Author:Joyce
Title: The Consequences of Flirting
Disclaimer: Nope, still not mine.
Note: Thank you guys for your huge responses. I got 16 reviews in the last 24 hours for a short first chapter which is just amazing. This second chapter was already done but I wanted to wait until I knew if you guys liked this story idea, I guess you do. I made up Tina's last name for this chapter, coming up with Harris because Xander was my favorite Buffy character. Yes, I'm weird. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, I know I had a blast writing it and please don't hesitate to tell me what you think of it, good or bad.
Breakfast, flirting and denial
Two days later Warrick walked through the lab, trying to find Nick. During the last days he had fixed his problem, the incident with Sara almost forgotten. He had decided that it had been a fluke, nothing more and now he planned to spend a relaxed morning at home with his best friend and his girl. He finally located Nick, talking to Greg in the break room and he entered without knocking, startling them both.
"We were not talking about you," Greg immediately told him and Warrick just stared at him, trying very hard not to laugh.
"Ok," he said, shrugging while turning to Nick. "What are you doing after shift?"
"Nothing much," the slightly younger man replied. "I kinda promised that..."
He was cut of by Warrick who was eager to invite his friend.
"Come to my place," he demanded. "Tina has the night shift today, we'll have breakfast and you can meet her."
Nick smiled. "I finally get to meet the mystery woman?" he asked. "That sounds interesting but I kinda had plans with Sara after shift, I promised I'd buy her breakfast. Do you mind if she tags along?"
Warrick, who was on his way to the coffee machine, stopped dead in his tracks and turned back to his friend.
"Sara?" he managed to choke out and Nick just nodded. "Yeah, the more the merrier, right?" he said, obviously not getting what the fuss was all about.
Warrick plastered a fake grin on his face.
"Right," he agreed, his morning suddenly not so relaxed anymore.
"See you after shift," the Texan CSI told his friend before he left the break room to meet up with Grissom in the DNA-lab. "Bye, Greggo."
Greg just waved, more interested in observing Warrick, who hadn't moved from his spot by the coffee machine.
"What was that all about?" he finally asked and he saw Warrick spin around, a defensive look on his face.
"That was nothing, Greg," he told him firmly and he wanted to leave the room when the voice of the younger man stopped him.
"You flinched, bro," Greg helpfully explained to him. "Nicky said that Sara was coming with him and you flinched."
"I did not," Warrick replied immediately, shaking his head to emphasize his point.
"Whatever," the young man mumbled before he continued in a sarcastic matter. "And thanks for inviting me too, that was very flattering but I already have plans."
The dark man gave him an goofy smile, obviously embarrassed.
"I'm sorry, Sanders," he explained. "It's not that I don't want you there but I don't want to overwhelm Tina by bringing the whole lab home. You'll meet her soon, I promise."
"I'll take you up on that promise," the former DNA-analyst told him and Warrick just grinned before he swung open the door and walked out, more then a little worried about the relaxed breakfast he planned to have after shift.
Sara walked into trace, steeling herself for a meeting with Hodges but to her relief he was nowhere to be found.
"Score one for me today," she said triumphantly to herself. She had put the incident with Warrick behind her, deciding that it had been temporary insanity and it would never happen again. She suddenly heard a sound behind her and sighed, turning around and preparing herself for Hodges but it was Nick standing in the doorway.
"Change of plans, Sar," he informed her. "We're having breakfast a Rick's place and get to meet the infamous Tina."
Sara just blinked. "At Warrick's?" she asked and Nick nodded, already moving along. "Yep," was the last thing she heard him say.
"And score two sucks," she whispered to herself, not believing her own bad luck.
Several hours later Sara found herself standing in front of a familiar house, Nick beaming beside her.
"I wonder what she's like," he pondered and Sara gave him a weak smile.
"Yeah," she said, sounding not at all interested. "Me too."
Her friend had already knocked on the door however and they were greeted by Warrick, who had changed into simple jeans and a t-shirt for the occasion.
"Come on in, bro," he warmly greeted Nick but he became uncomfortable when he noticed his co-worker behind his friend.
"Hey," he said awkwardly and she gave a small wave. "Hey," was the even more awkward reply.
Nick just frowned at their odd behavior and shoved his friend inside, eager to meet his girlfriend. He was greeted by a tiny, gorgeous lady with chocolate colored skin and bouncy curls and Nick immediately liked her.
"Hi," he said politely, extending his hand to her. "I'm Nick Stokes."
She took his hand and shook it. "Tina Harris," she clarified for him before her eyes turned to the tall brunette standing next to Warrick. "And you must be Sara," she assumed with a friendly smile on her face and Sara couldn't help but smile back before she confirmed that she was.
The next half hour was spent with them talking and getting to know each other, an opportunity Nick took to ask as many questions as he could, something that seemed to amuse Tina to no end, when finally Warrick stood up.
"I better prepare breakfast," he announced and Nick perked up when food was mentioned.
"Ask Sara to make her scrambled eggs," he suggested. "They're great."
Sara waved the compliment away.
"They're not that special, I'm sure Warick doesn't need me hovering around in the kitchen."
"Oh c'mon, Sar," Nicky half whined, a comical expression on his face. "Do it for me, please?" and he bashed his eyelashes at her, which send Tina into a fit of laughter.
"Fine," the tall woman mumbled, getting up while avoiding Warrick's eyes and the two of them made their way to the kitchen.
After pointing out where Sara could find everything she needed an uncomfortable silence settled between them. Warrick was busy making some orange juice while she was stirring in the pan, all her attention focused on her eggs.
"We need to talk," he finally announced and she barely looked up. "Ok," she just agreed.
"Look, Sara," Warrick began. "I'm sorry for what happened the other day. I didn't mean to embarrass you and I promise it will never happen again. Can we just forget about it?"
She looked up from her eggs, giving him a small smile.
"I'd like that," she admitted and he let out a sigh of relief. "Good," he just said, walking over to her and looking into the pan.
"So," he said, teasing her. "Stokes knows about your breakfast specialities." He stopped to waggle his eyebrows. "What's that all about?"
She narrowed her eyes, giving him a glare.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Rick. He had breakfast at my place a couple of times, it was no big deal."
"Oh really?" he drawled. "You never made me breakfast."
She was busy stirring in her pan when she announced;
"I must like Nick better then."
Warrick placed his hand on his heart, pretending to be in pain.
"That hurts, Sidle," he exclaimed dramatically.
She laughed, taking her pan of the heat and asking him for a bowl. She carefully scooped her eggs up from the pan and wanted to transport them to the bowl when she was startled by Warrick turning on the orange juicer and the eggs fell on the floor, immediately followed by her swearing. He smiled and made his way towards her, helping her clean up the mess.
"This is your fault," she announced and he stopped helping her. "Really?" he asked her, "And in what way am I responsible for your clumsiness?"
"You turned on that damn juicer," she told him with a pissed off look on her face.
"And you're the one who dropped the damn pan," he retorted, getting annoyed, his face inches from hers.
She looked up to yell something back when it suddenly dawned on her that they were inches apart and he had that look again, the one that had made her melt last time and was doing the same thing now. They held each others gaze for a while and Warrick smiled, which made her heart flutter and that was it.
"Stop that!" she half screamed, getting up as fast as she could and he followed her.
"Stop what?" he wanted to know.
"Stop flirting with me," she quitely announced, remembering his girlfriend only a room away from them.
He had an indignant expression on his face and when he spoke she could hear barely contained frustration;
"You're flirting with me," he said in a matter of fact kind of way.
"Are you kidding me with this, Brown?" she hissed. "You almost jumped me!"
"Jumped you?" he hissed back. "Get over yourself, Sidle."
She turned around and stormed out of the kitchen, startling both Nick and Tina who were talking in the living room.
"Warrick made the eggs fell and I'm not staying in the kitchen with that man," she announced, sounding like a child, while Warrick stormed after her, hearing her last words.
"It's not my fault that pan fell! You were the one holding it, I wasn't even near it," he yelled back just as childishly and Tina got up to calm him down.
"Stop that," she told the both of them and they both calmed down somewhat while still glaring at each other.
"You always act on impulse," Sara told him calmly, starting things up again. "And that is what gets you into trouble."
He glared at her even more, hearing her hidden comment in the accusation.
"And you always think and think and think some more. You don't even realize when you're acting on impulse because your brain doesn't even know that the function excists."
Sara stood up.
"You can stick your breakfast where the sun doesn't shine, I'm going home," she told him before she grabbed her jacket.
"Good plan," Warrick said, walking to the door and opening it. "Don't let the door hit you on your way out."
She stopped, getting into his face.
"You are such a baby," she hissed before she left.
"Yeah, whatever," he said, slamming the door behind her and when he turned around both Nick and Tina were looking at him in shock.
"What the hell was that, man?" Nick demanded to know.
Warrick shrugged.
"That was nothing, you know she gets on my nerves sometimes. Let's just eat."
Nick followed him into the kitchen, a confused look on his face, one that was matched by Tina.
Meanwhile, outside, Sara was still boiling on the inside.
"Me flirting with you," she whispered with barely contained resentment. "I'll show who's the one flirting here, Brown..."
Tbc...
