Just A Dream

A/N: Hey everyone! I know it's been a while since I last updated, but school has consumed my life! I'm not particularly a fan…but what can you do. So as yall may have figured out, the story is starting to come to a close. By no means is this the last chapter, but there's probably only a few chapters left. Thank you times a million to all of you who stuck with me and this story! :] Oh yeah, don't own anything (including title), blah blah blah.

Un abrazo grande para sucker-4-Smacked, saturn567, Icabot, JackSam, Catulicious, and Fallen Angels of Love for the awesome reviews. Keep 'em coming!

The entire room was a blur to Stella. All she knew was that Lindsay and Jess were holding her hands, and she was apparently having a baby. Nothing was really processing because it had all happened so quickly.

"C'mon Stella, just one last push and you'll get to meet your baby girl!" her OB/GYN encouraged.

Stella dug deep for that last ounce of determination she knew she had in her. She was incredibly exhausted and wanted it all to be over, but she had to just push one last time. She breathed in, clenched Lindsay and Jess' hands, and gave the final push. With that, her daughter gently dropped into the doctor's hands and started to cry.

When Stella heard her baby cry, she sat back and closed her eyes, trying to make sense of everything that just happened. Lindsay and Jess were congratulating her and saying how beautiful their niece was. Everything was perfect until she realized again that Mac wasn't here. His surgery was supposed to be over by now, but she hadn't heard anything since before the birth.

The doctor's voice snapped her out of her thought process. "You're little girl's a healthy 7 lbs, 8 ounces. Does she have a name yet?"

Once Jess and Lindsay heard this question, the both turned to look at Stella for an answer. "Yeah, her name is Zoe, Zoe Mackenzie Taylor. Mac and I picked it out just last week," Stella replied with a smile.

"Do you want to meet her? She's quite adorable if I had to say so myself," her doctor mentioned with a laugh.

Stella nodded as the doctor placed a clean, pink Zoe on her chest. Immediately, an incredible amount of love just poured out of her as she softly spoke to Zoe. "Hey Zoe, it's mommy. S'Agapo." She fixed her little pink hat on her head to make sure it didn't fall to her eyes and sealed her action with a kiss.

Lindsay and Jess stood in amazement of the picture before them. Neither one of them could say or do anything but smile and think to themselves. Both of them wanted exactly what Stella had at that moment: a great husband and beautiful daughter, and feeling of uncontrollable love, and joy. Jess was the first to break the silence between them.

"Hey, I'm going to go check on Mac's surgery and the guys. You need anything before I get back?"

"No, I'm good. Hopefully everything's ok with the guys."

"Yeah, I know. I'll be back in a bit. Don't try to steal that beautiful little niece of ours while I'm gone ok? I need some time with her too," Jess laughed as she left.

"I can't make any promises!" Lindsay shouted behind her as Jess walked out the door.

Jess spotted Don and Danny in the waiting room chairs as she turned the corner. Both of them got up and ran to Jess to see how everything went.

"How is she? Did everythin' go cool?" Don asked.

"Yeah, Stella's great, baby Zoe's beautiful. Now all we need is a husband to go with that perfect family, and we're all set! How was Mac's surgery?"

"It went well, at least tha's what the docta said," Danny answered.

"Any word on when his anesthesia will wear off and can actually see his wife and daughter?"

"Yeah, by now he should be wakin' up in like the next 20 minutes. He's been out of surgery for a bit."

"That's the kind of news I like to hear. So while we wait, would you two like to meet your new niece?"

"Of course. We need to see if this girl is tough enough to roll with us in the crime lab," Danny joked.

They rounded the corner back to Stella's room and quietly opened the door. Stella had her eyes closed as Lindsay walked around with Zoe in her arms. Danny stood for an extra second and admired his Montana with baby Zoe. That second solidified his love all over again for Lindsay. He stepped up next to her and gazed at a sleeping Zoe. She was perfect, and he already knew that she had her parent's personality.

"Hey Cowboy, wanna hold Zoe?" Lindsay questioned with a kiss.

"Why not." Danny scooped Zoe up from Lindsay's arms and rocked her a little bit to keep her from crying. Lindsay, Jess and Flack were all amazed to see how well Danny was able to keep Zoe calm. "Wha'? You guys surprised that I can actually take care of a baby? I had to take care of my cousins when I was growin' up. No big deal."

Zoe was gently passed to Flack and Jess, who admired her beauty. The four of them sat and enjoyed getting to know their new niece on a more personal level. As they laughed a bit, Stella began to wake up from her brief nap. "I see you all were trying to steal my little girl from me. Now I know where to look if she's ever been kidnapped in the middle of the night," she laughed. Flack and Danny went over to Stella and gave a proper hello and congratulate her. "So how's my husband?"

"The surgery went really well. He won't be able to use his left arm for a bit to give his shoulder a break to recover, but other than that he should be fine. By now he's probably woken up from anesthesia. We'll go check on him now."

Flack and Danny left the room and headed to the 2nd floor to Mac's new room. They checked with the floor nurse to make sure it was ok to go in, and they gently knocked on the door. They heard a weak "come in" and saw a groggy Mac on the bed. They walked over to his side and saw a few IVs hooked up to him.

"Hey man, how you feelin'?" Flack asked.

"Like shit. My left arm hurts a bit, but I'm more concerned about my wife and daughter. Did Stella already have the baby?"

"Yeah, and I have to say that Zoe's beautiful. Congratulations Mac," Danny said.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to go see them. It was bad enough I couldn't be there with Stella."

"That'll change in a few minutes 'cause we already got it covered. We talked to the nurse while you were in surgery, and she said if you were feeling up to it, we could wheel you up to the room for about 30 minutes."

"Sounds great, let's go." Danny and Flack received a wheel chair from the nurse and checked to make sure all of Mac's IVs were in place before they wheeled him out of the room. Once everything was ready, they got in the elevator and went to the maternity floor. Mac was pretty nervous to meet his daughter, yet excited to see Stella and Zoe together. They could actually be a real family now. Danny opened the door as Flack wheeled Mac in. The girls were talking quietly as Stella held Zoe in her arms. Her eyes immediately lit up and filled with tears when she saw Mac. Flack wheeled him up to her bedside, and Mac and Stella shared a kiss. Mac looked down into Stella's arms and saw the most beautiful little girl in his entire life.

"Can I hold her?" Mac delicately asked.

"Of course, but first off how are you feeling?" Stella asked. "I'm fine, I just won't be able to use my left arm for a while. With a brief smile and tears quietly falling down her cheek, Stella placed Zoe in Mac's right arm, trying to cause the least amount of pain possible. He protectively held Zoe in the gentlest way. Stella could believe her tough Marine husband could be so nurturing yet manly while holding their little girl. This was it. There life was actually starting, and it felt normal. It felt right.

"Ok guys, how about a picture of the happy family?" Lindsay offered. The Taylor family came together the best they could. Stella and Mac intertwined their fingers, shared a smile, and looked down at their daughter. Lindsay took the photo right then and there, knowing the new family would love it. It's always the shots you least expect that capture the essence of the moment.

"Perfect."

That one word summed up this moment: perfect. They were surrounded by people they loved, and most of all, Stella, Mac and Zoe were finally together. No matter how many obstacles they would have to face, they knew that they would always find a way back to each other. Family always stuck together.

Did you like it?!? I thought yall would love an update, so I decided to write this chapter. Give me your thoughts in a REVIEW! I would make my day of studying a million times better! Love Love Love ~messermonroe125 :]