Author's Note: Yes, 'Attack of the Killer Tomatoes' is a real movie. Sort of a cult classic and is actually a spoof of Alfred Hitchcock's 'The Birds'. Its availability on DVD, however, is really a mystery to me.
Images flashed through Sara's mind as she fell into a restless sleep, images of the victims of the cases that had bothered her the most, images of grisly crime scenes, images of her suicide attempt, images of the disappointment on the faces of her coworkers, and perhaps most strangely disturbing to her of all, images of rabid vegetables singing off key. She tossed and turned in a futile effort to shake the images from her mind. Somewhere in her sleepy struggle, she tangled her legs in the sheets, and then as she emitted a disturbed moan, she felt something sharp pinch her nose.
She sat bolt upright in bed and let out a blood curdling scream. As she sat there panting, trying to catch her breath, she realized that she'd scared Harley nearly out of his fur and that the sharp pinch she had felt was him biting her nose.
The door to the guest room burst open as a sleepy and disheveled Nick rushed in with his gun drawn.
Sara screamed again and dove back down, hiding her face in the pillow.
As Nick realized that there was no danger, he set the gun down on the desk just inside the door, and moved over to sit next to where Sara lay on the bed. "Are you ok? The way you were screaming I thought for sure someone was attacking you." His voice was slightly panicked, but soft and soothing and he reached out and stroked her hair.
Sara turned to look at him and from the soft light filtering in through the blinds she could tell that he was worried about her. "I had a nightmare." She reached over to where Harley was tentatively crawling up the blanket. "And then Harley bit my nose, which is why I screamed." She narrowed her gaze at Nick. "And then you scared the shit out of me by going S.W.A.T."
He raised a single eyebrow. "Do you need clean sheets?" There was a definite smirk on his face and that coupled with his hair sticking up in every direction and the fact that he was clad only in a pair of plaid boxers emblazoned with the images of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, he looked rather humorous.
Sara swatted at him. "Not funny." In spite of herself, she was smiling.
His expression turned serious again. "You want to talk about it?"
She furrowed her brow, hugging her pillow closer as Nick continued stroking her hair. "It was weird." She shot him an accusatory glance. "Now I've got vegetables singing off key in my nightmares."
Nick winced as he let out a soft chuckle. "Sorry. I didn't think that 'Attack of the Killer Tomatoes' would have that kind of effect."
She feigned a pout. "It's not your fault." She let out a deep sigh. "I just wish I could stop thinking sometimes." She looked at Nick earnestly. "Do you ever get to where you feel like your brain is full, and if you have to cram one more thing in there you'll go crazy?"
He continued stroking her hair. "Sometimes. But I've had to learn how to leave work at work. I think that's why it's important to have interests outside of work."
She let out a frustrated sigh. "And then there's that again."
"Hey, no one said this was going to be easy." He chided her gently. "And remember, Sara, you're not alone. I'm here for you every step of the way. Ok?"
"Yeah." She breathed out heavily. "This isn't fair to you, Nick." She started to pet Harley who she had finally coaxed back within her reach after she scared him.
"Don't worry about me." Nick's brow furrowed.
She looked him in the eye. "Can you honestly tell me that having me here isn't going to put a damper on your social life?"
He let out a chuckle. "I don't really care." He smiled at her. "I care about you, and you're what's important right now. Besides, lately the only women that seem to be attracted to me are a little too much like Lauren." He had a bit of a smirk on his face.
Sara smiled at him a bit sadly. "She really hurt you, didn't she?"
Nick shrugged. "I guess she did. It was months ago though."
"It's not easy to trust someone after you've been hurt like that." Sara seemed like she was talking about Hank as much as she was talking about what Lauren had done to Nick.
Nick furrowed his brow. "No it's not." He looked at her thoughtfully. "I should have said something to you about Hank. I had a bad feeling about that guy."
She chuckled softly. "Well if you had run Lauren past me I could have told you that she was a bad idea."
Nick looked at her a little amused. "Oh, really?"
She smiled. "Yeah, the attitude alone was a dead giveaway."
"Attitude?" Nick chuckled. "I guess she did have an attitude, didn't she? And come to think of it, she might have asked me what kind of car I drive."
Sara smirked. "She certainly had some nerve showing up on your doorstep like that."
Nick tucked her hair behind her ear. "She got the wrong idea about you. She assumed that we were living together."
She looked a little smug. "Technically we are, but not the way her glare of death was implying."
Nick felt a slight pang of longing for a moment and then furrowed his brow as he tried to reason it away. "In any case, I'm sure she won't be around again. I think the fact that you were in your pajamas and the fact that you mentioned that I gave you Harley sort of sealed the deal." He rested his hand on her shoulder. "I suppose I should thank you for that."
"Anytime." She smiled and let out a yawn. "You can use me to break up with all of your girlfriends."
He laughed. "I'll remember that." He gave her a meaningful glance. "And if you ever need me to beat some sense into some guy for you, let me know."
She laughed. "I'll remember that the next time I'm dumb enough to fall for someone. I think I've had my fair share of one sided attraction."
"Grissom was an idiot you know." He squeezed her shoulder. "You're a great catch."
She rolled her eyes and quipped. "Yeah, well he wasn't even playing the game." She glanced down at Harley and noticed that the kitten was taking care of business. "Oh, shit! Harley!"
Nick took one whiff and wrinkled his nose. "I'll put him in the laundry room." He scooped up the kitten, which by this time had finished, and headed straight for the laundry room and plopped him in the litter box. "Hey, bud; this is where you're supposed to do that." He raised his eyebrow to emphasize his point, but then realized as the feline jumped out of the litter box and climbed up the scratching post that he couldn't understand him anyway.
As he closed Harley in the laundry room, he turned around to find Sara dragging the bedding from her bed. "I think I am going to need clean sheets after all."
Images flashed through Sara's mind as she fell into a restless sleep, images of the victims of the cases that had bothered her the most, images of grisly crime scenes, images of her suicide attempt, images of the disappointment on the faces of her coworkers, and perhaps most strangely disturbing to her of all, images of rabid vegetables singing off key. She tossed and turned in a futile effort to shake the images from her mind. Somewhere in her sleepy struggle, she tangled her legs in the sheets, and then as she emitted a disturbed moan, she felt something sharp pinch her nose.
She sat bolt upright in bed and let out a blood curdling scream. As she sat there panting, trying to catch her breath, she realized that she'd scared Harley nearly out of his fur and that the sharp pinch she had felt was him biting her nose.
The door to the guest room burst open as a sleepy and disheveled Nick rushed in with his gun drawn.
Sara screamed again and dove back down, hiding her face in the pillow.
As Nick realized that there was no danger, he set the gun down on the desk just inside the door, and moved over to sit next to where Sara lay on the bed. "Are you ok? The way you were screaming I thought for sure someone was attacking you." His voice was slightly panicked, but soft and soothing and he reached out and stroked her hair.
Sara turned to look at him and from the soft light filtering in through the blinds she could tell that he was worried about her. "I had a nightmare." She reached over to where Harley was tentatively crawling up the blanket. "And then Harley bit my nose, which is why I screamed." She narrowed her gaze at Nick. "And then you scared the shit out of me by going S.W.A.T."
He raised a single eyebrow. "Do you need clean sheets?" There was a definite smirk on his face and that coupled with his hair sticking up in every direction and the fact that he was clad only in a pair of plaid boxers emblazoned with the images of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, he looked rather humorous.
Sara swatted at him. "Not funny." In spite of herself, she was smiling.
His expression turned serious again. "You want to talk about it?"
She furrowed her brow, hugging her pillow closer as Nick continued stroking her hair. "It was weird." She shot him an accusatory glance. "Now I've got vegetables singing off key in my nightmares."
Nick winced as he let out a soft chuckle. "Sorry. I didn't think that 'Attack of the Killer Tomatoes' would have that kind of effect."
She feigned a pout. "It's not your fault." She let out a deep sigh. "I just wish I could stop thinking sometimes." She looked at Nick earnestly. "Do you ever get to where you feel like your brain is full, and if you have to cram one more thing in there you'll go crazy?"
He continued stroking her hair. "Sometimes. But I've had to learn how to leave work at work. I think that's why it's important to have interests outside of work."
She let out a frustrated sigh. "And then there's that again."
"Hey, no one said this was going to be easy." He chided her gently. "And remember, Sara, you're not alone. I'm here for you every step of the way. Ok?"
"Yeah." She breathed out heavily. "This isn't fair to you, Nick." She started to pet Harley who she had finally coaxed back within her reach after she scared him.
"Don't worry about me." Nick's brow furrowed.
She looked him in the eye. "Can you honestly tell me that having me here isn't going to put a damper on your social life?"
He let out a chuckle. "I don't really care." He smiled at her. "I care about you, and you're what's important right now. Besides, lately the only women that seem to be attracted to me are a little too much like Lauren." He had a bit of a smirk on his face.
Sara smiled at him a bit sadly. "She really hurt you, didn't she?"
Nick shrugged. "I guess she did. It was months ago though."
"It's not easy to trust someone after you've been hurt like that." Sara seemed like she was talking about Hank as much as she was talking about what Lauren had done to Nick.
Nick furrowed his brow. "No it's not." He looked at her thoughtfully. "I should have said something to you about Hank. I had a bad feeling about that guy."
She chuckled softly. "Well if you had run Lauren past me I could have told you that she was a bad idea."
Nick looked at her a little amused. "Oh, really?"
She smiled. "Yeah, the attitude alone was a dead giveaway."
"Attitude?" Nick chuckled. "I guess she did have an attitude, didn't she? And come to think of it, she might have asked me what kind of car I drive."
Sara smirked. "She certainly had some nerve showing up on your doorstep like that."
Nick tucked her hair behind her ear. "She got the wrong idea about you. She assumed that we were living together."
She looked a little smug. "Technically we are, but not the way her glare of death was implying."
Nick felt a slight pang of longing for a moment and then furrowed his brow as he tried to reason it away. "In any case, I'm sure she won't be around again. I think the fact that you were in your pajamas and the fact that you mentioned that I gave you Harley sort of sealed the deal." He rested his hand on her shoulder. "I suppose I should thank you for that."
"Anytime." She smiled and let out a yawn. "You can use me to break up with all of your girlfriends."
He laughed. "I'll remember that." He gave her a meaningful glance. "And if you ever need me to beat some sense into some guy for you, let me know."
She laughed. "I'll remember that the next time I'm dumb enough to fall for someone. I think I've had my fair share of one sided attraction."
"Grissom was an idiot you know." He squeezed her shoulder. "You're a great catch."
She rolled her eyes and quipped. "Yeah, well he wasn't even playing the game." She glanced down at Harley and noticed that the kitten was taking care of business. "Oh, shit! Harley!"
Nick took one whiff and wrinkled his nose. "I'll put him in the laundry room." He scooped up the kitten, which by this time had finished, and headed straight for the laundry room and plopped him in the litter box. "Hey, bud; this is where you're supposed to do that." He raised his eyebrow to emphasize his point, but then realized as the feline jumped out of the litter box and climbed up the scratching post that he couldn't understand him anyway.
As he closed Harley in the laundry room, he turned around to find Sara dragging the bedding from her bed. "I think I am going to need clean sheets after all."