Ok, I know the story seems to be moving a bit slow. I apologize for that. I'm still trying to figure out where I want this story to go. As of right now….I have no idea! So just bear with me for the moment! Thanks for all the great comments so far! They really do mean the world to me! Again, I own nothing.

Chapter 6 – Thank You

Once Hank decided to go to L.A for the weekend he knew he had to kick things into gear. He hadn't done a trade show in a while so he needed to get things ready. He had some things already prepared but he wanted to mat new photos and get everything as ready as possible. He gave Sarah a list of things to do and they both got to work. There were so many things swirling through Hank's head, he was so wrapped up in getting things done, but occasionally he would steal a glance at Sarah. He loved watching her work, especially work on his photos. He normally didn't trust people with his photos but he trusted Sarah. Even though she was still new, and she was still a little rough around the edges when it came to photo shoots and mating photos, he loved how focused she would get. He loved watching the perfectionist in her come out, when she would measure out mat, stand back and look at, then measure it again. More than once he found himself smiling while he was watching her.

As the day came to an end, Hank looked down at one of the large tables in the studio with all the photos matted and ready for the upcoming weekend. He crossed his arms and stood back and had a cheeky grin.

"What's that look about?" Sarah questioned.

"I'm just so relieved we got all this done." Hank responded.

"This would be where you say, 'Thank you'" Sarah said with a 'duh' tone.

"Do I have to say thank you for everything?" Hank asked, each word dripping with sarcasm.

Sarah just rolled her eyes and went to grab her purse. "Ok I'm off for the day, see you tomorrow Hank."

"See you in the morning" Hank replied.

"Oh Sarah?" Hank called out right as Sarah was about to walk through the door.

Sarah tried not to act annoyed when she stopped, almost certain her boss was going to ask her to do something.

"Thank you," Hank said softly, with a small but noticeable smile.

A bit taken back by his gratitude, Sarah just gave a half smile in return and continued walking out the door.

"THIS IS WHERE YOU SAY 'YOU'RE WELCOME!'' Hank yelled and completely busted out a smile.

Sarah just looked back through the window as she walked towards her car and stuck her tongue out at him.

When Hank locked the studio up, he had full intentions of going home, making dinner (and by making dinner, calling the local Chinese food place) and catching up on his DVR. However, he found himself missing his turn and ending up in a pub. He knew he should just get back in his car and drive home, but his feet didn't agree with his head. He kept walking towards the bar until he was sitting on a bar stool.

"Whiskey sour" was all Hank said.

He wasn't planning on getting drunk, he wasn't planning on the bartender taking his keys away and he certainly wasn't planning on calling Sarah in the state he was in. But the more he drank the more he kept thinking about his daughter and how devastated he was about losing her. He felt that he was starting to finally connect with her again after the divorce, but now she was moving. His baby girl was moving half way across the country and the more he thought about that, the more he drank.

It wasn't late when the bartender cut him off, not by bar standards anyway. It was only 9:30pm and he knew he could still call a cab, but when he pulled his phone out of his pocket the only number he chose to dial was Sarah's. It didn't cross him mind that she would be with Mark or what she was even doing for that matter. All he knew was that he needed her. He needed her to tell him everything was going to be all right. Even if all she could just provide some sort of false hope. He needed that tonight.

He hit dial….

It rang 6 times and just the whole time it was ringing he was doing all he could to keep himself standing outside the bar.

Just when he was about to give up he heard a voice, her voice on the other end, "Hank?" Sarah sounded confused.

"Saaarrrrraaaahhh….neeeeeeed you." Was all Hank was able to get out.

After some encouraging from Sarah about the details of his location she finally figured out where he was.

With an exhausted sigh Sarah said, "I'll see you in 10 minutes. Try not to pass out in a gutter or pee anywhere."

Sarah's heart broke when she pulled into the parking lot, she saw Hank sitting on down by the curb looking utterly dejected. She got out of the car and quietly said, "Ok Hank, lets get you in the car."

Hank just nodded and gladly accepted her help. She put his arm around his back and helped him get to his feet.

Sarah did her best to get directions to Hank's house. She tried talking to Hank about what happened. All Hank would say was something along the lines of, "My baby is leaving, she can't take my baby away."

They finally reached Hank's apartment and she helped him inside. She was a little reluctant to take him to his bedroom, not sure if he would try to make a move. But being the good person she was, she knew he would get a better night's sleep if he was in his own bed.

After almost falling twice, they finally made it to his bed. Hank sat down and tried to take his shoes off and when he couldn't untie his own shoe because of how drunk he was Hank started to cry, and then the crying turned into full-fledged sobbing. Sarah had no idea what to do. She just stood there for a minute.

She walked over to the side of the bed where Hank was crying and kneeled down and attempted to help with the shoe. Hank stopped her and yelled, "ITS NOT ABOUT THE SHOE! MY DAUGHTER IS MOVING A THOUSAND MILES AWAY AND THERE'S NOTHING I CAN DO" he stopped crying and looked up at Sarah, the two locked eyes. Tears were streaming down his face. The look in his eyes was beyond dejected and sad, there was no hope there. Sarah, could see how much he cared for his daughter. She slowly walked over to the side of the bed, thinking any sudden movement would scare him. She sat down right beside him and did what she knew to do, wrap him in a hug. At first Hank just sat there, then he slowly wrapped his arms around her. He started slightly crying. Sarah could feel his body shake and she just hugged him tighter. Sarah whispered, "you're going to get through this, I'll be here, you will get through this." And there it was, that hope that Hank needed. He was used to having to do things on his own, he'd done it for quite some time since he and his wife had divorced, but he believed Sarah. He believed that should would be there for him.

Hank slowly released his grip, suddenly feeling completely exhausted and laid down in bed. His eyes slowly closed. Sarah waited a minute until she thought he was asleep and took his shoes off for him. She every so lightly kissed him on the forehead, and whispered, "I won't leave you."

As she was leaving his room she heard a faint, "Thank you."

All Sarah could do was offer a sad smile and whispered, "you're welcome, Hank."

I wanted to get to the Christmas episode but I felt like this was a good ending spot. Hopefully I'll have the Christmas episode up by Christmas! Thanks again for reading! Thoughts and comments are always welcome!