A tremendous thanks to everybody who has read and/or reviewed this. You guys are all awesome, and your kind words have been very much appreciated! Thanks so much. I hope you all enjoy the ending. :)

Snapshot Six
Full Circle
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Time flies.

To Eric Delko, it felt like just yesterday that he and Calleigh had shared their first kiss. It felt like just yesterday that he was anxiously standing at the altar, watching his beautiful bride as she walked toward him. It seemed like only yesterday that Calleigh had told him he was going to be a father.

It seemed like only yesterday that they were walking their daughter down the never-ending hallway for her first day of kindergarten.

Emma had been excited. But her excitement had quickly become embarrassment, and that had eventually become annoyance. She wanted to play with the other kids. All the other parents were leaving, so why were hers still there?

Eric and Calleigh just didn't want to let go.

Calleigh at least found solace in knowing that it was only seven hours. Thirty-five hours a week, which would probably pass quickly for her while she was at work. And then they'd still always have the weekends with Emma. Sure, letting her out of her sight for that long wasn't something she had looked forward to, but it was school. It was necessary. And it wasn't like Calleigh was turning her five year old daughter loose in the mall all day. It wasn't like they were sending her halfway around the world or anything.

But Eric didn't quite see it that way.

Through and through, Emma was Daddy's little girl. On that first day, all Eric wanted to do was smuggle her out of that classroom and take her to her favorite ice cream place and let her spoil her supper.

It all seemed like it'd happened yesterday.

And now, here he was, in a crowded and stuffy gym, wearing a scratchy suit. Sitting on the bleachers beside him, her trusty camera in hand, was his beautiful wife. For as much as Calleigh used that camera, not once did it ever seem to let her down. It was faithful, always seeming to capture the moment perfectly, and though it was obviously starting to show its age, Calleigh just didn't want to part with it.

Nor did she want to put it down, it seemed. The ceremony hadn't even begun, and already Eric was amazed that she had any film left at all.

With a smirk, he leaned closer to her, whispering teasingly in her ear. "You don't have to take pictures of the balloons, you know."

Calleigh gave him a petulant look. "Yes, I do. What if we want to make a scrapbook or something later?" She shrugged, a bittersweet smile touching her lips. "Besides. This is a one time thing. Emma won't have another one, and I want to remember all of it."

Eric took another look around the gym, feeling a jolt as Calleigh's words sunk into him. She was right. This was a one-time deal. Eric's heart began to pound in his chest - he wasn't ready for this.

Balloons filled the ceiling, turning the drab white into a blue and gold cloud above. Bright lights filled the gym as well, the heat radiating from them adding to the already stuffy air. A makeshift stage had been wheeled into the gym, taking up a great amount of floor space. A podium was set atop that, the principal standing behind it. And just in front of the stage were three rows of chairs, filled with fidgeting children, all wearing identical blue gowns.

Overnight, the gym had been transformed. No more did it look ready for a game of basketball. Instead, it was now filled with all the familiar icons of graduation.

Kindergarten graduation, Eric reminded himself sternly. Only kindergarten graduation. It's still twelve years until she really graduates and goes out into the world as an adult…

Eric did not want to think about that. Ever.

Besides, thinking that far into the future meant he would have to worry about other things as well, like teaching Emma how to drive, fielding phone calls from undeserving boys, and the most frightening prospect of all, prom.

When compared to all that, letting Emma graduate from kindergarten was quite all right with Eric. Just as long as she didn't grow up too quickly.

Craning his neck, Eric scanned the rows of chairs, looking for that telltale blonde hair. His eyes alighted on it almost immediately. Emma was sitting a little past the middle of the front row, and Eric's heart stopped for a second - his daughter was talking very animatedly to the child next to her, a boy.

He didn't get a chance to voice his concerns to Calleigh, as at that moment, the ceremony began. A few words were spoken by the principal, as well as by a few other staff members. Just when it seemed the restless kindergarteners couldn't sit still any longer, the principal returned to the podium, ready to read off the names.

Eric would never forget the immense pride that welled up inside him as his daughter's name was called. With a giant smile, he watched her ascend the stairs and cross the stage, accepting her report card and a certificate from her teacher. She turned to the audience with a huge smile upon her lips, allowing Calleigh to get what she knew would turn out to be three perfect photographs.

It seemed as soon as the moment had begun, it was already over. Emma turned and made her way off the opposite side of the stage, allowing the boy she'd been talking to earlier to have his moment.

From his left came a sound that only barely reached Eric's ears. It was muffled, and not something he was used to hearing, but it was, irrevocably, a sniffle. He felt his heart break as he turned his head, seeing Calleigh with her head bowed, dabbing lightly at her eyes. Her camera for the moment lay forgotten on the ground, next to her purse.

She felt his eyes on her, and she gave a nervous chuckle. "Sorry," she mumbled, tucking her hair behind her ears.

Eric could tell she was barely hanging on. He understood all too well - this was their little girl, and this was by far the hardest part of her growing up that they'd been through. Taking her to daycare the very first time had been difficult, as had taking her to preschool for the first time. Letting her start kindergarten had been even harder, but they'd gotten through that alright. Through it all, Eric had been the one who hadn't wanted to let go. He'd been the one that wanted to quit CSI so he could homeschool Emma. He'd been the one who'd wanted to go to school with her. He'd been the one who'd wanted to never let her out of his sight.

Through it all, it seemed Calleigh had been the strong one. Calleigh had been the logical one, rather than the emotional one. And now, while the roles hadn't exactly reversed (Eric was still plenty emotional himself), it seemed Calleigh was the one who wanted to turn back time.

For a moment, his mind flashed back to that morning. He'd stood in the doorway, watching as Emma donned her deep blue gown. He'd smiled as Calleigh brushed the tangles out of Emma's long blonde hair; his heart had swelled as Emma carefully placed the matching blue cap atop her head.

Eric had smiled; he'd been overjoyed. So had Calleigh.

But her smile had been bittersweet, for it was punctuated by the shine in her bright green eyes.

Her eyes held that same shine again, and Eric reached out, gently draping an arm around her. "You okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," Calleigh murmured with a sigh, resting her head against his shoulder. "It's just the hormones…"

Eric held her tightly, pressing a kiss into her hair. "No, it's not," he said, smiling slightly. "It's the fact that our little girl is growing up."

Calleigh reached over, lacing her fingers with the ones on Eric's free hand. "Is it so terrible of me to wish she wouldn't grow up so fast?"

"I wish that every single day," Eric admitted, squeezing her hand. He looked down, letting his eyes linger on Calleigh's softly rounded tummy. "Just think, though," he whispered, a smile forming on his lips, "in a few months, we'll get to start it all over again."

Despite the unshed tears in her eyes, the prospect of that brought a smile to Calleigh's lips. "I know," she murmured wistfully. She sighed, feeling Eric press another light kiss atop her head.

Before long, the final name was called, and the last child had made his way across the stage. Calleigh's camera was back in her hands again; the kindergarteners were now lined up in front of the stage, and with a few more words from the principal, they tossed their caps into the air with a cheer.

And with that, all sense of order was lost. The children had sat still and quiet for far too long, and every last one of them was excited to finally be free. They broke from the line, dispersing in all directions, their identical gowns making it difficult to successfully tell them apart.

Eric had no problem, though. He simply looked for that unmistakable, golden blonde hair, though he didn't have to search long. As soon as he and Calleigh stepped onto the gym floor, Eric was nearly knocked to the ground as Emma ran into him in a blur of blue and blonde, throwing her arms around his middle. With a laugh, he embraced her in return, gently ruffling her blonde hair. "Hey there, sweetheart."

Emma smiled brightly, looking up at Eric, and then to Calleigh. "I graduated!" she said, her voice full of pride.

Calleigh smiled as Emma moved to hug her as well. "We're so proud of you," she said, her eyes shining once again. Eric moved closer, gently wrapping an arm around his wife.

With a serious expression, Emma stepped back, looking up at her parents. "I'm glad I don't have to take naps anymore," she said with such sincerity that Eric and Calleigh couldn't help but laugh. Of course it would be Emma's favorite part of moving on to the first grade, not having to lay down after playtime for afternoon naptime.

A short while later, after Calleigh had gotten another parent to take a picture of all three of them together - no, all four of us, Eric reminded himself, his eyes once more straying to the bump at Calleigh's abdomen - they were ready to head home.

But before they could make it to the door, there was one more interruption.

"Emma!"

All three of them turned, and Emma came face to face with a raven-haired little boy with bright blue eyes. His hair was slightly tousled from spending hours hidden beneath his cap. He carried two in his hands, only one of which could belong to him. Eric noted with a bit of unease that it was the boy Emma had been sitting next to earlier.

"You forgot this," he said shyly, holding the extra cap out to Emma.

Emma smiled and took her cap, immediately placing it back atop her head. "Thanks, Logan."

Logan gave what Eric was horrified to recognize as a smitten grin. He looked at his wife, and was further horrified to witness an amused smile on her face as well. Eric narrowed his eyes; he didn't see anything amusing about this.

For a moment, neither of the kindergarten graduates spoke, though Emma could tell Logan wanted to. She gave the boy a calculating look. Logan shifted on his feet, though his smile only widened and a sparkle found its way to his eyes.

"Well, see ya in the fall, Emma!" he said excitedly, and before Emma could react, he leaned forward, pressing a quick, chaste kiss to her cheek. Grinning from ear to ear, he turned and ran.

Emma stared after him for a second, her face a perfect imitation of her father's look of disbelief. Eric would've chased after that boy, had his eyes not been occupied with his daughter's reaction.

He wasn't disappointed. Disbelief slowly became disgust, and Eric did a silent cheer as Emma quickly raised a hand to her cheek, furiously rubbing away at it. "Yuck," she mumbled, almost as though Calleigh had just tried to get her to eat peas again.

Eric, however, was elated. He couldn't help but chuckle. "That's my girl," he praised, chuckling as Calleigh swatted him on the arm in amusement. "Come on, let's get you home and out of that gown," Eric suggested, watching as Emma continued to fidget with the fabric. "Then maybe we can go swimming."

Emma's eyes still lit up at the thought of swimming, despite already spending so much of her free time in the water. "Yeah!" she cheered, hopping excitedly from one foot to the other. "Can we get ice cream first, though?" she asked eagerly.

Eric grinned, pulling Calleigh closer to him. "It's up to your mother," he said, knowing Calleigh wouldn't say no. First of all, Emma was giving her that irresistible Delko pout. And second, anyone who gave Calleigh ice cream became her new best friend. While doughnuts had been her craving while pregnant with Emma, this time around, it was ice cream.

Calleigh chuckled, not even trying to resist. "Oh, why not?" she said, eliciting more happy cheers from her daughter.

"You gave in too easily," Eric whispered with a grin, his eyes gleaming.

Calleigh gave a helpless shrug. "What can I say?" she replied, looping her arms around Eric's neck. "The baby wants ice cream too," she said, glancing down at her abdomen. "And besides, Emma's got that pout of yours down to a science."

Eric smirked. "That she does," he murmured, lowering his lips to Calleigh's for a quick kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too," Calleigh replied, still feeling the shiver that raced through her body every time she heard those words from Eric. He grinned in return and gently captured her lips once more.

They broke apart as an exasperated sigh reached their ears - Emma was getting impatient. "Can we go now?" she asked, tugging at Calleigh's shirt.

Calleigh smiled happily. "Yeah, we can go." She pressed one last kiss to Eric's lips before breaking away completely, extending a hand to Emma. Emma happily accepted it with her left hand before reaching out for Eric's hand with her right. And together as a happy family, they made their way out of the gym and into the bright Florida sunshine.

If there was anything that Eric knew, it was that when he looked back on the past few years of his life, he wouldn't see the crimes and criminals he worked with everyday. He wouldn't see the pain or the death that walked hand in hand with his job. He wouldn't see losses; he wouldn't see fear, unless it was the eventually conquered fear of monsters living in a closet.

Looking back, it would be days like today that he would see. Days of pride, days of sheer, albeit bittersweet happiness. He would see lazy days off spent with his family on the beach, collecting seashells and looking out over the ocean, hoping to see a dolphin or two.

To Eric, it was days like today that made even the bad days good.

It was days like today that made his life perfect.

the end.
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In small proportions we just beauties see;
And in short measures life may perfect be.
--Ben Jonson