Disclaimer: I own none of these totally phenomenal characters. I love them dearly, but they are not mine.
It was nearing 2 am. Cases like this, Gibbs knew, really wore on the team. Cases like this were the ones that hit close to home and kept the team from their own beds for days, and he was neither surprised nor angered to return to the bullpen to find it silent.
Even the incessant tapping of keys had fallen mute.
To his right, DiNozzo was slumped backwards in his chair, head slung to the side at an angle that was sure to pain him in the morning, mouth gaping slightly open, sock-clad feet crossed practically atop the keyboard. On the younger agent's desk, amid several gutted, empty files (the contents of which were spread across the entire surface, the surrounding floor area, and in Tony's lap), sat an open pizza box. It was almost empty. Gibbs grimaced. A nasty neck crick and indigestion. He did not envy his Senior Field when he awoke. Reaching over, Gibbs flicked off the garish yellow light of the desk lamp—leaving Tony to slumber in uncomfortable peace.
Turning to Kate's desk, the silver-haired agent was not at all surprised to find it lacking its usual feminine occupant. Kate never slept in her desk chair. Said it gave her muscle cramps. Looking at Tony, Gibbs could certainly see why. On Kate's immaculate desk, case files and notes were stacked neatly. Stepping closer, Gibbs smiled softly. Curled behind the desk was his female agent, her arm cushioning her head and her jacket covering her legs. A few scattered papers- witness reports, by the looks of them- lay in a semi-circle around her. A napkin with a half-eaten slice of pepperoni, sausage, and cheese pizza lay by her elbow.
Behind him, his Probie's desk was conspicuously empty, and Gibbs was not surprised, when he made his way down to Abby's lab, to find McGee there. His agent and his forensic guru were passed out on the floor against one of Abby's whirring machines. McGee, always the gentleman, had fallen asleep sitting up, his back against the hard plastic of a device and his legs crossed beneath him, creating the perfect pillow for Abby. The Goth had found the comfortable cushion that was McGee's lap, and was stretched out across the floor, her black garments at garish contrast with the tile floor and her head cradled in McGee's lap. Despite the obvious skirting of rule 12, Gibbs' could not keep the edges of his mouth from twinging upward in a half-smile. No-one could say that his team were not close.
On the counter in the center of the lab sat two napkins. One contained only crumbs, and the other the remains of a nibbled-on pizza crust. Flicking off the lights, Gibbs left the two to peaceful slumber, free from the chaos of the case.
Taking the elevator back up to the bullpen, Gibbs wandered through the dark to the one desk lamp that was still on. His own. On his desk, sitting illuminated in the circle of yellow light, sat a napkin and a single piece of DiNozzo's sausage, pepperoni, and cheese pizza.
And a note.
Eat it, Boss. Not that I couldn't carry you off the crime scene tomorrow if you faint from hunger. Not that you're prone to fainting. Just that I could…Shutting up now, boss. Just enjoy!
-T
Gibbs smiled, laughing quietly. Sitting down, he took a bite of the cold pizza and flicked off his lamp, plunging the bullpen into total darkness. As he settled into his chair for a short night's sleep, the chaos and horrors of the case were pushed away, momentarily, by thoughts of his sleeping team and a shared pizza.
Hey everyone! I really hope you enjoyed this short one-shot that's been drifting in and out of my mind for a while now! Please read and review! Let me know if you liked it, loved it, hated it :) Anything you'd change, if you were the writer? I want to know!
Thanks, you all rock! :D