"Hey guys, since by some random occurrence we are all off on Halloween this year," Catherine started, "let's have a costume party." She look around the table at her friends gathered there. They were all sitting around having breakfast in their diner. "I will take care of everything."Sara looked up from her waffle. "I don't know, Cath. I was planning on hibernating in my apartment. I picked up a book that I am looking forward to reading."
"What is it this time? A new forensic textbook or something like that? I saw that Advanced Sciences of Basic Forensics had just been published. " "Actually, Catherine…"Sara responded, "It is a book by Patricia Cornwell. It is her newest release and is titled, 'The Bone Bed'.
"Come on, Sara! It will be fun. I already have an idea what I want to be. Which do you think would be better, an old school Las Vegas mobster or a rock star, ala Marilyn Manson?"
"Hey, Greggo," Warrick responded, "You know you want to dress up as a Las Vegas showgirl."Nick laughed, "Yeah, show off those legs, G!" Warrick spoke up, "I dare you, Greg. Or perhaps, you would like to make a bit of a wager.""A wager, you say? What are you thinking of doing?" "Hmm.. I will have to think about that. But, I think if you lose, you do not get a choice. You will dress as a showgirl."
Sara sat there, contemplating the idea. She had spent so much of her life running and hiding. A childhood marred by violence and adolescent years being shuffled from one foster family to another. Even now, she still kept to herself. She didn't trust people easily, so not very many people had cracked through the wall she had built around her. But, the people surrounding her were her family now. She had been slowly letting them get a peek behind the wall. They had seen her at her worst and yet they were still there, not giving up on her. Something occurred to her. All through school she had wanted to try her hand at theater. There had always been something appealing about the ability to change personalities and lives as easily as one might change their outfit. A self proclaimed 'science nerd', she had never allowed herself to do something so fanciful. Growing up before her time, she had pushed herself harder and harder, just to make it out and survive on her own. Now, she was beginning to realize that she could slow down and take time for herself. People were not going to always leave her or make her feel unwanted until she left on her own. Gil had startled to rattle on about the origins of Halloween, much to the amusement (or lack thereof) of the others gathered around the table. Sara felt a hand touch her back and start rubbing it. When she looked over at Warrick who was sitting next to her, he gave her a wink. She couldn't help but to notice that Nick's hand had slipped under the table, more than likely to hold Greg's. She got Warrick's attention and nodded to him. They both smiled at the unseen gesture of their coworkers.
Truth be told, she was happy the way things were working out. Nick and Greg were very special to her for their own reasons. They had each had a long journey to get to where they were. She and Warrick were the only ones who knew of their relationship. Nick and Greg were happier now than they had been in a while. "I need to head out now. It was a long busy night. See you tonight!" Gil Grissom stated in his matter of fact way. "Hey, Gil. So are you coming or not?" Catherine questioned. "You know, I don't really do stuff like that." With that, he stood up and walked to the cash register. Then he was gone. The rest of the group remained sitting there chatting about various things. "So Sara, what's it gonna be?"
"Well, I may regret this, but I will be there. If you need any help, just let me know. I don't have a lot of experience but I will do my best."
"Thanks, Sara. I promise that you will not regret it! Warrick, you in? What about you, Nicky? Greg?"
"I'm in if Sara is." Warrick responded. "Come on, Nick. You know how much I enjoy stuff like that. Let's do it!" "Cath, I guess you can count me and Greg in. How can I resist that adorable face?"Catherine's jaw drops and then she grins, "You and Nicky? It's about time!"