Author's note: I'd like to take this opportunity to thank my beta-reader once again. The success of the story is due to her. Thanks, Allie. You're the best!

This story is based on characters created by Anthony E. Zuiker for the television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

Ghost (Epilog)

by Cheers

It had been nearly three weeks since Grissom had been found. His mother had gone home to California three days after he had been released from the hospital. He had called the lab every day for the last two weeks and twice a day for the past few days. Catherine didn't think anyone would be happier to see Grissom get back to work than she would. That was until she saw the look of pure childlike delight on his face when he stepped into his office.

"Is this still my office?" Gil asked, looking to make sure his name was still on the door.

"Why, are you afraid you've lost your job?" Catherine joked, moving around from behind his desk and stepping up to face him.

"Not if I still get to be a part of all the fun," Gil told her.

By the smirk on his face, Catherine knew Gil was feeling much better. She had been concerned that he was coming back to work too soon. She should have known that the best medicine for a man like Grissom was to do what he loved to do. For Gil, that meant getting back to the work at the crime lab.

Catherine visually inspected his face. The bruising had almost completely faded, and there was only the barest hint of darkness about his eyes to suggest how close to death he had come. As a matter of fact, the only overt sign of his brush with the hereafter was the as yet pristine white cast on his left forearm. This would have to remain in place for at least another four weeks, making Gil's contribution to CSI almost purely supervisory for the time being. But being a part of what was happening at the crime lab in any capacity was better than sitting at home another day as far as Grissom was concerned.

"Right," Catherine finally said. Her face took on a serious expression and she sighed deeply before continuing. "Are you sure you're ready to be back at work?"

Gil sobered immediately. "Why? What's happening?"

Catherine hesitated. "I don't want to push too much at you too soon," she said gravely.

"I'm fine," Gil insisted, a bit frustrated with the way everyone wanted to protect him. He wasn't a child. He was perfectly capable of telling them what he could and could not handle. "What's going on, Cath?"

She studied him for the briefest of moments before nodding. "I guess you know what you're doing," she told him, "It's your call. Follow me."

Intrigued, Gil followed her down the hall. They passed the evidence room and rounded the corner of the hallway by the DNA lab. Catherine moved toward the closed door of the conference room and placed a hand on the doorknob, pausing.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" she asked one last time.

"Open it," Gil told her.

Catherine shrugged. "You asked for it," she said, pushing the door open.

"SURPRISE!" everyone in the room shouted.

Gil stood rooted to his spot just outside the doorway to the conference room. The entire night shift seemed to be gathered around the conference room table, which was covered with a tablecloth. In the center of the table was an enormous cake with "Welcome Back, Gris" written in icing across it.

"I hope I'm not late," Doc Robbins said from behind Grissom, making him jump slightly. Turning, Gil saw the laughter in the coroner's eyes.

"You're in on this, too?" Gil asked the ME.

"Wouldn't miss it," Robbins told him. "I even brought my own pen."

Now Grissom was confused. "Pen?"

"For the cast signing," Robbins informed him.

Gil looked back into the conference room and realized that there was a large collection of Sharpie markers on one corner of the table. "I never said anyone could sign my cast," he said weakly.

"Like you get a choice," Sara laughed.

"Come on, Gris," Nick told him. "Everyone's gonna think you're a spoilsport."

Stepping into the room, Grissom looked from one smiling face to the next and realized how glad he was to be there. He found himself smiling, too. "We can't have that, can we?"

"Not if 'we' know what's good for 'us,'" Warrick said.

The cast signing and welcome back party continued for the better part of the evening. Grissom would go home in the morning with a cast covered in glyphs, get well wishes, and signatures from just about everyone at the lab. Jim Brass stopped by to welcome Gil back to the lab and was happy to add his name to the cast as well.

"What are you going to do with it when the cast comes off?" Brass asked Gil.

"I think I'll mount it on the wall next to my Big Mouth Billy Bass," Gil told his friend.

"Well," Jim intoned, "it's good to see you haven't been changed by everything that's happened."

Gil raised his eyebrows. "Oh?"

"Your taste in office décor hasn't improved at all." Jim said flatly.

Fini