Hey guys!! How's it going?
You probably will have seen the summary, but since there is a small chance that you have not, I will tell you. This story is based on the film "What A Girl Wants", which is based on the play "The Reluctant Debutante". I would definitely recommend watching the film but you don't have to.
Also, regarding Operation Jibbs and Truths as to why I have not been updating them, I am completely and utterly stuck. My muse seems to have gone to another galaxy and, until I get it back, I unfortunately will not be able to update them and for that I deeply apologize.
Review Shout-outs
Troubled-Angel-26
nerdydisaster
Patti Lipscomb (Guest)
Bee-327
DiamondCrystal987
Disclaimer- I only own one thing in this, which is a precious bean whom you will be introduced to in a couple of paragraphs time
Enjoy guys!!! Xx
Imagine growing up with one parent. Imagine knowing the other parent existed and knowing where they were but not able to visit them. Imagine having a photo and knowing their name and what they looked like but not knowing them as a person.
One fifteen year old girl did not have to imagine this: she lived it everyday.
Megan Elizabeth Leora Shepard was born in Edinburgh, Scotland at 09:27 on the sixth of July 2000 to Jennifer Marie Shepard and Leroy Jethro Gibbs although the latter did not know she existed. Megan's Mother had left her Father two months after she was conceived.
As Megan had grown up, her Mother had told her stories about her Father. Megan knew he was a federal agent for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service in Washington, DC in the United States of America. She knew he had electric blue eyes and that her eyes were the same as his. She knew he was a functional mute and that he was very kind and handsome. The looks was something she could vouch for as she had a photo, but the kindness was something Megan had never known.
She lived in Edinburgh with her Mom and every summer, the man who was like a grandfather to her, Ducky, visited for two weeks for her birthday and when he was not there, they video called with him every Saturday. Megan loved her life in Edinburgh. She loved her Mom, her house and her school but she wished more than anything she could have a Dad as well.
And every single year, starting from her third birthday, when she blew out the candles on her cake, Megan Shepard wished for only one thing: for her Mom, her Dad and her to be a family again.
On her fifteenth birthday though, everything changed.
NCIS
Megan groaned as she opened her eyes slowly before she bolted upright.
"Oh my gosh!" She squealed in her Scottish accent. "I'm fifteen today!"
She put on Fifteen by Taylor Swift and sat on her bedroom floor with the photo album of her life like she did every year on her birthday. After that, someone knocked on her door.
"Come in!" She called.
The door opened and in walked Jenny and Ducky.
"Ducky!" Megan cried before she hugged him.
"Happy birthday Megan" Ducky said with a small laugh.
"Thank you" the teenager responded once she pulled back.
"Happy birthday Meg" her Mom stated before she hugged her daughter tightly.
"Thank you Mom" the younger redhead whispered.
"We would like to tell you something" Ducky told her and he gestured to Jenny to talk.
"He and I have been talking and we think it's time for you to meet your Dad" the older redhead informed her daughter.
"Why did we not do this sooner?" Megan asked and her Mom looked at the ground.
"Because your Mother is scared you might get hurt like she was" Ducky answered.
"What do you mean?" The younger redhead questioned.
"Your Father had a wife named Shannon and a daughter called Kelly before he joined NCIS, which went by NIS at the time, who were killed by a drug dealer after Shannon witnessed a murder at Camp Pendleton where he was stationed at the time. I found out the week before I left him. I also told him I loved him two weeks before I found out, to which he replied "that'll be the day"" Jenny said, tears in her eyes.
"Oh Mom" the teenager responded before she hugged her Mother tightly.
"If you do go, I'm going to remain here until I can get some vacation time from work which should be soon. So Meg" Jenny stated a couple of moments after, "do you want to go?"
"Yes please! I would love to meet my Father!" Megan responded excitedly and Ducky and Jenny both laughed.
"Well that's settled then. All we have to do now is book the flight" the older redhead told the teenager.
"How long can I going for?" The younger redhead checked.
"Until a week before the schools go back, because you'll take a while to adjust to the timezone and then it'll be a shock when you get back home. You can always come home earlier if you want though" Jenny replied.
"So a month and three days maximum then?" Megan inquired and her Mom nodded in confirmation. "Great! Now please go out because I need to get dressed."
Jenny and Ducky obeyed and exited the room, closing the door behind them. Megan got dressed and went downstairs. She made herself, her Mom and Ducky breakfast before they all sat down at the table.
"Princess Charlotte looks adorable!" Megan squealed, looking over her Mom's shoulder at the article in the paper about Princess Charlotte's christening.
"That she does, Megan" Ducky responded.
"What do you want to do today, Meg?" Jenny asked. "It is your birthday after all."
"Can we go to the zoo please?" Megan pleaded.
Jenny and Ducky shared glances.
"I don't see why not" her Mother stated.
"Yay!" Megan cried.
Jenny looked at her iPhone and Googled visiting times.
"There's one in an hour. Do you want to do some grocery shopping and then we can give you your gifts before we go to the zoo?" She asked her daughter.
"Yeah! That sounds great" Megan answered.
They all went out to the nearest shop which was just down the street and got some groceries before walking back up to the house. The three of them all sat down in the lounge and Ducky handed Megan a small box.
"Be careful with it" he told her.
Megan opened it and revealed a pale blue frame saying Forever and Always in calligraphy with a photograph of her on Ducky's lap who was reading a book to her. Tears in her eyes, Megan hugged him. They broke apart and Ducky handed Megan another box, but this time it was smaller and thinner. She unwrapped it and inside was a CD.
"Speak Now World Tour! Mom, it's the Speak Now World Tour CD!" She turned to Ducky. "How did you know this was the only one left that I needed?!"
"Your Mother told me you've been wanting it for years" Ducky shrugged.
"Thanks Duckman" Megan said with a smile.
"You are very welcome my dear" Ducky replied.
"Here's your first gift" Jenny stated, handing Megan a thin rectangular box.
Megan unwrapped it to reveal the DVD of Disney's "Inside Out". Her eyes widened and she squealed.
"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh! Thank you thank you thank you!" She cried. "This is the best gift ever!"
Megan hugged her Mom who laughed slightly.
"You're welcome, Meg" Jenny said.
Ducky looked at them questioningly once they broke apart.
"I'm obsessed with it. We went to see it the weekend it was released and fell in love with it immediately, not to mention we cried a couple of times" Megan explained before she realized something. "Wait, first gift? What do you mean by first gift?"
Jenny handed Megan a box wrapped in tissue paper. Megan looked at her Mother questioningly.
"Just open it" Jenny told her daughter.
Megan unwrapped the gift and opened the box to reveal a pair of silver heart earrings.
"They're beautiful, Mom!" Megan gasped. "Thank you!"
She put the box down and hugged her Mom tightly once again.
"It's OK, Megan" Jenny said, hugging her daughter in return.
After a while, they all got in the car and drove to Edinburgh Zoo. They waited in the ticket queue and then eventually they got into the building after a fifteen minute wait.
"Two adults and one child please" Jenny stated.
"That's £27.50 please" the woman replied.
Jenny handed over the money before she got the tickets. They all walked over to the ticket man who checked their pockets. He saw Jenny's weapon and his eyes widened.
"I'm a police officer" she told him.
The ticket man nodded silently before he cleared them to go through. They spent the whole morning at the zoo, and then it was lunchtime.
"Can we go to McDonald's please?" Megan requested.
Ducky and Jenny shared glances.
"I don't see why not" Ducky answered. "It is your birthday after all."
"Thank you thank you thank you!" Megan screamed before she hugged him and then her Mom.
They drove to the McDonald's at Corstorphine Retail Park and walked in. They ordered their food before they sat down at a table.
"How's school going, Megan?" Ducky asked her.
"It's fine. I have a couple of friends, just no one like Alexis" Megan replied.
"I'm sorry, my dear" Ducky responded sympathetically.
"It's fine though" the younger redhead said, brightening up. "I have you and Mom."
They finished their lunch and walked out. The three of them got into the car and went back to Jenny and Megan's house. They walked in and Megan noticed an envelope on the floor addressed to her. She took off her boots and picked up the envelope before ripping it open.
Dear Megan,
Fifteen already! Have a fabulous day.
Lots of love,
Tom and Harriet
Inside the envelope, as well as the card, was a photograph of Megan as a baby in the arms of Harriet, Tom Morrow's wife, and Tom was beside them, his arm around his wife. Both of them were smiling down at Megan. The redhead ran through to her Mom and Ducky.
"Tom and Harriet's card arrived" she stated, holding up said card.
"What photograph did they send you this time?" Jenny asked.
Megan handed the photograph to her Mom who smiled.
"I remember taking this. They came to visit you when you were just a week old" the older redhead responded.
"I really miss them" Megan said softly.
"I know you do, sweetheart" Jenny sympathised. "But you'll be able to see them when you go to Washington in a week."
The teenager grinned.
"I'm gonna go and put this in my photo album" she replied before she went upstairs, leaving her Mom and Ducky in the lounge.
"How's Jethro?" Jenny asked.
"He is very well" Ducky answered, not looking her in the eyes.
"What?" She questioned, glaring at him.
The doctor went silent.
"What?" The older redhead repeated.
"He's engaged, Jennifer" Ducky told her softly.
Jenny's eyes widened in shock.
"To whom?" She questioned.
"To Assistant Director Mann's daughter, Hollis" he replied.
"You've gotta be kidding me" the older redhead stated, putting her head in her hands.
"I'm sorry, Jennifer" Ducky apologized.
"It's not your fault, Ducky" she told him.
Megan walked back downstairs, and saw her Mom and Ducky sitting there, Jenny looking sad and Ducky looking sympathetic.
"Mom? Are you OK?" The teenager asked.
"Yeah, honey, I'm fine" her Mom answered with a forced smile.
Megan nodded before she sat down beside her Mom who wrapped her and around her daughter and kissed her hair.
"So" Jenny said after a while, "who wants to go out for a walk?"
Megan and Ducky looked at each other.
"Definitely" they chorused.
They went for a walk, which took over an hour. Afterwards, they went round the shops and with the last stop being the charity shop so Megan could have a look for anything she wanted. She came out with a navy jumper and the Sweet Home Alabama DVD. They all walked back to Jenny and Megan's house and by that time it was 17:15.
"What do you want for dinner, Meg?" Jenny called to her daughter who was in the lounge over an hour into Sweet Home Alabama.
"Pasta please" Megan replied.
"Come and help me make it then please sweetheart!" her Mom stated.
The younger redhead paused the film before she went to the kitchen to help her Mom, Ducky following behind.
"Do you need me to do anything?" The doctor asked.
"Could you please set the table?" The girl who was like a granddaughter to him requested.
"Of course" Ducky responded before he got the cutlery out and put it on the table.
The younger redhead grated the cheese into the container before she got out the pesto and placed them both in the center the table. Meanwhile, Jenny was making the cheese sauce. Eventually, she was finished and she put in a bowl and put it on the table.
Megan got the pasta and placed them onto three plates and put the plates on the table. Once she had done that, she got a jug and filled it with water and put it in the middle of the table before she grabbed three glasses and put them at each of the places.
"Dig in" Jenny stated once they had all sat down.
They all began to eat, occasionally making small talk about things. The three of them eventually finished dinner and tidied up before they went through to the lounge. Megan was just beginning to watch the movie again before she realized she had to write a thank you letter for Tom and Harriet.
"I'm going to my room to write a thank you letter for Tom and Harriet because I want to get it done as soon as possible" she told her Mom who nodded before the younger redhead went upstairs.
"When did Jethro and Hollis get engaged?" Jenny asked Ducky as soon as her daughter had left the room.
"Three months ago" Ducky informed the older redhead.
"How long had they been dating before that?" The older redhead asked.
"About three years. There's something else too. She has a daughter, Bianca, who's always coming in and out of NCIS because, obviously, Hollis's Father works there" the doctor told Jenny. "Bianca is eight months older than Megan and yet she is everything Megan is not."
There was silence for a few moments before Jenny spoke up.
"Are we sure Megan going to America is a good idea, Ducky?" She questioned anxiously.
"She clearly wants to go, and I'll be there with her if she needs me. She'll be fine, Jennifer, I promise" Ducky assured the woman who was like a daughter to him.
Jenny nodded, looking at her knees. Ducky squeezed her hand and she looked up before giving him a weak smile. Half an hour later, Megan came back downstairs.
"Done. I got distracted as always" the younger redhead laughed.
Jenny and Ducky both looked at each other before they too burst into laughter. They all made small talk before it was time for dessert. Jenny went through and got the birthday cake. She and Ducky both sang "Happy Birthday" to Megan as Jenny brought the cake over. Jenny put the cake on the table and Megan blew out the candles, making the same wish she had been making for the past twelve years. Jenny and Ducky both cheered before the three of them all took the candles off the cake. Jenny cut three pieces off the cake and put one onto a plate before Megan tried to hand out the plates but Ducky stopped her.
"I'll do it my dear" he said. "You've done quite enough today."
Megan smiled before she sat back in her chair while Ducky handed out a plate each to the other two and then put one in front of himself.
"Thanks" the teenager stated.
"Thank you Ducky" Jenny added.
"You're very welcome my dears" Ducky responded and then they all began to eat their cake.
"Oh my gosh, this is amazing, Mom" Megan declared through her mouthful of cake.
"Glad you think so, Meg" Jenny replied with a smile.
"I agree with Megan, Jennifer. This truly is fantastic cake" Ducky concurred.
"Thanks Duckman" the older redhead said.
They finished the cake, and then Megan was allowed to finish the movie while Ducky and Jenny tidied up the plates and the cake. Once Megan had finished the film, the three of them all sat in the lounge and had conversations about many things, from politics to what the best Star Wars film was. At 21:00, Megan went to bed.
Little did she know, in just a week, her life would be completely different.
That was unbelievably long and I have no idea why. The next chapter is not going to be posted until I've completed Chapter 4, which should hopefully be soon. I'm going to skip a week because the week in between is completely unimportant plot wise.
Anyway, thanks for reading!! X