A/N: And we come to an end. Let's see how our kids turn out.

"Jacob, let's get a move on, bub."

Jake rolled over from where he was on the floor with Rosalie and Alice to look at Bella. "But it's in the middle. You can't leave a movie in the middle."

"You can, especially when you've seen that movie a million times. Isn't this the second time tonight?"

"Fine. But it's not fair." He got to his feet in a huff and put his hands on his hips. "Mommy, we're here all the time anyway. Why don't we just live here?"

"Yeah, Mommy." Carlisle, who to that point had been flipping through a medical journal on the couch, spoke in a low, disinterested tone. "Why don't you just live here?"

Bella narrowed her eyes at the top of her boyfriend's head. He continued to stare down at his journal, the picture of innocence. She closed her eyes and and sighed. "Get your things, Jake. Please."

Jacob went in search of his backpack, and Carlisle finally looked up. What little ire had sparked in Bella vanished. He was wearing his reading glasses. She had a thing for men in glasses. She had a thing for Carlisle specifically.

"You're lucky you're so pretty," she said as she dropped down next to him on the couch. She draped her legs over his knees and spoke in a quiet voice so the girls wouldn't pay attention.

Carlisle gave her an angelic smile and curled his hand around her ankle. He began to press his fingers, kneading. It felt good. Of course it felt good. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Uh huh."

His smile fell, and he reached beyond her to pluck an envelope from her purse. She grabbed at it, but she knew he knew exactly what it was. "I saw it earlier. When were you going to tell me?"

"It's not your problem."

"It is my problem." He shook his head, and she recognized the frustration there. She'd hurt him. It wasn't the first time. "Bella-"

He was interrupted when Jacob came running back into the room. "I'm ready." He sounded so sullen.

Bella chewed the inside of her cheek and made a split second decision. "Can you sit for a while, bub? I need to talk to Carlisle in the kitchen."

"You just told me-"

"Jake. Please."

His expression turned pensive. The girls must have heard the turn in her tone because they both rolled over. "Are you fighting?" Rosalie asked.

"No," Carlisle and Bella said at the same time. They glanced at each other. "We're just going to talk," Bella said.

"You go to the kitchen when you fight."

"And when they tell secrets," Alice said.

"We're not going to fight. I promise."

"No fighting. Daddy gets very sad when you fight." Rosalie wagged her finger for emphasis.

Bella held her hand out for Carlisle's and pulled him to his feet. "No fighting."

She led him away. As soon as they were behind closed doors, Carlisle started to argue though he didn't raise his voice. "How can you still believe your problems aren't my problems?"

"We just promised our children we weren't going to fight."

"No, you promised our children we weren't going to fight. I have every intention of fighting." He began to pace. "This is supposed to be a partnership. For the last six months I've watched you struggle with your rent and your bills."

Bella folded her arms over her chest. "I caught up with the rent. I'm working on the bills now."

"That envelope said final notice, which means it's already messed with your credit." He stopped and threw his hands up in frustration. "This is your life, Bella. What is the point of all this if you won't share your life with me? You work so hard. You don't have to work this hard. Or you could be putting all that energy into something you want. Something more than just surviving. I want to help you, and you won't let me."

Watching a man like Carlisle who had such rigid control of himself come undone always struck her as profound. That he cared for her so much he could lose his control left her both scared and elated. "I can't stand to watch you struggle like this," he said. "I've tried-"

"Marry me." As soon as Bella blurted the words she clapped a hand over her mouth and stared, wide-eyed, at him.

"I… What?"

Bella opened her mouth to take it back, but then she considered the idea. "Marry me."

Carlisle looked very confused. Then it was Bella who was pacing. "I know we're supposed to wait and be sure. That's what I've been trying to do. The thing is, I don't want to move in here because I'm struggling for money. I want you to want me to move in. I think you do. I know I do. So marry me. If you want me to share your life, you should be able to say yes. I… I'm sure that's not what popular wisdom says, but I don't know how to do the trial basis thing. I'm in. I'm all in. I want to be all in, but-"

All at once, Carlisle, who had been frozen in place, staring at her, rushed forward and took her face between his hands. Whatever else she was going to say was drowned against his mouth. He only let her go after he'd kissed them both breathless. "You want to get married?"

English was a complex language when someone had been kissed stupid. "I, um… if you'll have me?"

He laughed and kissed her again, slow this time. "Bella," he mumbled against her lips. "I would have asked you months ago except I figured if something like paying your phone bill sent you into a tailspin, a proposal would send you running."

"Ah. It probably would have." She took a small step backward so she could look at him. "I'm a pain in the ass, Carlisle. I'm stubborn. You have to wait until I figure things out for myself." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Did you really want to propose to me months ago?"

"What did you say before? You don't know how to do the trial basis thing?" Carlisle rested his hands at her waist and kissed the tip of her nose. "That's as good a way to describe it as any. My modes are 'not interested' and 'head over heels', it seems."

He tilted his head down and put his lips to hers again. "You really want to marry me?"

"I asked, didn't I?"

He kisses the side of her mouth and her chin. "You'll move in here?" He kissed along her jaw. "And let me help with the bills. And let me buy you an engagement ring?"

"I will move in here. If I'm living here, I'll be able to pay my own damn bills, and yeah, since you like it, I'll let you put a ring on it."

He laughed and moved his hands to cup her face so he could look at her. "I love you."

Before she could answer, he was kissing her again. These kisses built quickly in momentum, and Carlisle pressed forward until her back was up against the counter. He rested his hands on the flat surface on either side of her as he leaned in. His tongue slid along hers.

"Whoa." Jacob's voice interrupted them, and they turned in time to see the little boy close the door again. "They are definitely not fighting. Ew."

Bella groaned and banged her head against Carlisle's shoulder as they laughed. He nuzzled his nose against her head. "Stay tonight, Bella. Please? I don't want you to go home tonight. Jake left some of his school clothes here last week, and they got laundered. Just stay."

She tilted her head up to kiss the underside of his jaw. "I'll stay."

~0~

Carlisle parked the van and took a deep breath. He reached over to take Bella's hand and squeezed. "Are you ready for this?"

Her hands were clammy, and her face was pale. Her fingers trembled in his, but she swallowed hard and nodded her head. "Yeah. I'm good."

"Not for nothing, lovebirds, but you must release us from the childproof locks," Edward said from the back of the van.

"It's crowded back here for the big kids," Jasper said.

Alice giggled. "You're not a kid, Jasper. You're old."

Jasper leaned forward from the back seat to kiss Alice's forehead. "Thanks, munchkin. That's exactly what a guy likes to hear."

Carlisle shook his head and clicked the button to open the side doors of the van. It took a few minutes to get everyone out and organized, then they were off.

"Are we really going to be on TV, Mommy?" Jacob asked. He swung their hands as they walked.

"We'll see, bub."

Carlisle took her free hand and squeezed again. "We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"I already said I would." She turned to him, and as always, her smile sent a thrill through him. He couldn't help swooping down to kiss her once before they stepped up to the starting pavillion.

It was hard to believe a year ago he was alone. He'd come to this race with his little girls and their nanny. Now, Bella was at his side as they kissed the kids and went in search of the reporter who had approached them some weeks before. Apparently, their story made a good human interest piece about the marathon.

They found the tent they had been asked to meet at and were greeted by a vivacious young woman with a soft smile.

"Hello, I'm Angela Weber. You're Dr. Cullen and Miss Swan, right?"

They shook hands and Angela brought them to where they could sit.

"This is my cameraman, Eric. Try not to pay attention to him. Just be natural. It's a friendly conversation. No interrogation, I promise." She grinned.

As she went to get set up, Carlisle again reached out for Bella's hand. "You breathing?"

"I think I got it."

He leaned in, bringing their joined hands to his chest as he kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear. "You're fabulous, and now everyone in the Seattle area will know it."

That brought a smile to her lips. She turned and skimmed her nose along his cheek. "You're not so bad yourself."

Angela cleared her throat to get their attention. Carlisle turned to see the cameras on and pointed at them. He smirked. He couldn't help it. Typically, he was a discreet person, but he couldn't help the rush of pride he felt that he was the one who got to kiss Bella. He was the one she trusted.

"Ready, kids?" Angela asked, sitting opposite them.

Carlisle looked to Bella and raised an eyebrow. She grinned. "We're ready."

~0~

Bella had worked hard to get in shape for the marathon, but she wasn't up to the speed she had been before the accident by a long shot. On top of not being as fit as she once was, her leg wasn't as strong. She'd worked hard, but she had work, a baby to raise, and a relationship to tend to. It hadn't been easy, not that she was complaining.

Angela had, of course, asked her about the trials and tribulations she came up against after having been so badly injured a year before. Bella thought back to the interview, if only to distract herself from the bone-deep ache in her leg.

"You never resented Carlisle for all the pain and hardship you suffered as a result of your injuries?"

Bella reached over to put her hand on Carlisle's knee. He was still so guilty. "I never saw the point of resenting him or blaming him. He tripped. All of us have tripped. What good would it have done me to be angry?" She looked over to Carlisle and smiled. "If I'd resented him, look at all I would have missed. I gained so much more from not being angry."

"A doctor fiance, a family," Angela said.

Bella grinned. "My best friend even fell in love with his nanny."

Angela laughed. "Well, how 'bout them apples."

"What are you smiling about?" Carlisle asked, bringing her back to the present.

"Nonya. You know," she said between pants. "You don't have to hang back. You could have already finished by now."

He rolled his eyes. "The point of this isn't to finish first. Besides, what was it you told Angela?"

Bella shook her head. "I knew that was going to inflate your massive ego."

"Any tricks you use to keep up your energy for a race like this?" Angela asked.

"Yeah," Bella said. "The best motivation is to run behind a person with a nice butt." She ruffled Carlisle's hair. "Luckily, I have that covered."

Carlisle ran a few paces ahead and looked back to wink at her. "Come on, sweetheart. We're almost done."

After the initial pack of the fastest runners, people tended to be more spaced out. For most of the marathon, Carlisle and Bella had been by themselves. There were always a scattering of people ahead of them and behind them but nothing like the crowd they'd run in the year before.

Then, as chance would have it, by the time they started up that last hill where everything had gone to hell the first time, a crowd of runners caught up with them. Before Bella could process what was happening, her body, her mind, began to feel odd. There was a prickling like panic that made her concrete thoughts difficult to hold on to. The throb in her leg seemed to send spasms of pain throughout her whole body. Her breath spiked. She was already breathing hard because she'd been running, but this was different. Her heartbeat was erratic.

As the other runners passed closer, surrounding them, Bella's vision flashed. They were shattered bits of memories. Of falling. Of pain and disjointed voices all around her.

Her leg wobbled with each footfall. Then it would not hold her. She pitched forward and rolled. The world was nothing but fear and pain. The noises all around her were nonsensical and frightening.

Then, above it all, she heard a soothing voice. She couldn't make out the words at first, but the voice seemed to go with the soft touch she felt on her cheek and her back. She recognized that voice. She trusted that voice. That voice would protect her from the feet.

She took a deep breath, realizing only then her lungs were burning for air.

"That's it, Bella. Just breathe. I got you," Carlisle said against her ear.

"Sir? Step away. We can help."

"She's fine. She's not hurt." She felt his hand against her brow. "I think she's just having a flashback. Give her some room, would you?"

Bella forced herself to open her eyes. She blinked, trying to focus, and regretted it. She groaned and ducked to hide her head against Carlisle's neck. They were surrounded by people, and she couldn't stop shaking.

"Just breathe, Bella. You're just fine." He rocked her.

"Mommy. Mommy."

Bella's eyes flew open again. Her baby was crying. Of course he was crying. He hadn't been here last year when she was hurt, but he knew damn well what had happened.

The crowd parted, and Bella was surrounded again, but this time with friendly faces.

"Mommy?" Jacob said again. He got loose of Edward's hand and dropped to his knees beside her.

Taking a deep breath, Bella lifted a shaking hand. "I'm okay, bub."

"Are you sure? You have cuts."

A glance down at her legs showed she had scraped them up. "Ah, those are nothing Jake."

"You should kiss them better, Daddy," Alice said from her place in Jasper's arms.

Carlisle smiled at her. "It's not a bad idea," he said, waggling his eyebrows. "A kiss can be ten times more effective than morphine in reducing pain, as it's thought that it activates the body's natural painkillers. That's medical fact."

She leaned close so she could speak in his ear. "Well, I know what we're doing tonight then."

Edward sighed. "This hill is cursed for you."

"So it would seem." Bella winced as she pressed her tender hand to the ground, trying to push herself up.

"I'll help you, Bella," Rosalie said. She took her hand and pulled.

Carlisle laughed and shifted his grip on her so he was supporting her weight. "Can you stand?"

"Um." Bella let go of Rosalie's hand to put her other arm around Edward's shoulder. Together, they got her up. She still felt shaky. She put pressure on her bad leg and groaned when a spasm of pain shot up her body.

"Here." Carlisle made sure Edward had a good grip on her before he bent in front of her.

"What are you doing?"

"Come on. We're finishing this race."

Realizing what he wanted, Bella laughed. She let go of Edward to loop her arms around Carlisle's neck. She clung as he straightened, hitching her good leg up around his waist without trouble and her bad one up with his help.

"Ready?" he asked, holding her securely to him.

Everyone was staring. The cameras were on them. People were smiling, and everyone she loved was with her. "Let's do this."

~The End~

A/N: I'd like to thank barburella, jessypt, and songster for their help. And mina for the pretteh banner.

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