Chapter Seven
Greg had finally made up his mind about what he wanted to do. He knew it would be disappointing to all those who knew him, but he decided he just wasn't cut out for the field work stuff. Of course he had enjoyed it for a while, but he decided what he'd really needed was not to be a CSI, but just to get out of the lab and see what he was missing out on. Now he realized that he was not missing out on anything he really felt the need to be a part of. He'd weighed the pros and cons of each job and had ultimately decided being a lab tech had more benefits. Now all he had to do was tell Grissom that he wanted to go back to the lab.
He asked Sara to drive him to the lab under the guise of 'just visiting everyone.' Of course he had the feeling she knew it was not the only reason for his visit, but she went along with it anyway. When they arrived, he split with Sara as she headed for the locker room. He nervously headed for Grissom's office to let him know what he had decided. Fortunately, Grissom was at work early, as usual and Greg knocked on his door.
"Greg, come in," Grissom looked surprised.
"Hi," Greg sat in the chair across from Grissom.
"We've narrowed the evidence and we're closing in on figure out just who it was that shot you. All the suspects have been arrested, it's really just a technicality," Grissom explained.
"That's kind of what I wanted to talk about," Greg started, "about getting shot."
"I've been meaning to ask, how are you?" Grissom asked.
"Okay," Greg replied, "but that's not what I wanted to talk about. I've had a lot of time to think while I was in the hospital. The more I thought about it, the less I want to be a CSI. I know that being shot is not something that happens all the time, I've already heard just about every argument in the book from Sara. I just realized that I really enjoyed working as the DNA lab tech. Sure, there was less respect and I was always listening to my music and being a little weird, but I was really good at what I did. I can't really say the same about field work. I'm awkward, and it seems like I'm just not getting the hang of it. Plus, there's always that added danger factor."
Grissom seemed stunned by Greg's words as he took several minutes to respond, "Greg, I understand that this has been a traumatic experience for you. It's understandable that you would want to quit, but I don't think I can let you. You've come so far, and despite your assessment of yourself, you're doing a good job. Everyone struggles at first, you can't just expect it to come to you easily."
"What exactly do you mean by 'you can't let me quit'?" Greg asked.
"I mean, I am not willing to let you just give up," Grissom explained, "you had a very scary experience and you are having doubts about your ability to do your job as a side effect. We already have a replacement for you, so it's not even like your old job is available."
"You won't let me stop being a CSI?" Greg was incredulous, "well I don't really think it's up to you."
"You just need to calm down and think about it," Grissom countered.
"I've done all the thinking I care to," Greg crossed his arms, "I made my decision. If you don't support it, maybe I should just quit."
"You wouldn't give your job here entirely would you?" it was Grissom's turn to be incredulous.
"If I have to," Greg said, "you can't make me be a CSI."
"And I don't want to force you to, I just think you're making your decision based on all the wrong reasons," Grissom told him, "I think you need to cool off and come back to me another time."
"I don't want to cool off and come back. I made my decision. I can't believe you're arguing with me," Greg stood angrily, "I guess you can consider this my notice of resignation."
"Are you sure you want this?' Grissom asked.
"Yes," Greg spun around, "as a matter of fact, I am."
"Then for it to be official, I'm going to need a letter of resignation," Grissom said.
"You'll have it on your desk before you get to work tomorrow," Greg told him and then disappeared from sight.
Grissom shook his head in disbelief. He hadn't meant to make Greg so mad. He'd only wanted him to re-think what he thought he was so sure about. The last thing he'd expected was for Greg to refuse and quit his job entirely.
"What the Hell did you do?" Sara stormed into Grissom's office, not even bothering to knock.
"Excuse me," Grissom was caught completely off guard.
"Greg just informed me that he is quitting," Sara said, "and I'm guessing it was because of you. He was fine when I talked to him earlier."
"Wait a minute, you don't even know what happened," Grissom told her, "he came here and told me he wanted to go back to being a lab tech. I asked him to re-think it and he got really mad and said if I didn't let him be a tech, he'd quit."
"Really?" Sara asked, her anger toward Grissom fading.
"Yes," Grissom nodded, "I told him he was really good at being a CSI and that I didn't want to let him stop because he was afraid."
"Oh," Sara sighed, "sorry for yelling at you."
"It's all right," Grissom assured her, "so he's really going through with it?"
"I think he's serious," Sara sat slowly across from her supervisor.
"Well, I asked him for a letter of resignation. I'm hoping he will calm down and realize he doesn't want to quit," Grissom explained.
"I hope so too," Sara told him, "I tried talking him out of it a lot of times."
"He mentioned that," Grissom nodded, "well maybe when you get off shift you can go talk to him. You've spent a lot of time with him recently."
"True," Sara agreed, "I'll have to talk to him later. Right now, I'll just give him a ride home and not say anything about it. So I might be a little late."
"That's fine," Grissom said.
Sara drove Greg home and as predicted, he was silent the whole time. She had decided not to press the issue, unless he wanted to talk.
"Thanks," Greg got out of her Denali at his apartment building, "and I know you want to ask me."
"Ask you what?" Sara decided to play ignorant.
"Am I really quitting? And the answer is yes. As long as Grissom won't let me be a lab tech again," Greg told her.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Sara replied.
"I'm not," Greg said, "I think it would be nice to find a new job in a new city."
"And miss out on the Vegas club life? I thought you loved that Greg," Sara argued.
"I'd live," Greg replied, "there's always something to do. It doesn't matter what town I live in, I can find a new set of clubs to go to."
"Well, I have to get back to the lab," Sara glanced at the time, "are we still on for lunch tomorrow?"
"I guess so," Greg nodded.
"Okay, I'll call you when I'm ready," Sara told him.
"See you tomorrow, then," Greg turned and Sara stayed long enough to watch him go inside his apartment building. She headed back to work and hoped Grissom was right. She knew he couldn't really want to be a tech again. He had been so eager to get in the field. She understood that he was probably nervous about returning to work, but she had been too when they were in the explosion.
A/N: Glad to hear that you guys are still enjoying the story. I think I'm finally back in the swing of writing it! Thanks to all of you who are reading it.
