DISCLAIMER:Don't own anything associated with the show… I just like playing with the characters in it.
RATING: T – Teen (language and adult issues)
PAIRINGS: GSR & Yo!Bling pre-established in previous fics of this timeline.
SPOILERS: Sequel to "Displacement" and "Transitions"
SUMMARY: Everything is changing around Nick Stokes. Can he deal with it, and how it will affect him in the end?
A/N: Here's one more quick one... I've got to get through a big chapter and maybe another before I post anymore chapters, so it may be a few days again... We'll just have to see what I can get through.
REVIEWS: Reviews are the way I know if people are enjoying the work or not. So, if you leave one, THANKS! And if not, I hope you found at least a little something to brighten your day, and thanks for taking the time to read.
Chapter 16
08:00 – 2006.12.08
Nick Stokes' Pickup
It had been a week long tournament of pain for Nick Stokes. He found out that even his friends considered him a sexist. But more importantly, he was learning that he was starting to believe it himself.
The part that was bothering him the most was that he could not think of anything he would change about the supposed problem. He truly believed he should always offer his protection to anyone around him, but especially women, because he simply could not see anything wrong with the way his parents had raised him. They always taught him to be polite, to respect his elders, to always do his best, to look out for his sisters (even though they were all older than him), that he should always be a proper Southern gentleman around women and girls, but above all else he was always supposed to help those less fortunate than himself. He just could not find any fault in the things he had been taught as a boy.
If his friends wanted to fault him for old fashioned values, then he resigned himself to that fact, because he had no intentions of going against his upbringing. However, finding out that people considered him a shallow man when it came to his romantic interests really shook him to the core.
As he drove home, he thought over the list of his various relationships since Stephanie's arrival in Las Vegas. The problem was he knew she had missed a few passing dates along the way. He found himself having trouble reconciling that part of his life to the things he had been taught by his parents. Stephanie and Sara were both right; he did date women that never had a hope of challenging him.
He often told himself that he was just checking out the field, because he was not yet ready for a serious relationship. Now, he wondered if it was really true, or if he was just trying to rationalize his own ridiculous behavior.
Nick never wanted to think he was such a superficial person, but the truth was he did date Barbie Dolls; gorgeous women with plastic personalities. When he pulled up in front of his condo he was ready for a sleepless day of contemplation. He just hoped he could get his head on straight before Grissom's little party Saturday night. Otherwise he knew he would be facing the third degree. He had just under thirty six hours to get his act together and put on a good face for the holiday party, or whatever it was Grissom had going on.
As he walked in the doorway, he quickly wrote himself a note and pasted it to the front door, reminding him to pick something up to take to the party; just like his mother had always told him. Never show up empty handed.