In The Night Chapter 9: Epilogue, a csi fanfic

Epilogue

Gil Grissom tossed the last file into his out-basket, and then leaned back to remove his glasses. Of all the tasks he had to perform, he hated paperwork the most. Lately, he had been doing more of it though. He had been meeting deadlines. He had been leaving work at the end of his shift. It was only a matter of time until someone noticed the aberrant behavior, but he couldn't find it in him to care. If his work was finished, he got to be at home with Sara. It was as simple, and as complicated, as that.

Unfortunately, managing the never-ending paperwork entailed giving assignments to the others, and not going to as many crime scenes as he would have liked. For years he had done both, but he couldn't do that now and still have time with Sara. And she was making compromises as well, working more cooperatively with others and acting less brittle. She still wasn't exactly the same vivacious woman who had shown up years before to watch him throw mannequins off a building, but she was closer than she'd ever been since. He held an obscene amount of pride that he could hold any responsibility for that, and if he was also responsible for her lack of happiness in the interim, then he tried not to dwell on it. Sara had told him that they couldn't change the past; they could only learn from it. Gil Grissom was learning.

With his work finished, and the clock on the wall telling him that he had nearly thirty minutes until shift ended, he decided to treat himself to some hot coffee and perhaps an opportunity to take a look at what his CSIs were doing while he wasn't standing over their shoulders.

He found Greg hunched over a microscope with music blaring and he had to smile; some things never changed. At the very least the music did seem to improve his productivity, even if it aggravated those around him. Perhaps for Christmas he'd buy the man an mp3 player; that way they could all relax and let him have his heavy metal within the privacy of his own headphones. Gil watched a moment more, unable to hold back a smile as Greg's bottom stuck up in the air and bounced to and fro to the music. If the boy only knew how ridiculous he looked…

Warrick and Catherine were to be found only a few rooms down. They were engaged in a heated argument over whether the fibers they had found were relevant to the case or not. Warrick insisted yes; Catherine demanded no. If they didn't come to a conclusion before coming to blows, then he'd step in, but one of the best supervisory techniques was to just let his people hammer things out on their own. Both of them were intelligent and competent, and neither inclined to excessive violence. There was no need to micromanage the situation, even if Warrick was right. Everything was always relevant to a case until it was solved, and only then could things be ruled out as unimportant.

After getting his cup of coffee from the break room – the empty break room – he decided to admit to himself what he was really up to. He wanted to find Sara. He wasn't going to molest her in a hallway, but he wanted to see her. He just wanted a smile. There were times he still didn't believe that his life was more than a misty dream, and a single smile or touch from her could remind him that – as cliché as it sounded – dreams did come true.

She wasn't in the autopsy room, and he didn't find her either at trace or in the interrogation area. He widened his search area, trying to remember the details of the case he'd put her on. Damn, he'd become so rapped up in paperwork that he was losing sight of where his people were; that wasn't good.

The auto yard; now he remembered. They had found an abandoned vehicle near to the DB that he had assigned her and she was having it hauled in for a thorough investigation because they suspected the cause of death was hit and run. If he knew her, she'd be in coveralls with grease everywhere and every piece of that car spread across the room even though there wasn't a man in sight to help her with the heavy lifting.

He slipped out the back of the main lab building, and then walked towards the yard. He crossed an area where he had first known that Sara cared for him as more than an instructor or boss, where they had watched a pig decompose over hot cocoa and warm blankets. She hadn't eaten meat since. She had done that for him, so he wouldn't be alone in the cold. He had done it for her, because the case had meant so much. That had been the moment Gil realized that she was more than a colleague; she was more than a friend. He only wished now that he hadn't spent so damned many years fighting what was inevitable.

Rounding the corner of the garage area, Gil stopped dead in his tracks. He heard her voice, and it was more than a hum. Each word was clear and bright, and she was a hell of a long way from tone deaf. In fact, her alto was fairly precise, and the song tugged at his heart. He stood there in silence, listening as she sang the last verse, only stepping into the garage as he heard the last few lines.

"We'll just go on burning bright," she sang. "Somewhere in the night."

He watched as her head jerked around at his gentle applause, and then he watched her blush. She rolled herself out from under the car and sat up, and her cheeks were still pink as she stared at him. "Sorry," he told her. "Couldn't resist."

"You could warn a girl," she complained, but the words were good-natured in their tone.

"Where's the fun in that?" he asked.

"Right." Sara brushed her hair out of her way with greasy hands, leaving the smudges that he knew she would have. He wondered why it was so much more endearing than perfectly applied makeup or fashionably exact clothing.

"Shift is over in twenty," he told her. "You going to be off on time?"

She looked back at the car with a frown, and then back at him. "Honestly, I don't think so. I found some traces of blood on the undercarriage, and I need to get some more samples done and into trace before I leave. Then there's the forms and the follow-up…" She shook her head with clear regret. "I'm sorry, Griss."

His head tilted sideways as he watched her, and then he moved down to take a look at the undercarriage that was visible on the lifted car. He handed Sara his coffee, catching the quick grin she gave him as she took a sip. "Did you see that there's some… something up under that fitting."

She rolled herself back under and passed back his coffee. "It looks like tissue," she said with clear excitement in her voice. "Hey, Griss, get me that jar."

He didn't mind that it was an order, even though he was her boss. He set down the coffee and reached for her kit, grabbing the tweezers and storage jar that she would need. Then he disregarded the polo shirt and slacks he was wearing to slide in beneath the car and hold things in place for her and make her job a little easier.

It was almost forty-five minutes later when they finished with the evidence collection and prepared to leave the garage. She packed up her kit, he held the evidence bags, and they took the short walk back to the lab. Along the way he heard her humming, and he couldn't resist joining in.

"Music to magic to end, I'll play you over and over again," she sang quietly.

"Loving so warm, moving so right," he sang softly at her ear.

"Closing our eyes and feeling alive."

They completed the song together, as they had come to do most things. "We'll just go on burning bright. Somewhere in the night."

fin

Author's Note:

This wasn't intended to be a songfic, but for some reason the words just seemed to fit… it just did. And I really do miss hearing Jorja Fox sing on the show… she had a decent voice.

FYI – Lyrics to Somewhere in the Night by Barry Manilow

Time, you found time enough to love

And I found love enough to hold you

So tonight I'll stir the fire you feel inside

Until the flames of love enfold you

Layin' beside you lost in the feeling

So glad you opened my door, come with me

Somewhere in the night we will know

Everything lovers can know

You're my song, music too magic to end

I'll play you over and over again

Lovin' so warm, movin' so right

Closin' our eyes and feelin' alive

We'll just go on burnin' bright

Somewhere in the night

You'll sleep when the mornin' comes

And I'll lie and watch you sleepin'

And you'll smile when you dream about the night

Like it's a secret you've been keepin'