Note From The Author-- Not surprisingly, I had no real reason for this other than it popped into my head. Please keep in mind that in this particular case I'm kind of guessing at some stuff, and humor me :) Enjoy
"You doing okay, Stell?"
The question caught her just a bit off guard, but she looked up at Don with a smile nonetheless. "I'd say that's a bit of a loaded question; but generally speaking, I'm fine."
He set down the file he was carrying and sat across the desk from her. "The Manning case?"
"The Manning case," she affirmed with a sigh.
"It's a tough one," Flack agreed. "I can't imagine how Teresa Manning must be feeling, not knowing who killed her two year old, the why of it."
Stella shook her head. "I can imagine it; she's been calling me."
It wasn't surprising, seeing as victims' families often stayed in touch; but he also knew that Stella tended to be more invested in her cases. "Stell, I can respect what she's going through, of course; but are you taking the time to think about yourself? Or are you just worrying about her?"
She couldn't help but smile. A long while ago she had given up on getting her back up when the men in her life worried about her. In the grand scheme of things, she figured there were worse things than to have a bunch of them kibitzing over her well being. "I'm worrying about myself, I swear. I even got a pedicure last week." She was grinning then.
"Nice." Don was laughing as he stood. "Anyway, the reason I came by, not the Manning case, but still important."
"You ran down that address on the body in the alley this morning?"
He nodded. "Just a couple blocks down from here; you free?"
"Let's go."
As usual, they chatted all the way to the elevator and down to the street. At the request of Stella's growling stomach, which she hadn't fed since breakfast, they stopped at a vendor just outside the lab to grab a pretzel. They had turned to pay when an unfamiliar voice rang out and put them both on edge.
"Stella Bonasera?"
They both turned, and a collective breath caught in their throats when they saw the man standing in front of them. Stella's knees almost buckled, and the hand Don pressed to her back was the only thing that kept her upright.
When neither of them did anything other than goggle at him, the man spoke again. "I'm sorry, are you Stella Bonasera?"
"Yes," she managed, unconsciously making Don proud when her voice didn't shake.
"I'm sorry to have snuck up on you, but I wanted to speak to you. I'm Frankie's brother, Tony."
She felt like someone had punched her in the gut. Don felt her go rigid and moved quickly, his hand going from her back to take her hand. "As far as we knew Frankie didn't have any family."
Tony shook his head. "That wouldn't surprise me. Frankie and I didn't exactly see things eye to eye, and when he died it had been over ten years since we had spoken. When I heard about what happened…" He broke off, still shaking his head. "I was hoping we could talk."
"Stell…"
She turned just enough that she could see him clearly, showing him a sad smile. "It's okay Don." Stella turned back to face the other man. "I would be lying if I said this wasn't surprised, and a little overwhelmed. I didn't know that you even existed, and with what happened…"
"I can understand that," he agreed. "And I would certainly understand if you wanted me to walk away right now and never come anywhere near you again; but I'm in town, and I knew I at least had to give it a shot."
Stella nodded. "I think I can see where you're coming from. I can't guarantee that you're going to get whatever it is you're looking for, but I'm willing to sit down and talk to you."
They set a time and location for that night. It certainly didn't surprise Flack when Stella picked someplace bright, crowded, and frequented by cops; he wouldn't have expected anything less. He wasn't really happy about the situation either way, but he didn't try to talk her out of it. Stella was a strong willed woman who knew her own heart, and if she wanted to do this she was going to do it.
So he held onto her until she was okay to let go, and he kept his mouth shut. But he wasn't happy about it. Which was exactly why he met Tony Mala at the front door of the bar where Stella was waiting.
"I figured I would be running into you," he said with an acknowledging nod.
Flack nodded back. "You're a smarter man than your brother."
"Look, I understand that you're worried."
He shook his head. "No, with all due respect, you really don't understand." Blue eyes flashed as he spoke. "You didn't sit by her hospital bed and listen to the story, you didn't watch the cuts and the bruises heal or wait for the results of a rape kit, and you sure as hell didn't watch the strongest woman you know fall to pieces and put herself back together after the actions of one man ripped her world apart."
The way the detective's voice broke just a bit surprised him, but he could see the point that was being made. "No, I didn't see any of it; and that's why I'm here."
"I know, but either way I'm warning you, from me and every other person in that woman's life; if you hurt her, so help me God they will never find your body."
Tony nodded crisply. "I wouldn't expect anything else."
Without another word, Don turned on his heel and headed back for the lab. When he got there, he wasn't surprised to find Danny, Hawkes, and Mac looking relatively worried and morose in the break room. "You three look like someone just kicked your puppies," he said tiredly as he sat down with them.
"Yeah well you look about like someone killed your grandmother," Danny told him.
"I don't think this is a good idea," Hawkes said, shaking his head.
Mac sighed. "Don't think any of us do, but Stella needs to do this, for herself. She's going to be fine.
Danny shook his head. "It took her so long to be able to deal with what happened. I don't like that she has to relive it."
"Think any of us do?" Don questioned.
Hawkes would have said more, but his cell phone rang. "Adam with results."
"Don't tell him where Stella is," Danny cautioned.
"Why not?" Mac asked, his brow furrowing.
Flack smiled a bit. "He has a huge crush on Stell."
"Got it, not sharing. See you guys later."
The others sat there for a while longer, and neither Danny nor Mac missed just how worried Flack was. Neither of them said anything, and surprisingly it was Don who spoke first. "This is ridiculous. You've got a lab to run, you've got a wife and baby at home, and I've got paper work. Stella will let someone know when she gets home."
He was on his feet when Mac spoke to him. "You know she's going to be fine. Try not to worry too much."
Yeah, that would happen. Flack finished his paperwork, grabbed a pizza on the way home, and went home to bide his time. In sweats and a worn high school t-shirt he sat on the couch and halfway watched whichever game happened to be on that night, and he did, in fact, worry.
The big problem with that worrying was that there was no guarantee that he would be the one who Stella called when she left that bar. God only knew he wanted to be the one; he always wanted to be the one and had wanted it for years. Hell, he couldn't really remember a time when he didn't want Stella to be a bigger part of his world.
Don was surprised when his thoughts were interrupted by his ringing doorbell. Seeing Stella on the other side when he opened it surprised him even more. "Stell, I didn't expect to see you tonight."
"I didn't expect a lot of things today," she said with a soft smile. "Can I come in?"
"Yeah, of course."
She stepped around him and as he closed the door and locked it she made her way into his living room. There was a perfectly good couch sitting there, but she found that she cared little for normalities at this point. She slid to the floor, resting her back against the couch and her head against its' cushions. "This has been a very, very long day."
Flack noted her position with a smile and slid down next to her. "So what did he want?"
Stella sighed. "I don't honestly know. Maybe he wanted to know if his brother was really capable of what he always thought. Maybe he wanted to figure out if he deserved what he got. Either way, I took him through it."
"Stell…"
His concern wasn't surprising. "I wanted to, Don. I figured if he wanted to know, he could listen to every little detail of what I had to live through that night."
God, he was proud of her. "And?"
"And, he listened. He was disgusted and horrified and everything else expected. When I finished he talked a little bit about Frankie, but I shut him down. I don't need to know anything else about him other than what I do now."
"It took a lot to go back through that. I hope he realizes that."
She nodded. "It was interesting experience, but I learned a lot today. He told me that you had a little chat with him."
"Stell…"
"I'm not upset Don, it really didn't surprise me. I figured it would either be you or Mac," she told him with a wry smile.
The laughter came naturally. "At least we're predictable."
Stella shifted, turning to place her back to the coffee table so she could look at him. "I learned something else tonight, about myself and about you."
"What was that?" he asked, not sure where she was going.
"I learned that what they always say is true, that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. And I realized that you've always been there," she told him quietly. "You were there through that entire ordeal, and you've been there ever since."
He shrugged, feeling a bit nonplussed at the attention. "You make it easy to care Stell."
"It's more than that, and we both know it. Don, he told me what you said..."
"Of course he did," he grumbled.
She grinned at him. "Hearing that; Don I can't…"
Then he was the one grinning. "Shouldn't I be the one at a loss for words in this situation?"
"Cute. Point is… Damn it I can figure out how to say this." So she decided to show him.
In a split second they were a whisper apart, and when they kissed it was as if someone pushed them off a cliff. Heads spun, hearts pounded, and in a split second the world around them shifted. It went deeper than either of them was prepared for, and they pulled away, gasping for breath.
Stella looked down to find herself straddling his hips and her face scrunched with confusion. "Now how the hell did that happen?"
It was so completely absurd, and they both burst out laughing. He laced his hands through her hair to cup the back of her head, pulling her down to bring their foreheads together. "That is an excellent question. I'd say the better one is what are we going to do about it?"
"Well," she said with a grin. "I'm going to stay right here, and I'm going to kiss you again. Maybe in a little while I'll move, but until then, I'm content…" Her mouth met his again. "To stay…" And again. "Right here."