San Francisco.
Nurse Polly walked from one bed to another, writing down times and notes on her clipboard. She checked her watch as she took pulses and talked softly to the young babes lying in various stages of awake or sleep. She spotted Grissom and Sara and smiled. "How can I help you?"
"We're here for Anthony Jack Blackwell." Grissom answered quietly, glancing around the room. There were so many large and small bassinets.
"Ah yes. I was informed by the police that someone would be coming to collect him. I'll need to check some identification and you'll need to sign some forms." She lead them towards the nurses station. She leaned over the top and grabbed a fairly thick folder from behind a stack of pink and blue filing cabernet folders.
Sara looked from one bed to another, searching out one with a family name on the wall above them. "Do you think we could see him?"
Nurse Polly smiled. "Of course. Why don't we take some chairs over to young Blackwell and sign the forms there. He's been sleeping for the last hour, but I'm betting he's awake now."
Bumping into Grissom as they all turned, Sara's hand found his and her fingers weaved with his as they followed the nurse. They each grabbed a visitors chair from the corridor they were walking down. Apparently Anthony was being kept in a different ward.
"Were there any injuries?" Grissom asked.
"None. He is completely healthy."
"Is he ok to be taken home today?" Sara asked softly.
Nurse Polly nodded. "If you check out, I'll arrange for you to take him into your care."
"Thank you." They both said with small smiles.
"Your first?" Nurse Polly asked.
"Yes." Both answered, grinning slightly at each other.
At the end of the corridor, the walls opened up onto another large ward. More parents and babies were up and about with chatter and laughter. Some music was being played from someplace in the room, casting a gentle and calm atmosphere. Close to the middle of the room they were stopped and Nurse Polly planted her chair down at the end of a blue tinted bassinet.
Sara set her chair down and then stepped up to the small bed. Her hands came up to rest on the edge and her fingers dipped in to lightly touch the blanket. Deep blue eyes shone up at her. She gave the baby a watery smile. "Hey Anthony. I'm your Aunt Sara."
"You can hold him." Nurse Polly smiled, sitting down and pulling out her pen.
Grissom rubbed Sara's back gently as she reached in to lift the baby into her arms. "A lot smaller than I thought." He said to her.
"They come in all shapes and sizes." She whispered. "He'll grow quickly though."
"Baseball." Grissom whispered back conspiratorially. Many months ago they had both been curled up on the couch watching the television, just talking about anything and nothing, enjoying the quiet. A baby commercial had come on and they started talking casually about what they were like as kids and what sports they were into.
Sara wasn't really a sport fan, but she still liked to watch Baseball with him because it reminded her of that time in the ice rink. So long ago now. Mixing sport talk with baby talk had gotten them thinking about what sports they would like their child interested in. Hockey, Soccer and Baseball were all on the table. Grissom wanted Baseball most of all.
"We'll see. He might get my brothers broad shoulders and decide Football." Sara smiled at his fake shudder. She turned and pressed herself with the baby between them, against his chest. "I gotta say, this seems like the easier option than the whole birth a baby thing."
Grissom grinned. "Not as much fun though."
She winked at him. "Not in front of the baby, Griss."
Sobering at Nurse Polly's throat clearing interruption, they both went red at the ears. "Let's sign these and I'll leave you to it."
Las Vegas.
Several Weeks Later.
Reaching around the stereo, he pushed the button.
"What the-?" Sara spluttered the second the music vanished and the silence filled the room.
"Sara?"
"Turn it back on. Turn it back on, before-" A small light whimper was soon followed by a loud high pitched wail, which tore through the air. "-he wakes up." She finished tiredly, getting up from her crashed out position on the chair.
"Sara, what's going on?"
Walking across the room, she answered him. "I'm generating a headache. Going out of my mind. Exhausted and hungry. And I have so, so much work to do."
It was almost incoherent and garbled, but he heard. "Well, why are you in here?"
"Gil," She paused to yawn. "I would love to be in bed right now, but the AC in there isn't working again. And you weren't available to fix it. I would have taken a shot, if it wasn't for not being able to step out of the room before a cry tore through my ear drums."
He swallowed. "Okay."
"God, if my brother was still alive, I'd castrate him and then kill him, slowly." She grumbled with conviction as she made her way back towards the chair with the baby crying for his bottle.
"I guess you're not available tonight then?"
"Oh god." She crumbled and sat down. "Dinner."
"Dinner. Dancing. Dessert." He sighed.
"Dessert." She dreamily looked up. "Chocolate cake with cream. Hmm, yum."
He smirked. "Ok. That settles it then. A night in."
Sara sighed, her smile vanishing. "I am really sorry."
"It's ok, honey." He assured her as he picked up a readymade formula bottle from the counter and sat down.
Las Vegas.
Several More Weeks Later.
He stopped to tug gently on the tiny pinkie finger. "-6, 7, 8, 9, and 10." He smiled. "AJ has ten little fingers. And ten little toes."
Finger and thumb guided the little hand by the wrist, up. "High five." He tapped AJ's curled up fist on his larger palm before bringing it down and the fist unfurled. "Baby five." He chuckled, tapping two fingers into AJ's small hand.
The house phone rang, making AJ startle, but he was instantly distracted by the stuffed animal being pushed into his side, into his reach.
"Grissom." Turning back to watch the baby, he listened to Jim Brass giving him details on a new case. "I'll be in later Jim. I can't leave right now. Because? I'm looking after a baby, that's 'because'. Call Catherine."
Kneeling on the mat, he gently rubbed the baby's tummy in smooth slow motions. "Hey, what's wrong?"
AJ's chin quivered and his eyes were wide.
Smiling down at the boy, he lightly brushed his fingertip over the small soft chin, tracing the birthmarks that still showed on the pale skin. "Sara will be home soon and she can make a better fuss of you than I can." He promised.
Kicking his legs, AJ began to whimper.
Gently pushing his large hands under the baby, he lifted him up to lay him against his shoulder. Soothingly rubbing his back, Grissom stood and started to walk slowly around the room.
AJ still whimpered and began to wiggle. He raised his head for short durations before bringing it down on the big shoulder.
"You can't be hungry, Sara only fed you 45 minutes ago. She changed you too, so… wind?" He angled his head down to see the brown hair on AJ's head. Lightly patting his back, he smiled when a small burp was released. "There ya go."
When his whimpers continued, Grissom continued to wander and rub at his back, eliciting more burps and less wiggling as AJ began to settle and soon all he could feel was fast breathing and stillness.
AJ's legs were almost curled up against Grissom's chest and his fists were pulled up to his face. And Sara had no choice but to capture the moment. There was plenty of light in the room, so the flash wasn't needed.
Walking slowly across the spacious room, she slipped her arms around the swaying waist of the man cradling her nephew. "Hey." She whispered into his ear, pressing a kiss to the lobe, her eyes closing as she breathed in the now familiar smell of baby, baby powder and Grissom.
"I heard you come in." He smiled, turning his head towards her, but not too far to disturb AJ's small head.
"Hmm, I got supplies." She hummed, swaying with her man, her eyes still closed as she enjoyed the moment of just pure contentment.
Las Vegas.
Few Months Later.
Snapping buttons up the front of AJ's sleeper, Sara spoke softly about what was on her mind. AJ didn't understand the conversation going on, he just felt safe and warm in the care of the two new people in his life.
He could clearly feel the love between them and how they cared deeply for him. His needs were met and his life was full of toys, fresh diapers, milk and a pseudo-mom. What else could a baby need?
"The DA called the lab. They want us to be present in the court room." Sara said almost to herself.
"That leaves just one problem." Grissom smiled down at the paper he was reading. "We need to find a babysitter."
Sara sighed as she picked up the baby and cradled him to her chest, her left hand brushing down his brown hair. "I think I can leave him with a stranger, Gil."
"Don't have to." He stood from the chair and walked into the kitchen. "We're know loads of people who can baby-sit, Sara. We can call Greg."
Gently rocking AJ in her arms, Sara smiled at the warm bottle of formula that was handed to her. "Thanks." She kissed his cheek before settling onto the couch to feed the baby his evening feed before putting him down for the night.
"Whose standing for sentencing?" He asked, sitting beside her.
"Richard."
Setting the paper on the coffee table, Grissom slipped his arm around her shoulders and hugged her against him. His free arm stretched out to gently stroke the thickening brown curls of AJ's hair. "Shouldn't be too long now before the rest are sentenced."
"We keep saying that." She smiled sadly.
Pressing a kiss to her temple, Grissom sighed. "We have him. He's save. No one else can hurt him. Your brother would be proud."
"He's what started all this." She said angrily, though she tried to calm herself. "If he hadn't been so selfish in the first place, AJ wouldn't have been put through any of that in the first place. We wouldn't have been either. He had to go swaning off to prove something with whatever he was doing. Some stupid secret. Stupid idiot."
Grissom nodded. "It's all over now."
"Thank God." She murmured, kissing AJ's soft cheek. "Come on." She smiled at Grissom. "You can put him down while I grab a shower."
Taking the baby, who wasn't as light now as when they had collected him from hospital, Grissom reached out his hand for Sara and pulled her up. "I won't be a minute." He walked to the spare room, which was now the nursery. He had just pulled AJ's blanket up to his chest when he heard the water running.
"Such little things bring joy." He smiled at the soft sigh that escaped, unsure if it was his or AJ's. Rubbing his fingers over the pale green sleeper suit, Grissom's smile widened at the Chicago Cubs baseball jersey on the small soft toy that sat at the bottom of the crib. Adjusting the blanket needlessly, he decided that tomorrow was a new day and before then, before more dirty diapers and feedings and crying, there was a nice quiet night ahead of him with a beautiful woman.
"Gil," Sara called from the bedroom.
"Coming." He sighed wistfully. "Good night Anthony Jack. Sweet dreams."
The End.
This wasn't how I wanted to write the story, but I suppose it'll do. I'm afraid so much starts to happen if you leave a chapter for too long. Real life gets in the way and mine did big time. I'm not impressed with this story, but I'm not going to change it. Thank you for sticking with me and for your kind reviews.
