**Title: Considering Sara
**Author: Juliet (pandora1251@yahoo.com)
**Disclaimer: for as much time as I spend on these guys, you'd think I'd have some sort of claim to them.but alas.
**Rating: PG-13 (for language only)
**Author's Notes: it all started innocently enough, I thought to myself, "I'll chat while I work on some writing." Little did I imagine that I would begin writing a full-fledged story in a chat room thanks to the sneakiness of my beloved Graveyard Shift Groupies.
**Thank-you's: first and foremost to Nic, Angie, Allie, Rita, and Manda for a fun-filled chat and for conning me into writing this fic in the first place. To Gabe, for being the love of my life and a constant source of inspiration.
Part One
"So big plans tonight?" Catherine asked leaning against the desk.
"Why do you ask?" Grissom said barely looking up from his paperwork. "Because you've got your leather jacket draped over the chair," Catherine said motioning towards it.
Grissom put his pen down. "Alright Cath, you've caught me."
Catherine raised an eyebrow at him. "Have I?"
"I do have plans tonight," Grissom began, wondering why he felt so unsure explaining this to her...after all Catherine was his best friend. "I have a date."
There was a pause as Catherine took in this information.
"Well don't do anything I wouldn't do," she said tossing him a smile and wink as she left his office. Maybe there was hope for Gil yet.
"You look nice," Nick said as Sara gathered some papers from the table in the break room. Sara's smile faded as Catherine walked in.
"Hey," Catherine said, staring at Sara for a moment. "Well Nicky, I'm glad to see that someone else missed the memo about 'dress-up day.'"
"I'm going to take this stuff to Grissom," Sara said carrying the files out of the break room.
"She has a date," Nick said, replying to Catherine's questioning look.
"I see," Catherine said, feeling as if a ton of bricks had just hit her.
"What?" Nick asked, sensing her sudden shift in moods.
"Nothing...it's nothing," Catherine replied, trying to shake the anxiety she felt coming on. It had to be a coincidence.
Feeling as if her entire body was numb, she slowly made her way into the locker room. But before she got there, Catherine's ears were assaulted by a horrible sound.
"So where are we going," Sara asked standing the hallway in front of Grissom's office.
"You'll see,' Grissom said shutting the door and leading her down the hall towards the exit.
"Shit," Catherine exclaimed not sure whether she wanted to yell or cry or do both. She ducked into the locker room as the pair came down the hallway, talking softly to each other as they went. Leaning against a row of lockers, Catherine whispered to herself, "This can't be happening."
"Wait can't be happening?" Warrick asked walking into the locker room.
"My, uh, I think I'm coming down with a cold," Catherine said quickly, trying to make excuses.
"Catherine," he began, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I just need to get home and get some sleep," Catherine replied shrugging his hand away as she grabbed her scarf out of her locker.
"Well are you going to be okay?" he asked with a look of concern. He had never known a cold to have Catherine this upset.
For a moment she bit her lip, unable to speak as tears threatened to spill over.
"Yeah Warrick, I'll be fine," Catherine said turning to face him. She flashed him a smile that for all the effort she put into it, Warrick knew was fake.
"You're sure Cath?" he asked one final time.
"Yup, I'm great, wonderful," Catherine replied, struggling to remain composed. When her locker didn't close the first time she slammed it shut with incredible force. "Hell, I'm walking on sunshine Warrick."
Giving the locker one final slam, she left the locker room as quickly as possible.
Once outside she was able to take a few deep breathes, but she still felt trapped.
"I need to get out of here," she said to no one at all.
"Bye Catherine," Greg yelled over the blaring music in his car, as he pulled out of the parking lot.
She managed to wave to him with another fake smile. Then with shaking hands, she unlocked her car. Once she was sitting in driver's seat, she wanted to cry, but found that she couldn't.
Instead she decided to drive.....she didn't know where she would go, but she had to go somewhere. Flinging a CD of love songs into her backseat, Catherine shoved the Aerosmith into her stereo, turning it up as loud as humanly possible.
Feeling her car come to a stop, Catherine realized where she had driven. She was in a parking lot on the outskirts of the Strip, in the older part of town. Across the street stood Dream Dolls, a grim reminder of her past. For a while she sat in the car, regarding the building as both an old friend and a hated enemy.
The neon lights were glaring in the cool desert night, as Catherine slowly got out of her car. There was something about the lights and blaring music of the Strip that had always seemed like home to her.
"Maybe this is where I belong after all," Catherine murmured softly to herself, remember how Grissom had delivered her from the world so many years ago. The thought of Grissom, his blue eyes, the soft sincere tone he had reserved for her and her alone all these years made Catherine feel as if she were going to explode, yet once again she couldn't bring herself to cry.
As she traveled further into the heart of the city, where the lights shone brighter than the stars, Catherine began to wonder what she had done wrong. Her marriage to Eddie seemed the most glaringly obvious on a long list of vices. But as she accounted for a cocaine addiction, her years as a teenage runaway, and her career as an exotic dancer, Catherine stopped walking. Considering Sara however, caused Catherine to start walking again, at an even fast pace. After all, what qualities did the younger CSi possess that she didn't? She seemed sweet and innocent at first glance, but as another woman, Catherine knew that Sara had been trying to get her claws into Grissom since her first day at the lab.
Finally, when her body would no longer comply with her mind's detirmination, Catherine stopped in a small grocery store to buy a bottle of water.
She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she barely noticed the man approaching her.
"Catherine?" he asked after staring at her for a moment.
She looked up and almost spit out her water, realizing who the man standing before her was. "Ricky?"
**Author: Juliet (pandora1251@yahoo.com)
**Disclaimer: for as much time as I spend on these guys, you'd think I'd have some sort of claim to them.but alas.
**Rating: PG-13 (for language only)
**Author's Notes: it all started innocently enough, I thought to myself, "I'll chat while I work on some writing." Little did I imagine that I would begin writing a full-fledged story in a chat room thanks to the sneakiness of my beloved Graveyard Shift Groupies.
**Thank-you's: first and foremost to Nic, Angie, Allie, Rita, and Manda for a fun-filled chat and for conning me into writing this fic in the first place. To Gabe, for being the love of my life and a constant source of inspiration.
Part One
"So big plans tonight?" Catherine asked leaning against the desk.
"Why do you ask?" Grissom said barely looking up from his paperwork. "Because you've got your leather jacket draped over the chair," Catherine said motioning towards it.
Grissom put his pen down. "Alright Cath, you've caught me."
Catherine raised an eyebrow at him. "Have I?"
"I do have plans tonight," Grissom began, wondering why he felt so unsure explaining this to her...after all Catherine was his best friend. "I have a date."
There was a pause as Catherine took in this information.
"Well don't do anything I wouldn't do," she said tossing him a smile and wink as she left his office. Maybe there was hope for Gil yet.
"You look nice," Nick said as Sara gathered some papers from the table in the break room. Sara's smile faded as Catherine walked in.
"Hey," Catherine said, staring at Sara for a moment. "Well Nicky, I'm glad to see that someone else missed the memo about 'dress-up day.'"
"I'm going to take this stuff to Grissom," Sara said carrying the files out of the break room.
"She has a date," Nick said, replying to Catherine's questioning look.
"I see," Catherine said, feeling as if a ton of bricks had just hit her.
"What?" Nick asked, sensing her sudden shift in moods.
"Nothing...it's nothing," Catherine replied, trying to shake the anxiety she felt coming on. It had to be a coincidence.
Feeling as if her entire body was numb, she slowly made her way into the locker room. But before she got there, Catherine's ears were assaulted by a horrible sound.
"So where are we going," Sara asked standing the hallway in front of Grissom's office.
"You'll see,' Grissom said shutting the door and leading her down the hall towards the exit.
"Shit," Catherine exclaimed not sure whether she wanted to yell or cry or do both. She ducked into the locker room as the pair came down the hallway, talking softly to each other as they went. Leaning against a row of lockers, Catherine whispered to herself, "This can't be happening."
"Wait can't be happening?" Warrick asked walking into the locker room.
"My, uh, I think I'm coming down with a cold," Catherine said quickly, trying to make excuses.
"Catherine," he began, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I just need to get home and get some sleep," Catherine replied shrugging his hand away as she grabbed her scarf out of her locker.
"Well are you going to be okay?" he asked with a look of concern. He had never known a cold to have Catherine this upset.
For a moment she bit her lip, unable to speak as tears threatened to spill over.
"Yeah Warrick, I'll be fine," Catherine said turning to face him. She flashed him a smile that for all the effort she put into it, Warrick knew was fake.
"You're sure Cath?" he asked one final time.
"Yup, I'm great, wonderful," Catherine replied, struggling to remain composed. When her locker didn't close the first time she slammed it shut with incredible force. "Hell, I'm walking on sunshine Warrick."
Giving the locker one final slam, she left the locker room as quickly as possible.
Once outside she was able to take a few deep breathes, but she still felt trapped.
"I need to get out of here," she said to no one at all.
"Bye Catherine," Greg yelled over the blaring music in his car, as he pulled out of the parking lot.
She managed to wave to him with another fake smile. Then with shaking hands, she unlocked her car. Once she was sitting in driver's seat, she wanted to cry, but found that she couldn't.
Instead she decided to drive.....she didn't know where she would go, but she had to go somewhere. Flinging a CD of love songs into her backseat, Catherine shoved the Aerosmith into her stereo, turning it up as loud as humanly possible.
Feeling her car come to a stop, Catherine realized where she had driven. She was in a parking lot on the outskirts of the Strip, in the older part of town. Across the street stood Dream Dolls, a grim reminder of her past. For a while she sat in the car, regarding the building as both an old friend and a hated enemy.
The neon lights were glaring in the cool desert night, as Catherine slowly got out of her car. There was something about the lights and blaring music of the Strip that had always seemed like home to her.
"Maybe this is where I belong after all," Catherine murmured softly to herself, remember how Grissom had delivered her from the world so many years ago. The thought of Grissom, his blue eyes, the soft sincere tone he had reserved for her and her alone all these years made Catherine feel as if she were going to explode, yet once again she couldn't bring herself to cry.
As she traveled further into the heart of the city, where the lights shone brighter than the stars, Catherine began to wonder what she had done wrong. Her marriage to Eddie seemed the most glaringly obvious on a long list of vices. But as she accounted for a cocaine addiction, her years as a teenage runaway, and her career as an exotic dancer, Catherine stopped walking. Considering Sara however, caused Catherine to start walking again, at an even fast pace. After all, what qualities did the younger CSi possess that she didn't? She seemed sweet and innocent at first glance, but as another woman, Catherine knew that Sara had been trying to get her claws into Grissom since her first day at the lab.
Finally, when her body would no longer comply with her mind's detirmination, Catherine stopped in a small grocery store to buy a bottle of water.
She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she barely noticed the man approaching her.
"Catherine?" he asked after staring at her for a moment.
She looked up and almost spit out her water, realizing who the man standing before her was. "Ricky?"