Nocturnal Admissions

Spoilers: All seasons including S5 in its entirety.

Sara Sidle was scheduled to appear in court at 12:30, so her sleep time was cut short. 'Oh, well, I'll catch a quick nap before shift tonight,' she thought. However, when 4:30 rolled around and she still had not been called to testify, she knew that was not going to happen.

Gil Grissom knew that Sara had not gotten much (if any) sleep because of her court date, but with Greg out with a stomach bug and Sofia confined to the lab for the duration of her pregnancy, the night shift was short-handed. Grissom also knew that, even if he tried to send Sara home, she wouldn't go.

Thankfully, it was a very slow crime night in Las Vegas. With Catherine and Ecklie on call in case something came in, Grissom felt no qualms in taking Sara with him to a crime scene out in the desert.

Discussing the cases that were pending and even Sara's day at court helped to quickly pass the hour and a half drive to their new site.

The desert sun and wildlife had done quite a bit of damage to the body they had been called to process. There was little more than a skeleton left. Working in almost perfect synchronization and symmetry, the silence between them was not uncomfortable or strained. Collecting what evidence they could, they were back on the road and heading toward Vegas in just a few hours.

"Sara, I know you worked overtime yesterday and no sleep today, why don't you lay the seat back and try to get a little nap?"

"You know, I was just thinking the same thing. You sure you won't mind?"

"I wouldn't have suggested it if I had minded. Besides, you're such a chatterbox, the quiet will be welcome," he finished with a grin.

"Fine then," she teased back, " Just for that, I'll make sure that I snore."

With her seat leaned back and Grissom's windbreaker wadded up as a pillow, it wasn't too many minutes before her breathing deepened and he could tell that she was asleep. He chanced a quick look in her direction, and noticed that he taut lines around her mouth had softened and she looked more like the girl he had met all those years ago.

'What would it feel like to wake up to that sight every day?' He sighed and turned his attention back to the road.

Sara had been asleep about half an hour when she started to mumble and twitch in her seat. When she began to whimper and her breathing increased, Grissom realized that she was dreaming. It was not a good dream by the sounds she was making.

"No!" she cried out as her left arm swung out in an arc directed for his head. He managed to grab her wrist before contact was made with his nose, and steered the vehicle onto the shoulder of the road.

Shifting to 'Park', he told himself it would be dangerous to try to drive while dodging blows from his slumbering companion. "Shhhhh, baby, its all right. You're safe." He barely acknowledged the endearment as it left his lips.

He started to relax as her breathing evened out once more, signaling the end of the nightmare. Reaching to put the SUV back in gear, he heard another moan from her side of the car. This one sounded different from the others. Turning his face to look at her, he saw her right hand inching its way under the hem of her tank top and her left hand was clawing and clenching at the denim covering her thigh.

"Grisssss . . . " she hissed.

'Oh, God! Not this!' he thought to himself as he tried to calm his body's reaction to her sounds.

Her breathing quickened again as the visions in her sleeping mind took over her body. Unbuckling his seat belt, he leaned over her supine form, taking great care not to touch her. He closed his eyes and listened to her moans and hisses as her body strove for completion.

"Griss, please!" she begged in her slumber.

"Say my name, Sara. Please, say my name!" He whispered in her ear.

"Gil... oh God, Gil..."

"Let go Sara. Its OK. Just let go and feel ."

"GIIILLLLL!" As she roared his name, her left hand clutched at her jean covered mound and he could smell her orgasm as he tried to control his own breathing.

Her eyelids started to flutter, so he quickly retreated to his own seat. Sara woke to the sight of Gil Grissom, eyes closed, breathing hard, and white-knuckling the steering wheel.

"Griss, why are we stopped?" When he didn't respond, she asked, "Are you OK?" He barely nodded at her. "Griss?" She laid a gentle hand on his arm.

"DON'T!"

She jerked her hand away, tears and a little fear in her eyes."I'm sorry. I just..."

"Don't... just don't touch me right now." He turned his head to look at her."Please." His eyes were a deep midnight blue, darker than she had ever seen them. His breathing was ragged, and he still had a death grip on the steering wheel. He tuned back to face forward and lowered his head. He was afraid she would see the lust in his eyes, so he closed them.

"You, uh, were having a nightmare and took a swing at me. I thought it would be safer to pull off the road for a while."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

"Of course you didn't. You were dreaming, Sara."

"It must have been some swing, to have you still so shook up."

"It wasn't the nightmare ...You... you talk in your sleep, Sara." He finished with a whisper.

"Oh," the confusion was evident on her face and in her voice. Suddenly, she blushed. "Oh! Oh, shit!" Wrapping one arm around her middle and hiding her face in the other hand, she turned away from him. "I'm sorry, Grissom. I certainly never intended top make you mad."

"I'm not angry with you, Sara."

"Yeah, well, you could've fooled me!" When she realized how she had snapped at him, she lowered her voice, " Sorry. I'm feeling a little exposed and vulnerable right now."

"Sara, it was a dream. We can't control what we dream."

"It was a wet dream, Grissom! And apparently, a very vocal one. I don't even want to know what you heard."

"Sara, I did not take advantage of the situation. I didn't touch you."

She knew now what had been niggling at the back of her mind. "No, but you did speak to me. Didn't you...Gil?" Sara turned to look at the man beside her.

His hands started to tremble with the intense effort he was exerting to control his raging hormones.

"I didn't touch you," he asserted again.

The sound of his breathing was all that was heard in the following silence. When Grissom thought that he could finally speak, he asked quietly, "Do you have that dream often?"

Deciding that she could not be any more humiliated than she already was, Sara answered truthfully. "Yes. All the time."

"Me too," he replied.

She decided to go for broke. "Sometimes I'm not asleep."

"Me too."

"Then why do we do this? Why do we dance around each other until somebody gets hurt?"

When he didn't answer, she touched his chin to turn his face to hers. What she saw there almost made her recoil in shock. His eyes were pooled with tears that were threatening to fall, but hadn't yet. She saw the desire that still lingered. But what frightened her the most was the pain. Sara could see his heart breaking in his eyes. "Sara..." he tore his face from her touch and launched himself out of the vehicle.

Sitting in her seat, wondering just what was going on, Sara was startled when her door was jerked open. Standing silently by the open door, his gaze locked with hers. She stepped out of the SUV and to the side so that he could shut the door. Leaning back against the car, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Talk to me," she said.

"Sara...this can't happen."

"Why not? One good reason, Grissom. Just one. We have been friends for years, and we've just proven that its not because you don't find me physically attractive."

"I didn't touch you"

"We have already established that, Grissom!"

"I didn't touch you because.. I couldn't."

"You couldn't ? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Think about it, Sara" He could almost see the wheels spinning in her mind.

"You couldn't touch me because you...are scared."

He closed his eyes and nodded in relief that she understood. His eyes flew open when he felt her lips softly brush across his own.

"Its all right, baby. Its all right. I'm scared, too."

This time when she kissed him, he was prepared and even managed to kiss her back... a little.

"You are so young, you could have any guy you want."

"But the only guy I want keeps pushing me away."

He tenderly framed her face with his strong hands. "Don't leave me, Sara."

"Just love me, Gil."

'I do."

He drew her mouth to his to seal their new pact with a proper kiss.

THE END