Danny and Lindsay According To…

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters; this is simply my imagination put to paper.

Chapter 4 – The Crew

Lindsay had to rush to get dressed since she was delayed by Stella's visit. She had very little time to figure out how she was going to tell the rest of the team. Of course, if Flack and Stella knew, she had a very short window of opportunity to break it to them herself. Then there was Aiden and Hannah. This was all too much. She wasn't going to get off until 8:00 and that wasn't a certainty. The best she could do was to make an announcement to them all at one time.

CSI:NY

It was 4:30 and the morning crew was getting off and it was Lindsay's lunch time. Lindsay had sent a mass text message out to Hawkes, Sid, and Adam, as well as to Aiden and Hannah, and they had all gathered at the bar and grill a few blocks from the lab. When Danny and Lindsay arrived, Danny could tell that Aiden was not happy about being there without knowing why she was there.

After greeting everyone, Lindsay addressed Aiden. "So, how does it feel, Ms. Burn, to be invited out not knowing what's on the agenda?" Lindsay asked cheekily.

Aiden feigned annoyance. "Lindsay, you texted me while I'm working on a case of my own and I lose the subject I'm trailing and you're playing games with me?"

"And I repeat, how does it feel?" Lindsay's smirk irritated her even more.

Aiden rolled her eyes at her and said, "Look, Lindsay, I'm glad that you and my boy are happy and are having fun at our expense, but I don't have time for this. You'd better make this quick or I'm outta here."

Lindsay knew that this was just Aiden's way and that she meant no harm, but she also knew that she could be quite impatient and she had better get to the point.

"I guess you all are wondering why you've been summoned here."

Her audience nodded.

"Danny and I have an announcement to make." She beamed from ear to ear as she leaned into Danny. "Danny and I got married!"

Instead of the excitement the happy couple expected to see, there was apathy. Hannah asked, "That's all? You made me cancel my last two appointments for this?"

Danny and Lindsay were utterly confused. This was good news. Their friends wanted to see them together, and now that they were together forever, nobody cared.

"We thought you guys would be happy for us."

"We are happy," Hawkes explained. "It's just that with all of this, we thought that you had some earth-shattering news."

Lindsay and Danny were quite disappointed that their friends didn't show the least bit of excitement about their marriage. If that wasn't earth-shattering, what was?

"So, Danny," Aiden asked. "How's Lou doing these days?"

Danny was dumbfounded. They could not have expected this announcement. Before either one of them could ponder it any further, the lights went out.

"What the hell?" Danny asked. That took his mind off of the situation at hand. They all looked around in the dark for a few seconds as the crowd murmured about the surprising state of darkness.

Just as quickly as they went off, the lights came back on. Straight ahead, they saw a banner held by two police officers that said, "Congratulations Danny and Lindsay Messer." There were cheers from the patrons as Danny and Lindsay tried to take it all in. Their friends at the table laughed and Hawkes pointed to the couple and said, "Gotcha!"

They looked at each other in confusion trying to make sense of what had just happened. They were set up! Their friends new all along that they had gotten married and planned this celebration for them since they were not able to attend the wedding. Little did they know that the restaurant was filled with their friends from the lab and from the precinct.

Lindsay finally gathered her thoughts and said the only thing she could say, "You knew!"

Sid said sarcastically, "No, Lindsay, we had nothing to do with this fiasco." He smiled, then rose to his feet and made his way around the table to give her a hug and to shake Danny's hand. "I wish you both the best. I knew it was just a matter of time."

Aiden said, "Yeah, we all did. It took this one," she gestured toward Lindsay, "the longest time to admit it, but look at them now – husband and wife. Messer's married! Can you believe this?"

CSI:NY

And so it continued. Everyone there gave their well wishes and expressed their surprise. Their closest friends were surprised at how it was done, but not that it was done. They had sensed something between those two that was masked by their obstinance. Danny fought it tooth and nail, substituting his true feelings for animosity. There was no in-between for him – he was a passionate person by nature, given to extremes. Lindsay finally let him in and allowed herself to believe that he could have deep feelings for her and he could possibly be the one to bring her happiness despite all of the misery he had previously heaped upon her. What they discovered was an enduring love in the last place they expected to find it: in each others' arms.

CSI:NY

Well, that's all, folks! Thank you all so much for the reviews and feedback. You have no idea how much the encouragement is appreciated. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. I have another story in the works that is very different from this one. I make no promises as to when I'll post it, though.