Part VII: Dinner and a Movie
Catherine woke up with a start. The house was silent. Looking at the clock on the far wall, she wondered where Grissom and Lindsey were. She stretched and looked around. She spotted Lindsey's book bag by the closet. Standing up Catherine carefully folded the light, butter cream-colored afghan that Grissom had covered her with and set it on the back of the couch.
Her headache was gone and she felt better than she had for the past week. She moved to the kitchen to make a snack for herself figuring that they would be back shortly. Entering the kitchen she saw a plate of cookies on the counter next to the box that she hid away for emergency snacks. 'Looks as though I'll be having a talk about snooping with someone,' she thought as she put the box away in a different place.
As she opened the door to the refrigerator she noticed Grissom's handwriting on the dry erase message board she kept next to it. She poured herself a glass of grape juice and read the note.
'Cath: we went to my place so I could change. Should be back around 4.30. - Love, L and G.'
Catherine pondered the "Love, L and G" portion of the note carefully. The letters had been meticulously written, except for the "and G." That was in her daughter's handwriting. Grissom probably didn't even know about Lindsey's addition to his note. She had to smile at the thought of her daughter changing the ending.
Lindsey had on more than one occasion noted that Grissom had made her mom happy. She always looked for a way to get Grissom to come over, but only if she knew her dad wouldn't show up. The clock chimed the half hour. It was four-thirty, they should be getting home soon. Twenty minutes passed by agonizingly slow. She had resisted calling Grissom's cell to find out what was keeping them. Finally she couldn't handle the worry anymore. She picked up the phone and dialed.
------
Grissom started to dial Catherine's number. He knew that if she was awake, she would be worried that they weren't back yet. The phone rang in his hand. A glance at the caller ID told him that it was Catherine. 'Damn!'
He barely got the word hello out when she cut him off. "Grissom, where on earth are you?"
"Calm down, Catherine. We got caught in traffic after stopping at the video rental place."
"Grissom!"
"Ah, Lindsey wants to talk to you." Grissom hurriedly handed the phone to his passenger and turned the corner. They were only a few blocks away, but he knew that she would keel hull him when they got a chance to be alone. He hoped that talking to Lindsey would dispel most of her anger and reassure her that everything was okay.
"Mommy! Uncle Gil and I rented some movies to watch tonight."
"Sweetheart, Uncle Gil and I have to go to work tonight."
"But he called Uncle Warrick and told him that he was in charge tonight."
"Honey, put Uncle Gil on the phone." Catherine hated doing this to her, but she needed to straighten things out with him.
Lindsey tapped Grissom's arm and said, "Mom wants to talk to you."
"Catherine, I'm sorry." Grissom wanted to let her know that whatever it was, he didn't mean to upset her.
"Care to explain why you two rented movies? I thought we were working tonight?"
"Well, technically I am. I put myself on call tonight and Warrick is in charge unless I'm called in."
"And I am... what am I doing?"
"You are following doctor's orders and taking it easy tonight. If it makes you feel better, I'll tell Warrick that you are on call with me. Anything that requires either of us, we'll deal with it together."
"And Lindsey? Since the sitter won't be here, what do we do about her if a call comes in?"
"I... I thought we might be able to bring her in. She can sleep in my office if it comes to that." In actuality Grissom hadn't thought about that aspect. Now he understood why Catherine was running just a shade shy of irritation when he would call her in. "Catherine. I really am sorry about being late, but I didn't want to leave Lindsey so I could get a change of clothes."
Catherine's frustration began to abate as she remembered that he was doing his best in a foreign situation. "I know. I just would have appreciated a call earlier to let me know what was going on. I'll see what I can pull together for dinner."
Grissom turned into her driveway and suggested that they eat out instead. They were still talking on the phone discussing possibilities when Lindsey opened the door to the house for Grissom. "Mommy, we're home!"
Catherine hung up the cordless phone she was on and greeted her daughter. Grissom set the bag with the tapes in it on the coffee table and turned his cell phone off. Hoping to diffuse their argument he asked, "So Lindsey what'll it be for dinner?"
"Pizza!" Lindsey said excitedly. Sensing that her mom needed to talk she added, "Can I order?"
"I don't know, can you?" Catherine joked. She kept trying to get her daughter to use the proper form of asking for something.
"May I, Mom?" Lindsey asked correcting herself.
"Sure, kiddo."
"Order some appetizers, Linds," Grissom said. Lindsey nodded and left the adults alone in the living room. Grissom explained, "It's my treat, Cath."
Looking at his face she knew it was useless to argue with him. "Okay." Neither said a word for awhile. "Gil, I'm sorry I snapped at you. When I woke up alone..."
"I'm sorry. I should've woken you up to let you know. I just didn't want to disturb you." Grissom hugged and held her to reassure her that everything was all right. After a few minutes of silence he felt her shaking against him. "Hey, what's wrong?"
Catherine stepped back smiling. "Nothing. I was just thinking that we have apologized to each other so many times today, someone would think we didn't know anything else to say to each other."
Lindsey came back into the room and found two laughing adults. They hadn't noticed she came in so she went back into the kitchen and searched for her camera. Making sure she had film she re-entered the living room and took a picture of them.
The flash from the camera brought both of them back to earth. Catherine looked at her daughter and smiled in response to the big grin on her face.
"So what are we eating tonight?" Grissom asked letting go of Catherine.
"Half meat lovers and half Hawaiian and some breadsticks; it'll be here in forty-five minutes. Ca... *May* we play my movie first?"
"Sure. Go put in the tape," Grissom said as he and Catherine sat down on the couch and waited for Lindsey to start the movie. She turned off the lights and sat down on the other side of Grissom and whispered something in his ear. He smiled and whispered back.
"Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Catherine asked the two conspirators.
"Nothing, Mommy."
"Yeah, 'Mommy', it's nothing. You sit back and enjoy the show; I'm going to get us something to drink."
Catherine looked at him in shock. Today had been one hell of a roller coaster ride, at least as far as Grissom was concerned. All day he had been spoiling Lindsey with small treats and now they were keeping things from her. Today also showed a side of her friend that she never truly saw before. She returned her attention to the movie deciding to wait until another day to figure out the curve balls that he kept sending her way.
Grissom, with tray in hand, stood in the doorway and watched as mother and daughter focused their attention on the movie. Today had been an emotional trial for him. Between nearly losing a valuable friend and co-worker and feeling guilty about not letting her in of late, he was exhausted.
Lindsey's whispered words kept surfacing in his mind. Before today he thought Lindsey was a bit nervous when he was around. But now he could really understand why Catherine always smiled when someone mentioned her little girl's name. When he finally heard about Catherine's attack it was as though everything he knew intellectually had been shaken apart. Now, at the end of a single day, everything was put back in order, exactly as they had been before only this time some things made more sense.
He silently approached the couch and started to sit down on the other side of Lindsey when she moved so he could sit between mother and daughter. Halfway through the movie the delivery guy arrived. Grissom put the movie on pause and chuckled as Lindsey "raced" him to the door.
Throughout time, civilizations often based their beliefs on the supposition that there was life after death. All through high school and college he could never understand that belief, but today he did. Just being there to lend support to his friend brought death to part of him; the barriers he erected so long ago started to crumble and a little girl's love told him that there is indeed life after.
Catherine woke up with a start. The house was silent. Looking at the clock on the far wall, she wondered where Grissom and Lindsey were. She stretched and looked around. She spotted Lindsey's book bag by the closet. Standing up Catherine carefully folded the light, butter cream-colored afghan that Grissom had covered her with and set it on the back of the couch.
Her headache was gone and she felt better than she had for the past week. She moved to the kitchen to make a snack for herself figuring that they would be back shortly. Entering the kitchen she saw a plate of cookies on the counter next to the box that she hid away for emergency snacks. 'Looks as though I'll be having a talk about snooping with someone,' she thought as she put the box away in a different place.
As she opened the door to the refrigerator she noticed Grissom's handwriting on the dry erase message board she kept next to it. She poured herself a glass of grape juice and read the note.
'Cath: we went to my place so I could change. Should be back around 4.30. - Love, L and G.'
Catherine pondered the "Love, L and G" portion of the note carefully. The letters had been meticulously written, except for the "and G." That was in her daughter's handwriting. Grissom probably didn't even know about Lindsey's addition to his note. She had to smile at the thought of her daughter changing the ending.
Lindsey had on more than one occasion noted that Grissom had made her mom happy. She always looked for a way to get Grissom to come over, but only if she knew her dad wouldn't show up. The clock chimed the half hour. It was four-thirty, they should be getting home soon. Twenty minutes passed by agonizingly slow. She had resisted calling Grissom's cell to find out what was keeping them. Finally she couldn't handle the worry anymore. She picked up the phone and dialed.
------
Grissom started to dial Catherine's number. He knew that if she was awake, she would be worried that they weren't back yet. The phone rang in his hand. A glance at the caller ID told him that it was Catherine. 'Damn!'
He barely got the word hello out when she cut him off. "Grissom, where on earth are you?"
"Calm down, Catherine. We got caught in traffic after stopping at the video rental place."
"Grissom!"
"Ah, Lindsey wants to talk to you." Grissom hurriedly handed the phone to his passenger and turned the corner. They were only a few blocks away, but he knew that she would keel hull him when they got a chance to be alone. He hoped that talking to Lindsey would dispel most of her anger and reassure her that everything was okay.
"Mommy! Uncle Gil and I rented some movies to watch tonight."
"Sweetheart, Uncle Gil and I have to go to work tonight."
"But he called Uncle Warrick and told him that he was in charge tonight."
"Honey, put Uncle Gil on the phone." Catherine hated doing this to her, but she needed to straighten things out with him.
Lindsey tapped Grissom's arm and said, "Mom wants to talk to you."
"Catherine, I'm sorry." Grissom wanted to let her know that whatever it was, he didn't mean to upset her.
"Care to explain why you two rented movies? I thought we were working tonight?"
"Well, technically I am. I put myself on call tonight and Warrick is in charge unless I'm called in."
"And I am... what am I doing?"
"You are following doctor's orders and taking it easy tonight. If it makes you feel better, I'll tell Warrick that you are on call with me. Anything that requires either of us, we'll deal with it together."
"And Lindsey? Since the sitter won't be here, what do we do about her if a call comes in?"
"I... I thought we might be able to bring her in. She can sleep in my office if it comes to that." In actuality Grissom hadn't thought about that aspect. Now he understood why Catherine was running just a shade shy of irritation when he would call her in. "Catherine. I really am sorry about being late, but I didn't want to leave Lindsey so I could get a change of clothes."
Catherine's frustration began to abate as she remembered that he was doing his best in a foreign situation. "I know. I just would have appreciated a call earlier to let me know what was going on. I'll see what I can pull together for dinner."
Grissom turned into her driveway and suggested that they eat out instead. They were still talking on the phone discussing possibilities when Lindsey opened the door to the house for Grissom. "Mommy, we're home!"
Catherine hung up the cordless phone she was on and greeted her daughter. Grissom set the bag with the tapes in it on the coffee table and turned his cell phone off. Hoping to diffuse their argument he asked, "So Lindsey what'll it be for dinner?"
"Pizza!" Lindsey said excitedly. Sensing that her mom needed to talk she added, "Can I order?"
"I don't know, can you?" Catherine joked. She kept trying to get her daughter to use the proper form of asking for something.
"May I, Mom?" Lindsey asked correcting herself.
"Sure, kiddo."
"Order some appetizers, Linds," Grissom said. Lindsey nodded and left the adults alone in the living room. Grissom explained, "It's my treat, Cath."
Looking at his face she knew it was useless to argue with him. "Okay." Neither said a word for awhile. "Gil, I'm sorry I snapped at you. When I woke up alone..."
"I'm sorry. I should've woken you up to let you know. I just didn't want to disturb you." Grissom hugged and held her to reassure her that everything was all right. After a few minutes of silence he felt her shaking against him. "Hey, what's wrong?"
Catherine stepped back smiling. "Nothing. I was just thinking that we have apologized to each other so many times today, someone would think we didn't know anything else to say to each other."
Lindsey came back into the room and found two laughing adults. They hadn't noticed she came in so she went back into the kitchen and searched for her camera. Making sure she had film she re-entered the living room and took a picture of them.
The flash from the camera brought both of them back to earth. Catherine looked at her daughter and smiled in response to the big grin on her face.
"So what are we eating tonight?" Grissom asked letting go of Catherine.
"Half meat lovers and half Hawaiian and some breadsticks; it'll be here in forty-five minutes. Ca... *May* we play my movie first?"
"Sure. Go put in the tape," Grissom said as he and Catherine sat down on the couch and waited for Lindsey to start the movie. She turned off the lights and sat down on the other side of Grissom and whispered something in his ear. He smiled and whispered back.
"Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Catherine asked the two conspirators.
"Nothing, Mommy."
"Yeah, 'Mommy', it's nothing. You sit back and enjoy the show; I'm going to get us something to drink."
Catherine looked at him in shock. Today had been one hell of a roller coaster ride, at least as far as Grissom was concerned. All day he had been spoiling Lindsey with small treats and now they were keeping things from her. Today also showed a side of her friend that she never truly saw before. She returned her attention to the movie deciding to wait until another day to figure out the curve balls that he kept sending her way.
Grissom, with tray in hand, stood in the doorway and watched as mother and daughter focused their attention on the movie. Today had been an emotional trial for him. Between nearly losing a valuable friend and co-worker and feeling guilty about not letting her in of late, he was exhausted.
Lindsey's whispered words kept surfacing in his mind. Before today he thought Lindsey was a bit nervous when he was around. But now he could really understand why Catherine always smiled when someone mentioned her little girl's name. When he finally heard about Catherine's attack it was as though everything he knew intellectually had been shaken apart. Now, at the end of a single day, everything was put back in order, exactly as they had been before only this time some things made more sense.
He silently approached the couch and started to sit down on the other side of Lindsey when she moved so he could sit between mother and daughter. Halfway through the movie the delivery guy arrived. Grissom put the movie on pause and chuckled as Lindsey "raced" him to the door.
Throughout time, civilizations often based their beliefs on the supposition that there was life after death. All through high school and college he could never understand that belief, but today he did. Just being there to lend support to his friend brought death to part of him; the barriers he erected so long ago started to crumble and a little girl's love told him that there is indeed life after.