One more chance, a newsroom fanfic

"We really have to do this?" Mackenzie asked slightly petulantly, and Will pulls her to him, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "We really do," he tells her and she rolls her eyes. "Come on then, husband mine," Mackenzie replies, sliding her fingers into his and letting him lead her out on the dance floor. Her parents were insistent that they be allowed to throw them a wedding reception after the wedding was brought forward so very quickly. It's fortunate really, Mackenzie considers as Will takes her into his arms for their first dance, that they had such a fabulous do planned for June. It meant her mother could sweep in, add her finishing flourishes and Mackenzie mostly got the second part to her wedding that she wanted.

Maybe I didn't love you

Quite as often as I could have

Maybe I didn't treat you

Quite as good as I should have

Mackenzie laughs against Will's shoulder as a familiar tune starts to play. "I should have known," she murmurs and she feels Will smile against her hair. "I used to listen to this and think of you when you were embedded, and I didn't know where you were, and then before we got engaged," Will owns "so it seemed like a good song. I wanted to give it a more positive spin, and this seemed the perfect opportunity." Mackenzie smiles again. She remembers this playing in the bar just before they got back together, the two of them just staring at each other for a few moments, the realisation of the lyrics dawning on both of them. She knows Will loves this song, and the lyrics do make her both teary and happy. They've come so far in the last nine months, and here they are, dancing at their wedding reception (albeit six months after the actual ceremony, and with Mackenzie exactly six months pregnant.) Mackenzie isn't sure what her mother makes of the fact that her prospective grandchild is almost exactly a wedding night conception, or quite how she feels about Mackenzie dancing at what is ostensibly her wedding whilst so heavily pregnant.

If I made you feel second best

Girl, I'm sorry, I was blind

You were always on my mind

"I am the luckiest man in the world," Will tells her as they move to the music slowly and Mackenzie smiles happily. "You look beautiful," he continues, rubbing his thumb over her lower back. And he's right. Mackenzie found a gorgeous empire line cream lace dress, which flatters her bump beautifully and makes her skin look luminous. Her hair is styled into a soft bun, tendrils loosened a little so that soft waves frame her face and he loves how she is dressed tonight. She's wearing her engagement and wedding rings as per norm, and a string of pearls around her neck which he gifted her as a belated wedding present. The pearls are tiny, iridescent almost and delicate. Mackenzie cried when she saw them, something she put down to pregnancy hormones but Will knew she was thrilled with the gift. "They're beautiful," she'd told him, her voice thick with emotion and he'd kissed her tears away.

Maybe I didn't hold you

All those lonely lonely times

And I guess I never told you

I'm so happy that you're mine

"I can never tell you enough times how happy I am you gave me a second chance," Will tells her as they dance. He looks up and beckons the Newsnight crowd onto the floor, Don and Sloan, Jim and Maggie, Leona and Reese. Other couples start to drift onto the dance floor and Will adjusts his arm around Mackenzie. "I'm so happy," Mackenzie replies gently, pressing her lips to his cheek and he smiles at her, eyes only for her. The baby kicks furiously and Will and Mackenzie both stifle a giggle. Will rubs his hand over her bump lovingly and Mackenzie laughs. "Baby's determined to ensure they're included in our day," she observed and Will nods. "I cannot wait to meet this little person we've created," he tells her and Mackenzie nods her agreement because suddenly she's overwhelmed by it all and she thinks if she tries to speak she might just cry. Sometimes, at her lowest, she has to pinch herself to believe it's really true. Slowly but surely, the scars of their time apart are fading, and they're learning to be together, to be as one. And they're happy. It isn't always easy, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

Little things I should have said and done

I just never took the time

You were always on my mind

In the run up to their engagement, Will began reading the emails Mackenzie had sent him while she'd been away. He'd been blown away by the contents, angry, upset, emotional, with himself as much as anything else. Mackenzie had lost track of the number of nights she'd had to wrestle his laptop from him, to drag him into their bed and love him until neither of them could speak but rather, lie in each other's arms and just feel. On the nights Mackenzie wakes screaming from nightmares of Fallujah, Islaamabad or Peshewaar, unable to speak of the horrors she re-experiences in her dreams. Will's arms are able to calm her, his voice soothe her, his breathing settle her. In her darkest hours, Will is there to hold her, to love her and he never makes her feel anything other than loved. And safe.

Tell me, tell me that your sweet love hasn't died

And give me one more chance to keep you satisfied

I'll keep you satisfied

Little things I should have said and done

I just never took the time

Will always tries to find the little things these days. He likes to spoil Mackenzie and while she doesn't object to romantic gestures he knows it's the little things she values the most. He'd kept a box of her things after they'd split up the first time, under his bed and when he'd produced it one evening after they'd gotten engaged Mackenzie had completely broken down, sobbing over the contents. She likes that he knows her tastes and preferences so well, reminds her of what a good fit they are. He can tempt her into eating when she says she isn't hungry, lull her into sleeping when she says she isn't tired, coax her into crawling into bed when she says she isn't ill. In turn, Mackenzie can read Will like a book. She knows him inside and out and he loves her for it. They make good news because they inspire the best in each other and they're solid. Even when they row. Which is often. But at the end of the day, they go home together, finish their day together. And they love each other.

You were always on my mind