Author's note: Yes, this is my first attempt at fan fiction. Read on and you can tell. I was intrigued by all the stories I read that mentioned the Unbound Impov challenge. I never could find the site, but wanted to try my hand, anyway. I hope I don't step on any toes by doing so – I thought the idea of crafting a story out of a first and last line rocked. Oh, and I don't own any of these characters. If I did, I'd hire someone with talent to write all these fantasies they star in.
Sitting tied up in a car sinking to the bottom of Lake Mead wasn't quite how Sara had planned to spend her day off. In fact, it took all of Grissom's persuasive powers to convince her to do it.
"Come on, Sara" he said, giving a quick rise of his eyebrows as he wheedled, "It's for science. We have everything all set up – we just need someone to play the role of victim since Catherine came down with the flu. Think of it as a pleasant evening swim."
"If it's so appealing, why don't you do it?" she shot back.
"We need someone approximately the same size as our vic. Sellers' defense attorney is saying there is no way she could have escaped if she was really bound and gagged, like she claimed. If you can make it out of the window, we'll have proved that her version of events is entirely plausible."
"Yeah, it's the 'If you can make it out' in that explanation that's got me worried." Sara grumbled. She knew that she would give in, but that didn't mean she had to make it easy for him. Her mouth quirked up in the corner as a thought hit her. "Okay, I'll do it, but only if you go in with me." Which explained how she wound up rolling toward Lake Mead, with a scarf tied around her mouth, a length of nylon rope around her wrists, and her boss sitting in the front seat with a large oxygen tank.
What she didn't expect was the sharp knife of fear she felt when the Cadillac began slipping into the murky depths. Feeling the car move with the currents of water instead of gripping solid ground just felt wrong, somehow. She looked up sharply at Grissom, who gave her a reassuring smile. It made her feel slightly better to know that she wasn't in this venture alone, even if he was the only one with the benefit of scuba gear.
Sara felt the scrape of rope against skin as she worked on the ties that bound her. As the icy water began its ascent up her legs, her motions became frantic. She whipped her head from side to side, trying to get a look at the ropes that tightened with her efforts. Some primal instinct to survive kicked in, even though her logical mind knew she wasn't in any danger. Panic gave her moves an urgency that only seemed to hinder her bid for escape.
As her struggles continued, she felt a soft touch on her shoulder. Worried blue eyes drew her own.
"Sara?" he asked softly. Concern etched lines around his features, and he seemed to come to a decision. "Okay, this experiment's over. Nothing is worth scaring you like this. The lawyers will just have to fight it out on their own."
Sara stilled at his words, slightly stunned. Since when did her feelings come before everything else? Grissom reached a hand into her hair, giving the briefest of caresses before moving his hands towards the ropes. A calmness seemed to settle over her, as she realized that Gil Grissom, arguably the biggest geek she knew, had just chosen her above science. Where panic had consumed her before, she felt a gentle sense of wonder fill her being.
"Grphhhmm," she said through her gag. It wasn't the clearest anyone had ever said his name, but it did serve to get his attention. A soft gleam filled her eyes. She hoped he could see the grin she tried to give him, and shook her head no. She wanted to do this herself. The water still glided its icy fingers up her thigh, but the fear she had felt was gone. Her mind began to function once again, and she wanted to finish this experiment they had started together.
'Okay, Sidle,' she thought, 'Time to use your head and figure out how to get yourself out of this.'
Grissom seemed to understand her meaning. "Are you sure?" he asked, sounding as if he wanted to reassure himself more than her. This time, she nodded and quirked her eyebrow at him. "Okay then, it's all yours."
Freed of the paralyzing fear, she realized that the car wasn't sinking straight down, but was listing to the driver's side. She scooted until she was all the way against the opposite side and pulled her legs up onto the leather seat. By kneeling, she was able to hold her face above the rising water, near the roof of the car. "Well, if there's going to be an air pocket," she thought, "this is where it will be."
Sure enough, a small bit of air was trapped right where she sat, and she was able to wait until the car hit bottom. Figuring the pressure was about as equal as it was going to get, Sara pulled a deep breath through her nose, turned her back to the door, and slid her hands along until she could find the handle. She thought she saw a glint of admiration in Grissom's expression as she fumbled the door open, but it was hard to tell with the scuba tank's mouthpiece covering most of his face.
Following the last of the bubbles that escaped the Cadillac, she kicked her way to the surface. Her chest burned with the need for oxygen, but she managed to burst through the surface of the water before it overwhelmed her. A long-forgotten sense of pride filled her chest then, and she let out a muffled shout of triumph at her victory over the water.
Grissom surfaced just in time to hear her celebration. His grin gave him a boyish expression, easing the lines that too many cases and too many responsibilities had etched on his face. "I guess you won't be needing this," he joked, holding up the mouthpiece that still hissed with precious air.
It took almost a minute for him to untie the ropes that held Sara's hands firmly behind her back. She immediately reached up and pulled the gag down over her chin, grateful to be able to speak again.
"Wow! I don't know how she ever managed to get out of there!" she exclaimed.
Grissom looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean? You just proved exactly how she got out of there."
Sara was saved from answering as a police boat slid up to them. The next several minutes were a frenzy of activity as they climbed into the boat, bundled themselves into warm blankets, and headed to the shore. The paramedics that were standing by onshore quickly checked them out and declared them no worse the wear for their adventure. Sara hoped that Grissom would let her statement go, but of course he asked her about it once they finally were left to themselves.
"What did you mean about not knowing how she did it? Wasn't that the whole point of this little exercise?"
She considered lying, but decided against it. The sweet freedom of just being alive and able to breathe made her giddy. She'd had enough of tiptoeing around Grissom, afraid of saying the wrong thing. It was time for a little truth.
"Yes, I did the same things she did. There was one big difference, though – she was alone." Sara paused, turning to look Grissom in the eye as she searched for the right words. "When I felt the water rushing in, I was afraid. Not just afraid, terrified. I felt totally helpless, and there wasn't room for any thoughts of air pockets or water pressure in my head. All I could do was panic. That's when you came over to me."
"I guess knowing there was an air tank right there helped you calm down, huh?" he queried.
At this Sara jumped up angrily. "It wasn't the damn air tank that saved me, it was you!" Grissom's mouth fell open in a silent "Oh" as she started to pace back and forth while she ranted. "Just to know that you were there with me, that you cared enough to call off the experiment, it was enough to keep me going. If you hadn't been there, I would have drowned before I could even remember that car doors have handles, much less figured out how to use one. Don't you get that?"
She finally seemed to run out of steam, and turned to face him on the last question. "Don't you understand?"
It took Grissom a stunned moment to gather his thoughts. He held her steady gaze and watched her anger fade, to be replaced be a look of longing. His mind reeled as he saw that, despite all the mistakes he had made, the times he had rejected her out of fear, the ugliness that they had seen together, this woman still cared for him. He felt a rush of admiration and something more fill his eyes.
"I understand now."
Sara took a tiny step back as she analyzed the look he gave her. She knew something was different, but was afraid to trust what she saw. Slowly, she realized that the shuttered, careful shield that Grissom usually wore in his expression was gone. A flicker of hope sprung within her, and she slowly graced him with her smile -- her beautiful, beautiful smile.