Title: Never Again
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Nick Stokes
Fandom: CSI: Vegas
Rating: PG-13
Table: 1, 52_challenge
Prompt: 19, Pain
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Greg Sanders or Nick Stokes, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

Nick woke suddenly, sitting bolt upright in bed and reaching for Greg. Turning his head, he realized with a start that his boyfriend wasn't there; the covers had been thrown back, and Greg's robe was missing from where it was usually tossed over the back of a nearby chair.

Frowning, Nick kicked the covers off and got out of bed, pulling on a shirt. He had no idea what had made Greg get out of bed, but he was willing to bet that his boyfriend had been having another nightmare, and that Greg hadn't wanted to wake him up.

Greg hadn't been sleeping well lately; Nick knew that nightmares about his abusive ex had been coming back to haunt him, even more so than they usually did. He couldn't help wondering if that was some kind of portent, some foreshadowing of what was to come.

He didn't want to think that Shane could possibly be back in Greg's life in any way, other than Greg testifying to the things he'd done when they finally caught the bastard and put him behind bars, where he belonged. He wanted that man out of Greg's life for good.

But even getting Shane banished from Greg's future existence wouldn't change the past -- and he was afraid that it was going to be a long time before Greg fully recovered from all that pain that Shane had put him through. He might never recover, Nick thought with a sigh.

Greg would be emotionally scarred all of his life -- and thanks to that explosion in the lab that had led to Shane dumping him, he had the outward scars to match. Nick didn't find those scars ugly, though. To him, they were the outward sign of Greg's inner strength.

They were also a sign of the pain that Greg had suffered, and in a way, he hated them for that. He hated to think of Greg suffering through anything, whether it was an accident like the explosion in the lab, or the brutal abuse that Shane had put him through.

But that was all in the past now, Nick assured himself as he padded down the hallway towards the living room. Greg was never going to suffer through the kind of pain that Shane had inflicted on him again. He would make sure of that. He'd protect Greg until his dying breath.

As his eyes adjusted to the darkness that filled the living room, he realized that Greg was standing by the sliding glass door that overlooked the back yard, staring out into the dark night. Quietly, Nick approached his boyfriend, clearing his throat when he was near.

"I couldn't sleep," Greg murmured without turning around. "And I didn't want to wake you up by tossing and turning, so I came out here. I thought maybe looking out at the stars might make me feel sleepy, but it hasn't. I'm still way too wide awake."

Nick nodded, moving to stand behind Greg and wrap his arms around the other man's slender waist. "Why can't you sleep, babe?" he asked, his voice very soft. 'Did you have another nightmare?" His voice was filled with compassion, the words spoken quietly and calmly.

Greg hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah," he answered, his voice barely audible. "I was dreaming about Shane beating the crap out of me .... and then ...." He swallowed hard, obviously not wanting to say what he was thinking, but Nick could guess what it was.

He pulled Greg closer, raising a hand to stroke gentle fingers through his boyfriend's hair. "He's never going to hurt you again, Greg," he whispered, his heart breaking at the thought of all that Greg had suffered. "I'm not going to let him get anywhere near you. I promise."

"I can't go through that again, Nick," Greg said, his voice sounding wobbly and on the verge of tears. "I can't deal with that kind of pain again. He almost broke me the last time. If he gets his hands on me again, I know I'll break. I can't fight him any more."

"You won't have to," Nick told him, his own voice almost breaking when he spoke. "You shouldn't have had to deal with that at all. You deserve so much better, Greg. I wish you'd never met him and never been involved with him. But everybody makes mistakes, baby. It's not your fault."

"Yes, it is!" Greg turned to Nick and buried his face against his boyfriend's shoulder, his slender body wracked with sobs that he could no longer hold back. "I should've known better than to get involved with somebody like him. I should have seen what he was from the beginning."

Nick shook his head, wrapping his arms around Greg and holding him close. "No, it's not your fault," he said, his voice strong and firm. "You couldn't have known what he was like, Greg. He was good at hiding his true colors. I'm just glad you found out, before he could hurt you even more."

Greg nodded, sniffling and lifting his head to look into Nick's eyes. Nick gazed at his boyfriend, raising a hand to wipe away Greg's tears. How was it that this young man could be so utterly beautiful? Even with reddened eyes and the sniffling, he was still gorgeous.

"You're never going to have to go through that kind of pain again," Nick said, his voice soft and husky. "I'll never let anything bad happen to you again, Greg. And if it does -- well, I can guarantee you that it won't come from him. I'll keep him away from you. I promise you that."

"Th-thanks, Nicky." Greg's voice was subdued, but at least the tears and self-recriminations seemed to have stopped, at least for the time being. Nick knew that it would probably be a long time before Greg stopped blaming himself, though he had no reason to do so.

They stood there for what felt to Nick like a very long time, simply holding each other, both of them giving the other comfort. Nick moved one hand up and down Greg's back, wishing that he could take his boyfriend back to bed, but wanting Greg to make the first move.

Eventually, Greg sighed softly and lifted his head from Nick's shoulder to look him in the eye. "Let's go back to bed, Nicky," he murmured, slowly extricating himself from Nick's embrace. "I think I can sleep now. As long as you lay there and hold me."

"That's just what I was planning on doing," Nick said with a soft smile, leaning forward to brush a kiss across Greg's cheek. Turning towards the hallway that led back to their bedroom, he took his boyfriend's hand, twining their fingers together and squeezing gently.

As he led Greg back to bed, Nick fervently hoped that the nightmares would stay away for the rest of the night, and that they'd both be able to get some sleep. And he hoped that Greg's memories of the pain he'd had to suffer would eventually fade into nothingness.

He didn't want Greg to have to deal with those memories for the rest of their lives together. They might always be there, hidden in the background, but if they were lucky, good memories would replace them, and they would eventually just seem like a bad dream.

He'd protect Greg from any more pain as much as he could, Nick told himself as they both lay down on the bed, Greg snuggling into his arms. Whatever it took, he would make sure that Shane never got near him again -- even if he had to sacrifice himself in the process.

***