Chapter 7: Cover story - Aftermath

Notes : Chronology changes : Gibbs married Shannon in 1982 and they had Kelly the same year, not in 1984. Shannon and Kelly died in February 1987.

In this story, Tim is born in May 1981, instead of 1977. He's four years younger.

The story starts in the timeline of season four, before "Cover Story" Episode, so in 2007.

N/A: And, we have reached the aftermath of "Cover Story"! Know that this episode had me choking with anger about the way the team treated Tim. The development of the impact of this episode for the story is gonna be very important. I always planned for "Cover story" to be the sparkles that will make Tim explode. And starting to truly move on and impacting NCIS (especially Gibbs) strongly.

So, first part here: This chapter is a Nico one, you will learn more about her and how much Tim is it for her ^^

N/A #: Thanks to my beta jerseybelle for her work.

Nico stood up from her couch and passed an anxious hand through the heavy curls of her hair. She paced around her loft for a couple of minutes before she sat back down. Ten minutes passed before she stood up again and resumed her pacing.

She had been in this state since Tim called.

She didn't know what happened, but his voice on the phone… god, he had sounded like a wreck, so broken that she had been stunned for a second. The only thing he told her was that something happened at work and he needed her. She didn't have to think twice about it; she told him to come to her place and handed Crescendo over to her two coordinators, Tami and James, for the night. Then she went upstairs and waited for Tim to arrive.

At least she had time to think about her own feelings. Nico had never been one to lie to herself even if the truth could potentially freak her out. She knew she was falling for Tim and this time she had actually taken the time to build a solid friendship and an unbreakable trust before she gave in to her feelings.

The first time she met him, he had just seemed so sad, standing lost and somewhat wistful in front of her club, that she just had to go and cheer the poor man up. She had really looked at him then, and damn but he was attractive. She had found him charming as hell with his big green eyes and his playful pout. She quickly realized that he was a little shy and funny and he obviously had impeccable taste in music.

Moth. It had become her nickname to him, almost like an endearment; not only because of his name Timothy but more because he had been drawn to Crescendo like a moth to a flame. And in return, Nico had been utterly drawn to him.

The last couple of months had been the best she had for a long time and she considered herself a relatively happy person. Tim had just… settled in her life like he had always been there. It had felt right, it had felt great and now, she just couldn't stand the thought of him out of her existence.

Things in life had not always been easy for her, but she always thought she was lucky enough. She had never known her father. Her mama has been a beautiful Jamaican woman, skin as dark as night and smile as blinding as light. She had been strong and fair but not known to use kid gloves. Nico was told that she just had a one night stand with the man who was her father and he was gone in the morning, like a dream. She had tried to look for him but he had just vanished. Eventually, she had given up and two months later found out that she was pregnant. That's when she decided to leave Jamaica where violence, drugs and corrupt police were flourishing, and go to America, Washington, DC, where her older brother, the only family she had left, was living.

Things had been good for them, even if at times her mother struggled with the bills, not wanting to accept financial help from her brother no matter how much he begged. But everything changed when Nico turned fourteen. That's when her high school principal told her she had been accepted to Julliard. And that's also when her mama was shot in the middle of the street during a show down between drug dealers.

It had been a very dark period for her and her uncle. Both of them coped the same way, they buried themselves in their work. Her uncle Mattie didn't want her to give up on the opportunity to realize her dream and even if he was anxious at the idea of letting his fourteen year old niece attended a university in New-York, far away from Washington, he still let her go. Of course, as a DIA agent, she knew he had contacts in the university who could keep an eye on her but he had always been protective so she let it pass.

It was hard being so young and surrounded by older students and some of the girls were downright bitches but Nico got by. She was passionate about Jazz, and the teachers were fascinated by her. She received a Bachelor's then a Master's of Music and graduated in four years.

She hoped her mama was proud.

Her uncle had many friends all around the world, so when Nico decided to take a year to study her area of music in other countries, he supported her. And when she came back, finally at the legal age of eighteen and with the dream of Crescendo inside her heart, he helped her. He loved her that much.

So, as far she was concerned, Nico was lucky, incredibly lucky. That's why Tim was like a blessing to her, she couldn't believe she had the luck to meet such a nice man, a man who had become, in a very short time, her best friend when she never really had one before. She had found it so easy to talk to him about herself, her past, and her hopes for the future. She told him things that nobody else knew , not even her uncle. She spoke about her unknown father and the murder of her mother. She spoke about her only relationship with an older boy who hadn't wanted what she wanted.

And in return Tim told her all about his life, his family and his work. Nico hadn't really been surprised when she learned that Tim was an NCIS agent. She knew there was something about him, an edge that made him different from anyone else. Her uncle was the same. But she had been surprised and distressed by how hard it was for him to work with his partners. She had hated the things he told her about how they treated him and even if her mama had always told her not to judge people without knowing them first, Nico had wanted nothing more than to go to NCIS headquarters and do some ass-kicking.

How Tim must love his job to stay despite what was happening every day. She loved his dedication and how his eyes lifted when they talked about the latest data program on computers. She loved how he could kick her ass on the ACD PlayStation Game. She loved how he was making a difference, saved lives, and brought people peace in their grieving by discovering who took their loved-ones. She loved how strong he was, how fierce he could be and how his eyes sometimes darkened when he watched her in the soft red lights of Crescendo. She loved him.

And that's why her heart was beating painfully fast in her chest at the idea of what could have happened to him.

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