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obvious you were pregnant?" he said, astounded.
    "What else could I do? They were about to blow us sky high."
    He pulled his hand from her back and ran it through his hair. "But what if someone else works it out? You weren't exactly subtle. Jesus, Marie; are you trying to get us sent to the fucking estate?"
    Tears burned Marie's eyes and her voice cracked. "What else was I supposed to do?"
    "Uh, I dunno… hide the fact that you're pregnant maybe? Fucking hell, Marie, why don't you go all out next time and wear a 'bump on board' T-shirt? Maybe you could start asking people on the train to give up their seat for you." His eyes widened when he jabbed his finger against his temple. "What were you thinking? I'm having sleepless nights trying to work out how to afford this fucking child and you're telling random strangers that you're pregnant."
    Hot tears ran down Marie's face as she stared at Frankie's rage. "I didn't feel like I had much choice. We were going to die . What part of that don't you understand? They were going to kill us!"
    Frankie turned back to the television. "You do realise that someone will study this footage and work it out, don't you? I wouldn't be surprised if Doug knows by the morning and you end up not having a job to return to."
    "I was going to die , Frankie." Marie's words broke with her raised voice. "Is that what you would have wanted? Would that make your life easier if the baby and I were killed ? It would save you having to worry about life on the fucking estate, wouldn't it?"
    For a moment, Frankie stared straight at Marie. Then he stood up, shook his head at her, and walked out of the room.  
    Marie fell back into the sofa and sobbed.
    On the television screen, Marie watched the recording of the female terrorist walk over to their leader as Hank offered a sombre voiceover. "This woman must have seen sense. No one knows what she said but, whatever it was, it broke through their leader's zeal."
    The screen merged back to Hank as he spoke again, "When the civilians cleared, the police moved in. That was when the terrorists detonated the bomb. Our thoughts are with the brave officers who sacrificed their lives to keep our streets safe from harm. I would like a minute's silence in their honour."
    After less than thirty seconds, Hank's face lit up. "This is Hank Manifesto for Nirvana TV ." He pointed his fingers in the shape of a gun and clicked from the side of his mouth as if calling a horse. "Stay safe, people."

    ***

    For about the next ten minutes, Marie stared at the blank screen. It was only when Frankie walked in that she broke away from her daze.  
    "I'm sorry, Marie. It wasn't fair for me to get cross. It's just… I feel so scared about ending up back on the estate. I do want to be a dad… I'm just finding it hard ."
    Marie wiped her eyes and nodded. "I'm finding it hard too, but we can't turn on each other. I'm not an idiot, Frankie. I know what revealing my pregnancy means, but the terrorists were about to blow us all up. I didn't have any other choice. I'm scared about ending up on the estate too." Just talking about it burned her stomach. "Petrified, in fact."
    Frankie sat down next to Marie again, grabbed her hand, and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Everything's going to be fine. We'll work something out. I didn't want to tell you about this because nothing's been confirmed, but I may have some extra money coming in."
    "Through teaching?"
    After a slight pause, Frankie nodded. "Private tutoring."
    What wasn't he telling her? When Marie tried to look into his eyes, he looked away. What was he hiding?
    "I'll do some extra time at school. It means I'll be staying late most nights."
    Something wasn't right. "Will it pay enough to support us all?"
    "If it works out, yes."
    There were too many things for Marie to worry about already. If Frankie said he was sorting something, she needed to trust that. Marie hugged Frankie and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you. Thank you for everything you're