Rating: PG
Summary: The team at Tuscadero High School, Nevada...
Spoilers: None, really.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: There. Happy now? You got your romance. Now for a little bit of improvised angst!
***
"Nick?" Catherine asked, tentatively. She sat down beside him as he stared out at the desert. The horizon was blurred, the sky purple in the fading light. An endless red plane of rocks and sand stretched out before them, dotted with desert flowers. Nick didn't break his gaze from the scene.
Steadying herself, the young woman moved closer to her friend. Both sitting on the desert floor, knees hugged to their chests, they could barely have been noticed as Catherine whispered the bad news. "I'm so sorry, Nicky." she tried to put her arm around him, but he shied away. "I'm fine." he said.
Silence fell, the pair both wrapped up in their grief. Catherine let her tears fall freely, and Nick allowed himself to cry a little. He trusted the girl next to him – enough to show his weakness, unafraid. "I brought her out here once." he said, breaking the thick blanket of stillness. "We watched the sunset."
"Romantic." Catherine smiled through her tears.
Nick's intake of breath was shaky. "Yeah." He pulled her closer, and she moved against him, "We're OK."
"We will be, in time."
***
Sara scrambled to reach her phone in time. She scrambled around, searching beneath all her papers and text books, finally finding the small, silver flip phone. "Hello? Mrs Watts?" she stopped working. Morbid fear struck her heart; this was the call she'd been waiting for, wishing to evade. But knowing it would come, all the same. After five days, how could it not? "Oh... Oh God. I'm so sorry, are you OK? If you need anything, at all, just call, OK? Yeah, I will. Take care of yourselves. Goodbye."
She ended the call, and began to cry.
***
"Hello, this is Gil... Mr Watts?" Gil's stomach twisted. He listened, not speaking. The father finished talking, but Gil didn't reply. Shock. Bereavement. "I-I'm sorry."
***
Saturday morning rolled around, and the five friends met in a café, Lindsay's favourite one, at nine o' clock. They ordered a coffee each, and sat there waiting for their order, talking very little. "How you holding up, man?" Warrick asked Nick, who shrugged. "I'm alright." came the dead, monotonous answer. Nick, clearly, was not alright.
In their grief, Sara and Grissom could not find it in themselves to be angry over the events of Wednesday night. In times like that, it was hard to be thinking about the opposite sex. Or, at least, it should've been. Sara's mind was with Gil, not Lindsay. It made her feel bad. But she couldn't help it – she was confused, upset, and looking for comfort. When the anger she'd been expecting from her friend didn't show, she couldn't help but fall into that trap.
When their coffees arrived, the gang piled in, Nick taking his back. "Man, how can you do that?" Warrick asked, trying to lighten the mood. Bad move. No-one batted an eyelid, and he sensed the coldness radiating off his friends in waves. It was hopeless.
"We have to get past this." Gil told them, gently. Everyone looked up.
"Gil, it's gonna take time." Catherine reasoned, suppressing her anger, and trying not to upset Nick. Sara looked disbelieving. "How can you even be thinking about moving on right now?" she asked, her voice escalating.
"It's not as if it's the end of the world." Gil replied, refusing to believe the attitude *some* people had to this. "Oh," Catherine gave a dry laugh, "so our friend is dead, and you think it's not the end of the world." She demanded, outraged.
"No, but life isn't going to just-"
"Shut up! She wasn't your best friend!"
Nick snorted. "She wasn't your girlfriend!"
"Oh, God, Nicky. We could all see you weren't in love with her." Catherine sniped, bitterly. That had always upset her, how Nick didn't feel for Lindsay what she did for him. "And neither were you! Since when were you such a bitch?"
"That's it. I'm outta here." Warrick muttered, disgusted. He left enough money for the whole round. Catherine sighed impatiently. "Me too." she stormed off. Sara glared after Nick as he left; she was on Catherine's side about the idea of him dating Lindsay.
Alone at the table with Gil, she glanced at him. "I'm sorry." she wasn't talking about the argument, and he knew it. "I know." he replied, softly.
Summary: The team at Tuscadero High School, Nevada...
Spoilers: None, really.
Disclaimer: Not mine.
A/N: There. Happy now? You got your romance. Now for a little bit of improvised angst!
***
"Nick?" Catherine asked, tentatively. She sat down beside him as he stared out at the desert. The horizon was blurred, the sky purple in the fading light. An endless red plane of rocks and sand stretched out before them, dotted with desert flowers. Nick didn't break his gaze from the scene.
Steadying herself, the young woman moved closer to her friend. Both sitting on the desert floor, knees hugged to their chests, they could barely have been noticed as Catherine whispered the bad news. "I'm so sorry, Nicky." she tried to put her arm around him, but he shied away. "I'm fine." he said.
Silence fell, the pair both wrapped up in their grief. Catherine let her tears fall freely, and Nick allowed himself to cry a little. He trusted the girl next to him – enough to show his weakness, unafraid. "I brought her out here once." he said, breaking the thick blanket of stillness. "We watched the sunset."
"Romantic." Catherine smiled through her tears.
Nick's intake of breath was shaky. "Yeah." He pulled her closer, and she moved against him, "We're OK."
"We will be, in time."
***
Sara scrambled to reach her phone in time. She scrambled around, searching beneath all her papers and text books, finally finding the small, silver flip phone. "Hello? Mrs Watts?" she stopped working. Morbid fear struck her heart; this was the call she'd been waiting for, wishing to evade. But knowing it would come, all the same. After five days, how could it not? "Oh... Oh God. I'm so sorry, are you OK? If you need anything, at all, just call, OK? Yeah, I will. Take care of yourselves. Goodbye."
She ended the call, and began to cry.
***
"Hello, this is Gil... Mr Watts?" Gil's stomach twisted. He listened, not speaking. The father finished talking, but Gil didn't reply. Shock. Bereavement. "I-I'm sorry."
***
Saturday morning rolled around, and the five friends met in a café, Lindsay's favourite one, at nine o' clock. They ordered a coffee each, and sat there waiting for their order, talking very little. "How you holding up, man?" Warrick asked Nick, who shrugged. "I'm alright." came the dead, monotonous answer. Nick, clearly, was not alright.
In their grief, Sara and Grissom could not find it in themselves to be angry over the events of Wednesday night. In times like that, it was hard to be thinking about the opposite sex. Or, at least, it should've been. Sara's mind was with Gil, not Lindsay. It made her feel bad. But she couldn't help it – she was confused, upset, and looking for comfort. When the anger she'd been expecting from her friend didn't show, she couldn't help but fall into that trap.
When their coffees arrived, the gang piled in, Nick taking his back. "Man, how can you do that?" Warrick asked, trying to lighten the mood. Bad move. No-one batted an eyelid, and he sensed the coldness radiating off his friends in waves. It was hopeless.
"We have to get past this." Gil told them, gently. Everyone looked up.
"Gil, it's gonna take time." Catherine reasoned, suppressing her anger, and trying not to upset Nick. Sara looked disbelieving. "How can you even be thinking about moving on right now?" she asked, her voice escalating.
"It's not as if it's the end of the world." Gil replied, refusing to believe the attitude *some* people had to this. "Oh," Catherine gave a dry laugh, "so our friend is dead, and you think it's not the end of the world." She demanded, outraged.
"No, but life isn't going to just-"
"Shut up! She wasn't your best friend!"
Nick snorted. "She wasn't your girlfriend!"
"Oh, God, Nicky. We could all see you weren't in love with her." Catherine sniped, bitterly. That had always upset her, how Nick didn't feel for Lindsay what she did for him. "And neither were you! Since when were you such a bitch?"
"That's it. I'm outta here." Warrick muttered, disgusted. He left enough money for the whole round. Catherine sighed impatiently. "Me too." she stormed off. Sara glared after Nick as he left; she was on Catherine's side about the idea of him dating Lindsay.
Alone at the table with Gil, she glanced at him. "I'm sorry." she wasn't talking about the argument, and he knew it. "I know." he replied, softly.