Kelly nearly knocked her father over as she came flying down the stairs, flowing down her cheeks. "No!" she whined, and in her haste missed a step, and tripped, tumbling to the foot of the stairs.
Jethro was at her side in an instant, panic coursing through his veins at the sight of his unconscious three year old. "Kel," he tried, tapping her face, "Come on Kel. Wake up baby please." When still she did not respond, he sprinted out the door.
Outside, Jenny was about to stick her key in the lock when something caught her eye. Jethro rushed down his driveway, with what could only be, Kelly's limp form in his arms. She panicked. "Jethro?" she called, already taking off across the green. "What happened?" she demanded, taking the child from him in auto piloted movements.
"She fell down the stairs," he said, his breathing heavy, opening he door for her. She stepped in, Kelly in her arms, before he closed it, and ran around to the driver's side.
Jenny looked to him without a word, taking in his set jaw, the set line of his mouth, but it was his eyes that got her; normally an icy blue, they were now the color of midnight sapphires.
Moments after Kelly had been wheeled away on a stretcher, Jenny ran a hand through her hair, exhaling heavily. "How?" she breathed, "I thought she was asleep. I wasn't even in the house yet."
"I think she heard you. About leaving. She was going after you, and she missed a step."
"Oh my God," she breathed, sinking to the floor, fearing her legs would not support her. "Oh my God," she repeated. "This is my fault. This is all my fault. I though she was asleep. I wouldn't have said it if I thought here was even an inkling that she could hear me."
"Jenny it's not your fault," he contradicted her vehemently.
"Do not try to make this better Jethro," she snapped, "You can't." They simply looked at each other in silence, before she spoke again, softer his time, and disbelieving. "Why aren't you angry? Screaming at me? Something? Your daughter is in the hospital because of me Jethro. You of all people, should not be trying to make me feel better."
He hugged her to him without a word, and she broke down in sobs.
Several hours later, Jenny and Gibbs sat in the waiting room, her nodding off against his shoulder, when a deep voice sent them shooting out of their chairs. "Family for Kelly Gibbs."
They waited as the doctor crossed the floor. He smiled when he reached them and they both exhaled a breath neither knew they had been holding. "She's going to be fine," he assured them, "Perhaps a little disoriented when she wakes, and she'll have quite the headache, but no lasting damage that I can see from here. She's a very lucky child." He paused before broaching his next topic, knowing that people did not normally take too well to the questions. "Now, I do have to ask, how this happened?"
"Can this wait?" Jethro asked, and the doctor nodded.
"Sure," he agreed. "Just know that I will have to ask eventually. We'll have to question Kelly as well."
Jethro nodded curtly, and brushed past the doctor in the direction of his daughter's room, Jenny at his heels.
Hours later, Kelly woke, and as her vision cleared, she could make out her father's figure, his head in his hands. "Daddy?" she moaned, and his head shot up.
He smiled, moving forward, and brushed her hair out of her face. "Hey Kel," he whispered, "How're you feeling?"
"My head hurts," she moaned, bringing a small hand to her forehead.
"Yeah I know," he sympathized, "It'll get better though."
Her bottom lip started to quiver as a thought crossed her mind, and she cast her gaze down. "Jen-Jen go-ed bye-bye?" she asked, her eyes starting to water.
"No Kel. She's here, she just went to get some food," he assured the little girl, and as if on cue, the red head stepped through the door, her eyes going wide at seeing Kelly awake.
Kelly immediately broke down in hysterics, reaching out for her. "Please don't go Jen-Jen," she pleaded. "I won't ask about my mommy no more, I promise. Don't go," she cried.
"No baby, "Jenny soothed, setting her sandwich on the table, before dropping to her knees at the child's bedside, "You can ask about your mommy all you want. I'm not going anywhere."
"Promise?" Kelly sniffed.
"Promise," Jenny laughed, cupping Kelly's face affectionately.
~ 4 Years Old ~
"Jen-Jen!" Kelly screamed, jumping into her father's bed, where the red head was currently residing.
Jenny gasped, jumping awake, familiar blue eyes staring into hers, the weight of the child on her chest. "Kelly," she rasped.
"Come on Jen-Jen," Kelly urged, jumping up and down over the red head, "It's time for school."
"Okay. Okay, I'm up," she sighed. As Jethro was currently deployed, Jenny was taking Kelly to her first day of preschool. She rubbed her eyes, squinting at the sun streaming in through the window. She was beginning to regret her decision from the previous night of giving Kelly access to any kind of sweets, as well as several cans of silly string. She had spent the entire night cleaning up the back yard.
She eyed the clock on the bedside table, groaning at the time, 10:30.
An hour later, they stood in the hallway, Kelly jumping up and down, a grin splitting her face. "Hey Jen-Jen?"
"Yes sweetheart?" Jenny asked, her voice soft with exhaustion.
"Are you excited too for school. We're gonna have fun huh?"
"You will. Grown-ups don't go to school," Jenny explained.
"Where do you go?" Kelly asked, confused.
"Work," Jenny replied simply.
"Where do you work?" Kelly asked, as they walked out the door, Jenny dressed in a forest green, high-waisted pencil skirt, and cream secretary blouse, under a matching green jacket, Kelly in denim overalls over pink t-shirt, a pair of ruffled ankle socks, and a pair of jelly shoes on her feet. Jenny had pulled the child's hair into a ponytail, and curled it, so that it bounced on her shoulders as she ran down the steps.
"I work at my business," Jenny said, opening the door to her car, lifting the child up and into it.
"What's your business do?" Kelly queried as Jenny hooked her in.
"I make people's houses look pretty," she said, and what Kelly said next, made her bust out in laughter.
"Can you make daddy's house look pretty?" she asked.
Jenny simply replied through her laughter, "Your daddy couldn't afford me."
Twenty minutes later, they pulled up to Kelly's school, as several children walked up the steps with their mothers or fathers.
They made their way down a short hallway before they arrived in a fairly large classroom painted blue, full of things for the children to explore. Kelly shrugged her bag off her shoulders, for Jenny to take, and took off toward the tall shelf of books. Unlike many of the other children, Kelly had already been taught to read and write. Jenny laughed as a young blonde woman came up beside her. "Hi, I'm Terri James," she introduced herself, holding out a friendly hand.
"Jenny Shepard," Jenny said, taking the offered hand. "And that one," she continued, nodding to Kelly, "is Kelly."
"She's seems very bright," the blonde praised. "She can read?"
Jenny nodded in confirmation, and as if on cue, Kelly called across the room to her. "Jen-Jen, come listen to me read," she said, and Jenny smiled, turning to the woman she assumed to be the teacher in silent question. At the woman's insistence, they made their way over to the young brunette. The red head took a seat in one of the, much to small, chairs. Kelly scooted closer to her, and began to read. "Once upon a time, in…" she faltered.
"Spain," Jenny supplied, and Kelly smiled, before continuing.
"…in Spain, there was a little bull named Fer-din-and," she sounded out each syllable, "All the other little bulls…" Ten minutes later, she finished, "And for all I know he is sitting there still, under his favorite cork tree, smelling the flowers just…" she stopped, looking up at the smiling red head, "What's that word?" she asked.
"Quietly," Jenny said, and Kelly nodded, before ending the story.
"He is very happy."
"That was really good Kel," Jenny praised, running a hand over the child's hair affectionately, eliciting a face splitting grin from the brunette.
"Can you read me one?" she asked, holding out, 'Red Riding Hood.'
Jenny shook her head apologetically. "I have to go to work, peanut. I'll be back to get you at 3:45 though okay?" Kelly nodded, and Jenny moved to her feet. "Have fun jumping bean." she said, a name she had affectionately dubbed the energetic child with, bending down to hug her goodbye.
As she made it to the door, she was stopped by a hand on her arm. She spun to face, Terri James, Kelly's teacher. She eyed the smiling woman expectantly. "Sorry," Terri apologized, "I didn't mean to startle you. Kelly really is very bright you know. I'm not even sure that she needs to be in preschool. She would probably do well skipping to kindergarten actually."
Jenny smiled, her gaze drifting to the child in question. "Her father is deployed until next week actually," she said, "Maybe we could talk about it then." Terri nodded, and Jenny smiled, turning on her heel, her heels clicking against the tile of the floor.
At precisely 3:45 that afternoon, appeared in the doorway of Kelly's classroom. She smiled, seeing her giggling with a group of girls. Her teacher saw Jenny first, and called the child's name. Kelly looked up, and grinned at the sight of the red head. She ran toward her, tugging a blonde haired little girl with her. "This is Jen-Jen," she said, and Jenny smiled, squatting down to the girls' level.
"Hi," she greeted, smiling at the curly haired blonde. "I'm Jenny."
The blonde giggled, waving. "I'm Maddie."
As they walked down the steps, Jenny turned to Kelly. "Did you like it?" she asked.
"Yeah. It was so fun," Kelly enthused, "I made lotsa friends, and Miss James is really nice. I can't wait 'til tomorrow."
Jenny smiled. "I'm glad."
When they reached home Kelly was still going on about her day. "…And Bobby tried to kiss me, but I pushed him away. He fell on the floor," she giggled.
"Kelly!" Jenny laughed, the scolding her voice failing to come out, "That isn't nice."
~ One Week Later ~
Jenny and Kelly stood at the airport, in the loading are, waiting for Jethro. Kelly grew anxious as people started to unload. "I don't see him," she said, looking up at Jenny.
"He'll be here," she assured the young child, "Don't worry."
Sure enough, the hardened Marine, came into view. Kelly saw him before he saw her. "Daddy!" she shrieked in joy, taking off toward him.
"Kelly!" Jenny scolded, taking off after her, but the anger was replaced with fear, as the child tripped, falling to the floor, and was kicked by someone in the unaware mob of people. Both adults, took off at a sprint toward her, Jenny reaching her first. She did not think she had ever moved so fast, as she scooped Kelly up, her eyes flitting over the child in concern. Jethro appeared at her side a split second later, his expression reflecting Jenny's.
"I'm okay," Kelly assured the adults, before turning to her father. "Missed you daddy."
Gibbs laughed, taking his daughter from Jenny. "I missed you too Kel."
A/n: Good? I hope :) Thanks for the reviews, Brii Taylor, MariskaBaby92, Paris-eternellement, JET1967, left my heart in Paris, TeamCarlisleandEsme8, nciscsinyluver, thump, Tali 101, you guys are awesome! :)