Chapter 1 - Impromptu

A/N: Happy New Year everyone! This is an epic collaboration between myself, Windbound and Zygon24. It starts right after immortality and will go all the way up to CSI Vegas, detailing what we didn't see in between. There will be some twists later on to portray what the writers had wanted to show in CSI Vegas but could not due to COVID regulations at the time of filming. We hope you enjoy it and please drop us a line to let us know what you think.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

She should have been taking her first sip of watered-down coffee as lab supervisor, her glimmering badge tucked safely in the front pocket of her jacket. She should have been back in Vegas in her newly appointed office, signing off on the last of the Lady Heather kamikaze bombing case paperwork and playing cupid with Greg's evident crush on Morgan.

She had planned their goodbye, almost rehearsed it. Quick and brief; a clean snap as she walked away, a simple "bye Gil" to conceal a scarred heart. For years she'd suffered, first in her unrelenting and unrequited pursuit of him, then in the constant pit in her stomach in the time following their divorce. Those dreaded papers she'd received years prior in the mail had left her feeling worse than that same morning's eviscerated corpse. Sara had refused to suffer again, refused to let him back into her heart- because once she did, she knew she'd never let him go. So she had walked away from him before he could shatter her resolve with the pleading sadness behind his eyes.

But that facade crumbled when Lindsey pushed her to watch Heather's interrogation tape, and fifteen years of emotions had barrelled into her at his recorded words.

And so there she stood on the creaky planks of the San Diego docks, salty wind whipping back her curls and seagulls squawking as the evening sun reflected off her sunglasses. She pulled at the strap of her near-empty bag and watched from afar as Grissom tossed a buoy off the side of his board. Her shades came off and unshed tears welled in her eyes at the sight of him while she shakily walked down the pier.

With every step, a warmth spread through her being, a warmth she'd missed night after night and one she loved so very dearly. Grissom glanced up as he turned around and stopped, his feature frozen in disbelief. If Sara wasn't so wrapped up in the warmth only he could make her feel, she might have laughed at his deer-in-headlights expression. Instead her quivering lip curved into a smile and she watched his face shift and his gaze soften.

Her chest tightened when she reached the edge of the boat and met his eyes. In an instant, any doubts or anxiety that had consumed her on her short flight there disappeared and she knew Catherine had been right. Sara had always been in love with Gil Grissom, that had never changed nor would it ever. And as his gaze mirrored hers, she knew he had never stopped loving her either.

She wordlessly answered his silent question and he held out a hand to help her aboard. His hands didn't leave her waist as her feet hit the wooden deck, nor did hers leave his shoulders, rubbing them affectionately as if to make sure he was real. Her heart pounded in her chest and she fought off tears, cupping his scruffy cheek as she had done countless times before. He bit his lip and she almost sobbed at his sad smile, a chapped smile that held so much hope, yet so much sorrow for the time they had lost.

And because she couldn't bear to be so far from him, she pulled him to her. One hand slipped to his neck and the other locked around his back, tightening as if she were afraid he would slip away. She felt Grissom's arms around her own back and melted into him. Her eyes shut as they lost themselves in each other, silently saying all the words they never could and all of those they wished they had. Every missed call, every tear spilt, every night they woke in a cold sweat to an empty bed flooded them and Sara gripped him tighter as he did the same, never wanting to let go. It seemed unfathomable to her now that she had ever chosen to leave his arms, leave the warmth that they gave her, leave this man that she loved with a fire and a passion she never would have thought possible. As he buried his face in her neck, she chose to stay. This was where she belonged, this was home. He was here and she was with him. Her Grissom.

Only when she felt his grip loosen and his palms draw slow circles on her back did Sara break the embrace.

"I'm here." She smiled.

"I see that." The same sad smile still shaped his features despite his amused tone, but a boyish twinkle glinted in his eye.

"I want to show you something." He added.

Sara frowned at his unexpected statement. Grissom only glimpsed at the sky and squeezed her hands.

"Just let me anchor up, I'll only be a minute."

He quickly walked to the edge of the boat, finishing off what he had started when she'd first got to the docks. She couldn't help but break into a lopsided grin at his excitement as he moved about, efficiently going through a mental checklist as he checked ropes and rigs, occasionally glancing at his wristwatch.

"All done," Grissom announced, brushing off his hands, "you ready to go?"

Sara caught the nervosity in his question, he wanted to be sure this was what she wanted. She nodded softly, there was no longer any doubt in her mind.

His once sad smile now turned positively gleeful, Grissom offered her his hand again and led her atop the Ishmael's helm. The view took Sara's breath away. The brilliant orange hues of the setting sun shone across the still blue ocean, split only by the white stone groyne extending towards the horizon. A small flock of seagulls flew by, their silhouettes against the burning sky creating a postcard-worthy picture. It felt almost surreal to Sara, dream-like, though she felt the man by her side contributed to that effect. She fought the urge to pinch herself as she turned to him.

"Gil… It's beautiful."

"The first sunset I saw on this boat… All I could think of is how much you would have loved it." His voice cracked as he tucked a curl behind her ear.

Sara's hands locked at the nape of his neck as she leaned into him for a kiss, throwing kindling to the fire that raged inside both of them. It was soft, and gentle and made salty from a tear neither knew who had cried. It was perfect.

She pulled away and leaned into him, hugging his arm, as he checked a couple dials before pulling the boat out of the Berth.

As they sailed off towards the setting sun, Sara rested her head on Grissom's shoulder, closing her eyes and inhaling the salty air once more as droplets of sea spray spattered her side. This wasn't supposed to happen but she was so glad it had, because she was by his side and come what may, she always would be.