His eyes scanned her face, finally feeling free to take her in.

"What is it?" She asked, seeing the emotion behind his eyes. She couldn't quite read him.

"I have something… for you…" He was having a hard time with his words again. Nervous about how she'd receive his gesture. Her eyes followed him as he stood and walked across the room to retrieve his duffle. He pulled a small brown paper wrapped box from the bag.

He placed it in front of her. A small smile pulled at her lips as she slowly ran her fingers over the box before opening it. Her finger pads felt the food of the frame before she saw it. She lifted a the small shadowbox out to see the small bee. Her brows scrunched momentarily before the light of recognition replaced her confused look. The bee's stinger was missing. Then, she noticed the date scrawled underneath in Grissom's best penmanship.

"Oh, Gil." She looked up at him, seeing he was watching her with baited breath. "Gil." A sad, quivering smile took her by surprise and her voice betrayed her. The bumble bee that had stung her, perfectly preserved and pinned to the center of the frame, the date he asked her to marry him in script below.

"I didn't know, you know, if uh—if you still…" He swallowed, finding himself fighting back emotion. He gave himself a moment to compose himself a bit then continued, "But I had completed this the day before you left… and well, I still wanted you to have it."

She pulled herself up onto her knees and moved toward him as he stood by the foot of the bed. Her soft palms touched his face and stroked his neck to find the back of his head.

"I'm so moved." She finally spoke, then, leaned in and kissed his lips lightly. "I love it."

"Yeah?" The surprise in his voice saddened her. She hated the idea that he ever second guessed her commitment to him.

"It's beautiful, Gil." She kept using his first name in hopes it may repair the fear of intimacy she suddenly saw back in his eyes. Something she hadn't seen since they first got together. She touched he ring hanging from her necklace and looked deeply into his eyes, "I love you." She was getting choked up a bit, "More every day."

He brushed her hair out of her face and behind her ear. His fingertips lingering on her skin, feeling her warmth. His lips took hers in a sudden haste of need. He'd missed everything about her over the past several months. Her smile, her voice, her genuineness, intellect, laugh, taste, smell. Her love. He became acutely aware of the beating of his heart.

He kissed her lips, her cheek, her ear, her neck. Trailing along her collar bone until he felt her vocal chords vibrating against him. He looked deeply into her eyes now, foreheads mere centimeters apart. He placed a hand on the side of her face, holding it there for a moment.

"Sara." He whispered, her eyes flickered up to his, "Sara, I have missed you so much." The words danced off his tongue and kissed her ear. She wrapped her arms around him.

Just as he was settling into the joy of being in her presence again, it was time to go. He turned around and gave her a small smile and wave before he disappeared into the terminal. His heart felt even heavier now. Reminding him of just how deeply his feelings for her ran. And how helpless he felt now as he left her behind to return to a life they once shared together. He pressed his lips together, trying to hang onto the feeling of her's.

When he got up the nerve to ask her when she was coming back, she simple shook her head and gave a small, then a genuine shrug. And that moment was the final unraveling thread for him. He finally had to concede, this was his new normal. He was leaving his heart in San Fransisco with no known time to retrieve it again.

October 2008

"Sara!" Greg exclaimed as she walked into the coffee shop.

"Greggo!" She smiled widely and embraced him in a familiar hug. "It is so good to see you." She spoke while taking up the seat opposite him. "I was surprised to get your call." She admitted.

"You know that book I was working on? About Las Vegas' history?" She nodded, "Well, I've been shopping it around and there's a publisher here in San Fransisco that took a bite." He took in the excitement on her face, the happiness she displayed for him. "You seem good."

She smiled softly in a bashful way, "I feel good." She nodded.

"What's so much better about California?"

"It's not California." She began, trying to find the right words to describe this shift that has happened for her. "It's working during the day and sleeping at night. Reconnecting with my roots." And then, with a head tilt that could only read as realism, she shrugged, "It's not being around death and violence."

He nodded in understanding, "You can't do that in Vegas?" He looked down at his coffee for a moment. "It's not the same without you." He spoke with a sudden tonal shift.

"I wish I could, really." She thought about how badly she wished she could return to her life with Grissom. But she knew. She knew it would be her unraveling. She could feel it in her bones. "But I haven't found a way."

"Warrick's been a bit of a loose canon lately." He changed the subject quickly, "He's blaming it on the divorce and your absence."

"I was pretty good at keeping him in line. Is he going to be okay?"

"Oh, I'm sure. You know how he gets. A little hot headed and then steam off."

"I know the feeling." She raised her brows, self-aware of her own short fuse. "How's uh… How's Grissom doing?" She paused for a moment, the emotion thickly laced her voice, yearning for the truth, "Really."

"I think he's okay." He gave a sad smile and nodded his head a bit, "You know how he gets? Hard to read sometimes. He's been in his office a lot lately."

"And with the bees?"

"The bees? Oh that experiment he had in the lot?" Greg was surprised as Sara's confusion, "No, no. He—uh—he passed that off to a cadet on Days that showed interest."

"Oh." He'd never mentioned as much to her. Not even in their letters. "When was this?"

"You didn't know?" He spoke softly, "Sorry—I just figured… I think last time he was out there was a week or two after you left."

She nodded, her eyes welling slightly. But she fought back the emotion before a tear could fall. She didn't much care that he neglected to tell her. But her heart broke at the idea of Grissom giving up the entomological experiment that he had been new levels of obsessive over when it had began. She loved how charged he seemed with the bees. How light and happy his features were. How in his element he clearly was. And the sunlight on his face, illuminating his boyish grin and bright blue eyes.

Her absence caused him to retreat. As Greg could confirm, he'd become an older version of himself. The version of himself that threw himself solely into his work. Who scrunched his views into more black and white and binary constraints. Who could be short with the team, especially Warrick lately. He'd grown frustrated with his favorite CSI's sloppiness. Two men, both estranged in a sense from their lovers, handling the situation in drastically different ways. And Grissom could not understand the emotional display Warrick so easily slipped into at the slightest inconveniences.

"He's not too bad. I promise." Greg tried to reassure her. "Really." He emphasized.

"Okay." She softened a touch, but the feeling lingered on. She couldn't shake the image of his face, heavy with somber, from her mind.

Sara stepped out of the shower and glanced at the clock. She smiled as she pulled out her phone, realizing Grissom was probably just getting off shift now. She gave him a ring, but was sent to voicemail. A text came in just a moment later:

Grabbing breakfast with the team. I'll call you when I'm home. GG

She was happy to see the text. She knew how easily he could say no to those outings with the team, to retreat to his loner sensibilities. But being social with the team could bring him to life sometimes. And she enjoyed the idea of him having breakfast with the team, enjoying their company.

Two hours came and went and Sara began to wonder if he'd fallen asleep before having a chance to call her. Just as she was considering this her phone rang.

"That must have been one heck of a breakfast." Sara joked easily as she answered the phone.

"Sara…"

"Greg?" She looked at her phone, realizing she had simply assumed it would be Grissom. "Everything okay?"

"No, It's Warrick. He's…" She could hear his voice cracking as he tried to manage the words, "He's gone, Sara. He was shot, and he didn't make it."

"Where are you?"

"I just landed in Vegas and got Catherine's call…"

She took a seat to steady herself, "What happened?"

"I guess the team got breakfast after shift, after Warrick was cleared… and afterward, after he left the diner, he was shot in an alleyway in his parked car."

"My god." Sara brought her hand to her face. "Okay, I'll take the next flight out."

Grissom walked through the lab halls. Warrick's blood was still caked on his face, his hands, his shirt and pants. He felt so numb. Like the world was spinning around him but he was stuck in place. Eyes watched as he moved through the halls, colleagues coming together, holding each other.

As he turned the corner he saw Greg walking toward him. His face mimicked the weight of the lab, somber and heavy. They made eye contact.

"I came straight from the airport…. I, uh, I need to do something." His voice was small and cracking and Grissom could see that he'd been crying. His eyes red and glazed.

"You could, um, pick up Warrick's clothing from the coroner." He offered. His voice was soft and even.

"Okay." Greg nodded and watched as Grissom continued to walk down the hall to Hodges' lab.

Grissom stepped into Hodges' lab without a word. Hodges held out a large paper bag and helped Grissom place his clothing inside. Hodges guided him with delicate tact as he watched him strip down.

"Here." Hodges spoke softly, extending fresh clothing to Grissom. "Black shirt, medium and your department windbreaker."

"Thank you." Grissom's voice continued to be soft and monotone. He couldn't process what was happening yet. His thoughts, his feelings, Everything just felt wrong. He felt lost and cold. Grissom walked out of Hodge's lab and down the hall back to his office. He stopped abruptly in the threshold. There she stood, leaning against his desk.

Her face was soft and sad but still a radiant of welcome light. She pushed off the desk and took a tentative step toward him. His feet took him to her with increasingly quickening stride. There eyes locked before finally embracing. Her warmth engulfed every fiber of his being and for the first time since he held Warrick's lifeless body, he let himself cry.

She stroked his neck and squeezed him into a tighter embrace. Letting him feel safe enough to unfold and unravel. "I got the first flight out." She spoke lightly into his ear. He closed his eyes tightly, letting himself feel comforted by her presence, her hold, her scent. His chest heaved slowly against hers.

"Thank you." He finally spoke. His voice was so small it was almost inaudible. He tightened his arms around her, his hands gripping at her jacket.

They finally let go of each other. "I didn't call, I couldn't—"

"It's okay." She reassured him, her hand gently placed on his heart, "Greg called."

He nodded in understanding. There was a long silence between them now. They just stood there, looking at one another, taking in the reality of the moment they found themselves in. "He didn't want to go, Sara." He finally spoke absently.

She took his hand and guided him to the two chairs at his desk. "Tell me." She held onto his hand as they sat down, not able to let go of the contact.

"I was holding him." He looked back at her now, "God, I could feel his life. I could feel the life slipping from him. I felt that, if I could hold him tight enough, that he would be okay."

"You know there is no where in the world he would have rather been in the end." She paused to push back the tears threatening to fall, "He loved you."

"Yeah…" He whispered, his eyes filled with sadness, "I loved him."

"I spoke with him two days ago."

"You did?" The confusion mingled with the sadness that seemed permanently placed on his face now.

"When he was arrested. He called me." She looked down at her hands for a moment, "He was terrified that he'd disappointed you. He, uh, he maintained his innocence and said that the worst thing that could happen to him, wouldn't be to go to jail for a crime he didn't commit, but to let you down. You were father to him, Gil. He loved you like a father."

Grissom let a few tears fall. He smiled sadly, "He couldn't disappoint me."

"That's what I told him." She squeezed his hand.

"Sara?" The pair looked toward the door to see Catherine entering his office. Sara stood and embraced Catherine.

"I am so sorry."

Greg entered the office soon thereafter, "Twice in one week, hu?" He attempted levity but his voice betrayed him easily. After seeing some confusion on Catherine's face he added, "We were together yesterday… in San Fransisco."

"It's so good we can all be together." Catherine squeezed Sara's shoulder lightly. Nick had joined them now as well, embracing Sara with a bear hug.

"Look, maybe I can pick up some slack. I—I know I can't work the case but, I can make some of the arrangement?"

"Thank you." Grissom spoke, accepting her help.

"I'll give you a hand." Greg chimed in.

Greg and Sara drove to Warrick's apartment in near silence. She didn't even fight him to be the one to drive.

"When did he move?" Sara asked as they pulled up to an apartment complex.

"When he and Tina split up." Greg responded.

Sara then remembered how that split up took place just after Sara was abducted. Warrick and Tina had married just after Nick was abducted. Nick's abduction had sparked a cascading air of urgency for love. Both Warrick and Grissom took a step they never thought they would take that night. It shook them awake to the true fragility of life, and how precious each day really is. Sara's abduction seemed to take the pair in opposite directions. While it had torn Grissom apart, it also cemented for himself just how much she meant to him, how desperately he was willing to do whatever it took to find her alive. It awoken him to the greatest depths of his love for her, to the point he'd proposed.

Whereas Warrick's experience in the aftermath of Sara's abduction took an opposite route. He was unhappy with Tina. He had been for a while. And this near death experience for one of his closest friends pushed him to end things with her. Not wanting to spend his precious days bickering with someone he didn't trust anymore.

"Looks like he never really settled in." Greg observed as he walked past the half opened packing boxes.

They made their way to his bedroom and pulled a suit and tie for the funeral.

"Could you grab a pair of dress socks?" Greg asked Sara, who was standing next to the dresser. She opened one drawer, then a second to find the socks.

She picked up a pair of dress socks along with a DVD. It's location at the bottom of a sock drawer pulled her suspicion. She shot a glance to Greg and posed it into the TV sitting on that same dresser. The tape began to play immediately.

"This is a court produced testimony to evaluate the social, economical and psychological fitness for custody of your son. Please state your name for the record."

"Warick Brown."

"Warrick has a child?" Greg looked over at Sara with surprise.

"A son…" She she spoke blankly.

As the tape played on, the evaluator asked a series of questions. It was just a few minutes into the tape when when the following was spoke:

"You grew up without a father, what makes you think you know what a father should be?"

"That's true. But I've been lucky enough to know a great father, a great man. Fair and honest. Someone who has taught me how to be inspired and to inspire other. I've known him for nearly two decades, and I feel so lucky, to have benefited in the ways I have, from his fatherly presence in my life."

"Sounds like a special relationship. Who is this person?"

"His name is Gil Grissom, he's been by supervisor for 11 years now."

"Gil." She walked into his office with the tape in hand, "I'd like you to see this."

He peered up at her over his reading glasses, unsure if he was in the mood for anything outside of the case right now.

She smiled sadly and gestured her head to his reading nook where the TV was. He stood and followed her, watching as she placed the DVD into the player and stood behind him, her hands gently resting on his shoulders. She felt empowered to share in such intimacy within the confines of the lab in a way she never had before. People knew and she wasn't employed here anymore. He wasn't her supervisor. And in the wake of Warrick's tragedy, she didn't even second guess it.

And he relished every moment of it. Each interaction felt like the smallest glimmer of normalcy back in his life, to a time when Warrick was still alive. His shoulders melted under his touch as the video played.

"I wanted you to hear it from him."

Grissom placed his hand on her's and squeezed. "What happened with this case?"

"He was granted joint custody." She smiled sadly. "He was supposed to meet him next week."

Grissom ran his hand through his hair then over his mouth. Processing everything he just learned. "Has anyone called Tina?"

Sara nodded, "I went over there today. I, uh, I…" Tears began to fall, Grissom stood to face her, wiping a tear with his thumb as it slowly trailed down her cheek, his other fingers resting just below her ear.

"What is it?" He asked softly, his blue eyes glistening with his own unfallen emotion.

"I met Eli… Warrick's son."

Grissom pulled Sara into his arms at her words, hugging her tightly against him. And after a moment she added, "He has his eyes."