"So what will you have to drink at dinner time?"
"Do you have cola?"
"Yes. Will you open a bottle for me?"

They continued talking until dinner, and then they ate together at a grand dining table, until Keene found himself constantly blinking his eyes and struggling to stay awake.

"Are you alright?" asked Louise. She must have noticed a fading in the colouring of his face or something else, which would have betrayed his sudden urge to fall asleep on the spot.

"I just feel tired for some reason. We'd better start the harder parts of the assignment though. I'll sleep better knowing that we've got some of it out of the way."

"I can start on my own, if you're not feeling well."

"No. I should be fine in a minute."
"You do look very drowsy."
"But I can't imagine why. I feel sleepy too, but I had a good night's sleep last night, and I've just eaten a hearty meal. I should be bursting with energy."

*          *          *          *

Keene had fallen asleep. He dreamt of a variety of scenes and was oblivious to whatever Louise was doing while he slept. Many hours later he began to awaken from a deep sleep. His eyes were still closed, but he felt he was now in a bed. Had Louise carried him to the car, driven him home and opened his door with his own keys before putting him into his bed? Had she watched him suddenly drop off and taken him to a spare bed in her own home?

He felt a hand stroking his head and heard her humming to herself. He opened his eyes and saw her standing beside a bed, which was completely new to him.

"How's my darling little Keene this morning?" she said.

"Fine Louise I suppose. Did I fall asleep at dinner?"

"No. I just tucked you into bed when you were ready, like I normally do."
"But I've never been here before. I only came over last night so that we could do some of the assignment."

"I'm doing it with Karen. Anyway I don't think that my university would welcome the help of my foster son."
"Who is he?"

"You. Why do you ask all these silly questions, Keene?"
As she spoke, Louise sat on a chair beside the bed, put her hand under his chin and tilted his head a little so she could kiss his cheek.

"Hey that felt strange."
"Really?" she laughed.

"It was nice, but I haven't shaved yet" he said rubbing his cheek with his fingers "Hey did you shave me? My cheeks are clean. They're never this clear. Whatever you used was marvellous. I've tried all the best and most expensive shaving equipment over the last few months, and I still ended up with chafed up skin and short stubble sticking through."

"You're telling more fibs Keene. You cannot expect me or anyone else to believe that you would need a shave at your age. You don't have any facial hair to shave off."