Sharing Means Caring

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI Miami ,nor their characters. That belongs to the great Jerry Bruckhiemer and CBS.

Author's Note: I haven't written in a while, and so I have Shiny Zephyr to thank for the inspiration and playful nudging! Thanks, Shiny!

Author's note #2: Not harm no foul to Sunglass Hut...They rock!

The day had been a rough one, with several cases now on his desk, and one very irate suspect, who was the reason for the rare visit to the mall, Horatio glanced over to the unoccupied seat to where his now crushed sunglasses sat and sighed. It wasn't as if the sunglasses were something he worshiped, but they were essential to his job as well as being able to function in the sweltering sun of Miami, not to mention, it added to the aura that surrounded him. They had to be replaced and there was no way around it.

Parking the Hummer, Horatio got out and stood , his eyes staying affixed on the building in front of him. He wasn't accustomed to coming to the mall, simply because he never had the necessity to, but he needed a quick fix, and someone had mentioned in passing that the Sunglass Hut housed some decent frames, he just hoped that he could find just the right pair to complete the look.

"Well , here goes nothing," he said as he adjusted his belt and jacket, the stiff wind blowing past him.

Steadily, he walked until he got to the door and pulled it open, one final gust ruffling his copper tinted locks. Running his hands through it, he looked down the corridor towards the center of the mall, his eyes wondering to the countless stores that lined both sides. The number of patrons was minimal, which suited him well, making this less than a burden now. When he finally got to the end of the corridor, he looked to the left and then the right, searching for the store. "Sunglass Hut...sunglass hut..." Turning to the left once more, he spotted it , starting for it, "Bingo."

Weaving through the now seemingly crowded mall, he narrowed his eyes, swearing he had seen someone familiar at the little booth filled to the brim with sunglasses and chuckled as the person turned, giving him a full view. He would recognize the man anywhere, having seen him one too many times in his own lab through out the day. Increasing his gait, he felt his smile grow at the thought of those same countless times that he was able to advert Rick Stetler's attempts to foil his team, knowing that it was a hint of jealously that fueled the dark haired man.

Coming to the booth, he leaned lightly over it, his eyes glancing over the offerings, already seeing a few potential pairs then looking up to him seeing him busy with something. Clearing his throat, he relaxed more and kept the smile, waiting almost with bated breath for him to turn around, "Fancy meeting you here, Rick. Didn't peg you as the type to hit the mall on a regular basis."

The man stopped what he was doing and stiffened, his voice decidedly cold, "What are you doing here, Horatio?"

"A man can't come to the mall?" Horatio asked as he arched an eyebrow, wondering what he was hiding. "Rick, what do you have there?"

"None of your business," Rick responded, his tone growing more and more unfriendly. Theirs was a complex relationship ; Horatio garnered much more respect from colleagues and peers alike, while Rick garnered attention of a different sort, usually the kind that ended in him walking away from fits of laughter. Despite this, it was always his contention that they were always neck and neck , both professionally and personally. "What, your almighty glasses broke? I thought those were forged with the right hand of God or something." Much like you think you are, he added under his breath.

Horatio chuckled slightly as he shook his head, "It's just a pair of sunglasses, Rick. Necessary for life in Miami, but you ..." he paused, seeing who he surmised to be the manager, entering the booth, "you didn't answer my question. What are you doing here?"

"You know, I think none of your business is a sufficient answer, Horatio. Now if you don't mind..."

"Ricky, are you done with those mirrors yet?" the manager asked, seemingly irritable. "I left almost twenty minutes ago. What did you do, get stuck staring at yourself again? We've got customers, Ricky. Sir, have you been helped?"

Catching Rick's stark expression, Horatio tried to contain his laughter, looking back at the manager, " Ricky here was helping me, but thanks." He stood up and watched as Rick entered into the booth , fully seeing the icon on his polo shirt and the bottle of window cleaner and paper towels in his hands. The manager turned towards the other side, his eye on the couple that was grazing over the sports shades, leaving them alone. Horatio couldn't help but laugh, his breath escaping in bursts as Rick put his materials away. "Ricky, you never told me you worked here. I would've come a lot sooner. I'm jealous."

Shaking his head, Rick sighed heavily, "Cut the crap, Horatio and pick out a pair, okay? I'm really tired and I don't get a break tonight."

"Not only does he fight crime, but he helps others look good as well," Horatio dead panned as he looked down at the dark frames, one pair catching his eye. "Alright, Ricky, I'll take a look at those."

Rick rolled his eyes and bent down to where he was pointing, bringing them out for him to see. It burned him something wicked to have to service him, but he realized that it was his job and he really needed the extra cash. "They are decent, Horatio, if you are looking for inferiority. Of course, we can't have that , can we?"

Horatio slipped them on and turned to the mirror, "I think they look just fine. Good job on the mirrors, by the way, Ricky."

Rick was about to say something before a young man came up, giving Horatio the once over and then back to him, pointing to the Ray Bans, "How much are these?"

"Wait your turn, sir," Rick answered, his demeanor no better.

"It's alright, Ricky," Horatio said as he gestured to the young man, "help him while I make up my mind about these."

"Thanks, mister," the young man responded, glaring at Rick as he moved towards him, his look bordering on maniacal. He pointed to the black Ray Bans again and asked, " how much?"

"I'd have to look that up , sir," Rick answered dryly.

"Well," he answered as he dismissed him with a wave of his hands. When Rick left, he turned to Horatio noticing the badge, "Hey, you're a cop , aren't you? I'm a first year cadet at the academy."

Horatio smiled as he saw Rick returning with the glasses, " Yeah, I'm a cop. CSI, actually."

"CSI, cool," he answered as he nodded to Rick. "Yo!"

"Yo, yourself," Rick said as he half tossed the pair on the glass. "It's forty ninety- nine. And I'm a cop too."

"Yeah, sure, mister," the young man said as he chuckled a bit, taking the glasses in hand.

"What, I am," Rick responded, turning to Horatio, the tone of disparity rising in his voice. "I came out the same year that he did."

"Dude, you're holding down the Sunglass Hut. Let it go. So, as I was saying, I'm first year at the academy..."

"I can prove it to you," Rick continued, reaching in his pocket, bringing out his shield, "see, Miami Dade PD."

" IAB... the Rat Patrol?" the young man snickered as Horatio leaned in, his eyes switching from the badge to Rick.

"Rick, you wear your shield to work at the Sunglass Hut? Who could you possibly be investigating here?" Horatio asked as he slipped the glasses off and placed his hands on his hips, his brow furrowed.

"Man, that rocked! Do it again," the young man interjected, truly taken with the Lieutenant's stance.

"What, he just posed for cripes sake!"

"Don't hate," the young man chided as he turned his attention back to Horatio. "So, you must really kick ass. CSI you say?"

"Yeah," Horatio answered, chuckling as he watched Stetler, practically seeing his wheels turning.

"But I'm a cop too." The sound of the defeat in Rick's voice caught their attention and both men turned to him, Horatio's wall cracking somewhat. He wasn't going to last much longer.

"Dude!" the young man came back, his tone speaking to his irritability, "Sunglass Hut. Deal with it, 'kay?"Horatio couldn't help it any longer, letting out a guffaw as Rick stood motionless, taking it all. The young man moved stood back and shook his head, the sarcasm dripping heavily, "Never mind, too much for my blood anyway. Have a good day, copper."

Rick scowled as he shook his head then turned to Horatio, "Satisfied now?"

Horatio tried to gather himself as best he could, handing Rick the glasses back, "I'm sorry, it was just too much."

"Are you going to pay for these, Caine? Or do you have a tab you want to start running?" Rick took the glasses in hand and watched as Horatio pulled out his wallet, already knowing from his look that retribution had yet to be given out. "Alright, what am I going to have to do to make this go away?"

"Oh, so we are doing bribery now? This day is so full of surprises, Ricky." Horatio counted his money and put it on the glass. " I think we can come to some sort of agreement."

Rick took the money in hand and closed his eyes, " Agreement?"

"Sharing means caring, Ricky," Horatio responded coyly.

Great, Rick thought as he rung him up, I wonder what this means.

CSI Lab

Calleigh pushed through the doors of the break room, seeing them hovering over a table, her interests piqued. It was their custom to gather in the break room before the start of the shift to decompress and chat about what they were working on. Usually, one of them brought something to start their day off, be it a round of coffee ( or juice for Speed) or pastries, they always had something to keep them connected. Coming closer, she saw the box on the table and arched an eyebrow, in almost confusion.

"Okay, I was throughly prepared for a blueberry scone," she remarked lightly, her smile widening as she picked up a nice pair of shades, admiring them, "but what's with the shades?"

"Seems as if they were donated," Speed answered picking up a pair that he liked, "by the Sunglass Hut. Just in time too, I needed a new pair."

"So did I," Eric chimed in, picking up his pair. " You guys noticed that they were labeled with our names?"

"Yeah," Calleigh answered first, slipping her pair on. "Must've been Horatio's doing. How do I look?"

"Fantastic, Cal," Eric said as he looked out of the break room to the corridor, seeing Stetler. "Stetler's on the prowl, might as well get to work."

Speed turned to see him standing, almost staring hatefully into the room, then watching his lips move in anger, "What's his problem?"

"With Stetler," Calleigh sighed as she watched him move on, still seemingly talking to himself, "Who knows. Hey, have you guys been to the Sunglass Hut in the mall?"

"No, but a friend of mine in the academy said he went the other day. Said the attendant was a total ass," Eric said as he shook his head. "Could he be related to Stetler?"

The room came alive with laughter as they began to filter out of the break room, heading for their respective labs, their fashionable sunglasses slipped deep into their pockets. They would look good while fighting crime today all thanks to a simple donation.

Fin