Chapter 3
The next night was busy with cases. Nick and Warrick were solo. Nick worked an apparent suicide, Warrick was investigating a robbery and Catherine was working with Sara on a murder at the racetrack.
Grissom was working solo on a rape case. He sat in autopsy, staring at the x-rays with Doc Robbins working on Catherine's and Sara's murder vic.
Doc Robbins looked up now and then and saw him still staring at the x-rays in deep thought. He was going to ask him what was wrong, but decided against it. Sara and Catherine walked in and were filled in on what killed their vic. Catherine glanced at Grissom and looked at Doc Robbins with confusion. He shrugged and continued on filling them in. Grissom moved from his sitting position on the desk chair and rubbed his face. He stood and walked out of the room without a word.
He'd heard Sara's voice and froze. She asked questions about the body and he listened to her. When the room went quiet for a few minutes, he realised he was being watched. He knew it was just Al and Cath, but he needed to get out of there.
Catherine looked at Sara, but she was staring at the floor. "You ok?"
Sara nodded and took the autopsy report from Doc Robbins and left. Catherine followed her after saying thank you to the coroner.
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Sara sat in the layout room and flipped through her case file. "Dammit." She flipped through the file again and cursed quietly. "Where the hell is it?" She stood and looked around the table and on the floor. "Oh for gods sake." She collected the file together and stalked off towards Autopsy.
She walked through the door and headed straight for Doc Robbins desk in the dark. She blindly groped for the lamplight and switched it on. She sat down at the computer and booted it up. "Of all the things Cath, could've taken the file not just the report. Jesus." She muttered tapping at the keyboard.
The room was pitch black apart from the computer screen and lamplight. Everyone had left and barely a person remained in the building. A few lab techs and the beginnings of the day shift. It was still dark outside, but the sun was rising rapidly.
Sara yawned and rests her chin in her hand. Tapping at the mouse she printed off the report and went to stand up. She grabbed the desk as she swayed. Movement came from the back of the room and Sara turned quickly in shock only to grabbed the desk to support her.
"Sara, You ok?"
The familiar voice seemed close, but so far. She grasped the person's shoulder and rubbed her eyes. "Yeah fine." She looked up and inwardly groaned. "Grissom, what are you doing sitting in the dark, in the autopsy room?" She shook her head and this time groaned and wiped her hand across her eyes. "Forget it, I'm going."
She let his shoulder go and waited for him to remove his hands from her arm. He did slowly, making sure she didn't fall. "Sara, What's wrong?" He watched her pick up the report and walk out the door. He turned the off computer and light before following her. She had gone back to the layout room. Grabbing her cell from the table she turned and bumped into Grissom. "Are you ill?"
"No." She stepped back and moved past him once he let her by.
Grissom frowned and followed her with his eyes. Leaning against the wall he sighed. He lowered his head and took a deep breath.
Everything was getting from bad to worse and it just got from worse to bloody worrying. She wasn't talking to him in the first place and now she might be ill and she's not going to say anything. He turned and headed for his office in defeat. He tried to help, he didn't mean to scare her. He was sat in the dark thinking, nothing else.
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God she felt horrible. Her whole body ached. It wasn't like it a few days ago when she had her first dizzy spell. It's just lack of sleep, she keeps telling herself. That damn phone keeps ringing all night and all day. Why wouldn't he take no for an answer? but that wasn't the only problem.
Sara's mind was occupied with two cases that suddenly showed a possible connection. Nick was interviewing a suspect while Sara made phone calls to company's about a specific brand of wax that was found on the vics body. It was some sort of insignia. The wax was used to keep the victims hair in place while the perp killed them. The hair would be combed back with no parting. The wax was a browny gold colour and was familiar to Nick. He said he'd seen it somewhere, but couldn't think where exactly. So, here Sara sat at the computer and on the phone for over four hours. Her caffeine need seemed to increase ten full and whenever someone saw her, she had a cup in her hand. She realised that without it, she would fall asleep. She didn't want that happening, although when Warrick walked past the computer lab, he saw the computer mouse still and Sara's head resting on her fist. Although from the door it looked like she was reading, but when Warrick moved into the room, she didn't move or respond to his voice.
"Hey, Sara." He sat next to her and removed the coffee from her hand that rests on the desk. He snapped his fingers, but no reaction. Just then Catherine wondered by. "Um. Cath, come here."
Catherine stopped by him and gave a worried look. "Can you carry her to the break room Warrick?"
"Yeah sure, but she'll be mad." Catherine gave him her motherly 'I-don't- care' look and he carefully picked Sara up and carried her two doors down to the break room.
Nick and Jim came striding down the hallway and followed Catherine and Warrick. "What happened?" Nick asked.
Warrick gently laid Sara down and covered her with a blanket. "She's asleep I think. Can't wake her up. She's out cold."
Catherine perched on the edge of the couch and felt her head. "Sara, Sweetie." She leaned down and heard her breathing softly. "She's out."
"Why? She was fine earlier." Nick asked worriedly. "I don't understand."
"Don't understand what? And why are you lot not working?" Grissom's voice was hard and stressed.
Warrick and Jim moved away from the couch and let Grissom move forward. He saw Sara and crouched down. Catherine saw his concerned and panicked look. "She seems asleep."
"Seems?" Grissom checked her pulse and felt her head and neck. "She's incredibly hot, a temperature and her pulse is slow." He turned to Warrick. "Can you get the nurse?" Warrick nodded and left.
"Is she alright Gil? I mean she's asleep." Catherine placed her hand on his shoulder and he turned.
"The other day she nearly passed out. Lost her balance a few times. I'm not sure she's well." Grissom looked down at Sara and held her hand in both his.
"She's been fine, a bit heavy on the coffee, but fine." Nick informed.
The nurse came through the door and check Sara over. She stood and turned to Grissom. "She's defiantly sleeping, past out from exhaustion by the looks of things. Can someone take her home?"
"Yeah." Everyone looked at Grissom and the nurse nodded. Once the nurse left, Catherine put a blanket over Sara and watched as Grissom easily lift her into his arms. "Warrick could you open the doors and Nick, grab my keys from my desk."
Chapter 4
Grissom opened Sara's front door without disturbing the brunette in his arms. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck and her breath tickled his neck as her head rest on his shoulder. It took everything in him to keep his legs from buckling at the sensations she was unknowingly evoking in him.
Kicking her door shut quietly, he headed in the direction of where he guessed her bedroom was. Once he laid her down on her queen-sized bed, she curled up on her side. He pulled the blanket at the bottom of the bed up to her shoulders and brushed her hair away from her face. His fingers lingered on her cheek before backing out the room.
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Sitting on Sara's couch, he laid his head back and not meaning to, he fell asleep. His head was still going when he reached deep sleep. Things to say, things to ask and things to explain. The first thing he had to explain was why and how she got home and the most important that he was sure she'd asked. 'Why are you here?' amongst the over painful questions and words she was bound to say. Some friend he is, not being their for her, letting her get sick, avoiding her, getting angry with her, etc. Life went down the drain when he realised how much he missed her when he'd put a large distance between them. His heart ached to speak with her, stand next to her or be in the same room with her.
It then hit him. She was doing the exact thing to him. She was avoiding him just as he was doing to her. She wasn't talking to her just like he was doing to her. They argued, never talked, never looked each other in the eye, barely worked cases together, barely said a courteous hello.
Grissom sat up abruptly and stood. He walked to her bedroom and stuck his head inside the door. She was still sleeping. He checked his watch. Raising a curious eyebrow at the 5 hours he'd been asleep and decided to see what Sara had in her fridge to eat. Not finding anything, he ordered some food from the one and only takeout menu on the fridge. She's defiantly cutting down on the takeout food. He though not seeing any containers in the fridge, but then he felt a pang in his chest. Wasn't she eating? He looked into her cupboards and food a few boxes of cereal and a few jars of jam and other sauces for vegetarian dishes along with many soups, tinned and packet.
She must be eating. She doesn't look like she's stopped; maybe he's just over reacting. Anyway, he ordered her some takeout too, so she would probably eat when she wakes up.
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Sara turned onto her front and buried her face into her pillow. She moaned softly at the softness, but then the thought of her bed and pillow flooded her sense. Her head shot up and turned over. She scanned the room it was her room. Furrowing her brows in mass confusion, she sat up and replayed what she could remember before falling asleep. Work, researching - then nothing - then now.
Flinging the covers off and standing, she immediately regretted it and fell back onto the mattress with dizziness and nausea. She groaned and clutched her head as she laid back.
"You want to start telling me what's going on?"
Sara's eyes flew open and found the owner of that voice hovering over her. She groaned again, but in agitation this time. "What are you doing here Grissom?"
Grissom pulled the blanket from where she pushed it to the end of the bed and draped it over her as he sat down next to her. "Answer the question Sara." He said sternly.
She glared at him. "Don't start with me Grissom."
Looking away at the bedroom door, he sighed. "Sorry. I brought you home. You fell asleep."
"I gathered that. Why are you here? Still." Sara sat up and pushed herself off the bed, only to close her eyes and press the heel of her hand into her forehead.
Grissom stood and touched her shoulder. "Sara?"
She shrugged his hand off. "Go away." She seethed and walked out of the room.
Following her into the living room where she stood by the kitchen entryway. He was about to ask her again what was wrong, but there was a knock at the door. Sighing he paid for the food and walked past her to the kitchen. He began opening the containers and loading food onto two plates. Sara watched in shock as he pushed a plate towards her over the breakfast bar. Frowning, she sat down on a barstool.
"Just eat a little bit. Please." Sara looked up at him and nodded slowly.
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After eating and washing the dishes. Grissom pulled out his cell and rang Catherine. "Yeah, hey Cath I'm not coming in tonight. no she's fine, don't worry. Ok bye." He hung up and poured two glasses of water.
"You seem to know where everything is Grissom. How long have you been here?" She asked taking a glass from him.
"Same as you. You want to tell me why you didn't mention that you were ill?"
Turning away from him to sit on the couch. "I'm not ill and it's no ones business if I were."
Grissom leaned against the breakfast bar on the living room side and stared at her. "Try again Sara."
"What? You don't believe me?" She laughed unconvincingly.
He shook his head. "No. You want to know why?" He moved to sit on the coffee table in front of her. "You won't talk to me and tell me what's going on. If you're ill you should have told me."
Sara held up her hand. "Don't preach to me damnit."
"I'm not. I'm concerned, but you don't care about what I think or feel, so." As he spoke her eyes left his in remembrance and guilt. ". listen to me now because you are going to make yourself even worse and passing out at work was the last straw and the most evil way of telling me your not well."
Before he could go on, she stood only to sit down again as a thought entered her head. "Evil way? I wasn't planning on telling you at all. I don't have to tell you anything, I don't even have to talk or listen to you, so just leave. We're not at work, you can not bully me into telling you anything."
Grissom pulled his head back a little at her hurtful words. He took in a shaky breath through his nose and dropped his eyes to his hands. Sara watched him carefully. Why did she have to open her big mouth?
His jaw twitched and his fists clench as he stood and walked towards the door. He pulled the door open and stood in the doorway with his back to her. Rubbing his face to alleviate some of the aching pain he said. "I'm sorry."
Sara opened her mouth to say something, but stopped. She watched him leave and stared at the closed door for what seemed like forever.
The next night was busy with cases. Nick and Warrick were solo. Nick worked an apparent suicide, Warrick was investigating a robbery and Catherine was working with Sara on a murder at the racetrack.
Grissom was working solo on a rape case. He sat in autopsy, staring at the x-rays with Doc Robbins working on Catherine's and Sara's murder vic.
Doc Robbins looked up now and then and saw him still staring at the x-rays in deep thought. He was going to ask him what was wrong, but decided against it. Sara and Catherine walked in and were filled in on what killed their vic. Catherine glanced at Grissom and looked at Doc Robbins with confusion. He shrugged and continued on filling them in. Grissom moved from his sitting position on the desk chair and rubbed his face. He stood and walked out of the room without a word.
He'd heard Sara's voice and froze. She asked questions about the body and he listened to her. When the room went quiet for a few minutes, he realised he was being watched. He knew it was just Al and Cath, but he needed to get out of there.
Catherine looked at Sara, but she was staring at the floor. "You ok?"
Sara nodded and took the autopsy report from Doc Robbins and left. Catherine followed her after saying thank you to the coroner.
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Sara sat in the layout room and flipped through her case file. "Dammit." She flipped through the file again and cursed quietly. "Where the hell is it?" She stood and looked around the table and on the floor. "Oh for gods sake." She collected the file together and stalked off towards Autopsy.
She walked through the door and headed straight for Doc Robbins desk in the dark. She blindly groped for the lamplight and switched it on. She sat down at the computer and booted it up. "Of all the things Cath, could've taken the file not just the report. Jesus." She muttered tapping at the keyboard.
The room was pitch black apart from the computer screen and lamplight. Everyone had left and barely a person remained in the building. A few lab techs and the beginnings of the day shift. It was still dark outside, but the sun was rising rapidly.
Sara yawned and rests her chin in her hand. Tapping at the mouse she printed off the report and went to stand up. She grabbed the desk as she swayed. Movement came from the back of the room and Sara turned quickly in shock only to grabbed the desk to support her.
"Sara, You ok?"
The familiar voice seemed close, but so far. She grasped the person's shoulder and rubbed her eyes. "Yeah fine." She looked up and inwardly groaned. "Grissom, what are you doing sitting in the dark, in the autopsy room?" She shook her head and this time groaned and wiped her hand across her eyes. "Forget it, I'm going."
She let his shoulder go and waited for him to remove his hands from her arm. He did slowly, making sure she didn't fall. "Sara, What's wrong?" He watched her pick up the report and walk out the door. He turned the off computer and light before following her. She had gone back to the layout room. Grabbing her cell from the table she turned and bumped into Grissom. "Are you ill?"
"No." She stepped back and moved past him once he let her by.
Grissom frowned and followed her with his eyes. Leaning against the wall he sighed. He lowered his head and took a deep breath.
Everything was getting from bad to worse and it just got from worse to bloody worrying. She wasn't talking to him in the first place and now she might be ill and she's not going to say anything. He turned and headed for his office in defeat. He tried to help, he didn't mean to scare her. He was sat in the dark thinking, nothing else.
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God she felt horrible. Her whole body ached. It wasn't like it a few days ago when she had her first dizzy spell. It's just lack of sleep, she keeps telling herself. That damn phone keeps ringing all night and all day. Why wouldn't he take no for an answer? but that wasn't the only problem.
Sara's mind was occupied with two cases that suddenly showed a possible connection. Nick was interviewing a suspect while Sara made phone calls to company's about a specific brand of wax that was found on the vics body. It was some sort of insignia. The wax was used to keep the victims hair in place while the perp killed them. The hair would be combed back with no parting. The wax was a browny gold colour and was familiar to Nick. He said he'd seen it somewhere, but couldn't think where exactly. So, here Sara sat at the computer and on the phone for over four hours. Her caffeine need seemed to increase ten full and whenever someone saw her, she had a cup in her hand. She realised that without it, she would fall asleep. She didn't want that happening, although when Warrick walked past the computer lab, he saw the computer mouse still and Sara's head resting on her fist. Although from the door it looked like she was reading, but when Warrick moved into the room, she didn't move or respond to his voice.
"Hey, Sara." He sat next to her and removed the coffee from her hand that rests on the desk. He snapped his fingers, but no reaction. Just then Catherine wondered by. "Um. Cath, come here."
Catherine stopped by him and gave a worried look. "Can you carry her to the break room Warrick?"
"Yeah sure, but she'll be mad." Catherine gave him her motherly 'I-don't- care' look and he carefully picked Sara up and carried her two doors down to the break room.
Nick and Jim came striding down the hallway and followed Catherine and Warrick. "What happened?" Nick asked.
Warrick gently laid Sara down and covered her with a blanket. "She's asleep I think. Can't wake her up. She's out cold."
Catherine perched on the edge of the couch and felt her head. "Sara, Sweetie." She leaned down and heard her breathing softly. "She's out."
"Why? She was fine earlier." Nick asked worriedly. "I don't understand."
"Don't understand what? And why are you lot not working?" Grissom's voice was hard and stressed.
Warrick and Jim moved away from the couch and let Grissom move forward. He saw Sara and crouched down. Catherine saw his concerned and panicked look. "She seems asleep."
"Seems?" Grissom checked her pulse and felt her head and neck. "She's incredibly hot, a temperature and her pulse is slow." He turned to Warrick. "Can you get the nurse?" Warrick nodded and left.
"Is she alright Gil? I mean she's asleep." Catherine placed her hand on his shoulder and he turned.
"The other day she nearly passed out. Lost her balance a few times. I'm not sure she's well." Grissom looked down at Sara and held her hand in both his.
"She's been fine, a bit heavy on the coffee, but fine." Nick informed.
The nurse came through the door and check Sara over. She stood and turned to Grissom. "She's defiantly sleeping, past out from exhaustion by the looks of things. Can someone take her home?"
"Yeah." Everyone looked at Grissom and the nurse nodded. Once the nurse left, Catherine put a blanket over Sara and watched as Grissom easily lift her into his arms. "Warrick could you open the doors and Nick, grab my keys from my desk."
Chapter 4
Grissom opened Sara's front door without disturbing the brunette in his arms. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck and her breath tickled his neck as her head rest on his shoulder. It took everything in him to keep his legs from buckling at the sensations she was unknowingly evoking in him.
Kicking her door shut quietly, he headed in the direction of where he guessed her bedroom was. Once he laid her down on her queen-sized bed, she curled up on her side. He pulled the blanket at the bottom of the bed up to her shoulders and brushed her hair away from her face. His fingers lingered on her cheek before backing out the room.
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Sitting on Sara's couch, he laid his head back and not meaning to, he fell asleep. His head was still going when he reached deep sleep. Things to say, things to ask and things to explain. The first thing he had to explain was why and how she got home and the most important that he was sure she'd asked. 'Why are you here?' amongst the over painful questions and words she was bound to say. Some friend he is, not being their for her, letting her get sick, avoiding her, getting angry with her, etc. Life went down the drain when he realised how much he missed her when he'd put a large distance between them. His heart ached to speak with her, stand next to her or be in the same room with her.
It then hit him. She was doing the exact thing to him. She was avoiding him just as he was doing to her. She wasn't talking to her just like he was doing to her. They argued, never talked, never looked each other in the eye, barely worked cases together, barely said a courteous hello.
Grissom sat up abruptly and stood. He walked to her bedroom and stuck his head inside the door. She was still sleeping. He checked his watch. Raising a curious eyebrow at the 5 hours he'd been asleep and decided to see what Sara had in her fridge to eat. Not finding anything, he ordered some food from the one and only takeout menu on the fridge. She's defiantly cutting down on the takeout food. He though not seeing any containers in the fridge, but then he felt a pang in his chest. Wasn't she eating? He looked into her cupboards and food a few boxes of cereal and a few jars of jam and other sauces for vegetarian dishes along with many soups, tinned and packet.
She must be eating. She doesn't look like she's stopped; maybe he's just over reacting. Anyway, he ordered her some takeout too, so she would probably eat when she wakes up.
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Sara turned onto her front and buried her face into her pillow. She moaned softly at the softness, but then the thought of her bed and pillow flooded her sense. Her head shot up and turned over. She scanned the room it was her room. Furrowing her brows in mass confusion, she sat up and replayed what she could remember before falling asleep. Work, researching - then nothing - then now.
Flinging the covers off and standing, she immediately regretted it and fell back onto the mattress with dizziness and nausea. She groaned and clutched her head as she laid back.
"You want to start telling me what's going on?"
Sara's eyes flew open and found the owner of that voice hovering over her. She groaned again, but in agitation this time. "What are you doing here Grissom?"
Grissom pulled the blanket from where she pushed it to the end of the bed and draped it over her as he sat down next to her. "Answer the question Sara." He said sternly.
She glared at him. "Don't start with me Grissom."
Looking away at the bedroom door, he sighed. "Sorry. I brought you home. You fell asleep."
"I gathered that. Why are you here? Still." Sara sat up and pushed herself off the bed, only to close her eyes and press the heel of her hand into her forehead.
Grissom stood and touched her shoulder. "Sara?"
She shrugged his hand off. "Go away." She seethed and walked out of the room.
Following her into the living room where she stood by the kitchen entryway. He was about to ask her again what was wrong, but there was a knock at the door. Sighing he paid for the food and walked past her to the kitchen. He began opening the containers and loading food onto two plates. Sara watched in shock as he pushed a plate towards her over the breakfast bar. Frowning, she sat down on a barstool.
"Just eat a little bit. Please." Sara looked up at him and nodded slowly.
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After eating and washing the dishes. Grissom pulled out his cell and rang Catherine. "Yeah, hey Cath I'm not coming in tonight. no she's fine, don't worry. Ok bye." He hung up and poured two glasses of water.
"You seem to know where everything is Grissom. How long have you been here?" She asked taking a glass from him.
"Same as you. You want to tell me why you didn't mention that you were ill?"
Turning away from him to sit on the couch. "I'm not ill and it's no ones business if I were."
Grissom leaned against the breakfast bar on the living room side and stared at her. "Try again Sara."
"What? You don't believe me?" She laughed unconvincingly.
He shook his head. "No. You want to know why?" He moved to sit on the coffee table in front of her. "You won't talk to me and tell me what's going on. If you're ill you should have told me."
Sara held up her hand. "Don't preach to me damnit."
"I'm not. I'm concerned, but you don't care about what I think or feel, so." As he spoke her eyes left his in remembrance and guilt. ". listen to me now because you are going to make yourself even worse and passing out at work was the last straw and the most evil way of telling me your not well."
Before he could go on, she stood only to sit down again as a thought entered her head. "Evil way? I wasn't planning on telling you at all. I don't have to tell you anything, I don't even have to talk or listen to you, so just leave. We're not at work, you can not bully me into telling you anything."
Grissom pulled his head back a little at her hurtful words. He took in a shaky breath through his nose and dropped his eyes to his hands. Sara watched him carefully. Why did she have to open her big mouth?
His jaw twitched and his fists clench as he stood and walked towards the door. He pulled the door open and stood in the doorway with his back to her. Rubbing his face to alleviate some of the aching pain he said. "I'm sorry."
Sara opened her mouth to say something, but stopped. She watched him leave and stared at the closed door for what seemed like forever.
