The Next Step: 6 Years On

The dreaded fire starter

1 week later......

Brittany pov
I wake up early on a bright and sunny Saturday morning from the sun that perks through our lightly shaded curtains. I groan as I hear crying coming from Emma's room and roll over so that I can ignore it.
"I'll get it babe" Trevor says and I softly smile to myself as I fall be my to sleep again

After I finally eat up 20 minutes later I again have to rush to the bathroom to complete my daily consequence of this baby. Nausea never gets old and it always kills me; just makes me to a different person. Transforms me, hence the hormonal behaviour I apparently 'mess around with.'

Following the Morning sickness I have breakfast and then come to the sudden realisation that we are moving house today. it's going to be hard- very hard but I'm sure we will get through it. All of our main furniture from the living rooms and play room from our apartment and our old fire house have been straight away placed there. it cost us a little extra but it helped. a lot.

Everyone is really excited for us. we did purchase a mansion so I'm sure every one of the cast and crew would want our house but after all we deserve it and after what we've been through- I'm sure they totally understand why we've bought it. I get changed before Opening Riley's door to her room. it's empty because all of the kids are having breakfast with Trevor downstairs but I just want to start on her packing because even though she's six and is capable of packing, I'm just not sure of how it's going to turn out.

I smile as I come across memories and photographs of when Ri was little and of her and James. thy was only a couple of years ago. she has grown up so fast. it's now been 12 years since the show has finished and it was only half of that time that Riley has been alive. I reach her stuffed animal pile that also HAD to come to the apartment by popular demand (Riley) as she quote 'could never live without them' unquote. I pack them all in a desperate box and I turn to all of her clothes. Riley I swear has so many clothes. too many. all of her 46 dresses, 29 skirts and 56 tops I place in a new box as well as placing all of her 18 pairs of shoes in another. I finally come across all of her baby belongings; the scrapbooks I made, the movies, the cute little picture frames, the gifts she got for her birthday from the cast every year as if course the box in which her charm bracelet goes in. When Riley was 1, Alex it her a charm bracelet and every time she had a birthday, she would I'd her a charm signifying that year of being alive. it was sweet I guess and it's so special to her. she wears it all the time. so far there's a:
- a pony (her favourite animal)
- an 'R' for her first name
- pink charm (favourite colour)
- a kangaroo (from our trip to Australia)
- shooting camera (for the tns reunion)
- ballet shoes (for her baby ballet)

I just start crying as I collapse on her bed with all of her packed boxes in front of me, staring down at all of it and her bare room that lies nothing but memories that we kept. Our old house was where everything remained of Riley's; her beloved swing set, her playroom, all of her photos, where her siblings came and its where she talked and walked for the first time, the place where she grew up and became part of our lives.

And now- thanks to this one hell of a person, it's all gone.

My thoughts are drifted and my red eyes are cleared away as Riley walks into the room Sitting down on her bed next to me
"Mummy, I'm sorry I didn't make my bed" Riley says looking really sad. I giggle but then turn to her sympathetically
"Oh darling I really don't care at the moment. I was crying because all of the things the we kept from the fire are still here and all of the memories are just flowing through me. you were and still are such a gorgeous little girl Riley- don't you ever forget that princess" I tell her giving her a side hug and she smiles, looking up at me.
"Thank you mummy. if only I could remember when I was little I would agree with you and start crying too but I just can't remember. I do remember Australia though"she says an her eyes light up like stars.
"Yeah we'll maybe we could do another holidays like that again soon huh?" I suggest and she smiles and grins
"We'll have to check with Daddy." I mutter softly
"Yeah he's the boss around here" Riley says and I laugh
"Excuse me?"
"I mean mummy is the boss around here" she corrects herself. I laugh ad give her another hug as we walk out of the room of boxes.

"Boxes are in Ri's room Hun; all ready and packed" I tell Trevor as we walk into the kitchen, both exhausted.
"Ok thank you for not lifting the boxes- you're not as stubborn this time round Britt, makes my job easier." he says giving me a short kiss
"Well if that's how the prince wants his dinner served than that's how it will be shown. We'll see wont we" I say to him smirking
"Yes we will. I'm going to start brining those boxes out here." he says, walking out.
It's silent in the kitchen until the phone rings.
"Hello?"
"Hi is this Brittany?"
"Yeah this is her"
"Hi I'm Gary from the police station down town. I have some news for you"
"Oh dear lord please don't tell me our new house is caught on fire to because right now I really don't need that"
"No. no Brittany. Im hear to inform you that we have tracked down the person who set fire to your house." Gary says and my heart stops pumping.

My world starts turning and I freeze like im some sort of statue. I'm about to find out who did all that damage to my house. the person who destroyed memories and ruined personal monuments of life. who deconstructed my home. that dreaded fire starter. and I swear I god once I have my hands on them, they would not want to be living in this work right now.

At the moment- they may as well be in Mars.