November 2, 2001

Lawrence smiled as he carefully hung up the phone in his office. It was official; he had two reserved tickets for Love Händel's farewell concert. Now, if only he could work up the guts to ask Linda out. A bit of nonchalant questioning had gotten Linda to reveal her favorite band, and as soon as Lawrence heard about the farewell concert, he knew what he had to do. The boys from Danville who'd hit it big had succumbed to the cruel fickleness of the music industry, but they wanted one last hurrah in their hometown. Linda had no doubt heard of the concert, but Lawrence wanted to make sure she was there to see it. With him. He had started listening to Love Händel after discovering Linda liked them so much, and their music was indeed addictive. They were scoffed for trying to be a hair band in the 90's, but Lawrence thought it gave them part of their unique style.

Lawrence was working late tonight, and Linda had volunteered to watch Ferb so he and Phineas could play. If a thousand fiery suns had been holding another thousand fiery suns, that might have begun to accurately describe the attachment the two boys had developed toward one another. It wasn't just their closeness in age – though Phineas was only about a week older – but they had bonded quickly and were now the best of friends. Phineas chatted, Ferb listened and offered toys, some of them cobbled together, and they'd play together all day long if they were allowed to. Phineas' obvious devotion toward his older sister had even begun to rub off on Ferb, and even though Candace was only content to play with the boys for a few minutes at a time before trotting off to do more girly things, the affection seemed to be returned.

Now, if only Lawrence could work up the courage to ask a woman out on a date for the first time in over ten years. It had been just over a year since Libby died, and while Lawrence wasn't sure there would ever be a day when he could say it had been "long enough," he knew if he kept waiting, that day would never come. Best to take a deep breath and jump back into the pool before he chickened out entirely. Linda was enchanting, and more importantly, Ferb had taken a real liking toward her. He needed a mother in his life, and while Lawrence didn't know yet if things would go that far with Linda, she was certainly a good candidate.

As Lawrence pulled into the driveway of the Flynn home, the Post-It note he had written the ticket confirmation number on felt like it was burning right through his pocket. He knew it was all in his head, but he didn't know whether to be giddy, terrified, or both. Had dating changed significantly since he'd done it last? Were there things he was expected to know? Would Linda even be interested in dating him, or did she only see him as a friend? They always had a good time together, but was that all she wanted? It was almost enough to send Lawrence back home to hide under the covers of his bed, but he needed to pick up his son first.

When Lawrence rang the doorbell, it was Candace who answered. She stood there in her pajamas, waving cheerfully at him. "Hi, Mr. Fletcher."

"Well, hello, Candace." She might have had plenty of seven-year-old sass, but it was equaled by her charm. "Where's your mum?"

"She's with the babies, in Phineas' room." Candace collectively referred to Phineas and Ferb as "the babies." Neither boy seemed to mind and Lawrence found it cute. "You can go back there if you want."

Lawrence's pace slowed as he approached Phineas' room. Linda was singing, and Lawrence nearly found himself falling under the spell she cast. Well, he considered, perhaps that was a touch melodramatic, but she was very good.

"Hush, little one, don't you cry; you're safe in my arms. I'll hold you and keep you safe from those dreams, safe from harm...."

Lawrence peeked around the doorway and into the bedroom and the sight that greeted him melted his heart. Phineas was fast asleep in his bed and Linda had Ferb with her in the rocking chair. He was lying against her, his eyes focused on her face as she sang to him. Ferb had liked many of his babysitters, but never had Lawrence seem him look at any of them with such an intense, visceral connection, and Lawrence knew right then that he absolutely had to marry this woman. Of course, that was easier said than done, considering he had never even done so much as hold her hand.

Linda looked up, seeing Lawrence, and smiled, standing up to hand Ferb to his father. "Oh, hi. I think he had a bad dream...he woke up crying."

"Poor fellow." Lawrence hugged Ferb firmly, then looked down at him. "Are you all right now?"

Ferb nodded, blinking drowsily.

"Will you be all right to stay here with Phineas while Daddy talks to Ms. Flynn?"

Ferb nodded again, climbing into Phineas' bed when Lawrence set him down. Phineas stirred, blinked, then reached out to pull at Ferb's arm. The two cuddled up together, and Phineas fell back to sleep. Ferb was still awake, but he was content.

"Aw." Linda smiled. "Would you look at that. They really do adore each other."

Lawrence nodded. "Yes, so it would seem." He cleared his throat, shifting nervously. "Linda...could I ask you something?"

"Of course." Linda turned to him, looking curious. "What is it?"

"I, ah, seem to have acquired a pair of tickets to the Love Händel farewell concert in Danville, and...." Lawrence paused to take a breath, but forced himself to soldier on before he backed out and ended up looking like a complete fool. "I was wondering if you would like to accompany me?"

Linda's eyes widened, but then she grew more reserved. "You mean, like a date?"

"Yes," Lawrence confirmed. "A date."

Linda looked down at the floor, scuffing the toe of one shoe against the carpet. "It sounds lovely, but what about...?" Her eyes trailed to his hand.

Lawrence, a bit baffled, looked down at his hand to see what the matter was, then realized it. His wedding ring. He still wore it out of habit, and perhaps out of an inner reluctance to sever that final tie. "Oh. That."

Linda's voice was quiet. "It's a pretty big 'that.'"

Lawrence swallowed hard, fighting the surge of emotion that came with talking about Libby. These days, it was a dull ache instead of raw pain that threatened to swallow him, but it still hurt. "Libby...my wife...." He sighed. "She died a year ago. It was very sudden."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Linda met Lawrence's eyes, her face full of sympathy.

"Thank you." Lawrence continued. "I suppose I really should stop wearing this ring."

Linda shook her head. "No, you don't have to if you're not ready. I understand. The way you've talked about her, she sounds like an incredible woman."

"She was," Lawrence agreed, "but I think it would be a better tribute to her to live life rather than stay mired in memories and let it pass by."

A smile tugged at the corners of Linda's mouth. "That's what I've always liked about you. You're so sensit--" She stopped herself, probably to avoid letting all of her inner thoughts slip. Lawrence had never quite understood why women did that. It seemed more conducive to communicative to get it all out in the open, but what did he know about how women's minds worked?

"Does that mean you'll go?" Lawrence asked, hopeful.

Linda nodded, her cheeks pinking up a bit. "Yes. I'd love to."

"Oh, good." Lawrence smiled at her, then realized he was missing a rather critical piece of information. "Now what in blazes is one supposed to wear to one of these things?"