A...songfic
Mar. 27th, 2006 02:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vr_trakowskiI actually wrote this some time ago, and it's a futurefic based on a popular song. Points if you can figure out which one. Warning: this is a strange little vignette; it has a plotline I'd like to explore in more detail someday, but not today.
Best--Rated G, CSI, Grissom/Sara, futurefic
Some days it hardly seemed worth it to get out of bed.
Sara glanced out her office window, but there was nothing to see; rain had fogged it until all beyond was a blur. Normally she had a fairly decent view of the city, but not today.
She took a sip from the mug she held, but the contents were cold and metallic. Sighing, she rummaged for the analgesic bottle she kept in her desk; she had a headache, legacy of too late a night and a little too much wine. A gulp of the cold tea washed the pills down, and she willed the pain away. She had enough to do without having to deal with a throbbing skull as well.
Feeling listless, she flipped open a folder, trying to muster the enthusiasm to go over the budget report one more time. But her gaze drifted, focusing on nothing for a while before catching on the simple wood frame on the wall of her office.
Slowly, without her quite realizing it, a smile crept over her face as she took in the image. It was just an amateur photograph, a man standing in sunlight, bending over something cupped in his hand. Nothing more. But it still delighted her.
A knock on the door broke her reverie, and a head bearing a shock of red hair appeared between the door and its frame. “Hey, boss. Came looking for you earlier but you weren’t in.”
Sara grimaced. “Yeah, I got here late. Rain, traffic, etcetera.”
“I hear ya.” The man nodded sympathetically. “Anyway, just so you know, the meeting’s been moved up an hour.”
She glanced at the clock. “Oh, great. Well, I don’t think staring at this any longer will make it look any better.”
He chuckled. “Probably not.”
The meeting was long, boring, and infuriating. Sara sighed for the tenth time, struggling to keep a hold on her temper. “I know we have still have red ink from the last period. But we need this equipment. We can’t maintain our lab ranking without the correct tools.”
“Director Sidle, I understand your determination, but you’re new to your post,” one of the comptrollers said, with a smile that Sara wanted to smack off his face. “You’ll learn eventually that compromises must be made.”
His tone insinuated that she wouldn’t be around long enough to learn, and she gave him the controlled version of the glare that could send CSIs scrambling for cover. “I do understand that. But this is not the place to compromise.”
The meeting went on. Her headache got worse.
When she got back to her office, her temper was foul, and she seriously considered ignoring the blinking light on her phone that told her she had a message. But finally duty kicked in, and she picked up the receiver.
“Hey, Sara. I’m just calling to say hello...wondering if you got in okay through the rain. I know, I’m just being overprotective. Anyway, my lecture got pushed back until tomorrow, so I should be in when you get home. I’ll make something special for dinner. Love you.”
She leaned back in her chair, the pounding in her head fading, and hit the button to listen again.
The rest of the day was as miserable. The rain washed out any number of evidence collections; two people went home sick; and the assistant D.A. buttonholed her about procedure, revealing a complete lack of understanding of the process. Sara didn’t find time to eat her lunch, instead snacking on a granola bar, which gave her an acid stomach to go along with her headache. And when she finally went back for a fresh cup of tea, the milk was all gone.
Sara loved her work, but going home seemed like the best idea in the world when she locked her office door behind her. That is, until she ran into traffic. After forty-five minutes of gridlock, she was swearing.
The penultimate straw came when she pulled up in front of the house. Her normal parking spot was taken; she had to go half a block before she found an open one. And just as she got out of the car, the rain started pouring again.
Her umbrella was in the house.
The rain did one thing; it washed away her anger, leaving a sort of chilly misery in its place. Sara stalked along the sidewalk, feeling her suit wrinkling around her, letting her hair straggle into her eyes. It wasn’t even worth it to run. She was tired, she was starving, and nothing had gone right all day. She was halfway tempted to lie down in the gutter and let the rain wash her away with the day’s garbage.
She shoved the door open, planning a dreary drip in the hallway, but before she could blink the rain away she was enveloped in a huge warm towel. Arms surrounded her and rubbed, blotting the moisture, and she grunted in surprise and pleasure. “Gil, I’m soaked, you’ll get wet.”
“So?” Grissom rubbed a little harder, warming her cold skin, and then ran a hand up the back of her neck to flip the towel over her head. She reached up to squeeze some of the moisture out. “I’m glad you’re home.”
“Believe me, so am I.” Sara scrubbed at her scalp for a moment, then let the towel drop, getting a good look at his face for the first time since she’d walked in the door. It still hurt a little, seeing the unfocused gaze and the scarring on his temple and cheek, but he was smiling, and she let the hurt go as she was learning to do. Grissom raised a hand to her face and leaned in to kiss her, his mouth heating her cold lips, and she gave up on trying to keep him dry and wrapped her arms around him, letting him fill her world.
“Mmm,” she said when he’d finished. “My day just got a whole lot better.”
Grissom chuckled. “You didn’t even notice, did you?”
“Notice what?” She let him go and kicked off her shoes, planning a nice hot shower and wondering if she could entice him into it with her.
“The temblor just now.” As though he knew she was gaping at him, he shook his head. “I’ve heard of the earth moving, but...”
Sara closed her mouth, feeling just a little sheepish. “Missed it.”
He laughed again, and reached out to touch the wall with his fingertips. “This city of yours is certainly more geologically exciting.”
She followed as he walked back towards the kitchen with the confidence of someone who knew the space intimately. “You should hop in the shower and warm up. Dinner will be ready soon.”
Sara paused a moment, watching as he moved around the fragrant kitchen as though he could see more than just a blur of light and shadow, and that only out of one eye. “Your lecture’s tomorrow instead?”
“Mm-hm.” His clever fingers found the wine rack and flickered over the labels she’d applied for him, choosing one bottle and inserting the corkscrew. “Some kind of schedule mix-up. They’re sending a car for me.”
"Nice.” Sara shivered even as she took the glass he handed her. “Thanks.”
His hand skimmed up her arm. “You’re cold. Shower, now,” he said firmly, and she laughed before taking a sip of wine.
“Join me?”
He cocked his head in his familiar way, and Sara thought briefly that while she never could have predicted this outcome, and would still give her sight to restore Grissom’s to him if she could, her life was better now than it had ever been before. “How can I resist?”
She set down her glass and looped her arm through his--not to guide, just to touch. “Come on. I’ll scrub your back, you scrub mine.”
He chuckled once more. “Parity in all things.”
The rain continued. She didn’t care.
End.
Some days it hardly seemed worth it to get out of bed.
Sara glanced out her office window, but there was nothing to see; rain had fogged it until all beyond was a blur. Normally she had a fairly decent view of the city, but not today.
She took a sip from the mug she held, but the contents were cold and metallic. Sighing, she rummaged for the analgesic bottle she kept in her desk; she had a headache, legacy of too late a night and a little too much wine. A gulp of the cold tea washed the pills down, and she willed the pain away. She had enough to do without having to deal with a throbbing skull as well.
Feeling listless, she flipped open a folder, trying to muster the enthusiasm to go over the budget report one more time. But her gaze drifted, focusing on nothing for a while before catching on the simple wood frame on the wall of her office.
Slowly, without her quite realizing it, a smile crept over her face as she took in the image. It was just an amateur photograph, a man standing in sunlight, bending over something cupped in his hand. Nothing more. But it still delighted her.
A knock on the door broke her reverie, and a head bearing a shock of red hair appeared between the door and its frame. “Hey, boss. Came looking for you earlier but you weren’t in.”
Sara grimaced. “Yeah, I got here late. Rain, traffic, etcetera.”
“I hear ya.” The man nodded sympathetically. “Anyway, just so you know, the meeting’s been moved up an hour.”
She glanced at the clock. “Oh, great. Well, I don’t think staring at this any longer will make it look any better.”
He chuckled. “Probably not.”
The meeting was long, boring, and infuriating. Sara sighed for the tenth time, struggling to keep a hold on her temper. “I know we have still have red ink from the last period. But we need this equipment. We can’t maintain our lab ranking without the correct tools.”
“Director Sidle, I understand your determination, but you’re new to your post,” one of the comptrollers said, with a smile that Sara wanted to smack off his face. “You’ll learn eventually that compromises must be made.”
His tone insinuated that she wouldn’t be around long enough to learn, and she gave him the controlled version of the glare that could send CSIs scrambling for cover. “I do understand that. But this is not the place to compromise.”
The meeting went on. Her headache got worse.
When she got back to her office, her temper was foul, and she seriously considered ignoring the blinking light on her phone that told her she had a message. But finally duty kicked in, and she picked up the receiver.
“Hey, Sara. I’m just calling to say hello...wondering if you got in okay through the rain. I know, I’m just being overprotective. Anyway, my lecture got pushed back until tomorrow, so I should be in when you get home. I’ll make something special for dinner. Love you.”
She leaned back in her chair, the pounding in her head fading, and hit the button to listen again.
The rest of the day was as miserable. The rain washed out any number of evidence collections; two people went home sick; and the assistant D.A. buttonholed her about procedure, revealing a complete lack of understanding of the process. Sara didn’t find time to eat her lunch, instead snacking on a granola bar, which gave her an acid stomach to go along with her headache. And when she finally went back for a fresh cup of tea, the milk was all gone.
Sara loved her work, but going home seemed like the best idea in the world when she locked her office door behind her. That is, until she ran into traffic. After forty-five minutes of gridlock, she was swearing.
The penultimate straw came when she pulled up in front of the house. Her normal parking spot was taken; she had to go half a block before she found an open one. And just as she got out of the car, the rain started pouring again.
Her umbrella was in the house.
The rain did one thing; it washed away her anger, leaving a sort of chilly misery in its place. Sara stalked along the sidewalk, feeling her suit wrinkling around her, letting her hair straggle into her eyes. It wasn’t even worth it to run. She was tired, she was starving, and nothing had gone right all day. She was halfway tempted to lie down in the gutter and let the rain wash her away with the day’s garbage.
She shoved the door open, planning a dreary drip in the hallway, but before she could blink the rain away she was enveloped in a huge warm towel. Arms surrounded her and rubbed, blotting the moisture, and she grunted in surprise and pleasure. “Gil, I’m soaked, you’ll get wet.”
“So?” Grissom rubbed a little harder, warming her cold skin, and then ran a hand up the back of her neck to flip the towel over her head. She reached up to squeeze some of the moisture out. “I’m glad you’re home.”
“Believe me, so am I.” Sara scrubbed at her scalp for a moment, then let the towel drop, getting a good look at his face for the first time since she’d walked in the door. It still hurt a little, seeing the unfocused gaze and the scarring on his temple and cheek, but he was smiling, and she let the hurt go as she was learning to do. Grissom raised a hand to her face and leaned in to kiss her, his mouth heating her cold lips, and she gave up on trying to keep him dry and wrapped her arms around him, letting him fill her world.
“Mmm,” she said when he’d finished. “My day just got a whole lot better.”
Grissom chuckled. “You didn’t even notice, did you?”
“Notice what?” She let him go and kicked off her shoes, planning a nice hot shower and wondering if she could entice him into it with her.
“The temblor just now.” As though he knew she was gaping at him, he shook his head. “I’ve heard of the earth moving, but...”
Sara closed her mouth, feeling just a little sheepish. “Missed it.”
He laughed again, and reached out to touch the wall with his fingertips. “This city of yours is certainly more geologically exciting.”
She followed as he walked back towards the kitchen with the confidence of someone who knew the space intimately. “You should hop in the shower and warm up. Dinner will be ready soon.”
Sara paused a moment, watching as he moved around the fragrant kitchen as though he could see more than just a blur of light and shadow, and that only out of one eye. “Your lecture’s tomorrow instead?”
“Mm-hm.” His clever fingers found the wine rack and flickered over the labels she’d applied for him, choosing one bottle and inserting the corkscrew. “Some kind of schedule mix-up. They’re sending a car for me.”
"Nice.” Sara shivered even as she took the glass he handed her. “Thanks.”
His hand skimmed up her arm. “You’re cold. Shower, now,” he said firmly, and she laughed before taking a sip of wine.
“Join me?”
He cocked his head in his familiar way, and Sara thought briefly that while she never could have predicted this outcome, and would still give her sight to restore Grissom’s to him if she could, her life was better now than it had ever been before. “How can I resist?”
She set down her glass and looped her arm through his--not to guide, just to touch. “Come on. I’ll scrub your back, you scrub mine.”
He chuckled once more. “Parity in all things.”
The rain continued. She didn’t care.
End.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-03-27 07:58 pm (UTC)Good stuff, but I'm too groggy to get the song...
no subject
Date: 2006-03-28 01:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-27 09:16 pm (UTC)Push the door, I'm home at last
and I'm soaking through and through
Then you hand me a towel
and all I see is you
And even if my house falls down,
I wouldn't have a clue
Because you're near me
Love that song, love the fic - thanks so much! I always look forward to reading your stuff.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-28 01:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 01:20 am (UTC)::soft whistle::
Okay. You have my complete attention. Most assuredly.
The fic as it stands is a wonderful study, a vignette, I suppose is the word. I like how her day starts out crappy (because I've had one or two of those) and ends on such a wonderful note.
But what I really like is how it conveys so much even as it says so little. Case in point: I (the reader) knows Sara is not a CSI out in the field. She has a supervisory position. The steady rain and reference to a city view hint that it may not be Las Vegas. The photo is not described in detail, yet the reader knows it is of someone very special.
And then that line about the "unfocused gaze" and the "scarring"...
Well done, VR. Very well done indeed.
If you ever decide to explore/expand on the plotline, I assure you I will read it.
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 01:14 pm (UTC)I'm glad you enjoyed it! If ever I do expand on it, I'll be interested myself to see where it goes...
no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 01:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-03-29 02:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-15 04:51 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-18 03:04 am (UTC)