Sorry for the wait! Thanks to all who've read and reviewed!

And Massimo Deportivo makes a reappearance :D Such a cool dude...If you want more on him, check out my profile ;)

Stella was in the elevator heading down to the street of West Park Heights. She was still staring longingly into the small glossy photograph in her hand. It was the only photograph she had of herself as an infant, never mind that it was the only photograph she had of her parents.

She stepped out onto the street, tucking the picture into her diary to keep it safe, and back into her bag. For the first time she'd ever known, there were no cabs in the street. This is New York City, and theirs no cabs!

"Stella! Stella!" Mac called over the busy street.

"Mac? I thought I told you to go home?"

"You did…but…you want a ride home?" he smiled that perfect little smile. A cross between apologetic and 'you knew I would do this'.

She chuckled a "sure" and crossed over the street.

"So…?" Mac said, desperate to know what she had learned to put her in such a good mood. He carefully drove out of the space and away down the street

"It was…amazing, Mac. He knew everything. About my mother - his daughter - and my dad, and my birth…" she'd twisted in her seat to look at him.

"So he's your mom's dad?"

"Yeah, he's originally from Skiathos, but moved to New York with his wife Cora when it got too touristy back home. They hadn't had any children by then, so my Mom was born in America. Then-" Mac cut her ramble short

"Whoa whoa whoa, have you eaten anything?" he gestured with his hand for her to slow down

"Erm…no. I didn't want anything before I came out"

"Well, how about I treat us and you can tell me all about, well, you"

Stella nodded a smile and sat back forward as Mac drove to a restaurant.

It wasn't long before they'd driven to Massimo's, a local eatery that was a hidden gem. Not many knew of the amazing little restaurant, making it personal and intimate but maybe the friendliest place in New York.

Massimo himself directed Mac and Stella to a booth in the back. They were well known to the short Italian, and ordered their 'usual's without needing to look at the menu. Massimo gave a small bow and went on his way.

"So, you were saying…?" Mac prompted, sipping at his water

"Before…all of this, I never thought anything of finding my family. Sure I'd fantasized about one meeting my mom or something, but, truthfully, I never believed I would. But now…now it's like I'm whole. I didn't realise I was broken before, but I feel like I've found a part of me that was empty for a long, long time…am I making sense here?" Stella asked, a blush adding colour to her cheeks

"Definitely" he chuckled

"Anatoli gave me a picture" she announced, her smile changing to a distant gaze.

"Of your parents?"

"Mmhmm. Mom, Dad, Antoli and Cora…and me"

Mac's eyes opened wider. Stella saw a flash of excitement deep inside the brown pools. Excitement for her.

She grabbed the photograph from her bag and scooted to Mac's side of the booth. Taking another quick glance, she passed it over. He looked at Stella for a moment before casting his eyes to the worn picture.

She watched Mac, gauging his reactions. He didn't say anything for a while, just flicked his eyes over each dimension to the photograph. "Say something" she prompted with a chuckle

"You were a very cute baby"

Stella giggled; it was typical Mac to state something totally out of the blue. She was expecting him to ask about when the picture was taken, or that she resembled her parents…she should have expected him to say something like he did. "Thank you" she smiled.

She went onto recap what Anatoli had told her, about that night and the social services. A single tear broke free and rolled down her ashen cheek. She fought so hard not to break down in front of Anatoli, and especially in front of Mac, but she was to emotionally confused to hold much of a resistance.

Mac brought her into a hug once she'd finished. The action collapsed the last remaining wall and she freely sobbed. She had a family. She had a past. She had something she'd never truly thought she would achieve.

As he gently rubbed circles on Stella's back, Massimo reappeared with two plates of steaming pasta. He gestured to Mac if he wanted the food a little later, to which Mac gave a slight nod, so not to alert Stella to the silent conversation. Massimo scurried back away to the kitchen.

As the shakes subsided and the tears all but dried up, Stella retracted herself from Mac's embrace. She wiped at her eyes and cheeks, keeping her head down, hoping he wouldn't see her blushed colouring. "Sorry"

"What for?"

"That beautiful display" she chuckled, gestured between herself and Mac

"Hey, if you can't do that with me, who can you do it with?"

"Thanks" she smiled. Taking a sip of her drink and gathering herself, she looked around the restaurant "What happened to our food?"

Mac stood up, bending himself between the seat and the table, and gestured to Massimo.

"Oh, hey, what are you doing tomorrow night? Around 7ish?" Stella asked, between mouthfuls

"Paperwork"

"Not anymore. I'm inviting you to my place for dinner. I want you to meet Anatoli"

"I'd love to" Mac smiled

"Good" she grinned, putting some more pasta into her mouth.