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1

As he pulled his car into the spot, he still wondered if he'd keep up his nerve. He thought about driving here several times, but something always stopped him. At first, he never even made the left-handed turn out of the lab's drive. After he finally made it past that point, there were weeks of turning around and taking scenic routes back to his townhouse. The next week or so he drove past her parking lot. The past week, he'd been in her parking lot three times. This was the first time, though, that he turned off the ignition.

Why was this so hard for him? Here he was, a man in his fifties, and he still couldn't even ask a woman out on a date. Well, he could ask a woman out on a date, just not the one he wanted to ask. And why was this so hard anyway? This should be easier. After all, he already knew she was interested in him. She'd asked him out to dinner for goodness sake! He was the one that turned her down! Maybe that was it. Maybe he was afraid she'd turn him down like he had her. What kind of man was he? If she could take that rejection, why couldn't he?

The answer was simple; he was chicken. She was braver than he was. She was so strong. That's one of the things he adored about her. Her strength and determination blew him away. Life had handed her so many obstacles and, in his mind, she'd overcome every one of them. Sure, she'd struggled a few times, but she'd always made it through.

And it was time he learned a lesson from her. With that, he got of his car and walked to her apartment door. He must have stood there for about five minutes before he got the nerve to knock. He heard her footsteps through the door and almost turned to leave. Keeping his goal in mind and scolding himself for being a coward, he stood his ground.

When she opened the door, he sucked in a breath. "Grissom?"

He smiled and all he could manage was, "Hi."

A few seconds past and Sara finally spoke, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh!" He thought about lying, but figured that wouldn't be a good start, "I, uh, need to talk to you."

"Okay. Would you like to come in?"

"If you don't mind."

"No, come in." After he walked past her, "Can I get you something to drink?"

"What do you have?"

"Coffee, juice, water, tea…"

Forgetting that she wouldn't have any liquor, he went with the next best thing, "Coffee?"

"Okay, I'll put a pot on. Make yourself comfortable."

He walked over to her sofa and sat down. Funny, both times he'd been to her apartment, he found himself sitting in the same spot on her sofa. She'd come in and sit on the chair next to him, and they'd talk. Every time, she'd end up in tears and he'd helplessly reach out a hand to her. His goal was for this time to be different. With that in mind, he moved to sit in the chair. Might as well start off on the right foot.

She came into the living room a few moments later and sat where he'd just been on the sofa. "Coffee will be ready in a few minutes."

"Great." A moment of awkward silence loomed until both of them spoke at the same time, "Sara, I…"

"Gris, what did…sorry, you go first."

"Okay." After a deep breath, he took the plunge, "I wanted to…no, I need to know if you're still interested."

With a confused look, "Interested?"

Matter-of-factly, "Yes."

"Ya wanna help me out here?"

His brow furrowed as he realized his mind was ahead of him, "Sorry. I, uh…" He struggled with his words, but finally it hit him, "Do you remember when you asked me to dinner?"

She gave him a 'duh' look and answered, "No, I always forget when I'm turned down by a guy I'm interested in. Especially when I have to work with him every day."

He pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows at her, "So that's a yes."

"Yeah."

"Good. Well, I was wondering if, through that hostility I hear in your voice, you're still interested."