A/N: As promised, here is chapter two. After this it'll go back to one chapter a day. As I said before, this'll be a longer one… I'm currently working on Ch 27, so I hope you will stick with me :) Thanks again for all the kind reviews!
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As the bit of sugar edged into her system, Abby perked up a bit. "You don't have to take care of me. I just need a day or two of sleep. I'll be ok."
"You're right, you need a few days of sleep, and you'll be just fine. You aren't staying alone, so don't even try."
They chatted quietly until Gibbs noticed that her eyelids were looking heavy. "Alright, why don't you lay back and get some sleep." He helped remove the second pillow and set it aside. "Your cell phone is on the table, I'll be down stairs a bit. Call if you need anything or you suddenly feel worse. I'll check on you in a bit."
"Mmhmm…" Abby settled back and closed her eyes.
He stood watching her for few minute before stepping out of the room and shutting the door softly behind him. Making his way back to the kitchen he put away the rest of the groceries and then made a quick sandwich. He took his sandwich and a fresh cup of coffee down to the boat. He was able to keep himself busy for nearly an hour before he lost interest and headed back upstairs. He peeked in to find Abby still asleep, so he went to take a shower.
Once he had showered and redressed he went back to Abby's room. This time she was tossing and turning, her forehead covered in a light layer of sweat. He was able to take her temperature again to find that it had climbed back up to 102.5, so he went for a bowl of cool water, and returned to wipe down her forehead and back of her neck.
After two hours and another round of Tylenol, Gibbs finally had her fever down to just under 101. She seemed to be sleeping comfortably, so he pulled a chair from the corner of the room and settled back. He rested his heels up on the edge of the bed and crossed his arms over his chest. Within minutes he was asleep.
Gibbs woke when he felt the bed dip next to his feet. "Abby?"
Abby sat on the edge of the bed rubbing her eyes. She stood, and swayed slightly as she tried to balance.
Gibbs grabbed her shoulders, steadying her. "How you feeling?"
"Like I ran a marathon."
"Understandable. Bathroom?"
"Yeah." Abby started towards the door when she noticed a bag with presumably her clothes inside. "My clothes?"
"Yes."
"I think I'll shower then as well."
Gibbs picked up the bag and then followed her towards the bathroom. Inside the bathroom, he opened a cabinet to grab a clean towel and set it on the sink. "You'll be ok while I make some breakfast?"
Abby nodded and ran a hand through her hair.
"Don't try the stairs, I'll bring breakfast up." Gibbs pulled the bathroom door shut behind him and headed to the kitchen. He decided on scrambled eggs and a few crackers. He would see how that settled, and if she was still hungry, he would find something else to fix.
The warm water soothed the aches and pains that had been brought on by the fever. When her legs started to feel like jello, she turned off the water and grabbed for the towel. It took a solid twenty minutes to gather her strength to dry off and pull on a clean set of clothes – cotton shorts and an oversized tee. Had she been feeling better she would've been embarrassed at the thought of Gibbs packing her clothes – it meant that he had gone through her underwear drawer, but with the way she was feeling, she could care less.
Gibbs was waiting in the guest room when Abby walked back in and promptly dropped back onto the bed.
Gibbs pulled up the chair again and scooped a bite of scrambled eggs up with the fork and held it up for her. "You need to eat."
"I'm really not hungry."
"I know, but you need to eat something. You don't have to eat it all, but a few bites…" Gibbs moved the fork closer to her mouth and smiled when she opened her mouth. He hid a small smile as he fed her a few bites and then set down the fork to hand her a glass of juice and two Tylenol.
Abby downed half the juice and then reached for the crackers on the side of the plate. "Thanks Gibbs. I don't mean to sound ungrateful. I appreciate everything, I really do. I'll think of a million ways to make this up to you once I'm… not so… yuck."
"You have nothing to make up to me. Here, have another bite." He fed her a few more bites of egg and then was satisfied that she had eaten enough. "You tired? I grabbed some magazines that were in your mailbox when I grabbed your clothes. Or I could set you up on the couch to watch some TV for a bit?"
"Maybe watching some TV would be nice." Abby pulled the blanket back, but Gibbs stopped her and covered her back up.
"We'll take the blanket with." He slid one hand under her knees and the other around her waist, lifting her effortlessly.
"Gibbs, I can walk."
"You're unsteady on your feet. I don't need you falling down the stairs and adding to your misery. Grab the pillow."
Abby reached for the pillow and then gripped his shoulders tightly as she was carried out of the room and down the stairs.
Gibbs settled her on the couch, fluffing the pillow behind her and then left her to finished cleaning up from breakfast.
Abby sank into the couch; it was comfortable with just the right amount of support and just enough cushiness to really curl up in. She was rather pleased to see that he had kept the cable service she had signed him up for some months ago. She decided on CSI, it always made her laugh at the obvious mistakes in the forensics.
Gibbs finished drying the pan he had used for the eggs and went to join Abby on the couch. He rolled his eyes at her choice of entertainment. "You know that isn't real, right?"
"Of course, that's what makes it so entertaining." Abby leaned forward to pull the pillow out from behind her, and pushed it against Gibbs' side to lean against him. "See, they totally did that backwards. Everyone knows you add the second solution after… well, ok. Maybe you didn't know, but forensic people would know. I know."
Gibbs wrapped an arm around her and then lifted a hand to her forehead to check for a temperature.
"Gibbs, we checked my temp like 20 minutes ago, I'm good."
"Do we have to watch this?"
Abby settled against him with her pillow and nodded. "Nothing else on."
Gibbs didn't believe that. She had signed him up for a ridiculous number of channels, but if it was what she wanted to watch, he'd watch it. The show ended – finally – and Gibbs expected Abby to shift or change the channel, but she didn't move.
"Abby..?" He tried to get a quick look at her face, but when he shifted, she fell forward a bit, mumbling something in her sleep. He worked the pillow free, and placed it on his lap and settled her forward so that she was resting her head on the pillow. He could see her face more clearly, and she had a peaceful look to her. He touched the back of his hand to her forehead one more time to be sure, and then ran his fingers through her raven hair, still slightly damp from her shower.
The slow pull of fingers through her hair woke Abby two hours later. "Gibbs?"
He leaned forward to get a better look. "Yes?"
Her eyes stayed closed as she spoke. "Can I have another blanket? I'm getting cold."
Gibbs frowned and felt her forehead. She was warm again. "Yeah, let's get you back upstairs again." He gently lifted her again, and noticed that she was shivering. Laying her back on the bed in the guest room, he pulled the blankets over her, hoping it would stop the teeth chattering shivers that wracked her body.
Her temperature was back to 102. "I'm going to get you some juice. You can have some medicine again in about an hour."
He watched her toss and turn as he stroked her hair, willing the time to go faster so she could take the pills again. Finally he sat her up so she could take the medicine and drink the juice. He pulled the chair close to her bed again and sat holding her hand between both of his as her body slowly stilled and she fell back asleep.
He left the room twice, to hit the head and to make some fresh coffee as well as grab a box of crackers up to eat while he waited for her to wake up again. Each time he returned he picked up her hand and ran his thumb gently back and forth over the back of her hand.
The room darkened as the sun went down and he angled the chair so he could still sit beside her, but also prop his feet up on the edge of the bed. He pulled her hand out to rest on his knee, covering her hand with his own. Settling back he closed his eyes to sleep.
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TBC…. Let me know what you think!
