Thank you SO much!! Thank you for your reviews and lovely comments on the last chapter Mynerva24, lily moonlight, and Aly!! It really made my day! :) Lindsay is now in Montana in this chapter, so some D/L will definitely be in here. Hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter Twenty One: Home Again

Billings Logan International Airport, Waiting Area, A3

From his seat in the waiting room, he could see the arriving plane land. He had been watching planes arrive and depart from the runway all morning. None of them had been Lindsay's, and he had a feeling this plane wasn't going to be hers either. Of course, the waiting room he had been sitting in was the one he had gotten off of when he came from Chicago, and the flight that was supposed to arrive at the gate was from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. But he knew Lindsay wasn't coming from Chicago O'Hare, since five tornadoes had wrecked the city and the airport probably wouldn't be open for flying anywhere that morning. She had told him she was driving to Wisconsin, so she couldn't be on the flight that was coming from Minneapolis-St. Paul.

He glanced at the clock, which now read ten forty five. Lindsay had told him if she didn't get to Montana by the afternoon, he should check into a hotel in Bozeman. She wasn't late, and he definitely wasn't going to check into a hotel without her there in Montana. He slouched down in the chair, watching the TV that hung on the wall.

A plane pulled up to the gate, and soon crowds of people began to rush out of the plane, through the waiting room. He looked once or twice over to the crowd, hoping to see Lindsay there, waiting for him with a smile saying, I'm over here, Danny. How long were you going to wait to come and get me?

As he glanced over at the crowd again, he thought he saw a flash of Lindsay's hair. But many people could have had the same hairstyle as hers or she could look entirely different from the last time he had seen her, which had been a year ago, on the dreaded flight to Chicago. She had acted strange on the flight, she had yelled at him for the stupidest things, panicked too much while they had experienced a little turbulence, and cried at the end of the flight because she missed New York, or at least that was what he thought she had cried about. He gazed out at the crowd, and in a matter of a few seconds, he saw her, not just her hair, but her face. She was smiling at him, just like he had imagined. "Lindsay," he whispered.

"Danny!" exclaimed Lindsay.

They both ran, thrilled to see each other again. They immediately hugged, which he thought was odd because he didn't think Lindsay would want him to hug her. Maybe she had changed during the last year.

"Montana," he said, backing away from her so he could see her face. Surprisingly, she didn't make any comment on him calling her Montana, the name she hadn't liked being called for a long time. She just slightly blushed, still smiling a mile a minute.

He noticed that she did look different; her hair was a darker colored brown, and the length of her hair was longer than it had been before. "I notice you're admiring my hair," said Lindsay. "Do you like it?"

"It's beautiful, Montana," he commented. Again, she didn't say anything about him calling her Montana.

"Thank you," she replied. "You're still as handsome as before."

Danny smiled. Yes, he still looked the same, had the same hairstyle and the same glasses. Not everyone can change in a year, he thought. Lindsay had definitely changed. She was flirting with him again; at least that was what it sounded like. "So, why did you come in from Minneapolis-St. Paul?"

Lindsay gave him a questioning look, and tilted her head to read the arrival sign. She looked at him again, still smiling. "Well," she began, as they walked away from the waiting room, "I drove the entire why to Milwaukee, which took me two hours, and then got to the airport— General Mitchell International— to find that there were no flights that had a straight connection to Billings Logan. So then I found a flight to Minneapolis-St. Paul, which had a connecting flight that went to Montana. And that's how I ended up here."

"Ended up here?" questioned Danny.

"Yes," replied Lindsay.

Danny glanced at the little bag she was carrying. "So, is that all you have?"

Lindsay nodded. "It's not much, but I didn't exactly have time to gather everything when a tornado, more like tornadoes, was going to hit my apartment." She glanced down at his suitcase, and then looked at the backpack he was carrying. "Unlike you, who brought everything but the kitchen sink."

"I didn't bring that much!" Danny protested.

Lindsay laughed. "I'm just kidding, Danny."

"Okay, you got me," said Danny. "Where are we going then?"

"Don't worry," replied Lindsay with a grin, "I've got that all taken care of."

Danny stared at her in disbelief. "You're going to let me stay in the same hotel room as you?"

"Who said anything about hotels?"

"Wait, we're not staying in a hotel?" asked Danny.

"If you would just shut up for a second," said Lindsay, "we could get moving to rent a car and then you'll see where we are staying."

"Rent a car?"

"Seriously, Danny," said Lindsay. "Do you think I could have brought my car all the way to Montana?" Danny was about to open his mouth to say, "You could have drove here," but she answered, "And before you think about that, do you really think I was going to drive all the way from Chicago, Illinois to Billings, Montana?"

He looked down to the ground, not being able to meet her angry gaze. They had started off with a pleasant meeting, but he had asked her too many questions, which obviously must have bothered her. He let her take the lead, him following her as if he was her child, and she had just scolded him for doing something wrong. For the rest of their time in the airport, he kept quiet, so he wouldn't disturb her mood. When he was in the car, he decided that she was still the same old Lindsay, mad at him for no apparent reason. The two didn't say anything to each other during the ride, and didn't even turn to look at each other.

She had the radio on, but the volume was so low that he could barely hear it. He didn't ask her to turn it up, since he knew questions bothered her, and he didn't bother turning it up himself, for he knew he would yell at him for turning it up when she could have done it herself. They both felt uncomfortable, afraid to even move slightly their seats. When the song, "Bleeding Love," by Leona Lewis came on, the feeling of being uncomfortable got even worse.

The lyrics were familiar, the song had been popular just a year ago, and it obviously still was now. Lindsay turned to look at Danny quickly, with something like fear on her face, like the song portrayed a message about her, and then turned to look at the road again. He decided to challenge her, since the song did remind him of her. "Sounds a little like us, huh?"

Again, Lindsay turned to look at him, her face stricken with fear.

"You know what I mean," he said. "How you love me, but don't want to admit it."

The emotion of fear quickly ebbed away from her face and got replaced by anger. "I don't like you, okay? How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Why save me then and not help the others back in Chicago?"

"I didn't know where Mac and Stella were during that time of the storm," Lindsay protested. "I wouldn't have known where Samantha was, or Flack or Hawkes. I knew that you would trust me to go to Montana; the others thought we should have waited one more day, just to see how the weather played out. I'm sorry Danny, but you and I are never going to get back together, so just forget the idea."

"Well, I love you," said Danny. "And I'm never going to forget how you just dropped me like that, for no reason." And with that, the song ended. He knew she liked him too, but didn't want to admit it. He turned to look out the window, watching the wheat fields pass by.

After a while, Lindsay turned to look at him. "I'm sorry Danny; I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I like you, as a friend, but there are just things right now that are affecting my life, and I don't want you to be a part of it."

"So you're saying you do like me, more than a friend," said Danny. "I called you Montana two times, and didn't say anything about it."

"I don't know," she admitted. "Maybe I do like the name Montana. It's just, right now, can we stay friends? At least until this whole weather think is fixed."

Danny nodded. "Friends," he said, putting out his hand.

They came to a stoplight, and then Lindsay shook his hand. "Friends," she said, smiling. The light quickly turned to green, and she immediately turned to keep her eyes on the road. She was a good driver at least.

Danny counted the stoplights as they passed them, because he was bored, and after they had passed six of them, Lindsay spoke up again. "How are those wheat fields, Messer?"

"Much more beautiful than I thought they would be," he replied. "I guess it does beat the city. It's kind of nice, living out in the country, huh?"

"Yeah," replied Lindsay. "I kind of missed it too. It's nice to wake up in the morning, and hear birds chirping, and then walk outside to the countryside. I like the city, don't get me wrong, but you wake up to traffic jams and then walk outside to see that's exactly what woke you up. And with tall buildings blocking the sky, you miss all the beauty in nature."

"I guess I'm used to that," said Danny. "I've lived in the city all my life."

She turned to car, and soon a view of a little house, covered by trees came to his sight. "You used to live there?"

"Yes," she said. "I pay for two house payments, what can I say? That's why I need the job I have." She pulled up to the driveway, parked the car, and turned it off. "It's a house a little away from the subdivisions of Bozeman. I like my privacy." She got out of the car and followed Danny to the back of the car, to get his suitcase and backpack, and of course, her little bag. "I guess you could say this is kind of my vacation home, though."

She tried to pull the suitcase out of the truck, but Danny could tell she was struggling with it. He took the handle of the suitcase, and pulled it out himself. He was faced with a perplexed look from Lindsay. "What did you pack in there?" she asked. "Bricks?"

"No," said Danny. "My clothing, laptop, some magazines, toothbrush, toothpaste, stuff like that."

"Well, its awful heavy," said Lindsay. She threw him his backpack. "Let me guess, more magazines, an Ipod, and snacks for the plane ride?"

"You've got me all figured out, Montana," he said with a smile.

"Go on," said Lindsay, pushing him towards the front door. "I'll be there in a second."

As he waited for her at the front door, he gazed around the property. Trees grew around the house, and in the back, he could just catch a glimpse of a lake. Lindsay came to join him and followed his gaze. "Yeah, there's a lake," she said. "Do you like fishing?"

"You fish off that lake?" he asked.

"Yep," replied Lindsay, opening the door. "The lake's not there to just look at. You can swim in it too, but that's if you really want to. It's a little cold for that right now."

He walked inside of the house. "Do you happen to own horses too?"

"If I did, they'd be dead by now," said Lindsay. "I would love to own horses, but I don't have the time to take care of them. I did used to ride horses when I was a kid, though."

"You're not getting me to ride one," said Danny.

"I'm sure you'd like it, once you rode one," said Lindsay.

Danny shrugged and looked at the sight in front them. "You can leave your suitcase here, along with your backpack," she said, pointing to a spot by the front door. "Get your laptop, though, and then come to the kitchen." She walked away, obviously off to the kitchen.

Danny dropped his backpack on the floor and got his laptop, just like Lindsay had commanded him to. He took his time; stopping to look at the rooms he passed by. There was a nice living room, with a flat screen TV, and a built in fireplace. The red colored walls made the room feel homier, and he wanted to sit down on one of the couches, turn on the TV, and watch football with Lindsay. Maybe a game with her favorite team, the 49ers, even though he knew they weren't exactly the greatest football team.

He glanced at a few bedrooms, but didn't really see what they looked like inside. He made his way into the kitchen, and Lindsay was waiting for him, right at the table, with a stool pulled out for him to sit down at. "Taking your time, Messer?" she asked, and with everything she said, she had sounded more like she came from the country.

His New York accent didn't sound normal in the countryside. "Yes," he replied. "You have a lovely house." He sat down at the stool and opened up the laptop. Once he was signed in under his user and had the internet opened up, he turned to look around the room.

The kitchen walls were a brown color, matching the cabinets. There were granite countertops, the tiles a light shade of beige, and everything in the kitchen sparkled, as if the house had just been bought. "Do I want to know how much this house costs?" asked Danny.

"Probably not," said Lindsay. "Just enjoy the stay, okay? You're lucky I'm not making you pay to stay here."

He looked at the search Lindsay had just typed into Google. "Global cooling?" he questioned.

She ignored the question, and instead got up from her seat and walked over to the refrigerator. "Do you want anything to eat or drink?" she asked.

"Nah," said Danny. "I'm fine."

"Okay," said Lindsay. She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and came back over to sit by him.

"Have you ever thought about golfing?" asked Danny.

She turned away from the computer to look at him. "Golfing?" she asked.

"Yeah," replied Danny. "There was a golf course we passed when we were coming from the airport."

"Oh, you mean Bridger Creek," said Lindsay. "Yeah, I've been there a few times."

"You've done everything, haven't you?"

"I haven't ever been to a foreign country," said Lindsay.

"Well, neither have I," said Danny. "So, are you good at golfing?"

"Not exactly," said Lindsay. "It's not one of my best sports, though I can't imagine you being good at golfing either."

"I've golfed," said Danny, "a few times. But I much rather prefer other sports, like…"

"…Bowling?" questioned Lindsay.

"How did you…?"

"We've been bowling before, remember? You've beaten me a few times at bowling, and I've kicked your butt a few times too."

Danny laughed. "Yeah," he admitted. "So, to get back to the computer search, why are you searching about global cooling? Shouldn't we be more concerned about global warming?"

"Before, maybe," replied Lindsay. "Now, it's global cooling that's causing this weather mix up."

"How do you know this?" asked Danny.

"Mostly from weather reports," said Lindsay. "But I've been considering something else. Doesn't it seem like this has happened before, like déjà vu?"

"No," said Danny. "Not really."

"Oh, come on, Danny," said Lindsay. "Don't you remember back in the New York, when you were watching that one movie?"

"That one movie," Danny repeated, trying to remember the movie he had watched back in the New York Crime Lab a year ago. How could he have forgotten something like that? "What was it called?"

"The day," Lindsay prompted.

"'The Day After Tomorrow'!" exclaimed Danny, standing from his seat. He grinned. "And you were scared of watching the movie…"

"I was worried about the upcoming hurricane," said Lindsay. "I've seen the movie. Not exactly the scariest around."

Lindsay opened up a website, but the closed it when Danny asked, "So what are we going to do about this?"

"Well," Lindsay said, getting up from her seat, "What you can do is go into the living room, I'm sure you've already seen it before, and wait for me while I make some popcorn."

"One question. How come your house looks so clean and you have fresh food when you haven't been here for like, what, five years?"

Lindsay smiled. "My neighbor, who is a good friend of mine, lives down the road and she said she would clean and get some food to store the refrigerator. I called her at the airport and told her that I had company coming over to my house in Montana." She paused for a moment, and then said, "Unlike you, I answer my emails."

Danny shook his head, remembering how he hadn't been very communicative with the others while working as a waiter.

He walked to the living room and immediately slouched down on the couch, happy to be able to watch the flat screen TV, with the girl he loved, even if she 'said' she didn't love him back. As he waited for her, he turned on the TV and flipped through the channels. She was soon there to join him. "I see you've already made yourself feel at home," said Lindsay. "Now scoot over, so we can begin the movie."

"What about putting the movie in the DVD player first?" Danny questioned.

She took a seat next to him. "I was thinking you could do that." She handed him the DVD.

He gladly accepted it. He put it into the DVD player and hurried to take a seat next to her. "You know," said Danny, "not everything in this movie is true."

"I know," said Lindsay. "But it'll help us understand more of how the weather will take its toll."

Some fights, but they're getting along. We'll see how they are doing in chapters to come. Hope you liked this chapter!

The next chapter will finally be about Without a Trace! Yay! Jack reunites with his team after the tornadoes have passed through Chicago… How is the team doing? In the next chapter, we'll find out!