"No!" "Sorry." "Come on." "Are you the lady who telephoned?" "Yeah." "I thought you said it would be quiet now." "Hello, young man." "Shall we go inside and try on some new shoes?" "Come on." "New shoes and then a lollipop, all right?" "Just two minutes." "No!" "Come on, let's get it done." "Sorry." "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "Karen, could you help, please?" "Come on, come on." "He needs a 12." "Try the 13." "Come on." "He's wearing a nappy." "Shh." "Don't say anything, darling." "There must be something wrong with him." "Don't stare!" "I'm so sorry." "Shh." "Well done." "See now, new shoes." "Now here's your treat." "It's a lollipop." "There." "Come on, then." "Let's get home." "Shall I take Mickey?" "I'll take Mickey." "Let's cross." "Hold my hand." "Hold my hand." "Right, now we look, and we look, and no cars and we can go." "Come on." "Come on, Kyle." "What's the matter?" "What's the matter?" "Have you scuffed your shoe?" "Come on, come over to the pavement, we'll look at your shoe." "No!" "No!" "Come on, Kyle." "Kyle!" "Kyle, come on." "Please, Kyle." "Come on, Kyle, cars make you smile." "Come on, good boy, good boy." "Please, come on." "Please, Kyle, come on." "Come on, come on." "Excuse me!" "Oh, thank you so much." "Kyle." "Kyle!" "Thank you." "Yeah, right, the show's over." "Appalling behaviour." "What?" "What?" "From this lot, you mean, staring at a handicapped child?" "Yes, it's disgusting, isn't it?" "Come on." "Come on." "Come on, Kyle." "Come on." "Keep moving, please!" "Leave all your possessions behind." "Do not run!" "Come along, please, quickly." "Come along, please, quickly." "Come on." "This includes you, you know?" "Mr Edwards." "Come on, Rob, move it." "They're waiting for these changes upstairs." "No, they're not." "They're evacuating like everyone else." "The whole company knows the fire alarm's faulty." "Could we argue about this outside?" "I'm never going to get this finished." "Has it ever occurred to you to try getting in on time?" "Come on, Mal, you know what my mornings are like." "It's not hard to understand." "You get up a bit earlier." "You're assuming I got any sleep in the first place." "I'm not without sympathy, Rob, but you can't expect the rest of the team to make up for your situation at home." "Come on, Kyle." "Stand in." "Stand in." "Now, to open the door, we use the key." "We use the key." "Kyle?" "Kyle!" "Kyle." "Rain off, rain off, rain off, rain off." "Kyle, you can't turn the rain off." "Where are you?" "It's not raining in here, is it?" "Come on, let's get these things off." "Your coat's all wet, your shoes." "Come on, let me get it off." "I'll put the tea on now, okay?" "Don't say okay!" "Kyle!" "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Kyle, open the door." "Kyle, open the door!" "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Kyle, are you okay?" "Kyle?" "Kyle, open the door and Mummy can help you, Kyle." "Kyle?" "Thomas the Tank Engine was feeling bright and cheerful." "It was a splendid day." ""Good morning," he whistled to some cows, but the cows didn't reply." ""Never mind," said Thomas." "And he's off..." "He's clear." "Through the middle, just the keeper to beat." "And he saved it." "Better not be an omen for tonight." "England 3, Holland 0." "I've got 50 quid on it." "Fifty quid?" "We could have drunk that." "Mmm-hmm." "Rob, are you coming?" "Come on." "A, pub, footie, mates." "B, trouble and strife." "If I go for A, then vital parts of my anatomy will be severed from my body by B, with a blunt knife and no anaesthetic." "See you, lads." "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Kyle, are you there?" "Kyle, talk to Mummy." "Kyle!" "Help me!" "Help me, somebody!" "Help me!" "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "Hello." "What's the damage today, then?" "Oh." "What can I do?" "You can go and get him cleaned up if you like." "Hey there, little fella." "Another masterpiece in the making, I see." "Car, tree, train, sausage." "Poetry, too." "Multitasking." "Car, tree, train, sausage." "Very impressive." "Okay." "Car, tree, train, sausage." "Right, I think we should see what Thomas..." "Oh, shit!" "For God's sake, why can't you be more careful?" "All right, all right, so you've had a shitty day." "So..." "Just leave it." "How was your day?" "Great." "I was 20 minutes late for work and I broke the overhead projector." "Good." "We need a handle on the inside of that coat cupboard door." "Did you hear me?" "Yes, I heard you." "What for?" "So that I don't have to spend another afternoon locked in there with the door to the house wide open, that's what for." "Listen, why don't you sit down?" "Let me do this." "No, I'm fine." "No, I'm fine!" "It's not fine." "None of this is fine." "Will you stop it, Nicola?" "Stop it, Nicola." "See, even he knows what's good for you." "If he even knew who I was, it would be a start." "What would be good for me, Rob, what would be good for me would be to have some kind of a life." "It's all right for you, you escape everyday." "You get to go and have a laugh with your mates." "Oh, yeah." "It's nonstop hilarity at our office." "I mean, why bother with work?" "Apart from two lousy shifts a week, my entire time is spent with a child I can't talk to." "I can't cuddle him, I can't kiss him," "I can't hug him..." "So what do you want?" "Shall we hand him over to the authorities, see if they've got one that doesn't have autism?" "Okay, what am I supposed to do with all this love?" "You could always try unleashing some of it in my direction." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "Listen, let's get bedtime battles over with and then we can watch the match together, okay?" "Why don't you just arrange to watch it with your mates?" "Because I chose to drive 30 miles home to spend some time with my wife." "I'm sorry, Rob." "I'm so sorry." "I'm just shattered." "And I need to get a nap in before he wakes up again." "Why don't you go and watch it down the road on the big screen?" "We're only 1-0 down, Rob." "The fat lady's not singing yet." "Is Kate here?" "We're not joined at the hip, you know, me and your sister." "If there were any more of you, you'd be a coven." "You were going to take me to lunch, so I could lend a sympathetic ear." "Oh, yes." "Sorry, I was a bit pissed." "I'm a bit pissed now." "It must be really hard for you, having an artistic child." "He's not artistic." "He's a boy with autism." "But we mustn't label him." "Every child is a unique individual." "Buggered if I can see the difference." "We're all just terrified of everything." "He's not scared of his lovely daddy, though, is he?" "His lovely daddy is just an object, a provider." "That can't be right." "You try telling that to Kyle." "You need someone to talk to." "I'll buy the lunch, hang the expense." "Or even dinner?" "Call me." "Okay, Kyle, stop now and eat." "No." "Yes, Kyle." "We'll stop on three." "Okay?" "One, two, three!" "Come on." "Come on, darling." "Off we go." "Will you do that?" "What's going on?" "Didn't you see my note?" "I can't be late." "The second Kyle saw Mum and Dad, he assumed it was park and picnic time, the same as every Sunday." "Didn't you tell him?" "I've been telling him for days, Rob." "It obviously didn't go in." "You're not even changed." "The girls have got it all sorted, Robbie." "Nic's going to change in the car." "Ours not to reason why." "If you're not happy, Rob, why don't you try explaining to your son that it's Daddy's sister's baby's christening this afternoon and Mummy and Daddy mustn't be late?" "There's not a single concept in any of that that he'll be able to grasp, not least Mummy and Daddy." "Ow!" "No, Kyle!" "No, you mustn't hit people with this." "It hurts." "It makes them sore." "You made Mummy sore." "That's a bad thing to do." "Are you okay?" "Yeah." "Here, let me have a look." "No, no." "I'm fine." "I'm fine, Rob." "Don't fuss, all right?" "Oh, Mickey, what did you say?" "Oh, Mickey says that he wants to have his sandwich now." "Okay." "Here's your sandwich, Kyle." "There we are." "And here's one for Mickey." "Oh, what was that, Mickey?" "Mickey says he feels very cold and he'd like to have his sandwich in the car." "What a good idea." "Shall we do that, Kyle?" "Yes?" "Good boy." "Come on." "Thanks, Mum." "What?" "So, we don't spend any time together." "Now I can't even touch you." "You never..." "You never let me touch you." "It's not like we're still trying for..." "For what?" "For another baby?" "Just because that hasn't worked out, that consigns our love life to the scrapheap, does it?" "I'm really tired, Rob." "What happened, Nic?" "What ever happened to us?" "Kyle happened." "What time is it?" "Will you stop asking me that?" "It's not gonna get us there any quicker." "Don't know why we're bothering, anyway." "It's a family christening." "Yeah, well." "Babies seem to arrive like buses, don't they, where your sister's concerned?" "You really don't like the idea of anyone else having them, do you?" "Fuck!" "Dickhead!" "Sorry." "Is everyone all right?" "I thought I was on my way to the next world there, Robbie." "Me, too!" "And me with my grey old undies on as well." "Grey old undies." "Whoops!" "Finally." "About bloody time." "Go on, in you go." "Go and sit down, quickly." "Sorry." "So sorry." "Sorry." "I'm sorry, Kate." "Usual excuse." "Thank you for waiting." "Rachel was starting to panic she might be the only godparent." "They are responsible people, really." "I'm sorry he's such a state as well." "I could try getting him changed again." "No." "We'd kind of like to do the christening today." "Shall we go in?" "Sorry about the wait." "Listen, I'm the one who should be sorry, about the other night." "What are you talking about?" "I don't know what came over me, or maybe I do." "But I'm sorry anyway." "Oscar, I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." "Amen." "Amen." "May God who has received you by baptism into His Church pour upon you the riches of His grace." "Fuck!" "That within the company of Christ's pilgrim people, you may daily be renewed by His anointing spirit and..." "Fuck!" "Fuck!" "Fuck!" "To the inheritance of the saints in glory." "Amen." "Amen." "Fuck!" "Fuck!" "In union with Christ and in the power of the Spirit, let us pray to the Father." "Can't wait to leave us, can you, Poppy?" "Thank you very much." "Is that for me?" "Poppy, that..." "That is the nicest, most special card I think I've ever been given." "Thank you." "Can I have a hug?" "There." "You take care." "Bye." "Bye." "You should come back and work days, Nic." "Then you get to play with them as well." "I'm quite happy rooting out the odd monster from under the bed in the dark." "You're wasted on two nights a week." "I'm sure the hospital could help you find someone to mind Kyle." "Your mum would get a break then, too." "I think we're all right as we are." "Thanks for the thought." "You could leave him with someone." "Yeah." "Yeah, I suppose I could, practically." "But it's not..." "I'll see you next week." "# Along comes Mr Crocodile" "# As quietly as can be" "# Snap!" "#" "Let's see how many are left." "# One little monkey swinging from a tree" "# Teasing Mr Crocodile, "You can't catch me, can't catch me"" "# Along comes Mr Crocodile" "# As quietly as can be" "# Snap!" "#" "Oh, no!" "William, do you want a go?" "May I see your photo, Kyle?" "Oh, it's your tree photo." "You're going to the park with Granny Pat after school, aren't you?" "Let's play with the others, Kyle." "Let's play, Kyle." "One, two, three." "I know you've got one." "Four, five, six, seven again!" "# Seven little monkeys swinging from a tree" "# Teasing Mr Crocodile, "You can't catch me, you can't catch me" #" "Good sleep?" "Eight hours on the sofa." "Never even made it to the stairs." "So your message was typically cryptic." "Yeah, just thought we could go for a walk." "A walk?" "You said you had something to show me." "I do." "This." "Come on, Rob." "We've got to go and get Kyle from Mum's." "She'll be perfectly happy to have him for an extra hour." "Come on." "So why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this?" "Will you listen to yourself?" "Here we are with a rare few moments together and already it's a problem for you." "Do you know, I keep getting this image in my head." "This daft, crazy girl tap dancing around the supermarket, nine months pregnant." "You should probably see someone about that." "Yeah, if it would bring her back to me, I would." "You know, I'd give anything to be tap dancing around the supermarket again," "nine months pregnant." "I know." "Listen, Nic, maybe you could just ease up on Kyle sometimes, eh?" "Give us all a bit of room." "Then how's he going to learn, Rob?" "John Havers said we have to challenge the autism..." "I know, but I'm sure he didn't mean every waking minute." "God, you trot that out like it's some kind of mantra." "Yes." "Yes, I do." "I do." "Because in the two years that it took to get Kyle diagnosed," "John Havers was the only person that made any sense." "So how come we're not getting anywhere?" "Because it's going to take time, Rob." "Yeah, but how long?" "Well, I..." "This is crazy, Nic." "You said yourself only the other day, you don't have a life." "Yeah, well, sometimes you have to make sacrifices, don't you?" "I think we've made enough." "I..." "I think we should go and see John Havers." "He's not going to tell us anything new about autism, is he?" "I just want to see where he teaches." "Rob, it's 100 miles away." "Nic, I think we should send Kyle there." "Away." "To Bruce House School." "Now promise me you'll keep an open mind." "Nic?" "Yeah, okay." "I'll try." "Now, Stuart, if I'm going to sort this problem out for you, old son, you're going to have to try and tell me what it is." "Oh, come on, matey." "Come on." "Good boy." "Look, I've got to go and have a word with my friends over there." "Why don't you come back..." "No." "All right." "Well, tell me what it is." "You know what to do." "Turn around." "All right." "I'm turned round." "Hello, John Havers here." "How can I help you?" "It's Stuart." "I don't want William to play Nintendo in my room." "He plays it at night and I need to sleep, and shouts when I turn it off." "I don't like it when he shouts." "It's loud." "It hurts my ears." "I see, Stuart." "You'd like me to have a word with William" "about that for you, would you?" "Yes." "All right, Stuart." "Thank you." "Rob, Nicola." "Good to see you again." "Hi." "So he's gone off happy?" "Oh, yes." "All sorted." "Till the next time, that is." "Please." "So how's this little fellow doing?" "At the moment, he's on his way to a tantrum." "Okay." "What's his current obsession?" "Trains." "Mary, can you come and look after this young man for me, please?" "You'll need trains." "Right, what can I do for you?" "Well, we were wondering if Kyle might benefit from coming to Bruce House." "Remind me, where is he at the moment?" "He's been in the special unit at Uplands for about a year now." "Kyle, off you go with Mary." "Look, she has trains." "Come on, Kyle." "Good boy." "Well, I've only heard good things about the unit at Uplands." "Yeah, they are good." "They're very good." "But Kyle is the most severe kid there and nothing ever changes." "I mean, Nic does her best, but..." "So we were wondering, could you change anything, John?" "Well, I'm a thoroughly good guy, but..." "Listen, I'm not a magician." "All right, come on." "Let's go and have a look around." "What do you think?" "He's great, isn't he?" "He is, yeah." "The place is fantastic." "Yeah, it is." "Whoa!" "He'd be in really good hands, Nic." "Yeah, don't pressure me, Rob." "Sorry about that." "What was I burbling on about?" "Something about obsessions." "Oh, yes, obsessions." "Look, don't worry about them at all." "Use them." "All right, look at these kids." "I mean, they're all perfectly happy in their own little worlds, but that's not much use in ours, is it?" "So we have to break in gently and use their obsessions" "to help them learn and develop." "But what if you can't break in?" "Well, some of them are just too severe, and they're going to need constant care for the rest of their lives." "But, look, it's too early to be giving up on Kyle, isn't it?" "Oh, William, William, William." "I need to talk to you about your night-time Nintendo activities." "Nintendo, Nintendo." "Yes, William." "We all love Nintendo, but listen to me, no Nintendo after bedtime." "All right?" "Stuart needs to sleep." "Okay." "All right?" "I'm going to come along tonight and check." "Good boy." "Off you go." "Good boy." "All right." "Did that go in?" "No, just sowing the first seeds, that's all." "It'll take a few nights and doubtless a few tears," "but we'll get there in the end." "Just like at home, eh, Rob?" "So, have a think." "If you want to take things further, let me know, and I'll get onto your local educational authority, get the ball rolling." "Thanks, John." "We'd appreciate that." "On the other hand, you might want to stay at Uplands for a while." "It's a great school and it's on your doorstep." "Oh, here we are." "Here we go." "Come on, come on." "Good boy." "Hello." "Mum." "I thought I'd rustle up a bit of supper in case you were tired after the journey." "You are a saint." "Thanks, Pat." "Come on." "Tree!" "No, no." "Not the time for trees." "No, that's not necessarily what he meant." "Just let him be." "Train." "Yes, train." "You see?" "Yeah, you saw new trains today, didn't you, Kyle?" "Steam." "Steam train." "No, no." "The steam museum's closed now." "He doesn't know what closed means, does he, Rob?" "Steam train, steam train, steam train, steam train." "Steam train, steam train, steam train, steam train." "Well, the words "use the obsession" are springing to mind." "Oh, what?" "So I've got to do a 60-mile round trip just to explain to him the concept of "closed", is that it?" "Not that I'm tired or anything." "Well, it's either that or a three-hour tantrum, isn't it?" "Steam train, steam train, steam train." "Come on, please, Kyle." "Steam train, steam train, steam train, steam train." "Steam train, steam train, steam train." "See, Kyle?" "You can't go in." "The museum's closed." "Look, no one's here." "The museum's closed." "All the steam trains are resting." "Ready for work tomorrow." "Work tomorrow." "Yes, so why don't we go home and rest just like the trains?" "Like the trains." "Yeah." "Better?" "You'd be able to do this more often if Kyle were away at school." "I'm not saying I'm all in favour, but it's just a fact." "Okay." "Here's another one." "John Havers is brilliant and so is his school." "But I want Kyle to have a life outside of school, too, you know..." "Just I'm not ready to let him go yet." "Tree." "Tree." "Tree." "Tree." "No, no tree." "Supper first, then bed." "All right, you two relax." "Supper." "I'll take care of this." "Supper." "Do you want yours now, Rob?" "No, I'll get something later." "Supper first." "Supper first." "Supper." "Supper first." "Supper first." "So how was it?" "All right." "I think he actually got the message." "You know, we can do this, Rob." "We don't need to send him away." "We can only do this if we have no other life." "We don't even go to the cinema any more." "Or go out for dinner or have friends round." "Christ, we had friends once, didn't we?" "I can't remember the last time I went out with my mates, went to the football with them." "Having kids is the same as being married, Rob, it's for better or for worse." "We can't just abandon our son because he's made our lives difficult." "Who said anything about abandoning him?" "I just want him to get the best possible education." "He's getting a perfectly good education where he is." "You heard what John said today." "Yeah, but look at the facilities at Bruce House." "The extra-curricular stuff." "He could do music, drama, go on a bloody ski trip." "We could take him skiing, Rob." "You know, when he's a bit older, he can start integrating with the mainstream kids at Uplands." "Nic, we don't know that for sure." "He might not be able to." "Yes, but if he could, what would be better than that?" "Bruce House!" "It would be perfect for him and us!" "He could board during the week and come home at the weekends!" "Oh, okay." "Okay, let's send our autistic boy away to a nice autistic world and let's keep him away from normal kids at all costs, shall we?" "But what about the cost to us?" "To our lives?" "I don't want our son to be just a condition, Rob." "And I refuse to believe that he is so severe that we can't help him." "Then you're no more living in the real world than he is." "Well, at least I care about his welfare." "You just want to get rid of him so that you can go down the pub with your mates and swan off to football matches." "Well, if that's what you really think of me, then maybe I should be the one to go." "Rachel." "Hi, it's Rob." "Yeah." "Hey, the birthday boy isn't even here yet." "Sorry, the cork popped out on its own." "Don't worry, Jim." "We've got bucketloads of the stuff." "Yeah, and Rob can hardly complain." "He should have been here ages ago." "He wouldn't miss his own birthday, would he?" "You know what, I wouldn't put anything past him right now." "Listen, you had a row, he stormed off and then when he calmed down, he came back." "I mean, it's all part of the joys of being married." "If you're this worried a week on, talk to him." "No, I've tried." "He's really distant, he's..." "I know I shouldn't have said what I said." "He loves Kyle to bits." "It's me he's got a problem with." "Come on." "No, it's true." "He thinks I cause half the tantrums." "Oh, don't tell me you agree with him." "I didn't say that." "You didn't have to." "Let's face it, I take the rap for most things where Kyle is concerned." "What are you talking about?" "Well, I was the one accused of having Munchausen's, wasn't I?" "Because I was the only person in England that thought Kyle was autistic." "Oh, hello, Kate." "You didn't know that, did you?" "That's my dirty little secret." "Oh, Nic, calm down." "That's all in the past now." "Well, not for me, it's not." "You know, they thought I wanted my son to be autistic because they didn't have a clue what was the matter with him." "No, I had no idea." "No?" "Here, look." "Come on." "Take a drink, for goodness sake." "What if Rob's gone?" "No, he wouldn't do that to you, Nic." "What reason is there for him to stay?" "Kyle, come on." "Oh, look at this." "Jim, Thomas, quick." "Kyle, Grandpa Jim's got a Thomas train." "Thomas." "There you go, little fellow." "Thanks." "All right then, you three," "let's not get any ideas." "That wasn't what we call acceptable behaviour." "Come on." "Thanks." "Lucky you came by when you did." "Maybe best stay away from the butcher's shop for a while." "Yeah, okay." "Thank you." "Thank you." "Bye." "Nice free taxi service you've got yourself there, Robbie." "We need some more nappies for the survival pack." "Nearly needed one myself, back there." "Right, I'm going to go and carve up." "Oh, I nearly forgot." "I've got something for you outside." "Come on." "Your dad can't wait to show you." "You had a good day, then?" "Yeah." "You know, I don't know whether it's because of the other children, but Kyle hardly ever has a tantrum when he's with us." "That's because you leave him be, Kate, which is exactly what he wants." "But why take him into a shop if you know he's going to wreck it?" "Because he has to learn." "I mean, that's why Nic's on at him the whole time, drives me nuts, but it's the only way he's ever going to be able to look after himself." "He hates changing his route when he's walking, so I thought he might like to ride instead." "Well, what's wrong with a bog-standard buggy?" "Exactly that." "Bog-standard." "Well, nothing very exciting about a buggy, is there?" "He kicks up when you put him in a buggy." "This is much more fun." "You'd think he'd be hungry by now." "He's never hungry." "Kyle, it's time to eat." "Kyle!" "Hey." "There's a house full of kids and he's on his own again." "Well, if he's not going to have a little brother or sister for company, how about a dog?" "I'm not sure that was your finest moment there, Pat." "Well, why not?" "Look how Nicola was with her dog when she was a little girl." "They went everywhere together, she and Tiggy." "I don't mean to be rude, Pat, but we're not having a dog." "Seriously, they shit everywhere." "They chew stuff up." "They're expensive." "I just thought it would be a friend of Kyle." "He doesn't know what friendship is." "He's no idea about relationships." "He can't tell the difference between a dog and a biscuit tin." "Kyle, come on." "Kyle!" "See, if there's any fun to be had, Rob's the lucky winner." "Good cop, bad cop, that's us." "Are we going to eat this pudding today or are we just going to stand here looking at it?" "It's pretty tiring this, old son." "Do you think we should go in now?" "Anything else?" "Only just got him settled." "Yes." "Put that on the table." "We are having candles on this, aren't we?" "What's happening?" "Kyle, is it this?" "Does it feel funny on your foot?" "All right, shh!" "Look, look, look, it's all gone." "Come on, come on." "Look, it's not sore, is it?" "It's not sore, not like when Kyle hit Mummy in the face with a fork." "No." "Nic, Nic..." "Oh." "Thanks, Mum." "Look, look." "I've put a plaster on, it'll all be better." "There." "There." "Is that better?" "Come now." "Come on now, have some tea." "Have some tea, good boy." "No, Allie!" "Phil!" "Would you just take the baby?" "Oh, sure." "Come back here!" "Hey." "You're all right." "What's the matter with him now?" "There's nothing the matter with him, Phil." "I love you, Kyle." "I love you so much." "Your mummy loves you, too." "I love you." "So dinner's in the duck, then?" "I thought you weren't coming." "I nearly didn't." "Rach, I'm sorry." "I can't do this." "Do what?" "All we've done is fatten up a few ducks." "I really value you as a friend." "Please, give me a break." "No, I mean it." "To have someone to sound off to, it means a lot." "Listen, Rob, cards on the table." "I'm not married, I've got no kids, no baggage," "it'd be so easy." "It's not always about easy, though, is it?" "Hello." "Hello." "What are you up to?" "Nothing, just tidying around." "Where's Kyle?" "He's at Mum's." "I had to go to the library, so..." "What?" "There can't be any more books on autism in there, can there?" "Oh." "Well, you know, the more I thought about what Mum said, the more I..." "I kind of think it might be a good idea." "Have you gone completely mad?" "Don't you think we have enough responsibilities?" "Come on, Rob." "You've never even had a dog." "It's not all responsibility." "Look, "If you want a good natured, sociable dog," ""then a golden retriever is ideal." ""Gentle, responsive, affectionate, the golden retriever's" ""most attractive attribute is its generous nature." ""It never tires of company and is always eager to please."" "Well, then." "Oh, "Goldens are among the dog world's greatest eaters."" "Come on, you eat." "Yes, I do." ""Consider a golden only if you are amenable to having shoes," ""socks and undergarments presented to visiting friends." ""No stream or dirty puddle can be passed without investigation," ""requiring you to clean your dog and your car on a regular basis."" "There are some new puppies in Broadstairs." "I mean, it can't hurt, can it?" "Just to take a look." "Hello, I'm Chris." "You must be Nicola." "Hello, Kyle." "That's a nice Mickey Mouse, isn't it?" "He doesn't even talk to us, never mind strangers." "Right." "Well, come in and make yourselves at home." "That's right, in there." "Thanks." "Good boy, good boy." "I'll be two ticks." "Okay." "Christ, is this what happens to you when you get a dog?" "Shut up." "It's not going to work, Nic." "Rob, we've just got here." "Let him at least see the puppies." "He's seconds away from a tantrum." "Thomas!" "Kyle." "But Thomas still had company." "What a day for surprises!" "The Toad, who was looking forward to a ride home..." "I'm sorry." "No problem." "Here, Kyle, come and meet some little furry friends." "Oh, they are absolutely gorgeous." "Hello." "Can they play football?" "You'd be surprised what a goldie can do." "Kyle, Kyle, look." "Kyle." "Kyle, look, come on." "Want to say hello?" "Want to say hello?" "Look." "Kyle." "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Hey, hey you." "Kyle?" "Kyle, look, the puppies want to meet you." "Look." "Maybe it's a bit much with the puppies" "and the video and everything." "Yeah, maybe it's bit much, full stop." "Shall we leave them to it for a couple of minutes?" "He won't come to any harm, will he?" "Oh, no, not now he's got Thomas, which is all he really wants." "Maybe when the video's finished." "He doesn't want to know, Nic." "You could always bring him back." "Have another go." "If there's still a pup left." "When Bertie was better, he came to thank Thomas." ""I"m sorry I teased you about being late."" "Do you mind if we just let him watch it through to the end, Chris?" "It'll be easier." "Meaning it will avert a major disaster." "Of course." "Will you look at this?" "... the last cheerful greeting, the two friends went back to work." "Have you got a new pal there, Kyle?" "Look." "Yeah, it may be all right with him here, but loads of kids with autism are terrified of dogs." "Does he look terrified to you?" "He needs some company, Rob." "I know he does." "This little fellow needs a name, Kyle." "Can you think of a nice name for him?" "Thomas." "He doesn't understand." "Thomas." "Well, it's a name he knows and a subject he likes." "Thomas?" "Poor thing's doomed from the start." "I wish we could take him now." "What, and start World War III?" "Oh, I know a pup can be hard work, but it won't be that bad." "No, it's Kyle." "He's terrified of any kind of change." "The tiniest things, so, I mean, a dog..." "Yeah, we do need time to prepare him, really." "Okay, Kyle, this is a happy face." "We smile when we're happy." "We also laugh." "Okay, moving on." "When we're angry, we're like this." "I think that was more like, "Has my dad lost his marbles? "" "Maybe, but we'll save that for another session, eh?" "Now, when a dog is angry, he's like this." "When he's very angry, Kyle, he might bite you." "Which may make you very sore, right?" "Now, we want a happy dog when he comes to live with us, don't we?" "Happy dogs do this." "They wag their tails as well." "A bit like this." "Thomas is going to come and live with Mummy, Daddy and Kyle." "Look, there's Thomas and there's Kyle." "But Thomas is going to be Kyle's special friend." "Kyle?" "So, after six more bedtimes, six more bedtimes, Kyle will have his Thomas dog." "Kyle?" "Kyle, are you listening to me?" "Here we are, then." "He's a bit of a big lump, Kyle." "Let me give him to your mum." "There you go." "Hello there." "Hello." "Yes, he's so beautiful." "It's nice to see you." "There, there, there." "Good boy." "Good boy." "Yes, hello." "You certainly look pretty." "You're such a pretty dog." "Pretty?" "He's a boy." "Oh, right." "He's handsome." "He's a boy, he's so handsome." "Rob?" "Rob, what are you doing?" "He can't come down now, he'll never go up again." "Well, I didn't exactly have any say in it." "Oh, come on." "Puppy or no puppy, he needs a routine." "Kyle, come on, it's bedtime." "Come on." "Bedtime, Thomas." "Thomas puppy, duck puppy." "That's not good puppy." "Nic?" "No, give it to Kyle." "Thomas puppy, duck puppy." "No, puppy." "Give it to Kyle." "Listen to that." "What do you reckon then, Thomas?" "Blue or green?" "Nic, it's a dog collar." "Daddy doesn't get it, does he?" "He doesn't get it." "No, no." "Don't want those other dogs in the street teasing you, do we, for getting the wrong colour?" "Try this one." "Oh, now that is nice." "Look, look, Thomas." "I think it's a bit big for you." "I think it's a bit big." "I think he'll like one of these because he knows..." "Thomas!" "He knows that it will fit." "And he knows that his old one is too small." "Kyle, the pram's for you." "How much do we need?" "Fifty should do it." "You're sure you've finished shopping for the dog?" "He doesn't need his own sofa bed or something?" "Kyle?" "Kyle?" "Hello." "No, he's fine." "He's all right." "This is my dog." "His name is Thomas." "He's just a puppy, but he'll grow up to be a big dog." "He's beautiful, isn't he?" "And what's your name?" "Andrew is angry with you, Kyle, because you took his toy." "Thomas wouldn't like it if you took his toy, would he?" "Thomas?" "Yes." "So, go and ask Andrew nicely if you can see his toy?" "Look, it's okay to be a bit scared." "Just go up to Andrew and say, "May I see your toy, please? "" "Go on." "That's it." "May I see your toy, please?" "No." "That's all right, too, Kyle." "Sometimes people do say no." "I'm sure Andrew will let you play with his toy another time." "May I see your toy, please?" "May I see your toy, please?" "Thomas said no." "He did, didn't he?" "He'll give it to me another time." "Is that what he said?" "Okay, then." "Kyle is filling the cup with Thomas' food, and then pouring the food into Thomas' bowl." "Very good." "I think that's enough, do you?" "And now we have to add some..." "Water." "Some water." "Well done, very good." "Oh, no!" "No, stop!" "Nic!" "Take him outside, Rob." "Come here, you." "Thomas wee." "Yes, that's right." "Thomas has done another wee-wee." "But he should do it outside, so it doesn't make the house all dirty and smelly." "Just like people use the toilet." "That's why Mummy and Daddy tell Kyle to use the toilet and then Kyle won't need nappies any more." "See how he's doing it?" "Go on, give him a choccy drop." "Thank you." "Clever, isn't he?" "Give it to him, then." "Here, Thomas." "Now praise him." "Um..." "Excellent pee." "Well done." "Good effort." "Right, it's time to go to the shoe shop, I think, boys." "Shoe shop!" "Okay, brilliant." "Thank you." "My Mum's got our money." "You want some money." "Okay." "Now, Tim." "Would you like to come to my shoe shop?" "Which shoe would you like to buy?" "Monster ones." "Monster ones?" "Okay, the monster shoes costs 2p." "One, two, 2p." "Let me just put the money in my till." "Come and sit with your friends, Kyle." "We're playing shoe shops." "No." "Okay, that's fine." "I want a wee." "What did you say, Kyle?" "I don't want to make the house dirty and smelly." "Choccy drop." "What was that, sweetheart?" "Choccy drop." "Yes, you have been a very good boy." "Come on." "Back to class and we'll get you a biscuit." "Rob, have you seen the other one of these coats?" "Hello, Thomas, how was your day?" ""Oh, not so bad, thanks, Dad." "How about you? "" "I'm sorry." "I've been looking everywhere, and this one's way too small now." "Here you go." "On top of the wardrobe." "Nappies." "Oh, no, Thomas." "What's up with him?" "Oh." "It almost sounds like he feels sorry for someone." "Oh, shame." "What?" "What's a shame, Kyle?" "Poor bike, Thomas." "What are you doing?" "Just looks a bit new." "He won't fall for it otherwise." "Hello, mister." "There's Thomas' coat, look." "Come on, kick it over here." "Go!" "Get it, boy!" "Go!" "Go on!" "What's this?" "Thomas." "We're going to get him, one." "Come, let's have a look." "Kyle, did you have a good day at school, fellow?" "Don't say school." "Tea?" "Mum, look." "What?" ""His first ever attempt to recreate an image."" "Oh, that's wonderful." "That's lovely." "Come on, boys." "Kyle, you be good." "Come on." "Kyle, now listen." "Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen." "It will be just like the shoe shop games we play in class every day." "You don't have to join in." "You can just watch your friends if you want to." "How's Thomas doing?" "Is he still getting bigger?" "Yes, he's going to be very big." "And Mummy says that he grew out of his puppy collar." "And he doesn't mind wearing a new one?" "So, Thomas doesn't mind wearing something new, does he?" "He likes it." "Mummy says you need a new pair of wellie boots to go walking with Thomas." "Shall we see if we can find some that fit you that you like?" "And that Thomas likes, too?" "Rob." "Come on, Kyle, up you get." "Come on, Thomas." "It's time for our walk now." "That's your nose." "That's your foot." "Those are your ears." "Hey, Kyle, are you looking forward to our picnic on the beach?" "Are you?" "Grandpa Jim and Granny Pat are going to meet us there." "It's a big foot now, isn't it?" "And you've got big teeth, too." "What are we going to do when we get to the beach?" "We're going to have a..." "We're going to have a..." "Those are your eyes." "That's your neck." "That's your tail." "These are your whiskers." "Sit." "Thomas, come." "Go on, Thomas, go on." "Here I am, boy." "Yes." "Oh, good boy." "Let go, let go, come on." "Come on, drop it, drop it, drop it." "Drop it." "Drop..." "Kyle." "Kyle." "All right, darling, jump up." "Come on." "There's a good boy." "No!" "He hates me." "Don't be soft." "Of course he doesn't." "He doesn't know what hate is." "Can't you see what's happening here, Rob?" "He's let Thomas in." "That dog is absolutely a part of his world." "His teachers as well." "Look what he's learning at school now." "But us, we're just objects, just there to" "meet his needs." "Well, what do you expect, Nic?" "He hasn't let his teachers in." "They're dealing with everyday, practical things, not feelings." "For God's sake, it's autism." "He doesn't know what feelings are." "He doesn't know what love is, so how can he love you?" "He will never love you, Nic." "Just accept it." "Stop craving something you'll never have." "I'm sorry, Rob." "I can't accept it." "I'm his mother." "Nic, I'm sorry." "About yesterday, on the beach." "I just can't stand seeing you torment yourself over something that's..." "That's never going to happen." "I love you, Nic." "I'm sorry." "I love you so much." "Thomas likes trains." "Thomas train, Henry train, Thomas train, Henry train, Thomas..." "Kyle, your handwriting is getting so, so good." "That's brilliant." "Look at that!" "I'm so proud of you..." "Don't say proud!" "No, Kyle, it's a good thing." "It's a good thing that I'm proud of you." "It's okay for Mummy..." "Don't say okay." "Come on, come on, come on." "Come on, Thomas, in the corner." "Good boy, good boy." "Come on, come on." "Look, Kyle." "No, Kyle!" "No!" "Come on, stop it." "Hey, come on." "Hey, hey, hey." "Look who's here." "Daddy's here." "Hello, Kyle." "Daddy's here." "It's okay." "It's okay." "It's going to be all right." "Look, Daddy's here." "It's going to be all right." "Kyle, I was hoping we could go for a run when I got home from work." "Do you want to do that now, Kyle?" "Oh, Kyle, look at Thomas." "Poor Thomas is so upset." "Look, he's scared." "Oh, dear, oh, dear." "Kyle." "Kyle, this is Thomas speaking." "I hate it when you cry, it makes me so worried." "Could you please stop it?" "Okay, Thomas." "I'm sorry." "So, can we go for our run now?" "Okay." "Come on, Thomas." "Come on, come on." "Good boy." "Give, good boy." "Leave it, Thomas, leave it." "Go on, boy." ""Big fat raindrops began to fall." ""I'm off,' said the bird and he flew away."" "Now that's it, Kyle, remember our deal?" "The deal was I'd read to you till Mum and Thomas got back." "Now, a deal is a deal, son." "So, off you go." "Get your pyjamas." "No!" "Get your pyjamas, and Mum will help you put them on." "Kyle, this is Thomas speaking." "Could you go and find your pyjamas, please?" "I'm quite tired myself." "I think I'll go to bed now." "Okay, Thomas." "Yes, see how clever you are?" "You are." "Turn around." "Good boy." "Now, sit." "Say please, say please." "Up, say please." "Good lad." "Shake hands." "Good boy, what a good boy you are." "Yeah, they shit everywhere, don't they?" "Mess stuff up." "Oh, they just need a bit of discipline, need a firm hand." "Yeah, I can see that." "He's a good boy." "Thomas, come to bed." "Stop playing with Dad." "Did you hear what he just called you?" "Good night then, son." "Good night, Dad." "Come on, Thomas, bed." "Good night, Kyle." "Good night, Mum." "Child in the car, dog in the car." "Wife no..." "Oh!" "Are you coming?" "I'm late." "No, we're fine." "Paula said we didn't have to..." "No, not we." "Me, I'm late." "But..." "You..." "You mean, you mean late?" "Yeah, I'm late." "I'm never late." "Hello, Thomas." "Hello, Thomas." "Here we go." "Hello, Thomas." "Come on, Charlie." "You'd like to." "Do you want to hold his lead?" "One day, the lead..." "The lead was for William, one day." "Are you ready?" "Are you going to go slow?" "Don't run too fast." "Come on, Thomas." "Ready, go." "Lovely." "Go, go, go, Thomas." "Oh, good boy, good boy, Thomas." "Thank you, well done." "None of our end-of-term VIP guests are ever this memorable." "Or this important." "Let's do a big, big wave and say, "Goodbye Thomas."" "Bye, Thomas!" "Bye, Charlie." "Bye, Paula." "Hey." "Hey." "Can't you wait till we get home?" "Well, I could, but I don't really want to." "Not in a public toilet." "Oh, Rob, I'm not going to be in there all day, am I?" "I'll see you in a minute." "Do you think he's hungry?" "There you go." "Thank you." "Here's yours, Kyle, crispy fries." "Chicken for you, Thomas." "No fries or bread, you little porker." ""Oh, no, Dad, I like bread and fries."" "It's okay, Thomas, you can have some of mine." "His vocabulary's coming on a treat." "Yeah, the teachers are really chuffed." "I meant the dog's." "What's going on between you two?" "No, it's too soon." "Oh, come on, Rob, we've waited long enough." "Where on earth did that come from?" "Over there, between the mustard and the ketchup." "Oh!" "Darling, that's wonderful." "I'm really pleased for you." "Thanks, Mum." "Well done." "That's wonderful." "Hello?" "What is it?" "Kyle." "Kyle, listen to me." "Listen to me, listen." "Listen, look, look." "Listen to me." "Listen, listen." "We have to go to the hospital, Kyle." "Listen to me, listen to me now." "Listen, listen, Granny Pat." "No, Kyle." "Listen, Granny Pat is very, very sick and we need to go to the..." "Don't do this to me now." "Don't do this, don't do this now, Kyle." "We have to go to the hospital." "Come on, Thomas, Thomas, Thomas." "No, I can't leave him." "I can't leave him with a neighbour." "It has to be somebody that he knows." "Rob's at work and it's 30 miles away, and I've got to go now." "I can't even get him near the car." "Granny Pat was suddenly very sore, Kyle." "And all the doctors and all the nurses tried to help her with their medicines and their Mickey Mouse sticking plasters." "But she was just too sore," "so she went away." "And that's why Mummy and Grandpa Jim are so sad, because they love Granny Pat very much." "But Granny Pat isn't sad because she's gone to a lovely place called heaven." "And she's not sore any more." "Puff, puff, puff, puff, Thomas is taking Granny to heaven." "We won't see Granny any more." "Puff, puff, puff, puff..." "There are worse things he could be saying." "Ow!" "What's she up to?" "Where's Mum got to, Kyle?" "She's coming." "We have to wait." "Well, I've been waiting, I've been very patient, and I should like to go and get the Christmas tree now..." "Come on, they'll be shut." "Where's your coat?" "Will you just go with Thomas and Kyle, please?" "I don't really feel up to it." "Since when?" "I just don't feel very well." "Will you just go?" "The walk will do you good." "Come on, guys." "We'll carry her if we have to." "Rob, will you just go and get the fucking Christmas tree?" "Come on, Kyle." "You think a bow next, do you?" "Okay." "Where did you get that from?" "I take it these aren't really meant for Christmas decorations." "I'm sorry." "I want my Mum." "Mummy." "What is it, Kyle?" "I can't hear you." "I'm up here." "I didn't hear you, Kyle." "You have to be in the same room to talk to someone." "Thomas wants his tea." "Well, it's not time for Thomas' tea." "He'll eat after we've eaten, all right?" "No, he wants it now." "Don't you, Thomas?" "Thomas isn't in the room, Kyle." "He can't hear you." "It's okay." "I'll find him." "Thomas." "Hello, is that Kyle?" "Yes, Thomas." "Do you want your tea now?" "Not right now." "I'm not too hungry, I..." "Mum will give me my tea later." "Okay, Thomas." "Mummy, Thomas says he'll have his tea later." "Did he?" "We're not in the same room, I can't talk to you." "Oh, sorry." "Here I am." "Come on." "Shall we go down and check your school bag?" "Don't say school!" "Look, give it to Mummy." "I need to see if there's a note from Paula." "Let me have it and then we'll get the tea on, okay?" "Don't say okay!" "Kyle!" "Kyle!" "You mustn't hit people." "It hurts and it makes them sore, do you understand, okay?" "Don't say okay!" "Stop it!" "Stop it, just calm down." "Kyle, no." "Kyle, stop it." "Come on, Kyle." "Kyle." "Kyle, look at Thomas." "Look, look, you're frightening him." "Come on." "Kyle, Kyle, please will you stop it?" "Please, you're frightening me." "Right, that's it." "It's finished." "I will not have you making that dog's life a misery, now get out!" "Out!" "So, are we agreed?" "Well, it's not like he hurt Thomas, is it?" "Rob, that can't happen again." "We have to be sure on this otherwise" "I don't know if I can go through with it, really." "Okay, yeah." "There you go, Thomas." "That should help a little bit." "Hello, Chris?" "Chris, it's Nicola." "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but something terrible has happened." "Kyle has hurt Thomas." "Yes." "He kicked him very hard and now Thomas is..." "Well, he's very upset." "So I think it's best..." "I think it's best if he comes back to live with you." "I'm sorry, Thomas." "No, Kyle, you kicked me." "You hurt me." "My back is very sore." "I'm going back to Chris' now." "Please, don't leave me, please." "I love you, Thomas." "This is just grand, Rob." "Well done to you both." "Merry Christmas, everyone." "Merry Christmas." "Can I just say a quick hello to my Mum?" "Wherever..." "Wherever she may be and thanks for everything." "Here, here." "To Pat." "To Pat." "Granny Pat's in heaven, Mummy." "Yes, she is." "Silly Uncle Phil." "He's looks like a fucking Christmas tree." "Dickhead." "You are going to love this." "Right, here you go, mate." "Happy Christmas." "He didn't eat any breakfast either." "Mum's cooking isn't that bad, is it?" "Something's wrong, Rob." "This can't be happening." "Mrs Graham, Thomas is undoubtedly very poorly." "You were right to call me, but let's just see how he responds to the treatment." "I don't think you understand." "This isn't just a dog." "It's not just a dog." "No." "Nic..." "Nic, just calm down." "It's his bones and his joints." "It's a palo and something." "I don't know, it's a long Latin name." "If the condition gets much worse, the vet said that he'd need to do an X-ray, but he'd have to have a general anaesthetic and it's too risky." "He's so sick, Rob." "What are we going to do?" "Choo-choo!" "Come on, come on, come on." "Oh, there's a good boy." "There's a good boy, come on." "Oh, I'm sorry, Thomas." "There, there." "Good boy." "Don't get too sore, Thomas, like Granny Pat." "If you get too sore, you go away to heaven." "It's a nice place, but I want you to stay here." "How are you doing, old fellow?" "Why us, Rob?" "Just give the drugs time to work, Nic." "He'll be okay." "Wake up, wake up." "Hey, look who's here, Nic." "Nic, wake up, look." "Thomas." "Thomas." "Hello, Thomas." "Oh, we've been so worried about you." "I love you so much." "Thomas loves his mum, doesn't he, Kyle?" "He does." "And Mummy loves Kyle, too, so, so much." "Kyle." "It's all right." "I'll get him." "Kyle." "Kyle." "Kyle." "Mummy!" "I'm here." "Have you got him, Rob?" "We're fine, come on." "Mum!" "I'm coming." "I'm not in the same room." "I can't talk to you." "It's not the same if you're outside, Kyle." "Thomas said he isn't sore any more." "I know." "It's wonderful, isn't it?" "And he says he loves his Mum." "He does, darling, doesn't he?" "And Kyle loves his Mum." "What did you say, Kyle?" "Kyle loves his Mum." "Come on, Thomas." "Kyle."