Title: Tears in the Rain
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Ryan Wolfe
Fandom: CSI: Vegas/CSI: Miami
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 Ryan Wolfe, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

Ryan awakened with a start, realizing that Greg wasn't in bed next to him. His first thought was one of panic -- he had no idea where his boyfriend was, whether he was still in the apartment or not. He sat up in bed, ready to call Greg's name aloud.

The name died on his lips as he realized that Greg could be anywhere in the apartment. He could be in the kitchen, the living room, the bathroom .... Ryan smiled wryly at himself as he threw the covers back and got out of bed. There was no reason for him to panic.

He reached for a pair of sweatpants, pulling them on quickly, not bothering with a shirt. He was sure that they would be going back to bed within a few minutes; there was no reason for him to get fully dressed. Once he found out where Greg was, he would be able to settle down again.

He frowned as he passed by the open door of the bathroom; Greg obviously wasn't in there, and he wasn't in the living room either. Ryan looked into the kitchen, starting to feel alarmed when there was no sign of Greg anywhere in the apartment.

Could Greg have gone out by himself? Ryan didn't think so; his boyfriend knew how dangerous it could be for either of them to go anywhere on their own, especially after what had happened in the park. Neither of them were willing to take any chances with their safety.

He hadn't gotten a phone call; Ryan was sure of that. He would have heard the land line ring, or either of their cell phones. And Greg wouldn't go out somewhere without leaving a note. There wasn't any, so Ryan was sure that he was still here at home.

Maybe Greg had gone into their other apartment next door, for some reason. He might have left something there that he needed, and gone to get it. Yes, that had to be it. Ryan sighed in relief, heading for the front door, when he had a sudden thought.

Greg might have gone out onto the balcony by the living room if he couldn't sleep. That was the best idea he'd had yet; Ryan switched his direction and went over to the sliding glass doors in front of the balcony, pulling back the curtains to step outside.

Yes, that was where Greg was, he saw as he slid one door aside and stepped out onto the concrete. It had begun to rain, just a light mist that pattered down softly; in the warm air, the moisture felt good on his skin. Ryan closed the balcony door, stepping to the front of the balcony beside Greg.

It took him a moment to realize that Greg was crying, tears streaking down his cheeks. He thought at first that the wetness was caused by the rain, but after a few moments, he realized that it wasn't. The other man was crying silently, not making a sound, but definitely crying.

"Greg? Baby, what's wrong?" Ryan asked softly, alarmed by the tears on Greg' cheeks. Had he somehow done something that had made Greg unhappy? Was he at fault for this? He slid his arms around Greg, drawing the other man back against the warmth of his body and kissing his hair.

Greg turned to him, resting his forehead against Ryan's shoulder and slipping his own arms around Ryan's waist. They stood there for what felt like a very long time, the soft rain splashing down on them, Greg crying softly in Ryan's embrace.

Ryan didn't want to ask Greg again what was wrong; he was afraid that the question might send his lover off into another flood of tears. Whatever it was, Greg would tell him soonr or later, he told himself, closing his eyes and moving a hand comfortingly up and down Greg's back.

After what seemed like a very long time, Greg finally raised his head from Ryan's shoulder, sniffling and wiping at his eyes. "I'm s-sorry," he whispered, the words spoken so softly that Ryan could barely hear them. "I j-just ...." He gulped, tears filling his eyes again.

"Shhh, baby," Ryan murmured, raising a hand to stroke Greg's hair. "You don't need to explain anything. Sometimes you just feel like you have to cry, even if you don't know what it is that's making you feel that way. I've been there before."

Greg nodded, his arms slipping around Ryan's waist again. "It's .... everything, Ry. All this crap you're going through, this guy who won't leave you alone. And I'm making things worse for you. If I wasn't around, then you wouldn't have to worry about him getting to me."

"If you're saying that we shouldn't be together until this is over, don't even think about it," Ryan told him, his voice sharper than he intended it to be. "I've given that a lot of thought already, and I don't want that. I need you with me, Greg. I can't make it through this alone."

Greg nodded, sniffling, not lifting his head from Ryan's shoulder. Ryan could feel tears rising behind his own eyes; he hated to see his boyfriend cry. He hated knowing that he was the cause of those tears; knowing that Greg was hurting because of him was unbearable.

Greg's tears mingled with the rain; Ryan didn't know which was which, but it didn't matter. He would stand here and hold Greg for as long as his boyfriend needed that comfort; he would do anything that he could to take these tears in the rain away and make Greg smile again.

Slowly, Ryan moved back towards the balcony doors, wanting to get inside and out of the rain. He didn't think it would do either of them any good to have colds on top of everything else; even if Greg felt some kind of comfort at being out here in the elements.

Greg moved along with him, though he didn't raise his head to look up at Ryan. When they were nearly to the doors, Ryan stopped moving, bowing his head to brush a kiss against Greg's cheek before the other man finally lifted his head.

Ryan placed his hands on either side of Greg's face, gazing into those beautiful dark eyes, wanting to brush away the pearlescent droplets gathered on Greg's long lashes. He didn't know if that wetness was tears or rain; for the moment, it didn't seem to matter.

"You belong with me," he whispered, one hand moving down to touch the silver hearts that rested at the base of Greg's throat. "And I belong with you. Don't ever doubt that, Greg. And don't ever forget. No matter what happens in our lives, we belong to each other."

Ryan could feel the tears streaking down his own face as he spoke; he hoped that Greg would think that they were raindrops, and that he wouldn't start sobbing as he stood there, staring into his lover's eyes. All he wanted at this moment was for Greg to know how very much he was loved.

"I love you," he whispered, his voice catching in his throat. "I'll love you until the end of time, Greg. And I'll always be with you. Whatever you're feeling now, it'll pass, baby. I promise it will. And when it does, you and I will still be together, and I'll still love you."

Greg nodded, gulping as he struggled to speak. Ryan shook his head, pressing one finger against the other man's lips. Greg didn't need to say anything; Ryan already knew how much his boyfriend loved him. He could feel it every time Greg touched him, or even looked at him.

Carefully, he slid the glass door aside, getting the two of them into the living room and out of the rain. He slowly led Greg down the hall, not caring that the two of them were dripping water on the carpet; it would dry, and at the moment, that was the least of his worries.

Ryan stopped by the bathroom door to get two towels before continuing down the hallway to their bedroom, his arm around Greg's waist. He silently helped his boyfriend undress, then began to slowly dry Greg's wet hair with the fluffy towel.

It only took him a moment to get out of the sweatpants he was wearing; as Greg sank down onto the bed, Ryan quickly ran the towel over his own hair, plastered to his head by the rain. He didn't know what to say, or if he could even say anything that would make Greg feel better.

All he wanted was to take away his lover's tears, to make his beautiful Greg smile again. But there was nothing in his mind that he knew could do that; all that he could do was hold Greg, show him that he was loved, and hope that would be enough.

As he settled down into bed and pulled the covers up over their nude bodies, Greg's arms slid around him, his boyfriend moving closer to him. Ryan gathered Greg into his arms, not surprised to feel more hot tears trickling down his chest as he held Greg close.

"I love you," Greg whispered, his voice choked and barely audible. "I'll always love you. I always have." His slender body was shaking with sobs that he tried to hold in; Ryan closed his eyes, his own tears rising to the surface, wishing that he knew how to make them stop.

"I love you too, babe," he murmured, stroking Greg's hair and holding him close. He didn't know what was causing the other man's tears, but whatever it was, he hoped that Greg would be able to talk about it later -- and that he would be able to do something to make things better.

Greg's only response was to hold onto him tighter; Ryan could do nothing but lie there and listen to the rain come down on the windowpane, a counterpoint to the tears that were beginning to streak down his own cheeks, hoping that the rain -- and their tears -- would soon be gone.

***

Next story in series - More Than You Know.