Broken Hearts
By: Emmithar
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: As usual, I am not the owner of CSI, or any of the characters, sadly enough.
Summary: Sara uses Greg in order to make Grissom jealous, but what happens when Greg finds out?
A/N: Challegne fic from GregSara yahoo Groups.
Chapter One: Leaving it all Behind
Greg tilted the bottle he in his hand, watching as small pills tumbled over one another, coming to a stop in the corner of the container. How should he start; little by little, or all at once? Without hesitation, Greg twisted the cap off, pouring the contents into his open hand. They were relatively small, but he knew looks could be deceiving. The recommended dosage was only a single pill; once he had taken three, when he had been agitated. The result had been rather unpleasant.
His mind wondered briefly the impact it would create if he took the entire handful at once. Would his body reject it, or would it already be too late to do anything? Greg let out a sigh, tilting his hand to the side, watching as the pills fell into the sink, scattering around the plastic base before falling down the drain. He had to use his free hand to scrape away the remaining pills, before turning on the faucet, assuring that they were in fact, gone.
Setting the empty container on the edge of the sink, Greg left the room, coming to a rest on his bed a few feet away. He had thought about this long and hard, to a point that it almost unnerved him. But in the end it was clear, he couldn't do it.
Sure, the woman he loved had used him, was still using him, in order to woo another man. Not just any man, Greg reminded himself, but his boss. Of course, he supposed that he was just as much to blame. He had followed along blindly, hadn't cared to look at the facts.
The worse part, she didn't even know that he knew. She had used him, hurt him, and she didn't even care. But it wasn't like it was the end of the world. Greg closed his eyes, reminding himself this once again. He had thought about trying something, had actually planned how he would carry through.
That's why he had to get rid of the sleeping pills. They were far too much of a risk just sitting around. They were a potent prescription that he had picked up from his doctor, shortly after the lab explosion when he encountered sleepless nights. Now and then he would need to take one, in order to calm himself down enough to get the rest he needed.
Reaching up with his hand, Greg rubbed his forehead, following down to the base of his neck where he could feel a knot forming. Part of him wished he had taken a single pill, enough so that he could actually sleep. Perhaps he would feel better once fully rested. Another part of him was afraid that if he took one, then he would take another, then another. It was just too risky to try.
He let out a sigh. If it wasn't the end of the world, then why did it feel as though it was?
"You really didn't have to do all of this."
"I know, but I wanted to, you deserve it."
It seemed like it all happened long ago, once upon a time. Yet in reality, it had only been a month, maybe a little longer. Sara walked through the room slowly, the room that seemed oddly out of place. The bed was neatly made, two pillows on each side of the bed, balancing it out.
A pair of shoes were matched together, just inside the closet, underneath the suit that was hanging there. It was the same one he had worn for his prelim. Sara smiled sadly, remembering that night. Greg had been so happy; she had taken him to dinner as a celebration.
She lingered there for a moment longer, the beam of her flashlight sweeping over the closet floor. The rug had recently been vacuumed, and like everything else, it was clean. And odd trait, it seemed, for someone like Greg. It wasn't like this the last time she was over.
She wandered in further, stopping just inside the bathroom, turning to look behind her as Brass came into the bedroom. "Talked to the neighbors," he stated in a quiet manner, "Last anyone saw of him was a few days ago. Left about 11:30 at night, sometime real late."
"So he's been gone no longer than we've noticed. Left by his own will." Grissom mused, checking the desk drawers by the bed.
"As far as we know," Sara interjected, reaching out with her free hand. Her fingers closed around the empty medicine bottle, lifting it up to show the two men. "Drugged maybe?"
"If the residents here saw him walking out under his own power it's unlikely. There was no one else here, no one came, and no one left."
Sara placed the bottle back down, sighing as she turned around in a full circle. "If it was that late, then mostly everyone would be asleep. How could they know for sure? It's easy to miss someone; maybe they came up, stayed a while, stole the pills before leaving, and hid in his car, just waiting for him."
"I don't think we're looking at a kidnapping Sara," Grissom told her, straightening up. "There's no evidence of a struggle, no blood…nothing's out of place."
"Maybe it's not what's missing, but what's here. Everything's too orderly, it like they didn't want us to find anything. Besides, someone doesn't disappear just like that," she argued her point lightly, coming back into the room. I mean, even if he went somewhere, we'd be able to track him through phone records, credit cards…"
"If Greg really wanted to disappear then he wouldn't be using any of those things."
"Maybe he can't," Sara suggested. "I mean, why would Greg just go off and leave, and not telling anyone?"
"Maybe he wasn't planning to disappear, but that's the way it happened."
He remembered the first time. It was surprising, a bit uncomfortable. He had imagined how it would happen so many times. Where they would be, how it would happen, who would move first. But this…this was just unexpected.
It had been only three weeks since he was official in the field, and he had moved from working with Grissom, to working with Sara. It was a change he was grateful for. He felt as though they were a perfect match.
He loved seeing her smile; sometimes, right before he fell asleep, he would picture her warm smile in his mind, and if he was lucky, he could even hear her laugh. Greg had never really mustered the courage to ask her out; sure he was nervous, but he was even more afraid of making her upset. Her moods were never really steady, and he knew at this point it was better for her to a friend, rather than a lover.
Still, he was never prepared for what happened next. Going over their newly assigned case, he was retelling his findings when all sudden she had kissed him. Greg had been so shocked that he hadn't even returned the kiss, throwing him off track all together.
He could still remember her look, her cheeks burning red with embarrassment as she turned away.
"I'm sorry," Sara apologized quickly, "It's just…do you want to go out?"
"…right now?" Greg asked, finding his voice after a moment.
She laughed softly, "After shift. Do want to go do something?"
"Sure…" he answered with a warm smile.
Greg shifted uncomfortably in his seat, one hand on the steering wheel. Up ahead to his left was a gas station; he needed to fill up again. It hadn't taken him long to decide what to do that night. He had spent all day trying to figure out ways to kill himself, only to figure out that death wasn't what he wanted. Solitude…solitude was what he wanted…what he needed.
He couldn't exactly go back to work with his newly found knowledge; he couldn't face Sara again, or Grissom for that matter. And he couldn't ask Ecklie for a transfer, because then Grissom would be brought into the discussion, and Greg knew that he would end up breaking down in front of the older man.
No, he had to leave, had to get away…forever. He had stayed behind long enough to plan, long enough to cover his tracks. As he pulled to a stop, Greg dug his wallet out from his coat pocket, filing through the money he had in there. Pulling out a few select bills, Greg climbed out of his car, heading inside the store.
It had been a simple dinner, nothing really romantic, but it had been theirs none-the-less. It hadn't been far from her place, so Greg had offered to walk her back home, instead of renting a stuffy cab. She had agreed, but only after a moment. She seemed a bit out of place, but Greg didn't push the matter. He assumed that it was because of her early actions, thinking that she may be still embarrassed.
"I had a real nice time," Greg told her as they came to her door.
Sara smiled back him, nodding as she looked for her keys. "So did I."
"See you tomorrow then?"
She nodded, moments before heading inside. Greg let out a breath of air, smiling happily. Everything seemed too good to be true…
The nozzle clicked in his hand, causing him to look up. The tank was full, and he hadn't used up all the money yet. It didn't matter anyways, he decided in the end, moving to get back into his car. The sooner he was on the road, the better.
TBC