Sorrry I didn't get a change to respond to the reviewers, for the last chapter. I grovel...please keep them coming, I thank you for all of them. Hope you enjoy!
He decided to wait until after work tonight to talk to her, thinking that maybe she needed some time after the conversation they had last night. Besides, he needed some time to figure out exactly how he was going to tell her. He had all of the major points down, but he wanted it to be perfect. Not that he hadn't spent the entire night running different scenarios in his head, he had all he could do not to run to her last night, because all rules aside, it was no longer about wanting Abbs, it was about needing her, in every sense.
The day went particularly slow for him, especially considering that word of her return had begun to spread, and he was hearing her name mentioned around every corner. He was about to head home when Ducky approached his desk.
"Jethro, I've been waiting to speak with you all day, it seems that you've been rather elusive. I can't help but wonder if that may have something to do with the return of your favorite lab rat and mine?"
Gibbs let a smirk escape the corner of his mouth before bringing his commitment to the conversation. "Duck, you would've been so proud of her last night. She is absolutely amazing, so determined, strong, and independent. Abbs is back!" Duck could see the glow surrounding him, and momentarily waited for him to elaborate.
Ducky was never one to pry for information, it was usually offered to him, but in this case, he couldn't help himself. "Am I to assume by the recent turn of events that you two have fixed your….situation?"
"Not entirely, but I intend to. We've talked, and long story short, we know how we feel about each other, and we're working on it." Ducky expressed a look of concern before Gibbs decided to relieve it by telling him that "it's been a process, but I am on my way to her tonight to 'cement' things." Ducky felt the red in his cheeks as he began to blush, "what are you waiting for then?"
Gibbs stood to walk his friend out replying with his itinerary "coffee, shower, then Abbs, and with any luck, all Abbs!"
As soon as she heard the elevator doors shut she hastily revealed herself from behind Gibb's cubicle, she'd heard the entire conversation. She'd heard about Abby's return, and was furious. She'd been trying to get a job here for years, and she finally had it, and now, on Abby's return she was loosing it. Director Shephard's demeanor had been friendly when she informed her of such this morning, but it made no difference.
She'd spent the entire day gathering intel on Abby, and the circumstances of her departure. Scuttlebutt had informed her of Abby's reasons for leaving, and what everybody assumed where her reasons for returning; Gibbs. It'd taken her the better part of the day to formulate her plan, but it was in place. Her theory: end Abby and Gibbs, and keep her dream job.
She hurried out of the building being careful not to be seen. She'd actually snuck past Gibbs and Ducky as they said their goodbyes to beat him to the coffee shop. She waited for him to place his order and just as he was turning to leave she called his name "Agent Gibbs" causing him to turn and seek the source. His eyes stopped on the only face he remotely recognized; the interim. He'd never taken the time to learn any of the names of the Forensic Scientists that Jenny had hired as a replacement for Abby.
She waved him over, and he nearly waved her off until she hollered his name louder and followed it with a "please." He reluctantly made his was to her table in the corner checking the time on his watch as he walked. Arriving at her table he provided his traditional head nod, for no other reason than he didn't know her name.
"Agent Gibbs, I just wanted to thank you for the opportunity to work with both you and your team, it was both a privilege and an honor. I look forward to working with you again in the future." She stretched her arm out to shake his hand spilling her coffee all over the table, floor, and his shoes.
"Agent Gibbs, I am so sorry, let me get that." Putting his coffee down on the table and reaching for the napkin dispenser, "No, I got it" was all he said as he bent down to wipe his shoes.
As soon as he bent down she tipped the lip to his coffee, poured the fine powder in, and resealed it before he stood. They said there goodbyes and Gibbs turned to leave mumbling "kiss ass" under his breath, thankful that that encounter was over.
She displayed a devilish grin as she watched him leave the coffee shop. She was careful to leave enough distance between them as she followed him home. His mind was so preoccupied that he hadn't noticed; she counted on that for her plan to work. She knew how long it would take before the drug began to take effect and he started to teeter on the edge of sanity and she patiently waited for it while she changed into her 'Abby attire' which included a jet black wig adorned with pony tails, short tight fitting shirt, short skirt, and combat boots.
Silently making her way through his house, she came upon him in his bedroom still wet from him shower, and having a very difficult time getting dressed. She hesitated slightly before making her move.
"Gibbs, I missed you" she said excitedly as she hurried to him wrapping him in her version of an Abby hug. He wrapped his arms around her as she steadied him. "Abbs, I was on my way to see you" was all he managed to get out before she kissed him.
As soon as she knew that it was safe; that he wouldn't remember anything that was going on, or be able to tell the difference between herself and Abby, she removed the wig and kissed him again. This time she held the untraceable phone she had purchased in her left hand and she steadied him in her right and began to take pictures of the two of them kissing.
Satisfied with those, she made her way to the bed to rustle the bedding and place him there. She waited for him to close his eyes into oblivion before she stripped herself of her clothes and lay beside him making sure that he was in full naked contact with her from head to toe. His arms wrapped tightly around her and his head resting on hers. She propped her phone up and set the timer for the camera and interlocked her fingers with his and shut her eyes waiting for the phone to start taking pictures.
After reviewing the pictures, she removed all evidence of the events and made her escape from his house. It's perfect she thought to herself as she drove off.
She scanned through the photos several times when she got home picking a few that showed the most detail. She needed to make sure that there was no mistaking that it was actually Gibbs in the photos, that there was enough background in the images for her to recognize the location, and that the date and time stamp was clearly visible as well. The latter was very important after overhearing the conversation that Gibbs and Ducky had; she knew that Abby needed to know that his happened tonight, and not any other night to have the most effect.
She decided that sending them to Abby's cell phone and email address was sure to double her pain, so as she bundled them all into one message she typed "thought you should know" before she hit the send key.
Abby was cleaning her new apartment in preparation for the big move when she heard her cell phone ring indicating a new message. She flipped it open and slowly, painstakingly toggled through the images. "What the fuck!" could've been heard from the street as she slid down the wall to the floor as she flipped through the images a second time. She stared at the phone for what seemed like hours as the tears ran down her face. It wasn't until she squinted at the images for the fifth time that she looked into the details of the message to try and figure out who had sent them. Unknown sender was all that the phone displayed.
It wasn't until she was just about to throw the phone that she saw the tag attached to the message indicating that it was sent to her email as well. Opening up her laptop and immediately checking her email any hope that it was not Gibbs in the photos was instantly gone, and the question of "who the hell is that slut" was burning inside her.
She had so many questions like who the hell would do this? Who took the pictures? Why would they send them from an untraceable phone? Her emotions took over and her sense of caring about any of those things completely left her because the scientist in her could tell that the images weren't doctored, and there was no denying that it was Gibbs in them, and that based on the time stamp it happened tonight. She dropped her head in disgust at the date stamp etched into her brain "he couldn't even wait 24 hours" left her lips as she felt the stream of tears intensify.
Each time she flipped through the email images her pain intensified. I took her a few minutes to collect herself and dry her eyes before she succumbed to her worst fear; Gibbs didn't want her anymore. She had her answer; Gibbs couldn't break his rule to be with her.
She could eat off of the floors by the time she had finished. She fell to a slump back against the wall exhausted before telling herself that "the lines were drawn, you know where you stand now. You made your decisions and put the ball in his court and he played his game. He made his decisions, you can't be angry with him for it, you have no claim to him now, and you have no voice in the matter. It's over."
She got cleaned up and tried to compose herself before she left for her dinner with McGee. Today was McGee's birthday and she'd invited him to dinner with her to celebrate, not knowing that she was going to fell like the dirt in the bottom of her shoes. Nonetheless, she knew the he was looking forward to it and wasn't going to let him down.
More to come soon...