Did you sleep good in Leelee's bed?" I hugged him close, covering him in kisses as he laughed.
"Mama," he squealed, giving me a happy, toothy grin. "Mama, hi!" He babbled some more before making the sign for milk, so I quickly got him settled and focused on Rosalie.
"Did you sleep okay with Pumpkin in your bed?" I asked her as I gave her some good morning kisses.
She nodded and held my face between her hands so she could fishy face kiss me. "Yahuh, Mommy. I love when Pumpkin gets to have a sleepover in my room. It's my favorite! My girl sister Alice needs to sleep there, okay?"
"Maybe when she's as big as Pumpkin," I said, giving her our newest excuse. It was hard to tell her no when we could easily see how much she loved her sister, but it just wasn't possible at the moment.
"Okay," she sighed, used to receiving the same answer. "Can I help with her clothes?"
"Of course you can, baby girl. Can you go start looking in her room? I'll be in there soon."
Rosalie quickly nodded and ran out of the room. I laughed softly, having known that she'd be excited about her new task. And that it would take her a while to make her choice so I'd have plenty of time for the babies to finish.
Alice had her fill soon after Rosalie left the room, and Pumpkin finished not long after her. He ran around the room and entertained me as I made sure Alice was free of any air bubbles. Edward continued to adjust well, not seeming to mind tandem nursing or his new baby sister.
It was one of the biggest things I prayed about every day, for Edward to know that our love for him hadn't changed. That we'd still have enough time for him and his needs. And so far, it was going as well as could be expected. We really did have so much to be thankful for.
When we went to find Rosalie, I was not surprised that she hadn't decided on an outfit for Alice.
"Mommy, Alice has a lot of clothes," she said seriously. "I dunno what to do!"
Instead of laughing like I wanted to, I went over to the closest to find some options. "Hmm . . . this is a hard job, isn't it? How about one of these?" I grabbed two dresses and turned to show them to Rosalie.
"Ooooh, that one, Mommy!" She pointed to a white dress with tiny pink butterflies on it. "And I can wear a pink dress and a bow and Alice can have a bow and we can match. Huh, Mommy?"
"That sounds like a perfect idea, sugar. How about you go pick out a dress to put on after breakfast and then head downstairs." With me planning to make French toast for breakfast, I didn't want to have any clothing mishaps this early. I did enough laundry already.
With Rosalie happily occupied once more, I quickly changed Pumpkin's diaper and sent him to wake his brothers before undressing Alice and weighing her. Carlisle had brought home a scale and we'd started weighing her twice a day. With breastfeeding, there was no other way to tell if Alice was getting enough except by her increasing weight. And just like on every previous day, this morning she had gained a good number of grams.
"Look at you, love bug," I said, picking her up after I wrote down the number on our little chart. "You're just growing and growing." Her little arms and legs stopped flailing around as soon as I held her close, and I swayed us back and forth slowly to soak in the joy of her knowing me.
As soon as she was calm once again, I dressed her and headed downstairs, finding the rest of my children playing with their big box of blocks. After taking the time to love on Jasper and Emmett, I settled Alice against me in the wrap carrier and started on breakfast.
Right on cue, the kids flocked to their chairs at the table as soon as they smelled food. Breakfast was devoured and the mess cleaned almost as fast with my three little helpers.
My plans for the day included spending the morning relaxing inside until Carlisle returned from work. I was still recovering from the almost week spent in the hospital and waking during the night, so I enjoyed as much rest as possible. But after the kids were dressed, they had other ideas.
"Mommy, can I play outside today?" Emmett asked, hugging my legs tightly as I sat on the couch. "Please, please, pleeease? Mr. Sun says come out and play with him."
It wasn't my favorite idea, but Emmett was right. The sun was out and the sky looked as if it would be staying clear for a while. I had no good excuse for not letting them go out except for my own wishes to be a couch potato, and Emmett somehow knew it.
"Do Jasper and Rosalie want to play outside too? I need everyone in one place." They were my last hope but unfortunately they weren't on my side today. Rosalie was all too excited about taking her baby dolls for a ride in their stroller, and Jasper's wide grin made me want to agree to anything.
"I want to go outside," Jasper said, running over to join us. He crawled into my lap, giving Alice and me a hug. "I can show you how I swing, Mommy. I go soooo high and high!"
I ran my fingers through his hair and widened my eyes. "Oh wow, buddy. I don't want to miss that. I guess we can go out for a little while, but we definitely need to come in and clean up before Daddy gets home. Deal?"
They all agreed, so after finding shoes and spraying some sunscreen, we headed out. Pumpkin stayed on the porch in the shade with me, having lots of fun in his swing we had attached to one of the beams. Even Alice was content wrapped against me, and I had to admit that the slight breeze was nice.
Jasper showed me how high he could swing and how he could slide down the slide as fast as a superhero. Rosalie strolled her babies all over the yard, finally ending up on the porch with me to put her babies down for a nap on one of the loveseats.
Emmett was the wildest child of the day, going from one activity to another. His favorite was the monkey bars that went above the playset, and I watched him like a hawk every time he attempted to go across. Some of his attempts were completely successful while others ended with him falling and thankfully landing on his feet in the soft mulch. My heart was in my throat every time even though I knew he'd done things like this his whole life. My active toddler had turned into an active little boy, and he was definitely all boy.
"Be careful, monkey," I called out in warning, as I had every few minutes.
"I can do it, Mommy," he assured me. "Watch!" He crossed again successfully and went down the slide before running back over to start again.
I gave him a thumbs up and turned to help Pumpkin out of the swing so he could play with Rosalie.
Just as I had Pumpkin on his feet, I heard a scream behind me that made my heart stop for a second. Quickly, I turned around and scanned the area, finding Emmett on the ground cradling his arm. I immediately held Alice close to me and ran over to him, kneeling on the ground beside him.
"Mommy," he cried as soon as he saw me. "Mommy, my aaaaarm. Owwieee. Make it stooooop!"
"It's okay, baby. It's okay. Does anything else hurt? Did you just land on your arm?" I frantically looked him over for any other injuries but didn't see anything other than his left arm that was already swelling.
He nodded and fell against me, crying as I'd never heard him cry before. I shushed him and held him close, wishing Carlisle was here to help me. For a minute, I wasn't sure what to do but then I snapped out of it, realizing that it was up to me to handle Emmett's pain and get everyone else inside too.
Carefully, I stood with Emmett on my hip and looked to make sure everyone else was okay. Jasper was frozen in his spot at the end of the slide, and Rosalie seemed worried as well.
"It's okay, Jasper," I told him calmly as I began walking toward the house. "Come inside and we'll call Daddy. He'll make Em all better."
"Can . . . can Daddy and Peter m-make my arm be-better?" Emmett asked through his tears, rubbing his head against my shoulder.
"Of course they can," I assured him. "But we're going to call and see what Mommy needs to do here before we go see them, okay? Don't worry, buddy. I'll take care of you."
I sent Rosalie into the house to find my phone, and Jasper helped me with Pumpkin as I carried Emmett inside and placed him on the couch. He only wanted to sit in my lap, so I unwrapped Alice – who had miraculously slept through the whole thing – and placed her in Rosalie's arms so I could focus on Em as I called Carlisle.
I wasn't sure if he'd be with a patient or not but I didn't bother trying his office phone first, choosing to call his cell. He answered on the fifth ring, and it took everything in me not to sob in relief as I heard his voice. Of course, he noticed right away that something wasn't right.
"Esme, what's wrong, sweetheart? Is everyone okay?"
I shook my head even though he couldn't see it. "Carlisle, Emmett . . . he . . . he fell off the monkey bars and I guess landed on his arm and it's already swollen. And what do I do?"
"Okay, sweetheart. Everything will be okay," he said, staying calm and immediately putting me at ease. "Can you tell me if a bone has broken through the skin or if his arm is in an abnormal position?"
I shuddered at the thought of this and was so grateful we weren't dealing with anything like that. "No, he's just cradling it, but it looks the same. Swollen and kind of red but that's it."
"Good. Now, I need you to put some ice in a plastic baggy, wrap it in a towel, and have him hold it against his arm for about twenty minutes. Go ahead and give him a little bit of Tylenol too. We can give him something stronger here. Put me on speaker while you do that and then we'll talk about what to do next. I love you, Esme. You're wonderful."
"I love you too," I said, happy to have a plan.
Emmett was less than thrilled about me having to leave him on the couch, but with his daddy reassuring him and telling him what a brave boy he was, I was able to get my task done and return without any major meltdowns.
I gave Emmett the small dose of Tylenol and gently placed the ice on his arm. He wasn't too happy about it at first, but with Carlisle saying it would help, he didn't fight me or the cold.
"What now?" I asked.
"Now I need you to get one of their harder books, one that's long and narrow, and then you're going to use that as a splint with a thin blanket wrapped around it."
I managed to do as he said, though it took a while to wrap it since every little movement made Emmett cry out and I hated hurting him.
"Emmett, you're being so good for Mommy and I'm so proud of you," Carlisle said which made Emmett smile as I wiped the tears from his cheeks. "You guys are good to go now. Stack some pillows in his lap in the car to elevate his arm. Peter and I will be ready for you as soon as you get here, okay?"
After hanging up, I tried to usher everyone to the van. Unfortunately, Edward picked that time to need a serious diaper change, Rosalie didn't like her carseat, and Alice wanted to nurse. It was hard to think fast enough to deal with everything at once, but I managed to get Edward changed and let Alice nurse long enough to keep her from crying the whole way to the office. She cried for ten minutes of the drive but not the whole way.
Carlisle was waiting for me in the parking lot, and I fell into his arms as soon as I parked the van and opened my door. I was a complete wreck but somehow he made me feel better without even saying anything as he kissed me several times and held me close.
"You were amazing, Mommy," he said softly. "Let's get our boy taken care of, okay?"
I nodded, still managing to mostly keep it together while unloading the kids. I settled Alice at my breast as soon as possible which stopped her cries, and Rosalie's whining ended as soon as she saw Maggie who graciously volunteered to keep the other kids occupied while we took care of Emmett.
Carlisle led us straight back with Emmett in his arms who seemed to be much calmer now that he knew his arm was about to be fixed.
"There's the brave man of the day," Peter said with a smile as we met him in the hall and followed him into an exam room. "Did you fight bad guys too hard today?"
Emmett shook his head as Carlisle sat with him on the table. "No. I just hit the ground too hard. My arm went crack, Peter!"
I cringed at that bit of information and was glad I hadn't heard it. His screams had been bad enough.
Peter chuckled but had a serious expression as he unwrapped my homemade split and took a look at Emmett's arm, gently running his hand over it as he went. "Well, my guess is that it is fractured, but I don't think it's displaced or worse. Pulse and capillary refill are fine, hand color's good. Let's get an x-ray and then go from there. Sound good?"
I looked at Carlisle, and he nodded so I knew this was the right course of action.
Emmett was actually excited about getting pictures made of the inside of his arm, and he had no problem going into the room by himself for Peter to do the x-rays. A few minutes later, we were all looking at the results which were a bit better than expected.
"Do you see it right there?" Peter asked as he pointed to a tiny gray line across one of the white bones on the film. "That's the fracture. This one is very simple, only through the radius, and it won't need to be reset or anything. A cast for a few weeks should fix him right up. I'll go find Charlotte and meet you back in the room."
"Here that, buddy?" Carlisle said as we slowly walked back to the room. "You get to have a fun cast to make your arm all better. What color do you want?"
"I get to pick a color?" Emmett asked with wide eyes. "That's so cool! Umm . . . I want green!"
"That's a great choice, monkey," I said as I rubbed his back. "Is your arm still hurting?"
He nodded. "Uh huh but it's better, Mommy. You gived me that stuff at home to make it feel better and it worked!"
"I'm so glad it did. You're being such a brave boy for Peter. I think you deserve some ice cream after lunch today."
His face lit up and he leaned over to give me a big kiss which warmed my heart. This wasn't what I would have ever wanted to do today, but my Emmett was still the same and that was the most important thing.
When Peter returned, Charlotte and Kate were with him. Alice's belly was finally full, so she was okay with going to see her Aunt Kate while Carlisle and I focused on Emmett. We switched places with me holding Emmett in my lap and Carlisle holding his hand as Peter got everything ready.
Charlotte gave him a shot of pain medicine before Peter got started. Emmett took it like a champ, only shedding a few tears, and that really was the hardest part. Peter had the cast finished in a matter of minutes, and it was even one that had a waterproof liner so swimming and bathing wouldn't be an issue.
Memories of my last time in a cast were brought back, but the situations were so different. One thing was the same, though. Carlisle was always my rock, this time holding my hand as he held his son's and I wasn't sure who needed it more.
Emmett was actually excited about his cast and couldn't wait to show everyone. Charlotte took him to show it off while Peter gave us the care instructions. They didn't seem to be too complicated, and it was a relief to know that the cast would probably get to come off in four weeks.
After we were confident with the instructions, Carlisle took my hand and led me to his office. As soon as he closed the door and I realized we were finally alone, I collapsed against him, letting all of my fear and worry come out as sobs against his shirt.
"Shhh. Everything's okay, sweetheart. Everyone's fine." He kissed my head and picked me up, sitting on the couch with me across his lap. "You were perfect today, Esme. So strong for Emmett and all the kids. I love you so much."
This made me cry harder. I felt far from perfect. What kind of a mother didn't watch her children closely enough to know when they fell? What kind of mother didn't keep her children safe? I was a failure and had no idea how I was going to handle five children with Carlisle working from now on. I'd thought I could do it but now I wasn't so sure if that was safe. I shared my doubts in between my tears while Carlisle continued to kiss my head and rub my back.
"Esme, never doubt how good of a mother you are," he said seriously as my cries died down to sniffles. "This probably would have happened sooner or later with Em being such a daredevil whether I'd been at work or not. But you did everything you needed to do. You were scared but you comforted him and the other kids too. That was amazing. You handled it much better than I would have."
I scoffed, still feeling like I let someone down.
"Sweetheart," he said softer, putting a finger under my chin to tilt my head back. His eyes were bright and sincere when they met mine. "I would not ever want to parent with anyone but you. You are not a failure, and I'm confident that you can handle anything. We've only been a family of seven for a couple of weeks; we're still adjusting, but soon this will be no different from having four kids.
"But if you need me to stay home for a while longer, I will. If you need someone to help you during the day, we'll work it out. You're the heart of our family. You hold us together like no one else could, and that showed today. I love you. So, so much, Esme. As my wife and my friend and the mother of our children."
A few more tears fell as I leaned to kiss him, making sure it was an amazing kiss. Because my amazing man deserved nothing less.
"I love you too," I whispered before kissing him again. "You have no idea how much. You held me together today. You're the amazing one."
"Let's be amazing together, okay?" he said, chuckling softly. "Us and our amazing kids."
I nodded and kissed him again. Sometimes I couldn't believe that he was real and mine, but God had known exactly what man I needed in my life. Carlisle was truly my perfect match.
We kissed and innocently touched for a while longer, drawing strength from each other until we were interrupted by one excited little boy.
"Mommy," he said as he ran over to me. I slid off Carlisle's lap and let Emmett crawl into mine. "Peter said people can draw cool stuff on my cast now! Can you draw me something?"
"Of course I can." I smiled as I ran my fingers through his hair. "What do you want me to draw? You know I'm not so good." Em's drawing abilities had bypassed mine long ago.
"Mommy, you're the bestest," he protested. "You draw really, really good monkeys too. Can I have one of those?"
"I will try my very best just for you," I said, blowing a raspberry on his cheek. He laughed and jumped off my lap, running out of the room while telling me that Maggie had lots of markers.
Carlisle stood and took my hand, pulling it up to kiss my fingers after I stood. "See, Mommy? You're the bestest. Our very smart son knows exactly what he's talking about."
I rolled my eyes playfully and wrapped my hands around his waist as we went to find our kids.
The day had been hard and it wasn't even halfway over yet. It was hard to believe that our fun morning together would turn into this, but I did feel stronger. This transition we were going through had been smooth so far but nobody had said we wouldn't have bumps along the way.
After getting through this day and its many emotions, I was almost sure we could get through anything. Alice was adjusting well, the other kids were adjusting well, and it seemed – despite my doubts today – I was adjusting well too, especially with Carlisle's assurances. I definitely couldn't do any of this without him, but together, we would make it.
A/N: Hi. Anyone remember me? I know it's been forever and I'm so sorry for that.
I'd hoped to have a chapter ready in August, but it just didn't happen. What did happen was me graduating from college, passing my nursing boards, and becoming an RN. So I haven't been completely unproductive. ;)
I had to fight through a lot of writer's block to get this written (which I guess is what happens when you ignore characters for a whole semester), but I'm positive it won't take nearly as long for the next update.
Thanks again for sticking with me! Your sweet reviews and PMs about this fic were fantastic motivation. It means so much to know that you guys care about this fic like I do, and I can assure you that I'll never abandon it. =)
I hope you enjoyed the chapter!