Chapter 12
Tim walked into the squad room and made his way to his desk.
"Guess what I heard when I called the Probie this morning, Ziva?" Tony teased.
"Are you still giving him a hard time?" Ziva asked.
"Oh, I've only just begun," Tony promised. "So… guess," he prompted.
"A woman, Tony, it's no big deal," McGee said. "It's not like it's the first time."
"Two nights in a row?" Ziva asked suspiciously. McGee smiled, refusing to rise to the bait.
"Come on, McGee," Tony taunted. "Give a little."
"It's none of your business, Tony," Tim answered. "I can't believe you called me that early just to confirm I was with someone. You clearly didn't have company." McGee enjoyed watching Tony squirm for a change.
Ziva guffawed, "Good one, McGee."
"A guy has to take a night off every once in a while," Tony defended.
"A Friday night?" Ziva questioned. "You're slipping, Tony."
"Gear up!" Gibbs barked, rushing into the squad room. "Ziva, gas the truck." She chuckled. Tony panicked.
"You're not going to let her drive, Boss?" Tony complained.
"I don't care who drives, just make it snappy. McGee, you're with me. Ducky's on his way. Let's roll!" Gibbs said as he stepped onto the elevator. The others rushed to catch up with him.
---
"Jen?" Julie said questioningly into her hotel room phone. She had decided to call her sister while she was there gathering her things.
"Julie!" Jen answered, delighted to hear from her sister. "How are you?" she asked. Julie smiled.
"I've had a bit of an adventure, but things are good now," she explained. "I'm in town."
"From where are you calling?" she asked.
"I'm currently at the Mandarin Oriental, but I'll be checking out soon."
"You simply must stay with me for a few days," Jenny insisted. Her words, as usual, were perfectly annunciated and properly polite. Julie tried to muster some enthusiasm for her sister. She knew Jenny truly cared for her.
"I'm staying in town for a while, but I already have a place," Julie explained.
"But you're checking out of your hotel?" Jen interrogated. "Are you going to stay with Toby and Diane?"
"No, Mom," Julie teased.
"Okay, backing off," Jen said with a sweetness that rang a bit untrue. Julie shook her head. Why did her sister have to treat her like she wasn't old enough to make a decision for herself?
"I wondered if you would like to meet me for lunch," Julie proposed.
"That sounds delightful," Jenny consented.
---
"I've finished here, Jethro," Ducky commented after the team had thoroughly worked the crime scene. "I need to get our marine onto my table. Come along, Mr. Palmer," he said, gathering his gear and heading toward his truck. "It is the weekend, you know," Ducky continued.
"Coming, Dr. Mallard," Jimmy said, grabbing the rest of the gear and loading the truck.
"Let's get this evidence back to Abby," Gibbs said. "Come on, let's move it."
---
DiNozzo and McGee carried the boxes of evidence into Abby's lab.
"Hey boys," Abby greeted them. "I was wondering when you would get here. Gibbs called me in when he called you. I've been sitting here. Bored." She paused for a moment. "Did you know that at my current weight, in these shoes, the maximum speed I can spin in my chair is precisely the same speed at which…"
"Abby!" Gibbs interrupted, joining the others in the lab. "Later." He turned to the others. "McGee, see what you can do with the laptop," he ordered. "DiNozzo, upstairs."
"Wow," Abby said after Gibbs and Tony had left the room. "He's particularly crabby today." Tim shrugged his shoulders noncommittally. He had stopped trying to anticipate his boss's moods long ago. Tim began a thorough search of the laptop that had been recovered from the scene.
"There are some encrypted files, but the code looks fairly easy," he said aloud.
"I guess you would know something about that," Abby said acidly. Tim gave her a confused look.
"What?" he asked.
"Easy," she repeated. "Tony says you spent the past two nights with some mystery woman that you just met."
"First of all," Tim responded, "you shouldn't talk about things you don't know anything about and second of all…" he paused a moment in confusion, "why are you listening to Tony?" he asked.
"Because I'm curious," Abby said. "It's not like you to hold out on me," she said with a pout.
"Her name is Julie," Tim said. Abby almost couldn't remember the last time she had seen him smile that brightly. Almost.
"Where did you meet her?" she asked softly.
"I helped her out with something the other night," he said, not wanting to give away too much information.
"You slept with her the same day you met her? Tim! You can't do that!" she exclaimed.
"Actually, I didn't have sex with her until the next day. And I don't see what the problem is. You do it all the time," he countered.
"But that's different," she defended.
"How is that different?" he demanded.
"You're my best friend, Tim! I don't want to lose you to some brainless hussy that only wants to use you and throw you away!" Abby argued.
"You mean, like you did," he accused. Abby's face reflected the amount of hurt his statement had dealt her.
"I never used you, Tim. I love you. I'm not in love with you, but I never used you. You're my best friend," she repeated.
"I'm sorry for saying that, Abs," Tim said sincerely. He walked over and gave her a big hug, which she only partially returned. "I love you, too. And you are my best friend. You pushed me away from a relationship with you because I will always want more than you are willing to give," Tim said quietly. "I had a really hard time getting over you, Abs. Can you please at least try to be happy for me?" he asked.
"I'll try," Abby said with a smile. "So, what did she think of your tattoo?" she asked with a smirk. Tim smiled. If only she knew.
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