Faraway Dreams

By: Emmithar

Rating: T

Disclaimer: CSI and all recognizable characters belong to Anthony Zuiker and CBS. All others belong to me. Please ask before using them.

Summary: Happily ever after seemed so far away, especially at a time like this. Questions of trust and loyalty arise when a new threat interferers in Greg and Sara's life. Along with that comes new dangers as an old case resurfaces, bringing to light memories that should have been forgotten.

A/N: Yes…a little sooner than I had intended, a little later than I promised. But I'm easily excited sometimes about a particular story and I can't wait. Bad habits, I know. Thanks go out to Becca for betaing this for me. Chapter shout out goes to Lizzy Sidle

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Chapter One: New Beginnings

He had known about it for weeks. It had been on his mind the entire time, and with each passing day it grew closer, twisting his stomach into painful knots. Now it was tonight, and he had gotten ready early, too afraid of being late. Now, as he stood in front of the mirror, he reached up with shaky hands to redo the bow tie that rested under his neck one last time.

Giving it one last tug, he checked himself over in the mirror, frowning at his own reflection. The bowtie was now tilting to one side, giving him a lopsided appearance. Sighing, Greg muttered a curse under his breath, reaching up to pull it free of the knot, his hands moving over one another as he retied it.

Once that was done, he folded back his collar of his tuxedo, reaching up to smooth his hair back. He paused for a moment, frowning again as he ruffled his hair back up. After much consideration, he had chosen to go with a plain black suit. It wasn't his first choice, but after much prodding from Sara he finally gave in. That and the considerably lower price tag. Plus he was too nervous to really argue.

Letting out another sigh, Greg smoothed his hair back down, reaching for the bow tie, stopping as he heard her laugh. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, watching as she walked into the bathroom slowly. Oddly enough, she had chosen an outfit quickly, a plain red dress that cut off just below her knees, slimming over her waist. Her hair hung loosely by her face, the same style that Greg and all the others were accustomed with. Still, she looked beyond beautiful, her grace coming from somewhere that not even Greg could explain.

"There's not going to be much left of that bowtie if you keep messing with it," she teased him lightly, grabbing a hold of his hands, her fingers closing over his as she pulled them away. "You're shaking," she noted, concern evident in her voice as her light tone dissipated quickly.

Greg swallowed, looking back into the mirror. "I'm a little nervous," he admitted, letting out a sigh as she reached up to straighten his bow tie.

"You shouldn't be, you're practically the guest of honor," she reminded him. Her arms moved around his waist as she rested her head on his shoulder, her eyes studying his reflection in the mirror.

"That," Greg told her, pausing to take a breath, "is the reason why I'm so nervous. I don't see why I have to be there," he muttered lightly, refolding his collar again.

"Greg," Sara's voice was soft as she closed her eyes, her lips grazing along his neck. "They can't give you an award if you're not there. You're employee of the year, that's a wonderful honor."

"It's a cheap award to make people work harder without any extra pay," Greg argued, letting out another long sigh. "Besides, I don't feel like I've earned it."

"After all you've been through?" Sara asked skeptically, looking up at him. She moved her arms from his waist up around his neck, resting lightly on his shoulders. "You've done so much just this last year."

"Let's not forget I've spent half of that in the hospital," he reminded her curtly. "What about Nick and Warrick and Catherine? They've all done three times the amount of work that you and I have done combined. They deserve something as well, don't they?"

Sara gave him a small smile, giving him a hug as she straightened up. "You're so quick to praise others that you never give yourself a chance to shine," she commented. "Tonight is your night, which we will be late for if we don't get going."

Greg laughed softly, getting one last good look in the mirror. "I think I'm ready," he announced lightly, trying to muster up a confident smile.

"Almost," Sara told him, grinning. She reached up with her fingers, running them through his hair, ruffling it back up to its normal chaos. "There," she stated with a proud smile. "Now you're ready."

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They had something like this every year. But it was a first for Greg. Last year he had been in the hospital, the year before that at a trainer seminar. That was, of course, not too long after he became a full fledged CSI. Lab techs and other personal were invited to the dinners, but Greg usually found himself working, using the down time to catch up on samples, and any other much needed work.

The amount of people there was enormous, and Greg felt himself on the edge of claustrophobia for the first time in his life. Of course not wanting to be there in the first place wasn't helping very much. He felt as though there was a lump in his throat, nearly suffocating him and he swallowed painfully, forcing a smile as he greeted yet another couple.

Everyone wanted to meet him. It wasn't just because he was a new face, but because of his publicity from the last trial, and the series of kidnappings. It was publicity Greg never wanted. Now everyone treated him like some sort of celebrity, when all he wanted was to be left alone. He and Sara had little time alone as it was, the last thing he wanted to do was to answer endless questions about their personal life.

He avoided the house phone, and it only took a handful of days before Sara yanked the cord from the wall. This in all was okay, because the only people they actually talked to were those from the lab, and they always tried their cells first. The only other hassle they had was getting to and from the lab.

Several reporters enjoyed lounging around the entrance, forcing Greg and Sara to use the side and rear exits to come and go. This tactic worked fine, for a while that was. Coming to work became a game of cat-and-mouse, picking a single entrance and hoping that no one was there. Sometimes they were lucky, but most of the time there had been at the very least, one person waiting outside.

It wasn't until Brass stepped in that a change could be noted. The only time anyone ever hung around was when they were certain the detective wasn't around, and even then it was easy to avoid them.

In the past few weeks however they were beginning to lose their interest in the story, moving along now to keep pace with real life as other commotions broke out. For Greg it was not entirely too soon. Even tonight there had only been a few reporters, who had, at least at his assumption, come to garner rumor and gossip from the annual dinner, and upon seeing him choose to press their questions.

"You're doing surprisingly well."

Greg let out a strained smile as Sara came up alongside him, bringing him into a warm embrace as she kissed him tenderly. It was short, because although the lab already knew of their status, Grissom had cautioned them that not everyone in the department would approve of their relationship. Even still Sara refused to pretend that nothing was going on, but had agreed to downplay it.

"Why?" he queried, muttering through clenched teeth as he forced another smile. "Are you expecting me to screw something up?"

She chuckled, one hand still lingering on his arm as she brushed the hair from her face with the other. "I know you didn't want to come, but I'm glad you did."

He said nothing in return, at least not at first, but then could not help but smile for real. "I suppose you want me to say that I'm glad as well?"

She just smiled, and he laughed, shaking his head. "Fine…I'm glad I came to."

It was an outright lie, and he knew that Sara could tell that. But his point had gotten across…he was trying. For Sara that was all that mattered to her. And for Sara he would do anything.

"That's good," she said sweetly, smiling still, "I'm going to be headed off for a bit, just so that you know."

"You're working?" Greg shook his head, unable to believe yet, but somehow not surprised as he thought he should be. The lab was just across the street, no more than a five minute walk. It was a great convenience if someone was needed, or they had a break-through in a case. After all, life didn't take a break just because they were. "Sara…"

"I'm just going to check on the John Doe case, it won't take more than ten minutes," she told him quickly, causing him to frown. He knew that she had been wrapped up in this case from the very start, angered and irritated by the simple fact that she couldn't find any promising lead. It had caused many late nights, and early days for her, and Greg found himself seeing less and less of her.

"This was supposed to be our night," he protested, reaching out for her hand. Disappointingly she pulled away, hands hanging free at her side.

"This is your night," she reminded him, "You don't need me around to be yourself. Besides, I'm just going in to get the updates, and I swear I'll be right back."

Greg started to shake his head, started to protest but Sara beat him to it. "If anything happens just call me on my cell. I promise I'll come right over."

"I don't know," he said softly, knowing that he shouldn't be this discouraged. Sara was right, he didn't need her to be there, but he wanted her to be.

"I promise," she said again, this time with more emphasis, relieved to see that Greg was finally agreeing. She gave him a smile, a quick squeeze of the hand, ready to make her leave when both of their names were called.

She could see Greg smile, and despite her frustration she let out one as well. "Detective Brass," she noted, turning around to greet the other man.

He merely smiled, nodding to the two before turning around, glancing over his shoulder. "I'd like you to meet our newest recruits, transfers from LA."

Brass, of course was referring to the threesome that was following behind. The first, the oldest of the three, shook their hands, nodding his head. "Alfred Damen," Brass introduced lightly. "Worked in LA for years as a cop, became a detective about a year ago. The city had some financial problems so they sent him on our way. He provides a promising record."

Alfred chuckled at the comment, shaking his head. "Don't let the age fool you, I'm still a rookie. Ask me anything about the police force and I can give you a damn summary but I'm still working at this detective stuff. I was the newest one in that area, it doesn't matter that I worked with the force for seventeen years."

"I know how that is," Greg agreed mildly, one hand slipping behind his back to grasp Sara's as she shifted agitatedly. "I'm still getting used to all this CSI stuff." He took a moment to gauge the man, who had to be in his late thirties, hair though mostly brown was starting to thin out, grey already working it's way in. He was a tall man, and big-boned, and though Greg wouldn't be the first to admit it out loud, he was a bit rotund.

"Jaysen Lewir worked with LA for two months, also part of the cut backs. Schooled in Chicago, moved out Sacramento before landing a job with LAPD. He's still in training so one of us will always have to keep an eye on him."

The other man laughed, shaking hands first with Greg, than with Sara, his fingers lingering on hers for a moment longer, causing her to draw back with a firm smile. "Sorry," Jaysen apologized, "Sometimes I can't help myself, especially around such beautiful women."

Greg took a step closer to Sara as she blushed, grateful that Brass had started speaking once again. "Brownnosing doesn't work with Miss Sidle," he pointed out firmly.

"But it certainly doesn't hurt to try," Sara laughed softly, smiling still.

He was at least a head shorter than Alfred, putting him at almost Greg's height. His black hair was pulled back into a tie, stopping at his neck line. It was obvious his hair had been dyed, standing out sharply in contrast with his pale complexion. It was silent for a moment before the third member moved in, shaking hands with the both of them much to Greg's delight. Even still he couldn't help notice that Jaysen's eyes had yet to leave Sara.

"Carla Raquel, has a few more months under her belt than Jaysen, but still a lot to learn," Brass nodded, indicating the blonde. She was the shortest of the bunch, long hair draping down her back, and her firm handshake stating that she was very upfront. You couldn't ask for a better attitude when it came to police work.

For a while the group stayed together, discussing the lab in general, and mostly putting the newcomers at ease. Brass explained that they had arrived just that day, a perfect time in accordance with the dinner. It gave them ample opportunity to meet the faces that they would be working with over the next several months, and hopefully in the continuing years that followed after.

Sara, of course, excused herself in due time, but much later than she had wanted. Greg had not wanted to see her go, especially now, as he gritted his teeth, doing his best to listen to what the others were saying, and give them decent answers. It was hard to pay attention when he wasn't even interested, but he couldn't help feeling sorry for the detective. After all Brass had to have spent most of the day with them already, and as much as they were talking now he couldn't even begin to imagine what Jim had to put up with.

He stayed with them for only a few more minutes afterwards, quietly excusing himself. Sara, if she had stuck true to her word, would be back any minute now, and Greg purposely waited by the front of the door, his eyes always seeking out her slender form. He knew it was unhealthy to be this attached to someone, but the more he was apart from her, the more he truly realized how much he loved her.

His hand slipped into his pocket, fingering the small box that was inside. He had spent a great deal of time choosing the perfect ring, one that would display his affection for her, and at the same time wouldn't overwhelm her. Sara wasn't much into jewelry, and she had a strong distaste for things that were flashy. It made finding something difficult, but after nearly a month of looking, he found what he felt was the perfect ring. The only problem that remained now was presenting it to her…that and asking her to actually marry him.

That had been weeks ago now, and though he had tried several times he had never actually built up the courage to ask. What if she wasn't ready? What if he ruined a perfectly good relationship? Greg couldn't stand losing her. He was willing to remain her boyfriend forever if it meant keeping things the way they were now. His fingers wrapped around the box as he let out a heavy sigh.

Greg always made sure to keep it on him. Firstly because he never knew when and where he would finally ask her, and secondly to keep Sara from finding it herself. Too many times had he imagined the embarrassment he would face if Sara found it their dresser, or if it accidentally fell from his locker at work. No…the only way to keep it truly safe was to keep it with him…and at all times.

With a smile he let go of the item, sliding his hand free of his pocket as he spotted his girlfriend crossing the parking lot. And in just in time too, as everyone began to gather inside the dining hall, the sheriff's voice coming over the loudspeaker.

Greg tapped his wrist, visually enough so that she could see, and hurried her along. Sara let out a low breath of air, squeezing Greg's hand as she stepped inside. With a small shake of her head she indicated that there had been nothing new, and without a word the pair slipped inside, taking a seat in the back as the dinner began.

TBC