Six Months Later:
It was an unusually clear October day in Seattle. The leaves had started to fall from the trees and the clear weather was a respite from the rain that had been falling nonstop for the last eleven days.
Nick and Sara strolled through Pike Place Market hand in hand, pausing to stop and watch the fish monger toss a king salmon to be wrapped up for some tourist before stepping out of the market and onto the sidewalk to head back to the car. They had spent the day in a leisurely fashion, lingering over breakfast and then heading to the market to meander and pick up a few things.
As they neared the car, Nick paused and turned towards Sara with an inquisitive smile on his face. "Do you ever regret your decision?" He knew that her decision had been a difficult one. They had spent a week together in Tamales Bay after he'd been discharged from the hospital and had spent hours talking through the pros and cons of Vegas versus Seattle. The only decision that hadn't been hard was choosing to be together.
She smiled and shook her head, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Not for a minute." She leaned up and kissed him softly for a moment. She really had no regrets. With Nick in her life it didn't seem to matter where she was and what she had to deal with at work because she had someone to come home to that understood what being a CSI was all about.
Nick grinned at her. "I love you." Looking back he realized that the car crash had been a blessing because it had helped he and Sara see how they truly felt about each other and what was really important in life.
She smirked. "I know you do." She tilted her head slightly. "And I love you." Sara was so thankful for Nick and how much being with him had not only changed her life, but helped her to find it again. That day that she'd left Vegas, she had come to the end of herself, but realizing how much she wanted to be with Nick and being given a second chance at life by surviving that car crash had helped her to live more spontaneously and more in the moment than she had before.
He leaned down and kissed her for a long moment before pulling away and taking her hand. "Let's go."
She climbed into the car and smiled as he climbed in and took her hand in his. It was simple gestures like this that made her love him even more.
Nick threaded the car through the Saturday afternoon traffic along Western Avenue and then up towards Queen Anne Avenue and Kerry Park.
As he parked the car, Sara looked over at him curiously.
He just grinned. "I wanted a picture of us up here with the skyline in the background."
She giggled at his sentimental nature and climbed out of the car while Nick looked for an honest looking passerby to take a few pictures of them together. Finally, a young couple stopped and offered to take their picture. Nick stood there for a moment explaining the features of the camera to the man for a moment, then stopped and started to laugh, handing him the camera and sprinting over to where Sara stood. She glanced at him as he approached her. "Satisfied that he knows what he's doing?"
Nick flashed her a sheepish smile. "He's a photographer for the Seattle Times."
Sara couldn't help but laugh. "Figures."
Nick grinned and then wrapped his arms around her. "Ok, smile."
Sara giggled as Nick tickled her. "You are a nut."
He loosened his hold on her and grinned. "I'm a nut, huh?"
Sara raised an eyebrow. "Yes, but I love you anyway."
"Good, because I love you too." Nick glanced at the man taking their pictures and then suddenly let go of Sara.
She looked at him a bit confused until she realized what he was doing and then her eyes widened in surprise.
Nick had dropped down on one knee and pulled a black velvet box out of his pocket, opening it to reveal a diamond engagement ring as he looked up at her. "Sara, I love you with all of my heart and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I'd be the happiest man in the world if you'd consent to become my wife." Tears had formed in Nick's eyes as he watched Sara's face, and he felt a lump in his throat as he tried to speak again. "Sara Sidle, will you marry me?"
Tears were streaming freely down Sara's cheeks and for the longest moment all she could do was stare at the ring, and then at Nick before she nodded, finally finding her voice which was thick with emotion. "Yes."
Nick grinned and pulled the ring out of the box, slipping it onto her finger with shaking hands before standing up and wrapping his arms around her waist, picking her up and spinning her around. "Wahoo! She said 'yes'!"
As he set her down he leaned down and kissed her long and deep, finally pulling away to look into her eyes. "I love you so much, Sara."
She laughed softly, looking at her hand in disbelief as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I can't believe you just proposed to me."
"And you said 'yes'." Nick couldn't stop grinning.
She just nodded, her smile widening into a grin.
"I think I used all of your film up." The man who Nick had handed his camera to, walked up with a smile on his face. "But I think you're going to be happy with what I caught on film."
"Thanks, Chuck." Nick shook the man's hand before taking the camera.
"Let me be the first of say congratulations." Chuck smiled at Nick and Sara.
"Thank you." Sara shook the man's hand.
"I proposed to my wife up here too." Chuck gestured back towards the woman he had been walking with before knitting his brows together momentarily. "You know, I wonder if you two might consider letting me put your picture in the paper. We don't get enough good news in it these days."
"We know what you mean." Nick agreed. "Sara and I are crime scene investigators."
"Tough job. Do you work out of the crime lab downtown?" Chuck inquired.
Sara shook her head. "No, although we almost did." As much as she wondered at times what it would have been like to have come to live in Seattle, she had no regrets about turning the job down.
Nick slid his arm around Sara's waist. "We work in Las Vegas." He was glad that things had worked out the way they had. When they'd returned, the rest of the team had been very supportive, and Grissom had made a concerted effort to be more in touch with what was going on in the lives of his crew outside of work.
"So you're here on vacation then?" Chuck continued.
Sara nodded with a smile. "Yeah, we're actually heading back to Vegas in the morning." Sara had been hesitant at first when she'd made the decision, but true to his word, Grissom had really tried to treat her the same way he treated the rest of the team, and their working relationship had significantly improved.
By this time, Chuck's wife had walked over to where they stood. "Congratulations." There was a soft smile on her face as she greeted the newly engaged couple. "I'm Cheryl."
"I'm Nick, this is Sara." Nick grinned, still trying to process that he'd just asked Sara to marry him and that she had said yes.
"Nick and Sara, how would you like to join Cheryl and I for dinner tonight." Chuck had a thoughtful expression on his face. "We could all go down to the paper and I'll develop your film and then you could tell us your story over dinner, maybe at the Space Needle."
Nick glanced at Sara with a raised eyebrow. "What do you say, babe?"
She considered the offer for a moment before smiling widely. "I'd love to."
"Ok then." Chuck smiled and then began giving directions to Nick and Sara so they could meet him and Cheryl at the newspaper office.
Several hours later, sitting at a table in the Space Needle restaurant, Chuck smiled at Nick and Sara. "So how did you two meet anyway?"
Nick chuckled, reaching over and squeezing Sara's hand as they exchanged a knowing glance. "Well, I was throwing dummies off of the roof of a hotel."
The End
It was an unusually clear October day in Seattle. The leaves had started to fall from the trees and the clear weather was a respite from the rain that had been falling nonstop for the last eleven days.
Nick and Sara strolled through Pike Place Market hand in hand, pausing to stop and watch the fish monger toss a king salmon to be wrapped up for some tourist before stepping out of the market and onto the sidewalk to head back to the car. They had spent the day in a leisurely fashion, lingering over breakfast and then heading to the market to meander and pick up a few things.
As they neared the car, Nick paused and turned towards Sara with an inquisitive smile on his face. "Do you ever regret your decision?" He knew that her decision had been a difficult one. They had spent a week together in Tamales Bay after he'd been discharged from the hospital and had spent hours talking through the pros and cons of Vegas versus Seattle. The only decision that hadn't been hard was choosing to be together.
She smiled and shook her head, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Not for a minute." She leaned up and kissed him softly for a moment. She really had no regrets. With Nick in her life it didn't seem to matter where she was and what she had to deal with at work because she had someone to come home to that understood what being a CSI was all about.
Nick grinned at her. "I love you." Looking back he realized that the car crash had been a blessing because it had helped he and Sara see how they truly felt about each other and what was really important in life.
She smirked. "I know you do." She tilted her head slightly. "And I love you." Sara was so thankful for Nick and how much being with him had not only changed her life, but helped her to find it again. That day that she'd left Vegas, she had come to the end of herself, but realizing how much she wanted to be with Nick and being given a second chance at life by surviving that car crash had helped her to live more spontaneously and more in the moment than she had before.
He leaned down and kissed her for a long moment before pulling away and taking her hand. "Let's go."
She climbed into the car and smiled as he climbed in and took her hand in his. It was simple gestures like this that made her love him even more.
Nick threaded the car through the Saturday afternoon traffic along Western Avenue and then up towards Queen Anne Avenue and Kerry Park.
As he parked the car, Sara looked over at him curiously.
He just grinned. "I wanted a picture of us up here with the skyline in the background."
She giggled at his sentimental nature and climbed out of the car while Nick looked for an honest looking passerby to take a few pictures of them together. Finally, a young couple stopped and offered to take their picture. Nick stood there for a moment explaining the features of the camera to the man for a moment, then stopped and started to laugh, handing him the camera and sprinting over to where Sara stood. She glanced at him as he approached her. "Satisfied that he knows what he's doing?"
Nick flashed her a sheepish smile. "He's a photographer for the Seattle Times."
Sara couldn't help but laugh. "Figures."
Nick grinned and then wrapped his arms around her. "Ok, smile."
Sara giggled as Nick tickled her. "You are a nut."
He loosened his hold on her and grinned. "I'm a nut, huh?"
Sara raised an eyebrow. "Yes, but I love you anyway."
"Good, because I love you too." Nick glanced at the man taking their pictures and then suddenly let go of Sara.
She looked at him a bit confused until she realized what he was doing and then her eyes widened in surprise.
Nick had dropped down on one knee and pulled a black velvet box out of his pocket, opening it to reveal a diamond engagement ring as he looked up at her. "Sara, I love you with all of my heart and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I'd be the happiest man in the world if you'd consent to become my wife." Tears had formed in Nick's eyes as he watched Sara's face, and he felt a lump in his throat as he tried to speak again. "Sara Sidle, will you marry me?"
Tears were streaming freely down Sara's cheeks and for the longest moment all she could do was stare at the ring, and then at Nick before she nodded, finally finding her voice which was thick with emotion. "Yes."
Nick grinned and pulled the ring out of the box, slipping it onto her finger with shaking hands before standing up and wrapping his arms around her waist, picking her up and spinning her around. "Wahoo! She said 'yes'!"
As he set her down he leaned down and kissed her long and deep, finally pulling away to look into her eyes. "I love you so much, Sara."
She laughed softly, looking at her hand in disbelief as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I can't believe you just proposed to me."
"And you said 'yes'." Nick couldn't stop grinning.
She just nodded, her smile widening into a grin.
"I think I used all of your film up." The man who Nick had handed his camera to, walked up with a smile on his face. "But I think you're going to be happy with what I caught on film."
"Thanks, Chuck." Nick shook the man's hand before taking the camera.
"Let me be the first of say congratulations." Chuck smiled at Nick and Sara.
"Thank you." Sara shook the man's hand.
"I proposed to my wife up here too." Chuck gestured back towards the woman he had been walking with before knitting his brows together momentarily. "You know, I wonder if you two might consider letting me put your picture in the paper. We don't get enough good news in it these days."
"We know what you mean." Nick agreed. "Sara and I are crime scene investigators."
"Tough job. Do you work out of the crime lab downtown?" Chuck inquired.
Sara shook her head. "No, although we almost did." As much as she wondered at times what it would have been like to have come to live in Seattle, she had no regrets about turning the job down.
Nick slid his arm around Sara's waist. "We work in Las Vegas." He was glad that things had worked out the way they had. When they'd returned, the rest of the team had been very supportive, and Grissom had made a concerted effort to be more in touch with what was going on in the lives of his crew outside of work.
"So you're here on vacation then?" Chuck continued.
Sara nodded with a smile. "Yeah, we're actually heading back to Vegas in the morning." Sara had been hesitant at first when she'd made the decision, but true to his word, Grissom had really tried to treat her the same way he treated the rest of the team, and their working relationship had significantly improved.
By this time, Chuck's wife had walked over to where they stood. "Congratulations." There was a soft smile on her face as she greeted the newly engaged couple. "I'm Cheryl."
"I'm Nick, this is Sara." Nick grinned, still trying to process that he'd just asked Sara to marry him and that she had said yes.
"Nick and Sara, how would you like to join Cheryl and I for dinner tonight." Chuck had a thoughtful expression on his face. "We could all go down to the paper and I'll develop your film and then you could tell us your story over dinner, maybe at the Space Needle."
Nick glanced at Sara with a raised eyebrow. "What do you say, babe?"
She considered the offer for a moment before smiling widely. "I'd love to."
"Ok then." Chuck smiled and then began giving directions to Nick and Sara so they could meet him and Cheryl at the newspaper office.
Several hours later, sitting at a table in the Space Needle restaurant, Chuck smiled at Nick and Sara. "So how did you two meet anyway?"
Nick chuckled, reaching over and squeezing Sara's hand as they exchanged a knowing glance. "Well, I was throwing dummies off of the roof of a hotel."
The End