Jackson, Greta and little Finn are my original characters, but I don't own CSI.

Happy birthday Louise Lombard!

Spoilers for the first two seasons of CSI: Vegas. And I'm keeping Nick and everyone in Vegas.

I thought about writing another Jackson and Greta story with Brass or maybe one with little Finn (I still might). Then it occurred to me how much I enjoyed writing my Coffee Break stories with Brass and Sofia. So I thought I would revisit them and catch up with my other characters and see how they are now. As I said, spoilers ahead for the first two seasons of CSI: Vegas. Please read and review!

Jim Brass listened to the TV news, wishing he could see the pictures to go with the commentary. He did miss working with the CSI team - in many ways, they were his family. He'd come to terms with losing his eyesight, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt knowing that he was going blind.

He heard rustling in his kitchen and wondered what his caretaker Marta was making for dinner. For someone who was so independent most of his life, he thought he'd hate being fussed over. But Marta was a kind woman who was good to him and his CSI family when they came to visit.

"Marta!" Jim called from his spot on the couch. "Everything okay?"

He narrowed his brow when he was greeted with silence. Before he could say anything else, he heard footsteps approaching. Brass raised an eyebrow. He expected to smell Marta's favorite rose-scented lotion, but this was different. It smelled like a subtle vanilla. Before he could say anything, a familiar voice broke his thoughts.

"I thought I'd give Marta the night off."

Jim laughed softly. "Sofia, hey."

Sofia Curtis smiled warmly at her dear friend. "Hi."

"To what do I owe this visit?" Jim asked. He reached out and Sofia gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Well," Sofia said with a sigh. "Work has been crazy. But I wanted to touch base." She sat down beside Jim on the couch.

Jim chuckled softly as he reached for his plate. "Well, I'm glad you're here."

"Me too," Sofia said honestly. She looked at the food. "Marta takes good care of you."

Jim smiled as he inhaled the food. "Yeah. And she's been helping Eli and Jackson, too."

"Oh?" Sofia knew Jim loved helping out with Warrick and Greg's sons.

"Yeah," Jim said as he took a bite of the stew Marta had prepared. "Eli still comes over every week." He chuckled softly. "Warrick would be so proud of him."

"I'll bet," Sofia said with a warm smile. She and Jim missed their colleague.

"Does he still hang out with Nick?" Sofia asked.

"Oh, yeah," Jim said with a soft laugh. "Eli says he likes to watch football with Nick and Finn."

"Aw," Sofia said. She could just see Nick and his son with Eli.

Jim smiled thoughtfully. "Eli's a great big brother to Finn. I guess it's because they both lost..." Jim looked down as he thought of losing Warrick years ago and Julie after Finn was born.

Sofia pursed her lips. "Nick is doing well?"

"Oh, yeah," Jim said as he raised his head. "You know, he always treated the team like family. I know it hurt him years ago to see Tina gone downhill."

"Yeah," Sofia said as she took a sip of water. "I always loved how Nick and Warrick were so close. When Warrick died..."

"Nick was a little lost," Jim said as Sofia trailed off. "But Eli is doing great."

"Yeah?"

Jim nodded. "Yeah. He always wants to know about his father. And, yeah, Tina had a rough time. But she's turned her life around. Even babysits Finn every now and then."

Sofia smiled. "That's great. I know Jackson still talks to Eli all the time."

Jim raised his eyebrows. "Yeah?"

"I had lunch with Morgan the other day," Sofia said as she took a bite of food. "He's still into science and bugs. And Greta is Morgan all over again. She says Greta's always asking questions about science and wanting to know about her family. And Greg and Nick are great supervisors."

Jim couldn't help but chuckle. "Who would have thought those two would be in charge of grave, huh?"

Sofia loved seeing Jim smile. "Yeah. Greg said Maxine and her team are doing well..."

"But nothing beats the original?" Jim asked with a raised eyebrow. When he heard Sofia softly laugh, he added, "That's what I told Sara last year."

"How are they, by the way?"

"They're good," Jim said as he finished his meal. "You gotta admit Grissom is in his element teaching the next generation. And he says Jackson and Finn want to know all about science." As Sofia cleared the dishes away, Jim said, "You know I talked to Nick a few weeks ago after his father passed away? He said Finn's doing okay. He said that Finn said his grandfather is hanging out with his mom."

Sofia smiled sadly. "Finn seems like a smart guy."

"Yeah," Jim said. "And Nick is a great dad. So is Greg." He wondered what Sofia was doing as he heard dishes clattering.

"Sounds like they do a good job helping you," Sofia said with a warm smile as she put the dishes in the sink.

Jim chuckled. "Yeah. You know after everything...we really are a family."

"I know," Sofia said. She smiled thoughtfully as she remembered when she first joined the team. "All of us have been through a lot together."

"Yeah." Jim looked down.

After a few moments of silence, Sofia asked, "Heard anything?"

Knowing what she was talking about, Jim ran a hand across his face. "Oh...I think she knows she hurt herself more than she hurt me."

Sofia still remembered when she first heard that Jim's estranged daughter Ellie was behind a series of murders and nearly killed Morgan. Her heart broke for her dear friend.

"I think she's accepting the fact that she'll never get out of prison. In a weird way..." Jim glanced to the window. "I finally know where she is."

Sofia walked to the couch and sat next to the man she loved and respected. "Jim, you did everything in your power to help her. More! She is the one who made her choices. You are not responsible for what she did."

Jim fought back tears. "Sara said the same thing when Ellie tried to kill herself. I know I'm not to blame. Morgan even told me she doesn't blame me. I don't know, I guess... I guess when one family failed me..."

Sofia gently rubbed Jim's shoulder. "Your other family was there."

Jim looked at Sofia, barely able to tell the features of her face. "Yeah." He squeezed her hand. "Thank you for being here."

"I always will be," Sofia said honestly. She glanced to the kitchen.

As he was about to ask what she was doing, a familiar smell caught Jim's attention. He smiled. "You made coffee?"

"I did," Sofia said as she stood. "If I remember, you take one sugar?"

Jim laughed and let go of her hand. "Good memory."

Sofia smiled and went to get her and Jim's coffee. "Do you mind if I stay?" She asked as she prepared the coffee.

"I was hoping you would," Jim said. He smiled as he heard Sofia's footsteps and smelled the fresh coffee. Sofia guided Jim's hand to the cup.

As Jim gratefully inhaled the steaming beverage, he smiled at the woman who'd come to mean so much to him. "Why are we always having great conversations with coffee?"

Sofia laughed softly. "It's just what we do."

The End