Old Tools, Old Ghosts
"Let's get the truck unloaded and then we can relax and eat lunch." Callen climbed in the back of the truck and started handing stuff to Sam. "Here take the ladder off so we can get the wood out."
"Sure G, where do you want me to put the ladder?" Sam easily lifted the ladder out and walked towards the garage. "How about we put it all in the garage for now?"
"Ok, let me unlock the door and see how much room there is; I need to put the truck in here later on." Unlocking and pulling up the door both men studied the space left beside the car already in the garage. "I don't know Sam there doesn't seem to be a lot of room in here; maybe we should put most of it on the patio."
"We can do that G, but are you sure you want to leave all this stuff outside? Suppose someone decides they need a little home repair work and wants to save money by using your stuff." He smiled at his partner "I think we should put it all in the garage; if you don't want to leave Reba out overnight you can always move your car, you know the $80,000.00 Jag to the driveway and park Reba inside."
"Very funny Sam, I've only got one word to say to you. Charlene, it's not like you parked her outside now is it." G smirked at Sam "Didn't you have her in a climate controlled storage area with security?"
Sam had a pained look on his face "Please you can't be comparing this monster truck wanna be to my classic Challenger? That's not cool G, not cool in any way."
Throwing his hands up "I'm just saying don't be talking crap about my ride. This is a garage; you're supposed to keep your car in the garage. That's all I want to do, keep my car & my truck in my garage."
"I'm not telling you not to keep your truck in your garage; I'm just saying if you leave building materials outside more than likely they won't be here in the morning." Sam picked up a box of nails and carried them to the patio. "I'm trying to look out for you G; you're new to this homeowner thing."
"Look Sam if it makes you feel any better I'm going to put down a tarp and move all this inside. So quit acting like my mother and get busy before lunch gets cold."
"Fine why don't you grab the rest of this stuff and we'll be done." He dropped the last load of wood on the stack before going back to grab the food bags out of the car. "You got anything to drink with this?"
Callen walked inside to get a couple of beers before sitting beside Sam on the steps outside. "Here you go, thanks for helping me out today."
"Anytime G, you know I got your back." Unwrapping the turkey burger he took a big bite.
Feeling his partner's eyes on his back Callen finally gave a sigh and turned to face Sam. "Ok spit it out, what is it you're dying to ask me about?"
"The storage unit, what all do you have in there and where did it come from? I thought the only thing you owned was the bed roll and the stuff in your box."
"Unfortunately you don't get to be my age without some stuff sticking to you." There was a pained look in the blue eyes. "Anyway when it became obvious a few years ago that I needed to keep some things the storage unit was an easy solution. I rented it under a different name and paid the rent in advance for several years."
"Makes sense to do it that way, I'm guessing Hetty knows?" Sam spoke quietly not wanting Callen to shut down and stop talking. "Where did you get the tool box, it looks pretty well used."
"An old friend gave it to me a long time ago; said one day I would need it that a real man needed to know how to fix things. He taught me how to use most of the tools in it.' He smiled at the memory of the faded blue eyes teaching him how to sand and varnish a piece of wood, how to hammer a straight nail and use a wrench. "It was one of the first things I put in the storage unit."
"That has to be Gibbs, right?" Getting an affirmative nod he kept on "What else you got in there if you don't mind me asking."
"Not much really; some old books and papers, a few pieces of clothes, you know it's just stuff. Don't you have stuff you keep for no reason?"
Sam knew he had gotten as much information as he was going to get at this point, if he kept pushing Callen would shut down and withdraw. "Cool, sounds like what anyone would keep in a storage unit."
"You never did answer me, what kind of table are you planning on building?" He would let it go for now, but Sam knew there was something important in the unit that his partner didn't want to speak of. "I figure if Gibbs taught you how to use those tools you must be pretty good with them."
"I think an all-purpose table; you know big enough to clean your weapons or work on your computer at. I guess it could be called a dining table except I don't really do the whole dinning thing. Anyway I figure if I'm going to have a hobby it might as well produce something useful."
"I'm glad you're serious about this hobby thing, I've always said you needed something besides reading Russian Literature to occupy your time." He laughed as he got up to throw away their garbage. "Maybe now you'll start listening to the other stuff I tell you; how to eat better and take care of your body. Stop putting all that crap in it."
"Right Sam that will happen about the same time I meet a nice girl and settle down." Callen smirked "Don't hold your breath; it's just a hobby not a lifestyle change."