I'm getting accustomed to the ebb and flow of our life on the waterway called marriage. Louisa and I empty into the same vast unknown but we get there differently. Like water, she can't be contained. My job is to smooth her way.

She has been going to The Centre for almost two months, ever since Melody wrote her a letter apologizing for her rude behaviour on Louisa's first visit to The Centre. They met and over tea in the small cafe on premises, Louisa realized that Melody needed a listening ear. Soon, Melody started sending her friends to Louisa for advice.

The first sign that something was amiss came one morning at breakfast. I watched helplessly as she gobbled down what passed for a meal.

"Is that all you're eating? Toast and coffee?" I asked incredulously.

She corrected me brightly, as she moved towards the door lugging her handbag and a carry bag bulging with papers. "That's all I have time for."

I tried to delay her departure. "You do know that your bag is too heavy. What do you have in it anyway?"

"Research material for the Cornwall exhibition and information for Melody's friend."

"Don't you think you're going overboard? You're supposed to be pacing yourself, volunteering, not taking on a full-time position. What about the flexibility you said you wanted?"

She reached up and said goodbye with a kiss. I tried to prolong the moment by hugging her, bags and all, and returning her kiss with the passion she stirred in me, just by being who she is.

When she came up for air, she looked at me with smoldering eyes. "You know I have to go."

I held her even tighter with one hand and ran my other hand over her, willing her to stay. She pulled away from me laughing. "Not even that, as tempting as it is, will keep me away from The Centre today. Hold that thought until I see you later."

Shortly after she started going to The Centre, deep sleep became a luxury. One night, she was particularly restless. I held her firmly against me until she stopped twisting around.

"Sorry, Martin," she said cuddling up against me. She settled after she found a comfortable spot, then began shifting about again.

I turned on the beside lamp and sat up in bed. "Come here." I straightened her nightie around her, smoothed her hair then held her in my arms and rubbed her back.

Looking up at me with a sleepy smile, she murmured, "You're so good to me, Martin," before she fell asleep.

I looked at the clock. Luckily it was a Friday night, we could sleep in tomorrow.

Things began coming to a head one night after I reached for her and discovered that she was not in bed. I fell asleep again, thinking she would be back soon.

The next morning I looked over at the clock. It was 7 am and her space besides me was still empty. I found her asleep on the couch in the upstairs lounge. Her pyjama top was half off her, the blanket she used for cover was on the floor, she was entangled in the sheet she had spread on the couch and her pillow was on the floor. She must have had a troubled night.

Looking at her, my mind reached back to my last few months in the village. Our relationship was tumultuous, with hazards on every turn. I had tried to discourage her from applying for the headmistress position when she was so heavily pregnant, to no avail. I had only wanted her to take it easy for herself and our baby's sake. She had stormed into my kitchen and told me off for trying to sabotage her efforts to get the job. I hated having Edith in my kitchen overhearing our conversation. I winced when I remembered how badly I had treated Louisa. All I had wanted to do when she began crying was to fold her in my arms, beg her to come and live with me so that I could look after her and the baby properly. Instead, I had been so stiff and afraid of being rebuffed that she thought I was being mean and spiteful and had stormed out of the kitchen, as much as someone heavily pregnant could.

This morning I did what I should have done back then. I extricated her from the web of textiles around her, wrapped her in my arms and kissed her head.

"Sleepyhead, what are you doing here?"

She opened her eyes and looked around confused. "Where am I?"

"You are in the upstairs lounge." I turned her to face me and waited for an answer.

Her eyes were still trying to focus and she seemed to be as perplexed as I was. "I don't know. I can't even remember coming here. If you must know, I'm having a hard time sleeping and I know you need your sleep so ... I guess that's why I'm here."

I made my voice sound as calm as I could. She hates what she calls my doctor voice.

"What is happening, Louisa? Are you feeling ill? This couch is not going to make you sleep any better."

"I know, but I feel comfortable here. I'm so tired." She yawned, relaxed against me and fell asleep mid-conversation.

Louisa loved this room. This is where she came when she missed Cornwall or if something was bothering her. She would just sit and lose herself in memories until she felt better.

I reached for her wrist and checked her pulse and placed my hand on her forehead to check for fever. Everything was normal. I looked closely at her sleeping body and realized she had lost weight. There could be many reasons for her disturbed sleep and weight loss and as I watched her, a million possible scenarios ran through my head. When she began burrowing into me, trying to get comfortable, I pulled the blanket around her and left her to it.

"Sleep tight, sleepyhead."

Luckily, today was my late day so I was home for a good part of the morning. She came downstairs yawning at 9 am, which was late for her. I looked up when she took a seat at the dining table, holding her head down so as not to meet my eyes.

"You know we have to talk," I told her quietly.

"About what?" She had the grace to blush although there was some irritation in her voice.

I changed the subject. We would get back to it, but not now. "Let me fix your breakfast," I offered, not pausing when I noticed that she was shaking her head vigorously.

Her phone rang and she walked towards the powder room to take the call, shouting as she left, "I'm not hungry."

I sat waiting for her until she came back to the table. I had noticed that she was getting early morning and late night calls. God knows what happened in the day when I was away. I suspected that they were from Melody and her friends, but had said nothing. Despite this Melody and company matter, I was glad she was doing something that she was good at and enjoyed.

"So, do you want to tell me what is happening. You're not sleeping well, sleeping late, always tired and today, not hungry." She looked at me for a long time before she answered with a question which she knew I hated.

"Martin, why are you worrying? I'm telling you it's nothing. I'm just tired, it will pass."

I leaned over and cradled her face with my hands. "Remember our promise to trust each other even when we are afraid?"

She refused to look at me, so I left it at that. She would tell me when she was ready and I sensed the time was drawing near.

Before I left for work, I sat beside her on the couch where she was having a cup of tea. I took her hand. "If you don't tell me, I can't help you."

She said nothing just looked at me for a while. "I'm going to The Centre this evening. Could we meet for dinner after?"

Tuesdays and Thursdays were her days at The Centre. Today was Friday. I turned to her surprised. "Is something special happening today why you're going into the city? Why not stay home and catch up on your sleep?"

"I can't. Today is a one-off. Are you trying to wiggle out of taking me to dinner?" Of course I wasn't and I gladly agreed.

I knew Martin was not pleased that I was devoting so much time to The Centre. I wasn't happy myself as I had taken on more than I could handle. He didn't know it, but on the days I was home I would get calls all day long. Listening to people's problems is not what I wanted to do, but it was a start. I hoped that one day soon, an opportunity would open up for me to use my classroom skills. I promised myself that since I got myself in this fix, I would get out of it by myself. Martin had displayed remarkable patience in letting it continue for so long and I hoped it would be resolved before he put his foot down.

A little before we were to meet, Martin texted to say he would be late and I should wait in his office.

Mrs. Green was surprised to see me. "Oh, hello Louisa, what brings you here?"

"I'm waiting on Martin. We're going to dinner." She looked at me strangely.

"I'll just wait in here," I said, pointing to Martin's inner office. "He told me I could."

"Go right ahead." She got up from her desk and pushed the door open for me. "You can take a nap on the sofa while you're waiting. There are blankets and pillows in the cupboard. They are Mr. Ellingham's."

She peered at my face. "You look a little tired. Hasn't he been taking care of you?"

When I didn't answer she pursed her lips and rattled on. "I'll be leaving soon. There's water and coffee in the cupboard over by the window."

"I'll be fine," I told her then lay back with my head on a cushion. I'm not sure when I fell asleep but the next thing I knew Martin was shaking me awake.

"Louisa, I'm here." I looked at him. I felt tired and must have looked it because he sat down beside me and reached for my wrist.

I stopped him. " I told you I'm not ill, just a little tired."

He showed me the note from Mrs. Green. "That was two hours ago. I have been here for at least half an hour finishing up paperwork and waiting on you to wake up."

"I have been feeling a little peaky. Maybe I'm doing too much ..."

"How long have you been feeling like this?" he asked quietly.

"Why do you ask?"

"There you go again, answering my question with another question."

"A little while." I saw his eyes widen. I hated when he just listened in doctor mode.

He gestured with his hand, "Stay there" and got up abruptly.

The next thing I knew, I heard him making an appointment with Nigel Singh. He wrote something on a notepad and handed it to me. It read, Nigel - 11 am, Saturday. "I'm taking you there tomorrow. He's coming in especially for you."

"Martin, you're such a fusspot."

"That I may be, but there's no negotiating your appointment." Then his voice softened. "Louisa, I only want what's best for you. Going around tired, napping in the early evening and sleeping late are significant. You have to pace yourself at The Centre. Listening to problems without the training to remain objective is stressful and will make you ill."

Not wanting to cause a fuss and to change the subject, I said, "You promised me dinner. Let's go, I'm hungry."

Dinner was at a lovely restaurant where we had been before. I had insisted on a table with a nice view to enhance our dining experience. I watched as Louisa asked the waiter for the wine list and ordered a glass for herself. With no breakfast, and possibly a nutritionally inadequate lunch, that was not a wise choice.

Seeing my expression, she said cheerfully, "It's just one glass, Martin," and proceeded rub my leg with her foot. She knew the effect she had on me and knew how to use it to her advantage. I didn't mind that my lovely Louisa was responsible for my increased heart rate, but just not now.

"Let's drink a toast to us," she said when the waiter brought her wine and my water. "Cheers."

We both ordered fish and I watched her eating enthusiastically. Well, at least she was eating.

"You must have been very hungry," I said looking at her plate which was almost empty. She was normally a slow eater and tended to dawdle, especially when she was tired.

"Didn't you have lunch?"

"Today was a busy day, no time for lunch."

"And no breakfast?" That was a rhetorical question.

I made to say something, then stopped. She had refused to answer any of my questions fully and I knew not to push her. Minutes away from home, she tugged at my arm and mumbled "Stop."

Luckily, I was driving at a moderate speed and we were on a patch of roadway that allowed me to pull over quickly, lean over and open her door. I heard her moan, clutch her belly, then discharge her dinner and God knows what else by the roadside. I rubbed her back until she was done, handed her some wipes and a bottle of water from the stash I kept in the car.

"Let's get you home quickly. Think you can make it? We could sit here a little."

She was still holding her belly. "Yes I can. I just feel weak from all that heaving."

When we got home, I didn't have to tell her to get into bed. I led her upstairs to the bathroom, helped her get out of her clothes and into the shower. While she was doing that, I made her a cup of ginger tea and brought it and a few crackers up for her.

"Drink this Louisa, it will settle your stomach." While she was having the tea, I got ready for bed.

As I leaned over to take the tray from her, she held my hand.

"I'm sorry Martin. I overextended myself and compromised my health. I'm ready to see Nigel."

I fluffed her pillow and climbed into bed beside her. "That will be done tomorrow. Also, you may wish to consider limiting your time at The Centre to one day or two half days a week."

She knew that was an order and that there was no escaping a discussion. Not after how our evening had ended.

"I tried to do a good job at The Centre, I really tried."

"I know you did. But it was never a job for you to do. You're not Social Services. The Centre is not Social Services. That's not we do."

"I was only trying to help."

I knew she was drowning, so I did the only merciful thing I could do to save her - tell her the truth.

"You're out of your depth, Louisa. It's only going to get worse. Soon you will be helping out with money."

From the look on her face, and the cash I had recently seen lying around on the dining table, her bedside table and even the bathroom counter, I knew that was already happening.

I couldn't believe my dear, sweet Louisa had allowed herself to get overwhelmed by problems she could not solve. She looked at me, begging me to stop, then her face crumbled and she buried her face in my chest.

"I'm so sorry, but Melody especially needed help."

"What is so special about her that you couldn't talk about it before you made yourself ill?"

Then it all came tumbling out.

"She's responsible for her three younger siblings when she gets home from school and two have chronic illnesses. I tried to keep them at The Centre when I was there."

"What!"

"Her mum works overtime to make ends meet so a lot of the domestic duties fall on her. Then there's her dad who has a new family. She misses him badly. Martin, we have to do something. I had to do something or Melody would be lost to Maths."

"And her friends?"

"Oh, their issues were teenager stuff. I could handle them."

The solution was all so simple if she had only asked.

"Imperial's Community Outreach office will see that her ill siblings are assessed and treated where possible. They will also work with Social Services to get the family the help they need. I'll give you their number and you can have Melody's mother call them."

I tried to soften my words by making a joke about the disastrous end to our evening. I could see that she was mortified.

"I don't understand how you invite yourself to dinner, eat, then promptly bring it up. You could have stayed home and done that."

She sighed. "I'm glad I have you to look after me.".

I pulled the duvet over us and settled in for what I hoped would be a restful night.

"We will look after each other. Now it's time for bed, you need the rest."

I wondered how we would fare navigating our trip to the village for the first leg of the Science Is Cool exhibition.