Gibbs and Horatio's ages in this chapter aren't exact for what they are now. This is supposed to be taking place later on in life, just a few years difference.


A Sunny Day


He smiled as his lover leaned down and kissed him.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Jethro," the redhead said as he sat down at the table just outside the restaurant.

"It's alright, Horatio, I know these bastards never time conveniently," he said as he began looking over his menu.

The redhead chuckled lightly as he picked up his menu to scan. The waiter stopped and set a large onion bloom with chipotle sauce on their table.

"I see you've already taken care of appetizers, Jethro," the redhead said, picking up a piece and dipping it into the chipotle.

"No one said I had to be in my office to take charge," he said with a smirk.

His lover smiled and reached across the table to hold his hand.

"I'm sorry I got called into work this weekend," he said. "I know this was supposed to be our weekend together in Miami."

"Hey, you can't help it that some jackass tried to blow up a federal building," the silver haired man said. "I'm just glad no one knew I was in town." He picked up a piece of the onion and dipped it into the chipotle before feeding it to his lover. The redhead gave him a shy smile as he chewed his food.

"You're so handsome," the Marine quietly said. "I can't believe you're mine."

The redhead blushed slightly and looked down at the menu in his hands. The older man chuckled and reached across to caress his cheek.

"You're so funny," he quietly said. "I compliment you and every time you blush almost as red as your hair."

The redhead smiled at him and leaned across to kiss the other man. Their lips locked as their tongues briefly met before they each pulled back.

"So how's Ryan?" the Marine inquired as he resumed looking over his menu.

"You mean how's he taking being rejected by Abby," the redhead responded.

"I wasn't going to use that exact terminology, but ok, I guess we'll go with it."

The redhead sighed as he tried to look at the menu.

"I think he's doing better," he finally said. "He had his heart broken pretty badly."

"Yeah, Abby's always been rather truthful," the silver haired man commented. "She told me she tried her best not to hurt Ryan. I told her there's no easy way to tell a person you don't want to marry them."

"Do you think they'll get back together?" the redhead inquired as the waiter approached their table.

"I don't know, and I'm not sure I want them to."

"Why not?"

"Because they're such a weird couple," the silver haired man commented.

"So? We're weird."

"Not in the same way Abby and Ryan were weird."

"We're two old guys dating each other. How does it get weirder than that?"

"I didn't say they were weirder then us," the older man retorted, "I said they were a different kind of weird."

"A bad weird?" the redhead inquired.

"No, just a weird-weird."

"You don't ever make any sense, Jethro."

"Well neither do you some days, ginger."

The redhead looked at his older lover. He smiled and shook his head as he chuckled lightly.

They ordered their food and continued chatting and eating their appetizer. Just as they finished the onion the waiter brought over their plates of food.

"So what are we going to do once we're married?" the silver haired man suddenly asked.

"Why do you always bring up our marriage, Jethro?"

"Because it's going to happen soon enough," the Marine said. "I mean, we're sixty years old. We're not getting any younger, so why wait?"

"Correction, you're sixty-one, I'm fifty-six."

"So I'm a cradle robber, big deal," the NCIS Agent scoffed.

The redhead chuckled and shook his head. "Oh Jethro, what am I going to do with you?"

"Marry me, already," the silver haired man bluntly said.

"I thought you wanted to wait until we retire so neither of us had to leave our jobs."

"Nope, I want to get married now. So quit your job and come live with me in Maryland."

"Jethro, I'm not quitting my job."

"Great, then make room for me to move in with you and Billy, because we're getting hitched already."

"What are you going to do for a job?"

"You just said it. I'm sixty-one years old. Who in their right mind would hire me now?"

"Maybe the Miami NCIS team?"

The silver haired man scoffed and waved him off.

"Oh please, those fake and bake surfers wouldn't even know how to handle me."

"You're right about that one, Jethro," the redhead responded. "Maybe you could work as a recruiter for the Marines."

"Phft, no!" the silver haired man jeered. "They wouldn't want me. I'd scare everyone off and then we wouldn't have anyone to protect our country."

"Maybe you could be a stay at home dad for Billy," the redhead teased.

The old Marine thought it over and shrugged his shoulders. "I could," he said.

The redhead chuckled and continued to eat his food.

"You are such a trouble maker, Jethro."

"I get the job done," his lover responded with a crooked smile.

They were silent again as they finished their lunch. Afterwards, they sat together and each drank a cup of coffee.

"Do you want to have a ceremony?" the silver haired man asked him.

"What kind of ceremony?" the redhead inquired.

"You know, a wedding ceremony. After we get our marriage license in Boston, do you want to have a wedding ceremony that our friends and family can attend?"

The redhead thought it over. "Is this where you'd wear your dress blues for me?"

"Yes," the Marine happily said, "Sword and everything."

The redhead smiled and leaned across the small table to kiss him.

"Then yes, I think I would like a wedding ceremony."

The silver haired man smiled and kissed him tenderly. "Good," was all he said, before he captured the redhead's lips again. His phone ringing made him groan as he pulled it from his pocket. He flipped it open and stared at the screen.

"Well we may have a bigger problem on hand now," he quietly said.

"What is it?" the redhead asked in a concerned voice.

The silver haired man turned his phone to face the redhead. It said there was a picture message from the NCIS forensic specialist. It was an ultrasound with a tiny fetus in the center. Printed beneath it was a short message.

'It's Ryan's.'