A/N: Frankie and I are just as annoyed as everyone else about how long it's taking for Eric and Calleigh to get together, only unlike us stuck in TV land, she can do something about it. So she does. (PS, CSI still aren't mine, so please don't sue)
Frankie, in a desperate attempt to forget Horatio clad in only a towel, took Calleigh out drinking that evening for a general whinge about the uselessness of men in general. Calleigh looked only to ready for this discussion.
"Why doesn't he ask me out? Doesn't he like me?" Calleigh never whined, but a few glasses of wine did wonderful things, and made her loosen up significantly.
"Eric likes you, trust me, but he's scared."
"Of what!"
"I think he thinks you might shoot him." Both women giggled. "Seriously, Cal, he's worried you'll say no."
Calleigh sighed. "He's not the only one who's nervous, you know?"
"Hagen." It had taken Calleigh a while, but she had eventually opened up to Frankie about that particular event. Frankie was livid with the detective and, if he wasn't already dead, she would have killed him herself.
"And my dad." At Frankie's questioning glance, Calleigh sighed. "Eric isn't white. I went to my high school prom with a wonderful boy called Charlie, who was smart and kind and happened to be black. When Daddy found out, he was drunk and he…." Calleigh trailed off. "He did this." She slipped her top off her shoulder, exposing a thin white scar. "I've got a couple more on my back where he took his belt to me."
"Oh God, Cal, I'm so sorry." Frankie reached across and took her friend's hand. She studied the scar on her shoulder and suddenly went very still.
Calleigh looked at her curiously. "You look like Horatio does when he's just solved a case."
Frankie swallowed. This would need careful handling. Dear God, no wonder Horatio was serious. The amount of scars on his back suggested years of abuse. Why hadn't she seen this before? Sure, he guarded his feelings closely, but she was meant to be good at seeing through these things. His reactions whenever child abuse was involved in the case should have been a big enough hint. Remembering where she was, she gave herself a mental shake and refocused on Calleigh.
"Trust me, Calleigh, Eric likes you a lot. An awful lot. I'm amazed it's taken him this long. Just give him a hint that even a dumb man can't ignore. Trust me, he will get the hint. If I have to beat him over the head with a blunt instrument, he will get the hint!" Frankie was relieved to see Calleigh smile. "In fact, why don't we do something about this now?"
She grabbed her cell phone and rang Eric. "Hey, you. I need a favour. A friend of mine and I were out drinking, but I have somewhere else to be. An emergency has just come up," she continued, ignoring Calleigh's frantic signals to shut up. "Could you come and pick her up? I only ask because I think you two would be perfect together. All right, thanks babe. We're in O'Neill's. See you in fifteen minutes?"
"What emergency?" Calleigh asked.
"I can't say. It's confidential. But it is important; otherwise I wouldn't just abandon you." Eric was as good as his word and came in fifteen minutes later. He stopped short as he saw Calleigh, who went bright red. Frankie grinned at the pair of them. "See Eric, I told you my friend would be perfect for you! Now, why don't you two have a drink, and a nice little chat, and tell me all about it tomorrow! See you both later," she said, bending down to whisper in Eric's ear, "Don't waste this chance!" As she left, she looked back and noticed they were smiling awkwardly. Then Eric said something that made Calleigh giggle and Frankie knew it would all be all right. Unlike Horatio, who presented a much more difficult challenge.
