Title: The Long Annoying Shift
By: cameragirl
Pairing: Nick/Greg
Rating: PG
Summary: A day in the life of a CSI; the last thing a sick Greg Sanders needed was a quadruple shift.

***

7 a.m.

Grissom walked into one of the computer rooms and saw Greg surrounded by packed up evidence. He was trying to stack the boxes.

"Greg, I need to talk to you." Grissom said and waited for Greg to turn around. When he did, Grissom saw the young CSI wearing a lab mask.

"Is this contaminated evidence?" Grissom asked, on the verge of scolding. Greg pulled down the mask, shaking his head.

"I have-" Greg's raspy explanation was cut off by a coughing fit that he covered with the mask. "I'm coming down with something." Greg's weak voice responded. Before Grissom could answer, a knock sounded at the door.

"Hey G, you ready to go?" Nick leaned against the doorframe. "Oh, hey Griss." He nodded at his boss.

"Yea, I just need to put these away and Grissom-" Greg looked over "needed to talk to me."

"Yes, I'm sorry Greg but the two lab techs for days are out sick, the ones on swing are on vacation and sick."

"He's not on DNA anymore." Nick said slowly, not liking where Grissom was going with this.

"Doesn't matter, the fact is that we have four level 5 cases, no techs but one of the top DNA techs in the country is still at our disposal. He's still qualified." Grissom explained. Greg had spent quite a few years in DNA and the Las Vegas lab is considered second in the country, only second to the FBI government lab. Greg had been selected and had become the top at the crime lab.

"How much is there?" Greg's unusually deep voice asked.

"Quite a bit of backup and more coming in off of those cases. The sooner the better." Grissom replied.

"I've been out of practice a bit-"

"No you're not." Grissom retorted, knowing perfectly well that Greg was working on a DNA paper.

"-And" Greg sighed "I'm sick, won't that affect the cases?"

"You've already proven responsibility by wearing a mask." Grissom said confidently.

"How long?" Nick asked, not happy with the situation. Grissom glanced over at Nick, playing the part of the worried boyfriend to perfection. He'd noticed Greg getting sick the day before and didn't like anything Grissom was saying.

"In addition to the twelve hour shift you just finished? You'll probably end up with 30 hours? Maybe 40? It's hard to tell but one of the high profile cases involves the mayor's daughter." Greg sighed and looked apologetically at Nick, who gave a small smile and nodded.

"I'll have someone on day shift take your current case. You'll get overtime and a half on this." Grissom told him. "Also, we're going to set you up in the lab so there are things for in and out. Don't give your show after finding results. Page them when things are done and place them in the out box. Fast and efficient."

"Jeez Grissom am I allowed to pee or eat?" Greg stared open mouthed at his supervisor.

"Sure, so long as you don't get distracted. If you're getting special pay then higher up people will be checking in on you to make sure you're doing what you're getting paid for." Grissom said sternly. Greg nodded seriously.

"Get your mask on, you start now." Grissom walked out the door and stopped, waiting for Greg to follow him to the DNA lab. Nick grabbed his hand and squeezed. He felt Greg's forehead with worry.

"I'll be fine." Greg smiled and tried to reassure his boyfriend. Nick sighed.

"You better be. What are the odds of Grissom giving both of us a day or two off after this?" Nick asked hopefully.

Greg shrugged. "Hopefully good odds. Especially after forty hours." Nick pulled Greg towards him, wrapping his arms around his waist. Greg leaned his head on Nick's shoulder, sighing in contentment. Nick kissed the top of Greg's head, not happy he couldn't do anything else cause they were at work. And Greg would be at work for the next 30 hours.

"You should go home and get some rest. I don't want you catching my thing." Greg smiled.

"Don't worry, I actually took the recommended daily vitamins unlike some people." Nick smirked. "If this gets worse then I'm taking you to the doctors."

"If it gets worse during the next two days then Ill ask Griss to have Doc Robbins take a quick look." Greg reluctantly pulled away from Nick and pulled his mask back over his mouth.

See you later babe, feel better." Nick squeezed Greg's hand once more before leaving the room.

9 a.m.

Greg had set himself up in the lab. His old lab. Nothing had really changed. His porn stash was gone. The c.d.'s he kept were still hidden behind an organic compounds encyclopedia. They were just burnt c.d.'s that he kept in the lab, he hadn't really had time to listen to them lately. The case load had been ridiculous and there wasn't anytime to get music while he analyzed evidence.

Greg looked outside through the glass walls of the lab. Grissom had someone set up a hallway outside the room where all incoming evidence was being placed. Greg looked up as the lab's fax machine made a series of beeps. Greg pushed his swivel chair over and grabbed a sheet of paper.

The cover said it was from the office of Dr. Gilbert Grissom. Weird… couldn't Grissom just give him whatever news this was? After the cover page was a handwritten note in tedious script.

Greg, I heard from Brass about times that Ecklie and other supervisors will be in to check on you. Be aware and turn on a respectable music level 5 minutes before and five minutes after. –Grissom

Following the note was Ecklie's schedule for the next two days. Certain shifts and break times were circled. Greg smiled, reminding himself to thank Grissom later. The next page was a schedule that Greg was to follow. It included very specific bathroom and food breaks.

He had to be accompanied to the bathroom? High profile cases sucked. The lawyers and attorneys were always crawling the lab hallway, purposely looking for ways that procedure had been broken. The fact that there was back up wasn't helping at all.

Food would be delivered to him by a member of the team. Greg perked up at that, maybe Nick would bring him food. Preferably something warm, maybe soup. He scanned the rest of his schedule, noticing he had a doctor's appointment with Doc Robbins at six p.m. Six, a time when he'd just be coming into work.

Sighing, Greg started to work on the nearest evidence bag. Great, a used condom. Fantastic way to start his shift from hell.

It only took him five hours to get through the supposed backlog. It had him feeling accomplished but at the same time he was disappointed. LV was one of the top labs in the country and he was extremely protective of his old job and title.

Was Grissom hiring the right people for the job? That backlog wasn't even challenging. That backlog shouldn't even have happened, even with the high profile cases. Greg shook it out of his mind, which wasn't a good idea. He grabbed hold of the desk to try to gain back his balance.

Once in equilibrium, he stepped away from the evidence, pulled down his mask and blew his nose. His nose wasn't too bad but his head and throat were killing him, and his appointment with Doc wasn't for at least another eight hours.

2 p.m.

A knock at the lab door startled Greg and he stiffened. It wasn't the first time someone had tried to come in since the start of his shift. People needed to learn to read. Greg wasn't going to let them in and have Ecklie on his case or have some lawyer cancel out any trace and DNA results.

Greg looked to his side and sure enough Ecklie was at the door. Greg didn't look up but instead just pointed to the sign on the door that Archie had hung up.

Lab rat at work. Do not disturb and see Grissom for anything.

More knocking, this time harder. Greg sighed and looked up just in time to see Grissom intercept Ecklie. Lots of hand motions from Ecklie contrasted with Grissom's calm demeanor. Greg watched them for a minute before quickly putting his head down when the attention was put on him.

After a few minutes of staring intently into his microscope, another knock sounded at the door. Greg looked up and saw Grissom and a police officer standing there. Greg moved his mask off his mouth and secured his current evidence bag. He opened the lab door, stepped out ad shut the door behind him.

"Grissom." Greg rasped before a coughing fit overtook him.

"Greg." Grissom leaned over, concern on his face, and smacked Greg's back.

"Ow…Not choking Grissom, just coughing" Greg said weakly. Grissom grimaced and kept a hand on Greg's shoulder.

"I'll move that doctor's appointment to right when the doc comes in. Ecklie won't bother you anymore. I told him you're going on fifteen hours with high profile cases and don't need anymore heckling.

"Thanks." Greg cringed, imagining how that was going to come back and bite him in the ass.

"And this," Grissom gestured to the cop next to him "is Dave Kelly." Greg looked curiously at him.

"Nice to see you again Dave." He looked from Dave to Grissom.

"He's going to he guarding the lab for the next shift or two. He has a list of people allowed to get you for breaks and the doctor's appointment. You've had two eating breaks so far."

"Yea." Greg grinned. Archie and the dayshift audio tech had brought him Chinese takeout.

"Good, Sara's going to be around in a bit, something about hearing you can't stink up a lab so add a 5 p.m. shower and then someone will be back at probably around midnight. We can't let any of your germs contaminate the evidence. We can't let anyone twist the outcome of these results." Greg looked a little indignant at the implication of his stench. "So, that's all for now, Dave will be outside so he'll let you know anything." Greg frowned at the idea of a guard. Grissom noticed it and continued.

"There are lawyers and city agents crawling around the entire building, we're not taking any chances."' Grissom gave him a rare smile. "Keep up the good work. I'll see you during the doctor's appointment." Greg reluctantly smiled at Dave before going back to his microscope and the newest evidence bag.

 ***

5 p.m.

The next three hours passed slowly and Greg had gone through his three c.d.'s more than four times each. He was left with a midday rock radio station that insisted on playing block artist songs instead of mixing it up once and awhile. 23 hours had passed since he and Nick had come to work for the previous shift.

Greg started swaying to the song in the Goo Goo Dolls block as he waited for his next results. The sound and rhythm encompassed his entire body. He was so intent on the music that he didn't even notice that someone had walked into the lab.

The music stopped abruptly and Greg's head snapped up, a blush spreading quickly across his face.

"I don't think they pay you for dancing in between DNA readings." Sara teased.

"There's only so many machines, it's not like I can start another sample while I'm waiting." Greg rolled his eyes.

"Well finish up for a bit, you need to shower, eat another meal and then-"

"Nap? Go home?" Greg asked excitedly.

"Nope. Neither. Then you have a doctor's appointment with Robbins."

"Oh." Greg's face became downcast. He avoided the doctor's at all costs and never thought he'd have to go to the morgue for an appointment. How often had Doc given exams to the living?

"Only 13 more hours after that." Sara tried to cheer him up.

"13 long, long hours with who knows how many showers, food breaks, and possible sneaky Ecklie visits. I hate having to keep watch over everything I do." Greg said indignantly. He ran his hand through his now greasy hair. The mask was getting to be annoying and Greg cringed as he imagined how much bacteria was breeding. The mask was probably just making him feel worse. Maybe he should swab it…

Sara's hand on his shoulder brought him out of the absurd thoughts that were brought upon by the lack of sleep. "It beeped." She pointed to the trace machine against the far wall of the lab. Greg slowly got up off his chair, balanced himself, and then made his way over to get the printout results.

"Steady." Sara pursed her lips and watched as Greg methodically rebagged and tagged the evidence with the results and placed them on the outgoing table. They walked out of the lab in a comfortable silence. Greg locked the door behind them and smiled at Dave, who nodded back seriously.

"Food or shower first?" Sara asked him.

"Food. I feel gross, but I'm so hungry. Archie's takeout feels like it happened forever ago." Greg told her.

….

"What's been going on?" Greg asked as they sat in the empty break room. "Have I been missing out on anything? Isolation is not for me."

Sara laughed good-naturedly. "No, you're probably driving yourself crazy in there." While Greg was eating hot soup, Sara filled him in on all the happenings around the lab. A lot can happen in eleven hours. Combined with the hours he had logged in his original shift where he was isolated as he examined evidence.

"23 hours is a long time." Sara sympathized, noting the distant look on Greg's face. His smile was still there but his eyes looked tired.

"I'm sure your boyfriend's done more." Greg said through a mouthful of soup. He was still able to be a sarcastic smartass when he was sick.

"Keep your voice down." Sara hissed. Greg rolled his eyes and continued eating.

Almost as if on cue, Grissom walked by the break room and stuck his head in. "Everything all right here?" Greg and Sara nodded. "Alright, I'll see you at six." Grissom reminded him before he left.

"Six?" Greg thought. Sara saw the confused look on his face.

"Six o'clock you have a doctors appointment. Remember?" She asked, concerned.

"Oh." Greg leaned back in his seat, he remembered now.

"Are you going to be ok to take a shower? Cause I don't want to leave you and be standing outside while you faint." She told him sternly.

"I'll be fine. I won't make it too hot and there are safety poles there. I'll yell if I need anything." Greg gave another tired smile, trying to reassure her.

"I still can't believe that you don't have a choice on this whole shift thing." Sara grumbled.

Greg sighed and tried to rationalize it so Grissom wouldn't get in trouble. "It's practically the biggest case in all of Nevada. Hell, in the western U.S. Sara. A mayor's daughter is threatened by terrorists? And then kidnapped."

"Assassinated." Sara corrected him quietly.

"What?" Greg looked up in shock.

"The mayor's daughter was killed and the mayor himself tried to make a deal with them. Before the deal went through, he was assassinated during his morning city-wide briefing. They're still looking for the killers" Sara explained, making sure to keep her voice down.

"He tried to make a deal with them?" Greg hissed angrily. His frustration along with a fogged head wasn't a good combination.

"Some people don't have trust in police work. Maybe he's had a bad experience." Sara shrugged. They sat together for a few more minutes until Greg finished his soup.

Sara stood up and watched carefully as Greg steadied himself against the break table. Greg waited for his dizziness to pass. Hopefully Doc would be able to give him something for this. Greg had been trying to hydrate himself, but between being tired and having some sort of illness, all the water in the world couldn't help him stand up straight.

"Alright," Sara handed him his change of clothes from the CSI truck they usually use. "Clothes and some shampoo, soap and a washcloth."

"No loufa?" Greg teased.

"Smartass." Sara glared. "I'll be right out here if you need me." She said more seriously.

"Thanks." Greg said gratefully and sincerely. The whole day was spiraling out of control. And the mayor was assassinated? The case was getting dangerous.

The lukewarm water felt great on his overheated skin. Not to mention his hair felt disgusting and greasy. His long fingers scratched through his scalp, cleaning and itching their way to shampoo every area. It felt fantastic and Greg had to stop himself from moaning out loud. Greg leaned further back for no reason at all, other than he was content.

The slippery floor got the better of him. His eyes shot open as he lost his footing. Gasping, Greg's arms flew around him, trying to find something to grab onto. He yelped as strong arms were suddenly firmly wrapped around his waist and supported his weight.

"Careful, I've got you." Nick's voice said quietly, soothing Greg's adrenaline rushed mind. Greg turned around to face Nick and leaned his head on his shoulder. Nick could feel Greg's heartbeat going a mile a minute after his scare.

He kissed the top of Greg's head; the wet hair smelling of whatever fruity shampoo Sara had given him. When his dizziness had passed, Greg raised his head to look at Nick.

"You have clothes on." He said stupidly, his dazed eyes confused.

"Yes…" Nick raised an eyebrow and waited to see where Greg was going with his obvious statement.

"You're getting wet." Greg's eyebrow's creased but he couldn't dwell on the thought because Nick, wet clothing and all, slowly moved him out to the abandoned locker room bench and wrapped a towel around Greg's waist. Greg leaned his head back against the wall while Nick turned off the shower water.

"Feeling any better at all babe?" Nick sat down next to him, Greg's change of clothes in his hand.

"Not really. Now I'm just tired. What time is it?" Greg alertly sat up, but Nick held him down.

"It's around five thirty." Nick told him and started dressing Greg before he caught even more of a chill. "Come on, arms up babe." Nick commanded softly.

"Hmm?" Greg broke out of his trance and saw Nick holding his t-shirt. "You're not on til six…" Greg observed.

"You have a doctor's appointment, Grissom told me about it. I'm going to come with you before my shift starts." Nick told him, helping Greg stand up to put his boxers and pants on.

"You're wet." Greg said again, raising his eyebrow. Nick pointed to another change of clothes that Greg hadn't noticed before.

"Hang out here." Nick got off the bench, got undressed, and began to dry himself off with Greg's towel. Greg seemed dazed, either he was really tired and sick or he was really intent on watching Nick strip off his wet clothes and get dressed again. Nick helped Greg up and they made their way to the elevator to get down to Doc's room.

***

6 PM

"Ow." Greg said instinctively. "Did Grissom tell you I'm still living…" He muttered as Doc Robbins poked him just a little too hard.

"Hm…no…he forgot to mention that, although the breathing was a bit of a dead giveaway." Doc laughed at his own words as Greg squirmed on the cold, but clean, autopsy table. It was extremely awkward being watched. Nick being right next to him was fine, but Sara and Grissom were there too. Nick rolled his eyes at his boyfriend's skittish movements.

Doc frowned and examined Greg's lungs again with the stethoscope. "Looks like advanced flu." Doc mused and motioned for Greg to put his shirt back on. "Take these low grade antibiotics and make sure to drink juice and water. Switch off but be constant in keeping yourself hydrated." Doc instructed. "You're isolated in the lab right?" He asked.

"Yep." Greg answered.

"With a mask." Grissom added.

"Ok well stay in isolation and keep a mask on at all times." Doc handed him another one. "We don't want all shifts getting sick." Greg started to mumble something about that being self-explanatory but a poke from Nick shut him up.

"Alright then, Nick you're on assignment with me. Sara maxedout on OT again." Grissom glanced over his glasses at Sara before sighing. "So you'll be here. Log evidence, catch up on paperwork and keep an eye on Greg." Greg rolled his eyes and Sara nodded at Grissom.

Greg reluctantly said goodbye to Nick, squeezing the Texan's hand in a reassuring manner. Now, he tried to listen to Sara rant about overtime as they took the elevator back upstairs.

"Maybe if you didn't always throw yourself into work…" Greg mused out loud. Sara's steely gaze made him want to run and hide.

"You're lucky you have a boyfriend that'll beat me up if I touch you." She smirked.

"Nah, Nicky wouldn't hit a girl." Greg passed. "Although…" He grinned and soon found himself cringing in pain, brought about by Sara smacking him upside the head.

"Violence in the workplace…" He muttered.

"You deserved that." Sara told him.

"That I did." Greg agreed. They parted ways at the lab door and Greg got out his keys. Dave wasn't there. 'That's weird' Greg thought. He reached and put his key in the lock, only to find it was already unlocked. "Sara…" He called weakly without turning his head.

Down the hall, Sara turned and saw a frozen Greg staring at the lab door.

"Greg?" She rushed back. "What is it?"

"I-I thought that Dave was j-just in the bathroom." Greg stuttered. "But he's not here and the lab door is open." He finished with a whisper.

Sara touched his shoulder and slowly moved him away from the door, leaving his keys dangling from the lock.

"I'll call Grissom; you check with Archie, he can get you the security tapes. If I can't get in touch with Grissom, I'll try Catherine or Brass." Sara took out her cell phone and started frantically dialing.

Greg stood dazed for a moment. Someone had sabotaged the lab. Well, possibly but the situation wasn't looking too good at the moment. Then he realized what Sara told him to do and, in a haze, he wandered off to the AV lab to find Archie. It was only 6:30 so the night tech should still be setting up schedule in the lab.

"Hey Sanders, feeling any better?' Archie looked up from his keyboard.

"Erm, I-I need the security tapes from the last hour." Greg tried to grab hold of his thoughts but they seemed to drift away from him, making whatever he said out loud slightly incoherent.

"What?" Archie asked. He stood up suddenly and walked over to Greg, making sure he was steady.

"Someone um, broke into the lab. The DNA lab was broken into. The door was unlocked and the guard wasn't there and someone broke in, I think. Sara went to get Grissom or Catherine or Brass." Greg said in a monotone voice.

"Ok, you sit down. Catherine's in the next lab over." Archie ran out of the room but quickly returned with Catherine.

"Greg." She knelt down in front of him. "Where's Sara? And where are your keys?" Greg thought for a minute.

"Sara's…outside the lab. She's trying to call Grissom. My keys are in the door. It was unlocked before I turned it all the way. And Dave wasn't there."

"Dave?" Archie asked.

"Dave was on guard outside the lab."

Catherine nodded. "We're going to start an investigation right away. Until we need you, you and Archie are going to stay in another evidence lab. Get done what you can and Archie will be there to keep an eye on you." Archie put his hand on Greg's shoulder and steered him away to the other lab. Even with the lab broken into, there was always work to be done.

12 AM

Greg and Archie were able to get a lot accomplished. They avoided each other in a comfortable silence to get their work done. Greg was tense during the first hour, but then was able to get himself lost in his work.

Archie's cell phone rang and Greg waited patiently as Archie responded to the call with "hm…'s", "what's?" and "ok's". Archie hung up and turned to see a patient Greg, waiting for information.

"Ok, here's what happened. Another AV tech went through the security cameras; Dave got a call from someone that he swears was Grissom. Apparently, this person told him to go home. Then the video shows that new CSI-in-training breaking into the lab with a bobby pin." Archie chuckled. "One of the layers crawling around tried to buy him off. Apparently our young moron wasn't aware about cameras. They've got him in custody and needless to say, he's fired." Archie grinned but Greg was still worried.

"What about the evidence?" He asked anxiously.

"We have video evidence that will definitely hold up in court." Archie told him. "It shows him going into the lab and just looking over the tables for evidence. The bag he was looking for had already been processed because, you know, you're ridiculously fast." Archie continued.

"So all he took were the paper results and an evidence bag. But there's digital evidence results in the system so everything's fine. It all works out and your evidence results are all still valid." Archie grinned as Greg gave a sigh of relief.

"Thank god." He said out loud, although it was stifled by the mask. "I don't think I could go through more hours of re-analyzing that evidence." Greg told him in a happy, relieved voice. Greg leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling.

"Oh jeez." Archie rolled his eyes. "You can't fall asleep; you have six more hours left. C'mon you can do it." Archie laughed and pulled Greg out of his chair. "I think it's time for Thai food and red bull." He suggested.

"Gloooorious!" Greg threw his hands into the air, slightly delirious.

"Oh man, maybe not red bull…" Archie said as an afterthought.

"Aw man." Greg whined in a five-year-old voice. He looked around the room, wide-eyed due to his newfound energy. "I need to pee." He said obnoxiously.

Archie raised an eyebrow. "You're not getting help with that."

1 AM

Greg splashed cold water on his face, hoping it would keep him awake but calm him down at the same time. He only had five more hours left. The Thai food hit the spot and he felt a bit cleaner after washing his face and re-brushing his teeth. Or as Sara called it "freshening up".

With a revived vigor, Greg went back into his lab, now guarded by another cop that hopefully wasn't as gullible as the last. Greg wasn't really concerned with that at the moment. He was concentrating on five hours left and attacking the new evidence that had accumulated into a little pile on the lab table.

The fax machine beeped again and Greg was pleased to find it was from Grissom, letting him know five more hours and the amount of pay he would be receiving for his 36 hour shift.

"Wow." Greg said out loud, thankful that no one else was in the lab to hear it. That was a nice chunk of change… Greg's musing stopped when he read the next line.

Since Greg had gotten through his sample and evidence so quickly, the police had been able to apprehend the suspect that had killed the mayor before he had left the country. They had enough DNA to convict, and in addition, he confessed.

Great work- Grissom.

Greg tried not to be proud about it, and with no one around to inflate his ego further, it proved to be easy. The next five hours went slowly and Greg could feel himself winding down and getting tired. He had to put on a mix of Marilyn Manson and AC/DC so the rhythm would keep him awake.

Moving like a zombie wasn't an efficient way to get work done but Greg was still steady and accomplishing evidence samples. A knock on the door brought him out of his most recent trance. It was Sara.

"Hey." She said when he opened the door.

"Hey." He replied back in a sleepy voice.

"Guess what?" She followed him into the lab as he rebagged his evidence.

"Hmm?" He replied without looking up.

"You're done." Sara smirked. Greg nearly dropped his evidence bag.

"Seriously?" Looking up at the clock, he saw that she was right. It was 6:02 AM and Greg Sanders was officially off the clock. "Yes!" He punched the air and ended up toppling into Sara. She laughed good-naturedly and helped him steady his balance. They left the lab room and Greg nodded goodbye to the guard who smiled and wished them a good morning.

"Is Nick here?" Greg asked once he realized Sara had been steering him towards the break room.

"He just finished processing a car, he'll be out soon."

"He's my ride." Greg told her.

"Yea, I know." Sara grinned. "I wouldn't trust you driving right now. Who knows what Doc gave you. You probably aren't even allowed to drive." Sara teased.

"Yea yea yea." Greg's retort was barely audible. He was leaning on Sara but now she had him slowly drop onto the couch. The couch wasn't even that comfortable but after 36 hours of work, anything could make him fall asleep.

Nick walked in and saw an off the clock Sara being a pillow for a curled up Greg.

"He fell asleep a few minutes ago." Sara informed him. Nick wasn't listening. He was just watching Greg scrunched up on less than a half of the couch. His face was flush and the majority of his hair was sticking up.

"Greg…" Sara nudged him.

"Mmm." Greg moaned but didn't move.

"No, don't wake him." Nick said quickly. "I'll get him." He went over and scooped up Greg in his arms. The young CSI didn't wake up, just snuggled into Nick's chest.

"He's going to kill you when he finds out you carried him out of work. It'll ruin whatever reputation he thinks he has." Sara warned.

"Then he'll never know, right?" Nick raised an eyebrow.

"I'll tell him he walked out and he just forgot it because he was so sleepy and out of it." Nick explained. Greg was moving again, trying to get as close as possible to Nick's warm body.

Sara smiled at the sight and opened the doors in Nick's way all the way out to the parking garage, where Grissom was waiting for Sara in her car.

When Nick finally got Greg up to the apartment and down on the bed, he began to stir.

"Mmm?" Greg rolled his head and Nick grinned at the hair that was plastered to the side of his head.

"You're home babe, you're done." Nick whispered. Greg opened his eyes halfway and gave a sleepy smile when he realized he was at home with Nick. The smile faded suddenly.

"What's wrong?" Nick asked quickly, moving to Greg's side and rubbed his back.

"You carried me out of work." Greg moaned and buried his head in the pillows.

"No…no, I didn't." Nick said carefully. Greg turned to face him, scrutinizing his partner's facial expressions.

"I'm a CSI mister. And your nostrils flare when you lie." Greg told him with a sigh.

"Alright, so I might have carried you out of work." Nick admitted and leaned against the headboard. "But how could I not!" He continued. "You were lying on the couch all adorable, with your hair sticking and which way." Nick described him lovingly.

Greg smiled and moved up to lean against Nick, who wrapped his arms around Greg's waist.

"But you know what…" Nick stated. "You have off the next three days and…" Nick waited for suspense. "So do I." He finished.

Greg looked up and gave Nick a huge, sleepy grin. "If I weren't sick I'd kiss you." Greg told him earnestly. Nick laughed and moved to lay down on the bed.

"Don't worry, I'm more than content to just lie here and hold you." Nick kissed Greg's forehead and soon they were both asleep.

END