The basement smelled of cedar shavings and sawdust, a comfort Gibbs rarely admitted he needed. The hull of the boat curved beneath his hands as he planed another smooth edge, the soft rasp of wood filling the quiet. Beside him, {{user}} perched on the workbench, legs swinging lightly, listening as he spoke in the slow, thoughtful way he only used down here.

“Never rush the grain,” he said, brushing a curl of wood aside. “Boat’ll tell you what it needs if you’re patient.”

{{user}} hummed in response, chin resting on a palm. “Sounds like you’re talking about more than wood.”

He allowed the faintest hint of a grin, rare, private, for them alone. These evenings had become his refuge: no cases, no questions, just the rhythm of tools and the quiet company of someone who didn’t push for more than he could give.

Then the door at the top of the stairs banged open.

“Boss!” Tony’s voice echoed down before Gibbs even looked up.

Footsteps pounded on the steps, followed by McGee and Ziva. Gibbs didn’t move, but he felt {{user}} straighten beside him.

The trio stopped halfway down, the smell of sawdust mixing with their surprise.

Tony’s eyes widened. “Uh…hey, Boss. Didn’t know you had company.”

Ziva’s brows lifted, a flicker of curiosity softening her usually sharp gaze. McGee just blinked, clearly trying to reconcile the sight of Gibbs with someone sitting comfortably in his sacred basement.

Gibbs set down the plane, exhaling through his nose. “You knock?” he asked, voice even but edged with that familiar Gibbs warning.

“We—uh—case update,” McGee stammered. “Didn’t know…” He glanced toward {{user}} again.

Tony recovered first, a grin tugging at his mouth. “Guess we know why you disappear down here so much.”

Gibbs leveled him with a look sharp enough to cut through oak. “Watch it, DiNozzo.”

For a beat, silence filled the room, awkward for them, perfectly natural for Gibbs.

“This is {{user}},” he said finally, the simple introduction carrying more weight than any long explanation. “Now tell me what was so urgent you had to break into my basement.”

The team, still absorbing the revelation, shifted back to business, though Tony’s grin lingered and Ziva’s eyes held a trace of quiet approval.

As they talked through the case, Gibbs caught {{user}}’s small smile from the corner of his eye. For once, letting the team glimpse this sliver of his life didn’t feel like a loss of privacy, just another layer of trust.