Disclaimer: I don't think the 28 dollar refund I got from my state taxes will cover buying them, so they still aren't mine.

Author's Notes: I want to thank everyone for the wonderful, wonderful replies to the last part, I was tickled pink that I got so much response! You guys are amazing, and it really encouraged me to write...otherwise you guys would have had to wait until Monday for a new part. This will be the last update until Monday or Tuesday, I've got to go to my parent's house for Easter, we're doing it early so Mom and Dad can go on a cruise...My brothers, sister, and I have been trying to find a way to dodge this for a week now, and we don't have a way yet, so we're going to leave in about half an hour to start driving (It's a 12 hour drive from here, I'm just waiting on my sister to get off of work), I just wanted to give you something to tide you over. If I get a good response, I may be motivated to write one night while I'm at my parent's house... :-)

It's not the best of chapters, but it does get the story ready to enter the last set of chapters...I predict 3 more to come. Call it a transitional chapter...

Jenny

Five:

Sara had fallen back asleep before the guys had left, and by the time she awoke again, only Warrick remained, holding Catherine's good hand while she slept, his head resting on her hospital bed, his eyes shut.

She knew immediately that her pain medication had completely worn off when the moment she opened her eyes, the light nearly blinded her and her whole body seized with pain. Moments later, she was fumbling for the basin beside her bed as she retched, her insides shaking with pain and embarrassment as Warrick made his way to her bed, pulling back her hair and steadying her with his hands.

"Shh, it's okay Sara." He soothed, his voice filled with concern for his friend. Her body was shaking, yet it was extremely hot to the touch, and she barely seemed aware of his presence as she continuously vomited, tears streaming down her cheeks.

After nearly 15 minutes, the spasms of her stomach stopped, and she fell back against Warrick, exhausted and weak, her head pounding worse than she had ever felt it before.

"You going to be okay? Want me to get a nurse?" Warrick asked gently, helping her get situated against her pillows, "Want some water or anything?"

Sara moaned weakly, "I'll be okay, I'm sorry."

"Hey, no need to apologize. I'm a CSI, remember? It takes a lot more than that to gross me out. Here I was, thinking Sara Sidle was invincible, and I'm just finally glad to see you're human like the rest of us." Warrick teased, standing, "I'm going to get a washcloth for your face, you're burning up."

"I'm worried about you." Catherine said softly from her bed, where she had halfway rolled onto her side, "It doesn't seem like your concussion's getting any better."

Sara fumbled for the button to her morphine drip, only to look over and see it was no longer there. "Pain medication wore off. How long have I been sleeping?"

"About 6 hours, they're giving you sedatives to keep you calm. Grissom's convinced the Dr. Richardson that you're a likely candidate to be checked out AMA. That, and the only time your fever seems to drop well is when you're resting. Dr. Richardson came in while you were sleeping, he told Grissom that you seem to be doing well enough to just have a regular dosage of Demerol every 4 to 6 hours, Dolores, the day nurse, will bring you some if you ask...at least, that's what they want you to believe. You may want to ask for something to settle your stomach, especially if you're going to be taking oral medication, it won't work if you throw it up." Catherine replied, her voice still showing concern, "You're flushed."

"It's hot in here. Stop trying to be my mom. And I'm not going to check myself out AMA. I don't need to be knocked out, I just want to go home, I'm fine."

"You're running a fever." Warrick interjected as he walked out of the bathroom, "They may need to adjust your antibiotics."

He placed the washcloth on her forehead, and she smiled as the cool moisture hit her warm skin. It was amazing how one little change could make such a big difference. She let her eyes close again, but was only able to drift halfway to sleep. Her body was so tired, she couldn't even find the energy to open her eyes, so she laid in silence, vaguely aware of Warrick and Catherine's presence in the room.

"She's not looking better." Catherine insisted, "Do you think there's something they aren't telling us?"

"It's going to take her some time to heal. Vomiting isn't unusual for people with concussions, especially serious ones. Fever isn't unusual for an infection, you can't overanalyze things, Cath." Warrick argued, "They're keeping an eye on her, they think she's getting better."

"Stop talking about me." Sara mumbled, almost incoherently, "Get a life."

Warrick smiled down on Sara, knowing she at least had the same spirit she did a few days ago, before the accident, and then turned to Catherine, "I'll go talk to the nurse, see if she can bring Sara some of her pain medication in and an anti-emetic. You need anything, Cath?"

"Diet soda, please." Catherine replied, motioning for him to grab her purse.

Warrick shook his head, "Please girl, it's on me." He looked down at Sara, "I'll be back in a few minutes."

As Warrick left the room, Sara managed to drift off into another dreamless sleep.

Nearly 72 hours later, she awoke with a scream, her fists flailing around her as someone inflicted a tremendous deal of pain on her aching body.

"Get off of me!"

"Sara, Sara, calm down. It's Dr. Richardson, can you hear me? I'm just changing your bandages, it's okay, I'm not trying to hurt you, I'm trying to help you get better."

"You're hurting me." Sara cried, tears pooling in her eyes, her mind confused. What was going on? Where was she? What was happening?

A familiar voice called out from behind the doctor, "Sara, settle down, he's almost done."

"You're not in bed anymore." Sara said slowly, as the last few days replayed through her mind, "Don't tell me they discharged you."

"Free and clear." Catherine replied from a chair near Sara's bed, "Well, for the most part. I am stuck staying with my sister, since I can't really do much on my own, but I do get to stay and visit you, which, actually, has been a real drag. All you've been doing is sleeping, and when you were awake, you were so incoherent that it wasn't even funny to tease you."

Sara mentally overrode her reflex to kick the doctor as he tugged on another bandage, focusing on Catherine, "How long have you been out?"

"Why, are you jealous?" Catherine retorted, only to be interrupted by Anabel as she walked in, a new pack of gauze in her hand as she met the doctor next to the bed, "Sara, hon, don't listen to her, she's only been discharged for about 9 hours, and she's spent 4 of them here with you."

"Watching me sleep? What kind of sick fetish"

"Don't even go there." Catherine said, waving her hand at Sara, "I've been worried, we all have, about you, and I figured you'd be scared when you finally decided to wake up, thought you'd like a familiar face."

Sara blushed slightly, honestly surprised that Catherine had thought this much about her. Sure, they had been getting along fantastically since the accident, but now that Catherine was free, well, she expected her to spend all of her time until the casts were off with Lindsey, she had always assumed once Catherine was out, she'd just be alone.

"Speaking of people going home," Dr. Richardson cut in, disrupting Sara's mental interrogation, "Miss Sidle, before we are able to discharge you, we need to find someone you can stay with, or who can stay with you. It will be difficult for you to manage with the burns on your hands and the broken ankle. Do you have any relatives in the area?"

"She can stay with me." Greg said from the doorway, "Wouldn't that be exciting, not to mention...well...never mind. What do you think?"

Sara looked at the doctor, raising her eyebrows with a smile, "He wouldn't have to like, bathe me or anything, would he? Because I think he'd enjoy that a little too much."

"I'll pay you 200 bucks to tell me I have to give her a sponge bath." Greg deadpanned the doctor, which resulted in a snort of laughter from Catherine.

"Do you have something to say, Cath?" Greg asked, his eyebrow raised.

Catherine shook her head, leaning towards Sara, "I bet you didn't know he'd pay to see you naked."

"Believe me, I knew." Sara said with a faux-serious look on her face, "Sure Greggo, why not, it could be fun."

"Staying with me or the sponge bath?" Greg quipped, resulting in a smack on the arm from Catherine. "Hey, just wanted to be clear." He turned to the doctor, "When can she leave?"

Dr. Richardson taped some new bandages back on Sara's slowly-healing cut, "Even though we had a bumpy start, her concussion seems to be healing marvelously, her infection seems to be nearly gone, and she hasn't had a temperature in 24 hours, so as long as nothing changes overnight, she's free to leave in the morning. Now Sara, in case I don't see you before you're discharged, I'm going to prescribe you some antibiotics, which I want you to take until the entire prescription is gone, and I'm going to prescribe you some Demerol tablets, with one refill. One every 6 hours, as needed, don't take more than that, and if the pain is severe enough to warrant a second pill, I want you back in here immediately. I'm also going to prescribe you a sedative, in case of any anxiety related to the accident and any discomfort that doesn't warrant pain medication. It will help you sleep, which will help your body heal, but you only need to take it when you feel you need it. Change the dressing on your hands once a day, until the draining stops, and once the draining stops, you can leave the bandages off. If you have a problem with the pain, try soaking them unwrapped in lukewarm water, with baking soda mixed in, for 15 minutes at a time, let them air dry, then wrap them again. I do not want your side submerged in water for 2 or 3 more days, although a quick shower is okay."

"She could use one." Greg said, earning a glare from Sara, "And if you need any help." He wiggled his eyebrows at her, earning yet another glare.

"I'll leave this all written down with the nurse, and you can call my office with any questions. I'd like to see you again in a week to check up on you." He gave her shoulder a light squeeze, "You're doing very well, obviously you're determined to heal."

"See, even the doctors think you're stubborn." Catherine teased as Dr. Richardson walked out of the room, "If you don't like staying with Greg, you're more than welcome to come home with me. I'm sure my sister wouldn't mind one more crippled woman, and Lindsey seems to like you a lot."

"I'm sure it'll be fine with Greg." Sara said with a small smile, "I can't put your sister out! I just want a long, hot shower, and my own comfortable pajamas." She flashed a bigger grin at Catherine, nodding towards Greg, "But if you want to come over later, in your pajamas too, I'm sure Greg wouldn't mind."

"We'd give him a heart attack." Catherine smirked in response, "I'm not so sure Greggo's ever seen a half-dressed woman before."

"I have too!" Greg argued, "Even naked ones." He let out a low growl, sending Catherine and Sara into fits of laughter.

Catherine wiped a tear from her eye as she tried to catch her breath, "That alone proves my point. We will have to visit though."

"How long until I can go back to work?" Sara asked, tilting her head to the side as she peered at Anabel, who was checking her blood pressure, "I mean, I know it'll be awhile before I can get out into the field, but what about lab work?"

"Grissom wants both of us out for at least another week." Catherine supplied, "Paid, and not coming out of our vacation time. After that, he said light duty in the lab, paperwork, helping out Greg, reviewing cold cases, until we're ready to work full time again." She tapped on her broken leg, "I'll be out of commission for at least 6 months, probably longer, depending on my physical therapy."

"Your cast will be coming off in about 10 weeks," Anabel told Sara, "If all heals like it's supposed to. You'll need to do physical therapy as well, to get full range back in your ankle. It will probably take 2 or 3 months until your hands will be ready to get back into the swing of things. Once the bandages come off, which probably won't be for a few days, they'll be very sensitive and shaky. Severe burning often causes nerve damage. We may have to do some rehab with your hands while waiting on your foot to recover."

"Gee, that sounds fantastic." Sara muttered sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "Greg, please tell me you brought food with you."

Greg motioned to the chair in the corner, where a brown bag laid, the top rolled shut, "Why, of course, anything for you."

"What did you get me?" Sara asked, sitting up and only slightly wincing at the stab of pain in her side. She still hurt, but she definitely could tell she was getting better. At least her head had stopped hurting...

Greg pulled out a plastic container, handing it to an eager Sara, "A grilled cheese sandwich and a yogurt cup. I made the sandwich myself."

"Look how proud he is." Catherine teased, stifling a yawn. "Greg, if you have it from here, I'm going to call my sister to come pick me up, I'm beat."

"No problem, I know how to entertain the ladies." Greg replied teasingly, raising his eyes suggestively at Sara, "We're just waiting for you to leave."

"You're such a loser." Sara laughed, taking a bite of the sandwich, "But you do make good food."

"That's not the only thing I do well."

"Stop hitting on me." Sara said with another delighted laugh. She had missed her friends over the last few days in the hospital, and as annoying as Greg's flirty banter could be, she was really flattered that he took the time and energy to hit on her.

Greg flashed her a smile, relieved to see her laughing. He had been so scared when he heard about the accident, he couldn't fathom what he would do without Sara. Sure, he knew that she was out of his league, but he enjoyed flirting with her so much, and he could tell she didn't mind it, so he continued to tease her with his lewd comments and innuendos. He'd do anything to see the smile and gentle blush on her cheeks.

"So, roomie, I'm going to have to do some shopping...what do you like to eat? I know it's no meat, but what do you really like? And don't even try to tell me 'it doesn't matter', because even though you're injured, I'll still beat you down for that."

Sara rolled her eyes, "Yeah right, gentle Greg? Seriously, I like fruit, yogurt, pasta, popcorn...I'm not really that picky."

"It's a good thing you like simple foods, because I suck at cooking"

"The grilled cheese was pretty good."

Greg smirked, "As I was saying, I suck at cooking real good. The simpler, the better. Although I do make a mean chocolate cake."

"You know..." Sara began with a yawn, "Someone once told me that chocolate was better than sex."

Greg laughed, "That person obviously hadn't gotten any for awhile. Sex is definitely better than chocolate."

"I think it depends on the chocolate." Sara replied sleepily, stifling another yawn, "Sometimes I'd definitely take chocolate over the horizontal tango."

"I disagree, sex is always better, no ifs, ands or buts about it." Greg replied, "No matter what you say, sex will always be better."

Sara raised her eyebrows with a smile, "Care to place a wager on that? We can set up a field experiment and test this theory."

"First off, stop hitting on me when you're crippled, drugged, and hospitalized. Secondly, that sort of experiment should not take place in a field, with all of the burrs and bugs...a motel room, maybe, a lab, maybe."

Sara laughed, swatting at his arm, "I'm not hitting on you, I'm just teasing. And you're not even funny, you know what I meant." She laughed harder, clutching her side as pain soared through her abdomen, "Could you see Grissom's face if he walked in on our experiment in the lab? That would be priceless."

"How much Demerol have they given you?" Greg teased, "You're so doped up, it's not even funny."

Catherine smirked, "Too much, apparently. In a way, I'm glad to be getting out of here, just in case things get a little too carried away."

"And she finally agrees to let me have her right here in her bed?" Greg said, his eyebrow raised again. "Yeah, you should give us the privacy.

Cocking her head to the side, Catherine smiled at Sara, "Call if you need anything, and if he gets too perverted, you can just kick him out and call Nicky, I'm sure he'd jump at the chance to let you stay at his place."

"I know." Sara replied, looking down at her cast, which already held the names of her co-workers, "See you tomorrow?"

"Definitely." Catherine replied, "The guys are going to come by after work to visit you, and tomorrow we can all have dinner together before they go in. Warrick's going to drive me, he's agreed to be my chauffeur when my sister isn't available."

"I bet he's going to love that." Greg and Sara said in unison, earning a surprised look from Catherine, "What do you mean?"

"Nothing." Sara replied, with an expression reminescent of the phrase "the cat that ate the canary" plastered on her face, "Warrick's just a good friend."

"We don't have those kind of feelings." Catherine replied, her eyes narrowing, "You're loopy from the drugs." She turned to face Greg, "And you're just loopy. Mind wheeling me out front?"

Greg gave her a bow, "Your wish is my command."

"Say that to Sara and you might get laid." Catherine laughed, smiling over her shoulder at Sara as Greg led her down the hall, leaving Sara to lay in bed and wonder why she had agreed to stay with Greg, of all people. If anyone could get under her skin as much as Grissom could, it was Greg. Sure, the flirting was all in fun, but in the back of her mind, she always wondered if he was serious, and how serious he was. Sure, she made her sexual jokes, but being around someone who constantly made them gave her the creeps, and she wasn't sure she'd be comfortable in that situation for weeks.

Looking around at the 4-walled prison (labeled room 416), she decided anything was better than a hospital room, and who knows, maybe Greg would behave and they could build up their friendship. Lord knows, she didn't have many friends, and with the way she had been attracting trouble, she could use a few people on her side.

(Let me know what you think! I still love feedback!)