A/N: Thanks so much to all the reviewers – that feels really good! (I'm a fanfic virgin.) I'm posting the next 6 chapters.
Thanks to contributors like Jezzmin, CSIFreak11, spamhead2005, pinkforensics, and especially sugah66. I have found much inspiration from the clever beautiful videos posted.
Chapter 13: Dreaming
Imagine something of your very own
Something you can have and hold.
I'd build a road in gold just to have some dreaming.
Dreaming is free.
Lindsay swam to the surface of sleep, murmuring, "Danny." The sound of her voice woke her all the way, and she rolled over in bed, groaning. Why would she dream of Danny that way? She'd closed that door and locked it. In spite of that, though, she could still feel his arms around her, feel the heat of his breath on her mouth.
"Stop it! Stop it! Closed and ended. You can't do this." Lindsay threw herself out of the bed and paced across the floor. "Make coffee; have a shower; get on with your day; get on with your life! No Messer!"
She walked into the kitchen and jumped a few feet when Stella turned around, "Coffee, Linds?"
Lindsay stared at her for a few moments, then felt the evening before slowly seep back into her consciousness.
"Oh, Stella. Um… how did you sleep?" Lindsay tried to carry this off with a modicum of dignity, but she could hear her own voice still echoing from the other room.
Stella tried unsuccessfully to smother a snicker, but lost it when Lindsay glared at her, and burst out laughing. Then she reached over and casually hugged the younger woman, squeezing tightly for just a moment, before leading her to the kitchen table.
"Look," she gestured proudly, with a secret fond grin. "Croissants and coffee!"
"Where did this come from?" She looked at Stella, still wearing the shorts and t-shirt she'd borrowed from Lindsay's wardrobe when they had finally had stopped talking early in the morning. Her eyes opened wide, "You didn't go out like that, did you?"
Stella laughed again, "No, Flack dropped them off this morning. He was on his way to work and stopped by." Her eyes went soft, as she bit into a warm sweet croissant.
Lindsay stopped with her croissant almost at her open mouth. "Um … Stel?"
"Yeah?" Stella's eyes had been closed with pleasure, but snapped open at the accusatory tone.
"Exactly HOW did Don Flack know that you were here? And how does he know that you like croissants – no, LOVE croissants more than life itself in the morning? And WHY are you blushing?" Lindsay's eyes went wide, and she sighed, "Ohhhh, Stella!" Then she smacked her friend on the arm.
"Hey, what was that for?" Stella was now bluffing as well as blushing.
"Why didn't you TELL me? What's going on with you two? Tell – tell!" Lindsay was practically begging.
Stella looked at the eager face and smiled. If this was all it took to distract Lindsay from the conversation last night, she was willing to dish a little. Besides, she wanted to hear herself say it out loud, and see how weird it felt.
"Flack knew I was here because I texted him last night to let him know. And he knew I was coming here last night because he dropped me off. And he knew I like – okay, LOVE – croissants because …" she paused for a moment, and grinned at Lindsay's threatening hand. "We had dinner together last night."
"Oh my GOD!" All thoughts of last night's conversation flew out of Lindsay's head. "What was it like? Was it amazing? Where did you eat?" The questions just tumbled out.
"Whoa!" Stella put up a hand, laughing. "I'll tell you everything once you've answered two questions for me."
In a flash, the conversation returned to Lindsay. She shifted a little uncomfortably. She still hadn't told Stella everything, although she had confessed her betrayal of Danny. After Stella had forgiven her, the evening had become a bit blurred – the bottle of wine they had broken out may have had something to do with that! "Okay," she said cautiously.
Stella sat forward, and grabbed Lindsay's hand. "Are you still thinking of going to Toronto?"
Lindsay closed her eyes, but didn't pull her hand away. "I don't know. Maybe not. It's just … it seems like such a sensible solution." She looked up then, and saw the compassion in Stella's face.
"Easy, Lindsay, not sensible. You know that, don't you?" When Lindsay nodded, Stella continued, "I'll wait for the rest of the story, Lindsay. We'll all wait until you can tell us. You don't owe us a thing, not even Danny." Stella tightened her hands as Lindsay shivered. "But don't run away from us, either. We won't let you go without a fight."
She sat back and bit into her croissant, waiting for Lindsay's tears to stop. After a few minutes, she shook her head and said, "Okay, second question."
Lindsay gave a watery little snort, wiping her face with her hands. "What?"
"So, exactly how hot was the dream?"