Battle of Love
One Shot!
Author: Lolly4Holly
Rated: K+
Pairings: GSR – Gilbert Grissom and Sara Sidle
Summary: A short battle over love for what is rightfully hers.
Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of its characters.
Warnings: Religious pieces. I'm not against religion, it may sound that way from the way I wrote it, (I'm an atheist nonbeliever) but that's just the affect I wanted for the story.
Author Note: Looking through my computer over the weekend, I found lots of unfinished pieces that I wrote a while ago. This is one of them that I never really finished, but I think it makes quite a nice one shot.
Pacing up and down the length of the room that she currently felt trapped in, Sara Sidle fanned herself with her hand as she held the small bouquet of flowers in the other hand, getting more and more anxious by the second. She knew she was doing the right thing, deep down anyway. But she couldn't help but feel a little ridiculous as she turned towards the full length mirror the other side of the room, checking out the long white dress and her flawless makeup one last time.
"Oh my god, I can't do this." Dropping onto the back of the sofa, Sara continued to fan herself with her hand. Inhaling slow deep breaths to try and calm herself down, Sara started whispering, "I didn't want this. I didn't want any of this. Not like this," As she felt her fears of the entire situation beginning to overwhelm her once again.
Sara suddenly jumped as she heard laughter coming from outside the room. Springing to her feet, Sara dragged her long trail of dress behind her towards the door and peered out through the open gap to see Warrick Brown and David Hodges still ushering people inside.
"Oh god!" She gasped, rolling her head back as she tried to calm herself down.
"Hey, you ready?" The red headed crime scene investigator, Catherine Willows came in through the other door, adjusting her champagne coloured dress as she made her way over to Sara. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Sara forced a smile towards her to try and assure her that everything was fine and she wasn't planning on running from the building. "Do I look okay? The dress is okay, right? I don't wonna look stupid."
"No, the dress is fine Sara." Catherine assured her as she slowly made her way over to her. "The dress is fine. Everything is fine; we just need to walk you down the aisle now. You look beautiful Sara; you've both been through a lot. You both deserve this, so let it happen."
"Okay, okay." She nodded, adjusting the veil attached to her pinned back hair. "Well, I guess we should get going then." Fiddling with the bouquet of flowers in her hands, Sara made sure they were absolutely perfect before she glanced at herself in the mirror again. "God I feel stupid in this dress. Why didn't I just pick out that suit I had my eye on?"
"C'mon butch, you can change into your t-shirt and jeans once you've said 'I do'." Catherine teased her with a smirk then reached out for Sara's hand, urging her off towards the door. "C'mon, your man's waiting for you. Don't wonna keep him waiting, not until after you're married anyway." She chortled to herself then quickly turned to give her a sisterly hug. "I just wonna say I'm proud of you Sara. I didn't think he'd ever get married, but here you are."
"Yeah, please stop hugging me." Sara gave her a gentle push backwards. "Seriously, everyone's been hugging me today, what's the deal? I'm not a person who hugs. Does this dress make me look huggable? If it does then shoot me now."
"O-kay." Rolling her eyes, Catherin gave her a soft smile then turned to pull the door open, leading Sara out into the hall. "Just relax Sara."
"Hey, y'all ready?" Nick Stokes' Texan accent rasped from the doorway.
Sara anxiously pursed her lips together; letting out another deep breath then gave him a nod. Catherine linked arms with her tall dark and handsome chaperone then began her journey up the aisle of off duty police officers, crime scene investigators and lab staff towards the front row.
As the familiar bridal music started to sound through the room, Sara inhaled a deep breath then looped arms with Nick, looking down the aisle ahead of her as Warrick's six year old daughter Raleigh slowly skipped towards the front of the church, throwing the multi coloured flower petals over her shoulder.
"Hey." Nick whispered from beside her. "He's a good man Sara, you made the right choice."
"I know." Sara smiled back at him. "Let's get this over with." Taking her first step into the next chapter of her life, Sara felt overwhelmed with emotions as she and Nick marched down the ivy carpeting coated in flower petals towards the front.
As she reached the halfway mark, Sara could see all of her friends from the lab looking their best. Some of them had even rented tuxedos or splashed out on a new dress, and the spiky haired ex-lab rat had even combed his hair out flat. She was grateful for the effort they had put into their outfits as they all made her feel a little less stupid in her white wedding dress that she had stupidly decided to wear to follow tradition.
Nick turned to face Sara once they reached the front, delicately pressing a brotherly kiss to her cheek before he turned and took a seat on the bench between Raleigh and Greg.
The Preacher cleared his throat then began the wedding charge, "Hand in hand you enter into marriage, hand in hand you step out in faith. Let me charge you both to remember that your future happiness is to be found in mutual consideration, patience, kindness, confidence and affection." He started, not noticing the annoyed look on the brides face as he continued, "Gilbert Grissom, it is your duty to love Sara Sidle as yourself, provide tender leadership and protect her from danger. Sara Sidle, it is your duty to treat Gilbert Grissom with respect, support and create a healthy, happy home. It is the duty of each of you to find the greatest joy in the company of the other; to remember that in both interest and affection, you are to be one and undivided."
Sara couldn't stop an eye roll and a soft sigh from escaping her lips as Grissom's mother had still managed to get her way with how the ceremony took place. Sara didn't want all the religious tidbits that made her sound like a slave to her husband, but as with most Brides and their mother in laws, they came to a big disagreement.
"Gilbert Grissom and Sara Sidle, you have made a very serious and important decision in choosing to marry one another today." The Preacher continued, "You are entering into a sacred covenant as life partners in God. The quality of your marriage will reflect what you put into nurturing this relationship. You have the opportunity to go forward from this day to create a faithful, kind and tender relationship. We bless you this day. It is up to you to keep the blessings flowing each and every day of you lives together. We wish for you the wisdom..."
Sara cast her eyes over her shoulder towards her grinning mother in law who was lip reading the Preacher, smiling happily at what he was saying.
"Gilbert Grissom, do you understand and accept this responsibility, and do you promise to do your very best each day to create a loving, healthy and happy marriage?" The Preacher asked as he turned to look at the groom.
"Yes, I do." Grissom smiled as he looked into Sara's eyes.
"And Sara Sidle, do you understand and..."
"Yeah, I do." Sara abruptly interrupted him, hearing a gasp coming from her mother in laws direction. "Please continue." She smiled to the Preacher, trying to keep her anger from bubbling to the surface.
"Okay, onto the vows." The Preacher momentarily closed the book he was reading from as he looked towards Grissom first.
Unfolding a piece of paper from his jacket pocket, Grissom inhaled a deep breath before he started to read them out, "I take you Sara Sidle, to be my wife, loving you now and as you grow and develop into all that god intends. I will love you when we are together and when we are apart; when our lives are at peace and when they are in turmoil. I will honour your goals and dreams, and help you to fulfil them. From the depth of my heart, I will seek to be open and honest with you..."
Sara sensed that these were not Gilbert Grissom's words, Grissom was always more poetic with his words of love, this had his mother written all over it.
Scowling in her mother in laws direction, Sara shivered as she realised that in marrying the man she loved, she would also tie herself to the woman she was starting to severely hate.
Sara cleared her throat as it became her turn to say her wedding vows that she had been preparing for months in advance. She had wished that her groom had done the same instead of following his mother's instructions, but she still wanted to say what she had written.
"Gil, you know that I love you. I feel I've loved you forever. I've spent my entire life with ghosts, feeling alone and... isolated within myself. But since I met you... I feel as though this... huge weight has been lifted. Our life together, here in Las Vegas is the only home that I've ever really known," She smiled softly as she looked into her soul mates eyes. "And I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love you, I always will."
The audience looked on awestruck by Sara's words, while her mother in law just furrowed her brows as she hadn't lip read a single word of God in Sara's vows.
The Preacher smiled then looked towards Warrick stood just behind Grissom. "May I have the rings?"
Warrick opened his jacket pocket and handed over the boxes, revealing the simple gold banded wedding rings that Grissom and Sara had picked out together a few months in advance.
"Let us bow our heads in prayer. Bless O Lord, the giving and receiving of these rings. May Gilbert Grissom and Sara Sidle abide in thy peace and grow in their knowledge of your presence through their loving union. May the seamless circle of these rings become the symbol of their endless love and serve to remind them of the holy covenant they have entered into today to be faithful, loving and kind to each other. Dear God, may they live in your grace and be forever true to this union. Amen."
"Amen." The audience parroted.
"Groom." The Preacher turned towards Grissom. "Repeat after me... I give you this ring as a symbol of our vows."
"I give you this ring as a symbol of our vows." Grissom repeated as he took the ring for Sara between his thumb and index finger.
"And with all that I am, and all that I have."
"And with all that I am, and all that I have." Grissom replicated the Preacher's words as he smiled into Sara's eyes.
"I honour you, in the name of the father, and the son and of the Holy Spirit."
"I honour you, in the name of the father . . . and t-the son and of t-the Holy Spirit."
The Preacher nodded as Grissom stumbled over his words from his nerves. "With this ring, I thee wed."
"With this ring, I thee... damn." The ring slipped from his fingers, dropping to the ivy carpeted floor beneath him.
Instead of bending to pick it up though, Grissom unclipped the vibrating phone from his belt beneath his jacket, reading '419 Tangiers' off the screen of his cell phone.
Grissom looked up into the disappointed eyes of his bride then turned towards Nick and Greg who were sat in the front row. "Guys, I've got a crime scene for you. Keep me posted."
Tossing Nick his cell phone with the details, Grissom then bent to his knees and retrieved the ring, finishing where he left off while Nick and Greg quietly snuck out of the church to tend to the crime scene that had almost interrupted the happiest moment of the bride's life.
"I now pronounce you, husband and wife." The Preacher finally announced once everything else was out of the way. "You may now kiss the bride." He smiled in the groom's direction.
Taking a step closer towards his new wife, Grissom cupped his wife's cheeks in the palms of his hands as he leant forwards, capturing her lips in a passionate kiss. "I love you, Mrs Grissom." He smiled as he pulled back slightly, lovingly caressing his thumb across her cheek as he gazed into her eyes.
"I love you too, Mr Grissom." Chuckling softly in excitement, Sara turned to face her cheering fans in the rising audience, feeling like the centre of attention for the first time in her life.
"So, Mrs Grissom," Reaching out his newly ringed palm to her, Grissom gave her a wide smile as she slipped her hand into his. "Are you ready to begin the next chapter of our lives together?"
"Yep, more than ready, Mr Grissom." Nodding her head, Sara grinned like a kid in a candy store as she had won the battle over Grissom, leaving the lonely mother in law sat in her seat to watch them parading off down the aisle together.
This round, she had won.
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