"Thank you so much, Graham, for putting a good word in for me at the same hospital that Roxanna will be working in. I just wanted to call and tell you that I managed to get the job."

"I had no doubt that you would, Henrik. You're a wonderful surgeon and any hospital would be lucky to have you. I'm just sorry that Holby will be losing you, since I've heard nothing but good about you from the doctor who stole you away from us."

Henrik smiled to hear that, as it was always nice to know that one was appreciated. "I still miss being in Sunderland, but I know that life often takes us in other directions. Did you get the birth announcement?"

"Yes, thank you for sending one my way. Ingrid is a beautiful baby."

He looked down at his daughter, sleeping in her cradle, and nodded. "She reminds me so much of Roxanna, even though she's only a month old so far. Her eyes are darkening, though, so I think she's going to have brown eyes like me. And I know, I sound completely daffy, but this is what very little sleep has done to me."

"It does it to all parents, Henrik. Welcome to the world of having your heart walking around outside your body for the rest of your life."

He nodded, not wanting to remind his mentor of the fact that this was his second child. "The movers are coming in five days to pack up the house and move the important pieces of our house over to the place we're renting in London."

"You're keeping the house in Wyrven?"

He nodded. "I can't shake this feeling that we're going to return here someday. So, we'll be renting it out until we do move back. This will also give us another stream of income, so that we can afford a child minder, rather than having Ingrid in daycare."

"It seems like you have everything figured out, then."

Henrik took a deep breath before answering. "I'd like to think that I do, yes, but there's always the fact that life is anything but predictable and mundane, much though I would like that to be the case."

"Wouldn't we all," Graham muttered. There was a pause, and Henrik thought he could hear a familiar voice in the background. "I'm sorry, I thought that I would actually get a lunch break this shift, but we've had an emergency surgery come in. Take care of yourself, Henrik, and we'll talk soon."

"Yes, we will. Goodbye, Graham."

They hung up, and Henrik allowed his shoulders to sink, wishing that he had been honest with Graham, with his therapist, with Roxanna, but he hadn't found the right words in his mind to talk about the creeping darkness that was slowly gaining ground on him. He knew that it was likely to turn into a depressive episode for him, that he was around the age of his mother experiencing her own first breakdown, and he wondered how long he could hold it off. Looking down at Ingrid, he smiled widely, trying to will happiness, contentment, into his heart as he sighed and picked up his book and leaned back on the sofa as he started to read.

He had almost lost himself in the story when someone knocked on the door. Letting out a huff of frustration, he marked his place before placing the book on the coffee table and hurrying over to see who was at their door in the middle of the day. Peering outside, he saw John standing on their stoop, a pensive look on his face. Henrik frowned as he opened the door to their friend, staring at him as he tried to suss out why the man was there.

"I heard that you were moving, so I thought that I'd come and see you before you made your way to London," John said as he made his way inside. "And where is the little one? I'm assuming that she's here and not with Roxanna while she's at work?" Henrik found himself a bit speechless at the man's forwardness, and shook his head slowly as he quietly closed the door.

"Our daughter is sleeping quietly in her cradle right now, so I'll thank you to keep your voice down. She's been a bit cranky as of late, and I don't relish trying to get her back to sleep."

"Don't be such a worrier, Henrik. I'm great with children," John said as he followed Henrik into the living room, crouching down to stare into the basket at Ingrid, a silly smile on his lips. It was a strange sight to see, since he had never taken his friend for a baby person, but from the tender way that John ran his finger down the curve of Ingrid's nose to the gentle way that he lifted her from the cradle and into his arms, slowly pressing her against his chest as he took a seat on the sofa, Henrik quickly came to realise that there were things that he didn't know about John. "She's beautiful."

"Thank you. I think she's going to end up with Roxanna's hair, but my eyes. Roxy already insists that she had my nose, but I'm reserving judgement on that for a little while longer, since she still has a squishy baby nose."

John let out a soft laugh as he shook his head. "I never thought that you would be someone to use the word squishy, Henrik. That seems so plebian coming from your mouth. Are you content with moving to London so soon after purchasing this home?"

"Seeing as how we both have steady jobs in London, and a new flat that will be ours while we're staying there, along with a network that will support us, yes. This may come as a shock to you, John, but I want the best for her, just like she wants the best for me. Right now, that is spending time in London, and we'll see where life brings us next."

"There's no need to be so testy, Henrik, I was just trying to see where your head was in all this. I know that Roxanna can be a bit forceful when it comes to getting her way, and you're so besotted with her and your daughter that you'd do anything for her, without taking into consideration your own feelings and needs. Despite how much you love your wide, you still need to make space for yourself and your needs and feelings. I can see in your eyes that you're not quite as happy as you're trying to make yourself out to be, and that hurts me as your friend. If you don't want to acknowledge that part of you, at least allow me to be the one who cares for you."

Henrik frowned a little as Ingrid stirred a little in John's arms, torn between wanting to pull his daughter away from John, and hoping that she would go back to sleep, so that she wouldn't be aware of the argument that he and John were carrying out so dispassionately. Though there was a part of him that relished the verbal sparring that they were doing, as it was nice to have someone that pushed back against him, that challenged him. "I will never turn down an offer of friendship, John. You should know that. But my heart and mind are of one accord here – Roxanna and I have a bright future ahead of us, starting in London, and then wherever the wind might take us. It is past time that I became slightly more flexible with change and all that it brings." John merely nodded before changing the subject and Henrik was left to stew in his thoughts as he half heartedly kept up his side of the conversation, wondering if John would still be here by the time Roxanna returned home.