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The sun was low on the horizon as everyone reached their rented cabin. It was truly a sight to behold. A two story wooden log construction. Screened in front porch with two picnic tables. Nick flung the front door open and they all stepped inside. Bags were dropped by the door as each person gazed around. Standing in the doorway and looking to the right one could see the kitchen, dated fridge and open shelving units. Looking to the left, one could see the living area, large couch two love seats, hand crafted rocking chair and a nice sized television. Along the wall, there were bookshelves filled with books of all sorts as well as board games and cards with poker chips. Directly in front of the front door stood a staircase that led to the rooms upstairs.
Sara and Catherine took their bags and climbed the stairs, entering the first room on their left. It was a nice sized room with two twin sized beds and a phone. The large single pane window looked out over the lake and really showed the beautiful skyline. Nick and Warrick followed Catherine and Sara, taking the first room on the right. Similar to the girl's room, Nick and Warrick's room had two twin sized beds as well as a desk and bookshelf with books. Gil and Greg were the last to take their room as they walked down the hall and entered the open door at the end of the hall. Their room was slightly larger and instead of individual twin beds, there was a bunk bed along the outside wall. Dropping his bag at the foot of the bed, Greg climbed the top bunk and stretched out. He heard a thump on the floor and turned his head to face the door. Gil stood in the doorway, hands on his hips, his foot tapping on the floor.
"Uh, Greg. You're in my bunk." he stated
"No way, man. I was here first. First come, first serve." he replied, making an attempt at assertiveness
"I'm the boss, and the one with seniority gets first choice." Gil answered, tension evident in his voice
Greg mumbled as he climbed down and flopped down on the bottom bunk. Gil could tell that Greg was less than pleased by his usurping of the top bunk, but really didn't care.
"I'll give you seniority, you senior citizen." Greg mumbled under his breath
"I heard that." Gil grumbled, his head hovering above his open frame pack
Everyone having settled themselves and having been acquainted with their surroundings, they went downstairs and got comfy. Sara looked around the cabin and sighed.
"Where's Jim?" she asked
"He's outside pitching his tent." came the reply from Nick
Sara walked outside and found Jim tossing his bag into the tent. Sara chuckled and Jim turned to face her.
"What?" he asked
"Nothing, its just that you pitch a tent faster than anyone I know." she replied
"Well, I have a lot of experience." he said, grinning "You remember our camping trip?"
Sara blushed and cleared her throat. She looked around, making sure the coast was clear, then walked up to Jim, pinching his love handles. Jim jumped up and scowled at her.
"I remember that trip. I remember that you were a perfect gentleman." she whispered in his ear
"I remember you tried to seduce me that first night." Jim said, grinning widely
"Well, you can't fault a woman for coming on to a catch like you." she asserted
"Yeah, well, I guess not. After all, you caught me, didn't you?" Jim replied, pinching her cheek
Sara chuckled softly and walked down to the lake, sashaying her rump as Jim watched, mouth hanging open slightly. As she approached the water, she whistled loudly and whipped around when she heard a commotion along the tree line. Squatting down and stretching her arms out, she clapped her hands together. Edgard, the dog, came crashing out of the woods, soaking wet; it was obvious he had already been in the lake. Sara picked up a stick from the shoreline and tossed it in the water. Edgard bounded into the water and returned moments later, stick in his mouth.
Jim looked around, surveying the grounds for firewood, and seeing none, he entered the cabin and found Greg, sitting in the rocking chair. His eyes were closed and he was humming to himself. Jim began to speak, then, noticing that Greg was oblivious to his presence, he slapped him on the leg, causing him to jump up.
"Sara, the dog and I are going for firewood." Jim stated
"Ok, I'll let the crew know." Greg said, standing up
Jim exited the cabin and walked down to the water. He found Sara playing with Edgard and placed a hand on her elbow. Sara whipped around and glared at Jim. Edgard jumped up on Jim, covering him in muddy paw prints. Jim stepped back, growling and looked down at his muddy clothes. He glared down at Edgard and shook his finger as he admonished him.
"How many times have I told you, NO JUMPING." he growled
"He's a dog, that's what they do. You should know that by now." Sara stated, trying not to laugh
"Let's go for wood." Jim suggested
The three of them tromped into the woods, heading away from the cabin. While they were away Grissom and Nick came into the kitchen, looking around. Nick checked the fridge while Gil looked at the shelves. Finding the supplies stocked, as requested, Gil walked outside and gazed around, taking in mother nature's splendor. Hands on his hips,
he shouted in for Greg and waited for him to come outside.
"Where are Jim and Sara?" Gil asked
"They're out for wood." he replied
"I'll bet they are." Catherine chuckled as she stepped out onto the screened in porch.
"They are so obvious." Warrick commented as he stood behind Catherine, arms wrapped around her waist
"But not like you two?" Nick stated, grinning at Warrick and Catherine
"Well, at least they're discreet." Gil replied
They all walked down to the water and looked around. The water surface was calm and the birds were chirping. Catherine looked up to the sky and sighed.
"Look at all the stars. Its like someone poked holes in the night sky." she commented
"Nice simile." Gil replied
They stood by the lake for a short while before returning to the cabin. Catherine walked into the kitchen and rummaged through the fridge, looking for the contents of their meal. She pulled out a flat of steaks as well as some potatoes, garlic, onion, and fresh green beans. Wandering in circles, looking for knives and bowels, Catherine called out to the living room.
"Hey, Warrick. Get your ass in here and help out." she shouted
Warrick stood from his seat and headed towards the kitchen. Just as he passed Gil and Greg, Greg whispered to Gil.
"Well, I can see who wears the man-sack in their relationship."
Gil chuckled and Warrick whipped around. Glaring at Greg, he growled.
"I heard that"
Jim and Sara had some difficulty in finding their way back to the cabin, but the moon was quite helpful, casting its light down on them. Finally, around 22:00hrs, they arrived back at the cabin, with no wood. The others, seated on the front porch saw the two approaching the cabin empty handed and clothes a mess. Glaring at them, Grissom rose and spoke.
"What, no wood"
"Couldn't find any." Jim replied "In a forest...trees everywhere. You found no wood?" he grilled Jim and Sara
"Not a stitch." she said, straightening her shirt and shorts
"Huh." was Greg's simple response.
"Smells great." she said, startling Greg
"Dinner is served." Catherine called out
Heads whipped around to see her standing in the living room, a smile on her face. Greg sat up in his seat and winked at Nick and Warrick.
"So, you two didn't have any luck with the wood, huh? You've been gone quite some time." he commented
"Yes, Greg, we found no wood. Maybe you should take the dog and look for yourself." she explained
"Well, dinner is served." came Catherine's voice from the kitchen, again
"Good, I'll let Jim know." Sara stated as she turned and walked back outside
Nick, Greg and Gil watched as Sara exited the cabin and went to Jim's side. Greg smiled wide as he turned to Gil and Nick. Holding out his hand out and rubbing his thumb and index fingers together, he cleared his throat.
"I believe you two owe me $20.00 a piece." he stated, grinning heavily
Reluctantly, they each dug into their pockets and pulled out Greg's winnings. As they coughed up, Nick glared at Greg.
"That's it. I'm never betting you again"
"And it would appear as though you've learned your lessons." Greg commented, pocketing his money
They all sat on the front porch for dinner. The steaks had been grilled and the potatoes chopped and fried. After supper was finished, Gil, Jim and Nick cleaned the dishes, while everyone else was outside around the fire that Greg had made. When the dishes had been finished, Gil, Jim and Nick walked outside and joined their colleagues around the fire. Gil reached into his pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper. He cleared his throat and began to read.
"Ok, we all know why we're here. HR believes that it would be beneficial for us to have a bonding session, so, I figured it would be best achieved by having a weekend away. After all, this is a three day weekend."
Faces turned to look at Gil as he skimmed the paper in his hand and read off the list of trust building activities. There were a series of laughs and chuckles as he ran through the list.
"Let's see, we have the trust circle, the confidence course, a three legged race and blind man's bluff."
"Well, I guess we should all turn in if we want to be up at a reasonable hour tomorrow." Catherine suggested
Everyone nodded and stood up, heading inside. As Jim and Sara sat outside on a log, they watched their colleagues walk back inside. She turned to Jim and kissed him on the cheek. As she stood up, Jim slapped her behind and wished her a good night. He watched as she walked inside and closed the door behind her.
An hour later and Jim was still awake and sitting in front of the fire. He stood up and reached for the snuffer bucket, dumped the dirt on the flames and crawled into his tent. He had just slipped out of his clothes and into his bag when he heard the front door open and close. He grinned to himself as he listened to the footsteps approaching his tent. A few seconds later, the zipper on the mosquito net was un zipped and Sara poked her head in.
"Is there room for two?" she asked, crawling in
"There's always room for you, my sweet." he replied
Jim unzipped his bag and laid it out flat, making a nice sized blanket. Sara cuddled up to Jim's side and rested her head on his shoulder and her left hand across his abdomen. Jim wrapped his left arm around her shoulder and kissed the top of her head.
"Good night, honey." Sara said, stifling a yawn
"Um Hmm." came Jim's reply
TBC?--