A/N: Well, who knew that writing was a cure for insomnia? I've been so busy and my creative juices have just not been flowing these past few weeks, and then tonight I'm about to go to bed when bam!, inspiration strikes! I think this'll be my first multi-chapter story (oh, the excitement!), so stay tuned.

And a big muchas gracias to all the gorgeous people who reviewed my two previous stories; especially the first one, which I wasthis close to not posting, but now I'm glad I did, so thanks guys. You rock. :)

This one's for you, A Christy. You gotta cut me a little slack here- not all of us were born with the gift and talent you were!

Spoilers: Crash and Burn, directly after which the story is set. That's season three, for the less-obsessed CSI fans out there.

Disclaimer: CSI's not mine, and neither is George Eads- yet.

It had been about a month since Sara Sidle had found out that her boyfriend of over a year had been cheating on her. While she had always suspected that things weren't 100 between the two of them, he had seemed a nice guy, and they'd had fun together. Not only was it a huge shock to her when she found out that he'd had someone else for – evidently – quite a while, but it had hurt. It had hurt that she'd been betrayed, when she'd promised herself she'd never trust anyone except herself. It had hurt that for once she'd decided to go and try and live like a normal person, and it had backfired in her face. And it had hurt that Hank had stayed with Elaine, and ditched her as soon as everything was out in the open. She wasn't good enough, it was that simple. She'd always told herself that she'd never be good enough for anyone, and for once she thought she'd be able to prove the little cynic inside herself wrong. But no, everything had come crashing down on her once again, and she found herself more alone than ever.

As she sat in the passenger seat department-issue vehicle, her head leaning on the window, jolting lightly with every bump along the road, she contemplated everything about her and Hank's relationship, and she had done so many times before on the way to work, while processing evidence, while pouring her coffee. Being such an analytic person, and always being so sure and so right about everything – and everyone – , she still found it hard to believe that she'd been fooled. It was just so unlike her. She closed her eyes and was unaware of the soft but audible sigh she emitted until her friend and co-worker Nick Stokes broke the silence from the driver's seat.

"You doing okay, Sara?"

Sara opened her eyes slightly and looked out the window. "Hmm? Oh. Yeah. Just thinking."

"Feel like sharing?" He smiled at her.

She smiled back wearily at him. "I'm okay." She paused. "But thanks."

"Well, you know I'm always here." He smiled genuinely at her again, and had to wonder to herself how a guy as nice as him could be single. She'd only dated one person since she'd come to Vegas thee years earlier, and although Nick had been on numerous first-dates, he'd never seem to find anyone special.

Her train of though was interrupted as the pulled up to the crime scene, Detective O'Reilly already there waiting for them.

"Hey, guys… just the two of you today?"

"Yeah, well, looks like a standard BE- doesn't take a genius to process the scene. Although two geniuses means twice the fun." Nick grinned at Sara.

O'Reilly smiled lightly, updating them on the current situation. "Looks like it wasn't so standard after all. Securing officer located a DB behind the bedroom door. We didn't spot it the first time, so we didn't report it when we called you guys. 'Medics are already inside."

Nick turned to Sara. "What do you say, you take perimeter and I'll cover inside the inside, then you can come help me when you're done?"

Sara smiled. "Or, an ever better idea- you take perimeter, I cover inside, and you come help me when you're done." She smirked at him.

"Fine, what about this: we stone-paper-scissors it out here, both go check out the inside first, and then loser takes perimeter and winner stays inside after the paramedics leave?"

"Deal."

After a quick game that resulted in Sara gloating and Nick complaining that in reality, a rock couldn't actually break a pair of scissors, the two headed inside, towards the rear of the house. Sounds emerged from the last door on the right of the hallway, and Sara headed that way as Nick talked to the securing officer in the living room. Crouching down and examining what appeared to be a muddy footprint on the rug in front of the door, Sara suddenly looked up into the room to see none other than Hank Pettigrew packing up his kit on the other side of the room.

Although he hadn't seen her, Sara instantly felt panicked. They hadn't spoken since she broke up with him at the police station the previous month, and she just didn't feel like she could face him right now. As she felt herself getting emotional as all the anger and frustration of everything that happened between them came flooding back, she did the only thing she could think of, and picked up her field kit before walking as quickly and calmly as she could manage towards the front door of the house.

Nick had just finished up with the officer and was about to head down towards the crime scene when a flushed and somewhat flustered Sara came charging down towards him, evidentially heading for the door.

"Sara, where's the fire? I said you won, fair and square, I was just about to tell you I was heading on outside."

Sara felt herself shaking slightly as she managed to stutter out, "Yeah, uh, y'know, on second though, I, uh, I thought I… could… take the, uh, perimeter. I mean, it's kinda dirty outside, and these are my old jeans, and it would make more sense since you're better with fibres, and there's something jammed in the, uh, door hinge thingy, and-"

She was interrupted by Nick staring intently into her eyes, as he placed one hand on her shoulder. "Sara? Are you okay?"

She was about to tell him she was fine, she was Sara, of course she was fine, but the way he was looking at her made her feel even more awkward than she already was, and all she could do was just look at her fidgeting hands. "I… uh…" she glanced nervously down at the hallway behind her.

Nick softly rubbed his thumb along her shoulder before letting go of her and walking down the hallway. He glanced into the last room down the corridor, and Sara saw his face tighten as he instantly turned and walked back towards her, veering off into the kitchen. "Sara, c'mere."

She followed him, feeling shaky once more as she thought of how uncomfortable and embarrassing things were going to get if she didn't get out of there- and soon.

Nick guided her to stand with her back against the countertop, and stood square in front of her, his hands holding her at her elbows. "Sara… listen. I know you probably don't feel like facing Hank yet, especially after everything he did to you, but trust me, him seeing you, not having a care in the world, is gonna make him feel a lot worse than not seeing you at all."

Sara spoke quietly. "I don't think I can."

Squeezing her arms a little tighter as he looked at her. "It's too soon, right?"

"Yeah. I… I'm just not ready."

"Sara, you can't hide forever." She looked away, a look of fear in her eyes, and he smiled softly at her. "Okay. You go cover the perimeter and I'll process in here. At least until they leave, okay?"

Sara smiled slightly shakily at him, touched at how understanding he was being about everything. She nodded and spoke briefly as she glanced up into his eyes. "Thank you."

He let go of her arms, smiling warmly. "Anytime, Sara. Just promise me one thing."

Sara was itching to escape from the house before the uncomfortable experience she was trying to avoid actually happened. "Uh, yeah, sure."

"We'll talk about this later, okay?"

Sara smiled at him one last time, and then quickly picked up her kit and bolted out the front door. Nick watched it close after her, then grabbed his own kit and headed down the back of the house.

Walking down the hallway, the paramedics were just leaving. He nodded in greeting to the first two men to walk past him, and stopped to look Hank right in the eye as they passed each other.

"Nick. Hey." Hank's tone was wary.

"Hank." Nick nodded at him, noticing Hank had stopped.

"Is, uh, Sara with you?"

Nick didn't even think as he responded. "Uh, no, actually… busy night. She's back at the station, finishing off some paperwork."

Hank took the information in, but didn't say anything, a thoughtful expression on his face. He opened his mouth as if to speak, then closed it, before opening and closing it once again, not saying a word.

Nick looked at him grimly. "Yeah, okay."

"Just, uh… I'm sorry. Tell her I'm sorry. I gotta go." Hank now seemed the one flustered as he quickly pushed past Nick and walked hastily out the door.

Shaking his head to himself, Nick walked into the bedroom, crouching on the floor to examine the blue fibre Sara had told him about that was wedged in the brass hinge of the door.

Meanwhile, Sara was photographing what she thought could be a possible set of the same footprints she'd found on the rug by the bedroom; this time, they were pacing through the side garden of the house. This conveniently gave her opportunity and reason to head around back, hiding from the paramedics she could just see leaving.

It was a quiet trip back to the lab, three hours later. The sun was just beginning to come up, and the rose-coloured sky gave both CSIs something to focus on other than the awkwardness within the car. As they pulled up to the crime lab, it was Nick who was the first to speak.

"Okay, here's my plan- I do the Greg drop-off, you take Hodges, we file our draft shift reports and then in half an hour, I'm taking you out to breakfast."

Sara groaned. "Nick, thank you… for saving my ass today, and I swear I'll return the favour sometime, but I don't need to be pitied. I'm fine. Really. I'm okay." She paused for a second. "Plus, I'd rather stay and just get the whole report done, and then we can start tracing the shoe prints-" Once again, she was cut off.

"We have tomorrow to do that. Have breakfast with me. Please. I'm hungry. You know that. I'm always hungry. I need food. And food plus Sara equals happy Nick." He smiled goofily at her, and she had to laugh.

"Well now you mention it, it is Waffle Friday at the diner…"

"So it's settled. I'll see you in half an hour. Whether you come with by your own free will or I end up dragging you out by your lab coat will be your own personal choice." He winked at her, and then walked through the glass doors, leaving Sara standing at the car, with a smile on her face.

Another A/N: There ya go. Okay, I'm off. I'll update as soon as I can. The more demand, the faster the update. :)