Valentine's Day
It was Valentine's Day and the team had finally wrapped up the case. It was already after ten o'clock in the evening and Gibbs went down to see if Abby had left, he was quite sure, because she had every year a Valentine's date with someone, although she hadn't told him about it this year. But when he left the elevator he saw light burning in her lab, he walked silently to the door to find Abby working on her computer, sad classical music playing, something he never had heard before. She looked a bit unhappy, maybe she was stood up. He sneaked up to her, invading her personal space and whispered.
"Abbs. What are you still doing here?" He felt her body tensing.
"Gibbs. One day I'm gonna die on a heart attack." She answered him, avoiding answering his real question.
"Abbs, it's Valentine's day, have you been stood up?" If she avoided answering him, maybe she didn't want to speak about it, so he had to try it this way.
"No." she answered him briefly, typing something in her computer.
"You didn't have a date?" he continued to question her
"Nope." She answered shortly again. He wondered if she was angry, but she didn't sound like it. But when Abby didn't speak a lot something had to bother her.
"Everything's fine Abbs? Is something bothering you?"
"No, Gibbs. I'm really fine." She answered, still not looking at him.
"Abbs, you didn't went out with someone quite a while, why's that?" he didn't know why he didn't stop to bother her, but he had to find out why she was acting strange.
"None of your business Gibbs." Now she sounded a bit annoyed.
"Abbs." Gibbs touched her shoulder and turned her around, but what he saw wasn't what he expected to see. Abby had tears in her eyes and he knew every minute they would begin to fall. Now he really was concerned, had something horrible happened to her? Or one of her friends, or why was she crying?
"Abbs." His hand was caressing her cheek and tears started to finally stream down, her lips were quivering. He took her in his arms and let her cry on his shoulder, his hand stroking over her hair, trying to soothe her, he hated to see her crying.
"Please tell me" he whispered into her ear "You know you can tell me anything, right?"
"No….no…I just…I can't Gibbs." Abby sobbed
"Why, Abbs? Don't you trust me?" he felt a bit hurt. She came always to him when she had problems, why has it changed now? Well when she had a stalker she didn't came to him. "Abby, do you have another stalking problem?" he asked concerned and bit angry
"No, Gibbs, that's not it." by now Abby had dried her tears with a tissue. Abby went over to the ballistic lab, collecting a paper from it and returned.
"Here, read, I can't tell you it." with that she went back to her computer and started to type something into it.
Gibbs took the letter and started to read:
Dear Gibbs,
today it's exactly ten years ago we first met in this Chinese restaurant, where you gave me the tissue to whip away my tears, tears of desperation that no one would give me a job in a hugh city where I didn't know anyone, but you were there for me, you listened to me, you understood me, you helped me. Thank you for this. I gave you my fortune and it said: "Today's friend is tomorrow's new family" and it really happened, I got the job, I was introduced into your family here at NCIS, I feel like being a part of it. Thank you also for this, but there is something I never told you. I fell in love with you the very first moment I saw you, and at first I thought it was a crush, but this bond between us is so strong, Gibbs, the way you flirt with me always makes me giddy with pleasure and yet I had to see all your affairs come and go, your marriage and your divorce, all the redheads in between. I tried to distract me with boyfriends, but it didn't help, I always imagined being with you when I was with them, but it didn't work out or helped, so I didn't start to see anyone anymore. And still you always see my only like your best friend, maybe like a daughter, I just don't know. I can't keep suffering like that, that's why I handed in my resignation, I have to go away or otherwise I can't survive. I really hope you're going to understand it.
I love you and will never forget you my silver-haired fox,
your Abbs.
When Gibbs had finished the letter he scrunched it up. His head was buzzing. He never knew she meant it for real, he always thought she was just flirting out of fun. His heart was beating so fast, that was everything he always had dreamed of, she wanted him, she was in love with him. A knot formed in his throat, he was afraid, afraid of so much, afraid to lose their friendship, afraid to screw up, afraid that he would never be able to be enough for her, afraid that he was too old. But he knew one thing: that if he didn't show his real feelings for her now, she would walk away, out of his life, maybe forever, something he would never let happen, something he couldn't let happen.
He walked over to her, Abby turned around and with fearful eyes she looked at him, tears brimming in her eyes. He never was good with words, that's why he started to kiss her, Abby was in complete shock, she thought he'd never feel that way, but soon she opened her mouth and let his tongue explore her, the kiss was fiercely. When they broke for air Abby's face was beaming, her cheeks red and she was smiling her beautiful smile.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Abbs!" Gibbs whispered and her smile grew even brighter and he had to smile too. "Wanna come home with me, my beautiful young lady?" he asked her.
"Always my knight in shining armour." Abby whispered and gave him a quick kiss and dragged him out of her lab, not even bothering to shut down her equipment.
THE END.