He stared at the photos of the couple in front of him. "Why him?" He asked to the photo. "He doesn't love you like I do." He tore up the photos and threw them away. "He won't be a problem much longer. Sooner or later we will be together!" He said, turning his attention to watch the screen in front of him. "You'll see how wrong he is for you."
Nick focuses all of his attention on Greg's breathing. It scared him to death when he realized how close he was to losing Greg. The younger man was asleep in his arms now. He knew it wouldn't last long. The nightmares would come and he would be there to comfort him.
He blames himself for Greg getting hurt. He was right across the hall; close enough that he could have been in there with Greg and somehow stopped this from happening.
He looks down at Greg and smiles slightly. The younger man's chest slowly rises and falls. He has the most peaceful look on his face. Nick only prays it stays there; that the nightmares won't come back tonight. He runs a hand down Greg's cheek and Greg unconsciously moves closer to Nick. "I won't let anything happen to you." Nick promises in a whisper before slowly falling asleep.
Greg rolls over and finds the other side of the bed empty. He opens his eyes and sees Nick standing in front of the dresser. "Do you have to leave already?" He asks sadly. Nick still had to go to work even though he was on paid leave until he was well enough to return to the lab.
Nick turns around and nods. He sits down on the bed and gives Greg a small kiss. "Yeah, I have to leave in a half an hour." He says before giving Greg another kiss.
Greg puts his head down on Nick's shoulder. Nick can hear his heavy breathing and can feel his body shaking slightly. "Baby, are you ok?" He asks while running his fingers through Greg's hair.
Greg shakes his head back and forth. "No, my back hurts so badly." He tries to take his mind off the pain but it is too intense. "Oh god." It feels like fire is on his skin.
Nick gets up and goes to get Greg's medicine. He comes back with a bottle of water and two pills. He hands them to Greg who instantly takes them from Nick. "Thanks." Greg mumbles after he swallows the pills.
"Anytime babe." He placed a kiss on his forehead. He gently pulled Greg into his arms and made sure he didn't hurt him. He held Greg for a few minutes until the pain in his back subsided.
"You should probably leave for work now." Greg said staring at the clock that read 7:45 P.M. He saw the concerned look in Nick's eyes. "I'm fine, really." He said rolling his eyes. He loved Nick's over protectiveness but it got to be annoying at times.
"Are you sure?" Nick asked. "'Cus I can stay home if you want me to."
"Go to work, If I need you then I will call you." Greg said laughing slightly.
"Ok, fine." Nick said giving Greg a kiss before standing up from the bed. "I love you."
"I love you, too. Now leave before you're late." Greg told him. Nick had been late to work everyday this week because of him. He felt guilty but Nick didn't seem to mind. He watched as Nick left the house and drove away.
Nick got another lecture from Grissom about being late to work. Grissom told him that if he was late again he would be suspended for three days without pay.
He walked back into the lab after coming back from a crime scene to see the place in a frenzy. He walked to the break room where the team was all sitting. He saw their worried faces and saw that Sara was almost in tears. "What's wrong?" He asked.
Grissom took off his glasses and studied Nick, deciding the best way to tell him. "It's Greg." He blurted out.
Nick's eyes went wide and his heart started racing. "What's wrong? Is he ok?" The questions flew out his mouth. He needed to know if Greg was ok. He didn't know what he would do if something happened to him.
Sara grabbed his hand and knew this was going to devastate Nick. "Greg was kidnapped." Tears were fresh in her eyes. Greg was like her little brother and with him gone everything seemed quiet and dull.
Nick gripped Sara's hand. "What! Are you sure?" He asked. This couldn't be happening. No, this was a dream and he was going to wake up next to Greg and everything was going to be ok. He closed his eyes and prayed this wasn't happening.
"We're positive, Nicky." Catherine told him as she handed him a package. "The kidnapper sent this."
Nick opened the package and pulled out a letter. Tears poured out of his eyes as he read the letter. "He stole what I love. He must pay until I can have it back. You aren't going to see him again. Your little lab rat will die. He'll pay for what he did. You'll finally see him for how weak and pathetic he really is. P.S: Don't come looking for me. You'll never find me."
Nick slammed his fist into the wall. "Son of a bitch!" He screamed. "How the fuck can this happen?" He asked angrily.
"We will find him. I don't care what the note says, we can find him." Warrick said placing a hand on his friend's shoulder to try and comfort him. "We won't let this sick son of a bitch get away with this."
Nick turned around and faced his team. Anger was shining in his eyes. "I have to get him back." His voice started to crack. Sara got up and wrapped her arms protectively around him. "I need him back, Sara." He didn't bother to wipe away the tears that came.
"We'll get him back. Nothing will happen to him." She whispered soothing words into his ear hoping it calm him down.
"She's right. This guy won't get away." Grissom told them. How could someone do this to Greg? He didn't deserve this, especially now. "Greg is strong, he's a fighter. He won't let his guy hurt him."
Nick nodded. He wanted to believe him. But Greg was weak now. His back was still in pain and Greg still had his injuries from the explosion. "I hope you're right." He whispered.
Catherine cleared her throat to get attention. "Let's get to work on finding Greg." She said picking up the letter. "I'll print this and see if I can find anything except for our prints. Sara and Warrick, why don't you two go to Nick and Greg's house and see if you can find anything? Nick and Grissom go and help them." She immediately took control of the situation. Someone had to stay strong and knew they would rely on her.
Everyone headed to work and prayed they would find something. They all wanted Greg back and weren't about to let anything happen to him.
TBC...