Title: Home
Disclaimer: I don't own CSI...or Minority Report
a/n: This is just a short, one-shot fic that I wrote a while back. Hope you like it!
There was a puzzled look on all the CSI's faces. They had been called down to Grissom's office for a meeting. He was now the head of the lab; Ecklie had retired a few years ago.
"Sara, do you know what this is about?" Warrick whispered to her as they walked down the long hallway to Grissom's office. He knew that he confided in her more than anybody else, so he figured that she might know what was going on.
"I don't know," she said. It was true; she was in the dark about this meeting, just like the rest of them. She had noticed that Grissom had been spending a lot of time on the phone with the mayor and the sheriff's office lately. When he talked to them, he sounded as if he was pleading with them.
"I heard that they're shutting down all the crime labs, one by one," Nick told them. "They have some new technology that allows them to catch the suspect before the crime even happens, kind of like in Minority Report, that movie about those humans that dreamt of murders before they happened."
"Yeah, but I doubt they would just shut them down," Sara said worriedly. "I mean, they wouldn't, would they?" She had a look of concern on her face, which was worn from her many years of working around the clock on cases. Although she was only 43, she looked as if she was in her late 40s.
"No, they wouldn't…" said Warrick, sharing the same concerned look on his face.
When they arrived at Grissom's office, however, something seemed a bit off.
"What's up with all these boxes?" Sara asked, looking around at the empty shelves. All of his things had been neatly packed away into cardboard boxes. It looked like he was getting ready to move somewhere.
"Could we get this over with quickly, please?" asked Catherine, barging into the room before Grissom could answer. "I have to get to Lindsay's graduation."
"Well, we're still waiting on Greg and a few others," he said. He seemed a little distraught and nervous. Not two minutes later, Greg and the rest of the CSI's and lab techs joined them.
"So what's up, Gris?" Greg said, running into Grissom's office.
"Well, I'm afraid I've received some bad news," Grissom began telling them. His face was grave as he looked around at these people that he had come to know as family. "They're shutting us down. The new system that detects crimes before they happen has been proved to be effective. They feel as if they no longer need us."
"What!" yelled Catherine. "No! They can't do that to use. What do they expect us to do? I mean, not too many businesses out there are looking for criminalists to add to their payroll!"
"I've tried to convince them that technology isn't always the best thing when you have to consider human behavior," Grissom said as calmly as he could. "But I'm afraid that they've reached their final decision."
Sara couldn't help smiling as Grissom said these words, remembering his resentment for using computers to solve crimes, like the ones that simulated a person falling from a building.
"Wait a second! When are they closing us down?" Nick asked, hoping that it wouldn't be too soon.
"They want everyone out of here by tomorrow at 5 PM, no exceptions," Grissom sighed. He had been angry to have heard about it on such short notice.
"Tomorrow!" Sara yelled, finally speaking since the announcement. "But can't they give us a little more time?"
"Time for what?" Grissom said quietly. He knew that it would just be so much easier if they all went their separate ways as soon as possible. "There's nothing left for us here. We're not wanted. Look, I wish I had told you sooner, but I didn't want to say anything until the decision was final."
"Wait, is that why there haven't been so many cases recently? I mean, Nick and I have just been sitting around playing video games this week," Warrick said.
This, too, caused Sara to smile. She had lost count of the number of times Warrick and Nick had been caught playing video games over the years.
"I'm really sorry, everyone," Grissom said to all of them. His mother had died a few years ago, and all he had left was this lab. And now that was almost gone too.
With that, everyone began filtering out of his office one by one, being careful not to knock over any boxes. Most of them started cleaning out the lounge, making sure that they all got what belonged to him.
"Hey, Sara," Greg called to her as they were all leaving for the day. "We're all going out for drinks, you wanna come?"
"Um, okay, I guess," she said. She had been hoping to talk to Grissom, but right now, a nice margarita was all she really needed. Besides, they still had tomorrow, didn't they?
Sara and the rest of the gang, excluding Grissom, all enjoyed their night at Firuker's, which was an interesting sort of bar that had excellent drinks.
"To the number TWO crime lab in the country, baby!" Warrick toasted enthusiastically over their fifth round of drinks.
"I'll drink to that!" Nick said, and they all raised their glasses. At this point, they didn't really even care what they were drinking to, as long as they got to drink.
By the time the night was through, they had been through eight rounds. They all left the Lava Lounge feeling a bit uneasy, although they were unable to tell whether it was the mudslides or the news that they had just heard not five hours ago.
Sara didn't sleep much that night. She knew that this was her last chance with Grissom, that by 5 tomorrow, it would all be over. She tossed and turned uncomfortably all night, unable to get him out of her head. She eventually got to sleep at around 4 AM.
When she woke up, however, she had the worst hangover ever. Yet, she managed to drag herself out of bed, make herself look somewhat presentable, and she headed off to work.
The lab was quiet when she got there. Nobody really felt like talking too much. Even video games couldn't seem to cheer Nick and Warrick up. The only time they talked was when they were trying to figure out which games belonged to whom.
"I'm telling you, Halo 12 is my game! You bought Halo 11, remember?" Warrick argued.
"Fine, but then I get Medal of Honor!" Nick finally agreed. They didn't feel much like fighting over something as stupid as Halo when it was their last day at work.
"Well, I guess this is good-bye," Catherine said to all of them. They had been told that they were not allowed to leave until 4:30, and had been watching the clock in silence since 3:00, their own boxes of locker contents in front of them. She got up and hugged each and every one of them.
"Sara, you stay strong," she said, when she got to her.
"I will, Catherine. And tell Lindsay I said hi, okay?" Sara said, hugging her back. Catherine had already told them that she was going to retire and move to California at the end of the year anyway.
Warrick, Greg, and Nick all left together, all leaving Sara with a similar message that Catherine had. As they each hugged her, Sara felt tears welling up in her eyes.
"You ever need anything, you call one of us," Warrick had said, right before he exited the crime lab for the last and final time. She saw the little twinkle in his eye as he passed through the doors.
When they had all gone, she just stood and stared. Memories of her many years at the lab flew past her eyes. The time the lab blew up, the time Grissom told her she was beautiful, the time she received that plant that Grissom had sent her, and even the time she heard Grissom talking to Dr. Lurie. Even though many years had passed since then, she still hadn't told him that she had been there the entire time.
No matter how many times Sara told herself that she could be working in a different place, making a lot more money, she could never bring herself to leave.
A single tear rolled down her cheek. She couldn't go home. This, the lab, was her home.
"It's hard to say good-bye, isn't it?" Grissom said, coming up behind her.
Sara simply nodded. These people, her co-workers, had become her family over the years. She had never really had one before, and now it was all hitting her that this was it. The only people that had ever cared for her were leaving, and she was all alone. For the first time in so many years, she was scared, but as she stood there with Grissom at her side, she felt that she wasn't the only one.
"You guys were my family, Grissom," she said, unable to control her tears any longer. "I don't know where I would be if you all hadn't been there for me. But now that's all gone. We're being ripped apart, just like my real family was so long ago." Her voice cracked, and she broke down crying.
"Shh…It's okay, Sara," Grissom said, placing his box on the ground beside him and wrapping his arms around her. "We'll always have each other, and I mean it, Sara." He rubbed her shaking back and squeezed her shoulders.
"What?" she said, looking up at him.
"Look, I know this probably isn't the best time for this, but Sara, I can't stand it any longer. I've always wanted you to know this, and I've been searching for just the right moment. Well, I guess time has run out on me. I love you Sara. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you earlier," he said, his shoulder absorbing more salty tears. "I know you've been hurting because of me. So I have I, Sara. I was hurting myself by not letting you in. It pained me every time I saw you with a new man. So please, Sara, let me in. I really do love you Sara."
"It's okay, Gil," she said through her sobs. "I love you, and I don't think I would be able to keep you out, no matter how hard I tried. Please don't leave me, Grissom. I need you."
"I need you, too, Sara," he said, kissing her forehead. He held onto her tightly, never wanting to let go. "Come on, let's go home."
"What home?" she said. "This is my home, Grissom. My apartment was just a place for me to sleep, but it never was a place that I could call 'home.'"
"Come to my home, Sara," he said, his bright, blue eyes looking into her soft, brown ones. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you. As long as we have each other, we'll be at home. I promise."
Sara wrapped her arms around his shoulders and squeezed him hard. As they pulled apart, Grissom kept one arm around her shoulder, picked up his stuff and Sara's, which had been sitting on the ground at her feet, and they walked out of the crime lab, ready for whatever was going to come. Sara realized that he was right, that as long as she was in Grissom's arms, she was home.
"I love you, Gil," she whispered into his ear.
"I love you, too, Sara," he whispered back.