I Do Not Own CSI
"Hey, Greg! What can I do for ya?" Sara answered the door, two week old Charlie held on her shoulder.
"I'm not coming by at a bad time am I," he asked, coming inside and hearing five kids all giggling in the background.
"There really isn't a time to come around anymore. Six kids has got Gil and me running our butts off! If Charlie isn't hungry or smelly or cranky then one of our other kids are."
"I can go and come back later to talk. "
"No worries, Greg, come on in. You obviously came here for something," Sara said as she walked into the living room. All five kids were hiding in the large fort that Gil had made for them out of couch cushions and blankets, giggling as they shone flashlights around.
"Cool, who made the fort?"
"Gil did, about an hour ago."
"Where is the bugman?"
"In his office reviewing case notes. He has court in a couple days and wants to be prepared."
"Oh, well um…" Greg mumbled. Grissom was the one he wanted to talk to.
"Greg, just go to his office and talk to him. You obviously came here to have a man to man chat."
"I don't want to interrupt him."
"You won't be, Greg," Gil said as he came into the living room. He smiled as two flashlights shone in his face.
"Hey, remember what I said, no shining the lights in people's faces!"
"Orry, Daddy!" was heard from the confines of the fort.
"So Greg, what warranted a visit from you at home when I'll see you at work tonight?"
"I, ahh, just had a couple questions to ask you, you know man to man."
"Ok well, let me just get a drink and we can go talk in my office," Gil said as he went into the kitchen to grab a drink.
"So, are you going to give me a hint on this conversation or am I going to have to trick Gil into telling me after," Sara said with a smirk on her face.
"I just have a couple questions about pregnancy and stuff."
"Shouldn't you be asking a woman who's been pregnant then, Greg?"
"I think I need it from a guy's point of view. I could go to Nick but I don't want to hear the black lash of jokes afterwards. I want to know that what I ask Grissom will stay confidential."
"Greg, anything you say to me will be kept between us. Come on let's go talk."
"Between us, and Sara, right?"
"Pretty much, but you know Sara, she won't say anything," Gil said, kissing Sara on the side of the head.
"Here let me take him, sit down and relax for while."
"Ok," Sara said, passing Charlie to Grissom. Charlie immediately curled his legs and arms up close to Grissom's chest as Gil held him on his shoulder.
"So Greg let's talk," Gil said as he sat behind his desk.
"What's up?"
"I have no idea what I'm doing, Griss! One minute she's happy the next she's madder than hell then it switches to her crying again. Add that to the fact that we're trying to live together and I think I'm going crazy," Greg spoke rapidly, slumping in his chair when he was done making Grissom let out a small chuckle.
"I'm glad you find this amusing, Griss!"
"Trust me, Greg, if you were in my shoes you would find this a little funny too. OK, let's start with problem number one, mood swings."
"Yeah, I don't remember Sara ever being that moody when she was pregnant with any of your kids," Greg said, causing Grissom to chuckle.
"That's because you were never around to witness it. I think the only other person to see Sara turn into what she calls 'Bitch from hell mood' was Jim. And trust me, he ran out our front door faster than I've ever seen him run!"
"Really?"
"Really. I remember coming home from work one morning when she was pregnant with the triplets…"
"Honey, I'm home where are you?"
Getting no response I started looking around the house for her. Still not being able to find her after I checked just about everywhere, I walked into our bedroom. Seeing the bathroom light on I knocked.
"Sara, Honey, you in there?"
"Yes"
"Why didn't you answer when I called you before," I said, coming in the bathroom
only to find Sara in the tub.
"Because I was trying to prolong my embarrassment!"
"Why should you be embarrassed, you're having a bath."
"Because I can't get out of the tub, I've been sitting here for the last forty minutes in cool water because I need some help getting up." Sara said making me chuckle.
"Gil this is not funny, I'm cold and my butt is falling asleep and you're laughing at me!"
"No I'm not, Honey."
"Yes you are! I can see you holding in your smile. Just help me get out of here!"
I grabbed her hands and pulled her up slowly. I made sure to keep any and all smiles to myself until I was out of Sara's sight.
"Here," I said handing her a towel so she could wrap around her body.
"Thank you, I think I'm going to go lay down."
"Ok, I'm just going to have a quick shower and then I'll lay down with you, ok."
Apparently I said this to no one as Sara was already gone from the bathroom.
Ten minutes later I came out, ready to sleep only to find Sara silently crying, her back to me.
"Honey, what's wrong?"
"I'm fat and can't do anything!"
"Honey, you're not fat, you're pregnant. And you can do anything you set your mind to."
"No I can't, I can barley do my job anymore, I can't exercise, sex isn't the same," Sara started rambling on.
"Honey, we both knew that sooner or later you were going to have to leave CSI. It wouldn't matter if you had one baby in there or three. You can still exercise you just have to take it easy is all. Our sex life is fine, sure we have to come up with some new and interesting ways to have it but I find it kind of fun."
"I can't even have a bath by myself anymore!"
"Well, that may be one thing you'll have to cut back on or at least wait until I'm around if you need help."
"So you admit it, then," Sara interjected.
"What"
"You think I'm fat!""So that clamed Sara down, just telling her how much you love her and that's she beautiful no matter what?"
'Where on earth did that come from' was going through my head.
"Honey no I don't think you're fat, I think you're beautiful. You have three babies inside of you, you're glowing!"
"I don't feel that way. God Gil, I'm only five months pregnant and look at me I'm huge!"
"And I love you no matter what size you are. Honey, you're carrying our children inside of you. I couldn't be happier at the moment. I love you and that's never going to change"
"Even when I'm as big as the Empire State Building?"
"No matter what Sara" I said giving her a kiss, trying to convey how much I really do love her.
"That time yes, but there were other times when bringing home flowers and ice cream worked, too. But one thing that always worked was taking Sara out on a date."
"A date, how so?"
"Sara might not have said how she was feeling about the changes to her body when she was pregnant, but I knew. And taking her out whether it be to a movie or a walk helped with her own confidence. It let her know that I wasn't ashamed of her and that I loved her no matter what."
"Sara had to question your love? That doesn't sound like something she would do"
"It wasn't necessarily questioning my love, Greg. As I'm sure you have seen by now pregnant women can get a little crazy."
"Yeah"
"But that's just because they have ten times the amount of hormones going through their bodies, every one telling them to do a different thing. One side of her brain is telling her to cry or get mad while the other side of her brain is telling her that there's no reason for her to be acting this way. Why should she be crying because she can't get out of the bathtub?
Sara told me after she had the triplets that she knew she was being irrational about the bath incident but she just felt so helpless. Pregnancy will turn even the most rational person a little crazy, Greg."
"So what do I do for Torin when she's crying or mad?"
"Let her talk and be careful as to what you say back to her. Sara could take the most innocent comment and turn it on me.
Comfort her the best you can or just let her vent. Oh, and take her out, make her feel special and loved and beautiful."
"I can do that" Greg said, taking a deep breath looking up when Charlie stirred.
"Come on, Greg talk with me as I go change Charlie. He needs a new diaper."
"Ok. Griss, can I ask you something about when you and Sara first started living together?"
"I was waiting for that one. Ask away, Greg," Gil said, putting Charlie down on the change table and undoing his jumper.
"Did you and Sara have a lot of adjusting to do when you moved in together?"
"You can say that again! It's different when you each have a separate place to live at and you're just spending a couple nights a week at one another's house. It's a whole new ballgame when you're with that person everyday, all day, in Sara and my case."
"Yeah, I guess seeing someone everyday all day could drive anyone a little nuts."
"You bet it can!"
"Wow Griss, you can change diapers like a pro! That was like less than a minute!"
"Sixth kid, Greg, I know my way around a diaper. Ok, so back to the topic at hand."
"Right, so did you and Sara drive each other nuts," Greg said as they made their way down the hall.
"Greg, we drove each other absolutely nuts! Lead to a big fight, too" Sara said, overhearing the last part of there conversation.
"So Torin and I are normal, then. The little fights between us are normal," Greg asked as now all three of them plus Charlie sat down in the kitchen.
"Fighting is part of being in a relationship, Greg. It's normal. It's when it starts to get out of hand that's not," Sara said, as she took Charlie from Gil, he was ready to be fed. Placing a nursing blanket over her and Charlie the conversation continued.
"It took Sara and me awhile before we finally got used to living with each other. We had both had habits that after so long living by ourselves were hard to change."
"Like doing the dishes after dinner," Sara smirked out.
"Or doing the laundry more than once every two weeks," Gil retorted.
"Living with someone takes time to get used to, Greg. You have a harder time yet because Torin is pregnant and hormonal," Sara said, shifting Charlie a bit.
"How long did it take for you two to get used to seeing one another so much?"
"I would say a couple months at least. We had a lot of stuff to get used to."
"Like your bugs in the basement."
"Or the fact that you had to watch your Sunday night drama. You couldn't miss an episode."
"So how did you two figure one another out?"
"Well, we compromised. Gil knew his bugs bothered the hell out of me and I knew they couldn't stay outside."
"So I brought them to work. That's why they all suddenly showed up at work," Gil finished.
"And I knew that Sara hated when I left dishes in the sink and I couldn't stand when she never did laundry so…"
"I did the dishes and Gil always made sure I had clean clothes."
"Living with someone takes time, Greg. There's no shortcut. Its hard work, Sara and I work on our marriage everyday."
"How so?"
"By communicating to one another, telling each other what's bugging us or what we need help with. Communication is a key factor to being in a committed relationship, Greg. You have to be willing to open up and tell Torin how you feel and be able to trust her to help you with whatever you're going through and visa versa."
"Did you to find it hard to tell each other what you're feeling?"
"Yes," Sara and Gil both said at the same time, making Greg laugh.
"We were both intensely private people. We both had some pretty hard barriers to break down but eventually with time and learning to trust, those barriers come down and they will for you and Torin, too. You just have to be willing to put forth the effort," Sara said, unlatching Charlie from her breast and passing him to Gil.
"Ok, I think I feel better now. Now that I know that Torin isn't crazy, just pregnant. And that the whole living arrangement will get better. Thanks guys."
"Anytime Greg"
"I think I'm going to head out. I promised I would bring home Chinese for dinner. That's been her craving as of late," Greg said getting up.
"See you at work, Greg."
"Bye guys," he said, waving and leaving.
"You think they'll be ok, Gil," Sara asked.
"I think that as long as they try, really, really try that they'll be ok. Greg, underneath all that weirdness, is really a mature adult. He is ecstatic about the fact that he's going to be a dad, but just scared beyond belief," he said, walking back into the living room to check on the other kids.
"Dada, come play," Abigail said, peeking her head out of the fort.
Placing Charlie in the playpen, Gil lay down near the entrance and smiled when the kids had figured out how to make shadow puppets with the flash lights.
"I'm going to start dinner. Have fun, Gil."
"I will. Oh, and Sara"
"Yeah"
"I love you, just thought I would communicate that to you!"
"I love you back, Babe!"
Ahhh poor greggo, but i think every new expant father freaks out in some way weather they voice it or not. And i think greg had a valid reason for freaking out, living with someone and trying to make the relationship work while that other person is pregnant, lol
I don't think this is the last of greg freaking out, we'll see once Torin gets closer to the end of her pregnancy
stay tuned we got a little brass drama coming up
please be kind and leave a review, they mean a lot
Katie