"Nick. Sara." Grissom's brow was deeply furrowed as he walked through the front door of the lab to find the pair heading in his direction. "I'm glad I caught you before you left." He was fully aware of the administrative leave that they had been place on and he was only glad that it was Catherine and not he that had been the one to deliver the news.

"Grissom." Nick had a flash of worry as he studied his supervisor's face for any trace of news about Sophia's condition. He had a sinking feeling that whatever Grissom had to say it wasn't going to be good.

"How's Sophia?" Sara seemed far more at ease with Grissom's furrowed brow; as if she could read between the lines of his expression. She stood there with her arms across her chest and her head tilted slightly as she waited for Grissom to answer.

Grissom let out a tired sigh and looked at the two CSIs fully. "She's sedated. The doctor said it could be a while before we know anything." His thoughts drifted back to Brass being in nearly the same position not too long ago. So much had happened since then and yet all those things that he had resolved to do he hadn't quite followed through on. He was definitely feeling regretful.

"She's strong." Nick wanted to believe that; he wanted to believe that if any of them were in her shoes they would come through with flying colors. The problem was that not everyone did. If Holly Gribbs hadn't died, Sara wouldn't be here. Then there was Detective Lockwood, gunned down while trying to deposit a check on a lunch break. Shit, you didn't even have to be in the line of duty to clock out.

"I feel sorry for Vartan." Sara's voice was soft and almost wistful. "Hell of a way to announce that he's in love with someone." She glanced at Grissom for a fraction of a second before turning towards Nick. "I just want to get out of here."

Nick nodded at her, offering a warm smile. "Sure." He glanced at Grissom and noticed a slightly befuddled expression for just a moment before a more stoic one took over. "Did you need something else, Grissom?" He had stopped them on their way in; perhaps he had more than just Sophia's condition on his mind.

Grissom shook his head. "Uh, no...I just wanted to let you know how Sophia was." He glanced over at Sara again before turning his attention back to Nick. "So you're on administrative leave then." It wasn't really a question, more of a confirmation that Catherine had informed them.

"Yeah, until IA clears it all up." Nick really just wanted to get out of there and he clenched his jaw until it started to twitch.

Sara's expression clouded in concern. "I'm tired and hungry and I just want to go home." She addressed Nick, but glanced at Grissom as if to indicate that she wanted to end the conversation.

"Well I won't keep you any longer then." Grissom offered a sort of half smile and then turned and strode in the direction of his office leaving Nick and Sara at the entrance to the lab.

By the time they arrived at Sara's apartment, they had managed to stop and pick up a case of beer and couple of movies; chick flicks Sara had insisted because she was in no damn mood to see anyone else shot at. The pizza order had been called in and all Sara wanted was to relax and think about anything else besides the crime scene she couldn't seem to get out of her mind. The pizza arrived in short order and they settled themselves on her couch to watch Raising Helen.

If they'd thought that this was a safe movie that belief was utterly crushed about fifteen minutes in when the whole premise of the story was put into play with a tragic death. That combined with the seriousness of the day and the stress of it all broke through as Sara choked back a sob. This was definitely not what she'd had in mind for a way to decompress.

Nick was having a hard time too, although he wouldn't have liked to admit it, but when he noticed that Sara had started to cry he didn't know what else to do but pull her into a hug. "Oh, Sar." There was so much in that statement; he knew that she was having regrets about not having an opportunity to shoot the gunman before Sophia had been shot and for himself, he was so damn thankful that he'd gotten there before Sara was shot. He'd always been close to her, but for some reason this felt different, it was if they had bonded over something that no one else was a part of. Nick began stroking her hair as she melted against him.

Sara felt secure, she had so many things swirling through her mind that to have the feeling of Nick's arms around her made her feel just a little bit more grounded. She rested her head against his shoulder as tears continued to slip down her face and she could swear that his heart seemed to be beating fast underneath where her hand rested against his chest; hell it seemed as if her own was too.

As Nick inhaled the scent of her hair he felt compelled to press a kiss against her head as he pulled her a little closer. This was a woman that he cared about deeply and maybe his timing was shitty as hell, he just needed her to know that. He pulled back just a little and kissed her forehead as his fingers brushed at the tears on her cheeks.

Sara wasn't exactly sure when something had changed here and in the back of her mind a voice was screaming that she couldn't do this; this was a line she sure as hell couldn't cross, not right now anyway; but something in her needed this and she just couldn't make herself turn away from him.

Nick's fingers gently touched her chin, tilting her face towards his before their eyes met for the briefest second and then their lips were softly touching in a tentative kiss. Tentative went right out the window as hungry and tired and scared and anxious and whatever the hell other emotions had been swirling around that day surged through that kiss. Neither one of them seemed particularly concerned about what this was going to do to their friendship or to what was fueling it in the first place. They'd had an emotionally charged day to be certain and this was not something that had been planned by any means.

By the time they broke this kiss they were both breathing heavily and as the sound of the movie in the background penetrated Sara's senses, she shook her head. "I can't do this..." She wasn't really sure how to explain this to Nick; it had been pretty damn clear from that kiss that she wanted to be doing just that; even now, she was struggling with wanting to just kiss him again. Shit, she could not be doing this right now. Shit, shit, shit.

Nick's face clouded; of course, this was all too sudden and after the day they'd had this was probably not the best course of action. "I'm sorry." He wasn't a bit sorry but he could tell that Sara was conflicted. "I should go..." He didn't want to leave at all, but he also didn't want to do something that they'd both regret later.

"No, don't go." Sara knew that he probably should before she got in way over her head. This was not a good time for this to be happening, but how the hell could she tell him that? She scooted back a little, putting some space between them that was a bit more appropriate for people who were just friends.

He looked at her earnestly. "Sara." He knew that he couldn't hide what he was feeling from her; of everyone he worked with, she was probably the most perceptive and he tended to wear his heart on his sleeve in the first place.

"No, I'm sorry...I don't know what to say." She was toying with the idea of just telling him the truth when she heard a sound that caused her heart to sink.

Nick's expression was slightly bewildered as he heard the sound of a key turning in the lock, and he was utterly speechless when the door opened and a startled Gil Grissom walked in with a bouquet of flowers in hand as if he'd done this a dozen times. His expression said it all; this was no damn cat, the raging tiger had been let out of the bag.