Gibbs groaned heavily as his bow tie was adjusted. He mumbled under his breath and settled on paying attention to the redhead that was deep in concentration. He didn't want to be kicked a second time for not being able to stand still. He hadn't made her job easy.

"Jethro, stop fidgeting."

"If you'd hurry up," he started to complain but stopped after a defiant stare from her. He kissed her forehead. "I'll be a statue."

"Statues don't complain," she remarked and finished straightening the tie. "There. It's perfect." She smiled, admiring her work since it had taken ten minutes to fix it. He looked devastatingly handsome in his dinner dress blue.

He rolled his eyes with a slight huff. "Jen, we should stay home."

"I'm not staying home. I'm expected to attend the Marine Corps ball with my marine," she said softly, stroking his face.

"Yeah…and you're expected to go into labor at any time," he reminded her, glancing down to her rounded belly under the emerald green gown. Her April Fool's joke had not been a joke.

"Nothing has happened all day. It won't matter if I'm at home or at the ball if I go into labor. It'll happen whenever and wherever, Jethro. Now, get my coat."

He heaved a sigh. She was dead set on attending the ball, and he couldn't change her mind. No matter how much he wanted to stay at home with her. The hormones had only seemed to intensify her stubborn nature. He nodded his head and took her coat off the rack, helping her into it. He slipped into his long black wool coat and adjusted the collar. Moments later, the couple was settled in the backseat of the limo.

"Ow," Jen said in a gasp and placed her on her stomach, rubbing softly. Before Jethro could say anything, she looked at him. "It's nothing except my insides being used as a punching bag."

He chuckled softly and put his arm around her, pulling her against his side. She snuggled against him and closed her eyes, letting him massage her belly. The kicking eased with time, and she was grateful. Jen fell asleep and woke up when the limo stopped. "We're here, sleepyhead."

She pulled her compact out of her clutch, quickly fixing her make-up and reapplying lipstick. "Look okay?" she asked, looking at him.

"More than okay, Jen. Beautiful," he replied, kissing her deeply before getting out of the limo. He made sure to keep a protective arm around her. He didn't care for all the camera flashes, but he put on his best face for Jenny. He remained on her arm while she socialized during cocktail hour. He leaned into her ear. "I'm going to get bourbon. Need anything?"

She whimpered in yearning when told he would be getting bourbon, but she shook her head. She continued to socialize and began to wish she hadn't worn heels. Her back was aching. When Jethro return with his bourbon, he rested his hand on her lower back and rubbed gently. "Jethro, I'll be back."

"Surprised you haven't gone sooner," he remarked with sarcasm until she popped him on the arm with her clutch. She mouthed for him to shut up before leaving to go to the bathroom. He stood around, drinking his bourbon and people watching. Not even five minutes later, he felt something was off. That famous gut of his was telling him something. He downed his drink and rushed off to the bathroom. Not caring if it was a women's bathroom, he barged in and found Jen leaning against the frame of the stall and standing in a small puddle.

"Jeth...Jethro, my…it…"

"I can see, Jen," he said calmly, walking over and taking her by the arm.

"My dress…it's my favorite."

"It can be cleaned, Jen." He rolled his eyes slightly. She would be concerned about the dress instead of her water breaking. She had to find some aspect to control, and she could handle thinking about her dress being sent to the cleaners. She hadn't been able to control her water breaking. He took out his phone and called her doctor, letting him know the details.

Before reaching the door, Jen groaned and fell into him as a contraction hit her. He grimaced as her long nails dug into his skin but supported her. He called Stanley and alerted him of the situation. With the sweep of protection detail, they were out of the ball and in the vehicle within minutes. Traffic, however, was another issue.

An hour later, Jen was not a happy camper. She didn't care for the pain of contractions or Jethro attempting to comfort her. She was beyond frustrated with being stuck in the limo. Her baby was not being delivered in a limo. She breathed through a contraction while holding Gibbs' hand. When it ended, she scooted towards the divider.

"Jen, what the hell are you doing?"

She ignored his question and pounded on the divider. "STANLEY!"

Stanley swallowed hard before letting the divider down and looking in the rear view at her. "Ma'am?"

"MAKE THIS CAR MOVE! THAT'S AN ORD…" she was cut off by yet another contraction. She kicked at Jethro when he attempted to come near her. The contraction eased, and he reached out for her arm which she jerked away. "GET…AWAY…FROM ME! DON'T TOUCH ME! APRIL FOOL'S JOKE! SERIOUSLY, JETHRO! WHO'S LAUGHING NOW!? I'M NOT!"

Jethro winced at her bringing up April. He would never live that one down. Stanley quickly hit the button to make the divider go back up. He didn't want to hear all the threats or witness Director Shepard killing Agent Gibbs. There was plenty of yelling and threats being yelled on her part. Jethro took it in stride and said nothing. She would apologize after it was all said and done.

Close to another hour later, the limo was at the hospital. Gibbs filled out the information while Jen was taken back. He could hear her as she was pushed down the hall. "I do not need a wheelchair! I can walk perfectly…" He smirked to himself hearing her words that were followed by a shrill scream and several choice words.

By the time they should have been calling it a night and leaving the ball or maybe still dancing on the ballroom floor, the baby was born and letting cries fill the room. The doctor held the just delivered infant up to show the new parents. "It's a boy," he told them before passing him off to a nurse.

After seeing her son was fine, Jen fell back against the pillows. To say she was exhausted was an absolute understatement. Her son had his father's impatience and her ambition before coming out of the womb. The delivery had been fast, and she hadn't able to get an epidural. Natural childbirth was not a walk in the park. She had also fractured a few bones in Jethro's hand and didn't want to access the damage her nails had done to him. She glanced at the clock and smiled softly. "Jethro," she said, loud enough to pull his attention away from his son.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking down at her. He leaned down close to her face, moving her sweaty bangs away from her forehead. She had done a tremendous job of getting their child born. He kissed her forehead, tasting the saltiness of the sweat.

"He didn't miss your birthday."

Gibbs smiled and shook his head, glancing at his watch. "No, he didn't." He hadn't realized the time. It was 2358, and the tenth of November. Father and son shared a birthday. He leaned down and kissed her lips. She melted into the kiss until pulling away. A nurse was standing by the bed to put her son into her arms. Jen took him carefully and kissed his forehead, smiling at the sight of the baby's extremely dark hair. Jethro sat down on the bed and slipped his arm around her. She settled herself into his side, resting her head against him as they both admired their newborn son.