A Last Goodbye
Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS.
Summary: He watched as the casket was lowered into the earth, and suddenly felt like he was not alone. He sensed rather than saw her presence beside him, and he begins to wonder why she came to say goodbye.
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The funeral of Jackson Gibbs was simple and heartfelt. It seemed like everyone had come out to say goodbye to the old man, and for that, Leroy Jethro Gibbs was happy. His father had touched many people's lives – he just had to look at the people gathered around him to know that. Gibbs' whole team was there, even Bishop, who hadn't even known Jackson. LJ was there too, and a couple of older gentlemen who had been friends with Jackson. He would never admit it aloud, but Gibbs found himself comforted by their being there. Death was a common denominator with him, but it's harder the closer to home it strikes.
The young soldier approached Gibbs with the flag from Jackson's coffin, and he clutched it close to his chest. He had witnessed many people over the years holding flags identical to this, and he now understood why they held it with such esteem. It was not just a flag, after all. He stood through the rest of the service like that, his sad blue eyes never leaving his father's casket. He thought about all of the other funerals just like this he had attended – Kate, Jenny, Mike – but none of them were like this. No sadness had ever felt this heavy.
When the service ended, Gibbs thanked everyone for coming. Vance gave him a reassuring handshake. LJ gave his shoulder a squeeze and a quiet, "He's proud of you, Leroy." His team offered condolences, and Abby gave him a tight hug. Slowly yet surely, the spectators of Jackson's funeral drifted off to their respective cars, giving Gibbs the space and peace he needed with his father.
Gibbs placed the folded flag on a chair and walked over beside the casket. He rested his hand on the polished wood, remembering how his father was the one who had gotten him into woodworking in the first place. In fact, now that he thought about it, Gibbs realized most of the things he'd done in his life were inspired by Jackson. The sniping, for example. The boats.
Tell a kid he can't have a rifle, he grows up to be a sniper.
You know what your grandpa used to say? Water never forgets. Anyone with a boat named after them will live forever.
Gibbs found himself smiling at the words of his father and mother. He ran his fingers lightly over the casket and sighed. "I'm going to miss you, Dad," he whispered. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you." There was so much more he wanted to say, things that he had never gotten a chance to tell Jackson in all of their years spent apart. He resigned with a sigh and stepped back from the casket as the workers moved in, preparing to lower it into the ground.
Over the quiet noise of the workers, Gibbs heard footsteps on the grass behind him. They were so light he almost didn't distinguish them from the sounds around him, but he had been an agent long enough to pick up those kinds of things. He watched as the casket was lowered into the earth, and suddenly felt like he was not alone. He sensed rather than saw her presence beside him, and he began to wonder why she had come to say goodbye. How had she even known?
"Tony told me what had happened," she said softly, answering his unasked question. "No one knows I am here. I figured you would want some company." He smiled slightly, touched. "He was a great man, your father."
"Yeah, he was," Gibbs agreed. He looked down at the woman standing quietly beside him, dressed all in black with her curls pulled back. "Thank you for coming, Ziva."
She looked up at him and gave him a smile, one that he hadn't seen in what felt like forever. "I was not going to let you be alone for this, Gibbs."
"Ah, you're never alone when you have kids," he said. He pulled her into a one-armed hug before adding, "No matter how far away they are." Ziva smiled at his side. The two of them stood in silence, watching as the casket met its final resting place in the ground. The stillness of the cemetery surrounded them, and Gibbs mentally said his last goodbyes to his father. All the things he wished he'd said; all of the missed chances – he let them go. He remembered how, after his mom died, Jackson had just moved on with his life, and how angry that had made him. Gibbs promised he wouldn't do that this time.
After all, he was just like his father. You love your family forever, but you have to move on sometime. Snippets of old conversations with Jackson flowed through his head. Gibbs found himself smiling at the memories; the memories that would stay forever. Knowing that there was nothing left to be done at the cemetery, Gibbs left Ziva's side and picked up the flag that had adorned his father's casket. As they made their way out, he stopped for a moment and turned back to where his father lay.
"Bye, Dad," he whispered.