Work Text:
I'm Ignoring You
by Prizessin
Kate didn't like the feel of things when she slid back into the car. The first difference she noticed was that Gibbs was behind the wheel and Tony was in the passenger seat. Gibbs looked angry and Tony looked sullen. They were soon back on the highway, and so far, nothing had been said. Nothing needed to be said, the tension spoke loud enough. Kate knew a disagreement had occurred while she was in the restroom, it had been building for quite some time. While Gibbs concentrated on driving, Tony stared out the passenger side window, his head turned away from Gibbs. And Gibbs didn't look over at Tony once.
The car was quiet...too quiet. Usually, she liked it when Tony was quiet in the car, mostly because it almost never happened. Now she wished someone would say something. She knew she shouldn't, she shouldn't ask what had taken place while she was gone. If she was meant to know, whatever it was would've happened with her present.
Between the steady sounds of car on highway, the silence from the other two men in the car and the adult contemporary radio songs, she soon succumbed to the nap that was nagging at her. She woke a while later to find that the situation hadn't changed much. Except that Tony was curled in his seat, his back to Gibbs.
"You want to switch off?" she asked, figuring that her boss might be tired, especially when one occupant was sleeping and the other had just woken up.
"No, I'm fine. Go back to sleep, I'll wake you when we get there."
She could hear the tiredness in his voice, but there was more there. She deferred, closing her eyes again. But try as she did, she couldn't go back to sleep. She kept her eyes closed, trying to figure out what she might have missed. It didn't take her long to place it.
They were acting like her parents did when they fought. It was usually her father that said something wrong or offended her mother somehow, then her mother would go about the silent treatment until he swallowed his pride and apologized. And Tony using the silent treatment was as noticeable as a flashing hot pink neon sign. She was just surprised that Gibbs hadn't already tried to mend things. But he had a lot of pride, and a stubborn streak with its own ZIP code.
She cracked her eyes open, noticing that sunset had come and gone. The world around her was dark now, the only light coming from other cars, assorted town lights or the glow of the car's electronics. She hadn't moved, she didn't need to. Darkness covered her alertness to the situation. She could watch without them knowing.
Gibbs reached over, a hand on Tony's shoulder and shook gently. Gibbs' hand was pushed away. Her boss' shoulders sagged a bit, then righted again. The process was repeated a couple times before Tony moved.
"Pay attention, I'm ignoring you."
Then Tony curled back up. But the lack of steady breathing told her he wasn't asleep. He was upset and trying to hide it. Her eyes flickered to Gibbs, who it seemed was ignorant of Tony's condition. And while she actually wanted to provide some sort of comfort, it wasn't her place. And it was most likely do more harm than good.
She had fallen asleep a short time later, and was now being woken by her boss. Her eyes opened slowly and she sat up straight.
"What time is it?" she asked, trying to sound more awake than she was.
"Close to two in the morning. Go home, sleep in, be here by 0900."
She nodded, getting out of the car. After taking her gear with her, she started toward her car. She turned to see that the passenger side door was open, Gibbs kneeling by the seat. She hoped he was pleading his case and apologizing. She figured she'd find out in the morning.
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