A/N 1: Alright, no more waiting. Nice, long chapter. I couldn't resist another little cliffhanger. Sorry!

A/N 2: Had some trouble posting this. Hopefully all the kinks are now fixed.

Chapter 5

Heya Delko, Speedle here. It's September the 12th, 2004, and in light of this week's events, I'm returning to my documentary phase. With a twist, of course.

Calleigh, Eric and Horatio cracked three identical, nostalgic smiles as their old friend's face appeared on the screen. It was good to hear his voice again.

The past couple days have been rough for both of us—by the way, your ass is mine next time—but that's one of the reasons I am making this video. Watch it. All of it. You won't listen to what I have to say, so maybe you'll understand when you can see it—the way that everyone else does.

You mean a lot to me, brother, and I just want the best for you.

Eric was now too nervous to even bounce his leg; he stood frozen in place, staring wide-eyed at the screen. As the picture of Tim faded into black, another picture formed in its place. A song played faintly in the background. In an instant, Eric recognized the song and the picture, and he turned abruptly to face Calleigh. She avoided his gaze but couldn't hide the furious blush which had painted her cheeks.

Ryan and Horatio watched the monitor in utter confusion. H prided himself on his ability to know everything that was happening in his lab, but right now he was struggling to connect the dots. As the music continued to play, Eric's mind reeled. The date, Speed's black eye…

"No, Calleigh," he said firmly, taking a step forward to stop the video.

Calleigh caught his arm and stopped him in his tracks. The look in her eyes was beseeching. She knew full well what was on this video, now, just as Eric did. But she felt an inexplicable and undeniable urge to keep watching. Eric saw more in her emerald eyes than just a request—he saw pain, and sadness, and…desire? Far in the depths of her eyes, Eric saw desire, and that's what made him step back. A step back, and a step toward Calleigh. Their arms brushed as they continued watching.

Two pictures had passed and a third picture entered the frame. Eric closed his eyes and swallowed the lump forming in his throat. That was one of the happiest days of his life. Exhilaration showed on the young, dark face in the photo, and it was also manifested in the features of the laughing blonde woman sitting next to him. Speedle and Cal had come to his parents' house for Christmas that year, and his creepy cousin Sal kept trying to catch Calleigh under the mistletoe. She was in hysterics as she told Eric about Sal's latest attempt to harangue her, and soon he was laughing just as hard. Speed had captured a candid photo of his two friends, mid-laugh.

The group watched as three more photos passed, keeping in time with the music. Every image was the same: a young Eric and Calleigh completely engrossed in each other, and deliriously happy. Calleigh's eyes watered as she watched the show; she remembered the times she spent with Eric and Tim like they were yesterday. As each photo graced the screen, the ballistics expert became acutely aware of what Tim was documenting. He wanted to show his best friends what they couldn't see—what everyone else noticed almost instantaneously whenever Eric and Calleigh were together.

Suddenly the background music dimmed and a video began to play. It was of a poorer quality than most of Speed's work, and it appeared to have been shot from around a corner. Eric recognized his family home immediately.

'I'm just asking you to be careful, Cal,' his voice sounded on the video. Standing across from him in the deserted hallway, Calleigh crossed her arms in defiance.

'I'm a big girl, Eric. I can—'

'—take care of yourself, I know,' Eric interrupted in frustration.

Calleigh sent him an annoyed look. 'He won't hurt me.'

Eric raised his eyebrows incredulously. 'Calleigh, the man isn't stable. At least—'

'—tell Horatio,' she finished for him, rolling her eyes. 'Fine,' she groused, 'but not because you told me to do it. I'm doing it because John needs help.'

Eric sighed in relief. 'I can live with that.' He offered her a half-wattage Delko grin and pulled her into a strong embrace.

The camera panned out and the frame faded to black. The last image they saw was one of Eric holding his best friend close, almost like he could protect her as long as he could keep her in his arms.

Horatio stood silently in the back of the room, internally cheering Tim Speedle for doing something that should have been done a long time ago.

For his part, Ryan Wolfe sat dumbfounded in his seat. He'd always seen the closeness between his two friends, but the intimacy of these photos and videos added a whole new, complicated dimension to the two people standing behind him. He couldn't help but wonder where this project was headed. Speedle had a point— the Eric and Calleigh on film were completely oblivious to the significance of their shared looks. They held each other like it was the most natural thing in the world for two best friends to do. They had no idea they finished each other's sentences or seemed to communicate without words at all.

The Eric and Calleigh in this room, on the other hand, are rapidly becoming aware of that fact, Ryan thought. He bit down on his lips to stop a grin from spreading on his face. Palpable tension radiated from the two bodies behind him, quickly filling the lab from corner to corner.

Another video began to play, this time of the two friends dancing to an up-tempo Latin beat. Ryan had never seen Eric or Calleigh dance before, and he was surprised by how well they moved together. Delko's skill could be attributed to growing up in Little Havana. Calleigh, however, was another story. She was entrancing, and Ryan couldn't take his eyes off her. She moved with all the grace of a Southern belle, but with the sass of a Cuban woman. She never missed a step.

They look good together, Ryan realized. It was a strange thought. He saw them every day, hung out with them on the weekends. He'd seen their old photos earlier that afternoon. But something about the way they moved… they fit perfectly, anticipated each other's steps and sways, trusted each other implicitly.

Standing side by side behind Wolfe, Eric and Calleigh saw the same thing. Every fiber of Eric's being told him he needed to stop this, now. Calleigh had just started dating Jake Berkeley, and as much as Eric hated that fact, he had sworn to himself that he would do nothing to jeopardize that relationship. He wanted Calleigh to be happy, and she had chosen Jake.

Jake was the last thing on Calleigh's mind at the moment. She was lost in memories—memories she desperately needed to keep locked away. But this video… Speed was making it very hard for her to forget right now. Damn him. He's not even here and he's still creating chaos in my life. She peeked over at Eric. Correction, she thought with a sigh, make that our lives. The man next to her looked to be in as much turmoil as her right now.

The clip ended and one last photo appeared. Ryan and Eric both recognized the picture from the first stack of developed film they found in the storage room. Calleigh's stomach tightened in sadness as she saw it: Eric grinning ear-to-ear, staring straight into Speedle's lens. Calleigh had one arm strewn over his shoulders, and she was leaning in close to her best friend, kissing him soundly on the cheek. Her eyes were closed, and she just looked…peaceful.

In the present, the petite blonde woman felt sick, because she couldn't actually remember the last time she felt so content, so at peace with herself and with life.

Horatio visibly frowned, although everyone was so wrapped up in the movie that they didn't notice. The lieutenant had not seen his two CSIs—his two friends—that happy in years. Not since Tim's tragic death. He glanced at them and saw that both Eric and Calleigh were fighting back the moisture in their eyes. It was pointless—their red-rimmed lids were fixed that way, betraying their internal struggles for control.

The two happy faces disappeared into the background and Speedle's figure returned.

If I wanted to, Delko, I could create a seven-hour masterpiece with all the material I have. Lucky for you, I don't have that kind of time. You're probably already pissed as hell at me. That's fine. But I have a few things to say and I will not leave you alone until I have said them.

You usually help me come up with the titles for my pieces, but I did this one on my own. I have to say, I think it's my best yet. So... Sit back, relax—maybe grab a strong drink—and enjoy the rest of the show.

Speed was grinning mischievously as his face faded away, replaced by the film's opening credits. Eric watched warily as the first lines came and went:

Speedy Productions

A film by Timothy Speedle

Starring Eric Delko and Calleigh Duquesne

Eric was itching to pounce on the computer and stop the feed, but he waited a beat too long. The title finally appeared—artistic and professional, and completely Tim:

"The Idiot's Guide to Realizing You're in Love with Your Best Friend"

Wolfe choked on a laugh and ended up coughing for air. I would have liked this Speedle guy, he thought to himself as he wheezed. His poorly disguised entertainment only increased the tension in the room. Horatio had to cover his mouth to hide his own amusement. Calleigh had turned bright red, and Eric looked like he was about to explode.

"Turn it off, Wolfe," he growled.

"No!" Calleigh called. "Don't touch it, Ryan."

Eric turned to look at her in disbelief. "Cal, you can't be serious!"

"I am, Eric," she sighed. "We've already started this, and, let's face it, there's nothing in this film that Ryan and Horatio don't already know."

She sounded resigned to the fact, but also a little relieved to be able to admit it. Eric felt the opposite.

"You don't know that, Calleigh," he said, his voice dipping dangerously low, eyes locked onto his best friend's. "You have no idea what's on this DVD."

Calleigh got the message, and she felt suddenly uncomfortable. She and Eric hadn't talked about the events leading up to Speed's death since they happened. To do so now…it was hard. Maybe I don't want to forget anymore.

Calleigh's breath caught in her chest at that thought. Where the hell did that come from? she asked herself in a panic. She panicked even more when she realized she already knew the answer: it came from the same part of her that wanted to keep watching this video. Her green eyes sought Eric's brown ones once more, and they shared an intense look that conveyed countless unspoken words.

"We can turn it off any time, okay, Eric?"

The tall Cuban man did not miss the hitch in Calleigh's breath or the tiny tremble in her voice as she spoke. Something in his chest roared to life as he began to see that Cal was affected by these old memories just as much as he was.

She hadn't just not forgotten. She still thought about it.

He studied her face for a moment before he gave up trying to resist, uttering "what the hell" under his breath. Ryan, who had paused the movie and shifted to watch the intriguing scene unfold between Eric and Calleigh, turned back around and pressed 'play.' The title screen was quickly vanishing, giving way to another one of Tim's monologues.

Eric, you've given me reason after reason for why you can't be with Calleigh.

Eric groaned. "You've got to be kidding me," he muttered.

And as much as I tell you it's all a load of bunk, you never listen. Perhaps I wasn't being clear enough. Or perhaps you're just that dense. I guess I will have to spell it out for you.

Eric rolled his eyes and Calleigh giggled. He motioned to the screen. "How is this funny, Calleigh?"

Any amusement still left in the room vanished with his frustrated words. Calleigh threw her hands in the air and gave an angry sigh. "What else am I supposed to do, Eric? Cry?" She turned away from him a little to face the screen again, adding quietly, "I've done enough of that already."

Eric's stomach dropped at the hurt in Calleigh's voice. Ryan and Horatio couldn't hear her last comment, and Eric thanked God for small favors. He was slowly realizing that Calleigh wasn't okay. He wasn't okay, and their friendship certainly wasn't. His mind was screaming. We should have talked, we should have taken some time, should have—should have done something! Anything!

Tim Speedle's voice pulled him out of the painful pit into which he was quickly descending.

…assembled a video guidebook of sorts to help you see the light.

Speed's face disappeared and a series of pictures flashed across the screen, beginning slowly and gradually gaining speed until they became a blur. Each picture was unique, and all of them featured Eric and Calleigh. There must have been dozens.

The blur morphed into another title screen: Part One: A New Kind of Top Ten.

Calleigh smiled, and this time Eric smiled with her. Calleigh, Eric, and Tim were constantly playing the 'top ten' game. They'd be relaxing in the break room before their shift, and Speedle would call out, "Top Ten Most Useless Body Parts," or, "Top Ten Ways to Kill a Cat." (Calleigh had lectured him harshly for that one; she loved her cat, Cubano).

At the end of a long day, Eric would groan: "Top Ten Reasons This Case Sucked." One day Calleigh watched Speedle talking to a woman by the reception desk. When he came back with wounded pride and no phone number, she quipped, "Top Ten Ways to Strike Out?" He'd glared at her and stalked off.

Now he sat, alive and well, in front of his friends on a giant television monitor, coming up with yet another list.

I know we decided our last list couldn't be topped, but this one definitely beats the top-ten Horatio one-liners.

Eric and Calleigh had the decency to blush. They cautiously turned their heads to look at their boss, and were relieved to find him grinning. In fact, he laughed out loud. "I'll have to hear that one sometime," he said, eyes twinkling. The two CSIs let out deep breaths.

Speedle continued. I present to you…a drum-roll sounded… The Top Ten Signs Eric Delko is in Love with His Best Friend.

"Don't, Eric," Calleigh murmured with a smile. She looked at him from the corner of her eye and smiled wider when she saw that she was right: Eric was already on his way to shut off the video when she stopped him.

He was truly baffled. How could she stand there smiling at him? Calleigh was okay with this. She's not the one being humiliated right now, Eric complained to himself. After everything they had been through, after the distance that had come between them since Tim's death, and especially now that she was dating another man—Calleigh should not be standing there smiling. She should be upset, or sad, or angry, but not… whatever the hell she was.

Eric bit his tongue and let the movie play. The fact that neither Horatio nor Wolfe were fazed by the contents of this video intensified his growing anger. He felt like a fool in front of his co-workers. Tim had caused enough problems trying to interfere with his life while he still walked the earth, and here he was doing it all over again. Calleigh—Eric just didn't understand how this wasn't bothering her. How can she look at this and not have her heart ripped out of her chest? Maybe she didn't ever care.

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, however, Eric banished it. The tears in his best friend's eyes told him everything he needed to know. Calleigh did care. She cared too much, and that was the problem. That was always their problem.

Number Ten, Speed said, smiling at Eric from the past. You cancel all your weekend plans because she says she might need a ride to the airport on Saturday.

Eric's cheeks flamed as Calleigh whipped her head around to gawk at him. "Eric, you said you were going to the Keys the next weekend!" She couldn't believe he had done that for her. How many chances did he get to spend a weekend on the beach with his college buddies, on somebody else's dime?

"So I lied," he said with a crooked grin and a shrug of his shoulders. A look of confusion crossed Eric's face as he watched three pictures fill the screen: one of him and Jeff Corwin wrestling an alligator in the Everglades; one of Eric, Jeff, and Calleigh covered in mud and grinning at the camera; and one of Calleigh smiling sweetly at wildlife expert, absorbed in conversation and unaware of their audience.

Speed's voice served as a backdrop to the photos. Number Nine: You didn't answer Corwin's calls for a week after he asked Cal out on a date.

"Eric, you didn't!" Calleigh exclaimed disapprovingly. She pinned him with a glare.

Delko put his hands up in defense. "You didn't even know the guy!"

"Isn't that the point of dating? Besides, he's one of your oldest friends! If I can't trust your friends, they shouldn't be your friends."

She's right, he admitted begrudgingly…Eric was saved a real reply by two loud shushes from Horatio and Wolfe. Eric and Calleigh both looked at them incredulously.

"We missed the next one!" Ryan explained earnestly. He moved the mouse and scrolled the video back thirty seconds.

…on a date. Sign Number Eight: You hate half the food in your refrigerator, but you re-stock it regularly just in case Calleigh comes over.

That was true, about the groceries. Cal never said anything about it, but he knew she appreciated the gesture. She did spend an awful lot of time at his condo, and he at hers…so really, it just made sense.

Eric grinned at a picture of him and Calleigh attacking different ends of a massive sub sandwich. Another picture floated to the foreground of the two best friends, standing in Calleigh's kitchen and covered from head to toe in flour. Eric chuckled when he heard her groan; their little food fight took three hours to clean.

Sign Number Seven: Your ears perk up every time you hear a pair of heels coming down the hallway.

"They do not!" Eric said.

Calleigh wasn't sure about that one, but Ryan and Horatio both responded, "Yes, they do." She burst into laughter. She was still laughing as Tim started speaking again.

Number Six: She's the only woman you've ever brought home.

The laughter stopped. Calleigh's eyes studied Eric's face, and she didn't have to ask him if that was true. She could see that it was. A string of ten or twelve pictures came into view, one after another, each filled with tons of dark-haired people and one striking blonde.

In the seven some-odd years she had known Eric Delko, she'd spent six-and-a-half of them visiting his family once every one or two months. Tim used to go to the family get-togethers with her, but now she went alone. It seemed so natural—she never thought about the fact that Eric rarely let others see that part of his life. The time she'd spent with Eric and his family suddenly took on a new meaning.

Number Five: You are more than just "best friends"—Speedle formed his fingers into quotation marks to emphasize his words—when you knock a guy on his ass for grabbing her ass.

"What?" Horatio piped up from his perch to their left. He hadn't heard about that, and it sounded like Delko should be grateful he wasn't reprimanded by the department.

"He had it coming," Calleigh said lightly, winking at Eric. They shared a secret smile but found it difficult to maintain eye contact for too long.

Sign Number Four: You never let Calleigh go first at a crime scene, but when it's the two of us, you're more than willing to let me take the first bullet.

Silence. He was obviously kidding, hinting at Eric's protective streak when it came to CSI's resident ballistics expert. If he only knew, Eric thought as his gut wrenched with pain. If he only knew…

A stubborn tear escaped from Calleigh's lashes, but she swiped it away quickly. Speedle was joking about dying just days before he was killed, and the joke that might once have been funny was now just a harsh reminder that he was gone forever. Watching the rest of the film didn't seem so important anymore.

Horatio said nothing. He pulled a stool over and sat down heavily, feeling the weight of the years on his shoulders. Feeling the loss.

Number Three…

Hearing Speed's voice, seeing him a live again—H could understand completely how Eric had hallucinations about their friend, and he couldn't even blame it on a bullet fragment in his brain.

… Calleigh is the only one who knows what happened the night of your car crash in college. She's the only one that knows why you hate heights, why you carry a St. Christopher's medal in your pocket every day, why the cases with kids bug you the most. She's the first person you call when you need to talk, always.

That was true, even now. Eric met Calleigh's eyes and watched another tear spill onto her cheek. She gave a choked laugh and looked up at the ceiling, wiping away the tear like it was no big deal. But it was a big deal. Eric told her things that no one else on this earth knew. On the monitor above, at least two dozen photographs of Calleigh and Eric danced in and out of the frame, in time with the music—photos of the pair sitting by themselves and talking, chatting as they walked down a beach, holding a conversation in a corner away from everyone else. All of them were the same.

Eric was starting to get a bad feeling about the last two points on the top-ten list—not that he didn't already feel like his privacy was torn to shreds. His entire life was currently laid open for others to view, and he was beyond uncomfortable. Even with Calleigh, because although he knew she knew nearly everything Speedle had said, the two friends never verbalized those things. Ever. That was dangerous territory. But the unsettled feeling did not improve with the second-to-last item on the list (especially since Tim was becoming more adamant with every point he made).

Sign Number Two: You slept outside Calleigh's house for a week after Hank Kerner threatened to kill her, even when we caught him and sent him back to prison.

Yet again, Calleigh found herself looking to Eric for an explanation, brows furrowed in confusion and just a little awe. "Eric, you never said…"

The man met her gaze. "I had to make sure," Eric confessed, ducking his head. "You were already worried enough." He left it at that. Tears filled her eyes and he saw that she understood. That week was terrifying for Calleigh. Not only was her life threatened by a ruthless killer, but she lost one of her closest friends to that same man. On top of everything else, John Hagen wouldn't give her two feet of room to work through it all.

She'd mentioned to Eric that Hagen was invading some of her personal space. That was the start of her best friend's dislike of the detective, and it wasn't unwarranted. She could admit that in retrospect.

While John was in her face, Eric was protecting her all along and she never knew.

She never had to tell Eric when she needed him to back off. Most of the time Calleigh felt like she needed him to be there for her more, because he was the only one who could see straight through her walls. He could shatter them in an instant if he wanted to, but he chose not to out of respect for her. He knew when to give her space, and he knew when to push.

After everything that happened around the time Tim died, Calleigh feared she might lose that connection with her best friend. But Eric was still here, and he still knew how to let her make her own decisions. The only problem was, sometimes she wanted him to make up her mind for her, but she couldn't tell him that.

Eric and Calleigh returned their attention to the video just in time to see Speed's face come back into view.

Finally, the Number One Sign that you are an Idiot—Speed stopped himself and laughed at his own blunder—I mean, the Number One Sign That You're in Love with Your Best Friend…are you ready? Here it comes…

Eric could hear the sarcasm dripping from Speedle's words and dreaded what he was about to say next. He told himself that it couldn't be that bad, but the voice in his head sounded far more confident than the noise of his erratic heartbeat. Speed crossed his arms and fixed the camera with a hard glare that Eric swore he could feel.

If Calleigh was just your best friend, one night of making love to her would be enough. But it's not, is it?

Wolfe was damn grateful he hadn't fallen out of his chair. Horatio—omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient Horatio—found himself in much the same position. Apparently he really didn't know everything that went on in his lab.

Eric didn't have time to be shocked. He had no time to swear he would kill Tim Speedle if he wasn't already dead. There was no time to check and make sure Calleigh was okay. Because everything went to hell in a matter of seconds.

The words were barely out of Speedle's mouth when a new image took over the frame. It was another video, shot across a loud bar. In the middle of the scene were none other than Eric and Calleigh, sitting in a corner booth that, until two minutes ago, had held three people. The music playing in the bar blended perfectly into the background music of Tim's so-called documentary; it was the same song, and he had arranged the measures to transition perfectly from one scene to the next, to carry them from one reality to another on one note.

Except for the sounds from the video, the room was dead silent, so when Eric uttered a soft 'shit,' it went off like a cannon in the still air.

Calleigh was mortified. There was no taking this back. "Eric…" she drew out his name fearfully as she took in the scene at the bar, heard the music. She knew what happened next, and so did Eric.

They lunged at the same time. Wolfe was shoved aside roughly as Calleigh made a mad grab for the mouse. Delko reached for the keyboard and desperately hit the 'escape' button. Nothing happened.

He hit the button again and again. Calleigh clicked all over the screen. Nothing. "Wolfe! Stop this thing, now!" Eric almost bellowed.

Ryan wasn't listening. It was too late anyway. Up on the lab's oversized LCD monitor, blazing for all the world to see, the man and woman at the center of the screen had moved impossibly closer. They leaned in, and they kissed.

They kissed, and…kept kissing.

Calleigh heard Eric cursing under his breath again and again. She looked up at the screen and wished she could be anywhere but here right now. She should have listened to Eric.

"Wolfe!" Delko was yelling again. "For Christ's sake," he growled when he realized Ryan was a lost cause, wide eyes glued to the monitor and mouth gaping. Coming around the desk, Eric just started unplugging every cord he could find. When he finally heard the music stop, he knew he'd found the right one.

If only the hits had stopped with the video feed…

When Delko straightened up behind the lab table, he saw four people staring back at him with various degrees of shock and embarrassment written on their faces. Ryan and Calleigh stood to his immediate left and right across the desk. Horatio sat numbly on a stool to Eric's right, halfway between the table and the door.

And, just inside that door, hovering silently in the back as everyone watched the screen in front of them, stood a very resigned Jake Berkeley.