Kate was in a wonderful mood. She was 5 months pregnant and loving every minute of it. She had just been down to see Abby to discuss the baby shower. She entered the empty quad room. Tony out on his lunch break and Gibbs still up with the Director. She heard her phone ringing and rushed to answer it.
“ Kate Gibbs” she said in a cheerful voice.
“ Katie” she heard a rushed voice.
“ Mum, is that you? What’s wrong?” she asked in a panicked tone. She had never heard her mum like this, something was definitely wrong.
“ It’s your father. He…he passed away last night” Julie choked out. Kate’s heart stopped
“ What?” She asked not believe what her mother was saying.
“ He’s gone sweetie” her mother cried. Kate couldn’t speak.
Gibbs was finally finished with the director and started his way down the stairs. He saw Kate on the phone. He stopped to take in her. She was gorgeous and now that she was pregnant she was even more gorgeous. But something was wrong. Kate’s face was happy. He watched her body and he could see it swaying. Without thinking he sprinted down the stairs and into the squad room just as she fell to the ground. He reached her as she hit the ground. He brought her into his lap.
“ Kate. Kate? Look at me. Katie?” he pleaded to her. She started to come to but didn’t say anything. She turned her face into him and started crying. Gibbs turned to see the handing down near the desk and could hear a muffled voice.
“ Hello?” he took the receiver.
“ Jethro, is that you?” Julie asked.
“ Julie? What is going on?” he asked concern clearly in his voice.
“ Jack passed away last night” she repeated through tears. Gibbs let out a sigh and held Kate closer to him. He felt her grip his shirt.
“ What? How?”.
“ We’re still not sure. He was so healthy, I don’t know what went wrong” Julie’s voice broke.
“ Julie everything is going to be ok even if it doesn’t feel like it. Me and Kate will be there as soon as we can” he assured her.
“ Thank you Jethro, but Kate shouldn’t be flying in her state”. Gibbs looked down at his wife and her bulging stomach. He had to agree.
“ I’ll drive. Just stay strong. I’ll make sure we are there with you soon”.
“ Ok. Take care of her for me”. Gibbs nodded his head in his own silent agreement.
“ Always, bye Julie” he said.
“ By Jethro” he heard the click of her hanging up and let the phone go. He couldn’t reach up and put it back in its place. He looked down as he felt Kate stirring in his lap.
“ Jethro he’s gone, he’s really gone” she sobbed. He held her tighter and ran a hand over her hair.
“ Shhh its ok Katie” he said in a hushed voice as he kissed the top of her head. It was at that time that Tony decided to come back from his lunch break.
“ Well that was one of the best lunch breaks ever. Kate you would never believe…” he started as he headed into the squad room but stopped as he saw Kate lying on the ground with Gibbs cradling her.
“ What happened? Is she alright?” he asked as he threw his things at his desk and going to Kate’s side.
“ Physically yes, emotionally no” Gibbs said looking down at her. He made an attempt to get up but he couldn’t.
“ Help us up DiNozzo” Gibbs ordered. Tony bent down and put an arm under her back and knees and lifted her from Gibbs. She instantly wrapped her arms around Tony’s neck and hid her face in his shoulder. He could hear her silent sobs. Gibbs jumped up off the floor.
“ It’s ok Kate” Tony said in a hushed tone as he handed her back over to Gibbs who placed her in her chair.
“ Tony go brag her a glass of water” he ordered as he ran a gentle hand over Kate’s wet cheek. She sat there slumped over, eyes closed.
“ Sure. Anything else?” he asked. Gibbs shook his head.
“ No” Tony ran off to fetch Kate some water.
“ Katie look at me” he said in a hushed voice as he moved her hair behind her ear to get a better look at him.
“ He’s gone Jethro” he repeated, her eyes still closed.
“ I know honey, but you need to focus right now ok.” Kate nodded then finally opened her eyes to look at him. His face was one of concern and sadness.
“ Now did you hurt yourself when you fell?”. She shook her head.
“ Are you sure”. She nodded. Gibbs let out a sigh of relief then kissed the top of her head.
“ I’m going to take you to the hospital anyway” he said softly. Tony came running back into the squad room and up to Kate’s desk.
“ Boss I got the water”. Gibbs looked up at Tony and saw the concerns on the younger man’s face. He turned back to Kate and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek then stood up to stand next to Tony.
“ Stay with her, I’ll be back soon” he said almost a whisper. Tony nodded and watched his boss bound up the stairs and into the Directors office. Tony went and knelt down in front of Kate.
“ Hey Kate, I got you some water” he said and handed her the glass. She took it with shaky hands and took a small sip. Tony grabbed it from her and placed it on the desk.
“ Thank you” she said in a small voice.
“ Did you want to talk about it?” he asked softly. He didn’t know exactly what had happened but sometimes talking about it made you feel better. Kate shook her head.
“ Not really” she said. Tony reached out and tucked another strand of hair behind her ear as it fell in front of her face. He could see her tear stained face clearly now.
“ Ok. Well I’m here whenever you’re ready” he said softly. She nodded and tried to force a small smile on her face.
“ Thanks Tony” she said finally looking up at him.
“ I would do anything for you, you’re like my sister” he confessed. He hated seeing Kate like this, all broken and run down and there was nothing he could do.
“ And you’re like another annoying brother” she told him with a sniffle.
“ I’m not that bad am i?” he asked, mocked hurt. She shook her head with a smile.
“ Not anymore”. Her smile disappeared and she took a deep breath.
“ Tony my dad passed away last night” she told him.
“ Oh Kate I’m so sorry. Come here” he said and pulled her into a hug. She buried her head in the crook of his neck and he ran his hands over her back to comfort her.
“ Come on we’re going to the hospital” they heard Gibbs say next to them. They let go and Kate nodded. She got up off the chair and went to Gibbs’ out stretched arm. She turned back to Tony.
“ Thanks Tony” she said with a small smile.
“ Anytime” he said. They grabbed Kate’s things then headed for the elevator. Then McGee enters the squad room and see’s Kate and Gibbs by the elevator and Tony standing near Kate’s desk.
“ Where are they going?” he asked confused.
“ The hospital” Tony said as he made his way back to his desk.
“ Why? Is everything ok?” McGee asked concerned that there may be something wrong with the Kate or the baby.
“ Just a check-up” Tony said.
“ Oh ok” he replied then went to his own desk.
Gibbs opened the front door for Kate and she stepped inside. Still shaken from today’s news. Gibbs closed the door behind him, walked past Kate and made his way to their room.
“ Come on we have to pack” he called. Kate made her way to the bedroom.
“ Why? Where are we going” she asked as she stood in the doorway watching Gibbs grab some clothes and put them on the bed.
“ I told your mum we would be there as soon as possible” he said grabbing two bags from under the bed.
“ We can’t go now. We have no plane tickets and what about work” she said stepping further into the room.
“ I’m driving and the director had let us have some time off. Don’t worry about anything, so can you please come pack” he urged her as he shoved his clothes in a bag. She nodded and slowly made her way to her clothes.
“ But I have to tell Abby I’m ok” she said as she slowly pulled a black dress from her closet.
“ You can call her once we leave. Please Kate I don’t want to leave really late” he pleaded with her. He knew she was in a difficult place right now but she had to start moving otherwise it will be dark by the time they left. Kate made her way to her bag.
“ Thank you Jethro, this means a lot to me” she said softly, giving him her best smile. He stopped what he was doing and walked over to her and grabbed her softly by the shoulders and starred into her deep brown eyes.
“ I would do anything for you. Don’t you forget that” he said, cupped her face then placed a gentle kiss on her lips. They finally got the packing done. Grabbed two bottles of water and some fruit from the kitchen before they finally left.
It felt like forever before they reached the Todd residence. Kate climbed out of the car and stood starring at the house. Gibbs got out and grabbed the bags with him. The front door opened and her mum rushed down the stairs and threw her arms around Kate.
“ Oh mum I am so sorry” Kate said trying her hardest not to let the tears fall again.
“ Darling this isn’t you fault, it was his time” Julie said pulling back and looking into her daughters sad, tear filled eyes. Kate just gave her a weak smile and a small nod. Julie led Kate inside, Gibbs following them. He closed the door behind him.
“ I’ll be up stairs” he said with a soft kiss to Kate’s cheek.
“ Thank you Jet” she said giving him her best smile.
“ Come on we’ll go have a talk” Julie lead her into the dimly lit lounge room. The sat down next to each other on the lounge. Kate faced her mum.
“ Do you know what happened?” she asked in a small tone.
“I’ve been told he had a blood clot causing his heart to stop. I…I didn’t notice until I came back into get him for breakfast”. Kate could see tears welling up in her mother’s eyes. Kate grabbed her hand.
“ Mum you couldn’t have known, you were asleep. When are the others coming?” she asked changing the subject.
“ Uh in the next day or two. The sooner the better”.
“ We’ll get through this, I promise”.
“ How can you be so sure?” Julie asked in a small voice, not believing Kate’s words. A small smile appeared on Kate’s face.
“ Faith. I look at Jethro and I know it’s possible”. Julie looked at her with a questioning look.
“ Jethro?”. Kate nodded.
“ Please don’t tell the others. Well when Jethro was in the marines he had a wife, Shannon, and a daughter, Kelly. When he was deployed, Shannon witnessed a murder. Before she could testify against him they were both killed” she said the last words in a soft voice. Julie gasped.
“ Oh my goodness. How did he deal with it?”.
“ He joined NCIS to protect the families of marines who are deployed. He still has nightmares about it. You’re a strong woman and you have all of us for support” Kate told her squeezing her hand.
“ I know, but I’m going to be so alone in this big house” she said looking around the house, already feeling to empty.
“ Why don’t you move out into something smaller, more manageable?”.
“ I can’t do that. I have been here too long and there are just so many memories here”. Kate couldn’t agree with her more.
“ I know. It’s late, we should get some sleep” Kate said motioning to the clock on the wall.
“ Ok. Thank you for coming so quickly” Julie said getting up off the lounge. Kate stood up slowly. Her back was starting to ache.
“ It was all Jethro. Good night mum. I love you” she said giving her mum one last hug.
“ Love you too Caitlin dear” Julie said softly. Kate made her way up the stairs and to her bedroom where she saw Gibbs asleep. She smiled to herself, got dressed and slipped in next to him. She closed her eyes and felt Gibbs move closer to her and place his hand on her stomach. She put a hand on top of his before slipping off to sleep.
Four days had past and it was time for her father’s funeral. She stood by the window looking out. She wore a plain black dress that stopped at her knees, had an open back and was loose over her stomach to accommodate her ever growing baby bump. She wore simple black heels, not to high and her hair was down. Gibbs walked in and saw her standing there.
“ Are you ready?” he asked quietly. Kate shook her head before finally facing him.
“ Not really. I guess I have to be”. Gibbs walked over to her and stood in front of her.
“ Kate you don’t have to be anything. It’s hard but don’t try and be strong or hold everything in. That is what I am here for” he said looking down at her. She couldn’t hold it together anymore. She wrapped her arms around him and cried into his chest.
“ I can’t do this. I can’t say goodbye, not like this” she cried. He ran a hand over her hand and down her back.
“ It’s going to be ok” he said then kissed her head.
“ He didn’t even get to meet our child” she cried.
“ And for that I’m sorry”. She pulled back and looked up at him.
“ He was over the moon when I told him” she said trying a soft smile.
“ I know” he said wiping away her tears.
“ Kate, Jethro it’s time to go” they heard Steve call from downstairs. Kate took a deep breath. Gibbs gave her a quick kiss then grabbed his jacket and walked her down the stairs to the car.
The ceremony was beautiful. There wasn’t a dry eye among the guests, except for Gibbs who held on tight to Kate. It came time for everyone to say goodbye. They all had single rose and were to put it on top of the coffin. The guests lined up next to the coffin to say their goodbyes. The family was firs except for Kate who had stepped back and watched.
“ Come on honey” Gibbs urged her to go and say goodbye before it was too late.
“ I don’t want to say goodbye. I shouldn’t be saying goodbye” she said looking down at the rose in her hands.
“ I know it’s hard but you will regret it if you don’t” he said softly before kissing the side her of her head. She closed her eyes at the warmth of his lips.
“ Katie we will do it together” came Justin’s voice. She opened her eyes and saw him standing in front of her. She slowly nodded.
“ Thanks Justin”. Gibbs let Justin take Kate away and they made their way to the coffin that would soon be lowered into the ground.
“ How are you holding up?” Justin asked her.
“Ok. Maybe a bit less than ok. Is it wasn’t for Jethro I would be a mess. How are the kids?” Kate asked softy.
“ They are ok. We had to explain that he was in a big sleep that he won’t wake up from”.
“ I wish he was just asleep. I think what hurts the most is that he will never meet my child” she said rubbing a hand over her belly.
“ Katie you know he is never really gone. He will be watching over all of us, especially his princess and her new family” he said with a smile. They stopped at the coffin.
“ Thank you, you always know what to say”. Justin smiled at her then turned to the coffin. He said a silent pray then put his rose down. He held Kate’s hand as she prepared to do the same.
*-*-*
Gibbs stood there watching Kate and Justin walk towards the remaining guests saying goodbye. He felt someone come to stand next to him but he didn’t turn to see who it was.
“ How is Kate dealing with it?” Rachel asked, looking at her brother and sister. Gibbs let out a sigh before answering.
“ She is trying to be strong but I know she is hurting”.
“ Her and dad were so close. Even over all the boys, we knew she was his favourite” Rachel said with a small smile at the memories.
“ I could see that every time we came to visit. Did she tell you she collapsed when Julie told her?” he asked finally turning to look at Rachel. She shook her head, a stunned expression on her face.
“ No she didn’t mention it. What happened?”.
“ She got the call at work. I saw her fall to the ground. She was hysterical. I had to speak to Julie to know what was going on. I took her to the hospital to get checked out”.
“ What did they say?”.
“ The collapse was caused by the shock of the news. The baby was unharmed when she fell”. He saw a look of relief on Rachel’s face.
“ That’s lucky. I think she is mostly devastated at the fact that dad will never get to meet your little one”. Gibbs nodded. That was what Kate had told him.
“ She did mention that”. They were silent for a moment before she spoke again.
“ How are you?” she asked.
“ Ok. Don’t like funerals but Kate needs me. I should go pay my respects” he said as he started to walk away.
“ You know Jethro, he really did like you” Rachel said with a soft smile.
“ Thank you” he said then made his way over to Kate and Justin.
“ Hey, you ok?” he asked as he gave he a quick kiss. She gave a small nod.
“ I will be. Are you ready?” she asked him.
“ Just give me a sec” he said and stepped past her to get to the coffin. He placed his rose down.
“ Don’t worry I will take good care of them” he whispered. Then turned back to Kate and gave her a big hug and placed a kiss on her cheek. They walked back over to the cars and left for home.
The Todd residence was quiet that night. No one wanted to talk about the service and the kids were exhausted from crying, because everyone else was crying. They all decided to head off to bed early so the miserable day would end. Gibbs walked into the bedroom after brushing his teeth to find Kate lying on her side, her body shaking. He then heard her sobs. He walked over to the bed and climbed in next to her. She felt the weight of him on the bed and instantly rolled over and wrapped her arms his waist and her head on his chest. He laid further down in the bed and pulled her closer to him. He kissed her hair and let her cry herself to sleep, nothing he could say would make the tears stop.
Kate was sitting on the edge of the bed just staring at the ground. Gibbs walked in and packed the last of theirs things.
“ We better get going, you have an appointment tomorrow” he said with a gentle hand on her shoulder, waking her from her trance.
“ Oh I almost forgot. We’ll go say goodbye then we can go” she told him as she got up. Gibbs grabbed both bags and they headed down stairs and rounded up the family to say their goodbyes. It took 20 minutes but they were finally on the road. Kate slept for most of the trip.
Back home they sat cuddled up on the couch watching some T.V show that neither of them were really paying any attention to. Gibbs was running a hand up and down her arm.
“ Do you want anything?” he asked in a soft voice.
“ No, I think I’ll have a bath and go to bed” she said as she got up.
“ You sure?” he asked.
“ Yeah, but thank you. For everything”.
“ Anytime”. She gave him a quick kiss and made her way to the bathroom. He heard to water running and let out a sigh. He could tell it would take her some time to fully get over this, but deep down he wished it would be soon as he hated seeing her like this. So quiet, so distant and so not his Katie.
Gibbs looked at the time. It had been 30 minutes since Kate went for her bath and he hadn’t heard her exit the bathroom. He got up off the lounge and started down the hall way.
“ Kate?” he called out but didn’t get a response. He came to the bathroom door and the light was still on. He opened the door slightly.
“ Kate are you ok, you’ve been in there for ages” he called. He still didn’t get a reply. His heart started to race as the thought of her drowning in their own bath tub ran through his mind. He opened the door and ran to the bath tub. He stopped when he saw her sitting up staring at the wall, tears running down her face. She finally looked up at him, the hurt so evident in her eyes. He went over to her and knelt down and pulled her into a hug as best he could.
“ Oh Kate, It’ll be alright” he said in a hushed tone. She held on to him so tight, buried her head in his shoulder. He could feel that the water had gone cold.
“ I can’t do it Jethro. It hurts so much” she cried.
“ I know sweetie, I know” he said rubbing his hand up and down her back.
“ Come on, let’s get you out and into bed”. She nodded and slowly stood up with Gibbs’ help. She stepped out and he wrapped her in a towel and lead her into the bedroom. He helped her get dressed as she was a bit unsteady on her feet from her big belly. She sat down on the edge of the bed while Gibbs went and turned everything off and made sure all doors and windows were locked. When he came back in she spoke.
“ I’m sorry Jet” she said looking up at him. New tears in her eyes.
“ You have nothing to be sorry for” he said in a gentle tone as he came to sit next to her. He put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close.
“ I’m acting like a baby and these damn hormones aren’t helping” she said wiping her eyes.
“ You’re acting like a grieving daughter. I cried for a week” he finished in almost a whisper. She pulled back to look at him.
“ You? In the five years I have known you, you haven’t shed one tear, not even when Ari” she said but Gibbs cut her off before she could finish her sentence.
“ Not that you saw. You need to get some rest before tomorrow” he said brushing hair out of her face then kissed her. Kate got under the covers while Gibbs got dressed and climbed in next to her. He pulled her closer to her and sighed as he could finally relax.
“ Jethro” she said in a small voice.
“ Hmm” came his sleepy reply.
“ I love you” she said.
“ I love you too, now get some sleep” he said and kissed her head. He felt her body finally relax and knew she would be asleep soon.
Kate was lying on the flat chair, her top up over her belly and cold gel covered her bare skin as the sonographer moved the probe around her belly and stopped when she had a clear picture on the screen. Kate and Gibbs looked at the screen in aww. Gibbs tightened his grip on her hand.
“ You have a very healthy baby. Now would you like to know the sex?” the sonographer asked.
“ Yes” Kate answered.
“ No” Gibbs answered at the same time as Kate. They looked at each other. The sonographer looked at them confused. When most couples come in they have talked about if they want to know the sex or not.
“ Jethro I want to know” she pleaded with him. There was no way he could deny those big brown eyes.
“ Ok” he nodded to the sonographer. She smiled and turned back to the monitor.
“ Well you guys are going to be welcoming a little baby boy in four months” she said with a smile. Kate’s heart started to race and the hormones kicked in again.
“ Oh my god” she gasped and covered her face with her hands as the tears started again.
“ It’s ok” Gibbs tried to sooth her as he rubbed her arm.
“ I’ll give you two a minute” the sonographer said as she left the room. Gibbs turned more to Kate as she wiped her eye and tried to control her breath.
“ Are you ok?” he asked concerned. She nodded her head and tried to give him a smile.
“ Yeah, it…dad said it was a boy” she said as more tears ran down her face at the memory. Gibbs gave her a smile as he grabbed her hand again and kissed it.
“ He was a very smart man. Are you sure you’re ok?” he asked again. She nodded.
“ Yeah, I was just shocked”.
“ Ok” he said and leant down and kissed her.
“ Are you happy?” she asked.
“ Of course I’m happy” he said with a smile. The door opened and the sonographer walked back in and sat at the monitor and smiled at Kate.
“ ok, so would you like me to print you a copy of your happy, healthy boy?”.
“ Yes please” Kate said with a nod. It didn’t take long to do and she handed over to Kate.
“ Thank you”.
“ Not a problem. So have you thought of any names yet?” the sonographer asked being friendly. Kate smiled.
“ No not really. Before we weren’t even sure if we wanted to know the sex. The name was going to happen on the day” she said with a little laugh.
“ Now you have something to think about”.
“ We sure do” Gibbs said looking down at Kate.
“ Here you go. We will see you again soon” she said as she handed Kate a towel to wipe the gel of her belly, Gibbs got the parts she missed.
“ Thank you once again” Kate said as Gibbs helped her off the chair.
Back at home they have a lazy afternoon which turns into night and they have a quick diner and relax on the lounge in front of the TV watching some late night movie. Kate was lying on the lounge her head resting on Gibbs’ lap and he ran his hand through her hair.
“ I’ve been thinking” Kate suddenly says, her eyes still focused on the TV screen.
“ Yeah, about what?” he asked looking down at her.
“ Names” she answered looking up at him.
“ And?” he asked with a smile.
“ Jack”. Gibbs smiled as he thought about it for a second.
“ I would agree if I didn’t feel that my father would think it’s after him” he pointed out. Kate just shrugged.
“ Well it can be”. Gibbs shook his head.
“ Not the first name, perhaps middle?” he asked cautiously. Kate nodded.
“ Ok. So what about the first name?” she asked looking up at him.
“ What about your fathers middle name?” he suggested.
“ He didn’t have one”.
“ If you were a boy what was he going to call you?”.
“ Connor” she answered with a smile at the memory of her father telling her the story of her name.
“ There we go” he said leaning down and kissing her head.
“ Connor Jack Gibbs. Do you like it?” she asked looking at up at Gibbs. He repeated the name threw his head and a grin spread across his face.
“ I love it”.
“ Me too. Connor Jack Gibbs” she repeated. Gibbs leaned down and kissed her on the lips.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.