10. Chapter: sleepless night
When Gibbs came home he found Tony walking up and down in the living room. He had Lily in his arms, where she slept restlessly.
“Hey there!” Gibbs silently called from the door.
“Hey!” Tony answered and looked in Jethro’s direction.
“How is she?” he carefully stroked over her heated forehead.
“Not better, not worse!” Tony shrugged his shoulders and resumed to walk.
“I make something to drink. You hungry?”
“No. Something to drink is fine.”
“Something new from the doc?”
“Yeah, she got new meds, probably the only reason why she’s sleeping. Very strong ones. They hope it become better now.”
“How are you?” Gibbs asked while Tony sat down at the table and grabbed his coffee.
“Not better, not worse!” Tony repeated and shifted his daughter.
“Why don’t you lie down for a moment while I take care of her?”
“I don’t think that I can relax, not as long as she…”
“Hey, it’s fine. I’m here to help you, okay? Just lie down for a moment.”
“Okay, I take the couch.”
Tony carefully slid Lily into Gibbs arms, gave her a kiss in the hair and walked back to the living room and let himself fall to the couch.
He wasn’t lying for long when he heard the whimpering of his daughter and he jumped up again.
When he was standing in the door to the kitchen he observed Gibbs who held Lily tightly to his chest and silently talked in her ear. Slowly Lily calmed down and went back to sleep.
“How do you know what to do?” Tony whispered.
“Easy, I have experience. Sometime it was the only thing that helped with Kelly when she had a nightmare.”
“Do you think she’s getting healthy again?”
“Yeah, you know her she’s a fighter; she’ll be running around again very soon.”
“Thanks Boss, I don’t know what I would do without you!”
“Hey don’t mention it; having you two here is helping me as well.”
At night they all stayed in Tony’s big bed, Lily between their guardians closely snuggled with the two men. Jethro and Tony didn’t sleep at all; they watched over their little angel and didn’t talk at all.
The next morning Gibbs and Tony finally fell asleep, the fever wasn’t that high anymore and Lily wasn’t restless any longer. At six a.m. the little girl was wide awake and trying to wake up her daddy while stroking his face and crawled on his chest.
“Lily stop it! Let your daddy sleep. Com’on we’re getting up!” Jethro woke shortly after Lily and observed her.
“No, stay with daddy!” she grabbed Tony’s shirt and lied her head back on his chest.
“Okay but don’t wake him up. Promise?”
“Yeah! Pomise!”
“Good, I love you pumpkin!”
“Love too!” she answered.
Gibbs happily kissed her hair and left for a new cup of coffee.
Everything was on the mend again.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Companion piece to bad news. follows right after it.
Chapter End Notes:
HAVE FUN!