Chapter 7: Just Might (Make Me Believe)

"I got miles of trouble spreadin' far and wide
Bills on the table gettin' higher and higher
They just keep on comin', there ain't no end in sight
I'm just holding on tight...
I've got someone who loves me more then words can say
And I'm thankful for that each and every day
And if I count all my blessings, I get a smile on my face
Still it's hard to find faith..."


"Mac, why are we going and ruining our friendship?" Stella asks as they eat dinner one night. Mac had insisted upon taking her out to a fancy restaurant.

"What do you mean? We're not ruining our friendship, we're just becoming more than friends," Mac says as he finishes his meal.

"How do you know that we won't end up having a huge fight and not making up? If something happens, Mac, I already know I couldn't live without my best friend; our last fight showed me that," she says gazing into his eyes looking for an answer.

"We won't mess this up, Stel," both of their pagers go off.

"Looks like we have a case. We'll discuss this in the car," she says as Mac motions for the bill.

'Now my plans are down the drain,' Mac thinks as he helps Stella with her jacket. Little did Stella know that Mac was planning on proposing to her that night.

"But if you can look in my eyes
And tell me we'll be alright
If you promise never to leave

You just might make me believe"

"Stel, have faith in me. I won't hurt you," Mac says as she glares at him.

"What is your definition of faith?" she asks with a smirk.

"Faith is believing in something when common sense tells you not to," Mac puts his eyes back on the road as they drive to the crime scene.

"I do have faith in you, Mac. It's just, I'll screw this. I mean, look at what I did to Frankie," she says quietly.

"Stel, he threatened to kill you and after what was on that website he deserves to be dead," Mac pauses to see if she would argue with him again. When she doesn't reply, he continues, "Stella, we will make it through everything thrown at us. Just look at how much we've already been through as friends. I will never leave you, Stel," he finishes as he reaches over to tuck a curl behind her ear.

"I love you, Mac," and she leans over to kiss him when they stop at a red light.

"It's just day to day tryin' to make ends meet
What I'd give for an address out on easy street
I need a deep margarita to help me unwind
Leave my troubles behind..."

"You want to go out to dinner to make up for last night?" Mac asks as they walk out of the lab together.

"Not really, why?"

"Well, we didn't get to finish last night and I had something planned," he says with a small smile.

"Mac Taylor had plans? When are you going to tell me these plans?" she asks with a mischievous smile.

"Are you sure you don't want dinner?" Mac asks again.

"No, right now I just want to go home and take a bath."

"Okay, I'll order pizza while you take a bath. Then I'll do what I was going to last night."

---CSI: NY---

By the time Stella finishes her bath the pizza has arrived. Mac has already started eating.

"Somebody was awfully hungry. He couldn't even wait for me to finish," she says when she opens the box to grab a piece.

"Sorry, but I was starving. Let's see what's on tv tonight," he says reaching for the remote. Stella grabs it first, "Not until you tell me."

"After we finish eating. Give me the remote," he reaches out to grab it from her hand but she throws a pillow at him.

Not being very hungry she finishes eating before he does. She tries to wait patiently for him to finish. "Hurry up, Mac. I can't take the suspense."

Finally Mac finishes. "Stel, you clean up."

"The trash can wait, I can't," she says receiving a you-better-do-as-I-say look from him. "Fine."

"And take as long as you can," he calls after her.

As Mac pulls a small, velvet box out of his coat pocket, Stella calls from the kitchen, "You want a glass of water, Mac?"

"Sure. What's taking you so long?" he teases.

"Hey, you told me to take as long as I could," Mac puts the box on the table in front of where she was sitting.

"I used to believe in us
When times got tough
Lately I'm afraid that even love is not enough"

When Stella comes back in Mac didn't looked like he had moved at all. She didn't even notice the box until he pointed it out to her when she asked him for the millionth time what his plans were. She picks it up, "Open it, Stel."

Inside Stella found a diamond ring. He takes it out and puts it on her finger. "What is this for, Mac?" Mac gets off the couch and pulls her up. He leads her outside on the balcony and gets down on one knee.

"Stella," he begins still holding her hand, "will you marry me?"

Stella has a horrified look on her face. Mac starts to get worried when she doesn't answer. "Does that look mean yes or no?" Mac's heart was sinking: he had thought about doing this for a long time and he thought she felt the same way he did. Maybe he had been wrong.

She crouched down so their eyes were on the same level and kissed him long and slow. "What do you think?" she asks when they part.

"I'll take that as a yes," he says kissing her again.

"Mac, can we go back inside? It's kind of cold out here," she stands and he follows suit and wraps his arms around her waist.

"Sure. What do you think about having kids?-"

"Mac-"

"I mean if you don't want to we can adopt if you want kids at all-"

"Mac-"

"It's okay with me even if you don't want kids at all, Stella-"

"Mac, shut up. We just got engaged," Stella says when he finally shuts his mouth. "I would like to have kids someday."

"Good, so do I," he sits on the couch and she climbs in his lap. Her head is leaning against his shoulder, his arms still wrapped around her waist.

"Do you believe in us?" Mac asks after they sat silently for a few moments.

"Yes, of course I do. I agreed to be your wife, didn't I?" she answers as he stands up and carries her to the bedroom.

"But if you can look in my eyes
And tell me we'll be alright
If you promise never to leave

You just might make me
Oh, you just might make me
You just might make me believe"

A/N: "Just Might (Make Me Believe)" by Sugarland. This is the end. Sorry it took me so long to get it up. Thank you to everyone who read my story. Tell me how you liked it.