First part of a multi-parter! And can we get some more Abby/McGee moments in the show, please? Much as I love Tony and Ziva and the sexual tension you can cut with a knife, Abby and McGee's cuteness is less overpowering and more fun. Thanks, TPTB! :-P
Post-"Random on Purpose" (NCIS: LA)
She could have gone to Gibbs. But as much as he cares for her, as much as he loves her, he wasn't altogether what she needed.
Or Ziva. Ziva knows what it's like to think she's going to die, to wonder if anyone even knows where she is. But…not Ziva.
Not Ducky, not Tony…
…and so she's standing outside McGee's apartment, and knocking, softly at first and then harder, until the door opens and he's standing there.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
It wasn't really that she started crying, exactly, but the tears just kind of spilled over and she couldn't stop them.
"Hey," he said, concerned, and pulled her into his arms. "Shhh…It's okay, Abs. It's okay. Tell me what's wrong."
Her tears were making big wet salty patches on his shirt. "Nightmares. Can't sleep."
"Okay." He hugged her tighter. "Okay. Let's…let's see if we can make them go away."
McGee let her cry, and when the tears finally slowed down, he led her back into his bedroom and tucked her into bed, pulling the blankets carefully up around her shoulders. She heard him whistle, and Jethro's toenails clicked across the floor, and then McGee patted the bed. "Special dispensation, buddy. Up you go," he said to the dog, and Jethro jumped up on the bed and curled against her, his fur soft against her skin. And finally, McGee crawled in bed behind her, his arm heavy and solid and comforting where it draped across her. "When was the last time you slept?"
Abby thought. "On the plane, a little. And then the first night, kind of, but every time I feel asleep I would dream…And then last night not at all."
He was quiet, and she felt his thumb moving gently back and forth on her arm. "What was the scariest part?" She turned and looked at him questioningly, and he shrugged. "My mom used to ask Sarah and me that when we had bad dreams. She said if you told the scariest part out loud, it wouldn't be as bad."
The faintest of smiles tugged at her lips, and then faded. "Not being able to move," she said, and shivered. McGee's arm tightened around her. "And his voice. The crazy came out in his voice." She shivered again. "Talk to me, Tim. Please, just talk to me. I don't care about what. Just…talk."
She felt his lips against her temple, lightly. And then he began to talk, his voice deliberately slow and quiet, rambling nonsense about his day and the job and her lab and Tony and Ziva and Gibbs that finally, finally blocked out the memory of that room and the killer's face and his crazy voice…
…and Abby slept.