Chapter 11

Gibbs only heard from his team once, when they were in Santa Barbara. They wanted to check in to see how he was enjoying his time off. They tried to pry into his whereabouts but they knew better than to force Gibbs to tell. He told them he will call them next week, when he is back in DC.

Gibbs and Kate arrived at the airport in Rome in the morning. It was a long flight from San Francisco to Rome. They slept most of the time so that they could go sight-seeing the moment they get to Rome. After Gibbs collected their bags, they hailed a taxi and went to the hotel.

After checking into the hotel, they went to their room so they could freshen up. It was lunch time by the time they left the hotel.

Gibbs contemplated about getting a rental car but Kate suggested to him not to because traffic in Rome is bad and walking would be good for a pregnant woman. She told him that she if they got a car, they might spend more time in traffic than actually sight seeing.

Their first stop today would be a restaurant. Kate suggested they go to a Pizzeria. Since they are in Italy, for sure the pizza and pasta are better. They spotted a little pizzeria and asked for a table. To Gibbs' surprised, Kate spoke Italian.

"Babe, I didn't know you spoke Italian?"

"Mom is half Italian, babe. And our grandmother stayed with us when I was growing up. Grandpa died early, so Mom asked her to move in with us. Grandma wanted to make sure my brothers and I spoke Italian. I was the only one that wanted to learn it, so my Grandma spent a lot of time with me learning the language. So, the language is not a problem for us here."

"Oh, wow, and you failed to mentioned that on your resume, Agent Todd?"

"What can I say? I wanted to impress you, Agent Gibbs? Plus, I didn't want Tony to know that I spoke the language. Or else he would have been on my ass, like he wasn't already, about teaching him."

"Very smart, Agent Todd. And regarding your ass, you've got a great one so you really can't blame the male species for wanting to be on them." Gibbs said laughing.

"Gibbs, oh my God, I cannot believe you just said that. And here I thought you married me for my brains and not my body." Kate said teasing her husband.

I'm just kidding babe. But you really do have a really nice one."

"Well, thank you, my husband. Oh, here comes our pizza."

"So where should we go after we eat lunch?"

"Well, we can go see the Piazza di Spagna, the Roman Forum, the Pantheon and at night, we can go to Fontana di Trevi. Tomorrow we can go to the Vatican Church and the Vatican Meseums."

"Sounds, good to me Katie. Oh my God, this pizza is really good. I don't know how I could eat pizza hut anymore after tasting real pizza."

"Grandma used to complain a lot about how American pizza taste. She hated it and would let us know about it. She was so funny."

"Babe, did I ever tell you I saw her up there? She came to visit me and said that she's waiting for me to take the last step and finally join her."

"Really? What did you tell her?

"I told her the love of my life isn't quite ready to let me go yet and I'm not either. She understood and told me that when I'm ready, she and grandpa will be waiting for me."

"So what's it like up there, babe?"

"Let's talk about it later, before we go to bed. I have so much to tell you. For now, let's finish this pizza and start discovering Rome."

"Okay, babe."

Both Gibbs and Kate were lost in the beauty of what they have seen of Rome so far. The old buildings, the architecture and the history of each place they visited fascinated them. Pictures of these places they have seen in postcards and on the internet could not compare with the real thing just like love. People often talk about love, it is seen on television, in the movies or even written in books but to know love, you have to experience it, to feel it.

Kate told Gibbs that she once thought about being an architect. But she quickly changed her mind since packing guns to her was more fun and also she realized that she's better at drawing faces than buildings.

Looking at Kate as she explains to him the history of each place, it made his heart flutter as he watched her eyes light up with excitement. Her appreciation for Art and History is truly amazing. Kate is standing a few feet away from him, smiling, with the sun setting, she's holding her stomach and she looked so beautiful, so he took her picture while she wasn't looking and captured the true essence of Kate. This is the image he wants to hold in his memory forever. The urge to hold her and kiss her overwhelmed him at the moment. He ran up to her and put his arms around her and kissed her.

After visiting Piazza di Spagna, the Roman Forum, and the Pantheon, Gibbs and Kate made their way to Fontana di Trevi, because the view of it is best seen at night. When they got there, they stood in front it and dropped coins and made a wish. They asked another tourist to take a picture of them and the woman happily agreed. After taking their picture, the woman said that they make a lovely couple. They smiled and thanked her. They spent a few more minutes there before Kate informed him that she and little Katie are hungry. They found a restaurant that had a great view of the Fontana di Trevi and ate outside to watch the beautiful fountain and people throw in coins and make their wish.

Being away from work and not hearing anything about murder or abuse felt so good to Gibbs. He has seen so many ugly things in his life that he has become jaded. Losing Shannon, Kelly and then Kate the first time, made him not want to live in this mad world and it was only his need for revenge that made him want to live. But now, with their unborn child, a daughter, he knows it's a girl, he feels it in his heart; he has a reason to live the next 30 years for her and for Kate.