Fic: Hope, Like Faith (Miami, Delko/Calleigh, PG)
Now that's what I call baseball.
~
I don't write a lot of het fic. I used to, but it's been a long time. But considering this week is about supporting all unions, I decided to give Calleigh the attention she so politely requested. How could I resist, really? It's Calleigh. And Delko. They're almost canon. Sort of.
This one's for alethialia, who came through with a very speedy last-minute hand-holding beta. She's only seen the first two-thirds, however, so if the ending is horrible I'm entirely to blame. Not that I wouldn't be to blame anyway, but you know what I mean.
"Ready?"
She took a quiet breath before she turned on her smile, her fingers brushing across the hands that rested on her hips. "Of course."
If her voice shook a little he didn't mention it. Instead he pressed a warm kiss to the side of her neck, and she leaned back into his chest and let out a soft laugh. "You start that now and neither of us is going anywhere."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," he answered, but he let her go, and when she turned around he was smiling that boyish smile that she knew he'd never outgrow. He got a genuine smile in return, and for just a second she wanted to call the whole thing off and stay right here where they wouldn't have to think about anyone or anything else for awhile. But she'd always been the kind of person to face things head on, and she wasn't going to start backing down from the hard stuff now.
There was a time when he would have let her back out of it, maybe even tried to talk her into staying right where they were and ignoring the rest of the world. He'd changed a lot since they first met, though, and she knew it was at least partly because of the job. When he'd first transferred to CSI he'd been brash and cocky and everything everyone always assumed about the boys in a flashy department like Underwater Recovery, but there was no way even Eric could see what they saw every day and not let it affect him.
Sometimes she missed that part of him, but if he was more serious now than he used to be, he still smiled just as easily as he ever had. Responsibility looked good on him, anyway, so she didn't miss the Delko who used to show up late or spend all night out at the clubs breaking girls' hearts. He still knew how to have a good time, but when they went to the clubs they went together now, and he seemed okay with that. Happy, even, to leave with the same woman he came with, and that was the surest sign she'd seen that he really had finally figured out what he wanted.
She had a feeling that had a lot to do with Tim's influence. Sometimes she wondered if her relationship with Eric was hurting Tim, but she knew even if it was he wouldn't begrudge either of them this happiness. They never talked about it; she wouldn't hurt Tim by bringing it up with Eric, and she wouldn't embarrass someone she considered a friend by trying to assuage her own guilt. It was hard not to want to when she saw that look in Tim's eyes just before the walls went back up again, but she'd learned a long time ago when to hold her tongue. Or maybe Tim was just trying to figure out what they were doing together. She couldn't blame him, it was a question she'd asked herself often enough.
It was funny to think of herself as happy with someone like Eric; her type had always been big and forceful and intense in a way Eric would never be. At first she'd laughed off his attentions as a passing flirtation, just Eric being Eric. She knew he thought of himself as a ladies' man, and she'd assumed he'd get tired of flirting eventually and move on. But she liked him, she liked his loyalty to his family and his culture, and she liked the way he cared about the victims they worked for. So when he didn't give up she decided it couldn't hurt to go out with him, just to convince herself that he wasn't her type at all.
Six months and several Sunday dinners with his family later, and Calleigh had to laugh at the universe's sense of humor. She never would have pictured herself in the center of one of the Delko family's Sunday dinners, and she still caught Eric's sisters looking at her a little funny when they thought she wouldn't notice, but she had to admit it was kind of nice. Different from everything she was used to, but it was starting to grow on her.
So it was only fair that she did the same, opened up the parts of her that she'd always guarded so carefully. She'd put off tonight for as long as she could and she'd always be grateful to Eric for letting her, but when they reached the restaurant and he squeezed her hand before they got out of the car she knew it was time. It was time to let Eric in on her whole life, not just the parts she could control. The fact that he wanted to be let in made all the difference.
When they reached the door of the restaurant she hesitated, and he sensed it and turned to face her. "You sure about this?" he asked, leaning down to look into her eyes when he smiled. "We can do this another night."
"I'm fine," she answered, sounding a lot more sure than she felt. She wasn't even sure if he'd show, but she knew she couldn't leave and take the chance of standing him up. And if part of her was hoping that he wouldn't show up that didn't really make her a bad person, but she couldn't help thinking that it made her a little weak.
Eric threaded his fingers through hers as they let themselves into the dark restaurant, pausing just inside to let their eyes adjust to the light. When she finally focused she saw him almost immediately, and her heart sank when she saw the empty glasses already lined up in front of him. She knew better than to expect anything to change just because she wished for it, though, so she swallowed her disappointment and smiled at Eric before she led him toward the man at the bar.
"Hey, Dad," she said, her smile a little sad around the edges. "This is Eric Delko. Eric, I'd like you to meet my father."
"It's a pleasure, sir," Eric said, and when he reached around her to shake her father's hand she let herself take comfort the momentary connection.
"Lambchop," Duke said as soon as he let go of Eric's hand. "Don't you look beautiful."
"Thanks, Dad," she said, smiling at the nickname he still refused to give up. "You ready to sit down?"
"I never could refuse a beautiful woman."
Calleigh stopped just short of rolling her eyes at the compliment she'd heard a thousand times. She let Eric go ahead, waiting until he'd caught the hostess' attention before she steered her father toward a table near the back of the room.
"So you two work together?" Duke asked as soon as they sat down.
"For about two years now," Eric answered, flashing his most charming grin. "She keeps us all on our toes."
"I always tell her she's too beautiful to work so hard."
"Dad," Calleigh warned, but he waved her off and turned back to Eric.
"It's true. Even as a baby she was beautiful. You should've seen her."
"I don't doubt it," Eric said, his gaze lingering on Calleigh just long enough to make her blush before he turned back to the older man. "But she's a hell of a CSI. Sir."
She had to work hard not to laugh at Eric's expression, but her father didn't seem to notice. He'd already launched into a story about her childhood, and she resigned herself to an evening of listening to her father's version of family history. By the time they finished dinner Eric was regaling her father with his own stories about her; she felt a little like a trophy sitting there between them while they talked about her, but she knew things could have gone a lot worse.
"You could have let me pay the bill in front of your father," Eric said after they'd dropped Duke off.
Calleigh smiled as he pulled back into traffic and pointed the car toward her place. "Just because my father still thinks women belong in the kitchen doesn't mean I have to play along. Besides, he's my father."
Eric just grinned and let go of the wheel with one hand, reaching over and closing his fingers around hers. "He's a good guy. Crazy about you."
Her smile shifted to something a little more wistful, and she was glad Eric's focus was on the road so he wouldn't see her expression. "He's something, all right."
She regretted the bitterness that crept into her tone as soon as he turned to look at her, lifting their entwined hands to his lips before he turned back to the road again. "You wanna talk about it?"
She knew what he wasn't saying: You never talk about him; you never talk about what it was like growing up that way. But she didn't want to start, not tonight. She didn't want to have to count the number of drinks he'd ordered during dinner, or the number he'd probably had before they got to the restaurant. She didn't want to think about the next time she'd have to leave work to go pick him up at a bar and drive him home; she'd have to tell Eric all of that at some point, but it would keep for a little while.
"No," she finally said, squeezing his hand and giving him a small smile, "let's just go home."
~
FYI -- my hotmail account is still being wonky, so I've switched everything over to my yahoo address for the time being, just in case anyone's been trying to get ahold of me and wondering why I'm not answering.
~
I don't write a lot of het fic. I used to, but it's been a long time. But considering this week is about supporting all unions, I decided to give Calleigh the attention she so politely requested. How could I resist, really? It's Calleigh. And Delko. They're almost canon. Sort of.
This one's for alethialia, who came through with a very speedy last-minute hand-holding beta. She's only seen the first two-thirds, however, so if the ending is horrible I'm entirely to blame. Not that I wouldn't be to blame anyway, but you know what I mean.
"Ready?"
She took a quiet breath before she turned on her smile, her fingers brushing across the hands that rested on her hips. "Of course."
If her voice shook a little he didn't mention it. Instead he pressed a warm kiss to the side of her neck, and she leaned back into his chest and let out a soft laugh. "You start that now and neither of us is going anywhere."
"You say that like it's a bad thing," he answered, but he let her go, and when she turned around he was smiling that boyish smile that she knew he'd never outgrow. He got a genuine smile in return, and for just a second she wanted to call the whole thing off and stay right here where they wouldn't have to think about anyone or anything else for awhile. But she'd always been the kind of person to face things head on, and she wasn't going to start backing down from the hard stuff now.
There was a time when he would have let her back out of it, maybe even tried to talk her into staying right where they were and ignoring the rest of the world. He'd changed a lot since they first met, though, and she knew it was at least partly because of the job. When he'd first transferred to CSI he'd been brash and cocky and everything everyone always assumed about the boys in a flashy department like Underwater Recovery, but there was no way even Eric could see what they saw every day and not let it affect him.
Sometimes she missed that part of him, but if he was more serious now than he used to be, he still smiled just as easily as he ever had. Responsibility looked good on him, anyway, so she didn't miss the Delko who used to show up late or spend all night out at the clubs breaking girls' hearts. He still knew how to have a good time, but when they went to the clubs they went together now, and he seemed okay with that. Happy, even, to leave with the same woman he came with, and that was the surest sign she'd seen that he really had finally figured out what he wanted.
She had a feeling that had a lot to do with Tim's influence. Sometimes she wondered if her relationship with Eric was hurting Tim, but she knew even if it was he wouldn't begrudge either of them this happiness. They never talked about it; she wouldn't hurt Tim by bringing it up with Eric, and she wouldn't embarrass someone she considered a friend by trying to assuage her own guilt. It was hard not to want to when she saw that look in Tim's eyes just before the walls went back up again, but she'd learned a long time ago when to hold her tongue. Or maybe Tim was just trying to figure out what they were doing together. She couldn't blame him, it was a question she'd asked herself often enough.
It was funny to think of herself as happy with someone like Eric; her type had always been big and forceful and intense in a way Eric would never be. At first she'd laughed off his attentions as a passing flirtation, just Eric being Eric. She knew he thought of himself as a ladies' man, and she'd assumed he'd get tired of flirting eventually and move on. But she liked him, she liked his loyalty to his family and his culture, and she liked the way he cared about the victims they worked for. So when he didn't give up she decided it couldn't hurt to go out with him, just to convince herself that he wasn't her type at all.
Six months and several Sunday dinners with his family later, and Calleigh had to laugh at the universe's sense of humor. She never would have pictured herself in the center of one of the Delko family's Sunday dinners, and she still caught Eric's sisters looking at her a little funny when they thought she wouldn't notice, but she had to admit it was kind of nice. Different from everything she was used to, but it was starting to grow on her.
So it was only fair that she did the same, opened up the parts of her that she'd always guarded so carefully. She'd put off tonight for as long as she could and she'd always be grateful to Eric for letting her, but when they reached the restaurant and he squeezed her hand before they got out of the car she knew it was time. It was time to let Eric in on her whole life, not just the parts she could control. The fact that he wanted to be let in made all the difference.
When they reached the door of the restaurant she hesitated, and he sensed it and turned to face her. "You sure about this?" he asked, leaning down to look into her eyes when he smiled. "We can do this another night."
"I'm fine," she answered, sounding a lot more sure than she felt. She wasn't even sure if he'd show, but she knew she couldn't leave and take the chance of standing him up. And if part of her was hoping that he wouldn't show up that didn't really make her a bad person, but she couldn't help thinking that it made her a little weak.
Eric threaded his fingers through hers as they let themselves into the dark restaurant, pausing just inside to let their eyes adjust to the light. When she finally focused she saw him almost immediately, and her heart sank when she saw the empty glasses already lined up in front of him. She knew better than to expect anything to change just because she wished for it, though, so she swallowed her disappointment and smiled at Eric before she led him toward the man at the bar.
"Hey, Dad," she said, her smile a little sad around the edges. "This is Eric Delko. Eric, I'd like you to meet my father."
"It's a pleasure, sir," Eric said, and when he reached around her to shake her father's hand she let herself take comfort the momentary connection.
"Lambchop," Duke said as soon as he let go of Eric's hand. "Don't you look beautiful."
"Thanks, Dad," she said, smiling at the nickname he still refused to give up. "You ready to sit down?"
"I never could refuse a beautiful woman."
Calleigh stopped just short of rolling her eyes at the compliment she'd heard a thousand times. She let Eric go ahead, waiting until he'd caught the hostess' attention before she steered her father toward a table near the back of the room.
"So you two work together?" Duke asked as soon as they sat down.
"For about two years now," Eric answered, flashing his most charming grin. "She keeps us all on our toes."
"I always tell her she's too beautiful to work so hard."
"Dad," Calleigh warned, but he waved her off and turned back to Eric.
"It's true. Even as a baby she was beautiful. You should've seen her."
"I don't doubt it," Eric said, his gaze lingering on Calleigh just long enough to make her blush before he turned back to the older man. "But she's a hell of a CSI. Sir."
She had to work hard not to laugh at Eric's expression, but her father didn't seem to notice. He'd already launched into a story about her childhood, and she resigned herself to an evening of listening to her father's version of family history. By the time they finished dinner Eric was regaling her father with his own stories about her; she felt a little like a trophy sitting there between them while they talked about her, but she knew things could have gone a lot worse.
"You could have let me pay the bill in front of your father," Eric said after they'd dropped Duke off.
Calleigh smiled as he pulled back into traffic and pointed the car toward her place. "Just because my father still thinks women belong in the kitchen doesn't mean I have to play along. Besides, he's my father."
Eric just grinned and let go of the wheel with one hand, reaching over and closing his fingers around hers. "He's a good guy. Crazy about you."
Her smile shifted to something a little more wistful, and she was glad Eric's focus was on the road so he wouldn't see her expression. "He's something, all right."
She regretted the bitterness that crept into her tone as soon as he turned to look at her, lifting their entwined hands to his lips before he turned back to the road again. "You wanna talk about it?"
She knew what he wasn't saying: You never talk about him; you never talk about what it was like growing up that way. But she didn't want to start, not tonight. She didn't want to have to count the number of drinks he'd ordered during dinner, or the number he'd probably had before they got to the restaurant. She didn't want to think about the next time she'd have to leave work to go pick him up at a bar and drive him home; she'd have to tell Eric all of that at some point, but it would keep for a little while.
"No," she finally said, squeezing his hand and giving him a small smile, "let's just go home."
~
FYI -- my hotmail account is still being wonky, so I've switched everything over to my yahoo address for the time being, just in case anyone's been trying to get ahold of me and wondering why I'm not answering.