Note: So, this story will barely have any spoilers for the CSI finale, but there will be some tiny hints, so beware. That being said, what did you guys think of the finale? I have to admit that besides Catherine, Grissom and Lady Heather returning, I wasn't too excited about the storyline. Nevertheless, I think the time was right (perhaps it should've ended a while ago) and I think CSI has left a huge legacy out there as a world famous and television-changing show. That being said, let's get back to the story. So. I really hoped/wished Vartann would show in the finale and we would get some hints about the relationship between him and Catherine. We all knew he wasn't gonna be there though, but now after seeing the finale I decided to write my own Catherine/Vartann ending. Sort of. Because, well, I think they should have a decent one. Duh ;-) . This story will probably be two or three parts, still deciding about that, nothing too long. Wanted to give you guys a little warming up with this first part, next will be up soon.
Spoilers: CSI Series Finale
Rating: T
Summary: Catherine returns to the Las Vegas crime lab to help with a case, causing her to run into an all to familiar detective as well.

The One That Got Away / Part 1

The brown liquid warmed her body the moment she took her first sip. She also noticed the darn coffee still tasted the same as it had done years ago. Not too great, but well, it would suffice. As it always had.

The moment Catherine had jumped out of the airplane that had brought her to Las Vegas, a certain kind of warmth had filled her body. Of course, the reason why she'd returned was far from ideal. Being back however instantly made her feel as if she was home. Back where she'd spent undoubtly the most important years of her life. Becoming a CSI, getting married, raising her daughter, getting divorced.… She loved the place.

"You didn't even bother to call, hmm.."

She dropped her mug; she'd recognized the voice talking to her instantly and it had startled her. She could hear a small chuckle. "No need to get all scared, didn't mean to startle you."

"Fuck." She murmered, although she was positive he could hear her swearing. She took a breath. Catherine had known in the back of her head that seeing him would be possible, but she'd pushed those thoughts out of her head and had tried not to think about the man. Wrong move. The toughest part about moving away from Vegas had been moving away from Lindsey. Moving away from Louis Vartann had been a close second though. Catherine hadn't been prepared to love someone again as much as she had loved Lou. She had just been to darn scared though. Scared to get hurt, to be dissapointed…

When she turned around she stared into the green eyes of Louis Vartann, who was currently holding a wet yellow cloth out for her to grab. "Here."

"Thanks." Catherine figured swiping the floor would give her a few more seconds to figure out what to do. Gosh, she should've thought about running into him and how to act. What to say, what to do… This was way too surprising and she was way too unprepared to face him. He obviously wasn't planning on giving her that time though.

"Rumour said you returned, both you and Grissom, actually..."

Catherine stood up, throwing the yellow cloth in the sink before facing Louis again. He looked good. Great, actually, in his suit. He was so handsome. Catherine could feel her body responding to his presence. Not only her body though; her heart as well. Seeing him in front of her made her realise how much she'd missed him. If she would act on her instincts, she really just wanted to grab him, let him hold her and tell him to not ever let her go again. But, well, that kind of was out of the question.

She bit her lip. "Hey. Yeah.. I eh.. Well, you know…. It felt right, to get back and help."

Lou nodded. "Figures."

There was a weird sort of tension between them as they were standing in the break room. Both seemed to be joyful about seeing the other, excited to share more words and talk to each other. But there was too much unfinished business holding them back. Blue eyes were staring into green eyes, both not quite sure what to say and how to act. What was the appropriate way of greeting the person you loved but hadn't seen in years, and, quite frankly, hadn't even talked to in years?

Catherine couldn't handle it. Being so close to the man she thought she had gotten over in the past few years made her realise all she had done was bury the amount of love she felt for the man somewhere deep inside her so it wouldn't hurt to be without him. She had never gotten over him. Not even a little bit.

The buzz of Louis' phone interupted their staring contest and he answered, giving Catherine more time to think of what to say. Her head seemed to be filled with nothing though; nothing sensible came to her mind.

"Catherine." The way he said her name made her shiver. "I have to go, work. When... When do you head back to California?"

She shook her head. "I eh.. I'm thinking about staying here, actually." Catherine thought she could see some sort of spark hitting his eyes as she uttered those words, but perhaps it was just her hope of that happening.

"Okay. Well.. We could grab some drinks later today, after seven? I think we have a lot to talk about."

A small smile formed around Catherines' lips. "Yeah, yeah, we should."

Louis Vartann wasn't sure if having drinks with Catherine was the most brilliant thing to do. Was it a smart idea to have drinks with the woman that had crushed his heart into billions of little pieces? Pieces that still hadn't formed their way back together? He had loved her so much that her leaving Vegas had felt as if a knife had cut right through his heart; the pain had been unbearable. Was it really a good idea to warm up to her again? He knew she had probably never meant to hurt him. He was quite sure of that. Her return was already making him go nuts and he'd only just seen her for a few minutes. Darn Catherine Willows.