She paced along the bushes, looking deep into the darkness beyond the green leaves, but was unable to see nick who remained low to ground. He grinned when the sound of blaring sirens could be heard charging up the street, He watched Ally's feet stop as she listened. Then curing under her breath she ran off out of the back yard. Nick cautiously crept out of his hiding place and walked around to his front yard to see a dark pick up truck speed away up the street.
"Hey, sorry to be rude but, what's going on?" A sleepy voice asked Nick turned to see a tall brunette staring at him through droopy brown eyes; she lifted a tissue to her nose just barley catching a sneeze.
"Oh, I called the police some one broke into my house." Nick supplied, the fact that this was only half true didn't matter, no need to upset the sick neighbor.
"Oh my goodness, are you alright?" She asked blowing her nose; Nick grinned and shook his head.
"Yes I'm fine, are you okay?" He asked, she smiled shyly wiping her face, and pulling a fresh tissue from her pocket to catch another sneeze.
"Oh peachy, just fighting a cold is all." She replied pulling an afghan blanket tighter around her small frame.
"I'm Alex Cain, I'd shake you're hand but I doubt you want this cold." She introduced sniffling.
"Nick Stokes, sorry to bring you out side, I can imagine you fell pretty cruddy." He apologized; she blew her nose and sneezed.
"You needed help, and you called for it, you've nothing to be sorry for." She answered; they fell silent as a group out worried people came racing up the yard to where they stood conversing.
"Hey, Nick is everything alright?" Warrick asked, eyeing the girl on other side of the fence, Nick smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, she ran when she heard the sirens." Nick explained.
"Who's you friend?" Catherine asked.
"Oh, this is Alex, Alex this is Catherine, Sara, Warrick Grissom and Greg." Nick introduced each said hello in some form a friendly greeting.
"Nice to meet you all, I wont' shake hand this time." She replied, catching yet another sneeze, she looked back a nick through watery eyes.
"It was nice to meet you guys and I'm glad you okay Nick, but I'm going back to bed, to lie in misery until this dang cold goes away." She joked and hopping back up her steps went inside.
"Good night Alex." Nick called just as the door closed.
"Interesting character isn't she?" Grissom asked, Nick continued to smile and shrugging made his way inside his friend in tow.
The next afternoon, Nick stopped for lunch and Alex popped into his mind, poor thing laying in bed all day sick, Nick decided to bring her lunch, so he ordered two cups a chicken noodle soup and crackers, then stopped a bough some juice and tissues with aloe and lotion.
He knocked lightly and waited for an answer, it took a good five minutes before he heard the lock click and the door opened to reveal Alex wrapped once more in her Afghan blanket he hair pulled back in a pony tail.
"Well this is a pleasant surprise." Alex said allowing him entrance; she smiled and sat the bags on her table.
"I come baring gifts," He answered pulling out the soup juice and tissues.
"You bought this stuff for me?" She asked looking close to tears, but it could just be the cold.
"Yeah, I wanted to formally apologize for last night." Nick said handing a cup and spoon she took them gratefully and showed nick into the living room where they sat to eat.
"I told you last there's nothing to be sorry for, I'm just glad you weren't hurt." She replied spooning some soup in her mouth.
'This is really good." She said taking another bite, Nick nodded and going back to the table brought back the crackers. Alex got up and came back with cups of ice and the juice.
"Is the juice okay, I haven't been shopping in a few days so I'm short on drinks." She said blushing. Nick smiled and accepted to proffered drink, so this is how they spent to afternoon, eating soup and crackers and getting to know one another.
"Wow your parents sound wonderful, I never had that kind of family environment, my dad was an alcoholic, and my mom was so wrapper dup in taking care of my older siblings problems, and working that I kind of fell by the way side." Alex admitted, she was kind of surprised at this because she never really told any one about her past, but with Nick it was different, she felt she could trust him.
"Wow I'm sorry to hear that, I can't imagine what that must have been like." Nick gave her shoulder a reassuring pat and smiled warmly.
"Thanks, I don't usually talk about it with people I just met but, I think I can trust with the deep dark secrets of me childhood." She smiled.
"I guess growing up on a ranch surrounded by brothers and sisters, you never really feel left out of anything, I remember I used to ride champ as far away from the house as possible just to have a moment's peace." Nick smiled, Alex sighed.
"I wish I had a horse growing up, there beautiful animals, I always wanted to go horse back riding down a tree lined path in fall, the leaves fall around me, flying in the wind." She sounded far away for a moment and Nick smiled, imagining it for himself.
"Maybe some day you will." He said, she gave him a skeptical look.
"Yeah well, I guess so." Nick was going to say something else when the some knocking at the door stopped them. Alex got up and went to answer it while Nick cleared away the remnants of their lunch.
"Hi I'm Warrick we met last night, is Nick by any chance over here?" The tall African American investigator asked, Alex smiled and let him come in.
"Why yes Warrick he is, I think he was heading towards the kitchen when you knocked.
"Hey man, what up?" Nick asked, coming out into the foyer.
"Hey I was starting to worry you weren't answering your phone." Warrick explained.
"Oh yeah sorry, I brought Alex some chicken noodle soup." Nick explained.
"Well, Grissom just though one of use should drop by to check on you." Warrick explained again, Nick nodded, he'd been expecting that to happen eventually. Warrick bid good bye to them and then took his leave, explaining that a crime scene was waiting.
"Dang, what did his mom feed that guy, miracle growth?" Alex asked blowing her nose and then taking in air through his nose.
"I can breath!" She exclaimed Nick chuckled.
"Wow Nick you the cure for the common cold." Alex laughed, looking around her house she started to pick thing up tossing her blanket on the chair and taking her pillows back in the bedroom Nick cleared the table putting juice in the fridge and the crackers in the pantry, then tossed to bags and came back out find Alex vacuuming the floor.
"I got to find out what they put in that soup." Nick joked when she finally sat down on her couch; she laughed and sipped her juice.
"Yeah, well I always get a burst of energy when the cold goes away." She explained. They talked for a while about this and that, and finally Night fell outside, and Nick stood up to leave Alex pouted but walked him to the door.
"Thanks for today it was nice to have some to talk to for once it gets kind of lonely over here." Alex said. Nick stopped on the porch and looked at her for good thirty seconds, her hair was still up in a pony tail but, a few strand had fallen lose and no framed her face, her eyes were so dark that her could get lost in them, she was in a pair of care bear pajama bottoms and a spaghetti strap top.
'God she gorgeous just like that' he caught himself thinking.
"You're welcome I had fun too, maybe we could get together some time go to a movie or something?" Nick suggested.
"Why Mister Stoked are you asking me out?" She grinned and batted her eyes at him playfully.
"Yeah I guess I am." Nick answered with a grin of his own.
"I'd love to." Alex replied.
"Okay great, so I'll see you later then, how about Saturday night a movie and dinner?" Nick asked Alex laughed her voice like a bell.
"Well, you move fast, alright Saturday night," She agreed, Nick leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on her cheek, Alex blushed and grinned watching him walk back across the yard to his house.
Alex closed her door grinned from ear to ear, Nick went inside grinning about the same neither one aware of the eyes that watched their exchange, Ally growled deep in her throat, and glare at the house next to Nicks.
'Oh I'll have you Nick, if I have to kill every one to get you." She vowed and drove off down the street.
Well, there the next chapter, Nicky has a girl friend, I did this to give the story a little more of a plot. Hope you like, more coming soon.