Chapter 7 – Making an Appearance

Two minutes after settling into their seats, the pilot came on the speaker system and let everyone know they'd be taxing to the runway momentarily. When he was done, the flight attendants came out into the aisle and began their emergency evacuation instructions.

Sara was half listening to the instructions, having been on many flights. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Grissom rub his nose, sniff a few times, and pull out a tissue. A few seconds later he sneezed.

"Bless you," she said.

"Thanks." He pulled out another tissue and blew his nose, the tickle not going away. He stuffed the used tissues in his pocket and looked over at Sara. "So, are you ready to get back to our normal life in Vegas?"

"I guess so," she said somewhat disappointed. Having spent the week alone with Grissom during their free time at the conference, she felt things were getting a lot better between them. However, she knew the minute they got back to work in Vegas, everything would go back to the way it was before. "How about you?" Looking to see his reaction, she felt the plane start to taxi to the runway.

"Part of me is, and part of…" The lingering tickle now turned in to a sneeze. He reached in his pocket for another tissue, turned away from Sara, and sneezed three times. He wiped at his nose and turned back around. "Excuse me."

"Bless you…again," she said playfully.

"Thank you…again." He smiled shyly at Sara. He could feel a blush creep up his face. For some reason he felt slightly embarrassed showing Sara this weak side of himself.

Sara smiled back but could see how uncomfortable Grissom was with showing this vulnerability. She wanted to make him feel comfortable so she put a hand on his arm. "Grissom, you don't have to be embarrassed okay?"

"I know, it's just…"

Sara cut him off. "No. There's no 'it's just'. Just don't worry about it okay?" She took her hand off of his arm. "Are you still feeling all right?"

He sniffed a few times and rubbed at his nose. "Yes, I feel fine. And what you're doing right now is why I guess I'm embarrassed. I don't like people fussing over me. I'm just not used to it." He turned back around in his seat and laid his head back.

"I'm sorry, but you're just going to have to get used to it." She laid her head back, copying Grissom's position. "I'm just concerned about you. I want to make sure you're okay."

With his eyes closed, Grissom smiled, realizing the real meaning of what Sara was saying to him. "Okay."

They felt the plane come to a stop at the beginning of the runway. Pretty soon they would be off the ground and on their way back to Vegas.

"So Grissom, I never got to hear your answer. Are you ready to get back to our normal life in Vegas?"

He coughed a few times against the tightness in his chest before proceeding. "Okay, I'll try it again. Part of me is, and part of me is not. I guess you can say I enjoyed the conference, but I'm also looking forward to getting back home. The best part of this week-long trip was getting to spend time away from the lab and all the problems that usually arise." He quietly added, in almost a whisper, "and I got to spend a lot of time alone with you."

Sara could barely make out Grissom's last sentence, between his nasally voice and speaking in almost a whisper, but a smile spread across her face. "I'm glad I got to spend a lot of time with you too."

Grissom glanced over at Sara. Seeing her smile, he turned his head back forward, closed his eyes and smiled too. He really wanted to be an attentive neighbor to Sara, but he was so drained that he couldn't keep his eyes open. Soon after closing them, he fell asleep.

TBC