Eyes on Me (A CSI Miami fanfic)

EYES ON ME

INTRO

It was another long day at the lab.  It always seemed like there was something to do.  One thing was for sure, people needed to stop killing each other.  There were many times Calleigh had just had to stop and take a breath.  People were so evil.  On this case, tensions were high.  The team was on a 48-hour shift because a little girl named Madeline had been kidnapped.  Calleigh hadn’t slept in what seemed like forever.  She was looking through 45 expended rounds, running them through IBIS.  While she waited for the results, she went to Valera in DNA.  She got her results, and then revisited the scene.  Something was missing, this she knew, but what?  She got a call from Horatio saying that Eric found a gun that had been stolen.  She went back to the lab to wait for it.  She checked IBIS again: Nothing.  And she waited for the gun.  It never came.  She checked her cell and pager, and there was no sign that anyone called her.  She was irritated.  She called Eric to see what the deal was, and he was nowhere to be found.  So, she went to Trace where Speed was working.  He could tell by the look on her face that she was pissed.

               “What did I do now?”

               “I’m not angry with you.  You didn’t do anything.”

               “Who are you mad at?”

               “Who’s tall, dark, with the initials of E.D.?”

               “Oh, Delko… What did he do this time?” He grinned a little.

               “Found a gun and has yet to give it to me.  Worse, I can’t find him, and I can’t reach him on his cell.  And you know what that means; he’s probably with a lady friend.”

               “That’s usually what it means, but, he might not be.”

               “I just know how he is.  Until I get the gun, I’m stuck here doing nothing, and the girl could be dying, or she’s already dead, and I’m sitting here doing nothing. I so damn tired right now, but all I want is to find Madeline.  I can’t do that until he brings the gun.”

               “He’ll turn up eventually.”

               “How do you know?”

               “Because Delko doesn’t have a girl right now, and I know he knows what’s riding on this case.   He knows how important it is.”

               “Oh.” She sighed.  Then, she got a surprised look on her face.  “He doesn’t have a girlfriend?”

               “No.  Why?”

               “No reason, I just- am surprised, that’s all.”

But Speed knew from the smile on her face, that she was happy Eric wasn’t dating anyone.

               “What’s that look on your face, Calleigh?  Is that a smile?  Are you happy he’s available?”

She was taken aback, like it was a big secret.  “Um-“

               “Don’t try to hide it, Cal, I know you two like each other.”

               “You two?  You mean, he likes me?”

               “Uh, yeah.  Reality check.  I saw that little hip-hugging exchange last year.  I know all.  I see all.  And I’m Eric’s best friend.  When he goes out with other girls, he doesn’t seem fulfilled.  But even when he just sees you, a smile is on his face.  He talks about you all the time.  It’s like a high schooler’s first bout of puppy love.  Trust me, he likes you.  And you like him too, don’t lie to yourself.”

Calleigh’s eyes brightened, “Well, that makes me feel better.  Do you think-it’s more than just a friendship?  That there’s something else there?”

               “Hell yeah.”

               “Really?”

               “Yes.  You two have always had such an ambiguous relationship.  You act like friends and co-workers, team-members, most of the time, but others, you stare a little too long, laugh a little too loud, get just a little too close for it to be just a friendship. You guys SO like each other.”

               “I could just be crazy.”

               “You’re not.  Tell me, Cal, why did you and Eric wake up one morning and decided that you worked together and so you shouldn’t date?  Because at Orientation, you guys were VERY friendly.  Dancing, having drinks, flirting shamelessly. It was cute.  What happened?”

               “We just- we thought we had to get serious.  We both love our jobs.”

               “Well, you can love each other and still love your jobs.”

               “Maybe you’re right.”

               “Of course I am.  You have nothing to worry about, Calleigh.  Eric’s a great guy, and he respects you. What more can you ask for?”

               “Nothing.  But now I know why I always got jealous of his girlfriends.”

               “And why he got jealous of your boyfriends.”

 

 

CHAPTER 1

The look on Speed’s face warned that something was up.  “What?” Eric asked his friend.

               “You better go and find Calleigh and give her the gun. She was pretty pissed at you.”

               “What are you talking about?  I got the evidence and it got handed to another CSI.  They thought she was too busy and they did it.  I guess.  H asked me to get in a chopper and look for the girl.”

`              “Is that what you were doing?”

               “Yeah.  Why?”

               “So you weren’t with a lady friend?”

               “No.  Why?”

               “Well, someone in the lab would be happy to hear that.  A very special someone. “

               “Am I just supposed to guess?  Does someone like, have a crush on me or something?”

               “Oh yeah!”

               “Speed! Tell me!” Eric was half between laughing and confused. 

               “She has blonde hair, and she likes guns.”

The shock on Eric’s face was evident by the way he looked at his friend.  He had been holding an evidence folder and dropped it on the floor.  “Y-you mean it’s Calleigh?!”

               “Yeah.  She likes you, you like her, so go for it.”

               “Are you kidding me?”

               “No. Now go make your move.  Make her happy, let her know you’re on the level.  Flatter her.  That’s your mission.  Now get out of here, you’re annoying me.”

               “Thanks buddy.” He laughed, starting to leave.

               “You owe me.”

               “Yes I do.   I’ll find you a girl.”

 

Eric walked down to the gun lab.  He saw Calleigh though the glass, and she tossed her beautiful blonde hair over her shoulder.  She was perfect.  And he had to take a breath and try not to be turned on by it.  It was really hard, especially now that he knew she liked him.  He had always liked her, but they worked together.  He never really thought she was interested in him anyway.  He knocked and she answered.  “I’m sorry about the gun.  Peters took it I think.  He thought you were too busy.  I said you’d want to take it, but of course, I don’t know anything.” He said, with a tad of Eric Delko sarcasm. 

               “It’s fine.”

               “I had to go up in the chopper.  H asked me too.  I should have called you myself.”

               “Don’t worry about it. I’m not angry anymore.”

               “That’s good. I didn’t want you to be mad at me.”

               “Well, I’m not.  I’m over it.  I guess I can let it go.” After that, there was an awkward silence between the two.  They looked at each other and of course, they knew how stupid fighting was.  And they had to do it.  They had to hug.  And they looked into each other’s eyes, tiredness and frustration melting away.  And, just acting on impulse, overcome by the moment, Eric put a hand on the side of her face, like lovers do.  She laid her’s over it.  At first, he thought it was to tell him to get off, but, she didn’t push him away.  She smiled, “Eric.” She whispered his name.  He thought she thought he’d gone too far. 

               “Do you want me to stop?”

               “No.  I want you to keep on going.”

He gave her a look, shocked.  “Like what?”

               “Something like this.” She brought him close to her and kissed him slowly, wrapping her arms around his neck.  He kissed her back, losing his footing a little, falling into her.  Now, she was up against the wall.  Calleigh didn’t mind.  Their bodies were close together, and she didn’t mind one bit.

               “I must say this is surprising.” Said a voice from the door.  They jumped apart in a panic to see Speed. “You two don’t waste any time do you?  I get the two of you together and you start going at it in the firearms lab.  Very sexy.  I must have done a good job.” He had a trademark smirk on his face.  Calleigh and Eric were still dumbfounded.  Speed chuckled wryly and said, “You guys were lucky I found you and not Horatio.  He was looking for both of you.  The girl is related to her assailant.  He’s her uncle.”

               “Well, that’s a sick development.” Calleigh said.

               “Yeah.” Speed said.  “And neighbors say that they think he was coming over to his brother’s house all the time, and he always saw Madeline first, and you know what that means.”

               “He was molesting her?” Calleigh asked, although she already knew that was what was going on.

               “He was.”

Eric shook his head.  “That’s just awful.  And sick.  His brother’s daughter….” He cringed.  They all shivered at the thought.  They realized what a sick world we all live in.

               “Now, we know what we’re looking for, at least.” Eric shrugged.

               “And I know what I’ll be looking out for.” Speed gave them both a look. Then he headed out.

               “Well that was thoroughly embarrassing.” Calleigh laughed.

               “Yeah.  You know he’s gonna take credit for it.  Of course, I guess if someone is gonna get the credit, it should be him since he’s the one that influenced us in that direction.”

               “True.  But you know, I really don’t mind.  I don’t care if we start seeing each other and people know-as long as it doesn’t interfere with the job.”

               “I feel the same way.  The way I’m feeling right now, I could shout it down the hall.”

               “I don’t mind if you do.  I know that us making out in the lab is very inappropriate, but I think it needed to happen.   It was fun.  And it meant something to me, which is more than any kiss I’ve had recently…”

               “Me too.” His eyes told her that he was being genuine.  Of course, she already trusted him not to lie to her. 

               “You know, I’ve had a crush on you for a while.  I just didn’t want to let anyone know. Especially you.  But I would always get jealous when I thought you were with someone else.   But when I talked to Speed, he said you weren’t with anyone currently, and you weren’t happy with anyone you had been dating.   Basically, I should act now or miss my chance believe me, I didn’t want that.   I couldn’t stay mad at you.  And I just- I knew that I wanted you. “

               “And I thought you wouldn’t be interested in me. “

               “And that was my fault.”

               “Even though I didn’t think I had a chance with you, I started feeling that I needed to get my life in order and grow up.  Even if I couldn’t be with you, I could be with someone.   We could settle down and be mature adults…  I needed to get my priorities in line.  I wanted to be someone who deserves you.”

               “You do, Eric.”

               “really?”

               “yeah.”

               “Wow.” And that was all he could say. 

 

Chapter 2

Finally, the case was solved, and the girl was alright.  The uncle was taken into custody.  Then , the team got to go home and take a long rest.   Calleigh had just woken up when her phone buzzed.  She sincerely hoped that it wasn’t a call-out. She was still tired.  She saw the number on the screen.  “Eric’s Cell” So she picked it up.

               “Hi.”

               “Hi.  I just woke up, how about you?”

She laughed.  “Uh-huh.  But I think I could use another 10 hours.”

               “Me too.  I just realized that I was hungry.”

               “Me too.  My stomach is growling.”

               “Would you like to grab a bite?”

               “Yeah.  That sounds great.  I’ll get dressed and meet you somewhere.  Where were you thinking?”

               “I’m so hungry right now that I think a big Italian meal sounds spectacular.”

               “So, Carino’s…” She was totally guessing, but her gut told her she was right.

               “How did you know?” He sounded surprised.

               “Women’s intuition, I guess.  And, I’ve known you for years.”

               “True.  True.  Well, I’ll leave you to that, how about I’ll come and pick you up.  It’s right on my way.”

               “Ok.   Take your time though, I look horrible and I need to clean up a little.  I’ll leave the door unlocked and you can just come in: read a magazine or something.”

               “Ok.  Sounds good to me.  I’ll shower and change, be there in like a half hour or something.”

               “Great.  See you then.” She smiled, hanging up.  She hurried through a shower and blow-drying her hair, knowing he’d be there soon.  She dressed up in a little black dress because Carino’s was a really nice restaurant and because it was easy and low maintenance.  She put on some eyeliner and shadow, some blush and bronzer, just enough to give her pale skin some color.  What can you expect when you just woke up?!  She put in some black pearl dangly earrings, which her dad had bought her for Christmas the year before, and a silver necklace with a black stone, see accessorizing makes the outfit.   That, she knew.  Plus, it was fun.  She was fixing her hair when she heard the door open. 

               “Hey, Eric.” She popped her head out for a second, just to make sure that’s who was there.  It was.  “Hey, Cal.” He hadn’t had time to look at her.  She quickly darted back into the bathroom and finished curling her long blonde hair. It took forever, she thought, and felt bad for making Eric sit there.  But when she looked in the mirror, it had been worth it, she thought.  She smiled and found her purse and shoes.  When she came out, she got a “Wow!”

And she blushed.  Why?  She liked him, and she was glad when he voiced that he found her attractive. 

               “You did that all in 45 minutes?!”

               “Yeah.  It takes talent.  Actually, the accessories do the trick.”

               “Well, I think it’s you, but, whatever floats your boat.” He laughed, a little embarrassed because he thought he’d made an idiot out of himself.  But she smiled.  “Thanks.”

And he grinned, “You’re welcome.  You really look great, Cal.”

And she looked at him in his dress pants, white shirt and a tie with a black jacket, and she blushed again.  He’s so hot! But she said, “You look pretty fine yourself, hot shot.”

Now it was his turn to blush.  He tried to play it cool.  “Just a little something I threw together.”

She laughed.  “Sure.”  They both had a chuckle because they knew he was being a smart ass.  She grabbed her keys and locked the door as she went out.   While in the car, she realized that this was kind of a date.  How did he ask her out without making her think he was asking her out?  She looked over at him and he had a huge silly grin on his gorgeous face.  Actually, it was more of a sly grin, now that she thought about it.  He knew he pulled one over on her.  He looked over at Calleigh, who was staring at him.  He busted out laughing.  She looked surprised for a moment.  But then she laughed, face turning red.  She put a hand to her forehead, cradling her head for a moment or two, shaking it in disbelief, and he laughed louder.  She laughed, punching him in the arm.

               “Ow!  Damn!  That hurt!”

               “Good! You bastard!”

He knew she was joking, so it didn’t offend him. 

               “And they say hitting like a girl is a bad thing… I’ll tell you…” But then he looked at her, serious.  “Sorry I tricked you.”

               “It’s ok.  I enjoyed it.  But don’t do that again.  I can outshoot you, remember?”

               “Yeah.  I remember.”

 

Chapter 4

They got into the restaurant and the host saw Eric and smiled.  “Mr. Delko, your table is all ready.  Follow me.”

Calleigh gave him a surprised look.  He chuckled softly.  “How did you know I’d say yes?”

               “Let’s just say, I have my ways.  I thought if I asked you out, you’d still say no, so I had to trick you.  Since we’re such pals, I knew you’d agree to a luncheon.  To chat- talk about how much we love our jobs or something.”

She laughed as they sat down.  “You know something, I’m glad you tricked me.”

               “I thought you would be.  Would you like some champagne?”

               “You ordered champagne?!  How much did you spend for this luncheon?” She looked concerned.  He chuckled.  “Oh, the host here is my friend.  When I told him that I was in love with a girl, he was so shocked and he said I should ask you out, said he’d pay for the champagne.  So, this, I didn’t buy, but, lunch and everything  else, it was all me.”

               “You scared me for a moment.”

               “Thank you for caring, Calleigh.”

               “You’re welcome.  Shall we?” She motioned to the glasses.

               “We shall.”  He poured the champagne while smiling.  She was so adorable.  She held up her glass and said, “To you and your charm, and for taking me out.  May we both enjoy this date, and may great things come from it.” She laughed.

               “Cheers.” He laughed too, and they clinked their glasses. 

After that, the waitress came.  “What would you like to eat this afternoon?”

               “Go ahead, Cal.” Eric grinned, almost blushing.  She was impressed by chivalry.

She gave him a look, smiling.  “I’ll have the chicken parmesan.”  She said to the waitress.  And to Eric she said, “Thank you, and it’s your move, Er.”

               “I think I’ll have the ziti chicken alfredo, please.”

               “Alright.   I’ll bring your salads and breadsticks in a bit, ok?”

               “Alright.  Thank you.”

               “You’re welcome.”

They sat and talked, and when the salad and bread came, they ate and drank together, and when they got their food, the conversation was still going strong.  Calleigh knew that Eric was someone she should keep around.   He was handsome and sweet, charming, and he loved her that was clear.  That was more than she could say about anyone else.  And she knew that she was right next to the one that she should be.  But there was a question that came into Calleigh’s mind as they sat there.   She looked into his beautiful brown eyes and was a little scared, but she got up the nerve to ask him, “Why did you choose me?  You could have anyone you wanted, and you picked me.”

She couldn’t place the expression on his face.  “Cal, I didn’t want anybody else.  You’re the only one I feel anything for.  You’re the only one I trust, one who I know isn’t looking for a one night stand.  You’re committed, and I like that.  Now, we haven’t been together long enough for me to say we’re committed to each other, but I think we go well together, and maybe one day-“ He didn’t finish. 

And she saw the look in his eyes.   It’s the look a man gets when he realizes that he’s in love and wants to marry the girl.  She had to stop her eyes from filling with tears.  Now, she wasn’t sad, by any stretch of the imagination.  She was happy.  Totally and completely happy.   She had just realized that she wanted to marry the guy.

Chapter 4

Calleigh let Eric drive her home that night.  They had stayed out pretty late.  After lunch, they had caught a movie, and they stopped into a store where Calleigh said she had some earrings on hold.  “They didn’t have any when I was here last, but they said they would, so I pre-ordered a pair.  Actually, it was my dad.  He spoils me still.  It’s really an apology present.  You know how he is.”

               “I’m sorry.”

               “Why are you sorry?  It’s not your fault.”

               “I just know how much it bothers you, Cal.  Your dad is very important to you, and I know how much it hurts when someone you love is hurting themselves, and so-doing, they hurt you.  It sucks.”

               “Yeah.  It does.  You know, it’s odd, when me and daddy were looking for the earrings, he asked about you.  He said to me, ‘Lambchop, how’s that nice young man who worked on the case for me a while back?’ and I said, ‘Do you mean Eric?’ and he smiled a little, ‘Yes.  I liked him.  Real fine young gentleman.  Damn good at his job too.’ I had blushed a little, you know why.” She laughed, and he smiled.  He knew she had had a crush on him.  “What did you tell him?”

               “That you were fine.   That was it.”

               “Oh.  Well, it’s nice that he remembers me.  I thought he was nice.”

               “He’s very nice.  Daddy’s a teddy bear.  Mom, on the other hand, is a different story.”

               “You two don’t get along?”

               “Not really.  She hates that I’m a cop.  She nagged me every day about my career choice.  She said I was ‘much too pretty to do such an ugly job’.”

               “Well, while sometimes, it seems like a beautiful woman like yourself should be doing something else, I think you’re perfect for the job.  A lot of times the only reason why someone gives up information is because you don’t look like a cop, you look too pretty.  But, I think of it as, your beauty doesn’t contradict your strength.  You’re tough.  That’s what I love about you.  That, and much more.”

She blushed considerably.  “That was sweet.”

               “I mean it.”

               “I know, sweetie.  And I think, if my mom thought that, we’d get along.  You know, I think you and Daddy might really hit it off.”

               “You want to take me to your dad’s?” He looked surprised, but pleasantly.

               “Yeah.  Eric, I see you as a long-term thing.  As far as I’m concerned, you’re gonna be around a long time.  Hopefully, you’re not freaking out or anything.”

               “No. I think it’s cool.  If I’m gonna be around, which I hope I will be, I want to get to know the man who raised such a fine young lady.’

               “Young?” She raised a surprised eyebrow as if she thought he thought she was much older. 

               “Yeah.” He looked more surprised that she was surprised. 

               “Hmm.” She said, coyly.  “I’ll take it.”

They ended up going out for dinner, and dancing at a club.  They got some martinis and Calleigh admittedly drank one too many.  He just took her home when they decided to leave.   She saw that.  He could have tried to press his advantage, but he didn’t.   This showed character on his part.  But, Calleigh had to admit that she already knew he wouldn’t try anything.  He just smiled and kissed her cheek, telling her that he’d had a great time and that he hoped they could do it again.

               “I’d like that.” She smiled, and she kissed him once.  “Thanks, babe.”

Another grin.  “You’re very welcome.”

When he finally left, she went into her room and plopped down on her bed with a smile on her face big enough to light up the sky.  She was the happiest she’d been in a long time.  And it was all because of Eric.

Chapter 5

As they walked into the door, they knew this meeting was going to be interesting.  They had met Calleigh’s dad for dinner a Mexican restaurant.  He seemed really happy to see both of them, and that Calleigh had come with Eric.  He liked that “Nice Young man.” He was really pleased that the two of them were going out.  “it’s about time.” He said