I Want To Dream Now

Chapter 4

"That is a very expensive gift."

Robin grins, his crooked front teeth breaking what could have been a perfect smile.

"Sorry but can we even afford it?"

And that's where his smile fades. "Don't you like it?"

His wife, Nina, remains extremely still, barely batting an eyelid.

"Nina?"

She lets out a long-held groan then. "Well of course I like it. But that is beside the point. There's only one worker in this family, and I feel like this family is just not functioning how it should."

Robin smirks. "You never said that before the baby. In fact you were always complaining that I never did nice things for you. I'm trying here Nina, I really am."

"Not enough though," she murmurs, not courageous enough to look him in the eye.

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing," she tells him, and gets up off the couch, nearly falling with the extra baby weight. She cries out, but luckily, Robin is there to catch her just in time.

Not even a thank you.

"Um, dinner is nearly ready. Will you go out and get some organic peas?"

Robin nods, rolling his eyes while she's not looking.

"Anything else you need?"

"Um," she mutters, flicking through the kitchen cabinets. "Some painkillers."

Robin lifts a brow.

"Painkillers?"

She laughs then, a croak of a laugh to Robin's ears.

"I'm just joking. Like you were with that pram. Now, go return it."

Robin scrunched his eyes together. What is she on about?

"That present wasn't...never mind. I'll head out now."

"Like a good lad," she shouts as he opens the front door. "Maybe we can use that money on a holiday for the winter instead. I'm thinking sunny Spain. A coffee, oh my god. In Spain."

Robin flashes a quick smile. A very, very fake one indeed.

He shoves his left hand into his pocket. Outside is very damp. His feet sink into the soil of the soggy grassland. Slugs everywhere. Good thing Robin isn't afraid of slugs. Well, at least not tonight.

He pushes the light-weight pram with impeccable ease. He realises it is probably not a good idea to dirty the wheels.

Oh well. Gwen will accept it.

He isn't in the mood for Gwen though. Not tonight.

He continues pushing the pram until he comes across a trunk of a tree. The pram hits the bark suddenly, with Robin's body crashing at full-force into the pram. The pram eventually topples over. Robin rubs his thighs, blowing out deep breaths.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck. Fuck you, Nina. Fuck."

He bends down onto the grass, shoving the pram aside onto the roadside. He curls up into a ball. It is late, well, late enough for any perving old neighbours to catch him.