A/N: So, here's a little something new for you all. It came to me when I heard the announcement that they had cast a slightly older actress to play Lucy this year and it got me thinking about how old Lucy might actually be now. The next day I was out shopping and I was stuck in a line of parents and kids getting ready to go back to school… and as they say, inspiration struck.

This isn't going to be a long story – just a couple of chapters, really. But I hope you enjoy!

"Hey, Lindsay! Did you ever hear back from Adam about the…" Jo Danville broke off, grimacing when she noticed that her colleague was on the phone. "Sorry," she mouthed, entering the office and sliding into the seat behind her cluttered desk. Lindsay merely smiled and nodded before turning her full attention back to her conversation.

"Well, just get her the pink ones then," she said. "No, I know, okay?" She let out an exasperated sigh. "Yes, I know she already has lots of pink!" Closing her eyes, Lindsay sighed again, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. Clearly this conversation had either been going on for some time, or it was not the first time she and – well, whoever was on the other end of the line – had had this exact conversation. "Well honestly! What is the point of getting her the green ones if you know she'll never wear them?" Lindsay took a deep breath before speaking again. Her tone was calm and cool, the epitome of reason. "Just get her the pink for now and when she grows out of them – which will probably be in about a month at the rate she's going – we'll talk about other options then, okay? Thank you… yes, I know…" A small smile touched the corners of her lips. "I love you too. See you later."

She ended the call, tossing her phone onto her desk and scrubbing her hands over her face before looking up and giving Jo a slightly frazzled smile.

"Your better half?" Jo guessed, pointing to the phone on Lindsay's desk.

Lindsay raised an eyebrow and rested her elbows on the desk, cupping her chin in her palm. "Oh, is that what we're calling him now?" she asked with a roll of her eyes. "I could have sworn we were calling him my impossibly infuriating and stubborn half."

Jo chuckled. Although Lindsay's words were laced with frustration, her tone was full of affection for the man she shared her life with. "Uh oh. Trouble in paradise?"

Lindsay shook her head. "No. Not really," she said. "Lucy is just going through this pink phase right now – you know, if it isn't pink, she wants nothing to do with it – and poor Danny… I think he feels like his whole world is an explosion of pink. And he's desperately trying to inject some other colour into her life. I keep telling him he's fighting a losing battle; she'll grow out of it eventually, but…" she smiled and shrugged her shoulders. "It's weird. He didn't have nearly as much trouble dealing with her purple phase. Or the two months she insisted that she was a real princess. He didn't bat an eyelash then, just started calling her your majesty."

"So what's different now?" Jo asked.

Lindsay raised her hand to her mouth, gnawing thoughtfully on her fingernail until she realized what she was doing and clasped her hands together in front of her on her desk.

"Have you looked at a calendar recently?" she asked.

Jo frowned. "Um… yeah. It's August 31."

"That's right. And Monday is Labour Day. And that means that Tuesday is…" she prompted.

Her brow furrowed in confusion, Jo glanced to the small calendar on her desk. Tuesday. The day after Labour Day. What was happening on that day? She wracked her brains.

Suddenly it hit her. Hadn't her own daughter Ellie been lamenting the start of September? Dreading the end to her summer of blessed freedom and the start of another year of…

"Lord. Is Lucy old enough to go to school?" Jo asked.

A sad smile touched the corners of Lindsay's lips and she nodded her head. "She turned five in the spring, so my baby girl is going to Kindergarten."

Jo could see the conflict of emotions already swirling in Lindsay's eyes. She recognized the pride mingled with sadness on the young mother's face – she'd felt the same when first Tyler then Ellie had embarked on their respective first days at school.

"It's such an exciting time," Jo mused. "But also one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life; leaving my babies on the first day of school."

"I'm trying not to think about it, to be honest," Lindsay replied, a tightly controlled smile on her face. "It's just too hard. It feels like only yesterday that Danny and I brought her home from the hospital. She was so tiny and helpless and she needed us for everything. And now? Now she's going to school! And I just don't know where the time went."

Jo smiled sympathetically. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, Lindsay. But that feeling never goes away," she sighed. "They keep growing up, no matter what you do. And eventually they're off to college. Or getting married. Or having babies of their own…"

Lindsay's eyes widened. "Oh my God. Is Tyler…?"

Jo laughed. "Not yet, thank God. He's starting his second year of college, but the getting married and having babies part – you can't start calling me Grandma Jo just yet." She gestured toward Lindsay's discarded cell phone. "So… that phone call earlier… Danny is taking Lucy shopping for school?"

Lindsay nodded. "Yeah."

Jo raised her eyebrows. "Well, you've got more balls than I gave you credit for," she teased. "I never would have let Russ take Tyler shopping. He could never say no to that boy and would come home with half the store!"

Laughing, Lindsay leaned back in her chair. "Well, Danny has a list that he's supposed to stick to," she said. "And he knows that deviating from that list could be seen as grounds for sleeping on the couch for the foreseeable future."

"So this list… is it just the regular supplies – backpack, pencil case, the usual – or is he doing the whole kit and caboodle?"

Lindsay sighed. "Well, right now they're in Macy's looking for clothes for school."

Jo bit her lip, but it was useless. She couldn't contain the laughter that bubbled from deep inside.

"What?" Lindsay asked, her expression one of amusement. "What's funny?"

"I'm just… I'm sorry, Lindsay," Jo said, wiping the tears of mirth from her eyes. "I just had this mental picture of Danny Messer standing in the Little Miss section of the store and I just… I can't…" She dissolved into laughter once again. "I can just see him in his leather jacket looking all tough, surrounded by a sea of little pink dresses… It's just too ridiculous! He's such a… a guy!"

A smile split Lindsay's face and she too began to laugh. "I know," she agreed. "I kind of wish I could be there, hiding in the clothing racks with my camera. But from our conversation, he sounds a little frazzled. Lucy's not exactly picky about her clothes, but she can be a handful and it sounded like he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible."

"Well, he may feel that way now, but when she's off on her first day of school wearing the little outfit she picked out with her Daddy, I'm sure he'll feel differently."

A smile of fondness crossed Lindsay's features. "Oh I know he will," Lindsay agreed. "He's just having trouble dealing with the fact that she's growing up. If he had his way, she'd be three years old forever."

"And what about you?" Jo asked. "How are you feeling about this new stage in Lucy's life?"

Lindsay was thoughtful for a moment. "I'm… okay. A little sad," she conceded. "It's funny, Danny ended up taking her shopping today because when we checked our schedules for next week, we saw that he was on for first thing Tuesday morning. He was so upset that he was going to miss her first day. So we decided that he'd have this special time with her, taking her shopping and I'd be the one to take her to school. At the time, I thought he was getting the raw end of the deal, but now… now I'm not so sure."

Seeing the misty look in her young colleague's eyes, Jo stood, rounding the desks and dropping into Danny's empty chair. She put her arm around Lindsay's shoulders, giving her a reassuring squeeze.

"It's hard, Lindsay. I know it is," Jo sympathized. "But you'll look back on that day and be glad that you were there. There's really nothing like witnessing your baby take those first steps toward growing up."

Taking in a steadying breath, Lindsay turned and smiled at Jo. "Thanks, Jo," she said, dabbing at her eyes with Jo's offered Kleenex. She blew her nose and tossed the tissue into the trash. "You know, it's really nice to have someone to talk to… someone who's been there. I haven't really had that here at work before."

Jo smiled. "Well, it's nice to have someone who's willing to listen to me when I give advice. Lord knows my kids started tuning me out years ago," she said with a wink. "You guys are going to be fine. Every parent goes through this, Lindsay. And for what it's worth, I think that you and Danny have done a great job with Lucy. She's such a little sweetheart; she's the best parts of both of you. She's going to make you both so proud."

"Oh God. You're going to make me cry again!" Lindsay moaned.

Jo smiled and handed her another tissue. As Lindsay was wiping at her eyes, her phone began to vibrate on her desk. Glancing down at the caller ID, she sighed. "Guess who?" she asked. She answered the call, pressing the phone to her ear. "Hey, babe. What's up?"

As Lindsay listened to her husband on the other end of the line, Jo stood, going back to her desk to collect her things before heading back into the lab to finish her work. Pausing in the doorway, she glanced over her shoulder at Lindsay, who met her gaze, mouthing a silent thank you.

Jo winked. "Anytime," she replied quietly before pushing her way back out into the lab's bustling hallway.

So, Chapter 1 is in the books. I'd love to know what you guys thought!

I was originally going to have Lindsay having this conversation with someone else – not really sure who. But I was re-watching the episode with Jo's daughter Ellie and it hit me that she would be the perfect person for Lindsay to talk to about her feelings. She's been there and would an understanding and sympathetic person for Lindsay to confide in.

Anyway, enough from me. On to more writing :)