Growing Up McGee

The Tragedy - Chapter 29

A Couple Hours Later

Morgan was sitting in her pajamas in the lab drinking hot chocolate. Abby had gone by McGee's house to get Morgan's suitcases, knowing that they were going to be holed up in the building for a while.

Morgan hadn't said much since she and McGee came back down from the roof, but Abby knew that hot chocolate would make her talk.

"So, what happened up there?" Abby asked, also in her PJs with a cup of hot chocolate.

"I was mad that he was going to Paraguay, so I went to the roof to clear my head." Morgan told her, taking a sip of her beverage. "He found me, and we talked about why he wanted to go, and he promised that he would come home."

"That's a tough promise to keep." Abby observed.

"Well, I don't have anything else to believe in." Morgan told her. "A promise will have to do."

"But that's not all you're upset about, right?" Abby questioned. "I noticed you were upset before the whole Paraguay thing."

Morgan took a long sip before answering. "Yeah, I called Luke earlier, and he didn't want things to go any further."

"Why?"

"Mainly because we won't get to see each other much, which is understandable." She explained. "We only get to see each other at bonfires, and you know Dad would take me to Paraguay with him before letting me go to another one of those. He's also going to high school next year, which will make things even more difficult."

"Those are just reasons not to date right now." Abby reasoned. "When you get to high school, it may be a different story."

"He'll probably be over me by the time I get to high school." Morgan said.

"Maybe." Was all Abby could say before McGee walked in.

"What are we talking about?" He asked, trying to join.

"Definitely not bonfires and boys." Abby responded slyly.

Morgan normally would have been upset that she snitched, but she knew Abby did it to get on her Dad's nerves, which made her smile a bit.

"Well, I'm trying to erase that night from my memory, so let's talk about something else." McGee replied.

"Like what?" Morgan asked.

"Um..." McGee trailed off, trying to think of something. "I could tell you about an old case."

"Oh, you should tell her about that time you were held hostage in that women's prison!" Abby offered excitedly.

Morgan laughed. "A women's prison?"

"They were very aggressive." McGee shot back, trying to defend himself. "I also went in alone, so I didn't have any backup in the room. But I'm not getting into that tonight."

The two girls were silent for a few moments, which caused him to cave and tell a rather biased version of the story. Morgan could tell that some of it was fabricated, and Abby gave her a 'I'll tell you the real story later' look.

A few more stories later, it was 10:30 at night, and Morgan could tell that she was getting tired. She didn't want the night to end, though. This was the most fun she'd had in months and her father was leaving for Paraguay the next day. But she knew she would need strength for the upcoming day, so she said her goodnights and retired to her futon, putting in her airpods and letting Taylor Swift sing her to sleep.

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Morgan woke up around 9:30, a little later than she would have liked, but it still gave her some time until the afternoon. When she walked into the lab, Abby wasn't there, so she picked out some clothes and got ready in the bathroom. When she returned, Abby was standing by her computer with Chick-fil-A.