Reverse Psychology - NCIS Story

Making the Best of Things

Chapter 3 - Making the Best of Things

As the warmth of the late evening sun gradually ebbed from the room, five adults found themselves sitting silently in a dazed mixture of shock and exhaustion. The last eight hours had changed their lives in a way no one could have ever imagined. The only positive aspect to come from this otherwise depressing scene was the knowledge that, in the last ninety minutes, neither Tony nor Ziva had stirred from their blissful slumber and had remained unequivocally unchanged. That, in itself, brought some relief to the tension in the room.

Surprisingly it was Tim who broke the tangible silence. Shifting slightly in his chair, he raised himself and gathered together the picked over pizza boxes that were strewn across the coffee table. Taking her cue from McGee, Abby also moved and, wordlessly helped clear away the glasses and napkins. Heading into the kitchen, she set the glasses on the bench and turned on the coffee machine leaning her body against the counter and staring blankly into the space in front of her. She was pulled from her reverie when she noticed Tim staring at her expectantly.

"What Timmy?" she asked, annoyed at his blatant staring.

"I said, tough day hey" he repeated. He'd never seen Abby looking so shell-shocked.

"Yeah," she sighed. "Worse for Ziva and Tony though."

She placed her hands behind her on the bench and hoisted herself into a sitting position.

"I mean, how do you deal with something like this?" she asked aloud. "Like, I'm really pleased that the regressions have stopped but Gibbs is right, what do we do next? We've been left with a five and a ten year old. Can you imagine suddenly being ten years old again Tim?"

"Or worse, being five," Tim added.

"Exactly!" agreed Abby. "Ugh! Poor Tony and Ziva."

Suddenly Abby jumped down from the bench.

"I should be at work Timmy," she said, beginning to pace the room. "What am I doing here, I'm wasting precious time. I should be in my lab trying to figure out what that sicko used to make the serum and whether or not there's a cure."

"No Abbs," a firm voice resonated from the doorway. "You are right where you need to be."

"But Gibbs..."

"No Abby," repeated Gibbs. "Tonight is family. This day has been tough on all of us not just Tony and Ziva. We all need to rest, to talk about what we're gonna do next. Once that's sorted, then you can figure out what that bastard was using."

"So what are we going to do next, Jethro?" asked Jenny as she slipped into the kitchen and began taking mugs down from one of the cupboards.

"Coffee, then we hit the rack. Tony and Ziva are out of it and hopefully will stay that way until sunrise. I suggest we bunk down in the living room so we can hear anything if they do wake. I've got plenty of blankets and pillows. Up to you though. If you want to go home Jen, that's fine with me."

"Gibbs! How could you even think that!" exclaimed Abby. "You just said, 'tonight is family' so we're staying. All of us! Right Director Shepherd?"

Abby looked directly at Jenny in feigned innocence, daring her to disagree.

"Yes, Abby," replied Jenny, repressing a smile. Only Abby could think of matchmaking in the midst of mayhem and disaster.

"Besides," Abby added with a hint of mischief in her eyes. "Who's gonna take all those cute photos of mini Tony and Ziva with Papa Gibbs?"

Despite the hardened glare that was delivered, as he turned back to his coffee, Gibbs couldn't help smirking at the thought of what Tony would say if Abby started snapping random 'cutsie' photos of him and Ziva. Or worse, what Ziva would do. He wondered if, despite her size, Ziva could still find ways to inflict maximum pain on anyone who dared to call her 'cute'. He imagined she probably could!