Easy Access
The bell in the coffee shop door caught Lindsay's attention as it dinged for only the fifth time that morning. The light coming through the window was angled strangely on the freshly cleaned table and made white-gold rings in her coffee.
A tall, slender woman walked in naturally, but somewhat guarded, with an almost paranoid air. Her curls were clipped back, though a few tendrils still hung by the sides of her face, a few shielding her left eye and cheek.
Lindsay looked up at her and smiled a kind, gentle smile. "Hi."
"Hi." Stella smiled back a smile that managed to drag itself to her eyes, though her brows were still tilted from inner turmoil.
"I got you some coffee." The sandy blond motioned to the cup sitting opposite of her on the table, just out of the morning light.
"Sorry, I hope you weren't waiting long."
"No." Lindsay said simply, her smile still present as her friend sat down gingerly and reached for the cup slowly. Her hands weren't shaking, but she could see how they must've still been sensitive by how the long fingers went for the handle and avoided the rest. A few hairs drifted in front of her doe-brown eyes which were still trained on her friend's distant face. It was like she was looking at a painting full of woe. In a way, she was. "So, how did you sleep?"
"Fine." Stella shrugged after just the smallest pause.
Lindsay picked up on it and raised an eyebrow. Seeing Stella falter the slightest bit a smile crept over the country girl's face. "Really?"
"Yeah, I did." Stella said resolutely, hoping to end the conversation.
"Stella." Lindsay smirked as a pink started at the top of Stella's beautifully high cheek bones and spread. "What happened?"
"If I told you, I'd have to kill you." She squinched.
"Come on, you know you want to tell me...?"
Stella blinked several times and rubbed her eyes, the sun's light hitting her far harder than she might have liked. Her body was stiff, like she'd been sleeping on something hard, and she was a bit cold too.
"Morning." A gruff voice greeted.
Her head shot up to see Mac's face perilously close to her's. She'd slept on him?! WHAT?!! "M-Mac?!"
"You, uh, fell asleep last night." He admitted bashfully. "I didn't want to wake you, so we just, uh... "
"Oh... oh!" She jumped with the realization.
Clunk!
"Ow." Stella groaned, holding where she'd hit her head on his coffee table. She'd gone to roll off of him but she'd rolled a tad too much and ended up rolling onto the floor, SMacking her head off his table at the same time. Why was it so close to his couch, anyway?
"You okay, Stell?" Mac asked worriedly, helping her up.
"Yeah, I'm fine." She sighed, holding the newly formed bump. "What's one more little scrape right?"
"Here, let me see." Mac parted her caramel curls to see a tiny, harmless lump. Not bleeding, not bruised; harmless. "You're fine."
"It doesn't feel fine." She grumbled unhappily.
"Oh, poor baby." He chuckled, earning an infamous Stella Bona-scowl. He kissed it gently and chuckled. "Better?"
"A little." She mumbled, looking at the ground to hide her blush.
"How'd you sleep?" He asked gently, easing them both back onto his couch, his arms still around her while she kept her arms tucked to her chest.
"Alright, I guess." She murmured. She'd been expecting to have a nightmare, like she'd had at the hospital, but she didn't. She didn't even dream. She just... slept.
"That's good. You want some breakfast?" He asked gently.
"Sure." She nodded, though she didn't really want Mac to let her go. When he did she curled up and hugged her knees, trying to remind herself that Mac was just in the kitchen. It gave her some comfort, but not much.
"Do you want to have a shower while I cook? You're going into town with Lindsay in a few hours." He said from the stove.
"R-right." She nodded, getting up and making her way shakily to Mac's bathroom. She reached for a towel and grabbed her overnight bag, fishing out a pair of jeans and long sleeved shirt.
She never wanted to wear a dress again; hearing Mac tell her they needed to do a rape kit... she'd never felt so... bad. She was terrified enough as it was, she didn't need to think he'd violated her too.
Feeling the hot water of Mac's shower - her first shower since before the attack - run over her body she started to relax. She knew she was strong, but she also knew it would take time for her to heal. Mac could help, sure, but she wanted to be able to take care of herself.
"You slept to-mph!"
"Sh!" Stella hissed, still holding Lindsay's mouth shut. "All we did was sleep!"
"Sorry, this is just so huge!" The younger woman bubbled over with giggles like a teenager. "We all know you guys like each other! We've been waiting for, like, ever, but you guys are totally oblivious!"
"Like you should talk, cowgirl." Stella shot back with her own smirk. "Miss I-check-out-Danny's-ass-whenever-I-can."
"I do not!" Lindsay protested with her own embarrassed blush.
"Whatever you say Mrs. Messer, now let me finish."
"Hey, Stell." He greeted her gently as she walked out, her hoodie draped over her shoulders and damp from where her curls rested on her shoulders. "Want some eggs?"
"Yeah, thanks." She smiled. She sat down at his kitchen counter and watched Mac slide the plate of sunny-side-up eggs and toast in front of her. She picked the fork up and took a tiny chunk of egg, listening to the clink of the fork against the plate. She took the tiny chunk and ate it, opening her mouth as little as possible. She picked up the toast and nibbled the corner off. "I'm stuffed."
"Stella, I know a woman as tiny as you isn't capable of eating all that much anyway, but you have to eat more than that." He said in a light tone. She smiled weakly but couldn't make it reach her eyes. "Stella, you need your strength, please eat."
"Mac, I'm just not hungry." She shook her head.
"Stell, eat." He ordered, pushing the plate closer. He picked up the piece of toast she'd nibbled and looked at her expectantly. "Just one."
"Just one." She sighed, taking it with a limp hand and keeping her head down while she ate it. "What are you going to do today?"
"I don't really know." He lied. "Maybe clean up a bit."
"But not here." She said confidently.
"I'm going to clean up your apartment a bit."
Mac closed the door to Stella's apartment behind him and started in slowly, taking in the whole scene. She must've propped the chairs and such up again, but things were still messy. Blood. Just like she said; blood was everywhere. That demented sculpture he made her was still sitting atop her mantle covered in his arterial blood. "Damn."
How could he do this? How could that psycho do this to his precious Stella? How could anyone hurt anything so beautiful? He asked himself a lot of questions, didn't he? Yes, yes he did.
The living room was easy; just wash a few things, dust a little, get rid of that disturbing excuse for artwork and leave one of her favorite chocolates on her pillow. The rest of her apartment was fairly good, despite the phone being disconnected and the Chinese takeout that never was eaten was surely decomposing despite the msg.
Her bathroom was another matter.
In the tub was dried yet still slimy blood. Her blood. The blades of the razor were still sitting in the crimson mess, stuck in it over time from the coagulation. The phone chord that was once tied around her tiny ankles and wrists was laying also in her blood. A smudge by the drain showed where her feet slid on the slippery bottom when she'd gotten up. It made him sick.
Hopefully Stella was having a better time than he was.
"So he's at your apartment cleaning as we speak?" Lindsay asked in slight awe. She knew Mac was an extremely honorable man and that he had a soft spot for Stella, but that was above-and-beyond for her. "You know, my mom always told me that if I ever found a man as good to me as my daddy, to hold onto him."
"So, what-are you saying you're interested in Mac?" Stella joked, though part of her didn't really like the thought of it, for what ever reason. Seeing Lindsay's questioning look she just rolled her eyes.
Lindsay looked down at her coffee, shaking her looser, larger curls and looking at her reflection with a smile. "He's just a wonderful man."
"He's really come a long way." Stella nodded. "After Claire died, he just, shut himself up. I never thought he'd come back."
"He smiles more." Lindsay said suddenly. Stella looked up with inquisitive eyes. "I haven't known you guys for long, but Danny told me he didn't smile a lot. He smiled on my first day, but usually, he's neither smiling nor frowning. Almost like it's both and neither at the same time. Except when he's around you."
"What do you mean?" Stella asked, feeling what her friend was stating was so obvious, though she still didn't get it.
"He smiles for you. He always smiles for you." Lindsay giggled as Stella's eyes widened until it seemed unnatural. "It's true."
"Well, we've had our share of fights, too." Stella mumbled into her cup, taking another sip.
"I've heard." Lindsay smirked. "You always win, don't you?"
"I'm damn convincing with an automatic gun in my hands, I'll say that." She shrugged. "His face, I swear, was going to explode."
"If he exploded you'd sweep him up and glue him back together."
"Done." Mac said to himself proudly. He'd accomplished quite a bit in just a little time. Her apartment was as good as new, if not better, he'd installed her new lock system and replaced the door that Flack had kicked down that night. The phone was back on the hook, he'd found her cell phone and pocketed it to bring back to her. The food was disposed of and he'd even opened all the windows and ordered in a bouquet of white roses - her favorite - to mask the smell of cleaning products and rotten takeout. He was rather proud of his work.
Stella and Lindsay were walking down the almost empty streets, admiring the things in the shop windows and joking. Lindsay would point to something she thought Stella should at least try on, and Stella would protest and stick her fingers in her ears when Lindsay started to argue. She would get all riled up and not even notice Stella had stopped humming to herself and started walking away without her.
"Stella, can I ask you something?"
"Sure." Stella looked down at her younger friend to find her looking at the sidewalk, and was suddenly reminded of a shy little girl.
"When I first came here, what did you think of me?"
The question caught Stella off guard, for sure. She thought for a moment, but smiled. "I'd read your transcript, so I knew what to expect, but when we actually met, I thought you were really nice."
Lindsay smiled.
"I also thought to myself that if I wasn't nice to you you'd never stop being so nervous." Stella laughed lightly. "I got the let-the-new-girl-sink-or-swim routine once too. Not for long though."
"Why's that?"
"Mac stepped in. He'd been working there only a little longer and when we were paired up to be partners he'd been really friendly - well, as friendly as Mac Taylor gets, anyway."
Lindsay nodded.
"My mentor, the one who calls me Toots, was letting me struggle with an interrogation with Mac behind the glass with him. Mac told him that he ought to be trying to help me succeed and not shoving crap under my feet - he'd trained me after all. In the end, I'd gotten my confession and Mac was the first to congratulate me."
Lindsay smiled. "That sounds like Mac."
"We watched you interrogate Kia Rowe's killer, and we were both impressed. I told Mac, 'the new girl's good; she stands her ground'. I guess I was right." Stella smiled and ruffled Lindsay's hair, much to her chagrin.
"Stella." Lindsay murmured, sounding like a little girl arguing with her sister. In a way, it felt natural; here was this woman who'd become her friend and whom she admired so much, and she just felt good in being able to help her.
"I'm glad you've come aboard. We need a little more cheer in this black cloud of a city." Stella said, though she continued to stare ahead with a slightly grim smile.
"Happy I could help."
Stella blinked at the country girl and smiled.
Stella unlocked Mac's apartment with her key and led Lindsay inside. "Mac will probably be back soon. Just make yourself at home until then."
"Sure, thanks." Lindsay nodded. "So, you and Mac."
"Lindsay, don't start that again." Stella shook her curly head.
"Come on, Stell, you have to give me the good gossip."
"I don't know what you're talking about! Besides, I already told you we fell asleep on his couch together, what more do you want from me, woman?!" Stella blustered, furiously trying to cover her own flustered appearance, but just making it worse.
"Easy, Stell! Relax!" Lindsay cringed.
"See, Stell, I'm not the only one who wants you to relax more around here."
"Mac!" Stella's face brightened appreciably as he stepped in, offering her a smile back and nodding to Lindsay. "You're back!"
"I see you still enjoy pointing out the obvious." He joked with her, though he didn't hesitate in coming around to give her a hug and kiss on the cheek, even if Lindsay was watching (which she was).
"I'm gonna get outta here. Bye Stell." Lindsay said, wanting to give them their moment alone.
"See ya, honey." Stella hugged the shorter woman and patted her shoulder. "Thanks, kiddo."
"You're my friend, Stella, of coarse." Lindsay smiled. "Bye, Mac."
"Bye, Lindsay." Mac waved.
Stella closed the door behind her and plopped down onto his couch without another thought. "That was fun, but I felt like everyone was staring at me."
"Why?" Mac frowned.
Stella simply ran her fingers over the fairly fresh scar under her eye. "I swear some of them were ready to offer me domestic abuse pamphlets."
"Stella." Mac went and sat with her, putting his arm around her shoulders naturally, bringing her to lean into him. She gladly rested her head between his head and shoulder and sighed. "It's over."
"It's not going to be over for a long time, Mac." She sighed, letting him see that not only was she vulnerable, but that he was the only one who got to see her in such a state. That she didn't trust her heart with anyone like she did with him. They both knew it was hard for her to let people in, because in the past it only meant they could hurt her more that way; Frankie was a sadly shining example of that theory.
"So, did you really spend the day cleaning my apartment?"
"Yes. Why?" Mac smiled gently.
"I was afraid of that. All I really had to do was roll up the carpet and throw it out, you didn't have to do all of what you did."
"I left you a milk chocolate truffle on your pillow." He smiled.
"Okay, that makes it a little better." She sighed and yawned.
"Go to sleep, Stella. It'll be better tomorrow."
"A little bit."
They'd gone to bed wrapped in each other's arms comfortably. Mac with his arms wrapped around her tiny frame protectively and her nestled up to him, holding her hands over her aching heart, like a child.
They'd managed to pull through it.
Somehow.
Together.