First and foremost, thank you for reading! This idea came to me recently, and I just had to get it out. This is going to be a wild ride, so hold on as best as you can.

I want to thank my betas kas90 & stupidlamb118 and my pre-reader tg10781 for putting up with me and my horrible obsession with commas.

Summary:

When Edward & Bella's son, Nathan, goes missing it turns their lives upside down. This is the journey they take to find him, in the process realizing everything isn't always as it seems.

***I have noted this story as an Edward/Bella story for a reason-please just have patience***

If you're under the age of 18-please don't read, it is rated M for a reason.

I do not own Twilight, I just enjoy playing with the characters.

"Tanya, I already explained, we are not going on vacation that week, it's Nathan's birthday." I wanted to throw up my hands, but I knew it was hard for her to understand the pull I felt for my son. We had talked about having children a few times, but we were still waiting. Once we had children together, I was sure she'd have a better understanding.

"How about the week after?" she asked with a pout as she leaned over our bed, wearing my old college tee and red laced panties.

"Can't... Dr. Gerald goes on vacation, and the hospital will be short staffed."

I walked down the hallway to the third door before the stairs. Peeking in, I saw my son. He was my absolute pride and joy.

It'd been nearly eight years since he graced my life, and although he wasn't born into a traditional family, I wouldn't have changed a thing.

I sat on the edge of his bed, but he began to stir after I kissed his forehead.

"Daddy?" His voice was groggy with sleep.

"I love you. I have to go to work, but have a good day at school. Your mom will pick you up at the bus stop."

Bella and I met in college. I was up to my eyeballs in schoolwork and, on a whim, attended a party a friend was pushing me to attend. After too many shots to count, I woke up in Bella's dorm, in her bed, completely naked.

Neither one of us remembered how we got there, she was just as wasted as I was.

Three weeks later, we found out she was pregnant.

My family was less than thrilled. We had money, and they were convinced Bella lured me to her room to trap me somehow. I really didn't know what to think.

I grew up as the baby of the family, Emmett and Alice both ahead of me in age. I'd never wanted for anything a day in my life. I was a month shy of graduating, starting my residency, and then I knocked a girl up.

Bella and I did our best to make a relationship work, but we failed.

However, we both knew we'd be forever intertwined in the other's life. She let me attend the birth of my son, which I was very thankful for, and she did her best to include me where she could.
The first year was hectic, to say the least, she was nursing, and Nathan had problems with bottles. I spent many hours sleeping on her couch, and I helped out as much as I could;, while still juggling my residency.

After Nathan turned a year and didn't have to depend on Bella so much for nutrition, we established a routine that worked for us. I took him every Wednesday night to Friday morning, along with every other weekend. When more or less time was needed, the other was always willing to work around it.

Bella and I may have failed at a romantic relationship, but I considered us friends. She did too. We made good co-parents.

I'd met Tanya when Nathan was four. I'd started a new position at a new hospital, and she was a volunteer in Pediatrics. Every week, Tanya would go around the ward handing out stuffed toys and reading stories.

Tanya was gorgeous, smart, my family liked her, we got along well, and we had enough in common to keep me interested in her. It took me a while to gather up the courage to ask her out, but then a date turned into more, and then into marriage.

Introducing Tanya to Bella was hard. Bella didn't hold a candle for me or anything, but Bella just wanted to be sure that I trusted Tanya with our son. It was always Nathan she worried about. It took about six months before I introduced Nathan to Tanya, but when I did, I gave Bella my word that we didn't need to fear her.

However, anytime Bella and Tanya were in the same room, it would feel off. Tanya never knew where she fit with Bella, and I think Bella was a little weary of anyone that held a place in Nathan's life. Bella got a lot more relaxed when Tanya and I married.

We got married shortly after Nathan turned five. Nathan was our ring bearer, and Bella was all smiles. She hadn't dated much, at least not that she'd told me, but I hoped one day she'd find someone.

As a step-mom, Tanya was great. She enjoyed staying home and taking care of Nathan while I worked. When we didn't have him, she continued to volunteer in the hospital.

I placed one more kiss on Tanya's lips. We'd talk about a vacation when I got home, but I really wanted to consider one where we took Nathan with us. It'd been a while since we'd had a family vacation, and I wanted one. I was also sure Bella could use the break.

I unlocked my car and headed to work.

Working in the ER was a hectic job, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, I hated when I walked into work and, unexpectedly, get slammed with a double shift.

Tanya would be pissed I wouldn't be home until the middle of the morning, but I'd make it up to her later. I was looking at the entire weekend off in a few days, and it was not my weekend with Nathan. I considered taking her away to a Bed & Breakfast we'd been considering trying out. It was only a few hours away, but it might be enough for her to get off my back about a grand vacation for the two of us.

On my lunch break, I texted her to book us a suite. She was thrilled. I loved making my wife happy. I also knew the added hours would be forgiven. I was still considered the "new doctor" on the block, even three years in, so more often then not I was given the extra shifts.

As dinner time neared, my phone went off. I almost didn't answer it until I saw it was Bella. She'd never call me unless it was about Nathan, so I answered.

"Edward, where is my son?" she screeched through the phone.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, because it wasn't like Bella to call me out of the blue. Out of the two of us, Bella was always the calmer parent. For her to call me, in a panic, was alarming.

"I asked where Nathan is! When I went to the bus stop to pick him up, the driver told me he wasn't there this morning. So I called the school, and they said he was absent today."

"Bella, he was at home when I left. Let me call Tanya, maybe he woke up sick or something." Panic began to take over me, and I hightailed it into my office. Tanya would have called me if she kept him home...at least she did last time, and when I talked to her earlier, she hadn't mentioned anything.

I hung up on Bella, although not on purpose, so I could quickly dial my house number.

"Hello, baby," Tanya's flirty voice filled the receiver.

"Is Nathan with you?" I asked quickly.

"No, it's not our day to have him. I dropped him at the bus stop this morning and…"

"So he's not home?" I interrupted.

"I just said…"

"And did you watch him get on the bus?" Every red flag in my brain was lighting up like a Christmas tree.

"Um, no, but Ed..."

My fingers started working before my mind could catch up.

"Hello?" Bella was in tears, and I could hear it in her voice.

"He's missing, Bella. He's missing."

A cliffie, I'm sorry. This is actually a chapter, I've chosen not to do a prologue for this story, although you'll still probably see an epilogue. Reviews are loved, but not required. My goal is to update every 1-2 weeks depending upon my schedule. I can tell you Chapter 2 is almost with beta.