SUMMARY: "Oh, Little Child Of Las Vegas" is Angel Estrada's and Fuesch's response to an "Only_Nicky" fic challenge on LiveJournal. **WARNING: Slight spoilers for "Fannysmackin'".**
AUTHOR'S NOTES: This was my first completed fic, written in December of 2006. :) My friend, Fuesch, helped me with ideas and I put them into words for us. CSI and Nick Stokes don't belong to me, and I do not own the rights to them sadly. ;) I just like playing with them. ;) ...All ideas belong to Angel Estrada and Fuesch at Stokes Fanficz, so please don't plagerize! ...Oh yeah, and this is completely un-beta'd. :)
::*PROMPT*::
"It is the holiday season and one of our CSI's is the personification of Christmas cheer, while another CSI is the perfect example of Scrooge; and in the middle of all the holiday madness, Nick receives a gift he never expected to receive."
Nick strolled into the lab on Christmas Eve. It had been a long past few months for the team, so Nick was picking up extra shifts when they were available.
He always enjoyed Christmas time. Down in Texas, his family always had huge get-togethers, and he loved just hanging out, exchanging gifts, and having a good time. He missed doing that, but at the same time, he had a new family at the lab to share the joy of the season with. Walking past Grissom's office, he peeked in.
"Hey!" His supervisor looked up from a crossword puzzle and eyed Nick over the rim of his glasses.
"Merry Christmas Eve, Griss," he exclaimed. Grissom nodded.
"Same to you, Nick. Now, don't you think you need to lose the Santa hat and get back to work?" Nick's eyes looked up towards the top of his head. He'd forgotten he'd even put it on.
"You're not going to turn Ecklie on me, now, are you, man?" Grissom couldn't help but smile.
"Merry Christmas, Nick. Now, go back to work." Nick grinned and took off down the hall. Heading into the locker room, he spotted Warrick.
"Hey, bro! What's goin' on? Dude, what do you say we head down to The Spur and pick up some hot chicks for Christmas?" He was obviously joking. Warrick chuckled.
"Nicky, my boy, what am I going to do with you?" 'Rick grinned, adding, "I've taught you well, bro." He patted Nick on the shoulder as he stood up, grabbed his gear, and exited the locker room. "Oh, and uhh… Nice hat, Santa!" The two exchanged laughter as Warrick walked out.
A few hours had passed and Nick had finally calmed his excitement and was intently focused on his case. Multi-tasking by running tire treads, prints, and doing paperwork all at once, he was quietly interrupted. Looking up from his desk, he stared at a peeping, smiling Hodges.
"Do you have something for me?" Nick asked. Hodges shrugged.
"No. Can't I ever just check in on you CSI's once in a while?" Nick shook his head, sighing.
"What do you want, Hodges? I'm kind of busy here."
"I don't want anything. I thought I'd be nice for once and stop to wish you a Merry Christmas, Stokes. It's officially December twenty-fifth." Nick looked up at the clock, and sure enough, it was after midnight.
"Oh, Hodges, I uhh… I'm sorry, man. Merry Christmas." After Nick replied, he realized just who he was talking to, and looked back at Hodges, confused. Hodges grinned.
"So, what did you ask Santa for this year, Stokes?" Nick laughed, glancing at the Santa hat that he'd taken off and laid next to him on his desk.
"I'm more of the giving type, so I didn't ask for anything. What about you?" Hodges smiled.
"I'll never tell." Nick chuckled and shook his head.
"So what makes you the ghost of holiday cheer, man?"
"Oh, Nicholas, if I told you, then…" Nick grinned.
"I know, I know." Hodges smirked.
"So, Stokes, have you noticed anything different about Sanders lately?" Nick's eyebrows turned in toward his nose.
"What do you mean?" Shrugging, Hodges replied.
"He just… He doesn't seem like the Greg we all know and love." Nick thought for a moment, making a mental note to go see him later, just as Hodges' pager went off. "I have to run. Have a good night, Stokes." Nick's eyebrows rose as he replied.
"Yeah. Yeah, you, too, man." Laughing, Nick shook his head and returned to his paperwork. "He's awfully cheerful tonight," Nick said aloud.
Nick had finished up his work, putting his Santa hat back on, and deciding to go and search for the younger CSI and check up on him. Before he'd do that, he'd need to swing by the break room to snag a refill on coffee. Opening the door, he noticed someone sitting at the table. Much to his surprise, it was Greg… A very depressed Greg who was swirling black coffee with a coffee stir, his face resting on the palm of one hand, his eyes fixated on the dark waves that spun in his cup.
"Hey hey, Greggo! What's up, my man?" Greg shrugged his shoulders, not saying a word, and not raising his head. Nick poured himself a fresh cup of coffee, then pulled a chair out, and sat down across from Greg, studying him. "Hey, Greg? You okay, man?"
Greg sighed. "Yeah," he said softly, "Fine."
"You don't seem fine. Talk to me, man. What's going on?"
"I'm having dinner with my parents tomorrow, Nick." Confused, Nick cocked an eyebrow at him, shrugging his shoulders.
"…And?" Greg looked up at Nick in disgust.
"You don't get it, do you?" He looked back down, continuing to stir his coffee.
"I'm sorry, Greg. Help me out here, man." Greg stood up, coffee in hand, staring down at the floor as he paced back and forth.
"They don't know."
"About what happened?"
"They still think I'm in the lab."
"My God, Greg! You haven't told them?" Greg shook his head. "Why haven't you told them?"
"My parents will flip out, Nick."
"Greg, you need to tell them eventually." Greg sighed.
"I… I don't know if I can." Nick stood up and walked toward his friend, patting him on the shoulder.
"Cheer up, man. It's Christmas!"
"Yeah, Nick, and that's part of the problem." Greg dumped the rest of his coffee down the sink, tossing his white, paper cup in the trash before flinging open the door of the break room, and walking out. Sighing, Nick shook his head, topping off his own cup.
"Hey… Greg," Sara finished as she passed him, watching as he took off, swiftly, down the hall. Confused, she tilted her head, and then entered the break room.
"Hey you," she exclaimed, pursing her lips together with a smile.
"Hey yourself," Nick replied. "Merry Christmas, Sar."
"Thanks Nick. Same to you. How are you?" Nick smiled.
"I'm great. You?"
"Tired, but hey, it's Christmas." She grinned.
"I'm with you on that one. Got any plans?"
"Yeah, we're going to have a nice, quiet dinner together." Catching herself, Sara's cheeks turned fire engine red, and she added, "Some of the girls." She shrugged with a silent sigh, thankful she hadn't given her and Gil's secret away.
"That sounds like fun."
"It always is," she grinned, quickly diverting the attention from herself. "What about you? Are you doing anything?" Nick flashed a half-smile at her.
"Yeah, the same thing I do every year- Sit at home alone." He chuckled.
"Aww, Nick, I'm sorry."
"It's no big deal, really. I actually might see if Warrick wants to hook up some time tomorrow. Maybe we could play some desert football or something?" He joked. Sara smiled at her friend.
"Well, I'll be sure to save you some of my Vegan cookies." Nick nodded with a smile.
"Sounds good to me."
"Hey, I have to run, but you take care of yourself, okay? You could always call if you get too bored."
"Thanks, Sar. I'll be fine." Nick smiled, wrapping his arms around her, giving her a friendly hug. "Merry Christmas, Sar."
"Merry Christmas, Nick." Sara waved as she walked out.
Nick wandered aimlessly down the hall, walking slowly, reading a newspaper he'd picked up in the break room. As he made his way past the locker room, he stopped in his tracks. He backed up a little, glancing in.
"Christine, I'm not really sure how to tell you this, but… No, that won't work. Christine, we've known each other for years and… Christine, I love you." Nick watched for a moment, smirking at the sight before his eyes. Hodges had been standing in front of a mirror, with a reconstruction dummy, rehearsing lines to the pretend, what Nick assumed to be, possible girlfriend. He laughed as he sipped his coffee and continued walking. "Christmas is in the air," he thought to himself, smiling.
Nick had completed all of his assignments. All results were in, all paperwork was finished, all suspects were interrogated, and all cases were solved. This was going to turn out being a decent Christmas after all. Grinning from ear to ear as he glanced up at the clock, realizing he only had ten more minutes left of his shift, he decided to start packing his belongings and wish everyone a happy holiday before heading home. He stopped back in Grissom's office.
"Hey, Scrooge," he joked. An obviously tired Grissom looked up at him.
"Nick," he nodded.
"Just stopping to wish you a Merry Christmas… again."
"Merry Christmas, Nick," his supervisor smiled. "Oh, Nick?" Nick turned around.
"Yeah?"
"Next year, I want to see elf ears and pointy shoes to go along with that hat." Nick smiled with a chuckle, as he shook his head and waved, exiting his boss' office. Grissom grinned, returning to his work. As Nick made his rounds, he stopped at the front desk.
"Judy," he grinned. "I'm heading home. Merry Christmas!"
"Nick?"
"Yes?"
"I've been trying to get hold of you for the last two hours."
"Why? What's wrong?" He took his pager out of the clip, noticing the battery had died. She handed him a note, which read:
Mr. Stokes:
In appreciation for the justice you've granted our daughter, and our family, on behalf of our late daughter, Kimberly Marie Walker, we would be honored if you would accept our gift to you.
Sincerely,
Paul and Debbie Sinclair
Confused, he looked back up at the secretary.
"Did they leave anything?" Before she could answer, Nick heard a cry. Lifting a car seat up from behind the desk, she handed the baby girl to Nick.
"Merry Christmas, Nick," Judy grinned mischievously. Nick's jaw dropped and he put a hand over his mouth. He nodded.
"Yeah," he said, looking from the baby, to Judy, and back to the baby, "Yeah, Merry Christmas." Before picking up the baby seat, he happened to glance down toward her feet. The bottom of her blanket read "Angel Sky Walker."
Then, it hit him. Kim Walker was the girl he'd found beaten and shot to death by a stalker, who, later, tried turning the gun on himself. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the killer survived, and was put on trial, now spending the remainder of his life behind bars. Stopping in the locker room to grab his coat and gym bag, he ran into Warrick and Archie.
"Hey, Nick!" Archie exclaimed. Nick nodded.
"Nick?" Warrick asked, and then noticed the baby Nick was carrying in a car seat. He saw the look of confusion on his friends' faces, and tried to explain.
"You know that Walker case I worked a few months ago?" The two nodded, and Nick smiled.
"Meet Angel Sky Walker." Archie stood up, and anyone could see the light bulb going off in his head. Walking over to the tiny baby, he kneeled down. Putting his hands together, pointing upwards, a deep voice emerged from inside of him, "I am your father." Warrick punched him playfully, as he looked at Nick.
"So, what are you trying to say, buddy? Are you babysitting or something?" Nick handed Warrick the note.
"Surprise," he said, shrugging his shoulders with a smile.
"You don't plan on keeping her, do you, bro?"
"I don't know what I'm going to do, 'Rick. I need to check with the courts and everything. I think I need to get her home though." Warrick smiled at his best friend, patting him on the back.
"Hey, if you need anything…" He trailed off.
"Yeah, I know, call Cath, right? God knows, you won't change a diaper, bro," Nick laughed.
"You know me well." Warrick grinned. "Seriously though, if you need anything, call. Alright, man?" Nick nodded, giving Warrick a manly hug.
"Thanks, man." He waved at his two friends as he walked out.
Nick smiled, a tear in his eye, as he carefully carried her out to his truck.
"I guess I won't be spending Christmas alone this year," he smiled. The baby smiled back at him as he faced the car seat toward the rear window, securing it with a seatbelt. He could feel his heart racing the whole drive home. Finally, he made it safely into his driveway. Unbuckling the seat, he looked at a sleeping infant, carefully taking her, and the diaper bag they'd left, inside the house with him. Nick sat down on his couch, setting the baby seat at his feet. He couldn't help but stare at her beautiful face. Kicking his shoes off, he grabbed a throw that was on his couch from the night before, covering himself. He pulled the baby seat up near his head as he lay down. He smiled at the sleeping baby before closing his own eyes.
"Welcome home, Angel," he said, softly, so as not to wake her. Closing his eyes, he repeated, "Welcome home," and the two were out like a light.