Thanks for the reviews. As I keep saying - it really is great to hear what you think of the story.

CHAPTER 4

Roger and Jillian Stokes finally left for their hotel leaving Catherine to look after Nick. She had just taken the seat that Jillian had left, and moved it in closer to the bed so she could reach Nicks lax hand, when Grissom, Warrick and Sara arrived - Brass had headed back to the nursery. They had strict orders from the medical staff that they only had five minutes. Warrick and Sara moved in first. Warrick gripped his free hand tightly and muttered quiet words of encouragement to his friend. Sara squeezed his arm and bent down to whisper her message in his ear.

Grissom stood and held the foot bar at the end of the bed. He watched momentarily - focusing on the rise and fall of Nicks bare chest before his eyes moved to take in all the tubes and leads supporting his body's functions.

Warrick and Sara, content now they had seen their friend, bid farewell to Catherine and Grissom and headed home to get some much needed sleep. Grissom nodded at them both and stayed watching Nick a moment more before moving to take the seat next to Catherine.

He sat heavily and sighed deeply. Catherine smiled at him and brought a hand to rest back on this leg. "Gil, go home. Get some sleep."

Grissom raised an eyebrow at her in amusement. "I should say the same to you."

Catherine snorted. "I got a nap while we were waiting for you guys to arrive. Beside, I'm a Mom - I can survive for days without sleep."

Grissom smiled - exhausted. "Well, I might just head to the waiting room and get an hour or two. I don't really feel like going hime yet."

"Its been a hell of a couple of days." Said Catherine, shifting her gaze back to Nick.

Grissom arched his eyebrows again as he pushed himself up from the chair. "You can say that again. Call me if you need me - I'll be just outside."

Catherine smiled at him and waved him off, "Sleep well." she called after him quietly.

Turning her attention back to Nick, she reached out and squeezed his unresponsive hand and whispered, "Well, Nicky, its just you and me."

Grissom woke nearly two hours after he had passed out in one of the waiting room chairs. Although he couldn't honestly say he felt refreshed, he certainly felt significantly better than he had earlier. He wlked back into the ICU and smiled quietly. Catherine was fighting a losing battle to stay awake. Her head resting against the mattress near Nicks shoulder, she clung onto his hand as her eyes slipped shut, snapping open again as she felt herself slipping closer to sleep.

Grissom moved to stand next to her and offered her a hand up from the chair. She woke when she saw him and rubbed a hand across her eyes.

"I thought you didn't need sleep?" he asked her with unconvincing innocence. She snorted and allowed him to pull her to her feet.

"The one-sided conversation can be rather sedating." she said, "I just need a minute or two. I'll be back soon."

"Take your time." said Grissom

With Catherine gone, Grissom took the vacated chair and looked at his young colleague. He thought back on all the years he had worked with Nick, on how far he had come from being the young, green rookie straight from Dallas to the independent, confident leader he was today. Grissom was proud of how he had matured as a CSI and proud that his guidance had played a vital part in that development. He knew he had ridden Nick harder than Warrick or Sara, maybe he hadn't been as fair as he could have been, but he had only hoped that it would make Nick harden up a little. Nick had always been an emotional guy, had always empathised a little too much with the victims and their families - it could cloud his judgement at times and he had to learn to distance himself.

Grissom thought back to the farewell message that Nick had recorded for him.

'I never meant to disappoint you.'

A sharp pain hit him. After all this time Nick was still bothered by needing his boss' approval. Grissom thought they had moved past all of the insecurities which had plagued him earlier in his Las Vegas career. But you're final words on Earth are usually reserved for the most important of important things and it disturbed Grissom to think that Nick felt he had to address his fear of disappointing his mentor. That in the face of fear, despair and almost certain death, Nick had used his final words to Grissom to apologise for non-existant disappointments.

Grissom made a pact with himself to deal with these ongoing anxieties between Nick and himself once and for all. But for now, it was all about getting Nick back on his feet.

The following 24 hours passed by with little change in Nicks condition. He was kept heavily sedated until the early hours of the following morning when the sedation was weaned down and Nick was allowed to wake on his own. As the day progressed, so to did Nicks responses. It started with hand squeezes and spontaneous eye opening when the nurses suctioned his endotracheal tube. By midmorning he was becomming agitated with the tubes and, in moments of acute panic, would bring his hand up to try and rip them out, eyes open and frightened, scanning the room desperate for help. His parents were by is side, holding his hands - keeping them away from the tubes - and stroking his hair, speaking to him softly, reinforcing he was safe and encouraging him back to consciousness.

By the time Catherine arrived back in the afternoon, Nick was awake for longer periods and had just been extubated. A mask over his nose and mouth delivered humidified oxygen and the head of the bed lifted him into a 45 degree sitting position, making it easier for him to breathe. The intravenous pain relief and the after effects of the sedation continued to make him groggy, his head lolled against the pillow, but he recognized Catherine and gave a ghost of a smile as she kissed his cheek gently in greeting. He drifted off to sleep, his hand clutching his mothers. Catherine sat and talked with his parents. Every now and then Catherine and Jillian would get up to soothe Nick back to sleep as bad dreams and panic attacks interrupted his sleep. He settled quickly though as the drugs overpowered him.

After a couple of hours, Catherine bid the Stokes' farewell and headed into the lab. Despite their concern for Nick and their desire to spend time with him, the rest of the team were already back at work - now short staffed until Nick was back and cleared for duty.

And, God knows, Vegas never sleeps. There would be plenty of work to keep them busy

Thanks so much for the reviews. Please keep them coming - even a line or two - just to keep up the motivation for me. Many thanks in advance: )