Here's another chap, people! Hope you like it!
Stupid, Gil. Stupid, stupid.
Grissom scolded himself. At the moment, he felt like the biggest jerk in the entire world. He'd just told off his best friend then practically kicked her out of the lab. Nice going, genius. Now she could be gone forever. What the heck were you thinking? Truth be told, he wasn't. When Catherine told him what she'd seen, he'd felt embarrassed and violated. And he just lost it. What was she doing prying into his private life, anyway? She had no right. But she didn't do it on purpose. It was an accident. Wrong place, wrong time. She couldn't control what had happened that night. And neither could he.
He'd been caught and there was nothing he could do about it. Stupid, stupid Gil. This was his doing, his selfishness…his fault.
A soft knock pulled him from his thoughts. He glanced up at the doorway and found the last person he wanted to see at that moment standing there. Sara. She had a troubled look on her face.
"Hey, I just saw Catherine walk out of here. She looked pretty upset. Is everything okay?"
As she said that, he couldn't help but notice the same strange look he'd seen in Catherine's eyes at times. A cross between concern and empathy.
"Everything's fine," he answered plainly, looking back down at his work.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes." His grip on his pen became tighter. He really didn't wanted to be bothered right now.
"If you wanna talk, you know—"
"LEAVE!…me alone…"
She stared at him then crossed her arms stubbornly.
"NO!" She walked up to his desk and looked him square in the eyes. "I am not leaving. Not with you like this. Now, what the heck is going on?"
Grissom suddenly felt like a silly schoolboy standing in the principal's office. He ran his fingers through his short, silvery hair. His face softened.
"I'm sorry, Sara." He apologized. "Catherine and I--we got into another argument today."
"You two have been having a lot of those lately. The entire lab can hear you. You guys have been at each other's throats all week. What's going on?"
Grissom's eyes were downcast. "She knows."
"What?" Sara's eyes widened knowing exactly what he was talking about. "How? Since when? She has no right—"
"Hey, it's not her fault, alright. The only person that should be blamed is me. She would've never have been there in the first place if it wasn't for me. I ignored her phone calls and looked what happened. I am such an idiot."
I can just imagine what she must have felt like when she saw us. Her world must've come crashing down all around her. It must've broken her heart. Sara knew that Grissom and Catherine had known each other for a long time. Way before she came into the picture. They were the best of friends. And when they worked together, she could see that the two had this—connection. They played on each other's strengths and compensated for each other's weaknesses. It was something that she could never have with him.
Those two were meant to be together. They were two halves of a whole. They were made for each other. And she knew it. But because of her own selfish ambitions, she chose to ignore that fact and pursue her own fantasies. Not thinking that someone would be hurt in the process. And now, the strong bond she had seen between Catherine and Grissom had crumbled. And it was all her fault. You're not the idiot, Gil. I am…
Sara shook her head. "You're not the idiot, Grissom. I am."
"What? You're not—"
"No." She raised a hand to silence him. "I am and you know it. Your friendship was ruined because of me." She took a deep breath before continuing. "You two had a good thing going and I went and messed it all up. I should never have let it get this far."
"What are you saying?"
"You know what I'm saying. And you know I'm right."
Grissom nodded his head reluctantly.
"You and I were never meant to be."
That was it then. She was letting him go. "You're sure?"
Sara gave a slight nod. But instead of sadness, he felt this huge sense of relief wash over him.
"So, what now? My mind is telling me one thing and my heart another."
Sara chuckled. "You think too much with your head. Think with your heart instead of your mind." She put a gentle hand on his arm. "Follow your heart."
Grissom remained silent for a moment then took a deep breath, rising from his seat, knowing what he had to do. "Well, I'll have to face her sooner or later."
"Yeah." Sara stayed out of his way as he grabbed his coat from behind his chair. "It's not gonna be pretty. But don't worry. Things will work out. I promise."
He turned and gave her a special smile. "Thank you."
She returned the smile and followed him out of his office and into the hallway. She almost ran into him when he stopped dead in his tracks.
His cell phone had gone off and he had pulled it out of his pocket to check the message. He was staring at it wide-eyed.
"Grissom, what's wrong?" Sara got her answer when she glanced over his shoulder at the tiny screen.
CATHERINE 911Catherine was in trouble. Before Sara could say anything, Grissom pocketed the phone and dashed out of the building.
He really did care about that woman, didn't he? Sara smiled inwardly, knowing she had done the right thing. The corner of her lips curved slightly as she watched his figure disappear through the front entrance.
Go to her.
So, what do you think? A little sad for GSR fans, but whatcha gonna do? This is a Grillows fic not GSR.