It's all in the past
Chapter 1: I do (cherish you)
A/N: I really don't know what each character's worst moment would be so I'm basically making up the ones I don't know. This in no way reflects what really happened in their pasts, as I don't know them(.
"I was eighteen when I proposed to my wife," Grissom smiled at a memory the others couldn't see. It had been decided they would share the worst time in their life, as they were family, and Grissom volunteered to go first. He figured it be best that everyone got their secrets off of their chests. "We'd dated all though high school and I guess it just felt right for us to get married as soon as she turned eighteen.
"She went to work as a waitress while I took classes at university. I worked as a salesclerk at a grocery store during the weekends to pay off loans. It was a horrible way to live but we were together so we loved it.
"I worked so hard and eventually got my degree. You all know how fascinated I am with bugs so it was only natural for me to get my degree in entomology.
"My wife, her name was Rayleigh Denae Grissom, supported me the entire way. She was beautiful. She had long blonde hair, the colour of the sun, which ran down her back in twisted curls. Her ocean blue eyes sparkled with a love for life that made me feel so alive every time I looked into them. She was so loving and caring too. She always bought some food for the strays around our apartment building, even though it usually meant we'd have no breakfast food for the week. She'd rather miss a meal than allow those animals to starve all week, and I loved her for it."
He was gone, left this world and was swimming in the world of memories. They could hear the softness in his voice and could see the sparkle in his eye when he spoke of her. They knew he really loved her. They waited patiently for him to come back to the real world and continue on with his memory.
"When she told me she was pregnant, that was the happiest day of my life. I was only twenty-three and she was only twenty-two but we were ready to be parents. We'd been saving some money from each pay and, since I now had one degree, I was able to quit my salesclerk job and get a better job as a workclerk at a hospital. We were slowly on our way up and out of the slum we were living in. We didn't want our baby to see what our lives were like before she came into them.
Yes, it was a girl. Rayleigh always knew the baby would be a girl. We even had a name picked out for her. Tiana Hope Grissom.
"I'm getting ahead of myself now. We ended up saving enough to put a down payment on a small two-bedroom house. It was perfect for a small family. It had a larger bedroom for Rayleigh and I and a smaller one for Tiana. There was a bathroom, kitchen, living room, and a small dining room. Everything we would need. We managed to buy the basic necessities, like a bed, crib, and a couch. Luckily the bathroom and kitchen came fully furnished. The owners before us wanted completely new furniture and didn't want the hassle of trying to find someone to sell them to. It was our Heaven.
"I was still going to school on top of this. I had to get my entomology degree. Rayleigh refused to let me stay home and take care of her; no matter how hard it was for her to move around. She stopped working when she was eight months along and by that time it was summer so I could stay with her during the day. I still worked nights. We needed the money, especially when Rayleigh got one of her cravings.
"She always wanted the strangest things. She'd be waiting for me when I got home from work, sometimes she'd even call me at work, and tell me to bring her ice cream and pickles. Then she'd dip the pickle in the ice cream and eat it. I never could watch her eat that. I could stand to watch her eat chocolate covered ants or macaroni, cheese and molasses, but never ice cream and pickles. What I wouldn't give to be able to watch her eat ice cream and pickles now.
"When she began getting labor contractions I panicked. I could barely drive straight. I'm still surprised that we didn't get pulled over by the police. But I got her there. A nurse took her to an exam room and I was forced to wait outside while the doctor went in to see how far along she was. I was allowed in once the doctor came out. He said it shouldn't be too long before I became a father.
"I was holding her hand as a really bad contraction came. The only problem was that this time the pain wasn't going away. I press the call nurse button and was ushered out of the room while the nurse and doctor attended to my wife. They were in there for a while. I was pacing up and down the hallway, waiting for them to let me back in. Her parents and mine were on their way but it would be another hour before any of them could be there.
"It seemed like forever but was really only about a half-hour before the doctor came out, covered in blood. I knew. I felt my life drain out of me as he came up to me and gave me the worst news of my life. The strain of the pregnancy was too much for Rayleigh and it killed both her and Tiana. I felt that it was my fault. I got her pregnant after all. I wanted to go back to out house and burn every memory of her out of my mind because I felt like I let her down and I didn't deserve to have to joy of remembering her. I also thought of ending my pain, killing myself, but that wasn't an option. She had made me promise plenty of times that if anything happened to her that I would continue with my education and get my degree. It was like she knew that something was going to take her away from me before we could share a lifetime together.
"The double funeral for her and my daughter was the hardest thing I ever had to do. Not only was I saying goodbye to the love of my life and the offspring of our love but also I was saying goodbye to my life. I think that's why I became a CSI. I want to give families closure on the death of their wives, husbands, children and parents. Work became my life. It filled the empty void Rayleigh had left."
Sara had placed her hand over his somewhere during his story. He didn't remember feeling her squeezing his hand but she was. She also had tears in her eyes as hers met her boss's. He felt better now that his team knew of his wife. A weight had been lifted off his shoulders and he felt like he was breathing freely for the first time since her death.
A/N: I really don't know what each character's worst moment would be so I'm basically making up the ones I don't know. This in no way reflects what really happened in their pasts, as I don't know them(.
"I was eighteen when I proposed to my wife," Grissom smiled at a memory the others couldn't see. It had been decided they would share the worst time in their life, as they were family, and Grissom volunteered to go first. He figured it be best that everyone got their secrets off of their chests. "We'd dated all though high school and I guess it just felt right for us to get married as soon as she turned eighteen.
"She went to work as a waitress while I took classes at university. I worked as a salesclerk at a grocery store during the weekends to pay off loans. It was a horrible way to live but we were together so we loved it.
"I worked so hard and eventually got my degree. You all know how fascinated I am with bugs so it was only natural for me to get my degree in entomology.
"My wife, her name was Rayleigh Denae Grissom, supported me the entire way. She was beautiful. She had long blonde hair, the colour of the sun, which ran down her back in twisted curls. Her ocean blue eyes sparkled with a love for life that made me feel so alive every time I looked into them. She was so loving and caring too. She always bought some food for the strays around our apartment building, even though it usually meant we'd have no breakfast food for the week. She'd rather miss a meal than allow those animals to starve all week, and I loved her for it."
He was gone, left this world and was swimming in the world of memories. They could hear the softness in his voice and could see the sparkle in his eye when he spoke of her. They knew he really loved her. They waited patiently for him to come back to the real world and continue on with his memory.
"When she told me she was pregnant, that was the happiest day of my life. I was only twenty-three and she was only twenty-two but we were ready to be parents. We'd been saving some money from each pay and, since I now had one degree, I was able to quit my salesclerk job and get a better job as a workclerk at a hospital. We were slowly on our way up and out of the slum we were living in. We didn't want our baby to see what our lives were like before she came into them.
Yes, it was a girl. Rayleigh always knew the baby would be a girl. We even had a name picked out for her. Tiana Hope Grissom.
"I'm getting ahead of myself now. We ended up saving enough to put a down payment on a small two-bedroom house. It was perfect for a small family. It had a larger bedroom for Rayleigh and I and a smaller one for Tiana. There was a bathroom, kitchen, living room, and a small dining room. Everything we would need. We managed to buy the basic necessities, like a bed, crib, and a couch. Luckily the bathroom and kitchen came fully furnished. The owners before us wanted completely new furniture and didn't want the hassle of trying to find someone to sell them to. It was our Heaven.
"I was still going to school on top of this. I had to get my entomology degree. Rayleigh refused to let me stay home and take care of her; no matter how hard it was for her to move around. She stopped working when she was eight months along and by that time it was summer so I could stay with her during the day. I still worked nights. We needed the money, especially when Rayleigh got one of her cravings.
"She always wanted the strangest things. She'd be waiting for me when I got home from work, sometimes she'd even call me at work, and tell me to bring her ice cream and pickles. Then she'd dip the pickle in the ice cream and eat it. I never could watch her eat that. I could stand to watch her eat chocolate covered ants or macaroni, cheese and molasses, but never ice cream and pickles. What I wouldn't give to be able to watch her eat ice cream and pickles now.
"When she began getting labor contractions I panicked. I could barely drive straight. I'm still surprised that we didn't get pulled over by the police. But I got her there. A nurse took her to an exam room and I was forced to wait outside while the doctor went in to see how far along she was. I was allowed in once the doctor came out. He said it shouldn't be too long before I became a father.
"I was holding her hand as a really bad contraction came. The only problem was that this time the pain wasn't going away. I press the call nurse button and was ushered out of the room while the nurse and doctor attended to my wife. They were in there for a while. I was pacing up and down the hallway, waiting for them to let me back in. Her parents and mine were on their way but it would be another hour before any of them could be there.
"It seemed like forever but was really only about a half-hour before the doctor came out, covered in blood. I knew. I felt my life drain out of me as he came up to me and gave me the worst news of my life. The strain of the pregnancy was too much for Rayleigh and it killed both her and Tiana. I felt that it was my fault. I got her pregnant after all. I wanted to go back to out house and burn every memory of her out of my mind because I felt like I let her down and I didn't deserve to have to joy of remembering her. I also thought of ending my pain, killing myself, but that wasn't an option. She had made me promise plenty of times that if anything happened to her that I would continue with my education and get my degree. It was like she knew that something was going to take her away from me before we could share a lifetime together.
"The double funeral for her and my daughter was the hardest thing I ever had to do. Not only was I saying goodbye to the love of my life and the offspring of our love but also I was saying goodbye to my life. I think that's why I became a CSI. I want to give families closure on the death of their wives, husbands, children and parents. Work became my life. It filled the empty void Rayleigh had left."
Sara had placed her hand over his somewhere during his story. He didn't remember feeling her squeezing his hand but she was. She also had tears in her eyes as hers met her boss's. He felt better now that his team knew of his wife. A weight had been lifted off his shoulders and he felt like he was breathing freely for the first time since her death.