Title: No Reason To Worry
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Nick Stokes
Fandom: CSI: Vegas
Series: 1) The Word Is Out, 2) In the Light of Day, 3) Property, 4) Flames of Hell, 5) Bottles and Broomsticks, 6) At the Killing Edge, 7) Into Your Arms, 8) Uncharted Territory, 9) Out of the Woods, 10) Kiss Your Tears Away, 11) Security Blanket, 12) Help Is on the Way, 13) Walls Break Down, 14) Made of Glass, 15) More Than A Heart Can Hold, 16) Stop the World
Author's Note: Mentions of rape/torture.
Rating: PG-13
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.

***

Greg looked up at the clock, wishing that he could make the hands move forward faster. He hated not being at work; he felt as though he was just marking time, treading water, not doing anything useful in any way. He hated feeling so worthless.

Wasn't that what Shane had said he was? he asked himself, closing his eyes against the unbidden tears that started to rise. Shane had said that he wasn't good for anything but fucking -- and Greg knew that there was a part of him that had begun to believe those cruel words.

Nick would never say something like that to him, Greg told himself, trying to fill his senses with the man he loved and push the memory of Shane out of his mind. Nick truly loved him -- which was something that Shane had never done, not even at the beginning.

Even when they had been good, there was always a roughness to the way Shane had treated him that had made Greg a little uncomfortable. He had simply put it down to the fact that Shane was a dominant type, and tried to write it off as a personality trait.

Nothing like that would ever happen with Nick, Greg told himself firmly. Nick was a good man; he wasn't like Shane in any way. He might be a more dominant personality when it came to sex, but he wasn't the kind of guy who would abuse the person he was with.

He was starting to get used to the feeling of being with Nick; even though they hadn't been together for very long, their relationship felt completely natural. They hadn't had to go through that awkward "getting to know you" phase; they already knew each other in so many ways.

Of course, he was still learning things about Nick that surprised him. Like when he'd brought that stuffed panda home, Greg thought, looking across the room at the toy sitting on the bookcase with a smile. He still hadn't picked out a name for it. He'd have to do that.

There was no one in the world like Nick. But he'd known that even before they had professed their love for each other, hadn't he? Nick had been someone special in his life for a long time, even when he hadn't dared to think of the other man as anything but a friend.

Nick had always been there for him; he'd always known how to make Greg laugh when he was feeling down, always had a kind word when it was needed. It had been possible to go back home to Shane for months now because he knew he would see Nick at work.

The thought of Shane made a shudder go through Greg's thin body; he wrapped his arms around himself, closing his eyes. He didn't want to think about that monster, all of the things that Shane had said and done to him. That was over now.

Shane was his past. Nick was his future. He didn't need to keep his thoughts on the man who had abused him; there was no room for Shane, or even memories of him, in the life that he was building with Nick. There was no need to focus on the past.

But Shane was still out there, Greg thought with another shudder. He was in the wind, with no clue as to where he'd gone or what he was doing. For all they knew, he could be watching this house right now, just waiting for a chance to get in a take Greg again.

He closed his eyes, shaking his head as though he could chase the thought away by doing so. No. Shane wasn't out there. His nemesis had no idea that he was here, living with Nick. He would think that Greg was still back at his apartment, trying to pick up the pieces.

That was exactly where he would be, if Nick didn't love him and want him to be here. Or would he? Nick wouldn't have wanted him to go back home by himself in the condition he'd been in when he had first left the hospital, even if Shane wasn't in the picture.

No, he would still be here, even if Shane hadn't kidnapped him from the hospital. Nick wouldn't have let him simply go home and try to deal with his problems on his own. This had been the perfect way for them to let their relationship develop, almost as though it had been intended.

He didn't want to think like that. The explosion in the lab hadn't been meant to happen; Catherine hadn't meant to hurt him. It wasn't her fault; it was just one of those freak accidents that could happen anywhere. There was no one to blame for that.

The burns were a lot better now, though he still had some trouble moving around. Nick still had to change the dressings; he couldn't reach his back to do it himself. But the burns were healing, and the doctors had said that they wouldn't leave permanent scars.

There would be some scar tissue, obviously, but it wasn't going to be disfiguring. There would be few little puckers in the skin across his upper back and shoulders, but there would be no need for skin grafts, and he wouldn't have to deal with scarring or any sort of disfigurement.

That had been one of the things that terrified him the most; he had been so afraid that, despite what Nick had said, there would be scars that would remind them both of what had happened, and that Nick would turn away from them. He wouldn't be able to help himself.

Now that worry had been taken away, magically erased as if it had never existed. It felt as if all of the barriers that had been put in the way of his relationship with Nick were falling to the ground -- except that barrier that loomed the largest in front of them.

When -- if ever -- would they be able to tell the people they worked with how they felt about each other? It didn't seem fair that people who were as close to them as family, people who cared about them, should be kept in the dark about their relationship.

Their friends should be able to share in their happiness, not be kept away from it. And those friends had also helped to find him when Shane had kidnapped him; they deserved to know that he and Nick were a couple, not to be shut out from the biggest part of his life.

Those rules were so damn stupid, Greg thought resentfully, feeling like a pouty child denied the candy it desperately wants. There was no reason why people who worked together couldn't date each other openly. It wasn't like he was out there in the field with Nick, after all.

That thought brought him up short; he felt another shudder run through him, this time one that concerned Nick more than himself. What would he do if Nicky was in danger, if something horrible should happen to him while he was out there working?

He didn't want to keep that thought in his mind, but he couldn't help it. What if Nick died out there in the field, and he wasn't around? What if he had to hear about the death of the man he loved from one of his colleagues -- or worse, directly from Ecklie?

A small sob escaped him before he could hold it back; Greg clamped his hand over his mouth and squeezed his eyes tightly shut, determined to block out that thought before ti could take too firm a hold on his his mind and make him feel paranoid.

Nick wasn't going to die in the field. If some kind of accident happened, there would be other CSIs with him to have his back. And if the worst happened, and he was shot, they would get him to a hospital as quickly as possible. He wasn't going to be abandoned.

Greg took a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying to calm himself. There was no reason for all of these worries. He was being ridiculous. Everything that had happened to him recently was making him see shadows lurking around every corner.

That was no way for anyone to live. He couldn't constantly be looking over his shoulder and thinking that Shane would be there, or that something would happen to Nick. He couldn't live his life in fear. That would mean that Shane had won in some indefinable way.

Greg squared his shoulders, clenching his jaw and taking another deep breath. Whatever might happen, he wasn't going to let Shane win. He wasn't going to be fearful all the time, or live his life looking over his shoulder. He wasn't going to let himself be crippled like that.

Shane had already taken too much away from him, and the bastard wasn't going to get away with more. They were going to find him and bring him to justice, and put him behind bars where he belonged. It was what they did best -- and they weren't going to fail.

His ex-boyfriend might have managed to win round one, but that had only been the first skirmish. The next time, the CSI team would be more prepared -- and Greg wasn't going to let himself fall victim to Shane again. Next time, he would be ready to stand up to his nemesis.

Nick would help him with that. Nick would be there by his side when they caught Shane, and when Greg had to face him in court. Nick was going to be there for him; he had no doubt of that. Nicky was his other half, the man he loved -- and who loved him.

Greg settled back against the cushions of the couch with a sigh, smiling as he heard the door of Nick's truck slam outside. His boyfriend was home; all of his worries were swept away for the time being, leaving nothing but the heady anticipation of being wrapped in Nick's arms.

***