I saved a bunch of tumblr sentence prompts to help myself try and get back into writing regularly, even if the prompts only turn into little drabbles, so I figured I could start with this one. I felt like it fit Jibbs pretty well.
The ringing came just as Gibbs was beginning to fall asleep, the light sound of rain on the windows soothing his typically loud and constant thoughts as he lay on his couch. With a groan, he simply threw his arm over his eyes, determined to ignore his phone lighting up on the coffee table. Late night calls were never good, even more so when all he wanted to do was sleep.
Soon, however, it became clear whoever was calling didn't plan to give up. With a growl of annoyance, he yanked his arm away and picked up the phone, aggressively flipping it open to bring it up to his ear.
"Yeah, Gibbs." he snapped with as much annoyance as he could muster in hopes of deterring the caller from making this a long conversation.
"Jethro?"
Of all the voices he had been expecting, hers had not been one of them. Jenny didn't tend to call him anymore, lest she give the impression that they had any kind of off the job relationship. So, when he heard her on the other end of the phone, he resigned himself to the fact he wouldn't be getting a night off, sitting up and doing a quick scan of the table in search of his keys.
"Where's the body?" he asked.
"Body?" She sounded confused, which in turn made him furrow his brow and stop looking for his keys.
"'Sn't that why you're callin'?" he grunted.
"No." she denied, her tone deflating a little "There's no case."
"Oh." The response sounded terrible even to his own ears, but he was far too dumbfounded to come up with anything else.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called."
"Why did you call, Jen?" he asked, relaxing back on the couch now that it was clear he wasn't going to be forced to leave his house.
"I know it's late, but I just needed someone, and…I guess you always answer when I call." she admitted, sounding far more vulnerable than she had since she'd started as director. With just that one sentence, just enough of the Jenny he had known shone through, peaking his curiosity.
"What's goin' on?" he asked.
"I've been…having nightmares." she sighed. "About him." He didn't bother asking who the him was. Her obsession with La Grenouille had grown nearly out of control, and he was a little afraid the hunt was going to destroy her.
"Tell me 'bout 'em."
And so she did, beginning to describe her recurring nightmares, his only responses being periodic hums and grunts to indicate he was still listening, figuring that's what she was really after. Someone to simply listen. So, listen he did, even as her ramblings switched from nightmares to other things. The annoying things politicians had done at work that day, how badly she needed to clean her kitchen since Naomi was off, but she was too exhausted, even the trashy romance novel she was reading.
She continued to talk well into the night until Gibbs started to hear her voice getting softer with every word. Within a few more minutes, the line went nearly silent, the only remaining sound Jenny's soft, even breaths as she finally fell asleep. With a small smirk, he ended the call before tossing his phone back on the coffee table and throwing his arm back over his eyes as he started to fall asleep himself.
Suddenly, he didn't mind late night calls so much, as long as they came from her.