Title: Everything You Want
Author: StarrySkies
Rating: K+
Pairing: Mac/Stella
Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Characters and such are property of Jerry B., Anthony Z., CBS & co. Title comes from "Vertical Horizon."
Summary: She can't remember the last time she saw the stars.
A/N: Fluff if there ever was. First time writing it on purpose. Figured I'd give angsty Mac/Stella a break, but they shall return. :)
She talks about the stars. How she can't remember the last time she saw them. Then she remembers it was in the blackout of '03. With the city lights unable to overpower them, the stars came out to play. Not too many people enjoyed them like Stella did. She asks him if he remembers how hot it was. "The power had to go out in the summer, didn't it?" she laughs. Better than the winter, he reminds her. She agrees.
She said it was the closest she's ever felt to Heaven.
He feels it standing next to her.
"Stella."
"Yeah?"
He hands her a manila folder in passing. "Trace on the clothing."
"Where are you going?"
"Take-out. Want anything?"
"No, thanks," she says.
"I'll be back in an hour."
"Take-out at 4 in the afternoon?"
"Missed lunch."
She opens the folder and sees a Post-It stuck to the results she had intended on reading.
"Meet me at your place. 8pm. - M"
"Sneaky," she thinks. "Definitely sneaky." She smirks at his resourcefulness.
"What's so funny about that folder?"
She spins to see Sheldon standing behind her. The folder is clutched to her chest.
"Uh, nothing," she answers quickly. "Stupid criminals, you know. They amuse me. I'm a pretty simple person."
"Uh…huh."
Stella isn't sure, but she thinks he winked at her. The boy is too smart for his own good.
He doesn't head for his favorite restaurant. Instead, he walks to a store down the block, finds what he needs and brings them to the counter. The young kid behind it eyes his purchase.
"Just ring them up, please," he says, annoyed. Mac throws a 10 dollar bill onto the counter and grabs the bag while he waits for his change.
7:56 PM.
"Well, fancy meeting you here. Damn. Does this mean it wasn't one of the cute little lab techs leaving me the cryptic notes?"
He smiles and cuts to the chase. "Close your eyes."
"This is my apartment, Mac."
"Humor me, please," he smiles. "No peeking."
She sighs rather loudly in mock annoyance and squints her eyes shut while he takes the keys from her hand to unlock the door. He leads her in and turns on a lamp beside the couch. She tries to navigate her way around furniture like it's a game.
"I got you," he reassures.
He leads her left around the couch, around the coffee table, left to… "My bedroom," she says out loud.
"Will you just be quiet for a minute?" he teases.
"Sorry," she laughs. "You act like I don't live here."
She doesn't hear him turn on the light, but through her eyelids, she can tell it's already on when they walk into the room. She wonders if she forgot to turn it off before she left for work.
"Lie down," he says and leads her to the bed.
"Oh, what a smooth talker you are." Eyes still closed, she almost trips over the bed skirt as she climbs onto the bed. Shouts an obscenity. Laughs at her own clumsiness.
He flicks the light-switch off, and it's dark now. "Wait," he says.
She's stretched out; arms are folded behind her head, her ankles crossed at the other end of the bed. "I'd better get dinner out of this," she jokes and feels him lie down beside her.
"Now."
She opens her eyes to see her ceiling covered in stars. Green plastic ones that glow with energy from what light they can soak up. She gasps softly and looks over at him. If she had been thinking of a joke before now, it's been lost. All he can see is the outline of her smile.
"Mac…"
"You like them?"
"Yeah."
"I know it's not as good as the real thing."
She has tears in her eyes. They're glistening even in the dark. She presses her lips together as she looks over at him, trying not to cry. "It's close enough."
He grabs her hand.
"What do you want to do tonight?"
"Just lay here," she says.
"Don't you want to talk or something?"
"Okay." She thinks and adds, "What is the one thing you want most in the world?"
"What kind of question is that?"
"It's just a question."
"You first. What do you want?"
She's quiet for a moment. Brushes a curl from her eye. "I used to think it was being adopted. But that kinda ran out of time," she jokes. He doesn't find it all that funny. Feels a bit sorry for her, even though he knows she hates it. "And then, I thought it was having the perfect job. But now? I don't… I don't know."
"You're not happy at the lab?"
"I am. I'm just –- I don't like this question. Let's talk about something else."
"Hey, it was your question. Don't blame me."
"I know."
They lie there in the darkness, under the glowing of pretend stars. She moves closer to him and rests her head on his chest. She hears his heart beating, comforting her. It crosses her mind that she doesn't want to be anywhere other than where she is right now. She has the Heavens above her and the one person in the whole world who would do anything for her lying right beside her. What more did she need?
"You," he says suddenly.
"Me, what?" she asks, still lying on his chest.
"What I want is for you to be happy."
She lifts herself up to look him in the eye.
"That's what I want." He shrugs as if it's the easiest answer he's ever had to give. No thought process. Only knowing.
A smile crosses her face, which in turn, ignites a smile from him. Stella crawls on top of him and kisses him once. And then once more.
"You know, that key I gave you was for emergencies."
The End.