Hello all! So, at the request of lily moonlight, I am going to continue this story! It'll basically be a series of related one-shots.
Disclaimer: Do I look like Jerry Bruckheimer, the owner of CBS, or the owner of Alliance Atlantis? No? Didn't think so.
A/N (Aly's Note): This chapter was WAY too hard for me to write. Seriously. The grammar in this is not the best and there aren't as many descriptions in this one as there were in the last one. I've been diagnosed with the worst disease a writer could possible have: writer's block. So I'd really appreciate reviews and reviews containing criticism. Because it was really difficult to write. And also… the italicized part is a dream. Just saying. (:
Lindsay laughed at the statement that Danny made. The female detective never imagined that she would be sitting at a table at the Pine—one of the fanciest restaurants in the city—with the man she loved. Crystal chandeliers hung around the restaurant, sparkling and gleaming as waiters and waitresses bustled around the restaurant taking orders, delivering them, and handing out bills. The maître d' showed patrons dressed in fancy outfits to their seats as busboys cleaned up dirty tables, making more space available in the building.
Danny frowned when she laughed. "No seriously, Montana, the Giants did beat the Packers to a pulp during last night's game."
"Sure Danny, whatever you say," Lindsay grinned. "But I've never heard the phrase 'beat to a pulp' apply to the losing team." When it came to football, the two didn't always see eye to eye. Lindsay was a Packers fan while Danny was a die-hard Giants fan. It didn't matter how close they were; those differences would never be resolved.
"Well, they were beating you guys badly in the beginning of the game," the New Yorker said, defending his team.
The Montana native leaned across the table to get closer to him. "Yeah, but only the end matters, cowboy," she whispered. Danny mimicked her actions as they leaned in for a kiss. However, just before their lips touched, an invisible force pulled Danny's chair back. The chair slid backwards in the direction opposite Lindsay.
Lindsay was definitely confused, but she also felt another feeling besides that. She was irked. Tonight was supposed to be perfect. But Danny just HAD to be on a magical restaurant chair that took him God-knows-where. "Lindsay!" Danny called, a tone of longing in his voice.
His tone softened her irked expression. "Danny!" she called back, the same tone of longing in her voice. He seemed so far away. Why was he so far away?
"Lindsay!" Danny called again, voice growing fainter. He stretched out his right arm, reaching out to her. Lindsay followed suit and stretched out her hand, reaching out to him. As her arm extended, however, the scenery started to fade. Pretty soon, she was engulfed in blackness. The only thing left was the chair she was sitting on. Lindsay looked at her outstretched arm and then straight ahead at the black void where Danny previously was, gliding away on his chair.
She could only utter one thing, one thing that was emitted as barely a whisper. "Danny."
Lindsay awoke with a start, a couple of lone tears streaming down her face. She looked around and saw that she was still in her apartment, not in a restaurant or black void. It was just a dream. As she became less disoriented from sleep, she realized that today was Danny's funeral. The day that she had been dreading. She wasn't ready to accept the fact that Danny was gone for good.
Walking around her slightly disorganized apartment, she pondered the whole concept of a funeral. Lindsay wasn't a particularly religious person, but she did believe that the person they were having the funeral for was in a better place. She believed Danny was in a better place.
That's what funerals were, right? They were when a group of people—most of who actually cared for the decedent—gathered to 'witness' his or her passing into a better place. At least, that's what Lindsay thought.
After taking a shower, the female detective put on the ensemble that she put together for the funeral: a pair of black dress pants, a black dress shirt, a pair of new black wedge heels with plum-colored accents. Lindsay bought those expensive heels only two months before, promising herself that the first time she would wear them would be to a special event with Danny. She just never imagined that this would be that event.
Lindsay held back the tears as she did her hair and put on her make-up. She wasn't ready for this. She didn't want to go, yet a part of her felt compelled to go.
"For Danny," that part of her seemed to say. "Go for Danny. He would've wanted you to be there."
The brunette argued with herself for about a minute before making her decision. Then she grabbed her car keys and drove to the cemetery where Danny's funeral was being held. She was going.
"Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..." the priest, Father Morris, was speaking as they lowered Danny's casket into the ground. Lindsay, along with the rest of the CSI team, sat in the first row. Danny's parents sat in two chairs in front of the first row, Mr Messer holding Mrs Messer as she sobbed into his shoulder.
As they covered the hole in the ground with dirt, Lindsay couldn't hold her tears in anymore. She put her head in her hands and cried like she never had before. She couldn't believe it. Danny was gone.
The woman looked up when she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder. It was Hawkes. He had a concerned look on his face.
"You okay?" he asked. Lindsay nodded. He gave her a sad smile and then went back to watching the funeral.
In truth, the Montana native was not okay. How could she be? The love of her life was gone. All of the memories came back in a flood, whether they were good or bad. The hot tears poured even faster down her face as she sat there remembering all of the times they had.
"May Daniel Salvatore Messer rest forever in Your hands, Father. Amen," with those final words, Father Morris concluded the funeral service.
That's it. It was over. Danny was really gone. As the funeral guests left the cemetery, Lindsay stayed behind and wiped the tears from her eyes. She had to talk with him one last time.
As she knelt down in front of his grave, she gave a sad smile. "Hey," the CSI said. Obviously, there was no response except for a gentle wind whistling through the trees. Some strands of Lindsay's brown hair were blown into her face by the wind and she tucked them behind her ear.
"I miss you," Lindsay continued. Again, no response. Yet, somehow, she knew he was listening. Wherever he was, she knew he could hear every word she was saying.
"Living without you is gonna be tough, you know?" Lindsay said. "How exactly am I supposed to live without you, Danny? Every time I go to work I'll be reminded of you, every time I go home I'll be reminded of you, and hell, even when I go to my car I'll be reminded of you. I can't escape you. I don't want to escape you." The hot tears that had just stopped a moment a ago began to fall again.
"I love you Danny. I love you and I never got to actually say it. Now that you're gone… I can never actually say it," she went on, choking on a sob.
"I needed to come here when everyone was gone and tell you all of this. Because… I think that you and I have shared a bond that I've never had with anyone else before. I love you Danny, and I'll never stop loving you," she said. Lindsay reached into the bag next to her and pulled out a framed picture of Danny. She smiled sadly and put the picture in front of his grave.
Though it was hard, the detective forced herself to say the next two words. "Goodbye Danny."
So… I finished it. Reviews please! I have an idea for the next chapter. Since this story is going to be a series of related one-shots, I can write a one-shot song-fic pertaining to the story. Excellent. XD