Phew... I suddenly found myself getting the energy, so I could finish this chapter 16. Thank you for your patience, while I try to sort outall of my life troubles. And neglecting writing in the meantime.

Disclaimers: CSI still belongs to CBS. But Gareth is still my own though.

Chp. 16.

I spot Ecklie as Gareth and I heads to Jacqui, to see if he can stay there, while I'm going to interrogate a suspect. As he sees me, he gives me a glower then set his gaze on my companion. I see that he realize that Gareth is related to me, since he gives us both a once over one at a time.

"Sidle." He greets me coolly as he pass us.

"Ecklie." I greet him just as coolly, and then he continues down the hall, while Gareth shoots me a surprised glance.

"Is it just me, or was that a polar bear I saw pass by, as you two passed one another?" He asks me, and glance over his shoulder at Ecklie.

"It shouldn't surprise me if you saw one." I say irritated. "That was the idiot that had me suspended."

"Ecklie?" He asks me and I nod. "Then I understand the polar bear comment."

We start to laugh as we enter Jacqui's domain and she looks at us in surprise.

"What's so funny, if I may ask?" She asks us.

"Just Ecklie." I answer her. I can safely include her, since she hates Ecklie as much as us on the graveyard and swing shift does. Not that she has our reasons, but her own personal reasons are clearly enough.

"I understand." She says with a knowing smile. "Hi Gareth."

"Hi Jacqui." My brother says, and they share a smile.

I don't know what's going on here, between those two, but there's clearly something.

"What can I do for you two?" She then says.

"Just wanted to know if I could pass the time here?" Gareth says before I can open my mouth. "She's going to interrogate someone." He gestures towards me.

"If your not busy, that is." I say.

"I don't mind, and I'm not that busy." Jacqui says with a smile. "Pull up a chair and get comfortable." Gareth obeys and heads for a chair. He plops down across the table from her.

"Then it's settled." I say and start to leave. "See you later." I hear responses from both of them, as I heads over to meet Jim and Greggo, who are waiting with the suspect.

Somewhere around 45 minutes later, I return to the labs, head bowed deep in thoughts. As I turn a corner, I bump into the solid wall of a human being, coming from the opposite direction. I don't even have to look up to see who it is, since I know the stature of said body, as well as my own pocket.

"Hey Griss." I say even before raising my head.

"Hey yourself." He says as our eyes meet. He gives me that smile of his, which always seems to melt my insides. "So what had you so pre-occupied, that you had to walk smack-dap into me?" He asks me.

"Oh it's just the case I'm working on." I answer him. "There's something rotten about it, and I just can't put my finger on what it is."

"Want some help on it?" He asks me as he motions for me to follow him.

"Nah." I say. "I'll figure it out eventually."

"Okay. But I'm here if you need an extra brain." He then informs me, to which I nod and smile to. "So where's Gareth?"

"He's with Jacqui." I say. "At least he was about 45 minutes ago. They really get along great, Gil."

"They do." Gil tells me as we head for the break room. Once we reach the door, we find the said Gareth and Jacqui, laughing over something or other, as they drink coffee. They look up as we enter.

"Hey." Jacqui says.

"Hey you two." I say. "What's so funny?"

"Oh..." Gareth begins. "Jacqui's just sharing lab stories with me."

As he tell us this, we head for some coffee. When having retrieved a mug each, we park ourselves on the couch across from my brother and Jacqui.

"In fact." He says. "Since it's Jacqui's night off, she offered to drag me out somewhere." He looks directly at me, when he says the next thing. "That way I can get out of your hair for a while." He winks as he says it, making sure that Jacqui can't see it, and I have to fight off my blush, I can feel creeping onto my cheeks.

What he means is, that he'll let Gil and I have some time alone, since we hardly have had any, all while he has been here. I suddenly have a great idea. Since I still have my place, but spend all of my time at Gil's anyway, Gareth should use my place as his base while he's here. Get him a key, so he can get in and out, without having to get a hold of me all of the time. I store that idea back in my mind, so I can suggest the arrangement later, when we leave the lab. But in the meantime I'm dragged back to the conversation, taking place in front of me.

"That sounds really great Gar." I say using the nickname from our childhood. I wasn't able able to fully pronounce Gareth, when I had to learn how to talk, so somehow he became Gar to me. That's one of the many things, which have resurfaced, over the past many days. "Then you'll actually get to see some of Las Vegas."

We are always busy at night, and in the day we usually sleeps. So thus, he haven't really seen much of Vegas, but the saucy side. Aka the crime scene he went to with me. Well, the airport, the path to the lab, and the path to and from Gil's town house, and the path to the lab. I'm glad he gets to go out with Jacqui, because she's one of the nicest people in the lab. Gar and her might just become friends, but I wouldn't have anything against it, if there will be more between them. I've voiced my opinion to Gil, and he feel the same way. But if that happens, the "more factor", she'll have to know about Gil and I eventually, so that I'll also have to talk to Gil about. While I'm contemplating in my head the two, Gar and Jacqui finishes their coffee, and while they leave the break room, Gar tosses a "see you later, sis" over his shoulder, as he follows Jacqui back to her domain. Gil gets paged, and he heads for his office to use his phone there, dragging a newly filled mug of coffee along with him. But only after signing his "I love you", in sign language, unseen of other than me, which I more than happily return to him.

I have finally started to learn a bit of sign language, since I want to be able to communicate with Gil's mother, who knows to me, when I have to meet her sometime in the future. I know she is able to lip read, but I still want to be able to sign then. It's a bit more personal than using the lip reading. It's just the basics like my name, which is now the sign for "princess", on Gar's behalf, since deaf people are known for gestures, rather than their names. It's a bit complicated having to spell out your name, every time you need to tell it to someone. I've already learned how to say "thanks", "hello", "good morning", "goodnight"... All of those basic daily terms. And of course I know how to say "I love you". It was the first thing I learned. I actually knew how to sign it, but not on the more intimate level, as when I sign it to Gil. I had the alphabet down pat after only a few hours of lessons. My own personal intimate sign gesture for Gil is touching my own left cheek with my right thumb. His personal sign for me is the sign for "beautiful". Sometimes he calls me for his "lady butterfly".

While I finish my coffee Greggo runs in and commands my attention. I follow him to see what he wants.

Yes more to come... But I don't know when excactly. Have patience with me.

As always I like the reviews.