Spoilers for "Fannysmackin". Set immediatly after the episode.
Song at the end is "Best of Me" by The Starting Line.
Nick forced himself to sit down on the couch and stay still. He had been pacing up and down the house all day, cleaning things that didn't need to be cleaned and moving stuff around to keep himself busy, even though he always ended up putting whatever it wa back where it had been before. Words couldn't describe how nervous he was. Words couldn't explain why he was so nervous either.
Greg was coming home from the hospital tonight. Nick guessed the reason he was so nervous was because he hadn't seen Greg in the three days he had been at the hospital. He had wanted to go see him, but Greg had told Sara to tell Nick as nicely as possible that Greg didn't want him to come. Nick had actually been relieved because he was so afraid to see Greg all beat up. He hadn't even been able to handle processing the crime scene let alone seeing him like that. But Nick felt guilty that he had felt relieved that Greg didn't want him to come. He should have wanted to be there and be supportive no matter what. But the truth was that Nick was terrified.
When he had heard what had happened, Nick remembered not being able to breathe. He remembered Warrick calming him down and assuring him Greg was going to be just fine. Nick still couldn't grasp the fact that something so awful had happened to Greg and that he hadn't been there to protect him. He was overwhelmed by his guilt and fear that Greg wasn't going to be okay that he hadn't heard Sara's car pull into the driveway or the footsteps come up the walkway. Nick didn't know Greg was home until the front door opened.
Nick jumped slightly and his head shot up. He locked eyes with Greg and the sight broke his heart. All the swelling had gone down, but his face was still extremely bruised and cut up. The parts of his skin that wasn't bruised or cut was very pale. Even from where he was sitting on the other side of the room, Nick could see Greg's eyes were full of fear and pain. The younger man closed the door behind him and stood there, glued to the spot.
Nick stood up and slowly walked over to Greg. As he got closer tears spilled from Greg's eyes and his hands started to shake beyond his control. Nick stopped in front of him and gently took Greg's hands in his and brushed his thumbs over the top of his hands slowly.
"I'm sorry I didn't want you to come. I just didn't want you to see me like that. I'm so-" Greg stammered, but Nick cut him off.
"I know sweetie. It's okay, I'm not mad at you. I understand."
Those words were all it took to make Greg break. He pulled his hands from Nick's only to grab two fistfuls of Nick's shirt and pull him forward, crushing their lips together. Greg pulled Nick to him until he was pinned up against the door behind him. The tears were still running down Greg's face and were now dripping onto Nick's shirt as Greg kissed him as hard as he could. Nick kissed Greg back, letting the other man get whatever he needed. When they pulled apart for air, Nick brushed away Greg's tears and ran his hands through his soft brown hair to calm him down. Greg hooked his thumbs through the belt loops on Nick's jeans and held onto his waist tightly as the other man slowly started walking backwards, leading Greg into the bedrom.
Once inside, Nick slowly took off Greg's clothes and replaced them with a pair of his own basketball shorts and a t-shirt. Nick quickly changed as well before turning his attention back to Greg. He wrapped his arms around the other man as sobs started taking over his body. He gently laid him down on the bed, holding him tightly to his chest. Greg buried his head in the crook of Nick's neck and held onto Nick's right arm as tightly as he could. Nick used his free left hand to rub soothing circles on Greg's back and ran it through his hair several times. Greg finally caught his breath and began to calm down, somewhat.
He held onto Nick's arm tighter to try and get his hands to stop shaking. His voice was shaking just as much when he said, "I killed someone." His voice was soft and slightly muffled because his head was buried against Nick, but the older man heard him.
"You were defending yourself. You did the right thing Greggo."
Greg rolled away from Nick so he could look him in the eyes. "How was that the right thing? I killed him. I'm a killer."
"You had no other choice. He would have killed that other guy and you too. It was his own fault that he made the decision to do what he did." Nick said softly. He propped himself up on his elbow and wiped away the fresh tears on Greg's cheeks.
"Maybe it should have been me." Greg choked out.
Nick felt his heart skip a beat at what Greg just said. He gently cupper the other's face and forced his boyfriend to look at him. "Don't ever say that again. What happened to you wasn't your fault and you didn't deserve it at all. He forced you to make that decision and you did what you had to do. You did nothing wrong, and you are not a killer."
Greg smiled sadly up at Nick. "You'd love me no matter what wouldn't you?"
"Yeah, I would." Nick said as he smiled back. "Nothing could ever change that."
Nick laid back down and Greg snuggled up against him again. His tears slowed down, as did the shaking of his hands. Greg was still scared to death and was still very sore, but none of that mattered when he was laying next to Nick. The Texan made all the pain go away. There was nowhere Greg would rather be than where he was right now. But after a few minutes of laying in silence, Greg could tell by Nick's heartbeat and breathing that something was bothering him.
"What's wrong?" He asked suddenly.
Nick wrapped his arms tightly around Greg. "Nothing...I was just so afraid...I thought I lost you."
"But you didn't." Greg said, trying to reassure the older man.
But it didn't work as well as he had hoped. "I know. But when I found out, I had never been so scared in my life. I kept playing the worst case scenario over and over in my head. I have no idea what I would do without you. I can't live without you here. I just can't."
Greg craned his neck to look at Nick. "Then I guess it's a good thing that you don't have to." He said with a smile.
Nick nodded and mirrored Greg's smile. "Yeah, it's a very good thing."
They didn't exactly wake up the next morning because neither one of them had slept at all the previous night. They just laid there the whole night next to each other, occasionally talking but not feeling the need to at all times. When Greg coulnd't fight back the shaking or his tears Nick would hold him tighter and whisper sweet nothings in his ear that would almost immediatly calm him down. When he wanted to talk, Nick listened. When he didn't, he could just lay there with Nick and feel safe and most importantly, loved.
When the light from outside sneaked inbetween the curtains they both silently agreed to get up and get some food. Greg looked like he hadn't eaten in weeks and Nick could use a bite too. They walked into the kitchen hand and hand before Greg sat down at the table and Nick went over to the stove to make eggs and bacon for the both of them.
As Greg watched Nick cook, he couldn't stop thinking about how luck the both of them were to have each other. They had both been through hell and wouldn't have made it if it weren't for each other. They had had their rough patch, but got through it because they knew they would always have the other by their side no matter what.
Nick brought the food over to the table and they began to eat. Greg stared down at his plate as he ate, still lost in thought. After a few minutes Nick began to worry, so he voiced it.
"Are you okay?" He asked.
Greg looked up and smiled. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Nick didn't quite believe Greg, but decided not to pry because whatever it was he obviously didn't want to talk about. So they went back to eating their breakfast in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company. Greg was still thinking about what he had been before; about how much they had been through together. He would have said something too if he had known Nick was thinking about the exact same things. Except Nick was thinking about something else as well that both made him happy and scared at the same time.
After they were done, Nick cleared the table and put the dishes into the dishwasher. Greg stood from the table and stretched for a minute before sighing heavily, getting Nick's attention.
"I'm gonna go take a quick shower." Greg said.
Nick nodded. "Okay." He said with a small smile.
Greg disappeared down the hall and it wasn't until he heard the shower going in the bathroom that Nick went into the living room and sank onto the couch. He didn't turn on the TV or stereo. He just sat there and thought about what he had been thinking about ever since he had been pulled from the hole. He hadn't seriously considered it until recently, and he still wasn't sure of it. He knew what would make him sure of it, but finding out the answer could pose more problems than it would solve.
Nick felt his heart beat increase ten-fold when he heard the bathroom door open. His head snapped up and he watched Greg walk down the hallway. He was only wearing a pair of navy blue sweapants that hung low enough on his hips to show the waistband of his grey boxers. He wasn't dressed up or anything. He wasn't even wearing a shirt. But Nick was convinced that that was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, even with the bruises scattered across his tanned chest.
Greg was glad to see Nick was laying on the couch in a way that made it easy for him to snuggles himself up in between Nick's legs and lean back to rest against Nick's chest. The younger of the two sighed contently when the older wrapped his arms around him tightly and kissed the side of his head lightly. Greg looked at the TV, frowning when he noticed it wasn't on.
"Nothing good on TV?" He asked.
Nick shrugged. "I didn't even turn it on."
"Why?" Greg asked with a slight laugh.
"I was thinking." Nick answered simply.
"About what?"
Nick smiled at Greg's constanty curiosity. "You." He said honestly.
"I hope that's a god thing." Greg said jokingly.
"It depends really. I'm not sure yet." Nick said.
That got Greg a little worried. He shifted so he could look at Nick. He could tell by Nick's eyes that he something was on his mind that he was nervous about. That made Greg nervous as well.
"Well...what is it?" Greg asked cautiously.
Nick took a deep breath. "Okay...I've been thinking about this ever since I got outta the box and everything, but never seriously thought about it until a little while ago. Then with what happened to you and all..." He trailed off momentarily. "Anyway, I was just wondering if maybe we should...that it might be a good idea...I mean if you wanted to..."
Nick was clearly at a loss for words. Although he was unintentionally building suspense and making Greg more nervous, Nick's own nervousness was cute and Greg couldn't help but smile.
"Relax Nicky." Greg said softly.
Nick threaded his fingers through Greg's and held his hand firmly. He looked up into Greg's dark brown eyes and once he did he couldn't look away or stop the words from flowing past his lips.
"Do you want to get married?"
At first Greg thought Nick was kidding, but then he saw the sincerity in his eyes. Instead of being able to think, he was so surprised by the question that he answered it with one of his own. "Are you proposing or just asking a random question?"
Now it was Nick's turn to have to think. "I don't know. I guess sort of both?" Greg didn't say anything, so Nick just kept talking. "I always thought that if I ever asked someone that, it would be at this fancy restaurant and this whole big deal, like that's how it was supposed to be done. But the more I thought about it, the less it mattered where I said it. It only mattered who I said it to. And I've known for a long time that there's no one else I'd rather be with for the rest of my life than you."
"But it's not even legal. We'd have to go to Massachusetts or something..."
"I don't care what I'd have to do. I don't even care if you don't want to. I'll love you forever no matter what."
Greg stared into Nick's eyes for a long time before he finally said, "Are you sure this is what you want?"
Nick nodded. "You're the only thing I've ever wanted so much that I actually need you."
Greg smiled widely and pressed his lips to Nick's, giving the Texan his answer. Nothing else needed to be said. Nick pulled Greg as close to him as possible and they kissed long and slowly, not caring about anything else in the world. Nothing else mattered because they both had the only thing they would ever need for the rest of their lives.
Tell me what you thought about
When you were gone and so alone
The worst is over
You can have the best of me
We got older, but we're still young
We never grew out of this feeling that we won't give up
Thanks to everyone who read, and especially to those that reviewed this story. I enjoyed writing it very much and hoped you all enjoyed reading it.
I'm going to be writing another Nick/Greg fic soon that will focus again on their relationship and how it was put to the test, this time by the results of "Play with Fire."
Thanks again everyone.