Growing Up McGee

The Tragedy - Chapter 34

The next morning, Morgan woke up in Gibb's guest bedroom. She groggily shoved the covers off of her back and grabbed her phone on the bedside table. It was 7:00. Tali had texted her fifteen minutes before, saying that Tony had left to pick up her father from the hospital. This gave her some time to get up and get ready, so she went into the bathroom, showered, brushed her teeth, did her hair, and put on makeup for the first time since she was at the Fieldings. She needed mascara to brighten the dullness of her eyes and concealer to hide the bags under them. As she was brushing out her eyebrows, she noticed a bruise on her arm. She was confused, but then realized it was from last night while she was giving blood. She attempted to put concealer on it, which worked a little bit, but opted for a sweatshirt to hide her arm altogether. It was the middle of fall, so it wouldn't be strange for her to wear it. When she was finished in the bathroom, she made up the bed and packed all the belongings she took out of her duffle bag.

When she walked into the kitchen, she could smell waffles and hear the crackling of fresh bacon. Gibbs was looking in the refrigerator, but heard her footsteps and turned around.

"Mornin'." He greeted, pouring a glass of orange juice.

"Good morning." She replied, taking a seat at the table.

Gibbs brought her the glass of orange juice. "Hope you like bacon and waffles."

Morgan smiled. "Who doesn't like bacon and waffles?"

That made Gibbs chuckle a little bit. "Good point."

They sat down and ate breakfast for a while, Gibbs being a lot more talkative than he was the night before. She really enjoyed his company, but could tell that he was doing it because he felt bad for her. Even though everyone's sympathy had gotten old months ago, Morgan always liked listening to the agents tell stories about old cases, so she didn't complain.

It was about 9:00 when Morgan was helping Gibbs wash the last of the dishes when they heard the door open. Morgan's heart skipped a beat, knowing who it was. She stared blankly ahead of her, plate and sponge in her hand, contemplating on how to best approach the situation. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Gibbs looking down at her. "Go get your stuff, I can finish up the dishes later."

Morgan nodded and snuck into the guest bedroom to gather her things. This was the moment that she spent days waiting for. Scratch that, the moment she spent months waiting for. Even though this whole Paraguay thing has only lasted a few days, she has waited for the chaos to stop for over three months. It had been one thing after the other: the accident, the Fielding's, the attempted kidnapping, Paraguay, her father almost dying. Now, she was nearing the end of this saga in her life. She thought she would be overjoyed, but there was a sense of emptiness. She always had a pretty structured life until recently. She always yearned for that stability again, but there was something exhilarating about not knowing what huge obstacle would come next. Now that she had conquered all of those obstacles, there was nothing left (besides school, therapy, and the awkward moments where her Dad would try to fill the gaps her mother left behind). Instead of missing structure, she craved spontaneity.

This was the moment where she decided not to live her life by the book. She wouldn't live conventionally and she wouldn't conform to any kind of expectations. She had survived this much danger and sorrow, so now was her chance to live her life the way she wanted to. This gave her a newfound confidence, and she could see it when she looked in the mirror and feel it coursing through her veins.

She grabbed her duffel bag and made her way to the living room, where Gibbs and her father were talking. She placed her bag on the floor, which was loud enough to catch the men's attention. They stared at her for a moment. Her father looked a little confused while Gibbs smiled and shook his head, as if he could read her mind.

"Hey, Dad." She said, running over to hug him.

McGee, who was getting a little emotional, hugged her back. "Hey, honey."

As they broke the hug, McGee placed a hand on her shoulder. "How've you been the last few days?"

That's a loaded question, She thought to herself. "I've been good."

"Glad to hear it." Her father replied. "Well, I think we've bothered Gibbs enough. It's time to go home."

"Finally." Morgan said, smiling.

"I'll get your bags." McGee offered, but as he walked to go pick it up, Morgan noticed something.

"Hey, did everything go okay at the hospital." She asked him, pretending to be oblivious. "I noticed you're walking with a limp."

Gibbs rolled his eyes, knowing what she was doing.

"Uhh, yeah, I'm fine." McGee stuttered awkwardly. "I just pulled a muscle in my leg while getting into the helicopter."

"Oh, okay." Morgan replied. "Good thing it wasn't anything worse."

"Yep." Was all McGee said as he reached down to get the bag.

Gibbs gave her the "don't give him a hard time" look, but Morgan just smiled at him and hugged him.

"Thanks for letting me stay, Gibbs."

Gibbs sighed and hugged her back. "Anytime."

About twenty minutes later, the two McGee's arrived at their house. They walked in to see some of Morgan's things still in the middle of the living room, exactly where she left them when Cormac had helped her escape. That seemed like years ago, when in reality it was about a week. A lot of different emotions hit her at once, and she must have zoned out for a minute because her Dad nudged her and asked, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Morgan took a deep breath. "Yeah. I'll be okay."

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Well, this is the end of the storyline! I've appreciated all the support I've gotten in these past few months! This story has come so far since I first wrote it, as well as Morgan's character. I've enjoyed writing her character for the past few years, and I don't plan to stop anytime soon. I've already written most of the next storyline, and I'm so excited to share it with y'all, so be on the lookout for it. Thank you for reading :) <3