A/N – wow! I'm just thrilled at the response I've gotten so far! Thank you! I'll update as often as I can! As for Sara getting thinner – no kidding, she's already stick thin on the show (so jealous!) so you can just imagine how emaciated she's looking here in my story.
Chapter 3:
Grissom sat in the plastic hospital chair, his glasses off, eyes closed and hands folded in anticipation. He opened his eyes slowly, watching Nick pace back and forth, non stop for the last 2 hours. Catherine and Warrick had already come by and waited for awhile, but couldn't stay. They took over the rape case, and Ecklie had found some of his crew to help out that evening. Nick flat out refused to go anywhere, so Grissom waited it out with him, hoping the doctor would be out soon.
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Nick hadn't even noticed the stares of the people working at the crime lab as they quickly wheeled Sara's limp body to the ambulance. For all the dead bodies he had seen, her living one lying there, unmoving, made him feel sicker than he had felt at his first autopsy.
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The moment he had seen her start to crumble to the ground, Grissom and Catherine raced over to where she was. Nick stood, frozen in panic.
"Catherine call 911 – NOW!" he directed her as she ran to the nearest phone. People were poking there heads out, to see what the commotion was. "I want everyone back in there rooms and stay there until the coast is clear!" Grissom bent over Sara's body and looked for a pulse. He found one and sighed in relief – it was weak, but present. She was breathing, but it was shallow, and none of his attempts to revive her worked.
"What's wrong with her?" Nick asked him quietly, praying he knew something.
"I don't know Nick. She's breathing but she won't wake up. All we can do is wait for the paramedics now."
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A tall man came striding into the waiting room.
"I'm looking for the family of Miss. Sidle?" he asked, looking around at the almost deserted room. Nick shot over to him, Grissom at his heels.
"I'm Gil Grissom. This is Nick Stokes. We're friends with Sara – we brought her in. We're criminalists at the Las Vegas Crime Lab, where Sara works." He nodded.
"I'm Dr. Kyle Ferguson. If you could follow me to my office please?" The both nodded and walked down the sterile halls of the hospital. The doctor both offered them a seat, before taking his own, facing them across his desk. Nick kept wringing his hands in anxiety.
"I can't discuss everything to do with Miss. Sidle's case with you, due to the privacy act but there are a few things I need to know, and I can let you two know. I have called her physician. She's on her way. I've also looked over Sara's history. Before I get into detail, has she informed you at all about any of her hospital visits in the last 6 months?" Nick looked at Grissom, with a look of terror on his face. She hadn't been admitted to the hospital in the last 6 months. Nick, being completely unable to speak, Grissom knew that they were both oblivious to any medical problems Sara might have had.
"We have not been aware that she has been admitted at all? She never said anything." The doctor nodded, a grim look on his face.
"Well, as I'm sure you understand, I can't disclose any of her medical history." Nick couldn't believe his ears. Something was wrong with Sara and the doctor wasn't going to tell them?
"What do you mean – you're not going to tell us! She's my friend I want to know what's wrong!" He said, standing up. Grissom was instantly at his side.
"Nick – the doctor can't violate Sara's rights, as much as we may want to know. It's up to Sara to tell us. Please sit down." Nick looked mutinous, as he slowly took his seat again. "Dr. Ferguson – what can you tell us?" He looked closely at the man.
"Look, believe me when I say I wish I could tell you everything, but I could lose my job and end up in jail. Here's what I can tell you though – Miss. Sidle is in stable condition. She goes in and out of a catatonic state. As to why, well I'll leave it at that. She's conscious now. We've hooked her up to an IV. What I need is some information; just give me the best answers you can get. The more we understand the situation, the better we can help her. When is the last time she's eaten?" Grissom looked at Nick, an look of understanding shooting between them.
"We were discussing that before Sara came into work today. Another friend of ours noticed that she's lost weight and all of us have noticed she barely eats anymore." Nick answered. "Does she have an eating disorder? Is that why she passed out?" Gil knew that Nick was worried, and anxious to find out what was wrong with his friend, and he had to admit, the thought had crossed his mind as well.
"I can't say for sure, but personally – I think it's more of her not taking care of herself over an actual disorder. Forgetting to eat, not eating right, not wanting to eat. Loss of appetite. I've seen it before in these cases. As for the reason she passed out, I think it has a great deal to do with it. As I already said, she has the IV. I want to keep her at least a few days for observation but then she can go home. Our resident psychologist is going to be seeing her in the morning. No work for now and someone must be with her constantly. I also strongly recommend getting her to a therapist." They both nodded.
"I'll take care of her and take her to her appointments with a therapist. Can we see her?" Nick said, without hesitation. The doctor got up and nodded, and shook both men's hands before leading them to her room.
"Remember, she might not be cognitive the whole time, she slips in and out. Don't overwhelm or stress her. I'll keep you informed as to the best I can."
"Thank you doctor." Grissom said, as he stood outside of the door with Nick. He could see that Nick was almost afraid to go in.
"He barely told us anything – we still don't know what's really wrong." He said softly. Grissom nodded.
"But he gave us many clues I think he's hoping we'll decipher. We'll figure it out Nicky. We're criminalists for a reason and I think the doctor took that into consideration." Grissom grasped the handle and strode into the room, Nick right behind him, both taking chairs at either side of Sara's bed.