Author's note: This is the prequel to 'Downfall'; and as frustrating as I know it can be, every chapter I've written so far is short. Sorry!
This story was kinda inspired by a Rick Price song called "The Ghost of You and Me"- I've posted the chorus here, and I promise it will make sense later. The song shows my age a little, lol.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story, they remain property of Belisarius Productions
I didn't mean to fall in love with you
And baby there's a name for what you put me through
It isn't love, its robbery
I'm sleeping with the ghost of you and me
'Ghost of You and Me'- Rick Price
McGee knew the instant he asked the question that it had been a mistake. Abby stared at him, apparently frozen to the spot. He waited for a reply, hoping she'd surprise him. When it became evident that she wasn't going to answer, he sighed and got back to his feet. Momentarily he was glad that he hadn't decided on a public spot. His thoughts were in turmoil; hurt, sorrow, a little anger, and a sense of loss filled him.
Something of the devastation he felt must have shown on his face because suddenly she moved towards him a little. "Timmy..."
He shrugged her off. "Just... just forget it, Abs. I'll see you tomorrow." He let himself out of her apartment, needing to be alone. He drove slowly home, thinking about what had passed between them.
After Ziva's capture by Salim, and the team's rescue of her from Somalia, there'd been a change in Abby. She'd been quieter than usual; McGee had worried about his friend. Then she'd turned up at his apartment unexpectedly one night, about a month after their return from the desert. She told him about her worry that their rescue mission was a suicide mission; how relieved she'd been when he came back mostly unscathed. And to his wonder, she'd told him that she loved him. He'd been afraid to respond at first, the memory of her comparing her feelings for him to her feelings for puppies still etched vividly on his mind. But she'd convinced him that she meant it, the way he'd always loved her.
That was a year ago. Their relationship had grown in strength and depth until he knew, without a shadow of doubt, that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. Amazingly, she felt the same way.
Or so he thought, until an hour ago when he asked her to marry him... and she didn't answer. He knew he'd taken her by surprise; they'd never really discussed marriage. And he knew that Abby was one of the most commitment-phobic people alive. But they'd been in a committed relationship for a year; it had just felt... right... to him.
As he got ready for bed he told himself not to give up hope. Not yet.