Title: It's Okay to Ask for Help
Pairing: None
Rating: FR13
Genre: Drama, Episode Tag, Friendship
Cat: Gen
Spoilers: for the last couple of episodes of season 13
Warnings: None.
Summary: The thought of losing him scares Gibbs, but it's the thought of HER losing him that scares him more.
Author's Note: Written for colorguard28 for the 2016 White Elephant Exchange on NFA from her prompt: "Things that move us most are fear and love/One comes at you from below, the other from above/Can't say which one I'm most weary of/Push comes to shove" Not sure it really fits the prompt, but hopefully it works, lol. (Also, I know I haven't posted anything in forever, but it's been tough going, writing-wise, lately. Hopefully I'll get some inspiration back.)

He's not quite sure how they've done it, wormed their way inside a heart he'd long felt had scabbed over into something incapable of producing the amount of sheer love he has for these people. Not necessarily a romantic love, no, but on some level, the connection went deeper, with all of them, and each of them had their own unique relationship with him.

But it's his colleagues, the men he's known for years and developed relationships that went from frosty professionalism to true friendship, that cause him to feel the most. And it's why, at this moment, Gibbs is praying to anyone who will listen to spare one of his closest friends from the fate so many before him have befallen.

Fornell had been shot, in Gibbs' house, of all places. Gibbs can't help but feel guilty, responsible somehow, even though none of it is his fault. But it seems sometimes that it's his association with these people that gets them killed, and he'd give anything to just keep one of them safe from harm.

"Uncle Gibbs?"

And then there she is. The main reason he needs Fornell to pull through, not only because Gibbs would feel a bit lost without him to harass and confide in, but because Tobias isn't just a grumpy old man – he has a daughter to think of. Emily's just a teenager, and she's already lost her mother. She can't lose her father, too.

"Hey, Em," he says, and he finds his arms suddenly full of the small ginger fury. He sighs and runs a hand over her head. She can be so mature for her age, but she's still just a child, one who's seen far too much for such a young person.

She sniffs against his chest. "He'll be okay, right?"

He tightens his hold on her. "Yeah," he says. He can't bear to tell her otherwise, and he refuses to think of the alternative. "He knows what would happen if he wasn't, right?"

She nods and looks up at him, wiping away her tears. "Yeah. He'd never hear the end of it. I'd make sure of it."

Gibbs manages a small smile at that, though he doesn't feel like smiling much right now. But Emily's strong, and stubborn, a perfect mix of her parents, and looking at her now, he can see how Fornell never really fell out of love with Diane, because he saw her likeness in their daughter whenever he looked at her.

He glances around the hallway – sterile, white, far too bright for this time of night – and then looks back to Emily. "You hungry?"

She shrugs. "Not really." Gibbs fixes her with a look and she sighs. "I suppose I could eat something."

"I'm not gonna make you eat broccoli or anything, you know," he says, eliciting a tiny giggle from Emily.

"As long as you don't make me eat a steak," she says, making a face.

Gibbs puts on a look of mock outrage. "What's wrong with steak?" he asks, and Emily laughs again, louder this time. He grins at that. It's good to hear her laugh. "Nah, I was thinking. . . ice cream?"

Emily rolls her eyes. "I'm not a child, Uncle Gibbs," she says, then pauses. "What kind?"

Gibbs continues to grin at her. "Whatever you want," he says, then amends his promise. "Well, whatever they have in the cafeteria."

"We're not leaving?" He watches relief pass over her face and shrugs, wanting the decision to be hers.

"Not unless you want to go somewhere else." He glances at his watch. "Not sure what's open at this time, but there's probably something."

Emily's already shaking her head before he can even finish. "No, I don't want to go too far." She smiles and Gibbs sucks in a breath at the action – she looked just like her mother when she did that. "Who knows what kind of trouble Dad'll get into if I'm not here to look after him."

Gibbs chuckles. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Emily lifts her chin. "I know I am. Now, come on. I hope they have chocolate chip cookie dough."

Later, after Fornell wakes up, Gibbs is in the hospital hallway, texting McGee, of all things (nothing fancy, no emojis or LOLs here; just updating the team on Fornell's condition), when Emily bounds into view, a beaming smile on her face.

"Hey, no running inside," he says, but he can't help but return her smile, albeit not as exhuberantly.

"I knew he'd be okay!" she says, bouncing on her tiptoes. "I mean, I know we're not totally out of the woods yet and I won't pretend I'm not scared about that, but Uncle Gibbs!" She throws her arms around him and he returns the hug, feeling a bit overcome with emotion. He can't help but imagine sometimes if this is what Kelly would have been like as a teenager, all bubbly and outspoken, but he tries not to let those thoughts go too far, because Emily isn't Kelly, she isn't his daughter, and it's just too painful to imagine for long.

"Are you even listening to me?"

He pulls back, finding Emily giving him a stern look. "I was somewhere else," he admits, and her expression softens and she bites her lip.

"I don't know how I'm going to do this by myself," she says, and Gibbs rests a hand on her shoulder, making sure she's looking him in the eye before he speaks.

"Hey, you're not alone," he says. "Far from it. I'm here, anytime you need me, and you know my team will do anything for you and your dad, too." He pauses, swallowing hard. It's not easy to be vulnerable, but he'll show that side to the people he cares about. "Your dad means a lot to me. You do, too, kiddo. And nobody expects you to be able to handle this alone, or at all, for that matter. It's okay to ask for help."

Emily continues looking up at him for a moment, then wraps her arms around his waist again, burying her face against his shirt. "Same goes for you, Uncle Gibbs," she says, and they let the silence settle around them for a few moments before she suddenly releases him, looking up at him with a grin. "You wanna go see him? I painted his toenails."

Gibbs chuckles at the mental image. "Yeah, let's go."

The visit is going as expected, with plenty of sarcasm and laughter, when Emily announces she's hungry and offers to pick up something for all three of them from the food truck she saw a couple blocks away from the hospital.

"Okay, but you be careful," Fornell advises his daughter, struggling to sit up in bed. Gibbs is at his side in an instant, simultaneously helping him sit up and pressing him back into his pillow.

Emily rolls her eyes, ever the teenager. "I will, Dad. You worry too much." He narrows his eyes at her and motions at himself, a very real reminder of what can happen, and she sighs. "Yeah, okay, I guess you have a point. I'll be right back." She exits the room, leaving the two men alone together.

Gibbs watches her leave, saying, "She'll be fine. She can take care of herself."

Fornell scoffs. "Forgive me for being cautious. Haven't exactly had the best luck of late."

Gibbs turns back to look at him, his eyes expressing the guilt he held back when talking to Emily. Fornell sees the look and shakes a finger at him. "And don't you go feeling guilty about what happened. You're not responsible."

"For you," Gibbs says, and Fornell doesn't have a proper response to that. Gibbs will always feel responsible for Diane's death; if she hadn't been connected to him, she wouldn't have been targeted.

"Yeah, that was just my bad luck," Fornell says, putting the focus back on himself again and attempting some levity. His relationship with Gibbs is no good if they're both brooding all the time.

Gibbs suddenly smirks. "Hey, at least you didn't get shot in the ass this time. Never thought I'd hear the end of that one."

"Oh, very funny. Thanks for the reminder," Fornell says, shifting in bed again.

Gibbs is once again immediately at his side, helping him. "Take it easy, Tobias," he says, his touch gentle as he helps his friend get more comfortable.

Fornell lets out a labored breath. "Yeah, keep forgetting I can't just get up and go."

"Didn't think you could do that in the first place," Gibbs says, and Fornell turns a glare on him. Gibbs can't help but crack another smile; they'll be fine. Whatever happens to either one of them, nothing is going to destroy their friendship. They've been through too much to let anything change that.

"What's Emily getting for us?" Fornell asks suddenly; he hadn't thought to ask her what kind of food truck it was.

Gibbs shrugs. "Dunno. Probably Indian." Fornell gives him a sharp look and Gibbs rolls his eyes. "It's probably hot dogs or smoothies or something. I can't say I was paying much attention. Had other things on my mind."

Fornell makes a noise, but otherwise doesn't respond. At least not for a few moments, then he says, "I really hope it's not Indian."

Gibbs is still laughing about it when Emily returns, with a coffee for Gibbs, a corn dog for herself and. . .

"What the hell is that?" Fornell asks as she hands him a plastic cup filled with a thick green liquid.

"It's a smoothie, Dad," Emily says, giving him a look like she's the parent and he's the child. "It's good for you."

He makes a face, while Gibbs tries not to laugh. "Why couldn't you get me a coffee?"

"Because you're in the hospital, and coffee isn't good for you."

He pouts. "You got him coffee."

Emily rolls her eyes. "He didn't just get shot, either."

Fornell looks to Gibbs, who just shrugs. "I didn't," he says, and it's enough to make all three of them start laughing.

It's not going to be an easy road, this recovery, not for any of them, but they all know they can get through it, as long as they have each other.

THE END!