Lost love found
The sound of the locker door shutting filled the small room as Nick slipped his jacket on. He opened his small duffle bag and slipped the pictures Doc Robbins had given him earlier. They were photos from a recent autopsy he'd done. The case had been closed when everyone came to the conclusion it'd been a wild animal who had killed the woman. But, Nick had another theory.
A theory he could only discuss with Fred. If he told the rest of him he thought it might be a demon, he'd end up talking to the department's shrink.
"Hey," Warrick said when he walked in. "You off already?"
"Yep," Nick said with a grin. "Greg finally got those DNA results back. Bagged the perp and now I'm goin' home."
"Got plans with Fred tonight?" the other man asked as he put his bullet proof vest inside of his locker before sitting down on the bench.
"Nah. Just a quiet night at home," Nick said as he picked up his duffle bag. "Maybe they weekend we can meet up and do something. She's been wantin' to go to that new Mexican place over on Melrose."
"Sounds good. Just give me a ring."
"Will do," Nick said before telling Warrick goodbye and leaving the locker room.
He walked through the building, a smile to his face. He couldn't believe how much his life had changed. Over six years ago, he was madly in love with Fred, wanting to marry her. She was living in Los Angeles and he had just started working for the Las Vegas crime unit. They had the perfect relationship and were looking forward to their lives together.
Nick could remember the day she disappeared as if it'd happened the day before. They had spoken on the phone for about an hour, making plans for Nick to drive to Los Angeles to visit her. She was supposed to call later than night, but she didn't. The next call he would get was to tell him she had gone missing.
Shortly after, he started a frantic search for her. He had almost lost his job because all he could think about was her. If it hadn't been for Grissom, he would've been unemployed. But, he still couldn't get her out of his system - no matter how many years had gone by. Fred was the love of his life, and he continued to search for her.
A few months before, Nick got a message at the station, asking him to call someone named Wesley. He recognized it has a Los Angeles number, and even though he didn't want to get his hopes up, he couldn't help but to wonder if it was about Fred. When he called, he spoke to Wesley and found out Fred had been found.
He left for Los Angeles that night and went straight to the hotel. When he got there, Wes warned him Fred had been through a lot and she might be a little different. He went up to her room and at first she was skittish and said he wasn't real. It broke his heart but he knew he couldn't lose her again. That's when Nick reached out and softly touched her cheek, like he had so many times in the past. And, it was that gesture which brought Fred back to him.
They spent a week at the hotel, Nick trying hard to understand what happened to her. He was given books to look at and he couldn't believe there was another culture out there, with vampires and demons and witches. It took Nick awhile to understand it all but he tried - for Fred's sake.
It was finally decided the best place for Fred was in Las Vegas with him. They went back and she slowly recovered and they grew close again. Nick was glad the love they'd had before was still there, and this time it was stronger. Nothing would ever take his Fred away from him again.
After leaving the lab, Nick drove to a local Taco Hut and ordered a pack of tacos, along with some soda. He had called Fred earlier and they decided to just have takeout for supper and lay around for the rest of the night. With the tacos in hand, Nick pulled his Tahoe into the driveway and drove it into the garage.
When he stepped inside, he was greeted by their black lab. "Hey, Max," he said before the dog limped off. Nick always wished he could do something for the dog, who'd been shot in his hind leg, but the vet said he wasn't in pain and Max loved running around and jumping on their bed - while they were trying to sleep.
Setting the food on the kitchen table, Nick walked into the living room, where Fred was standing and putting a book back on its shelf. Walking over to her, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and smiled. "How's my girl?" he asked before placing a small kiss on her neck.