Title: Misconceptions 04/?
Author: Ceindreadh
Email: Ceindreadh@eircom.net
Rating: T
Warnings: THIS IS AN M-PREG FIC. If you don't like M-Preg then don't read it. If you read it anyway, then don't go complaining to me that you don't like it *because* it's M-Preg
Later chapters *will* feature minor character death, just so you know.
Tissues may be required.
Disclaimer. I don't own the NCIS characters, I'm only borrowing them, and I promise to return them in minty fresh condition when I'm finished.
Notes: Thanks to FatCat for her Beta'ing
I was going to go into this whole pseudo-scientific explanation as to how M-Preg works in this universe, but then I thought, Feck it. It works, and that's it.
Previously on NCIS. Jimmy was having McGee's baby and both were delighted.
Tony was also pregnant, but not so happy. Knowing that Gibbs had had a Vasectomy, Tony initially assumed he'd gotten pregnant before hooking up with him, but an ultrasound proved this wasn't the case. Now Tony was worried about telling Gibbs. Jimmy was being very supportive, bringing Tony to his OB and helping him get details in the even that he decided not to continue with the pregnancy.
Misconceptions 04
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McGee's dinner cooled on the table beside him as he booted up his laptop. It took him less than a minute to bring up the home page for the clinic and he quickly scanned the site. The words 'terminations' hit him like a slap in the face.
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[4]
McGee sat looking at the website for what seemed like an eternity. So fixated on it was he that he didn't hear the footsteps coming into the room, and he jumped when he felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around him.
"Hey," said Jimmy, sleepily as he rested his chin on McGee's shoulder. "I was waiting for you." He yawned, "Thought you might have fallen asleep on the couch after eating." He rubbed his cheek against McGee's as he glanced at the laptop.
McGee didn't say a word. He could tell from the sudden tension in Jimmy's arms, the exact moment when his lover had registered what site was on the laptop screen. "Is there something you want to tell me?" he asked, evenly.
"Why are you looking at that site?" Jimmy's voice was shaky.
"I don't know...maybe you should tell me why you had a referral for it in your jacket?" McGee pulled away from Jimmy and stood up, turning to face him. "And maybe you should tell me why you went back to see Doctor Wu today instead of going to the dentist...at least I *assume* the dental appointment was just a cover story."
Jimmy had backed away slightly. "Tim, it's not what it looks like..." He clamped his mouth shut, not wishing to betray Tony's secret.
"Is there something wrong with the baby? Is that what this is? Tell me Jimmy, please don't shut me out." McGee bit his lip, this was the worst thing he could think of...and then he thought of something worse, "Oh God, Jimmy," he moved closer and grabbed Jimmy's hands, "Is something wrong with you?"
"What? Oh...*oh*...no, Tim..." Jimmy brought McGee's hands to his lips and kissed them, "I'm fine...the baby's fine...I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the appointment..." Jimmy squeezed McGee's hands. "I promised I wouldn't...please Tim, I know we don't have secrets from each other, but this isn't mine to tell...not yet anyway. I swear that it's got nothing to do with me...with us..."
McGee wrapped his arms around Jimmy and hugged him closely, "So long as you and the baby are okay...that's all that matters."
"I'll tell you as soon as I can," promised Jimmy, hoping that Tony would find the 'right time', *soon*.
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A few weeks later however, Tony still hadn't found the 'right time'. He knew that he should just come out and tell Gibbs what was going on, but he just kept putting it off, using the excuse of pressures of work.
"I don't want to tell Gibbs while he has his mind on this case," said Tony to Jimmy one afternoon. Ducky was in his office finishing up a report, and Gibbs was in there with him, probably pacing the floor impatiently.
Jimmy looked at Tony, an exasperated expression on his face, "Tony, when is Gibbs ever *not* going to have his mind on a case? You can't keep putting this off. Gibbs isn't blind, he's going to notice sooner or later."
"I know, I know," said Tony. "And I *will* tell him...I just gotta pick the right time."
"When? Just before your waters break?"
Tony couldn't help but laugh.
"Something amusing about Autopsy?" Gibbs was standing in Ducky's doorway, looking at Tony and Jimmy suspiciously. He hadn't failed to notice that Tony had been spending an awful lot of time in the company of Ducky's assistant these last few weeks. And any times Gibbs's path had crossed with Palmer's, the younger man seemed a lot more nervous than usual. If Gibbs hadn't known better, he would have thought that Palmer was hiding something. Even now his young face had a guilty expression on it, as if he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't.
"Um, no, Agent Gibbs, Tony and I, we were just...just..." stammered Jimmy.
"Jimmy was just explaining to me the effects of aging on the human body," said Tony, quickly. "Riveting stuff, Boss. I'll tell you all about it sometime." He straightened up. "We good to go?"
Gibbs eyed him carefully, knowing that Tony was yanking his chain. He knew that he was older than Tony. He knew that he was considerably older than pretty near all of Tony's previous partners. Not that he was embarrassed about his age, but he didn't like it being flaunted in his face...especially when there were so many younger agents around. So many young men and women who were much closer to Tony in age. So many people who could catch Tony's eyes sooner or later...so much competition.
"Yeah, we're good." Gibbs walked out of Autopsy.
"Tony," hissed Jimmy, "Now's as good a time as any."
Tony looked at Jimmy, and bit his lip. "I...okay..." He swallowed hard.
"Good luck," said Jimmy softly as Tony left the room. He watched through the Autopsy doors as Tony caught up with Gibbs and stopped him at the elevator.
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"Boss, wait up," said Tony, "I...I have something I need to tell you."
Gibbs turned around, his expression carefully neutral. "What is it, DiNozzo?" At the back of his mind, he was sure he knew what Tony was about to say. They'd been together for what, nine, ten weeks now? That was easily ten times longer than any previous relationship Tony had been in. This was going to be his 'Dear John' conversation, Gibbs was sure of it. But at least Tony was doing him the courtesy of having it face to face and not leaving him a letter on the kitchen table.
"Well? What is it?"
Tony swallowed hard, wishing he hadn't listened to Jimmy. "I...Jethro...I'm going to have a baby..."
Gibbs's mouth opened wide, "What?"
Tony continued, his words spilling out as if a floodgate had been opened, "I'm pregnant, Jethro, eight weeks, I've been wanting to tell you for ages, but I just couldn't bring myself to say anything and I was scared about how you'd react because I know you didn't want kids and I guess I must have screwed up and I'm sorry and..." Tony's voice trailed off as he saw the expression on Gibbs's face.
"Eight weeks...and we've been together for ten," Gibbs's voice was cold. "So you only waited, what, two weeks before getting bored and cheating on me." He laughed derisively, "Guess I should flatter myself that you waited even *that* long."
"What?" Tony was shocked. "No...I...wait, Gibbs, I haven't been with anybody else, I swear...it's *your* baby! Honest."
"I haven't been with anybody else Jethro, I've been a good faithful wife to you" The words echoed in Gibbs's mind, just as Diane had said them to him, oh so long ago. But she'd been lying then, and he'd seen the proof of it when he'd come home unexpectedly and found her in bed with the next-door neighbor. Even then she'd tried to deny it, saying that it was a once off event, and he'd almost believed her, and then he'd gone to the bank and found their joint account had been cleared out and most of the house as well.
"Don't lie to me, DiNozzo!" yelled Gibbs, "You know that's impossible." He pushed Tony against the wall. "Who is it? Who've you been fucking behind my back, you lying little tramp?"
"Nobody, Gibbs, nobody, I swear it." Tony didn't think he'd ever seen Gibbs this angry...and he'd certainly never seen this much of Gibbs's anger directed at him. He backed away from Gibbs, knocking over a waste bin. "I love you, Gibbs..."
"I love you Jethro" Diane had said the very morning before she'd left him penniless. All Gibbs could see was her cheating face as he raised his fist.
Gibbs had never hit anybody who hadn't deserved it. The walls in his house bore more than one dent from his fist where he'd vented his anger on an inanimate object, rather than the person who he was angry with. Now was no exception as he swung his fist towards the wall to one side of DiNozzo's face.
Unfortunately, from the angle he was looking at, Jimmy didn't realize this.
He'd been hovering in Autopsy, waiting to see what the outcome would be of Tony's revelation to Gibbs. The raised voices had concerned him, but he forced himself to wait, knowing that this was something that Gibbs and Tony needed to work out for themselves. It wasn't until he heard the clatter of something being knocked over; that Jimmy decided it was time to step in.
He'd just opened the doors when he saw Tony backed up against the wall and Gibbs with his fist raised. Without thinking, Jimmy ran forwards, grabbing Gibbs's arm and trying to pull him away, "Agent Gibbs, NO!"
For a brief second, Gibbs's eyes met Jimmy's. The one face so full of rage, the other full of fear and concern. And then Gibbs wrenched his arm free, pushing Jimmy away and sending him stumbling sideways. Jimmy tried to regain his balance but the upturned waste bin was in his path. He slammed into the wall hard...his legs gave way beneath him and he slid down the wall to the ground.
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To be continued
Chapter End Notes:
I wrote a fic called Reality Check, which featured an M-Preg dream. Feedback was so positive that I decided to do the real thing.