Stalemate in a Sandbox

Rating: NC-17
Pairing: Grissom/Sara
Category: Romance/angstyness...or is it angstiness? Know what? Neither of them are real words.
Archive: Please ask first I might say yes.
Disclaimer: I own the park, I created it in my head.

Author's Note: SQUEEE!!!! Yayness! Kicking this one out for GeekLoveFan, so fun to talk to. Barenaked Ladies rock! (I think I've begun to culture another die-hard fan!) ALSO! To Katherine, who, while drunk last night, pointed out how trippy it is to watch them :::ZOOM::: in on evidence. Yeah, never get drunk and watch CSI. We were calling Grissom GRISHAM and then started talking about John Grisham... and it all went to hell.

This is what I like to call a bridge chapter. It's boring, but you have to read it... because I said so.

Summary: She reached out and traced random designs in the grainy surface, wiping them away when her arm had reached its extent, and starting over.

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Chapter 12

"Breakfast?" Nick posed the question in the locker room as Catherine was pulling out her jacket. She turned her attention to him and nodded.

"Sure. Someone's gotta go tell the others. I'll meet you guys there in twenty." Pulling her blonde hair out of her collar, she grabbed her bag and slammed the metal door to her locker, leaving hurriedly.

Warrick nodded and went off in search of the others. He caught up with Greg and Sara going over a DNA printout.

"We're doin' breakfast, you guys game?" He threw himself into the room, startling Greg. Sara's head shot up quickly, also taken off guard by Warrick's entrance.

"Uh, yeah, sure." Sara handed the printout back to Greg, who placed it on the table and nodded at Warrick.

"I'll go tell Grissom and Brass." Warrick said, slapped the doorjamb and was gone.

"So, now I'm being included in the group outings?" Greg pondered aloud, excited.

"Looks like it rookie." Sara said, punching him in the arm before she left. Greg grinned broadly and began tidying up his workspace in preparation for breakfast.

Sara made her way quickly to the locker room. She tossed her lab coat in the laundry bin and retrieved her things from her locker. She checked her hair quickly in the mirror, smoothed it out with her hands, applied some chap stick and left the locker room. On her way out, she quickly stopped by Grissom's office.

"You comin'?" She asked. Grissom had his head in a file, reading intently. He held up his hand, indicating to her to give him a moment, and the looked up at her. "Yeah. You need a ride?"

"Oh, no, no. Are you coming to my place after or...?"

Grissom smiled just slightly, got up from his seat and ushered her into his office quickly. Her head bobbed around, confused at his actions. She was about to question him when he shut the door and pressed her against it. Sara's eyes widened as his lips dropped to her neck. "It's been two and a half weeks. I can't take this."

Her lips broke out in a smile at his unbridled lust. "I know, I know. We've been busy, but... we. Have. To. Go. Now." She laughed as she pushed her off of him. He pouted, straightened out his glasses.

"Damn you woman. Look at me, unhinged." He glared at her mockingly, pursing his lips. "Uncontrolled. Unhinged." He growled at her. Sara threw her hair over her shoulder, blew him a kiss comically and opened the door.

"See you in a bit." And then she was gone.

Catherine was the last to arrive at the diner, with the exception of Brass who told Warrick that he'd be extremely late. She arrived at the table to a smiling, laughing bunch. It was nice to have the old group back, laughing and carefree, truly acting like a team.

"We ordered your usual." Warrick told Cath, sliding over in the booth so that she could sit next to him. They talked animatedly for a few moments. Catherine had been about to discuss the lab's Christmas event when their orders came up and Nick went to retrieve them. Sara got up to help him.

Nick placed a plate of fruit in front of his supervisor. Grissom glanced at it non-committally.

"Sara and I are in a relationship." Grissom stated, shielding himself from any blow he might receive by taking along swig of his coffee.

"I thought you said no grand declarations!" Sara piped up, her cheeks red with embarrassment and anger. Grissom shrugged and took a stab of strawberry. "I was just getting good at the...with the smiling and the... not being in a relationship with you, like." She grumbled, no longer hungry for the toast she had been holding.

"That was a declaration?" Catherine huffed, throwing her blonde hair out of her face, stealing a bit of pancakes from Warrick's plate. He didn't seem to notice.

"For him it was." Warrick said, taking a bite of his toast. He swallowed, allowing the information to process. "Wait, what the hell?" Warrick's remaining toast fell to his plate.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What just happened here?" Nick shook his head as if there were something caught in it. Greg just sat there, mouth wide with shock.

"Raise your hand if you're surprised." Catherine said dryly, eating her toast, not bothering to take part in the conversation. She was sure that Greg would have raised his hand had he not been paralyzed.

"Hell yes I'm surprised!" Nick exclaimed, nearly knocking coffee all over himself and Sara in the process. He steadied his coffee mug and then looked over at Sara, who had her head down, attempting to stifle a grin. "When did this happen?"

Grissom looked to Sara, wondering who was going to field the question. Sara was still attempting not to smile. "Three, uh, three weeks. Ago, three weeks ago." Grissom finally stopped fidgeting and looked at the group before him.

Sara's grin overtook her, and she began to laugh. "What?" Warrick asked, still in a state of shock. Sara laughed even harder and pointed to Greg, who still sat paralyzed, his mouth still hanging open.

Grissom almost laughed but contained it and straightened up in his seat. "I thought it would be... prudent... to tell the team before...well... I just thought it would be prudent." He finished, very businesslike.

"Riiiiiight." Nick drawled, his mind playing catch up. "So how serious is this? I mean did Sara have to force herself upon you or what? She can be very convincing when she wants to be." Sara glared at him, but waited for Grissom to speak. He was the one who brought up the subject, he would be the one to explain it to their friends.

The older man cleared his throat, and took another sip of coffee. Catherine was now eyeing him intently, anticipating how he would describe he and Sara's relationship to their friends. Grissom looked to Sara, who raised her eyebrow, also curious as to how he'd describe their predicament.

"I, I am very much..." Grissom licked his lips and wiped an imaginary smudge off of the side of his coffee mug. "I'm very much in love with our Sara Sidle." His stomach lurched violently, having made his confession. He heaved a large sigh and sat back in the booth, not caring to notice any of his teammates expressions.

Sara, who wasn't expecting a declaration of such epic emotions, stared at him in unabashed shock. Her eyes blinked rapidly, and she shook her head to make sure that she heard him correctly.

"Well. Well..." Warrick said, unsure that he could find words to accurately pinpoint what he wanted to say.

"I'd like to offer my congratulations Gil." Catherine said, quite impressed with the way he had handled the situation. "And say that... I'm very happy for you."

"Ditto." Nick said, sticking out his hand, shaking Gil's heartily. He turned his attention to Sara. "And you! I can't believe you kept this from me!" He ribbed her good-naturedly. "Can't believe this. You actually love this guy?" Nick said to her in a mock whisper. Jostling her in the ribs.

Sara ducked her head, just a bit, her hair falling into her eyes. The table stared, waiting for her answer. She picked her head up and smiled with half of her lips. "Yeah, I do." Sara said rather quietly. Nick smiled, broadly. Grissom reached across the table and grabbed her hand, squeezing her hand hard.

"Little sis is all grown up!" Nick cried, wiping invisible tears from the corner of his eyes. Warrick grinned at him and laughed.

"Don't encourage him." Sara admonished.

Grissom grinned, throwing everyone off. He looked at Sara, closed his eyes, and his grin grew wider.

"Yeah boss, congratulations." Greg chose that moment to snap out of his paralysis and smile, also shaking Grissom's hand.

"What, I don't get any?" Sara asked.

"Oh, yeah. Congratulations Sara, and thank you for relieving us of brooding Grissom. I think the whole night shift will thank you for that." Cath said, patting the other woman on the back good-naturedly.

"And I take it this is just an... us thing." Greg said, eyeing Grissom wearily. "As in, not a topic for discussion... aside from you know, amongst ourselves." Greg smiled lewdly, and was astonished when Grissom threw him a ghost of a smile.

"Correct." Grissom replied easily.

"Wow, man, what a way to initiate me into the gang." Greg finished, returning to his burnt home fries with renewed vigor.

Just then, an out-of-breath Brass walked briskly up to the table. "Hey, whad'I miss?"

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