Chapter 2: Ride of Your Life

"Wishing on a shooting star
But dreams alone won't get you far
Can't deny your feelings anymore
The world is waiting right outside your door
What are you waiting for?"

"Come on, Stel, don't leave me," Mac sits beside Stella in her room. The baby, Michael, survived and was doing fine in the nursery. Stella was still unconscious from the anesthesia that the doctor made her take. No one was positive she would awaken. Mac's mom and the rest of the team were in the waiting room. Mac prayed again that Stella would make it for Michael's sake. "I love you, Stella. I can't live without you. Please wake up, for me and Michael." It had been a couple of hours since the baby was born and Mac knew Stella needed to rest. But what he needed was to know if he had lost the only other woman he has loved since Claire. "Stella, please, if you can here me, squeeze my hand," Mac says, slipping his hand in hers, trying his Marine tactics again, and he hoped that they work like they did with Flack. "Please, Stel, I need you to squeeze my hand." This time Stella complied.

A few minutes later her eyes flutter open to his relief. "Mac," she whispers sleepily, "where am I?"

"The hospital. Michael was born. We all thought you wouldn't make it, but both of you did. I don't think I've ever been so scared except when we found you in your apartment after Frankie was shot."

"I hate hospitals," she mutters to herself, closing her eyes again. "Does he look like Frankie?"

"No, he has your green eyes and curly hair that is a little darker than yours," Mac kisses her. "Do you want to see him now or go back to sleep?"

"Sleep, now that I can lie on my stomach. I'm not fat anymore!" Mac chuckles at her happiness as she rolls over.

"You were never fat, Stella. I'm going to tell the others you're alive and see if anyone wants to hold the baby-"

"No you're not. As his mother, I forbid him to be held by anyone before I do," she says as he stands up.

"You're too late for that already. I got to hold him. You better not sleep long then because I'm pretty sure my mom and Lindsay want to hold him. But if you're asleep, you'll never know, will you?" he says, walking to the door.

"If I find out that anyone, other than you, held Michael before I did, you are dead, Taylor," she threatens as he closes the door behind him.


"Come on, here's your chance
Don't let it slip right through your hands
Are you ready for the ride of your life?
Your dreams are riding on the wind
Just reach out and pull them in and
Get ready for the ride of your life
The ride of your life"

"How is she? Did she wake up?" Mac is greeted with many questions.

"Yes, she's fine. She went back to sleep and doesn't want anyone to hold the baby before she does," Lindsay and his mom groan at this. "But since she's asleep you can hold him as long as Stella doesn't find out or she'll kill me."

"Oh, Mac, she wouldn't kill the father of her child," says Mrs. Taylor. The members of the team exchange looks, knowing Stella already has, but she didn't know it at the time. "She loves you too much. We really shouldn't go against her wishes."

"Mom, can I talk to you for a second," Mac asks, and he leads her down the hall away from the group.

"I am not Michael's biological father," he begins.

"What? Is she cheating on you?"

"No, Stella would never do that. Let me tell you what happened. She was going out with this guy, Frankie, and she found out after about a year that he had this website with videos of them sleeping together on it. She broke up with him, and he attacked her. He was going to cut her up, but she escaped the binds when he went to answer the door. She went for her gun, but he took it and tried to shoot. Luckily she had the safety on, and she ended up shooting him to save herself. Stella was really hurt by this, and I realized after all this that I love her. We kind of got together. A couple days later she found out she was pregnant with his child and didn't know what to do. I offered to be the father and asked her to marry me about three weeks later. So we're getting married in five months," Mac says, hoping she understands.

"Congratulations. I thought you'd never get over Claire. And you and Stella are good for one another. I can't believe all that happened to her. You're a great man like your father, Mac; always doing what you thought was right no matter what it was. The rest of your team know this?"

"Yeah, we told them when we went out for a drink about eight months ago because she couldn't drink and lie to them," he says, motioning to walk back to the others.

The doctor comes to talk to Mac soon after.

---CSI: NY---

"Mac, he's so cute!" Stella had woken up again and was now holding Michael.

"He gets that from you, Stel. You're beautiful," Mac smiles and wishes he had a camera.

"How much longer do I have to stay here?"

"Two days," Stella moans. "Why do you hate hospitals so much?"

"Since I was here after Frankie attacked me. I didn't want to go home, but I couldn't stay here. I wasn't fond of them before. You want to hold him?" she asks passing Michael to Mac.

"I told my mom that I'm not his father. So I had to tell her about you and Frankie. Mind if I invite the others in to see him."

"Go ahead," Stella takes Michael back and Mac gets the others.

---CSI: NY---

"Surprise!" Danny, Lindsay, Hawkes, Flack, and Mac's mom yell when Mac, Stella, and Michael get home from the hospital.

"Here, Stel, have a piece of cake," Danny says, handing her a plate and fork.

"I haven't eaten lunch yet."

"Who cares about eating healthy food when you can have cake?" Flack chimes in.

"I have to be able to fit in my wedding dress in five months, guys," she takes a bite anyway.

"Okay, Mac, you can open the presents while Stella enjoys her cake. She hasn't had decent food in three days," Lindsay hands Mac a couple of packages. Hawkes and Lindsay had each gotten Michael a couple outfits, Danny and Flack a couple of toys he could play with, and Mac's mom a blanket she made and a gift card because she didn't know what else they needed.

"Now for the big surprise. Follow me," Mac's mom gets up and starts to head up the stairs with the others following, Mac, Michael, and Stella bringing up the rear. They exchange a slightly worried look.

"Oh my God, when do you do this between work and visiting me at the hospital?" Stella is awestruck when she walks into Michael's room. It is painted and all set up for him.

"It was mostly Mrs. Taylor, but we all helped when we could," Hawkes says.

"I love it. Thank you so much," Stella goes around hugging everyone.

"Wow, I never suspected any of this. You're all too sneaky," Mac chuckles.

"We learned from the best, both of you," Danny says, and Mac and Stella just smile at each other.


"In your heart, you know what must do
You've only got yourself to answer to
Don't let fear of fallen hold you down
Your spirit's flying high above the clouds
You're glory bound"

"I do," Stella says five months later.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride," the pastor says.

"I love you, Stel," Mac says before kissing her.

"I love you too, Mac," Stella whispers as they walk back down the aisle together.

---CSI: NY---

"May I have this dance?" Mac asks holding out his hand for Stella.

"Of course you may," she takes his hand and he leads her to the dance floor. As he wraps his arms around her waist and she puts hers around his neck, Stella feels the need to thank him. "Mac, I can't tell you how much this means to me. You've been a great friend since I met you, especially this past year and a half with Frankie and all. I was so relieved when you offered to be Michael's father. I thought you'd never love me, so I stopped revealing my feelings towards you. Now we're married. Thank you so much for all of this, Mac. I'll never be able to repay you for everything you've done for me."

"Stel, I guess I've loved you since Claire past away, but I wasn't ready. When I saw you unconscious in you're apartment, I finally accepted my feelings. This is my way of paying you back for helping me after Claire. And not just because I feel guilty. I love you."

"You're such a great friend, Mac."

"Friends are angels who lift us to out feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly," Mac says, smiling.

"You've been so much more than that to me," Stella kisses his cheek. "My hero."

"Heroes are people who do what has to be done, when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences. Actually I guess that does fit me according to what my mom said when I told her about Michael."

"What do you do, memorize the dictionary? But you couldn't. Those definitions are more meaningful than the ones in the dictionary," Stella smiles. "Don't you dare leave me, Mac."

"I'll never leave you, Stella. And you of all people should know that I always keep my promises."

"Of course I know that."


"You are on your way no looking back
There's no future living in the past
You're free at last yeah
You're free at last"

"No, Michael, eat your spaghetti, don't put it on the floor," Stella says as the family eats dinner; well, Mac and Stella are eating, Michael is putting his food on the floor. Michael laughs as the noodles hit the floor, splattering sauce all over.

"You want me to clean him or the floor?" Mac asks standing up to help her. For now they are both finished eating.

"The floor," Stella says, taking off her jacket and sweater so they don't get stained, leaving her in just an undershirt. "Come on, time for a bath big guy," she picks him up form his high chair and sits him in her chair. She takes off his bib, shirt, and pants. "Wash those too while you're at it."

"Give him a bath, put him to bed, take a nice long, relaxing bath yourself, and come back down here," Mac calls as she heads up the stairs.

"Who are you, my mother?" Stella yells down to him.

---CSI: NY---

"Give Daddy a kiss good night," Stella tells Michael as they go back into the kitchen after his bath.

"Good night," Mac kisses Michael on the forehead. "I thought I told you not to come back down here until you have taken a bath."

"I kinda already got one," she indicates her sopping wet shirt and hair. "Who knew how much a little boy could splash in the bath tub?" Mac laughs as she heads upstairs to put her son to bed.

---CSI: NY---

"What do you think about getting a dog, Stel?" Mac asks later that night when she was sitting on his lap, wet hair clinging to her skin.

"Why? So you don't have to clean up the food Michael throws on the floor?" Stella asks grinning as he kisses her neck.

"No," he stops to answer. "Every kid deserves to have a dog."

"Fine, just don't get a little one that barks all the time or a big one that will bite his head off."

"I'll get a puppy that grows into a medium size dog or do you have a complaint about them too?"

"No," she elbows him lightly in the stomach for teasing her. "Get a lab or Golden Retriever. And I'll even let you name it so you don't complain that I named my son, planned our wedding, and named your dog."

"Not my dog, our dog, Stel," he corrects kissing the top of her head.

"Whatever," she turns to face him. She smiles as he kisses her lips gently, then a little more forcefully as she kisses him back, her hands now in his hair.

"Ow," he breaks the kiss. Stella looks concerned. "You kneed me."

"Oh, sorry," she says, climbing off of him and onto the couch beside him. "What do you think about having kids of our own?"

"You hated being pregnant because you couldn't work, giving birth you practically lost your life and the baby's, and now we have a son who is very mischievous like his mother. After all that you want to have more kids?" He looks a little scared at the thought.

"Despite all that, it's worth it, Mac. You're a great father to Michael. Are you scared to actually have a child of your own?"

"No, I'm scared of losing you, Stella. After what happened the last time, I … I just can't lose you too," Mac says.

"Mac, that probably won't happen again. First births are harder than second or third births," Mac gives her a quizzical look. "I read a lot of books when I was supposed to be doing paperwork."

"Okay, can we wait another year before we actually try to have more kids? If it happens before then, I guess I'll be okay with it, but-"

"Oh, alright."

"Besides, you've got one hard knee, Stel. It will probably take me a year to recover."

"You're lucky I can't kick you now, Taylor."


"Come on here's your chance
Don't let it slip right through your hands
Are you ready for the ride of your life yea
Your dreams are riding on the wind
Just reach out and pull them in and
Get ready for the ride of your life
Ride of your life
Come on, come on get ready
Yea, yea, yea
Your dreams are riding on the wind
Just reach out and pull them in
Get ready for the ride of your life"