So here it is, the eighth chapter. Thank you all for your reviews, they're very motivating :D I hope you'll like this chapter too, I'll try to put in some more Tate.
Chapter 8Two hours had passed since Kate arrived back home. The air had been dry and still rather cold and made it feel even more unwelcoming. What caught her a bit off guard was that her apartment felt way too big and way too empty. Last week, she'd felt like the walls were suffocating her. Guess things change fast… Even if she was reluctant to admit it, Kate knew she missed company. Correction, Tony's company. How was it possible? What the hell had changed? Except for the part when she'd spent the night in the same bed as him with less than an inch between them…
"I'm going crazy" she said to no one. "I am talking to myself, this is ridiculous" Feeling too awake to go to bed she slumped down on her couch. The cushions were still pretty chilly but it didn't prevent her from burying her face in the fabric. This. Was. Not. Good. When she needed to breath again, she rolled on her back and stared at the dark ceiling, finding herself counting down the hours until she could see him again. God, this was silly!
Another hour passed in what Kate would call Hell. She paced around her apartment, trying to sort out her thoughts. It was like getting home had brought her back to reality. Living with Tony had been like living in a bubble…Geez, what was wrong with her?! Feeling like slapping herself, Kate decided to go to bed. At least then she wouldn't have to deal with the silly reality. Except in your dreams…A small voice reminded her and Kate groaned. After the voice made a few more appearances Kate shouted out loud:
"Oh shut up!"
---
Kate wasn't the only one who lay sleepless that night. Tony also lay wide-awake having the same feeling of emptiness. What the hell has happened with me? Since when did Tony DiNozzo feel like someone had left him? He shifted and lay on his side. Only a few nights ago, Kate lay there by his side, arms and legs tangled around his. It felt very distant now. Having her living there had been so natural and suddenly living alone was unfamiliar.
"I'm so screwed" he said to the worn turtle his mother had given him for luck when he played football for Ohio State. The turtle had then gotten the name Alfred and faithfully sat on his drawer, looking down at him with wistful eyes. "Tell me what to do" he demanded from the turtle. He would rather die than admit that at a few occasions he talked to Alfred. Both because he didn't give some smart-ass comment back and Tony said what he wanted to say without any interruption. Although, now he wished that Alfred could talk. Cause he had no idea what to do.
---
Since it was Saturday, Kate didn't have to bother to go up at seven. As the clock struck eleven am, she still lay in bed, covers and pillows in a mess. She'd lost count of how many times she'd tossed and turned for the past hours. She'd gotten a couple of hours of sleep and then drifted off now and then ever since around seven thirty. But now she had to do something, this was getting boring. Sighing, she got up and picked up a few pillows from the floor.
When she was little, she'd always woken up with her duvet on the floor. Her brothers still teased her about it. Guess old habits die hard, she thought. Ironically, one habit had died extremely fast. The habit of spending her hours alone. That one was definitely gone. Suddenly she craved for company. She'd never been like that. When she was a teenager, she enjoyed being alone. Drawing, reading, just being with herself. Now she'd been without another human's company for around twelve hours, and was going completely nuts! And before she knew it, she'd picked up her phone to call Abby.
"You miss Tony" was Abby's greeting as the click signalled that someone picked up in the other end.
"Abby!"
"But you do"
"Yeah maybe but…"
"Ha! Gotcha. So, what else except the fact that you can't stay away from our favourite Italian Special Agent?"
Kate knew she was blushing. "I feel like a teenager"
"I can understand that" Kate blushed furiously, she could practically hear Abby's knowing smirk and she knew her friend had got the best of her.
"This is so silly. A typical thing my brothers would tease me for"
"Then don't tell them. But there's always the inevitable "how did you meet?"- question at the family dinners"
"ABBY!"
"Move in"
"What?!"
"You have the key, the permission. If you refuse to do something about the sexual tension of yours, then at least move in as friends"
"That would drive me crazy"
"Then kiss the man for God's sake!"
"You're impossible. I'm hanging up now. I have problems to take care of"
"Figured…Good luck, Kate" Abby teased and then they both hung up. Kate stared at the phone. Well, this was…rewarding? Not!
---
The clock struck three pm before Kate was ready to jump out the window. Without really thinking she grabbed her purse and bolted out the door, not really knowing why. When she parked outside Tony's building it was like she'd ran into a wall. What the hell was she doing here?! He would think she was crazy and tease her to death about it. Still, Kate soon found herself before his door. Why am I here?! Don't you dare knock, Kate.
"Hey, Kate. What are you doing here?" Tony looked completely shocked when he opened the door.
"I…" Shit, what I am going to say to that? "I was…bored" she managed to get out, as nonchalantly as she could. He eyed her for a moment, then grinned. "You missed me. Aww, how cute"
Kate glared, for a moment, forgetting the circumstances and how stupid she must look right now. "You gonna let me in?" she demanded and for a while sounded like herself. Chuckling, Tony stepped aside ande Kate walked in. She kicked off her shoes and hung her coat on the peg where it'd hung for the past few days. Then she turned to him.
"I…my…apartment felt…a bit empty" she said in a low voice. He stared at her. "What?" Tony looked completely confused. She groaned inwardly. Why was she even here? This had to be the most stupid idea of mankind. What did she expect, really?
"I…don't know" she said and blushed furiously and turned away her face. "Can I…um get a glass of water?" she mumbled.
"You know where to find it" Tony said softly and looked after her as she walked off. He'd caught her earlier sentence but what did she mean? Did she mean what he wanted it to mean?
Suddenly he smiled. Kate was freaking out. Kate never freaked out. Of course, she wasn't alone about it, but apparently, even as a profiler, she couldn't conceal it. Now he followed her and stood in the doorway and watched her.
"Don't laugh at me, DiNozzo" she muttered.
"Okay, sorry. Kate?"
She looked up. "What?"
"Calm down. What are you doing here?" he knew he should push it. If she was here for the same reason he'd contemplated going over to her place, he knew how awkward this was for her.
"I was bored at home, DiNozzo" she said, now sounding a bit more confident. God this is bad. She mentally cursed herself. Okay, Kate. Listen to the facts. She tried that but it wasn't at good idea since one, she actually missed Tony. Two, living alone suddenly seemed very strange and three, Abby was convinced they were madly in love with each other. Well, that didn't exactly help. She emptied the glass and put it in the sink. So…what now?
"Now care to tell me why you are here…or did you just want some company?" Tony asked softly. She met his eyes but didn't answer. Then his face split into a teasing grin. "You're freaking out, Kate. Wanna tell me why or should I guess? You do know that I know when you're lying?" She glared. But he was right. Tony always knew when she lied and if she could have a say, she was a pretty bad liar. At least outside the interrogation room. In there, anyone could lie. But here, in Tony's kitchen, on a Saturday afternoon, it didn't seem as easy anymore.
"You're goldfish died?" Tony teased and Kate was on the verge to slap him. Her head was almost spinning with all the excuses she could make and all the different reasons to why she'd ended up here in the first place.
"Okay, maybe not" Tony continued, still smirking. DiNozzo, you already know. Why torment her? Oh yeah, cause it's fun! "Gibbs called and fired you?" Another glare. "Maybe not that either…"
"Tony! Shut up"
"You're freaking out, Katie. Don't deny it. Actually…it's rather sweet. But the funny thing here is, you never freak out. So something must be very…hinky?" he teased, using Abby's made-up word. Kate blushed slightly. Yeah you could call it hinky, indeed. And she knew he knew she was freaking out. Why was she acting like a teenager? Why did it feel like she had no control at all? Abby's voice suddenly cut into the drama inside her head, uttering the same words she'd nagged about for almost six months now. You're freakin' in love with the guy, Kate. Face it! Everytime the lab tech had tried to convince her friend, Kate had violently denied the fact and quickly left the lab before Abby could come with more arguments.
"Kate?" Tony brought her back to reality by waving his hand before here eyes. "Still not wanna tell me?" She just sighed and walked past him, into the living room. She slumped down on the couch and grabbed the remote.
"Make yourself comfortable" Tony said sarcastically and slumped down beside her. But a part of him liked the fact that Kate felt so at home at his house.
"Kate! I wanna watch that, stop" He put a hand on her arm to stop her endless channel surfing. The glare he got told him one thing. Bad idea. Mental note, be at least six feet away from Kate when she's freaking out. As he should have known by now, he had no idea what to expect from Kate when she was all wired up. But still, he didn't see the pillow that a millisecond later slapped his face. When he had recovered from the slight shock he saw Kate, grinning at him, ready to hit again.
"You want to have a pillow fight? That's why you came here?" he asked, raising a brow, still wanting to know the real reason to why she was here. Of course he could guess but…what fun is that? Hearing Kate admit something was much more fun.
"According to you I'm freaking out. You should stay away from people while they're freaking out, DiNozzo"
He laughed, which earned him another slap with the pillow. Not wanting to take the abuse, he picked up a pillow of his own and managed to throw a few playful punches back at her.
Suddenly, Kate's shriek made him drop the pillow and stare at her.
"Ouch, DiNozzo!" when he studied her face, he spotted the red mark on her cheek, a blood drop trailing down.
"You hit me with the zipper!" she accused him and glared.
"I'm sorry, Kate" he said and actually meant it. He moved closer and wiped away the blood with his thumb. "I'm sorry, okay? Call it a truce?" Still glaring, Tony knew if looks could kill, he would be dead now. Then he started to laugh, making Kate even more annoyed.
"You know you're cute when you're pouting, right?" he said. She was, looking very much like a little girl, being grumpy cause she didn't get the doll she wanted from the toy store.
"Aww, come on, Kate. I said I was sorry" he now gave her his puppy eyes look. A few moments later she couldn't hold it any longer and smiled at him. "You're so silly. But I won!"
"Did not"
"Did too"
"Did not"
"Argh! Not this argument again"
"Then you could tell me why you're here?"
"Stop with the pestering, DiNozzo. You sound like a school boy"
"Well according to you I am a school boy" he grinned triumphantly, knowing he won this round. Kate just shook her head and smiled. See, this is why you came here, Kate. You have fun with him!
"So, truce?" Tony said and offered her his hand.
"I'll think about it"
"Want a band aid?" he asked and gently touched her cheek where another blood drop had found it's way down her cheek. Kate froze for a moment. His touch was burning, at the same time, as it was extremely light.
"Nah, I'll be good" she managed to get out. Tony smiled. "You sure?" now she just nodded. Giving it a last thought he opened his mouth to speak before he chickened out.
"Want med to kiss it better?" he smiled his brightest and unfortunately most charming smile.
"I…um…" Kate trailed off, still not really getting what he just said. He looked serious…
"I take that as a yes then"
And then, a bit hesitantly though, Tony leaned forward and gently pressed a kiss to her cheek, just below the small cut.
"Better?" he whispered. Kate almost shivered, feeling his breath against her ear.
"A little bit" she said, now smiling a half smile. She felt Tony smile too, against her cheeks as he left a trail of kisses down her cheek and jaw. Kate closed her eyes, all her rationality slowly fading. When he reached her lips, he pulled back slightly.
"Still not better?"
"It still stings a bit…" she murmured and you could practically hear the smile in her voice. Chuckling slightly, Tony leaned closer and gently captured her lips with his. Kate didn't hesitate to respond and gently moved her hands up to his neck.
"Wanna admit that you missed me?" Tony said when they broke apart, foreheads touching.
"I missed you" Kate said softly. They both smiled and Kate couldn't help but kiss him again.
"No more freaking out?" he asked. She shook her head. "Not unless my imaginary goldfish die"
He laughed. "You never know with goldfishes. So…up for lunch?"
Aww, finally some TATE!! I know many of you have been waiting for it. It was extremely fun to write this chapter. I hope you had as fun, reading it. And I managed to insert the title in the fic. Yay, old habits die hard is a favourite expression of mine. I count it everytime I see or hear it. So far I've seen it in two fics, an episode of Bones and one time spotted in JAG. I'm not sure whether I heard in CSI yesterday…Anyway, that's just a strange obsession of mine. I hope I didn't scare you away.
Btw, was the Kate/Abby phone call OOC? Maybe…Although, in the episodes when Tony drove her nuts about clipping his finger nails she kinda freaked out, right? So it's not that OOC?
Now, please review! And stay tuned for the next chapter, yes, there will be more!