Sara and Kami continued their conversation as they walked through
the rows of vendors, pitching the latest in forensic software and
devices, or peddled subscriptions to forensic journals. Kami accepted
a pamphlet on the newest tread identification software without even
looking at the salesman who handed it to her, her eyes focused on her
old friend as Sara told the long story of her non-affair with
Grissom. They had made their way through ten rows of booths, and Sara
finished the story, ending it with the previous evenings encounter.
She felt exhausted. Though a little more social than Grissom, Sara
wasn't used to sharing so much with other breathing humans. She
considered Nick her closest friend on the team, and even he didn't
know a good majority of her inner thoughts and past. She stopped and
admired the most advanced model of the Nikon microscope. "Wow, theses are amazing! I'd kill for one at the lab!...But, yeah. There you have it, Kami. He
pushed me away, just like he always has, and always will." She
stuffed an information packet on the microscope into a plastic
bag. "Oh, honey..." Kami's heart went out to her old friend. "Have
you ever out and out told him about your feelings for him? It sounds
like you guys do a lot of side-stepping around each other." Sara bit
her lip. "No, I haven't." Kami groaned. "Well, my dear, if you really
want this guy, if he's really worth your time, you'd better do
something." Sara scowled. "It's not that easy, Kam." She picked a
brochure up from the table next to her without even bothering to look
at what it was about. "Ma'am-I'm sorry, but you just took a handful
of those, and I'm running low. Two per person, max, please." Sara's
head snapped up in surprise. "Oh, sorry..." she mumbled to the
salesman, putting them back and quickly walking away. Kami smiled
sympathetically after Sara. "She's got it bad," the woman said aloud
to no one in particular, a smile playing upon her lips. "Huh?" The
vendor next to her asked rudely. Kami frowned at him and hurried to
catch up to Sara. She fell back in to step with her friend. Taking
the hint that Sara was finished with the subject for some time, Kami
began to ramble on about the microscopes at the San Francisco lab.
Sara barely heard a word she said. Inside, she knew Kami was right. Now was the time, and the place, for a confrontation on her feelings.
Tonight, she was going to confront Grissom, and settle things once
and for all.
Grissom wandered around the huge hall for half an hour, without
seeing any sign of Sara. His heart sank. He would have been content
to search all day until he found her, but his watch reminded him that
he was there for a purpose besides Sara. Grissom went to meet with
the lecture coordinators and find out how many people would be
attending his presentation. After that business was attended to, he
went up to his room to gather up everything he'd need to set up.
As he headed out the door, arms full, his cell phone rang, startling
him. He dumped everything back on the bed and pulled the phone out of
his pocket, flipping it open. "Grissom," "Grissom, Catherine. Say,
sorry to bother you, but Nick and I can't find the file for the
murder at the Zia Casino, the one four months ago? We think the cases
might be linked." "Really?" Grissom said, excited. He told Catherine
where he'd filed the case. "Great...it should be up on the third
shelf, Nicky...yeah! There it is. Thanks, Gil, we got it." "Great!
He, give me a call when you get the guy, if it's before I'm back,
would you? Just leave me a voice mail if I don't answer." "Will do.
So, how's Colorado. Are you being nice? Where's Sara?" Grissom
sighed, ignoring Catherine's first question. "I don't know where she
is." "She's not with you?" "Not right now, no." "You didn't screw
anything up again, did you?" "What?!" "Look, Griss, you're going to
loose her. Make things right before you come home. I've got to go.
Talk to you later." "Catherine, I don't"-she hung up. He closed his
eyes, taking a deep breath.
Hours passed by. Grissom attended a presentation on forensic
odontology's new database layout before he finished preparations
setting up for is own lecture. Soon, it was almost two, and Grissom waited
patiently on the podium as his attendees filed in. He looked up from
his note cards just in time to see Sara, the blonde woman from this
morning walking beside her. His heart pounded in excitement; he'd
been so afraid she wouldn't come. She took his breath away in a
simple burgundy button-down shirt and black slacks. As he watched
her, longing filling him to the brim, she looked up, catching his
eye, and quickly looked away. He couldn't ignore the pain he saw in
her gaze, and the fact that he'd caused most of it. All he wanted was
to leave the podium and go hold her, tell her how sorry he was and
how much he wanted her, loved her. But a convention worker was
closing the doors to the room, and it was time for his presentation
to begin.
It was a successful, well-received presentation. Sara's heart
stirred with pride and happiness for Gil, and she was impressed
herself-but she tried not to acknowledge any feeling having to do
with Grissom. Kami watched Sara out of the corner of her eye, seeing
Sara's restless manner, and catching her several times gazing
longingly at the blue-eyed man on the podium.
Grissom displayed the last slide and stood quietly to receive his
applause. "Thank you. I'll open up the discussion for questions and
answers now." He fielded questions for half an hour. He had answered
one pathologists query on pupa casings when an elderly man in
clashing suspenders and a bow-tie raised his gnarled hand. "Yes, sir?
Name, occupation, location and question, please?" Grissom replied,
nodding to him. "Yes, sonny, Dr. Gerald Wordsworth, MD, forensic
pathologist from Maryland here-that fine young man just asked the
question I was wanting to know earlier." Grissom's face flushed,
remembering pushing the man rudely out of the way. "OK, Doctor, did
you have any questions or comments to add to that?" "No, Dr. Grissom,
you answered just fine, but that scientist you just quoted, I'd like
to read more of his article. Could you cite your source, please?"
Grissom found Sara's face in the audience, and tried to keep a
straight face, thinking of the day on the plane, and Ken Fuller...
Sara knew immediately what he was thinking, and a smile played upon
her own lips, filling Grissom's heart with joy. If she could still
smile at him, maybe there was still hope. He answered the
pathologists' question, never taking his eyes away from Sara. Dr.
Wordsworth smiled as he returned to his seat, not minding Grissom's
inattentiveness in the least little bit.
Kami grinned at her friend, thinking, `Oh, yeah, he's got it bad,
too,'
Grissom wrapped up the presentation, promising himself that tonight,
he would confront Sara, and try his damndest to make things right,
once and for all.
the rows of vendors, pitching the latest in forensic software and
devices, or peddled subscriptions to forensic journals. Kami accepted
a pamphlet on the newest tread identification software without even
looking at the salesman who handed it to her, her eyes focused on her
old friend as Sara told the long story of her non-affair with
Grissom. They had made their way through ten rows of booths, and Sara
finished the story, ending it with the previous evenings encounter.
She felt exhausted. Though a little more social than Grissom, Sara
wasn't used to sharing so much with other breathing humans. She
considered Nick her closest friend on the team, and even he didn't
know a good majority of her inner thoughts and past. She stopped and
admired the most advanced model of the Nikon microscope. "Wow, theses are amazing! I'd kill for one at the lab!...But, yeah. There you have it, Kami. He
pushed me away, just like he always has, and always will." She
stuffed an information packet on the microscope into a plastic
bag. "Oh, honey..." Kami's heart went out to her old friend. "Have
you ever out and out told him about your feelings for him? It sounds
like you guys do a lot of side-stepping around each other." Sara bit
her lip. "No, I haven't." Kami groaned. "Well, my dear, if you really
want this guy, if he's really worth your time, you'd better do
something." Sara scowled. "It's not that easy, Kam." She picked a
brochure up from the table next to her without even bothering to look
at what it was about. "Ma'am-I'm sorry, but you just took a handful
of those, and I'm running low. Two per person, max, please." Sara's
head snapped up in surprise. "Oh, sorry..." she mumbled to the
salesman, putting them back and quickly walking away. Kami smiled
sympathetically after Sara. "She's got it bad," the woman said aloud
to no one in particular, a smile playing upon her lips. "Huh?" The
vendor next to her asked rudely. Kami frowned at him and hurried to
catch up to Sara. She fell back in to step with her friend. Taking
the hint that Sara was finished with the subject for some time, Kami
began to ramble on about the microscopes at the San Francisco lab.
Sara barely heard a word she said. Inside, she knew Kami was right. Now was the time, and the place, for a confrontation on her feelings.
Tonight, she was going to confront Grissom, and settle things once
and for all.
Grissom wandered around the huge hall for half an hour, without
seeing any sign of Sara. His heart sank. He would have been content
to search all day until he found her, but his watch reminded him that
he was there for a purpose besides Sara. Grissom went to meet with
the lecture coordinators and find out how many people would be
attending his presentation. After that business was attended to, he
went up to his room to gather up everything he'd need to set up.
As he headed out the door, arms full, his cell phone rang, startling
him. He dumped everything back on the bed and pulled the phone out of
his pocket, flipping it open. "Grissom," "Grissom, Catherine. Say,
sorry to bother you, but Nick and I can't find the file for the
murder at the Zia Casino, the one four months ago? We think the cases
might be linked." "Really?" Grissom said, excited. He told Catherine
where he'd filed the case. "Great...it should be up on the third
shelf, Nicky...yeah! There it is. Thanks, Gil, we got it." "Great!
He, give me a call when you get the guy, if it's before I'm back,
would you? Just leave me a voice mail if I don't answer." "Will do.
So, how's Colorado. Are you being nice? Where's Sara?" Grissom
sighed, ignoring Catherine's first question. "I don't know where she
is." "She's not with you?" "Not right now, no." "You didn't screw
anything up again, did you?" "What?!" "Look, Griss, you're going to
loose her. Make things right before you come home. I've got to go.
Talk to you later." "Catherine, I don't"-she hung up. He closed his
eyes, taking a deep breath.
Hours passed by. Grissom attended a presentation on forensic
odontology's new database layout before he finished preparations
setting up for is own lecture. Soon, it was almost two, and Grissom waited
patiently on the podium as his attendees filed in. He looked up from
his note cards just in time to see Sara, the blonde woman from this
morning walking beside her. His heart pounded in excitement; he'd
been so afraid she wouldn't come. She took his breath away in a
simple burgundy button-down shirt and black slacks. As he watched
her, longing filling him to the brim, she looked up, catching his
eye, and quickly looked away. He couldn't ignore the pain he saw in
her gaze, and the fact that he'd caused most of it. All he wanted was
to leave the podium and go hold her, tell her how sorry he was and
how much he wanted her, loved her. But a convention worker was
closing the doors to the room, and it was time for his presentation
to begin.
It was a successful, well-received presentation. Sara's heart
stirred with pride and happiness for Gil, and she was impressed
herself-but she tried not to acknowledge any feeling having to do
with Grissom. Kami watched Sara out of the corner of her eye, seeing
Sara's restless manner, and catching her several times gazing
longingly at the blue-eyed man on the podium.
Grissom displayed the last slide and stood quietly to receive his
applause. "Thank you. I'll open up the discussion for questions and
answers now." He fielded questions for half an hour. He had answered
one pathologists query on pupa casings when an elderly man in
clashing suspenders and a bow-tie raised his gnarled hand. "Yes, sir?
Name, occupation, location and question, please?" Grissom replied,
nodding to him. "Yes, sonny, Dr. Gerald Wordsworth, MD, forensic
pathologist from Maryland here-that fine young man just asked the
question I was wanting to know earlier." Grissom's face flushed,
remembering pushing the man rudely out of the way. "OK, Doctor, did
you have any questions or comments to add to that?" "No, Dr. Grissom,
you answered just fine, but that scientist you just quoted, I'd like
to read more of his article. Could you cite your source, please?"
Grissom found Sara's face in the audience, and tried to keep a
straight face, thinking of the day on the plane, and Ken Fuller...
Sara knew immediately what he was thinking, and a smile played upon
her own lips, filling Grissom's heart with joy. If she could still
smile at him, maybe there was still hope. He answered the
pathologists' question, never taking his eyes away from Sara. Dr.
Wordsworth smiled as he returned to his seat, not minding Grissom's
inattentiveness in the least little bit.
Kami grinned at her friend, thinking, `Oh, yeah, he's got it bad,
too,'
Grissom wrapped up the presentation, promising himself that tonight,
he would confront Sara, and try his damndest to make things right,
once and for all.