Louisa sat back at her kitchen table reviewing the latest email she had drafted to Martin. Things were going well between them, they'd exchanged a handful of emails, and it even seemed as if Martin was starting to open up to her… slowly, but opening up nonetheless.

She smiled as she thought back to that afternoon. She hadn't meant to kiss Martin, and definitely not while she was at school, but there was something so vulnerable about him, the look in his eyes so lost, so unsure... She hadn't thought at all, just reached out and kissed him. She closed her eyes and could almost still feel the spot where his hands cupped her cheek, the swish of her skirt as his bag dropped to the floor, the feel of his suit under her hands…

Shaking the daydream from her thoughts, her eyes fell back to the email in front of her. They were so good together, had such an amazing chemistry, Louisa just hoped that they could see this through and work out how to be together as a couple.

Smiling to herself she brought her hands back to the keyboard to continue drafting her email.

To: Martin Ellingham
From: Louisa Glasson
Subject: RE: RE: Fresh start

Dear Martin,

Martin, I find it really touching how hard you're trying to make this work between us. I know we're very different, and we'll both have to work at it really hard to make it work, but I think we can! Two people, who are different, but who love each other can make a relationship work, don't you think?

I'm glad that you like the idea of a fresh start, and I must say I like how it's going. And yes, I am referring to our little interlude at school today, after Billy and his parents left... How was the rest of your day? I found it extremely difficult to concentrate after you left. At least twice I was caught daydreaming, and I cannot for the life of me remember what that phone call from the school board was about. Oh well.

Louisa x

Hitting send on the email, Louisa got up to put the kettle on. The water had only just started to boil, when she heard the 'ding' of a new email. Switching the pot off and pouring herself a tea, she made her way back to the table and saw that the new email was from Martin.

To: Louisa Glasson
From: Martin Ellingham
Subject: RE: RE: RE: Fresh start

Louisa,

If you're having trouble concentrating at work you really should make an appointment to see me. Have you had any headaches, migraines? Or just the loss of concentration? Come to the Surgery tomorrow and I can examine you properly.

Martin

Typing furiously, Louisa shot an email back to Martin. Honestly, that man is going to drive me mad. She thought. For a smart man, he can be incredibly thick sometimes!

To: Martin Ellingham
From: Louisa Glasson
Subject: Really?

Oh, for God's sake Martin, I'm not sick! I was daydreaming about you! Not everything needs to be diagnosed!

Louisa

XxxxxxxxxxxxX

Martin sat back in his chair after reading the last email from Louisa. This is why he hated this sort of thing. How was he supposed to know that she was daydreaming about him? It was his job to diagnose people. And now she seemed upset that he'd tried to help her. God he was rubbish at this. Sometimes she made no sense to him at all, and she seemed so frustrated that he didn't know what she was talking about. But. He thought. She did say if I didn't understand her to just tell her... But then again she did say she wouldn't get frustrated either.

Martin knew he needed to smooth things over with her if he wanted them to continue along this path of reconciliation. He moved his hands back over the keyboard and started typing.

To: Louisa Glasson
From: Martin Ellingham
Subject: RE: Really

Louisa,

I'm sorry that I jumped to conclusions about your health. I know you've said that you don't want me to talk to you about medicine, but sometimes that will be hard for me. It's what I've been trained to do, and the only thing I'm really good at. When you said you were having trouble concentrating I naturally thought that I could help you with that. It would have helped me understand what you were getting at if you had just explained that you couldn't concentrate because you were daydreaming.

I have been doing some research about possible activities that we could try out together to see if there was something that we both enjoyed.

Up in Truro next Thursday evening there is a special exhibit for rare and exotic butterflies at the Art Gallery. I've been invited to the opening, and I was wondering if you'd be interested in attending with me? I know it's probably not your sort of thing, but I'm not really sure what your sort of thing is yet? It's going to be ghastly, lots of people fawning over artwork, but well, if you'd like to go we could?

Martin

XxxxxxxxxX

Louisa was ashamed. Without stopping to think, she'd jumped down his neck because he hadn't picked up that she'd been flirting with him. If she was being honest, he didn't pick up when she was flirting with him face-to-face, so why she thought he would via email was just ridiculous.

She'd immediately gotten frustrated with him and snapped, which was exactly the thing she promised herself she wouldn't do. Still, they were both on this journey together, and were bound to slip up once in a while.

He'd apologised to her for not understanding her, but in reality it was she who needed to apologise to him. She knew he was a logical man. She knew he struggled to understand subtext and the subtle nuances of conversations that most people would pick up. Without intending to, she'd set him up to fail. And when he did what he always did - turned to medicine, she'd jumped down his throat.

And he was right. He would always default to medicine. It was what he was trained to do. Was it unfair of her to ask him to change something that was so fundamental to him? Maybe she was going at it the wrong way. She didn't think she was being unreasonable in asking that he not talk about medicine when they were being intimate, but jumping down his throat when his thoughts bent that way was unfair. It was part of why she loved him, his unwavering dedication to helping others, and yet, perversely it was also what she wanted him to stop doing when he was with her.

Maybe he wasn't the only one that needed to work out how to be in a relationship. Now that was a sobering thought indeed.