Perhaps

A CSI: Miami fanfic by haganeochibi

Author's Note: Hey guys. I'm not dead. At least I think I am not... but I have to say that this short story is a few years late and dedicated to ycm!

…

"You know what we're doing is called trespassing, right?" the man asked his lady companion as he wrenched the window open. The lady's smile turned into a grin as she pushed past the man and peered into the dark and empty house. "First day back in Miami and the first thing we do is sneak into our superior's house."

"My apprehensive little criminal," she mused, as she took a brown package from her companion's hands and entered through the window, much to the surprise of her companion.

"Hey-!"

The lady put a finger to her lips and dropped her voice further. "I'd already asked Yelina, so it's not really trespassing."

The man shrugged and followed the lady into the house as she placed the package on the table and brought a card to greater prominence. The man stood beside her and reread the card they had written not too long ago.

"I swear he'll think it's a ticking time bomb when he gets home," he commented, putting an arm around the lady, who laughed.

"We'll see."

…

They were not a family.

We are not, thought Horatio Caine, though his instincts told him otherwise. Even though Horatio won't acknowledge it, in their team, Horatio Caine is the leader, the elder brother, and toughest of them all. Not that his more-than-a-decade CSI career was a piece of cake; he had had his share of disputes, dangerous ventures, loss of friends and family… basically he'd been through a lot of tight spots and he'd survived. At times like this, Horatio felt strange that right now, he was just driving quietly home.

The scientist in him would never make him feel or think anything without good reason. Horatio was a subtle person, and he reasoned that he didn't want to jinx himself nor his family for that matter. Jinx! Of all words, why did he have to use jinx? The feeling of shame flickered and then was gone. Never dwelling on one thing and moving on to another was one trait that kept Horatio afloat; he was CSI after all, and a well-weathered one at that.

Every time he thought of them as a family, one of them would be gone in one way or the other; his brother, Megan, Speed, Alexx, and Tara… and all those he could not, or failed to save. You'd think Horatio and the rest of the team were used to losing people because of their job but no. That was not the case. And each time a precious leaf is lost did not lessen the pain of the tree when it loses the next. But the pain was worth it, thought Horatio, Think of the people you and your team have helped, protected and saved.

And he felt peace.

Finally, Horatio pulled into the garage and shut off the engine. Moments later he would be sitting by the fire of his simple Miami home and enjoying his solitary lifestyle. On Christmas eve. Horatio shook his head as he swung the door open and admitted himself into his abode.

And panicked.

A small, innocent-looking package sat on the middle of the dining table, and in front was an attached card that read,

Hey H,

We put our vacation to good use. We know you're busy hunting Miami Dade criminals and keeping them at their toes, and it might be that you'll like something to remind you of how special you are to many people— us included.

Happy Christmas!

Cals and Eric

P.S. We'll fix the broken window as soon as we can.

Instinctively, he glanced at the window; it was closed and looked all right, but at closer inspection, he noticed that the ledge was bent and the wood scratched— signs of forced entry. He shook his head crossly; he'd failed to notice those, and a part of him admitted that he was really getting old. Maybe retiring isn't such a bad idea…

And weren't Eric and Calleigh still on vacation? If they were, then who had given him this? A man who wanted him dead? What if this innocent box was actually a deadly ticking time bomb?

Breeep!

Horatio hurriedly read the message on his phone. It was from Yelina, explaining how Horatio might be too paranoid to receive a surprise gift from two well-meaning colleagues, and the Lieutenant dropped his guard. If Yelina had messaged him… then perhaps this strange parcel which introduced itself to be a gift from Cal and Eric might be worth some attention.

Horatio assessed the package; it was relatively light, rectangular, and about an inch thick. Unconsciously, Horatio wondered if it was a book about crimes. It had been a while since he'd read and it bothered him to be out of the loop. Horatio slowly took the gift in his hands and stared at it. He could almost hear Calleigh urging him to open it. And when he did, Horatio found that his colleagues had indeed given him a book, but it wasn't what he expected it to be. The book was covered with handsome leather, and the pages were thick. It looked like a journal, only that it wasn't one he would write on. And each page he turned, full color photos and messages from familiar people—people he'd known from his early days, up to his recent working environment—leaped right at him, and warming and de-stressing his heart.

'You like it?, Calleigh would have asked,' Horatio thought. Horatio imagined Calleigh and Eric right in this very room, and murmured, "I do."

In his thoughts, he added, 'very much.'

…

Calleigh would have loved to stay and surprise her superior in his house for Christmas, but she restrained herself. There would be plenty of time for that tomorrow, but now, as she and Eric decided, was the time for Horatio to enjoy their little gift on his own. It was a gift they'd put a huge effort to do; it was no joke to contact special people Horatio knew then and now, and there had been plenty. It took a long time to complete, and it certainly looked special… but would Horatio like it?

"He'll love it," Eric remarked, unconsciously echoing her thoughts. "I'm sure he would."

Calleigh nodded. For Calleigh, it wasn't much, but she dearly hoped it would be enough for all the help Horatio had been to all of Miami Dade, to people dear to him, to her, to Eric, and to their team who had survived so much.

After all, for people such as them, they were their own family.

Could they really be? Perhaps.

…fin…

A.N.: Thanks for reading, and have a blessed Christmas.

~To God be the glory!~