Thanks for the reviews, Second Chapter.

My favorite part again : Disclaimer : CSI is a CBS property. I don't own Nick and definitely not Greg but I'm still working on it ( :

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"Lay me down, to Crawl" - Chapter 2

Written By

SuckerYouSuckerMe

Greg has been sitting in the locker room for what seemed for years, his head held down between his hands, his elbows resting on his knees and his bag on the floor next to the exit, before he heard light footsteps next to him. He lifted his heavy head painfully and saw Sara, standing in front of the closed door, staring at him with soft eyes.

"Weren't you supposed to leave half an hour ago ?"

"Yeah" he swallowed "but I have to do something first" he stated in a dismissive voice.

Instead of heading to her locker, Greg was surprised to see the brown haired woman walk until she was in front of him, then crouch down to his level, looking him in the eyes. "You need to go home and have some rest, G"

"I'm OK" he lied and closed his eyes fleeing her concerned looks "I will leave as soon as I have something fixed" he muttered.

"No Greg, you're not supposed to be here, If Ecklie finds out-"

"Fuck Ecklie !" he growled.

"Yeah, maybe" she admitted. "but if you want to get your job back fast, then you have to play by the rules." she cupped his face and shoot him a warm smile "I don't like Ecklie anymore than you do, but you have to admit that he was right. You totally lost it."

"It was a fuckin' bastard"

"I know, but we see many people of his kind every night at work, it's not you're job to teach him anything"

"Someone has to"

"But not us, and especially not you. I never thought you could be violent let alone hit a suspect in the crime scene with a dozen of cops around "

"He deserved it"

"Stop playing the hero here Greg, I know you better than that"

"I doubt it" he replied in bitter voice.

"You have to change this jock behavior that, by the way, doesn't suit you at all before you meet Ecklie again in a couple of days." she paused and put her hands on Greg's knees " You among all the people here, shouldn't get the work get to you. We need you around G." she laughed "Hell ! I need you around"

He forced a smile as he opened his weary eyes. "I promise I'm gonna be just fine Sara" he said in his most sincere voice with a wide grin on his face, hoping it would be enough to get her off his back.

"You better do" she smirked and rose to her feet. Greg sighed with relief as he watched her pack her things in the locker and turn to leave. As she opened the door Nick came in breathless and messy.

"Enjoy your rest, Hero" Sara smirked again at Greg then turned to Nick "See you tonight" she snapped, a little hostile, before closing the door behind her. Nick cringed but his mind was too busy to react to it.

"Thank God I found you" Nick said still a little out of breath. "We have to talk" he added his eyes traveling the room making sure they were alone.

"Good, because there's something I want to tell you too" Greg snapped in a distant, icy voice, his eyes swirling like the sky before a hurricane

Nick was caught off guard. He prayed it was not what he knew it was and before he could place a word Greg stood up and walked to him, leaning his body against the lockers with his arms firmly crossed over his chest.

"Something like you lied to me all along. Something like you played me really well" his voice was raising progressively with anger and fury "Something like you're a fuckin' bastard Mister Stokes !"

Nick's heart froze for the second time that day. Not like this. Not like this. He wanted to be the one to tell him, he didn't want his lover to find out by himself and think that he has been leading him on all along when It was only a one time goddamn mistake.

"Greg, baby please listen" he took a step forward.

"Don't you dare !" Greg shouted at him.

"I don't know what you're thinking but let me explain-"

"Let me lighten you up then" Greg muttered sarcastically then added with the same icy voice " I think you're a cheater"

" I swear I was going to tell you all about it tonight. The only reason I haven't yet is that I don't wanna loose you G"

Greg stopped breathing for a moment and felt his chest hurting intensely as if he has been stabbed deep inside. Even though he already knew what Nick was going to say, a little irrational part of him was still hoping he had it all wrong, that Nick would never do this to him and it hurt like hell to hear Nick saying out loud that he actually did.

"Greg honey, it was one huge mistake." his voice was cracking from emotion " I have been feeling like shit, sick and disgust from myself, from what I've done to you... to us. I couldn't stand look you in the eyes, touch you, kiss without feeling nauseous and guilty and every time I-"

"How long ?" Greg interrupted obviously not buying a word Nick said. "How long has it been going ?" he asked again his eyes now glued to the floor.

"It was a one time mistake, I swear it only happened once." when he saw the disbelief in his lover's eyes now piercing through him he took an other step forward "Greg baby, you have to believe me-"

"Liar" Greg yelled out remembering the conversation he had with Warrick earlier. "You're just a pathetic Liar, Nick "

"But I'm telling you the truth, it happened three nights earlier-"

"That explains one out of three" Greg stopped as bitterness filled his mind "or more... who knows after all ? Who knows you anymore ?"

Nick stood silent and confused for a minute, then the CSI in him pieced it all together. He cursed Warrick's big mouth a thousand times before finally answering.

" The first night I...I lied, I went to a gay bar because I was scared. You scared me." he watched Greg scanning his features with perplexity building into his eyes " You were the first guy I was ever with and then....then we had this relationship... then you moved in with me and all that was... too much for me to handle. Before you came into my life, I used to date more girls than I can count and no one of them ever came to my place or slept on my bed. And there you come and become everything my life turns around. I...I wanted to believe it was not all about you, that...that I could be happy without you. So...I went to that bar looking for someone, anyone to sleep with, to see what it's like to be with a guy how's not you." he closed his eyes tight and the tears were trailing down his face " I spent the night looking at perfect strangers who only wanted to get laid with me and never see me again. Then there was that ...guy... he came to me, offered me a drink then a second then his phone number and I took it then run out." his legs were too weak to hold him any longer, Nick sat his head down as he resumed relaying his story " The second time, I called him, I went to his place and... then we..."he paused as he couldn't say the word. "The minute it was over I left knowing that it was not what I wanted. It was nothing compared to what we had.... Not by miles.... Then... I couldn't stand sleep next to you, every time you touched me, my whole body shivered, I just couldn't... The third time I lied, Warrick saw me after the shift, I was sleepless and exhausted so he offered to cover for me and gave me the keys to his place so I could get some rest." Nick lifted his head to see an impassive emotionless Greg staring him down. "So that's the whole story and I know how much you must hate me right now but-"

"No, I don't think you do" Greg said in a whisper. "I thought..." he's voice cracked but he refused to cry, he had promised himself not to shed a tear over Nick anymore. "I really thought I meant something to you, I really thought you would never do anything to hurt me or to make me leave-"

"You mean the world to me, Greg" Nick confessed jumping up to his feet in front of Greg, only inches between their bodies. " I don't want you to leave-"

"I already did" Greg reminded. "And I won't be back"

"please don't say that" new tears rose to his already reddened eyes " I don't expect you to forgive me overnight... I know that what I did is inexcusable but it made me realize how much I need you in my life and-"

"What now ?" Greg shouted sharply "I should be grateful you screwed around on me ? You say it happened once. Am I supposed to believe that either ? How many other men ...or women did you fucked pretending you had to do some overtime ? I was stupid enough to blindly trust you, never check on you, never question your schedule, never-" he released a long breath he relized he was holding "God ! I work with you ! I'm a fuckin' CSI and I've never had a single doubt you were leading me on for six fuckin' months-"

"No, Greg, No. you have-" Nick pleaded.

"I'm done believing you Stokes ! I don't wanna see you ever again or hear from you." he swallowed the lump in his constricted throat "I'm already suspended and I think Ecklie will be more than happy to accept my transfer" Greg almost murmured with a weary voice.

That was something Nick did not expect. He looked to his coworker with confusion and disbelief "You can't be serious. You can't do that. You... you love you're job. You love the team. You can't leave it all behind because of me...If it comes down to that, I'll ask for my own transfer, it's the least I can do-"

"Save it ! I don't need your pity !" Greg yelled and shoved Nick off his way.

Nick wiped the tears from his face and cleared his throat before desperately asking "So..Is this a goodbye ?"

The door opened and Catherine stepped in obliviously starting to unbutton her lab coat but froze when she caught the last part of Nick's words. Her haze traveled between the two devastated men and a frown grew on her beautiful forehead. Her lips parted with an 'o' as she saw the Texan's red eyes, then she understood she was interrupting a private conversation and started to wonder if her thoughts about her two friends were real and not some fantasy in the back of her head.

"Hey boys !" she casually greeted "I'm sorry I'm interrupting" she snapped as she walked to her locker.

"No, actually there is nothing you're interrupting" Greg replied as he opened the door. "We're done here" he added then he seized his bag and left.

The silence in the locker room was so heavy with tension and emotional strain that none of them dared to break it. Catherine was still packing her files, her back to Nick. She tried to make her task last as long as she could until he says a word that never came. She knew it was none of her business but the image of her friend's eyes kept drowning in her mind and from what she knew about the Texan in the last seven years, he was not the kind to cry easily.

"You know..." she finally said, her curiosity getting the best of her. "He will be back in a few days"

"No he won't" Nick stated as if it was a common truth. "He'll never be back"

"Oh Nicky, please !" she teased "Don't get all melodramatic ! He will be just fine. We all in our careers lost it at least once." she paused remembering what happened earlier "The guy he hit was a total jerk! He killed his mistress before killing his own wife in a matter of hours. Now he's behind bars for good." he said proudly " You have to admire Greg's intuition though, the husband had a strong alibi back then and we had no links between the two murders"

She was slightly offended as Nick didn't comment what she just shared, but seconds after she heard soft cries behind her. She turned around to see a her coworker wrecked and confunded.

"Nicky ? What's wrong ?" she asked sitting next to him and resting one hand on his thigh and another on the back of his neck.

"I...I lost-" he said between two gasps for air. "I lost him for good, Cath"

"You're talking about Greg ?" she requested to engage the conversation even though she already knew the answer.

Nick nervously wiped his tears and silently blamed himself for breaking in front of Catherine among of all people. She would want to push the matter and get the story out of him. He was not ready to be known as the queer CSI let alone the queer cheating CSI. He knew that the second he would have told her, the whole lab will know about him and Greg by the end of the next shift. Even though he didn't care anymore at this point of his life, now that he lost him, but it was not fair for Greg, he could not put him on the spot. Nick suddenly stood up and run to the door. "Forget about what I just said..just never mind" he muttered then slammed the door behind him.

"I guess that's a Yes!" she murmured as she closed her locker. " I knew it !"

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Author's note :

Break up is done. Now ready for a fresh start. I hope you're enjoying reading the story as much as I'm enjoying writing it.

Reviews, suggestions, corrections are always welcome.