Richard wakes up before Hyacinth in the morning. He can smell the soft scent of her perfume and she looks so relaxed when she's asleep. He climbs out of bed and heads in the direction of the bathroom to have a shower. He doesn't want to wake his wife. She didn't sleep as much as he did on the plane. He turns the hot water on and allows the tub to fill a little as he strips out of his pyjamas and gets in pulling the shower curtain across. He allows the hot water to pound down on him and work some of the knots out of his back from the way he slept on the plane. He reaches for the body wash the hotel provided and lathers it over his chest. The smell wafts up to his nose in the steamy shower stall. He turns into the deluge of water and rinses the body wash off. He reaches for the shampoo and he can hear his wife begin to move in the bedroom. He massages the shampoo into his scalp with his fingertips and tilts his head back to rinse his hair. He finally turns the water off with the water dripping off his body. His eyes are closed when he opens the shower curtain and carefully steps out of the shower. Suddenly a towel is being pressed into his hands. He wipes the soap out of his eyes before he opens them. "Hyacinth!" Richard cries as he covers himself with his towel. His wife is standing at the sink washing her face. Richard's face flushes as he realizes his wife has seen him naked for the first time in almost twenty years.
"Who did you think it was? It's nothing to be embarrassed about, Richard. It's nothing I haven't seen before." Hyacinth says gently. She reaches for the hand towel and blots her face dry.
Richard turns his back on his wife and secures the towel around his waist. "I don't know who I thought it was. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." Richard mumbles. He remains facing the short stall. He is embarrassed. He's gained so much weight since the last time his wife saw him naked.
Hyacinth sighs softly at Richard's reaction. He's always been unsure of himself and she's sure she hasn't helped him with that at all. She walks over to her husband and wraps her arms around his waist and leans her cheek on his damp back. "I'm not uncomfortable. I'm sorry if you are. You shouldn't be. You're very handsome, Richard." Hyacinth presses a kiss in between his shoulder blades.
Richard reaches for Hyacinth's hand. He kisses the back of her hand gently. "Thank you, my darling." Richard mumbles quietly.
"You're welcome. Not, come on, breakfast will be here soon, so get dressed and come and join me for breakfast." Hyacinth pats Richard's shoulder before she leaves the bathroom.
Richard leans against the sink. His wife has made him nervous. She doesn't usually say or do things like that. He splashes some cool water on his face, pulls his pyjama pants on, drops the towel on the floor, puts his shirt on, and walks back into the main room. Hyacinth is just setting breakfast out when he enters the room. "It smells wonderful." Richard says quietly as he walks towards his wife. She looks lovely.
"Come and eat before we have to go and see Dr. Feld." Hyacinth pours Richard a cup of tea.
"You know I think this is going to really well. Ever since I told you about my plan we've been much closer. I have faith in us, now more than ever." Richard sits down across from his wife.
"Thank you for having such faith in me, Richard. I don't always have such faith in myself." Hyacinth says quietly.
"I never suspected that you were unsure of yourself at any point. I never considered that you didn't have confidence in yourself. I'm sure that I didn't help your confidence by pulling away from you." Richard tears a piece of toast apart.
"We'll be okay. I'm sure we'll figure things out together." Hyacinth says confidently. She's remaining positive about their relationship.