Holidays at the Stokes Place

Pairing: Nick and Sara (Of course! I wouldn't have it any other way)

Nick and Sara are having dinner at his childhood friend Jason Watson's place. What crazy memories will be conjured up? Why does the Watson family cat like to sit on peoples' laps, especially Sara's?

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Sara, Nick or any other mentioned character on CSI. If I did own Sara and Nick, they would have been hooked up and hitched already! (Writers of the show: take notice!) I don't even own Animal House. However, I do own Nick's family as well as Jason Watson and his family.

Dinner with Friends

"Get out of here!" Sara said in disbelief. "Nick actually did something like that?"

"Yeah, and he was lucky that the swim coach and the principal didn't press charges or suspend him," Jason said while Nick covered his face with his hands in complete embarrassment.

"Big deal, I dumped some fizzy powder into the pool," Nick said. "It was supposed to be a prank. I was a junior and some freshman from the boys swim team did something to piss me off. I took some inspiration from the famous list of complaints against the Deltas in Animal House and put some fizz into the pool."

"Mr. Dependable," Sara said. "You were more like a dependable prankster."

"Sara Stokes, you are mean," Nick said and Sara stuck her tongue out at him.

Suddenly, a blue grey angora cat strutted into the dining room. It was meowing, purring and rubbing the leg of the chair Haley Watson was sitting.

"Samantha, are you hungry, pretty kitty?" Haley asked. "Excuse me, but I have to feed the family cat."

"She is a very friendly animal," Jason said. "You can pet her if she approaches you. She just loves to be around people. If she doesn't get petted when she comes to you, she meows very loudly!"

"I am back," Haley said sitting down at the table. "The girls are still sleeping and we can enjoy the rest of the dinner until they start crying."

"Can we see Sydney and Nicole?" Nick asked.

"Sure, in a while!" Haley said. "Nick, you have to tell us how you and Sara met. I know we missed out on the wedding. I was undergoing a C-Section to have those twin girls. Jason didn't want to leave my side."

"We told two of our nieces the long version," Sara said. "We will try to give you the abbreviated version."

"I was helping my boss with a murder investigation," Nick said. "I was on a hotel rooftop throwing dummies off it. I saw this beautiful brunette talking to my boss and I wanted to meet her."

"That is the first time I have ever heard of a guy meeting his future wife while tossing dummies off a hotel rooftop," Jason said.

"We were flirting a lot," Sara said. "I was dating a jackass named Hank who was cheating on his girlfriend with me!"

"Sara, I am sure if Nick had his way," Jason said. "Mr. Jackass would have met with an accident. Did you know Nick used to be a cop before he became a CSI?"

"Ah, yes, I know," Sara said. "He told me about his days as a police officer with the Dallas Police Department."

"We finally started dating and I eventually asked her to marry me," Nick said. "As you know we had the wedding in Dallas. Our parents fought over the location, but the Stokes won."

There was a brief silence while they finished their main course which was risotto with scallions, squash, mushrooms and fresh mozzarella cheese. They had a salad with honey mustard vinaigrette before that. They drank some wine and some sparkling water. Jason went to the kitchen to get four martini glasses and filled them with some berries and drizzled it with a little bit of honey. It wasn't dessert yet, but it was something that was a prelude to it.

"Haley, you married a wonderful cook," Nick said. "You are not bad yourself, but I know your specialty is baking."

"Thanks," Haley and Jason said.

"How long have you known Nick?" Sara asked.

"We have known each other since we were three," Jason said. "We were in nursery school and became immediate friends."

"I have known Nick since our freshman year in high school," Haley said. "I was born in New Haven, Connecticut and lived there until I was fourteen. My family moved to Dallas when my dad's company transferred him to their headquarters in Dallas. I still have a tinge of New England with my Texas drawl. I met Nick in my English class, but I wasn't attracted to him. It was in our Global History class that I would meet the guy I would marry. Jason and I were inseparable in high school. I went to the University of Connecticut while Jason joined Nick at Rice. Those four years were the most difficult, but we managed."

"Absence does make a heart grow fonder," Nick philosophized with a sigh. "I remember Jason getting threatened by his parents for racking up those huge phone bills. He told them that loves Haley and they talked every other day. His parents visited and told him to forget her and that she probably found a guy at her school. He told them that she would never do that and she loves him a lot."

"Sara, did you have any boyfriends in high school?" Haley asked.

"No, I never dated in high school," she said. "I didn't have my first boyfriend until I was at Harvard."

"What! How could a beautiful woman like you not have a boyfriend in high school!" Haley said in shock and disbelief.

"The guys in her school must have had blinders on to ignore her," Nick said shaking his head. "Those bastards ought to be ashamed of themselves! If we had gone to high school in Dallas or Tamales Bay together, she would be the first girl I would notice. I would have dated her and we would have been married a lot sooner."

"Nick almost defaced my high school yearbook," Sara said. "In the senior superlative page, he wanted to cross the name of the girl who got best smile and write my name on it."

"Hey, that bitch stole the honor you so deserve," Nick protested.

"What was that?" Jason said.

"Sara should have been voted the girl with the best smile," Nick said. "If I went to the same high school, I would have made sure that she had the best smile honors. Even if it meant stuffing the ballots myself!"

"Nick, I think Jason and Haley got the point," Sara said.

Jason and Haley both smiled at Nick and Sara. Samantha strutted from the kitchen and saw Sara. She sat close to the chair where Sara was sitting and looked at the strange human being at her owner's house.

"Meow!" Samantha said while Sara was looking at her.

Samantha walked under Sara's chair and sat on the other side next to the chair.

"Meow!" Samantha said again with Sara looking at her again.

Samantha went back to the same side as before. She looked up at Sara's lap and leapt up to the targeted landing spot. She walked around Sara's lap until she settled for a comfortable position.

"You claw me and I'll kill you," Sara said, but she knew this was a very gentle cat.

"Aw, Sara, that is really cute!" Nick said grabbing his camera and taking a picture of his wife with the cat on her lap. "Samantha really likes you a lot!"

"You are such a cutie pie," Sara said to Samantha.

"She is a gorgeous creature," Jason said. "Haley got her as a kitten two years ago. One of her co-workers had a cat that gave birth to a litter of kittens. He couldn't keep them all so he asked his co-workers and friends if they would like to have a kitten. Haley jumped at the opportunity, fell in love with this cute kitten and the little ball of fur approached her. She called me at work to let me know that we have a new pet and I was thrilled. We named her Samantha after that character from 'Bewitched'."

"That is a sweet story," Nick said as he snapped another picture of Sara with Samantha on her lap.

After a few moments, Samantha got bored being on Sara's lap and got off. She went to a the den and fell asleep.

"Jason, Nick, Sara, do you want coffee or tea?" Haley asked as she went to the kitchen.

There were two cries coming from the upstairs. Haley immediately left the kitchen and ran upstairs. Nick, Sara and Jason immediately followed. They entered a room with the walls painted in soft pink and had a Cinderella themed motif. There were two cribs, one for each baby.

"Sydney, what's wrong?" Haley softly asked. "Mommy and daddy are entertaining daddy's childhood friend and his wife. Now, what's up with your sister?"

"I think the girls need to be changed and fed," Jason said. "Nicole, Sydney, this is your 'Uncle Nick' and 'Aunt Sara'. We were supposed to go to their wedding when you decided to arrive that day. Don't worry, they forgive you!"

"They are so adorable," Sara said. "Jason, Nicole looks like you and Sydney looks like Haley."

"Jason, why don't you get the water started for the coffee and tea," Haley said. "I will change and feed the girls. Show the video of our wedding."

Jason, Nick and Sara went back downstairs and went to the den. Nick almost sat on Samantha, but she escaped in time before any damage occurred. Jason turned on the television and VCR. He put in the video in the machine and played it. They watched the tape containing highlights of the ceremony and reception. Nick was the best man and his other friends were the groomsmen. Haley wore an elegant strapless gown, a short veil, a string of pearls with matching earrings and her hair was pulled into a fancy bun. At the reception, there was a buffet dinner, a band that played all kinds of music and the cake.

"Nick, did you catch the garter?" Sara asked.

"No, it was Jason's cousin who caught it," Nick said. "Haley's friend caught the bouquet."

About half an hour later, Haley came downstairs and joined them. Jason already made the coffee and kept the water for tea hot. After the video was finished, they returned to the dining room table. Haley went to the kitchen to get the French silk pie. Jason helped out by taking the dessert plates, forks, spoons and coffee cups. Haley brought a small wooden box containing an assortment of teas and the pot of coffee. Jason got the hot water. Everyone was settled in and each got a small slice of the pie with coffee or tea.

"Haley, this is the most delicious French silk pie I have ever had," Nick said.

"Thanks, Nick, I made it myself," Haley said. "My sister gave me the recipe."

"Your sister has good taste," Sara said.

"I am glad you like it, Sara," Haley smiled.

The rest of the evening was filled with conversations about the past, jokes and laughter. When it came time for Nick and Sara to head out to Stokes Manor, Jason called a cab for them. As they waited, they talked some more, mainly about when Nick and Sara were going back to Vegas. The cab finally arrived, hugs and kisses were exchanged. Nick and Sara left the house and walked towards the cab. They both waved at Jason and Haley as they entered the car. When the car drove away from the Watson house to Stokes Manor, Haley and Jason went back inside the house and locked the door.

TBC