Disclaimer: They're not mine
Rating: T or PG-13 for language and violence
Summary: It's 2am. The doorbell rings. A baby is crying. What are you going to do? W/S with GCR moments and a major case
I've been getting some really epic reviews lately, and not just from Review1234, which is an achievement in itself. So, thank you hugely to every one who reviewed: Review1234 (writer of great House fiction – Land Of Qualms), icklebitodd (yes, I know – I feel it's just all too easy to paint Ecklie in the extreme as The Bad Guy. I try to avoid it. Honest), JennCorinthos, Jenny70529 (well thanks very much for the review in the end!), charmed1818, Kelly, Joyce3 (HOW could they have thrown it out! And –cough- Better Memories? –cough-), Megara1, Aleja21, nick55, MissyJane, Daisyangel, kam and sidlegirl. Can't tell you guys how much it made me smile that so many of you reviewed by yelling at Sara that the reason why she's doing this is because SHE LOVES HIM! Ah, give the girl a break – she'll work it out. And I take it many of you liked her choosing his last name to check in with...
Write-underscore-Impulsive, the live journal community, has its first creative writing challenge up now if any of you are interested to check it out. Two people have already responded and it's brilliant. But back on the topic of fanfiction – I actually quite like the last third of this chapter, personally, but I'll leave you to make up your own minds. Enjoy! Love LJ xXx
- o -
Wake The Hope. Chapter Fifteen. Now We're Getting Somewhere
- o -
"Our ambition should be to rule ourselves, the true kingdom for each one of us; and true progress is to know more, and be more, and to do more."
OSCAR WILDE
- o -
Nate is seemingly oblivious to just how hectic an evening it is. He's slept through the journey back from the lab, Sara's anxious packing, the hotel check in and now the transfer to Warrick's house as Warrick sets the travel cot down in his living room.
"I'll take the couch," Sara says immediately.
"No you won't," Warrick tells her with a grin. "You're not going to get away with that. I'm on the couch; you're taking my bed."
Sara rolls her eyes. "Warrick, no, it's not fair on you," she argues tiredly. But she's not in the right mood for an argument and, as she raises a hand to rub her eyes, she feels she'll probably lose this one anyway.
As she's sweeping her hair out of her eyes, however, she feels Warrick suddenly grab her wrist forcefully.
"Sara...hold still," he instructs in warning tones.
"Huh?" Sara looks up and follows his fixed gaze to her watch. Around the spring bar of the strap, a blond hair is curled and her eyes widen in surprise; it'd been there all along.
"It's too light to be yours," Warrick murmurs, holding very tightly onto her wrist. Sara nods.
"Too thick to be Nate's," she adds and groans frustratedly. "I didn't think to bag my watch with the rest of my clothes."
Warrick reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pair of tweezers and envelope, not taking his eyes off the hair. Very carefully, he tugs the hair out of the spring bar to thankfully find a follicular tag on the end of it, preserved only by the hinges of Sara's watch and by spectacular fortune. Neither of them breathes for a while until it's carefully sealed inside the envelope. Then Sara grins at him.
"What?" he asks.
"You carry those around with you everywhere?" she smirks, looking at the tweezers. Warrick sticks out his tongue.
"I just came from work," he alleges, pleased to see Sara's mischievous look back on her face.
"Sure you did, 'Rick," she teases. Warrick shakes his head with a laugh and picks Nate out of his travel cot once again.
"Sorry little guy," he whispers as he settles Nate back into Sara's arms. "Back to work."
-
They were still waiting, Catherine, Grissom, Greg and Nick, when Warrick and Sara rushed down the hall together. Catherine looks surprised – she hadn't expected him to find her so quickly, if at all and Nick braces himself for another tirade from Warrick on how he'd been right. But he doesn't launch into any angry attack, he's grinning wildly and hands Greg an envelope.
"Process this, Greggo – I wouldn't trust anyone else," he tells him breathlessly. "It's a hair we found on Sara's watchstrap. We think it could belong to the perp."
He beams around the room at the momentarily stunned faces before Greg pulls himself together and gets up to return to the lab.
"This is gonna take a while," he warns them, holding up the envelope before leaving the room. Warrick shrugs.
"You wanna head back then?" he offers to Sara.
She raises an eyebrow, folding her arms. "Only if you'll quit being such a gentleman and let me take the couch."
Warrick laughs slightly and grabs a cup of water from the sink, holding it out to her. "Fine – if you'll take your Demerol like you're meant to."
"Deal." Sara grins and shakes one of the tablets from the bottle out onto her palm. "Watch Nate when I'm asleep, will you?"
"Of course." Warrick nods as she swallows down the pill.
Nick smiles to himself. He watches Catherine and Grissom's surprised faces as they observe the exchange: wondering to themselves how they'd missed out on this happening, wondering whether either of the pair knew how they appeared to the regular onlooker – Sara gently handing the sleeping baby back over to Warrick amidst quips and banter as he watches her with something that runs a little deeper than customary concern.
"We'll be in again tomorrow morning, Griss – that okay?" Sara turns to their supervisor who only nods without words.
Warrick smiles and holds open the door as the two of them return to his Tahoe. As they walk down the corridor, the three remaining in the room see Warrick slip his arm comfortably around her shoulders but Sara herself doesn't seem to give it a second thought.
-
The Tahoe pulls back into the driveway of Warrick's house and he shuts off the engine quietly; Sara has fallen asleep in the passenger seat and he's careful not to wake her as he goes round the other side and opens the door. She stirs and wakes anyway when he reaches across to unbuckle her seat belt and gently pries his hand away.
"I'm fine – I'm awake," she tells him with a smile, "You get Nate." and stumbles out of the car as Warrick carefully handles the sleeping baby. As soon as he unlocks the front door, she's ambling tiredly in but heading with direction to collapse onto the couch.
"Are you sure you won't take the bed?" he asks her with a smile.
She doesn't answer except for throwing a sofa cushion at him and sinking deeper into the couch. Warrick laughs and lays Nate into his travel cot before returning to check on Sara. She's already fast asleep, knocked out quickly by the pain medication, and, with a smirk, he scoops her softly up in his arms. Warrick moves slowly and quietly, checking she's still asleep with every step he takes. With a sort of triumph, he lowers her delicately onto his bed and covers her over with the blankets.
In the morning, just before work, Sara will wake with confusion, thinking to herself that this wasn't where she fell asleep. As she becomes more fully awake, she'll realise what he's done with an exasperated sigh and get up out of the large, comfortable bed to wander into the living room. She'll find Warrick curled uncomfortably on the couch and will wake him by kneeling in front of him and lightly touching his sleeping face.
"You are a very sneaky man, Mr Brown," she'll chide him fondly and Warrick, half-asleep, will think he's still dreaming when he opens his eyes to the first face he'll see that morning and realises it's Sara.
- o -