Eve
By The Dawn
E-mail: lesbiancala@yahoo.com
Rating: PG-13
Challenge: Christmas/New Year's
Spoilers: Anything up to "No Humans Involved" is fair game.
Disclaimer: Ooh, wouldn't it be fun if they were mine? Well, okay,
maybe not for you. But I would enjoy it.
A/N: I was going to do this for the X-Files challenge, but it didn't
get started in time. Then I was going to do it for the Virtual
Rewind last week, but it didn't get finished in time. Thus, you have
it now, barely in time for this challenge.:P
A/N2: Twisted Christmas, and other fine collections of mock-popular
music, are performed by Bob Rivers (and his cohorts at Bob Rivers
radio). I highly recommend them, as they are completely hilarious.
A/N3: I finished Dave Eggers' "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering
Genius" about halfway through this story, so it may get a bit
disjointed. I'm like a sponge when it comes to...well, everything,
but also writing styles;) Also, I had a lot of trouble with the
reality of this story; I had the idea, could see everything in my
head, but it was really awkward writing it, so if it sucks, that's
why;P
Chapter 1
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter One
"Man, Greg, what is this crap?" Nick griped from his seat on the
sofa. "It's not Christmas music."
Greg walked over to turn up the stereo, which was currently blasting
a Black Sabbath tune. The recently separated night shift was
gathered in Greg's living room for a Christmas party, joined by most
of the lab techs, Brass, Doc Robbins, and David. "See, the problem
with you, Nick, is you have no sense of humor. Wait for the lyrics,
man."
"I am Santa Claus." The irreverent lab tech boomed along with the
voice, pointing a brief air guitar riff in Nick's direction.
"I stand corrected." Nick said begrudgingly as Greg gave him an
expectant look.
"Twisted Christmas?" Sara had grabbed the CD case from the top of
the stereo and was now examining it in her seat. "Leave it to you,
Greg."
Greg stopped dancing long enough to shoot the brunette CSI a mock-
wounded look. "I'm hurt, Sara. I thought we had a connection."
Sara opted not to respond with more than a raised eyebrow.
"You never give up, do you Greg?" Catherine laughed as she rose from
the cushy armchair she was sitting in. "I'm gonna get a refill. I
think I might need it." She smirked at Greg's antics before
sauntering into the kitchen.
"So Sara, since you're not into our resident rock star here, how is
the love life going?"
"Nick, shouldn't you wait until everyone's drunk to ask something
like that?" Warrick piped up from the couch across from Nick. Sara
just sat in uncomfortable silence.
"Hey, I'm only asking 'cause I have this friend-"
"Can we not do this again, Nick?" Sara cut him off with a pointed
glare. It wasn't that she didn't want someone. It wasn't even that
she didn't trust Nick's judgment- he was a good guy, all things
considered, and a friend of his would have to be at least decent.
The problem was, Sara did want someone- a very specific someone. But
going there would create all sorts of problems, not the least of
which being the fact that it was very one-sided, at least as far as
she knew. And she'd learned her lesson about co-workers- off-limits.
"I could use a drink myself." She said distractedly, standing to go
to the kitchen. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't
notice the subject of them heading straight toward her. The two
women narrowly avoided colliding in the doorway.
"Sorry." Sara apologized, her cheeks flushing a bit. There's a way
to show her you care. Mow her down- better than a Hallmark card. "I,
uh, wasn't looking where I was going."
Catherine smiled. "Don't worry about it. I obviously wasn't either."
Neither woman was eager to admit the reason for their distraction,
considering each had been thinking of the other.
"'Kay, I'm just gonna-" Sara began to motion her intent to enter the
kitchen when she was stopped by Greg's delighted exclamation.
"Yes! I knew that stuff would be useful!" Impossibly blue eyes met
warm brown, a look of mutual dread in both. They looked up at the
same time, knowing what they would see. They'd both imagined their
first kiss in a variety of ways, but never had they thought it would
take place in Greg's kitchen doorway, under the mistletoe while at
least ten of their co-workers looked on. Their eyes drifted from the
mistletoe to reconnect awkwardly.
"C'mon ladies, we don't have all night here." It was quickly
becoming obvious that Nick was an obnoxious drunk. Everyone else in
the room merely watched with interest; Sara and Catherine gave every
indication of not being able to stand one another at work- except
for when they worked a case together, when they were a phenomenal
team- and everyone had to admit this was an intriguing situation.
It wasn't really such a big deal; a tiny peck on the lips and it
would be over, and the boys would be- if not completely satisfied-
at least quieted. But as controlled as Sara was, she knew that all
bets were off as soon as she felt Catherine's on hers.
"How 'bout I just owe you one?" Sara said awkwardly.
Catherine smiled, nodding her acquiescence. "Sure thing." Their
bodies brushed as they slipped past each other, and both women
suppressed a shudder at the all-too-brief contact.
"Aw, man, what a cop-out." Nick whined, taking a hearty swig of
Greg's "special" eggnog. Catherine laughed as she sunk back into her
chair.
"Careful Nicky, I think there's some eggnog in that alcohol." She
teased, taking a sip of her own.
"Gee, Greg, you comfortable?" Sara asked sardonically as she
returned to find her seat occupied.
"Hey, no one's saying you can't still sit here." Greg offered
suggestively, his eyes gesturing toward his lap.
Sara rolled her eyes. "In your dreams."
"Every night." Greg shot back, a playful grin on his face. Truth be
told, he'd just wanted to sit next to Nick.
Sara scanned the room for an empty seat, and came up- well, empty.
Catherine noticed the search, and its results, and she'd had enough
eggnog to make the offer easy to make.
"Here, Sara, you can come sit with me." She scooted to one side of
the oversized armchair. "Plenty of room for two."
Sara hesitated a moment before sinking down onto the edge of the
chair next to Catherine. She was right; it was big enough, but just
barely; the sides of her arm and thigh pressed against Catherine's,
and she was more than aware of how the warmth was affecting her
body. She took a long drink from her glass, hoping the cool liquid
would keep her from overheating.
"Water, Sara?" Nick cajoled. "You're really getting into the holiday
spirit."
Sara glared at Nick to cover up her discomfort with the question.
She'd hoped no one would notice; Grissom and Brass were the only
ones who knew about her drinking.
"I'm driving later." She explained feebly. "You don't expect me to
sleep here, with him around?" She nodded toward Greg, who was
starting on yet another glass of eggnog. A round of understanding
laughter went around the room, everyone pretty much accepting the
excuse. Everyone, that is, except Catherine, who was looking at Sara
curiously.
Sara's skin burned under the gaze, and she was grateful when the
focus shifted back to Greg.
"'Toy Sack'! I love this one!"
_)_)_)_)_)
There were plenty of opportunities for Sara to find a seat of her
own; the other guests rose several times to refill their drinks or
use the restroom, and as it got later most of them left, leaving
just the core night shift with an abundance of seating. Sara stayed
where she was, though, the physical contact- minimal as it was- too
pleasant to give up.
It became considerably more than minimal as the evening wore on, and
Catherine grew drunker. She'd managed to get her drink refilled
several times without leaving her seat. This allowed her to
gradually increase the contact, leaning heavily on the taller
woman's shoulder, until finally she drifted to sleep.
Sara's arm was now pinned uncomfortably to her side, so she
extricated it as gently as possible, placing it the only place she
could- across the back of the chair, almost around Catherine's
shoulders. She hoped no one would notice; no such luck.
"She's wiped." Warrick commented softly. "She should get home." His
suggestion was accompanied by one of his trademark all-knowing
looks, and Sara wondered just how much he did know.
She nodded, her cheeks flushed from both embarrassment and the
delicious warmth of the woman curled into her side. "I'll give her a
lift. You've got your hands full." She smiled teasingly, regarding
the dozing DNA tech snuggled up with him. Warrick glanced down at
Mia, then back at Sara, shrugging. A smug smile teased his lips.
Sara turned to Catherine, nudging her gently in the side. Leaning
close, she whispered in the sleeping woman's ear. "Hey, Catherine.
Time to wake up."
Catherine responded with a groan, snuggling further into the taller
woman, her head resting in the curve of Sara's shoulder. Sara bit
back a moan as she felt hot breath tickling the skin of her neck,
and the warmth of Catherine's arm stretched around her, hand curled
into the side of Sara's waist. Sara wasn't sure how much more of
this torture she could take.
"C'mon, Cat, we gotta get you home." Her breathing was labored, and
she prayed Warrick wouldn't notice, was thankful that Nick and Greg
were still- where were they, anyway? She nudged again, a little more
firmly than last time. "Cat?"
This worked, to a certain extent. Catherine woke, her hand sliding
across Sara's abdomen as she pulled herself to an upright
position. "Sara?" She asked groggily, eyes blinking.
"Mmhmm." Sara replied, her patented half-smile tugging at her lips.
She slipped her arm down, around Catherine's waist, applying gentle
pressure. "C'mon, let's get you home."
"'Kay." The sleepy blonde replied, slipping her own arm around
Sara's shoulders, allowing the taller woman to help her up.
"I'll, uh, see you at work." Sara directed at Warrick, who was
content to let Mia doze for the time being. He opened his mouth to
respond, but he was cut off by a pair of very drunk, very loud CSI's.
"Hey, you guys leaving?" Nick slurred, propped up by an only
slightly-less-drunk Greg as they emerged from the back of the
apartment.
"Yeah. Thanks for having me-" Sara paused as she considered
Catherine's very probable inability to respond- "well, us, over
Greg. It was fun."
Greg scoffed. "Hey, as long as you and Catherine provide the
entertainment, you're always welcome at my parties."
Nick giggled- who knew he could giggle?- and put in his own two
cents. "Hey, but don't go paying off that debt until we can watch."
Sara rolled her eyes.
"Goodnight, guys." She wasted no time in hurrying out the door- as
much as she could hurry while half-carrying a barely-conscious
Catherine.
Warrick eyed the two men and their disheveled appearances
skeptically. "I don't even want to know what you two were doing back
there, do I?"
_)_)_)_)_)
The drive to Catherine's house was blessedly quiet, Catherine having
fallen quickly back to sleep as soon as she was buckled in. It
allowed Sara some time to breathe, as Catherine's near-constant
affection all evening had made the simple action next to impossible.
It all seemed so surreal; the look in her eyes as they were caught
under the mistletoe- she could swear Catherine looked like she
wanted to kiss her- the armchair, Catherine all but sleeping on top
of her. It was almost as if one of her frequent dreams- the ones she
had when she finally got around to sleeping- was playing out in
reality.
She pulled up to Catherine's house, putting the car in park so as to
devote all of her attention to waking the blonde up.
"Hey, Cat. You're home." She said softly, giving Catherine's
shoulder a gentle shake. Catherine blinked drowsily as she was
awakened for the second time that evening.
"Mmm. So I am." She said sleepily, her voice low and husky and
irresistible, sending chills through Sara's body that only
intensified with the placement of Catherine's hand on her
thigh. "Thank you for driving me home."
"Hey, don't worry about it." She replied, smiling. A long moment
passed where neither of them moved nor spoke, and Sara could feel
the car filling with the tension that had been building up all
night. "Cat? You gonna go inside?"
Catherine chuckled, still half-drunk. "You know, I always hate it
when people call me that."
"Sorry." Sara's cheeks flushed; she kicked herself for the faux pas.
"Don't be." Catherine said, a lazy grin on her lips. Her thumb was
gently moving back and forth on Sara's thigh; it seemed she didn't
even notice she was doing it, but Sara certainly did. "From you, it
sounds right."
"Okay." Sara was at a loss. She was trying hard not to give in to
the desire to just grab her coworker and repay that debt right here,
right now, with interest. Lots of interest. Another moment and she
might have lost the battle, but Catherine broke the awkward silence
with a weary sigh..
"I'd better get inside." She said, taking her hand back. Sara missed
the warmth almost immediately.
"You gonna be okay to walk?" Catherine grinned at Sara's concern.
"I'll be fine." She said, opening the door. Before stepping out, she
reached over and squeezed Sara's hand, lingering for a few
moments. "Thank you. For everything."
Sara smiled back. "Merry Christmas, Cat." If possible, Catherine's
smile widened even further.
"Merry Christmas, Sara."
tba
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