Partially inspired by Midnight-Psychotics' songfic "Maps". She did such a good job integrating the song into the story without making it so 'in-your-face' I guess I had to try my hand at it too.
Different song of course.
I don't have a beta, I read this over and over again hoping to catch any remaining mistakes that might be lingering. If I happen to miss some please forgive me.
Standard disclaimer applies here.
Grissom had no idea how he arrived here, personally and professionally. Right now he was in unmarked territory and was just rolling with the punches. As he approached the bouncer at the door he was urged to show the man his I.D. not quite sure if he should be flattered or not or just chalk it up to bars in this area being overly cautious. There was a bill trying to get passed that would say bars could lose their liquor licenses on their first offense of selling alcohol to a minor. Everybody was getting carded that night, even fifty year old men apparently.
As he walked in all five of his senses were practically assaulted by the atmosphere. Smoke, noise, people and booze everywhere. This might have been someplace he frequented when he was still in grad school but the only thing Gil Grissom could think of right now was how quickly he could get out of here. He did a quick scan of the faces around him and at the bar, she was nowhere to be found. He eyed the people toward the back sitting in booths to see if maybe he could pick out someone back there sitting by themselves, also yielding no results, it never crossed his mind that she might not actually be here alone.
He approached the man behind the bar counter and flashed his badge, sure he wasn't here on official police business but the man didn't need to know that. Grissom wasn't afraid to throw his weight around when it came to some things...or someone...
"Hi, Gil Grissom Las Vegas Crime Lab. I'm wondering if you could help me, I'm looking for a tall brunette around 5'8", medium length hair comes to around her shoulders. I'm wondering if you've seen her?"
The bartender didn't bother to look at Grissom, hurriedly making drinks for his patrons. "Listen buddy don't take this the wrong way," he said filling a glass with ice, "look around there's at least fifty girls in this room alone that fits that description, and that's not to mention the patio."
"You have a patio?"
The man looked up and quickly pointed to a door, "Yeah it's that way."
Grissom thanked the man and made his way to the patio, as he pushed the door opened he made a mental note to wash his hands after he left, he didn't want to dwell on it but whatever he just touched on the handle was sticky. He said a silent prayer hoping it was just from a spilled coconut drink.
The patio was less busy than the inside, the sun had set a few hours ago and it was starting to get chilly. That was the one thing about Las Vegas that threw off the tourists, the days could be overbearingly hot, but the nights could sometimes reach near freezing, especially in the more deserted areas. Most of the people were huddled together inside trying to escape the adverse climate while just a few of the locals, he assumed, were enjoying their drinks in the luau setting outside. The patio was even equipped with it's own tiki style makeshift bar for convenience sake.
That's where he saw her.
Grissom approached lightly not wanting to startle her in case she had had too many drinks inside her already.
"Sara?" His voice was soft and comforting as he lightly touched her right elbow.
It took a few seconds for her brain to register that someone had just said her name and was touching her arm. The last few weeks had been extremely rough on her. While she wasn't one to drown her sorrows anymore, lately her doubles had been running into triples because of an extremely difficult case and this time she just needed a release. Somebody had broken into and old woman's house and stabbed her to death with a screwdriver while she slept. Afterwards the killer turned all his aggression onto her four cats, the team arrived after a business owner called the police. The woman was old fashioned and had milk for her cats delivered to her door, the delivery man took notice when the unopened bottles started piling up. The door wasn't even locked, when he walked in there were cat parts everywhere. The team found the old lady upstairs in her bed, the decapitated heads of her four cats with her. She had been robbed and they suspected the crime was drug motivated due the overly violent nature of it.
Sara was going to have nightmares for weeks.
"Sara?"
There it was again, that voice, it sounded warm. She turned her head to see who was saying her name.
She smiled lightly, "Grissom, what are you doing here?"
He took a seat on the stool next to her, "Sara I came to get you, you were upset when you left today."
Was she? She couldn't remember. What had happened that day? That's right Ecklie was riding her about her overtime, said she was single handedly putting the crime lab in the poor house and they couldn't afford to keep paying her time an a half like they did. As if she was the only one who ever got overtime. They got into a shouting match and she stormed away saying she was taking the night off. There was surely going to be Hell to pay when she went back.
"Ecklie is an asshole." She stated simply, it almost had a childlike quality. She took another drink of her beer, finishing it off.
"I know he is...Sara I think you've had enough."
She chuckled to herself a little bit, "Is this where I make a scene and lash out at you, telling you, 'I'll tell you when I've had enough!'?" She signaled to the bartender to get her another round.
Grissom smiled weakly, "I don't know, is it?"
She frowned, "Gris why are you really here? If I'm fired do you think you could wait until tomorrow and just email me or something?"
"You aren't fired Sara, and if you were I certainly wouldn't email you telling you so."
"That's comforting to know, you want something to drink? I'm buying. Hey bartender, get me that beer and my friend here anything he wants."
The bartender eyed Grissom silently wanting to confirm if he should continue to serve her or not. Grissom discreetly shook his head 'no' and the bartender gave a small nod. "Sorry Sara, I agree with your friend, maybe you should let him take you home now."
She dipped her head down in one fluid motion and rested her forehead on the counter top. "So you're against me now too huh? Fine, whatever, I'll go home and get screwdrivered to death while I sleep, then you'll be sorry you didn't give me my last beer."
She tried to stand up but stumbled a bit as she got off the stool. Grissom was at her side within seconds helping her steady herself. He looked up at the bartender and pulled out his wallet, "Is fifty enough?" The bartender nodded and Grissom told him to keep the change. As they were making their way off the patio Grissom had an arm wrapped protectively around Sara's waist trying to give her leverage enough to walk. Even in her particular state the gesture was not wasted.
"Grissom you don't need to hold me like this. I'm a big girl you know."
"Sara, you're drunk."
She laughed and rolled her eyes, "Oh you, quit flirting me. If you want me it's cool."
His voice was low and warning, "Sara..."
She sighed loudly and cloaked a slender arm around Grissom's neck and he smelled the alcohol on her breathe as she exhaled. Her cheeks were rosy, her shirt was wrinkled and riding up slightly from being pressed against his side where he supported her and her hair was tousled from being up for days at a time. He was certain that she could probably blow up on him or throw up on him at any given moment. She was disheveled in every sense of the word and honestly he'd really never seen her look more desirable. God help him he did want her.
"Grissom don't freak out, it was just a joke okay? Just...carry me home and put me to bed."
When they got into the parking lot Grissom looked around but couldn't find her car. "Sara, where is your vehicle?"
She was staring at the ground before but now she looked up, "I took a cab here," She looked directly in his eyes now and smiled, "You'll be happy to know that I no longer drink and drive."
He smiled back at her and then she turned away and puked on the asphalt. As she gagged and apologized Grissom held her hair and gently caressed her back in small clock-wise circles reassuring her that it was perfectly all right. At least she didn't have her slip up in his Denali. He helped her into the passenger side and shut the door then he got in on his side and started the engine. Her head was pressed up against the window and she spoke very softly.
"Gris, can I stay at your place tonight?" She sounded weak and unsure. When she looked over at him her eyes were glazed over and out of focus, "I just don't want to be alone at my place tonight."
Grissom put the truck into gear and drove away from the bar.
"Sure Sara, that would be fine."
By the time they got back to his place she had fallen asleep. He pulled up into his driveway and killed the engine. He pulled the keys out of the ignition and let his eyes fall on her, despite all he had seen tonight he still thought she looked heavenly. That must be what love is. He idly ran through his mind. Seeing someone at their absolute worst when they are completely broken and only wanting to love them more for it. He had no doubts that if the roles were reversed Sara would have come through for him tonight just like he had done for her. So what was he doing then?
He sighed to himself, "I have no idea what I'm doing."
Grissom got out of the car and opened the door to his town home, he didn't want to wake Sara up so he just planned on carrying her upstairs. He went back to the Denali and scooped her up out of her seat marveling at how light she was. As he pulled her close to his body she instinctively tucked herself into him, curling into his warmth. He heard his name pass her lips, his real name. She doesn't call him Gil often, as a matter of fact he can probably count on one hand the number of times, counting tonight, that she's used his birth given name. His heart swelled up so large he thought it might burst.
He reached the top of his steps and laid her gently on his bed. He took off her shoes and socks and covered her up with his down comforter. Running to the kitchen he got a glass of water and a large pot just in case she woke up nauseated and wasn't sure where to find the restroom. If she did have a slip up then he'd deal with that later. He made sure to put everything in plain sight so she'd have no trouble finding it. Before Grissom headed back downstairs to sleep on the couch he took a final look at her. Maybe I'm not as clueless as I thought, I could do this, I could get used to this...caring for someone.
Sara woke up the following morning to a pounding headache in a strange room she'd never seen before. Slightly panicked she sat up quickly and threw the bedding off herself. She was relieved to see she was still fully clothed. She let out a sigh, where was she? She noticed the water and the pot and felt a little more at ease, that was until she saw all the butterflies sitting in shadow boxes hanging on the walls. She began to panic again. Oh God, I either came home with a woman last night or...as she was about to finish her thought she caught sight of his badge sitting on his dresser.
"Fuck!" She let out a stifled profanity.
Why couldn't she remember anything, had she blacked out? All at once hundreds of horrible scenarios began running through her throbbing head. It was too early to deal with all of this especially with a hangover. Wait what time was it? Looking over at the digital clock on the nightstand she saw it was nearly noon. There was no way in hell she was making it out of this house with her dignity still intact.
She made Grissom's bed and rounded the corner, willing herself to walk down the stairs and face the music. Maybe she could sneak out the front door without him knowing...she shook that thought from her head. Sidle you are dead meat...
Grissom knew she was awake, he could hear her hushed hysterics from all the way down stairs. The thought brought an evil smile to his face, he probably shouldn't be getting such a morbid pleasure from the amount of embarrassment he was sure she was feeling right about now, but he couldn't help it. It was just too funny. He sat up and shuffled into the kitchen and started pulling out pots and pans. He was going to make her breakfast and maybe alleviate some of the stress she was feeling. They wouldn't have to talk if their mouthes were busy chewing.
"Gris?" He heard her from down the hall, she sounded small and cautious. Poor thing now I feel bad for laughing.
"In here dear." Woah what? It slipped out before he could catch it and he mentally slapped himself. So much for making her feel comfortable. Damnit! He turned his attention to an egg sitting on his counter and cracked it into a bowl a little harder than usual.
Sara heard him call out from the kitchen. Woah what? She walked a little slower trying to piece together her thoughts. She really wished she could remember what happened last night! She made a vow to herself, she was not going to drink when she was upset anymore. Sometimes the consequences were just too much. As the kitchen came into her field of view she was graced with the wonderful sight of Gil Grissom pouring pancake batter onto a hot skillet in his PJs. Maybe it wasn't all bad.
He looked over his shoulder and tossed her a smile. "Good morning."
"Yeah..." She felt incredibly awkward.
"How do you feel? Do you think you could eat something?"
She sat down at his kitchen table and totally ignored his question, "What happened last night Grissom?"
Flipping the pancakes he looked over at her, "You don't remember?"
He had this adorable cowlick on the side of his head where she could tell he slept, she smiled inwardly logging it into her memory banks. It was something she was not likely to ever see again, at that thought there was a small pain in her chest, it was bittersweet being here with him like this.
"No." Was her only answer
"Well..." He said pulling two sets of plates and two sets of silverware from the cupboard, "You had a rough night yesterday. I uh, found you at a bar after you stormed out of the office. You were pretty gone by the time I got a hold of you and brought you back here." He started plating the food, "You eat eggs right?"
She nodded.
Sara remembered the fight with Ecklie and walking out of the lab, and she vaguely remembered entering the bar, but that was it. She was mortified, she got completely shit faced and her boss was the one who ended up taking care of her at the end of the night. Her put he hands over her face, "Oh my God, Gil I am so sorry for whatever trouble I caused you last night." There was a pregnant pause, she looked up at him to see if he was accepting her apology but she noticed he had the oddest look on his face. "Gris are you alright? I didn't cause too much trouble did I?" He was acting strange and it really had her worried. She knew their friendship was strained and she prayed that this wasn't the straw that broke th camels back.
Grissom took her plate and quietly set it in front of her and then walked back to the fridge to get some orange juice.
"Grissom?"
He was lost in thought, "You know, that is the second time in less than twenty four hours you have called me by my first name?" He continued to look off into space as he poured two glasses of the drink.
"Uh...sorry?" She wasn't quite sure what to make of his comment. It seemed completely neutral, she wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing.
"Don't be," He set the glass in front of her and took a seat, "I like the way it sounds when it rolls off your lips – Ooh I forgot the syrup." He jumped back up out of his seat to fetch his bottle of Aunt Jemima.
Sara's jaw literately dropped, he was being way too nonchalant, didn't he realize what he was saying? Didn't he realize what it sounded like he was saying?
"Whoa...what? I mean, um...what?" She couldn't bring herself form real sentences, her brain was overloading, thoughts were running through her head so fast she didn't have the time to grasp onto them. It was like she just jumped into hyperspeed or something and everything was blurring passed her. It took all she could to just stand up.
Grissom couldn't believe what he just said, he buried his face in his cupboard pretending to look for the syrup that was right in front of him. She was surprised by his risky admission, but so was he. Grissom was walking a very dangerous line right now and if he passed it nothing would be the same ever again. Then again didn't he make up his mind last night, didn't he decide that he could give 'this' a chance? After he held her and had a taste of what he could have had all along he found that letting go was one of the hardest things he'd had to do that night.
He hadn't meant to be this brazen though, what if she thought he was toying with her again? Another one of Gil Grissom's famous games of 'push me/pull me'? He runs really hot until he runs ice cold, then you go into shock and get hypothermia in the shower. Oh God he hoped she didn't think that. He snuck a quick glance away from the cupboard and saw she was approaching him. Why was he such a coward when it came to her?
As Sara neared she reached passed him and directly into his cupboard, successfully finding the bottle of pancake syrup he was having such a hard time with. "Funny," She said as she handed it to him, "It didn't look very hidden...Now why don't you tell me what's going on." She looked him straight in the eye this time, her brown boring into his blue. Her jaw was set and her body language indicated that she was ready for some type of confrontation. She was so close, this could swing either way.
It all happened so quickly not even he expected it. One moment they were standing there in his kitchen mere inches apart ready to have some sort of life altering conversation, but all he could really think of was how sexy she looked when she was ready to kick his ass. Breathing heavily, chest pushed out, no doubt adrenaline coursing through her veins, God she was beautiful. He remembers the crash of Aunt Jemima hitting the floor as he dropped the bottle, but now that he thinks of it that might have been the crash of their teeth meeting as his mouth engulfed hers for the first time in a hungry kiss. All the pent up passion they'd held for eachother all those years spilling out in one glorious union of their lips, it was fierce and it was needed. His hands made their way up to cup her face, he pulled away to say something but was cut off by her mouth again, she was tired of talking to him. He forced her against the closed door of his refrigerator, and shudder ran through her body as her back met with the cold hard surface, the same shudder ran through Grissom seconds later. Feeling her body writhe below him was electrical. He took hold of her arms and pinned them above her head as his mouth overtook her neck and clavicle. He always did love anatomy.
God willing, that would have been the afternoon they consummated their relationship after several arduous years of foreplay, except in all the frenzy it became obvious that Grissom had neglected to take the scrambled eggs off the burner and shut the burner itself off. Thick black smoke was now threatening to take over his house. Without thinking twice Grissom grabbed the baking soda from his fridge and used it to smother the flame as Sara took the once burning pan and threw it outside. The smoke detectors finally went off, too little too late and they both began to laugh. Damn this had been a crazy week and it was only Wednesday.
Sara looked at the clock on the stove and licked her lips, "As much as I'd like to continue where we left off. I really have to get going, I've been in these clothes for too long."
Grissom smiled to himself, if it wasn't for his stupidity in about ten minutes neither of them would have had a problem with her being in those clothes. He cleared his throat and spoke up, "Okay then let me just get my keys."
The drive back to her place was relatively silent, but it wasn't awkward, both parties were just taking time to process everything that had just happened between them. Grissom pulled into he driveway and put the truck in park. "So should I call you later...or something?" He felt like he was a teenager again.
A huge smile crept up on her face and his heart soared, "Yeah, I'd really like that." She leaned over and gave him a kiss that lingered a bit too long, she pulled away with her eyes still closed, "Too bad about that fire." He smiled as she exited his car and practically skipped to her door.
Oh yeah, he could definitely get used to this.