Chapter Seven: Revelations

Rule #15: Always work as a team.

Abby nearly collapsed against Gibbs in relief when she found out Ben didn't need surgery after all. He rubbed her upper arms while she signed frantically to her parents, making sure she hadn't missed anything.

The tests had shown that Ben would need one or two stents placed in his arteries, not open heart surgery as his first doctor had predicted. They had been pleased to find less blockage than originally suspected.

Gibbs wasn't sure who looked more relieved, Abby and Gloria, or Ben.

Luka was just standing to the side, hugging Mellie and 'listening' to everything. Luka had told Gibbs that Mellie didn't speak sign language very well, but you didn't need to be fluent to understand the happiness that was flying around the room. Luka could tell her the details later.

"Of course I'm staying until you have the surgery," Abby signed and spoke simultaneously. "I don't have anywhere more important to be."

What about Gibbs? Gloria asked.

"Gibbs can leave if he wants." Abby glanced back at him. "But I'm staying until I know everything is all right.

Gibbs reached around Abby. Not going anywhere, he signed simply. He'd left Abby that summer when she needed him, and he wasn't going to make that mistake again.

It surprised him that Abby thought he'd just leave her there. He must have really screwed things up when he left for Mexico, even more than he had realized. But Abby was important to him, more important than even he had realized until this summer.

Abby had brought happiness back into his life. She'd been a breeze of fresh air in the dank darkness of his life. She had done what his three ex-wives had never been able to do.

She made him happy.

An idea popped into his head just then, something that might be able to help Abby keep Mawher away from her and her baby. It was possibly the craziest thing Gibbs had ever considered doing, but that didn't stop him from making a mental note to ask McGee about the feasibility of such an action.

But first, he had something to ask Mellie about.

After an hour or two, Gloria kicked them all out, saying there was no reason they all had to hang around all day now that they knew everything was going to be all right.

Go get lunch. Do some shopping, she had signed. I'll text if I need anyone.

I'm not leaving you here alone, Abby was signing furiously when Gibbs caught Mellie's eye and motioned towards the hallway.

He managed to slip out without Abby noticing, Mellie following closely behind him. He shut the door quietly behind them.

"Is everything all right?" she asked, looking concerned. "Everyone looked happy, did I miss something?"

Gibbs shook his head. "Everything's fine in there. I just needed to ask you something."

"Oh." Mellie smiled. "Ask away then."

"Wanted to know the name of the doctor you used when you were pregnant with Sami."

Gibbs had been thinking about this ever since they'd arrived back in the states, but hearing that Abby had missed an appointment brought it to the top of his priorities. If they were going to stay until Ben had his procedure this couldn't wait.

Mellie nodded. "Sure. I can get you her number too. She's great, but super busy. I don't know if you'll be able to get an appointment last minute."

"I'm very persuasive," Gibbs reassured her.

"I'm sure you are." Mellie smiled.

She promised get him the number as soon as she could and the two slipped back into the hospital room without anyone noticing. Abby was still arguing furiously with her mother via sign language and Luka looked to be enjoying himself immensely.

"I've missed this," he said with a grin as Gibbs stood beside him. "Watching them fight is one of my favorite childhood memories."

Gibbs glanced across the room at Ben, who had a similarly amused expression on his face. Gibbs could barely follow the conversation himself, the two were signing so fast. He wondered idly if either one of them was paying attention to the other person speaking, or if they were just continuing on without pause.

When the flurry of hands began to slow slightly, Gibbs stepped forward and placed his hands over Abby's, stopping the conversation in it's tracks.

She frowned up at him as he signed to Gloria. I'll take her out to lunch, but I can't promise to keep her away all day.

I can live with that.

"Live with what?" Abby only caught the last bit of their exchange. "Gibbs! What did you say to her!"

Gibbs winked at Gloria and began steering Abby towards the door. "I'll tell you all about it at lunch."

They were halfway down the hall when the remaining members of the room heard her exclaim, "Wait, lunch?"

xxx

The restaurant Gibbs took her for lunch had really good food, but Abby had not forgotten that he had conspired with her mother on getting her out of the hospital.

She ate her sandwich silently, glaring up at Gibbs from time to time so he wouldn't get too comfortable.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be having the desired effect as Gibbs had a slight smile on his face. He looked smug and that made Abby feel cranky.

"Luka told me Sami has a piano recital next week," he remarked casually, stealing one of Abby's French fries. "She's hoping her favorite aunt will be there."

"I'm her only aunt," Abby grumbled with her mouth half full.

"Told him we'd be there." Gibbs leaned back in the booth casually. "We can head back to D.C. a day or so after."

"Head back to D.C.?" Abby set down her sandwich. "And when exactly did we decide we were doing that?"

Gibbs was still nonplussed. "Can't go back to Mexico, Abby."

"And why not?" she demanded to know.

"Yer pregnant."

"I'm fairly certain there are pregnant women in Mexico, Gibbs."

"There isn't a hospital within two hours of El Rosario, Abbs. That's too big of a risk."

"That's not your decision!" Abby exclaimed. She realized just how loud she had been getting when she noticed the people at the next table staring. She lowered her voice. "You don't get to control my life, Gibbs."

"Not trying to control it," he told her.

She sighed. "I don't even know if I can go back. What about Mikel?"

"You leave that bastard to me." Gibbs leaned forward. "We can stay here if you want. Just figured you'd want to go home."

She did kind of want to go home. She missed her friends, missed Tony and McGee and Ziva. Louisiana hadn't been her home for a long time.

Not to mention she and Gloria would probably kill each other if she was here for the next four months.

"I don't want to stay here," she said finally, mentally giving up on fighting him. "You're right, I can't hide in Mexico forever. I'm sure you've got McGee getting my restraining order extended."

If Gibbs was surprised that she had guessed he'd been talking to McGee, he didn't show it.

"But I want to stay at least until my dad comes come."

Gibbs nodded. "Done."

"And not until after Sami's recital," she added.

"Of course." He smiled at her. "That can be arranged."

xxx

McGee was working late at NCIS that night when another call from Gibbs came in. He wrinkled his nose when he saw the number on the screen. He didn't have much of anything new to tell Gibbs, and definitely nothing good.

He picked up his phone and held it up to his ear. "Hey Gibbs." He tried not to sound like he'd been dreading the call. "How's Abby's dad doing?"

"They're putting in the stents tomorrow afternoon. Doctor seems to think he'll be fine after that. Could be home as early as Wednesday."

"That's great," McGee said sincerely. He knew how much Abby loved her dad, she'd have been heartbroken if he wasn't going to be okay.

"Need you to check on some laws for me."

"Okay." McGee pulled up a blank web browser didn't sound too bad. "What kind of laws?"

"I want to know if someone can challenge a woman for custody of her baby if she's married to someone else when it's born."

McGee continued typing, but his brain took a coffee break. Was Gibbs asking what he thought he was asking?

"Um." McGee swallowed and tried to focus on the words on the screen.

"An old buddy of mine once came back from being deployed for over a year and his wife was eight months pregnant. They got divorced after the baby was born and the judge said it didn't matter if the baby was his or not; they were married when the baby was born, legally he was the father."

"It does look as if that's the case in some states." McGee only glanced up when Ziva came back from harassing Shawn, Abby's replacement. Shawn was an excellent scientist, nearly as dedicated and capable as Abby, but not nearly as tenacious. Ziva liked to hover over him at least once a week and make the poor guy sweat.

As usual, Ziva seemed to sense when something was wrong and came over to McGee's desk, leaning against the desk and peering over his shoulder at the documents he had pulled up. "The law is a little dicier in the District of Columbia," McGee continued, "but in Virginia and Maryland both, the husband of the mother is assumed to be the father of the child and automatically put on the birth certificate."

McGee decided to stop beating around the bush. "Mawher could still contest custody," he told Gibbs simply, "but a marriage would certainly make things more difficult and take more time."

Ziva's eyes widened slightly, but she didn't say anything.

"Time could help," Gibbs said after a minute.

"I'm not totally sure, but some places might consider it fraud," McGee added hesitantly. "To sign a birth certificate knowing full well you aren't the father."

"Don't really care," was Gibbs response. "Thanks, McGee." He was gone before McGee could reply.

He hung up the phone, frowning down at his keyboard.

"Are you all right?" Ziva asked, tilting her head to look at his expression.

He shrugged. "I think so." He blinked several times. "I just wasn't expecting that."

"Gibbs has always cared a great deal about Abby, yes? And he wants to keep her safe?"

"Well, yeah." McGee turned to meet Ziva's gaze. "But I've got a funny feeling this isn't all just about Abby."

"The loss of his wife and daughter, perhaps?" Ziva straightened up and put her hands in her pockets. "Perhaps Gibbs is lonely."

"I didn't think Gibbs got lonely," McGee replied.

Ziva rested a hand on his shoulder. "A man who marries and divorces three times has gotten lonely. Are you jealous?"

"Jealous?" McGee wasn't surprised at the question, but he was a little surprised that it came from Ziva. "Not really. It's been a long time since Abby and I were together. We've been friends longer than we were ever a couple. I guess I'm just concerned."

"About what?"

McGee looked up at Ziva. "Abby once confessed to me that she had a crush on Gibbs when she first started working here. What if he's just trying to protect her but it's more than that for her?"

"I do not think Gibbs will hurt her." Ziva let her hand drop off his shoulder. "In fact, I think the two of them being together just might keep him sane."

xxx

"Mellie and I were going to go do some shopping tomorrow," Abby told Gibbs as she put the dishes from their dinner in the dishwasher. It had been three days since they'd learned the results of Ben's tests, and things were finally settling down.

The day after Ben's procedure, he'd had a couple minor complications. Despite that, he was due to be home by the end of the week.

She and Gibbs had settled into a routine the past few days. They spent mornings at the hospital, then Gibbs and Gloria would team up against her and insist she go home for lunch and a nap, which she would protest against, but not too hard because she was pretty sleepy by then. They usually ended up back at the hospital for a couple hours and either Abby would cook dinner or they'd eat at Luka and Mellie's apartment.

Sometimes Gibbs whittled in the evenings. He'd apparently thrown a few smaller pieces of his driftwood collection in his bag when they'd left. He confiscated one of Ben's Swiss Army knives and had been intently working on something, although he wouldn't let Abby look.

Distracted by everything that had been happening, Abby had been washing the few pieces of clothing they'd brought with them nearly every day and she was starting to get really sick of looking at the same three shirts. Not to mention the fact that even her looser clothes were starting to get too tight to wear anymore.

"As long as you're back by three," was Gibbs reply.

Abby paused, gripping the fork still in her hand. "What's going on at three?" Had she forgotten something going on at the hospital?

Gibbs was calmly reading the paper from his seat at the kitchen table. "You have a doctor's appointment."

Abby frowned. "Since when?" She put the fork where it went and after adding soap, closed the dishwasher.

"Since I made you one."

"You made me a doctor's appointment." Abby's eyes narrowed and she leaned back against the counter. "What for?"

Gibbs glanced up from the paper. He raised his eyebrows and glanced at her stomach, then back to her.

Abby gritted her teeth, trying very hard not to become angry with him. "Traditionally, the person who needs the appointment makes the appointment."

"When did you make the appointment for?" Gibbs asked, returning to the paper.

Marching across the kitchen floor, Abby snatched the paper out of his hands and threw it on the table. "You had no right to do that!"

"Someone's gotta take care of you." Gibbs glanced down. "The two of you."

Abby put her arms protectively over her stomach. "I can take care of myself and this baby just fine without your interference."

Gibbs stood up, slowly, his icy blue eyes drilling holes into hers. "You're going to the appointment," he stated slowly and calmly.

Abby crossed her arms. "And who's gonna make me?" she demanded to know.

He simply raised his eyebrows and continued staring at her.

"I was going to make an appointment when I got back home."

"I thought you didn't have a home."

"Don't bait me, Gibbs!" Abby took a step away from him. "I'm not a child, I can take care of myself!" She had an urge to stick her tongue out at him, but wasn't sure if he'd view it as childish or as a challenge.

Not even an eyebrow twitch.

"I don't even know who this doctor is," she said finally, when it became clear Gibbs wasn't going to respond to her outrage.

"She comes highly recommended."

"By who?" Abby furrowed her forehead.

"Mellie."

Well, damn. Abby felt her anger fizzling somewhat. This wasn't just an ambush, it was an intervention. Luka was probably involved too.

"You need regular prenatal care," Gibbs said, his voice low and husky. "I won't let anything happen to either of you."

"I know." Abby unfolded her arms and sighed. "Will you come with me?" she asked finally.

Gibbs looked a little surprised, but recovered fast. "If you really want me there."

Abby nodded. "I don't wanna be alone."

Gibbs pulled her into his arms. "Told you, Abbs, I won't leave you alone. Not now, not ever."

You left me alone when you went to Mexico, she thought, but buried the knee jerk reaction deep inside her. She didn't want to make him feel guilty, she really didn't. All Abby wanted was to be safe, and Gibbs made her feel safe.

"Nurse said they might do an ultrasound," Gibbs told her, probably trying to distract her.

It worked. "Really?" Abby pulled back and looked him in the eye. She'd heard the baby's heartbeat but she hadn't had a chance for an ultrasound before she'd left for Mexico. Her first one had been scheduled for the appointment she skipped.

Gibbs nodded. "That's what she said."

Abby grinned. "That means I'll probably be able to find out if it's a boy or a girl."

One side of Gibbs mouth titled slightly upward.

"Did Shannon find out? If she was having a boy or a girl?" Abby asked softly, a little worried about Gibbs' reaction.

His eyes darkened and his tiny smile went away, but Gibbs didn't seem angry. "Said she wanted it to be a surprise," he said gruffly.

"Oh." Abby bit her lip. "I wasn't sure I wanted to at first, but I'm lousy at waiting. And I figure it's a surprise either way, I just get to peek ahead of time and find out the surprise earlier."

Gibbs kissed her on the forehead and backed away. "You do whatever you want to."

"No opinion?" she called after him, trying not to sound too desperate.

Gibbs paused in the doorway of the kitchen. "Didn't think patience was one of your good points."

"Don't challenge me!" Abby laughed. He was right. She was way too impatient to wait. She was dying to know if the baby growing inside her was a little girl or a little boy.

Suddenly, she wasn't so mad at him for making the appointment. Now, she was kind of excited.

xxx

Gibbs spent a very long time that night thinking about what McGee had told him. Abby had been too busy worrying about Ben the past few days to worry about Mawher, but Gibbs hadn't been able to stop thinking about it.

If Mawher filed for custody, Abby was going to freak out. She didn't need that kind of stress. It wasn't good for her, or the baby. And so far, McGee hadn't been able to find anything on Mawher that could either get him put away or be enough of a bargaining chip against a judge awarding visitation.

Apparently Mawher's investigator had started digging into Abby's life. McGee told him when they spoke the day before that several people at NCIS had been approached by the investigator. Ziva agreed to an interview just to see if she could find out what the man was looking for, but that wouldn't be until next week.

Gibbs wasn't willing to wait that long.

He'd been dead serious when he asked McGee about the legality of Abby getting married. If they were been in DC right now he might have been dumb enough to suggest McGee as the groom, but they weren't, and he wasn't.

Gibbs knew he wasn't much of a catch these days. Not many women dreamed of being a man's fifth wife, but he loved Abby. He wanted to take care of her.

If she'd let him.

He wasn't surprised that she'd been angry about the appointment. Gibbs had expected that. Actually, he'd expected her to be a little angrier, maybe to have fought a little longer.

Strangely, the pregnancy seemed to be mellowing her.

If he was honest with himself, Abby wasn't the only one he wanted to take care of. Observing the changes in Abby's body the past month had really been effecting him. He'd always known he'd missed a lot by being deployed while Shannon was pregnant with Kelly, but he couldn't have imagined just how much he'd missed until he saw it for himself.

Abby rubbed her stomach when she didn't know people were watching. He knew from her statements that it was when the baby was moving, which according to her, still felt like popcorn popping. Once she'd compared it to a goldfish swimming in a tank.

She said she couldn't feel anything from the outside yet. Gibbs found himself looking forward to that time, which implied that he would be around.

He supposed it was pretty much a given now that he wasn't going back to Mexico, at least not for awhile, and not for long. Even if Abby wanted to stay in Louisiana, he had no intention of leaving her. Not unless she asked him to, and even then it wasn't likely.

He was going to have to have a serious conversation with Abby after her appointment. All the planning in the world wouldn't do any good if she wouldn't go along with it. While his plan seemed to make perfect sense in his head, Abby might disagree. She might not want to link herself to him, not even temporarily.

Although, if Gibbs was honest with himself, he wasn't thinking about this being a temporary situation. If Abby agreed, he couldn't see himself letting her go, not unless she asked. He would do everything in his power to make her happy, to make her stay.

He hadn't tried enough with his ex-wives, Gibbs knew that. He'd either been too wrapped up in his own grief over losing Shannon and Kelly or too wrapped up in work to really try. He'd let them drift away, and no matter how angry he was when they left, or cheated, he didn't blame them.

He would've left him too.

But with Abby, it was different. Abby wouldn't let him hide away in his basement and ignore her, even if he tried. She'd respect it if he got carried away in work, although now that he was retired, he suspected it would be more likely the other way around.

Abby was kinda perfect for him when he thought about it.

He continued to plan as he got ready for bed that night. Gibbs would talk to Ben tomorrow. Not for permission, because Gibbs didn't need that. No, he simply wanted to let Ben know his intentions, so it wouldn't be a surprise to him if Abby accepted. With any luck, he'd be able to speak to him without Gloria there.

Gibbs liked Gloria, he really did, but she still had some reservations about Abby's lifestyle that Gibbs didn't want to come up just yet. Abby needed to know that Gibbs had no intention of changing her, he simply wanted to support her.

Gibbs slid between the sheets, dressed in only a pair of boxers, because he needed to do laundry again. Maybe Abby would pick up a couple shirts for him while she was shopping. He couldn't help but smile at the thought. She'd probably buy him something black with a crazy design on it from one of the shops she liked. And he'd probably wear the darn thing, even if only to bed, because it would make her smile.

He lay silently in the dark, just thinking quietly until Abby came up to bed. He listened to her undress, trying not to let his mind conjure up images of the process, and remained perfectly still as she got into the bed beside him.

Abby curled around his body, following the warmth like a heat seeking missile. And as much as Gibbs tried not to, all he could think was how badly he wanted this to be the norm.

For the rest of their lives.

xxx

Abby sat uncomfortably in the waiting room next to Gibbs. She missed her midwife, who she'd known even before her pregnancy because the woman worked with her gynecologist. She'd even rather be seeing him than some stranger. It just wasn't natural to let someone you didn't know peek at your lady parts.

She looked around the room. Half the women there seemed to be staring at her and Gibbs. She'd been in a lot better of a mood that morning when she got dressed in a short black skirt from her parents house that miraculously still fit her (thanks in no small part to the Elastic Waistband That Could), a new black tank top and Gibbs red sweatshirt (that she had no intention of ever giving back). Her shoes were pretty tame, just basic black Mary Jane platforms, dressed up with a pair of black and white striped knee socks. In a hurry, she'd done quick 'Laura Ingalls' braids to her hair.

Shopping with Mellie had been lots of fun. Sami was in school for the day, so it was just the two of them who hit the mall, and hit it hard. After trying on a few garments in the mall's two maternity stores (while Mellie laughed hysterically) Abby vetoed the whole 'maternity' clothes idea, and started just trying on stretchy things in bigger sizes than she usually did.

Yoga pants and leggings were going to be her new best friend. Basically anything with lycra in it.

The best part about not working anymore was never having to put on a court suit, never needing to pretend to be someone else. Just because she was pregnant, that didn't mean she had to wear florals and pastels, as Mellie was quick to point out. After lunch they went back to the maternity stores and Abby picked out a couple simple pieces in dark colors that would work with the rest of her purchases.

Mellie did talk her into a black pair of ballet flats, promising Abby that when her tummy got bigger and her ankles swelled up she'd thank her.

Still feeling uncomfortable around the other moms and moms to be in the room, who all looked more prepared than she felt, Abby unsnapped the spiked dog collar she was wearing and held it in her lap. She was going to have to wear less pointy jewelry when the baby was born. If she started missing them, she'd pick up some bracelets with rubber spikes. Those at least wouldn't impale her baby.

She was smiling to herself when Gibbs nudged her. "Is it just me," he whispered, "or is everyone in here staring at me like I'm a dirty old man."

Abby glanced up and giggled. Now that she thought of it, maybe the other women were staring at Gibbs and not at her. There was an age difference, although she usually passed for younger so people were probably thinking it was bigger than it was.

Gibbs looked very uncomfortable, which only made Abby laugh harder. She'd never seen him like this, like he was trying to sink into the chair and hide.

A nurse poked her head into the waiting room. "Mrs. Gibbs?"

Abby turned to Gibbs and raised her eyebrows.

"I wasn't sure you wanted to use your real name." Gibbs nudged her. "Just go, I'll explain later."

"Oh, no," she said, tugging on his arm. "I'm not going anywhere without you, Mr. Gibbs." She gave him an evil smile.

"Abby," he tried to protest.

She crossed her arms.

Gibbs pushed himself to his feet, tugging her up beside him. "I'll get you for this later," he muttered as they followed the nurse.

The nurse led them into an examining room and handed Abby one of those awful paper gowns. "Just slip this on and Doctor Radin will be in shortly."

Gibbs turned his back while Abby wiggled out of her clothes and into the gown. He raised an eyebrow when she told him it was safe. Abby perched on the edge of the examining table and held up her feet. "Can you unbuckle my shoes?"

He'd had to buckle her into them this morning too. She could still reach, but she couldn't reach and see what she was doing at the same time. She missed the slip ons she'd left behind in her storage unit.

Now she just had on the gown and her knee socks.

Doctor Radin was a tiny Indian woman who appeared to be in her mid 40's. She gave Abby a stern speech when she found out how long it had been since her last appointment and pretty much ordered her to return in one month if she was still in the state.

"You need to stop dragging your wife all over the continent," she had lectured Gibbs, pointing a finger at him while Abby tried desperately not to snicker at the look on his face. "She needs regular prenatal care and shouldn't be traveling much longer anyway."

Abby was happy to have Gibbs there during the actual examination, as he provided a lovely distraction. She hadn't expected anything to phase him, but remembered he hadn't been present during Shannon's appointments as Gibbs studiously kept his eyes on her face, and her face only. It was hilarious.

Gibbs winced at the snapping noise when Doctor Radin pulled off her gloves. "Well," she announced, letting Abby remove her feet from the stirrups, "you should have had an ultrasound at your last appointment but it says here you declined?"

Abby nodded. "I wanted to wait a little longer until she'd definitely be able to tell if the baby was a boy or a girl."

"I'll send the ultrasound technician in when she finishes with the woman ahead of you. It shouldn't be too long."

"No problem." Abby sat up and swung her legs over the side of the table. "We're in no hurry, right?"

"No hurry," Gibbs agreed.

Doctor Radin nodded, as if they had answered correctly. "You can put your clothes back on if you like, you'll just have to pull your skirt down off your belly."

"Thanks," Abby told her as she exited the room. Gibbs turned away again while she slid into her clothes again. If it hadn't been for her underwear being off she would have told him not to bother. Lord knows she wasn't shy, or overly modest, but she did draw some lines.

Gibbs turned his head back when he heard her hop back up on the examining table. She swung her legs. "I can't wait to see the baby."

He gave her a half smile.

She thought about it for a moment. "So, you never got to see Kelly's ultrasound, huh?"

It hurt a little to remember, but Gibbs didn't really mind Abby's asking. She didn't pry, she was just genuinely curious, and he didn't blame her. "Just a blurry picture Shannon mailed me. Just looked like a gray blob to me," he confessed.

"This should be a lot clearer than that according to what I've read," Abby told him. "Ultrasound technology has made some serious strides the past few years. Mellie showed me one of her friends 4D ultrasound pictures on Facebook, and you could even tell the baby got her dad's big nose."

She paused, briefly glad she wasn't getting that high tech of an ultrasound, because knowing if the baby looked like Mikel was more than she could handle just yet.

Gibbs looked like he was going to say something when there was a firm knock at the door and it cracked open.

"Oh good, everyone's decent." The ultrasound technician, who looked barely old enough to have graduated high school let alone college, slipped into the room.

"I'm Maeve," she told them, wheeling the ultrasound machine in behind her, "and I promise I'm old enough to drink." She winked at Gibbs, who had a look of incredulity on his face.

Abby giggled. "I can relate to that. I got asked when I was graduating high school a couple months ago."

"Then you understand." Maeve settled the machinery just where she wanted it and turned to Abby. "If you could just lay back, we'll get this show on the road."

Abby obeyed, leaning back until she was lying flat on the examining table, pulling her shirt up to her breasts and letting her skirt waistband snap below her waist where it really wanted to live anyway.

Abby tensed as the technician squirted clear goo on her stomach, expecting it to be cold. Going in the face of every television show or movie she'd ever seen, it wasn't cold in the slightest.

"All right." Maeve grinned, using the wand to rub the gelatinous substance over Abby's belly, which seemed so much larger to her now that it was out in the open. "Lets get to the good part."

Abby stared at the screen, waiting impatiently for the black and white fuzz to turn into something recognizable. She frowned for a moment, then felt her mouth go slack when she saw…

"That," Maeve said, holding the wand in place, "is your baby."

"Wow." Abby stared in amazement.

Maeve pressed the wand a little firmer against her belly. "Yup, this is why I love my job." She began pointing out various body parts, head, spine, arms, legs.

Abby managed to tear her eyes away from the screen to glance at Gibbs, who hadn't said a word since Dr. Radin had left. "Gibbs?" she asked, wondering just what that look on his face was.

But he was too busy staring at the baby.

Her baby.

A/N: I had my gallbladder out several years ago, and when I was in the hospital they gave me an ultrasound to verify that my gallbladder was in fact the problem. Since I don't have kids, I was very curious about the whole process. Even through the pain of the attack I was having, I remember that the goo wasn't cold and thinking that people lied in books and movies. lol. You know you're a writer when you find yourself focusing on details like that instead of your diagnosis.