Chapter 6 – Party Time
AN: A NEW CHAPTER! Once again I'm soo sorry about the time between updates! Life has been incredibly hectic these past months, but I'm slowly establishing some kind of routine in my life. Anyway, I AM going to finish this story, mostly because I have a scene in mind for later which was actually the reason I began writing this story at all… Anyway, if anybody is still following, hope you'll enjoy :)
And remember: reviews are like chocolate, you can never get enough!
"Tom!" Jenny exclaimed happily as she entered the bar that had once been their regular.
The bartender looked up from the glass he was polishing and studied the woman in front of him. A few seconds passed and then he blinked uncontrollably not sure if he could trust his eyes. "Jenny?", Tom asked in disbelief.
"Hi", she said and then added as an afterthought, "You look like you've seen a ghost?"
"Can you blame me?" he asked, "Haven't seen you for almost ten years." Tom went around the desk to give her a brief hug.
Her eyes widened in shock, "Really?"
He nodded in affirmation. "Yup, last time I saw you, you were completely wasted rambling about 'stupid wedding', 'wanting to castrate every male you saw' and 'own damn fault'", he said with a smile on his lips recalling the incident. "But I wouldn't be surprised if you don't remember", he hinted. That night was still the night he brought in the biggest amount of money in the bar's history, mostly due to Jenny's need to buy a round for the whole pub every fifteen minute.
Jenny gave him a bright smile. "Can't say I do. But if I ordered the usual would you be able to remember?"
Tom chuckled, "I always remember when a lady drinks that kind of stuff. One bourbon coming up!"
"Make it two", Gibbs said seating himself in one of the barstools, Jenny following suit as the others place their orders.
"So," Jenny started. "To go back to what we talked about earlier, how is your lovely ex-wife?"
He smirked. "She's now Fornell's lovely ex-wife".
"What?" Jenny turned sharply in her chair to face him.
Her lips slowly curled into a grin resembling a cat that had just cornered the mouse. "Say that again?"
"She married Fornell"
Jenny broke into a big, belly laugh. "She… He marri…", she staggered through her sentence as she was trying to catch her breath. "They got married!" she finally exclaimed breaking into a new laughing-fit. Tears were leaking from her eyes, and her stomach was cramping, but it was oh-so worth it. It was no less than hilarious.
"Fornell and Diane, who would have though it?" she asked him, now controllably giggling, clutching her hurting stomach.
"Not me", Gibbs answered, "tried to warn the man, but he was in way too deep".
"What an idiot", Jenny said still unable to remove the smile from her face. "Did she rip him off?"
"Oh yeah, but at least he got a daughter out of it".
"Diane pro-created? Hopefully Fornell will be the biggest genetic influence". She caught Gibbs glaring and realized she'd gone too far. Sending him an apologizing smile she mumbled, "Too far, I know, I just really don't like that woman".
"Pretty sure the feeling is mutual", he grinned which in turn made Jenny grin.
She shook her head in disbelief, "still can't believe they got together". After a few moments she suddenly realized something. "What about you?"
"What about me?"
"Did you marry again?"
He looked at his drink and nodded. "Once, back in 2000".
"Did I know her?"
He smiled a bit embarrassed, "Stephanie Flynn".
Jenny held her lower lip captive by her teeth and searched her brain for the name. Gibbs couldn't help, but think how absolutely adorable she looked- which knowing Jenny wasn't something he should say out loud. The woman had never liked being cute or endearing, those words were only for pets or babies she said, but Gibbs strongly disagreed. Sitting like that, oblivious to the world, doing some heavy thinking was extremely cute – not to mention very sexy.
"Wait, wasn't she the redhead at the Christmas-party, the one who shamelessly flirted with you?"
Gibbs squirmed uncomfortable in his seat. "That's the one".
Jenny raised an eyebrow. She was about to grill him some more, when she remembered – she was the one who left him. For reasons still unknown to her, she'd chosen to leave this man, so of course he had every right to marry again, because she had absolutely no say over him. But damn it if she didn't hate it. So Jenny just shrugged, "Well, at least she seemed better than Diane", she replied through a somewhat forced smile.
Gibbs chuckled and just shook his head.
The team had been discussing Agent Lagger's new girlfriend, intentionally trying to give Shepard and Gibbs some space, when a very, very drunk man stumbled into the bar yelling at the top of his lungs, "LET'S HAVE A PAAAARTY!"
He was closely followed by another nine tuxedo-wearing guys that were just as intoxicated as him. Their ties were loosened up, the shirts a bit crumbled and it was only a little after 8.
Ziva and Jenny glanced at each other both wearing a mischievous smile. "Bachelor party," they said in unison.
"I want 20 shots of whatever you have!" the first guy bellowed over the bar.
"No no", another dude came up behind, "I wan zhis", he pointed a something in the drinks-card, "noh wait." His eyes slurred over the text, impatiently trying to make sense of the jumping letters. "Zhat one", he pointed proudly at the Long Island Ice Tea.
Tom turned to Jenny and raised an eyebrow, "still know how to make one?"
"Something things you never forget Tom and mixing a Long Island Ice Tea is definitely one of them"
He smiled, "what are you waiting for then?"
Jenny happily jumped out of her seat and went behind the bar. "Just like the old days", she said. Back in the 90's she'd used to help Tom on Friday evenings just for the fun of it. The place had been highly popular among the NCIS-people and the Marines, which in turn had made it rather difficult for Tom to keep up with the flow of alcohol requests. Jenny had offered to help for free and soon they'd established a nice routine.
She grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head to the great confusion but absolutely enjoyment for the men, leaving her in a black tank-top.
Ziva questioningly raised an eyebrow.
"Don't want to spill on that shirt", Jenny replied indicating to the shirt she'd just hide in some drawer. "It's white and a Donna Karen", she added and then her eyes widened. "You should see my closet! It's crazy. I have a huge amount of cloths, and a lot of it is by notable designers." She shook her head. "It's crazy", she repeated in almost a whisper.
Ziva noticed how Jenny's eyes got distant and her speech volume lowered. Something was definitely wrong. She considered pushing the subject of whatever was bothering Jenny further, but the look of sadness and distance disappeared as soon as it had crossed her face. Ziva stole a quick glance at Gibbs to see if he had noticed anything, only to find him in a conversation with Tony. She looked back at Jenny who was now searching for all the liquor used in the drink. A smile of success emerged on her face as she pulled down the Bombay Sapphire from the shelf. Upon noticing Zivas eyes on her, she sent her a testing smile.
Ziva smiled back and mentally shook her head in attempt to get rid of her train of thoughts. Jenny looked happy in that moment and she saw no reason to ruin her night out with speculations about her well-being. She could always ask if she became aware of something again.
Her eyes were glued to Jenny, alongside every single straight male in the small pub, as she practically danced behind the bar while mixing the drink. Her hips were bouncing to the music, following the beat of Shakira's "Hips Don't lie" as they swayed from side to side and an occasional up and down. She carefully placed the drink on the bar with a big smile. "There you go", she announced proudly as the guy carefully studied the pink umbrella, green straw and the lemon slice that accompanied the drink itself.
He gave a skeptically glance at Jenny before he took a sip. Then his face light up, "Zhis is awesome!" He exclaimed, sounding rather shocked to Jenny's great annoyance.
Instead of putting her fuming thoughts into words, she turned to the others, only to come face-to-face with Gibbs, who was staring so intently at her as if she was a riddle he couldn't solve. Slightly uncomfortable Jenny returned the gaze, open her eyes a little wider than normal in a mocking gesture, silently asking what?
A small smile appeared and vanished so quickly on her old partner's face that for a second she wondered if it had all been in her head. For something shorter than a second, she had been able, for the first time since the coma, to see him look at her with emotions that had a close resembling to joy, acceptance, and respect, and maybe even lo... No she was just fooling herself, her eyes deceiving her mind into seeing something that wasn't there. Shaking her head to get rid of her thoughts, she started mixing another drink for herself.
"How come I didn't know you had mad bar-skills?" Abby asked, just as Jenny was about to pour some grenadine in her Tequila Sunrise.
"Well, did you ask?" Jenny's tone wasn't condescending at all, merely curios because everybody back in the days knew she worked almost every Friday-night with Tom.
Abby squirmed a bit in her stool. "No…", she said thoughtfully. Jenny raised an eyebrow, saying without words, there is your answer. "But," Abby continued, "still. I got mad bar-skills. We could be like the Drinking-Duo… well, more like the Drink-making-duo, since we don't actually drink the drinks ourselves. Not that I don't drink, because I do… but not addictively or anything, just an occasional drink, you know.. or maybe you don't?..."
"Abby", Jenny gently interrupted. "Why don't you join my on side of the bar," she gestured behind the desk, " and show me some of your moves".
The forensic scientist eyes widened, before she in one resolute movement leap out of her high chair and behind the counter. "This.", she said starring at Jenny, "is totally wicked".
Jenny smiled – who wouldn't, coming face to face with such happiness. Abby was probably the most positive human being Jenny had encountered in her life (as far as she was aware of at the moment). Never had she seen anybody appreciated all the small things in life the way Abby did.
An hour quickly passed by, Jenny and Abby were mixing drinks in all sorts of colors and variety, while Tom had spent a better part of the time catching up with Gibbs and telling old tales to Tony, Tim and Ziva. The bachelor party had lifted the spirit in the usually quite pub, and during the past hour people passing by had joined the party, turning the left corner of the bar into a good resembling of a dance floor.
As the party had heated up, so had the request of alcohol and more than a few of the people in the bar were way past the 'I'm-driving-home'-state. One of the guys from the bachelor party seated himself in an empty stool in front of Jenny.
"Hello. I'm doing a study of what people think are the cheesiest pickup lines. You can chose between, "Do you come here often?" "What's your sign?" or "Hello. I'm doing a study of what people think are the cheesiest pickup lines"?" He said, surprisingly rather flawless even though alcohol practically oozed out of his every pore.
Jenny put on a fake smile, "thanks, but no thanks", she said somewhat politely.
"Baby..", the man started as the semi-charming smile disappeared from his face and a self-assured expression emerged, "you don't know what you're missin'. I know how to please a woman." He said self-importantly, leaning over the counter to touch her arm.
"Then please leave me alone", Jenny answered as she removed her arm before he could make contact.
"Awe, come on", the man continued obviously not getting her point. "At least let me touch your hand, then I can tell my guys over there that I've touch an angle".
Jenny immediately laughed out loud that was probably the stupidest line she'd ever heard. "Sorry, put I don't swing that way."
"What? Sexy, successful male isn't your type?" The man on the other side of counter grinned, still showing no signs of retreading; instead it looked like he could keep this conversation or at least the pick-up lines going for hours.
The redhead sighed as she returned to the shots she was pouring. This was going to be one long evening, if she didn't get rid of the guy. She briefly wondered if she could convince the guy she was gay, Abby probably wouldn't mind if she passed her of as her girlfriend. Ultimately she decided against it. The man would most likely find it appealing, even though a true lesbian never would engage with a straight guy, and definitely not this particularly man. She could play the transvestite-card, but she doubted he would believe her. The burping/farting/be-as-unattractive-as-possible wouldn't do the job either since the man was way past the border of a certain standard. His level of intoxication would suggest that he'd be willing to jump everything with a pulse.
"Would you please leave my girlfriend alone?"
Jenny turned around in astonishment, only to see Tony looking threateningly at the man. She flashed a big smile, and DiNozzo quickly winked her.
"I'm sorry, didn't know she belonged to somebody". She was about to comment on his word-choice, but stopped herself. The man got out of the chair, but before he walked away he leaned over the counter, "but should you by any chance be…"
"Yada, yada", Tony grabbed the man in his collar, hauled him from the bar and gave him a decent shove toward the dance floor.
Jenny let out a deep breath, before her face lit up in a big smile of gratitude. "Thank you! That guy was unbelievable."
"Agent DiNozzo, Savior of Damsels-in-Distress, Last Living Gentleman, and part time Knight in Shining Armor, at your service", he said doing a slight bow, trademark smirk planted firmly on his face.
Jenny chuckled. "Really, thanks, I think that creep would have been bothering me all night, if you hadn't showed up".
"Don't mention it".
Jenny put a beer on the table. "On the house", she grinned. "That's the least I can do for the last living gentleman"
Tony grabbed the bottle and raised it in her direction, doing a silent salute, which Jenny responded in kind raising her bottle as well. She took a swing of the cold beer and smiled to herself as her savior turned around to join the others; she had just decided that she really liked Tony.
Jenny woke with groan, she had a splintering headache, and her stomach was doing weird flip-flops. She had a sweat and her eyes were itching from yesterday's mascara. Damn you beer, bourbon, and tequila… and vodka and … whiskey? Okay, no wonder she was feeling a little off, last night had gone from enjoying a simple celebrating beer to a full-throttle monkey party. Granted she had been home before 1 o'clock, but those hours spent in the pub had been more than enough time to consume a heavy amount of alcohol. She noticed the glass of water on her nightstand and eagerly downed it. It was in times like these she loved her responsible side that made sure she always put out a glass of water, before she practically passed out from fatigue on the bed. She checked the time: 10.27 A.M… 10.27, ten twenty-seven… what was wrong wi… SHIT! Shit, shit shit! She had an appointment with her hairdresser at 11 sharp. Aw Crap! She let out another groan before hauling herself off the bed and into a quick shower. Putting on some random cloths, she was out the door less than 15 minutes later.
Beep. Beep. Beeeep. BEEEEP. BEEEEP!
What was that annoying noise? Jenny tried to look around before she discovered her purse. Oh! Her phone. She had forgotten it sounded like that. Quickly pulling it out, she noticed the screen reading: Gibbs. What the…?
"Shepard"
"Don't let the phone ring that long the next time, I was about to hang up."
Jenny rubbed the spot between her eyes. She was not in the mood for this conversation.
"Body found in Anacostia Park, be there within 45 minutes."
"Wait what?"
"A bo-dy…" Gibbs started dragging out.
"I heard you very well the first time, but why is it my problem?"
"Daniels woke up sick this morning"
"And?"
"We got a case"
"But were not on-call, how can.."
"Everybody else is busy, and we're free"
"Just because you got nothing to do, doesn't mean the rest of us don't".
"Cranky much, Jen?"
"Hadn't had my coffee yet". She rolled her eyes, as she could practically feel him smirk at the other end of the phone. "I can't meet you there, but I'll be at the headquarter at 1400".
"Where are you?"
"None of your business. I'll see you later", with that she hung up and turned off her phone.
Her eyes met the hairdressers in the mirror. "My boss", Jenny explained.
"Oh, what do you do for a living?" The 20 something year old inquired with a bright smile.
"I work as a navy investigator. Solving crimes and all that"
The girl's eyes widened "That sounds fascinating", she exclaimed.
"Yeah, well not when you're hung over and have to go to work anyway, because you boss don't have a life and therefore wants to ruin yours." Okay, she definitely needed her coffee… and some aspirin if she had to get through the whole day.
AN: The hairdresser scene may seem a bit out of place, but it'll be explained in the next chapter. It should be up sometimes next week, since I'm half-way done with it!
Have a great weekend, people!