Summary: Two days after the dinner from hell, Lindsay pays Caleb a little visit...
A/N: I've missed a few of the episodes this season, so I don't know how accurate or right or whatever some of this is, little details or whatever, but just ignore it and go with it, okay? Thanks.
Standing outside Caleb's office, Lindsay compulsively smoothed her skirt for what had to be the tenth time. School had just let out and she had gone straight to the Newport Group offies, intent on speaking to Caleb, but not entirely sure what she would say. She only knew that after the way dinner had gone two nights before, she had to say something. Smoothing her skirt one last time, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Come in."
She stepped inside the doorway to find Caleb hunched over his desk, buried in a sea of real estate papers. He looked up from his work, and hardly seemed surprised to find her there.
"Lindsay. Nice to see you. What can I do for you"
Taking another deep breath she said"You told me to come by when I had a list of demands." She pulled what appeared to be a small piece of paper out of her purse.
Caleb nodded and smirked knowingly. He reached inside his brief case and pulled out his check book. "I knew it. So what is it you'd like? A brand new BMW? Money for Harvard? Come on, let's have it. I've got a mountain if paper work to attend to, so let's try and make this quick, shall we"
"Okay."
She walked over to his desk and set the piece of paper in front of him. If Caleb was surprised to find that this "list of demands" was actually a photograph, he tried his hardest not to show it. He said nothing as he picked up the photo and looked at it carefully. It was a simple Polaroid, taekn several years ago. The picture was of a small girl with wavy red locks. She couldn't have been any older than six or seven. She was wearinga sparkly plastic tiara, a cute pink sundress, and glittery angel wings. In her left hand was a plastic wand of the Halloween fairy princess costume variety.
"What is this"
"It's what I want."
"A fake crown and some wings? Please don't waste my time" he said hastily, shoving the picture aside.
"It's not the wings."
"Then what is it you want from me"
"I want my seventh birthday back."
"Excuse me"
"You heard me. My seventh birthday, I want it back."
"I'm not sure I understand."
"Mom took that picture of me the day I turned seven. She had asked me waht I wanted for my birthday. I told her I wanted to be a fairy princess. So she bought me that dress, and the wings and crown and wand. But I lied to her."
Lindsay paused, stealing a glance at Caleb, who was watching her with a puzzled expression on his face.
She continued"See, what I really wanted was for my daddy to be there. He always missed my birthdays and holidays and school plays and parent-teacher days and he wasn't there to teach me how to ride a bike or roller skate. I thought it was because I had done something wrong, because I was a bad girl. So before my birthday, I made a wish. I promised... whoever it is that listens to wished, that I would be the best little girl in the whole world, so very well behaved and sweet, if only they would send my daddy to me for my birthday. I woke up that morning, wishing and hoping that maybe my birthday waish would come true. When my friends from second grade came and I blew out that candles on my cake, I closed my eyes so tight. I didn't want to open them. I think..."
She took another breath, trying hard to fight back tears"I think I knew deep down that if I opened them, I'd find out what a crock wishing really is. Because for all my hoping and wishing and promising to be a good girl, he never came. You never came."
Caleb stared at her, speechless. For once, he had no idea what to say, but it didn't matter. She wasn't finished yet.
"I didn't want anything from you. All the other little girls in my class, when it came time for their birthdays, they always asked their daddies for things; new dresses, a pony, the latest Barbie doll to hit the stores. I didn't want any of that. I knew that if you'd just walk through the door that day, I'd be happier than anyone with a brand new Barbie ever could be. I just wanted you to be there, to come to dance recitals and clean up my scrabbed knees after I fell off the swings. That's all I ever wanted.
Wiping the stray tears from her eyes, she looked at the floor. "So that's what I want from you, Mr. Nichol, my seventh birthday back."
She took a step toward his desk and picked up the picture that had been shoved to the corner. She held it out in her hand and he took it from her, silently, tentatively, his face expressionless, save the pained look in his eyes. She looked right at him, at those blues eyes that were hers, too, then turned and walked out of the office.
When he was sure she was gone, he brought the picture up to get a better look at it. She had his chine. Caleb turned the photo over to find something written on the back. In neat, yet messy hand writing that had clearly belonged to a very diligent second grader, it said"To Daddy. Love, Lindsay."