Disclaimer: (mutters darkly to selfwhile drawing Evil Diagram No. 42) I don't own it...yet...
Chapter 15
Nick hurried after Alex as she headed for her apartment. "Wait up!" he called.
Alex turned to him, a grin on her face. "You have something you wanna know?" she asked.
Panting, Nick joined her, grabbing her by the shoulders.
"What did you mean?" he asked, looking intently at her.
Alex looked at him, realizing he wasn't in the mood to play around.
"I had a vision," she explained. "I saw myself holding a little boy, and he looked so much like you…"
Nick stared at her, slowly thinking it over and coming to the conclusion that you didn't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out…
"Holy cow!" he yelped, sweeping the surprised Alex into a hug. "You mean, you mean -"
His girlfriend grinned and shut him up with a kiss, to which the CSI was more than happy to respond.
When the need for oxygen finally forced them apart, Nick had just one more little question, "Uh, Alex? How can you be pregnant when we haven't even…uh, you know."
She grinned. "Well, we can rectify that little problem right now, can't we?"
She relished the smile that spread over Nick's face as he led the way.
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"Like a candle in the darkness," announced Sara as she walked into the break room the next night.
"Excuse me?" Catherine peered over at her co-worker over the rim of her coffee cup.
"Nick," said Sara, opening the fridge door. "He's glowing. Haven't you noticed?"
Warrick's eyes widened and he said, "I really hope you don't mean that in the literal sense. I don't know what Gris would say about us talking science fiction here."
She rolled her eyes at him. "He's glowing, as in: he's so happy he lights up the room."
The blonde at the table lifted her head to stare at Sara. "Nick's happy? Why?"
Sara shrugged, then winked and said, "Alex would probably know. She's lit up like a glow worm buddy too."
A collective "ah" filled the break room as her colleagues collected and processed that information.
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Time passed by quickly for those in love, too quickly it seemed sometimes. Cases came and went, and the bond Alex shared with Nick grew each day.
The only thing was that Alex's vision didn't seem to be coming true just yet.
Still, destiny had its own timing, and Alex knew better than to question it. Patience was the key to virtue, after all…and anyway, kicking things made your feet hurt.
Talking about time…Alex was late for her breakfast appointment with the rest of the CSIs. They'd invited her to join them for Chinese food in the break room at the end of shift, and she had agreed. It wasn't often the whole graveyard shift could get together for some downtime.
Alex was greeted warmly by everyone, as she took a seat next to Nick. Passing her the kung pao chicken, he said, "We thought you might not show up."
Was that nervousness she heard in his voice? Alex shrugged it off and started eating. "Ecklie came to dump some evidence on me, that's all. So I'm a little late."
"A little?" Warrick looked up at the clock. "Twenty minutes is 'a little'? Remind me that the next time I'm late clocking in, Grissom."
Grissom looked up from his advanced-level crossword puzzle. "Excuse me?"
"Really, Warrick," said Sara, looking up from her salad. "Did you expect Grissom to pay attention while he's in his crosswords?"
The tall man frowned. "You've got salad dressing on your face," he informed her.
She put her hand up to feel. "No, I don't."
He lifted the bottle and squirted some out onto his finger, before smearing a glob on her face. "You do now."
"Guys!" Nick hissed, anguished, as Sara wiped off the glob and prepared to retaliate.
Something about his tone raised Alex's suspicion. Finishing her wonton soup, she looked up warily and asked, "Is there something I should know?"
Nick jumped, exchanging a look with the others. "No, of course not," he assured her.
She eyed him, still uncertain. "Really?"
"Really."
It didn't sound very convincing, but Alex trusted her boyfriend, so…
She had barely returned to her meal when Warrick picked his fortune cookie out and broke it to remove the fortune, popping the cookie bits in his mouth and chewing.
"Wait three days before making a big decision, and then follow your heart," he read with his mouth full, spraying a few stray cookie crumbs over Sara, who scowled at him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Greg, nearby. "Oh, hey! Read the lottery numbers on the back for me, Warrick."
"Get your own fortune from your own cookie," replied Warrick, rolling the paper into a tiny ball and flicking it into the dustbin.
Grumbling, Greg nonetheless rummaged for his fortune cookie. "Oh, this one's yours, Alex," he said suddenly, removing one from the take-out box.
Surprised, Alex took it. "Thanks, Greg," she said. "But I'm kinda full. I'll eat it later."
Nick spun to face her. "What?"
Alex looked at him, wondering what the problem was. "What do you mean, what? Can't I choose when and where I'll eat my own fortune cookie?"
Nick looked about to blurt something, but Grissom cut in. "No eating in this lab, Alex."
"Oh, yeah," Alex had momentarily forgotten that rule. "Sorry, Gris, I forgot."
Grissom got a funny look on his face, but he shrugged and said, "I'd just swallow it now, if I were you."
Sighing, Alex broke the cookie in half, and munched on it as she opened her fortune. This one seemed to be different from any fortune she'd ever gotten before. Frowning, she read:
You are going to marry a man named Nick Stokes in two months time.
Alex stared at the Sentence as though she had never seen words before.
"Nick?" she sputtered, almost choking on her cookie.
Lab Tech Asphyxiates On Fortune Cookie. She could just see the headlines now.
When she turned, though, Nick wasn't in his seat next to her. He was kneeling on one knee beside her, taking hold of one of her hands to ask tentatively, "Alex? Will you marry me?"
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Shout outs:
gelf - Not yet she isn't. But soon. I hope. :) And I can't write if you're going to describe doggie food ingredients in front of me!
SpectralLady - Oh, I see. Well, Rhi's not feeling too well right now, or we'd be working on the next chappie so you can review. You can always review anonymously, if you feel you can't wait. ;)
Kat Hawkins - Even double-drought sedatives can't do much more than knock a wolf feral out for more than a few minutes. >:) Say, if you're an MX fan, here's a forum you can join: w w w . mutantxphoenix . com / forum .Without the spaces in between, of course. ;)
And when is Valentine's Day where you stay? I live in Malaysia, for us it's February 14th. But I guess I did meet your deadline anyway, so...read and review. :p
love N/S - Glad you're still with me. DCHeesegirl seems to have left the building. :( As for their getting married, i dunno if Alex is ready.
Right. Now, Stage One of Evil Plan No. 52 of page 150 of the Evil Genius Training Guide shall now be unfolded!
(releases her pack of trained wolves to infiltrate CBS headquarters)
(sends her trusted Pokemon, Eevee, in to lead the wolves)
(sits back and starts working on Doomsday Device No. 49 according to Diagram 42 of the Evil Genius Training Manual)
