A/N: this chapter contains a real chapter plus Greg's note to Sara that he put on her bedside table. Enjoy, and please, review
and tell me what you think of it! Oh yes, there is a sprinkling of NickxGreg in here, only because it adds to the drama and Nick
is obviously not straight. For some random funniness, there is some songfic-y goodness in here. Anyone like the Police?
Bloody Roses
The note
Oh My God…. I'm so stupid… All this time she really did care and she tried to tell me, but I wouldn't listen! What is wrong with
me…
I closed Sara's Diary and looked at Cath, tears streaming down our faces. "Cath… I'm so sorry. If I would have just listened to
her, believed her…" She smiled sadly and grasped my hand. "It's ok Greg." Just then Nick must have broken free of his
restraints because he burst through the door and pinned me up against the wall again. But, this time, His eyes were
swimming with tear and full of pity, sadness, and sorrow. "You didn't tell me all your family was dead, Greg." Oh my god what
is he doing… why is he so close to me…
Don't Stand, Don't stand so,
Don't stand so close to me
Don't stand, don't stand so,
Don't stand so close to me
"Greg, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. It just happened.
His lips crushed mine with so much force and passion that I couldn't push him off of me, It stung, he sucked on my bloody lip
as I stood there, helpless, wishing that this guy would stop kissing me and get the fuck off.
Warrick and Grissom pulled him away from me, and I saw their worried, scared, and ultimately grossed out faces. I felt the bile
rush to my throat as I ran into the bathroom, making it only to the door. I was violently sick, then I slumped down to the floor.
Catherine rushed to my side, and I saw Nick sitting in a chair, cheeks as red as a tomato, being stared at in horror by his
coworkers.
"Greg! Are you ok?" She felt my forehead. Her hand felt so good against my flushed skin, which was probably a result of the
embarrassment and revulsion I was feeling so strongly. "I'm fine… I'm just sick to my stomach." My voice shook and I sobbed
against Catherine's chest, not caring that everyone could see and that I was probably staining her shirt with sweat tears, and
sick.
She stroked my hair with one hand to calm me down and motioned for Warrick to come over with the other. I heard him come
up to us.
"Hey, buddy, you ok? You need me to get you something?" his voice was deep and smooth, and comforting. I removed my
head from Catherine and nodded. "A nurse." My voice came out quiet and scared, like a little kid that just go off a scary roller-
coaster for the first time. He nodded and flashed Catherine a concerned look, then took off, jogging
down to a room with the words "Nurse station" on the door.
A few minutes later Warrick returned with a nurse who looked like she was in her mid thirties, and who also looked very
worried. They helped me stand and walked me to a empty room. I sat down on the bed and closed my eyes.
I heard a person come in, it was a female sound, the sound of high heels.
"So, what happened to this young man?" the doctor had a certain quality to her voice that made it sound like everything was
going to be ok. Warrick answered her. "Well, he was just pinned up against a wall and roughly kissed against his will." I
opened my eyes. The doctor looked at me with a confused expression. "Oh and it just happened to be one of his Male co-
workers." The doctor's confusion changed to shock. "And he just…got sick?" Catherine and Warrick nodded.
The doctor turned to me. "How are you feeling?" I looked at her and stated the obvious. "Sick." I sighed. "I feel like I just
ate a whole cow that was raised on human poison." She clucked her tongue and whipped out a thermometer. She stuck it in
my ear with no warning. I jumped at the chill caused by the metal end and waited. The ear-mometer beeped and she removed
it. She showed it to my friends and I heard them both gasp. I grabbed the thermometer, and by looking at the number, I
caused myself enough shock to make me, not only drop it, but get sick again in the trash can next to the bed. I swayed, dizzy,
and wondered what the hell was going on.
"What's wrong with me?" I looked from the doctor, to Warrick, to Cath, and back to the doctor. She pulled out a chart labeled
"Symptoms of Shock." I waited a while and watched her as she typed something into the computer at the end of the room.
The computer printed out a paper and she looked surprised. "Well Mr. Sanders, this machine suggests that we test you for
the flu. If it comes back negative, well, you'll be diagnosed with shock following a nerve-wracking event. I think you might
have homophobia."
"What?" Me? But…that's so silly… "Homophobia is the fear of gays."
Oh my god.
"I know what it means! But one of my friends in San Francisco is gay, and you don't see me puking ever time he hugs me."
Warrick tried not to laugh. The doctor smiled. "Ok then, I'll look at the complete list of irrational fears for you." I laughed. "So,
there's no real explanation for why I'm sick? This is unbelievable.
"Well, if your flu test comes back negative, then no, there is no physical explanation for your being sick. I'll give you a
prescription for your upset stomach and we'll have your blood test results back next week." Wait blood test? That means
she…
"Ow! Sonofabitch!" she had stuck a needle in my arm and was taking my blood. I watched as she filled the vial. It hurt…bad.
"Ow…Ow…Ow…Ow…How much blood do you possibly need? Ow…Ow…" My friends laughed quietly at my childish mumbling.
"There. All better." She put a Band-Aid on the small hole she had gouged into my flesh and kissed it. I blushed slightly and
began to feel dizzy again. Cath saw me swaying a little and handed me the trashcan. I got sick again and wondered if I had
any blood left.
The doctor handed Cath the prescription note and gave me a cup of water and showed me the sink. "You might want to
rinse." I nodded and gratefully swished the bad taste out of my mouth.
"Hey, Greg, that wasn't so bad." Warrick smiled at me. "Yeah," I answered tiredly. "All I did was puke my guts out again and
again and give all my blood to the hospital's diagnostic lab. I mean, god, she took enough to make blood soup with it!"
I groaned as I felt my stomach contract. I ran to the nearest trashcan and emptied my stomach of everything possible again.
"Hey Cath, What did you get for lunch on Saturday?" She looked at me funny, but spoke. "Sesame Chicken, Why?" I looked up
at her. "I had some ginger garlic sweet and sour chicken stuff. I didn't eat it all and I finished it in the hospital room when I
got hungry before I left. I might have poisoned myself." She looked at me, amused. "You think that this is food poisoning? I
nodded. "It makes sense. It was about, oh I don't know, sic hours ago when I ate it. My stomach was empty for a while
before I ate it, so it took longer to digest because my stomach wasn't doing anything for a while."
She nodded. "Well, that was some spicy chicken you had. I could taste the heat from across the room." I started to smile, but
I remembered why I came to the hospital in the first place.
I pulled my note out of Cath's back pocket, and read it to them.
Dear Sara, I'm so sorry. I have to leave. I need to pack. I'll come back and say goodbye and then I'll be off to visit my family. I miss them and want to be with them again. Tell Grissom I quit my job. I don't deserve it and where I'm headed I don't need to work. I'll tell my folks you said hi, but I won't be contacting you or anyone else when I leave. Hell, no one cares about me here. Everyone that cares froze up so it's my fault you're hurt.
Say goodbye to everyone for me. I'll see you again eventually.
Greg
I crumpled the letter up. How could I be so stupid, so blind to everything around me? I walked the long walk to Sara's room. I
opened the door. She was asleep, but I didn't care. I went to her bedside and placed my lips over hers.
It was soft at first, and then Sara woke up. She kissed me back with a longing that I didn't know was there. She moaned into
my mouth as I licked her lip, begging more for forgiveness than for entrance. She gave me both, and our tongues hotly
connected as the kissed progressed. I pulled back; I wanted to see her. I opened my eyes. She looked hurt, but when she
saw the love in my eyes she smiled. "So you decided to wait a little while longer." What? Wait? What is she talking about?
Oh shit.
I never told her that my parents were dead! She thinks I was speaking literally! God, the one person on this earth that
doesn't know, and it has to be Sara!
"Um… Sara, there's something you need to know." She looked at me with worried eyes and swollen lips. "Sara, my entire
family is dead." I wished it wasn't true as her eyes widened in horror and her jaw dropped. A tear slipped out as she started
to think. I could see her finally piece everything together. I reached out and hugged her as she sobbed onto my shoulder.
"How…dare…you! If you ever hurt yourself in any way I'd…I'd… I'd die!" I rubbed soothing circles on her back as Cath and
Warrick came into the room. I decided to kill two birds with one stone. "Sara, I promise, I'll never hurt myself like that. I realize
now that a lot of people care about me that haven't already taken a train ride to San Francisco." She let go of me and smiled
tearfully. I looked over and saw Grissom coming our way, with Nick in toe, and I laughed to see Nick with his hands duct-taped
behind his back and toothpicks taped to his face, poking him as a punishment.
"Hey, Grissom, I see you found my stuff." He smiled. "Nick, don't you have something to say to Greg?" Sara looked at me in
confusion. I mouthed, "I'll tell you later" and she nodded. Nick took a big breath. "Greg, I'm sorry I kissed you back their. I
always liked you and you just made me so sad, and you look so cute when you're mad, and, I couldn't help myself. Sara
looked at me and I nodded. Sara looked at me and then at Nick. "So… Nick? I didn't know you were gay." He smiled and
blushed.
"Well no one knew 'cept for my mom. I found out when I was sixteen at a party. I got drunk and when I woke up, I went over
to my friend and told him that I thought I was gay, because the night before I had kinda made out with another dude."
Everyone laughed, and he continued. "Their was way too much alcohol at that party. Now can you take these damn toothpicks
off my cheek?""
Nick said goodbye after Grissom had released him and so did Warrick and Catherine. I looked at Sara and she smiled. "I
suppose this means you finally get that I'm in love with you." I smiled. Life was going to be much better. My stomach lurched.
Well as soon as this food poisoning or whatever goes away.