in your arms

e p i l o u g e

jessica's pov.

apparently i went to my parents wedding. there's a picture in our living room of them, in an old silver frame that has dust collecting around the edges. there's a crack in the glass where dad dropped it. but it shows mom in a beautiful white dress and Dad in a tux — and he's holding a tiny me in his arms. i was asleep, completely oblivious to the excitement going on around me. Mom and Dad are both smiling wider than i've ever seen them smile.

so yeah. i was at their wedding. i don't remember anything at all, but at least i was there. even though i was 4 months old and spent most of my time sleeping, then went home with my grandma.

my parents are the type of parents who still really, truly love each other. most parents do, obviously, but mines still kiss all the time (totally gross, i know) and they talk about each other like their the most amazing person in the world. i always love seeing my dads face light up when Mom dresses up for their date. which they still go on frequently, by the way. honestly, they're getting too old for this. most of my friends parents are divorced.

Daddy told me i was the only kid they had who wasn't planned at all. my little brother patrick was, and then paige after him was too, but when i was born no one was prepared. my parents were only 19 and weren't even in love yet.

but that was 11 years ago. and nowadays they always say that i'm the 'best mistake they ever made'.

i dance at the next step now, and im the best dancer in j-troupe. i mean, i'm not bragging or anything, but that's what michelle told me.

but i think she's being biased because she's my aunt. or my somewhat-aunt. i have a lot of uncles and aunts who aren't even related to me.

i love dancing but i really love gymnastics. i do both. patrick, my 6 year old brother, is a dancer, but he isn't very committed. he prefers soccer. but Dad is still persistent to get him to dance. paige is only 3 but she's starting baby ballet and she's already pretty good for a three year old. Dad always tells us we get our natural talent from him, but then Mom rolls her eyes at him and he just laughs. that's always the case. Dad jokes a lot and Mom pretends to be annoyed but really, she loves it just as much.

a few years ago dads band hit the big deal, and they thought they were gonna go worldwide but after a while their popularity died down. he made a bit of money out of it. but that's really it.

i start middle school in a week and i just hope dad doesn't cry like he did when i started elementary school, even though he promised he wouldn't. and Mom said she'll try to persuade him to just stay home.

we live in a bigger apartment than we used to, becuase after paige was born we needed more bedrooms. it's still a small place but i have my own room. kinda. i mean, i technically share with paige but Dad bought this divider that goes in the middle of the room so i have my own space. even though paige insists on 'visiting' every few minutes. that's why there's a pile of glitter spilled on my carpet.

so that's my family. we're not perfect but, really, who is?

~~~

okokok i'm getting emotional omg, after writing this i might acctually make a sequel to this at some stage...😂 not completely sure but i'm gonna think about it. so that's the end of the book!

butttt i published chapter 1 of my new book!! it's called 'i need you' and if you could check it out on my page that would be amazing!! love u guys 💘
- emma