So just… Gabriel, I know you'd much rather hang out with your friends, but could you make sure he gets there and back safely?"
Gabriel was already straddling his bike, avoiding his mother's gaze. "I'll make sure he gets there. Not gonna follow him around all day, though."
"I didn't ask for that. Just look out for him. That's all."
Gabriel gave a short, noncommittal nod and pushed off down the driveway. Daniel sat behind him, waving to his mom as they left.
Nicole stood on the sidewalk for a few minutes waving back. She stayed there until they turned the corner. Being a parent meant almost always worrying about her children. Moments when she found herself worrying deeply, she couldn't help but feel her husband's busyness keenly. She did the best she could as their mom, but there were some things that she felt they would learn better from him.
With a sigh, she walked back into the house and straight into the kitchen where she poured herself a fresh cup of coffee, savoring the quiet once more. The day had begun, and though her husband was still asleep, her world was already in motion.
She turned to look out the window, toward the sun rising over the neighborhood's rooftops. It was going to be a good day. It had to be.
As she began preparing the meal for her and her husband, she wondered if it was time to wake him up.
Upstairs, as the sun rose to signal a start to the new day, the rays from the sun slipped through the gaps in the curtains, catching Robert's face, causing him to wake from a deep sleep.
"What time is it?" asked Robert, his voice groggy as he looked over to his clock. His vision, still blurry due to sleep, seemed to clear up the moment he saw the time on the clock's large digital display.
"8 am!!" He shouted from the top of his lungs, with his sleepy eyes wide with shock. In one quick motion, he shot up from his bed and quickly rushed into the bathroom. He barely spent one minute in there before he rushed back out and put on his blazer jacket and tie, still wearing the previous day's clothes.
He rushed downstairs, spotting his wife but he was too late to chat.
"Good morning dear, I'm late and I need to leave now."
"You're up! That's good," said Nicole, ignoring his earlier words "do you want any breakfast?"
"No, I'm late, I've got to go," said Robert. Robert tried to walk past Nicole, but she stopped him, putting her hand on his chest.
"Nice try, but you aren't going anywhere like that, take a shower and clean yourself up," said Nicole.
"I don't have time for this, I'm already late" said Robert, Nicole quickly brandished Robert's keys and held them out of his reach.
"Well you're not going anywhere without these, so the choice is yours" said Nicole.
"But I'm late."
"So why are you wasting valuable time arguing when you could go take a shower and rush down?" She asked. Robert quickly went into the bathroom and started the shower.
"That's more like it, honey , your breakfast will be waiting for you when you get out," she said, ignoring his mumblings about not being hungry.
Robert quickly showered, then rushed to get dressed. As he got downstairs, his breakfast was already on the table, bacon, eggs, and sausages, his favorite.
"Thanks for the breakfast," said Robert, trying to take his plate to go.
"Robert," said Nicole commandingly, "enough is enough. This is getting out of hand. You keep burning the candle at both ends. You have a good job, and you have a good family. But rather than focus on that, you're destroying yourself." Her words seemed to hit him hard, he deflated.
"I don't want that. I just want to finish my work."
"Your work? Today, Daniel and Gabriel all but said to me that they had lost their confidence in you. The boys are losing their trust in you. If they can't rely on you to be present, what's next? If you lose your family, will all the accolades and awards be enough to fill that void?"
"Well, if I was afforded the luxury that all the scientists before me were, then I wouldn't need to. I'm the only award winner that didn't receive a dime of funding other than the first grant. My hard work amounts to just a trophy. It's been a year now, and nothing… nobody cares," said Robert. His voice came out sounding shaky. Nicole stood awkwardly, unsure of what to do next. The funding diatribe was one she had heard many times. After the first few times, when it was clear he would not appreciate pity, Nicole adopted a gentle approach that seemed to work.
"I care. We care," said Nicole. "We're all proud of you, and your kids adore you. If these stupid investors can't see how great you are, that's on them, not you. But you just keep pushing and pushing. That's what we don't get, why do you keep pushing work so hard that you forget to enjoy life with your family?" said Nicole.
"It's just... I always promised myself that I would push myself to be the best. If for nothing else, to be able to provide for my parents. My parents sacrificed everything for me to be here. We lived in the ghetto. There were no prospects for any of us out there. But they saw how smart I was. They saw a way for me to get out of that horrible life that kept so many of us prisoners of our own environment, that put so many from my area in chains."
"So what did they do? They worked back-to-back shifts. When one parent finished work, the other started, alternating during the few hours they had to themselves just to bring me to science expos and competitions. They helped me flourish and truly gave their life so I could live mine, baby. So I need to make this work," said Robert.
"I understand that. And I commend your commitment to your passion, and to making sure your parents' sacrifice doesn't go in vain. But you need to find balance, not just for yourself, but for your family. You're saying all these things that your parents did for you, but do you realize that you can't say you've done the same for the boys? The kids need their father," said Nicole. She wanted to put her foot down, but she was afraid that her words had fallen on deaf ears.
"I know," responded Robert.
"I'm sure you do, it's just that we've had this conversation so many times. You'll say you know and turn around and sink into your work again."
"I just need some more time, the university is on my ass to produce results. Once I'm done with this project, I'll be better, I promise," he said. Nicole looked into his eyes for a few moments before she finally nodded.
"I believe in you. You're one of the smartest people I know,"
They embraced, resting their foreheads on each other. Time seemed to pause at that moment. Nicole looked into the eyes of her husband and he looked right back at her. He only saw trust and concern in her eyes.
"Don't worry about me, dear," he said right before parting from her and giving her a quick kiss on her forehead.
"You will do great things, honey. You already have, and I promise you, the best is yet to come. Just keep doing what you're doing, and stay true to yourself." said Nicole, handing Robert the keys to his car.