Chapter 7: Reality
One week later
Life had returned to normal for Calleigh and Ryan, although their friends might have said otherwise. It was clear that something special had happened between them during their three week stint as a couple. These differences couldn't have been clearer than during the CSI picnic in honor of the undercover heroes.
The day was hot and sunny and everyone was running around in shorts and t-shirts, and having a blast playing frisbee, water balloon volleyball, and just sitting around talking. Calleigh and Ryan entertained their friends with stories about their adventure; Ryan told a whopper about saving Calleigh in the shootout at the office complex. In his version there were at least 20 people with guns aimed at him and he had no where to go. Calleigh just laughed and threw a water balloon at him, which broke when it hit his face.
"You're gonna regret that," he growled playfully, chasing her with a larger water balloon.
This started a lab wide water fight with balloons flying every which way. Ryan finally nailed Calleigh with the balloon and tackled her to the ground. She giggled, but was able to squirm away due to her water soaked body.
All of a sudden they heard a voice from the CSI parking lot. "I'm King of the Lab!" Cooper yelled from atop a certified Miami-Dade fire truck. The other lab rats ran over and grabbed the fire hose and opened fire on their unsuspecting co-workers.
Ryan was carrying Calleigh piggyback style when the torrent reached them. He tried to outrun it, but pretty soon they were soaked. The spray knocked them both to the ground where they lay tangled up, gasping for breath. Calleigh laughed harder than she'd ever laughed in her life. She was soaking wet, muddy, and her hair was a mess, but she couldn't remember being happier. Ryan stomped in a puddle created by the excess water in the grass, splashing Calleigh. He tried to do it again, but slipped on the wet grass and landed on his butt in the muddy water. Calleigh laughed and pulled him to his feet.
"What do you say we get out of here?" Ryan asked, pulling her closer to him, "I've got something I want to ask you about."
She nodded and followed him to the back of the crime lab.
"I'm completely drenched," Calleigh laughed, as they stopped in a sunny spot on the cement.
"You still look pretty fantastic to me," Ryan said, pulling her over to him, "I've really missed you Cal."
"I've been right here," she teased.
"You know what I mean," he said, "It's weird going home and not seeing you there."
Her smiled faded slightly. "I know the feeling," she admitted.
"Remember what you said about waiting until we got back in the real world to make any decisions about..you know...us?" Ryan asked hopefully.
"I remember," Calleigh said softly, "And I've decided something. Undercover missions don't always change a person for worse, sometimes they change us for the better. It was real Ryan," she nearly whispered, looking into his eyes, "That kiss was real. I meant it."
Ryan's boyish grin spread across his face. He reached out and tucked a piece of damp hair behind her ear and studied her for a moment. Her eyes sparkled with warmth and a radiance he'd almost forgotten. He leaned in closer and whispered, "This one's real too." He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. She smiled into the kiss, returning it with equal fervor, wrapping her arms around his neck. Fireworks exploded behind their eyes.
Finally breaking the kiss Ryan grinned at her for a minute. "What do you say we give real life a try? You and me, together." he asked.
"I accept," she said coyly before capturing his lips in another kiss.
Walking hand in hand toward his car later Calleigh though of something. "You know Ryan, there's one thing I still don't understand...why did Horatio send us in undercover if he knew there were other agents working on it?"
"Who knows, Calleigh, who knows."
CARWASHCARWASHCARWASHCARWASH
From a short distance away, two people had watched the exchange with a multitude of facial expressions.
"So does that mean they're official H? They're dating for real?" Eric asked, still bewildered by what he had just witnessed.
Horatio smiled. "That's exactly what that means Eric. That also means that you owe me."
Eric shook his head. "It was a sure thing! There was no way Calleigh was going to fall for Ryan after a measly three weeks together on an undercover mission. She's made of stronger stuff than that."
"It was your idea for me to set this up in the first place, so I don't want to hear about it," Horatio laughed.
Eric dug out his wallet and counted out a hundred dollars, handing the money to Horatio. "Here you go H; my debt is paid."
Horatio took the money, but stopped his friend. "As I recall, there was one more element to the bet. A personal favor."
"Right," Eric remembered.
"The spider from the drug ring needs to be taken care of until the trial. We still need to extract some of its secretions to do drug analysis on, and we need him alive to do that. He's yours until the trial."
"No way, H. No way am I taking care of that monster!" Eric protested.
"You are and you're going to enjoy it," Horatio laughed. You can pick him up tomorrow at noon. Oh, and by the way, Oscar likes licorice.
Eric shook his head as Horatio walked away with a smug smile on his face.
"Never bet against Calleigh Duquesne, Eric."
The End
A/N: Now that you've enjoyed my story, please press the little purple button below...You never know what you might get! ;)
