A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing! I hope you enjoy this one.

I don't own CSI.

Another Goodbye

Sara watched as Grissom slipped his travel documents into his laptop bag, and sighed. He looked up at the sound to see her sitting on the couch, looking utterly forlorn. His features softening, he crossed to join her.

"I'm sorry," he said, sitting down next to her.

Sara shook her head, trying to blink back the tears. "Why should you be sorry?"

He ran his palm over her cheek, wiping an errant tear away with his thumb. "I'm making you cry," he nearly whispered.

She shook her head. The force of the motion sent more tears down her cheeks. "It's my own fault, isn't it? I could go back with you so easily …"

Grissom held his breath. Oh, Sara … if only …

"But, it's not that easy."

Grissom exhaled.

Sara wrapped her arms around his neck. "I need to be here right now. You understand that, don't you?"

"Of course, I do," he said automatically. "All I want is for you to be happy."

She nodded against him.

Grissom held her tightly. He had been very honest with her: All he wanted was for her to be happy. But, it was so impossibly hard to consider all that she needed for that to happen. She made him happy. Being with her made him happy. Why couldn't he do the same for her?

"Hey." Sara pulled back from his embrace to look at him. "Are you okay? You're squeezing the life out of me."

"I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I don't want to say goodbye, either."

Sara caressed his face and leaned in to kiss him. "I love you," she whispered against his lips. "I always will."

He nodded and kissed her again. "I love you, too."

Sara smiled and pulled back. "Come on. We've got to get going before you miss your flight."

Logan International Airport was, as always, a crowded, bustling scene of frazzled travelers. Sara waited with Grissom until he was checked in, then walked with him to security with her hand wrapped around his.

"Call me when you get to Vegas," she said as they stopped in front of the security gates.

"I will," he promised. He touched her cheek. "Take care of yourself."

"You, too," she said. She smiled slightly. "You're the one who's sick, not me."

"Still."

She nodded. "Love you."

"I love you, too," he said. He leaned down to kiss her. "I have to go."

Sara nodded. "I'll miss you."

He smiled and kissed her again. "I'll miss you," he repeated. "I'll talk to you soon."

Sara nodded. "I'll see you when I see you."

Grissom smiled and squeezed her hand. "Yeah. I'll see you when I see you."

He leaned in for one last kiss, then, with a final smile, he shouldered his bag and walked toward the security gates. Sara watched as he made his way through the lengthy process. She stood alone until he was gone from her sight. Then, wiping away fresh tears, she left the airport.

Grissom stepped into his shoes and picked up his bag, which suddenly felt like it was full of lead. He shook his head as he walked away from the check in area – away from Sara.

This is how it's going to be from now on, he reminded himself. Get used to it.

Struggling with another bout of coughing, he made his way to his gate. Maybe a stop at one of the airport shops for a bottle of water would be a good idea before he boarded the plane. It couldn't possibly make his cough any worse.

Sara was barely aware of her destination before she found herself in front of Mary's house. She didn't question her almost subconscious decision. Mary was exactly who she needed to see.

She climbed out of her car, and went to the front door. Almost as soon as she rang the bell, she could hear Josie's running footsteps coming to greet her.

"Sara!" Mary exclaimed as she swung the door open.

"Aunt Sara!" Josie squealed.

"Hi," Sara said as she walked through the open door. She swung Josie up into her arms, burying her face in her blond curls for a long moment.

"What's wrong?" Mary asked. Then, her face relaxed into understanding. "Grissom just left."

Sara nodded, and promptly began to cry again.

"Oh, sweetie," Mary sighed. "Come on. Let's sit down."

Sara nodded and followed Mary into the living room. She put Josie down as they sat down on the couch.

"Go play with your dolls, princess," Mary said to Josie.

"Okay." She ran off in search of her favorite toys.

Mary took Sara's hands. "When did he leave?"

"An hour or so ago."

Mary nodded. "You took him to the airport?"

Sara nodded and wiped at the new tears on her cheeks. "God, Mary, I'm sorry. I'm not usually like this when we say goodbye. I mean, we've done it enough over the years …"

Mary nodded silently.

"I guess … I guess it's harder this time, you know? Because, for the first time since I left Vegas, it feels real. Like we're really not living together."

"Why is that?"

"I have a real place here," Sara said slowly. "I have an apartment, not just a room in someone's house or a hotel. I have a job now …" She shivered slightly. "I'm making Boston my home."

"I can't pretend to be upset about that," Mary said. "But, I don't like to see you like this."

Sara shook her head. "I just need to get used to it," she said. "This is how it's going to be now. We're still together, just … long distance."

"You're sure you're okay with that, right?"

Sara nodded slowly. "What choice do I have? This is where we are now. His job is in Las Vegas, and mine is here. We're both doing what we've worked for, and we're maintaining our relationship as best we can."

"Okay, then," Mary said, squeezing her hands. "Stop crying and pull yourself together. This is your life now. You can't spend it sobbing for the life you've left behind. You've got to live it and make it work."

Sara nodded and extracted her hands from Mary's. She wiped away the last of her tears.

"You're right. I'm a big girl now, right?"

Mary smiled. "You certainly are."

Grissom was coughing yet again when he met Catherine in baggage claim at McCarran. She looked at him with concern.

"You don't sound good," she said in greeting.

"You sound like Sara," he replied.

Catherine shook her head. "I can't believe she let you get on a plane like this."

"What choice did we have?"

"You are allowed to change your tickets, you know."

He made a face. "I'm not paying that fee."

Catherine shook her head again, looking at him in disbelief.

"What?"

"You won't pay the fee, but you'll get everyone else on the plane sick?"

"I'm not sick."

Catherine rolled her eyes, effectively giving up. "Let's get your bag so I can take you home."

Catherine pulled to a stop in front of Grissom's house and turned off the car. She looked at him almost expectantly. He gave her a slight smile.

"Catherine, would you like to come in?" he asked.

She smiled. "Love to."

Grissom thought, as he climbed out of the car, that he should have known he wouldn't get off so easily. They had spent the drive talking about the events he had missed at work; Catherine had not even brought up Sara or his trip. He had been pleased, thinking that Catherine was being incredibly, if unusually, kind. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about Sara, it was just … painful.

Now, it would appear, her kindness had run out.

They walked into the quiet house together. Grissom set down his bags while Catherine flipped on the lights.

"Do you want something to drink?" he offered.

"Sure," Catherine agreed.

Grissom smiled at her. "Screwdrivers?"

Her eyebrows shot up. "Okay … if you're having one, too."

Grissom nodded. "I need one."

Catherine followed him into the kitchen and watched as he pulled the glasses, vodka and orange juice from their respective homes and lined them up on the counter. She took over as each item landed on the counter, and poured their drinks.

"Okay," she said as they sat across from each other sipping their drinks, "tell me. How's Sara?"

"She's … fine."

Catherine raised an eyebrow. "Sara being 'fine' does not constitute alcohol. And, you've already told me that you had a smooth flight, so that hasn't rattled your nerves. Out with it. What happened in Boston?"

Grissom sighed. "Sara got a new job."

"In Boston?"

"In Boston."

Catherine exhaled. "In a crime lab?"

Grissom shook his head. "In a university lab. Her friend, Tom, helped her get it. She'll be working with him."

"That's the one her friend Mary is married to, right? The one we met?"

Grissom nodded.

"Well," Catherine said, shaking her head slightly. "That's … surprising. Is she living with them?"

"She was. But, while I was there, we found her an apartment and got her all settled."

"So … you helped with this process?"

"Yes."

Catherine shook her head again. "When Sara first left, you told me that all you wanted was for her to be happy. I guess I didn't realize how much you meant that until now."

"That is what I want," Grissom said. "But …"

Catherine nodded. "It's not happening the way you want it."

"Certainly not the way I'd prefer."

Catherine nodded again and chinked her glass against his. "Well, bottoms up, then. Might as well come to terms with it by drinking a screwdriver with a friend."

Grissom smiled and took a drink with her. Catherine watched him, waiting in silence. She knew he wanted to say more, but she also knew that she had to wait for him to say it on his own terms.

"It seems real now," he finally said.

"What do you mean?"

"Sara being gone."

Catherine frowned slightly.

"Before, I could always think that she would be back someday. But, now …" He exhaled. "She has a job in Boston. A home. In a way, she's having a new adventure."

Catherine paused, choosing her words carefully. "Do you want to take it with her?"

"I belong here," he said simply.

"How did you … leave things?"

He shrugged slightly. "We're … long distance, I suppose." A faint smile crossed his face. "In a way, it's how we started out – living in separate cities, emailing, talking on the phone, trying to see each other at conferences …"

"Gil," Catherine said, a slightly annoyed smile crossing her face, "I don't believe for a minute that it's the same now as it was when Sara lived in San Francisco."

"No," he acknowledged with a sigh. "I suppose it's not. But, it gives me a frame of reference to think of it that way." He shook his head. "I don't know what I'm doing here, Cath. This is totally new for me."

She smiled at him. "I think every moment that you've known Sara has been totally new for you. And, the mistake you made for way too many years was trying to fit your relationship with her into a neat, little box. Whether it was a box created by society, by the lab or by your own experience, it was wrong, wasn't it?"

He nodded slowly, frowning as he tried to get her point. Catherine's smile widened at the look on his face.

"You and Sara are best together when you're making up your own rules," she said. "When you're defying what everyone else thinks you should do, it's … what you two do. It's what works for you." She smiled. "It's what makes you – both of you – happy."

Grissom gave a half-smile, thinking of the miserable time he had spent agonizing about all the reasons they shouldn't get together, and then all the blissful time he had spent breaking the rules to be with Sara. Catherine was absolutely right.

"You're right," he said simply.

She smiled. "I know I am."

Sara's cell phone started to ring as she walked into her apartment. She fished it out of her purse, then threw the bag on the couch. She smiled at Grissom's name on the display.

"Hi," she said.

"Hello," he replied, clearly smiling.

"You're back in Vegas?" she asked.

"Yes. Catherine even got me safely back to the house."

"Good." Sara sat down next to her purse.

"She stayed to talk for a little bit."

"Not surprising," Sara said. "You had a lot to catch up on at the lab."

"Yeah," Grissom said. "She also wanted to know how you're doing. She says hello, by the way."

Sara smiled. "I'll have to call her. I miss talking to her."

"She'll like that."

"So … did you tell her about my new job?"

"Yes." He paused. "She … made me realize something."

"What's that?"

"We don't do well with following the rules."

"What?" Sara asked. "Who doesn't?"

"You and I don't."

Sara laughed. "Griss. We're very law-abiding citizens. We catch the bad guys, remember?"

"Not the big, legal rules," Grissom said with a smile. "I mean … Sara, what we have … it's against the rules. I'm so much older than you – that's against society's rules. I was your supervisor – that's against the lab's rules. And, now, we're not in the same city, but we're still together, right?"

"Right," Sara said, beginning to see where he was going.

"Playing by the rules is not something we've ever done," Grissom continued. "So, Catherine made me see … if it works for us, we just need to do it."

"So, now you're suddenly behind our long distance relationship because Catherine said it was a good idea?" Sara asked.

"Well, since we first got together, I've been for whatever it takes to be with you," Grissom said. "I guess she just made me see that this long distance relationship is more 'us' than 'not us.'"

Sara giggled at that. "Mary told me I need to stop crying over the life I've left behind and start living the life I have."

Grissom smiled. "Similar ideas, in a strange way."

"Yeah."

"Did it make you feel better? What Mary said?"

Sara nodded, exhaling slowly. "Yeah," she said. "It did."

"Good," Grissom said. "I say we take this non-traditional thing and run with it for as long as we can."

Sara smiled. "I'm in."

"Good." Grissom smiled. "I love you, Sara."

"I love you, too."