Hey Jude

Cole and Gibbs looked at the window. There she was, packing her stuff and securing evidence. Man was definitely a creature of habit. "Go! Get her out of here", Cole urged the other man.

Hey Jude, don't make it bad

Take a sad song and make it better

Remember to let her into your heart

Then you can start to make it better

Jonathan did what he had to do. He didn't feel heroic, he didn't think he was giving up his life to protect Gibbs', or the girl's. Although it wasn't something he cared about one way or the other either, letting him stay wouldn't make that bomb explode any less. However, he was moved when he saw him looking at the girl. He wasn't a shrink, and he had neither the time nor the desire to analyze or interpret relationships between people, but he could see they had what he didn't: something to live for, something to lose. He felt a mix of pity and envy for both of them. When the bomb finally exploded he felt defeated, but also free, and the littlest bit redeemed. Let the poor man try to have the life he didn't.

Hey Jude, don't be afraid

You were made to go out and get her

The minute you let her under your skin

Then you begin to make it better

Somebody said that love is the difficult realization that something other than oneself is real. Well, in this moment she felt all too real. Her eyes were open, but she was disoriented and pale like a piece of paper, at least as far as Gibbs could tell. If something was wrong with him, he didn't notice.

"Abby?" Gibbs whispered. "Can you hear me? Are you O.K.?"

Even though he talked and talked to her, she just blinked, squinted and tried to tilt her head.

"Gibbs?" Abby whispered back, and it wasn't until that moment that they both realized neither of them could hear the other.

And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain

Don't carry the world upon your shoulders

For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder

They sat down slowly and began looking for a way out, but everything had either caught fire of fallen down, and if it was made of glass, it had exploded, and the chemicals mixed with the fire and smoke in very undesirable ways.

"I think we need to crawl to find a way out", Abby signed.

"We'll be fine, we can just walk", Gibbs replied, even though it turned out he was hurt after all. Having said that, he stood up, and as soon as he took a step, he fell down spectacularly, while she went towards him, to make sure he wasn't hurt more than he already had.

"I think we need to crawl to find a way out", Abby signed.

Hey Jude, don't let me down

You have found her, now go and get her

Remember to let her into your heart

Then you can start to make it better

Abby was scared. Not that both of them hadn't had encounters with danger before, but this time it seemed like there was no way out, like they were hopeless, depending on everyone and everything but themselves to get out of this situation, no matter how much of a superhero he was or how well she knew her lab. They went out of the lab and as far as they could, but they couldn't quite reach the stairs. They had lost their balance completely, and the foul air was making them dizzier by the second. The best they could do was lean against the wall by the elevator and cover their and each other's faces with his jacket and her robe.

So let it out and let it in, hey Jude, begin

You're waiting for someone to perform with

And don't you know that it's just you, hey Jude, you'll do

The movement you need is on your shoulder

Well. At least they had a pillow and something to drink until they were rescued or died asphyxiated, whatever came first.

She took sips of her Caf-Pow!, and then Gibbs did the same. Thank goodness for the Caf-Pow!. It was still somewhat cool, and it was so hot there, it tasted like glory. That was Abby's way of taking care of him. "You were trying to stop the bomb, weren't you?" Her eyes expressed what she couldn't with her fingers. If you had stayed there, you would have died.

"We saw you here. Cole offered to take care of it." They didn't know what to think. The guy died so they could have a chance of surviving, when he hadn't cared about killing others before.

"They all must be worried", she finally quipped. "Tony, Ziva, McGee, Dr, Ryan…"

"Dr. Ryan's gone", was Gibbs' reply. She couldn't help smiling a little. "The others haven't replied to our messages. I think I saw McGee upstairs…"

"They're all ok, right? They must be", Abby stated, although she wasn't nearly as certain as she would have liked. She grabbed his face and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Just in case we don't make it".

"We'll make it", he assured her. But that's when the awful realization came to him: the car was parked right in front of the lab's window and had been for a week, and it detonated just as he went to look for her. It didn't detonate when Vance was in the car, or when he was trying to defuse the bomb. That bastard Dearing was onto him. He knew his weakness wasn't the shrink that had just left, but the scientist working in the basement, and that was his way of sending him a message. The fucking asshole.

Hey Jude, don't make it bad

Take a sad song and make it better

Remember to let her under your skin

Then you'll begin to make it

Better better better better better better, oh

"I'm sorry", Gibbs signed.

"Why?"

"Dating other women, not telling you you're my love. I was just trying to keep you safe."

"That's not how it works", she replied.

"I know that now. I don´t want to lose you. I love you." And it was true. They were so far in all of this, the only safe distance was no distance, they only way they could be fine was to be together.

"I love you, I don't want to lose you either", was her answer.

He kissed her just like she had moments ago. Just in case. It was the last thing he did before they both inevitably fell unconscious.