Title: Coping

Romance

Rated: PG for now

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI, or any of its characters.

PLEASE… R&R!

“Just what do you think you are doing?”, asked Sara really pissed.

“I’m putting this in the fridge?”, replied calmly Grissom.

“Oh no you are not! Griss, you can’t keep storing your experiments in this fridge. Nicky was complaining earlier about his sandwich tasting like rotten meat” she shouted. God, he made her lose her temper. They weren’t being very amiable these last months, and things between them were getting worst by the minute.

“You’ll have to store it in your office fridge”.

“Look Sara, there is no room in it, and it is important that I monitor this experiment closely”, he replied, starting to get angry.

“We don’t care!”. Now she was really pissed. Didn’t he care about anyone?

“Go ask Doc if he can store it in the morgue. God, if its sooooo important, take it home with you Grissom!”, she yelled at him, and got up and left the break room.

“Have you seen Sara?”, Grissom asked Catherine.

Catherine kept reading her Cosmo, playing deaf, just to be safe. She had talked earlier to Sara, finding her pacing in the locker room. She had told her about their little “conversation”, and didn’t want to get between their stupid fight, although she completely agreed with Sara this time.

“Catherine, I asked you a question”, he said impatiently.

“Oh, I heard you!”, she replied.

“So?”

“Well, shift ended two hours ago. I’m just here making time, minding my own business before I go pick up Lindsey”, she said, without raising her gaze from the magazine.

“Just answer the question, Catherine”. He was her boss, why didn’t she care? She was exasperating!

“I don’t know Grissom. Maybe she went home, get some sleep and try to cool off”, she said, after a long awkward silence, and giving in to her conciliatory nature. She just wanted Sara and Grissom to get along. She didn’t even care any more if they were friends again… She, like the rest of the team, just wanted them to get along. They were all tired of the freezing silences, the fights and the bad faces.

“Cool off, huh?”.

“Yes Griss, cool off, OK? Is that enough for you? Or do you want to know what she had for breakfast too?”

“What is wrong with you? I only asked you one simple question, and all of the sudden, you are attacking me”, he replied defensively.

“What is wrong with me? God, Griss, you have no idea, huh?”, she replied, raising her gaze to meet his. “I’m tired of you asking to anyone but Sara where is she, how is she doing, is something wrong with her, and all the other questions about her. I’ve had it. We’ve all had it. From now on Grissom, if you want to know anything regarding Sara, you’ll have to ask her yourself. We are sick and tired of being between you two all day… Deal with her Gil!”

“What do you mean?”, he asked with caution.

“Exactly that!” she said, closing her magazine and leaving the room.

He was in his office, trying to concentrate in finishing his paper work, but his thoughts kept going to Sara. He missed her deeply. The way they used to talk, her laughter, her beautiful smile. He had come to think that smile was only for him. Now he was sure of that, because he hadn’t seen it for a long time.

He also missed their closeness, her casual touch. Brushing “accidentally” to here body in the lab, at a crime scene. He missed her electrifying touch…

But it was all for the best. Or so he had thought. This situation was starting to affect their workplace, as Catherine had so kindly let him know.

Now he would have to talk to Sara, set all this straight. She was his best CSI, and he could not afford to lose her, or any of his team, but specially her.

“Oh, this better be good”, Sara said to herself, as she sleepily recognized the number in her cell phone.

“Sidle”.

“Hi Sara, its Grissom. Did I wake you?”

“As a matter of fact Grissom, you did. Its four o’clock in the afternoon. It’s like four in the morning for me right now. What do you want?”, she asked angrily.

“Can we talk?”.

“Look Grissom, unless it’s about work, which I’m pretty sure is not, I don’t think so. You’ll just have to wait until I get to the lab, and that will be the day after tomorrow, since it’s my day off. Good night.”, and she shut close her phone, turning it off before.

“What the hell does he think he’s doing?” she asked out loud.

She rested her head on her pillow, trying to relax, when she heard a loud knock on her door.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me”, she mumbled, as she got up and put on her robe.

“It’s him, I can sense him behind the door. I hate to be able to sense him”, she thought to herself as she approached her from door.

“What is it Grissom”, she said as she opened the door. He stormed in, nearly making her lose balance.

“Why did you hung up your phone Sara? I’m your supervisor”, he shouted.

“Like hell you are, but not after shift, you are not pulling rank here, DOCTOR Grissom”, she answered back, controlling her voice, trying to keep it down.

She knew he hated when she called him “Doctor Grissom”. It reminded him of his age, and the fact that he was fifteen years older than she. She always tried to avoid making him feel that way, but frankly, now she couldn’t care less.

He looked at her defiantly. “Doctor Grissom? Now I’m Doctor Grissom? Gosh Sara, what has happened to us?”, he asked her, while she stood by the open door.

“Will you go away? Please Grissom, just leave OK. I don’t feel like talking to you right now. Quite frankly, I don’t feel like talking to you at all. I don’t think there’s anything to talk about”, she said, moving to allow him to go out.

Grissom didn’t move. “What is she talking about”, he thought. “there’s nothing to talk about”? “We are practically tearing each other heads off and there is nothing to talk about, Sara?”, he asked her, concern now occupying his face.

“Just leave me alone. I can’t do this any more Grissom, I’m tired, OK? Just leave”. She looked so tired and looking closely, so thin and pale. She was wearing a tank top and some sports shorts, covered by a robe that hardly covered anything.

He wanted so desperately to hold her close, to protect her. He took two steps towards her, and she immediately backed away against the frame of the door.

“Just go Grissom, I’m not doing this right now. Can’t you respect what I want?”.

After that plea, he couldn’t respond to anything. He left, without saying a word, leaving her resting against the door frame.

He walked to his Tahoe, reaching for his keys, when he decided he didn’t care she didn’t wanted to talk to him. He did, and she would have to cope with that!

TBC (if I get more than 5 reviews!)