Title: Gemini
Author: IrishDachsie
Pairing:
Grissom/Sara
Rating: NC17...I didn't figure it would stay PG for long
Disclaimer: Same as always…they’re not mine…no money...
A/N: Follow-up to MoaNO.
Chapter Forty One
Sara rolled over in the bed
and reached for her husband. Finding
only the cool sheets, she opened her eyes.
She yawned as her eyes focused on the piece of blue notepaper resting on
his pillow. She pushed herself up and
lifted the paper, a smile forming on her face as she read his written words.
Sara,
I’ve gone to pick Weevil up. Alex and Ant are with me. You
were sleeping and I figured you
needed your rest. We’ll be
back soon. If you need anything, call my cell.
Love,
Gil
Placing the short note on
her bedside table, she ran her fingers through her hair and glanced at the
clock.
“2:46…he couldn’t have left
too long ago.” She sighed lightly and
slid out of the bed.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Grissom placed Alex and Ant
in the double stroller, talking softly to them as he buckled them in.
“You ready to go get your
big brother?”
Ant responded with a happy
giggle while Alex yawned. Grissom
chuckled and stroked Alex’s tiny hand with his fingers. Alex looked up at his father and grinned
brightly.
“Surely you’re not sleepy
again, Alex…” He retied Ant’s shoe
before he stood back up. “Come on
guys…let’s go get Weevil.”
He whistled a tune that had
been playing on the radio as he carefully pushed the stroller through the front
doors of the building. A smile crossed
his face as he recognized a woman leaning against the wall watching the
children play.
“Hi Naomi…”
Naomi turned towards the
voice, returning his smile as their eyes met.
“Hi Gil…” She motioned towards
the children, grinning as Grissom chuckled.
“Looks like Michael and
Grissom nodded as he watched
his oldest son with pride. Hearing the
soft giggle coming from the stroller, he looked down and smiled. “Do you see your big brother over there?”
Naomi smiled warmly at the
two small boys before redirecting her gaze on their father. “Is Mikey good
with them?”
Grissom knelt down and tied
Ant’s shoe again after his tiny fingers had pulled the lace free. “Weevil loves his brothers. He’s pretty protective over them too.”
He looked up as he heard his
oldest son’s squeal.
“Daddy!”
Naomi laughed as
“It would appear so…”
Mikey ran into his father’s arms and began chattering
incoherently in his excitement. Grissom
shifted his crouch and pulled his son onto his thigh. “Slow down, son…”
Mikey took a deep breath and began again.
“We seed bugs on teebee!”
“Excuse me?”
“We seed a moobie and day was bugs on it!”
Grissom chuckled and placed
a kiss in Mikey’s soft curls. “What kind of bugs?”
“Beedles
an’ ands an’ wurms an’…lots of ‘em!”
“What movie did you watch?”
The young boy shrugged his
shoulders as he slid from his father’s leg to talk to his brothers. “Dunno.
I wiked it doe!”
“I’m sure you did…” He laughed as he ruffled Mikey’s
hair. As Mikey
busied himself by talking to his brothers, Grissom turned towards the young
girl in Naomi’s arms. “Hi
Naomi and Grissom shared a
laugh at
Suddenly, Mikey looked up at his father and furrowed his brow. “Wearz Mommy?”
“Mommy was asleep when I
came to get you, so she’s still at home.”
“Wadin
on us?”
Grissom smiled and
nodded. “Yes son, she’s waiting on us.”
Mikey waved at
Grissom chuckled as he met
Naomi’s eyes. “I think someone wants to
see his mother.”
“Sounds like!” She knelt down in front of Mikey and placed
“Is Widda?”
Naomi nodded as she looked
at her granddaughter. “Yes,
Mikey hugged
He looked up and motioned
towards Naomi as he looked at his father.
“Tell Nomie bye, Daddy!”
Grissom laughed as he looked
at Naomi. “I think this is goodbye. Do you and Jim have plans for Thursday
night?”
She thought for a minute as
she gathered
“We were thinking about
taking you two out for dinner…if you’re not busy.”
Naomi smiled. “I don’t think we’re busy, but I’ll ask Jim
later. Are you working tonight?”
“Yes…Sara and I both are.”
“Jess be dare?”
Grissom placed a gentle hand
on the top of his son’s head. “Yes,
Jessie will be there tonight.”
“Yay!”
Grissom laughed as Weevil
began jumping up and down excitedly. He
redirected his attention back to Naomi with a smile on his face. “Ask Jim to let us know at work?”
“Of course.” Naomi looked towards the room full of
children and smiled. “I think Ellie
wants to talk to you.”
“Oh…wonder what he did…”
“Doesn’t mean he’s in
trouble, Gil.” She placed her hand on
his shoulder and laughed. “I need to get
“Alright.” He smiled at the small girl in her arms. “Bye,
Grissom took a deep breath
as he watched Eleanor approach him.
“Hello, Mr. Grissom…”
“Hello, Ellie. Please, call me Gil.”
“Okay, Gil.” She laughed lightly as Mikey
wrapped his arms around her leg. “Are
you ready to go home, Weevil?”
“Yup! Mommy is sweep. Gonna wake her up!”
Grissom looked down as Ant
whimpered. He unfastened the webbed belt
and scooped the young boy into his arms.
“What’s wrong, Anthony?”
“Dat’s
And Daddy!”
“What is Ant short for,
Weevil?”
The young boy thought about
it for a moment, and then smiled at his father.
“Andonie!”
“That’s right…” Grissom soothingly rubbed Ant’s back as he
looked at Ellie. “I’m sorry, Ellie. You needed to talk to me?”
“It’s okay, I know how hard
it can be…” Ellie smiled in
understanding. “Actually, I just wanted
to tell you what a joy young Weevil is.
He was very helpful today…”
A look of panic crossed
Grissom’s face. “Helpful?”
Ellie laughed as she watched
the father standing in front of her. “He
knows a lot about bugs, doesn’t he?”
“Uh…yeah…he does. I’m an Entomologist. I think he’s taken after me a little in that
respect.” Grissom smiled as Ant giggled
at his big brother. He knelt down and
placed his youngest son back into the stroller and strapped him in. “Weevil?”
“Huh?”
“Will you watch your
brothers for just a second? They’ve
missed you today.”
“My bubbas!”
Grissom and Ellie shared a
smile as Weevil sat down on the floor in front of the stroller and began
talking softly to his brothers.
“So, he was okay today?”
“He was fine, Gil. Really.”
She chuckled as relief shone on his face. “He’s a very well-behaved little boy. And…quite verbal for his age…”
“Yeah…” He shook his head in amusement as he glanced
down at his sons. “He’s definitely a
talker.”
“Will he be back tomorrow?”
Weevil stood up quickly and
looked at Ellie. “Yup! I be back damarra!”
Ellie crouched down and
pulled Mikey into a hug. “Okay, then I’ll see you tomorrow, Weevil.”
“O-tay! Bye, Ewwie!”
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Grissom smiled as the front
door opened as he carried Alex and Ant up the walkway to the house. Weevil bounded up the two steps to the front
porch, giggling happily when he saw his mother.
“Mommy!”
“Hi baby! Did you have a good day today?”
“Yup! We seed a moobie wif bugs in it!”
“Did you?” She laughed as her son nodded
enthusiastically. “What movie did you
watch?”
He shrugged his small
shoulders as Sara picked him up and walked into the living room. “Dunno.
It wuz a ‘toon doe!”
“It was a cartoon? Wow!
Aren’t you a lucky boy?”
“Wucky!”
She set Mikey
down on the floor and reached out to take Ant from her husband’s arm. Grissom smiled as she leaned into him and
placed a soft kiss on his lips.
“Missed you…”
“I missed you too. You were sleeping so well…I didn’t have the
heart to wake you.”
“It’s okay. Thank you for leaving a note…”
He smiled as he leaned in
for another kiss. “Come on…Weevil’s
anxious to tell you about his day…”
Grissom shook his head
lightly as his oldest son flipped his mashed potatoes off of his plate.
“Weevil, quit making a mess…”
“Taytas!”
Grissom wiped up the
discarded mush and glanced at Sara before focusing his gaze on Mikey. “Yes, they are potatoes. You eat them, not play with
them.”
His son scowled at him and
promptly pushed his hand into the small pile of potatoes that remained on his
plate. Lifting his hand, his scowl turned into an expression of panic. “DADDY!”
Grissom fought to stifle his
laughter as Mikey held his potato-covered hand
towards him. “What?”
“OFF!” He shook his hand,
sending bits of potato flying in all directions.
Grissom gently grabbed his
son’s arm, stopping his movement. “Stop that, you’re making it worse.”
“OFF!” Mikey
screamed as tears began to well in his hazel eyes.
“Calm down, Michael.”
Grissom sighed heavily as he reached for the wet cloth that Sara handed him.
“Crying isn’t going to make it better.”
His son’s lower lip quivered
as the tears spilled down his cheeks. “Off.”
Grissom quickly wiped Mikey’s hand clean of the food and chuckled. “You know, if
you hadn’t decided that dinner was your new toy, that wouldn’t have happened.”
Mikey stuck his lip out in a pout and looked at his
mother. “Mommy.”
Sara smiled as she ruffled
his hair. “See? All better now. Daddy got rid of it all for you.”
“Mess.”
“Yeah, you made a mess.” She
lifted the young boy out of his highchair. “Why don’t you go give Daddy a big
kiss for helping you, and then tell him that you’re sorry for making a mess.”
She placed him on the tiled
floor and smiled as he slowly shuffled towards his father. Mikey
looked up at Grissom with glistening eyes as he pulled himself onto his
father’s lap. Wrapping his arms around Grissom’s neck, he sniffled lightly.
“Tank oo
for hepping me, Daddy. I sowwy
I maked a mess.”
Grissom felt his heart melt
once more as Mikey placed a sloppy kiss on his cheek.
“Okay, Weevil. You’re welcome. You just have to listen a little more closely
when I’m telling you something, okay?”
Mikey leaned back in Grissom’s arms and tilted his head.
“O-tay.”
“Why don’t you go in the
living room and look at your bug book while I help Mommy with the dishes.”
“Oo
weed?”
Grissom chuckled as Mikey slid from his lap to the floor. “Yes. I’ll read to
you in a little while, okay?”
“O-tay!”
Grissom shook his head in
slight amusement as Weevil excitedly ran into the living room and grabbed his
book.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
The buglets
were gurgling happily on a soft, fluffy blanket on the living room floor as
Grissom finished telling Weevil every single detail of the chosen insect of the
day. Sara flashed her husband a warm smile as Weevil slid from the couch to
play with his brothers.
Grissom returned her smile
as he tilted his head in the same manner their oldest son had earlier. “What?”
“He’s just like you…”
Grissom glanced at his three
boys. “What do you mean?”
“The same excitement shows
in his eyes when you talk about bugs that I see in yours.”
Grissom blushed lightly,
leaning over and pressing a soft kiss to his wife’s lips. He pulled back and
gave her wink when he felt her start to deepen the kiss. “What are you doing?”
She shrugged her shoulders
and grinned at him. A tiny hand tapping on Sara’s knee interrupted the moment.
“Mommy!”
“Yes, Weevil?”
“Awec
won’ wissen!”
Grissom’s brow furrowed
quickly. “Excuse me?”
“Awec
won’ wissen!” Weevil repeated as he looked into the
confused eyes of his father. “I tawk, he won’ wissen.”
Grissom chuckled lightly.
“Alex and Ant are still too young to talk. They’re not big boys, like you.”
“And wissens.”
Sara stole a quick glance at
Grissom before speaking to their son. “Weevil, what do you mean?”
Weevil sighed heavily and
turned back to the buglets playing on the blanket. He
walked up beside of them and spoke Ant’s name. Ant responded by looking up at
his older brother and giggling. Weevil laughed and then spoke Alex’s name.
Alex didn’t respond.
In fact, Alex didn’t even
respond to the laughter from his two brothers that was quickly filling the
room.
Grissom’s jaw tightened.
Sara’s heart lurched.
“See? Awec
won’ wissen.” Weevil shrugged his shoulders and sat
down on the floor with his blocks.
Grissom swallowed the lump
that had formed in his throat and slid to the floor, with Sara following
quickly. They knelt on the floor behind their youngest boys. Taking a hesitant
breath, Grissom softly spoke Alex’s name.
Nothing.
He spoke a little louder.
Ant turned his head and
smiled at his parents. Alex continued playing with the stuffed duck.
Grissom’s heart began to
race. Sara’s warm hand on his arm didn’t calm him. His eyes glistened as he
once again spoke his son’s name loud enough to distract Weevil from his blocks.
Ant giggled. Weevil giggled.
Alex’s fingers lost their grip on the duck, but he still didn’t acknowledge his
father’s voice.
“Oh, God…”
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Brass glanced at the caller
id on his cell phone as it buzzed annoyingly. He chuckled and flipped it open.
“Dinner’s on for tomorrow night. Thought I was supposed to tell you that at
work tonight?”
“Jim…”
Hearing the distressed tone
in his friend’s voice, he picked up the remote and muted the television.
“What’s wrong?”
“Do you know where Catherine
is?”
“She took Lindsey to visit
her grandmother, I think. Why?”
“I need her to work
tonight.”
Brass chuckled nervously.
“Good luck. She’s had this planned for a couple of weeks. If I had to guess,
she doesn’t have her cell or her pager with her.”
“Shit…” The expletive was
whispered. The whisper was laced with fear.
“Gil, what’s wrong?” When
Grissom didn’t reply within a few seconds, Brass took a deep breath. “Is Sara okay?”
“Yeah…no. I…uh…she’s okay.”
Brass narrowed his eyes.
“What’s going on?”
“We need…to take Alex…to the
doctor…”
Brass sat up quickly.
“What’s wrong?”
“He…he can’t…uh…he can’t
hear us…”
“Gil…are you sure?”
“Dammit Jim! If I wasn’t
sure, would I call you looking for Catherine?”
“Calm down, Gil…”
“I have to call Ecklie.”
“Ecklie?”
Grissom exhaled forcefully,
the frustration filling his body. “I need to get a couple of people to work
tonight. Sara and I…we can’t.”
“Let me…”
“What?”
Brass inhaled slowly. “Let
me call him. You take your son to the ER, okay?”
“I…we…can’t leave until
Jessie gets here.”
Brass nodded in
understanding. “Give me 15 minutes. You and Sara get ready. I’ll watch Weevil
and Ant until Jessie gets there.”
“Are…are you sure?”
“Positive. I’ll call Ecklie on the way over there.”
Brass heard the unmistakable
sound of Sara sniffling lightly as Grissom offered him a quiet ‘thank you’ and
disconnected the line.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
“Conrad Ecklie.”
Brass buckled his seatbelt
and backed out of his driveway. “Ecklie…need a favor.”
Ecklie sighed dramatically. “What do you need, Jim?”
“Can we borrow two of your
guys tonight?”
“Two? What the hell for?”
Brass grit his teeth. “Night
shift is two short tonight. Catherine is out of town…and…”
“Who’s not going in?”
“Does it matter?” Brass
gripped the steering wheel tightly and forced himself to remain civil.
“Gil and Sara? Again?”
“Look Conrad, they have to
take one of their boys to the hospital. You can either help out, or I can talk
to
A long pause followed. With
an extremely unhappy sigh, Ecklie informed him that
he would have two of his CSI’s work with Warrick and
Nick.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Brass held Mikey in his arms as they watched the black Tahoe back out
of the driveway. Mikey’s brow furrowed as he looked
at Jim.
“Dim?”
“Yeah?”
“Is Awec
sick?”
“I don’t know, Weevil.”
Brass sighed softly. “We’ll find out soon.”
Mikey leaned his head on Jim’s shoulder and yawned
lightly. “Weed ta me?”
Brass smiled lightly as he
walked over to the couch and sat down. “Sure thing, buddy.”
Jim read to the young
Grissom until Jessie arrived. After briefing her on what was going on, he said
goodbye to Weevil and Ant.
Navigating through the night
traffic on his way to work, he inhaled deeply and hoped that he’d hear
something from his friends soon.
Sara looked up at her
husband as Alex drifted off to sleep. “Gil, honey…stop
pacing.”
He stopped and stared at
her. Running his hand through his hair, he looked down at his sleeping son.
“This isn’t happening…”
She sighed and motioned for
him to sit down beside her. His trembling hand lightly stroked Alex’s head.
Raising his gaze, he looked into his wife’s eyes.
“Tell me this isn’t
happening…”
“Gil, it could be nothing.”
His eyes darkened. “And it
could be everything, Sara. How can you sit there so calmly?”
“If I were pacing back and
forth like you, Alex would still be awake.”
“Must be nice…” He grumbled
under his breath.
“Excuse me?” Her eyes
darkened as she stared at him. “Do you think I’m not scared? You’re wrong. So wrong. I’m scared shitless, Gil. But what is pacing going
to do to help? Tell me.”
His eyes softened somewhat
as he inhaled deeply. “I’m sorry, Sara. I didn’t mean to insinuate that this
isn’t bothering you…” He dropped his head into his hands and closed his eyes.
“I’m so scared.”
She placed a hand on his
back and rubbed soothing circles over his spine. “Look at me…”
She waited until his eyes
were focused on hers before she continued. “If it turns out that he is deaf,
and there’s nothing that can be done about it…will you love him any less?”
His eyes widened as he shook
his head slowly. “No, of course not. He’s my son. I’ll
love him no matter what.”
She smiled lightly as she
passed the sleeping baby over to her husband. Her own panic began to subside as
she watched him cuddle Alex.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
A man, who appeared to be in
his late 40’s, walked into the examination room with a clipboard in his hand.
He looked up as he closed the door behind him.
“Mr. and
Mrs. Grissom? My name is Dr.
Rodriguez. It says here that there is a problem with your child?”
Grissom placed Alex in
Sara’s arms and sighed softly. “We’re not sure he can hear.”
The doctor nodded, sat down
on the stool and rolled over to stop in front of them. “How did you discover
the problem?”
Sara smiled as Alex wrapped
his hand around her finger in his sleep. “His older brother said he wasn’t
listening to him…”
“Okay…” He scanned down the
short chart and looked at Grissom. “Any hearing problems in
the family?”
Grissom bit his bottom lip
nervously as he nodded. “My mother…and I…have otosclerosis.”
Rodriguez watched the father
carefully as he asked the next question. “What treatment did you have?”
“My mother had none. She’s
completely deaf and has been for many years. I had a stapedectomy performed a
couple of years ago.”
The doctor scribbled
something on Alex’s chart and lowered his voice. “And how is your hearing now?”
Grissom’s eyes narrowed. “Fine. Can we talk about my son, please?”
“Mr. Grissom, I’m sure you
know that otosclerosis is normally a progressive disease.”
“I know about my disorder. I
don’t know what’s wrong with my son’s hearing. That’s why we’re here.”
Sara placed her hand on his
forearm, silently willing him to calm down. The doctor noticed the motion and
nodded. “I’m sorry, sir. I’m not trying to irritate you. I’m just trying to get
as much information before I examine the little guy.”
Grissom gave him a curt nod
and covered Sara’s hand with his own.
“How old is he?” Rodriguez
asked quietly as he looked down at the small boy.
“Five months.” Sara
responded as the doctor placed the tip of the otoscope into the small
“Okay…the stapes look fine.
No malformations.” He looked up at Sara and offered her a gentle smile. “No
fluid in the Eustachian tubes. I would like to run a few x-rays, though.”
“X-rays?” Sara glanced at Grissom quickly. “What do you think
is wrong?”
“I just want to cover all of
the bases, Mrs. Grissom.” He smiled as the baby shifted in Sara’s arms. “You
can go in with him, of course.”
Sara turned to Grissom, her
eyes asking a simple question.
Grissom nodded slowly and
looked at the doctor in front of him. “Okay…”
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Grissom was holding his son
and talking softly to the smiling boy when the doctor returned with the film in
his hand.
“Ah, he’s awake.”
Sara chuckled nervously.
“Schedules…”
Rodriguez nodded quickly and
then turned his attention to the father. “Mr. Grissom, who
performed your surgery?”
Grissom tilted his head
slightly as he looked at the doctor. “Glen Kanamori.”
“He’s one of the best
specialists around. A very talented surgeon.”
Grissom nodded slowly as his
brow furrowed. “Yes. Yes, he is.”
The doctor licked his lips
as he placed the film on the lighted panel hanging on the wall. Grissom glanced
quickly at Sara as he placed a kiss on Alex’s forehead.
“Okay…” The doctor pulled a
pen from his pocket and pointed towards the x-ray. “I can see something
right here. A small nodule, of sorts.”
Sara attempted to swallow
her panic. “A nodule?”
Dr. Rodriguez nodded slowly
as he watched Grissom place his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “It could be
something…and it could be nothing. I’m just not sure.”
Grissom held his son against
his chest as he placed a comforting kiss on Sara’s temple. He turned his
glistening eyes back towards the doctor. “What do we do now?”
“Well, I’m going to write
out a referral for Alex to see Dr. Kanamori.” He
smiled lightly as Grissom continued to stare at him. “That’s why I asked who
performed your stapedectomy. I thought you may be more comfortable taking your
son to see a doctor that you know.”
Grissom nodded slowly and
tightened his arm around his wife.
“I can go ahead and call his
answering service and set up an appointment, if you’d like.”
Sara inhaled deeply and
looked at Grissom. Grissom swallowed nervously as his vision became hazy
through the unshed tears in his eyes. Not willing to trust his voice at the
moment, he merely nodded his consent.
Dr. Rodriguez offered a soft
acknowledgement and left the room to make the necessary phone call.
A tear slipped down
Grissom’s cheek as he took hold of Sara’s hand and stood up.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Sara turned to look at her
husband as he silently drove through the streets towards their home.
“Are you okay?”
“We should call Jim and let
him know. He’s probably worried…”
She placed her hand on his
thigh and gently squeezed. “Gil…”
“We were there for a while.
Jim will know who to tell and who not to. I trust him with that…”
“Babe…”
He lifted his shaky hand and
absently wiped his eyes.
“Honey, pull over.”
“We need to get home…”
She lightly stroked his
cheek as a tear fell. “Please, pull over…”
He nodded silently and
pulled into the parking lot of a gas station. He killed the engine and laid his
head against the steering wheel.
Unbuckling her seatbelt, she
leaned over and ran her fingers through his hair. “It’s going to be okay,
baby…”
“Nodule…”
Her heart ached as she heard
his soft whispered word. “A nodule could be anything…or nothing. You know
that.”
He lifted his head and
looked into her dark eyes. “How can you be so calm right now?”
She offered him a comforting
smile and glanced into the backseat. “Because…he’s our son.”
“You’re scared too…”
She nodded slowly and
caressed his shoulder. “Petrified. But, look at him,
Gil…”
She waited until he looked
over his shoulder and saw his young son sleeping peacefully in his carseat. “How gorgeous is he?”
“Completely…”
She smiled lightly and
turned his face towards hers. “There’s no pain, Gil. He just can’t hear.”
“Can you drive home?”
She wiped a remaining tear
away. “Of course…are you okay?”
He nodded as he smiled
softly. “I thought I’d give Jim a call on the way home…and…watch him sleep.”
She inhaled deeply as he
opened the door and slid out of the driver’s seat. She climbed out as well and,
as they met in front of the black Tahoe, she placed her hand on his chest.
“I love you, Gil.”
He bent his head slightly
and placed a kiss on her lips in a silent reply.
As Sara pulled out of the
parking lot, Grissom pulled his cell phone out of his jacket pocket and dialled
the familiar number.
Jim Brass pulled his phone
out of his pocket and, after gruffly directing his officers to finish their
jobs, flipped it open as he slid into the driver’s seat of his unmarked
cruiser.
“Brass.”
“Hi, Jim…”
“Gil…” He closed the car
door quietly and switched the phone to his other ear. “How’s Alex?”
“He…well, he has a nodule.”
He felt Sara’s hand on his arm as he sighed.
“What’s that mean?”
“We’re not sure. He has an
appointment with Dr. Kanamori in the morning…”
Brass leaned his head
against the headrest and inhaled slowly. “Kanamori? Isn’t he the doctor who
fixed you up?”
“Yeah…” Grissom turned his
head, a soft smile tugging at his lips as he watched Alex sleeping peacefully
in the backseat. “He can’t hear. But…he’s not in pain. We’ll just have to wait
and see what Kanamori has to say…”
“What time is the
appointment?”
Grissom glanced at the paper
in his hand. “8:30…”
Brass quickly thumbed
through his planner. “Okay…no court, no meetings…” He closed the binder and
placed it on the seat. “Want me to come over and watch after Weevil and Ant for
you? Naomi has to be in court at 9…”
Grissom quickly relayed the
message to Sara, who smiled and nodded slowly. “Thank you, Jim. That would be a
big help. I mean…if you’re sure…”
“Positive.” Brass started
his car and turned the heater on. “I’ll be over right after shift.”
Grissom quietly thanked his
friend once more and disconnected the call.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Jessie looked up as she
heard the front door open. She offered Grissom and Sara a worried smile as they
walked into the living room. Grissom carefully handed the still-sleeping Alex
to his wife as his eyes spotted his oldest son curled up on the couch beside of
Jessie.
Jessie glanced down and
gently ran her fingers through the boy’s soft curls. “He wanted to wait until
Alex came home. He was actually quite adamant about it…”
Sara smiled at the younger
woman. “He’s quite adamant about a lot of things. It’s okay…”
She turned to her husband,
her eyes carefully regarding him. “I’m going to slip Alex into bed…”
Grissom nodded silently and
watched his wife slowly walk down the hall. Taking a deep breath, he made his
way to the couch and sat down on the other side of Mikey.
He sat there, unmoving…simply content in watching his son sleep. Jessie’s soft
question caught his attention.
“I’m sorry…what did you say,
Jessie?”
“I just asked how things
went…”
“Oh…” He sighed heavily and
gently scooped Mikey into his arms. “We have to take
him to a specialist in the morning. The doctor thinks he found a…nodule.”
He looked into the green
eyes of the young woman, surprised to see tears in them. He placed a hand on
her shoulder. “He’s going to be okay though. We’re just not sure what has
caused it…and what treatments are available.”
She nodded as she raised a
trembling hand and wiped the tears from her eyes. “What if there aren’t any
treatments?”
Grissom placed a soft kiss
in his son’s hair as he thought about her question. Exhaling slowly, he looked
into her eyes once more. “Then I suppose…he’ll be deaf.”
He shook his head quickly as
he watched the tears welling in her eyes again. “There are worse things than
being deaf…and besides, a nodule could mean nothing…”
She sniffled as she nodded.
She wasn’t fully convinced, but opted to trust in his words. She smiled weakly
as she stood up and began gathering her belongings.
Weevil snuggled against his
father, Rusty held tightly in his small hands.
“You’re more than welcome to
stay here tonight, Jess.”
Jessie shook her head slowly
as she dug her keys out of her bag. “I appreciate that, Gil. I really do…but, I
think I’m going to head on home.”
Grissom nodded in
understanding and stood up with his son in his arms. Weevil shifted slightly.
Jessie reached out and stroked a stray curl on the boy’s head.
“Would you like me to come
by in the morning? I have classes starting at 9, but if you need me here with
the boys while you take Alex to the doctor I can ditch them…”
“No…no, don’t start ditching
classes Jess. If you do that, you’ll end up working for us permanently instead
of getting a good job, with better benefits…”
She smiled lightly at his
gentle joke. “Okay…but, could you ask Sara to give me a call tomorrow?”
“Of course…”
Her smile faded as she
walked to the door and let herself out.
Grissom locked the door and
sighed. “Come on, Weevil…we need to get you into bed.”
He looked up to see his wife
standing in the living room entrance, a knowing smile on her face.
“What?”
“It’s amazing how you can
counsel someone else and make them feel better about any given situation. Even if you don’t truly believe it yourself.”
He shook his head in
disagreement. “No, I do believe it.” He returned her smile as he walked past
her and into the hallway. “Believing things will be alright, knowing things
will be alright, and worrying about it…all different, honey…”
They quietly settled Weevil
into his crib and checked on the buglets. Satisfied
that all three boys were sleeping peacefully, they made their way into their
bedroom for a night of restlessness and worry over what tomorrow would bring.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
Grissom walked up to the receptionist’s
desk, hoping that his nervousness wasn’t showing. The woman looked up at him
and offered him a bright smile.
“Mr. Grissom…what brings you
in today? Your next check-up isn’t until next month…”
“Hi,
Marianne. I know…uh…I’m not
here for me today.”
She glanced down at the
computer monitor and skimmed over the appointments for the day.
She raised her eyes and
smiled sweetly. “Alexander Grissom…”
He nodded and motioned
towards his wife standing next to him with a seemingly happy baby in her arms.
“This is Alex…”
“Okay…” She grabbed a
clipboard and a pen, smiling as she handed them to him. “You know the routine…”
“Thank you, Marianne.”
Grissom ushered Sara over to
a couple of empty chairs and began to quickly fill out the forms. He looked up when
he heard the soft giggle coming from Alex.
He smiled as the baby
reached for him. He placed the clipboard on his lap and signed the words to his
son as he spoke. “Wait just a minute, Alex…and when Daddy’s finished with this
paperwork, he’ll take you…”
“Gil…that’s weird…”
He resumed his task as he
chuckled. “What? I use sign language with all of the boys…”
Sara shook her head as she
laughed lightly. “No…not that. I was talking about referring to yourself in the third person. That’s weird…”
A door opened and a young
nurse stepped through. “Alexander Grissom?”
Grissom looked over at his
son and smiled weakly. “That’s you, buddy. Let’s go…”
After dropping off the forms
with Marianne, they followed the nurse down the hall and into an examination
room.
“Dr. Kanamori
will be with you shortly.”
Grissom nodded at the nurse
as she left the room and closed the door behind her. He glanced down at Alex
and smiled as the boy reached for him again.
“Okay, Alex…come here.”
Alex watched his father’s face
carefully as Grissom spoke softly to him. He giggled happily when Grissom
playfully tickled his small ribs. Grissom heard the door open. He heard Dr. Kanamori’s friendly voice as he stepped into the room.
Alex didn’t.
He continued giggling at his
father. He only turned his head and noticed the strange man when he saw that
his father had redirected his gaze to somewhere other than him.
Dr. Kanamori
smiled at the young Grissom sitting on his father’s lap. “Hi
there, young man.”
Alex responded with a bright
smile as he leaned back against Grissom’s chest.
The doctor smiled at the
parents and sat down on the stool with a medical chart in his hand. “And how
are the Grissoms today?”
Grissom smiled lightly and
passed Alex to his mother when he began squirming. “We’re just fine…how have
you been, Glen?”
Kanamori nodded as he winked at Alex. “Good, good…” He took
a deep breath and looked back at Grissom. “How’s your hearing?”
He swallowed the lump in his
throat and glanced at Alex. “Mine is just fine…”
Glen pulled the otoscope
from his pocket and gently stroked Alex’s fine hair. “I’m just going to have a
look in your ears, okay Alex?”
Sara smiled at the softness
in the doctor’s voice as he spoke to their son. Alex looked up at his mother
with confusion in his eyes. “It’s okay, baby…he’s just having a look…”
“The stapes are fine…” Glen
looked at Grissom. “But, you already knew that…”
Grissom nodded slowly.
“I was looking at the film
from the x-ray that Dr. Rodriguez sent over from the hospital.” He leaned back
slightly and crossed his legs. “I’d like to do some more tests.”
“What kind of tests?”
“I’d like to have a CT scan
run…”
Grissom narrowed his eyes.
“He’d need to be anesthetized for that, wouldn’t he?”
“Yes, actually he would. I’m
not exactly thrilled with putting children under anesthesia,
but I’ll make an exception in this case.”
Sara looked at the doctor,
her concern for her son showing clearly in her eyes. “What do you think it is?”
“Well, I can see something
in the x-ray. It could be a number of things.”
Sara’s heart lurched
painfully in her chest. “A number of things?”
Kanamori nodded slowly. “It’s definite that he can’t hear.
He only responds to stimuli that are directly in his line of vision. He doesn’t
recognize voices or loud sounds.”
He put his hand behind
Alex’s head and snapped his fingers loudly a few times.
Alex continued playing with
a button on Sara’s blouse that had caught his attention. He never so much as
flinched.
Grissom closed his eyes
briefly and took a deep breath. “Dr. Rodriguez mentioned a…nodule?”
“Mm…yes, I see it here.” He
pointed towards the small shadow on the x-ray.
“What do you think it is?”
“I really can’t say right
now. Not until we have the scan run. It could be a bundle of nerves, a small
growth, a…”
“Growth?”
Grissom glanced at Sara
quickly. Seeing the panic flash in her eyes, he placed his arm around her shoulders
in a comforting manner.
“We’ll know more soon.” He
scribbled something on Alex’s medical chart and looked up. “Do you have
anything planned for the next couple of hours?”
Both parents shook their
heads slowly. The doctor offered them a gentle smile. “I’d like to go ahead and
have the scan run now.”
“Okay…” The word seemed
choked as it left Grissom’s lips on a soft whisper.
“Of course, both of you will
be allowed into the CT room as well.”
The parents nodded as Sara
cuddled her son tightly in her arms.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~
They sat quietly on either
side of the small bed that held their four month old son. Grissom’s thumb
gently caressed the back of Alex’s hand, while Sara’s fingertips lightly stroked
her son’s hair. Lifting their heads at the same moment, their eyes met.
“He’s going to be okay,
Sara…”
“I know…” She sighed as she
looked back down at the sleeping boy. “I just want him to wake up and smile at
me.”
The door opened slowly and
Dr. Kanamori walked into the room. He smiled as his
eyes focused on them. “I see the little prince is still sleeping…”
Grissom nodded as he studied
the doctor’s facial expressions. “Any idea how long he’ll sleep?”
“Shouldn’t
be much longer.” He
pulled a chair to the foot of the bed and placed his clipboard on top of the
white cotton blanket. “I have the results…”
Grissom visibly stiffened
and looked at his wife. They each inhaled a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
Grissom swallowed nervously and gave the doctor a brief nod in a silent request
for him to continue.
“Okay, what we have is an
acoustic neuroma.”
Sara gasped lightly. Grissom
stared at the doctor in silence.
Dr. Kanamori
cleared his throat softly and continued. “Basically, it’s a benign tumor on the eighth cranial nerve. I can’t tell you what
has caused it, but I do know that he was born with it.”
“Tumor?”
The doctor smiled gently as
he looked at Sara. “Benign, Mrs. Grissom. And it’s not
causing your son any discomfort.”
Grissom’s brow furrowed as
he uttered out one soft word. “Treatment?”
Kanamori nodded and leaned forward with his elbows on the
mattress. “It can be removed, which will release the pressure.”
“And…he’ll be able to hear?”
Though Sara spoke to the doctor, her gaze remained locked on
her son.
“Most likely, yes. Though
there will be a possibility of residual tinnitus. And…the tumor
could return. We’d have to do yearly checks. It’s a relatively simple
procedure.” His eyes moved to Grissom. “More complex than your stapedectomy,
but it’s something that I’ve done quite a few times.”
Grissom nodded as he
nervously chewed on his bottom lip. “When would you want to perform surgery?”
“I’d like to wait until he’s
18 months old.”
Sara’s head shot up as her
eyes darkened slightly. “That’s over a year.”
“Yes,
ma’am. It’s not a life-threatening
condition, so we prefer…”
“It’s a tumor!”
Sara’s eyes widened, the panic showing clearly.
“It’s a very slow-growing tumor, Mrs. Grissom. Theoretically, he could live with this
tumor for many, many years before any symptoms –
other than hearing loss – were noticed.” Feeling the intense need to try to
calm the worried mother, he offered her an understanding smile. “It would be
safer to wait until he’s 18 months old.”
Grissom placed his hand over
Sara’s as a tear slid down her cheek. She turned her watery eyes towards him
and silently questioned him.
“We could get a second
opinion, Sara. But…I don’t think we’d find another doctor willing to do any
kind of surgery on him right now. He’s too young.”
She opened her mouth to
respond, but no words would come. A soft gurgle brought her eyes to the small
child lying under the white blanket.
“Ah…he’s waking up.” Dr. Kanamori handed a stack of papers to Grissom as he stood
up. “I printed off quite a bit of information on Acoustic Neuroma for you. You
know that you’re more than welcome to call me at any time if you have any
concerns or questions.”
Grissom nodded silently as
he glanced down at his groggy son.
“And, if you’d like a
second…even third…opinion, I can refer Alex to a number of different surgeons.”
Grissom’s vision was
suddenly blurred by the unshed tears in his eyes. He slowly shook his head and
leaned down to kiss his son’s head.
“Okay. If you need anything,
I’ll be right down the hall.” He reached underneath the blanket and tickled the
sole of Alex’s foot. He smiled as the sleepy boy gave a half-giggle and
attempted to pull his foot away. “He should be ready to go home in fifteen,
twenty minutes or so…”
Grissom whispered a soft
‘thank you’ as Dr. Kanamori walked out of the room.