Title: Of Trees and Ribbons
Category: CSI: NY
Rating: K+
Genre: Romance
Pairing: Don Flack/Lindsay Monroe
Series: Christmas Ships
Word Count: 681
Summary: The best gifts don't always come in wrapping.
Of Trees and Ribbons
-Drabble-
The Little Drummer Boy played faintly in the background, with Lindsay humming to her favorite song as she circled their tree, hanging ornaments where she saw fit. Technically, they weren't allowed a real tree in an apartment which had been a constant downer for her each year. But Don Flack Jr. hadn't let rules stand in his way and hauled a real tree up the stairs without being caught once, setting it up in the center of the living room. It was the first thing she saw when she got home from work that night. The strong pine scent assaulted her the moment the door opened and she just about cried when she saw it sitting there, waiting for her. He came out of the kitchen then, satisfied grin on his face and a cup of egg nog in each of his hands, holding one out to her.
"I got the decorations out too... Took an hour to get the lights untangled but-"
She kissed him, cutting him off with her utter joy at what he'd done for her. Apparently it hadn't escaped his attention just how unexcited she was about pulling the old plastic tree out of storage and setting it up.
Drawing back, she pecked his lips in between exclamations of, "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"
Laughing, he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her forehead. "Thank me now but if the landlord comes lookin', I'm telling him it was all you and that smile..."
She grinned, hugging him tight before her excitement overcame her and she pulled back. "Let's decorate it." She hurried across the room and stuck her Christmas music in before beginning to look through the many boxes of decorations that had come from both their places and mixed together over the last two years. With a low chuckle, he joined her.
Lights and garland circled the branches and nearly all the ornaments were put up. Don was fastening the red ribbons into bows around various branches like his mother used to do when he was growing up. She peeked at him, lit up by the bright multi-colored Christmas lights; he was even more handsome in that moment, which was a hard feat for him. Three and a half years they'd been together and he still managed to surprise her.
Feeling her gaze he looked over. "What?" he wondered, lifting a dark brow.
She shrugged, her mouth widening in a grin. "Just happy."
He nodded. "Good. It was what I was goin' for."
She didn't think she could smile any larger. "Don... This is..."
"It's just a tree. If I was gonna do something truly romantic..." He took a few steps around the tree and took one of her hands. She looked up at him, wonderingly. His mouth quirked up on one side before he slid one of the red velvet ribbons beneath her right ring-finger and began tying it in a bow. She stared down at it with big brown eyes which only widened as he bent to one knee. "It's not a ring... Not yet anyway. Christmas is still a week away. But..." He stared up at her, bright blue eyes catching hers and holding on strong. "You're always saying the best presents don't come in wrapping... So, Lindsay Monroe... Will you do me this honor and be my wife?"
She swallowed tightly, her eyes swelling with tears once more, almost falling as she nodded vigorously before falling to her knees in front of him and wrapping her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. His arms circled her tightly, drawing her in close. The last strains of the song played out as Lindsay soon-to-be-Flack knelt before two of the best Christmas presents she'd ever been given. Her thumb lightly traced her engagement "ring" and then a happy tear did manage to escape only to be brushed away by Don's thumb as he cupped her face, stroking her cheek. It was, without a doubt, the best Christmas of her entire life and all because of a certain handsome Homicide Detective.