The walls were closing in; his apartment seemed to be getting smaller and smaller. The air was almost suffocating him as he tried to find a door, or even a window. On his hands and knees now, he could see faces taunting him. Nigel Crane kept chanting over and over "I am one, who am I?" A face he'd managed to keep out of his dreams for a long time gave him a stern look. "Don't tell anyone, Nicky, they won't believe you anyway." Somehow that sixteen year-old girl looked almost more menacing than Nigel did.
Grissom's brow was arched. "Say 'silk, silk, silk...now what do cows drink?"
Sara's hands rested on his shoulders. "So Tricky Nicky, how many outstandings did you get on your evaluation?"
Catherine's expression was full of trepidation. "I think we'd better head down to the police station" Her smile flitted across her face. "I have never seen a more perfect match...he killed her."
A faceless voice rang out in the eerie greenish light. "Hello CSI guy. Do it fast or do it slow, either way, you're going to die."
Nick screamed, thrashing his fists at what was now the ceiling of his house closing in on him. It didn't seem there was going to be any escape and he felt an unbearable pressure on his chest.
Sara was startled awake as she realized that they'd fallen asleep on Nick's couch while they watched a movie that was long since over and he was having another nightmare. "Nick." She gently whispered his name and tried to move herself from where she'd fallen asleep against his chest.
"No, please, no..." Nick whimpered in his sleep, clearly panicked by his dream.
"Nick." Sara reached up and touched his cheek softly. "Nicky." Her brow was furrowed in concern and she truly hoped that sooner rather than later, his nightmares would go away.
Nick's eyes bolted open as he tried to catch his breath. It took him a minute to realize that Sara was right there, that he could breathe despite the pressure of her resting against his chest. His arms instinctively tightened around her. "I'm sorry." His brows knit together as he tried to tell if he'd scared her.
"I'm ok." She smiled reassuringly at him. "Are you ok?" He seemed to be relaxing as the images from his dream faded away.
"I'll be fine..." He closed his eyes for a moment in relief that it had only been a dream. "I could see Nigel...and Cassie..." His words trailed off as he realized he'd never told Sara about his sexual assault as a child.
Sara stroked his face gently as she looked at him with inquisitive concern. "Cassie?" She didn't recall him ever mentioning her before.
Nick garnered his courage as he opened his eyes. His voice was soft. "I was nine...she was a last minute babysitter..." He wasn't sure how much to tell her.
He really didn't need to say anymore as a realization dawned on Sara's face. She felt a stab of pain deep in her soul for the child that Nick had been, and for the part of his childhood that had been stolen. She understood what that was like, in a completely different way, but she still understood what it was like to have the evil choices of other people rob you of your childhood. "I am so sorry, Nick." Her voice was thick with emotion and she rested her head against his chest. She listened to the sound of his heart beating as an assurance that he was ok.
"It's not your fault." He really didn't want to focus on his demons, he wanted to focus on something good for a change, and right now holding onto Sara felt pretty damn good.
"I know...it's just...Shit. Why does so much crap have to happen to kids?" She was enjoying just being close to him, and she wondered if she might ever have this chance outside of these circumstances.
"I think that's why we do what we do, Sar...so other people don't have to go through the hell we've been through." Nick knew that each of the CSIs had a very personal reason for why they did the job; you couldn't stick with it for long if you didn't have a passion for it; if something deep inside you didn't stir you to face death everyday to get some semblance of justice for the victims.
She looked frustrated. "It's just that some people get so much more hell than others." She lifted her head and looked into Nick's eyes with compassion. She had always had a connection with him; that's why they'd become fast friends when she first moved to Vegas, but now she understood that their connection went a lot deeper because they were both survivors.
"And everyone says I'm the one that empathizes too much." Nick's mouth twitched into a smile as he looked back into her eyes.
Sara chuckled softly as she let out a yawn. "Yeah, well, I guess you and I are two peas in a pod." She was finding that she was entirely too comfortable with the way she was laying against Nick.
"Two tired peas in a pod." Nick yawned too. "What do you say we give up this couch and get some sleep in a real bed?" Images flashed through his mind of what sharing his bed with her all the time might be like, and he tried to banish them as he loosened his hold on her.
Sara reluctantly disentangled herself from him and pulled herself off the couch. "That sounds good...I just need to change into some pajamas." She headed over towards the front door where she'd dropped her duffel bag on the way in.
Nick stood up and considered giving her an out; he wasn't so sure he still wouldn't do something to make her uncomfortable in his sleep if they did share a bed. "Uh, Sara?"
She glanced up from where she stooped next to her duffel bag noting the nervous expression on his face. "Yeah?"
"You don't have to sleep with me you know...you can sleep in the guest room if you want to." He really didn't want to take advantage of her friendship to the point that the boundaries got too blurry. The last thing he wanted to do was to drive her away.
She tilted her head slightly and smirked. "I've already slept with you, Nick..." She glanced over at the couch. "Besides, if you have another nightmare, that way I'll be right there..." Her brow furrowed. "Unless you don't want me to..."
"Uh, no, I do want you to sleep with me..." He chuckled softly and gave her an impish smile as he pause for a second. "Do you realize how this sounds?"
She smirked at him, trying to stifle the blush that stole across her cheeks. "If I didn't know you better, I might think you were hitting on me." Her tone was teasing, and she tried to keep things light. The idea that he might find her attractive just didn't register in Sara's mind as a possibility; she reasoned it was just the line of conversation that had brought the flirty banter that had always existed between them to the surface.
"I'm sure no one would blame me if I did." Nick smirked back wondering what she would do if he did.