"A New Nightmare, Part Five--Surprising Finale (Chp. 16, 17, & Possibly 18)"
--Chapter Sixteen--
A few weeks had passed since the death of Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Everyone within NCIS had been taking their time, and dealing with the loss in their own way(s).
In L.A., the hardest hit by the loss of the former NCIS Special Agent was Special Agent Kensi Blye. Kensi had had a relationship with Gibbs before his tragic death, and the rest of the team were/was doing their best to help her cope with the loss.
At present, it was still fairly early in the morning, and the team was gathered in the 'Tactical Room', upstairs in the NCIS: L.A. HQ building, for another case briefing by Hetty.
Abby had just walked into the room a few seconds beforehand, and quietly took her place beside Nate for the briefing.
Kensi tried her best to focus on the task at hand from where she stood between Callen and Sam, but her mind kept wandering away without warning, and she had to snap herself back to reality as soon as she realized that it was happening.
"Mr. Beal," Hetty said, looking over at Eric who was sitting comfortably at his console. "Take it away please." she added.
"Yes ma'am." Eric said, punching a few keys on his keyboard. A new screen flashed up onto the computer monitors.
Kensi tried to listen to the words that Eric was saying, but suddenly her stomach began to churn and flip flop inside of her, and she instantly felt extremely nauseated on the spot.
"Oh," she moaned in her head. "Not again." she thought to herself, rubbing a hand across her stomach.
She tried to swallow--tried to stop her gag reflex from kicking in, but it was no use. It wasn't going to work--at all.
A wave of dizziness washed over her, and she felt her knees buckle beneath her.
"Oh no," she moaned, aloud as she clamped her hand over her mouth reflexively.
She looked around her, and then bolted out from between Sam and Callen and made a bee-line for the stairs leading back down into the lobby area.
"Kensi," Sam called after her.
"Kens-" Callen called after her. "You alright!?"
But Kensi was too far away by now to hear what they were saying.
"I hope she's alright," Abby said quietly, genuine concern in her voice.
"Mr. Callen," Hetty said, looking from the doorway where Kensi had run out just a few seconds before to where G. Callen was standing next to Sam. "Could you please go and check on Ms. Blye for us."
"I'm on it." Callen said, walking towards the door.
She shoved open the bathroom door, and just barely made it to a toilet, dropping to her knees, before spilling her guts over the side of the porcelain fixture.
A minute or so later, she pulled back from the toilet bowl--her whole body shaking on the spot--and grabbed at the roll of toilet paper hanging from its wall hanger/thing. She wiped her mouth and face with a bit of the toilet paper.
She absolutely hated the taste of a meal coming back up that way. Her eyes were moist, and so she dabbed at them as well with another bit of toilet paper.
She was so scared. This had been going on for at least a week or so, and up until now she had done a pretty good job of keeping it hidden from everyone else.
She wished like 'all-get-out' that she knew what was causing it--she didn't feel sick or anything--at least until these spells came over her. And it was only, usually early in the morning, the rest of the day was usually pretty good.
She sat back on her bottom, and dabbed at her mouth and face again. She closed her eyes as she waited for her body to quit shaking.
There was a knock at the door.
"Kensi."
"Wh-What?" she replied, not opening her eyes yet.
"Can I come in?" Callen asked, from outside the bathroom.
"S-sure." she mumbled.
The bathroom door opened up, and Callen stepped inside.
"You alright?" he asked, as he walked towards her.
She thought about that for a second or two.
Callen knelt down beside her, and brushed a strand of hair out of her face.
"I-I don't know." she said, shaking her head lightly.
Callen reached up, and flushed the toilet--clearing out the disgusting contents within.
"Just--this has been happening nearly everyday for the last week or so." she told him, her body finally beginning to stop shaking.
"You're not pregnant are you?" Callen remarked jokingly, nudging her with his elbow.
They both remembered what Abby had been like during her first pregnancy, and then during the first trimester of her current pregnancy.
Kensi shook her head. "N-no, no." she said, quietly.
"Okay, well maybe you should take the day off." he told her, quietly. "Maybe, go see a doctor--just to be safe you know."
Kensi nodded.
"Come on," Callen said helping her up. "I'll walk you to your car."
Callen did just that. He walked Kensi to her car, and then watched as she drove off and disappeared into the distance.
Kensi spent the whole drive back in the direction of her place thinking to herself. Callens words echoed in her head; but they couldn't be right--they just couldn't.
She pulled up in front of a service station a few minutes later, and jumped out of the car. She ran inside and was back outside and in her car in just a matter of minutes. She had had to pick up something on her way home. A part of her felt like she was just being paranoid, but she had to know for sure.
She set the paper bag down in the passenger's seat, and then pulled away from the service station a few seconds later.
It was close to lunch time by the time Kensi got back to her place finally. She stormed into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. she opened up the paper sack, and pulled out the purple box that contained the Home Pregnancy Test.
She stared at the purple box for a few minutes before deciding to actually open up the box.
She ripped open the box, and pulled out the pregnancy test. It took a few minutes after that for Kensi to do her thing, and then all that was left was the waiting game.
She waited, and waited, and waited, and waited there on the bathroom floor sitting Indian style. Finally the required time limit had passed, and she finally decided to chance a look down at the small plastic, white stick in her hands.
A blue plus sign. Kensi's heart sank in her chest at the sight. She WAS pregnant.
Suddenly a wave of nausea washed over her, and she soon found herself leaning over the toilet vomiting her guts out once again. After the nausea had finally sub-sided for the second time in one day she fell back against the ball just opposite the toilet.
She broke down into tears where she sat. "How could this be?" she thought to herself. She thought back to the last time she had had sex...it had been with Jethro Gibbs.
She moaned through her tears as she sat there. She was pregnant with her dead lover's baby. A baby that she was not in the least bit ready for at that. She threw the pregnancy test stick across the room and it smacked into a wall, and then fell to the floor.
Later That Evening...
There were sounds coming from outside the bathroom in Kensis place.
"Kensi!?" a familiar voice called through the place.
Kensi knew immediately who was in her home. It was Abby. Abby had a key because she and Abby were really good friends.
"In here!" Kensi called back miserably.
Kensi let Abby into the bathroom a few minutes later.
"Kensi," Abby said, a look of worry spread across her face. "I've been calling you all afternoon." Abby told her, as she took a seat on top of the toilet. "You had me so worried."
"Sorry." Kensi replied, miserably. "I just found out that...that I'm pregnant." she said miserably, her eyes red and moist.
"Pregnant!?" Abby repeated the words. "Why Kensi," she said, throwing her arms around her friend. "That's wonderful."
"No!" Kensi shook her head furiously. "No, its now." she insisted.
"Why not?" Abby asked, somewhat confused.
"Look at me Abby," Kensi cried. "DO I LOOK like a mother to you!?"
"I-I wouldn't even know where to start." Kensi sobbed.
"Oh Kens," Abby said, kneeling beside her friend.
"I'm so scared Abby." Kensi admitted, through her tears. "I-I don't know what to do--I'm not ready for this."
"You wanna know a secret, sweetie?" Abby asked.
Kensi nodded.
"Neither was I." Abby admitted. "When I found out that I was pregnant with D.J.--I was terrified." Abby admitted. "But Gibbs told me that everything would be alright--and he was right." Abby told her.
Abby chuckled lightly, as she remembered, fondly, those first few years after D.J. was born. "In fact," she added. "In all honesty, I don't think that anyone is truly ready for 'kids' until they actually have them--and then from there its all just one big 'learning' adventure after another."
Kensi let everything that her friend was telling her soak in.
--Chapter Seventeen--
Something that Abby had said the night before had given Kensi an idea, and so the next morning she had made a phone call and managed to hop the next flight out of L.A. to Stillwater, Pennsylvania.
It was about a day later when she finally arrived in front of the Stillwater General Store, at 2:30 in the afternoon.
She swallowed a lump in her throat, and then after working up the nerve she opened up the door, and stepped inside.
"Hello," she called, as she stepped inside. No answer. She turned around to leave after a minute or two, deciding that she would try again tomorrow--maybe.
"Lookin' for me?" came a gruff, old voice from behind her.
Kensi turned back around to face the inside of the store, and saw Jackson Gibbs walking out from the backroom.
"M-Mr. Gibbs." she stammered.
Jackson Gibbs chuckled.
"Kensi, right?" Jackson Gibbs said. "Leroy's friend."
"Yes sir."
He chuckled again. "Oh, you don't have to call me sir."
"Sorry si--er--" she let her sentence trail off at the end.
"So," Jackson Gibbs said, moving towards the cash register. "What can I do ya for?" he asked.
"Its about your son," Kensi said. "Jethro."
"Oh, that right." Jackson Gibbs said, nodding his head with a smile. "Come with me." he said nodding towards the backroom.
Kensi nodded, and then followed Jackson Gibbs towards the backroom.
In the backroom there was a small table. Kensi pulled herself up a seat and sat down in front of the small table.
The older man reached into a small refrigerator that sat up against the wall off to one side, and pulled off one plain soda (in an old fashioned glass bottle) and also one bottle of water.
"Here." he said, kindly, passing the bottle of water across the table to Kensi. "You look like you could use this."
"Thanks." Kensi said, as she accepted the ice cold bottle of water from the older man.
Jackson Gibbs popped the top off of his bottle of soda, and then he too pulled up a seat and sat down.
"Your son and I" she began, replacing the cap on the water bottle she now held in her hands. "We-we had a-a relationship."
"So I've heard." Jackson Gibbs said, with a grin.
Kensi cocked her head to one side, with a confused look on her face.
"Leroy and I had an understanding...while he was in Mexico--we would write each other." Jackson Gibbs explained.
"He was very fond of you." Jackson Gibbs added.
"He-he was?"
"Of course." the old man chuckled. "And its not hard to see why."
Kensi blushed.
"The reason that I'm here," she tried to continue. "Is that--I just recently discovered that I'm--" her words almost failed her. "-I'm pregnant..."
"And my Leroy's the father." The older man finished her sentence for her.
Kensi nodded, a miserable feeling washing over her in that moment.
Jackson Gibbs sat silently for a moment or two after that.
Kensi could feel tears burning the space behind her eyes. "Sir...I know--I know how this sounds...but believe me-"
"...I loved your son." Kensi told him, tears running down her cheeks. "If I could have--I'd have given my life for his in a heartbeat." she added. "Oh...I'm so scared."
Jackson Gibbs chuckled. "Leroy would never have allowed it." he said, with a grin.
"I-I know." she admitted.
"You're scared, because you don't think you're ready." he said, quietly.
Kensi nodded. "Yes."
"And you're here because you want my advice." he said.
Kensi nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand(s). "It is your grandchild." she pointed out, with a sniffle.
"True." he said with a wink.
"You know," the old man said, leaning back in his chair. "I've met a lot of people doing what I do--heard a lot of stories too. A young woman comes in to pick up a few things, and tells me a story. She's just been told she's gonna be a mama--but she's worried that she won't be ready." he told her.
Kensi wiped her eyes with her hand again, and listened closely to what the older man was saying.
"Now, I spend the next few years watching that family grow, and learn--together. You see, in my experience--no one's ever ready for anything, especially for kids. But they'll learn...now I won't tell you it'll be easy," Jackson Gibbs told her, leaning forward in his chair and looking across the table at Kensi.
"But you'll learn." he added, softly and sweetly, as he placed his hand over hers and squeezed it gently.
Kensi couldn't help but smile back through her tears.
Kensi rubbed her stomach/abdomen with her free arm/hand under the table as she sat there.
"And if you ever need anything, sweetheart," Jackson Gibbs told her, as he wagged the thumb of his free hand towards himself, with a grin. "You'll find this old man--right here." he said, as he stood up, gave her a wink, and then walked back out to the front of the store.
The sound of the front door opening reached the backroom.
"Hello there," Jackson Gibbs said, with a chuckle. "How can I help you today?"
"My son has a bad cold," a woman was telling Jackson. "Do you have any cold medicine in stock?"
"As a matter of fact I do," the old man replied. "Let me show you."
Kensi sat there, now rubbing her mid-section with both hands/arms. Kensi Blye, tomboy, a mother--it seemed like an alien concept, but now the more she thought about it--she more she found herself falling more and more in love with the idea.
Her eyes glistened with the tears that still lingered there.
She caressed her mid-section gently, as a single tear rolled down her cheek.
"My...baby." she whispered, letting the words linger on her lips.
--Chapter Eighteen--
ONE YEAR LATER...
Abby and Eric climbed the hill in the cemetery to where Gibbs, Shannon, and Kelly were buried.
"Abby, wait up!" Eric called after his wife.
Eric was holding the hand of the almost 6 year old D.J. as they followed Abby up the hill. He was also carrying their almost one year old daughter in his free arm.
Abby stopped, finally, looking down at the grave marker that she had come to see. She laid the bouquet of black roses down, gently, on top of the grave. "Hi Gibbs." she whispered, running a hand over the headstone.
"Its been a while." she added.
"Abby," Eric said finally catching up to his wife.
"Let me see her." she said, softly, reaching out and taking her daughter from Eric.
Abby knelt down in front of the grave while holding the green-eyed, dark-haired little girl in her arms. She kissed her daughter gently, and lovingly on the cheek.
"Gibbs," Abby said softly. "I want you to meet my daughter--Kelly."
Abby ran a hand through her daughter's hair as a loving smile crossed her face. "Kelly Shannon Beal." Abby added. "Kel--for short." she said, with a chuckle.
Eric stood behind Abby with D.J.
"So much has happened in the last year," Abby explained. "For starters, we all got together and spent Christmas with your Dad--I hope you don't mind."
"I'm sure he doesn't." Eric spoke up.
Abby looked over her shoulder and shot her husband a dirty look.
"Kensi," Abby continued. "She has a son now--your son."
"Kinda scary when you think about it." Eric remarked, with a chuckle.
Abby rolled her eyes at her husband, though he could not see her do it.
"He's precious." she said softly. "He looks a lot like you--ya know--he's got your eyes, your smile," she said, as the memory of the way that Gibbs used to smile brought a smile to her own face.
"He's also very stubborn," Abby added, with a chuckle. "For a child."
The familiar glisten of tears became visible in Abby's eyes. "But she loves him...she loves him very much." Abby said, a tear rolling down her cheek.
She wiped the tear(s) away with the back of her hand.
"Everyone has been really good to Kensi. Callen's been the biggest help."
"Sam too, but we like to think of him as the 'funny' uncle in the family." Abby said.
"D.J.'s in school now." Abby said, motioning her son over to her side. "He's doing really well too." she added, kissing D.J. on the cheek with a smile.
"That's my boy." Eric remarked, out of the corner of his mouth.
"Tony and Ziva are doing well too," she said next. "Talia's doing well in school, and Gena is growing so fast--she'll be in school with her big sister before too long." she added.
"And McGee," she recalled. "He and Alicia have been talking about maybe trying for a baby brother or sister for little Maxie; but things are just so hectic in their lives right now that, just Maxie, is a handful at times." she explained.
"But they haven't given up yet." she added. "Oh, and by the way--Maddie's engaged now." Abby said, with a small smile.
"I talked to her a couple of weeks ago, and that's when she told me. She's also getting ready to start her first job as a teacher at a local school near where her mother lives."
"Abby," Eric spoke up. "We've got a long drive ahead of us, and if we're gonna stop for supper soon--we need to head out now." he told his wife quietly.
Abby looked up at her husband, and nodded. She turned back to face the grave marker, and rubbed a hand over its marble face. "We all love you, Gibbs." she whispered quietly.
D.J. wrapped his arms around his mother and hugged her. Abby hugged both of her children to her, as a single tear rolled down her cheek.
"Let's go guys." Abby said quietly as she stood back up to her feet. She hoisted Kelly up into her arms, and took D.J.'s hand in her free hand.
"Come on." she said softly, as the family started to make their way back down the hill towards the car that they had come in.
"Goodbye Gibbs." Abby whispered over her shoulder.
--Chapter Nineteen--
(Kensi's Life Now)
Kensi stood in the center of the small nursery at her home. It was a warm Saturday afternoon outside, and inside she was putting her infant son down for a nap.
Before now she could never have imagined herself as a mother. She had never really been the 'girlie' type, and so she had never really given much thought to the idea of getting married and having kids--unlike most of the other girls that she knew.
She could remember being so nervous the first time that she actually held her new baby in her arms at the hospital. But then, even more nerve-racking, had been her first few nights alone, in her home, with her new baby.
She had read a few 'baby' and 'parenting' books just prior to the baby being born, and she had consulted several other helpful sources--all of which were recommended by Nate--and she had even attended a couple of 'parenting classes' (with G. Callen along for support). Through all of this, though, she still had some doubts as to her abilities to be a 'good mother' to her child.
When the time finally came, though, to 'put-up or shut-up' she swore in front of everyone of her co-workers at NCIS that she was going to do her damnedest to be the best mother she could possibly be for her child.
Now, Kensi rocked her blue-eyed baby boy, gently and slowly, in her arms--humming softly as she did so.
He looked so peaceful and so beautiful laying there in her arms, as she swayed, gently, from side-to-side, that she couldn't help but smile a warm, motherly smile.
To her the little boy looked so much like his father (Gibbs) that sometimes (such as on a bad day) looking at his face would be enough to bring tears to her eyes. She was getting better about not crying at times like that though.
She began to slow her movements down carefully, now that Lee (which for her is short for Leroy) was finally falling asleep. She moved slowly towards the crib. She laid the little baby boy down, gently, in his crib; and then stood, hovering over him, watching him snooze silently for a few minutes.
It had been amazing, to her, how much she'd changed after her son was born. She definitely felt different, she was the same person that she'd always been mind you, but now there was a gentler, softer side of her personality that showed itself a lot more often now.
And she definitely felt very protective of her son. She had been so amazed, and was still amazed on a daily basis, at just how much she loved that blue-eyed baby boy that she'd given birth to.
She leaned over, and gently kissed the sleeping infants forehead. "Sweet dreams." she whispered softly to the baby. "I love you."
She slowly backed away from the crib, after that, and quietly approached the door. She exited the nursery, looking back over her shoulder at the precious baby boy slumbering in his crib one last time before she closed the nursery door.
She entered the living room area of her home, quietly, a minute or so later. G. Callen was sitting quietly on the sofa, patiently waiting for Kensi to return.
Callen was drinking from a water bottle that was filled with, well, water--as he waited. Kensi had recently forbidden alcoholic beverages from entering her home now that she had a baby to take care of.
"He's sleeping like a baby." she said quietly, as she entered the room.
"Kens," Callen said, quietly, arching an eyebrow at Kensi. "He is a baby."
Kensi rolled her eyes at Callen. "You know what I mean." she replied.
She sat down on the sofa beside Callen.
"How are you doing?" he asked her, quietly.
She let out a long sigh. "Just taking it day by day I guess." she replied, rubbing the back of her neck with one hand.
"Everyone at the office is talking about your eminent return." he told her.
She nodded. "Don't see why," she replied. "I mean you guys haven't left me alone since-" she pointed out jokingly.
Callen grinned.
"We're just trying to help, Kens." he told her, taking another swig from his water bottle.
"I know." she replied. "And besides--Hetty's only putting me on desk duty." she pointed out.
"Well, yeah," Callen said. "But you'll officially be back in operating status. And let's face it--its not the same without you there Kens." he told her with a smile.
Kensi shook her head, and scooted down the sofa a little further away from him.
"What!?" he asked, quietly, a little confused.
"Please don't do that." she said quietly, looking away from him.
"Do what?"
"When you smile at me like that..." her voice trailed off, and she didn't finish her sentence.
Callen, looked down, the smile fading from his face. He knew what she was getting at.
"Kensi," he said softly. "I just-"
She shook her head, wringing her hands/wrists nervously as she sat there.
"I just can't let myself fall into another 'situation' like that." she told him quietly. "It-its not you..."
A few weeks ago Callen had come over after work one Friday evening to check in and see how Kensi and Lee were doing. They'd been doing good, but Callen had insisted that she let him treat her to take-out, she could pick what, for dinner so that she would not have to be alone on a Friday night.
It started out innocently enough. They ate supper, and had a little wine (she had only half a glass, though, because she had not had much of a tolerance for alcohol since her son was born) (Callen had actually had a full glass of wine though). The baby had been asleep while all of this was going on as well.
The real trouble began after supper, when they were sitting on the sofa talking. Somehow, while they were talking, some unexpected emotions overtook both her and Callen and before they knew what was happening they were 'sharing a bed together' as it were.
She said, later, that she remembered him 'smiling' in that way like he had just minutes ago, and that was the last thing that she remembered before she found herself snuggled up very close to him--naked--in her bed.
She had even heard Callen say that 'He loved her'. That part scared her, maybe more, than any other part of that particular night.
She was so shaken up by what happened that she avoided Callen for two whole weeks afterward.
"Kensi," he said softly. "I'm sorry about what happened that night. We'd had ourselves a drink, and...I never meant to take advantage of you like that-"
She shook her head again, but this time there visible tears in her eyes as she looked up at him.
"You didn't take advantage of me," she reassured him. "You're--you're not capable of such an act. Truth is, I let you." she told him.
Callen set his water bottle down on the coffee table nearby.
"That's what scares me," she added. "I 'wanted' it. I 'wanted' you. Obviously, I didn't vocalize it--the way you did." she said, referring to his later confession.
"I need you to understand," she said, now moving back a little bit closer to Callen. She took his hand(s) in hers, and held them there for a brief moment. "I can't let myself fall like that. I'm not ready." she added, looking up into his eyes.
"I still wake up in the morning and think about Gibbs," she told him. "Its been a year since...but I'm still healing."
"I know." he told her, as he moved a few stray locks of her hair out of her face.
Kensi tried her best to act as if the feel of his hand brushing against her face, as he moved the stray strands of hair aside, didn't effect her--but in truth...it did.
"I can't 'love' you the way that you want me too--not right now," she told him. "And honestly, I'm not sure when or 'if' I ever will be ready."
Callen gently kissed Kensi's forehead. "I know how much you miss Gibbs," he told her. "I know you're still healing...and I don't expect you to jump into a relationship--just like that." he continued quietly.
"I care about you Kens," he told her. "I just want you to know that. I want you to know that I'm here for you. I do love you, and that you don't have to do this alone."
A single tear rolled down her cheek as she sat there looking up into his eyes.
"And I'm not asking you to love me." he added.
Their faces were getting closer and closer in that moment until their lips finally met, and they kissed--tenderly, but passionately--and then after a few seconds she pulled back slightly--her hands now cupping his face gently.
"That's why its so hard for me," she told him softly. "Because, I do."
She kissed him again, and he let her. He let her do what she felt/thought she needed to do.
Later That Evening...
She awoke in her bed, with Callen sound asleep next to her, a few hours later. She checked her alarm clock, and it read 1:30 A.M.
She sat up in the bed, the bed sheet still draped across her front, and reached for her silky night gown and robe that hung from a wall hook on the side of the bed that she usually slept on (her side of the bed in other words).
She could hear the faint sound of her son crying in his room. He was probably hungry--that or he needed a diaper change (also could just as easily be both).
She looked back over at Callen, one last time, as she made her way towards the door--now dressed in just her robe (if the baby was hungry then the night gown would just be in the way). He was still asleep, unfazed by the baby's crying.
She entered the nursery a few minutes later--she stopped to pee real quickly before seeing to her crying infant--and made her way over to the crib where Lee slept.
She reached into the crib, and gently picked her baby boy up into her arms. "Shhh." she whispered softly. "Mommy's here." she cooed softly, holding him against her chest comfortably.
He didn't smell bad and he didn't feel wet, so he was not crying because he needed a diaper change.
"Are you hungry?" she cooed softly, kissing the little baby on the top of the head, gently.
By now he was starting to settle down a little bit.
She carried him over to the rocking chair that she kept in the nursery for nights like this. She sat down, and opened her night gown just enough to expose her right breast.
The infant took to the tender nipple like a puppy to a new chew toy. Kensi chuckled softly/quietly. "You WERE hungry--weren't you?" she cooed playfully.
When she finally finished feeding her infant son she laid him back down to sleep in his crib, It didn't take long, this time, for the little boy to drift off to dreamland.
She turned to leave the room, and was startled to see Gibbs standing there behind her.
She gasped, clapping her hand, tight, over her mouth to keep from screaming and waking Callen up.
"This isn't real." she thought to herself. "He's not really here."
"He's beautiful." Gibbs said, nodding towards the slumbering infant in the crib.
She did not answer because she was shaking to badly to do so.
"You're doing a great job with him." he said quietly, with a warm smile that she could see even in the dim light coming in through the nursery's single window.
Even though she was scared to death, she couldn't help but smile inwardly at herself at his compliment.
"You're-you're not real." she choked out, quietly. "You're not...really here--I mean you're-you're..." her voice trailed off, and she was unable to finish her sentence.
Gibbs stepped forward, and wrapped his arms around Kensi. He pulled her close, and hugged her tightly.
"I'm real to you." he said softly.
Tears stained her cheeks now.
"How is this possible?" she whispered, still clinging to the silver-haired man.
"You were thinking about me," he explained, in a soft, understanding tone. "So, here I am." he added, with a slight grin.
He chuckled. "You worry too much." he told her quietly. "You're going to be a wonderful mother...I want you to know that." he added.
"And you and Callen-" he started to say.
Kensi jerked back, and looked up at Gibbs' face--a terrified expression crossing her own face.
"Its not what you think," she blurted out without thinking. "I swear Gibbs, its-"
He laid a finger against her lips, gently, forcing her to cut her sentence short.
"Its alright." he assured her, kissing her on the forehead. "I've seen the way you look at him," Gibbs confessed. "I've seen how he makes you smile." he added.
Kensi could not deny that what Gibbs was saying was true.
"He makes you happy," Gibbs said, with a warm smile. "You don't hurt as much when he's around."
"You should tell him that." Gibbs told her. "Kensi, I want you to be happy." he added, softly.
She honestly did not know what to say to that--at all.
"But Jethro, I miss you so much." she said, sobbing into his chest.
"I know." he told her, softly. "But it'll get better--I promise." he added, looking down at her. He lifted her face back up to his, and looked into her eyes.
Their lips were only a fraction of an inch apart, at this point, and he whispered something just before he kissed her.
"Everything's gonna be alright." he whispered softly.
She felt her lips touch his, for a brief moment, and then...he was gone. She stood there, now, in the center of the nursery alone. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she stood there silently.
She entered the bedroom, again, a few minutes later. She walked around to her side of the bed, hung up her robe on the clothes hook, and then crawled quietly and carefully back into the bed--slipping gently under the covers as she did so.
She looked over at Callen, still sleeping peacefully and unaware of what had just happened to her, and suddenly everything seemed alright.
She smiled, to herself, as she leaned over close to Callen's face, and there she placed a gentle kiss against his rugged cheek. "I love you too." she whispered in his ear, softly.
He stirred a little bit, but did not wake up.
Kensi rolled back over, again, and pulled the covers up closer to her. It didn't take long after her head hit the pillow for her to fall into a deep, blissful slumber.
Everything would be alright. Just as Gibbs had promised her it would be.
(Tony and Ziva's Life Now)
Tony was leaning on the edge of his (own) desk talking to McGee across the bullpen.
Around the corner, the elevator pinged. A minute or so later Ziva rounded the corner into the bullpen with two kids in tow. Gena was walking now, on her own, but she still had to hold 'mama's' hand when they went out in public.
"I have a surprise for you, Dear!" Ziva called out to her husband, from around the corner.
"What's that!?" he called back, with a grin spread across his face.
"Look." she said, as she came into view.
"Oh wow," Tony exclaimed, jumping excitedly in place. "A pair of pet monkeys--you shouldn't have!"
"Daddy..." Talia said, rolling her eyes at her dad.
Tony laughed. "I am too funny." he said, slapping his knee.
"Ignore your father." Ziva told her daughters. "He's crazy."
"At least I don't snort like a pig when I laugh." Tony countered, playfully.
Talia tried to stifle a laugh, but it did not go over all that well.
Ziva glared at her daughter. "How does 'no cartoons' sound?" Ziva asked, sternly.
Talia seemed genuinely threatened by that comment.
"Don't worry buttercup," Tony told his daughter. "Mommy's just had a bad day."
Talia nodded.
"Daddy, look what I did in school today!" Talia said gleefully, as she skipped over to her father's side holding a piece of paper in her hands.
"What's that buttercup?" Tony asked, with a smile.
Talia held the piece of paper up for her father to see. It was a drawing of a house, a family standing in front of their house, and a dog (kind of cliche I know, I know...) and it was all drawn in really bright colors.
"Wow," Tony said, taking the drawing so that he could examine it closer. "That is really good sweetheart." he told his daughter, with a smile. "Mind if I put this one up back here with the others?" he asked, nodding towards a panel of the wall behind his desk that was covered in a collage of his daughter's drawings and such.
"That's why I drew it." she said, as if that were completely obvious.
Tony chuckled. "Of course." he said nodding.
"Did you have fun staying over at Jenny's house while Mom and I were away?" he asked.
Talia nodded. "Yep. We even got to ride Horse." she told her dad, excitedly.
"Wow." Tony exclaimed, playfully. "That does sound like fun."
Ziva approached her husband, now carrying Gena in her arms, and smiled. "Hey." she said, as she kissed her husband, and handed off Gena to him.
"Have fun?" Tony asked, as he pulled the little girl into his arms.
"Fun!?" she replied. "Those people are nuts." she fumed, under her breath.
"I know honey," Tony said with a smirk. "That's why I try to avoid that place when I can." he added. "Too many people trying to be politically correct these days...gets really annoying you know."
"Sometimes I really despise you." Ziva told her husband, glaring at him unhappily as she did so.
Tony chuckled. "I love you dear."
"Come on Tali," Ziva said, taking her oldest daughter by the hand, gently. "Lets go get some snacks." she added.
"Okey dokey." the little girl replied, as she trotted off with her mother to find the vending machines.
Tony turned his attention to his youngest daughter at that point. "And how about you?" he asked, in a playful voice. "Do anything interesting today?"
Much to his disappointment the little girl was unusually quiet today, and seemed to be avoiding eye contact.
"Silent treatment eh?" Tony remarked, playfully. "Alright, two can play that-" he started to say, as he shifted the little girl in his arm. His arm brushed against her upper back, and she flinched.
Tony was startled by the reaction, and it took him a minute to recover from the shock.
"You okay sweetie?" he asked, concerned.
She still didn't look at him, but he could swear that in the corner of her eye(s) he saw a tear(s). "Was she crying?" he thought to himself. He rubbed his hand back across her upper back, and she flinched again.
"Tony," McGee said, as he stood up behind his desk. "Do you-"
"See that?" Tony finished for him. "Yeah, I saw it. She flinches when I touch her back--right here." he tested the area again, and got the same result as the first two times.
"Something's not right." Tony said in a low voice.
McGee walked over to where Tony was.
Tony looked up at McGee, and nodded for him to help him out.
"Check her back for me, will ya?" he asked McGee.
"Sure thing." McGee said, swallowing hard.
McGee lifted the little girl's shirt, while Tony held her still, and checked the area around her upper back.
"Oh no," McGee gasped.
"What!?" Tony demanded.
"Tony, you should see this." McGee informed him.
Tony peeked over the little girl's shoulder, and looked down at where McGee was pointing.
Tony's breath caught in his throat at the sight he was seeing. There was a nice-sized red spot stretched across her upper back. There was also small bruise-looking markings as well.
"What the hell is that?" Tony growled through gritted teeth.
"I-I don't know." McGee replied. "I think we need Doc Mason's opinion."
"Yeah." Tony agreed. "Come with me." he commanded McGee.
Down in Autopsy Gena was sitting on one of the clean slabs while Doc Mason gave her a once over. He finally finished his examination, and patted the little girl gently on the head, with a smile, and then walked over to where Tony and McGee were standing.
"Who did this?" Doc Mason demanded.
"What is it?" McGee asked, quietly.
"Someone STRUCK that little girl--HARD." Doc Mason fumed, under his breath.
"What!?" Tony replied, shocked and panicked (a little bit anyways).
"The patterns indicate that this has been going on for several days." he said.
"You're telling me," Tony said, his blood pressure rising from the intense anger that he felt inside him(self). "That someone has been 'beating' my little girl."
"Precisely." Doc Mason said.
"Ziva, McGee, and I just got back from a three-day undercover assignment up north." he told Doc Mason.
"Yes, I heard." Doc Mason replied.
"Talia stayed with a friend from school, Jenny, and Gena stayed with a friend from her daycare." Tony thought out loud.
"Damn." Tony swore under his breath. "I left my child with a 'child-abuser'." Tony's eyes were moist and red at this point.
"Tony," McGee said softly. "There's no way you could've known." he told Tony quietly.
Tony pushed past the two other men, and walked quickly over to his daughter. He stooped over to her level, and looked her in the eyes.
"Sweetheart," Tony said softly. "Did someone hurt you?"
No answer. The little girl just hung her head, as if she were ashamed of something.
"Sweetie," Tony tried again, softly. "Its me...Daddy."
"Did somebody hurt you?" he asked again, softly.
This time he could see visible (but silent) tears rolling down her cheeks. "Sweetie-" he started to say. The little girl wrapped her arms around his neck, and hung on tight as little tiny sobs began to escape her throat.
"Oh baby," Tony said softly, as he lifted his daughter up into his arms. "Its okay...its okay." he told her, his own voice cracking up as he spoke. "No one's ever gonna hurt you again...I promise. I'll keep you safe." he told her, softly.
"I promise." he added.
The automatic door(s) to Autopsy opened up, and Ziva and Talia entered the room. Ziva and Talia were both carrying snacks in their hands.
"We looked everywhere for you guys." she said, as they approached everyone else. "Why is everyone down here in-"
Ziva noticed that Gena was crying in her father's arms.
"What's wrong--what happened?" she demanded, suddenly a little bit scared.
"While we were gone" Tony began. "Someone was...beating her." he told her.
Tony lifted up the little girl's shirt, and showed Ziva the spot.
"Oh my God," Ziva gasped, hurrying over to her daughter and husband. "Oh baby. I'm so sorry--mommy's so sorry." Ziva said, tears forming in her own eyes.
She wrapped her arms, gently, around both her husband and her daughter. "Its okay." she whispered to the little girl.
"Who would do such a thing?" Doc Mason asked McGee.
"Someone who's sick and perverted." McGee replied, through gritted teeth.
Later That Night...
Everyone at the DiNozzo residence had turned in for bed, and the lights in the house were being turned off.
Talia was tucked in, and already fast asleep in her room. Tony and Ziva were in their room, with Gena, and were crawling under the covers of their bed.
Tony pulled the covers up, and Ziva crawled in on her side of the bed. Gena crawled in underneath the covers and settled in between her Mom and Dad.
They had promised that she could sleep with them, under the circumstances, and she had even brought her favorite stuffed teddy bear with her as well. Tony and Ziva had even gotten one of her 'baby' pillows for her to use in their bed.
"Good?" Tony asked Gena.
Gena nodded at her father as she settled into her 'spot' between both of her parents with her teddy bear 'Buttons'.
Tony had vowed earlier that not only would he destroy the bastard that struck his daughter, but also he would do the same to 'anyone' who so much as looked at either one of his children wrong.
"Lights out time." Ziva said, reaching for the bedside-table lamp on her side of the bed.
"Right." Tony said, as he did the same.
"Goodnight everyone." Tony said, as the room went dark.
"Love you." Gena said quietly through the darkness.
"We love you too, sweetheart." Tony said softly, as he kissed his daughter on the cheek in the darkened room.
Ziva leaned over, and also gave her youngest daughter a kiss on the cheek. "Sweet dreams, love." she whispered softly, in the little girl's ear.
The Next Morning...
Tony sat behind his desk at NCIS HQ, and Ziva was at her desk looking over some paperwork.
Gena had come into work with her parents this morning because they were afraid of leaving her anywhere else at this point. She sat behind her father's desk with her teddy bear, and some crayons and a coloring book.
McGee walked around the corner, escorting a rather sloppy-looking man, and when Gena saw him she scurried up under her father's desk to hide. "Sweetheart?" Tony said softly, looking down.
He heard his youngest daughter whimper at his feet.
"That him?" Tony asked, looking up at McGee.
McGee nodded. "Yep. Picked him up on my way in just like you asked."
"Take him down to interrogation." Tony said. "I'll be right there."
After McGee and the sloppy-looking man had disappeared from sight, Tony backed his chair away from his desk, and stooped over so that he could see his daughter.
"Sweetheart," Tony said, softly. "Its alright--he can't hurt you. I'll make sure of that." he told her.
He stood up after that, and headed towards interrogation.
Tony arrived in the observation room, and stood next to McGee looking in to the interrogation room through the one viewing window.
"He's a truck driver." McGee informed Tony. "His wife gave'em up without much of a fight." he added.
"Really?"
"Yeah. Apparently, he's been beating his own family as well." McGee told him.
"Go figure." Tony replied.
"What'd she say!?" the sloppy-looking truck driver man yelled from the interrogation room as he paced, angrily, back and forth in the room. "What'd that miserable little bitch say--Hunh!?"
"My wife in on this!?" He yelled angrily slamming his fists against a wall. "No--I bet it was that little runt's beaner mother--Fuck her!"
"Look at that McGee," Tony said. "I'm now authorized to use deadly force--if I need to." Tony said, as he walked out of 'Observation' and then re-entered 'Interrogation' a few seconds later.
In Interrogation...
"Actually," Tony said, as he closed the door to interrogation behind him. "Her mother's from Israel. Which makes her half-Israeli as well." he added.
"Who the hell are you?" the trucker snorted, angrily.
"The 'Father'," he replied. "Of the little girl that you beat." he added.
"That miserable-"
Tony stepped up to the guy cutting his sentence short. "That's my little girl you're talking about." Tony growled in a low voice.
"Guess you're not a very good father then, are you?" the trucker guy retorted. "Need to teach them bitches some respect." he added, with a sneer.
"How so?" Tony asked, trying to stay calm and cool.
"Take'em and beat'em every now and then--just so'as they learn their place in this world." The trucker started to chuckle at his words. "especially 'those people'."
Tony moved so fast it was almost unbelievable. He slammed the trucker guy back against the wall, and held his arm against the guys' throat. His whole body shaking and seething with anger.
"I would never put my family through that kind of hell," Tony growled. "And any man who does--is a coward." Tony spat.
The choker gasped for air, as his airway was being somewhat restricted by Tony's arm being pressed against his throat.
"You're an American," the guy choked out. "Shackin' up...with some...some...'sand monkey'--it ain't right!"
"That's my wife you're talking about!" Tony snapped, kneeing the guy in the gut, and then slamming him down, head first, into the nearby table.
Tony then yanked the guy back upright, and slammed him back up against the wall.
"And the day I become like you--which I pray to God never happens-" Tony spat at the guy. "-Is the day I hope to God, my wife has the good sense to shoot my ass--right where I stand."
"This...This is police...brutality." the trucker guy panted.
"McGee!" Tony yelled.
McGee switched on the intercom system from the other room, and answered.
"Yeah Boss?"
"This look like police brutality to you?"
"Nope." McGee replied. "All I saw was him attacking you, and you defending yourself." he added.
"This--This ain't right." the trucker said. "You can't do this to me."
"Mr. Barron," Tony said, as he whipped out his handcuffs. "You're under arrest for child abuse, spousal abuse, and--my favorite--assaulting a Federal Agent." Tony cited the charges aloud.
Tony then proceeded to read the trucker guy his Miranda Rights as well.
Later...
Later that day the team was getting ready to knock off for the day. Tony gathered up his things, and then looked across the bullpen at his wife.
Ziva was helping Gena, who was sitting on the edge of her mom's desk with her legs dangling down off of the side, into her jacket.
"What'dya say we pick up Talia, and go out to dinner tonight." Tony suggested, as he pulled on his own coat.
"Sounds good." Ziva replied, looking up at her husband. "What're you hungry for?"
"I was thinking...Pizza." he told her, with a thoughtful look. "How does that sound to you squirt?" he asked his daughter, in a playful tone.
The little girl sat quietly, and thought about that for a moment. "Pizza." she repeated, delightedly, clapping her hands together.
"Pizza it is then." Ziva replied, with a smile, as she kissed her daughter on the forehead.
"Pizza!" the little girl repeated, giggling.
Tony walked out from around his desk, and walked over to Gena and Ziva. "Alright then," he said, helping the little girl down off of the desk and back onto the floor. "Let's go get your sister."
"Night McGee!" Tony called over his shoulder.
"See ya." McGee called back. He was still gathering up his own things/stuff.
"Goodnight McGee!" Ziva called over her shoulder, as she and her family walked towards the elevator.
"See ya Ziva!" McGee called back. "Don't have too much fun!" he added.
"No such thing McGee!" Tony called back, with a chuckle.
--------THE END--------
Author's Chapter Notes:
The stunning and surprising finale to the 'A New Nightmare' storyline. Hope you guys have enjoyed the story so far, and hope you all enjoy the ending just as much...Thanks Again You Guys For Reading :)
Chapter End Notes:
Hope you guys enjoy this special surprise conclusion/finale. If you guys have any suggestions of things that you would like to see happen here, I would love to hear some feedback. Or if you guys have any suggestions for future projects I am open to your feedback...Thank You Guys Again For Taking This Ride With Me!