December 17th, 11.15 pm, Computer Room

Sara was floating; everything was bright and she felt truly happy. Children were running around and playing and everyone had wonderful smiles on their faces. She groaned when she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder.

"Leave me alone," she slurred, moving her body away from the intruding touch.

"Sara, you've got to wake up," someone said gently, her brain slowly registering whose voice it was.

"Tired," she mumbled, holding her hands over her ears. She flinched when she felt two strong, warm hands take hold of hers.

"Sara," the voice said again. "Open your eyes honey," it whispered lovingly.

She slowly started to leave her perfect world, her real surroundings starting to sink in. She lazily opened her eyes, only to be greeted by two blue, smiling orbs. "Grissom," she mumbled incoherently. She yawned and sat up, rubbing sleep from her eyes.

"Welcome back," he smiled at her. "Sleep well?"

"Sorry," she yawned again. "I was closing up the case and I fell asleep."

"How long have you been here?" Grissom enquired.

"Actually," she paused to look at him. "I can't remember," she said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Have you been home at all?" he asked.

"Well," she smiled innocently.

"You haven't?" he reprimanded her.

"I was so wrapped up in the case, I lost track of time," she excused herself. She knew how Grissom felt about her getting so involved, but she couldn't seem to help herself.

"What have you found out?" he asked curiously.

"Case is wrapped up and the file is on your desk," she said nonchalantly, rubbing at her eyes furiously.

"I'm impressed," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders and gently rubbing the knots. "Time for you to go home," he said softly. "You look exhausted," his concern plainly showing on his face.

Sara tilted her head back, enjoying his soft ministrations. She looked back at the blinking computer screen, and moved her hand over the mouse. "There's one more thing I need to find out," she turned to look at him, his hands stopping their movements.

"Sara, you closed the case," Grissom reminded her. "You need to rest."

She put her hands on the desk and pushed herself up, Grissom holding the chair out for her. She turned around in a swift movement and caught hold of Grissom's arms to steady herself as the room started spinning. "Whoa!" she exclaimed.

"You okay?" he gently held onto her arms.

"I guess you were right. I am really tired," she shrugged her shoulders.

"Ain't I always right?" Grissom said smugly, in a horrible British accent.

"Stick to American Grissom. Your English sucks," she giggled, holding her hand in front of her mouth.

Like a true gentleman, he bowed his head. "Yes, Madam," he replied cheekily. "Hey, can you spare five more minutes?" he wanted to know. "Since we're leaving tomorrow, I thought we better hand out the presents," he said excitedly. With his hand on the small of her back, he guided her to the break room.

Everyone sat gathered around the table, looking at Grissom expectantly when he walked in. "I want everyone in my office," he said mysteriously, smiling at the curious look that Catherine gave him.

"Now?" Catherine asked.

"Yes Catherine, now," he ordered.

They all trudged out of the break room, Grissom trailing behind them with Sara by his side. He still had his hand on the small of her back and he chuckled when she yawned again.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"Nothing," he shrugged. "You're awfully cute when you're tired," he said honestly.

Before Sara had the chance to reply, he guided her inside his office. They all found a spot to sit down and Sara sunk into Grissom's chair. "You don't mind, do you?" she inquired sweetly.

"Not at all," he said, rising his eyebrows. He looked around the room, tension obvious on the faces of the others. "Could someone please ask Greg to join us?" he asked, looking directly at Warrick.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Warrick exclaimed. "I'll get Greg," he said as he got up from the couch and left the office.

"I can see you're all curious," Grissom stated, Catherine looking at him suspiciously. "You'll find out soon enough," he grinned.

Greg came waltzing into the room, followed by a grinning Warrick. "You needed me, boss?" he asked, sitting down. His funny Santa hat was jiggling around on his head, the bell at the end ringing annoyingly.

Grissom strolled over to the young lab technician and snatched the hat from his head. "How many time have I told you not to call me boss?" he asked, throwing the hat as far as he could. It landed on the floor next to Sara, who casually picked it up.

Greg smiled at her and tried to get up from his chair, only to be held back by a strong hand on his shoulder. "Leave the hat," Grissom begged. "It's driving me nuts."

Greg stared back at him, his mouth wide open. "Close your mouth, Greggo. You're catching flies," Grissom exclaimed theatrically.

"You're the expert, bugman," Sara muttered quietly, a big grin forming on her face.

Grissom turned around to look at her, and narrowed his eyes. "Be nice to your boss, Miss Sidle," he said with a straight face.

"Yes boss," she saluted, propping her feet up on his desk.

"Do you mind?" he walked over to his desk and retrieved a few envelopes. "I'll put this down to the fact that you're tired," he lifted her feet from his desk and carefully put them on the floor. "Thank you," he grinned at her and turned back to the rest of the team, ignoring the amused look on Catherine's face.

"You all know that Sara and I are leaving for a convention tomorrow and we won't be back before Christmas," he paused to pour himself a cup of coffee. " So, I think now is a good time to hand out the presents," he finished.

"Cool," Greg shouted, a huge grin on his face.

Grissom opened the first envelope and smiled. "Statue of Miss Liberty," he read, while walking to the tree and taking down the horrific statue. "For Nick," he chuckled.

Nick took the statue from Grissom's hand. "Very original," he smiled. "Too bad she's wearing a bikini," he quipped in a heavy Texan accent.

Grissom smiled and pulled out the next piece of paper. Walking over to the tree again, he took down the glass Cupid and handed it to Catherine.

"It's beautiful," she stammered, tracing the heart with her finger. "Thank you," she managed to say.

"Gris," Warrick caught Grissom's attention, motioning with his head towards a sleeping Sara. "Is she okay?" he asked worriedly.

"She's fine," Grissom smiled weakly. "She worked all night until she closed her case," he announced, a tinge of pride in his voice.

"She did?" Catherine whistled. "Way to go Sara," she said appreciatively.

Grissom walked towards his desk, and sat down on the edge. He put a lock of hair behind her ear, and gently caressed her cheek. "Wake up, Sara," he whispered softly. When she didn't wake, he gently traced her jawbone with his finger. "Sara," he tried, but she merely stirred. Catherine watched the tender exchange in awe.

Completely ignorant to the people around him, Grissom put his hand on her shoulder, and caressed her neck. Sara slowly opened her eyes. "Grissom," she mumbled.

"You fell asleep," he explained.

"Sorry," she fidgeted in her seat. She yawned and looked at her co-workers. "I'm back," she quipped. "Did I miss something?" she straightened her blouse and grinned at Grissom.

"Nope," he said. "Unless you hoped the Cupid was for you," he sat further on his desk.

"Let me guess," she paused a second, "Catherine."

"Yeah, it's me," Catherine held Cupid up.

"Damn," Sara exclaimed, watching Grissom closely as his eyes scanned over another piece of paper.

Grissom walked to the tree and took out the pink Dame Edna sunglasses. He walked to Warrick with a huge grin on his face. "These are for you, Warrick," he put the glasses on Warrick's head and smiled. "They suit you," Grissom deadpanned.

"Right," Warrick snorted, taking off the glasses and giving them a close look. A smile spread across his face. "They're not that bad," he put them back on and chuckled. "I can see pink elephants already," he blurted out.

"I can see pink elephants without those glasses," Sara chuckled, leaning back in her chair, her hands behind her head.

"You should try counting sheep," Grissom said, giving her a mock serious look before proceeding to the next gift. He took the blinking Santa boxer shorts and handed them to Greg. "Uh, these are for you," he winced at Greg.

"Wahoo," Greg exclaimed. "One more pair for my collection," he said, strutting around Grissom's office with the boxers on his head.

"Let me guess, you have a closet full of those," Grissom said.

"I'm wearing a pair right now," Greg replied, reaching for his belt.

"Leave it, Greggo," Grissom stilled his hand. "I still want to be able to sleep at night," he growled.

"Awww, c'mon Gris, let us have a little fun," Sara complained.

Grissom shot her one of his 'don't mess with me' looks, and eyed the other pair of boxers in the tree. "These then, are mine," he stated, pulling them from the tree.

"Did you really expect those to be for someone else?" she questioned him.

"Not really," he mumbled, and took the necklace from the tree. "So I guess this awful thing is for you," he handed it to Sara.

Sara remained quiet, and looked at necklace with total adoration. She put it in the palm of her hand and admired the pendant. "Thank you," she whispered softly without looking up. "I love it," she added in an emotional voice.

Grissom watched her from the corner of his eye. "It's gorgeous," he agreed. "If we're all done," he changed the subject, "I'd like for Nick and Warrick to go over the evidence of their case from last night. Maybe you guys missed something," he looked at them, watching as they reluctantly left his office.

"Catherine," he picked up a piece of paper and handed it to her. "I want you to take over while I take Sara home," he motioned with his head toward Sara, who had slumped back down on his desk. "I don't want her to drive," he explained.

"She's not capable of driving, Gil," she replied, giving her long time friend a knowing smile.

He watched as she left his office, before turning his attention back to Sara. She lay with her head on his desk, her arms tucked under her head protectively. She had the necklace clenched tightly in her fist. "Sara?" he called softly.

"Sorry," she lifted her head and smiled. "I should really go," she yawned.

"I'll drive you," he offered.

"I would like that," she got up from her chair and walked towards him.

"Want me to help you put that on?" he asked, looking at her necklace.

"Yeah thanks, it's so beautiful," she said softly.

"Not as beautiful as you," he said quietly, making her wonder if he had really said it.

Sara handed him the necklace and turned her back to him. She shuddered as he tenderly wiped her hair away from her neck.

He gently fastened the necklace and peered over her shoulder. "It suits you," he said, turning to kiss her cheek, failing to notice she turned her head to him at the same time. His lips landed softly on hers and for a moment, time stood still.

"Sara," he whispered hoarsely.

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