Special Agent Caitlin DiNozzo let out an exasperated sigh as she slumped in her chair at her NCIS desk. She whispered a silent prayer in the back of her aching mind and subconsciously twiddled her white-gold wedding band and her diamond engagement ring between her fingers.
Her husband had been sent on a crucial undercover assignment 4 days ago; one that posed a huge threat to the team and both of their lives. There was an incredibly large chance that he wouldn't return from this mission- it was one of the most dangerous that he'd ever been sent on.
Thoughtfully, she unhooked her golden chain from around her neck and slipped the two rings onto her ring finger. She was done with hiding her relationship and marriage from her colleagues and friends- if something bad was going to happen to her or Tony, she wanted to be able to talk about it freely, to anyone, without having to hold anything back.
Fed up of sitting and waiting, Kate slid out from behind her desk and walked over to Tony's. She flopped into his chair, which had his NCIS field jacket thrown carelessly over the back of it. Wrapping the black jacket around herself, she breathed in his familiar scent, the scent that she associated with safety and home. Needing something to take her mind off Tony's dire situation, she opened the top draw of his desk, intending to tidy it and finding it already tidied. She moved the neatly arranged stationary and stack of files to one side to reveal hidden piles of photographs of the two of them underneath, along with a USB stick marked 'Tate Memories :D'. Smiling inwardly, Kate plugged it into the computer, watching as the screen lit up with a video.
"Katie?"
Tony and Kate were strolling down a serene woodland walk, the path surrounded by wild flowers such as bluebells and daisies, cherry blossom trees shedding candy pink blossoms that coated the path in a carpet- like manor. Kate was walking slightly ahead of him, her hand in his.
"Yeah babe?"
"Show the future us who are watching this video how pretty your hair looks!"
Kate turned around, flashing a smile at her boyfriend, who stood behind the camera. There were dozens of tiny lilac blooms woven in and out of her bangs, which had been French braided over to one side.
"Beautiful."
Kate's eyes sparkled as she leant in and kissed Tony on the cheek lightly, cupping his chin in her hand. When she pulled away, he was grinning from ear to ear. He moved in to kiss her again, but she broke away from him, running off the side of the path and into a meadow of flowers. She stopped, looking over her shoulder and sticking her tongue out at him playfully before carrying on running.
"Oh you're on Miss Todd!" Tony laughed, taking off after her.
The melodious tune that was Kate's joyful giggles carried on the gentle spring breeze as Tony chased after her, still filming with the camera in his hand. She was quick, extremely quick for such a small human being, but he was quicker, and caught up with her easily. He tackled her to the ground, wrapping his arms around her waist, his body pinning hers to the floor.
"Got you!" He chuckled, tickling her gently as she squirmed.
"Stop it!" She spluttered helplessly.
Tony stopped tickling her, staring into her hazel eyes for a moment before closing the gap between them and pressing his lips against hers, clicking the stop button on the camera as he did so.
Kate smiled as the clip ended. She remembered that day perfectly- it was one of her all time favourites.
Suddenly, her attention was caught again as another clip began to play.
"Tony!" Kate rolled her eyes as he skipped merrily towards her, the beach's golden sand spraying up behind him. "You're such an idiot." She stated.
"You're charming." He replied sarcastically as she smirked at him.
"Auntie Kate!" Her six year old niece Scarlett and eight year old nephew Rhys ran up to her and Tony, hugging them tightly.
"What a surprise to see you here!" Rachel Cranston winked as her, her husband Dean and 13 year old son Sol approached them.
"I know right!" Kate laughed, remembering how she and Rachel had arranged this meeting at least a week ago.
She handed the video camera to Rachel before giving Tony and the kids a devilish smirk. "Race you all to the sea!" She yelled as she sprinted off in the direction of the turquoise ocean.
There was collective cry of "WAIT" from the kids and a sigh of "Not again" from Tony before the whole crowd (excluding Dean and Rachel) chased after her.
Tony reached the water first, being a senior field agent and adult male. He dived into the water, picking up Kate by the waist and holding on to her tightly.
"I win!" She grinned childishly.
"No…" Tony chuckled. "I do!" He chucked her into the water ever so slightly further out. He laughed as she resurfaced, spluttering and pushing her hair out of her eyes.
"Are you alright?" Rhys asked as he and his siblings reached the couple.
Kate laughed and sprayed her youngest nephew with seawater.
"Water fight!" Tony yelled.
Soon the mini water fight turned into a full on water war, with Kate and Sol versus Tony, Rhys and Scarlett. Rachel and Tony watched and filmed from the shore as Scarlett jumped on Tony's back and charged towards Sol. Kate chased Rhys around as he squealed in delight.
"Such children!" Rachel murmured.
Kate yawned and checked the tiny clock that was placed beside the computer. 11:02. She kept praying and hoping as the next video began to play.
It was fall now, and Tony and Kate had come to his secret estate hidden in the park to set up for Halloween, and the party that they were hosting the next day.
Kate placed the camera on the picnic bench in the summerhouse as she sat down beside her boyfriend, prepared to have a pumpkin carving contest.
"What're you gonna do?" She asked Tony, already knowing exactly what she was going to do.
"John Travolta." He replied proudly.
She stifled a giggle. "You serious?"
"Totally." He replied, his face backing this up.
"Good luck then!" She smiled.
For a good hour, they sat in the little summerhouse, designing and creating pumpkin masterpieces, dumping spoonfuls of pumpkin innards into an old trick or treat bucket. They spent their time singing obnoxiously, bickering loudly and discussing Halloween traditions. Eventually, they dropped their craving tools and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Done." They breathed.
"Show me yours first," Kate smirked.
As Tony turned his creation around to face her, she had to bite her lip to hold back her laughter. At a first glance, it looked like a deformed gremlin, but as she observed it closer, she could see sense in the chaotic lines.
"Well?" Tony asked, pride evident in his voice and hope sparkling in his eyes.
Not having the heart to tell him that it was terrible, she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. "Does that answer your question?"
"Perfectly!" He grinned, "Let's see yours then!"
Kate smirked and revealed her pumpkin creation. Tony's jaw dropped: she'd managed to perfectly carve the stone cold face of their reckless boss- Leroy Jethro Gibbs, onto her pumpkin. It looked so hilariously accurate that they both collapsed into uncontrollable fits of laughter.
"Ok, you win!" Tony wiped his eyes, catching his breath. "Kate Todd- you're blimmin' brilliant!"
The video ended just as her cell phone vibrated with a text message. Immediately, it was in her hand, the message on screen.
"On our way home, be back in about 20- Gibbs."
Kate clasped her hands together and bit her lip. Typical Gibbs being cryptic via text. She played the final clip, hoping that 'on our way' meant that her three male colleagues were safe and sound.
"Ready to surprise your parents?" Tony asked, pointing the camera at his girlfriend as they up the driveway of her childhood home in Indiana.
"I'm so excited!" She grinned, jumping up and down energetically, the bag of gifts she was carrying rattling loudly.
"Let's do it then!" He responded, linking their fingers together.
They sneaked around the back of the bungalow and slipped in the back door. They crept through the kitchen and dining room and a few hallways (which were all luckily empty), carefully stepping over pieces of Lego and Barbie dolls. Eventually, they reached where the whole Todd family was located; the lounge.
Kate and Tony kept close to the wall as they peered around the edge of the wall and saw Kate's mother, Launa, stood next to the open door, her back to them. Slowly and silently, they crept up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder gently.
"Surprise!" They cried as she jumped and whirled around in shock.
"My babies!" Launa Todd squealed as the laid her eyes upon the couple. She threw her arms around her youngest daughter and her boyfriend and hugged them tightly- this was one of the only times per year that she got to see them.
"Merry Christmas mum," Kate whispered.
As soon as Launa had pulled away from them, the pair were pulled into hugs from various Todd family members that included Kate's dad, Sean, her brothers, Chris, Josh and Andy and of course her sister Rachel. Then there was the hoard of nieces and nephews that pounced on them, hugging them and kissing them, almost knocking them over.
After many hours of family festivities, it was time for present opening. Tony handed the camera to Rachel and politely asked her to film before standing up.
"If I may have your attention, ladies and gents," he called. Everyone turned to face him. "There is a certain present that I would love Kate to open now!"
There was a collective "Ooh" as Kate slowly rose out of her seat and went to stand beside her boyfriend in front of the Christmas tree. As she turned to face him, Tony pulled a tiny, square shaped parcel out from behind his back and handed it to her.
Bamboozled, she unwrapped the parcel to reveal a simple black box- a jewellery box. She looked up at Tony, eyes bright and hopeful. Then, she opened the box.
On a bed of black velvet, sat a diamond ring, glimmering as it caught the multicoloured beams of the many fairy lights that decorated the room.
"Tony…" She whispered.
There was a collective gasp as Anthony DiNozzo knelt down on one knee and took her hand.
"Caitlin Marie Todd," he let every syllable of her name roll off of his tongue. "Will you do me the honour of being my bride?"
Launa gripped Sean's hand and stared.
"Of course I will!" Kate grinned, tears collecting in her eyes.
Tony let out a sigh of relief and slid the ring onto her ring finger, relishing in the cheers of overjoyed adults and children.
Kate through herself into her fiancée's arms, planting kisses all over his face. "I love you," she whispered in his ear, meaning every word of it.
The clip finished and Kate was in tears. Just the thought that she may never get to hug her husband again was enough to set her on edge. She ran a hand through her messy hair and leant back in the chair, trying to keep herself together, and closed her eyes.
Kate's eyes shot open as she heard the ding of the elevator doors opening.
"Admit it boss," a loud, cocky voice began, "you were worried about me!"
There was a loud slapping sound, followed by a small squeal as Gibbs strode into the bullpen.
"DiNozzo's back." He grumbled.
"Probie, you missed me, right?"
"Oh shut up DiNozzo!" McGee begged.
Suddenly, the couple's eyes met. "Kate." He said. "You missed me, didn't you?"
Kate strode over to him, standing about an inch away from and looking him up and down before throwing her arms around him. She hugged him close, tears of relief spilling down her cheeks. "You came back," she sobbed, happiness evident in her voice.
"Well of course I…" He was cut off by her kissing him right on the lips, crushing hers against his. They could feel Gibbs and McGee gawping at them, but they didn't care anymore.
"I'm not hiding it anymore." She stated as she pulled away. Kate waved her left hand in front of his face, showing off her rings.
Tony smirked, pulling his own wedding band out of his pocket and sliding it onto his ring finger.
"Me neither."
A/N: Hey, I hope you like this new oneshot! Come back tomorrow for a new chapter of Aria!
Louise :)