1 Month Ago
St. Petersburg, Russia
Gibbs' undercover apartment
"I just hate not knowing Gibbs." Abbey said as she tossed an empty pizza box in the garbage. Even though it tasted different and always had a chewy texture, pizza was one of the things that made her miss D.C. "We've been working the case for three months; they have to have enough evidence by now." She plopped down on the couch exasperated.
"Yeah, I know how you feel." Gibbs stated and sat on the opposite end. He looked over at Abbey studying her; then he reached out and grabbed the sleeve of her shirt. "Is this blood?"
Abbey glanced down at the stain in question and nodded. "Yeah…" She paused for a moment but knew that Gibbs wouldn't press for information, so she continued. "You remember Sam?"
"Viktor's new hired muscle." He answered.
Abbey sighed and leaned back into the couch. "Well, he was caught selling surplus arms on the side Viktor asked me if I could get him to admit to it since he was always friendly towards me. Usually they just teach guys like that a lesson…"
Gibbs rubbed his chin absentmindedly. "Not this time?"
"Not this time." She stood up and disappeared into the kitchen.
Gibbs heard the sink turn on and he knew that she was trying to scrub the blood off her shirt. He got up and grabbed a white t-shirt from a stack in his bedroom and headed to the kitchen where Abbey stood at the sink violently rubbing a wet towel on the stain.
"Here." Gibbs said and held out the shirt to her.
She looked up to see what he was offering. She smiled and took the shirt. Not bothering to leave the room Abbey turned around and stripped off her old shirt and replaced it with the new one. Over the past couple of months the two of them had grown close to each other. After they realized that the trip to Russia was not going to be a short one, the trust between them grew stronger. Each of them used the other to hold onto their lives back home.
Abbey turned back around. The shirt hung loosely around her, but not in an unflattering way. "Thank you." She said.
Gibbs just nodded his head and they went back into the living room.
"It's late, I should get going."Abbey stated.
He looked down at his watch. "It's more than late, you should stay."
Abbey laughed. "You know I do have my own apartment."
Gibbs smiled which was a rare sight. "This one is just more convenient." He disappeared into the bedroom for a moment then reemerged with a pillow and a blanket. "I'll take the couch." He started to set them down on the cushions, but Abbey took them out of his hands and walked back to the bedroom.
"I don't know why you say that every time. You never sleep out there." She joked.
Gibbs followed her shaking his head. "I have to offer."
Both of them climbed into different sides of the bed and laid down.
"Goodnight Gibbs."
"Night Abbey."
They lay there for a while and finally Gibbs heard Abbey's breathing become slow and rhythmic. He quietly got up and rechecked the locks on the front door. When he was satisfied that they were secure her went back and laid down. He slung his arm around Abbey, pulling her closer, and fell into a dreamless sleep.