Moments of Confusion
Nick knocked on Grissom's office door. He heard voices on the other side so he cracked the door open and stuck his head in to see who was in the room.
"We'll figure out something."
"You're right. Is there something wrong with knocking, Nick?"
Nick looked at his boss and Catherine. They were standing close together and Grissom's arms were wrapped around Catherine's waist. She leaned her head against his shoulder stifling a laugh.
"I can come back later," Nick offered beginning to back out of the office. He was starting to feel guilty about interrupting them.
Grissom let go of Catherine and motioned for him to come in. "No, we were just discussing some evidence. What's up?"
"Brass couldn't get a hold of either of you. He called in a 419 on Linden and twenty-first. Said something about pumpkins and Altoids."
"Catherine, did you get..."
"He was paroled two years ago. Good behavior."
"Is he capable of good behavior?"
"Parole board thought so."
"Uh, guys? Who are you talking about?"
Catherine and Grissom looked at him for a moment. They had both shifted their attention to the 419 and forgot that Nick was still there. Catherine looked at Grissom and waited for him to make the decision.
"Catherine and I will take the 419. You, Sara, and Warrick finish working on the Dobson case. We'll fill you in later," Grissom said avoiding Nick's question. He stood up and grabbed his windbreaker. "Well, what are you waiting for?"
Nick left the room, mildly upset. At first he couldn't decide whether he was mad that both of them had avoided his question, or that finding them sharing what looked like an intimate embrace had momentarily distracted him from his initial quest.
"Gris, how did you miss Brass' page?" Catherine asked after a moment.
"It was on vibrate and I had it in my lab jacket," he explained. "You?"
"Left it in my purse when I came in today." She started to leave the room before reminding him, "Don't forget your pager, Gris."
He reached into the lab coat pocket and withdrew the black object that he considered to be the most annoying device ever created by man and put it in his pants pocket.
"Yes, Dear. Now don't forget your purse," he teased back and followed her out the door.
"Hey, is that the Grissom I know and love making a comeback?" she asked as they walked out to the parking lot before beginning to talk about the new case and drove off, leaving four very bewildered co-workers behind.
"Okay, what was that all about?" Sara asked aloud.
"I don't know, but they're both hiding something," Nick responded. "I found them in his office hugging. They refused to explain the 'altoids and pumpkins' remark Brass made." Nick and Sara looked at Warrick.
"Hey, don't look at me. I may have been here longer than you two, but those two have worked together for over a decade."
"Three tins of Altoids, wintergreen flavor," Grissom noted as he entered the bedroom. The green tins were on the bedside table approximately two yards from the body. At first glance, it was a typical scene involving a drug overdose, but to Catherine and Grissom it was a trip back to the first year they actually worked together.