How much pain can one person take?

eavesdropping

"You know mr Valentine, if you would like to talk to me, you could just come over and talk instead of listening in on my conversations." Miss Wilde said as Ollie walked past her.
Ollie went a little red but tried to hide it "I don't know what you're talking about."
"You were listening earlier when I was talking to doctor March. I saw you try to sneak off."
Ollie went slightly redder but moved to he was nearer the patient.
"You should just ask her you know."
"I think I'd have a problem with her dad if I dared to even think about asking her." Ollie argued
"Well that is where you are going wrong isn't it. You should do what you want not what you think others would like. My father broke my husbands nose when he first found out he'd asked me to marry him. Do you think that stopped him, it just made him more determined to make the night perfect. And it was. Don't you want to know that feeling of everything being absolutely perfect mr Valentine?"
"I've actually been married before."
"Not to doctor March you haven't." Miss Wilde said
"She died the next day, she had a brain tumour. I think that probably makes me more reluctant to ask Zosia." Ollie explained
"How do you know this time won't be better though. You may not know it but your making decisions based of off your past mr Valentine. And I'm not saying you didn't love your wife, but do up you not think you should make decisions that benefit yourself in the future."
Ollie smiled at her "you know you'd make a great couples councillor."
"Relationships are the one time it's okay to be selfish, mr Valentine."
And with that the conversation was over but this time it was Zosia who had been eavesdropping.

A few hour later the pair were in the car on their way home.

"See, it's only 9 o'clock. But I know you'll be tired, you know cause you're old and everything, so we can go straight to bed when we get back. Tuck up in bed with takeaway and a load of other crappy foods and we can just sit and watch the tv count down to the new year." Zosia said looking at the clock in the car.
Ollie rolled his eyes at the reference to his age but still told her he loved her and placed a hand on her knee while he continued to drive. "So why didn't you want to go our tonight anyway, I'm sure Dom would have loved to get really drunk with you especially tonight."
Ollie pulled up and parked the car, they both walked towards the door.
They were about 10 meters from the door when they stopped and Zosia said "sometimes you've got to be a little selfish don't you, especially in relationships."
Ollie sighed and stopped as well realising what her saying that meant. "So it seems we've both had the conversation, just not with each other."
Zosia turned and looked him right in the eyes. "I don't know what you want me to say Ollie. You don't like calling me your girlfriend, but you're not really doing anything about it are you. You're the only one who can do anything about it, so if you don't like it change it."
She started walking towards the door.
Ollie stayed where he was but closed his eyes, sighed and shouted after her "marry me."
"There you go, wasn't so hard was it."
Ollie ran up to her "is that a,"
She cut him off "yes."