Hanna has already started her week with a tough Monday, which included Chloe's sudden resignation and working until late hours. Little she knows on Tuesday morning when she arrives at her store that she's about to have the hardest of her days at work.

Hanna's challenges start in the morning, only an hour into her work day, when she is finishing introducing Vanessa to the workings of her workshop, Anna's new replacement, and Lisa approaches her.

Lisa "Han… your notes here say I should use a ten-inch white zipper, but we ran out of those… and we are also running out of cupro linings… and we haven't got many pearls left…"

Hanna sighs. "Okay, just move on to another design. I'll take a look to see what else we need and I'll make an order… I didn't have the time to take care of it…"

Sydney shows up upstairs. "Hanna, your friend Spencer is here."

Hanna "Send her up here, Syd… I don't have the time to go downstairs right now."

Sydney leaves and Spencer shows up there with Finn.

Hanna "Hey, you two!" She smiles at them while going through the drawers of the large piece of furniture where they keep the materials. She's taking notes of the supplies she has to restock.

Spencer "Hey, Han! Is this a bad time?"

Hanna looks at them, and Finn throws his arms at her, like he always does when he sees her. She can't help but leave her notepad aside and grab the baby in her arms. "I'm a little busy right now, but I always have time for my Finnie." She kisses his cheek softly. "So, what brings you two here?"

Spencer chuckles. "What do you mean by what brings me here? My wedding dress, maybe?"

Hanna "Oh, right…"

Spencer "So? Do you have any sketches for me to take a look?"

Hanna "I'm sorry, Spence… I haven't had the time to get started just yet. But give me a couple of days, and I'll come up with something… are you sure you don't want to ask me any detail in particular for the design?"

Spencer "No, I just trust your good taste… don't worry about it. I just stopped by because Finn had his checkup a few blocks away… and I was just curious about it. Just let me know when you have something to show me."

Hanna nods.

Spencer "What happened to your dresses anyway?" She suddenly asks.

Hanna "What do you mean?" She asks, confused.

Spencer "Your store is almost empty… did you take them somewhere else or something?"

Hanna "Oh, that… it's nothing. We just had a lot of sales last week, and Anna hurt her wrist, so we are a bit behind in restocking, but we are working on it…" She downplays the situation, even though it's the main cause of her stress.

Spencer nods. "Okay, Finnie. Time to leave… Auntie Hanna's busy." She grabs the baby from Hanna's arms. "See you, Han!" She says while walking away.

Hanna "See you!" She says back while grabbing her notepad to go back to work.

Lisa approaches her again. "Hanna, I've been going through the designs, and there's no one I could finish today. Every single one of them requires at least one item we are out of stock on."

Hanna sighs. "Just pick any then, and get started. I'll go get you the zipper you need to finish the other dress myself later. The supplies I'm ordering today should be here the day after tomorrow. Make me a list of the most urgent things you would need for today and tomorrow, and I'll go get them myself. Also, check if Vanessa needs anything too."

Hanna's phone starts buzzing on her desk, so she goes answer it. It's a call from Anna.

Hanna "Hey, Anna!" She greets her while taking a seat. "How did it go at the doctor?... Oh, so you broke your bone?... I'm sorry to hear that, Anna… We are going to miss you here… Sure, let me know anything… Okay, take care of yourself. Get better soon… Bye, Ann."

She ends the call, throws the phone aside and runs her hands through her hair, as the first tears of frustration of her day start rolling down her cheeks. It turns out Anna's wrist was broken after all. With the time she'll need for her fracture to heal and then some extra weeks of physical therapy, it could take her at least two and a half months to go back to work. Even after that, it will take her some more time to be able to return to doing fine pulse work, such as embroidery, or even something as basic for her work as threading a needle.

Hanna starts to feel anxious, and the quickest way she finds to deal with it is by refocusing on work. She decides to join Lisa and Vanessa in making dresses, even though there are other more urgent matters to attend to. However, she needs to concentrate on a task that might help clear her mind in order to be able to go on with her day. Hanna grabs a roll of fabric, takes measurements, and starts cutting it to begin work on a new dress.

/

At noon, she leaves the store to purchase the basic supplies needed to finish the dresses they are currently working on. They must be ready by the end of the day for Sydney to take them downstairs to the racks, where they are in high demand. It takes her longer than she anticipated to gather most of the items on the list Lisa prepared for her, and the cloudy grey day doesn't help to raise her low mood at all. She doesn't manage to find everything on her list and ends up paying higher prices for the items she does acquire. Usually, she buys these items in larger quantities from wholesalers to secure better prices. However, today, she buys them from various stores in Rosewood.

Hanna "Knock yourselves out, ladies." She says as she places the bags on a table. "I didn't get everything, but this should help until the order I'll be placing today arrives in a couple of days."

Lisa goes through the bags and finds the zipper she needs to finish the dress she had to set aside in the morning.

Hanna's starving because she skipped both breakfast and lunch, so she heads downstairs with the intention of leaving again to get something to eat. However, she finds Sydney putting her coat on.

Hanna "Are you leaving?"

Sydney "Yeah, I'm leaving. I usually take my lunch break when Chloe arrives, but since she's not coming, I'll just leave now."

Hanna "And you were just going to leave the store unattended?"

Sydney shrugs. "I was just going to hang a 'be back soon' sign on the door."

Hanna "You can't leave just like that, Sydney. I know it's your lunch break, but you have to let me know about it."

Sydney "For what? We have like four dresses left for sale. I'd just be doing you a favor if I closed the store for an hour. You might be able to get another dress ready by the time I come back, and it would make them, like, five whole dresses for sale! Wouldn't that be awesome?" She says with sarcasm.

Hanna "What's wrong with your attitude lately, Sydney?"

Sydney sighs but doesn't even look at her as she grabs her phone and puts it into her purse.

Hanna "Just go have lunch. I'll stay here in the store until you come back."

Sydney leaves without saying anything else.

Hanna goes upstairs to grab one of her sketchbooks, then quickly returns downstairs to watch over the store. She takes a seat at the checkout counter, hoping to make good use of her time while waiting for Sydney to return from her lunch break. However, every attempt at creating a new design ends up getting crossed out. She's so stressed and mentally exhausted that nothing good comes up… She crumples up paper after paper, tossing them into a small trash can nearby. For the second time on the day, she finds herself shedding tears of frustration.

She grabs her phone and texts Lucas: "Hey, Lucas! Please tell me you'll come up with something soon. I can't take this any longer."

The minutes pass by, and she doesn't receive any reply from Lucas. She gives up trying to design a new dress and puts her sketchbook aside. After wiping her tears and taking a deep breath to calm down, it takes her a few minutes to stop crying and stand up from her seat.

Just then, a customer enters the store, and Hanna is relieved that she has composed herself before someone had the chance to see her in that state.

Hanna "Good afternoon. How can I help you?" She forces a warm smile.

Woman "Hi, I was looking for a dress to wear to a fundraising event in New York next month..." She explains while taking a look around the almost empty store. "Did I just come in at a bad time?" She asks, confused.

Hanna "Oh, not at all... we just had a wave of sales, and we are restocking. I'll show you the beautiful dresses we have at the moment, but if this event is not until next month, you can come back in a few days and check the new designs we are working on." She approaches one of the racks to show her dresses to the woman.

/

Sydney takes about fifteen extra minutes for her lunch break before returning to the store. Hanna doesn't have the energy to argue with her, so she lets it go and heads back upstairs to resume working.

Hanna goes back to working on the supplies order she needs to place before four o'clock in the afternoon if she wants to get it delivered by Thursday. Fortunately, she manages to submit her order just ten minutes before the deadline, providing a small sense of relief on her challenging day.

But the relief doesn't last for long because, with only five minutes past four, she realizes she completely forgot to order the rhinestones, which aren't necessarily essential at the moment, but she'll still need them for embellishing some of her dress designs. She goes back to her laptop and places an extra order to be delivered on Friday, which means an extra shipping fee, but at least she'll get them soon enough.

Half an hour later, a big storm breaks outside, and if the day was already grey before the storm, it now makes the sky darker, almost as dark as if it were already night. Some minutes later, the power goes out, and even though it's not completely dark, since it's not even five in the afternoon, it becomes impossible to keep working with the limited lighting coming through the windows.

Hanna "Great. This is just great!" She says, very frustrated.

Lisa "It's okay, Hanna. The power may come back in a few minutes."

Hanna sighs. "I hope so."

Vanessa "Does anyone want some coffee? I'll prepare some." She stands up.

Hanna "I'm sorry, Vanessa. Everything is electric in here. You won't be able to make coffee."

Vanessa "Oh…" She just says and sits back in her chair.

Unable to work, both Lisa and Vanessa grab their phones to keep themselves entertained as they wait for the electricity to come back.

But the end time of their workday arrives before the electricity is restored, so they leave shortly after, leaving Hanna on her own.

She's feeling really down by now. She grabs her sketchbook and goes to sit down on the floor next to the large window to take advantage of the little light there. Once again, she tries to create a design, but not just any design. She attempts to come up with a design for Spencer's wedding dress since she promised her earlier that she would start working on it. However, she's not feeling inspired, and after discarding the second sketch, Sydney shows up upstairs.

Sydney "I'm leaving, Hanna. No one in their right mind would come for a dress in the middle of a blackout and with this huge storm." She says, expecting an objection from Hanna since it's not her end time yet.

But Hanna is exhausted. She only looks up at her and nods, so Sydney turns around and leaves. None of them even bother to say goodbye.

Hanna focuses back on Spencer's dress. There's extra pressure on her with this project in particular, as she doesn't want to let her friend down. Spencer is trusting her to create the dress she'll wear on probably one of the most important days of her life. Hanna wants it to be as close to perfection as possible. Frustration reappears, causing tears to roll down her cheek for the third time on the day.

She places her sketchbook beside her on the floor, and starts thinking of all the problems she's facing at the moment with her business. She thought everything would be fine as long as she achieved good sales, and as long as she created beautiful designs and high quality dresses for people to choose her brand. Turns out, having a business is much more complex than that, and what she thought it would be enough to succeed, is not. Now she feels like if she were surfing waves in the open ocean and every single time she manages to surf one, another bigger one appears to take her down again.

She suddenly starts to feel like if she were drowning in that ocean, as she starts having trouble breathing. She folds her legs bringing them to her chest and wraps her arms around them. Her heart racing in her chest. Her entire body trembling as her tears escape faster from her eyes. She remains there for minutes, paralyzed by her fear.

Suddenly, her phone starts buzzing on the floor next to her, and she sees it's a call from Lucas. She doesn't even try to reach out to take her phone just yet, but it catches her attention, distracting her from her negative thoughts for a moment.

Hanna takes a deep breath. She knows what's going on. It's been more than a year since her last panic attack, but she recognizes the symptoms. She recalls Caleb helping her calm down the last time she experienced one. The way he helped her by taking deep breaths along with her. So, that's exactly what she does, and by taking those deep breaths, little by little, she starts to feel better. She has already missed Lucas' call, so she takes some extra minutes to recompose herself.

Then, she finally grabs her phone and her sketchbook and stands up from the floor.

Still affected by her negative emotions, she sits at her desk and calls Lucas back.

Lucas "Hey, Han… I'm sorry. I just saw the text you sent me earlier."

Hanna "So? Did you manage to come up with something?"

Lucas "Yes, I have some ideas I would like to discuss with you… I think expanding your business to New York would be your best option, Han. An additional store, and we should move your workshop here as well."

Hanna "What? Are you nuts, Lucas? I just told you the other day I can't handle my store here in Rosewood, and your big idea is to open another one?" She snaps at him, annoyed.

Lucas "I know it sounds complex, but I've been doing some research, and I think it would actually make things easier for you."

Hanna sighs. "Forget it, Lucas. I can't take this anymore. I just had a terrible day here and I can't believe you are suggesting I should open another freaking store. This is a nightmare." Her voice cracks as she starts to cry, feeling like it's the hundredth time today. "I can't take this anymore, Lucas."

Lucas "Hey... I just want you to give it a chance. I'm sure you'll see it as a great opportunity once you let me explain the details to you." He reassures her.

Hanna "I can't, Lucas... I don't even know if I'll be able to keep my store open for another day. I was trying to, because you told me to, but..." She sobs. "Today was just awful."

Lucas tries to comfort her. "Calm down, Han… I'll tell you what. Don't open your store tomorrow, just like you did with the website, hang a sign on the door saying that you are closed for repairs and let's meet up tomorrow. I'm coming to Rosewood."

Hanna "You sure? I don't want to keep you from your own businesses. I can go there myself if you want."

Lucas "No, it's fine. I have to take care of some things at my loft anyway. It's been like two months since the last time I was there. Don't worry. I'll see you tomorrow. And don't stress yourself so much. I promise you'll agree with me about New York once I give you the details."

Hanna "Okay, thanks, Lucas. I'll see you tomorrow then."

Lucas "See you tomorrow, Han. Just try to relax."

Hanna doesn't get a chance to respond because her phone dies at that moment. She gets up from her seat and goes back to the window. She gazes at the storm outside, and her tears flow down her cheeks just like the raindrops running down the glass. She allows herself to cry a little longer, letting her emotions out.

/

Almost two hours later, Hanna arrives home. She's left her anguish behind, but it's been replaced with anger, putting her in a very bad mood. She heads straight to the kitchen. Caleb hears her from the living room, so he shows up in the kitchen shortly after.

Caleb "Hey, I was worried about you... you weren't picking up your phone, and with this storm outside, I-"

Hanna "You need to stop worrying so much, Caleb." She interrupts him. "You know that if I don't answer my phone, it's because it either died or I'm just busy." She takes a bottle of water from the fridge without even turning around.

Caleb "There was a blackout, Hanna."

Chocolate joins them and approaches Hanna for a greeting, but she only taps his head briefly before pouring herself a glass of water.

Hanna "I know, that's why I couldn't put my phone to charge." She turns to look at him now.

Caleb "I just thought you might have gotten caught in the storm or something." He says, noticing a small box on the kitchen table. "What's this?" He asks, taking it in his hand to have a look.

Hanna "Condoms."

Caleb "Yeah, I see... like fifty of them." He comments after checking the large pack and placing it back on the table. "Would you mind updating me?"

Hanna places her glass on the kitchen countertop after drinking her water. "You're using them until I can get back on the pill." She says, just like that.

Caleb "Why?"

Hanna "Because I'm not getting pregnant."

Caleb keeps staring at her, confused.

Hanna "Look, if you have a problem using condoms, then don't. We can survive a month or so without having sex. I just thought it wouldn't be too much to ask, considering that I've been on the pill all this time, making sure we were careful myself. But don't worry about it." She shrugs.

Caleb "That's not what I meant, Hanna." He sighs, very aware of Hanna's terrible mood by now. "I just want to know why you changed your mind."

Hanna "I just don't want to get pregnant, okay?"

Caleb "Yeah, I already got that part. You made it pretty clear. Let's talk about it."

Hanna "Why? There's nothing to talk about, Caleb. I don't want it. We are going back to being careful." She says and leaves the kitchen.

But Caleb follows her.

Caleb "Don't walk away from me just like that, Hanna. We aren't discussing what we're having for dinner. This is a big deal. We should talk this through." He says as they go upstairs.

Hanna "I have a terrible headache, Caleb. There's not much to talk about. I just don't want it." She repeats while entering their bedroom.

Caleb "So, this is it? You come home in a bad mood and you get to make decisions for both of us?"

Hanna "Gosh, Caleb! You're so annoying!" She yells at him.

Caleb "Am I the annoying one here? You sure?" he fires back.

Hanna opens her mouth as if she were about to say something back, but she reaches out and places her hand against the closet door, as if looking for something to steady herself, while closing her eyes.

Caleb "You okay?" He asks while grabbing her by her other arm.

Hanna opens her eyes and takes her other hand to her face. "Yeah, I'm okay. I just got dizzy for a moment." She releases herself from his grip and goes to sit on the edge of their bed. "Look, Caleb… it's my body, I think I have the right to make this decision." She resumes their argument.

Caleb "I won't try to convince you to have a baby, Hanna. I don't want to talk it through just to have you change your mind back. I just… I don't think we should make such a significant decision in a rush. You were the one lifting your legs up in the air the other day trying to get pregnant… It was only two days ago, Hanna. And now you show up with the largest pack of condoms you could find in the store. It scares me how fast you can change your mind about something so important. That's why I want to talk about it. I'm trying to see where you are coming from."

Hanna "I'm not ready for a baby. It's not the right time for me."

Caleb "Yeah, it's not the right time for any of us. I don't think we are on the same page… and I'm not talking about the baby anymore." He says and leaves their bedroom.

Hanna lies down on the bed for a moment. She feels terrible, and not only emotionally, but also physically. She's aware that her headache and dizziness must be due to the fact that she hasn't eaten anything all day, so she changes into her satin black short nightgown to be more comfortable and forces herself to go back downstairs to the kitchen to eat something, even though she's not even hungry.

She encounters Caleb in the kitchen, who's heating up some food in the microwave. She opens the fridge without saying a word and takes a yogurt from there. Then, she goes to sit at the kitchen table.

But Caleb gets the plate of food from the microwave and places it on the table in front of her before she even has the chance to open her yogurt.

Caleb "A yogurt is not a proper meal."

Hanna only looks up at him.

Caleb "I was just heating it up for you. I've already had dinner earlier."

Hanna "Thanks."

Caleb nods and he is about to leave the kitchen, but Hanna speaks again.

Hanna "Look, I'm sorry about what just happened. I know it wasn't the right way to tell you I want to go back to being careful… but it's what I want."

Caleb only nods again and then leaves.

Hanna has to make a huge effort to eat dinner despite the knot in her throat and a couple of tears that wet her cheeks once again. She can't wait for her day to be over already. She knows she owes Caleb more than just that poor apology. But she can't bring herself to talk things through without having another meltdown, she doesn't want to take the risk of having her second panic attack of the day. She truly hopes Lucas brings her a solid plan to make things better with her business so she can get her life back on track.

She finishes her meal, does the dishes, and then goes out to the backyard to get some fresh air since it's stopped raining. Once she's outside, she lights up a cigarette. Yes, condoms weren't the only thing she bought on her way home.

/

Next day. Wednesday.

Hanna's stomach is already aching with nervousness when she arrives at her store in the morning, even though she's not opening it for customers, she still has work to do.

The first thing she does as soon as she sits at her desk is text Lucas: "I'm sorry, Lucas. My phone died yesterday. Let me know what time suits you best to meet up. And thanks again!" The second thing she does is write the "closed for repairs" sign he told her to hang on the door.

Sydney arrives when Hanna is taping the sign to the door and takes a look at it.

Sydney "So we are closing again? You could have told me before I showed up here for nothing."

Hanna "Good morning to you too, Sydney." She does her best to be patient. "We are closing for a few days so we can get ahead with the dresses." She explains. "But I have some other things for you to do in your spare time."

Sydney rolls her eyes but doesn't say anything else.

/

Caleb gets to his office as well and heads for the kitchen to grab some coffee as he usually does. He meets Emily there.

Emily "Hey you! Morning." She hands him a paper bag. "Want a bagel?"

Caleb "Hey!" He forces a smile. "No, thanks… I'm not really hungry." He pours himself some coffee.

Emily "Toby just left for the Radley. Mrs. Marin called yesterday because one of the cameras was failing."

Caleb nods.

Emily "I already booked you a hotel room in Boston for tomorrow night. Is Hanna joining you after all?"

Caleb "No, it'll be just me."

Emily "Oh, okay. She's still pretty busy, huh?" She makes some conversation.

Caleb "Yeah, she is. But I didn't even ask her to come with me anyway."

Emily "Why not?"

Caleb "We aren't getting along so well lately... I just thought spending a couple of days apart could be good for us. Not that I get to see her much often anyway, but still."

Emily "I'm sorry to hear that, Caleb... but it's very common to go through some rough patches every so often. You two have been living together for some months now, and it's natural that you might start having some relationship issues at some point. We've all been there."

Caleb "I just... I don't understand her anymore. One day she comes home all tired, but still seeking affection, and the next day she just treats me like shit, and we end up fighting, like last night. I can't keep up with her mood swings. I don't know what to expect when she gets home."

Emily "Maybe she's just stressed about work... Do you want me to talk to her?"

Caleb "No, it's fine. I don't want to get you in the middle of this. I guess I'll just wait until I catch her on a good day and see if we can at least have one honest conversation." He sighs.

Emily places her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure you'll work things out. I know it might seem all dark right now, but every couple goes through difficult times from time to time. That's the point of relationships, things aren't always easy. But I'm very sure Hanna and you are one of those meant-to-be couples, so don't worry, you'll be fine." She reassures him with a sympathetic smile.

Caleb "Yeah… we are Haleb." He says softly.

Emily "You are what?"

Caleb chuckles. "Nothing, just a thing Hanna said the other day."

Emily "See? That's exactly what I meant. You two will be just fine. Just give it some time." She says, noticing the way his face lights up at recalling Hanna's wisecracks. "So I'm guessing you haven't told her about Sydney yet…"

Caleb shakes his head no.

/

Luckily for Hanna, her Wednesday goes smoothly.

Both Lisa and Vanesa show up for work as usual, and they make good progress with the dresses. Hanna's mind finds some peace knowing her store will remain closed for a few days. Even though she can't come up with a design for Spencer's wedding dress, she manages to create some new designs for the seamstresses to work on in the following days. Sydney's mood, on the other hand, remains difficult for the rest of the day, so Hanna ends up letting her go home earlier, not knowing what else to assign her to keep her busy anyway.

In the evening, Hanna rings the doorbell at Lucas' apartment where they arranged to meet up.

Lucas "Hey! Come in."

Hanna "Hi, Lucas!" She greets him back while entering the very nice loft Lucas owns in Rosewood.

Lucas "Make yourself comfortable."

Hanna takes a seat on the couch, and Lucas joins her after grabbing a folder from the coffee table.

Hanna "So, want to tell me how the hell opening a new store could help me manage the one I already have, which I had to close, by the way?"

Lucas "It's simple, Hanna. New York City offers many more possibilities and resources that your business needs, which you won't find here in Rosewood." He starts explaining, capturing Hanna's full attention. "For example, people to hire. You need more seamstresses. Can you find any additional qualified people for that here in Rosewood, aside from the ladies already working for you?"

Hanna shakes her head.

Lucas "Well, New York is teeming with talented individuals in the fashion industry, many of them eager to kickstart their careers and ready to work with a talented designer like you. You could not only hire more seamstresses but also employ newly graduated designers to assist-"

Hanna "I don't want anyone else to design dresses except for me, Lucas. My own name is in the brand. I won't put my name on other people's designs."

Lucas "That's not what I mean. Don't interrupt me, let me finish. I mean that you could have another designer overseeing your seamstresses' work, so you won't have to do it yourself. Someone knowledgeable on the matter, someone with good judgment who you could rely on. Wasn't that what you asked me? To alleviate your workload?"

Hanna nods. "Yes, I'm sorry. Go on."

Lucas "Well, so you'll have to close your workshop here and move it to New York. You should only keep your store here in Rosewood, not your production."

Hanna "What? Are you telling me I'll have to fire my employees at the workshop here?"

Lucas nods.

Hanna "I can't do that, Lucas. I won't."

Lucas "Let's move on, and we can discuss that later." He suggests, knowing he won't easily change Hanna's mind about it. "As I was telling you, moving your workshop to New York is the most convenient option. And since you are having your workshop there, it wouldn't make any sense not to open a store as well. I mean, New York City is practically a global fashion center."

Hanna nods.

Lucas "But, as you told me the other day, you won't be able to design as many dresses as needed to have a good stock of them in both stores. So, as I've already told you, you should have a hybrid. A new line of dresses that will be mass-produced in another place, still designed by you, of course, but a more affordable line of dresses, made elsewhere in an outsourced company. So you won't have to worry about their production. And more affordable doesn't mean lower quality, Hanna. They can still be very high-quality dresses. Also, don't forget, this new line can offer different sizes and colors to cater to a broader audience." He pauses for a moment and continues. "Of course, you'll have to raise the prices of your exclusive line of dresses, the ones made at your workshop. With these adjustments, you won't face any more stocking problems."

Hanna "It sounds actually quite good, Lucas… but it also sounds expensive, and I don't think I could afford all of those things, even if I reinvest the money I was setting aside to pay my mom back."

Lucas finally opens the folder he's holding in his hands. "Yes, I know. But the numbers you showed me the other day are great, Hanna. Your sales are strong, and your business has shown exponential growth during its first year. I've created a new business plan, and I've also included some projections for the next two years, and it looks very promising." He hands the folder to Hanna.

Hanna "Wow... these are too many zeros, Lucas..."

Lucas "Yes, that's why I know I won't have any problems getting you some investors."

Hanna looks at him. "Would you really do that for me, Lucas?"

Lucas "Of course, Hanna. Not only as your friend but also as one of your investors. I'd like to invest in your business too. I would put all the money myself if I could, but I've recently invested in some other businesses, and I won't see the profits of those for a few more months. I'll still invest a portion of what you need and find other investors for the rest."

Hanna smiles at him. "You're the best, Lucas." She hands the folder back to him. "But... I don't know much about businesses, and all this investors thing sounds a bit complex. Will I still have a say in my own business after getting more people involved?"

Lucas "Of course, you will, Han. This is your business, your brand. You'll retain a significant percentage of the ownership. And don't worry about the more tedious parts. I'll take care of them. I work with excellent lawyers for all these legal agreements, and you're already working with the best accountant in Rosewood. We've got this." He smiles at her. "If everything goes as planned, you'll be able to focus only on designing and hire other people to handle the admin work."

Hanna "Wait a minute... Will I have to go to work in New York?" She now realizes the implications of having an extra store and moving most of the production there.

Lucas "Well, you would have to go to New York for a while until everything is set up. After that, you'll be able to work from Rosewood and only go there when necessary."

Hanna "Are you sure? How long will it be?"

Lucas "It will depend on finding the right location for the store, hiring all the people to run it, especially the other designer I mentioned earlier since you'll have to oversee it yourself. It has to be someone you can trust. I'll also handle the outsourced company responsible for producing the other dresses. It could take at least a couple of months. You don't have to be there permanently, just most of the time to take care of these matters."

Hanna nods.

Lucas "And it won't happen right away. We still need to secure those other investors."

Hanna "I should talk to Caleb about this."

Lucas "Why don't we go out for dinner, the three of us? I haven't seen him in a while."

Hanna "Yeah, I'll see if he's free." She grabs her phone. "Just..." She sighs. "I haven't told him about the massive mess my business has become... Would you mind not mentioning my desperate visit to you in New York the other day, or me calling you crying yesterday, or my store being closed? Let's just tell him about the possibility of expanding it to New York."

Lucas looks at her, confused.

Hanna "It's just that he's been so supportive of me with this that I don't want to let him down. I don't want him to know what a terrible business manager I am. He was so proud of me when I opened the store, and I don't know how to tell him that I had to close it now. I like the image he has of me… I don't want to ruin it."

Lucas "Don't be silly, Han. I'm sure he'll-"

Hanna "No, you don't get it, Lucas." She interrupts him. "People usually tent to underestimate me. It's been like that my whole life. Even my dad. But Caleb is different, he sees something in me. And I like that… it makes me believe I can do this."

Lucas nods understandingly. "No problem, Han. I won't say a word about any of it. But don't you think he's going to find out sooner or later? I mean, he lives here in Rosewood, maybe he already saw your store closed. And your store being closed is not your fault, Hanna. Running a business is not easy, and you didn't fail. You've done great so far. It just grew too big in too little time, that's all. I believe in you too, by the way." He chuckles. "I just told you I would invest in your business myself, didn't I?"

Hanna "Thanks, Lucas. You are so nice to me." She gives him a warm smile. "And yes, I'll have to tell Caleb I closed the store, but I just don't want him to know how dramatic it all really was... I'll just give him a call and see if he's up for dinner tonight." She says while taking her phone to her ear.

Lucas "Go ahead. I'll give you some privacy and take all these upstairs." He starts grabbing some other folders and papers from the coffee table and goes upstairs to his little office there.

Caleb "Hey." He picks up after a few rings.

Hanna "Hey… what are you up to?"

Caleb "Just got home." He only says. They haven't spoken to each other since their fight the night before.

Hanna "Lucas is in Rosewood, and we were just talking about getting together for dinner, the three of us."

Caleb "I don't know, Hanna. I'm not really in the mood right now…"

Hanna "Please, babe... There's something Lucas and I have been discussing about my business, and I want your opinion about it."

Caleb "Oh, so now you care about what I think?"

Hanna "I always care about what you think, Caleb." She says softly and sighs. "I know last night didn't seem like it, but I do. Please, would you join us for dinner?"

Caleb "Fine, count me in."

Hanna smiles. "Great! I'll pick you up in a little while."

Caleb "Okay, see you." He says and ends the call.

/

Hanna stops her car in front of the house and honks the car horn to let Caleb know she's there to pick him up.

Caleb "Hey." He says while getting in the car.

Hanna "Hey." She turns and stares at him.

Caleb "So, where are we going?"

Hanna "To the Apple Rose… Lucas is meeting us there."

Caleb "Okay, let's get going."

Hanna faces back to the wheel and pulls out with the car, realizing she won't get the kiss she was expecting.

They arrive at the Grille and go inside. Lucas is already there, sitting at a table, so they approach him.

Hanna "Hey again!" She says and sits down.

Caleb "Hey, Lucas!" He shakes his hand before sitting down too.

Lucas "Hi, guys!"

Caleb "Long time no see." He tells him, making conversation. "What brought you back to Rosewood this time?"

Hanna gives Lucas a look to remind him what she asked him earlier.

Lucas "Nothing in particular, I just needed to take care of a few things at the loft. And-"

Hanna interrupts him. "And I asked him for his advice... business advice."

Caleb turns his gaze to her now.

Hanna "You know I've been having a little trouble keeping up with the production of my dresses. I asked you to take my website down the other day."

Caleb nods.

Hanna "Well, I had to close my store today, and I think I'll keep it closed until Monday so the ladies can get some more dresses ready to restock."

Caleb "Oh, I didn't know you-"

Hanna "It's no big deal." She cuts him off, minimizing the problem. "But I can't let this happen again, so that's why I asked Lucas to help me find a permanent solution."

Caleb "So?"

Hanna "He's come up with some very good ideas, but we'll need to get some investors involved to be able to carry them out."

Lucas "I've designed a new business plan for her business... which involves a workshop and an extra store based in New York City..."

Lucas continues to fill Caleb in about the details he discussed with Hanna earlier. However, the truth is, Caleb finds it very difficult to keep up with his explanation after hearing the phrase "New York City." He just becomes trapped in those three words.

Hanna "So, what do you think?"

Caleb shrugs. "It's your choice, Hanna."

Hanna stares at him, confused. She wasn't expecting this lack of interest from him at all. The waiter shows up to take their order. Unlike Lucas, neither Hanna nor Caleb had the chance to look at the menu since they were discussing Hanna's new project. But they've been at the Apple Rose countless times before, so they just order something they've had before, and the waiter leaves.

Hanna "Don't you have anything else to say about it?"

Caleb "No, it seems like you two have everything figured out. It sounds good." He only says.

Hanna "Okay…" She answers and there's a very awkward silence.

Lucas is the one to cut through that awkwardness. "I made you a copy of the business plan, Han." He hands her a folder.

Hanna takes it and places it aside on the table. "We still need to make some modifications to it, Lucas. I'm not firing Lisa and Anna."

Lucas "We can review that later." He only says. "So, how's your business going, Caleb?"

Caleb "It's going well. We have a good amount of clients, and we are about to close a new deal in Boston soon… and I've been working on a new software."

Lucas "Your own software?"

Caleb "Yeah, it's just a project for now. But I think we could expand our customer network throughout the country once it's finished."

Lucas "Oh, sounds very interesting. Tell me more about it."

The guys engage in a geek conversation that Hanna finds impossible to follow, but she likes watching Caleb talk about his computer things, so she remains silent while staring at him.

Food finally arrives, and they change their subject. At some point, Hanna and Lucas resume talking about some extra details of Hanna's business expansion, so Caleb is the one who falls silent then. Unlike Hanna before, it's not a comfortable silence for him. He starts to feel down, unable to believe that Hanna is embarking on a bigger project to expand her business when her excessive working hours are already harming their relationship.

Hanna "I need to keep my workshop here, Lucas." She insists. "Lisa and Anna can keep making the dresses to sell at the store here."

Lucas "Keeping your employees here would be more expensive than making the dresses in New York and then transporting them here. How the hell will I justify that expense to the investors?"

Hanna "Sometimes our customers need modifications to adapt the dresses they buy to their bodies, you know? Like making them shorter or other alterations. I need my ladies here."

Lucas "Fine. Only one of them."

Hanna "Both."

Lucas sighs, knowing he won't win this argument.

They finish their meal, and the waiter clears their table.

Waiter "Would you like to see our dessert menu?"

Lucas "I'll pass… I have to watch my sugar."

Hanna "What about you, babe?"

Caleb "I actually have to get up pretty early tomorrow, so I'll pass too. I should get going."

Hanna nods and looks at the waiter. "We'll just have the check, then."

/

Hanna and Caleb are back in Hanna's car after leaving the Grille.

Hanna "So? You are leaving earlier tomorrow morning? Is it about your new software project?" She makes conversation as she starts driving.

Caleb "I'm going to Boston."

Hanna "Oh, I didn't know you were leaving."

Caleb "I told you the other day."

Hanna "Yeah, I know. I just didn't know you were leaving tomorrow."

Caleb "Well, I was going to tell you last night, but…"

Hanna nods.

She decides to leave it there, seeing that Caleb is either in a bad mood or still upset with her about their fight the night before, or maybe both.

They arrive home, where Chocolate receives them with the usual excitement. He appears to be the only one happy in the house. He is greeted back by both of them.

Hanna and Caleb get ready for bed without exchanging a word.

Naturally, Caleb is the first one ready for bed, so he turns in before Hanna. She joins him a few minutes later and turns off the bedside lamp.

Caleb turns to lie on his side, his back to her.

Hanna can't take it any longer. She wraps her arm around his waist, spooning him, and places a kiss against his back. "I know you are still mad at me, but I'm going to miss you when you are in Boston, so I'll just hold you all night long."

Caleb "I'll only be away for two days."

Hanna "Still."

Caleb takes her hand but doesn't say anything. She's right. He's still upset.