Disclaimer: I do not own CSI and I am not making any money by writing this story.
Author's note: This occurs after the last episode of the third season. Grissom is still in the hospital.
Sara strolls into the locker room still in a daze. She is attempting to digest exactly what Grissom had said. A few weeks ago he hadn't been willing to go to dinner with me and now well…. She really isn't sure what he wants. "Don't force it." She slams her locker shut and sighs. Why the hell does he have to be such an enigma? She gets up and heads to the break room.
"Hey, Sara," Nick calls as she enters, "I tried to call you earlier. Where were you?"
Sara pauses caught off guard by the question, "Sorry, I went out," she shrugs it off, "Was it important?"
"No, I just wanted to see if you wanted to catch a meal before work."
"Oh, I'll catch you some other time," She pours herself a cup of coffee.
"Yeah, sure," Nick responds, but still curious as to where she had been.
Catherine saves Sara from any further questioning when she breezes into the room, "Busy night," she exclaims, shuffling through the assignment slips," Series of convenience store robberies. Warrick's already there. Nick, join him. Sara we've got a B and E gone bad."
Nick hurries out of the room, hoping to get to the scene before Warrick collects all the good evidence.
"How's Grissom?" Catherine asks while Sara finishes her coffee.
"He seemed fine when I dropped him off," Sara responds dismissively.
"And you just left him there? Never went back to check on him?"
"Didn't you?" Sara tries to shift the attention back to Catherine, "I'm sure he's fine. It's Grissom. Do you think he would want us bugging him?" Sara hides a smile behind her coffee cup. If she only knew.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right about that," Catherine acknowledges, "Come on we have a crime to solve."
Sara throws her coffee cup in the trash and follows Catherine out the door.
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Grissom washes the breakfast dishes, pondering what he had said to Sara that evening. A smile forms on his lips; for once his life was looking up. The only problem he has is what to do now. Sara isn't exactly going to wait for him to sort out the apprehension and uncertainty he feels about the situation. He doesn't know how to keep her happy while giving himself a chance to adjust. He dries the dishes lost in thought and carefully places them back in the covert. A light bulb finally goes on in his head. The idea didn't exactly go along with his non-forcing statement from earlier, but it would make Sara happy.
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Sara collapses onto the bench in the break room. The B and E had been heartbreaking. The youngest daughter had heard the break-in, but thought it was the family dog. The robber had freaked and shot the little girl as she came down the steps. She was in critical condition at the hospital because the robber had called 911 himself. Catherine and Sara job was easy, but it didn't make the night any less devastating. The perpetrator was in custody, but only time would tell if the girl would pull through. Sara sighs and then opens her locker. It was time to go home or at to Grissom's apartment. That thought makes her smile, but just as she grabs her keys Catherine enters the room.
"How are you holding up?" Sara asks.
"Fine," Catherine responds like she doesn't know why Sara would be asking that.
Sara gives her a knowing look, but lets it go.
Catherine responds with a weird look of her own, "Is that a key to Grissom's apartment?"
"What?" Sara looks shocked. She hadn't noticed the key Grissom had slipped onto her key ring yet. "I thought you had just dropped him off?" She raises an eyebrow accusatorily.
Sara ignores Catherine's question, her voice dripping with acid. She doesn't like Catherine cornering her, "And I suppose you know it's his because he gave you one?"
"No," Catherine states clearly, trying to get Sara's ruffled feathers to smooth out, "You know we're all behind you two."
Sara doesn't listen; she grabs her keys and leaves.
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Sara uses the key to open Grissom's apartment, slams inside, and then bangs into the bathroom, leaving Grissom to stare in her wake.
Grissom has no idea what to do. He can't exactly have a conversation with her through the bathroom door. Sara solves his problem by storming back out of the bathroom. She paces back and forth in the living, having nowhere to vent.
"Hey, hey calm down. What's wrong?" Grissom's voice sounds a bit off, but it still gets her attention.
"Catherine" she hisses
"Why? What did she do?" Grissom asks concerned. Catherine really knows how to push her buttons.
"She recognized your key! How does she…."
Grissom grabs her shoulders, "slow down."
Sara takes a deep breath, "Sorry" she smiles weakly and then begins to sign, "Catherine recognized your key."
"And you're mad at her for being observant?"
"She is so nosy!" Sara rants.
"She caught you lying didn't she?" Grissom smiles a little, recognizing the real problem: Sara didn't like to be out smarted.
"Yeah" Sara reluctantly admits; the question takes the hot air out of her anger.
"It's okay. She would have figured it out eventually." Grissom tries to reassure her that he isn't upset that someone knows they had been spending time together. He doesn't want to think about what Catherine imagined them doing, though.
"Figure out what?" Sara responds, trying to force Grissom to admit something.
Grissom holds her gaze for a moment and then shrugs.
Sara drops her eyes; the moment becomes too intense for her.
"I made diner," Grissom can only hope that his surprise can restore Sara's good mood.
Sara looks up at him and then over to the kitchen, "Candles, that's sweet." She gives him one of her famous Sara Sidle smiles.
"Would my lady like to take her seat?"
"Yes, she would," Sara smiles again.
Grissom leads Sara over to the table and actually pulls the chair out for her. They make small talk the best they can while they eat. Grissom smiles inwardly to himself, for once he had succeeded in being romantic without screwing it up in some way. Sara looks happier than she has in a long time and Grissom is overjoyed that he caused it.
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I'm afraid I will not be updating as often. Classes have started and I do not have nearly as much time to write.
