I Forgot To Tell You
Working Title
Chapter One
by Marita Linde
Author's Notes: Well, this is what I get for writing this fic from end to beginning. Thanks: To Amber, for promoting this idea. To Mike, for listening to me talk and talk..
The crime scene had an eerie feeling that day. She walked through the room, inspecting the walls and floor and pieces of furniture, all the time thinking that something was terribly wrong. There was something about the smell of the office, or the presence of someone...
She turned to face the wall of employee photos, smiling faces of young journalists staring back at her. She scanned each one of them, searching for something to take away the nauseous feeling that had started in her stomach. She'd had a bad feeling about this investigation from the start. She was terrified of what she thought she might find.
"Sara." A voice from behind her said, and she whirled around to look at Grissom. "Is everything OK?"
She stared into his eyes for a few breathless seconds before replying with, "Yeah. Yeah, everything's fine." He nodded shortly, and pointed to the ground. His lips were moving, but she couldn't hear a word he was saying. Caught up in the sight of the crystal in his eyes glittering from the early morning light, he sounded mute to her. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"
He sighed. "I asked you if you could start dusting for fingerprints."
"Oh. Yeah, OK, sure." She bent down to open her kit as he walked away, to where she didn't know.
There it was again, that odd feeling. Something was in the atmosphere and it was messing up her concentration. She lifted her head to look at the ceiling, then closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. What was that smell? She remembered it from somewhere...
"Sara." Grissom again. This time she didn't turn, but stayed squatted down where she was and spoke without seeing him.
"Something doesn't feel right, Grissom." She said, and waited for his reply.
"Sara, there's somebody I think you'd like to see waiting by the door." She stood instantly, and walked to where he was pointing. Her heart pounded in her chest, the blood rushed to her head and she couldn't hear or feel anything but that eerie wind that blew across the room. The figure in the doorway was slightly hunched, her dark hair falling across her face, making her form seem tragic. Even with the girl's tear- stained cheeks, Sara still recognized her, and gasped as an old friend's face was uncovered from behind the hair that had before hidden her features.
"Michelle Lampman." Sara said simply, and reached over to hug her. "What are you doing here?" Michelle's form was stiff in her arms, her breathing warm and stale-feeling in her ear. Sara smelled the old familiar scent of gardenia oil while she was close to her.
"I work here. Leah is-" She stopped herself. "Was one of my best friends." Sara nodded, then looked down at the ground once Michelle pulled herself away from her embrace. Pointing to the dead body lying on the ground behind a wooden desk, she shivered. "I can't believe this has happened."
Sara thought to herself that this was a horrible way of reuniting herself with her old best friend. For a short second she forgot why they had been estranged from each other for so long. She wanted to brush Michelle's curly black hair away from her eyes like she had done so many times in the years before, but opted not to when she saw the devastation in her eyes.
"God. It's so weird to see you after all this time." Michelle's eyes went up and down Sara's form. "You haven't changed a bit, you know that? Except your hair." Sara nodded. "It looks good."
"Thanks." Sara's hands were bawled into fists and were pulled up tight against her sides. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She was here to investigate a crime that Michelle was under suspicion for committing. "What happened, Michelle?"
Michelle just shook her head, not moving her gaze from Sara's face. "I don't know. I just got here this morning at the beginning of shift, went to my desk, and found her lying dead behind it." Sara wanted to say that that hadn't been what she was talking about, but didn't. She just nodded and watched Brass make a few notes, and wondered fleetingly when he had arrived by her side. He looked to her to see if it was OK that he start the questioning.
Sara heard herself mumble, "I've got to go." She turned to go back to the crime scene, but felt a cold finger on her arm.
"Sara, wait. Let's go out for a coffee or something, afterwards." Michelle suggested, watching the hope in her old friend's eyes envelope her entire body.
"OK. I'd like that." Nodding, she went back to her work.
"Michelle Lampman, after all these years.." Gil was contemplating to himself when Sara walked up and eyed him curiously.
"So you remember her?" He nodded. "She was your best student."
"No, you were my best student. She didn't even want to be there." Grissom reminded her, swirling the fingerprint brush around the back of a chair.
"She took the class because I didn't want to go alone." Sara reminded herself, looking at the ceiling lights in a new kind of fascination. Grissom nodded and continued with his work. "Are you going to go talk to her?" She asked. "You haven't seen her in..well, five years."
He stared at the carpet. "Maybe." At her exasperated look he said, "She's being questioned right now, Sara."
"We're going out for coffee afterwards, did you want to come?" She didn't know why she had asked him. A friend she hadn't spoken to in years wanted to go out with her so they could catch up on lost memories, on lost best friend things, possibly try and talk about why they split up in the first place, and she was inviting her boss.
"Do you and Michelle really want to go out with your old college professor?" He looked shy, then, so she smiled.
"Well, you always were our favourite."
Author's Notes: Well, this is what I get for writing this fic from end to beginning. Thanks: To Amber, for promoting this idea. To Mike, for listening to me talk and talk..
The crime scene had an eerie feeling that day. She walked through the room, inspecting the walls and floor and pieces of furniture, all the time thinking that something was terribly wrong. There was something about the smell of the office, or the presence of someone...
She turned to face the wall of employee photos, smiling faces of young journalists staring back at her. She scanned each one of them, searching for something to take away the nauseous feeling that had started in her stomach. She'd had a bad feeling about this investigation from the start. She was terrified of what she thought she might find.
"Sara." A voice from behind her said, and she whirled around to look at Grissom. "Is everything OK?"
She stared into his eyes for a few breathless seconds before replying with, "Yeah. Yeah, everything's fine." He nodded shortly, and pointed to the ground. His lips were moving, but she couldn't hear a word he was saying. Caught up in the sight of the crystal in his eyes glittering from the early morning light, he sounded mute to her. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"
He sighed. "I asked you if you could start dusting for fingerprints."
"Oh. Yeah, OK, sure." She bent down to open her kit as he walked away, to where she didn't know.
There it was again, that odd feeling. Something was in the atmosphere and it was messing up her concentration. She lifted her head to look at the ceiling, then closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. What was that smell? She remembered it from somewhere...
"Sara." Grissom again. This time she didn't turn, but stayed squatted down where she was and spoke without seeing him.
"Something doesn't feel right, Grissom." She said, and waited for his reply.
"Sara, there's somebody I think you'd like to see waiting by the door." She stood instantly, and walked to where he was pointing. Her heart pounded in her chest, the blood rushed to her head and she couldn't hear or feel anything but that eerie wind that blew across the room. The figure in the doorway was slightly hunched, her dark hair falling across her face, making her form seem tragic. Even with the girl's tear- stained cheeks, Sara still recognized her, and gasped as an old friend's face was uncovered from behind the hair that had before hidden her features.
"Michelle Lampman." Sara said simply, and reached over to hug her. "What are you doing here?" Michelle's form was stiff in her arms, her breathing warm and stale-feeling in her ear. Sara smelled the old familiar scent of gardenia oil while she was close to her.
"I work here. Leah is-" She stopped herself. "Was one of my best friends." Sara nodded, then looked down at the ground once Michelle pulled herself away from her embrace. Pointing to the dead body lying on the ground behind a wooden desk, she shivered. "I can't believe this has happened."
Sara thought to herself that this was a horrible way of reuniting herself with her old best friend. For a short second she forgot why they had been estranged from each other for so long. She wanted to brush Michelle's curly black hair away from her eyes like she had done so many times in the years before, but opted not to when she saw the devastation in her eyes.
"God. It's so weird to see you after all this time." Michelle's eyes went up and down Sara's form. "You haven't changed a bit, you know that? Except your hair." Sara nodded. "It looks good."
"Thanks." Sara's hands were bawled into fists and were pulled up tight against her sides. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She was here to investigate a crime that Michelle was under suspicion for committing. "What happened, Michelle?"
Michelle just shook her head, not moving her gaze from Sara's face. "I don't know. I just got here this morning at the beginning of shift, went to my desk, and found her lying dead behind it." Sara wanted to say that that hadn't been what she was talking about, but didn't. She just nodded and watched Brass make a few notes, and wondered fleetingly when he had arrived by her side. He looked to her to see if it was OK that he start the questioning.
Sara heard herself mumble, "I've got to go." She turned to go back to the crime scene, but felt a cold finger on her arm.
"Sara, wait. Let's go out for a coffee or something, afterwards." Michelle suggested, watching the hope in her old friend's eyes envelope her entire body.
"OK. I'd like that." Nodding, she went back to her work.
"Michelle Lampman, after all these years.." Gil was contemplating to himself when Sara walked up and eyed him curiously.
"So you remember her?" He nodded. "She was your best student."
"No, you were my best student. She didn't even want to be there." Grissom reminded her, swirling the fingerprint brush around the back of a chair.
"She took the class because I didn't want to go alone." Sara reminded herself, looking at the ceiling lights in a new kind of fascination. Grissom nodded and continued with his work. "Are you going to go talk to her?" She asked. "You haven't seen her in..well, five years."
He stared at the carpet. "Maybe." At her exasperated look he said, "She's being questioned right now, Sara."
"We're going out for coffee afterwards, did you want to come?" She didn't know why she had asked him. A friend she hadn't spoken to in years wanted to go out with her so they could catch up on lost memories, on lost best friend things, possibly try and talk about why they split up in the first place, and she was inviting her boss.
"Do you and Michelle really want to go out with your old college professor?" He looked shy, then, so she smiled.
"Well, you always were our favourite."