The black Jeep Cherokee rounded the desert freeway, its headlights being the only distinguishable feature against the darkness of the night. Warrick sped down the road at speeds that were far from legal, but he was unaware of this, concentrating so hard on the asphalt in front of him that his gaze might have seared a hole in the interstate.

A billion thoughts ran through his mind, mostly memories of a distant trip to the cottage at Lake Tahoe. A time that seemed so far away that the snapshots of that period in his life seemed to be a fantasy that never existed. He had changed a lot since those days; no longer an awkward, lanky teenager, but in ways, still a geek at heart. Only a few people in his life knew what he was like before he became a CSI with the Vegas Crime Lab. In a nutshell, Warrick was the chameleon in the crowd, never really in the spotlight, but always the guy who pulled the curtains on the stage.

His grandmother was hardly considered wealthy, but his friendship with Jo Parker managed to get him an invite up to her family cottage at Tahoe every summer. Warrick smiled to himself, remembering all the great times that he had since they became friends in junior high. Jo was the typical rich princess during school hours, a quality of her's that Warrick could only now come to understand, but the two were as close as best friends could be whenever they were together.

The smile fell off his face as he recalled the call from his grandmother just a few hours ago. It wasn't as if he had kept in touch with the Parkers after college, but just the sheer fact that Jo tried to reach him was enough for Warrick to answer to her beckon.

Hours passed by, and the desert valleys slowly changed into green, lush forestry. Next thing he knew, he was parked in the driveway of the large logged cabin that overlooked the lake. He turned off the car and just sat, preparing himself for the encounter he was about to face. A warm breeze swept through the open windows, brushing his brown skin and provided him with an unspeakable comfort.

Warrick finally made his way up the stone steps and knocked on the door. He heard footsteps from within, and the door opened. Lynn Parker stood in awe of the grown man that was in front of her; she gave a small gasp and pulled him into a hug. Her eyes were rimmed with red, even though there didn't appear to be any moisture on her face. The small body didn't have any more tears to shed, and Warrick didn't remember her ever looking so old.

From a door down the hall, John Parker emerged and walked towards them with a sorrowful look. He shook the younger man's hand, "I'm so glad you came, Warrick. You don't know how much this means to us."

He gave a small smile in return, "Where is she?"

"Upstairs in her old room.She should still be awake. She's been waiting for you."

The room was dimly lit with an old lamp that sat on a white wicker night table. Warrick slowly walked into the room and approached the bed. He had to hold himself back from giving a little gasp when he saw how pale and thin she was. Her eyes were closed, and it was as if she was off in another world, away from the suffering, away from the pain. She weakly opened one eye and smiled, "Hey War, didn't think you'd get here so fast. I hope you didn't drive too maniacally."

"You always had a sense of humour, Joey," He sat down on the bed next to her, and put his hand around hers. A silence formed between the two that couldn't be ignored until Warrick cleared his throat, "You should have called me sooner. I would've liked to be there for you during the chemo."

"Don't get me wrong, War, but we haven't talked more than twice since your sophomore year at Western UNLV. Besides, I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, pulling you out of your life just to come and watch me slip away."

"How much time have you got?" He had to ask the inevitable question. A measure of the precious moments he needed to make before it wasn't possible.

"A few weeks. That's why I'm here. I wanted to go in the place that held the best memories of my life, as cheesy as that might be," she yawned a little bit and shifted a little in her bed.

"Hey, sometimes, I like the Velveeta...go to sleep. We'll talk in the morning."

"Stay with me for a while?" It was an agreement that didn't need to have words.