Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS.

Prompt #50: Restart - They gave each other a shy smile, wondering how they could do what they wanted when they'd done what they did.

Words: 657


Neither was really sure why they broke up.

But since it was amicable, they became very good friends. Yes, they dated other people. Yes, they casually flirted with each other. And yes, they worried more than a little about the other's well-being through all sorts of situations. (But then again, that whole team was incredibly close and remarkably attached to each other.)

Tim McGee and Abby Sciuto's tale of friendship from a relationship was a rollercoaster from start to finish. But like all interesting stories, it had a beginning that wasn't very promising.


Post-breakup relationships are awkward things. Theirs was no exception to this rule. (Even if they both agreed it was for the best.)

McGee grew very aloof, and his insecurity seemed to spike. He wouldn't make eye contact with people. His demeanor shrank, like he'd been poked with a needle and was slowly deflating. But his paperwork and case reports were completed early and flawlessly, and he logged more hours at the firing range and spent more time at the gym.

Abby didn't change much, relatively speaking. Her music volume was slightly louder than usual, she guzzled down more Caf-Pows than the recommended daily serving, and she pulled long hours at the lab to plow through a backlog that was never really dented. Something in her aura dimmed, like she'd been put under a lampshade. But she never lost her bright, cheerful smiles or her quirky self.

When they had to interact, it was stilted and very, very uncomfortable to be around them. Alaskan weather outposts had a balmier atmosphere then the lab did when they were forced together. It wasn't hostile, but more...nervous. As if they couldn't figure out how to be friends after having been lovers. And it was damn uncomfortable.

Tony thought it was the most hilarious thing he'd ever seen (but then again, he'd been sooo immature back then.) Kate took pity on both parties and tried to give advice (but even thought it was good advice, it really didn't help enough.)

Gibbs never brought up the change in relations, but his disappointment was evident. Both parties could tell in small ways - a look, a sigh, the aura of "You cannot be serious" that followed him. Neither liked having the boss disappointed with them, but what could they do? How do you build a friendship amid the ruins of a previous romantic relationship?

So they met one night after a long day of work, ordered drinks and an appetizer to share, and sat down in a corner booth to figure out what to do. (Even though they had no idea how to do it.)


Who knows how they managed to fix it. It remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of NCIS. (Right up there with the mystery of Ziva David's current whereabouts and the identity of Gibbs' Mysterious Red-Head.)

But after several months of deadlock, the McAbby frost began to thaw. Abby started to call McGee when she had results and couldn't get a hold of Gibbs. McGee began to smile whenever he got those calls. When she was being stalked, McGee swore to himself that he'd keep her safe from the obsessive loser. When he was under suspicion for murdering a cop, Abby promised herself that she'd do all she could to prove his innocence.

The years following that gave way to a friendship that quickly became strong and fierce. They are colleagues and crimefighters and defenders of the free world. They find the suspect's secrets and break them in search of the greater truth. They are teammates and friends and part of Gibbs' family.

They are Abby and Tim. They slowly became what they'd once been, minus the romantic entanglement. Together, but not together.

And you know what? They're okay with that.

For now.


And that concludes this compilation! Thank you all sooooo much for sticking with me for this!

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