"I'm going to take Jamie down to the park and start teaching him how to ride a bike." Viv smiled at Siobhan and reached for her hand before asking "do you want to come with us?" It was a Sunday morning and they'd just finished breakfast, now they had a free day to do as they pleased. Siobhan smiled back and nodded, she always wanted to spend time with Viv and Jamie, no matter what they were doing. "Yes, I'd like that. I probably won't be much use though, I've never ridden a bike." The blond giggled as Viv looked at her incredulously and asked "you don't know how to ride a bike?" Before Siobhan could answer, Viv squeezed her hand and exclaimed excitedly "I can teach you too! It will be nice for Jamie to have a learning buddy!" Siobhan's eyes widened as she spluttered "oh...I don't know if I'll be any good at that...I'm probably a bit old to be learning now." Viv shook her head "you're never too old, you'll be fine I promise, it will be fun."
Before she knew it, Siobhan, Viv and Jamie were in the park, having walked down with the bikes. Vivs bike was old, but Jamie's little bike was brand new and he was very excited to ride it. As Siobhan lifted him onto the seat he looked up and her and beamed "bonbon, I've got my helmet on look. Mummy says it will keep me safe." Siobhan nodded and replied "yes, good boy, and you've got your knee and elbow pads, we don't want you getting hurt." Viv laughed and placed her hand on Siobhan's back "well, a couple of scrapes and bruises are probably inevitable, you know what this one is like, he's like a little hurricane."
Viv began to steer Siobhan towards her bike, which was leaning against a post. She could tell that the blond was hesitant so she pulled her close and whispered "what's wrong gorgeous?" Siobhan looked down at the floor as she spoke, wishing she could push the negative thoughts away forever. Suddenly, she looked up and into Vivs eyes and replied "are you going to laugh at me?" She looked so upset and worried and it was breaking Vivs heart, she hated seeing Siobhan doubt herself. "Baby I'd never laugh at you, I promise." Siobhan grabbed the helmet that had been hung on the handlebars somewhat reluctantly before putting it on and looking down at the floor again. She knew that she was worrying for nothing, Viv was so patient and even if Siobhan never got it, she wouldn't make fun of her or judge her. Siobhan had never felt good enough, even as a child she'd been berated and taunted by the people who should have loved her, which was why she'd created such a prickly shell to protect herself. Viv cared for and loved her and for the first time in her life, Siobhan was beginning to let go of the unrealistic expectations she'd been forcing on herself for so many years.
Once she was straddling the bike, Siobhan watched as Viv held onto Jamie as he started to peddle. He was doing so well but every time Viv let go, he'd have a wobble as soon as he realised he was on his own. Each time his wobbles were smaller however, until eventually he was able to pedal a very short distance by himself. As Viv turned to Siobhan she grabbed the handle bars for a second and smiled. "Ok bonbon, I know you're nervous but I promise you can do this, okay?" Siobhan put her feet on the pedals and took a deep breath, but immediately she overthought what she was doing and hit herself in the ankle with the pedal. When she cried out in pain, Jamie climbed off his bike and rushed over to her, placing his hand on her ankle. "It's ok bonbon, I'll make it better." He rubbed where she'd hurt herself gently, before Viv scooped him up and cuddled him.
"Thank you Jamie, I feel much better now" Siobhan smiled at him as she watched Viv carry him back over to his own bike. "Bonbon, look!" He shouted to her as he peddled forwards a little before looking back and beaming "just like that!" Over the next half an hour, Siobhan managed to get used to the peddles but she struggled to find her balance properly, relying on Viv to stop her from falling. Eventually, Siobhan sighed in frustration as she felt tears behind her eyes and snapped "Viv I can't get the hang of this, I look like an idiot. Jamie can already do it and I've still barely moved" She looked away to prevent Viv from seeing her glassy eyes as she muttered "I can't do it, I'm useless." As she looked up at the sky she felt Vivs hand on her arm but it was Jamie's voice she heard next. "Charlotte always says at nursery, we all learn..." he paused as he struggled to find the word he was looking for before shouting "DIFFERENT!" He was stood next to her now and tugging on her trousers "we're not supposed to be the same. You can do it bonbon, like I did."
Viv rubbed Siobhan's arm gently and said "you're not useless at all baby, you're just nervous." Siobhan nodded and took another deep breath and pushed the pedals down. It took a few more attempts but finally, she managed to move the bike forwards without toppling to one side. Jamie was still standing over his own bike as he clapped and shouted "YOU CAN DO IT BONBON, SEE!" Siobhan couldn't help but laugh at his little voice, so full of enthusiasm and belief. He grabbed his handlebars and rode his bike over to her, it wasn't far so he was confident he could do it. As Siobhan turned to look at Viv, she realised that she was filming them. "How long have you been filming for?" Siobhan asked, frowning a little as Viv smiled at her. "Since just before you managed to ride the bike forward. I've got both of you on camera now!" She beamed as she scooped Jamie up once again, laughing as he held his arms out and indicated that he wanted Siobhan to hold him. As she handed him over she watched them cuddling for a moment before asking "so...who's for ice cream?"
