Title: Regeneration
Author: justtopostmyfic
Note: sequel to Requiem
Pairing: Gil/Nick
Genre: established relationship, Gil-comfort
Season/Time set: Grave Danger
Rating: FRT
A/N: For those of us who like happy endings!

When Gil awoke, he was still sobbing harshly into his pillow. He looked around and took in the familiar, darkened room-- their room. He was in their room, in their bed. Gil scrambled to get up and looked over to Nick's side of the bed. Nick was still there, motionless. Was Nick asleep in their bed still?

It was too dark to see if there was a gradual rise and fall of Nick's chest, so Gil reached over and placed his hand at Nick's carotid, feeling desperately for a pulse. He could have sworn he felt one, but Gil need more. He needed more evidence. After a traumatizing nightmare that felt so damn real, he needed to see Nick open his eyes, needed to see Nick animated, needed for Nick to respond to him.

Against every sensible fibre of his being, telling him that Nick needed every moment of sleep he could get, Gil's overtaxed, distressed brain overrode his habitual self and he found himself shaking Nick's shoulders vigorously and desperately crying out, "Nick! Wake up, Nicky, please!"

Nick stirred gradually as something shook him forcefully. His mind was hazy from sleep, especially because sleep was so hard to come by for him these days. When his adled brain recognized Gil's panicked voice, his mental fog dissipated and he bolted up in bed.

"Gil? Gil, what's wro-?" he asked worriedly as the end of his question was muffled when Gil pulled him into a tight, life-wrangling hug.

Nick was alive, Nick is still alive, and Gil was so, so overwhelmed that he clutched on to Nick like how a terrified child would grab on to his rag-doll. Except his beloved rag-doll was hugging him right back mumbling soothing words into his ear.

Gil choked on the remnant of a sob and sniffled into Nick's shoulder.

Was Gil crying? Nick had never ever experienced Gil crying before and pulled back his head from the embrace in shock. It was too dark to make Gil's features out clearly, but as Nick ran his thumbs over Gil's cheeks, they met with streaks of moisture.

Nick leaned in to gently kiss the moisture away and comfortingly whispered words as he felt Gil calm and quieten under his lips.

"Let's go out into the living room for a while, okay? Don't go back to bed yet," Nick soothed.

"Yeah, living room, that'd be nice" Gil murmured, almost to himself.

This was Nick's turn to reciprocate the favour. Gil had helped him cope with countless of his own nightmares and Nick was going to give Gil the exact same treatment Gil used with him after a nightmare, because Gil's method worked so well.

Nick got off their bed and pulled Gil gently along after him, his arm never leaving Gil's waist. Sitting Gil on the couch, Nick said quietly, "Just sit here and relax okay, I'm make you a cup of coffee- decaf."

Gil would have normally made Nick a glass of iced tea, which greatly helped Nick after his nightmares of suffocating in a swelteringly hot coffin, but Gil was not much of an iced tea man himself. Coffee was Gil's comfort beverage, and he didn't need anymore stimulation right now, so Nick decided on the decaf.

Despite Nick telling Gil to rest on the couch for a bit, Gil padded after Nick into the kitchen. He couldn't let Nick out of his sight now, he had to see him, had to be near him.

When Gil entered the kitchen, Nick paused from grabbing the coffee mug and spoon and ran his hands up down Gil's arms and Gil couldn't help but meet Nick's reassuring smile with a weak one of his own.

As Gil watched Nick bustling around the kitchen doing something so routine and normal like making coffee, he was filled with aching relief. Nick is alive, well and truly, and suddenly Nick making coffee brought untold happiness to him.

In an instant of enlightenment, Gil realized he'd rather take Nick broken and hurt over Nick dead any day. No matter how tiring or painful or frustrating it would ever get. Gil had never complained before about Nick's increased emotional dependency since his rescue, but today his own nightmare safeguarded him from ever feeling burdened by Nick. As long as Nick was alive, he would endure and help Nick through any of the baggage that came with his ordeal. 

Nick turned to rest the steaming cup of coffee in front of Gil and Gil outstretched his hands, wanting Nick to sit in his arms. Nick took up the invitation without hesitation and sat on Gil's lap, resuming his comforting stroking along Gil's flanks.

They sat in silence for a while, the cup of coffee shared between them, and Grissom realized that everything he ever needed in life was right here with him. Coffee to get him through the day, and Nick to get him through the rest of his life.

After a while, Nick broke the silence and asked, "Do you feel sick to your stomach?" For Nick, the post-nightmare gnawing nausea was too fresh in his memory, and he worried if Gil was feeling it now.

But Gil shook is head as he burrowed into Nick's neck, being soothed by the vibrations of Nick's voicebox as he spoke.

No, I'm okay because you're alive. And even if you aren't fully alright right now, I'll help you get to okay again too, Gil thought.