Back again with another chapter! :D If you like "Bull" stories, I also posted the first chapter of a three-chapter story called "Moonlit Mourning". Yes, I have a lot of active stories at the moment, but it is fun and working for my creative flow, so I'm letting myself do it. "Moonlit Mourning" is also completely written, so it shouldn't be too long between updates.
Thanks to all who reviewed this story for me since last time - Troubled-Angel-26, Luvreading67, didemi, Sarai, Loads of Randomness, Suzy Q1068, and DS2010. I hope that you enjoy this story as it transitions to the actual "push" of the "pushing for it" theme. :D
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PUSH
Maybe if they had gotten along a little better or Gibbs had not been addicted to coffee, they could have avoided pushing their boss over the edge. But they were still in sibling rivalry mode and Gibbs loved his coffee more than 75% of his wives, so the disaster was fated to occur.
For the fourth day in a row, Abby and McGee were sequestered away together with the rising amount of computer evidence. For every code they cracked, another two seemed to appear. Their tempers had not been sweetened by Gibbs' threats of consequences, and now the two were trying to repress their frustration - yet another unneeded stress.
Around midday - just as the headaches of all team members were peaking - a suspect was brought in and within a couple hours agreed to share the small part of the code that he knew. Thankfully, it was part of the code that Tim and Abby had not already cracked, so it was still helpful, much to the relief of all involved.
There was so much that was still to be done though. Still so, so much.
"I just want to be doooone," Abby half wailed, half moaned as she slumped against her keyboard for a moment of respite.
"Me too, but keep going," Tim said flatly. There was no room for either encouragement or frustration in his voice after this grueling ordeal. He was focused on just getting through the day and then home for bed. Bed. Sleep. Closed eyes. That's all he wanted. Even the idea of playing his favourite video game made his eyes burn extra.
Abby nodded wearily. "Maybe we'll get it today?"
"I hope so."
The room fell back to silence. Taps and clicks - at a much slower, exhausted tempo than over the last week - were the only gentle disturbances. Finally half of the taps faded away and were replaced by heavy breathing then transitioning into snores.
"Abs!" Tim whispered, turning to see his friend slumped over the desk. As tempting as it was to tug on one of her braids to startle her awake, he settled on trying to wake her up with much less nose-punch-worthy actions.
He settled for flicking her shoulder, but she simply settled more against the keyboard. Tim looked up and groaned as he saw the rapidly multiplying combination of 7's and W's streaming across the screen. He poked her again. No result.
Tim looked around for inspiration, and suddenly got an idea.
He began to hum loudly and Abby started humming quietly in her sleep. Tim smiled to himself and kept humming and then Abby sat up with a jolt, the marks from the keys visible on her cheek.
"What'd I miss?" she gasped, blinking hard.
"Work."
"Oh." Pause. "Ugh."
"Yeah."
"Think we'll ever be dooooone?" she asked with a big yawn drawing out the last word.
"We'll have to be. We can't work on the same case forever - at least I don't think. That's what cold case days are for," Tim said with a tone that belied his doubt that Gibbs was going to let it go anytime soon.
...
Gibbs was headed down to the lab at 6:30 pm. It was late, but he was hoping that there would be one or two final leads that would be ready for tomorrow morning. As Tim and Abby had predicted, Gibbs had no interest in letting the case become cold. There was also another thing he did not want cold either - his coffee.
That's why his cup was full of the scalding beverage as he strode into the lab.
And it was also why he yelled "Stop!" and winced as the liquid splashed all over his shirt after walked straight into the middle of a pushing match between the dynamic duo.
After he yelled, he glared at the two who were finally deserted by all excuses and were silently staring at him in horror.
He walked over to the sink and took off his dress shirt. The white t-shirt underneath had some coffee soaked into it, but not as much as the dress shirt. Gibbs silently ran some cold water over the dress shirt and squeezed it out. As it became clear that the shirt was stained and the coffee was not going to come out, he set the shirt to the side. Only then did he turn around on the two young people shaking in their shoes behind him.
"We're ..." Abby began.
"Sorry," Tim finished.
"You've been pushing for this all week," he said in a false calm that was more threatening than the rare times he did yell at them. He took a deep breath, then asked, "Any new leads?"
Tim and Abby both shifted uncomfortably, wishing with all their might that they could say "yes". Gibbs could read the situation.
"We'll start again in the morning."
The "siblings", thinking that was all Gibbs was going to say, exhaled in relief. Gibbs picked up his shirt and then burst their bubble of hope by adding, "After you finish closing down here, drive yourselves to my house."
That was all he said but they knew - big trouble was waiting for them.
He left the lab, leadless and coffeeless ... if the stain on his shirts did not count. And he left Abby and Tim with never having regretted a pushing match more.
"We're SO going to get it," Abby mumbled.
"Too bad that's the first thing we can agree on all day," Tim grumbled.
Abby sighed deeply. "Gibbs is mad."
Tim nodded, then asked quietly, "Do you need to get anything from your apartment on your way to Gibbs'?"
She shook her head and pointed to a corner of her lab. "I've got a bag here that I usually keep in case I ever need to change or stuff. Plus, I always have a tooth brush and other basics at Gibbs' house anyway. What about you?"
"Go bag and same."
Abby quirked half of an exceedingly rueful smile. "Guess there's no reason to delay heading over then, huh?"
Tim reluctantly shook his head, agreeing with her. "Want to come with me?" he offered.
Abby shrugged, then nodded. "Sure. If we've got to dread it, might as well dread it together."
Tim picked up her bag as Abby finished shutting down the machines. Tim noticed her dragging her feet and he empathized but still pushed.
"C'mon, Abby. Gibbs isn't going to get more cheerful if he has to wait."
She made a face at Major Mass Spec, then turned and nodded.
"Okay. Ready. Or not. Anyway, here we come."
Abby locked up the lab. Tim slung his arm around her shoulders in a show of solidarity and they headed out to his car together, driving to their doom.
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Hope you enjoyed! Please review! There should be two chapters after this.
