"Sara, you go on in and see how Gil's doing, I'm going to go get changed," Mrs. Grissom stated, walking through the entrance.
Sara headed out to the kitchen and found Grissom stirring a pot on the stove. He turned around when he heard Sara come through the door. "How was your shopping trip?" he asked, setting down the spoon.
"Good," Sara said, walking over to wrap her arms around him, "your mother is too nice."
Grissom kissed the top of her head. "Why?"
"I found a wedding dress," she stated.
Grissom raised an eyebrow. "And what does this have to do with my mother?"
"She insisted on paying for the dress."
Grissom rubbed her back. "I knew she wanted to get something for you, but she didn't tell me what."
"Well, she caught me totally off guard."
Mrs. Grissom walked into the kitchen and looked at the pots on the stove. Sara pulled away from Grissom. "Gil, did you get everything cooked?"
"Pretty much. The gravy is still cooking on the stove, and I didn't cook the potatoes yet," Grissom replied, "Sara tells me that you purchased her wedding dress?"
"Yes, consider that my wedding present to you both. When I saw how beautiful she looked in it I couldn't resist."
"Thank you mom," he moved to give her a hug, "I'm sure I'll be thanking you again when I see how beautiful she looks on our wedding day."
When Grissom pulled back, Mrs. Grissom pointed to the living room. "Gil, you're been working on dinner all day while we've been out. Take Sara and go sit down in the living room, I'll finish getting things ready for dinner."
"Mom, we can stay and help out," Grissom stated.
"Go," Mrs. Grissom shooed them toward the living room, "I'll call you when dinner's ready."
Grissom wrapped his arm around Sara and led her into the living room.
Grissom sat against the back of the couch and pulled Sara into his arms. "Did you really have a good time?" he asked.
"Yeah," Sara smiled, "it was kind of slow for a while because I couldn't find anything I liked, but then your mom held up a dress that was absolutely beautiful. I tried it on and we both agreed that it was perfect."
"That's wonderful," he kissed the top of her head, "I'm glad you had a good time."
"I've never had someone do anything like that for me before," she shared, tucking her head under his chin.
Grissom softly ran his hand up and down her arm. "You deserve to be happy," he reiterated.
"But it was just so..." she whispered, but Grissom brought a finger to her lips.
"Sara, it makes her happy to see you happy."
Sara nodded and tried to stop tears from falling down her face. When a sob caught in her throat, Grissom became concerned. "Sara?" he questioned, turning her around to face him.
Sara tried to keep herself together in front of Grissom, but another sob escaped and tears started to fall down her face. Grissom, knowing how private the two of them were, helped her off of the couch and upstairs to his bedroom. As soon as they got into the bedroom, Grissom wrapped his arms tight around her. "You're not alone honey," he comforted, "I love you, my mother loves you, and our friends love you."
Sara broke down and Grissom felt her start to slip in his arms. He laid her down on the bed and kept his arms wrapped tight around her as sobs continually racked her body. Sara suddenly went stiff in Grissom's arms, and she brought her hand to her mouth. She pushed herself out of his embrace and raced toward the bathroom. By the time Grissom had realized what was going on and followed her to the bathroom, Sara was sitting on the floor to the side of the toilet emptying the contents of her stomach. Grissom tried to pull her hair back and comfort her as waves of nausea washed over her. When her stomach quit protesting, Sara leaned back against the wall and tried to dry the tears on her face. Grissom handed Sara a cup of water, and she gladly washed out her mouth. "C'mon honey, I'll help you back to bed," he spoke, helping her off of the floor.
"Gil, dinner," she complained.
"Don't worry, it's still early, we still have plenty of time," Grissom kissed her forehead.
Grissom helped her into bed and under the covers. He wrapped his arms around her once again and tried to soothe her. Sara started to breathe slower, and she got her tears under control. "I wish my mother could have loved me like that," Sara whispered.
Grissom turned her around in his arms so he could look her in the eye. "Sara, we can't change the past," he caressed her face, "there are so many people who love you so much."
"That helps me feel a lot more secure," Sara admitted, "but it's so hard to forget what's happened."
"You'll never forget Sara."
"I know, that's what is so hard."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Gil, I don't think I can right now," Sara admitted.
Grissom pulled her in for another hug. "I understand. You know where I am when you're ready," Grissom smiled.
Sara gave him a small half grin. "I can't believe I'm ruining Thanksgiving," Sara mumbled, starting to turn away.
"You are not ruining Thanksgiving. It's still the early afternoon, and everything can be reheated if necessary. How do you feel?" he asked, rubbing his hand across her stomach.
"Like I worked myself into a wreck. My stomach is openly protesting."
Grissom lightly kissed her lips and kissed her forehead. "Why don't you try and get some rest and hopefully you'll feel better in a little while?"
"Griss, your mother is downstairs slaving away in the kitchen. I can't let her do all of the work," Sara protested.
"Sara, you don't feel good, you're upset. Get some rest so you can join us for dinner. I'll go help mom finish getting everything together."
Sara nodded her head as tears started to form in her eyes again. Leaning above her, Grissom took his thumbs and wiped away the newly formed tears. "Stop worrying honey," he chided, kissing her forehead, "get some rest. If you need anything, give a shout."
Sara smiled and nodded. Grissom briefly kissed her lips and left to help his mother in the kitchen.