Well aint I fast? Nah, my beta sent it back to me tonight, and since I'll be busy all weekend I decided to just post it! It's the last chapter.
SPOILERS for Stalker in this part.
As the months went by, Nick and Greg spent a lot of time together. They went on a couple of more dates, but mostly they stayed at each others places, lounging on the couch, watching movies or playing games. They had kissed a few times, but they were still taking it slow.
Greg was in his lab, thinking about Nick and their relationship. He had done something really stupid that day and he was cursing himself for it. 'Damn, how did this happen? How could I be so stupid? We had a really good thing going here, and now Nick's pissed with me. Why did I have to do it?' He could still hear the Texan's voice in his head telling him to stop invading his privacy.
The DNA-tech knew that his feelings for the older man had changed, especially over the last couple of weeks. Now he couldn't wait to see Nick again, and he wanted to take things further. He wanted to do more than just snuggle on the couch and kiss him good bye. He knew in his heart that he was falling in love with the other man. And now; said man was angry with him. 'Damn this is really fucked up!'
Hours later, Greg still hadn't seen Nick since their last encounter. He really wanted to apologise, but that was difficult when the CSI was in the field all the time. What's worse was the rumour that had started in the hall of the lab some thirty minutes earlier; that Nick had been thrown out of a window and that he was badly injured, maybe even dead. He had tried to call the Texan ten times since he first heard the rumour, but all the calls had gone straight to voice-mail. So now he was tired from working a long shift, sad because his (hopefully) boyfriend was mad at him, and dead scared that something bad had happened to him.
One hour later, Greg still hadn't heard anything from Nick or anybody else. Just as he picked up his phone to call the Texan again, Warrick and Sara came walking past his lab. Warrick was the only one of the CSI's who knew about their emerging relationship, and he excused himself to Sara as he saw the desperate look in the Californian's face. When he entered the lab, Greg pounced on him.
"What's happened? Is Nick okay? I heard he's hurt bad, that he's dead. Tell me he isn't dead, tell me, come on Warrick, TELL ME!!"
"Damn Greg, calm down. Nick's okay; he's not dead. He got thrown out of a first floor window. He's got a concussion, two broken ribs, a sprained wrist and five stitches to his head. He'll be fine. I just dropped him off at home. He just needs some rest, and someone to help him. Will you do it?"
Greg sat down on his chair, relief evident in his features. He nodded to Warrick and the other man left the lab. 'He's okay! He'll be fine. Oh man, he's alive!' Greg intended to drive straight to Nick's place when his shift was over, looking at his watch he could see that it was only one more hour left, then he could go there and see for himself that the Texan was indeed okay. It's not that he didn't trust Warrick, but he needed to see it with his own eyes.
Ten minutes later a big commotion in the hall made him look up, and he saw Grissom, Catherine, Warrick and Sara walk out of the A/V-lab towards the entrance. He walked up to Archie and suddenly got worried from the looks his fellow lab-tech gave him.
"What's wrong Arch? What's happened?"
Archie knew of course about Nick and Greg, as did all of the techs. Now he didn't know what to say. He didn't want to worry his friend even more, but he didn't have a choice. He knew that Greg could tell when he lied, so he had to tell the truth.
"We looked at the last tape. It looks like Crane is hiding in Nick's attic."
"WHAT? For how long?"
"I don't know Greg, I haven't watched them all. We just started at the beginning, and then we looked at the last one. And he was talking about Nick being his friend, and being willing to give his life for him, and all that crap. He had a copy of the crime stopper newsletter."
Greg sagged down the wall beside Archie. "So why did they all run out of here?"
Archie frowned and looked apologetically at his friend. "They think he might still be there. That he might do something against Nick."
The DNA-tech closed his eyes to avoid a blackout. He could feel his head spinning, and his stomach squirming. He knew there was no chance for him to do any more work now, not with Nick in mortal peril because of him and that stupid newsletter. He could feel tears sliding down his face, but did nothing to prevent them from falling.
The word went in the lab, and soon after Greg was surrounded by Hodges, Jacqui and Bobby. Archie had the police-scanner on and they were all listening intently to hear any news about Nick. When they finally heard that Nick was okay, Greg cried even worse, but these were happy tears. He smiled a huge grin to his best friends, who were all sighing in relief and hugging each other.
"Thanks for being here for me. I couldn't have done this without you."
"No problem Greg. That's what friends are for! Now go to the bathroom and brush yourself up a bit. I'm guessing Nick will be here any minute." Jacqui gave him one last hug, and Greg was on his way.
-----
Greg was standing in the hall outside the interrogation room, waiting for Nick to come out of the adjoined room. Inside he could see Nigel Crane, obviously muttering something to himself. The Californian couldn't make out the words, not that any of that mattered anyway. He tried not to think about the fact that that man had been hiding out in Nick's attic. 'How long has he been there? Has he seen us getting closer? Has he watched us snuggling on the couch?' Greg was so lost in thoughts that he jumped when the door opened, and Catherine came out, quickly followed by Grissom, Sara and Warrick. The tech tried to make himself invisible, he didn't want to be asked why he was there.
As Warrick closed the door behind himself, the two men's eyes locked. A silent conversation started and ended quickly. "He needs you Greg." "I know, I'll take care of him." "Good. Now go inside and help him." "Thanks Warrick."
Greg opened the door slowly and looked at Nick standing in front of the see-through mirror. In the other room Nigel Crane was escorted out by two police officers. The tech closed the door silently, careful not to startle the Texan.
"Nick?" Greg's voice was barely a whisper. He knew he was heard when the older man started to turn around. As more of his wounds were shown the tech drew in a huge breath. He could see the tough face on the CSI start to crumble as his eyes became misty and his lower lip started trembling. In two strides Greg had his arms around the other man, mindful of his injuries.
When Nick saw Greg standing there with so much care in his eyes, all the day's events came crashing down on him. He found it a little weird that he had no problems with breaking down in front of the man he loved, while he had toughened up when his friends had surrounded him. When he felt the tech's arms around him, his knees could no longer hold him up. Together they slid down to the floor, and Nick sobbed into the younger mans chest.
"I was so scared G. When he had that gun at me; I was sure I would die. And all I could think about was you. How much I love you, and that I wanted to see you again."
The Texan's voice disappeared as his crying got worse. Greg held him close, one hand caressing the strong back and the other stroking his hair.
"I was scared too. I heard you'd been thrown out of a window, and no one would tell me if you were alive or not. When Warrick said you were okay; I've never been so relieved before in my entire life. And then when Archie told me that Crane might be at your house; I broke down Nicky. I just sat there on the floor, crying my eyes out, thinking how you don't know. That I never told you. And it's all my fault, that stupid newsletter, I'm so sorry Nick, I never meant for this to happen, I was just so proud of you, and I wanted to show everyone how great my boyfriend is. And now you probably hate me, and I can't stand that…"
During Greg's rambling the Texan's sobbing had lessened, the voice of the tech had a soothing effect on him. As the Californian ran out of words, his tone got lower until it died completely. Nick was quiet now, and more relaxed than he had been for the last hours. He sat up a little and locked eyes with the younger man.
"What don't I know Greg? What haven't you told me?"
Tears were silently running down the tech's cheeks. His eyes softened as he looked into the other man's dark brown eyes.
"That I love you."
At once Nick's eyes too got misty, but a huge smile turned the tears into happy tears. Slowly the small distance between them was gone, as they met in a sweet kiss filled with love. The passion and desire had to wait, but they knew they had all the time in the world. As their breath began to go out, they broke apart, but still kept their foreheads together.
"I love you too G. I don't hate you, don't ever think that again. That's something that's impossible for me. And none of this is your fault babe. Crane's a crazy man, and this would have happened no matter what. That newsletter didn't have anything to do with it. Please believe me."
Greg could only nod; he didn't know what to say anymore. Instead he once again found Nick's lips, this kiss deeper than the first one. They didn't break it until the lack of oxygen almost made them black out, both panting and grinning madly at each other. At last Greg stood up, and then helped Nick get up. He gave the Texan a small kiss, before he started walking him out.
"Come cowboy. You're coming with me. Let's go home."
-----
Nick was confused. One month had gone since the incident as he had started calling it, avoiding the term 'attempted murder'. His injuries were more or less healed, and his relationship with Greg was better than ever. But still Nick was confused.
The Texan had decided to sell his house. He couldn't live there any more; there were too many bad memories there now. Sure a lot of good had happened there, but he just wasn't comfortable inside. He had only been there once in the past month to pick up some clothes. So he was still living with Greg.
One week ago Nick had started talking about finding a new place as soon as the house was sold. The market was good now, so the real estate woman he had talked to said he would get a pretty dime from the sell. And this was why he was confused. Every time he had talked about buying a new place, or go to see an apartment or a house; Greg would go quiet. The tech just stopped talking, and would nod and shrug his answers.
Just as he had done only fifteen minutes before. The couple had watched a movie snuggled together on the couch, looking forward to a rare night off together, when Nick had asked the lab-tech to come with him to a viewing the next day. Greg had immediately tensed, keeping his eyes locked on the tv without seeing anything. He had given the CSI a small shrug before jawing and stretching and declared that he was tired and going to bed.
So Nick was confused. How was it possible to go from such a great time to such an awkward time in just mere minutes? Seconds actually. The Texan turned the tv off and followed his boyfriend into the bedroom, intent on finding out what this was all about.
Greg was lying on his stomach obviously still awake. Nick walked over to him and crouched down on the floor, keeping their heads at eye-level. He extracted one hand and stroked a wayward hair out of his love's eyes. When those eyes opened the CSI could see that they were glassy.
"Hey baby. What's wrong?"
Greg quickly closed his eyes, muttering "Nothing" under his breath.
"Look at me G. I know something is wrong. You've been acting kinda strange lately. Not your normal self."
A quiet sob escaped the tech's lips and he buried his face further into the pillow. Now Nick started to get really worried. He shed his clothes, not bothering about where they landed and jumped into the bed, wrapping his arms around the lithe man, stroking his hair and back in a soothing way.
"Please baby. Talk to me. I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on in that beautiful head of yours."
Greg took a deep breath, desperately trying to stop the tears from escaping his eyes. He gripped the Texan's shirt tight, scared to let go.
"I can't… I don't know what to say Nicky. I'm so lost right now. All I know is that every time you start talking about leaving I get really sad and I'm sure it's me you're leaving. And I don't want you to go. I don't want to live without you. This past month has been so great, I love that you're here. Knowing that I'll see you when I get home makes work a lot more bearable, makes me happy. I don't want to go back to the place I was before, living alone, eating alone, never knowing when I'd see you again."
As the words came tumbling out of Greg's mouth, Nick could feel his own eyes get teary. He knew the thoughts the tech had, because they were also on his mind.
"My God G. I didn't know you felt like that; like me. I just thought that you would get bored with me around all the time, and that it was too soon to start thinking about living together permanently. This month, despite the injuries and pain, has been the best month of my entire life. Being here with you, making meals together, watching tv together, and you holding me at night, it's heaven Greg. I love you so much, if you want me to stay, I'd be more than happy to do it."
Greg looked up at the Texan, the smile on his face lighting up the entire room. He put his arms around the older man's neck and drew himself up until their faces were mere inches apart. The kiss they shared, felt like the first kiss to both men. A kiss filled with happiness and love. As the minutes passed the kiss changed; it became more passionate and longing. Their hands started roaming over the others body, stroking and feeling, searching for the secret places only a lover would know of.
The need for oxygen drew them apart, but their hands kept on pacing, and their foreheads were still touching. Greg looked deep into the dark brown eyes in front of him. With a small kiss he lay down on the bed, pulling his soon-to-be lover on top of him.
"Make love to me Nicky."
Nick was thrilled by this declaration of trust and love. His eyes got teary again as the strongest emotion he'd ever felt streamed through his body. "I love you so much G. I never knew love until I met you. I'd love to make love to you."
Their lips met in a searing kiss again, and their bodies melted together as one.
-----
It had been six months since he was here last, but now Nick found himself seated at the exact same table at Retro as last time. Greg's band was having another concert and the club was packed with people. The feelings the Texan had this time were very different from last though. Now he actually knew what to expect, well sort of anyway, since Greg had said he had a surprise for the CSI. It was still ten minutes until the show began, and Nick took the time to think over what had happened in the half year that had gone by.
If he looked away from the whole Nigel Crane-thing, the last six months had been pure bliss. Living with Greg was everything he had ever wanted and hardly dared hoping for. Nick loved to come home to the lab-tech, especially after a hard case. When the Californian wrapped his strong arms around him, all worries and burdens just flew away. Going to sleep and waking up all interlaced with the younger man was the Texan's favorite time of the day. He just loved to watch the tech sleep, looking so peaceful and beautiful.
For the past weeks the couple had started talking about coming out to those few in the lab that didn't know about them. They had decided to start with telling their families that they were together. So two weeks ago, Greg's parents had visited them in Vegas. Nick had been very nervous, but his in-laws had been great. They were so accepting of him, had welcomed him to the family and immediately invited the pair to celebrate thanksgiving in San Francisco.
Then last weekend, when both Nick and Greg had two nights off in a row, they flew to Texas, where the whole Stokes-clan was waiting to meet the guy who had snatched their son/ little brother. Nick knew the younger man had dreaded the meeting, especially since there were so many siblings, brother-in-laws, sister-in-law, nieces and nephews to remember the names of. Greg had nothing to worry about though. With the patented Sanders-charm turned on he soon had the whole bunch under his spell. Nick had even heard his only single sister, Jess; complain about all good looking men being gay. The couple had left with a promise to try to return for Christmas.
So now, everybody knew about them, except for Sara, Catherine and Grissom. The threesome was sitting beside him at the table, looking forward to the concert, talking with Warrick and the lab-techs. When the speaker finally entered the stage, the crowd went silent.
"Helloooooo! I hope you're all doing fine tonight!" The crowd cheered loudly, whistling and clapping. "That's good! I know what you're all here for, so why don't we just get this show started?" The noise grew louder. "So clap your hands and give a big cheer foooor… THE RATS!!!!"
The crowd went wild as Greg, Hodges, Neal and Martin jumped out on the stage. The band waved to their fans and friends as they got their instruments ready. They started with some old songs before moving to the new ones. The minutes went by so fast; Nick couldn't believe it when Greg announced the last song.
"Now to the last song of the night." The aaaww from the crowd made his smile even wider. "I know and I'm really sorry! But we all got other places to be and things to do. So, this one will probably surprise you a bit, since it's not our usual style. We're covering a song, something we've never done before. But this is one of my boyfriend's favorite songs, so Nicky, this is for you. Since none of us play the piano, we had to ask a friend. Warrick; come on up!"
Nick couldn't believe what had just happened. He couldn't stop the grin on his face, which only grew larger by the shocked looks on Sara, Grissom and Catherine's faces. His smile turned into amazement when he heard the last statement from his boyfriend. Warrick gave his friend a smirk before moving to the stage and placed himself behind a piano Nick hadn't noticed until now. His mind was close to overload and he had to pull himself back together as Martin started playing, quickly followed by Warrick. The Texan immediately recognized the song, his eyes widening in surprise. He had no chance, nor did he wish to close his eyes when Greg looked at him.
Every time our eyes meet
This feeling inside me
Is almost more than I can take
Baby when you touch me
I can feel how much you love me
And it just blows me away
I've never been this close to anyone or anything
I can hear your thoughts; I can see your dreams
I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better
I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you
The smell of your skin
The taste of your kiss
The way you whisper in the dark
Your hair all around me
Baby you surround me
You touch every place in my heart
Oh, it feels like the first time, every time
I wanna spend the whole night in your hands
I don't know how you do what you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better
I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you
Every little thing that you do
I'm so in love with you
It just keeps getting better
I wanna spend the rest of my life
With you by my side
Forever and ever
Every little thing that you do, oh
Every little thing that you do
Baby I'm amazed by you
As the song ended Nick could feel tears in his eyes. He never thought his feelings for Greg could get any stronger, but every day the tech did something to prove him wrong. The club was dead silent for three seconds before the crowd started cheering. Nick smiled and joined the others clapping and whistling for the band. Before their eyes parted, the Texan mouthed "I love you" to his lover and got a huge grin back. He was so proud of his wonderful boyfriend, and looked forward to getting him home, so he could reward him for the best surprise he'd ever gotten in his life.
The End
A/N: Well there you have it! I hope you liked it! The song is I'm Amazed By You by Tim McGraw. Please review, I love hearing what you think!
And Merry Christmas everybody (just in case I don't get to tell you later!)