Love Comes Softly
Part 3
Disclaimers: Characters and the show C.S.I. belong to CBS, Anthony Zuiker and whoever else gets paid more than I do.
Notes: After reading all the nice reviews I got for part 1 and 2, I decided to try and write this as quickly as possible. Thanks goes to Tash, Mooni, and anyone else who took the time to e-mail me and tell me how much they're liking this. Sorry this took so long, six words: Toronto and Carolina went into overtime.
And now we get into the REAL angst.
Enjoy.
She sat at the kitchen table, her hands covering her face. She didn't dare to look up, not even when she heard Warrick come into the house, calling out her name. She was still wiping the tears from her eyes when he entered the room and saw her.
"Cat?" He walked up to her and put his arm around her shoulder. "Are you crying?"
She didn't answer, didn't move to acknowledge his presence. "Oh Jeez Cath, I'm still so sorry about last night. I didn't mean to say it, I was just stressed and-"
"Warrick." She said simply, putting a hand on his forearm, but not lifting her head. He stopped short, he didn't understand what was going on.
She looked at him, finally, and her cheeks were stained with freshly fallen tears. "It's not you." He was still confused, but reached out to hold her. He couldn't stand to see her like this, he wanted to help her but he didn't know what to do. He didn't know what was wrong.
"What happened?" He was afraid, the fear was building up in his stomach, tying his insides into knots.
"It's Lindsey. Warrick, she's been hit by a car. They're not sure if she'll make it." The words brought a fresh batch of tears, but this time he didn't reach down to hold her. He wasn't sure if he could even help himself stay standing. He felt as if he had been slammed in the face with a crowbar.
His groping hand found the back of a chair, and he slowly sat down. His eyes, wide, were still set on Catherine's face as she looked at him. Waiting for him to say something, anything.
"I went to the hospital as quickly as I could, I sped the whole way there. They wouldn't let me in the room, I'm her mother and they wouldn't let me in! I called and called you, but you didn't answer...finally I just went home because I knew you'd be here soon and I wanted to make sure you knew where I was. I didn't want you to find out from anyone else." She knew she was rambling, but she didn't care. If he wasn't going to talk, she was. She couldn't stand the silence.
He shook his head, running his fingers over his face again and again. She saw the beginning of a tear forming in the corner of one of his eyes, and her heart broke. She reached out to hold him, afraid he would turn her away, but he didn't. He grabbed her, wrapped his arms tightly around her, so tightly she thought she couldn't breathe.
But she didn't mind. It was comforting, almost, the way he sobbed into her shoulder. Her own tears wet the blue cashmere of his sweater, her own loud cries pierced the darkness around them. They rocked back and forth, sharing a chair in the middle of her kitchen.
Grissom sat in the break room, leaning over a sheet of paper with a puzzled expression on his face. Sara entered the room, and seeing him sitting there she smiled inwardly. Coffee with Grissom, she couldn't imagine a better way to spend her evening.
"Hey Gil!" She greeted, watching as he turned to her and smiled.
"Hey Sara. I'm just working on a crossword puzzle." He went back to his paper, scratching it a bit with his pencil.
"Toughy?" She asked, taking a sip of coffee and standing over him. She pretended to be interested in the puzzle, but she was really engrossed in the smell of his cologne.
"Not really." He wrote something down and grinned. "Finished." She chuckled softly, then lightly rested her hand on his shoulder.
"I was thinking..."
"Uh-oh."
"About you and I." His eyes rose to meet hers. He actually looked...hopeful. "We should talk more. About...stuff."
He knew what she meant, Sara only used the word 'stuff' when she was trying to avoid her main goal in the conversation. "Sar-"
"Just hear me out, alright? I mean... I like to watch the news. Believe it or not, I do watch TV. I watch the news everyday. Do you watch anything, in particular?"
He almost laughed- almost. Taking his glasses off and setting them on the table, he exhaled deeply and shook his head. "Sara, do you want to talk about my hearing? Because I will not sit here with you all night and beat around the bush."
"I'm not beating arou-"
"Sara!" He warned her, his eyebrows risen.
"All right, fine." She inched closer to him and bent her head down, ready to ask him the questions that had been haunting her ever since he told her about his illness. Just then Nick burst into the room, his eyes flashing with horrifying fear.
"You guys, come quick! Catherine just called us, her girl's in the hospital!"
Without another word Grissom and Sara grabbed their coats and ran out the door as fast as they could.
Part 3
Disclaimers: Characters and the show C.S.I. belong to CBS, Anthony Zuiker and whoever else gets paid more than I do.
Notes: After reading all the nice reviews I got for part 1 and 2, I decided to try and write this as quickly as possible. Thanks goes to Tash, Mooni, and anyone else who took the time to e-mail me and tell me how much they're liking this. Sorry this took so long, six words: Toronto and Carolina went into overtime.
And now we get into the REAL angst.
Enjoy.
She sat at the kitchen table, her hands covering her face. She didn't dare to look up, not even when she heard Warrick come into the house, calling out her name. She was still wiping the tears from her eyes when he entered the room and saw her.
"Cat?" He walked up to her and put his arm around her shoulder. "Are you crying?"
She didn't answer, didn't move to acknowledge his presence. "Oh Jeez Cath, I'm still so sorry about last night. I didn't mean to say it, I was just stressed and-"
"Warrick." She said simply, putting a hand on his forearm, but not lifting her head. He stopped short, he didn't understand what was going on.
She looked at him, finally, and her cheeks were stained with freshly fallen tears. "It's not you." He was still confused, but reached out to hold her. He couldn't stand to see her like this, he wanted to help her but he didn't know what to do. He didn't know what was wrong.
"What happened?" He was afraid, the fear was building up in his stomach, tying his insides into knots.
"It's Lindsey. Warrick, she's been hit by a car. They're not sure if she'll make it." The words brought a fresh batch of tears, but this time he didn't reach down to hold her. He wasn't sure if he could even help himself stay standing. He felt as if he had been slammed in the face with a crowbar.
His groping hand found the back of a chair, and he slowly sat down. His eyes, wide, were still set on Catherine's face as she looked at him. Waiting for him to say something, anything.
"I went to the hospital as quickly as I could, I sped the whole way there. They wouldn't let me in the room, I'm her mother and they wouldn't let me in! I called and called you, but you didn't answer...finally I just went home because I knew you'd be here soon and I wanted to make sure you knew where I was. I didn't want you to find out from anyone else." She knew she was rambling, but she didn't care. If he wasn't going to talk, she was. She couldn't stand the silence.
He shook his head, running his fingers over his face again and again. She saw the beginning of a tear forming in the corner of one of his eyes, and her heart broke. She reached out to hold him, afraid he would turn her away, but he didn't. He grabbed her, wrapped his arms tightly around her, so tightly she thought she couldn't breathe.
But she didn't mind. It was comforting, almost, the way he sobbed into her shoulder. Her own tears wet the blue cashmere of his sweater, her own loud cries pierced the darkness around them. They rocked back and forth, sharing a chair in the middle of her kitchen.
Grissom sat in the break room, leaning over a sheet of paper with a puzzled expression on his face. Sara entered the room, and seeing him sitting there she smiled inwardly. Coffee with Grissom, she couldn't imagine a better way to spend her evening.
"Hey Gil!" She greeted, watching as he turned to her and smiled.
"Hey Sara. I'm just working on a crossword puzzle." He went back to his paper, scratching it a bit with his pencil.
"Toughy?" She asked, taking a sip of coffee and standing over him. She pretended to be interested in the puzzle, but she was really engrossed in the smell of his cologne.
"Not really." He wrote something down and grinned. "Finished." She chuckled softly, then lightly rested her hand on his shoulder.
"I was thinking..."
"Uh-oh."
"About you and I." His eyes rose to meet hers. He actually looked...hopeful. "We should talk more. About...stuff."
He knew what she meant, Sara only used the word 'stuff' when she was trying to avoid her main goal in the conversation. "Sar-"
"Just hear me out, alright? I mean... I like to watch the news. Believe it or not, I do watch TV. I watch the news everyday. Do you watch anything, in particular?"
He almost laughed- almost. Taking his glasses off and setting them on the table, he exhaled deeply and shook his head. "Sara, do you want to talk about my hearing? Because I will not sit here with you all night and beat around the bush."
"I'm not beating arou-"
"Sara!" He warned her, his eyebrows risen.
"All right, fine." She inched closer to him and bent her head down, ready to ask him the questions that had been haunting her ever since he told her about his illness. Just then Nick burst into the room, his eyes flashing with horrifying fear.
"You guys, come quick! Catherine just called us, her girl's in the hospital!"
Without another word Grissom and Sara grabbed their coats and ran out the door as fast as they could.
