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"Lucky... " - Nick exhaled and threw his backpack beside his desk. Just in time - a minute later McGee was back from Vance's and didn't seem to notice him. Tim was hanging around his desk as if he had lost something and was trying to find it.
"McGee? Is everything okay? Did you lose something?"
"Torres? How long have you been here?"
"Since 2016 I think." Nick smirked rubbing the back of his head.
"Huh, okay. I meant today."
"I get it McGee. It's called humor. But you don't seem to be in the mood for jokes, do you?"
Tim brushed his hand and glanced toward Ellie's desk with a frown. Without waiting for the question, Nick blurted out without thinking: "probably stopped for coffee as usual and got stuck in traffic" (which was only half true).
"Mm-hmm. Black with cream and more sugar..." McGee nodded his head, pretty sure that was the kind she usually drank, because he'd bought her one a few times himself.
"Actually, it's just black..." Nick shook his shoulder, as if that wasn't such a big deal.
"Since when?"
"Oh, Tim, always?"
"But...but when I brought coffee for everyone...that's what I thought she was drinking?"
"Huh, no. She was taking mine - but I never told you that, and she was giving hers to Palmer. Besides, I only prefer coffee in the morning: water is better during the day, McGee."
"How well do you know her?"
"Well...We' ve been working together for a long time. (Yeah, and not just working, but you don't need to know that). Things like that are memorable."
"No, no. But since I’ve been working with her longer, you can't claim to know her better".
"Longer? Since when is that an excuse? Longer doesn't mean better".
Ellie cleared her throat, interrupting their conversation by clearly startling them with her appearance, and Nick was ready to swallow the last words and fall through the ground. "Bishop! We were just talking about you".
"Ugh, yeah... So is it true about the coffee? Do you drink it without sugar?"
"Yeah. What does it have to do with better or longer?" Ellie took off her coat, looking at them, not grasping the point of their argument.
"Nick claims he knows you better than I do, but that's impossible, because we've been working together longer and accordingly I know more about you than he does".
"That's where you're both wrong. No one knows me better than I know myself".
"Shall we check?"
"What, Nick, why? I know what I'm talking about."
"Nuh-uh... afraid of losing?"
"Of what? That I know what my favorite color is?"
"Black" - McGee replied confidently.
"Graphite black!" - clarified Nick.
"What?" - Ellie and Tim blurted out at the same time.
"What? Am I wrong?"
"Ahem, you just got lucky. Apparently I've said that before".
"Lucky? Let's have the next question".
"Ugh, we don't have an investigation?"
Tim glanced at his watch and checked his phone in case it was off again. "Actually, no. You know what? Now I just have to beat Torres. Give me the next question".
"There's a better idea...let's just work!" Ellie didn't like the idea at all. Sure McGee was right: they'd been working together for years, but Nick knew things about her that many people didn't need to know at all (especially nobody needs to know about their relationship). And it's not even about her favorite color: it's graphite, not just black. Many people didn't see the difference, but to Ellie, as a painting person, it was a huge difference.
"No way. I'll back McGee. It'll be fun".
"Hm...fun you say? How about we start from you?"
"Whoa! Bishop chickened out?" Nick stepped closer to her desk toward her. Ellie took another step toward him: "Torres chickened out?"
"Ahem, guys? I suggest two rounds. Five questions from both".
Ellie and Nick exchanged a glance and backed away from each other. "Two? What about you, McGee?"
"Me? Pfft, I don't have any secrets".
"Huh, said Tim, who goes home early every Wednesday". Nick looked at him defiantly, suggesting he give away his secrets.
"I don't leave early, you imagined".
"Aha...mister I don't have any secrets. Three rounds or we just keep working and pretend this conversation never happened".
McGee wrinkled his nose, but his desire to prove a point to Nick overpowered his laziness. "Okay, fine. Three rounds. Anything that doesn't involve work".
Nick put his palm up and Ellie clapped it, but stopped just in time to avoid kissing him on the cheek out of habit.
*Ellie
"So...McGee I believe in you.
- How many foreign languages do I know?
- How old I was when I got my first bicycle?
- Why I don't like winter?
- If I choose what to snack on, will it be something sweet or salty?
- Calls or text messages?"
McGee and Nick wrote down the answers, hiding the sheets of paper from each other. Nick smirked every time Tim managed to write before him.
"Ahem, McGee, seriously? Just one?! How is that possible? Language skills are all you know about me outside of work?"
"Nonsense!"
Nick held out his sheet to Ellie and with each plus one, McGee's face widened in surprise. "Not nonsense, McGee! Five out of five from Nick". Ellie tilted her head sideways to at least hide her rosy cheeks a little. McGee snatched up the sheet and compared Nick's answers to his own. "First bike at 12 years old? That late?"
"McGee, three older brothers. Until I broke all of them, I was refused to buy my own. Of course my parents are still convinced that all the breakages were accidental...but let's not talk about that."
"So you like winter after all, and it's all about Christmas? Very sly, Bishop. What do you mean sweet and salty? Is that possible?"
"McGee, remember when I asked you for a couple of dollars for chips?" - Nick decided to explain his answer.
"Yeah, and you haven't paid me back yet by the way..."
"Oops!"
"Well, I was fifty percent right on that last one. Calls in the morning, texts at night... I don't even want to know..." McGee handed the sheets back, and was glad he kept his mouth shut and didn't bet his money.
"So how long have you been working together?"- asked Nick, feeling his superiority.
"Oh, Torres, don't gloat, it's your turn Tim. Let's see how well Nick handles your questions".
"Huh, so you're absolutely sure of yourself?"
"Of course I am, Nick. What can go wrong?"
McGee's questions were ridiculously simple, but Nick decided to play a joke on him, determined to cheer everyone up.
"My first book wasn't titled 'The Adventures of the Elf Lord', Nick, but thanks for the idea. Overall, not bad, I told you I have no secrets. Now I'm a little embarrassed, Bishop".
Ellie shrugged and turned to Nick, rubbing her palms together in anticipation of questions from him. "Torres, how many riddles are there in you? I wonder how many I'll be able to solve".
"Hmm ugh, I'm the exact opposite of McGee". Nick teased her and casually ran his palm across her back, nudging her closer to him.
"Oh, damn. Another time? You're lucky, Torres, we got a dead body."
"...Yeah, I really hope you're oblivious..."
McGee may have forgotten with all the work that had fallen on him in Gibbs' absence, but Ellie was looking forward to getting home. She liked the idea for some reason: if Nick knew a lot about her, she wanted to test herself.
"Ellie, stop staring at me..."
"Can you see with your eyes closed?"
"I can feel your questioning gaze...what's wrong?" Nick turned to her, bringing her lips close to his.
"Mhhm...You surprised me today. I didn't think you were listening to my entire pointless stream of words".
"Ellie, Ellie, I love you, of course I'm listening to you. I remember everything".
"Ugh, now that's a little creepy".
Nick rolled her over on top of him, almost roaring, digging his lips into her neck, tickling her under her ribs. Ellie shrieked, trying to free herself from his embrace, but he covered her body with kisses as he continued to roar softly. "I'm your creepy boyfriend. And I really, really love you".
Ellie laughed out loud and kissed him on the lips, pulling off a lingering moan. "And seriously, Nick, I feel like you know more about me than I do about you."
"That's not true, baby. You can ask anything you want to know."
"But I want you to share with me what's important to you yourself, Nick."
"Ugh... EIlie, right now?"
She sighed, getting off of him and lying down with her back turned to him. Nick rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingers, cursing this morning and McGee at the same time. The idiotic argument that had just become an excuse to fight. He pursed his lips and turned his head in her direction.
"I hate it when you turn your back on me".
Ellie hummed with a twitch of her shoulder, but she didn't even think about turning back, instead she covered her eyes, pretending to sleep. Nick began slowly pulling the blanket off her, knowing how much she didn't like sleeping uncovered. All her attempts to hold the blanket in place were unsuccessful.
"Nick, come on...I want to sleep."
He wrapped her in the blanket and pressed her against his chest, kissing her tightly.
"I don't like fighting with you. I don't like you leaving lipsticks in my car. I still have nightmares about that car accident. Our first time working together on the field as partners was awful: we almost got shot, and I can't forgive myself for that."
"Nick..."
"Shh...I'm not done." Ellie hummed again and turned around in his arms, pursing her lips. Fake resentment wasn't the best way to get him to talk, but it worked.
Nick went on for a long time talking about what he loved and what he couldn't stand, some things Ellie tried to resent because they had been about her. But Nick kissed her each time and whispered words of love and went on talking.
"...Also, when I was probably 8 years old, my sister used to make me watch her favorite TV show with her... ugh, what else. Hmm, I exchanged my cap for a comic book when I was about 10, and what I'm saying is it wasn't worth it. The magazine was frayed and it didn't have the last page, so I didn't find out how it ended. You probably already guessed that we had a fight with that kid".
"Mhm, did you win?"
"...No...I was short, El. Shh, no jokes about it."
"I wouldn't do that, Nick. You're perfect to me".
Already soon, he was yawning more often, and it was very infectious. Ellie covered her eyes for a second and immediately fell asleep to his voice, which was getting lower and quieter, huskier - just the way she liked it. Nick kissed her again, and followed her to sleep.
***
Sometimes we think we know ourselves better than anyone else does.
However, the longer Nick and Ellie were together, the more they opened up to each other, and were reminded of things they were used to and didn't give much thought to.
But it was all the more satisfying to know that the person you loved was sharing a piece of themselves as they got to know you better, opening up in return.