It's Sunday night, and Jackie told Lindsay she would make dinner for the two families that evening. However, Jackie hates cooking and isn't too good at it, so she orders pizza and invites Lindsay and her boys over.

"How you holding up?" Jackie asks Lindsay as she tears a slice of pizza out of the box and sets it on her paper plate (dishes aren't her strong suit either).

"Oh, you know," Lindsay mumbles, picking up a mushroom that fell off of her piece. "Same old." Her eyes momentarily light up. "You know, I found out that Oliver has a girlfriend."

"No way," Jackie says, smiling at her friend. "Justin's gotta be about there, too, I think. They're just so damn secretive."

"That's probably what they do when they hang out," Lindsay says with her mouth full. "They talk about girls now, I'm sure."

Jackie glances at her youngest son from the corner of her eye. He's sitting on the couch in the living room with Oliver next to him as they casually talk.

"Poor boys," Jackie says quietly. "I remember how insane it was being that age as a girl. I can't imagine what they're going through." She frowns, remembering that Oliver also has just lost his father. "I mean… they aren't gonna be kids much longer."

"They're twelve and thirteen," Lindsay reminds her. "They're hardly kids now."

"That's subjective," Jackie says a little defensively.

Meanwhile, Alex and Matthew are sitting on her bed eating their pizza. They're taking advantage of hanging out in Alex's room since Daniel is working late and he's the only one who cares anyway.

"So you're really leaving me tomorrow, huh?" Matthew asks.

"Only for a week," Alex states.

"How are you ever going to survive without me?" Matthew teases. "I mean, we do spend every day together."

"I'm a little more worried about you," Alex admits, a small smile on her face. "I get to be in a different location and hang out with different people. I'll be busy. You, however, get to stay home and do all of your weird AP summer homework. Real exciting, huh?"

"That summer homework involves some reading," Matthew says. "It'll give me something to do." He takes a final bite of his pizza and sets the crust down on the plate. "Do you have, like, old friends there or something?"

"I mean I had friends when I lived there," Alex says. "Nobody I kept in contact with. But it's not like I'm going to just be surrounded by adults the whole time I'm there, though. Aunt Donna has a daughter who is like, a year younger than me, I think."

Matthew grins and grabs her hand. "Just try to have a good time without me, okay? I know it'll be super hard, but…"

"Ew!" Alex pulls her hand out of his grasp. "You got pizza grease all over my hand!" She giggles and looks at him. "Stupid."

"Won't be so stupid when you come back, what with all the studying I'm gonna be doing," Matthew says with a wink.

Alex hears her father voice bellowing from the kitchen. "Shit. What now?"

The door flies open. It's Jackie.

"You know your dad doesn't like you two alone in here, and I'm lenient," Jackie says quietly, "But you've got to at least keep the door open, okay?" She peers behind her really quick and then looks back at the kids. "I trust you both, you know, especially you, Matthew," she says, looking at her friend's son, "But Daniel, not so much. You're his daughter's boyfriend."

"Okay, sorry, Mom," Alex says. "It's just a habit."

"Sorry," Matthew echoes as Jackie walks away, leaving the door open.

"What does she mean, she especially trusts you?" Alex pouts. "I've never done a bad thing in my life."

Matthew just grins at her.

…

"You know my son is smart," Lindsay tells Daniel as he joins them at the kitchen table. "So is Alex. They're not idiots like you two."

Jackie hides a smile as she glances over to see her husband's reaction.

"They're teenagers," Daniel says. "Teenagers aren't smart."

"No, Daniel, you weren't smart," Lindsay says. "I mean, you were a mother's worst nightmare when you were in high school."

"Kim's mom liked me," Daniel says, earning him a glare from his wife.

"Kim's mom wasn't a real mom," Lindsay refutes. "She didn't care what Kim did or who she did it with." She looks over at Jackie. "Sorry," she apologizes.

Jackie just rolls her eyes. "Maybe I'll see my ex-boyfriend when I visit, and then I can talk about him in front of you," she comments to Daniel.

"Come on," Daniel says dramatically. "That idiot? You think he's gonna make me jealous?"

"Oh, you think I'm jealous of that tramp?" Jackie asks, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I…" Daniel stops. "Never mind."

Lindsay hides a small grin on her face as she watches her friends continue to bicker. In a way it makes her sad because she doesn't have a husband to bicker with anymore, but at the same time she and Scott never argued the way Daniel and Jackie do.

"Guys, shut up!" Justin yells from the living room. "We're trying to watch TV and we can't do that if you're always fighting!"

Daniel rolls his eyes. "We are not 'always fighting'."

Lindsay looks at him with a skeptical look on her face. Jackie ignores it and takes a sip of her wine, while Daniel notices and turns to face his wife.

"Hey, we get along like most couples do," he says, and looks back at Lindsay. "She knows I love her." He grins at his wife.

"Some days," Jackie says, being serious but keeping a small smile on her face. "He's probably looking forward to me leaving for a week, to be honest."

"Nah, 'cause you know Justin's gonna be off with Oliver the whole time," Daniel says. "I'm gonna be alone."

"You can hang out with Ken," Lindsay offers.

"Ken's got a baby," Daniel says. "I've only seen him once since she's been born and she's two."

Lindsay doesn't even bother to bring up Nick Andopolis. Daniel and Nick hadn't spoken much since Nick joined the Marines after high school per his father's request. Everybody mostly expected him to rebel or stick with it a couple years and then resume being his goofy, drum-loving self, but Nick kind of wound up just like his father. Whether something happened to him or he just decided to become hardheaded one day, nobody really knows.

"Well, if you're ever desperate, I'm right down the street," Lindsay says. "I don't have much company besides you guys these days, anyway. With your daughter gone, however, I might have Matthew back for a little while."

"What about me?" Matthew asks, emerging from the hallway.

"You gonna want to hang out with me while Alex is gone?" Lindsay asks, raising an eyebrow at her son.

Matthew smiles. "Of course, Mom."

He and Lindsay had always gotten along, but he especially has been feeling sympathetic towards her since Scott died.

"See," Lindsay says, gesturing to Matthew, "He's a good boy."

"Okay, I'm an honor student, not a dog," Matthew jokes.

"You guys spend so much time together," Daniel comments, "I'm guessing you aren't helping her study 'cause her grades are nothing like yours."

Matthew sheepishly smiles. "Yeah, well…"

"I'm not all intellectual like Matt, Dad," Alex intervenes. "Just like you aren't. It's fine. I got my music, anyway."

"Music doesn't pay the bills," Daniel reminds her.

"It can," she shoots back with a smile plastered on her face. "Not like you guys even care. You've never even come to one of our shows."

"The places where you play scare me," Jackie simply says.

"You'd be with Dad," Alex points out. "But whatever, it's fine. Just don't think I haven't noticed you made it to all of Justin's soccer games."

She walks away, grabbing Matthew's hand and making him follow her into the living room.

There's an awkward air around the kitchen.

"Well, now I feel like shit," Daniel admits.

"Don't," Lindsay says, forcing a smile on her face. "You guys will hear her eventually. She's mostly only played in people's basements, anyway, from what I hear." She stands up. "I should probably head back home. I have some papers that I need to grade." She looks over at Jackie. "You and Alex be careful, okay? And have fun. I'll see you guys next week."

"We will," Jackie says, giving her friend a quick hug. "See you next week."