Of Decades and Train Whistles

A/N: Sorry it took so long for this last chapter. Life did get in the way, but mostly, I'm just lazy. Hope you've enjoyed it, and thanks for the comments and questions.

"Happy birthday dear Alex…..happy birthday to youuuu!"

October fifth fell on a Thursday and so Alex found himself surrounded by some of his classmates and family for lunch on the following Sunday, when it would be easier for all to attend. They went to a buffet that was quieter than usual, and the birthday boy enjoyed eight bite sized brownies for his cake, because he didn't normally eat dessert and wasn't really a fan of cake anyway. Grissom and Rose were amused by all the train toys Alex received, and Sara was quietly moping that this was his last single digit birthday.

After getting hyper from the party and the singing, Sara brought Alex home and Grissom helped pack him up to spend the next two nights at respite. She'd told him the official name of the place before, but it was essentially a residence where Alex could go for a few nights to have some fun away from home in a supervised environment, and Sara and Rose could have a little break of their own. Grissom thought it was a great idea, and he could tell that though she loved her son, and might have felt a little guilty for sending him off, Sara enjoyed the break too.

Sara took the two days off of work and spent part of them cleaning house, going through old stacks of paper and such to purge things. Alex had a lot of paperwork; whether it was bills concerning his therapy, test results, papers needed for school, or just things that he created. And though Sara had finally gotten him to put all his papers away neatly, they all just got thrown into a basket on his desk. Once in a while Sara found the time to sort through them.

Somehow a train engine had fallen into the basket along with Alexander's papers, and Sara drew it out, to be placed on the bookshelf with all the other ones. She recognized this engine as the one Grissom had left for Alex when he'd first come to visit, a year ago. It didn't seem like that long ago, but for the level of friendship they now shared, it felt too short a time. They were a lot closer than they'd ever been while working together in Vegas, and though the twelve-year drift wasn't idealistic, it seemed to have just strengthened their relationship. No longer working together, having experienced life with other people, and no pressure to become a couple were all factors that Sara begrudgingly admitted to herself as being major reasons for their level of intimacy now.

Grissom called while Sara was in the middle of cleaning, but she didn't invite him over. The respite wasn't just for Alex, and Grissom seemed to understand that too. Instead, he merely spoke to her about what was going on at work, and then let her go. He'd gotten to the stage where he missed her if they weren't in contact daily, whether seeing her in person or just talking on the phone. He continually lied to himself by saying she was just a friend, though he was aware of the mistruth.

All three went to pick Alex up from respite, because Grissom's car was in the shop for an oil change and he'd needed a ride home from work. Rose was there because she was curious to see the new respite building, and Sara was glad to see that Alex had missed her. His smile was huge as she hugged him, and the clapping with some short whoops let her know that Alexander had had a great time. He jabbered in gibberish while walking around and in the car, before falling asleep halfway home, leaning against Grissom.

Once they arrived to the house, Rose hurried in for the washroom, muttering that she'd had too much tea, and Sara unlocked the door to hear the phone ringing. Grissom didn't want to wait, and so carefully picked Alex up with him out of the car and carried him inside. He helped a half awake Alex into his pajamas, and then put him to bed. Sara would be up later with Alexander's medicine, but the boy could nap for now.

Griss found Sara and Rose in the kitchen, discussing the new aide in Alex's class who was the spitting image of George Clooney. Rose was impressed, and was considering volunteering in the class just for the eye candy. Sara was amused, though she informed Rose that not many older men did things for her. The twinkle in her eye drew Grissom's gaze as he grinned. Instead of teasing though, Grissom merely asked how many older men she did approve of. Sara retorted that she'd have to get back to Grissom, and then went to search in the freezer for something to eat for dinner. Rose left them in order to watch Coronation Street on TV, a show she didn't like to admit she was addicted to.

Pulling out frozen vegetarian lasagna, Sara then opened the fridge and offered Grissom a beer and poured some cheetos in a bowl. She didn't know if Grissom wanted any, but her growling stomach did. In the background they could hear Emily Bishop talking on the TV,

"You know, Rose has strongly hinted to me that I should ask you out." Grissom stated, sipping his beer as he watched Sara fix a snack and then sit down at the table across from him.

"On a date?" Sara paused, flashing him a grin. "But you don't know how to do that."

"Yeah." Grissom agreed, nodding his head upward. "And besides, we'd be boring. Come home too early." He stole some cheetos and smiled, enjoying this little banter.

"And the sex…" Sara laughed instead of continuing, choosing not to jest about something he might be a little too sensitive about. Grissom's raised eyebrow confirmed that she'd chosen wisely.

"We're really just not the right two people to go out."

Sara nodded in agreement, and they sat quietly for a moment, looking out into Sara's backyard and the approaching night.

"You gonna stick around later?" She asked softly, sipping more beer.

"Yeah," Grissom replied, his words not rushed by anything. "I'm not going anywhere."

The end.