Sharing Too Much

I have no idea where I'm going with this story, but none of the characters belong to me except the ones I make up, probably the bad guys. I'm sure I'll have someone jump in there that's all mine later. If anyone has some good suggestions with who I can pair up, let me know. For now it's just about the individual characters for the most part. And the 'minor' warning is just because Nick's past is going to come up, but there won't be much, if any, detail about it. Oh, and I'm making no money off of this.


The silence in the break room was overwhelming and all eyes were on one man.

Greg cleared his throat and ignored the concerned gaze of his friends to concentrate on Ecklie. "You're rewarding me for my work in the field by putting me back in the lab?"

Grissom looked down at the table to hide his smirk. He was proud of Greg for standing up for himself and yet hoped that he would know when to back off. His concern dissipated a moment later.

Ecklie nodded. "I need you there right now because some things are going to be changing around here and I need you and Mia working full time." The look on his face made it clear that he wasn't trying to be a jerk and didn't really want Greg in the lab anymore than Greg did.

The younger man nodded. "Whatever's best for the team." He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and felt there was more to the reasoning, but chose to drop it.

Ecklie continued, "Gil, that leaves you, Sara, and Sofia on graveyard. I've been going over all of the records and decided that these teams are all wrong. I want to utilize all of your talents equally. While Mia will continue her current schedule, Greg will take over swing shift hours."

Again all eyes were on Greg and this time he didn't say a word. He just stared at the table top and told himself not to growl at his boss. All this work just to be back in the lab and land a screwy sleep schedule He sighed. How am I supposed to sleep when it's dark outside? It took him a moment to realize that Ecklie was still talking. Something about respecting everyone's needs and yet not wanting to deal with complaints. Apparently they were all supposed to trust the balding wonder to keep their best interests in mind.

"Catherine, I'm putting Nick back on nights with Gil and giving you Sofia."

Right away people were discussing the decision over the table. Everyone seemed to have a different opinion on the new assignments. For the most part, nobody knew if they should be happy or sad.

Gil smiled a small smile at Nick, making it clear that he was happy to have him on his team again. Grissom had been very unhappy when Nick had been assigned to swing shift under Catherine's supervision. He had always prided himself on caring for his team members. He had been there for Catherine any time Eddie had caused a problem. He listened when she needed to vent about Lindsay's recent hyjinks. Sara had practically broken down in his arms when she told him about her past. He had defended Warrick because of the younger man's gambling problem. He and Brass had shared memories over their many years in the business of bringing down the bad guys. Even Mia had shared her secret with Grissom. She told him that she was very attracted to Greg, but because of her father's rampant racism, had been flirting with Warrick instead just for her father's approval. Gil was pleased to listen.

Sofia, Nick, and Greg were the only ones that posed problems to him. He enjoyed being the confidant and the trusted one. It irked him that there were two people he couldn't reach and one that just ruined everything.

Sofia had plenty of shameful things in her past and she did tell Grissom, but she also told everybody else that would listen. The supervisor didn't feel special at all. Most of the time he wasn't even the first to know. At least with her gone he could keep his own secrets now. She nearly found out how important it was for him to be the one everyone trusted. Yes, he was lonely, but it was necessary that everyone thought he preferred his solitude. That way they sought him out. It was good to be wanted.

Greg was so professional in the field that it threw Gil off. He had expected a lot of chatter that would offer clues into the young man's past, but Greg only talked about vague things involving funny stories where Greg was not only the main character, but the only character. The supervisor didn't even know if Greg had friends outside the workplace or a family.

Nick was completely different. Gil knew plenty about him and was looking forward to being a listener for the Texan, but something happened to delay the process. He glanced over at Catherine. He had watched as Nick began to open up to her and shut down Grissom's attempts to be a 'buddy'. He knew that he finally had a chance. Separating him from Catherine was the first step. Putting him on a variety of hard cases was the next. Once he found out which kinds of cases upset him the most emotionally he'd be sure to put him on primarily those cases until he broke down to Grissom. It had worked with Sara. At least now he could back Nick into a corner when he needed to.

He had been by his side after Nigel Crane had come after him. He had tried to be by his side after his horror of being buried alive, but hadn't had the chance. The problem had started before that, though. One of Gil's main clues that he was out of the loop came when he could get nowhere as far as criticism with the younger man. Catherine had blocked him every step of the way with an annoying 'mama bear' routine. Gil relaxed and considered himself lucky. Sure, he couldn't work on Greg's secrets now, but he could start in on Nick with no interferance frfom Catherine. He felt the smirk form on his face as he glanced toward the ex entertainer. The look on her face made him reconsider showing his happiness.

Catherine was glaring at Gil and if looks could kill he'd be on a cold slab. She was so angry she could scream. Convincing herself that Nick had asked for the transfer, she turned her venomous eyes on him. Seeing him wilt beneath her stare made her feel vindicated somehow so she decided to look at Ecklie instead as he continued to talk about team unity and blah blah blah.

She thought about Sofia. Catherine did not want her on the taam. First of all, she wanted to be the only woman in the field on that shift so she could guarantee she was the one getting all of the attention. Secondly, she knew that Sofia deserved the supervision job more than she did. The fact had her feeling insecure until she remembered Greg.

Catherine loved mothering Nick, but it was getting on her nerves that he questioned her all the time. She flirted with Gil and Brass and had certainly enjoyed playing a tease for Warrick, but Nick was out of her reach. He had firmly planted her in the 'friend' category when he had confided in her about his past.

She tucked her hair behind her ear and looked toward Greg. He was young, but if she could keep Sofia away from him she might have a chance to get a bit of a rivalry going between him and Warrick. It was good to feel wanted.