Jiley Oneshots

Living without you

James's POV

I held my 5 year old daughter's hand as we walked out of the church. Tears were still slowly running down my face as we headed to the car, and even though I wasn't looking at Ella, I knew she was still crying as well. As we neared the car, I unlocked it, and opened the back seat for her. She climbed in, being careful as to not rip her black dress. I smiled weakly at her as she sat down in her car seat, taking in her appearance. She wore a cute, summery black dress along with black ballet flats. I had pulled the front pieces of her shoulder length brown curls back, pinning them to the back of her head. Her hair wasn't as great as if Riley had done it, but I think I did okay. Ella's brown eyes studied me as I continued to smile at her, despite the tears in my eyes. Don't get me wrong, the service we had just exited was beautiful, but I still couldn't help tearing up. "Let's get you buckled in." I told Ella, leaning in to do up her seatbelt. Once finished, I closed the door. Turning around to head to the drivers seat, I saw Michelle walking towards me. She also wore a black dress, hers however fit tighter and had long sleeves. Her blonde hair had been straightened, and she wore black pumps on her feet.
"You guys doing okay?" She asked, looking at me in sympathy.
"Uh, not really, but we'll manage." I answered truthfully. She nodded.
"It was really beautiful James." Michelle stated, continuing the small talk. "The service, I mean. You chose a nice one." I nodded, listening but unable to reply. "How's Emily doing?" She asked, having noticed how Emily rushed out quickly once it was all over.
"I think she's okay. It's just tough." I responded.
"Yeah, it must be so hard for you guys." She told me. I shook my head.
"Yeah it is, but it must be hard for you too. You were her best friend." I protested. Michelle nodded, sniffling.
"I just can't believe it, you know." She explained. "One minute everything was fine, and now this. It's crazy how fast everything changed. It felt like it only took 30 seconds to get from winning Internationals with you guys, to now. You have a daughter. She's 5! That proves just how long it's been. But now everything's starting to move so slowly. I can't watch the next 5 years of my life linger on as if it were 50. I just can't accept what's happened." Michelle said as she started to break down in tears.
"I know. I know, but everything will be okay, most likely. We'll learn to live with the way life is now." I assured her, crying as well. I pulled her into a one armed hug, as we cried.
"And poor Ella. She thought her mom would come home with a baby, but she's not coming home at all." Michelle continued. I nodded, thinking over the last 2 weeks.

"James! I need a Halloween costume! I don't want to be one of those boring moms walking around in sweats." Riley groaned, coming into my at home office.
"Ri, baby, you can't fit in any Halloween costumes. Plus today is Halloween, where are we gonna get a costume on such short notice?" I asked her, sighing. Her pregnancy brain always forgets about things until the last minute. Suddenly she smiled, her eyes lighting up.
"I know what to do!" She announced, turning and rushing through the house. I followed her to the kitchen, where she was pulling acrylic paints and paint brushes out from a cupboard. "I'll be done in a second." She added, moving upstairs. A minute later, Riley came down in a black sports bra, which showed off her 39 week 6 day pregnant belly, and Ella holding her hand, dressed in her Belle costume. They walked over to me, and I stared at Riley in confusion. "You're gonna paint on my bump!" She exclaimed, sounding happy with her idea. "Ella what should dada paint on mama's tummy?" She asked our daughter in excitement.
"Um, a pumpkin!" Ella answered happily. I smiled at my 2 girls as they looked at me.
"Come on James! We have to leave to meet A troupe soon." Riley groaned. I chuckled, opening the paint. It took around half an hour to complete, but when it was done the pumpkin looked surprisingly good.