Green Monster

TEASER: No one at the lab knows the truth of Grissom's and Sara's vacations. Response to the 8-22-05 Unbound Improv Challenge and sequel to "Blue Blazes".

RATING: M for sexual content.

SPOILERS: Through Season 5.

DISCLAIMERS: Not mine. No matter how hard I wish or pray, they never will be. So I'm just playing with them for fun without profit. All of that goes to Bruckheimer, et al.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: You'll get more from this story if you read "Red Hot" and Blue Blazes first. Reviews appreciated, archived at my site, and the keepers of the MONTH (never mind the second week) of August HATE me, though to my knowledge, I've never done anything to them. First and last lines given, 1000 word limit for the story itself; according to MS Word 2003, I made it with 10 words to spare.

CSI CSI CSI

"Put your back into it." Grissom watched as Greg pushed a shovel into a large pile of compost. The look on Greg's face made it abundantly clear how he felt about that particular assignment.

Greg threw two shovels full into the large sifter and set the shovel aside. He knelt down to the ground and lifted the sifter before he spoke. "I heard Sara had a fabulous vacation."

"I presume she did. She looks rested." Actually, he knew she did because he was there with her, but no one else except his mother knew that.

Greg's eyes went as wide as saucers and he stopped shaking the sifter. "I, uh, um . . . well . . ."

"Yes, Greg?"

"I just assumed your declaration of it not working out was bogus."

Grissom chuckled. "You know what happens when you assume, Greg."

"Yeah. It's just . . . well, the way she was talking about this guy, I would have sworn it was you."

Grissom shook his head. "Nope. My mom and I had a great time." Well, they would when he actually went to California. Eight days and nights of fabulous vacation sex beat a weekend with his mother anytime.

Greg eyed him with suspicion. "You're taking the news that she met someone awfully calmly, Gris."

Grissom wanted to laugh out loud, knowing how much that observation had cost his young assistant. Instead, he grinned and waggled his eyebrows. "What makes you think I didn't meet someone on my vacation, Greg?"

Slackjawed, Greg went back to his sifting, muttering incomprehensibly the entire time as Grissom went on to search another area of the property a serial killer called the Florist once owned.

CSI CSI CSI

"You mean to tell me that Grissom went crying home to Mom in California and you had a fling with some male gigolo in the back woods of Oregon?" Catherine's screech echoed through the warehouse she and Sara were processing as part of the Florist investigation.

Sara didn't even look up from her fingerprint powder to answer. "That's exactly what I mean, Catherine."

Catherine took a series of flash pictures that lit up the cavernous space like a disco. "God, I thought your speech about it not working out was just blowing smoke to cover any improprieties Ecklie or the Sheriff might try to create."

"Oh, come on, Catherine. You're the one who went to the most trouble. Don't you think we'd at least level with you and swear you to secrecy if we were just blowing smoke?"

Catherine snorted. "I could hope. But getting Grissom to speak about such things is worse than pulling teeth, and I know because I've done both."

"Maybe you should ask Grissom if he met anyone on his trip."

Catherine cackled for almost an hour as she photographed the rest of the room.

CSI CSI CSI

In the break room later, Nick and Warrick told Catherine and Greg about their conversations with Grissom and Sara.

"I thought they were blowing smoke, man." Warrick ran his hand over his head as he thumped down in a chair between Nick and Catherine and drove his coffee cup into the table with such force that it sloshed over.

"Don't waste that, 'Rick." Greg pointed at the puddle on the table. "I did, too. But Grissom said something that suggested he met a woman in California."

Nick popped a handful of popcorn into his mouth and chewed a few times before he said around the remnants, "He told me she was spectacular. A great conversationalist, beautiful, mature, and a true delight to be around. I kind of got the very creepy feeling that he was fantasizing about her as we talked. Something about ticklish lips."

"Ew, Nick! We could have done without that image." Catherine smacked his shoulder.

"Sara's mystery lover was quite a hottie, according to what she told me. Athletic, well built, a great kisser, and she let me fill in the rest of what he was really great at." Warrick sighed. "Damn, I really thought we had the two of them together for once and for all."

Catherine tapped her lip for a moment. "You know what this means, guys."

Greg rubbed his hands together. "Operation Green Monster is a go?"

"Yes. You all remember what to do, right?"

"Get them to talk about their new loves as much as possible in each other's presence." Nick spoke for all of them. "Got it."

CSI CSI CSI

"Grissom, can you pull all the files on that serial rapist we had to set aside last year? I'm beginning to see a pattern here with the Florist but I need to refresh my memories with the actual crime scene photos."

Grissom pull open a drawer as Greg stepped into the room. "You want the photo files or everything, Sara?"

"Photos for now is fine. Thanks, Gris."

"You told Warrick but not me? Sara, I'm hurt." Greg made sure to set a cup of his special brew in front of his favorite co-worker as she looked at the files. Grissom thumbed through the cabinet across the room, apparently paying no attention, but Greg banked on his ears perking up as soon as Sara started talking. That and Catherine's interrogation techniques, which would follow his with Sara.

Sara took the cup but didn't look at him. "Told him what?"

Greg nodded to the others, who stood gathered just beyond the glass walls within earshot. "About your mystery man in Oregon."

She smiled at the computer. "Dreamy. Great hands. Talented hands." She shifted a little in her seat.

Grissom looked up, but Greg couldn't read his expression. "Talented hands?"

Catherine took that as her cue and strolled into the room. "Grissom, I've heard some very interesting things about your vacation in California. Care to elaborate?"

Greg watched Grissom squirm. "Not really."

"Ticklish lips ring a bell?"

Greg heard Sara inhale and Grissom grunt before they said together, "What did you say?"

--FIN--