A/N: Written for the Written for the Teeny Tiny Challenge for Concision Storytelling on NFA. I do not own NCIS or any of its characters.
He knows that for her, it's only sex.
It started off as only sex for him, too… the intimacy fulfilling a different, yet unspoken need for the both of them. It's barely been six weeks and the explanations regarding the hows and whys are already blurred.
There is no explanation on why they continue.
He hasn't asked, not willing to admit that he's afraid that the question will draw attention to their… relationship? arrangement?
Maybe it doesn't need defining.
Because for her, it's only sex.
It was that way for him once, too.
Late at night, long after she has both slipped out of his bed and his home, he lies awake in the dark and imagines what it would be like if she stayed.
She'd wake to the smell of coffee brewing and bacon sizzling in the pan. She'd forgo a shower and slip on one of his t-shirts instead… the soft grey one with the fading logo of something no longer distinguishable.
He imagines that her hair would be pulled up in a messy ponytail, and she'd lean against the counter as he poured coffee into a mug.
There would be no need for words.
Or they would talk for hours.
Only one detail really matters: she stays.
It's puerile, but he can't let it go, and the next time she comes over, smiling as she slips under the covers, he's so close to asking. But her mouth covers his and it's all so good and overwhelming and he can't help but forget about everything else when she makes those noises and their bodies move seamlessly together.
When it's all over, he keeps his eyes closed when he feels the mattress shift as she stands. He keeps them closed and listens to the quiet rustling of cloth as she gets dressed. He won't open his eyes, too aware that if he does, his wish for her to stay will be too obvious, and in the afterglow of what's happened, he's suddenly unsure of what he wants.
"See you tomorrow, Gibbs," she whispers just beyond his bedroom door.
"Goodnight, Kate," he responds… but she's already gone.
After all, it's only sex.
But for him, it's so much more.
the end.