Author note: I don't own any characters related to CSI, unfortunaly.
Marrying two workaholics
As I step into the most unusual office I've ever seen, I wonder how I got here. I am Fingal o'Brien, a Justice of the Peace, I have been marrying people for forty years now and the marriage tat I'm suppose to do here in this office is definitely the most interesting out of all the marriages I did in my forty years. I t is not just because of the venue or office in which the ceremony is to take place or so it seems. No it is because of the two persons I am going to marry and how we got in this office. It's the journey I've made with dr. Gilbert Grissom and miss Sara Sidle to come to this moment in time, and the persons that made that journey with me.
Let me start at the beginning: the day dr. Grissom and miss Sidle came to ask me to marry them. They had never heard of me, but had done some research, so they told me. They had chosen me because none of the marriages I had performed had ended in divorce. My wife does always tell me that I make sure that the couples I marry know what they are getting into. So dr. Grissom and miss Sidle made an appointment with me to talk about what they wanted, and to get to know each other better. As they left I remember thinking that they were really serious about the step they were going to take, that they were in it for the long haul. Our next meeting only made that believe stronger, they were well read and wanted to know everything about marriage, they happily listened to the stories I told abut other marriages and the meaning of some of the traditions surrounding marriages. They already knew a lot about those traditions and I quickly felt as if I was talking to some old-time friends. Over the next couple of meeting they opened up about their relationship and themselves, for as far as they wanted. I learned how they met, how miss Sidle had gotten to Las Vegas, how each one at times had denied their feeling for the other, how they had finally gotten their timing right and how both had realised that this made them happier than they had ever been. They told me a little bit about their work and how that effected their lives, both are workaholics and how they had looked death in the eyes several times. Through it all I saw the love they shared and so came the day they were supposed to get married. They had chosen the revenue I mostly used, a beautiful old courtroom, that was only ever used for ceremonial purposes. Both had loved the rich history the court room had.
So there we were: I stood behind the desk, looking at dr. Grissom and miss Sidle who sat before me in the old chairs, where may well known Las Vegas citizens had sat when they were married. At the sides were several colleagues and friends seated. Neither had family members present, both had lost their parents and didn't have any other family. It was the only thing they were reluctant to talk about; as far as they were concerned their co-workers Catherine Willows, Jim Brass, Warrick Brown, Nick Stokes, Greg Sanders and doctor Albert Robbins were their family and so these people were seated in the chairs that were usually reserved for the family. It was silent, the silence that always settled down just before I start. I was about to start when that silence was shattered by the chirping of a pager; it was captain Brass' pager. He excused himself and walked out of the room. He had just closed the door when another pager chirped, this time it was miss Willows' as she looked at it six other pagers interrupted the silence. Dr. Grissom rose and apologized to me, his co-workers rose and the entire group walked out of the room. I was flabbergasted, it was something I had never before had seen. A fifteen year old girl came to me and said: "Please excuse them. I'm sure it is really important, but on the other hand they are all married to their jobs." There was nothing else I could do, except let everybody else go home. That evening I saw on the news that a full out gang war had erupted. As I looked at the footage I saw several very well dressed CSI's picking up bullets and sure enough the prospected newlyweds were working side by side in perfect synchrony. Not five minutes later I got a phone call from dr. Grissom. He apologized and set a new date. I accepted the apology and told him I had just seen the news and the date, next week, was all right with me, on one condition: that they turned the pagers off. Dr. Grissom laughed and said it was okay.
I should have asked them to also turn their brains off…
Today they were going to get married, hopefully. I packed my bag and left for the court room, like I had done for forty years. I arrived on time and got the legal papers ready. Miss Willows and her daughter arrived shortly after me. They arranged the floral table piece, I talked with her briefly and then left for the rest room. When I got back dr. Grissom and miss Sidle hadn't arrived yet, which was odd, they were ten minutes late. At the previous attempt they had turned up ten minutes early. I voiced my surprise to miss Willows, who told me about the events that had happened earlier that day: "I know it is a bit odd, both Grissom and Sara are punctual. But this morning they were called in for a case. They were supposed to have the day off, so they could prepare for the wedding at home. Anyway, there was a case with insects, Grissom always get called in for those cases and Sara usually accompanies him. He really did need the help, because all other CSI's were busy. I saw them come in after they had processed the crime scene, they both had their clothes with them. They were going to change and get ready at the lab, it was most likely going to take a bit longer. They will come soon." I took her word for it and patiently waited, seeing the guests starting to fill the seats. Miss Willows got called away to help miss Sidle with the final touches, which meant that at least miss Sidle had arrived. Just then captain Brass and dr. Grissom came in and had a quick talk with me. Finally thirty minutes late the ceremony got on its way. This time we got further then last time, dr. Grissom had assured me that all pagers were in fat turned off. Everything went fine, until I started to explain about the importance of the marriage certificate and of keeping it safe. I always include that in my speech, even though all couples I married knew all these things. As I mentioned the marriage certificate I saw miss Sidle snap into heightened attention, she briefly looked at me and then turned to dr. Grissom, who at that precise moment turned to her. Dr. Grissom nodded and then asked me to wait for a moment, I was surprised and had stopped talking. Dr. Grissom turned and motioned captain brass to come to him, they whispered briefly after which captain Brass excused himself and left the room. Miss Sidle and dr. Grissom once again looked at each other, both looked a bit apprehensive, then as if they had reached a decision they nodded to each other. Dr. Grissom turned to me and said: "I'm sorry." Then he too walked out of the room. Miss Sidle merely raised her shoulders, apologetically, and followed him. I was stunned, those two hadn't said a word, but apparently had an entire conversation. Unsure of what to think I turned to Miss Willows. She looked surprised as well, but not as stunned as I felt. "What just happened?" I asked. Miss Willows looked at me and smiled: "You just saw a perfect example of the interaction between Grissom and Sara: silent and a complete riddle to the other people in the same room. They communicate with their eyes."
"But why did they leave?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. Bu I thing it has something to do with the case they were working on." Miss Willows said. The other people seated in the room grew restless, all of them equally surprised as I was with this turn of events. I knew I would get a phone call from dr. Grissom or Miss Sidle later on the day. They would apologize and reschedule. There had been other instances that they found themselves otherwise engaged, when they had an appointment with me, they always called, apologised and rescheduled. Miss Willows interrupted my ruminations: "Those two really should get married. I think it's time that we budded in guys." She was talking to Mr. Brown, Stokes, Sanders and dr. Robbins, who all nodded. After they had approved, miss Willows asked me if I had anything planned for today; I had not. She then asked me to join them and go to the lab, so we could perform the ceremony there. In the meantime Mr. Brown and Mr. Stokes were telling all the other guests that we were relocating. Miss Willows led me to her car and her daughter followed us with the floral arrangement that had set on my desk. We drove to the lab, where dr. Grissom and miss Sidle along with their co-workers worked. There was no sigh of either. Mr. Sanders walked towards us and told miss Willows and me that dr. Grissom and miss Sidle were interrogating a suspect. Miss Willows laughed: "Grissom and Sara? The suspect doesn't stand a change. They'll be done in under an hour." I couldn't resist asking: "Are they that good?"
Miss Willows looked at me and nodded: "Yes, they are that good. They are the best. Come on I'll show you his office, that's the best place to merry these two." We walked through the hallway, passing several labs as we went. Miss Willows occasionally halted to say something to the persons we met. At last we arrived in his office…
That is how I got here, in this cluttered, stuffed, weirdest office I have ever seen, waiting for two people who wanted to get married. Around me people are busy putting up some minor decorations, not within the office, just on the doorpost. Mr. Brown and Mr. Stokes are clearing dr. Grissom's desk from all the paper that is stacked on it. Miss Willow is calling a restaurant and Mr. Sanders is opening the blinds in the office, so people can look in. I take some time to take in my new surroundings. The office isn't large, there will only be room for dr. Grissom and miss Sidle and their team, when I perform the ceremony, the others will look in from the hallway. Like I said before: this office is stuffed, it has more trinkets then me and my wife have in our entire home and my wife is a fervent collector of trinkets. It has mounted butterflies, spiders and other bugs, there are jars with funny stuff swimming in them and the most unnerving thing for me is the tarantula in its habitat, that will be looking over my shoulder as I marry its owner and miss Sidle. Suddenly Mr. Brown comes in , telling us that dr. Grissom and miss Sidle have just arrived in their car. Miss Willows tells him to make sure that dr. Grissom is presentable and she'll take care of miss Sidle, to me she says that they'll be here in ten minutes.
And sure enough ten minutes later, after their co –workers have filled in the office, dr. Grissom and miss Sidle come in. Miss Sidle has her hand in the crook of dr. Grissom's arm. I can see that they are astonished by what they see. I suspect that miss Willows has held everything quiet. Immediately, though, it is obvious that dr. Grissom and miss Sidle know their co-workers, both glance at miss Willows, who smiles and nods to them.
Dr. Grissom and miss Sidle turn to me and I take that as my cue to start, having learned from the previous two attempts I don't hesitate and start with the age old words that start the wedding ceremony: "Dear, friends, we are gathered here to witness the union of two incredible individuals: dr. Gilbert Grissom and miss Sara Sidle." I am aware of the people who stand in the hallway, looking in and hearing every word, someone had placed a microphone on the desk and linked it to the intercom, so everyone could hear what is being said inside. I am also aware of Dr. Grissom and miss Sidle, who pay their full attention to me and what I say. Unfortunately I am also very much aware of the habitat and the tarantula behind my back. I quickly try to shake the feeling and continue with the ceremony. I go through the motions, I've done this so often that all the texts I have to say, flow from my mouth, without much thinking. Until I get to the more personal stuff, I made it my business to always include several sentences about the two people I'm marrying, of course leaving the stuff from more years ago and more personal to family and personal friends, in this case captain Brass, miss Willows and Mr. Stokes. However I manage to tell a bit about dr. Grissom and miss Sidle: "When they came to me, to ask me to marry them, they told me they elected me because of the research they had done. I had never heard about that before. But to these two people research, facts and science is very important. In the time that I spend with them I learned that they are very serious about the step they are taking today and that these two people love each other very much." Then I give the word to captain Brass, miss Willows and Mr. Stokes. They talk about dr. Grissom and miss Sidle, telling us that they are hard working co-workers and good friends outside of the office. What surprises me is that no one refers to the live these two have led before they started working here, which tells me that these two persons are very private about their pasts, but their co-workers and friends have accepted that. Captain Brass, miss Willows and Mr. Stokes do refer to the fact that everyone is amazed by their ability to communicate with each other non verbally, which especially for the suspects can be unnerving, but it can also keep their colleagues guessing. It is once more my turn and I get to the vows they are making to each other. Dr. Grissom is the first to say his vow, he and miss Sidle turn so they are looking at each other, Dr. Grissom softly holds miss Sidle's hand: "Sara, my butterfly, you are my friend, my love and my soulmate. Since the day I met you, you've been in my mind and heart. You are with me, even when we are apart. I promise you that I'll protect you, cherish you, answer all your questions, love you and be faithful to you and you alone."
"Gilbert, you are my friend, my lover and my soulmate. You keep me grounded, tell me, remind me that I can't save everyone on this planet. You let me be me and you listen to me when I rant and rave. I love you and I promise you that I'll cherish you, protect you, ask you all my questions, sit wit a decomposing pig, for the sake of science and be faithful to you."
As they make their vows I watch them, to them the people around them don't exist anymore. As dr. Grissom refers to miss Sidle as his butterfly, I notice miss Sidle's dress. It is very simple: the dress is a very delicate broken white colour, it reaches to her ankles. The top is also very simple, it fits her perfectly and has off the shoulder bands. The band that makes the shoulder bands and lays over the top of the top, catches my eye. Because if you look closely you can make out very delicate butterflies, embroided with very fine embroidery. And in her hair, which falls in lose curls over her almost bare shoulders, several small butterflies had been placed. Dr. Grissom is wearing a dark grey suit, with a white shirt and a blue and silver striped tiy. As miss Sidle remarks that she'll sit with a decomposing pig with him, which quite frankly seems quite gross to me, I hear some snickering around me, which tells me that there must be a story behind that. When both have finished their vows Mr. Brown and Mr. Sanders hand over the rings, once more very simple, but platinum and miss Sidle's ring has a small diamond inlaid in hers, so nothing can get snagged in its setting. The rings are placed on their fingers without any delay and I pronounce them husband and wife. Dr. Grissom and miss Sidle, now mrs. Grissom-Sidle, share their first kiss as a married couple in front of their friends. The kiss is passionate, beautiful and full of love. When they break apart from their kiss I close the ceremony with: "With great pleasure I present to you dr. Grissom and mrs. Grissom-Sidle." As they receive the congratulations from their friends, I can't stop myself from sighing, relieved that it has been done. I hear the people in the hallways cheering and think that the people who have just pledged themselves to each other are truly revered and loved in this lab.
After they have made their rounds and the people in the lab are going to the break room, where a cake has been set up, to be cut by Dr. Grissom and Mrs. Grissom-Sidle, dr. Grissom and Mrs. Grissom-Sidle come to me. They thank me for my patience, service and kind words. They also tell me why they left the ceremony earlier today: they had suddenly realised why something was bugging them about the case they had worked on. Apparently the suspect had said that she and the victim were married and she loved him, so she couldn't have killed him. Which was odd, because on the knife they had found only her prints. When I had told them about he importance of the marriage certificate, they had remembered that there was no marriage certificate to the marriage between the victim and the suspect. Dr. Grissom and Mrs. Grissom-Sidle had felt that only with them present the case could quickly be resolved. In the interrogation Mrs. Grissom-Sidle had realised that the suspect had wished to be married to the victim, but the victim had never had the intention to marry the woman. The suspect had cracked and admitted to the crime. "So we also want to thank you for your help in solving the case." Dr. Grissom concluded his narrative. "I've never helped solve a case, even unintentionally, so it's a first for me, but you're welcome. My wife will love this story, I'm going home to tell her an I think your friends are waiting for you." I nod towards the small group obviously waiting for the newly weds. "Yes, thank you." Dr. Grissom and Mrs. Grissom-Sidle shake my hand and walk to their friends, their own little family. I bend to grab my bag and coat and walk to the entrance of the building, where a taxi is waiting for me, the taxi miss Willows arranged for me. This was definitely the most interesting wedding I ever did and the most interesting people I ever met.
Author note: So I hope you liked it. Could you please review and tell me your opinion, please???