Time Management!

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Thanks to all my readers old and new! Thanks to Chelsea1234 for giving me the inspiration to write and publish my goofy works!

Dedicated. That one word could be used to describe Abby when she was involved in a case. She was dedicated to the precision of science and she was dedicated to the truth. But sometimes her dedication could lead her into a heap of trouble and today was one of those days.

"Come on my little babies, speak to mama!" Abby sang as she twirled around and around in her chair. Abby like to get a different perspective sometimes and getting spin drunk always gave her that. Abby had 3 separate cases going at the same time. Granted, she was mainly a Team Gibbs player, when other lab rats could not figure something out, they turned to their favorite Goth. It was approaching 6am and she had not left the lab since yesterday morning when she first clocked in, except for her bathroom calls and her stomach rolling. She knew that sometimes she got in over her head, but usually one of her 'family' would set her aside and help her out, but she had been trying to stay under the radar. "Hurry! Please guys just this once. If Gibbs gets a catches me here, I am toast! " Abby remembered what she had promised Gibbs yesterday.

FLASHBACK****

It was already after 9pm and Gibbs had noticed that the rest of his agents had left for the evening. Standing up to cut off his lamp, he did not remember seeing Abby pass his desk on her way out. Walking down the steps to catch her off guard, he heard the music well before he saw her standing in front of the microscope. She was so engrossed in her scope she did not even see Gibbs walk past her and shut off her music.

"What Son of a…. Oh! Hey Gibbs." Abby saw as she saw him quickly move into her personal space. She quickly turned to face towards him, just to make sure her backside was away from danger.

"Abby, come on time to go home. Start shutting down now." Gibbs said as he had one hand on her arm, trying to escort her to her machines and make sure that she is done.

"Wait! Gibbs! I can't just up and leave now."

"Oh, yeah you can, you have been here for 15 hours and I see 8 Caf-Pows and no food wrappers, so in my opinion, you ARE done." Gibbs now growled at her. He knew that Abby was one to get so entranced in her job that she would forget to feed herself, and it was his fatherly duties to make sure she takes care of herself.

"OK! Listen!" Abby sputtered as Gibbs tried to pull her towards the mass Spec. Abby pulled hard, stopping Gibbs. "Seriously Gibbs, I can't leave. It would ruin all my evidence!"

"How soon?" Gibbs barked out.

"One hour max. Listen I promise, I will leave as soon as they are done. Go on home. You need your beauty rest." She snickered.

"I am warning you now, Abigail. You had better be out of here in one hour. I will call the guard's desk, just to make sure." Gibbs threatened.

"Got it , dad! Geesh! You would think I was twelve, not well, old enough not to have everybody in my business" Abby swung around, upset that she was having to compromise, just to do her job.

Gibbs quickly grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her to face him again. He landed one hard swat.

OW! Abby yelped as she tried to rub her backside.

" Then I suggest you start acting you age and start taking care of yourself. You will not like the consequences if I find you here later than 2230. I am giving you an extra half hour so there is no room for OOPS! So help me Abby, I will make that one swat you just received seem like a love tap. Are we clear?" Gibbs said in his low steely voice.

"Crystal, sir" Abby added just to antagonize Gibbs.

As soon as Gibbs left her machines starting spitting out what she needed. All except for Major Mass Spec, he was being stubborn. "Come on!" While she waited on Major Mass Spec to finish Abby started shutting down her babies. KNOCK KNOCK . Turning around she saw Fornell, standing in her lab door, holding a bag and soaking wet.

"Sorry about the late hour Abby, but this is of national security and I need an answer now." Fornell said as he entered her lab.

"Did 'cha forget to take you clothes off before you showered again, Fornell?" Abby asked with a laugh.

"HA HA! Not funny, I was chasing a known terrorist when he threw this knife into a creek and I did not want to take any chance of water degrading any of the evidence, so I jumped it to retrieve it. Our lab is backed up and can't get to this until later this week, I want this terrorist in bars tomorrow, and so can you help me?" Fornell asked as he raised his eyebrows in a silent plea.

Knowing that doing this would break her deal with Gibbs, but also she knew she could not turn away a friend asking for help. "I will do it only on one condition. I need you to distract the guard."

"Why?" Fornell asked.

"Well, I don't want this time on my NCIS paycheck. They are tightening back on the overtime. So I will just sign out like I am leaving, and while he is still distracted I will come back in."

Fornell understood the whole cutting back on pay, which was part of the reason his lab was so backed up. "OK, can do."

After the whole faking the sign out and getting back down to her lab hit no hitches, Abby dismissed Fornell and told him to be here at 0600 sharp in her lab. She would give him the results before the rest of her 'family'. Or so she thought.

Around 11pm, Gibbs called the front security gate. "Hello, this is Special Agent Gibbs, I am checking to see if Abigail Scuito signed out last night. She did around 2230, Good ,, thanks." Even though the guard said she had signed out, his gut still churned.

PRESENT TIME***

McGee was hoping to get in before the rest of his team. He hoped to get started before Tony, he was tired on his incessant babbling. A little quiet time could help McGee catch up on the paperwork. As he parked his car, he noticed Abby's still sitting in the same spot as yesterday. Maybe he needed to check on her.

McGee entered the lab to see Abby talking to the machines. "Come on my little babies, speak to mama!" Abby sang as she twirled around and around in her chair. Abby like to get a different perspective sometimes and getting spin drunk always gave her that. Abby had 3 separate cases going at the same time. Granted, she was mainly a Team Gibbs player, when other lab rats could not figure something out, they turned to their favorite Goth. It was approaching 6am and she had not left the lab since yesterday morning when she first clocked in, except for her bathroom calls and her stomach rolling. She knew that sometimes she got in over her head, but usually one of her 'family' would set her aside and help her out, but she had been trying to stay under the radar. "Hurry! Please guys just this once. If Gibbs gets a catches me here, I am toast! "

"Why?" McGee asked from the door.

AHHH! "My God McGee, you almost gave me a coronary! What..What are you doing here… Why Oh Why…Oh Please don't tell Gibbs…Please…Pretty Please…" Abby rambled. She had tons of caffeine in her system and was majorly rolling.

"What? Don't tell Gibbs…Wait, Abs" McGee had to put his hands on her shoulders just to keep her still. "Abby, How many caf-pows?"

"Ummmmm! I don't know, I lost count after 6 or 8 I think." Abby could not keep still. She felt like her insides were made of jello and any movement set them to jiggling. Her pupils were dilated and her heartbeat was erratic and fast, but she hoped she could put McGee at ease. "I am fine, I am just tired, I came in real early."

"Abby, I felt the hood of your car and it was cold, it had not been run in a while. So either, you tell me the truth or I will go to Gibbs." McGee threatened, he knew Abby was pushing herself too hard and now he was worried that she might make herself sick.

"Oh,, way to go MCSnoopy! Just leave me to me and go take care of you." Abby did not make much sense but she just wanted McGee gone. She knew one way to get McGee to keep quiet. "OHHH! Timmmy! I am sorry, you know how hormonal I get when my menstrual cycle starts and I start to.."

"Oh, fine Abby, just keep your hormones to yourself." McGee was now flushed red to the tip of ears as he turned and left the lab.

"Works everytime." She muttered to herself.

"Abby?" Fornell called her name as he entered her lab. It was a little after 0600 but he had overslept. By looking at the mess and empty caf-pows strewn over the lab, he deduced that Abby did not go home last night.

"In here, whew! You are cutting it close. You were right, the DNA matched your terrorist and I have included all the needed info in this envelope. So off you go, hurry , I don't want anyone to know so just go!"

"Thanks Abs." Fornell said as he left the lab and entered the elevator.

When the elevator stopped at the main level Fornell was stepping off and Gibbs was entering.

"Whatcha you doing here so early Fornell? Need to see Abby?" Gibbs asked as he sipped his coffee.

"Nope, just actually finished with your youngest! I tell you , what a mess. I have never seen her lab look out of whack."

"Just finished, when did she start this for you?" Gibbs asked. His famous gut starting to churn again.

"Last night around 2200, I brought her this knife and needed DNA and my lab was backed up for weeks. I wanted this terrorist now, so Abby agreed to help me." Fornell said.

Gibbs just tilted his head towards the back of the elevator, hit a button and waited for the doors to close. As soon as they did he hit the emergency stop button, turning the elevator into his favorite conference room. "Did she leave with you?" Gibbs asked in a low voice.

"Um. Well not exactly." Fornell could see the change in Gibbs face, he was now getting angry.

"What do you mean, not exactly, Fornell?" Gibbs said.

"Well she asked me to distract the guard as she signed out, so she could return back to her lab and do this not own NCIS time and money. I .I can tell by the expression on you face that this was not supposed to have happened correct."

"You are right, Fornell. I specifically told Abby she had to leave by 2230 last night. She had been here for 15 hrs straight and was supposed to go home. I told her I was calling the guardhouse to check to make sure that she left. That is why she used you to distract the guard."

"So she lied to you and me. I swear Jethro sometimes she reminds me of Emily. Willing to lie just to get her way, no matter that us dads are not stupid, and we say what we say out of care and love. I apologize for the extra work, I should have made her wait."

"Forget it, Tobias. Abby knew what she was supposed to do, if she had thought that it was OK she would not have tricked you into covering for her. "

"OK, Gibbs. I hope you deal with this, I know I would if it was Emily." Fornell said as Gibbs flipped the power back on and the doors opened up.

"Oh, Don'tcha worry about that , lil miss Abby and I are going to have a conversation of lying and disobeying an order." Gibbs smirked as he exited the elevator. He was going to take the steps again, he liked sneaking up on her.