Everyone put away the rotten vegetables and fruit! I come bearing another part. Sorry about the long absence. Moving really sucks! Sucks even more when you can't find your folder that you have the current part of Complicated written in (yes, folks, I'm a bit old fashioned and write everything down before typing it.). A lot of people have written, saying that Gibbs should ask Kate to marry him. He will...eventually. In my twisted mind, they're not quite there yet, but it will happen. This part is a bit short, but it's really a filler chapter. Thank you for all the reviews, favs, and story alerts! Hope you all enjoy!
He stood outside Autopsy for a moment or two—to gather his thoughts. Ducky had called him, asking him to come down whenever possible—hadn't said what for or as to why, but sounded quite somber—unusual for Ducky.
His heartbeat echoed in his ears.
Gathered up every ounce of courage he had—mentally told himself that it was nothing to worry about. Ducky was probably overreacting.
Why was his heart beating wildly, then?
He stepped up to the doors to Autopsy and they whooshed open—he walked through them, noticing the lights were dimmed—almost like the time Ari Haswari had held Kate, Gerald, and Ducky hostage in this very room.
Stole a glance at the stoic ME—who cocked his head towards the body bag residing on one of the metal tables, with sorrow etched in his face and mirrored in his eyes.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
His heartbeat echoed in his ears—getting louder as he drew closer to the table. Reached out and grasped the zipper between two fingers and slowly pulled it down—exposing the body that lied within its confines.
The breath in his lungs was wretched from them.
Blood roared in his ears—overpowering the rapid cadence of his heartbeat.
This wasn't real. None of it.
Not his Kate—not the warm, beautiful, and loving woman and the mother of their son, Gabriel.
A devious laugh reached his ears.
Automatically, he reached for his weapon and withdrew it from its holster—pointing it in the direction of the maniacal laughter.
"Would you shoot your own child to get to me?"
Gibbs clenched his jaw. The fucking bastard was cuddling Gabriel. Why hadn't he believed Kate when she voiced her fears of them probably not seeing the last of Ari Haswari?
Closed his eyes—tried to wish the bastard away—but when he reopened them, Haswari was still there, holding Gabriel—almost like a shield and daring Gibbs to take a shot.
"Why?" He hissed as he kept his gun trained on Haswari.
Haswari shrugged nonchalantly as he rubbed a gentle hand up and down Gabriel's back. "Why not?" Stood up from Ducky's desk—a devious smirk on his face, "Did you think you were going to live happily ever after with Caitlin? Like you thought with Shannon and Kelly? You're destined to be alone, Gibbs—reliving the horror of not being able to protect the women you love and your children."
A shot rang out—echoing throughout the quiet Autopsy room.
Gibbs shot to a sitting position in the bed. Heart beating wildly in his chest—thought it would beat right out of his chest. Breaths were coming in short gasps. He immediately reached for his weapon that resided on the nightstand—a soft rendition of Silent Night drifting through the baby monitor stopped the action mid-way.
Scrubbed a hand over his face—couldn't hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. He swung his legs to the floor and grounded the heels of his hands in his eyes as his body shook from the quiet sobs.
It seemed so real. So vivid.
He literally felt the pain—the knife twisting in his heart when his eyes had landed on Kate's lifeless form and then with the realization that his nightmare—since Kate had announced her pregnancy and Gabriel's birth—had come true. That he had lost another woman he loved and another child.
Wiped away the remaining tears. He wished he could forget everything—the nightmare; Ari Haswari; and the nagging in the back of his mind that this nightmare was an act of foreshadowing.
Please, be wrong. Haven't I suffered enough through the years? Haven't I done enough penance for killing the monster that took Shannon and Kelly from me? Don't I deserve to be happy for the first time in however many years?
Gibbs prayed silently—hoping God would listen to his lonely prayer.
After donning a pair of pajama pants, he exited the bedroom—lingered outside the nursery, listening to Kate softly serenade Gabriel as she laid him back down in the crib. Felt a smile forming when he heard his one month old son whimper and then Kate's soothing voice—quieting Gabriel almost immediately.
Gibbs then quietly descended the stairs and headed for the kitchen.
Faintly, she heard footsteps out in the hallway and then noticed a shadow settled in the middle of the nursery—a few minutes later, the steps creaked as Gibbs descended them. She shook her head and laughed softly—Gibbs thought he could sneak past her?
Glanced down at Gabriel—once more sleeping soundly. Made sure the monitor was on—volume turned up—before exiting the nursery.
She headed downstairs, wondering what had woken Gibbs up.
Found him in the kitchen, staring out into the backyard. "What's wrong, Jethro?"
He turned around to face her—she was leaning against the doorway, looking extremely adorable—wearing his old Parris Island t-shirt, a pair of his boxers, and her hair tousled from sleep. Without realizing it, her image conjured up a wistful smile.
She noticed it—and the way his blue eyes lit up in the darkness—and called him on it. "What was that for?"
"You."
"Me?" Cocked her head and then ventured into the kitchen, making her way over to him.
Reached down and grasped his hand—interlacing their fingers, letting him know that she wasn't letting him go. "You know you can't hide from me. I know when something is bothering you."
Gathered her into his embrace. Buried his nose in her neck—breathed in lavender and Johnson & Johnson's Baby Soft. Gabriel.
It broke her heart. She could see—and feel—that he was hurting. Emotionally and mentally. Whatever was bothering him—it was having a profound effect on him. She had never seen him this troubled.
She wished he would just open his eyes and see her standing in front of him—here for him through the good and the bad. Nothing could make her run, screaming, in the other direction.
Nuzzled his ear with her nose. "Jethro," she whispered, "you're scaring me. Please, talk to me," she pleaded with him.
His voice was muffled—and husky, "I had a dream—more like a fucking nightmare—identical to the one that I had on the day that you were kidnapped by Ari Haswari." Felt her body stiffen—thought it was at the mention of Haswari's name, so he kissed the side of her neck to soothe her mind.
Bit her tongue. Right now would not be the perfect time to give him a lashing—even though he deserved it. He had never told her about a nightmare that he had when she'd been kidnapped. Swallowed her pride and answered, "What scared you?"
"There had been a body bag on one of the Autopsy tables. I unzipped it and discovered you inside—gunshot to the head."
Clenched her eyes shut. Why hadn't he ever told her about this? Why? her mind screamed out loud.
"It was so fucking real," he growled, "and then the bastard laughed. I turned around and he was holding Gabriel—daring me to take a shot, knowing full well I would never harm my own child."
Kate remained silent—not knowing what to say.
Gibbs raised his head and looked into her mocha orbs—shimmering with unshed tears. Ran a thumb over her full lips. "I'll protect you, Kate. I'll protect you both," he whispered harshly.
"Ssh," she shushed him with a finger to his lips. She knew. Knew the depth of his love for her and Gabriel. "Why were you going to keep this from me? Why had you kept the previous dream from me?"
"I didn't want you to worry."
"You let me be the judge of that."
When would this man understand that she was capable of making her own decisions and had shoulders strong enough to handle his vulnerabilities? By his current facial expression—there had to be more to his nightmare that he was withholding from her.
"There's more to this, isn't there?"
He swallowed a curse. Obviously, this was a preview of a life with Kate Todd. "He said—did I really think I would live happily ever after with you? Didn't I know that I was meant to be alone—reliving the horror of not being able to save another woman I loved and my child?"
Kate wondered if the nightmare was just his insecurities—demons, so to speak—voicing themselves and Ari Haswari was their face—in Gibbs' mind.
But, wasn't it she that had a nightmare about the hostage situation—one of many—and told Gibbs that they probably hadn't seen the last of Ari Haswari?
How was it that one man could bring the both of them to their knees?
To Be Continued...
