Homecoming - by kyrdwyn

Grissom was concerned. Ever since he had woken up this afternoon, his daughter had been unusually quiet. Gillian was usually quiet when she got home from school, often because he was still sleeping. He tried to sleep while she was at school, not wanting to waste what time he had to be with her. They always had breakfast together when he got home from work, and he drove her to school. Her school bus was often late in getting her to school, so he had started taking her. He enjoyed taking her to school, hearing her plans for the day. Then he would return home and sleep.

Today, Gillian had been home from school when he woke up. She was sitting on the couch, MTV running quietly while she did her homework. He went into the kitchen and smiled to see a fresh pot of coffee waiting for him. Gillian must have made it.

He'd sat at the table, doing paperwork he'd brought home from the office. When Gillian had finished her homework, he'd put away his work and they'd spent some time together playing a game before he'd made dinner.

It was during dinner that he'd realized Gillian was being too quiet. At dinner she was usually gregarious, telling her father all about her day and asking about his. He would learn a lot about grade school politics at dinner, and Gillian enjoyed hearing about his co-workers, though he tried to temper his discussion of cases in front of her. She was only 11, after all.

Still, tonight she had been unusually quiet. At a loss as to how to approach her silence, Gil asked her to help him clean up the kitchen. Instead of protesting, she simply began taking the dishes into the kitchen and placing them in the dishwasher.

"Gillian…are you okay?"

She looked up at him, her mother's green eyes wide. "Yeah, why?"

He shrugged. "You're being so quiet."

She smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I have a History test tomorrow," she explained.

"Need some help studying?"

She shook her head, her blonde hair bouncing around her shoulders. "No, I think I'm okay. I'm going to finish studying before I go to bed, okay, Daddy?"

"Okay, sweetheart," he replied, watching her walk off to her room. He sighed. There was still so much distance between father and daughter at times. He felt so inadequate now, unable to figure out what was bothering her. He wondered if Gillian would have told Elizabeth what was bothering her. Or maybe that was bothering her - she didn't have her mother anymore. Elizabeth had died over a year ago, but Gillian still felt her loss sharply. Mother's Day had been a problem for them, though Gillian did get to celebrate her first Father's Day.

Still troubled, Gil picked up the mail that Gillian had left on the hall table and sorted through it. Something fell to the floor, and he bent to pick it up.

It was an invitation to a birthday party. Not unusual, except that the party was to be held at the Nashville Area during a Nashville Predators hockey game. Apparently, Leah Norris was turning 12 and wanted her friends to be there.

Gil recognized the name as one of Gillian's friends. Gillian and Elizabeth had moved to Nashville when Gillian was 4. For the next six years it had been their home. Then Gillian's world had been turned upside down with her mother's death and her move to Nevada to live with a father she'd never met. Gil still regretted missing out on those years, even though he'd had almost no control over that.

But he did have control over this. Gillian kept in touch with her friends. Gil encouraged it because it made Gillian happy. One of her friends thought highly enough of Gillian to invite her to the party, even though she must have known Gillian wouldn't be there. Gillian knew it too. That must have been what was bothering her.

Checking his watch, Gil went into his bedroom and shut the door. He didn't want Gillian overhearing him.

* * * *

The luxury box was full of laughter. The game was in the first intermission, with the Predators leading the Avalanche 3-1. Seven young girls were gathered around another girl who was ripping open wrapping paper and exclaiming over gifts. Four adults stood around the room. One was taking pictures while another was cleaning up the discarded paper. The third was scooping out ice cream.

Gil walked over to Leah's Aunt Jessica. "Anything I can do to help?"

The brunette smiled at him. "Nope, I've got it all in hand. Besides, you've done enough, bringing Gillian all the way out here just for Leah's party. Leah was absolutely thrilled."

Gil smiled, remembering the look on the young girl's face when she'd opened the door to the suite and seen Gillian standing there. Leah's parents had agreed to keep Gillian's arrival a secret as a birthday gift to her. Gil had told Gillian about going to Nashville only a few hours before they got on the plane. His daughter had been hyper ever since. It was exhausting to him, but gratifying. The two girls had squealed and hugged each other and then the others had surrounded them. All eight had been in a tight group since, watching the game together, chatting and cheering. The four adults had stayed inside the box, letting the girls have the outdoor seats.

"Gillian misses her friends. I should have brought her back here before now, but," he shrugged.

Jessica smiled sympathetically. "It's hard for kids her age. All the cliques of friends have been formed. And Gillian was torn away from her friends abruptly by a traumatic force. She didn't have time to adjust to the thought of departure before she left. One day she was here and the next she was on a plane to Vegas. It was hard on Leah too."

Gil raised an eyebrow at the woman. She laughed. "I'm a high school counselor, Mr. Grissom. I have a tendency to analyze people. Don't take what I said too personally though, because Gillian looks happy. But I still can't imagine why you would take the time and effort to fly down here just for a party."

He shrugged. "I did it because it would make Gillian happy."

She cocked her head at him. "Do you always try to make her happy?"

"When I can. I'm not letting her walk all over me. Trust me, I have a co-worker who would let me know if she saw that happen," he said with a smile. "And this is something Gillian never would have asked for."

Jessica smiled at him. "Well, I'm glad to see you're taking well to this." She handed him some bowls. "Help me set out dessert?"

Gil took the bowls and carried them over to the table. A cake was set up, and everyone sang before Leah blew her candles out. Gillian beamed at her friend. The smile warmed Gil's heart.

Later, after the game had ended with a 6-1 Predators win, Gil and his daughter drove back to their hotel. Once inside the opulent Opryland Hotel room, Gillian turned to her father and hugged him tightly.

"Thank you so much, Daddy! This was awesome and it was great to see my friends again!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, Gillian."

She looked up at him with her mother's eyes. "Can we do something tomorrow before we have to leave?"

Gil sat on the edge of his bed. "Sure, sweetheart. What?"

"Can we go visit mommy?"

His breath caught in his throat and he pulled his daughter to him. "Of course," he said softly.

* * * *

The sky was cloudy when Gil and Gillian got out of their car and began walking through the rows of markers. They found the one they wanted halfway back from the road. It wasn't elaborate or ornate, just a simple flat marker with her name and the dates that delineated her time on this earth.

Gil stood back a few feet to give Gillian time to be with her mother. He could see his daughter's lips moving, and knew she was talking to her. He felt guilty - he really should have brought Gillian back to Nashville before now, if only so she could say goodbye to her mother.

Gillian set the flowers she'd brought with her into the holder. She stood up and came back to where Gil was waiting and gave him a little push in Elizabeth's direction. Smiling at his daughter, Gil walked over to where the woman he loved lay.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "You gave me the greatest gift in the world. She's so much like you. And she misses you so much. I miss you." He paused, having so much else to say but not sure how to say it. How much he had missed her over the years, how sorry he was for not understanding her dreams, how hurt he was that she hadn't told him about Gillian earlier. Feeling the tears in his eyes, and not wanting to cry in front of Gillian, he settled for saying to Elizabeth what he hadn't been able to tell her for a decade.

"I love you."