DISCLAIMER : I don't own CSI nor it's characters. Everything belongs to the brains behind this wonderful show. Props go out to them. :D

AUTHOR'S NOTE : Sorry this is very late. I had to go give a three day workshop in a place without cable tv, no internet and no computers to use. I can say to you now that it was torture.

Next chapter we have Griss witness Sara singing! :D

Please review! Thanks!

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CHAPTER XIV

The lab had spent a couple of uneventful shifts the past days. Everyone was wondering if all the crooks have up and left town, but it wasn't so for the night shift.

Getting back to the lab from her crime scene with Warrick, Sara gave a heavy sigh as they pulled into the parking lot. If Warrick noticed her sigh, he did not give any indication of doing so. They had earlier gone back to try and see if there were any evidence they might have overlooked on the B&E-gone-homicide case they have been working for days. Sara was growing frustrated knowing that the perpetrator was still at large.

Thankfully, her mind wasn't all consumed by the case at the moment. She had decided earlier that day to finally have that talk with Catherine.

Stepping out of their vehicle, Sara told Warrick she'd catch him later and went to look for Catherine.

She found the senior CSI walking out of Ballistics. She quickened her pace to catch up behind Catherine who was looking down on her folder.

"Hey Cath," Sara called over. She saw Catherine look up from the file she was viewing and gave her a smile.

"Hey," Catherine greeted. "What's up?"

"Umm... I was wondering," Sara said, her voice low. "I was wondering if I could by any chance talk to you for a while."

"Something about your case?" Catherine asked.

"No, it's not about a case," Sara answered quickly. "It's ummm... it's personal actually."

"Oh?" Catherine raised an eyebrow. She looked about her scoping out some private area they could go to. Deciding that there was only one place that was good, she took Sara by the elbow and directed her there. "Why don't we do this in the locker room. Nobody's there this time of the day."

"My thoughts exactly," agreed Sara, letting Catherine lead her by the elbow.

They remained silent on their short walk towards their destination. As if by agreement they waited until they were out of everybody else's way before they spoke again.

"So, what's this all about?" Catherine asked, lowering herself unto the locker room bench.

"It's ... it's about what you said about me the other day." Sara said, sitting right next to Catherine.

Catherine gave her a confused look. Sara wasn't sure if she was pretending not to remember of she really couldn't recall.

"You know, that comment you did about," Sara nervously recounted. "about ... well, about my heart already taken ... or something along that line."

"Oh right," Catherine nodded remembering what Sara was referring to.

"Yeah, I was wondering," Sara was now wringing her fingers together," I ... why did you say that?"

"Isn't it the truth?" Catherine answered with a question. Getting no reply from Sara she continued saying, "Look, you're a woman, so am I. We have this ... this radar, if you will. One can tell these things, you know."

"And here I thought I was getting good at hiding it." Sara smiled, a little sarcasm in her voice.

"Well, you can't fool me Sara." Catherine's voice was smooth and she looked at Sara's wrung fingers. "I've known for a long time"

"Why didn't you say anything?" Sara brought her gaze to Catherine's face.

"Because, I figured that when you're ready, you'll tell." Catherine gave her a smile and a shrug.

Sara merely nodded at this. She always had great respect for Catherine. Catherine was one of those women who could exert their rights without breaking a sweat but who could also give tremendous amount of comfort to others. True, they've had their differences, but those same differences were the reason they were friends.

Sara had been silent for a long moment. Catherine intruded into her thoughts asking her to continue asking, "So ... you ready to tell?"

The younger CSI looked deep into Catherine's eyes. What she saw was comforted her. She took a deep breath and started speaking.

"I don't think I can go on pretending I don't feel anything anymore, Cath." her words came quickly and heavy.

Catherine gave Sara a sympathetic look and wrapped her arm around Sara's shoulders.

"Sara, I don't know what's going on between you and Grissom," Catherine soothed, "though I'm sure that he's been closing himself off again in 'Emotionless Wonderland'."

"How ... how'd you know it was him?" Sara sounded more shocked than she thought she'd be.

"Aw c'mon," Catherine gave a low laugh, "You didn't really think the lab wouldn't notice the flirting and now the coldness between you two, did you?"

"I ... I didn't really think ..." Sara stammered in return.

"Sar, what happened?" Catherine softly inquired. Of course she knew what happened, it didn't stop her from wanting to hear the story from her friend.

Sara exhaled deeply, looked down on her hands again and spoke. "Remember the lab explosion? Oh, of course you remember. Who can forget ..."

"Go on," Catherine encouraged her as she lapsed into another silence.

"Well, that ... after shift I asked him out to dinner. It took all my guts to ask. I had followed him earlier that day trying to get the perfect time to pose the question." She gave a shaky laugh, "My timing really sucked, huh?"

"What happened next?"

"I got hurt in the blast, I ... I must have been staring off in shock or something because the next thing I remember was seeing him in front of me and saying something." Sara told her story, her gaze shifting back and forth between her hands and Catherine. "I remember him calling me 'honey' though."

"He did?" Catherine smiled warmly, mentally telling herself that it Grissom must have slipped after seeing Sara hurt.

"Yeah, he did. Made me think the dinner invitation would be worth it after all, you know?" Sara gave Catherine a weak smile and then she shrugged. "How wrong was I about it?! Sooo wrong."

Catherine began moving her palm up and down Sara's back to comfort her. Sara just shook her head.

"Sara ..." Catherine spoke softly after a few moments. "I don't know what to say about Grissom's actions, but I am sure he feels something for you."

"I don't know Cath," Sara simply shook her head. "At one point, I thought so too. I just can't figure out if it was just flirting with me or it was something else. Which is precisely why I asked him out to dinner. Well, that turned out disastrous."

"I'm sure it was more than just flirting Sara." Catherine said, wanting to comfort Sara further.

"That's just it," Sara looked up at her, a tear falling down her cheek. "If it was, why did he say no?"

"Maybe ... maybe he had his reasons?" Catherine defended Grissom. She didn't know why he'd said no, but she had a feeling that losing his hearing played a role in it.

"Well, I'm tired of it." Sara huffed, more tears pooling in her eyes. "I'm tired of being pulled back and forth. I'm tired of pining away for someone who may or may not feel anything for me."

"What are you saying?" Catherine asked carefully, afraid to elevate Sara's emotions some more.

"I'm saying I want to move on." Sara brushed the tears that rolled down her cheeks. "I want to not feel this pain anymore. I want to feel something else other than this."

They remained silent after Sara's revelation. They listened to the other voices and noises from outside the locker area.

"You want to know what's worse?" Sara said with a shaky laugh. "Hearing him say no felt so much worse than finding out about Hank's lie."

Catherine could only imagine how Sara was feeling at that very moment. But she knew now the roots of the emotions Sara projected whenever she sang. She would have to tell her about the team and her knowing this, but that could come later, she thought.

"I don't think I even loved Hank. I liked him," Sara gave another pathetic laugh, a tear rolling down her left cheek. "He made me feel liked ... wanted. That's why I stayed in it."

"What are you going to do?" Catherine didn't really know why she was asking such a question. Nobody really knows what to do when one is heart broken, did they?

Sara shook her head slowly. "I ... I don't know. I feel so lost right now ... alone. I know that I come off as distant to you guys, but it's just my way of dealing, y'know? But lately..." Sara sighed, "lately, it's been terribly hard pretending I don't feel anything. It's just that, everyday, I wake up and tell myself, today is the day I move on, and then I see him at work and ... and ... and all of these things just wash over me. I really do want to move on ... I don't think I can handle this pain anymore."

"Maybe you should try expressing yourself?" Catherine suggested. "I know that when people keep things bottled up inside, it ends up hurting them or the people around them who cares. And Sara, we care about you, I hope you know that."

"I know Cath," Sara smiled, placing a hand over Catherine's. "And I'm blessed to have you guys. I know I don't say it enough, but your friendship, you, Warrick, Nick and even Greg, is one of the things that has made me stay in Vegas."

"And Grissom?" Catherine inquired softly.

"He brought me to Vegas, he made me stay, he is the reason I stay." Sara confided, making Catherine's heart swell for her. "But, lately, I don't know ... it all just feels pointless now. I can't go to work without thinking that somehow I've lost what I always look forward to. I love my job, don't get me wrong, but I had something to drive me to enjoy it. We had something in common."

Another silence drifted between the two women. This time, it was occasionally interrupted by sniffing coming from Sara who continued to wipe the tears off her face. Catherine felt that she should help Sara with a little revelation herself.

"You know, in the spirit of being honest and all, I have something to tell you myself." Catherine smiled.

"Oh-oh, am I going to like this piece of confession?" Sara's voice sounded afraid.

"Well, it's actually a good-news-bad-news kind of confession."

"Okay," Sara relaxed a little, "Go on then."

"The good news is, I think you've got a really good voice." Catherine said, raising alarms in Sara's head.

"Wait a sec, you've heard me sing?" Sara asked, almost panicky. "Around the lab right? You've heard me hum and sing around here?"

"That's the bad news," Catherine smiled again. "I've actually seen you at Tikirocks."

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?" Sara's voice came out as a shout. The word she uttered reverberated around the empty locker room and even caught the people's attention passing outside the room, including Grissom who had been looking for Catherine.

Hearing Sara's panicked voice, he quickly directed his steps inside the room and caught Sara standing menacingly over Catherine's seated form. Sara looked like she was about to eat the other woman though Grissom couldn't figure out why there were tear stains on her face.

"Is everything alright in here?" Grissom asked, leaning against the locker room door.

Both heads snapped to him, one with shock, the other one still looking menacing.

"I heard raised voices. You aren't fighting are you?" Grissom looked from one to the other. Neither seemed to want to answer his questions.

"Well, if we're just going to stare at one another, I suggest we go about our work. Catherine, as I've been on the hunt for you, I want to see you in my office. That is, if you can spare the time." Grissom said, almost irritated by the women's silence.

"Yeah, I'll be right out." Catherine replied, standing from her position.

Grissom gave both of them another look and left the CSIs to finish off whatever conversation they were having.

"Look," Catherine sighed, soothing Sara's tense form by rubbing her arm. "I think that it's a very brave thing to do, singing. I know that it's hard for you to express things and I think that all this singing is doing you good. And you really do have a great voice. You almost made me cry, did you know that?"

Sara snorted. She didn't know what she felt hearing Catherine's news. She felt shocked, betrayed, but mostly, she felt relieved. "Thanks ... I guess."

"No, seriously. You have an amazing voice, and well ... you bring out pure emotion when you sing your songs. It was lovely seeing you like that Sara. You felt real."

Sara blushed a very dark shade of red. Catherine merely laughed at her and gave her a small hug.

"Well, I better go see what Dr. Gruesome has for me." Catherine started on her exit. Just before she completely left the room, she turned around and said, "Oh, there's more news ... I'm not the only one who thinks you have a beautiful voice. So does Warrick and Nick ... and maybe even Greg."

Before she could get any response from Sara, Catherine quickly ducked out of her sight not seeing the complete and utter shock on Sara's face.