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“Wow, he’s home, that’s great.”

“Yeah, I’m so proud of him. So, pizza?”

“Sure. I invited Elise to the pub too.” Why had she blurted that out?

“Oh, really. You guys are friends?” Lydia didn’t miss the edge in Halle’s voice. Did she really think Lydia had something going on with the doctor beyond friendship?

“We’re becoming friends. It was tricky when she was my doctor, but I’ve been discharged now and it’s only right that I buy the woman a drink.”

“Of course.” Halle’s face still looked stricken.

“Halle, we’re just friends.”

“Lyds, it’s entirely up to you who you see. I’m not being weird, I swear.” Yeah right!

“I owe you, too. Although I don’t think a drink will suffice.” Lydia still hadn’t worked out how to thank Halle for sticking her beak in, as Halle so eloquently put it one time.

“You owe me nothing. And we’re not gonna bleat on about it either. Why don’t you get changed and I’ll call for a pizza?”

Sensing Halle’s metaphorical foot being put down, Lydia sighed. “I’ll be 10 minutes.”

* * *

“Is this the list?” Halle asked, waving a piece of paper as she spoke. Pulling on a boot, Lydia hopped over to the kitchen table. Plonking down rather ungracefully, Lydia peered at the flapping page.

“Yup. What do you think?”

The doorbell rang, halting further discussion temporarily. Halle shot off to collect the food. “It’s not a very long list. And what does “appearance” mean?”

“I just wanted to change things up a little.”

“Well, the haircut was a good shout. You look great!” Sensing her cheeks heating, Lydia busied herself with the pizza box so as not to make accidental eye contact. Any compliments from Halle were too much at the minute.

“Thanks.” Actually, Lydia was over the bloody moon with her new hairstyle. Instead of bedraggled brown locks, she now sported healthy layers that sat just above her shoulders. It was a simple style but gave her a little edge. Everyone she’d come across had complimented her hair, apart from Halle. Which at the time upset her a little, but now she wondered if Halle was trying to play it cool.

“So, you can tick the moving one off. What about the others? Have you found a place to chuck yourself out of a plane? Or bridge?”

“Not yet. Anyway, they were just the first things that came to mind. There are plenty of things I want to experience.”

“What about that charity dog sled you always wanted to take part in?” Lydia sat silent for a few seconds. She remembered?

“Y-yeah, that’s still something I want to do. How the hell did you remember that?”

“Lydia, you spent six months bombarding Fe and I with pictures of cute Husky dogs.”

“I was twelve.”

“And? You were pretty determined, that’s what you wanted to do. You should put it on the list.” Halle handed the paper over, tapping it with one finger, whilst handing Lydia a pen with the other.

“Okay, that’s added.”

“What else?”

“I’d like to visit the fjords in Norway, too.”

“Well, there y’are! It’s a two for one. You could make a holiday out of it. It’d be a real adventure.”

“I suppose so.”