It was June 1994 and 22-year-old Sara Sidle was in her first year of her masters program at Berkeley in San Francisco. It was suggested by her advisor and good friend Howard Feltenbaum that she take an Entomology class given by a good friend of his, Dr. Gilbert Grissom. He was a coroner at the L.A. Police Department and taught classes each summer. She figured she would take his advice, even though she was not fond of insects at all.
Sara was the first one to enter the classroom, as she usually always was. Dr. Grissom was writing on the blackboard.
Thirty-seven year old Gil Grissom was a very handsome man. He had dark brown curly hair with just a smidgeon of gray on the sideburns. His eyes were a deep and mysterious blue. He wore a blue Hawaiian print button shirt with Chinos and loafers, and he wore rectangular framed glasses that set on his nose.
Sara was a svelte, raven-haired woman with pallor skin and dark chocolate colored eyes. She was wearing a black t-shirt with the group The Cure on it along with khaki camouflage pants and black Chuck Taylor’s. Her hair was long and wavy and back in a camouflage headband.
She noted how he didn’t say a word to her; he just kept jotting notes on the board. ‘How anti-social is that?’ she wondered to herself. What in the world could be so wonderful about this man that Howard was going on and on about? He probably spent his days and nights classifying and studying bugs instead of going out with women she figured, and she chuckled aloud. She then swore under her breath because she didn’t mean for the giggle to come out.
“Is there something funny, Miss...” Gil turned around and faced her.
“Sidle, Sara Sidle. No, nothing funny at all Dr. Grissom.”
“I should hope not. This class is very serious.” With that, he turned on his heels and continued writing.
‘Boy, what a creep!’ Sara thought to herself. She made a mental note to talk to Howard the next day.
After class, Sara ventured out to the bay for a smoke break and to drink her Starbuck’s. As she was puffing away, she noticed a familiar voice behind her.
“So we meet again, Miss Sidle.”
“Yes, how cozy is that? What brings you to the bay, Dr. Grissom?” Sara sarcastically stated.
“I like to take walks along the bay and I happened to see you here, so I figured I’d say hi.”
“Okay. Hello.” He was so cold and unsocial in class, so why in the world would he just stop by and say hi?
Gil doesn’t normally fraternize with his students but there was something different about Sara Sidle. The way she stared intently at him while he was lecturing, and the way she was taking notes made him believe that she was highly interested in the subject. He also noticed how beautiful she was, even though she was wearing Army pants and a shirt that had the face of a very pale man wearing red lipstick.
“Well, I will be going now. See you in class tomorrow. Oh and remember to have your essay done!”
“I sure will Dr. Grissom.” Yeah, she sure will. He wants the class to write an essay on the black carpet beetle and about its habitat. She groaned when he gave the assignment considering it was the very first day of class.
He left and Sara finished her cigarette and frappucino. She walked to her dorm and worked until 10 PM on her essay.
The next day, Sara made sure she wasn’t the first one in class. She waited until others started to show up and she took a seat towards the back. She smiled over at a skinny, curly haired guy and he smiled back.
“Hi, my name is Micky Dolenz. What’s yours?” He extended his hand to her.
She took it and shook it. “My name is Sara Sidle. Nice to meet you Micky.”
“So what do you think of bug man’s class?”
“I find it very interesting but don’t let him know that.” She smiled her gap-toothed grin at him.
Gil noticed that she sat in the back and he wondered why, because she seemed so interested in his class the day before.
Sara handed her paper in and before she left class, Micky caught up to her.
“What are you doing after class?”
“Oh just going to the pier for a cigarette and a Frapuccino. Care to hang out with me?”
“Sure, that would be the bomb.”
They walked down to Pier 39 and hung out while Sara downed her coffee and smoked.
“So Micky, what are you majoring in?”
“Actually, I am majoring in Architecture but this class caught my attention, so I had to take it. How about you?”
“I’m going for my masters in Forensic Science.”
“Oh cool! I have always been fascinated with the subject. You plan to be one of those CSI’s?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact I am.”
Micky and Sara were engrossed in conversation when Gil approached her.
“Hi Miss Sidle. I didn’t know you had company. I’ll come back later. Good morning, Mr. Dolenz.” He nodded in Micky’s direction.
“Hello Dr. Grissom.”
“Have a seat Dr. Grissom.” Sara motioned toward the empty chair at the round table.
Gil sat down next to Sara and he smelled her shampoo. It was intoxicating to him. “I noticed you sat towards the back in class today. Is there something wrong?”
“No, nothing wrong Dr. Grissom. I just wanted a change of scenery.”
“Okay, but I really thought you were interested in my class by the way you were taking notes and tilting your head when I spoke.”
“I take notes and listen to my professors that way in every class I’m in Dr. Grissom. I need to leave in a couple minutes gentlemen, I have to get my report done on those creepy crawlers.”
“Those creepy crawlers happen to be tarantulas and they are very gentle insects once you get to know them.”
“Maybe for you they are but to me they are hideous and dangerous. I have to leave now, until tomorrow, Dr. Grissom.”
“Hey Sara, would you like to work on it together?” Micky thought Sara was really pretty and he wouldn’t mind taking her out sometime.
“Sure, Micky.”
They walked back to her dorm and Gil got jealous. He knew he shouldn’t get jealous, considering that she was so young. He watched Sara walk away. ‘What a fireball!’ He thought to himself.
Back at the dorm, Sara and Micky worked on their research projects and talked in between.
“Hey Sara, would you like to go out to eat with me tonight? My treat.”
“Is this a date, Micky?”
“It could be. What do you say?”
“Oh Micky. I’m really not interested in dating anyone. I’m very into my studies. I would love to be friends though.”
“Oh okay. Well I tried anyhow. Yeah sure we can be friends.” He couldn’t hide the frown on his face.
“I’m sorry Micky, I really am.” She was feeling attracted to Grissom and she really didn’t like it. She didn’t like to date while going for her degrees. She didn’t date anyone in the four years that she went for her Bachelors and she really didn’t want to break the trend now.
“It’s okay Sara, it really is. You are a pretty girl though, you shouldn’t close yourself to the opposite sex.”
“I know, but I want to make sure that I make the grade and make the goals I have set for myself.”
“I do understand that. That’s great that you are determined enough to go for your masters and spend another four years in college. There are days that I wonder why I’m even here! My band mates hate the fact that I spend my days in school.”
“You have a band? How awesome is that?”
“Yeah. I’m in a rock band called The Monkees.”
“The Monkees? What a strange name for a band, but I like it. Do you do covers or original songs?”
“We do both. Mike, the leader of the band, wants to cut a CD of all the songs we have written and played at gigs.”
“You should go for it! So how many of you are in the band?”
“There are four of us. I play drums, Peter plays guitar, banjo, and keyboards, Davy sings and plays maracas and tambourine, and Mike plays the guitar.”
“That’s wonderful! You know, I sing pretty well. Do you need an occasional female voice?” Sara poked him on the arm.
“I don’t know if Mike would go for it but I can ask. Maybe he’d let you sing one song at a practice or something before you could try at a gig.”
“That would be great! Hey, since we’re done, would you like to get a bite to eat?”
“Sure, that would be great.”
They decided to go to the Wharf for a late night bite to eat. They went to her favorite Chinese restaurant, House of Beijing, and noticed that Gil was seated at a table, eating General Tso’s Chicken and some Vegetable Lo Mein.
“He’s actually out somewhere on a Tuesday night?” She giggled and whispered to Micky, who laughed at the thought of him out.
They sat at a table and ordered their food. Grissom noticed that they were still together and he felt the anger and jealousy build inside of him.
‘She’s still out with him? I’m going to have to do something about it.’ He then realized that was wrong, but he was going on total emotions at this point and didn’t care. He figured he would let her eat first, then go up.
Sara and Micky were heading out the door when she felt him tap her on the shoulder.
“Hello Dr. Grissom. We sure run into each other a lot.”
“Yes we do. I need to speak to you for a couple minutes.”
“Okay. Micky, I’ll see you in class tomorrow!”
“Okay, see ya!” He waved and gave her a look of sympathy as he walked out the door.
He walked outside with her and she lit up a cigarette.
“You know, smoking is bad for your health.”
“I know, but I got addicted at age 14 and I haven’t been able to quit since.”
“Why don’t you try the patch? I hear there’s a pretty decent success rate.”
“I could I guess. So what did you need to speak to me about?”
“So, um, is anything serious between you and Mr. Dolenz?”
“No, and that really is none of your business.”
“It is, because if you two were engaging in hanky panky, it would affect your performance in my classroom.”
“Oh really? You don’t think that I could keep things separate? You really are something else, Dr. Grissom.” She couldn’t believe the gall of him to say such a thing.
“I’m not so sure.”
“Well! This is goodnight, Dr. Grissom! You have some nerve saying the things you did.”
He realized that he was being a jerk. “Sara, I’m sorry. Please, let’s start over.”
“I don’t know. You come off as a crass, pompous jerk, do you know that?”
“I’m really sorry. I’m not good with words. Would you like to walk around the pier?”
“Okay.” She was still mysteriously drawn to him. His eyes were so deep and mysterious. He was a mystery to her, and she wanted to figure him out.
They walked along the pier and talked.
“So Sara, what is your major?”
“Forensics. I hope to become a CSI when I graduate.”
“That’s a very good field to get into. I am hoping in a few years to go into that line of work myself.”
“How is it being a coroner, and how does it tie in with your Entomology expertise?”
“It really doesn’t Sara, but I have enjoyed the study of insects since I was a young boy bringing home experiments to the garage. I like being a coroner, but I think being a CSI will be a much more challenging career choice for me.”
“I can picture you bringing home tarantulas and black carpet beetles and making your mother scream.” Sara laughed.
“Actually my mother is deaf. She didn’t scream, she signed her disdain. She did allow me to do it though, as long as it was in the garage or in the back yard.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your mother.”
“It’s quite alright. She adjusted to her life and lives it fully.”
They talked until 1 AM and he took her back to her dorm. They both wished each other adieu and when Sara got to her room, she smiled her gap-toothed grin and sighed. There was actually something about the man that she found fascinating and titillating at the same time.
Chapter 2
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