I recently got Season 13 of CSI on DVD and when I re-watched it, I just couldn't stop thinking why the writers had Morgan kiss Hodges... I'm sure many more of you Morganders fans think the same thing, so I hope this story will help you get through the first episodes of Season 13 a little better!
Minor spoilers for 13x01.


Quietly, Morgan closed the door of her apartment. She leaned against it with her back. What had she been thinking? She shook her head. Unbelievable, what had gotten into her? How could she have kissed Hodges?

She pushed herself away from the door and walked over to the bedroom. She fell down on her bed on her back, staring at the ceiling. How could she have been so stupid? And especially since the guy she really wanted to kiss had been at the hospital only a little while earlier.

She looked down at the clothes she was wearing. The clothes he had brought to her, so she could change. A tear slowly ran down her cheek. Sweet, wonderful Greg… How could she ever tell him she was in love with him now after having kissed Hodges?

A few more tears started rolling down her cheeks. They weren't the tears from before anymore, when she had been worried about her father. No, her father was going to be just fine and she even told him she loved him. No, the tears that ran down her face, were those of shame.

As they started rolling down her face quicker and quicker, she rolled over and pushed her face into her pillow. She had never been angrier with herself or felt more ashamed. How could she have done what she did? How could she have given Hodges that stupid kiss?

Her thoughts wondered off to Greg. When they had first met, he had made quite an impression on her. Immediately, she had known she wanted to get to know him better. And over the weeks and months that followed, she had. She had gotten to know a great CSI, but also a really smart, funny and, most of all sweet, guy. And slowly, she had realized she didn't just like him, but that she was falling in love with him.

As more weeks passed, she felt herself falling deeper and deeper in love with him, but she had tried to ignore her feelings. After all, they were colleagues on the same team and she felt like going out with someone from work wasn't the professional thing to do. Yet, she couldn't help how she felt. And she suspected he felt the same thing for her. They had just never said anything about it.

Morgan rolled back onto her back. There'd be no chance of telling him now, not after what she had done! But a part of her wanted nothing more than to go to him and tell him how she felt, right now. Or was she acting without thinking again then?

She softly groaned. What a mess she had gotten herself into! She looked down at her clothes again. Suddenly, she hated them. She pushed herself off the bed, rushed into the bathroom and took them off, throwing them into a corner. She then turned on the shower and stayed in there for nearly fifteen minutes, hoping the water would somehow wash away the horrible memory.

After she had turned off the water, she found some other clothes to wear. Just as she had finished dressing, she heard the doorbell. Frowning, she looked towards the door. Who could it be?

Slowly, she walked up to the door. If it was Hodges… She shook her head. No, if it was, she would clearly tell him the kiss had been a stupid mistake and that there was nothing going on between them. And maybe, if he really kept going on about it, she'd even tell him she was in love with someone else. She wouldn't tell him who, though, although he'd probably be able to figure it out.

The doorbell rang again. A little nervously, she opened the door.

"Greg!" A sense of relief went through her body. She tried to give him a smile, but it suddenly seemed difficult. Did he know? Did he know how stupid she had been?

"Hey," he greeted her, a little shyly. "I, eh, just wanted to see if you were alright. I first went to the hospital, but your father was sleeping and the nurse said you had gone home."

"Yeah, my Dad said he was going to try and get some sleep and he said I should try to do the same thing," she explained. She knew there'd be no sense in trying, she wouldn't be able to sleep anyway!

"Don't take this the wrong way, but for someone who's going to bed, you look awfully dressed up!" he said, pointing at her black jeans, blouse and jacket. She smiled at him, more of a real smile this time. "I didn't think I'd be able to sleep anyway… Do you wanna come in?"

"Only if you want me to, I don't wanna keep you away from something… Or awake," he said. She held in a groan. He really was too sweet!

"You're not," she reassured him. "Want some coffee?"

He smiled at her. "Sure."

He followed her over to her kitchen, where she started making coffee. While she waited, she noticed he was looking around her kitchen.

"Hey, a waffle maker!" he suddenly saw. "I've always wanted to have one when I was a kid, but my mother wouldn't allow it. She didn't think it was part of a good, healthy and balanced breakfast," he added with a grin. She smiled at him, a real happy smile this time. "Well, if I would have had the ingredients, I would have gladly made you some, but unfortunately I was due for some grocery shopping tomorrow… If you like, you can come over some other time and I'll make you some…"

The suggestion made her feel a little nervous. Had it sounded too much like a date? Oh, who cares, she suddenly thought. You like him, then let him know! And make sure he never finds out about your stupid action…

"Sure, I'd like that," he nodded. He took his coffee from her. "Thanks."

After a careful sip, he looked at her. "So, do you wanna talk about your father or what happened?"

No, absolutely not, she immediately thought.

"Well, since you've been at the hospital, I assume you know he's going to be just fine," she told him. He nodded. "Yeah, they told me."

He looked at her. "Are you going to be fine?"

She hesitated. Was she going to be fine? Yes, she had told her father that she loved him and she finally felt she had let go of her anger towards him. But was she going to be fine after what she had done?

She looked at Greg, who was looking at her with those beautiful, sweet and caring brown eyes. Suddenly, she knew she wanted to tell him how she felt. Just not right now, not after what she had done earlier today. When she told Greg she was in love with him, she wanted to remember that day and not have it be ruined by her stupid, unthoughtful action.

She gave Greg a little smile. "I will be, thanks. Can we please talk about something else now?"

"Sure," he nodded. He pointed at a photo she had on her fridge of her posing with the Eiffel Tower. "Is that taken in Paris or at the hotel on the Strip?"

"That's Paris," she smiled.

Over the next hour, they happily chatted about traveling, places they had visited and still wanted to visit. When Greg left, Morgan felt a lot happier than before. No more wasting time, she decided. From now on, she'd try to spend as much time as possible with him and when the right moment was there, she'd tell him she was in love with him. By the looks and smiles he had given her the past hour, she was absolutely certain he was in love with her too.

"I'm sorry, Greg," she whispered, even though he couldn't hear her. "Please know I didn't mean to hurt you! I just… wasn't thinking…"

She sighed deeply. She definitely hadn't been thinking at the hospital! But from now on, she only wanted to be thinking about one thing: about how badly she wanted to tell Greg about her feelings for him.