Chapter 102

Martin slept on the bed in the nursery and was up at his normal time. When he checked on Louisa, she was still hot and now snoring loudly. He showered and dressed and went down to make breakfast. Louisa appeared, looking just as tired and now with red-rimmed eyes.

"You look dreadful, dear," was his first comment to her.

"Oh, thank you Martin, that's just what I needed to hear," and burst into tears.

"I'm sorry," he said. "Go back to bed and I'll bring some toast up."

"I've got to go to school," she riposted.

"You are ill. It's probably just a cold, but you wouldn't want your fellow teachers or pupils to get it, would you?" he used the one argument he knew she would be unable to refute.

Sighing she dragged herself back to bed. When he took her tea and toast up, she was fast asleep, again. He decided to leave her and let her sleep it out.

Going downstairs he called the school and left a message to the effect that she wasn't well enough to come in. He thought she might be able to go in on Thursday, but would let them know.

When he took a break at 10:30 he took more tea up. She was sat up in bed, still looking tired. "I've brought you some tea. Do you want anything to eat?"

She shook her head and croaked "Thank you," to him.

"I rang the school and told them you wouldn't be in until Thursday at the earliest. If you are still not well, I'll tell them next week."

Louisa was too tired to argue with him. Snuffling she got out of bed and went to the bathroom. Even that small trip exhausted her. She was glad he was a take-charge sort of man.

He returned to surgery and saw his patients until lunch time. When he went to the kitchen, Louisa was sat on the couch, looking slightly more rested.

"Do you feel like eating anything? Toast, cereal, soup?" he asked.

"I'd like some porridge, please?"

He prepared that and brought it on a tray, over to where she sat. He put a glass of fruit juice on the coffee table. While he was eating his own lunch, he watched her pick at the porridge and only eat some of it before pushing it away and drinking her juice.

She leaned back on the couch and shut her eyes again.

"Louisa, go back to bed again. I'll check up on you later in the afternoon."

She went wearily up the stairs and was soon back to sleep. By three o'clock she felt well enough to shower and dress, but even that small effort tired her. Going downstairs she made herself some tea and enough for Martin.

When he appeared he could see she looked slightly better. He touched the back of his fingers to her forehead, "Hm. You're not as hot as you were. Do you feel a bit better?"

"Some, but getting dressed was a real effort. Thank you for telling the school, I wouldn't be in. I couldn't have coped with the children today."

The back door opened and Joan's "Only me" rang through the kitchen. She walked in carrying a tray of spare veg. Taking one look at Louisa she said, "You're not well. I hope you've not been to school."

Joan's voice seemed to be very loud and Louisa shook her head, mutely.

Martin said, in his no-nonsense voice, "She's got a cold, and she's just going back to bed."

Louisa nodded meekly, stood up and dragged herself off.

Joan looked at Martin, "I hope you've been looking after her? Pregnant and in that state, she needs it!"

"Yes, Auntie Joan!" he squeaked. "I am a doctor you know?"

"Hmf," retorted Joan. "I won't stay. Enjoy the veg," and left abruptly.

Martin was disgruntled by Joan's accusation he was not looking after Louisa. He quickly put the vegetables away and then returned to the surgery. Perhaps Louisa had more than a cold? Maybe she had 'flu? Either way she would be uncomfortable for a few days, especially given how advanced her pregnancy was.

He got through the remaining patients and then closed up. Pauline was happy to be going home early and so there was no disagreement there.

He collected his leaflets, left a note for Louisa, and went down to the pharmacy to leave one there.

He strode into the chemist's shop glad that there were no other customers. When Mrs Tishell appeared he began telling her about the changes he was making at the surgery.

"Yes Dr Ellingham. I've heard something about it. Why are you closing on Saturdays?"

"It won't be every Saturday, just the first and third in the month. It will be beginning on the 4th of June. As for the reason why, I'd have thought it obvious that now I'm a family man, with a new child coming along, I need some quality time at home."

"Oh. I see. Yes, I'll put the notice up, for people to look at." She seemed subdued, but Martin was glad that she wasn't fawning all over him and left her to get on with things.

There were a couple of other places which served as general information centres, and he left his notices there as well. The Lifeboat station house was his last call. At almost every place he called into he was asked "Why?" He became tired of answering. Perhaps he should contact that garrulous Caroline radio woman and announce it over the airwaves. Answer a couple of questions and leave it at that? He loathed the idea of doing it, but it would disseminate the information widely to the local population, and save him from answering the same question over and over again.

He returned home to find Louisa sat at the table with her fruit juice. "Are you feeling any better?" he asked, putting his fingers on her forehead. She didn't seem to be as hot, but her tired eyes suggested she was still weary.

She sneezed, violently and his question was answered. "Yes, I think it is just a cold, you should start to feel better in a few days, when it has run its course."

Louisa looked up at him, "Then why do I feel so rotten, if it's just a cold? I've had colds before, and not felt as dreadful as this?"

"You've had colds before, but you haven't also been 7-months pregnant at that time. Your body has enough to deal with, nurturing the baby, without the extra burden of a cold. Basically you are battling on two fronts."

It was if a light switched on. "I hadn't really thought about that," she confessed.

"Hm. Have you had anything to eat? You only seemed to pick at the porridge I made earlier?"

"No, just this drink and the one you left for me."

"Would you eat some vegetable soup, if I made some? Joan has left us some unwanted veg which are fresh?"

"Yes, please Martin. That sounds good, actually."

He set to and made the soup, making enough for the next day, as well. He decided to have some himself instead of a full meal.

"I'm going to contact the radio station and see if I can get a slot in Caroline's show. Hopefully if I tell people what's happening, I won't have to answer the same inane questions I've had today."

"Are you sure? I know you hate doing that. However I can see the rationale behind it."

"Yes, I'll ring the station and leave a message for her to contact me, to arrange it."

After they'd finished, he washed up, made a second drink for Louisa and went to his surgery to make the call to the radio station. He was assured that Caroline would be in touch, soon.

"Well that's as much as I can do for now," he told Louisa when he went back into the living room area. "Do you want your magazines to read, or anything else?"

"Yes please, Martin. The magazines won't tax me too much, and if they make my arms tired, I can easily put them back on the coffee table."

The evening passed quietly for them, with Martin reading his BMJ's and Louisa desultorily leafing through the magazines. Nothing was really holding her interest, but some of the pictures were good. The food sections caught her attention and she gave them more than a cursory look. Ordinarily she would do the puzzles and crosswords, but tonight she couldn't summon the enthusiasm.

"Do you want a drink, Martin?"

"Yes, but don't move, I'll do it."

He moved across to the kitchen. "Tea, or hot chocolate?" he offered.

Her head jerked up, "You mean it? YES please. Hot chocolate please."

Did he think she'd opt for the tea, given the alternative? By a superhuman effort of will, he made no snide comments and put forward no studies at all.

When he'd carefully placed the mugs down and sat beside her again, she patted his leg, "thank you."

He smiled, but didn't kiss her.

She waited for the drink to cool and took her first sip. To her chagrin, she couldn't taste anything, other than it was hot. When she thought about it, she hadn't tasted much of the soup, either.

After she'd finished the drink, she told him she was off to bed.

He glanced up and said, "I'll finish these, lock up and be up shortly. I'll sleep in the nursery though, so I don't disturb you."

When she looked disappointed, he said, "you'll be past the infectious state soon and I'll come back, then."

Of course he had his patients to think about, some of them quite frail. Although in his opinion it was only a cold, he didn't want to add to their misery.

He looked in on her before going to bed. She was sound asleep. It really had taken it out of her, he thought.

The next morning he was showered and dressed at his normal time. He peeped in to the bedroom, but she was still asleep. Going downstairs he decided to get the makings for an omelette together in case she wanted something more substantial than, cereal.

To his surprise she was downstairs before he'd finished his breakfast. "How are you this morning?"

"I feel a lot better than I did yesterday, but not tip-top."

"When you've had a heavy cold such as yours it can take a few days to feel well again," he agreed. "Give me a few minutes to finish this and I'll make you an omelette."

She sat down and poured herself a cup of tea. "Have you any house-calls to make?"

"No, I don't think so. Beth Sawle isn't due for one until next week, and as she has asthma now, it wouldn't be good for her if I turn up with cold germs on me. Touch wood, I won't get called out, either."

He got up and rinsed his plate before putting it into the dishwasher. "Now, do you want an omelette?"

When she nodded assent, he set about making it. In next to no time he was placing it in front of her. "Louisa, you may feel alright at the moment but this initial feeling of well-being is likely to fall away a bit later in the day. Go back to bed if you feel yourself flagging. If I do have to go out, I'll leave a note. I'll pop in at breaktime and also, I'll be here for lunch. Don't do too much, understand?"

"Yes, I know what you mean. Thanks for breakfast, it was good to get some solid food in to me." She smiled at him and he was pleased to see it looked more natural, today.

He left to go into the surgery and she went upstairs to dress. Once she was ready, she stripped the sheets from the beds and took them down to be washed. After a half hour read on the couch, she went back up and remade the bed. She picked up her dirty clothes and some of Martin's from out of the laundry basket and took them down to be washed as well.

When Martin came in at breaktime she was asleep on the couch. He heard the washer going and frowned. He made his espresso and the gurgling of the machine roused her. "Do you want some tea, Louisa?"

"Yes please, I'm thirsty."

"I told you not to overdo things. I could have put the washer on."

"Actually Martin, I felt the need for some clean bedding and I have only brought it down, the machine has done all the work!"

"Do you want cheese on toast for lunch? That's not too heavy, is it?"

"I think I could manage that. See you then." She blew him a kiss and he smiled.

Once he'd gone, she took the sheets out of the washer before putting the dirty clothes in. She folded the sheets and set them aside to go in the dryer.

She'd just got seated on the couch when the familiar "Only me," shout was heard. Joan walked in with a casserole dish. "Chicken," she announced. "Thought you'd like a square meal, which you didn't have to cook!" Joan smiled at her. "You look a bit better today. How are you?"

"I feel better than I was, but I now know I'm not back yet to my usual health. I brought some washing down and re-made the bed. I was shattered. Of course Martin had told me not to do too much."

"Yes, you don't realise it, but summer colds can be just as bothersome as their winter counterparts." Joan agreed with her. "Right, I'm not staying so you put your feet up and relax. That's an order!" Joan smiled at her before leaving.