Title: Best Day Of My Life (8/23)
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters that might strike you as familiar.
Summary: That it had all started that one day, that was plain to see. But love has never been simple, and with her it certainly wouldn't get any easier. (CaRWash)
Chapter summary: She seems to understand him perfectly, it's herself she's struggling with.
Spoilers: None.
Song: Jesse McCartney - Beautiful Soul
A/N: My newest multichap, inspired entirely on Jesse McCartney's both current (3rd one's coming up) albums.
I was planning on posting two chapters before I went on holiday, but I just didn't have the time.
Sorry, you'll have to live on this for the coming 2 weeks. I promise I will post a new chapter the day I get home.

I don't want another pretty face
I don't want just anyone to hold
I don't want my love to go to waste
I want you and your beautiful soul
You're the one I wanna chase
You're the one I wanna hold
I won't let another minute go to waste
I want you and your beautiful soul

Alexx looked up in surprise as she saw Calleigh entering her morgue. She looked around, there were no bodies prepped for autopsy, and as far as she was concerned, there wasn't a case that required another check of the body. Her eyebrow therefore shot up in obvious confusion as the southern blond smiled and leaned the palms of her hands on a cold autopsy table.

"Hi Alexx."
"Hi Calleigh, dear. What brings you down into my humble surroundings?"
"Can't a girl come down here for a little chat, from one woman to another?" Calleigh smiled brightly.
"Of course you can baby. You just don't do it often." Alexx smiled back.
"Maybe I'm just not often in the situation where I need some motherly advice."
"Ah!"

Alexx placed a file on a table and walked around to meet Calleigh on the other side of the table.

"Now why didn't you say so immediately? You know I love my gossip."
"Well, I hadn't exactly planned for this conversation to be the lab's next big thing, if you get what I mean."
"Private conversation, I got it. Go for it."

Calleigh leaned her back against the table, attempting to strike a relaxed and confident pose at the same time.

"Well, I know you were talking to Ryan the other day, and I'm sure, with him being the emotional…well, him, he told you about what happened the other day?"
"Yes he did darling, that he did, but he didn't have to. I've witnessed it all with my own two eyes."

Calleigh turned white and raised an eyebrow. "What were you doing at the parking lot across the street?"

"Parking lot across the street?" Alexx said confused, "I saw you in the locker room. What happened at the parking lot across the street?"

Calleigh closed her eyes and sighed. She began to tell the entire story to Alexx, knowing that no matter how much she dreaded to, it would make her feel better.

"We kissed."
"That I figured, I'm more interested to know what led to it."
"He just…he saved my life, when I was bitten by the snake…he carried me through the Everglades, Alexx, and the look in his eyes…I don't know why I've never realized exactly what it meant. He stayed with me in the hospital until I woke up…and then we talked for a long time before he eventually left. The next morning he was back to drive me to work, and when we arrived in the parking lot, we kissed."

Alexx listened fascinated yet judgingly, processing the story in her head, forming her opinion based on these new facts.

"But I don't know what to think, I don't know what I want. I told him I needed time, but now I think I've hurt him, but I didn't mean to. I just don't know Alexx…" Calleigh finished.

Sighing, Calleigh lowered her head, staring at the floor.

"Sweetheart, you're worrying too much. If you need time to figure this out then you know Ryan's gonna give you time." Alexx said, placing her hand on Calleigh's shoulder.
"But I just can't be around him now. I mean, not that I can't as in I don't want to, but whenever I am I start doubting everything, and it seems like we're unintentionally avoiding each other all the time, but I don't want that, because he is my best friend. D'you understand?"
"I do Calleigh, I do, but you have to give it time, exactly like you asked for. You will figure out what you want, I'm positive, but I'm also sure that in the state you're in, it's not going to come to you within the next week." Alexx concluded.
"Great."
"It's never been simple baby. You should know that."
"I do. I just don't like it."

"I really, really don't like it." Calleigh thought as she sat in one of the observation rooms with case files spread out on the table in front of her, Ryan sitting in the chair opposite of her with a bunch of photographs spread out in front of him, and no word had been said, not even when she'd entered.

She flipped another page and picked up a piece of paper, studying it thoroughly. Their case had definitely reached a dead end, and they didn't satisfy themselves with an unsolved case. So every member on it had retired into a place where they could think straight. Or, this had been the plan. Until Calleigh walked into the same room Ryan was sitting in. Getting back out would seem rude, especially since he did look up at her, so she had just flashed him a smile and sat down on the other side of the table.

And she was still sitting there now, as was he still sitting across from her. His eyes were gliding across the pictures in front of him, flipping through them, shoving them around, but never letting his attention slip to her. She focused on her file, but upon realizing that she'd been reading the same sentence five times, and still didn't know exactly what it said, she gave into her ponderings.

Alexx had told her that if she needed time, that Ryan would give her time, and she was right in that. Ryan was just that kind of guy, and especially around her -or so Calleigh liked to think. He always took her feelings into account, asked her what she wanted, and lived up to that. If she said yes, it was yes, if she said no, it was no. He trusted her judgment for a hundred percent, probably a result from her mentoring days, and she knew he'd only go against her if he was 110 percent sure he had good reasons and arguments to go against her.

Well, most of the time.

Sometimes he was irrational; his vision would be clouded by personal experience, prejudices, or just his naïve and ignorant mind. On a couple occasions she had to set him straight, because, driven by his passionate side, he'd been making comments or actions that weren't right. But no one was perfect, and she found that she actually liked that passionate, involved side of him. At least it proved he cared, about the things they worked for, and for her. And as unlikely as it sounded, that was a rarity in her life.

He had a bit of a temper, which especially came out when things didn't go the way he wanted them to. More specifically, when injustice was done. She hadn't found out, and shamefully she realized that she'd never asked either, why he was so incredibly set on things being 'right'. She did this job because she wanted justice, too, they all wanted that, but there was something about him that pushed him more than it did them, something that when things weren't 'right', made him explode. She'd expected it to have something to do with his OCD, and she made the mental note that, if they ever went back to talking again, she should ask him about it.

He felt easily attacked too. He was all for conversation, he could be social and he was a very good listener, but he wasn't much for conversation when it was about him. He tended to go into denial or defense quickly. But she understood that, she was exactly like that. If people started talking to her about herself, the chance was high they heard something they wanted to confirm, and there was always the chance it would be spread and it would have negative effects for her in the end. So she understood Ryan's reluctance to talk about himself.

She had, however, gotten him to open up to her on multiple occasions. Apparently he thought, or used to think at least, that she couldn't do him much harm. And that had never been her goal, indeed. She was a naturally curious person, and she just liked to get to know people better. During his first two years at CSI, she'd gotten to know a lot about him, and just when she was fairly sure she knew him well, in his third year there had been a turn in his behavior. He'd gotten more private, kept more things bottled up inside himself. It had scared her, because she recognized this behavior from herself, and she knew how the load could be too much to bear.

He had turned to gambling, and she had felt useless. She knew the reasons for it; she was a smart woman who knew him better than he thought she did. But she hadn't known how to help him. And because of that, she had instead turned to another emotion she knew well: disappointment. In a way, she felt let down by him, disappointed that he let things get as far as getting himself fired. She was glad that after he returned, they'd eventually had the chance to talk about things, and get him to open up slightly. She knew that he hadn't told her everything, but after the events of the last few days, she suddenly knew what had been the main reason for his gambling.

And she couldn't help but feel guilty.

She stole a glance in his direction, only to see him still staring at his pictures in trance. She swallowed, she so desperately wanted to make some witty, sexy comment that would make him grin and give a teasing reply, as they used to do, but she couldn't think of anything at all. She didn't think he felt like it either, because he had made no attempt to start a conversation with her either.

She wondered if he was really that hurt. She'd never noticed his male pride to be so…there. Perhaps he was just shielding himself from her to soften the expected blow, or maybe he was trying to keep his emotions in check this way. Or maybe he's just giving you the space you asked for.

Damnit. Ryan Wolfe really was that kind of guy.

She looked over at him again, and again he was fixated on his photographs. She didn't know why she minded, she should be glad that he was doing his job well instead of letting her distract him. She looked at her file. What did she want to do if he looked back anyway? It was not like she knew what to tell him.

"Cal?"

She never had been the type for awkward behavior; she always had an answer or a comment ready. Especially around him it had never been difficult to start a conversation about anything at all, about work, or private matters, or about the birds and the bees. Anything at all worked for them. Or, rather, used to work for them.

"Cal."

She wondered, if she were to just say something, anything, to him, would he reply normally? She'd try it out, but she honestly had no clue what to talk about. Talking about the case seemed useless since they were both on it and obviously neither of them had found anything new yet. Talking about anything other than the case seemed useless as well, because they were here to find a new lead on it, not to talk about what he'd be eating for dinner later that day.

"Calleigh!"

She jumped and looked up at him, surprised that he was really talking to her.

"What?"
"I've got it."