Disclaimer: I do not own anything of CSI. If I did, then things would be a whole lot different.

A/N: Thanks again to my wonderful beat, happyharper13. And to Marifw, who has generously offered to help me with my Norwegian. In this chapter, Nick will learn a little about Greg's past and the meaning of Papa Olaf's nickname for Greg.

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Chapter Nine, Out and About Town.

"Wake up! It's morning. Time to get out of bed, you lazy child. You sleep too much anyway!"

That was the sound that awoke Nick at eight-fifteen in the morning. He was laying on his back with Greg on top of him.

"Wake up!" the clock repeated, "It's morning. Time to get out of bed, you lazy child. You sleep too much anyway!"

"Turn it off," Greg mumbled in his sleep, "I wanna sleep.

Nick scrunched his face as his hand fumbled around for the source of the annoying sound. After a couple of seconds, he was able to locate the alarm clock on the night stand.

"Wake up! It's morning. Time to…" Nick managed to hit the off-button.

"Better," Greg said.

Blinking his eyes several times so that they adjusted to the sunlight, Nick slowly started to get up. He rolled over on his side and Greg was still clutching onto him. Nick loved this. Waking up with the tech wrapped around him was the best part of the morning.

"Come on, Sunshine. Time to wake up."

"Mmm," came Greg's answer.

"G," Nick said slowly.

"Wanna sleep." Greg buried his face into Nick's naked torso. "Sleep good."

A knock at the door prevented Nick from replying.

"Time to wake-up, boys," Irene called out. "Breakfast is almost ready. Your Nana is making your favorite, Greg."

Greg's eyes snapped open at his mother's comment, and Nick was surprised as the younger man practically jumped out of bed.

"Be there in a moment Mom"

"Okay boys." They heard her walk away.

Nick smiled at the sight before him. Greg was jumping up and down with the energy of a small child and still naked.

"Come on Nicky. Breakfast is ready."

"A moment ago, all you wanted to do was sleep." Nick pulled back the covers and sat on the edge of the mattress.

"That was before I knew what we were having. Come on," Greg was halfway across the room before he stopped. "You were going to let me do that, weren't you?" he asked as he turned to face the Texan.

"Like I haven't seen you eat a bowl of Fruit Loops naked before."

"But we're not having Fruit Loops, Nicky. We're having pancakes and sausage!"

The sheer energy and joy in Greg's voice made the older man smile. Getting up from the bed, the naked CSI went over to the naked lab tech and wrapped his arms around the slim waist. Nick brought his boyfriend into a kiss. Greg smiled as his lips made contact with Nick's. After they allowed their tongues to visit with one another and explore each other's mouths, they broke apart.

"How about we get dressed first? While I'm sure your family wouldn't be phased by seeing you naked, I on the other hand, would prefer it if your grandmother did not see me nude.

"Why?"

"She keeps looking at me like she's a cougar. I'm a little worried that she might jump me when nobody is looking. When I first got here, she said I had a nice tight butt."

"She did?"

"Yeah."

Greg laughed. "Well you do," he said, and he let his hands slip down and gave the Texan's firm checks a gentle squeeze. "That's my Nana. From whom do you think I get my sex drive? Don't tell me you actually thought it was all Papa Olaf's fault she got pregnant with my Uncle Fredrick? He was the one who wanted to wait till they got married. According to him, Nana was, and still is a…"

"Don't," Nick interjected, "I prefer to think of your Nana and Papa like I think of my grandparents. Separate beds and separate bedrooms."

"Really?" Greg asked as Nick let go of him.

Yeah. But just my mom's parents," Nick said as he went over to his suitcase and pulled out his pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, "Grandpa Levi liked a firm mattress, and Grandma Marguerite liked hers soft."

"Weird," Greg responded as he too went over to his dresser and got himself a pair of tartan pajama bottoms. He walked over to his dressed boyfriend and reached for the A&M shirt that had been brought up by Irene.

"Ready?" Greg asked when he was finished dressing. Nick nodded and opened the door. Greg led Nick down the hall and stairs and back to the kitchen. The smell of cooking sausage met their noses.

When they entered the kitchen, Olaf and Michael were seated at the table. Both were reading the newspaper and greeted the boys. Greta was flipping pancakes on the griddle, and Irene was piling link sausages onto a plate. Irene and Michael were already dressed while Olaf and Greta were still in their robes. The table was already set and had a pot of coffee and a pitcher of orange juice sitting there, along with bottle of Log Cabin Maple Syrup.

"Take a seat, boys," Irene instructed as she placed the platter of sausage down. She was followed by her mother with the large pile of pancakes. Once everyone was situated, everyone helped themselves to breakfast.

"So, you both have two weeks off together. What do have planed between now and your reunion, Greg?" Michael asked after a few minutes of making small talk and eating.

"Well, I have to call my friend Wendy sometime today like I promised her. For today, I was going to see a few of my friends and hang out with them." Greg was already helping himself to his fourth helping of pancakes when he turned to Nick, "Do you want to come along?"

"You mean you are questioning whether or not to show off your handsome boyfriends to your closet friends?" Nick mockingly asked.

"I know you hate it when you have women drooling at the mere sight of you. I was just trying to be nice."

Nick rolled his eyes while Greg's family chuckled to themselves. "I would love to meet your friends, Greg."

Greg smiled. "Okay then."

"So, Nick, this your first trip to San Francisco then?" Iren asked as they started to clear the table.

"Yes it is."

"Well then, since you're going to be here for a couple of days, we must make sure to treat you to all the sights."

"My daughter is right, Nicholas," Olaf said, "You must see the sights."

"Well, I have the same number of days off as Greg so I'm sure I'll be able to get around," Nick replied.

"Good. This Saturday night, you'll be coming with us to Chandell's," Greta said.

Greg started to giggle at his Nana's statement. Nick was puzzled.

"What's Chandell's?"

"It's one of my grandparents' favorite places to have fun."

"Oh. I'm sure that would be fun." Greg decided not to tell Nick what type of place Chandell's was exactly. He wanted to see to see the look on Nick's face.

Before anybody could say anything, they heard a scratching sound coming from the other side of the sliding door. Olaf went over to the door and slid the door back away.

Greg's face lit up as a large black dog made its way into the kitchen.

"Nótt! Hey, boy." Greg got up from his seat and crutched down to hug the dog. "Nicky, this is Nótt."

Nick saw the dog was staring at him, trying to figure out who the stranger was. Having been around dogs his entire childhood, Nick knew what he had to do. Getting up from his seat, Nick made eye-contact with Nótt and calmly held out his hand for the dog to sniff, which Nótt did before licking it.

"That means he like you," Greg said. Nick got down on his knee to rub Nótt's head but instead felt the dog's tongue make contact with his face.

"He's a beauty. What breed is he?" Nick questioned Greg.

"A Purebred Norwegian Elkhound, the national dog of Norway." Greg turned back toward the dog. "Alright, boy, off you go" The large dog took off down the hall after giving his master a wet lick.

"Well, I need to get to school," Michael said, "I'll see you all later." He gave his wife a kiss on the check and smiled at everyone else before he walked out of the kitchen towards the front door. A second later, they heard the door open and then close again.

"I'm going to get going too," Irene stated, "We have all those new mentors to get assigned. Have a nice day, you two." She kissed each one of the boys on the check and did the same to her parents. Then she too was out the door.

"I'm going to watch The View." And with that, Greta left with a fresh cup of tea.

"So my macaroni pingvin, how did you sleep last night?" Olaf asked his grandson.

"Fine, Papa."

"And you, Nicholas?"

"Fine sir. Just fine," Nick answered. He could see a twinkle in the grandfather's blue eyes that made Nick slightly nervous, "Basically feel asleep the moment my head hit the pillow." He paused. "I think I'll go take shower," the Texan stated.

I thought you took one last night Nicholas," Olaf said knowingly. Nick began to worry. Did Olaf hear them last night?

"No, that was Greg. Like I said, asleep the moment I touched that pillow."

"Alright then. Off you go. Pingvin, I would like to talk to you." And with that, Nick fled the kitchen in the most discreet manner possible.

Greg went over to the coffee maker to get himself a fresh cup before he faced his grandfather.

"Did you have a nice walk this morning, Papa?"

"Oh yes," Olaf answered. "You should have joined me, but, then, I don't know if I could have woken you up this morning. How you were able to sleep last night is beyond me."

Greg took a drink of coffee to steady his nerves. "What do you mean, Papa Olaf?"

The grandfather smiled.

"Foreldrene dine hadde visst litt problemer med å sovne i går. Kattene til Arcane, Churchill og Mozart, jamret noe veldig. Jeg var på vei ned hit for å hente meg et glass vann og jeg hørte de to holdt på for full halsh. Foreldrene dine tenkte at de skulle si noe til Arcane i morges, men jeg sa at jeg kunne gjøre det for dem siden de måtte dra på jobb."

Greg's face paled at his Papa's statement.

"Og forresten," Olaf said as he walked over to his grandson, holding a Walgreens bag, "jeg tok meg den friheten å kjøpe inn noen ting jeg regner med du og Nickolas har glemt igjen hjemme."

Greg took the bag. "Thank you." he said in a slight uneasy voice. After receiving a pat on the shoulder from his grandfather, Olaf watched as his youngest grandchild left the kitchen clutching a cup of coffee in one hand and the bag in the other.

----------

Nick was stepping out of the shower as Greg entered his bedroom. He called out to Greg that he would be out in a few minutes as he started to dry himself off. For the first time, Nick got a good look at the décor of the bathroom. The main color was a soft white, but the two accenting colors were black and orange. A few of the decorative towels featured a pair of penguins on them. Looking at the sink, Nick saw that the liquid soap dispenser, the soap bar holder, the toothbrush holder, and the small trash can on the floor were all part of the same penguin collection.

When Nick exited the bathroom, dressed in a pair of jeans that Greg had bought him and a green striped shirt, he found Greg was sitting on his bed, dressed in a red shirt with a flaming skull and shorts while he talked on his phone. A Walgreens bag was next to the younger man.

"…can't thank you enough, Wendy. So far he seems to be having a good time. Not that's it's any of your business, but yes. Hot. Alright, I'll talk to you later then. Bye." He turned to Nick to add, as he closed the phone, "Wendy says hi."

"Tell her 'hi' back for me next time. So, what did your grandpa want?" Nick asked as he sat down next to Greg and got his shoes on.

When Greg had related what his Papa Olaf had said, Nick's head shoot up. "What?!"

Greg smirked as he watched the CSI's eyes grow large. "Papa Olaf also gave me this," Greg added as he handed the bag over to Nick, "Every morning, he and Nana go for a walk, and he picked us up a few things."

Looking into the bag, Nick's face became pale with shock. Inside, were a large box of Trojan Ultra Ribbed condoms with spermicidal lubricant and a bottle of KY Sensual Silk Tingling Ultra Gel.

"Ho…how did he-"

"Know our brands?" Greg finished for his boyfriend. "Let's not get into that now. Come on. My friends are waiting for us."

The two were out the door and heading down the hall when Nick stopped by the door that Greg had told him was Olaf's and Greta's.

"Do you think we should say something, G?"

"If you want to, they're both downstairs--"

But then the sound of accordion music interrupted the younger man.

"Let's go, Nicky."

The panic in his voice made Nick's brow furrow.

"What's-"

"We need to go NOW!"

"G, why--"

"That's Myron Floren playing."

"So, my grandparents used to listen to him to him when he was on Lawrence Welk. Granted, I'm not a major fan of his but…"

"Nick, listen to me. When Myron Floren a-playing, don't go a-knocking."

Greg got the point across.

"Let's go."

The two made it down the stairs and out the door as fast as they could.

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In his car, Greg told Nick that he was meeting up with four of his best friends at their favorite hangout, called Ozzies'. The place was a cross between a pizza parlor and a video arcade that had a number of what people would call "old school" games. Once they entered, Greg brought Nick over to a corner booth where the four occupants seating there got up and engulfed the lab rat in hugs and friendly slaps on the back. Once the hugging subsided, Greg introduced Nick.

"Everyone, this is Nick Stokes. Nick, this is Joshua Carroll, Kevin Jay, Alan Barbeau and his wife Julie."

Joshua was tall and lanky. He had a rather large pointed nose, big ears and messy hair. To Nick, Joshua looked like Ichabod Crane. Kevin was about Nick's height and build. His hair was cut in a crew cut and his eyes were a piercing steel-blue. Alan was shorter than Greg and had a possible two extra pounds on him. He had glasses and short brown hair. His wife, had long blond hair and fair skin. Her features were soft and beautiful. It only took a few seconds for Nick to be brought into the group. After talking for almost twenty minutes, the boys got up to play the games while Julie and Nick stayed at the booth.

"I still can't believe Greg fell for someone like you, Nick," Julie said in an astounded tone as they watched Josh and Greg play Space Invaders. Kevin was standing behind the two as they played. Meanwhile Alan went over to get drinks.

"Why do you say that? Am I not cute enough for him?"

"Oh no, you're more than cute," she answered. "I don't know, I guess. When Greg first told us about you I was a little shocked. Maybe I saw him going for someone who was more like him, too energetic and not so…"

"Straight looking?" Nick finished for her.

"Yeah. I mean, from everything Greg has said, you're great, but the whole Texan jock part kind of threw us for a loop, to be honest. Especially the jock part."

"I can understand. I never thought I would meet someone like Greg. The few guys that I actually went out with were the stereotypical gay guys. But Greg was nothing like that. He was so full of energy. It was like he was living life to its fullest."

"Well I should say so," Alan interjected as he returned with the drinks, "After what happened to Greg at that school, I would be a bit surprised by Greg's personality.

"What do you mean? What happened to Greg?"

"You mean you don't know?" Alan asked as he sat down, "I would have thought Greg--Ow!" Julie stomped on is foot to shut him up.

"Be quiet, Alan," Julie hissed to her husband.

"He has a right to know."

"Greg told us not to say anything."

Julie looked over to Nick, who had a drawn-out look of concern on his face.

"Julie, please. If something bad happened to Greg, I want to know."

Julie just looked at him for a moment before she finally nodded her head. "Alright." She reached for her soda and took a drink of it before she set her shoulders, took a deep breath and turned her head to look straight at her dear friend's boyfriend.

"As you may or may not know, we've been friends since the first day of kindergarten. All through elementary and middle school were tight. It was after we had finished the eighth grade that Greg found out he had been accepted to the Ratcliff Academy. He wasn't happy about that."

"Why not?" Nick questioned.

"Greg didn't want to go to some snotty private school." Alan said, "He was happy just going to a regular school with his friends. But it was more his mother's idea that he should be in a "better" learning environment. Of course, if his dad had been here at the time, Greg most likely would not have gone to that school."

"Where was his dad?"

"New York. He was teaching out there since he and Greg's mom got separated."

"Separated?"

"They had been separated for almost three and a half a years at the time. You really didn't know?"

Nick shook his head.

"Anyway," Julie said, "Greg eventually went to Ratcliff. And it was around that time that Greg came out to us. No big surprise. We were happy for him. But, as you can imagine, being gay was not an easy thing to live with when you were going to an exclusive private school. Granted this is San Francisco, but the majority of those students were from the polo and country club set. He had only one real friend while he was there, Alice Robertson. For the most part, Greg got through that school with Alice's help. But he was still something of a target, what with his taste in music and his excellent grades. The one person who really made Greg's life hell was a jock named Torstein Stewart. When Greg was about sixteen, he and Alice were walking and Torstein and his little group of pals jumped them."

Julie's voice had started to break before she stopped. Allen put his hand on her shoulder to steady her. After a few seconds, Julie began to speak again.

"He wasn't hurt too bad, just a sprained waist and a few bruises. Alice was being held by two of the goons. Luckily, a cop car was going by and the cops saw what was happening, but Torstein and his gang took off before they could get caught. But that was before Stewart…pulled out a knife and…pu…put it to Greg's neck and--," tears were now falling from her eyes, "--and asked him if he wanted to live."

She put her head in her hands and cried. Alan comforted her before he took over the story.

"Greg's dad came straight back after he was told what had happened. He and Greg's mom basically made up the moment he walked into Greg's hospital room. They decided to bring charges against the Torstein."

"Was Torstein charged with gay bashing or a hate crime?"

"I don't think they had the term gay bashing yet. As for a heat crime, he was charged with assault, but his family paid through their nose to keep the whole thing from going to court. I think Greg was happy about that. But since that attack took place on school grounds and Greg's parents threatened to sue the school, Torstein was expelled in the end. After a few weeks, Greg started to act more as he does now. Energetic and outgoing."

"He was so happy to have his family back together in the end," Julie said. "In fact, I believe it was a week later that he came out to his family."

"That's why we were surprised to find out you were a jock. After what had happened, we were sure he would want to avoid them completely. But we can see you're different, Nick." Alan sincerely told the CSI.

Nick just sat and took in everything he was told. Greg had been attacked and he could have been seriously hurt.

"I…I didn't know any of it."

"Nick, look, Greg tends to keep things that he feels might hurt people to himself. He has done it to his family, us, and most likely to you and your colleagues but he doesn't do it to hurt anyone. He doesn't want people to worry and make a fuss about him. Maybe once Alice gets here, she can talk some sense into him. He loves you, and you love him. Remember that."

She gave Nick a smile which he returned. The sound of the three boys returning caught their attention.

"I'm still the king of Space Invaders!" a triumphant Joshua called out.

"Yeah, well, let's see how you do at playing Halo. Then we'll see who's the king," Greg said as he sat down next to the Texan, who hugged and kissed him. "What's that for?"

"I can't show my boyfriend that I love him?"

"If you two can put the make-out session on hold for a while," Kevin interjected, "the pizza's here."

A waitress was coming over to their table with the pizzas they had ordered. The group gored themselves on pizza and Nick enjoyed hearing about Greg's exploits with his friends. For the rest of the day, Nick hung out with Greg and his friends. After Ozzie's, they went to their favorite park, and Joshua and Alan showed off their skateboarding skills and continued to talk to Nick about his relationship with Greg.

"So Nick," Kevin said, "you coming surfing with us?"

"I don't think so. I don't surf."

"Come on. It's easy once you get the hang of it. I'm sure Greg would love it if you came."

"I'll think about it," Nick said as Greg made his way over to them.

"It's about time we get going Nicky. It's almost supper time."

"Alright, G."

Everyone said their goodbyes and left the park.

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When they got back to Greg's, they found dinner was already on the table. Tonight they were having beef stroganoff.

After dinner, the family spent the evening in the family room. Greg's parents and grandparents enjoyed sharing stories Greg had hoped the Texan would never get the chance to hear, to Nick. Greg just sat and shook his head at the tales. Nick, on the other hand was enjoying himself.

"Oh come on, G. What kind of parents would they be if they didn't tell an embarrassing story or show off a picture or two?"

"Yeah but still, grandparents aren't supposed to be the ones showing off pictures of you taking a bath." Greg poured himself a drink at the bar and gulped it down in one take.

Greta closed the photo she had placed between herself and Nick. "Now Musen, you know we do not mean to embarrass or hurt you in anyway."

Seeing that there was a sad look in her gentle eyes made Greg want to kick himself for his choice of words. "Jeg vet det Nana. Unnskyld." He gave her a kiss on her check and she in return patted him on the check.

"Det er greit min kjære lille mus. Til og med dine gamle besteforeldre kan
bli litt ivrige når de snakker om sin kjære Gregory."

"Din Nana Greta har rett min makaroni pingvin," Olaf said with love, "Vi får
varme følelser i hjertene våre når vi snakker om deg."

"Du forstår Greg," Irene said. "Vi fortsetter bare fordi vi er glade i
deg."

"Don't worry Nick. They do this all the time." Michael said once he noticed the CSI's puzzled face when Greg and his family started talking to each other in Norwegian.

"It's not that. I can get the undertone of most of it. I'm just curious about the nickname Olaf calls Greg is all."

"I would be happy to Nicholas," Olaf said, "I call him my little Eudyptes chrysolophus.

"Macaroni Penguin. Of course. Why didn't I see it? The hair was a dead giveaway."

"Yes. They've been Greg's favorite type of penguins since he was eight years old," Irene stated. "Since then, he has always had a thing for penguins."

"That explains the bathroom," Nick said.

"Especially the feathers of the Macaroni. Ever since then, we have been paying a fortune in hair care products. How did you know the scientific name for that breed Nick?" Michael asked.

"Nick is obsessed with the Animal Planet. He has seen just about every single bird documentary that's ever been aired," Greg informed everyone.

"I wouldn't say every single one, G. At one point, I had thought about becoming an ornithologist."

"But then if you did, you would never have meet me."

"Yes, Greg. Everything leads back to you."

"Well, it does" At Greg's proclamation, the room filled with laughter.

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"I'm glad you like my friends," Greg said as he laid in Nick's arms.

Both were snuggled under the blankets of Greg's bed. They had used both of the items that Papa Olaf had given Greg that morning. Now both men were basking in the afterglow of a sex session. This time around, they were careful of their volume.

"They're nice, G. I'm looking forward to meeting Alice."

"Oh. You know about her, do you?"

"Yeah. Julie told me about her. She was your only friend at Ratcliff?"

"She was the only one there who was into the same stuff as me. I don't know what would have happened to me if it wasn't for her."

Nick wanted to ask Greg about the attack, but decided that it would be best if it were to wait until tomorrow.

"Let's get some shut eye, Sunshine."

"What? No repeat performance?" Greg asked cockily.

"Like you said this morning Greg. Sleep good."

Greg smiled. "Alright."

"Love you, babe."

"You too."

After exchanging kisses, each snuggled into the other's warm embrace and drifted off to sleep.

-Translations and Author's note-

Thank you everyone for waiting patiently. This is the longest chapter I have written. Reviews, reviews. I love your reviews. Thanks for your feedback on my first sex scene. I'll do another one soon. Surprised at Julie's story about Greg? Well, there will be more about Greg's past. I have a number of concepts for future chapters. There will be a number of surprises in store for the boys. I have also created a c2 at FanFiction, Nick and Greg, True Love. Come and check it out.

--Translations--

"Your parents apparently had a little trouble falling asleep last night. Let's just say that the Arcane's cats, Churchill and Mozart, were not the only animals making a raucous last night. I was on my way down here to get myself a glass of water and I heard the two going at it at the top of their lungs. Your parents were thinking about saying something about it to the Arcanes this morning but I said I would do it for them instead since they had to leave for work."

"Oh by the way," Olaf said as he walked over to his grandson, holding a Walgreens bag, "I took the liberty of picking up a few things I figured you and Nicholas forgot to pack."

-----

"I know Nana. I'm sorry."

"It's alright my dear little mouse. Sometimes even your old nana and papa can get carried away when they are talking about their beloved Gregory."

"Your Nana Greta is correct my macaroni penguin," Olaf said with love. "Talking about you brings warm feelings to our hearts."

"You see Greg," Irene said. "We only go on because we love you."