After a while Ollie and Lucy took Ryan back to bed while Cloda and Jemma sat down on the sofa in Martin and Zoe's room.
"Could it be less than two months.. like.. with your parents.." Cloda began,
"I hope it's not." Martin said, "but.. with my dad.. yeah, it was much less. But don't- don't think about then, just think about now. Try and get some sleep, you two."
"That might be difficult, but we'll try." Said Jemma, looking down as she stood up before pausing.
"I'm sorry sir. About everything that's happened to you."
Martin looked over at her in surprise. "Don't be." He told her, "just live your own life and enjoy every second of it."
Jemma gave a sad and touched smile, before running over to Martin and hugging him, feeling like she was about to burst into tears.
Martin rested his chin on her head, wrapping his arms around her and closing his eyes, reminding himself of Martha's embraces, feeling like it had been years since he was a dad, but all the same, feeling like he still was one.

When the girls left, Martin retreated back to the bathroom where Zoë was lying in the bath, the warm clear water reaching just above her shoulders which rested against the edge of the bath while she looked out at the city through the huge windows.
"Hey." He greeted, sitting on the edge of the bath beside her.
"You getting in?" Zoë asked, looking up at him.
Martin took a deep breath, "Yeah, alright." He began to strip off, "I feel a bit exposed with this big window."
Zoe laughed, folding her arms on the rim of the bath and resting her head on them as she looked up at him, "Yeah, 'cause the whole of Venice is staring up just waiting for you to take off your pants."
Martin chuckled, climbing into the bath and sitting at the side opposite Zoe.
"Did you just give Jemma a hug back there?" She asked him, facing him.
"She needed it." He justified with a sympathetic expression.
Zoe shook her head, looking right at him and chewing her lip and saying, "You might just be the nicest man in the world."
Martin laughed, "I highly doubt that-"
"I love you." Zoë Interrupted, with the most sincere gaze. "I really really love you, Martin."
Martin leaned back and listened, seeing her eyes grow red again as she continued to speak, moving her gaze away from Martin, "I- I don't deserve you. I never have and- and I never will. I've lied to you and yet you forgive me in an instant and take me as I am- I-"
Martin moved quickly over to her side of the bath, crawling on top of her and pressing his hands onto her cheeks, with his nose brushing against hers.
"Zoe?" He whispered, looking straight into her eyes, "you're perfect."
His mouth slowly covered hers before he tasted her lips, and sunk into the bath, his skin pressed against hers.
As he began to kiss her neck, Zoe closed her eyes with pleasure, looking up before whispering, "I'm sure there must be some rule in teaching that teachers aren't supposed to hook up on a school trip."
"I read the Ts and Cs pretty thoroughly and there was absolutely nothing regarding intimate relationships." He chuckled, running his finger down her chest with his mouth hovering above hers.
"Oh, well it must be okay then." She said, wrapping her arms around his neck and smiling at him.
Martin grinned down at her, "Come on lets go to bed." He wrapped his arms around her back.
"Is doing the 'bed thing' the only method of cheering you up?" Zoë Asked, stepping out of the bath and wrapping a towel around herself before walking back into the bedroom.
"I don't think anything is gonna cheer me up about this." Martin Sighed, "the 'bed thing' might take my mind off it, though."
He climbed into bed and looked up at the ceiling as Zoe lay down beside him planting a hand on his chest and snuggling her face into the crook of his arm.
They lay in silence for a few minutes, contemplating everything before Martin looked down to see that Zoë was fast asleep.
He smiled slightly before moving away from her, tucking the duvets over her and getting changed again. He exited the room and walked into the main living room where the piano was. He heard music playing softly; he recognised a guitar strumming, and eventually a voice, it was coming from the balcony.
Martin slowly made his way towards the glass doors which stood slightly ajar.
Ollie sat on one of the deck chairs with his guitar on his knee, singing something made up, with sad lyrics and deep chords.

Martin leaned his back against the door, listening in and slowly feeling his jaw shiver as he listened to the lyrics of metaphors.
And now the fire we had is dying, it's colder now, but it's trying.
And it's spread all over the land,
It's source, however, we'll never understand.

Martin found tears streaming down his cheeks over his lips. And when Ollie had finished he looked over to the door and gasped slightly when he saw his teacher standing there.
Martin walked onto the small balcony beside him,
"I'm sorry; I'm a mess." Martin apologised.
"Don't worry- so am I. Sit down." Ollie replied, indicating the chair beside him which Martin sat in, seeing that the sun was beginning to rise, though the sky was still dark. "Thought you were busy trying to have more children with Miss Flynn than crying about my friend."
Martin tried to muster a laugh, "I think I'm done with kids."
"Well too bad you're a teacher." Ollie told him, smiling even through his tears, "and Miss Flynn's already got one on the way."
Martin looked out at the deep purple sky, seeing a prickle of sunlight on the horizon.
"Do you miss her? -Martha, that is." Ollie asked, also looking out at the sky.
"More than anything." He Replied, gazing at the stars before making eye contact with Ollie. "Guess that's how you feel about Ellie."
Ollie nodded in response, thinking of his little sister.
"Do you think we'd be here right now if they hadn't died?" Ollie pondered.
"I dunno." Martin Replied, "their deaths wouldn't have changed Ryan's health. Nothing can change it."
Ollie covered his mouth and more tears leaked from his bursting blue eyes, "I'm not ready to lose him. I'll never be ready to lose him! Why's it always us?! Why is it always you! Why are you losing everyone? How haven't you given up yet? How can you still go in there and make Zoë happy- how.. how..?"
"How haven't I killed myself yet?" Martin assumed, and by Ollie's despaired countenance he calculated that his guess was accurate. "Because of you." Martin began, "because of you, and Cloda, and Jemma and Lucy and Ryan and Zoe."
Martin bit his lip, "mind if I ask you the same question?"
"My answer is exactly the same too." Said Ollie, looking down to his conjoined hands, wanting everything to stop.