Title:
Laundry Day.
Author: Taisa Prongsie.
Rating:
PG
Pairing: Donald "Ducky" Mallard / Abigail "Abby"
Sciuto / Leroy Jethro Gibbs
Summary: Saturday morning is
laundry day, though Gibbs is full of surprises.
Warnings:
None.
Disclaimer: Ducky, Abby & Gibbs (as with the rest
of the NCIS team) are not mine.
-----
Saturdays were always meant for late mornings, lying around in bed, falling in and out of sleep. Stretching her back out in bed, the petite girl let out a contented sigh, feeling entirely satiated and awake despite the clock reading 10:00am. Carefully, she got up and out of bed without waking the sleeping grey-haired man beside her. Heading downstairs, she wrapped a white cotton sheet around her pale body. As she quietly descended the mahogany stairs, Abby smiled as the sun was shining brightly in through her bedroom windows, and through the windows in the hallway, giving the entire house a comfortable yellow glow.
Walking into the kitchen for some water, she could hear the coffee pot percolating on the counter. Abby loved sunny days, especially when the sun brightens up the entire house. Pouring herself a glass, she moved into the dining room where she noticed Ducky already had been up and reading the paper. Her hands ghosted along the greyscale paper, half-heartedly browsing the headlines.
As she was reading, the door opened in the living room. Ducky came in, followed by his late-mother's dogs. Smiling, he unleashed the pups and hung up his coat & hat before walking over to Abby and kissing her on the forehead.
"Good morning, my Abigail!"
"Morning, Ducky!"
"How are you, my dear?" the Medical Examiner stated as he motioned for Abby, wrapped up in the sheet like a Greek Goddess, to follow him into the kitchen.
"Peachy! I was just looking over the newspaper. Nothing really interesting in the headlines, of course, I've yet to check the science portion, yet. I always hold off on it, y'know, save the best for last."
"Of course, as would be expected," he nodded, fixing his coffee. Turning around, he sipped the rich drink and smiled at the girl before him. "It really is beautiful outside; never you mind the paper today, my dear. I'm afraid the world would lose its splendour on days like these if you were to pay too much attention to current events."
"You're right, Ducky. Any plans for the day?"
"No, my love; I've only to do the laundry. Which Gibbs has seemingly neglected, lately... That poor dear, staying up all night and leaving for work at the crack of dawn. I worry about him, Abigail."
"Would you like some help with the laundry, Duckman? I always helped my mom when I was little. When I wasn't hiding my brother in the laundry bins, that is." The raven haired girl giggled, a chiming sound that almost always brought a smile to Dr. Mallard's face.
"Why, certainly, Abigail; I would enjoy your help."
Running upstairs, Abigail grabbed all of the laundry from the three of them, and brought it down to the laundry room, adjacent to the dining room. Ducky followed in, with a last sip of coffee, and began to toss the whites into the washer as Abby separated the loads into colours. Once the detergent was poured upon the last of the clothes, Ducky shut the lid, and Abby hopped upon the machine to sit.
She gently wrapped her arms around the older man before her and kissed him sweetly.
"My dear, what was that for?" he asked inquisitively, though attempting to hide the blush creeping upon his face.
"You are amazing: taking both Gibbs and I in, turning this house into a legitimate home... all of it. I love you, Duckman."
"Oh, Abigail. You certainly know how to make a man of my years feel as if he were a school boy once again."
With an electric grin, Abby smiled and kissed him again.
"I love you, too, Abigail. My Abigail."
From the hallway, Gibbs stood, smiling with his arms crossed over his bare chest.
"Don't tell me he beat me to it..."
"Oh, Jethro! I'm afraid, Abby beat both of us to it," the bespectacled man announced, with a hint of a smirk upon his lips.
Walking over to the duo within the laundry room, Gibbs pulled Ducky in before kissing him on the head, and Abigail on the cheek.
"To be honest,... I...the two of you..." the former Marine stumbled over the traditional phrase. It wasn't easy to ever say for the first time, especially after the number of times he's used it.
Abby held Ducky's hand and squeezed as the two smiled at the blue eyed man. "We know, Gibbs. We always have." She kissed him on the cheek softly.
"Our dear girl is right, Jethro. Always have, and always will," Ducky said quietly, gently caressing his friend's cheek with his free hand.
Gibbs shook his head and took a deep breath. He looked at the Medical Examiner first; his lover through wives and girlfriends, missions and wars, thick and thin. He leaned down, and kissed Ducky. "I love you, Duck."
Tearing up ever so slightly, the soft voice responded, "I know Jethro; and I, you."
Abby, also with tears in her eyes, smiled brilliantly at the scene before her. Secretly she adored the two men together. The way they knew each other inside and out, and how they let her in so easily...
Gibbs turned to Abby, as well, kissing her as he did Ducky moments before. "I love you, too, Abbs."
"Aw Gibbs. I love you, too!" The bright-eyed scientist wrapped her arms around him and hugged. After a few moments of silence, she chuckled softly. "I was always told that you were a bastard in the morning before your coffee. I mean. Not that I think you're a bastard. Or anything... I mean. Out of curiosity: what spawned this on?"
Smiling at her mini-ramble, Gibbs laughed. "I don't know, Abbs. Maybe it was the first sunny day we'd seen in a while, or maybe because I happen to be the luckiest bastard around to have the two of you. Anything else, and I'm definitely going to need that coffee."
"My dear, it's already on the counter." Ducky smiled.
As the grey-haired man walked away, Abby hopped off of the washing machine, still wrapped in her make-shift toga. "See Ducky? This is why I love laundry day." She grinned, slipping her arm within his, and walked into the dining room where the three would soon have breakfast.