As I promised: it's Sunday and this is my update! Hope you'll like it, though :) Thanks for not killing me earlier :)

I want to dedicate this chapter to someone who became sort of special to me over the past couple of months. Someone who writes awesome SMacked stories and someone who is reading this story from the very beginning although she was a bit nervous about my summary ;) but she came to know me quite well and I know that she knows what I am capable of and what I wouldn't ever dare to do. Reading her stories inspired me to try something like she did and it somehow improved my writing style. I want to thank her for her support. Thanks and dedication goes to: Andorian Ice Princess.

But of course I want to thank all of you for your support and kind words and for not giving up on me :) This story is the most reviewed and I assume the most read story I've written so far and I want to thank you! I am truly honored and I am very happy that you all read it and review. YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME!

Chapter seventeen: Waiting

"Mac…" I whispered again, tears in my eyes. What if the paramedics wouldn't be here in time? What if I would loose him? If he died?

"Mac… you can't do that to me… don't you dare doing that to me…" I whispered again and again.

Finally, for what seemed like hours, but only took a few minutes, I heard the sirens of the ambulance and I also heard it coming to halt near me. But it all seemed like it was a dream, or a scene on TV. It felt like I was watching everything that happened around me now. Two paramedics came running toward me and Mac and one of them a young woman pulled me away from Mac. Another paramedic, probably the one who drove the ambulance ran toward Mac to help the young man who was examining Mac. The third paramedic who drove the car had brought the stretcher with him and both where now gently placing Mac on it. The young woman who stayed with me had given me something like a towel, a piece of cloth to clean my hands from Mac's blood. She asked me a few questions which I answered subconsciously. As the two men passed us with the stretcher I wanted to rush toward them, but the young woman grabbed my arm. When they pad pulled the stretcher into the ambulance and the driver was going back into the cabin the young woman asked me if I wanted to come with them. I nodded my head and she led me to the ambulance. She ordered me to sit on the bench next to the stretcher, which I did. I instantly grabbed Mac's hand and was shocked about how cold it actually was.

"How is he? Will he survive?" I asked the paramedics quietly and looked at them in misery.

"I can't say that right now. He lost much blood and his breathing is quite fragile and so is his heart rate. But we're doing our best." The young man, who was the first to examine Mac, answered my question. The answer didn't really satisfy me and it didn't help my fear to subside.

"Come on Mac… you can do it. I know you can." I whispered into his ear, hoping he could hear me.

xXxXxXxXx

The ride to the hospital was a torture for me. One time Mac's heart rate dropped to critical level and they feared he wouldn't make it. That was the one time I did let go of his hand to call Don so that he knew what happened. He told me he would come to the hospital as soon as he could.

Now I was sitting in the waiting area of the ER hoping that Mac would be okay, the moment when they pulled him away from me and into the ER examination room running through my head over and over again. A young woman in white clothes came walking to me. Dr. Triny Wilkins was written on her name card.

"Ms. Bonasera?" she asked and I nodded my head. "I'm Dr. Wilkins."

"Hi." I said. I wasn't able to say anything else.

"Were you hurt, too?"

"What? No, why are you asking?" I asked her somewhat confused. She pointed on my hands and my shirt. Blood, but I instantly knew it wasn't my own.

"No… I'm fine. It's from… when I tried to stop the bleeding and save his life."

"You did a good job Ms. Bonasera. Anyways… I want to check you also, just in case." Dr. Wilkins said in a friendly but firm tone.

"I'm fine, really. Just… shocked. That's all."

"I know, but it's my job to check on those people who were at the scene."

"It's a waste of time, Dr. I said I am fine. You don't need to check on me, because it's not my blood." I said firmly. I didn't want to be examined. I knew I was okay and I was still waiting for Don.
"Okay. Then let me at least get you something to clean your hands and let me get you a shirt you can wear." She suggested. I look down at my hands and my shirt and then back up at her. She had light brown, shoulder long, wavy hair and beautiful dark green eyes. Those green eyes looked at me asking for that one favor, friendly but firm and concerned.

"Okay." I agreed and she led me into one of the examination rooms and closed the door and blinds. Next to the room there was a smaller washing room, which you could only enter through the examination room. She led me into the room.

"Okay, you can use this soap next to the second sink to clean your hands." She instructed and I went over to the sink.

"Thank you, Dr. Wilkins." I said. She smiled lightly.

"Just clean your hand. I'll get you something to wear while you're in here. You mind wearing a white shirt?"

"No. Thanks."

Dr. Wilkins left the room and I started my mission to clean my hands of Mac's blood. It was a bit hard for me to do so. I had no idea how he was holding up and if he was going to be okay. All I knew was that he was brought to surgery shortly after we arrived. The only person who talked to me since was a nurse asking me if I needed something and Dr. Wilkins, obviously wanting to help me. The nurse didn't have any news from Mac and I forgot to ask Dr. Wilkins. It took a while till I got my hands cleaned of Mac's blood and yet, being reminded of what happened in the car park I felt the tears threatening to roll down my cheeks again. I had just finished my task when Dr. Wilkins came back, a white T-Shirt in her hands. I dried my hands and she offered me the shirt.

"Thank you." I said after I had put on the white shirt instead of my own light green one.

"You want to give that to me? I can give it to the laundry and they'll clean it from the blood." She offered, pointing on the shirt in my hands.

"No. Thanks. I… um… I can do it alone." I said, offering her a thankful smile.

"So, you really don't want me to check you?"

"No. I'm fine."

"Okay. I'll walk you back into the waiting area. Heart a detective named Flack asked for you and Detective Taylor." She said.

"Do you know anything? How's he doing?" I remembered to ask her.

"I'm sorry. I have nothing. Haven't heard anything, yet. Guess he is still in surgery." She said.

"Kay. Thanks."

She brought me back to the waiting area and I started to look for Don. I finally saw him sitting on the bench where I had been sitting before Dr. Wilkins let me clean my hands and get me a new shirt. Dr. Wilkins offered me a small smile and then got back to work. I started my way to Don who had seen me coming and was now meeting me halfway. He wrapped his arms around me and held me close. A friendly and yet comforting gesture like we shared before.

"Thanks for coming, Don." I told him after we went back to our seats.

"Hey, you're my friend and so is he. How are you holding up?" he asked looking at me with a concerned expression.

"I don't know. Mostly I sat here worrying about him and hoping that he'll be fine. It still seems like a bad dream to me and I am hoping to wake up from it any minute."

"I'm sorry, Stell."

"I just want him to be okay…" I said, tears threatening to build again.

"You know Mac… he's going to be fine." Don said but his voice was worried also.

"I just worry."

"You care a lot, don't you?"

"You know I do."

"Stella, I worry about him just as much as you trust me."

"I know. And yet I have no idea how the hell that happened. I only remember a figure in black running from the scene."

"Security cameras showed that a man in black clothing with white shoes was sneaking around that area quite a while. And before you ask I let one of my people checking the tapes and he called me."

"So we have all that on tape?" I asked him.

"Yah, we do. Every single detail, but not his face."

"I think it's the guy who's after me. Damn it, Don, this bullet was supposed to hit me… I should have been the victim, the one in that surgery. Not him…"

"Stella… Mac offered you his spare room, because he wanted to protect you. He was shot down, because someone wanted to kill you. He wanted to protect you, Stella, because he cares about you, just as much as I know you care about him." Don said. That was assuring what I had been feeling and thinking all the time but it wasn't really helpful for me, because now I couldn't hold back the tears. Don put his arm around my shoulder and I rested my head on his shoulder, not caring about the tears now rolling down my cheek.

"That's the problem, Don… it was supposed to be me, not him… I… what if I can't ever thank him for protecting me? Tell him I'm sorry… What if he…" I started but Don stopped me.

"Don't you dare to even think about it? You know Mac, he's strong and he'll pull through. All he needs is you staying at his side." He said.

"We had a great time before you called him… I was planning to maybe continue that great time later, but now… maybe I'll never get the chance to. I should have called him on that on the way back to the lab…" I said in misery. Don looked at me, his bright blue eyes looking curious, sad and comforting at the same time, but he remained silent. He just listened to me and was there where he was needed.

"Damn it, I want to tell him so much… I have so many things I wanted to tell him…"

"You'll get your chance, look." He said pointing out toward the reception table. I saw another man with a white lab coat walking toward us. I whipped away the tears just as he arrived.

"Detective Bonasera?" he asked and I nodded.

"I'm Dr. Jesse Hendricks. I'm the doctor responsible for Detective Taylor."

"How is he?"

"Well, he's taken to a room the moment we speak. We were able to remove the bullet, but it hit his milt, so we had to remove that also. He lost a lot of blood and his condition is still critical. He's not out of the woods yet." Dr. Hendricks said. I looked at Don and he nodded his head lightly.

"Can I see him?" I asked the Doctor.

"I'll show you the way." The doctor said and I turned around to face Don.

"I'll drop by later, Stella. There is a lot of work for us to do, to find the one who did this. Anything I can do for you?" Don asked.

"Mac suggested that maybe Dimitri Patos' brother is behind all this. Maybe you can do a little research and find out where he is? And… tell them I want the whole team working on the case and the latest victim. They can call me. I'll be staying with Mac." I said.

"Wouldn't let you do anything else. I'll let you know when we got something." He said. He hugged me and placed a soft kiss on my cheek.

"He's going to be okay, Stella. Let me know when he wakes up. Gotta kick his ass for doing that to us." He said with a smile and I couldn't help but reply it. I knew he meant to change my mood and I was thankful for that.

I turned around and followed Dr. Hendricks. On the way to Mac's room I cemented the plan that, as soon as Mac will be okay and out of the hospital, I would tell him how much I really care about him and how I really feel for him. I needed to take that chance.

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think, will you? Hope this chapter worth the cliffhanger from the last one and I hope you're not bored away ;)

A/N: To the few of you who also read my other active story "Tragedy And Joy"... I know that I kinda neglected that one the last couple of weeks and I'm sorry. I just ran out of ideas as to how I should go on with that one and then the news of Melina leaving the show killed the muse for a short time and I just haven't found back to that one... I'm sorry... I try to get back to it, too. I just hope you're not mad at me, for not posting any updates for that story. Just be patient with me, please? I am doing my best to get back to it, too :)

blackrose538