Tony's heart was pounding and adrenaline rushed through his veins. Despite what Abby had said, he knew something was wrong; it wasn't just his "spidey-senses." He continued cautiously toward her apartment door, not knowing what to expect, but expecting something all the same. He took no notice of the neighbor, having ascertained she wasn't a threat.

He was on autodrive, reverting back to his training in homicide, probably from lack ofsleep. That was something Abby had been wrong about; he hadn't slept. Something about seeing her, being in the lab, it all kept him wide awake. He couldn't help but smile when talking to her, or even just thinking about - no. There was no time for that now; he needed to focus.

He came back to reality to find his hand on the doorknob. Turning itslowly, he pushed and stood back, gun raised. The door swung inward and the sight that met his eyes was terrible. Everything that could be seen was burnt black. Nothing had been left untouched by the ravaging fire. His arms fell limply to his sides.

"Abby," he said, and her name caught awkwardly in his throat as he lookedback down the hallway to where she stood. He opened his mouth to say something else, to warn her, because he couldn't stand to let her see what had happened, but it was as though he had lost his voice. Seemingly in slow motion, he watched as she walked towards him, turning to look into her ruined apartment.

His eyes remained firmly on her face as he watched herexpressions turn from confusion to surprise, to anger, finally coming to
rest on grief as tears began to well in her eyes. She looked as though she was going to collapse, and to his surprise, Tony found his voice again.

"Abbs, I.." he began, but his words came too late, for at that moment sheturned, running back down the hallway, and disappearing down the stairs. He resisted the strong urge to rush after her, to comfort her in her time of need, but he also knew she would want to be alone. Abby wasn't much one to cry in front of people. Even so, it hurt him to see her in so much pain.

It was at this point that something else caught his attention. A piece ofyellow notebook paper was lying on the soot covered carpet in front of him. In one quick move, he picked it up, scanning the hastily scribbled words, his eyes finally coming to rest on the illegible signature. The note crumpled in his clenched fist before he angrily stuffed it into his pocket.

ncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncisncis

The parking lot was beginning to fill with the soft pale lightoften associated with sunrise when he found Abby. This wasn't to say that
he'd been looking for a long time, but only that it was finally the next morning. She was sitting on the ground, her back up against his car. Her eyes were closed, and for a moment she looked surprisingly peaceful.

"Abby?" he asked, and although she didn't open her eyes, she still replied. "I'm not going back in there," she said, and he sighed. She sounded as though she was alright, but then again, she was a master at hiding her true feelings.

"I'm not asking you to. Come on," he told her, and she finally opened hereyes. She avoided his gaze, but allowed him to pull her up into a standing position. For a moment he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sorry," he murmured softly in her ear, before letting go and opening the car door for her. She said nothing, but got in all the same.

They drove in silence for a couple of minutes, Tony alternating betweenwatching the road and watching Abby. She was staring out the window, in a sort of blank trance, her face a mask. After a while, she looked over at him.

"Where are we going?" she asked, as though she'd only just realized that she hadn't known.

"My apartment," Tony replied, realizing that she had never been therebefore. He suddenly lost all of the confidence he had in the matter. Up until that point he had acted matter-of-factly, in a way that was the most sensible thing, in a sort of detached kind of way. This, on the other hand, taking her home, was very attached. It was something he'd done out of emotion, and he wasn't so sure of himself anymore.

"I mean, I just figured that you'd want to ... to stay at my place for awhile.For tonight at least, or today I guess, and sleep. I mean, just as long as you need to or..." he began, but obviously sensing his goodintentions, Abby interrupted him before he got any further."Thanks, Tony. That's really sweet," she said, with just a touch of her old self back for a moment. Tony smiled, feeling as though he must be glowing They lapsed into silence again. Tony's mind was now racing; he had to ask he just had to, because something there wasn't right.

"Abby," he said seriously, his mind finally made up, "do you cook?"