A/N: I've finally finished this story. I know it's been a year since I last posted anything on it. I've had some very serious medical problems in the last year, and have just gotten back to feeling like I can write again. And I needed to finish this before I could move on. I continued with the Unbound Improv lines-the next set, I think, after I left off. First and last lines provided. As always, I own only my nifty CSI hat. That's it.

She walked down the corridor, humming "Happy Birthday" under her breath. Even without the tune, Grissom would have noticed her. Since their breakfast two days ago, he'd been more aware of Sara than he had been in months. 'You see me every day.' Grissom closed his eyes as he remembered her rejoinder of…how long ago now, since the last time he had really looked at her? And how easily he had let one cool response force him back into his flight away from her? Was that his destiny then, with Sara? Always pushing and pulling, one always pursuing, one always running, would they always be trapped in some dysfunctional dance that neither would be able to break away from?

But then-there had been that breakfast. In many ways they'd been more honest with one another at the top of the Stratosphere than they had been in a long time.

And here she was, smiling again.

"Sara?"

The woman stopped and spun on her heel, "Grissom. I didn't see you there. I was just heading to the break room." She glanced at the assignment slips in his hands, "Anything interesting?"

"Does kidnapping of a school mascot count?"

Sara paused, trying to read his expression. "Seriously?" At his nod she grinned, then shook her head. "No, it doesn't count."

"Then no. Nothing interesting." He fell in step beside her. Past several doorways he didn't say anything, watching her continue to smile from the corner of his eye. "You've changed."

Sara laughed softly, "Yeah Grissom, I went home last night."

Before they'd had breakfast-before he'd really thought about Catherine's advice, he probably would have left it at that. Maybe he'd changed too. "No. I mean…I haven't seen you this…I haven't seen you smile in a long time."

"Oh." She stopped, turning to face him. "I guess…"

"I…" Grissom interrupted, his hand moving to touch her arm for a brief moment. "I'm glad Sara. You seem happy….happier. Everyone does and…I'm glad."

Her smile returned then, and she nodded. "Thank you, Grissom. It's been a good couple of days." She laughed then, "After being doused with paint I mean."

"It has?"

"Yeah. I think…" her brow wrinkled thoughtfully as she considered her next words. "I think we all…the shift change hurt us all. I think we let it pull us farther apart than we had to. And now…we're fixing that."

"With Nick, Warrick, and Greg you mean."

"No. I mean all of us, Grissom. We're all fixing it."

"Oh."

She stopped again, before they got to the break room. "I meant it for a lot of things." She looked down as he glanced at her uncertainly. "Thank you, for a lot of things. For…I don't know…being concerned even when I told you it wasn't necessary. For…what you said at the Strat. Really for being a better supervisor than you realize. For…for a lot of things."

He smiled. "You're welcome. I really am happy you're doing better, Sara. That everyone is."

She smiled then, and her next words made him realize that she still hadn't lost the ability to leave him speechless. Well, you know. As Karl Menninger once said, 'Love cures people, both the ones who give it and the ones who receive it.'"

Fin

A/N: I originally planned on the story ending up with GSR resolution. But the show has moved on so far since the whole change in shift thing, so I felt it was best to show a repair in the friendship, and go on with resolving the UST in future stories. Thank you to anyone who had the patience to wait for an end to this. I'm truly sorry for the year long wait.