A/N: As always, thanks for your reviews!

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Disclaimer: I do not own any part of CSI or its characters. That honor goes to the good folks over at CBS.

Title: Warrick's Story

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"That leaves the two of us…" Warrick told Sara, looking over at her. "So who's it going to be..?"

"It's all you," Sara muttered, staring down at her hands. I really… don't want to go at all, she thought to herself. I really, really don't.

"Okay…" Warrick shrugged, glancing at the supportive gazes of his friends. "You all know about my… problem, right…?" No one answered him. "Well… my former problem, I guess…" he trailed off, staring into the flames of the fire. "Although… when something consumes your life for so long, I'm not so sure that it ever stops being a problem."

"What are you talking about, Warrick…?" Greg asked. Grissom shot the young CSI another warning look. "Sorry…" he mumbled.

"It's alright, Greggo," Warrick sighed, once again studying his hands. "I told you that my greatest fear is not being a good husband and father, right…? Well it goes beyond that," he said. "Because in order to be those things, you first have to be a good man… and I'm not…"

"Yes… you are…" Catherine told him. "You are one of the nicest men that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. You are very sweet, and sensitive, and intelligent, and articulate, and…"

"Uh, Catherine, those aren't necessarily the best manly traits…" Greg trailed off, trying to hold back a smirk.

"Can it, Greg," Catherine replied, frowning at him. "But Warrick, you have a lot going for you… you really, really do…" she tried again.

"Thank you, Cath," Warrick replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "But… I don't agree with you. My gambling problem…caused the death of Holly Gribbs, and… I can never forgive myself for that. If I hadn't…" he started to say, taking a deep breath, "If I hadn't left her alone at the crime scene, she never would have been killed…I should have… known better…" he finished, studying the ground in front of him.

"Yes, you should have," Grissom simply said, staring across the fire at Warrick. "And I am not going to tell you that you did not make a huge mistake… one that ended up costing Ms. Gribbs her life, because… that was probably the biggest mistake that you ever could have made, Warrick," he told him.

"Grissom!" Catherine sharply said, looking over at him.

"C'mon, Gris, lay off…" Nick added.

"What happened to listening without judging?" Greg asked, trying to hide his surprise at Grissom's words.

Sara just frowned, still looking at the fire. She had no clue what Warrick was even saying, because she was too preoccupied with the fact that she would have to share next.

Grissom held up a hand to quiet everyone down. "But what I will say, Warrick, is that you made a mistake. A mistake. The fact that you left Holly alone at a crime scene does not make you a bad man, and it does not indicate that you will make a bad husband, or even a bad father, when the time comes for that. What it means is that you had a lapse in judgment; a lapse that to my knowledge, has never reappeared."

"No, it hasn't, nor will it ever…" Warrick trailed off, looking around the fire at his friends. "I just… her death… it hit me hard, you know…?" he asked. "I mean, I know that it hit everyone hard, but… I was to blame for it. And then when you got kidnapped, Nicky," he added, turning to look at his friend, "I had visions of Holly again… except… it was your face that I was seeing. That damn internet connection," he muttered. "That damn button…"

"But… I lived, Warrick…" Nick quietly said, looking over at his friend. "And what happened wasn't your fault..."

"Maybe," Warrick shrugged. "But every time that I clicked that button, and saw your face on that screen, I felt… helpless to do anything to get you out of that mess. And then when you grabbed the gun, Nick, and I watched you load it, I… damn…" Warrick mumbled, putting his head in his hands, and taking a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves.

Greg stared at the ground, once again finding an interesting pebble to study, while Catherine studied her hands. Sara, once again, was lost in her own world.

"I'm… alive, Warrick…" Nick repeated.

"I know, but… when you pulled the trigger, and the light when off," Warrick continued, his voice catching in his throat, "I thought for sure that you were dead…I… felt so powerless to help you, Nicky, and…because I sat there and clicked the button time after time, I felt so… responsible. The more I clicked, the worse I felt. If I had just… insisted on taking the case in the first place, you wouldn't have had to go through all of that," he whispered, staring down at the ground again, so that no one could see the tears glistening in his eyes.

"Then it would have been you, 'Rick… it would have been one of us, no matter who took the case…" Nick quietly told him.

Warrick nodded. "But watching you, and knowing that it could have been me, reminded me of how I single-handedly killed Holly… which reminded me that I had, and I guess that I still have, a gambling problem, which… reminded me that I am not a good man. How… can I expect Tina to love me, when… I'm not good enough for her…?" he asked the group.

"I think the real question, Warrick, is how can you expect Tina to love you, when you don't even love yourself…?" Grissom asked him. Greg laughed. "What's so funny, Greg…?"

"I, uh… nothing," Greg muttered. You just sounded like Dr. Phil there for a moment. "Sorry…" he added.

"But I don't… know how to," Warrick finally said. "I am so angry with myself, for so many things, and I just… don't know how to forgive myself."

"You just have to, Warrick… before it eats you alive," Catherine told him.

"There are so many positive things about you, 'Rick. You just have to… try to see them…" Nick added, trying to be helpful.

Warrick gave a small chuckle. "Okay, I'll bite… like what…?"

"You're intelligent," Catherine pointed out.

"And you have a sense of humor… not as good as mine," Greg told him with a smile, "But a good one."

"You try to help the rest of us out, whenever possible…" Nick added.

Crap, what was the question? Sara thought to herself. "You, uh…" Positive traits about Warrick. "You are like the protective older brother that I never had…" she said, before lapsing back into silence. Shoot. I have a brother. Do they know that?

"And you are one of the best CSIs that I have ever met, Warrick, hands down…" Grissom told him. "You have come a long way in the past six years, and… I am proud to count you as a member of my team."

"…Really…?" Warrick asked.

"Absolutely," Grissom replied.

"And for the record," Greg said, "I'm glad that you're back on my team… I didn't like being separated from you, Nick, and Catherine… not that I didn't enjoy working with Grissom and Sara, but… we started off as a team, and… I was upset to be torn apart…"

Warrick nodded. "Well… thank you…" he trailed off.

"Warrick…?" Nick then asked.

"What?"

"Are you still gambling…?"

"No, Nick, I'm not. I have a family now, and… I needed to grow up."

"Good…" Nick told him.

"Because as I see it," Catherine jumped in, "You don't have to worry about being a good man. You already are. But one question…?"

"Shoot," Warrick told her with a small smile, looking up. "Are you and Tina having a baby…? Is that where all of this talk of being a good husband and father is stemming from…?"

Warrick simply nodded yes, grinning. Catherine and Nick exchanged glances, before smiling at one another. Greg looked absolutely stunned. "Kidding!" Warrick then said. "Just kidding!"

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TO BE CONTINUED 