It had been an extremely long week for Team Gibbs. A tip on an old cold case had led to a burned out car which had led to a burned body in the trunk of the car which had led to the apprehension of a former Navy petty officer. Under Gibbs intense interrogation, coupled with Abby's miraculous forensics work, the accused had no choice but to confess. Tim and Tony were finishing the reports when Callie joined the group.
Dressed in black cargo pants with black Doc Martens and a tight, long sleeved thermal shirt, she was a redheaded version of the resident Lab Goth, minus the black nail polish and lipstick. As she slid into her desk to finish her work, she felt the three men's stares.
"What?" She asked to no one specifically.
Tony said, "I don't recall seeing that particular outfit in your closet."
"Been going through my closet, DiNozzo?" she shot back.
Casting an uncomfortable glance towards Gibbs before replying, "You know what I mean."
She smiled and teased, "Do I, Anthony?"
Tony blushed and quickly returned to finishing his work while Gibbs and McGee shared a quick smirk.
From behind them, the elevator doors sounded the presence of another person and Abby bounded her way to Callie's desk. Dressed almost identically to Callie, she pulled the shorter agent from behind her desk.
"You're adorable!" Abby gushed.
"It's a great fit. Thanks for thinking of me."
"You don't mind being twinkies?"
Callie smiled back, "Are you kidding?"
From behind them, a very droll Gibbs replied, "I was thinking you looked more like Mutt and Jeff."
At 5' 10 without her heels, Abby towered over the more petite Callie. The girls turned at the same time, pinning Gibbs with a glare as he continued. "Where exactly are you two headed?"
"Its girl's night out, Gibbs," Abby explained. "We've been planning for weeks and decided tonight was as good a night as any."
"You didn't mention that to me," McGee quickly crossed to stand beside Abby. "I thought we had plans."
From his desk, Tony added, "Yeah, I don't recall you sharing that information with me, either, Harris."
The girls crossed to their respective fellows, "I didn't know I had to clear all my dates with you, DiNozzo." Callie replied, a slight enigmatic tone to her voice.
"And, we don't have plans, Tim, for every Friday night," Abby countered.
The two couples continued to argue until a shrill whistle from the boss cut them off.
"Look, this why it's never a good idea to date your coworkers. I don't like listening to the arguing and I'm sure as hell not going to referee."
Callie grinned at the older man before turning back to Tony, "Look, we're just going to a club, have a few drinks, and blow off some steam. We'll be in by midnight. 1 A.M. at the latest."
"If you're both so worried about it, why don't you two guys do something and we'll come back to Tony's when we're done," Abby supplied.
Tim shared a look with Tony who nodded and replied, "Okay. One A.M. at the latest. I'll see you both at my apartment where you can sleep it off."
The girls gave the guys a hug and with a wave at Gibbs were on the elevator and already giggling the entire time.
Gibbs watched them go, a peculiar feeling starting deep down in his gut. He tried to appear unconcerned as he asked, "You know exactly which club they're headed to?"
Tim replied, "Probably The Drunken Lizard. It's one of Abby's favorite places. All the people know her and the door man usually slips her in VIP."
Tony smiled. Gibbs may not like to admit it but he was protective of all of the team. He didn't interfere in their free time but he had all their numbers, cell and home, programmed into his phone and he had keys to all their apartments, for emergencies. As he finished his report and carried it to the Boss' desk, Tony answered, "Since it seems Tim and I are thrown together for the evening, do you want to join us?"
Gibbs was a bit surprised at Tony's offer. McGee quickly followed, "Yeah, you might as well, Boss. What else have you got to do?"
Gibbs glared at Tim's comment. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded. I mean, you've got lots of stuff I'm sure you could do. I just meant…"
The Boss let him off the hook, "I know what you meant, McGee."
The guys both stood expectantly watching Gibbs go through powering down his computer and locking away his things. He finally looked up at the two agents and replied, "Fine, but I'm bringing the beer. That cheap ass stuff you two drink is like water."
Tony and Tim both laughed. "I'll pickup the pizzas." Tony supplied.
"I guess that leaves me with movies," McGee added.
"None of this new age crap, McGee, find some good actors." Gibbs ordered.
"On it, Boss." Tim answered as Gibbs headed to the elevator.
Tony let the door close before he replied to McGee, "Make sure you've got plenty of change, McGee. We'll wind up playing poker until we pass out."
"You think?"
"I know," Tony replied, "The few times he's been to my apartment, that's how we spent the night. And, I can guarantee you, he's not going to sleep until the girls get in."
Tim walked up to Tony's desk, "You think he's that worried about them?"
Tony shrugged, "I don't know but he watched them all the way to the elevator and I've seen that look before. If I hadn't invited him, he'd have shown up. At least this way, I don't have to worry about the alarm going off twice."
McGee laughed, "OK. See you in half an hour."
"See you then," Tony replied as he watched McGee leave.
Sitting at his desk, Tony began to get an uneasy feeling. He knew Callie could take care of herself but he just didn't like it when she, or for that fact Abby, was out alone. Maybe it was from working too closely. Or, maybe it was from experiences with Kate, Paula and Ziva. Or, maybe, it was just…DiNozzo shook it off. He was not becoming like Gibbs.