Title: The Cross of Changes
Author: Beverly aka Bev *too*
Beta: none, hopefully there aren't too many mistakes in 100 words.
Fandom/Pairing: CSI: Vegas, Gil Grissom/Nick Stokes
Rating: R
Summary: Part two from the Gil/Nick love story, once more told in drabbles.
A/N: Inspired by the second CD from Enigma "The Cross of Changes".

A/N2: The "universal justice"in the last drabble "The Cross of Changes"is part of the lyrics:

"If you understand or if you don't
If you believe or if you doubt
There's a universal justice
And the eyes of truth
Are always watching you."

Previous set of drabbles in series - MCMXC A.D..

**Second Chapter**

"When were you planing on telling us?"

Sara's voice sounded harsh. Demanding. Nick winced, and Gil didn't like that. Never, he thought. And it wasn't my idea.

"This is none of your business, Sara, and the fact that Nicky decided to tell you about us is a nice gesture. One you should appreciate."

"Appreciate?"She nearly spat out the word before turning around, leaving the room.

Gil sighed. He knew that it would be difficult. Had warned Nicky. But it was something the younger man wanted to do. To begin the second chapter in their life together.

**The eyes of truth**

She felt stupid. So, so stupid.

Now that she knew ... all the evidence was right there, staring her into the face. She managed to ignore it.

Mostly.

But then there were days like today. Where Gil seemed to be unable to *not* touch Nick. Where Nick's eyes lit up whenever Gil entered the room. Where the touches lasted just this moment too long. And again she asked herself how she could have been so blind.

They were there, staring directly at her. Right into her soul. The eyes of truth.

And there was nothing she could do against it.

**Return to Innocence**

"I don't think that I can ever forget that sight."

A sigh, soft words, broken voice, a shivering body in his arms. Gil stroked through Nick's hair, holding the other man closely. Nick always got emotional when kids were involved, Gil knew that.

This time ... no kids had been harmed. But they had been forced to watch when some crazy guy butchered their family.

"He took their innocence,"Nick whispered. "They can never return there."

Gil knew, and felt helpless because with cases like that Nick was loosing his innocence, too. And Gil mourned this loss.

**I love you & I'll kill you**

The case in its simplicity was easy and cruel alltogether.

A homophobic asshole thought it funny to beat some gay guy to a pulp while he walked out of a nightclub with his lover.

Gil simply shook his head in disbelief.

Two days later the case got really ugly. The victim's partner tried to kill himself by cutting his wrists. A friend found him, and Gil and Nick were there when he was brought to the ambulance, whispering "Can't live without him!"over and over again.

"I can understand him,"Gil said quietly, and Nick took his hand.

**Silent Warrior**

"Thank you,"the woman said with tears in her eyes, "thank you so much. I don't know what I'd done without you."

Nick nodded, shook the woman's hand, and said, "Just doing my job, m'am. And I couldn't've done it without the team."

Gil raised his head slightly when he heard the words from his lover, and smiled. This was so Nicky. He'd been the one working night and day to find the murderer. And yet he never bragged about it. Took a step back and let team step up.

Gil loved his silent warrior even more.

**The dream of the dolphin**

The touch of warm hands on his skin was welcomed. The sound of the ocean in the background the only music they needed. Their first vacation together as a couple. Gil Grissom and Nick Stokes. A little bungalow with a private beach. Slowly, his thoughts came to a halt. He was surrounded by heat and love and Nicky. He felt like floating. Like swimming in an endless sea of sensations.
With a happy sigh he let himself melt into the sand beneath his towel.

"You okay?"Nick asked.

Gil nodded smiling, and when he slept he dreamt of dolphins.

**Age of loneliness**

Sometimes, looking back, it felt as if he'd been lonely for ages. Never alone, mind you. Always surrounded by his family, or his colleagues. First at the PD, later at the lab in Vegas. But when he'd gone home, there hadn't even been a cat waiting for him.

Looking back, he's not sure how he managed to stay sane in those long, almost endless days and nights.

He turned around, cuddled closer to Gil's sleeping body, wrapping his arms and legs around him. With a sigh he drifted off to sleep again, knowing that his age of loneliness was over.

**Out from the deep**

"You won't, okay?"

Nick's voice was a deep rumble, going straight to his soul.

"I don't know where that came from but I promise you ... you won't loose me."

Gil smiled though there was a single tear stubbornly clinging to his lashes. There had been this guy, pointing his gun at Nick.

Again!

And the thought of loosing Nick, had made stepping in front of the gun incredibly easy.

Later, Nick had asked him incredulously what had gotten into him. The answer was an echo from his fear out of the deep. "Can't loose you, Nick."

**The cross of changes**

Somehow he knew that this - what he had right now - was simply meant to be. Some sort of universal justice for everything that ever went wrong in his life, tsarting with the molesting babysitter.

Blue eyes, graying hair, slight belly, bowlegs, razorsharp mind, dry wit, biting sarcasm, all that wrapped up together in a mouthwatering package named Gil Grissom.

Add to this the tender love, gentle caring, and toecurling kisses ... Nick walked over to sit down next to Gil who was reading, and put his head on the older man's shoulder.

"You okay, Nicky?"

He nodded.

The end