So, I didn't originally plan on making a sequel to "Just Saying" but I got quite a few reviews requesting one... so, I gave it a whirl! This story takes place minutes after "Just Saying"...now prepare yourself...and enjoy...
After a few moments of sitting in comfortable silence, Mac got up.
"Okay, you can take the guest room…it's all ready," Mac said. Stella stood up from the couch quickly and placed her hands on her hips.
"I can't sleep now…I feel…I feel like a new person...a new Stella!" she declared, stretching her arms out dramatically, as if giving an introduction. Mac fought back a smile.
"So this… "new Stella"…she doesn't sleep?" he asked slowly.
"Nope, she's a real go getter…she likes to live every moment to the fullest," Stella grinned.
Mac stared at her for a long moment, his expression bordering between humor and sympathy.
"Okay," he said slowly. Stella grinned and clapped her hand together.
"Now that we got that out of the way-," she walked over to his book shelf and grabbed a small package. "-want to play cards?" she asked, thrusting an old pack of cards in his face. He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face.
"Do I really have a choice?" he asked. Stella grinned.
"Nope," she slurred and walked unsteadily to his snack bar. He walked behind her, holding a cautious hand on the small of her back in case the alcohol in her system finally decided to take its complete toll. She plopped down onto one of the bar stools at his snack bar and stared at the pack of cards as if unsure what to do with them.
"Want some ice cream?" he asked casually, walking to his refrigerator. At the mention of ice cream she stopped trying to open the pack of cards and beamed enthusiastically.
"Would it be a card game without it?" she asked. He chuckled and pulled a half gallon carton of neapolitan ice cream out of the freezer.
"I guess not," he said and grabbed two spoons from a drawer and walked around the snack bar. He set the ice cream in between them as he took a seat on the stool next to her. Stella had finally managed to get the pack of cards open, but Mac grabbed them from her hands.
"I'll shuffle…I don't feel like sitting here for the next three hours watching you try to do it," he teased and was rewarded with a slap on the arm.
"Mac, I resent that!" she slurred. As Mac shuffled Stella rocked the stool back and forth; a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth, watching him carefully.
"So, what game are we going to play?" he asked as he dealt the cards.
"I was…I was thinking the great game of Go Fish," she said.
"I think it's the only game you could handle right now," Mac muttered.
"What was that?" Stella asked, looking up at him as she stole another spoonful of ice cream. Mac looked up at her innocently as he dealt the last card.
"Oh, nothing," he said. She gave him the stink eye before picking up her cards and holding them close to her face. He briefly glanced at his own cards before looking back at her. Stella gave him a suspicious glance over the top of her cards.
"Are you ready, Detective?" she asked, as if they were going to be playing the hardest and most dangerous game in the world.
"As ready as I'll ever be," he sighed. They both took a spoonful of ice cream.
"Do you have a three?" she asked. Mac glanced down at the six, queen, two, eight, nine, jack and five in his hand.
"Go fish," he said. Stella sighed and grabbed a card from the deck in front of them.
"So, how long is "new Stella" sticking around?" he asked eating another spoonful of ice cream. Stella looked up at him seriously.
"She's thinking about making this a regular thing," she replied thoughtfully.
"Getting drunk or harassing me in the middle of the night?" Mac asked and watched a slow grin spread across her face.
"The getting drunk mostly…maybe the harassing…we can play it by ear," she said.
"Do you have a six?" Mac asked.
"Go fish," she replied.
"So, now you're including me in your little schemes?" Mac reached for another card.
"Mac, you should take it as a compliment," Stella slurred and peered at her cards. "Okay…do…you...have a nine?" she asked.
"I'm not at liberty to say," Mac dead panned.
"That's a yes," Stella said and grabbed his arm, yanking one of the cards out of his hand, ignoring his feigned shock.
"That's not it," she frowned and discarded it behind her back. She tried to grab another card, but Mac stood up and stretched his arm as high as he could into the air. Stella stood and tried to reach the cards, but they were out of her reach.
"You're…such…a…cheater," she said as she struggled to yank his arm down to her height. Mac chuckled and relented, allowing her to pull his arm down. Stella ripped his cards out of his hand and looked at them.
"Aha!" she exclaimed as she held one of the cards in the air triumphantly. Stella slapped down the pair of cards on the table and grinned at him. He looked down at the match and chuckled. He picked up the card she had called a nine, which was actually an upside down six.
"Stella, this is a six," he said, turning it right side up. She squinted at the card and frowned at him.
"No, it's a nine...I know I had a nine in my cards...that's why I asked you for one...I know my numbers, Mac," she argued.
"It's only a nine when it's upside down," he said and flipped it back upside down so that she could see the correct number. Stella rolled her eyes.
"Fine, it's a six…so what?" she asked casually.
"So what?" Mac asked, grinning. "So, That means that you don't have a match and I do because you actually had a six in your hand when I asked you for one a minute ago...not the nine you thought it was," he explained.
"Just a small technicality," Stella shrugged. "I'll win anyway…take that as a pity match cause you're gonna need it," she slurred seriously. Mac set the pair of cards down.
"We'll see…you know I don't know if I like this "new Stella"…she's kind of arrogant," Mac said picking up new cards.
"She may be arrogant, but she always gets her way," Stella said and then leaned her face across the table. "Always," she whispered, a mischievous glint planted firmly in her eyes.
Thank-you very much for reading my fic! I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a review...please! Tell me if you have any other story requests...