~ Elevenses ~<br/><br/>Nicci was surprised that the men thought they had a lot to do, I mean the wood store was full, the coal was there in its bunker, hardly any veg this time of year...... She frowned into her mug, chopping a little kindling wasn't exactly hard work, and OK if the weather was bad taking the quad bikes up onto the fells to dump the feed might be a chore, but they had good wet weather gear and a warm, wonderful home.  She thought about the concrete jungle she grew up in, the dirt the..... smells.......  the fear.......  How could they not be in love with the wild beauty and total freedom the island seem to be for her?<br/><br/>She worried that if so many of them didn't feel happy about their environment they would leave..... Hardly any of them seemed to be energised or happy about what was going to be their life together. Marcus who'd she'd thought looked so at ease talked about worries and weaknesses, even Bo's talk of sharing the work load didn't reassure her, the whole thing suddenly seeming so fragile and it scared her.<br/><br/>She was pleased that Mari took her hand and squeezed it back, and Nicci smiled at her without showing how worried she was, this wasn't the time for it she thought, and she stayed quiet, listening to Mari's banter and trying to stay positive.  She knew that, for her own peace of mind, she needed to focus on the things she could do something about, and relegate everything else to the bench. She had to feel there was a real chance of happiness and hard work had been her savior many times, without it she didn't think she would have survived, and so much of what had made her happy had come from just that.<br/><br/>Work she thought, there was the physical work, the building of a home, and also working at their relationships, being there for someone else and giving up things, compromising, going that extra mile to make someone else happy before yourself.  She let her smile deepen looking into Mari's eyes, her light touch and loving humour something she thought would be their saving grace many many times in the future. Nicci knew she could take the slack, and work for all three of them if needed, and standing up she quietly started to clear the things from the table, start as you mean to go on Nicci, she told herself, you may not be able to say the right thing, but you can do the right thing if you put your mind to it.