Privacy by SLynn
Disclaimer: It's all mine, because yeah, this is what I'd do with my free time if I actually owned these characters.
Notes: I reposted chapter 26 fixing a number of glaring errors I'd missed. Nothing content wise has changed but it should be a bit easier to read now. Oh and yeah, this is officially my most reviewed fic to date! So cool. On with the show.
Chapter 27: Remedy
It had taken a week. A week of Grissom's non-stop harassment of Ecklie and Sara's non-stop badgering of Greg. In the end Ecklie agreed to at least meet with Greg. Greg, for his part, agreed not to just flat out refuse whatever Ecklie might offer. Sara was relieved. To be honest, she didn't think their relationship would have lasted another week. Greg had a lot of energy and with nothing to occupy his time he'd practically be waiting at the door for her arrival each morning, asking hundreds of questions and not letting up until she fell asleep. But it was more then that. It was like when they'd first bought the house all over again, they'd spent the week having stupid fights but without the making up afterwards.
The day the meeting was arranged for Sara left early from shift to ensure Greg was really going to go. She got home only to find him in the shower, clothes laid out, which she took as a good sign.
'At least he's bothering with the details,' she thought until she got a good look at what he'd picked out.
She was holding up one of his more particularly vibrant shirts when he stepped into the room, towel around his waist.
"You're not wearing this," she said shaking her head.
"Why not?" he asked taking it from her.
He knew why not. It was loud, safety vest orange loud, but he didn't care. Greg knew in part he'd picked that shirt to wear just to tick off Ecklie, who was the walking epitome of conformity, but Greg also really liked the shirt.
"Greg," she said, staring at him like he'd really lost his mind, "you do want your job back, right?"
"It doesn't matter what I want or wear at this point. Ecklie already knows whether or not he's going to hire me back. I can go in there wearing an Armani and it wouldn't change his mind."
Sara saw his point but thought he was carrying it too far.
"Just wear something else. Anything else, not that shirt."
Greg was already pulling on his pants as she started looking through his side of the closet and having very little success in finding anything considerably tamer.
"Are you going to tell me how to wear my hair now?" he asked.
She stopped what she was doing and turned towards him.
"I'm not trying to start a fight."
"Then stop telling me what to do," he finished, walking around her and pulling the first shirt he saw off of its hanger before heading out of the room dressing as he went.
Sara joined him in the kitchen a few minutes later. By the way he was decidedly avoiding her gaze she knew he was pissed.
"I just want you to be happy," she said leaning against the fridge. "You haven't been all week."
"I shouldn't have quit," Greg said as he sat down. "I know that. I don't want to go in there and beg for my old job back but I don't want to do anything else either."
She knew what he was getting at. His parents, who had some connections back in the bay area, had offered to ask around for jobs there. They'd helped him land his internship when he was still in college. Greg had refused it but not definitively. He really wanted to be a CSI and Sara knew if he couldn't be one here eventually he'd go to where he could. The thought was scary, very scary, mainly because Sara didn't know if she would go with him if he asked. Right now, she didn't even know if he would ask.
"He wouldn't agree to see you if he wasn't going to offer you something."
"And ten-to-one that something involves a mass spec."
At her shaking her head he continued on, but less bitter now.
"He's been trying to get me back into the lab as long as I've been trying to get out of it. Now he's got the perfect chance. I know you want me to take what he gives, but if that's all he's got for me I can tell you right now I'm saying no."
Sara looked down at her hands, she couldn't meet his eyes right then. She felt like screaming and crying all at once. Instead of saying anything, she nodded.
"I'd better finish getting dressed, head over," Greg said as he stood up, still trying to get her to look his way.
When she wouldn't he gave up and went back into the bedroom for his shoes and socks. He was gone inside of ten minutes without either of them saying anything else.
Greg made it there in good time, but had to wait in the lobby for fifteen minutes before anyone could escort him in. It was still technically night shift so it wasn't at all a shock to see Nick come around the corner to get him. After signing him in quickly, Greg had been removed from the rosters the very day he'd quit, they walked to the break room.
"He's not here yet," Nick supplied. "I thought Sara was coming with you?"
"Change of plans," Greg said hoping Nick would drop it. He didn't want to get into that he'd left before she'd had to the chance to come, not now anyway. "How's the Warner case?"
"Slowly. Jason Warner has been out of town for the last week so we haven't been able to talk to him again. He's due back in on Wednesday. We still don't have anything linking him to the crime except his restaurant sells blowfish."
Greg nodded. He knew that already, Sara had told him yesterday, but they had to talk about something. Greg had to be doing something right now instead of just waiting for Ecklie. Before he got the chance to ask another question he knew the answer too Grissom poked his head inside.
"Greg, he's ready."
Greg nodded and Nick tapped him once on the shoulder, silently wishing him luck, before he followed Grissom down the hall.
"Any idea…" Greg started to ask.
"None," Grissom cut in, wishing he could have something solid to give him. Some hope even.
They stopped at the door and Grissom just smiled once before leaving him. Greg took in a deep breath, trying to stay calm, before he knocked. After a beat Ecklie called out for him to enter.
Without thinking about it, Greg ran his hands down the side of his pants. They were actually sweating. He hadn't felt this nervous since he'd first applied for the job seven years ago.
"Have a seat," Ecklie said upon his entrance not bothering to look up from what he was doing.
After what felt like an eternity Ecklie put away the file he was reviewing and looked up at him.
"So," he said leaning back, "You wanted to talk to me?"
"Yes," Greg said, doing his best to stay seated. It hadn't been easy. "I may have overreacted last week."
Ecklie just smiled and nodded, glad to have Greg take the blame.
"I'm sure you understand," Greg continued after a long pause, "that given the circumstances I wasn't comfortable continuing on here."
Ecklie's smile faded some now. It was well worded, but it was still a stab at him. He knew what those circumstances were, exactly what they were. They involved Ecklie taking some reporters version of events over Greg's own. Not just his own, but Sara and Grissom's too.
"It was a misunderstanding," Ecklie tried brushing past it, "but had you been willing then to work out alternatives, we might not be here now."
"I didn't feel then that there was room for negotiation," Greg responded and it was true. Ecklie had told him to redo all his proficiencies or report back to the lab.
"Maybe there is now."
Greg nodded, ready to begin.
Sara wasn't too happy when she rolled over in bed to find that not only was it nearly four in the afternoon but Greg wasn't asleep beside her.
Climbing out of the covers she padded down the hall and found him snoring on the couch still wearing what he'd left in that morning. He seemed to sense her movement and stirred. She watched his eyelids flutter a few times before they finally opened all the way.
"How long have you been watching me sleep?" he asked, his voice scratchy as he sat up.
"Just got up. How long have you been out here sleeping?"
"Since about noon."
This time his words were accompanied by a loud yawn. She sat down now in the armchair and waited. Sara was determined not to ask but was dying to know. Greg, really sorry at how he'd acted this morning, was just assuming she didn't care now.
"Saw Ecklie," he began, gauging her interest.
She nodded but didn't turn away so he continued.
"He offered me my lab position back with the promise of moving me back into the field after a year."
Sara put her head into her hands, not believing it. Not wanting to believe it but Greg wouldn't kid about this.
"You told him no," she stated not looking up.
"Yeah," he nodded, "I was getting ready to walk out when he came up with another offer."
Sara lifted his eyes, wanting now too believe.
"Said I could retain my level one if I took my final proficiency over with him and Sophia overseeing it."
"Please say you…"
"Of course I took it," Greg cut her off, finally smiling. "It's not all that great, I lost all my vacation time but I get to come back tonight."
"That's great," she said really meaning it.
For a moment neither of them moved. They just sat there staring at each other, feeling awkward.
"I'm sorry about this morning," he began.
"Me too."
He reached out tentatively and took her hands. She didn't pull away, just watched as he brought them to his lips and kissed her knuckles. Sara smiled at him, but the tension between them was still there.
"I know you thought," he started again, not sure how to say it all, "because of what my parents said, that I was thinking of leaving."
Sara didn't say a word, looked away trying to hold back any tears that might soon threaten her eyes. Greg squeezed her hands once, wanting her to look at him again but she wouldn't.
"Sara," he continued, "I wasn't ever thinking of taking a job anywhere but here. It would be different if you wanted to go too, but I know you don't."
Sara hated to cry. Hated to do it in front of anyone, even Greg. It made her feel weak and stupid. But she was doing it now unable to stop.
"I told you I'm not leaving," Greg finished, "I meant it. Even if I have to get work handing out flyers on the strip."
She laughed at the image that invoked which was exactly what he wanted. Greg brought his hands up to her face now, wiping away the few tears remaining.
"That is, if you still want me."
Greg's voice had sounded light, as if it was still a joke, but his eyes told a different story. Sara could see he was completely serious. Worried even.
Instead of answering him with words she leaned in and planted a kiss on his lips. He wasted no time returning it, full of need. Greg's hands moved from her face into her hair, cradling her neck then down her back to pull her closer. Reluctantly she broke apart from him, looking him straight in the eye.
"Come to bed."
A/N – Okay, I am the first to admit my mistakes (grammar and otherwise) and boy did I screw up! I plan out my stories, to an extent, get a rough sketch of where they are going and what's going to happen and by no means was Greg ever supposed to lose or quit his job in this one. Once I wrote the chapter and the next I realized my mistake, because he is going to need that job for this thing to ever end. I nearly jumped the shark trying to fix it (think Dallas and the big dream sequence with Patrick Duffy, but not that bad) in several drafts of this chapter. This chapter was my (cough, cough) graceful fix and it took three days to think up. It's cheesy and it's corny, but at least it's written. I promise better in the future. Thanks! And for those of you reading 'The Body', I couldn't rest until I fixed this but I should have a new chapter of that out fairly soon.