A/N: It has been over 13 years since I've written CSI fanfiction but I hope I have done our lovely characters justice. HUGE thank you to van22114 for all her help and encouragement. Enjoy and please review. I'd love to know what you thought and if I should post chapter 2 from Grissom's POV.

Life is like a Roller Coaster. It has its ups and downs and you can never be sure what's around the next corner. The only thing you know is that when you look back, you're going to think it was a great ride– Erin Vermillion

The click of the lock. The hiss of a brake. The screech of metal against metal. The racing of hearts and the shallowing of breaths; the unmistakable sounds of laughter and terror all roled into one. The sounds of a roller coaster.

Sara sat down and reached for Gil's hand. She had never been the roller coaster type. It wasn't as if she was scared of them; she just never really had any interest in them. She remembered all those years ago when Grissom had told her she needed a diversion. He told her that he had his roller coasters and she needed to find something for herself.

If she was honest, she was surprised by his comment back then. The buttoned up, straight laced (but sexy as hell) Dr. Gil Grissom rode roller coasters? The more she thought about it over the years the more it seemed to make sense to her that he would enjoy riding them. In their line of work there was so much unpredictability so much that was beyond their control. So often their adrenaline was pumping for an all too unpleasant reason.

On a roller coaster you gave yourself over to the machine, the adrenaline rushes and stomach drops were a release. Grissom had chosen to experience the highs and lows of the roller coaster rides, their cases chose him whether he wanted them or not.

As they had made their way over to the Mosaic Casino, she'd thought about their life together. All the highs and lows. All the unpredictable twists, turns,drops and loops. It seemed like just when the ride was leveling out a heart stopping drop waited just around the corner.

Over the years their deepening friendship turned into an even deeper love. Life was never simple or easy for them but she wouldn't change a thing. The greatest love stories are born from the deepest struggles. It seemed that one or both of them was always wrestling with something. Some misplaced guilt or a deep seeded trauma. In the end though, the roller coaster of Sara Sidle's life was an amazing experience full of wonderful people, amazing experiences and the greatest love story ever told.

She remembered the last case they worked on before she left her life as a CSI for good, (well until they needed to help Hodges). She remembered as they stood waiting for the bees they'd sent out to return and as she waited she tried not to remember the last time they worked with bees; when he'd proposed in the most Grissom-like way possible. She tried not to think how much she still loved him and always would. She tried not to think about how there would never be anyone else for as long as she lived.

Later when they were standing face to face with their suspect Dalton Betton (in effort to calm him down),Gil told a story about a Whale that sang his mating song,

"There's a great mammal in the ocean known as the 52-hertz whale. All year he practices his love song for the female. Travels thousands of miles to find her, but when he finally gets the chance to serenade her, she doesn't give him a call back. Why? His love ballad is sung at 52-hertz a sonic signature one note higher than the sound of a tuba. The average female hears at 10-15 hertz so she never hears his song…"

She remembered standing listening to his story, willing her face to not betray her, as a host of emotions coursed through her. She felt his telling of that story was more than just to calm down a suspect but she couldn't let herself go down that road again. If he still loved her had to be explicit, something she knew was difficult for him, but a necessity for her to hear.

Later he'd congratulated her on her promotion and she told him how ironic it was that she was the one who always wanted to leave Vegas and he was the one who thought he'd never leave. Afterwards he stood there awkwardly as he said, "So…" She stopped him right then and there, telling him she hoped he found what he was looking for. She couldn't handle the so's and the what if's aymore. There was no more room for shades of grey for Sara Sidle. When it came to the great Dr. Gilbert Grissom, things were very black and white, he made that clear when he'd filed for divorce.

Then Lindsay had come to her with the tape of Lady Heather's last interview. She had no intention of watching but there was a look on Lindsay's face and something in her voice when she talked about the last part. Her curiosity was piqued, so she decided to watch.

"Before I get back on my boat I wanted to thank you. When we first met I had a shell around my heart. I'd lost my belief in humanity. The only truth I knew was empirical science. I just wanted to thank you for opening my heart. Through you I learned to love someone… Sara?… She restores my faith in humanity. Plus she helped me with my crossword puzzles. She's been my best friend, I'll miss her for the rest of my life."

He did it. There in black and white he'd confessed his love for and his regret for losing his best friend. Maybe him telling Heather was even more telling than if he'd told her right to her own face. Sara had spent years being jealous of this woman when there was no need. Gil Grissom had only ever loved one woman, Sara Sidle. She knew then what she had to do. Sara Sidle had worked hard in life and it showed in her professional accomplishments, but the one thing she'd never been more proud of was that she'd gotten a chance to love Gilbert Grissom and she couldn't pass up an opportunity to get another chance at doing that. Growing up in a loveless household full of nothing but noise and violence she never thought she'd have a chance to truly be loved. That all changed they day she walked into his seminar about a double murder in a garage. Who would've thought a seminar on a topic such as that would give birth to one of the world's greatest love stories.

When she'd met him on the dock in San Diego she could see the surprise on his face. More importantly she could see the love shining in his eyes. That night as she lay contendly wrapped in his embrace they'd talked for hours. He'd asked what had changed and she told him she watched the tape of the interview.

"You know when I first met Lady Heather she told me that my biggest fear was of people getting to know who I really was, so I kept people out. She was only half right. While it was true I kept most people at an arm's length, there was only one person I was afraid of revealing myself to and that was you. My God Sara even back then you terrified me. I was so afraid that if you really got to know me you wouldn't like what you saw. You were a young, beautifully brilliant scientist and I was a socially awkward nerd who spent the better part of my life hiding in my protective shell oblivious to so much of the world around me. You could've had any man you wanted and I was baffled as to why you'd chosen me. Like coming across a crossword clue and knowing the answer but hesitating to write it down because you can't believe that's it even though it fits perfectly in the puzzle."

Sara knew that even after all this time he still didn't see what she saw when she looked at him. When he'd finally opened up to her all those years ago. When he'd finally shown her his whole self, she hadn't been repulsed. On the contrary she'd fallen even more in love with him.

"Well I guess you could say I was bitten by a bug at that seminar of yours. The love bug," she'd waggled her eyebrows as she said it and he laughed a deep throaty laugh that she'd missed so much. The joke had been corney she knew, but she also knew he'd laugh and it felt good to hear his laughter again.

Now all these years later as they walked up to the Mosaic, hand in hand, she turned to him and said, "Are you ready for the ride of your life?" Her eyes sparkling.

He'd squeezed her hand as he'd replied, "Life is like a Roller Coaster. It has its ups and downs and you can never be sure what's around the next corner. The only thing you know is that when you look back, you're going to think it was a great ride… A life spent loving you has been the greatest ride of my life. One I'd gladly spend an eternity standing in line for."

She'd blushed as they'd made their way to the elevator. Even after all these years he still had the power to do that. She knew that no matter what the future held, no matter where the wind blew them, they had each other and that was all that mattered.