A/N: Inspired by "Where to Begin" by My Morning Jacket. Thanks to Princessklutz04 for the beta! ;)
Flowers in your hair
She turned up the radio, leaned back in her seat, and started singing softly. Her voice was soft and not quite in tune with the song, and it got carried away on the wind blowing the hair out of her face. Even though it was too chilly to drive with an open window, she had rolled it down and had explained to him that she liked to feel the wind in her face.
"It's the art of feeling naked in your clothes…" she sang quietly and he wanted to tell her how much he liked her voice. It was easy to tell that she was a smoker; he could hear it in her voice, that husky rasp that crept down his spine.
"Feeling naked in your clothes?" he asked and threw her a glance. She smiled and ran a hand through her messy hair.
"Always. It's a gift."
It was his turn to smile and he felt a pang of guilt because he was sharing something with her that was much more than a favor of a teacher driving home his student.
Somewhere, and he couldn't quite put his finger on the exact moment, the exact day or time, he had fallen for her. He had let his emotions cloud his judgment. On a cool evening, very similar to this one he had kissed her, pulled her across the center console of his rental car and made out with her. A woman fifteen years younger than him.
Two months they had lived in a blissfully surreal life, almost forgetting about his imminent departure.
"Sara, you are…"
"Don't. I know what I am." She cut him off swiftly and smiled again. The streetlights reflected in her eyes and he would have stared at her if he didn't have to concentrate on the road.
"What are you?" he asked, his voice growing deeper, more careful.
She half turned towards him, looked at him for a moment before looking ahead again. It seemed as if she was ignoring his question, as if she was going to let it hang in the air until the silence would devour it and break the moment. Then again, she never left any question unanswered.
"I'm what you need. You just don't know it yet." she stated confidently and refused to look at him when his head whipped around to her.
He was speechless for a moment, his mouth opening and closing a couple of times until his head stopped buzzing.
"Sara, I…" he trailed off and she shook her head.
"Griss, please. You don't have to say anything." With the wave of her hand she dismissed him.
Unsure of what to say, he drove on in silence, turned the music up a little louder and listened to her singing softly. When he pulled up in front of her apartment building she turned towards him.
"Coming?" she asked and winked at him.
"I'm leaving tomorrow."
"I know. It's marked in my calendar." Her eyes seemed black in the one orange streetlight behind them and he studied her face for a moment before he pulled the key out of the ignition and pushed open his door.
She followed him, pulled on the sleeves of her leather jacket nervously as she watched him lock the car. It really was cold outside.
It took her a moment to fumble the key into the lock and another one to find the light switch.
"I have your spare key." he reminded her as she draped her arms around his neck.
"Keep it, whatever." She shrugged and leaned into him, capturing his lips in a slow kiss that left him feeling lightheaded and longing for more.
He kicked his shoes off and let her pull him towards the bedroom while his fingers explored the texture of her leather jacket, roamed up and down her arms and over her back.
"I'm not sure we…" he started to say between kisses but she pushed her tongue into his mouth before he could finish.
"Mh Mh." she mumbled.
She insistently coaxed him out of his clothes and into bed, just the way she had done so many times before. His good intentions went out the window when she peeled her jacket off and pulled her sweater over her head.
His guilty conscience had no chance against the hunger growing deep inside of him and as the night went on, he nearly forgot that this would be the last time he would touch her.
When she woke up, delightfully sore and buried beneath the sheets, she heard the shower running. Of course he had woken up before her. She waited until he reentered the bedroom in his boxers, rubbing a towel through her hair.
"Morning." she mumbled and leaned up on one elbow to watch him move around.
"I didn't mean to wake you. You looked so… peaceful." he apologized and smiled softly.
"Can't just sneak out on me like that Dr. Grissom."
He chuckled and buttoned up his shirt, his eyes fixed on her. Her hair was a mess and she smiled, showing off the gap between her front teeth. With a sigh he came to sit beside her on the bed.
"What are we gonna do about… this." he asked and looked her straight in the eye.
"Don't worry about it. It's… we're good for now." She leaned in and placed a lingering kiss on his lips.
"Honey I… don't wait for me okay?"
She sat up, wrapped the sheets around herself and licked her lips.
"Can't promise that. I'll try but… I won't forget you and… this." She rested a hand against his cheek, rubbed her thumb across it and smiled sadly.
They sat like that for a moment until he turned away and her hand seemed to fall onto the sheets as if pulled by gravity. He sighed and pulled his socks on.
When he was fully dressed, he turned towards her again.
"I don't regret any of this." he said.
"Good. Neither do I."
He leaned down to kiss her and when he started for the door, she wrapped one of the sheets around her and followed him.
"Keep in touch, will you?" she asked softly and he nodded.
"Of course I will. Remember what I said- don't wait for me." He cupped her cheek, looked into her eyes as if he wanted to make sure what he said registered in her brain.
Quickly she leaned up and kissed him. When he was halfway down the first flight of stairs, she called after him.
"Remember what I said- I'm what you need."
He turned towards her, nodded slowly. Somewhere in the back corner of his mind he already knew that, he knew that she was right. He just wasn't ready to accept it as he blew her a kiss and marched down the stairs as fast as he could for fear he might change his mind and turn around.
The End.