A/N: Texarkana is a song by the awesome Canadian band, R.E.M. Don't own it, and sadly, I didn't even know what 'Texarkana' was until I looked it up. (sigh…) I'm not a Geoggers fan. (Geography.) But the song was suiting, besides the fact that Sara was not going to Texas… or Arkansas…
Anyway, I'm rather fond of this chapter…it's longer than usual, mostly to make up for the slightly shorter than usual chapter 7. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did planning and writing it! Let me know your thoughts!
Chapter Title: Texarkana
"Sara! You look great!"
"Well, besides my running mascara, achy sinuses and hair akin to bed head, I feel it too." Sara smiled at the man before her as she set her backpack down on the floor. Blaze Evans stood a tall 6'1, dwarfing her by about four inches, with russet brown hair so dark it was almost black. His eyes were a piercing but light cobalt, and his tone was kindly, voice tinged with the remnants of an English accent that she'd always found comforting; she'd forgotten how much so.
He was clean cut and shaven, but she couldn't help but notice that his admittedly handsome face was slimmer, paler than she remembered it. He would have looked a little gaunt had it not been for the brilliant smile he'd plastered on his face upon greeting her.
Sara sighed affectionately, and pulled the taller man into an embrace. "How you doing, Evans?"
"Never better, Sara. Boy it's great to see you again." Blaze pulled away so he could see her as he spoke. Sara gave him a look that implied she didn't believe he was speaking the truth. But considering the circumstances, it was probably a stupid question anyway. He read her expression, and without missing a beat, corrected himself.
"…As well as one could be at present moment, dear. Yourself?"
"Dealing." She smiled sadly. "And it's great to see you again too. I still can't believe I'm back here, after so many years…"
"You know, you didn't have to leave—"
Sara raised a hand to stop him. "Yes, I did. Blaze, please, I really don't want to talk about that…"
"Alight. Shall we go grab your baggage, then? Here, let me take your sac."
"It's okay, I can carry it."
"Stubborn as ever, I see." Blaze grinned at her and placed a hand on her shoulder as they made their way together to the luggage pickup belts. Sara had forgotten how easily he used to cheer her up on the worst of days, no matter what he had to say. She chuckled, and shook her head at the next thought that crossed her mind. Nick was the only other person who could do that.
"So, what does yours look like?"
"Standard… you know, tall, black…"
"That one?" Blaze pointed to one of about fifteen nearly identical looking black suitcases, cocking an eyebrow at her with a joking smile.
"Um… I'm not sure, actually."
"…Sara…"
"Just kidding, Blaze. It has a little gold ribbon round the handle… and uh, a little cowboy hat keychain." She coughed through that last part, unable to suppress a little laugh. Nick's niece back in Texas had sent one to her uncle, and Nick had given it to her, probably about six weeks ago.
"Cowboy hat, huh?" Blaze smiled, but didn't have a chance to press the subject, because at that moment, a black bag with a little gold ribbon and cowboy hat keychain slid onto the conveyer belt. Sara insisted on picking it up and pulling it herself, so Blaze insisted she give him her backpack. After a while, she gave up and agreed, finally following the black-suited man through a security check.
The checkpoints had been put into place for all people coming in and out of the airport since the Oakland bombing that took the lives of two of her former coworkers. It wasn't until they went through the check that she really realized this place was now eerie, even though it wasn't Oakland. It used to be familiar to her, even friendly. Now it was a security intense hellhole full of emotions that she'd never be ready to face. After setting her bags down onto a scanning machine and receiving them back, she followed Blaze Evans out a pair of automatic sliding doors and into an equally familiar parking lot.
After about fifty years of trying to flag down a taxi, one finally picked them up, and Blaze sparked up their conversation again. "So how is Las Vegas? You've been up there for what now… well, it would be six years, correct?"
Sara managed a smile, unable to stay sad around the man for very long. "No, actually… five."
"Five? But you left six years ago—"
"I know. But this year isn't over yet. So it hasn't been six."
"Sidle, why are you always so technical?" He laughed, elbowing her in the arm.
"Ow, Blaze…" Sara rubbed her arm, rolling her eyes as she stared out the window, watching the busy streets bustle by as they sat stuck in early rush-hour traffic. She could have sworn she heard some sort of crashing noise from behind them, but it didn't sound metallic enough for a car accident…Blaze seemed to have heard it too, but chose to ignore it, instead pursuing the one question she had hoped he wouldn't.
"Why did you really leave, Sar?" The longer bangs of his dark hair fell into his intense cobalt eyes as he cocked his head, as if asking her to look at him. Something jumped in her upon hearing this question, and suddenly she was afraid.
"You know exactly why I left, Evans…" She peeled her eyes from the window just long enough to steal a glance at him. "I don't want to talk about it…" Images of Nick flooded her minds eye, and she couldn't bear to look at her old supervisor anymore. Her auburn eyes closed as she took a deep breath, and stared out the window again.
"Look, Sara, can't we start over? I mean, look at this- we all…" he paused and sighed, frustrated. "We all need each other."
"Blaze… I can't do it."
"Sara—"
"That's why I left." More tears were running down her face, and Sara felt powerless to stop them. "I couldn't handle… us."
20,000 miles to an oasis
20,000 years will I burn
20,000 chances I wasted
Waiting for the moment to turn…
Back in Las Vegas, Nick lay sprawled on the sofa, trying to watch TV, but having very little success. Grissom had given him another day off; apparently things were slow in the lab anyway. Part of him really wished he could be at work, where there would at least be something to keep his mind busy; evidence, people, questions… Instead, he stared blankly at the box in front of him, not digesting much of the dialogue until he heard the name 'San Francisco'.
"There's been another bombing at San Francisco's International Airport in California, speculated to be in connection with the series of unsolved terror attacks against the local law enforcement, a mere hour ago. Police in the area have denied comment for the time being, and fatality information is also being withheld until it can be confirmed with the city's health region. Twelve people were taken to hospital, no word yet on whether any of the victims were actually targeted parties. In weather news—"
"Oh my God… Sara…" Nick's eyes grew wide as he heard this news, and immediately, he looked at his watch. She should have gotten there an hour and 45 minutes ago, unless her plane was delayed… He cringed. Planes were always late. Within seconds, the phone was in his hand and he was frantically dialing Sara's cell number.
One ring…
Two…
Three..
Fou—
"Sidle."
Nick's heart jumped at her voice, and the tears that had welled in his eyes finally fell as he fought to catch his breath. He grinned in relief.
"Sara, you're okay… thank God…"
"Nicky! What are you talking about, of course I'm okay!"
"I was just watching the news… apparently another bomb went off at the international airport an hour ago… I was worried your flight was delayed and… well…"
"Another bomb went off? Oh God…" Sara looked at her own watch. Her and Blaze had left the airport an hour and a half ago. Plus whatever time it took to catch a cab. They'd have been lucky to get out of there five minutes before the bomb went off. "We left maybe five minutes before it went off…" That must have been what she'd heard just before Blaze started quizzing her about her motives for leaving, despite the fact he knew full well why. She heard Nick take a deep breath, his voice only slightly shakier than her own.
"What? Another bomb?" Blaze couldn't help but hear Sara's frantic speech. Sara motioned 'one minute' as she heard Nick talk again.
"Thank God you're alright… Damn Sar…"
"Sorry Nick—"
"No… not your fault… I just can't believe you're in the middle of a bomb field, and I'm not there with you… Please be safe…"
"I will… promise I'll try… I bet you anything we're going to get called in in about two minutes, we're not even out of the taxi yet."
Blaze's cell phone gave a shrill ring, and he answered.
"Evans. Yeah, I thought so. Uh, call it intuition. Heard the explosion as we left. Yeah, we're fine. Any fatalities?" He shook his head, expression desolate. "Three dead, nine injured." A notepad was pulled out, and Sara watched as he jotted down a series of notes. "Officers? No? Alright, good… Do you have any names for me? …. Alright, got them. I'll be there in a half hour, send Kira and her team over early, she can take over until I get there and after I leave; I'm still bringing Sara in. Alright, thanks… bye."
"Listen, Nick? I have to go, but I'll call you back, alright?"
"Okay Honey." Having heard most of Blaze's conversation, he didn't question why. "Take care of yourself… Love you."
"I will… Ditto, and I'll call you back… promise."
Sara snapped her cell phone closed and looked to the man who sat beside her, his bright eyes penetrating her dark ones, conveying an unspoken message.
"You want me to come?" Sara asked, pulling a few stray strands of curly hair behind her ear as she pushed her phone back into its belt-clasp case.
"No… you should at least get settled in first. Apparently your shipments haven't arrived yet, so if you're okay with it, you're welcome to stay at my place."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. You want to?"
Sara nodded, glad she wouldn't be sleeping on the floor of her new apartment without any furniture around yet. "Thanks, Evans. Are you sure about the scene though? I can grab my kit from my case real quick…"
"No no… I know you want to get started, but tonight… perhaps isn't the night…"
Sara sighed in defeat. "Alright, I get it… how long is your shift?"
"My shift ended three hours ago… they're a bit irregular right now. I'll be gone for two hours, maybe. Kira Johnson will take over… It's her shift anyway; swing."
"You think after we could maybe…" She looked back to the window, then at her feet, unable to meet Blaze's eyes as she spoke. "…go see Neil?"
Blaze smiled pityingly at her and nodded. It was one of the rare occasions she'd shown him a vulnerable side of herself. "Sure."
Catch me if I fall…
Nick, now certain that he couldn't concentrate on the television, had grabbed a light coat and gone out for a walk to clear his mind. The afternoon sky was slowly fading into darkness, and a light breeze swept his face with a caress so gentle it was akin only to Sara's touch… Everywhere he looked, he detected a trace of her. The nearby kid's park where he had frequently pushed her on the middle swing, the tetherball court where she'd accidentally smacked him in the face with the yellow ball… (he'd carried the bruise of honour for over a week.) …the little bit of green space they looked out on from the window, the hill they looked at the stars from; a rare thing in a city always polluted by neon light, but something they always shared…
40,000 stars in the evening…
Look at them fall from the sky…
40,000 reasons for living…
40,000 tears in your eye…
I would give my life to find it…
I would give it all…
Catch me if I fall…
Finally, he got tired of walking and decided to head back. Back at home, Nick was on their loveseat without even taking his coat off. He stared out their window, feeling more alone than he had in a long time. The loneliness was peaceful, sorrowful, but somehow comforting. He actually jumped when his cell phone rang in his pocket. The last thing he wanted was to talk to anyone, and he cursed himself for carrying the stupid thing around with him. Now that it had rung, he'd have to answer it. Annoyed, he checked the caller ID. Sophia Curtis…
What did she want?
Looking for something to learn…
30,000 thoughts have replaced it,
Never in my time to return…
A/N: Don't want to say much, because I know I'll give something away… I'm really bad about that. (laughs) I occasionally give hints in review replies... (sigh) :)
Again, penny for your thoughts! (Haha, Cat… (grins…) ) Even if you hated it, let me know. Feedback is always appreciated. Thanks for reading!
Until Next Time,
-Sahariah