"The Road I'm On" Miami fic

Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

It is near 4 p.m. at the hospital and Horatio still watches her sleep. He is leaning back in his chair, eyes beginning to droop, when Alex sticks her head in the door. He gives a tired smile and waves her in.

“How she doin’?” Alex asks, silently pulling up a chair to sit next to Horatio.

Horatio rubs his tired eyes. He knows that he should go and find out more about Raymond and the case that had gotten Yelina shot, except he had promised her that he would be there when she woke up.

“Um, better,” he nodded. “How’s the boy?”

Alexx looked at the door across the room and hesitated to answer. Horatio follows the direction she is looking. She looked worried and he immediately became alert.

“Something wrong?” he asked.

“Ray Jr. is out in the hallway. He had a nightmare last night and woke up screaming for his mother,” Alexx explained. “He’s too scared to come in and he won’t talk to me about it…”

Horatio looks at Yelina, still resting peacefully, and nods. He is relieved that Ray Jr. is all right. It most likely wouldn’t be long before she woke up, and it would do her an immense amount of good to see her son. He would go talk with his nephew.

“I’ll talk to him,” Horatio said to Alexx.

Alexx nods and places a hand on his shoulder. She was quietly telling him to hang in there and he knew it. Horatio nodded, thanked her, and swallowed hard before standing.

“I’ll sit here with her,” Alexx spoke quietly.

Horatio nodded and made his way to the door. It was hard to be strong through all of this but he needed to be. Not just for himself but for Yelina, Ray Jr., and even his brother.

As he crossed the room, Alexx could tell there was a heavy load on his shoulders. A burden unlike any she had never seen. He felt responsible for what had happened to Yelina. He felt responsible for everyone but there was love in his care for her. She knows how much he has always cared for her. So many years and his heart never wandered. Even when Horatio had been with other women Alexx knew that he wasn’t where he really wanted to be, wherever Yelina was.

***
Horatio entered the hall at the Baptist Hospital in the ICU ward. He blinks several times, trying to keep himself fully alert; he hadn’t slept but about 15 minutes in the last two days. As he enters, he sees Frank Tripp sitting on one of the benches against the wall, talking to Ray Jr.

“Hey,” Frank said, walking towards him.

He had something to tell Horatio that he didn’t want the boy to hear. News regarding the shooting at the Crime Lab. Horatio knew this and stopped short of where his nephew sat.

“What’s up?” Horatio asked.

Frank glances back at the boy and gives a slight sigh.

“Stetler’s willing to make a deal. He’ll talk if he isn’t charged with kidnapping,” Frank replies.

Horatio looks around angrily. He couldn’t just let Rick get away with forcing him and Yelina into a car at gunpoint. It was not forgivable and it was wrong to let him get away with it.

“Listen, Horatio I know how this must make you feel. I know you, Yelina, and the boy has been through a lot but I think we should take up this deal,” Frank spoke quickly.

Horatio placed his hands on his hips.

“Fine, drop the kidnapping charges but we’re still going after attempted murder. Anymore news on how Rebecca is involved?” Horatio asked.

Frank nodded and scratched his head. He was surprised that Horatio was willing to drop a kidnapping and still go after attempted murder.

“She’s not talking. Deal or no deal. I guess that’s what you get when you’ve got a lawyer for a suspect,” Frank scoffed. “Calleigh and Eric are still piecing together the surveillance tapes of the docks, nothing yet. Oh, and we’re getting the file on the Vlad guy later today. Wolfe’s gonna bring it to you when we do.”

Horatio nodded.

“And we got in touch with the Brazilian police. They haven’t sent anyone to the U.S. looking for anyone in Miami. According to the guy Eric talked to, all of their officers are accounted for. We even looked at I.D.’s of their men. None of ‘em looked at all like the people that were at the Crime Lab the other night,” Frank finished.

Horatio nods again.

“I want to talk to Rick again. Keep him on ice until I get there,” Horatio said finally.

Frank shook his head and turned to walk back down the hall. He waves at Ray Jr. as he leaves.

“See ya, tough guy,” Frank said to the boy.

Ray Jr. nods and waves back.

“See ya, Mr. Tripp,” Ray Jr. acknowledges.

Horatio walks to his nephew and sits down, placing his hand on the boy’s shoulder. For a long moment, they sit there in silence.
These two had a lot of history. Ray Jr. had known him closely since he was born. He knew that Horatio had always been there for him. Sometimes the boy had secretly wished that his father could’ve been more like his Uncle. Nothing ever seemed fair to him: he’d lost his father—twice, and feared that he was about to lose his mother. Then, all that he would have left, that he cared about, was Horatio.

“Why couldn’t Mom and Dad chose to work someplace else? Besides with the police,” Ray Jr. asked.

Horatio exhaled slowly. It was a difficult subject to discuss and even harder to explain since he himself was on the force. Perhaps the boy’s way of thinking was that being with the police had caused what had happened to his parents.

“You see, buddy…the police try to help people. Make the world a better place for all of us. We all want to do that, right? Help people.” Horatio started to explain.

Ray Jr. seemed a little confused about all of this and Horatio understood that. Sometimes it was hard to comprehend it himself.

“But can’t they help people another way? I mean, they could’ve been a doctor or somethin’,” Ray Jr. sighed.

Horatio gave his nephew a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. He knew how confused the boy was and he knew that he could never really make it all go away. He still had yet to tell him that his father is still alive.

“You’re right, they could have. But you see Ray sometimes the job chooses you. Does that make any sense to you?” Horatio attempted again.

Ray Jr. gave a slight shrug.

“You mean like a calling?” he asked.

Horatio ruffled his nephew’s hair and the boy gave a smile.

“Yes, a lot like that. Hey, there’s that smile,” Horatio grinned. “Now tell me about this dream of yours.”
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

ahhh uncle horatio! well done i love this so much!!poor yelina!and i love the relationship beetween horatio and ray jr he should be his dad!!lol cant wait for the next entry!!
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

They do not love that do not show their love. The course of true love never did run smooth. Love is a familiar. Love is a devil. There is no evil angel but Love.
~ William Shakespeare




Raymond walks up onto the porch of his and Yelina’s house but does not attempt to knock. He sits tensely on the steps. He still needs a little time to think. After he had left there earlier, he had gone out seeking comfort. Finding it in the arms of someone besides his wife. It wasn’t the first time.

There were times when he questions whether he should’ve ever married Yelina. Maybe the married life isn’t for him. Maybe his life would be so much easier to lead if he didn’t have anyone. Just himself to let down. Things have been even harder since his son was born.
He knows that all he is to Yelina, Horatio, and his son is a just one big disappointment. He wants to be reliable but commitment was never right with him. For a while after he married her, he felt that he could change his ways: lead a good, clean, loving life.

For a long moment, he sits there. Battling the urge to stand up, go inside, and promise his family that he was going to change. However, he knew that they would only be empty promises. Ones he could not keep. He isn’t his brother. All his life he has lived in the shadow of Horatio. The best a man can get. He had once thrived to be like that. What had happened to the Raymond of the past? The one who Horatio was proud of in every way? Perhaps he had just faded. Like the waning day around him, as he sat there on the front steps.

Although he wanted to be free. Free from responsibility over others emotions. He still kept coming back to Yelina. Day after day, he had scoured his heart searching for answers. If he did love Yelina enough to keep coming back, time after time, then why seek comfort elsewhere. Was he tired of her? At one point in time, he would have found that explanation unbelievable. Now, everything was plausible.

As he sits there, he hears muffled music from the living room. He recognizes the music immediately. It is Sinatra.


…When somebody needs you
It’s no good unless he needs you
All the way
Through the good or lean years
And for all the in between years
Come what may…

Yelina was always trying to get him to dance to it with her. He never had. There had always been the excuses. The ones he regretted now: he had to work, he was tired, he didn’t have time, and he hated dancing. He knows, without a doubt, that Horatio is dancing with her.

Raymond bows his head and looks at his hands for a moment before standing to leave. He couldn’t be there right now. It was too painful. It is easier to leave. Let the hurt subside. He walks unnoticed back down the walkway to his car that is parked up the street.
**

Horatio releases Yelina as the song ends. As always, it is hard to let her go. They just fit so well together. It was hard to ignore his feelings for her when everything just felt so right between them. He just has to convince himself that it is just his imagination. His heart playing with his emotions again.

It took both of them a moment to realize where they were and what they were doing: standing in the middle of the living room floor just smiling. After an awkward moment, Yelina walks towards Ray Jr. and Horatio looks towards his feet.

“Bed time for you,” Yelina smiles, tickling the boy.

Ray Jr. giggles.

“Can Huwasho tuck me in?” Ray Jr. asks, still not being able to pronounce his Uncle’s name correctly. “Pwease.”

Yelina glances back at Horatio and raises an eyebrow questionably. She doesn’t want him to have to do anything he didn’t want to. After all, he’d already done a vast amount for them just in that day.

Horatio locks eyes with her for a long moment. Didn’t she already know he’d do anything for her and Ray Jr.? They are his family. Even if he wishes, he was more to her than a brother-in-law is.

“I’d love to,” he smiles.

Yelina watches as Horatio walks towards the stairs with Ray Jr. sitting on his shoulders. The sight brings tears to her eyes. It is just too beautiful. Ray Jr. has one hand on either side of his Uncle’s face, his little chin resting in his red hair, while Horatio holds onto the boy’s knees. Smiles all around.

“So, what are we reading tonight?” Horatio asks his voice distant now.

“Cat in da hat!” Ray Jr. exclaims.

Horatio begins to ascend the stairs. This whole picture looks so natural to her. She had seen it, repeatedly, but still cannot bring herself to accept it fully. It is how Raymond is supposed to look with him. Instead, her husband looks awkward most of the time. Maybe it is all the time father and son were apart that caused that. Or maybe it is just Raymond being Raymond.

“Good choice,” are the last words she hears Horatio say in ear shot.
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

ahh horatio makes such a good father figure for him unlike raymond!!!i love this well done!!!i wonder what raymond is gonna do
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

Horatio waited patiently for his nephew to tell him about his dream. The boy was being careful about what words to choose. It was hard for him to describe what he had dreamt. It was obvious by his expression that it had deeply affected him.

“It didn’t feel like a dream. I mean, it felt like it was real, and I just don’t know what’s right…”Ray Jr. started.

Horatio nodded understandably. He wished that there were more that he could do physically for the boy.

“Take your time, buddy. No rush,” Horatio assured him.

Ray Jr. sighed as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. His Uncle always seemed to know the right words to say and the right time to say them.

Around them the hospital was at its usual fast
pace but the two remained as if the world around them didn’t exist. His nephew concentrated while Horatio watched him studiously.


“It was about Mom,” Ray Jr. continued, wincing at the words.

Horatio nodded but did not say anything. He knew that the boy needed time still to put his thoughts into words. There was a long pause before he continued.

“I dreamed that she was gone—like Dad—and when I went in to see her, before they took her away, it didn’t look like her. I mean, it was someone else. Like yesterday, when she didn’t look like she used to. Just white and— um, different. I’m just scared to see her,” Ray Jr. finished.

Horatio took all of this in quietly. He had to look away from his nephew for a moment to collect his composure. It wasn’t easy, what the boy was going through, and he needed to find to right way to put it. Say something to help him.

“She’s going to look a little different for awhile because she’s sick, okay? Remember, I said it’s going to take some time?” Horatio began.

Ray Jr. didn’t acknowledge this but wiped a tear from his own cheek. Horatio placed his arm over his nephew’s shoulder in attempt to comfort him. Leaning over, to peer up at his face, he continued to try to explain.

“She’s going to look a little different until she gets better but she’s still your Mom. There are doctors here helping her to get her health back and it’s going to take some time. What she really needs right now is for us to help her get through this. Okay? Your Mom is weak right now and we need to be strong for her,” Horatio spoke thoughtfully.


Ray Jr. nodded.

“Yeah. I can do that,” Ray Jr. sniffled.

Horatio gave a small tired smile.

“I’m here with you, Ray. The three of us will get through this. Together,” Horatio said, his own voice cracking.

Ray Jr. couldn’t hold back the tears any longer.


Horatio peered up at him again sadly and Ray Jr. nodded.

A long tense period of silence followed.

“I think I’m ready to see Mom now,” Ray Jr. spoke finally.

Horatio nodded quietly.
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

Very sweet HnM. Exactly right in every way. :)
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

It is two months after the evening Horatio and Yelina had danced in her living room. Raymond had come back the next day with no real explanation, as to where he had been, other than, ‘he just drove around.’ Horatio hadn’t believed it completely and Yelina had not either.

Now things were going rather well at their residence. Raymond was taking a few weeks off from work to be with them. Horatio is happy for them but keeps his distance. The three of them needed their time alone. Still, Horatio has worked to occupy himself. Nonetheless, thoughts of them loomed.

At the time, he is working on a case involving the suspicious death of a local journalist who may’ve stuck his curious nose too far. He put himself into this case wholly—as always—but couldn’t help but seem preoccupied.

“Hey, H,” Tim Speedle calls, interrupting his thoughts.

Horatio is standing in the hallway looking out at the sunrise. He turns slowly to see his colleague walking towards him, his hair on ends, his AC/DC T-shirt wrinkled, and a smile on his face. Speed had spent the entire night working, and he’d found what he wanted.

“Turns out our journalist, Chad Downing, was working a case secretly. The guy had been investigating a drug ring near Cutler Ridge about 5-6 months ago. Found some photos in his desk at work, of some of the guys who’s been buying,” Speed said, handing Horatio the file. “We haven’t been able to identify them yet but…”

Horatio stops looking through the photographs suddenly and stares silently. Speed frowns at him. What is it that he is seeing?

“Is this the only copy of these?” Horatio questions him.

Speed tries to read his expression.

“Yeah…yeah, as far as I know? Something wrong?” Speed asks.

Horatio looks up at him. There is anger and confusion written on his face. In one photograph, it is apparent that his brother, Raymond, is buying from the dealers. Is he undercover in the photograph or were these drugs for his own consumption? He wanted answers.

“I’ll explain later,” Horatio spoke tensely.
___________


It is 1:00 p.m.; Yelina sat paper plates out on one of the picnic table in the backyard and smiled towards Raymond. Her husband was working the outside grill, for the first time, and cooking up hamburgers and hot dogs, her Uncle is putting together a swing set. It is Ray Jr.’s fourth birthday and all of their friends and family was there. Excluding Horatio.

Yelina had wanted him to come, more than anyone, and he had said he would be there. He just had to be. No one kept his or her word like Horatio. She knows that he is one of the few people who truly mean what they say. Something truly important must be holding him up. They wouldn’t bring out the cake without him.

“He hasn’t changed,” her mother, whispers as she walks up.

Yelina sighs and looks away from Raymond. Her mother had never fully approved of her marriage and constantly reminded her of it.

“Mama, please. Ray is here now, trying to enjoy his son’s birthday, can you give it a break? Just for today, hmm?” Yelina requested.

Her mother gave a small laugh and placed her hands on her hips, raising an all-knowing eyebrow. Yelina knew she was not going to get what she wanted.

“Yelina, darling. Don’t you see what is going on here? This isn’t happiness. This isn’t what my sweet little girl wanted for herself all those years ago. He is wrong for you and wrong for my grandson. I don’t care if he’s…” her mother started.

“Yelina, do you have a screw-driver?” her Uncle called, still piecing Ray Jr.’s swing set together.

Yelina gave her mother a weary frown.

“I’ll get it!” she answered, wanting to get out of the conversation. “Mama, please…”

Yelina hurried inside and to the kitchen where Raymond kept all of his tools.



Horatio walked around the side of his brother’s house. He knew that everyone would be back there, getting ready for Ray Jr.’s party.

“Horatio!” Yelina’s mother, Mrs. Salas, exclaimed when she sees him.

He greeted her with an embrace and a kiss on the cheek. The two of them had always gotten along well—as apposed to her relationship with Raymond. She is usually a very warm and all-loving woman but she couldn’t feel that way about anyone who treated her family that way.

“So glad you made it. I hope you know more about putting a swing set together than my brother does,” Mrs. Salas laughed.

Horatio gave her a small smile.

“Um, actually I need to talk to Raymond right now.” Horatio explains briefly.

Raymond hears this and turns expectantly. Mrs. Salas gives a forced smile and offers to take over the grill. Horatio leads his brother towards the house. No one else dares to speak to them. They can sense there is intensity in the air.

“Inside,” Horatio orders through his teeth.

Raymond frowns back at him as he pulls open the screen door that lead to the living room. What was this all about? It had to be something private or he would’ve talked to him outside.

“I want to know what you were doing at Cutler Ridge five months ago when you were suppose to have been in Gainesville,” Horatio speaks intensely, closing the door behind him.

Raymond frowns at him.

“How’s it your business? I was working all right! How am I supposed to know exactly where I’m being sent?” Raymond exclaimed.

“Wrong. I’ve already checked. When this was taken,” Horatio explains, holding up the photograph of Raymond that Speedle had given him. “You were not working. I want to know. And I want to know now.”
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

you tell him horatio!!! go horatio! i love this soooo much i cant stop reading it!!!well done!!!cant wait forthe next chapter!
 
Re: Horatio & Yelina fic

Love is a journey,
Not a destination.



Yelina allowed her eyes to drift open. She had slept fitfully for several hours and was feeling better for it. The room around her was dimmer than the last time her eyes had been open and she suspected that evening had arrived.

Turning her head, she sees Ray Jr. smiling quietly at her although tears have gathered in his eyes. She smiles back and stretches her arm out to take his hand. She feels happier now. Her son is there with her. Giving her the strength and need to carry on. He had always done that for her, especially during the rough years she had been married to his father.

Looking towards the end of the room, she sees Horatio. He is standing by the window, staring out, with his expression unguarded. There is sadness there. A deep profound desolation that took the smile off her face. Whatever it was he is thinking of must really cause him pain.

“Horatio?” she asked quietly.

He closes his eyes, for what seemed like a long moment, and looked at her. There was a flicker of that emotion before it was gone. Ray Jr. looks at his Uncle, sensing strangeness in his Mother’s tone. He is too late to see what has concerned her.

“Something wrong?” Yelina asked.

Horatio gives a soft smile. She knew he could usually make her believe anything with that smile of his. However, this time she couldn’t let it get the better of her. Despite her own condition, she felt more concerned about his. They were alike in that respect.

“Not anymore,” he answered, crossing the room to stand at her bedside.

Yelina looks into his eyes for a long moment and nods. Horatio swallows hard and looks away. She knows there is something he wants to tell her but cannot or will not.

Beside her, Ray Jr. releases her hand and stands up to kiss her cheek. He senses that his Uncle needs to tell his Mom something and doesn’t want to intrude. Yelina smiles at this adult gesture and embraces him before he excuses himself to get a soda.


After the boy has left, there is a long silence. They just silently gaze at each other. Horatio stands where he was for a moment before taking a chair by her bed. She watches him quietly as he struggles to piece his thoughts together.

“Yelina, if…if Raymond is alive and you want to go back to him…”Horatio began. “I’ll understand and…”

Yelina sighs slowly and quietly. He watches her intently as she looks at her hands for a breathtaking moment. He wonders if she is in fact thinking over whether she wants to return to her husband or not.

“I haven’t told you this but…um; Raymond and I were going to get a divorce. We were going to stay together for Ray, but we agreed that our being together was hurting him more than it was helping. I mean, I still care for him. He’s the father of my son and I guess I love him for that. Um, but we knew things weren’t going to work out. All the lies…the cheating. I just couldn’t forgive him for that and he understood. That’s why we were in the restaurant that day. We were going to tell Ray and…” Yelina explained as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Then Ray and I were coming back here.”
 
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