Author's Notes: Thank you to everyone who's been reading and reviewing. Reviews tend to make me go a little easier on the characters. No cliffhanger this time, I trust you'll still hit that little button to tell me what you thought. Lol. My writing thrives off of your reviews.

This is probably the last chapter I'll have out before I leave next week to go on vacation, but I'm going to try my hardest for another one this weekend. No promises. Reviews do help the process along. But regardless, I'm enjoying this story right now, so I'll try to get an update before I go. If I don't, I'll be back in town on July 11th, and I'll try to get something done that week. I will have two full days of plane trips ahead of me, so I may bring my laptop and try to get something accomplished on one of those flights, assuming my daughters allow it.

Hope you enjoy it!

Jenny

Chapter Five:

Greg fumbled with his apartment keys as he reached the top of the steps, stifling a groan when he noticed the lights were still on. Angelle was going to pitch a fit when she found out he was going back to the hospital to sit with Sara, and he had been hoping beyond all hope that his feisty roommate was already sleeping. He had never been that lucky.

As he slid his key into the lock, he could hear her pain-inducing singing voice filtering through the walls, and he cringed slightly. He was exhausted, this was the last place he wanted to be, and when the woman sang, it sounded like a thousand cats screeching to be freed.

I don't like golf, I don't like swimming...I just like chasing, them big butt women...We gonna do that butt thing...

Greg shook his head as the lock slid open. She couldn't even pick a good song to warble out, she had to pick some backwoods song from back home. He suddenly found himself unable to tell what was worse, her singing of the lyrics of the song she had chosen.

He pushed the door open, making a beeline for the bedroom while ignoring Angelle's presence all together. With any luck, he'd be in and out before she even noticed he was home. All he needed was a few changes of clothes, and the essentials from his bathroom. He could only assume that with the injured arm and high dosage of pain medication she was bound to receive, Sara may need a bit of help getting back on her feet once released. He had always been there for her now, and as troubled as their relationship had been, he couldn't let her down now.

He couldn't explain the surge of emotions he had experienced since he had walked in to find Sara being held at gunpoint. He had spent so much time convincing himself that he resented Sara, that he had no romantic feelings for her whatsoever. Seeing her so vulnerable, so easily expendable, had opened his eyes to realize that he had been completely wrong. He may not love her as he used to, but something besides anger resided in his heart. He wasn't sure what it was, but he knew he had to be by her side at a time like this.

He had stayed at the hospital long enough to get an update on her condition, the bullet had shattered against her humerus bone, fracturing the bone while fragments of the bullet embedded deep in the tissue. After assessing her damages in the trauma room, they had taken her back for immediate surgery.

Doing quick math in his head, he decided he had just enough time to rush home, get some clothes, and make it back before they were finished. He just hoped Angelle didn't delay his return. He had just zipped up his bag when she appeared in the doorway, her face wrought with concern, "Pigeon? Why are you packing?"

"There was a shooting at a crime scene tonight," Greg replied distractedly, slipping his wallet back into his pocket while he grabbed his keys, "I'm in kind of a hurry?"

"Are you skipping town? Have you done something wrong?" Angelle asked, her eyes lighting up with excitement, "Can I come too?"

Greg shook his head impatiently, "No, no. It's nothing like that, I just need to head down to the hospital to help out. I'll be back."

"It was Sara, wasn't it?" Angelle asked softly, reaching out to touch Greg's arm, "I don't know why you keep doing this to yourself. The two of you are in the past, you need to move towards the future, sugar."

Greg shrugged off her hand, slinging his bag over his shoulder, "She's my friend, she needs some help. I need to get back quickly, I don't have time for this."

"I can't let you go back there just to get your heart trampled on again! I care about you too much to let you do that to yourself!" Angelle insisted, blocking the dooway, "Besides, I need you here with me."

Greg pushed past her, growling with frustration when she followed him into the hallway, "What is your problem, Angie! Sara is one of my closest friends, I need to be there with her. Whatever you need can't possibly be that important right now!"

Before she could argue for him to stay, he had stormed out the front door, slamming it roughly behind him. He wasn't in the mood to play one of her games, to listen to her tell him how awful his colleagues were, how he could only trust her. There were more important things going on, and it wouldn't be fair to Sara for her to wake up in a hospital room, alone.

She had been so selfless at the crime scene, begging him to sacrifice her to save himself. Thinking about he and Angelle and their child before her own life. He froze at the bottom of the stairs, his eyes widening. Their child. Tossing his bag to the ground, he raced back up the stairs. Before he could go back to Sara, there was something he had to clear up.

He opened the front door with a slam, barging into the living room with a cold look on his face, "We need to talk."

"You came home!" Angelle exclaimed, obviously relieved that he was back, "I knew you'd see it my way. Sara's only out to hurt you, I wouldn't be surprised if she arranged--"

"Are you pregnant?" Greg demanded, staring into Angelle's eyes, "Are you?"

Angelle fell silent, the lie caught in her throat. She wanted to tell him that she was, she wanted to go ahead with the plan, but she couldn't bring herself to form the words. His face was set in tension, his eyes tired and weary. She diverted her eyes to the floor before replying, "I--"

"Save it. I'm gone." Greg replied tiredly, shaking his head furiously. Her hesitation was all he needed to prove she was lying. He walked back to the door, pausing with his hand on the doorknob, "I'll be back later for my things. I'll call first, I'd appreciate it if you weren't here."

He slammed the door shut behind him, leaving Angelle alone to succumb to her tears.

--

Greg made it back to the hospital in record time, dashing to the nurses station to get word on Sara's condition, relieved to find she now resting comfortably in her own room. Getting the room number from the nurse, he moved towards the elevators, taking a deep breath and slowly releasing it. So much had happened in the last few hours, he was finding it extremely overwhelming.

As the elevator slowly made it's way to Sara's floor, the relief he had felt was now being suppressed by anxiety as he realized he had no clue what he was going to say to her. He had been thinking on autopilot the entire time, only knowing that he belonged by her side, he hadn't taken the time yet to decide how to make that happen. What if he got there and she was less than interested in him? If she kicked him to the curb, where would he go? He had just implied to Angelle that he was moving out, he had no family in town, no friends left to go to. Sara was his only option.

The dull ache that had resided in his head for the last few hours soared rapidly into a persistent jabbing as he stepped off the elevator, staring at the sign on the wall. He could do this, he could put one foot in front of the other and make his way to her door. He could push it open and ask her to talk. He could sit down and take her hand in his, apologize for the way he left, for calling her a liar, for always assuming the worst.

Or could he?

His mind raced with the possibilities of her reaction. She could be relieved that he finally came to his senses, happy to have his company. Or she could be angry and resentful, hurt by his accusations, scarred by his irresponsibility over the last year. She could tell him that she was in love with Nick, or that she wasn't in the mood for any sort of relationship. She could tell him that she hated him so much that she didn't even want to be his friend. The possibilities were endless.

"You have to try, you can do this." he whispered to himself, "You owe it to her."

"Talking to yourself now?" A familiar voice spoke up from behind him, "She's asked about you, you know. She's worried that you were hurt."

Greg spun around to come face to face with Catherine, who wore an expression of deep concern, "You look like death warmed over."

"Thanks." Greg replied dryly, "She's awake?"

Catherine nodded with a smile, "Already terrorizing the nursing staff, demanding to be released. I think she's too high on pain meds to know what a brat she's being, but let's just say that she's lucky she has this nice nursing staff at her beck and call, and not me, because we'd be fighting."

"She always did make a difficult patient." Greg remarked with a smirk, "How is she?"

Catherine smiled warmly, leading him down the corridor towards Sara's room, "They don't think she'll have any lasting damage to her arm, they've removed the bullet fragments that showed up on x-ray, they've had to put pins in her arm to get the bones stabilized. She's heavily medicated, sort of groggy, but she'll be okay."

"Permanent damage?" Greg asked worriedly, glancing towards the wooden door that would reveal him to Sara. He bit his lip nervously, his heart pounding wildly. He had never been this nervous around Sara, but tonight it just felt different.

Catherine shrugged lightly, pushing down the door handle, "We'll have to wait and see, but her doctor's pretty optimistic. Warrick's in with her now, but we need to get back to work, so we'll leave you two alone."

"Grissom didn't show up?" Greg asked curiously, "I thought for sure--"

"He's been here, but he had to get down to the crime scene you two were working on...he didn't trust anyone else to process." Catherine replied, "Nicky hasn't stopped by...I'm not sure if he will or not."

Greg shrugged slightly, "I'm sure he will. Even if they're not getting along, we're all a family."

"That's right." Catherine agreed, walking ahead of Greg into the room, "Hey Sara, look who I found in the hallway."

"Greg." Sara breathed heavily, her face mixed with elation and apprehension, "You came."

"Where else would I be?"

TBC