Believe it or not

By Clara

Disclaimer: They’re not mine

Info: Fifth part of nineteen.

Year: 1993

Archive: My site, Working Love, ShipperWorld, Catherine Willows, Graveshift

Rating: PG

Category: CGR

Author’s notes: This started as answer to a challenge over at ‘Working Love’ and some how it turned into this! Thanks to Jo for the beta! None of the fics in this series will have a summary on them. I don’t want to give it away!!!

Dedication: To the wonderful Jo R. What would I do without ya? ;)

****

The ringing started and it took Catherine a moment to realise that it was nothing to do with the computer she had managed to fall asleep on.

Drowsily she reached across the desk and picked up the phone. “Hello?” When no one replied Catherine sat up properly in her seat, brow furrowing in confusion. “Hello?”

“Catherine?”

The voice was so quiet that she had to think for moment before recognition dawned on her. “Gil? Are you ok?”

Glancing at the clock on the computer screen, Catherine was surprised to see it was way past midnight and a sense of dread began to form in the pit of her stomach. It was then that she realised he was crying.

“Gil? What’s happened? You’re scaring me.”

It took a couple of moments for him to compose himself enough to answer and when it did she felt like her heart would break for him, the pain in his voice so evident. “My mother died.”

“Oh Gil…”

Catherine knew how close he was to his mother. He’d taken her to visit her just after she had joined the crime lab and had immediately struck up a rapport with the woman, even through she had had to communicate through Gil.

The thought that she was gone hurt her deeply, but she knew it was nothing compared to what Gil was feeling.

“Where are you?”

“St Mary’s. The nursing home called about an hour ago.”

Catherine held the phone to her ear and began to search around for her keys, cursing when she banged into the coffee table before finally finding the keys stuck down the back of the couch.

Quickly she promised Gil that she would be right there before hanging up and heading out of the front door, slamming it behind her.

***

Catherine entered the hospital 20 minutes later and had to marvel about the fact that she hadn’t got a speeding ticket on the way over, she doubted she’d ever driven that fast in her life.

Shaking her head she glancing around the waiting room of the ER and eventually spotted Gil huddled in a corner, the look on his face making her just want to hold him.

Silently she walked over and sat down next to him, grabbing his hand as she did so. “Gil, I’m so sorry.” She ran her free hand through his face before letting it rest on the side of his face.

Carefully, Catherine brushed away the tears as they continued to fall down his already tear streaked face, finally she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him to her, relief ran through her when his arms came around her and she buried her face in his shoulder. Not realising until then just how much she had wanted to be held as well.

It felt like hours later when they eventually pulled away from each other, Catherine taking the opportunity to grab hold of his hand again and pulling him out of the seat, taking a deep breath as she did so.

Quietly they left the hospital and walked towards where she’d parked the car, hands staying entwined until they reached the car. Catherine pushed Gil into the passenger seat before climbing in and pulling out of the car lot and back onto the main road.

She didn’t ask him if he wanted her to take him home and simply drove to her apartment, knowing that he needed her comfort that night and would be more likely to except it, if he didn’t think she felt like she had to be there.

They stayed quiet the entire ride to her apartment block, Gil was lost in his own thoughts and Catherine alternated between keeping her eyes on the road and glancing across at the man next to her.

She’d never seen him this vulnerable before and it scared her to see him this way. Gil was a man who felt things deeply but hardly ever showed his true feelings and Catherine worried that he would begin to burry himself away, which she knew would be much worse in the long run.

When they arrived Catherine pulled him out of the car and into her apartment, helping him towards her bedroom. Carefully, she undressed him until he was sat on her bed with just his boxer shorts and a tee shirt on.

Without a word she pushed him into laying down, before taking a pair of sleep shorts and tee shirt out of her chest of draws and went into the bathroom to change, while brushing her teeth, she stared at the image looking back at her in the mirror. Her eyes were puffy and she knew there was no way she would make it to work the next day.

Resolving to get up briefly the next morning to phone in for herself and Gil, Catherine finished in the bathroom and walked back into her bedroom, not surprised to see Gil hadn’t moved at all while she was out of the room.

She shut the light off before climbing into the bed next to him and pulling the covers over them, she wrapped her arm around his waist and snuggled up to his side, offering him her comfort.

After a while, Catherine felt his arm wrap around her and sighed when she heard his breathing even out. Lifting her head up, she looking at his face and was relived to see some of the tension had left him.

Laying back down she placed her head on his chest and quietly settled down to wait for the dawn.

~I don’t wanna believe you’re gone. Somethings are true, whether you, believe it or not ~

Believe it or not- Rebecca Lynn Howard.