Charlie's fear of cars was inconvenient but not unexpected. After being involved in such a horrific accident, the could not blame the kid. They had gotten around via bus while still in Ohio. Getting around would be much harder upon arriving home. They would be able to ride the bus when it was just them and Charlie but getting three kids and two adults on a bus was near impossible.
"We have to do something about Charlie." Tony commented as he zipped his suitcase.
"What do you mean?" Ziva asked.
"The car thing. We have to get him over his fears." Tony explained.
"I talked to Rachel about child psychologists. We have a meeting with one tomorrow at two." Ziva explained.
"That's good but what do we do in the meantime? How do we assure him?" Tony questioned.
"I'm not sure we can. At least not right now." Ziva admitted.
"How are we supposed get around?" Tony asked.
"We can take Charlie on the bus but keep him with a sitter if we have to do something with the girls. At least for the first few weeks." Ziva explained.
"Is giving into his fears really the best idea? Maybe it would be best if we just forced him to ride in a car." Tony commented.
"I don't know Tony. This is uncharted territory for me. I just don't want him to live in fear or to resent us." Ziva explained.
"Maybe the shrink will have some ideas." Tony hoped.
Charlie sat between Tony and Ziva on the flight home. They had managed to get the boy to ride in a cab but not without a fight and a lot of tears. Tony and Ziva knew that they were facing a battle and deep down Ziva knew that Tony was right. They could not forever given into the child's fears. The best thing they could do, was work with Charlie and get him to face his fears. They would do their best to work with him on their own but most of the work would be done by Charlie's psychologist.
"What's it going to be like?" Charlie asked.
"What do you mean?" Ziva asked.
"When we get home? What will life be like?" Charlie asked.
"Well first thing we are getting you checked out by a doctor. Then we will take you home to meet our family. You now have two sisters an older sister named Marley and a younger sister named Lily. Soon you will have two baby brothers but Ziva and I are still deciding on names for them." Tony explained.
"Will they like me? My sisters I mean?" Charlie asked.
"They will adore you. They are both ecstatic to have you as a brother." Ziva assured.
"Why didn't they come?" Charlie asked.
"We were not sure how you would feel and did not want to overwhelm you, and besides we did not want them missing any school." Ziva explained.
"I just hope they are nice." Charlie whispered.
"They are the best." Tony assured.
It was another fight to get Charlie in the car for the drive home but this was an easier battle. Maybe he was tired or maybe he was finally coming around. Whatever the case, they were just glad for their son to be relatively relaxed. The first stop was the doctor's office. They made it just in time for Charlie's three o'clock doctor's appointment.
"This must be Charlie." Dr. Kendall announced stepping into the room.
"Yes" Ziva replied.
"How old are you Charlie?" Dr. Kendall asked.
"Eight and a half." Charlie replied.
"What grade are you in?" Dr. Kendall asked.
"Second, I got held back." Charlie explained.
"You will catch up." Dr. Kendall assured.
"So why am I here?" Charlie asked.
"You need a check-up." Dr. Kendall replied.
"OK" Charlie muttered.
Charlie had a very good check-up. Though Dr. Kendall did want him to be evaluated by an optometrist. The child was fast asleep as they departed the doctor's office. Getting him into the car was easy but Tony still rode in back, so he could be right there if Charlie were to wake up.
"That went well." Ziva commented.
"I am glad he doesn't have my fear of doctors." Tony replied.
"He has enough fears to worry about doctors." Ziva explained.
"Poor kid" Tony whispered.
"I just hope, Dr. Regis can help him." Ziva replied.
Upon arriving home, Tony waited in the car with Charlie. While Ziva went inside and gave the girls a few ground rules. They knew that Charlie was vulnerable but needed a reminder on their behavior. Ziva reminded them to be gentle and to not approach Charlie to quickly. She also reminded them not to play car accident games in front of Charlie.
"So do you understand?" Ziva asked.
"Yes Ima" Lily replied.
"Yes" Marley assured.
"Good, I am going to go get him and Tony." Ziva replied.
Tony unbuckled Charlie's seat-belt and carried his son into his new home. He stepped into the living room and knelt down in front of Lily and Marley, so they could see their new brother. Charlie stirred slightly but did not wake.
"Lily, Marley this is your new brother Charles Aden DiNozzo." Tony introduced in a whisper.
"Is he asleep?" Marley asked.
"Yes" Tony replied.
"Why?" Lily asked.
"He is tired." Tony explained.
"When can we play with him?" Lily asked.
"Soon but remember what Ziva said. You have to be careful and gentle around him." Tony reminded.
After introducing him to the girls, Tony carried Charlie upstairs and tucked him into his new bed. For a while he just sat in the child's room and watched him sleep. In a lot of ways Charlie was like AJ but he was nothing like AJ. Even before the explosion AJ was different than Charlie. That's what Tony had to keep telling himself. He was not getting AJ 2.0, he was just getting a son. Who happened to be the exact age that AJ was when he became disabled.
A/N: How will the girls react to Charlie? Will the psychologist be able to help him? New chapter will be up soon. Please review and thanks for reading.