The Next Step:Jiley's story

Sisters

"James, get the triplets ready, we're going to the airport to pick up Em and Hunter." I shout up the stairs to where James is playing with Amelia and Lottie "Alright, Babe." he calls down, I giggle before replying "don't call me babe." I reply imitating me a few years ago, I hear a laugh before I head into the kitchen to start washing up the breakfast stuff.

I'm just washing up the last bowl when I hear tiny footsteps coming up from behind me, I turn around to see Josh stood there, looking very cute "Mommy, can you listen to me?" he asks me, I nod and he carries on "I want another brother or sister." he says, this makes me nearly choke on the water I was sipping "You what?" I ask him still completely shocked "You heard me Mommy, I want another brother or sister." I don't know what to say, James and  haven't even talked about anymore but I wouldn't mind having another, I just stand there is silence before Josh coughs, clearly signalling that he wants an answer "Ermmm, maybe bub, it would be a while though." I tell him, he nods and then runs off, I turn back around to carry on washing up but now my mind is buzzing with thoughts of having another baby.

"Come on Lottie, get in the car." I tell her, we're already running twenty minutes late but we built in thirty minutes for traffic, so let's just hope there's none. "Okay Mommy, but I don't really want to." she says before she walks out of the house and climbs in the car before James straps her in, I do a quick head count and then get in the car, James is driving so I'm on child entertainment duty, fun.

After ten minutes of singing with the kids they're all fed up of singing so give up, leaving me to talk to James "you'll never guess what Josh asked me earlier." I tell him not really knowing how to start the conversation, he thinks for a few seconds before shaking his head "No I probably wouldn't know." he tells me, I laugh and then decide to tell him "he asked for another brother or sister." I say quickly, James takes his eyes off the road for a second to look at me, I see shear shock on his face but I also see something else, maybe hope, he looks back at the road and begins to talk "and what did you say?" he asks me, clearly wanting to know weather or not I want another "I said maybe, but probably not for a while." I say, hoping that James feels similarly to me "personally I'd love another now but what if we have multiples again?" he asks, this is the one question that has been on my mind since Josh asks, I shake my head before talking "I really don't know, I think I could handle nine or maybe ten but not eleven or twelve or so on." I say, this is the truth and James is the only person I would ever trust with this information, he nods in agreement before talking "I think we should try again, if it is more than twins then we would just have to deal with it, but I don't think it will be." he says really confidently, I think about this for a few seconds before deciding that we should try again, I nod my head and then we arrive at the airport.

"Emmmmmm!" I scream across the whole airport, I've missed her so much, I charge towards her and embrace her in an extremely tight hug "mind the bump." she reminds me, I look down to see a small perfect bump, seeing this really makes me want another, I want to be pregnant as well, I want to be looking forward to bringing new life into the world. "how've you been?" Emily asks, breaking me out of my baby bubble, I think back to the last few months and sigh "not too great." I say simply, I can see Emily mentally cursing herself for bringing the last few months up but I just shake my head "you don't have to step on eggshells around me you know." I tell her, she looks at me and pulls me into another hug, I relax in her arms and have the urge to spend all day catching up with her "Hey, James you take Hunter and the kids home, Em and I are going to get the train into Toronto and do a bit of shopping." I say, I know Emily's probably exhausted but she never says no to a shopping trip "alright babe, call me if you need anything." he says, I flash him a smile and then Emily and I head to the train station.

I'm now sat on the train with Em, talking about her trip to Europe "are last stop was London, we've just came from there to here and it was so fantastic, especially the amazing shops there and the London Eye, that was so cool at night, Hunter and I had so much fun the night we went on the London Eye, I mean the bit in the bedro-" she's saying before I cut her off, I don't need to know what they did "to much information." I say whilst laughing, it's nice to not be the one embarrassing myself talking about what James and I do. "Ughh, I guess, anyway how've you been?" she asks me, I think for a few seconds because these last few months have been so hard but the bit before the shooting, the bit where we were just one big happy family, they were some of the best few weeks of my life "Do you want the good or the bad bit?" I ask her trying not to sound too blunt "both, we're sisters and we deal with the good and the bad times together so Riley, how's the last four months been for you?" she asks me, it feels good having Emily back here, to talk to her about these things "Everything was going pretty perfect, until we were at the park and I had to take Poppy home because she fell in a puddle and then James got shot, since then I nearly lost him too many times to count, but I didn't and now, life's going pretty good again." I say, then I look up at Emily to see her in deep thought "what you thinking about?" I ask her curiously "how once upon a time you were just my little baby sister who was following in my footsteps to become a great dancer and now you run the head of the best dance studio in the world, are the mother to eight beautiful children and have had more experience in loosing or nearly loosing things you love so much than most people do in a lifetime." she says whilst sighing, I've never really though about how Emily feels about my life but I'm glad I know now, I know that she missis the old Emily and Riley, the Emily and Riley who used to talk late into  the night about different boys at the studio. Thinking about this makes me miss the past and all the perfect things in the past but then I remember just how lucky I am now.