Author's Notes: Here you go, another chapter straight off the press. Thanks to Emmithar, for kicking me up off my lazy butt to write this...as well as her guidance to make this comprehendible. You rock, girl!

Please let me know what you think, and thank you to all who read and review...you guys keep me going when I really hit a roadblock and want to give up.

Seven:

Nick stared out the window, anxiously tapping his fingers against the glass, if not to only break the silence of the apartment. It had started raining nearly an hour ago, not too long after Sara took off after Greg. The longer they remained gone, the more upset he became with the whole situation.

He knew he should be thinking of an apology, an excuse, something to make this situation a little bit better than it actually was. He had contemplated just leaving, but he felt that would be unfair to Sara, another man running off on her when they had open issues. He wouldn't stoop to Greg's level when it came to Sara's heart.

Even after an hour, he was unable to come up with any words or gestures to show he was sorry, probably because he didn't feel sorry one bit. The longer he sat in Sara's quiet, lonely apartment, the angrier he got at Greg, for putting them in this position again. The longer the rain drops cascaded down the window, the more he wished Greg hadn't interrupted their kiss, that he and Sara had a chance to explore the possibility of being a couple, that he was curled up on the couch with the most beautiful brunette he had ever seen, keeping each other company while the lightning lit the apartment.

And with each minute that passed, he was reminded that when it came to love, he wasn't even a spot on Sara's radar. She had been focused on Greg since the moment he left, and until she had closure with him, she wouldn't open her eyes to any other man.

It wasn't enough that Greg had left in the first place, but then he had to show up again and stir up trouble just when things were getting back to normal. The idea of Sara going back to him was enough to make Nick's stomach clench with rage. She deserved so much better than a man who was going to leave her at a moment's notice, as soon as things got too overwhelming for him.

The front door creaked open, alerting Nick that he wasn't alone anymore. He silently watched as Sara led a tired, pale, shaky Greg into her apartment, shutting the door softly behind them.

Without giving Nick as much as a second glance, she led Greg into her bedroom, shutting the door with a click. With a defeated sigh, Nick walked back to the sofa, flopping onto it and leaning his head against the back cushion. She was so absorbed in Greg that she hadn't even noticed Nick was still here. All he could do, now, was wait for her to return, hopefully without the younger nuisance.

In the bathroom adjoining her bedroom, Sara handed Greg a towel, her eyes still trained on him, "You dry off, I'll find you something to wear."

Greg took the towel, tears still flowing down his cheeks in a light, yet steady, stream, dripping water from his hair wetting the rest of his face. After a few moments of holding the soft pink towel to his face, he realized that they smelled like Sara, like the Sara he had remembered. In fact, the whole apartment did. He looked up to meet her gaze, offering her a weak smile, which she half-heartedly returned.

"I've got some of your boxers and a t-shirt from before you left." Sara offered, placing them on the counter, "Do you need anything?"

Greg shook his head, sending droplets of water flying in every direction, causing Sara to slightly flinch as a cold drop landed on her cheek, "A blow dryer, perhaps?"

"No thanks." Greg murmured, rubbing his hair with the towel, then unbuttoning his pants, "Can I have some privacy?"

Startled, Sara agreed and walked into her bedroom, shutting the door behind her. Of course he'd want privacy, it wasn't like they were dating anymore, he was just a friend who needed some help. The knowledge that he was rightly entitled to feel the need for solitude did nothing to stop the sinking feeling in her chest. This was just another minor, yet painful, reminder that things had definitely changed, and they weren't going to just be able to pick up where they left off.

She looked up eagerly when the bathroom door opened, revealing a Greg similar to the one she remembered from 7 months ago. His hair stood in every direction, held in place by the water that still held on to his hair follicles, despite the towel drying. His face was a bit paler than usual, although the tears had finally stopped flowing. His shaky demeanor was gone, although his posture was still tense as if he was bracing for the worst.

She took him by the hand and led him to her bed, pulling the covers back for him, "I'll sleep on the couch."

"No, please stay." Greg asked hopefully, clinging to her hand, "Please."

Sara shook her head, "I can't. I'll come back, but Nick's in--"

"Fine, go to Nick."

The defeated tone in his voice was almost enough to make Sara crawl in bed beside him, but she knew she had damage to control before she could give in to Greg's request.

"It's not that I want to leave you to go to Nick, it's just that he's waiting for me to tell him something, and I can't just leave him standing in there all night." Sara protested defensively, "I'll be back in a few minutes and I'll stay as long as you want me to."

The fresh tears glistening in Greg's eyes was his response, and Sara heavily sighed, walking towards the door, "I'll be right back, I promise."

Greg rolled onto his side, ignoring her statement as the door clicked shut behind her. He knew she was doing what she had to do, but it had felt so nice to be taken care of while they walked back to the apartment. He had gone so long without having anyone to emotionally connect with, he just didn't want to see it end so soon. The fact that she was leaving him to talk things over with Nick made him feel ten times worse.

He rolled over onto his back again as the sounds of Nick and Sara's raised voices penetrated the walls of the bedroom. All of a sudden, he felt like he was thirteen years old and living at home once more.

"I can't believe you went after him!" Nick shouted angrily, "After all he's done to you!"

Even from the bedroom, Greg could hear the tears in Sara's voice as she retorted equally angrily, "After all he's done to me? Nick, I got over that a long time ago, what's in the past is done! What about him? What he's going through? Don't you think that everything's affecting him just as much as it's affecting us?"

"Don't fall for that, Sara! You are so naive sometimes! It was his choice to leave, not ours, and he's got to pay the consequences! You can't just baby him and pretend like nothing ever happened, Sara, wake up and face reality here."

There was a long pause, and Greg contemplated getting out of bed to make sure no one had been killed, but the exhaustion from his emotional outburst made it hard for him to even think about moving from Sara's warm, comforting bed.

"I think you need to leave."

Sara's voice was so cold and hard that Greg nearly felt sorry for Nick. His sympathy, however, was short lived as Nick replied heatedly, "So you're going to throw away all of your friendships, again, for that scumbag? Do you remember how badly he hurt you?"

"My decisions are none of your concern." Sara replied, her voice wavering with tears once more.

Nick was quick with a comeback, this time, "It is my concern, because I'm the one who will be picking up the pieces, again. He didn't have to see you after you found out he was gone, he didn't have to hold you while you cried, comfort you when you had nightmares, listen when you only need a friend to confide in. He didn't have to watch all of us pick up the pieces of his destruction and move on, he didn't have to deal with any of it!"

"You're wrong." Sara said, her voice barely audible through the apartment walls, "He had to deal with all of it, he still is. It hurt all of us when he left, but we had each other to lean on. He's only one person, he's alone Nick, and it's killing him to know what he put us through. Next time you want to throw stones, try putting yourself in his shoes."

Footsteps echoed through the apartment, and the front door creaked open, "It's time for you to leave."

"Fine, just don't expect me to be your knight in shining armor this time." Nick replied, his voice still angry, as he stormed out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him.

Greg feigned sleep a few moments later as the bedroom door opened, not ready for his own confrontation. He was surprised when the bed shifted beside him, and pleased when she laid down and covered herself up with the remaining covers.

He could tell she was crying by the way the bed shook slightly as she took ragged breaths. More than anything, he wanted to reach out to her and wrap his arms around her to try and chase her demons away, but he knew that it would take time before they were able to get to that stage again.

Tonight, though, he would provide her with the knowledge that he was still here, and when things had gotten rough, he hadn't taken the first plane out of town. Even though it wasn't the comfort he wanted to give her, the peace of mind would surely come as a welcome relief.

Catherine rinsed yet another bottle, barely able to stop herself from yawning as her eyelids started to droop once again. She glanced suspiciously over at Lindsey, who had offered to help once she finished eating her lunch, something that rarely, if ever, happened without an ulterior motive.

"Are you ready for school to be out?" Catherine asked, popping out the nipple from another bottle, which she had found nestled between two plates, "When I was your age, I couldn't wait until the first day of summer vacation."

"Things really haven't changed that much, then," Lindsey said, hesitating before asking in a much cheerier tone, "So, Mom, there's this field trip coming up in like two weeks, and I really, really, really want to go." Lindsey said, taking a bite of her reheated spaghetti, watching as her mother tiredly loaded the dishwasher, "All of the slots were filled, but Terry Henley got mono and she's going to have to stay home. All of the cool kids are going."

Suddenly, Lindsey's recent behavior began to make a lot of sense, "Are you talking about the trip to Washington D.C.? Lindsey, that's going to take away a month of your summer vacation, do you realize that?"

Lindsey rolled her eyes, "Well, yeah! But it's so cool! We'll learn all about the government and we'll get to see all sorts of historical places. And, there's a 3 day excursion to New York City. Mom, you've got to let me go!"

"I'll have to think about it, Lindsey." Catherine replied, pouring dishwasher powder into the compartment, "It's a long trip, what if you get lonesome?"

Lindsey rolled her eyes again, "Oh, come on Mom. It's a great life experience, and it will help me out with American Government in school next year!"

"There will be chaperones." Warrick added, walking into the room and kissing Catherine on the forehead, "Morning, ladies."

Catherine shut the dishwasher, flipping it on while giving a slight glare to Warrick, "Never side against the mother."

"I just think it would be a great learning experience. I did the summer program when I was her age. It really is a great learning experience, and they're chaperoned 24 hours a day. You can get her a prepaid cell phone so you can call and check up on her, and she's growing up, she could use some time with her friends during the summer, instead of being cooped up with her baby brother." Warrick grinned at Lindsey, "Besides, I need to work on my racing skills, and Lins is always hogging the PS2. When she comes back, all of the top scores will say "WB" instead of "LW"."

Lindsey looked towards Catherine with hopeful eyes, "Oh, please Mom? Rebecca is going, and the whole summer would be a total waste without her. If I don't have any friends left in town, who will entertain me?"

"I said I'd think over it, although, if you keep pestering me about it, I may decide you aren't mature enough to go." Catherine warned, taking Lindsey's plate from the table as Lindsey stood. She placed it in the sink, running water over it while sighed, "When did my little girl start to grow up so fast? A month long trip?"

Warrick wrapped his arms around Catherine from behind, kissing her neck gently, causing her to moan softly, "Just think how nice and quiet it will be when Lindsey's in D.C., Lyle's asleep, and it's only me and you trying to find a way to occupy the time?"

"Isn't that how Lyle came to be?" Catherine purred, leaning her head to the side so Warrick could continue kissing her neckline.

A gagging sound came from the doorway, where Lindsey had just re-entered, "Get a room, guys. That's disgusting, that could be filed as child abuse, you know."

Catherine threw her dishtowel at her daughter, "Don't you have something to be doing?"

"Actually," Lindsey said coyly, sitting down at the kitchen table, "I'm free until you decide if I can go to Washington."

Catherine looked at Warrick, who nodded slightly, then looked at Lindsey, "Oh alright, you can go--" she was cut off by Lindsey's triumphant reaction, then continued, "But we're going to lay some ground rules. You've got to prove you can handle the responsibility for this."

Lindsey jumped up, wrapping her arms around Catherine's next and bouncing excitedly, "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! I'll do anything you want, anything! You're the best, Mom! You're the coolest Mom ever!"

As Lindsey bounced out of the room, Catherine was left with a sinking sensation in her stomach. If she was the coolest Mom ever, why did she have the worst feeling about this trip?

Sara silently crept out of bed, turning off her alarm half an hour before it was supposed to go off. Her mind had been wandering too fast and far for her to fall asleep, and by this point it was useless to even try. She always found that no sleep was better than less than an hour's worth of sleep, anyway.

She tiptoed to the bathroom, trying as hard as possible not to wake up Greg, who had slept fitfully, at best. So many times when he had awoken in a panic, gasping for air, she had wanted to reach out and comfort him, but she knew that if she pushed too hard, too fast, he was liable to hitchhike back to Houston, just to get away. She was determined not to let him get away, this time.

She quietly shut the door behind her, turning the shower on while crossing her fingers that the noise didn't disturb him. She had been relieved to see that her fight with Nick hadn't disturbed Greg, he had been peacefully sleeping when she had crawled into bed with him. She was partially relived to know that he'd never know she had been next to him, the last thing she wanted was for them to be more awkward around each other than they already were.

She had thought for many hours about what Greg had told her in the park the night before, "Warrick was right. He was absolutely right. I destroy everything."

Warrick never really talked much about the night Greg left Las Vegas. She had heard some of the details from the others, about Greg and Nick's fight, about Warrick's blow up with Greg, and then Nick, at the hospital. No specifics were ever mentioned, but Warrick wasn't really the type to cross the line while in a fit of anger. Warrick, more than any of the other CSIs, seemed to try to keep his cool in most situations.

She had a feeling that by figuring out what Warrick had told him, she'd find the last puzzle piece to the reason Greg disappeared, to the reason he was as vulnerable as he was now. The problem was finding out what was said. Greg already made it clear he wasn't going to tell her, and Warrick wasn't likely to divulge the information either. He was far too much of a private person to share his personal business with someone who honestly didn't need to know. That left Catherine, who was more likely than not going to keep Warrick's statement a secret, and Nick, who probably wouldn't be speaking to her after their argument.

As she dressed for work, finding out the truth was on the front burner of her mind. Deep down, she knew that once she knew the whole story, she'd be able to find a way to convince him to stay. Sara Sidle was a woman on a mission, and she made a silent vow to not stop until she knew the truth about what happened the night Greg left town.

TBC