Hey again guys! Basically, this started as a chapter in 'Aging Well' (so, same story as Elintézetlen) but it kind of expanded until it seemed like it would work better as a kind of 'special' like 'Nicest in the Autumn'.

Oh boy. You guys are gonna hate me.

But I'm going to just ask you nicely, sit back, don't stress, enjoy the ride, and a little review every so often would be lovely!

Thank you for your ongoing support, every single one of you xxx

Home – Part One

He watched her, as she stood right in the centre of the brightly lit hallway, the sun shining through and lighting her up in an otherwise vacant area. She was pregnant, heavily pregnant – with their third - and wearing one of those very African-esque cheesecloth tops, that floated around her like a permanent cumulus cloud around her middle. Though if he looks close enough, he can see the outline of her stomach, and his child, beneath it.

She gives a sigh that lifts her shoulders, looking around critically.

"No."

He presses his fingertips to his temples. The estate agent looks ready to pass out. He hadn't realised before now the importance of a family home to her. Of course, they should get this right. But it had been so long he was at the point of just picking a place at random and just moving them in, without asking her what she thought.

"Jesus Christ, Nikki. What's wrong with this one?"

"The stairs aren't wide enough. Suppose the kids are going up and down at the same time? They'd fall over each other! And there is no room in the spare bedroom for a double bed. Suppose Pieter and Sara come and visit? Where would they sleep?"

Poor Sam the Estate agent left out the front door to wait for them outside, supposedly so he wasn't tempted to strangle the wife.

"Nikki, darling. I know you want this to be perfect, and believe me, so do I, but you have to compromise a bit, love. We're not buying a mansion here."

She could be a brat, at times, and Harry curses her late Father for the phony lavish upbringing he gave her in South Africa. It had been the last house in a long list and they were out of options with not even one of them getting close to a maybe.

On the way home, he had no choice but to ask her;

"What is it you actually want, Nik?"

Her answer was clear and succinct, no hesitation. She knew exactly what she wanted.

"Do you remember, a very long time ago, I told you about a dream I had? About a big house in a smallish village outside London? It was a red brick village, as was the house and it had a big garden that we could have barbecues and parties in and our children could play out there and we'd know they were safe because we could see them from the window. And one of the outside walls had ivy all over it. There was a huge living area inside – with a living area and a kitchen – and a big stair case and out the front there was a drive and a hedge and enough ground left to plant some flowers that would make it look so colourful in the spring…"

Eventually, she had stopped for breath. He had answered "Yes", because he did remember. It had been a very long time ago, perhaps even before they were married, but he remembers because it was rare that she would tell him of her dreams…though he knew she still had them. There was little she told him that he would forget, even down to the tiniest of details.

"I want that."

He had given an exasperated sigh.

"And you won't settle for anything else?"

"What would be the point, Harry? You know how it is. Anything other, would just be a compromise."

Another sigh.

"And how would I know 'how it is'?"

"Well that's why you were single for so long, wasn't it?"

He had thrown her a sideways glance to find her smiling audaciously in his direction. His glance had momentarily fell to her rather large stomach.

"So, you're giving me, 6 and a half weeks to find you this house?"

Her turn to sigh.

"No. We'll make do where we are for now…"