The Reckoning

During the following weeks, they sniped at each other. She felt that he was constantly criticizing her and she said hateful things and pushed him away, convincing herself that it was for the best – hard hearted, bossy arse! He was a stick of rock alright! Hard as stone thru and thru! He obviously had no interest in their baby. That was fine. Not his problem. But her heart wept a little with each confrontation between them. Still, didn't he realize that she had to work? He insisted that it only be three days a week which was impossible. When the position of Head Teacher became available due to the illness of the person (Mr. Strange) who had held it since she left to go to London, he tried to convince the board that, because she was pregnant, she was unable to resume the post.

Once again, she showed up at his door, but this time in a flaming temper. Before he could invite her in, she shouted at him, "Martin, how dare you tell the governors that I shouldn't take the post as Head Mistress! you have no right to tell me how to live my life!"

The redhead was standing behind him and broke in before he could answer saying, "I think I'll leave and stay out of this fray. You shouldn't get too excited you know. It's not good for the baby. I'll see you Friday." And pecked him on the cheek.

Ignoring that unexpected kiss, and with his ferocious scowl in place, he said, "You do not need to leave. Miss Glasson hasn't been invited in."

She just shook her head with a little secret smile of satisfaction and left.

"I don't want to be invited in, Mar-tin." She started to say, but he interrupted her with, "Thank you for that display of ill manners, Louisa. You've successfully ruined my evening."

Louisa had sworn to herself that she wouldn't shed another tear over him. She managed to say, "What I do with my life and how I do it is none of your bus…" And her emotions got the better of her and the tears flowed.

Clueless and flustered Martin, instead of comforting her, asked with honest bewilderment, "Why are you crying?" All his sessions, all the advice that Sam had given him were forgotten.

Humiliated, she choked out, "Oh, shut up!" and he watched her walk away from him again. She just hoped he wasn't watching her because she was sure that she was waddling.

Her tears cut through him. This was an example of the situations he wanted to learn to handle better. What should he have done? If he tried to embrace her, she looked angry enough to slap him. Sam could help with this dilemma. He spent another sleepless night seeing her crying every time he shut his eyes.

She relieved her feelings by saying that he was unbearable! Insufferable! If that would only stop her from having erotic dreams about the last night they spent together. Another sleepless night! She put a hormonal pregnancy as the reason.

On top of everything else he was dealing with, he had to endure criticism from Aunty Joan which he felt to be very unjustified. He repeatedly told her that Louisa didn't want him involved in any way. She invariably said, "Don't be ridiculous! You're the father! You have responsibilities!" That certainly didn't make it any easier. And Pauline made her little comments, too. "Just because she's strong don't mean she don't need your help. That's your baby! Don't you care at all?" Yes, he was the father and yes, it was exciting. But also terrifying. He didn't know anything about babies. What if he turned out to be like his father? Why hadn't she told him when she first found out? Didn't she realize that he was truly concerned for hers and the baby's welfare? Why was she always so angry? She wouldn't even allow him to be her doctor. She was just being unreasonable and stubborn. Feminist point making! But the memory of his words the night of their latest fight made him squirm. She upset and angered him with her words and rejection of him but he shouldn't have said what he did. He hurt her after promising that he never would. And round and round his thoughts went, always ending with "Why didn't she tell me that I'm going to be a father?"

Pauline knew better than to openly criticize Edith but she made it plain to him that she neither liked or trusted her. "That woman never makes an appointment. Just shows up like Queen Muck. And that hair color sure didn't come from nature." Edith breezed in late in the afternoons and treated her and the patients with amused contempt. "Oh, don't worry about an appointment. He'll see me next." And he did, without barking about appointments. He couldn't be serious about this slapper!

No, he was serious about the bags of out of date blood she brought him and the research paper he was helping her write.

As was Martin's habit, every time he had reason to stand on the terrace or leave the surgery and walk through the village, he looked for Louisa, hoping to catch a glimpse. She did the same thing, looking for him at every turn. Small consolation when they did see each other, they ended up arguing or her pointedly ignoring him.

When Joan found out that Louisa was back and pregnant, she was over joyed and made Louisa promise to tell her if she ever needed anything, anything at all. She wanted Louisa to live with her so that she could help look after the baby but Louisa said it was too far from the school. No, she had to be independent. It would be too much to ask Joan to drive her back and forth every day.

Louisa told Joan that she was going to the Truro hospital to register as a patient and she insisted on taking her. "It's no trouble, Louisa. I'm happy to do it." Louisa accepted, but just this once, she insisted right back. Martin was there on the slipway where they met and wasted no time in putting Louisa's back up again by criticizing her for eating a few Jelly Babies.

"I just fancied some." She said defensively.

"You know that the weight you gain during the pregnancy will be harder to shift because of your age. You shouldn't have wasted calories and excess sugar." He said helpfully – he thought. To her, he was criticizing her again and was that a crack about her age? She glared at him and snapped, "Thank you, Mar-tin. I'm aware that pregnant women should watch their weight. Especially older women!"

She was angry again. No surprise. No matter what he said or how helpful he tried to be, it made her angry. Probably hormones. Joan pulled up and he, thinking that she wanted him for some reason, told her to wait just a minute.

"No, it's Louisa I've come for. Are you ready to leave? Well, come on then." She called.

Louisa walked toward the truck and Martin asked where they were going.

"Joan's taking me to Truro to register at the hospital." Louisa answered him without stopping.

He didn't know whether he should feel guilty or responsible, he just knew that he wanted them to do this together and asked hesitantly, "Shouldn't I be the one taking you?"

Once again, she pushed him away. "No thanks. I'm fine." He looked so forlorn standing there! When they arrived at the hospital, she waited for what seemed like ages before being shown into a room. The nurse asked all the normal questions and then asked if her husband would be attending any of the appointments. "No, I'm not married." She replied. Next question was, "Will the father cooperate in a study?" Louisa didn't see the woman enter the room as she answered, "Why? And what study?"

The woman turned out to be the red head. She answered that it was a study of geriatric patients who were having babies. She smiled and added with certainty "And no, he won't cooperate." And left the room. Just how well did they know each other anyway? What kind of remark was that? Had Martin talked to her about their baby? That was the second time that day someone had implied that she was old. Did that smirk never leave her face? Her thoughts were in a whirl.