Sara woke up to noise from Laredo's bedroom. She looked over at Grissom who was still sound asleep and then looked at the clock and saw that she had slept almost a full eight hours. Definitely due to Grissom being here, she thought as she touched his face softly. She heard Laredo moving around in her room so she climbed out of bed to check on her.
Laredo, the smart little girl that she was, had taken one of the boxes that Sara had brought home the previous day and pulled it into her room and started packing her toys in it. Sara stood at the doorway watching her and tried not to make a sound. How did I get blessed with this smart and beautiful little girl?
Laredo looked up to see her Mommy and asked, "Is daddy seepin'?" Sara smiled and knelt down next to Laredo and the box. "Yes he is. What are you doing?"
"I want to go with daddy. He's leavin' now." Laredo said, so certainly. Sara realized that Laredo had understood what she and Grissom talked about the previous day and remembered it. She reached around her precious little girl and hugged her tight as something stuck in her throat. She barely got the words out before tears started to fall, "Oh Cricket, he's going back home but we aren't yet. We'll go in a few days. Daddy has to go back to work."
Laredo's eyes fell to the floor and with a little pout she said, "Oh." Then she started to unpack her toys but Sara stopped her and said, "Laredo, we'll go in a couple of days. I promise. I tell you what though, we can make him a good breakfast before he leaves okay?"
Laredo put her thumb in her mouth and nodded that she agreed. Sara picked her up and they walked down to the kitchen. She prepared coffee, some eggs and even bacon for Grissom, cereal for Laredo and then some coffee and toast for herself. She told Laredo to make sure the door to the bedroom was wide open and followed her down the hallway.
Grissom woke to find the bed empty and then heard voices coming down the hallway. Just as he was about to get out of bed, the door opened and he saw Laredo. She saw he was awake and ran to the bed then was soon followed by Sara, holding a tray with breakfast on it. "What's this?"
"Well, since your leaving today, we decided to let you sleep while we made breakfast." Sara said. "Prop up the pillows behind you and then I'll put the tray in your lap."
"I helped." Laredo beamed. "I love you, Daddy." Grissom smiled at her and picked her up but held her in the air above him. "Thank you and I love you too, Cricket." Laredo giggled as Grissom's hands started to tickle her and then he put her down on the bed next to him.
Sara set the tray down over his lap and sat down. She fed Laredo as she also ate her toast and drank her coffee. Laredo, the smart girl that she was, sat very still so that nothing would spill. "A little bug thought she would pack up her toys this morning so she could go with Daddy." Sara said as she spooned some food into Laredo's wide-open mouth. Laredo knew she was being talked about and looked up at her Daddy, as he had been about to take a bite of his egg. "I told her you would be working too much."
Grissom stopped at Sara's words. As he looked over at his daughter, who had turned her bright blues eyes up to him he said, "I'm sorry, Cricket. I would love to have you with me, but your Mommy's right, I have to work a lot." As he talked to her, he touched her hair and her cheek.
Laredo turned shy all of a sudden and put her head down after sticking her thumb in her mouth. "I tell you what, when you come to my place in a couple of days, I'll let you see my bugs. Okay?"
At that Laredo turned her now huge eyes up at him and asked him, "You got bugs?"
Grissom laughed. "Yes I do. Big ones even. You want to see them?" He watched as Laredo's eyes got even bigger. She nodded at him as her thumb found its home once again.
Sara watched the exchange of words with a feeling of maternal love. She realized that if anything did happen to her, Grissom would always be there to love and care for their daughter.
They finished their breakfast and Sara took the tray back down to the kitchen followed closely by Laredo as Grissom went in to take a shower. While he was in there, Sara took out the picture that Grissom had asked for and placed it in a picture frame but she also put one behind it of Laredo as a newborn. She then put it over by the door so she would be able to give it to him just as he leaves so he will have it with him when he drives home.
Sara turned to find Laredo missing. And then heard voices coming from the bedroom and smiled. Laredo wanted to be with her Daddy so much. She walked back down to the bedroom and leaned against the doorframe. She watched father and daughter partake in a conversation made for little girls. She quietly turned and walked back down the hallway and finished putting the dishes in the dishwasher.
Grissom had felt Sara lurking in the doorway and when he knew her presence was no longer there, picked up Laredo and took her into her bedroom. He wanted to get a look at her room again so he could get a few ideas for the project he had in store to work on during the next week for his other three CSIs.
After he did his surveillance of the room, Laredo pulled him over to her toys and proceeded to show him all her bugs. Grissom smiled. The next few weeks, hell, the next several years are going to be quite an experience. He sighed as he thought about how he needed to get on the road. "Laredo, Daddy needs to go now. You want to walk with me to my car?"
Laredo had been putting a toy on one of her shelves. She turned back to look over at Grissom as he had knelt down to her height. She looked back at her toy, a stuffed ladybug, and pulled it back out from the shelf and handed it to Grissom. He took it from her grasp and looked it over and then smiled at her as he said, "Do you want me to keep this?" Laredo nodded as her thumb snuck back into her mouth. He pulled her into a hug and told her he would make sure to keep it in a special place. Then he picked her up while still holding the toy and they walked into Sara's bedroom as he got his duffle bag and then they stepped out into the hallway. Sara walked in from the kitchen just as they reached the living room. She saw the toy Grissom held and smiled. She knew why he had it. "I should be getting on the road. Walk me out to my car?"
They walked out and he put his bag in the trunk and then turned to give both Sara and Laredo hugs. He kissed Laredo and then gave her mother a little longer kiss. Laredo, still in her father's arms, had quite the view and started to giggle with her thumb in her mouth. Sara and Grissom broke from the kiss and looked at Laredo with smiles on their faces. He started to hand Laredo to Sara, when Sara said, "Oh, wait, I almost forgot. Just a minute, I'll be right back." And she turned and went back up to the house. She reached in to the table by the door and grabbed the picture frame. She walked back down to Grissom and then took Laredo.
Grissom wore an inquisitive look on his face as she handed him the picture frame. He looked down at it and smiled. "Thank you for remembering."
"There's a surprise underneath it for when you get back. And Gil, thank you for coming here, it was much better then a phone call." It was Sara's turn to feel a little shy as she tucked her head down and against Laredo's curls.
Grissom reached out and touched her cheek softly. "I'm glad I came too. We'll have to do something special to thank Catherine for interfering," he said with a wink and a twinkle in his eye. He then turned and put the ladybug and picture frame on the passenger seat as he sat down and closed the door. He waved to them as they walked back up the sidewalk backwards watching him as he started the car and pulled out. He waved again just before he disappeared from view. He never saw Sara hugging Laredo tighter as she started letting the tears fall or Laredo clinging to her mommy's neck in a fierce hug to try and make her feel better.