Meh. That's all I have to say about this chapter.
Fire
Ryan sighed as he followed Greg and Ray into the small house.
"Why are we going with them again?" he grumbled under his breath.
"Because Jessie left Vegas with three open cases," Horatio said, "The least we can do is help close them. Now go with Greg and check out the utility shed. Ray and I will do another walk through of the house."
"But if Jessica checked out this scene why would we need to check it again?" Ryan groaned.
"Because it was on Jessica's list," Ray explained. "She wanted to come out and recheck the scene because something wasn't adding up in the evidence."
Ryan groaned and followed Greg outside. They walked around the shed, taking pictures and jotting down notes. Greg looked at Ryan shyly before he spoke.
"Are you still mad at me for not telling you Jessica was here?"
Ryan shot him a sideways glance. "Greg it's going to take a lot more than just twenty-four hours for me to get over the fact that I'm pissed as hell at you."
Greg sighed and tried the door. It was unlocked and he and Ryan walked in. Jessica hadn't been in the utility shed, but it said in her notes she thought the reason the home owner was killed was because of something in that shed.
Ryan walked to the back wall and looked at it. He rapped his knuckles against it hard. "This wall's hollow," he commented. "Come help me move it."
Greg stepped up and helped Ryan push the false wall to the side. The smell ammonia filled his nose and the sight of fire flashed before his eyes. Greg grabbed Ryan and pushed him towards the door. He slammed Ryan to the ground and shielded his body as flames fanned out and the shed exploded.
Horatio and Ray ran out into the backyard. Greg was screaming out in pain as Ryan lied beneath his body. They rushed to their side and Ray carefully worked to move Greg.
"Slowly Greg," Ray quietly said, "You don't want to move too quickly."
"Oh god!" Greg cried, "Take them out! It hurts!"
"I can't do that, Greg," Ray calmly said. "It could cause major damage or you could bleed out."
Horatio was already on the phone with 911 as Ryan continued to lie where he was, too shocked to comprehend what was going on. He turned and looked at Greg. Three large shards of glass stuck out of his back and blood was running onto the ground beneath where he was huddled. Ryan's body trembled and he vomited just before he passed out.
Ryan awoke several hours later in a hospital bed. For a moment he was confused and a sudden fear flowed through him as the memories from the CDC flooded back to him. He slowly calmed down as he remembered where he was and why he was there.
Horatio walked in and sighed in relief at the sight of Ryan awake. "Thank god, you're awake," he quietly said as he sat beside Ryan's bed.
"Where's Greg?" Ryan quickly asked.
"He just got out of surgery," Horatio explained. "He was lucky; those glass shards didn't cause any major damage. He's just going to be sore for a very long time."
Ryan sighed in relief, not realizing he hadn't been breathing. "Can I see him?"
"Not right now," Horatio said, "He's not awake yet." Horatio's eyes peered into Ryan's. "He saved your life, Ryan. If Greg hadn't been there those glass pieces would have hit you in the chest, and you're a little smaller than Greg. I don't think you would have withstood the blast."
Ryan blinked several times, clearly holding back tears that threatened to fall. "I'm such a jerk," he whispered.
Greg was propped up on his side and he was groggy as the anesthesia wore off. Someone was holding his hand and he was confused as to whom. His eyes slowly drifted open and he stared at Ryan sitting in a chair next to his bed. Ryan looked at him, his large hazel eyes filled with sorrow.
"I'm sorry," Ryan finally whispered after several minutes of silence.
Greg looked at him. "It's ok," he whispered in response, "I would have been pissed, too."
Ryan sighed as he pulled on a pair of Greg's coveralls. He cuffed up the pant legs, making them the right length for his shorter legs.
"So let me get this straight," Ryan said, "Because that meth lab in the shed happened to explode when I was in it you feel that we need to repay a debt to Catherine for taking out one of her CSIs."
"Exactly," Horatio said as he zipped the coveralls with the name "Grissom" embroidered on the front. He chuckled to himself as he pulled on an old pair of Grissom's work shoes.
Catherine walked into the locker room with another woman with brown hair. She stopped and chuckled at the sight of Horatio in Grissom's old coveralls.
"Well I would have thought Gil would have taken those with him," she laughed. "I must say though, Horatio, you pull them off well."
"Why thank you, boss," Horatio chuckled.
Sara Sidle stared at Ryan with an intense curiosity. She walked towards him and stopped short of him. She gaped at him with her mouth parted slightly.
"You're Ryan," she finally whispered.
Ryan nodded his head as he grabbed Greg's CSI hat from his locker. "Yeah, Ryan Wolfe," he answered.
Sara looked at him perplexed. "You're a real person," she whispered again. "She was telling the truth."
"Who?" Ryan inquired, rather confused.
Sara reached across him and pressed her index finger against the door of Greg's locker. Ryan followed her gaze and looked at the picture taped to the inside of Greg's locker. It was a picture of Greg and Jessica. Ryan didn't understand how he had missed it. They were sitting together at a table set with dinner plates. They were smiling and their heads were held together. Greg's arm was wrapped around Jessica's shoulders and she was beaming with joy. They were dressed in elegant clothing and the decorations hinted at Christmas time.
"I told you Jelly and I weren't together," Greg said as he limped into the locker room. "She kept telling you Ryan was her boyfriend but you wouldn't believe me." He sat on a bench and hissed in pain.
"Greg you shouldn't be here," Catherine said.
"I can finish my lab work," Greg protested. "Besides, my apartment's lonely without Jelly."
"Jelly?" Ryan quietly said.
Nick chuckled as he walked into the locker room wearing his coveralls. "It's a little nickname G came up with for Jessica because he kept forgetting to call Jessica Holly and he would remember at the last second so it always came out Jelly."
Ryan smiled at Nick and then at Greg. "I like it," he quietly said.
"Well too bad," Greg said, "Because it's my nickname for Jelly!"
"Yeah you should have heard him when Hodges tried to use it," Nick chuckled.
Ryan chuckled and picked up his jeans off the bench. A small ladybug fell out of the pocket and Sara scooped it up.
"Um, you dropped your ladybug?" she chuckled.
Ryan accepted it back with a smile and carefully tucked it away in Greg's locker.
"You brought it with you," Horatio chuckled.
"As a matter of fact, yes I did," Ryan proudly said. "I told you I was going to ask her the next time I saw her."
"Ask her what?" Greg inquired.
Ryan smiled and held out the ladybug ring box. He popped it open and watched as Greg's eyes lit up in amazement at the sight of Jessica's engagement ring.
Nick laughed loudly and clapped Ryan on the back. "You were going to pop the question!" he exclaimed.
"Yes I was," Ryan proudly declared. "I've been dying to ask her for months now."
"He really has," Horatio chuckled. "He came with me last week just to pick it up from the jewelries."
"When did you buy it?" Greg asked.
"I didn't," Ryan smiled, "It was her mother's, but don't tell her that."
"Why did you have to go pick it up last week?" Greg inquired.
"Jessie Bug's fingers are larger than her mother's." Horatio explained, "Her mother was a rather petite woman. We had to get it re-sized."
Catherine chuckled and held the ring box in her hands. "Well it looks like Horatio Caine finally found someone good enough for his little girl," she smiled brightly.
"Better than good." Horatio smiled at Ryan. "He's the best I could have asked for."
Ryan stared at the barn floor where supposedly a murder weapon was buried. He sighed and picked up his shovel.
"I can't believe I'm an indentured servant because of Jessica…again," he muttered.
"You knew what you were getting yourself into when you signed up for the role of Jessica's boyfriend," Horatio said with a smirk.
"Yeah, but I bet no one warned you when you sighed up to be her father," Ryan chuckled.
"Nope, found that one out the hard way," Horatio smiled as he began digging.
"Back to the dirty work," Ryan said.
"Not a big deal," Horatio said. "It's nice to not be the boss for once."
Ryan collected things from Greg's apartment. Jessica had left in a hurry and a few of her items were still scattered through the apartment. He dropped three pairs of heels into a box and grabbed a pair of pants. He stopped and stared at a pair of Jessica's panties that were hidden beneath. Ryan scooped them up and quickly glanced around the room before he brought them to his face and inhaled deeply.
"Oh my god Ryan, are you really smelling those?"
Ryan jumped and quickly turned around, hiding the panties behind his back. He stared wild eyed at Nick and felt his ears flush. Nick laughed at his embarrassment and walked over to him. He clapped Ryan on the shoulder and smiled a wide grin at him.
"You're a dirty boy, aren't you?" Nick asked with a wink. Ryan's face flush and he diverted his eyes. Nick laughed again and patted him on the shoulder again. "No need to be embarrassed about liking the way your girl smells."
"I'm more embarrassed about getting caught sniffing her panties," Ryan muttered.
Nick laughed once more and shook his head as he walked over to the closet. He began pulling dresses off hangers and carrying them over to the bed. Ryan followed him and picked up a purple dress.
"This is new," he commented.
Nick looked at the dress with an interested expression. "Yeah, that's the one Jess wore to the department Christmas party."
Ryan looked it over. It was a warm shade of purple that shined like satin. He looked at the v-neck collar and quickly read the tag. It was a size eleven, two or three sizes bigger than what Jessica wore.
"It was a little big on her when she wore it," Nick commented. "She said she was too cheap to pay someone else to do something she could do herself."
Ryan smiled and neatly folded the dress, gingerly placing it on the bed. "Sounds just like Jessica."
I think Ryan's horny. He better get laid and fast! lol