I know the team was split before the "Spark of Life" episode, but for the sake of this story, it didn't happen. The joys of it being fiction. D


The halls in front of Conrad Ecklie's office are deserted except for one lone figure, the CSI night supervisor trying hard not to focus on the raised voices coming from behind the closed door of the assistant director's office. It's been going on for a while now, and Greg's voice only seems to be getting louder, something Grissom never thought he'd hear from the younger man.

Gil feels like he's a kid again, sitting outside the principal's office after getting in trouble for trying to take the science classes bug collection home. It's obvious to anyone that walks by that things aren't going well with Greg in there, and although he knows it might sound the same once he himself enters the office, he hopes it won't end as bad as he expects.

When the door finally slams open and Greg steps out almost an hour after being sent in, Grissom stands up to say something but is almost pushed off balance by the CSI turned lab tech, so many emotions present in Greg's eyes that it's hard to decipher each.

Grissom tries to grab Greg's arm before he can take off, to say I something /I to calm the younger man down, but soon the two men are flanked by Ecklie on one side of them calling Grissom into the office, and security guards on the other side, ready to escort Greg to the locker room before making sure he leaves the building. The measure seems a bit extreme, and Grissom silently watches Greg push the men away from him before storming off in the direction of the locker room, the men's absence leaving Ecklie and Grissom alone in the hallway.

Although Gil wishes he could put this meeting off longer, he soon finds himself sitting in the chair Greg was in just moments before across the desk from Ecklie, his hands resting in his lap as the assistant director opens the personnel file in front of him.

"Mr. Grissom, I suppose you already know why you're here, so why don't I just cut to the chase."

"You fired him."

Ecklie was expecting the question and all the anger behind it, so it doesn't effect him much as he shakes his head, his eyes meeting with Grissom's after a moment longer of looking at the file, not really paying attention to what's in it but using it more as a scare tactic, to make Grissom more nervous than what he already is.

"As a matter of fact, I didn't get a chance to fire him, he resigned his position as a CSI and lab tech, which is good for you I suppose."

It catches the supervisor off guard, to say the least. He could have never expected Greg to give up on the job he fought for so easily, and he doesn't understand how he could gain any benefit from Greg quitting.

"Now if we can stay on track here Grissom, I've been looking over your personal file, and it seems that there have been some major problems with your team and their ability to do their job correctly. Although I'm sure where the problem lies, I have decided to start an investigation to correct the errors. Until the investigation is complete, I'm putting you on unpaid suspension, and I will be supervising the remainder of your crew."

Grissom isn't sure what makes him more upset, the fact that Ecklie's starting an investigation into his ability to do his job, or the fact that he's going to be in control of the night shift. He knows he should be relieved that he hasn't gotten fired completely yet, but the fact that he's still being suspended makes it feel like the same results. He's never been forced away from his job like this before, with the risk of completely losing it, and as much as he's addicted to his work, the thought of being kept away from it is something he's not sure he can deal with just yet.

"Mr. Grissom, do you have any questions before you go?"

Hundreds of them, he thinks, but he can't seem to make his voice work for the first time in his life. He knows he should try to fight it, but the image of Greg curled up on the couch at the club, that look in his eyes, Grissom knows he screwed up and it's his fault that Greg's gone.

He wants to go find the younger man, apologize for letting this all get so far out of hand, but he doesn't even know where he would start. Gil Grissom and personal talk have never gone hand in hand, but he thinks that it's something he's going to have to conquer soon, very soon, because he finds himself standing up and walking towards the door, unsure of whether or not the meeting is actually over but no longer really caring. All that seems to matter right now is finding Greg and at least trying to make things right between them.

The steady flow of traffic through the hallway seems to have returned when the CSI steps out the door, and despite the fact that Grissom's sure he can hear Ecklie calling his name behind him, Gil only keeps moving in the direction of the locker room, finding his CSI's standing just outside the door talking quietly amongst themselves.

They look worried, as they should, and although they turn questioning eyes to Grissom when they seem him coming, the supervisor ignores it and pushes open the door to the locker room, his feet remaining in their spot momentarily as he watches Greg empty his locker into the trash, the box sitting on the bench behind him remaining empty.

The two security officers are standing near Greg silently watching the younger man, like they expect him to pull a gun on them or something, and Grissom clears his throat from the doorway, finally making his presence known as the two men finally look up at him with questioning looks on their faces.

"Do you mind giving us a moment alone?"

"Sorry sir, we've got direct orders to escort Mr. Sanders until he's out of the building."

It usually takes a lot more to make Gil Grissom upset, but he suddenly finds his fists clenching at his sides, wishing that Ecklie were here right now so that he could hit him for treating Greg like he's a criminal. Gil supposes that this is the last thing Greg needs to be dealing with right now on top of everything else, and despite his anger, Grissom tries not to yell when once again requesting the men to leave.

"He's not going to do anything or go anywhere, I just need a few minutes alone to talk to him."

"With all due respect sir, he's resigned his position as a CSI and you're currently on suspension, I'm sure you'll be able to find plenty of time alone to talk to him outside of the lab. Until then, we've been directed not to leave his side until he's out of the building, and we're going to make sure the job gets done right."

It will be too late, Grissom knows it will be too late because right now he has Greg trapped, as terrible as it may sound, but out in the parking lot Greg can easily get away from him and he's really not at the age where he can be chasing people, especially those that are fit like the former lab tech.

Greg doesn't even seem to be paying attention to what's going on around him, his movements automatic as he throws one thing after the other into the trash can. Gil moves towards him to allow the door to finally close behind him, and although his fingers twitch to reach out and grab the CSI's arm, make him stop his actions for only a moment, he can't bring himself to do it, instead trying to ignore the men watching him and finding the courage to speak.

"Greg, I'm really sorry about all of this, it isn't all your fault. I should have noticed something wasn't right and tried to help."

"And done what Grissom, made the images go away, make me forget about the explosion and the scars covering my back? This is something I did on my own, I didn't want everyone to think I was incapable of doing my job, so I kept it a secret. When it came down to it, I knew Ecklie was going to fire me, fire us, so I beat him to it, I quit. Now your job is secure."

That would explain why he gave up his job so easily. Damn.

"I never once thought you were incapable of doing your job Greg, you've gone a lot further than several CSI's I've dealt with in the past. You can't just quit what you've worked so hard for just to cover me, I can't let that happen."

"It's over Grissom, there's no point in both of us losing our jobs if one can be saved. You belong here, this place is your life and I'm not going to be the reason you're forced to leave it."

His voice sounds just about as loud as it did when he was in Ecklie's office, and Grissom is faintly aware of the security guards starting to approach them, getting ready in case they need to jump in. The fact that they're not actually trying to throw Grissom out is surprising enough, but he's not going to complain, not when he knows this might be his only chance to talk to Greg before the younger man leaves for good.

"This wasn't all your fault Greg, I was careless when I sent you to Tara Matthews, I heard what you said to Sofia in the locker room, and I should have caught on then instead of sending you back."

Greg opens his mouth to respond but the door to the locker room is suddenly pushed open, Grissom knowing who is standing behind him without even bother to look back.

"Mr. Grissom, I think you've been working here long enough to know that suspensions are effective immediately, not when you decide they are. What are you still doing here, interrupting my staff with your raised voices?"

Grissom turns around, the anger present in his eyes as he looks at Ecklie, forces himself not to just reach out and choke the life out of the little weasel. His thoughts towards the other man are starting to get more aggressive and violent in nature, and Grissom thinks that if Ecklie doesn't watch his back, he's going to be the target of the first punch from Gil Grissom that's been thrown in almost twenty years.

"I'm talking to Greg, Conrad."

""You can talk to Mr. Sanders off the grounds of the crime lab, that includes out of this building, and the parking lot. Until he's finished clearing out his locker, you can work on finding your way in that direction, I'll even be so kind as to escort you out of the building, just so you don't happen to get lost."

Greg continues to empty his locker out, ignoring everyone around him, and Grissom wonders just when everything seemed to fall apart around him. He supposes it has been happening ever since the lab explosion and he just never realized it, and now he knows the true results of his blindness.

"Greg-"

"Now, Gil. You should be lucky that you still have your job, but the longer you stay here, the more I'm starting to rethink that decision."

Grissom hesitates, lets his gaze shift between Greg and Ecklie. He wants to finish this with Greg, get this all settled, but he's not sure if he can handle losing his job. He wants Greg to fight, to stick up for himself and fight Ecklie to keep his job, but he's not even sure if his words will have an effect on the younger man any longer, not after he participated in the betrayal that left Greg in this position.

Ecklie's about to physically remove Grissom himself when the supervisor suddenly pushes past him, opening the locker room door to be greeted by the group of CSI's still standing close by, still unsure of what exactly is going on.

Grissom's eyes scan the group until they land on the one CSI that wasn't a part of all the charades, and he ignores Ecklie standing behind him as he walks over to Sarah, pulling her aside by the elbow until they're at a reasonable distance from everybody.

"Grissom, what's going on?"

"Greg resigned. I tried talking to him, but-"

"Grissom, if I have to tell you one more time, I'm going to have you physically removed from the premises."

Gil throws a glance over his shoulder before turning back to Sarah, a frown drawn tight onto her lips.

"I'll talk to him, but I can't guarantee you anything."

Grissom thanks her just as Ecklie grabs him by his arm, one of the security guards that was in the locker room moments ago now standing by his side, looking highly annoyed by the CSI's actions. He's not able to say much else before he's pulled down the hallway, a small crowd gathering as the security guard escorts him to his car to make sure he leaves.