A/N: Not altogether too much to say. Second to last chapter. Usual disclaimer. Bon Appétit!
"Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you?
Why can't I speak whenever I talk about you?"
"Alexx, have you noticed that Ryan's been acting depressed lately?" asked Horatio, surveying the young CSI as Ryan listlessly lifted prints from the doorknob of the house.
Alexx just shook her head without looking up. "Poor baby boy's heart is broken," she said sadly.
"The vic's heart is broken?" asked Horatio incredulously.
Alexx gave him a look. "No, Horatio, Ryan's heart is broken."
"Oh," said Horatio. He looked at Ryan with new understanding, noting his downcast eyes and lethargic movements. "What happened, Alexx?"
"Met someone in Chicago," said Alexx, carefully rolling the body. "He lives in Vegas. Bullet was a through-and-through, by the way."
"COD?" asked Horatio automatically, still watching Ryan.
"Most likely," answered Alexx, letting the body fall back into its original position. She looked up and followed Horatio's gaze to where Ryan was snapping pictures of some footprints.
"Will he be alright, Alexx?" asked Horatio softly.
Alexx stood and shrugged. "I dunno, Horatio," she said, just as softly. "Greg really broke his heart."
Horatio nodded in understanding and walked over to where Ryan was now taking pictures of a broken glass. "Mr. Wolfe," he said, "how are we doing?"
"Got a couple of partials off the door," said Ryan, not looking up. "I'm gonna take this glass back and see if I can get any prints off it."
"Very good, Mr. Wolfe," said Horatio, "but how are you doing?"
"I'm fine, Horatio," replied Ryan, still not looking at him.
"Are you sure?"
"You've been talking to Alexx," said Ryan calmly, standing and snapping one last photo.
"Maybe I have, Mr. Wolfe," said Horatio, twisting his sunglasses in his hand, "but it was only because I'm worried about you."
"Well, don't be. I'm fine," snapped Ryan.
"Mr. Wolfe, I'd suggest you cool it," said Horatio calmly.
Ryan sighed. "Sorry, H, but really, I'm fine." He picked up his kit. "Is there anything you want me to take back to the lab?"
Horatio sighed as well before slipping his sunglasses on. 'No, Mr. Wolfe, but thank you." Ryan shrugged and left, leaving Horatio alone. Horatio sighed and pulled out his cell phone, dialing number he knew by heart. "Calleigh, it's me. Yes, actually, Ryan's on his way back to the lab, and I want you to keep and eye on him, alright?" He paused. "No, everything's ok, Calleigh, I just don't think that he should be alone right now. Ok, thanks." He closed his cell and slid it into his pocket, brow wrinkled in worry for his CSI.
There few things in life that Catherine disliked more than a decomp. After all, who could possibly enjoy wading knee-deep in a shallow retention pond to retrieve a floater that had been there for a good couple of days? Worse still was doing so in the company of a companion who normally would be bouncing off the walls, singing bad songs and cracking highly inappropriate jokes at highly inappropriate times, such as making a joke about police officers when the sheriff was right behind him. Catherine hid a smile at that memory, still vaguely surprised that Greg had managed to talk his way out of that one. Today, however, the normally overexcited man was quiet…too quiet.
"Hey, Greg?" called Catherine as she fished for the vic's boot, which had fallen off. "Are you feeling ok?"
"I'm fine, Cath," said Greg, taking a picture of the body. "Why?"
"Well, for starters, you're not singing, dancing, cracking jokes or complimenting my ass in a desperate attempt to suck up." She paused and gave him a concerned look. "It's not like you."
He shrugged and turned away. "I'm just not in the mood today, ok? I mean, I highly doubt Mr. John Doe here would appreciate me cracking jokes over his bloated, rotten corpse."
"You never used to care if the bloated, rotting corpse enjoyed your bad jokes," remarked Catherine calmly. "What changed your mind?"
"Nothing changed my mind," said Greg quietly yet firmly.
"Or maybe a certain Miami CSI is what made you lose your comedic outlook on life?" mused Catherine, shooting Greg a knowing look.
A muscle twitched in Greg's jaw. "Sara told you, huh?" he said, trying to sound light.
"No," said Catherine. "I beat it out of her. She wasn't the only one who realized you were upset, and when I figured out that she knew why, I decided to force it out of her." She paused and gave Greg a hesitant smile. "And just so you know, she only told me to prevent me from going to Grissom about your new mood."
Greg merely grunted in response, hunching over the body to take more pictures. Catherine looked at him expectantly. "Well?" she asked, arching one eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me what's going on? Sara gave me the bare minimum only."
"What more do you want to know? I had a fling with a guy in Chicago, and now it's over, ok?" snapped Greg.
Catherine's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait," she said slowly. "You had a fling with a guy?"
Greg's shoulders stiffened. "Yes, I did," he said through clenched teeth. "Is there a problem with that?"
"No! No," said Catherine emphatically, shaking her head in emphasis. "I just didn't know you were…"
"I'm not," he said calmly. "I'm bi. In fact, Ryan was my first…my first boyfriend," he said, blushing slightly.
"Wow. You must've really liked him," she said mildly.
"Liked him?" snorted Greg. "No. I didn't just like him…I love him. Er, I mean, I loved him. Past tense. It's over."
"Why?" asked Catherine, brow furrowing in confusion. "If you loved him and he loved you, why'd you guys break up?"
"He lives in Miami," said Greg simply.
"So? I mean, if you guys really loved each other, couldn't you make it work?"
Greg's jaw tightened. "Firstly, we do really love each other, but secondly, I wasn't really prepared to give up my entire life to move to Miami where I have no job, no friends, no whatever, and neither was Ryan prepared to move here." He paused, then spoke again with a slightly wavering voice. "I love Ryan, but God, I'm scared. I'm scared of what could happen if we don't work out, if I give up everything to go down there and then we break up and I'm left with nothing."
He looked so lost that Catherine went to pull him into a hug, only stopping herself when she realized she was covered in man-juice. Instead, she reached for his hand and grabbed it, squeezing it tightly. "I'm sure it'll work out, Greggo," she told him. "Love always finds a way."
Horatio looked around the emptying lab. There was one person he was looking for, and he happened to be the one person who wasn't there. Horatio left his office and went to hunt down Calleigh. He found her in the ballistics lab. "Calleigh," he said, standing behind her, "where's Ryan?"
Calleigh set down the gun she had just test-fired. "Um…last time I checked, he was in trace. Why?"
"Because he is no longer there," said Horatio as calmly as he possibly could.
Calleigh shrugged and returned the gun to the rack. "Well, he probably went home," she said, going to retrieve the bullet.
Horatio nodded slowly. "Yes, maybe he did," he mused aloud. "At least I hope he went home. It's better than the alternative." He gave Calleigh a searching look. "Do you know what happened?"
"I know bits and pieces, but not the whole story," she answered honestly. "I know that he got his heart broken." She looked at Horatio. "Is there more I should know?"
"No," he said, putting his sunglasses on. "That's all anyone needs to know."