Fic: The third wheel
TITLE: The third wheel.
AUTHOR: Sage Harper (aka Erehwon6)
PAIRING: Gibbs/Ducky (and The boat)
GENRE: Slash
SUB-GENRE: established relationship.
WORD COUNT: 2,015
WARNINGS: n/a
SPOILERS: n/a
SUMMARY: Never was there a tale of so much woe, as that of the wooden boat, built by Jethro Gibbs.
DISCLAIMER: All the good stuff belongs to Don McGill et all, I'm just borrowing and will put them back when I've finished.
AUTHOUR'S NOTES Written for challenge #42 - quote from the series, using set 5 from 3sentence, and for 12_stories prompt ‘brown’.
“How did you possibly manage to …”
“Ah geez Duck, you ask me that every time,” (Aliyah)
01. Back.
“How did you possibly manage to …”
“Ah geez Duck, you ask me that every time,”
True, Ducky supposes; but that wasn’t really the question he meant to ask each time he walked into the basement to find it empty again.
02. Front.
Next day he had free Gibbs drew up plans and went to the lumber yard; no sense dwelling on the past.
03. Yard.
“Oh no these aren’t for me,” Ducky answered the delivery man unloading the tarp covered wood; “They’re for my husband, he’s building a boat” … he hadn’t meant to say that, but Ducky couldn’t help feel a glow of pride; that he could still shock people, and himself at how easily the words rolled off his tongue.
04. Foot.
Ducky found himself uttering curses he didn’t even realise he knew, and for good reason too that wood was really heavy … that’ll be the last time he tries to take the initiative and carry any wood down to the basement.
05. Length.
Gibbs laid out his tools with precisions, smoothed his hand along the grain of the wood, tested the tape measure and smiled as it slinked back into the holder; this one was going to be a keeper, he could tell.
06. Rough.
Ducky loved to watch as Jethro planed the wood; the contrast at how such a blunt marine to the core could be tender in his stokes, how it segued so well into Jethro’s other outlet of tenderness.
07. Road.
As the tarmac unfurled like a ribbon Gibbs felt lighter with every passing mile that took him closer to home, where he knew Ducky was waiting up, even though he’d told him not to.
08. Journey.
“Where do you fancy going for our holiday?” … Gibbs had been flippant, something about how it better have boats; but really he just plain didn’t mind, anywhere he could be with Ducky at his side was a place he’d want to be.
09. Hero.
Lola took her time, clambering through the gaps in the frame and running her hands over the wood; “Oh I love it already, Grandpa, it’s gonna be the best boat ever.”
10. Villain.
Gibbs took another slug of bourbon, as if that might erase the words that had been flung between them; this wasn’t going to help sitting and sulking any more than laying blame; so he started back up the stairs, it wasn’t right or fair for Ducky to always apologise first.
11. Clasp.
“Gibbs no, I couldn’t, it was Ducky’s mom’s ...”
“And he wants you to wear it today, something old y’know, so as I can’t argue with him,”
Abby turns around, waits as Gibbs closes the string of pearls around her neck; “It really is beautiful.”
12. Hands.
Pressed together their palms couldn’t be more different; the soft gentle hand of a surgeon, and the toughened hand of a gunny; but they’re the same size, slotting together like the parts of a puzzle.
13. Beautiful.
He’s seen it so many times, but the intricate swirls and patterns that make up the wood’s grain never fail to lift his heart.
14. Ugly.
It was like an addiction, Gibbs’ team could always tell when a day had passed when he’d not been able to work on his boat; and they knew to give him a wide berth.
15. Mind.
He knew if asked Ducky would say things were fine, would be the dutiful host, but he could read his lover like a book; so he made the hints that they should call it a night, before the fatigue was etched any deeper around Ducky’s eyes.
16. Passion.
He was about to say that he’d just finish up, five more minutes, then he’d come along to bed; but Ducky is giving him ‘the look’, and it was always a sure way to make Jethro set down his tools without any hesitation.
17. Whine.
If he was being honest, yes sometimes Ducky did get annoyed at how much time Jethro spent slaving over that boat at the expense of other things; but he couldn’t really complain, after all he had plenty of consuming interests of his own.
18. Cheap.
Sometimes Gibbs did wonder about taking up Ducky’s half joking suggestion and just going out and buying a boat, considering all he’d invested with his time and material; but the quality just wouldn’t be the same, not unless you were willing to pay sums that made his eyes water.
19. Dirty.
Gibbs never did understand why showering with a friend was meant to save water; it always ended up taking twice as long because they would have so much fun.
20. Clean.
“Thought I should, with my dad coming to visit …”
Ducky didn’t suppose Mr Gibbs would notice the condition of their basement floor, but it was a noble sentiment.
21. Tail.
He’d never admit it, short of Chinese water torture, but Gibbs loved to wake up and see Ducky beside him snuggled up with the cat; Sophie having woken him up by poking him in the eye with her tail, hmm not so much.
22. Warp.
Ducky covered her ears, but it was too late; so he gave a stern lecture that Lola was not to repeat any of the words Grandpa Gibbs had just said when he realised the fate that had befallen the lumber.
23. Black.
If anyone had asked, Gibbs would say his lover looked the most perfect in a tux; well strictly speaking, having just undressed from a tux was slightly better.
24. Hole.
He hated when Ducky went away to conferences; he could never anticipate the vastness of the vacuum in his home and life that such a departure left.
25. Escape.
He felt ridiculous doing this, like a naughty schoolboy that was bound to be caught; but when Jethro had snuck in and taken the seat next to him at the auditorium, well suddenly the subject of the lecture wasn’t terribly interesting or important after all.
26. Blaze.
Still brimming with righteous indignation Gibbs made a bonfire of the warped wood, he felt better for it; or maybe it was that Ducky had held him close while they roasted marshmallows.
27. Candle.
“It’s the most flattering lighting because it makes the pupils dilate …”
See Ducky must be the one; nobody else could explain away romantic notions as still have Gibbs rapt.
28. Fade.
Memory was a curious thing, Ducky had always felt; he could recall the very first film he’d seen with Jethro, but couldn’t for the life of him remember where he’d put his car keys so they’d be able to get to the cinema tonight.
29. Faint.
Ducky felt he should point out that a glob of paint was about to drip onto the floor; but then again Jethro looked so handsome, deep in thought as to whether he’d need to apply another coat of paint.
30. Pressure.
‘Keep the arm up, press harder on it, that’ll slow the bleeding …’
He’d never been much good with his blood; so Gibbs had no idea where his inexplicable calm and expertise had come from, maybe Ducky’s good example was rubbing off after all.
31. Head.
Soon enough Ducky is going to need to give himself a head slap; he’s supposed to be focusing on the case, not the way Jethro has his sleeves rolled up and forearms braced against the table.
32. Ache.
He stands beside Ducky, as they lay the wreath at Mrs Mallard’s grave, and though Gibbs doesn’t fully believe in the afterlife he promises her that he will do everything not to let her son feel any more pain.
33. Mend.
He sits there biddable as you like, as Ducky puts the stitches in his arm; Gibbs hates doctors, which is duly noted, but that’s not that same … Ducky isn’t really a doctor, of course he is, but to Gibbs, well he’s just Ducky.
34. Itch.
It made him feel like a teenager to get so het up and impulsive, stopping the elevator because he just has to kiss Ducky long and hard or he’s certain he’ll not make it through the day otherwise; he’s not really sure if that’s a good thing or not, not when Abby give them a knowing look and hums that stupid Aerosmith song.
35. Scratch.
“Uh, no sorry, I’ve got an important meeting that I simply must attend …”
With Jethro, over a bottle of wine and lunch at that delightful restaurant by the water …
Ducky decides it’s best not to add that part.
36. Scream.
“Bad dream, my dear?”
Gibbs waits for the echoes of that wretched sound to clear from his mind, as Ducky draws him closer; “Yeah, something like that.”
37. Cry.
It was such a pitiful pout that he almost gave in and Lola help him; but he thought better off it, knowing the fate that would befall him at Abby’s hands if her little girl got hurt with a saw, after all she learnt to be a mama bear from his example.
38. Moan.
He’s mentally composed a good eloquent rant in the car on the way home, it’ll be really cathartic to vent that; but then he comes through the door and Jethro kisses him, and all his indignation melts away.
39. Bitch.
Ducky had never said a bad word against any of the women Gibbs had been foolish enough to have relationships with; but the way he will never speak their name says it with more clarity and dignity.
40. Please.
Gibbs has never exactly been a model of etiquette or good relationship advice; but he does always say please and thank you to his lover, especially please, particularly with regards to that thing he does, with his tongue, that he never wants to end.
41. Night.
Gibbs never would have expected to take up boatbuilding in the very small hours; but he was up anyway to give Abby’s twins a feed, and the rasp of the plane would lull them back to sleep.
42. Day.
In all the time he’s been building boats Gibbs has never been able to picture his boat actually finished, for keeps, and for it to set sail; in a way he prefers that, then the pleasant reality will be a surprise.
43. Afternoon.
Was it really so bad to hope for a slow day, not because that meant no untimely demise will have befallen anyone; but that there would be an excuse for Jethro to stay longer after lunch and help Ducky with the crossword?
44. Midnight.
Gibbs kisses him awake; because it’s three minutes into Ducky’s birthday, and there’s no sense hanging about with the celebrating thing.
45. Twilight.
It was meant to have been just a quick tweak before dinner; but by the time Gibbs comes up from the basement dusk is settling, and his meal is under a cover on the counter, he expects Ducky to be mad about that, but his lover is far too engrossed in a novel.
46. Gentle.
The final part was always the most delicate job; Gibbs held his breathe, desperate not to mess it up after he’d come so far.
47. Massage.
By the end of the day he wasn’t sure which was his favourite part; the satisfaction of getting more done on the boat, or that Ducky rub his back to untense the knotted muscles.
48. Flower.
Gibbs had never bought a bouquet for a man, certainly if anyone got him one it’d be the last thing they purchased; but some how as a gift for Ducky it felt more right than anytime he’d given flowers to a woman.
49. Perfume.
Ducky wasn’t sure if he’d always liked the scent of sawdust, or if it was simply that it was such an entrenched association with his lover.
50. Bottle.
“Oh Jethro, now you’ve shown me I don’t think bourbon is quite right; it seems more fitting to crack a bottle of champagne against it as it makes the maiden voyage.”
AUTHOR: Sage Harper (aka Erehwon6)
PAIRING: Gibbs/Ducky (and The boat)
GENRE: Slash
SUB-GENRE: established relationship.
WORD COUNT: 2,015
WARNINGS: n/a
SPOILERS: n/a
SUMMARY: Never was there a tale of so much woe, as that of the wooden boat, built by Jethro Gibbs.
DISCLAIMER: All the good stuff belongs to Don McGill et all, I'm just borrowing and will put them back when I've finished.
AUTHOUR'S NOTES Written for challenge #42 - quote from the series, using set 5 from 3sentence, and for 12_stories prompt ‘brown’.
“How did you possibly manage to …”
“Ah geez Duck, you ask me that every time,” (Aliyah)
01. Back.
“How did you possibly manage to …”
“Ah geez Duck, you ask me that every time,”
True, Ducky supposes; but that wasn’t really the question he meant to ask each time he walked into the basement to find it empty again.
02. Front.
Next day he had free Gibbs drew up plans and went to the lumber yard; no sense dwelling on the past.
03. Yard.
“Oh no these aren’t for me,” Ducky answered the delivery man unloading the tarp covered wood; “They’re for my husband, he’s building a boat” … he hadn’t meant to say that, but Ducky couldn’t help feel a glow of pride; that he could still shock people, and himself at how easily the words rolled off his tongue.
04. Foot.
Ducky found himself uttering curses he didn’t even realise he knew, and for good reason too that wood was really heavy … that’ll be the last time he tries to take the initiative and carry any wood down to the basement.
05. Length.
Gibbs laid out his tools with precisions, smoothed his hand along the grain of the wood, tested the tape measure and smiled as it slinked back into the holder; this one was going to be a keeper, he could tell.
06. Rough.
Ducky loved to watch as Jethro planed the wood; the contrast at how such a blunt marine to the core could be tender in his stokes, how it segued so well into Jethro’s other outlet of tenderness.
07. Road.
As the tarmac unfurled like a ribbon Gibbs felt lighter with every passing mile that took him closer to home, where he knew Ducky was waiting up, even though he’d told him not to.
08. Journey.
“Where do you fancy going for our holiday?” … Gibbs had been flippant, something about how it better have boats; but really he just plain didn’t mind, anywhere he could be with Ducky at his side was a place he’d want to be.
09. Hero.
Lola took her time, clambering through the gaps in the frame and running her hands over the wood; “Oh I love it already, Grandpa, it’s gonna be the best boat ever.”
10. Villain.
Gibbs took another slug of bourbon, as if that might erase the words that had been flung between them; this wasn’t going to help sitting and sulking any more than laying blame; so he started back up the stairs, it wasn’t right or fair for Ducky to always apologise first.
11. Clasp.
“Gibbs no, I couldn’t, it was Ducky’s mom’s ...”
“And he wants you to wear it today, something old y’know, so as I can’t argue with him,”
Abby turns around, waits as Gibbs closes the string of pearls around her neck; “It really is beautiful.”
12. Hands.
Pressed together their palms couldn’t be more different; the soft gentle hand of a surgeon, and the toughened hand of a gunny; but they’re the same size, slotting together like the parts of a puzzle.
13. Beautiful.
He’s seen it so many times, but the intricate swirls and patterns that make up the wood’s grain never fail to lift his heart.
14. Ugly.
It was like an addiction, Gibbs’ team could always tell when a day had passed when he’d not been able to work on his boat; and they knew to give him a wide berth.
15. Mind.
He knew if asked Ducky would say things were fine, would be the dutiful host, but he could read his lover like a book; so he made the hints that they should call it a night, before the fatigue was etched any deeper around Ducky’s eyes.
16. Passion.
He was about to say that he’d just finish up, five more minutes, then he’d come along to bed; but Ducky is giving him ‘the look’, and it was always a sure way to make Jethro set down his tools without any hesitation.
17. Whine.
If he was being honest, yes sometimes Ducky did get annoyed at how much time Jethro spent slaving over that boat at the expense of other things; but he couldn’t really complain, after all he had plenty of consuming interests of his own.
18. Cheap.
Sometimes Gibbs did wonder about taking up Ducky’s half joking suggestion and just going out and buying a boat, considering all he’d invested with his time and material; but the quality just wouldn’t be the same, not unless you were willing to pay sums that made his eyes water.
19. Dirty.
Gibbs never did understand why showering with a friend was meant to save water; it always ended up taking twice as long because they would have so much fun.
20. Clean.
“Thought I should, with my dad coming to visit …”
Ducky didn’t suppose Mr Gibbs would notice the condition of their basement floor, but it was a noble sentiment.
21. Tail.
He’d never admit it, short of Chinese water torture, but Gibbs loved to wake up and see Ducky beside him snuggled up with the cat; Sophie having woken him up by poking him in the eye with her tail, hmm not so much.
22. Warp.
Ducky covered her ears, but it was too late; so he gave a stern lecture that Lola was not to repeat any of the words Grandpa Gibbs had just said when he realised the fate that had befallen the lumber.
23. Black.
If anyone had asked, Gibbs would say his lover looked the most perfect in a tux; well strictly speaking, having just undressed from a tux was slightly better.
24. Hole.
He hated when Ducky went away to conferences; he could never anticipate the vastness of the vacuum in his home and life that such a departure left.
25. Escape.
He felt ridiculous doing this, like a naughty schoolboy that was bound to be caught; but when Jethro had snuck in and taken the seat next to him at the auditorium, well suddenly the subject of the lecture wasn’t terribly interesting or important after all.
26. Blaze.
Still brimming with righteous indignation Gibbs made a bonfire of the warped wood, he felt better for it; or maybe it was that Ducky had held him close while they roasted marshmallows.
27. Candle.
“It’s the most flattering lighting because it makes the pupils dilate …”
See Ducky must be the one; nobody else could explain away romantic notions as still have Gibbs rapt.
28. Fade.
Memory was a curious thing, Ducky had always felt; he could recall the very first film he’d seen with Jethro, but couldn’t for the life of him remember where he’d put his car keys so they’d be able to get to the cinema tonight.
29. Faint.
Ducky felt he should point out that a glob of paint was about to drip onto the floor; but then again Jethro looked so handsome, deep in thought as to whether he’d need to apply another coat of paint.
30. Pressure.
‘Keep the arm up, press harder on it, that’ll slow the bleeding …’
He’d never been much good with his blood; so Gibbs had no idea where his inexplicable calm and expertise had come from, maybe Ducky’s good example was rubbing off after all.
31. Head.
Soon enough Ducky is going to need to give himself a head slap; he’s supposed to be focusing on the case, not the way Jethro has his sleeves rolled up and forearms braced against the table.
32. Ache.
He stands beside Ducky, as they lay the wreath at Mrs Mallard’s grave, and though Gibbs doesn’t fully believe in the afterlife he promises her that he will do everything not to let her son feel any more pain.
33. Mend.
He sits there biddable as you like, as Ducky puts the stitches in his arm; Gibbs hates doctors, which is duly noted, but that’s not that same … Ducky isn’t really a doctor, of course he is, but to Gibbs, well he’s just Ducky.
34. Itch.
It made him feel like a teenager to get so het up and impulsive, stopping the elevator because he just has to kiss Ducky long and hard or he’s certain he’ll not make it through the day otherwise; he’s not really sure if that’s a good thing or not, not when Abby give them a knowing look and hums that stupid Aerosmith song.
35. Scratch.
“Uh, no sorry, I’ve got an important meeting that I simply must attend …”
With Jethro, over a bottle of wine and lunch at that delightful restaurant by the water …
Ducky decides it’s best not to add that part.
36. Scream.
“Bad dream, my dear?”
Gibbs waits for the echoes of that wretched sound to clear from his mind, as Ducky draws him closer; “Yeah, something like that.”
37. Cry.
It was such a pitiful pout that he almost gave in and Lola help him; but he thought better off it, knowing the fate that would befall him at Abby’s hands if her little girl got hurt with a saw, after all she learnt to be a mama bear from his example.
38. Moan.
He’s mentally composed a good eloquent rant in the car on the way home, it’ll be really cathartic to vent that; but then he comes through the door and Jethro kisses him, and all his indignation melts away.
39. Bitch.
Ducky had never said a bad word against any of the women Gibbs had been foolish enough to have relationships with; but the way he will never speak their name says it with more clarity and dignity.
40. Please.
Gibbs has never exactly been a model of etiquette or good relationship advice; but he does always say please and thank you to his lover, especially please, particularly with regards to that thing he does, with his tongue, that he never wants to end.
41. Night.
Gibbs never would have expected to take up boatbuilding in the very small hours; but he was up anyway to give Abby’s twins a feed, and the rasp of the plane would lull them back to sleep.
42. Day.
In all the time he’s been building boats Gibbs has never been able to picture his boat actually finished, for keeps, and for it to set sail; in a way he prefers that, then the pleasant reality will be a surprise.
43. Afternoon.
Was it really so bad to hope for a slow day, not because that meant no untimely demise will have befallen anyone; but that there would be an excuse for Jethro to stay longer after lunch and help Ducky with the crossword?
44. Midnight.
Gibbs kisses him awake; because it’s three minutes into Ducky’s birthday, and there’s no sense hanging about with the celebrating thing.
45. Twilight.
It was meant to have been just a quick tweak before dinner; but by the time Gibbs comes up from the basement dusk is settling, and his meal is under a cover on the counter, he expects Ducky to be mad about that, but his lover is far too engrossed in a novel.
46. Gentle.
The final part was always the most delicate job; Gibbs held his breathe, desperate not to mess it up after he’d come so far.
47. Massage.
By the end of the day he wasn’t sure which was his favourite part; the satisfaction of getting more done on the boat, or that Ducky rub his back to untense the knotted muscles.
48. Flower.
Gibbs had never bought a bouquet for a man, certainly if anyone got him one it’d be the last thing they purchased; but some how as a gift for Ducky it felt more right than anytime he’d given flowers to a woman.
49. Perfume.
Ducky wasn’t sure if he’d always liked the scent of sawdust, or if it was simply that it was such an entrenched association with his lover.
50. Bottle.
“Oh Jethro, now you’ve shown me I don’t think bourbon is quite right; it seems more fitting to crack a bottle of champagne against it as it makes the maiden voyage.”