It was only a few hours later when Vartan returned; despite his best efforts to get some sleep at home, he just couldn't seem to rest when Sophia was lying in the ICU. He knew that Sara Sidle would call him if Sophia woke up; but he was anxious; he wanted to be there the moment she woke up. He was a man on a desperate mission with an engagement ring burning a hole in his pocket. As he sauntered into the waiting area of the ICU, he found that the population had grown considerably since he'd left. As the word seemed to have spread that Sophia had woken up, several other law enforcement types had made their way to the hospital. Sara was still there, barely staying awake from all appearances flanked by Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown; both of which looked like they were giving her a run for her money in the fighting sleep department. Captain Brass, a couple of uniforms he couldn't quite remember the names of, and Catherine Willows rounded out the crowd.

Vartan looked hopeful. "Any news?" He didn't address anyone in particular.

Warrick glanced up at the detective. "Nothing new." He could see the stress on Vartan's face and offered him a twitch of his lips in an upward direction. "She's in good hands; as soon as she wakes up again, you'll know, man." When he'd arrived the tall lanky CSI had been surprised to find his wife working in the ICU; the last time they'd spoken which was going on a month and a half now, she'd been working down in the ER. There had been an awkward few moments before she'd suggested that they had a lot to talk about; the way she'd said it offered Warrick hope that maybe things between them might yet be salvaged. The fact that she wasn't working in the same department as her ex any longer just added to his hope.

Vartan sank down into a plastic chair; it seemed that the more that people knew about his relationship with Sophia, the more they seemed supportive. He regretted ever deciding that they needed to keep things a secret for the sake of their jobs. Apparently, the real issue for him had been commitment phobia; something that had completely disappeared the longer he'd been with Sophia, but by then, things were well under wraps and neither of them seemed to know how to let the secret out of the bag.

The sound of the grizzled voice of Jim Brass cut through the too quiet waiting room. "She's a fighter; she's gonna be just fine." He sounded confident; maybe he had reason to be, he'd faced death himself and had come out the other side only a little worse for the wear. He liked Alex Vartan and he knew that bolstering his spirits even though he'd already seen Sophia earlier could only serve to help him. The seasoned cop in Brass had softened considerably around the people that he worked with on a day to day basis; he had found that they had become a family of sorts for him that he didn't know he could count on until they were already stepping up to be there for him; he knew they'd be there for Sophia as well.

"Thanks, Jim." Vartan offered the best smile he had in him at that moment. He would rest much easier once he'd asked Sophia to marry him and when she'd been moved to a regular hospital room; for now he appreciated the support.

Footsteps approached the group and as Tina Brown spoke, all eyes were on her. "She's awake." She smiled at Vartan. "And she's asking for you again...but I can only give you a few minutes, she really needs her rest." She glanced briefly over at Warrick, smiling softly at him, her eyes locking with his as she seemed to be trying to communicate something that maybe words couldn't convey.

"Yeah, thank you." Vartan smiled and took a deep breath as he pulled himself out of the chair and made his way into the ICU room. The sounds of different monitors beeping seemed to hum into the background as he took in the sight of the woman he was in love with.

Sophia's blond hair fanned out a little across the pillow and she smiled weakly as Vartan approached. "Hey, you shaved." Her voice was raspy.

"I even showered." Alex grinned at her as he sat down on the edge of her bed, enveloping her hand with his. He leaned in and softly kissed her, memorizing the taste and feel of her lips as if this might be the last chance he'd have. As he pulled away, he had a serious expression on his face.

"What?" Sophia looked worried; worried that maybe he knew something about her condition that she didn't and worried that maybe all of this was just too much for him.

Vartan smiled again. "I've just been doing a lot of thinking about us." He gently stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. "Even before this happened, I'd been thinking about it, but this...well, this just made me realize that I can't keep us a secret anymore."

Sophia laughed softly, wincing as she realized that her side was sore in spite of the pain meds she was on. "Somehow I think that the cat's out of the bag." She was perceptive even in her current state.

Vartan laughed too. "Yeah, pretty much the entire department knows by now." His expression turned serious again. "I love you, Sophia; I want a life with you...I thought that maybe I was going to lose you and..." His voice broke as he realized just how close he really had come to losing her.

Sophia reached up and touched his cheek. "Hey, don't you start talking like that...I was scared enough for both of us." She really wasn't sure how she was; she had thought at the scene that she was really going to die; the fact that she'd woken up at all was a complete surprise to her. A surprise that she was incredibly grateful for because it meant that she had a second chance; and their line of work, that was something you didn't see too often.

He smiled at her; he wasn't sure what he'd ever done to deserve someone like her in the first place, but whatever it was, he was glad he'd done it. "Yeah." He squeezed her hand and leaned in to kiss her again.

Sophia smiled as he pulled away. "I can't wait until I can get the hell out of here and return that kiss properly." No matter how long she was stuck in that hospital, it was going to be too damn long.

Vartan smirked. "It'll just be that much better." He could wait; as long as she was ok, he'd wait a lifetime for her.

Sophia rolled her eyes; sometimes the man could be far too romantic for his own good. "The hell it will; you'll be just as frustrated as I will; only I'll at least have the benefit of pain medication." She let out a yawn; she hadn't realized just how tired talking could make you when your body was doing its best to heal.

"Ok, maybe I will..." Vartan paused for just a moment as he reached into his pocket. "But I'm hoping that you'll know I'll be waiting." He held up the ring until it caught her eye and as her jaw seemed to drop a little, Vartan continued with a smile on his face. "I love you, Sophia, and I want to marry you; would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

It took a fraction of a second for tears to stream down Sophia's face and she answered him without any hesitation. "Yes, Alex, yes, oh, yes."