Disclaimer: Same old story, different day. You know the drill. I dont' feel like being sued, so please don't. XD
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Sara's POV
I wake up again, but this time is different. I'm not alone, and it makes me feel a little better just knowing that someone else is in the room. Blinking a few times, I realize that it's daylight; the sun is streaming into my room. And then, I realize that there's a hand in mine. It's Grissom's, of course. Who else could it be?
He's asleep still, his head resting on the edge of my hospital bed. I gently disentangle our hands, slowly, and lift my now freed hand to run my fingers through his thick salt and pepper hair. I love his hair. There's something about premature graying that just makes me tingle.
"Sara?" His voice is quiet, and gently, riddled with sleep. I smile to myself and take his hand in mine again. Giving it a gentle squeeze, I peer into his eyes.
"Hey there. Sorry to wake you," I say, but he shakes his head.
"You didn't. I was ready to wake up anyways. How are you feeling?"
His voice is quiet, reserved. I know that he's worried about me, so I give him a small smile.
"I feel a lot better than I did last night. Which isn't too hard, considering…" I let my voice trail off again, leaving him to understand what I'm talking about. I guess he gets it, seeing as how his eye brows raise and then fall.
"Sara, about that-"
"I don't want to talk about it. Just leave it alone." My voice is sharp, and he winces at the severity in my tone. I feel guilty, but I don't want him to bring up the subject. Not just yet. Stretching, I groan when my back pops.
"Where's the rest of the team?" I ask, but too late I realize that that's a stupid question. They're probably at home, sleeping and-
"Right here," I hear from the doorway. Looking up in shock, I see Catherine, Warrick, Nick, and Greg, all smiling and each of them holding what appears to be a gift bag. Catherine has an extra bag, and balloons as well. I love balloons. They file in, and one by one, they set their bags on the bed by me. Greg looks ready to pop when I pick up the first bag with my good hand.
"That's mine," he blurts excitedly, and I can't help but smile. Reaching into dark blue bag, I pull out a CD, and when I look at it, I'm shocked to see that it's Queen, singing Bohemian Rhapsody. I also know that it's Greg's favorite group. Looking up, I smile at him.
"Thanks Greggo," I say, using his nickname, which makes him blush. He shrugs nonchalantly and grins.
"You're welcome. I know how much you hate the music I listen to, so I thought that, while you're on leave, you could become acclimated to my song styles."
Everyone in the group laughs, and I move on to the next bag. Nick looks excited this time, so I know it's his bag that I'm opening. Pulling my hand out, I smile when I see Nick's gift. It's a Texas belt buckle and a leather belt with my name stamped on it. Looking up, I grin.
"Aw, Nicky, you shouldn't have!"
He leans down and kisses my forehead.
"This way, you'll always have a little bit of Texas charm with you where ever you go."
I move onto the next bag, and Catherine speaks up.
"Now, I didn't get you anything fancy, but-"
I withdraw two tickets to dinner for two at the Belagio, and my jaw drops. I gape at Catherine for a moment before I realize what I'm doing. Snapping my mouth shut, I thank her profusely. But she just brushes it off and hands me the next bag, which is Warrick's. I can tell by the look on his face. I reach in and pull out an MP3 player. By the looks of it, it wasn't cheap.
"Warrick, you shouldn't have!" I exclaim, but Warrick holds up a hand.
"I know that you're going to be taking some time off to recover, so I figured you could listen to this while you're recovering," he explains, and I know I'm blushing. Warrick gives me a quick and gentle hug, and then it's time for the last bag. It's either from Brass or Grissom, but the way Grissom is looking lets me know who it's from. I reach in and feel something small and velvety, and retracting my hand, I realize that I'm looking at a small, red, jeweler's box. My heart catches in my throat, and it's suddenly become hard to breath.
"Griss...what..." I manage to sya, and he just squeezes my arm.
"Just open it," he whispers, and so I comply, flipping the lid up. And immediately,tears begin to form in my eyes. It's a diamond crusted heart, with a ruby set in the exact middle. The chain and heart are white gold, and simply beautiful. I look up at him and Grissom staring in anticipation. I smile weakly, still taken aback at the magnitude of the gift.
"I can't take this," I say, but he shakes his head nad then gently kisses my hand.
"I love you more than life itself. I would do anything just for you. And this will be a way to keep my heart close to you at all times."
I wipe my eyes, which are overloaded with tears, and then reach up and pull him down to kiss him. I don't even mind that the whole team is watching. This is one moment in my life where I'm just going to go with the flow. A knock at the door brings Grissom and I apart, and when I look up, I freeze. It's Sofia Curtis, that detective that I don't like and never have. She tried to steal Grissom from me, and that puts her on my 'blacklist.'
"Hey there, Sara. How are you feeling?"
I stiffen, and I think Grissom notices because he tightens his grip on my hand. The rest of the team looks at me, then at Sofia, and finally at my Grissom, who nods. The group leaves, after a round of hugs and kisses,and then just the three of us remain. Sofia smiles bleakly and shakes her head.
"Sorry to come around at a time like this, but I just wanted to let you know the good news. We caught the bastard who did this to you. William Martin is in police custody, so you don't have to worry any more."
That's great news. I'm about to say so when Grissom speaks up.
"Thanks Sofia. But Sara and I need some time alone."
"Sure thing," the blonde says, and exits the room. Grissom looks back at me and I notice his 'I'm being deathly serious now' look, so I give him my full attention.
"Sara, we have to talk. There's no way around it; what you suffered through can't be stored away in the back of your brain and never spoken about. Please, let me in and talk to me."
I knew he'd bring up that. But I suppose he's right. I can't hide from what happened forever. I clear my throat and begin to speak.
"I don't remember much. Right after he tied me up in the woods, he kicked me in the ribs. That knocked me out, but I do remember waking up to an incredible pain. I couldn't figure out what it was, but now I know. It was him in me, tearing me apart."
Grissom is silent, and I know I've shocked him. But he pushed me to talk, and so I did. What'd he expect, butterflies and sunshine?
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