Hidden Depths Part 2

 

Grissom pulled in and parked next to Nick’s car.  “How did you get my car here?”

 

“I had one of Brass’s people drop it off.  Hope you don’t mind.”

 

Nick shook his head, “No of course not.  If it had been left there it’d be nothing but scrap metal by now.”  Grissom went around grabbing a bag out of the back, then helping Nick out of the passenger seat.  “You know it is okay for you to leave, I’ll be fine by myself.”

 

“Well for one, I still have your keys and for another, I have a bag packed,” Grissom held up the generic gym bag, “I thought I might crash on your couch.”

 

Nick eyed Grissom, seemed to search his eyes, whatever he saw seemed to make him happy because he nodded and said, “yeah okay, but why don’t you just use the bed in the second bedroom?”

 

“Well, I didn’t want to be presumptuous.”

 

“Staying in my second bedroom is presumptuous, but sleeping on my couch isn’t?”

 

“Ah the insanity of modern society.”

 

“Yeah you can say that again.”  As Grissom moved to unlock the door he heard scratching, indicating T.S. was waiting for the door to open.  He glanced worriedly at Nick.

 

“You might want to brace yourself, T.S. sounds a little eager.”  Nick just waved him off so Grissom shrugged and opened the door, and of course T.S. came bolting out.  Grissom was quite shocked when Nick made the sign for down and T.S. dropped onto his belly right there and crawled toward Nick.  Nick bent down and showered love on T.S. for following his instructions.  Grissom was starting to realize that there was a lot more to Nick then anyone had thought.  “Would you like some breakfast?  I don’t know about you but I’m starving.”

 

“Nah, I’m not that hungry.  I think I’ll just have a cup of tea.”  Nick moved toward the kitchen, but Grissom stopped him with a hand on his chest.

 

“Go sit down in the living room, I’ll make you the tea.”

 

“Grissom, man, you don’t have to do that this is my house and you’re a guest here.”

 

“Nicky, I’m staying here to help out, you went through something very traumatic, not to mention the only reason the doctors let you out of the hospital is because I assured them you wouldn’t be alone.  Now go sit in the living room.”

 

“Okay Grissom have it your way.”

 

“Well if that’s the case, maybe you could call me Gil, at least when we’re not on duty.”

 

“Yeah okay.”

 

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A few minutes later found Nick sitting on the sofa with a mug of tea scratching T.S..  Grissom was seated in the chair beside the sofa, eating of all things Fruit Loops.  “You know I just didn’t have you pegged as a Fruit Loops man.”

 

Grissom blinked at him, “what did you think I ate?”

 

“Cheerios or Frosted Flakes.”

 

“That’s pretty specific.  Do you think about what kind of cereal everyone on the team eats?”

 

Nick shrugged, “maybe”.

 

“So…Warrick?”

 

“Wheaties.”

 

“Catherine?”

 

“Special K.”

 

“Greg?”

 

“Count Chocula.”

 

“Sara?”

 

“Coffee.”

 

“That’s not a cereal.”

 

Nick just shrugged, “She didn’t strike me as a cereal person.”

 

“Okay, so what about Ecklie?”

 

Nick made a face, “Eggs and bacon, there’s no way that man eats cereal.”

 

“Why do you say that?”

 

“Because he defiantly doesn’t have enough fiber in his diet.” 

 

After the laughter had died off Grissom asked a question that had been bugging him since the porch.  “Nick do you know sign language?”

 

“Yeah I do.  How’d you know that?”

 

“That signal you used on T.S., it was sign language.  I didn’t know if you just used it to train your dog or if you really knew it.”

 

“Oh yeah I know it, actually feels like English is a second language.”

 

“Really?  You grew up signing?”

 

“Yeah.  See, I’m the youngest by about 5 years.  I’m kinda unplanned.”  He grinned ruefully at the thought.  “After my youngest sister started school my mom decided to work full time rather then part time.  She had just been offered this great promotion as a full time DA then there I come.  She arranged to start working the job after I was born and have her father watch me.  Well, Grandpa had been going back to school to get his teaching degree after he retired.  And he did get it right around the time I was one.  He immediately got a job offer at, The Regional School for the Hearing Impaired in Fort Worth he was deaf ya know, and he made arrangements to take me with him and between driving time and the hours he worked, I basically grew up not speaking English, I mean I my socialization was with people that couldn’t hear or if they could spoke in sign language.”

 

“What happened when you started Kindergarten?”

 

“Well I had already made friend at the school, so I asked to attend school there, my parents too busy to really notice much of anything said okay and I went to a school for deaf kids until I was 8.”

 

Grissom was completely enthralled in Nick’s tale.  He had no idea that Nick had these kind of hidden depths.  He had always just assumed, and it seems unfairly, that Nick had had an unremarkable childhood.  “Why did you change schools at eight?”

 

“My Grandfather and I were driving back from school one day when we got broad sided by a 18-wheeler.  The driver had fallen asleep at the wheel and ran a red light.  I had been in the back seat asleep and wasn’t wearing my seat belt.  Because I wasn’t I rolled to the floor and under the seat.  It saved my life actually.  Imagine that, not wearing a seat belt and it being a good thing.”  Nick sobered quickly though.  “my Grandfather wasn’t so lucky.  He was killed almost instantly.  And that was why I had to start public schools.  It was funny but without my Grandfather around no one needed to sign.  I mean I had just been in this accident, my Grandfather was dead and everyone was communicating in a way that I couldn’t understand.  I think that’s when my parents realized there was a problem.  I just walked up to them one day and signed, ‘momma why don’t talk?’  First she tried to say it then she said it in sign language.  It just dawned on them that I only understood a few words of English.  They still enrolled me in 3 rd grade but they started intensively teaching me how to speak after that.  It’s pretty funny but most everyone there thought I was stupid.  My written English was fine, but my small vocabulary and my tendency to phrase things like I would if I was signing them marked me as retarded.  I didn’t manage to change that image until I was in high school.  I missed signing though, so when I got T.S. I decided to train him using signs rather than words.”  Nick let out a hugh jaw cracking yawn.  “Wow I feel so tired, but it seems like all I do is sleep.”

 

“Your body needs time to recover, not to mention the medication can really wipe a person out.  Speaking of medication it’s time for yours.  Then I think we should both get some sleep.”