The alarm went off. Gibbs hand shot out and slammed down on the alarm clock to silence the alarm. He lay there for a second in a sleepy haze, then glanced at the clock and saw that it was 6:30am. Later than he usually had it set, but it was a holiday. He slowly rose out of bed and moved slower than he use to, ever since the last surgery. Even though he moved slower, he was thankful to Dr. Taft for saving his knee and his life. He stretched a bit, then made his way to the bathroom. Seemed to be part of the routine lately. After he did his business, he changed into a pair of jeans and t-shirt, then headed downstairs to put a pot of coffee on. He still used a percolator. In his opinion, it was the only way coffee should be made. While the coffee was still percolating, he cooked up a couple of eggs over easy and put them on a couple slices of toast. He quietly ate his breakfast and drank his coffee. He was ready for a difficult day.
Every Memorial Day was always difficult for Gibbs. While many people were getting ready for Cookouts or pools to open, Gibbs knew up close and personal what Memorial Day was all about. He packed a bag with the supplies he would need for the day. In the past, he use to run to Arlington Cemetery to pay his respects to his fallen brothers, but this year, the knee was a little less forgiving than in the past, so he got in the pickup and drove up route 1 and made his way to Arlington National Cemetery.
Gibbs was allowed to drive into Arlington, the guards at the entrance knew him well. First stop was always Lt Cameron. His death affected Gibbs more than any other – maybe it was because Cameron died in his arms. Maybe it was because Col. Granger, a man he looked up to, relied on the image of Lt Cameron as he spiraled into mental illness. Gibbs grabbed the bag out of the truck and walked among the white stones until he found the one he was looking for. "Gunnery Sargent Gibbs reporting for duty' Gibbs said as he saluted the gravestone. There was a US flag in front of the gravestone, placed by 'The Old Guard' out of Fort Meyers. Gibbs reached into his bag and pulled out a bottle of Bourbon. He opened the bottle and poured a shots worth in front of the grave stone, then took a big swig from the bottle. "Lt Cameron, you son of a bitch. You should never have died. You taught me more about life than I ever thought anyone could. I tried to save you, but you had more holes in you than I had hands. Godspeed, sir." Gibbs looked around and saw a few other people at other graves nearby. He wondered if they were friends or relatives of the deceased soldiers, but knew it didn't matter. Each gravestone represented a son, brother, husband, fiancé, friend of someone.
Gibbs grabbed his bag and was ready to move on to the next grave. Col Granger had passed a couple years ago. He had been able to live the last few years of his life rather lucidly once the doctors had figured out the right mix of medications, but he really was never the same man. Gibbs visited him regularly, and every time he visited, Col Granger was happy to see him. But he could see a dullness in the man's eyes and knew part of him was missing. Gibbs was never sure if it was the drugs or the mental illness. After a short walk from where he parked the truck, Gibbs found the tombstone he was looking for. He saluted, said 'Semper Fi'. Then "God, I miss you Colonel." He smiled as the memories of Granger came to him. "You son of a bitch! I miss you ever day, sir". Gibbs reached into his backpack and pulled out the flask that he had gotten with Col Granger. He went through the same ritual as he did at Lt Cameron's grave, poured Bourbon from the flask on the ground and took a swig for himself. After this, he sat down, back against the tombstone. Granger was a good soldier, Gibbs always tried to emulate him. He was devastated when he realized the extent that Granger had descended into mental illness, but it also made him more sensitive to what he and his peer might experience as they became civilians and tried to assimilate into the civilian world. Col Granger was the dad that his dad never was to him. This death affected him more than many of the other deaths, other than his father. After spending nearly a half hour just sitting there, recalling all the memories of Granger he stood up, saluted the grave again and moved on, back to his truck parked nearby.
He drove just up the road to section 66. He didn't have to go far to find Mike Frank's grave. "Hey Mike!" Gibbs smiled, remembering his mentor and friend. "I miss ya! I'm glad you visit me once in a while. You deserve a double." Gibbs pours two shots worth of Bourbon from his flask over Mike's grave. He winced a little bit, wasting that much Bourbon, but it was for Mike. "You taught me well, Mike. I hear your voice all the time, guiding me. Almost like a second gut." Gibbs sat with his back against the grave, pulled out the bottle of Bourbon, took a swig, then poured the rest of the liquid on Mike's grave. Tears formed in his eyes. He couldn't help it. Mike had meant so much to him, a second father. "Leyla and Amira are doing well in DC. She has met many other refugees from Iraq and Afghanistan and is helping them to assimilate to a new culture. I am being as much of a father-in-law/Godfather as I can be to fill your footsteps. Hell, I even play twister with Amira!" Gibbs sat with his back against the tombstone. "Mike, life has gotten complicated without you. We got all the women out of the safehouse in Afghanistan. If you ever put me in that situation again, you SOB! I'll probably do the same thing you did." Gibbs thought about all the women in the safe house that were saved because he and McGee stayed and stood up to those wanting to destroy the women who took refuge there. "Mike, I gotta go. Love ya buddy and I'll be back soon."
Gibbs continued on his mission. His next stop was only a few rows away. He finally found the location he was looking for. Shannon's and Kelly's grave. He would be buried there eventually. Sometimes he thought he would make it earlier than later. But as the years passed, he knew taking his life to be with them was not the answer. He was on this earth for a reason, as an NCIS agent his mission was to help people. He didn't always understand how his actions helped, but he had come to understand over the years that people were grateful that a murder was arrested, a terrorist was thwarted, or a family was reunited. He knew that his family would not be reunited while he was still on his mission, but he had found a new family, albite a slightly dysfunctional one.
As he approached the gravestone, he saw that the small bear that he had whittled for Kelly was still at the base of the stone. It brought a smile to his face. He sat down and leaned against the stone. He let his body meld with the stone. "I miss you guys." He enunciated. Tears came to his eyes, and he quickly wiped them away. He sat there for a long time, nothing else said aloud. He has two red roses that he had been carrying that he placed at the base of the stone. "One for each of you. I know how you loved roses, Shannon." He watched as a flock of birds flew out of a nearby tree and headed to an unknown destination. "I'll be with you guys soon, but still have things to do here. Still have a family counting on me." He slowly got up, kissed his hand and placed it on the stone.
After a short walk, he stood in front of the newest gravestone that he planned on visiting. This was the first Memorial Day that his dad was here. It took a couple months to get him here because of the backlog of burials for Arlington National Cemetery. He loved the spot. He could see the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument and Capital and knew that his dad would love it. "Dad, I'm not big on words, as you know, but I do miss our calls. I'm calling LJ weekly, instead. He was almost like a dad to me as well. I'm glad that I was able to reconnect with him."
Finally, Gibbs hiked his way up to Memorial Amphitheater. He went around the back to the Tomb of the Unknowns. It was a beautiful setting. No one was there at this time since the changing of the guards had just finished. He stood, paying his respects to the unknowns, those buried in this place as well as all of those buried in Arlington who didn't have anyone visiting them this Memorial Day. He knew what it was like to operate in obscurity – NCIS was as obscure as he could get. Many of those buried on this hallowed ground never received visitors, and he wanted to honor all of them. With only a couple on lookers, and the ever present Sentinel Guard, Gibbs walked to the barrier and saluted the unknowns for the full cycle of the guard, 21 steps, turn and wait 21 seconds, turn then move firearm to other shoulder and wait 21 seconds, 21 steps, turn and wait for 21 seconds, move firearm to other shoulder and wait 21 seconds, then start on the next cycle of 21 steps. After Gibbs finished his salute, in a rare vocalization he said aloud "You are not forgotten." He lingered for a while, watching the guard in his routine. More and more people gathered as it got closer to the time for changing of the guard. Gibbs slipped out of the growing crowd.
As Gibbs walked back to his truck, he felt the presence of all those who had passed and were buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Most of all, he realized that they didn't want to be forgotten. It was Memorial Day, the day to recognizes them. Despite what the holiday had become, the unofficial start of summer, he wanted to make sure he never forgot those who came before or after him. He climbed into his truck and closed the door. He bowed his head and folded hands. Not big on vocalizing, Gibbs prayed in his head "Dear Lord, I thank you for the freedoms that I enjoy in this country. I know that freedom isn't free. I pray that each soldier buried in this hallowed ground is never forgotten. Please be with their families, as this is a difficult time for them. Lord, your will be done. Thanks for listening to me. Amen." Gibbs looked up and saw a robin bouncing along the road in front of him and took it as a sign that everything would be alright.
Gibbs started up the truck and headed over to Palmer's house. Palmer had offered to host a Memorial Day picnic at his new home in Fairfax. It took almost a half-hour drive to get there, but Gibbs loves how rural the area was. When he arrived, the rest of the team was already there. They all knew that Gibbs had his Memorial Day routine so they didn't mention it. Gibbs easily slipped into the backyard without any fanfare. He sat there and watched the NCIS family interact.. Gibbs was mentally exhausted from his morning activities. Abby approached and gave Gibbs a big hug, and left him with a bottle of beer. "I love you Gibbs, you know you are loved? " Gibbs smiled, "Yes, Abs. Thank You. I love you, too." The rest of the team followed in a similar manner. This was his family now, the family he thought about as he left Shannon and Kelly's grave. This was the reason he still lived.