Finding Sleep [open RP for albuquerque_liz and/or ncis_ljgibbs]
It's late when Jen and Noemi finally get back from the hospital. They checked her out, loaded her up with a round of IV fluids, and sent her home again. She's fine. She should just get used to the contractions and just keep treating them like she has been. They're going to be around for the next 18 weeks. She toes off her shoes by the door and Noemi follows her into the house. The old house is so still and dark. Everyone must be asleep. Somehow, she figured out Liz isn't there and she wonders if she's sleeping wherever she is.
"You want tea, señora?" Noemi asks quietly, watching Jen. Jen seems lost as she stands in space between the kitchen and the adjoining room.
"No, thank you, Noemi," she answers, blinking, realizing she was staring off into space. She's asleep on her feet and unsure of where she should go or what she should do. "You can go to bed," she adds. The other woman hesitates for a moment before nodding. She turns and heads for her room, leaving Jen alone.
She thinks about going upstairs to sleep in her bed, but Jethro is still passed out there. She knows she could kick him onto the floor and he wouldn't be the wiser, but the idea of sharing a space with him makes her skin prickle. His gripe about the nursery still stings like a slap in the face. Every time it enters her thoughts, she feels like she could burst into tears. Sleeping with him is out.
There is always the criminally comfy couch. She starts to make her way over to it, but once she gets there, she stops in front of it. Who is she kidding? She's too big to do much more than sit on the couch at this point. Her body hurts enough as it is; she doesn't need to cram it into places and positions it's not meant to go.
So she turns around, thinking she'll just go reclaim the bed back from her significant other--she's not even sure what to call him now--but as s he walks, she finds herself going not in the direction of her room, but towards Liz's. The door is closed, but she knows Liz isn't here, so she pushes it open. As she moves into the space, she realizes this is the only place in the house where she can find comfort. If Liz were actually here, it might be different, but for tonight, she finds a small bit of peace in the nightmare. The sweatpants she ended up in after the third bath will make perfectly fine PJs. The door is ajar and she doesn't bother to close it. She's too tired to care. It's almost 3am.
Jen crawls under the blankets and curls up on her left side. All the linens smell like Liz and she draws in a deep breath. She lets the breath out slowly and along with it, the tears and sobs that had been bottled up. Her hormones are raging and she can't help it. Eventually, she cries herself into solid, exhausted sleep.
"You want tea, señora?" Noemi asks quietly, watching Jen. Jen seems lost as she stands in space between the kitchen and the adjoining room.
"No, thank you, Noemi," she answers, blinking, realizing she was staring off into space. She's asleep on her feet and unsure of where she should go or what she should do. "You can go to bed," she adds. The other woman hesitates for a moment before nodding. She turns and heads for her room, leaving Jen alone.
She thinks about going upstairs to sleep in her bed, but Jethro is still passed out there. She knows she could kick him onto the floor and he wouldn't be the wiser, but the idea of sharing a space with him makes her skin prickle. His gripe about the nursery still stings like a slap in the face. Every time it enters her thoughts, she feels like she could burst into tears. Sleeping with him is out.
There is always the criminally comfy couch. She starts to make her way over to it, but once she gets there, she stops in front of it. Who is she kidding? She's too big to do much more than sit on the couch at this point. Her body hurts enough as it is; she doesn't need to cram it into places and positions it's not meant to go.
So she turns around, thinking she'll just go reclaim the bed back from her significant other--she's not even sure what to call him now--but as s he walks, she finds herself going not in the direction of her room, but towards Liz's. The door is closed, but she knows Liz isn't here, so she pushes it open. As she moves into the space, she realizes this is the only place in the house where she can find comfort. If Liz were actually here, it might be different, but for tonight, she finds a small bit of peace in the nightmare. The sweatpants she ended up in after the third bath will make perfectly fine PJs. The door is ajar and she doesn't bother to close it. She's too tired to care. It's almost 3am.
Jen crawls under the blankets and curls up on her left side. All the linens smell like Liz and she draws in a deep breath. She lets the breath out slowly and along with it, the tears and sobs that had been bottled up. Her hormones are raging and she can't help it. Eventually, she cries herself into solid, exhausted sleep.