The Morning After
By that belle
Ending up in Anthony DiNozzo's bed was not at the top of Caitlin Todd's 'to do' list... ..Tony & Kate..
Tony could hear the sentence in his mind that Gibbs was about to say, even before he said it, but he didn't care. He slipped in between Gibbs and McGee and raced out the door after Kate.
She was sitting on the floor by the elevator, her head in her hands. When she heard Tony come through the door, she looked up at him. She didn't say anything though.
"How did this happen?" He said.
Kate shrugged. "Did you really use protection, Tony?"
Tony was surprised by the question. He thought that it had been covered already. He thought about it again, thinking he already knew the answer, when suddenly he remembered… when he had been dating that blonde girl, he had run out of condoms. If the situation the two were now in was not so serious, he would have found it very amusing.
But it was not funny. It was quite serious.
"… I didn't, Kate. I'm really sorry." He felt her gaze on him, and he looked away. He couldn't look at her. Abby had been right. Everything that had happened had happened because of him.
Kate got to her feet, and watched Tony. His face was burning with shame. She was scared, because a baby was a huge commitment, and in her line of employment, it was bound to end her career. She looked down at the ground when she saw Gibbs coming from the lab.
"Would you like to tell me what's going on here, you two?" He asked, looking from Tony to Kate. "How did this happen?"
"Well, Gibbs, I believe it starts when a man and a woman…"
"Enough of your smart remarks, Agent Todd!" Gibbs barked. Behind him Tony grinned and gave Kate the thumbs up. She smiled, despite what was happening.
"Boss, if I may cut in…" Tony stepped in between the two quickly and turned to his boss. "This wasn't planned or anything."
Kate's mouth fell open. She felt like she had been punched in the stomach. 'There goes DiNozzo, trying to earn brownie points again…'
That changed when Tony added, "But I intend to stick by Kate, no matter what happens."
Abby and McGee were sitting in the lab, listening to Gibbs. From what they could hear, he had threatened to fire Kate and suspend Tony.
"All this over a baby?" Abby said to McGee. "Isn't he being a bit too unrealistic?"
"I can't really say." McGee answered. "Imagine what a baby would do to Kate's career."
"Apart from end it?" Abby said, turning on her computer. "But if she wants a baby, and with Tony, then she's got it."
The lab door opened and Tony walked in. His expression resembled that of a kicked puppy. McGee and Abby watched as he walked over to them.
"Well?" McGee asked.
"Well what, Probie?" Tony nearly snapped. "Kate and I have been suspended; me for two weeks, Kate for three because we 'violated' rule 12."
"Why did Kate get three weeks?" Abby asked.
"Because she's pregnant." Tony and McGee replied simultaneously.
Abby grimaced. "Poor Kate. And anyway, Gibbs is being totally unreasonable!"
"I know." Tony said, rubbing his hands together. "We just won't invite him to the wedding."
"Wedding?" Abby gasped, grabbing McGee's arm. "You're getting married?"
"It's a possibility." Tony replied, running a hand through his hair. "Kate's catholic, and I don't know what the rules are about having children and not being married."
Abby snorted. "Rules?" She shook her head and sat down at her computer. "You're useless, Tony. Why don't you go and take Kate home… look after her for the next fortnight. Go to see her doctor with her."
"Anything else, madam?" Tony asked, exasperated.
"No getting married without us being present!" Abby said, grinning.
"Look after her, Tony." McGee advised, but Tony blocked his ears, mentioning something about 'not taking advice from the Probie', and then walking out.
Kate was waiting by Tony's car, and smiled slightly when she saw him coming over. "Did you really mean what you said earlier?" She asked him as he gave her a smirk.
"Of course, Katie." He kissed the top of her nose, and grinned inwardly when she giggled. "Baby or not, I'm going to stick by you."
Kate frowned. "But Tony, a baby is such a big commitment. I mean, we haven't even been seeing each other that long."
"It doesn't matter." He said, unlocking his car and opening the door for her. "If you want to keep the baby, then I'm behind you. One hundred percent."
She got into his car, and waited for him to get in before she replied, "I'd keep the baby, even if It wasn't what I originally wanted."
He was about to ask why, but then he realised. "You don't believe in abortion?"
Kate nodded. "I was brought up to believe that abortion is a sin."
Tony nodded, not knowing what to say next. It was not until they were halfway to Kate's house that another word was spoken.
"Tony… what are we going to do?" Kate asked. "About… you know, living arrangements."
"What do you mean?"
"Um…" She started. What was she trying to say? "When the baby is born." She had no idea why she said that; what she had wanted to say went more along the lines of, 'Should we move in together?'. But there was no way in the world she could suggest it. Yet, anyway. Although she was over the moon that Tony had taken the whole baby thing so well, she didn't want to push him. They had been dating for less than a fortnight.
"We'll see how things go."
Kate was disappointed, but she smiled at Tony. She couldn't expect too much from him too quickly. Nothing else was said until they were outside Kate's house.
"Would you like to come in?" Kate asked as she rummaged through her bag for her keys.
"Actually," Tony said, turning to her. "I…"
She cut him off. "It's okay. I understand if you don't want to."
He rolled his eyes. "Actually, what I was going to say – no, ask – was…"
"Was?"
"Would you mind too much if I stayed?"
Kate's mouth fell open. "Stay? Stay over?"
"Yes, Kate, stay over. Stop sounding like a gawky teenager."
She laughed. "I'm sorry, but I feel like a gawky teenager. I didn't think I'd hear it from you so soon."
Tony stroked her hair. "Well, I'll head back over to my place and get some things. In the meantime, why don't you make us one of your mean hot chocolates?"
She felt so happy, she wanted to burst.
Kate was on the phone when Tony returned, about an hour later. She ended the conversation and went to see him. She had left the door unlocked for him, and he was standing in the hallway with several overnight bags by his feet.
"Tony, how much stuff exactly did you bring?" Kate asked, dumbfounded.
"About two weeks worth, I hope." He replied with a wicked grin.
"Two weeks worth?" Kate repeated, a wary smile on her face. "Tony, you should have told me you intended to stay longer! Now I need to go shopping…"
Tony winked at Kate. "That would have spoiled the surprise. Why don't we go down to the supermarket now?"
"Okay," Kate said, still amazed by Tony's behaviour. "Let's take your things upstairs, and I'll change into something more comfortable."
"What's wrong with what you're wearing now?"
Kate smirked. "Being pregnant and wearing heels aren't a very good combination, I've heard. My back actually hurts, now that you mention it."
Tony rolled his eyes. He would never be able to understand women properly. He waited in the hallway while Kate went upstairs to change. She returned five minutes later, wearing a pair of dark jeans, a light pink top (which, Tony noticed, showed a hint of cleavage) and a pair of…
"Slippers, Kate?" Tony laughed. "You're wearing slippers to a supermarket?"
Kate shrugged a shoulder. "I've been in my pyjamas before." She replied nonchalantly. "Nobody looks twice."
"Not in my neighbourhood…" Tony muttered under his breath as he followed her out the door. He waited outside while she ran back in to get her keys and purse, and while she was gone he had a look down the street. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, not that he was expecting anything. It was just a normal middle-class street. The houses appeared to be similar, and all the front lawns were neatly trimmed, all the flowerbeds were immaculate, and all the cars were blue, red or silver. There was one exception: the black sedan parked directly opposite Kate's driveway.
Kate came out, smiling at Tony. "You ready to go?" She asked, putting her sunglasses on.
He nodded, and unlocked his car. "Ready when you are."
They got into the car, and drove off. If Tony had been looking in the rear-view mirror – which he hadn't been – he might have noticed the figure getting out of the sedan. But it hadn't crossed his mind, and he had more important things to worry about. Like spending the next fortnight with Kate.
