So, I thought I would have this chapter up a little earlier. But I lost my jump drive like three different times and had a few things to do, but hey, at least you are getting two chapters in two days! Sadly I won't be able to update tomorrow and probably not on Saturday either. Going to Busch Gardens tomorrow and then getting my first tattoo on Saturday! So I hope you like this chapter! Leave me a review on what you think!
Ziva and Amelia made the short walk to the café down the street and sat down at a table, waiting for someone to come take their order. Once that was done they settled into their table more, sipping on their drinks.
"I'm so happy to be out of there," Amelia groaned as she draped her coat over the back of her chair. Ziva smiled at her,
"And why is that?" She asked, as if she had been oblivious to Amelia's misery all morning.
"Are you kidding me? Gibbs is like a freaking prison warden. All I'm allowed to do is write those damn sentences!"
"It could be worse," Ziva offered. Amelia looked at her skeptically,
"How on earth could this whole situation be worse?" She asked, thinking that the woman sitting across from her was probably insane. Ziva decided to keep her mouth shut, not wanting to argue with the teenager about her problems just yet,
"Never mind," she said dismissively. Amelia shrugged,
"It's just so ridiculous. I mean, he's totally over reacting, don't you think?"
"Well,"
"I mean, all I did was go hang out with some friends, he's acting like I killed someone or something. It's not the end of the world." It was the first time Amelia had been away from her father all day and if she had her phone she would be texting her friends, complaining about how annoying and unreasonable Gibbs was being. Had she been able to talk to her friends then she wouldn't currently be complaining to Ziva, who was finding herself to be very annoyed with Amelia's ranting. The ranting about how unfair Gibbs was being continued for a few more minutes until Ziva could take no more,
"Enough! It is completely unnecessary for you to be complaining about your father this way," she said suddenly. Amelia stopped talking mid-sentence, surprised that Ziva had interrupted her.
"What are you," Ziva interrupted her again,
"You should consider yourself lucky that you have him and that he cares enough about you to punish you for making stupid decisions. If I had done something like that when I was your age I would not have been able to sit for a week. You made a choice, it ended badly, now learn to deal with the consequences," Ziva finished her own little rant and took a bite of her food. Amelia starred at the older woman in front of her for a moment,
"Sorry," she shrugged, only half meaning it but realizing that Ziva had a point. They ate in silence for a few minutes before Ziva spoke up again,
"So how has school been going for you?" she asked. Amelia considered not answering, but decided against it, not wanting to be ignoring two of the four people she was in close proximity with for the rest of the day,
"It's alright. Most of my classes seem really easy so far. Except my English class, English is gonna kill me this year."
"That is good. I am sure you will catch up in English, or you can get help from someone."
"Yeah, I'm sure it will be fine."
"And what about friends? I believe you have made a few if you are going to parties." Amelia didn't even bother denying that it was a party they had gone to,
"Yeah. On the first day, Luke, the guy I was with last night, decided he was going to be my best friend and wouldn't leave me alone. I didn't exactly appreciate it at first, but he kinda grew on me. He introduced me to some other friends of his and they all seem pretty nice."
"That's good. I am glad that you have made friends so easily. I know it is not always easy to make friends when you are new somewhere."
"Yeah, it's nice I guess. I just miss my old friends too," it was the first time Amelia had said it out loud, but she had been thinking it all week. Sure, these people that she had met here were nice and made sure she was included, but she had grown up with her friends in New York. She knew everything about them and them her. It didn't seem fair to her that she had to start all over and jump into these people's lives, no matter how welcoming they were.
"I understand," Ziva told her, "Sometimes I still miss friends that I left behind in Israel. I have some great friends here, and I even consider them family, but it is not the same." Amelia looked at her plate, she hadn't talked to anyone about the move from New York to DC and she wasn't sure if Ziva was who she should be opening up to, but something about the woman made Amelia trust her and she spoke up anyway,
"I really miss my brother too," she admitted quietly. Ziva felt her heart twinge a little for the young girl sitting across from her. For as much trouble as she seemed to have given Gibbs the past few days she really did feel bad for her. The only parents she had ever known had just died, and even if they were not the world's greatest parents, they still meant something to her. And so soon after losing her parents a father she has never known suddenly shows up and takes her away from her brother, her only other family. Yes, Ziva definitely felt sorry for this girl, but she in no way thought that excused her behavior lately.
"I had a brother," Ziva offered. Ari wasn't someone she normally talked about, especially with someone she didn't know that well, but something told her that Amelia needed to hear this.
"You did? What do you mean had?" Amelia was curious to know what happened.
"He was killed on a mission," Ziva told her, not wanting to get into the actual details. Not only was it hard to talk about but she did not think Gibbs would like them discussing the ordeal.
"Oh, I'm sorry. What was his name?"
"His name was Ari. He was older than me, only by a few years, but he never let me forget it. Tell me about your brother," she suggested. Amelia smiled,
"His name's Matt. He's kind of an idiot," she said. Ziva laughed a little,
"Why do you say that?"
"Well, he tends to drink, and do drugs, and get arrested."
"Ah, I see. I have to agree, that does seem pretty idiotic."
"Yeah, but he's still my brother. And even if he can be stupid he's still my big brother and I love him. He's always stuck up for me and cared for me when our parents weren't around, which was pretty often." Amelia paused to take a bite of food, "He wanted to have me live with him after the accident, but no one was going to let him have custody of a fifteen year old when he had such a colorful history."
"That's understandable though, they simply wanted you to be safe."
"I would have been perfectly safe in New York. But no, stupid Gibbs had to drag me to stupid Washington DC," Amelia spat. Ziva sighed,
"Can I give you some advice?" She asked rhetorically. Amelia looked at her expectantly, "Cut Gibbs some slack. I do not think he took you away from New York on purpose to ruin your life. He is simply fulfilling his duties as a father and cares about you. Consider yourself lucky that he cares about you and wants you to stay safe. My father did not always care about me and we do not even speak anymore. Do not ruin your relationship with your father over something that seems like a big deal now, but in a few years this will seem like nothing. So even though you are mad at him, just remember that he is trying his hardest and it won't always be easy if you are constantly not speaking to him."
Amelia listened to Ziva, and even though she knew there was truth to the words she could not bring herself to get over the anger she was feeling. She knew that everything that had happened was not Gibbs' fault but at the moment he was the easiest person to be mad at. Ziva checked her watch,
"We should probably be getting back," Ziva suggested. Amelia nodded and they paid for the food before taking the short walk back to the navy yard.
"Thanks for taking me to lunch Ziva," Amelia said when they were in the elevator.
"It was no problem Amelia. I enjoyed your company." Amelia would have said more but the doors opened to reveal Gibbs, Tony, and Tim standing there.
"Get your stuff Ziva. Amelia, you're going to stay with Ducky while we are out," Gibbs told them, not bothering with hello. Amelia inwardly groaned but stayed silent, starring at the elevator buttons. Tony, Ziva, and Tim exited the elevator at the ground floor, heading to the parking garage while Gibbs and Amelia continued down to autopsy.
"I expect you to listen to Ducky while you are down here. You'll be writing more lines, so you shouldn't be getting too distracted but don't touch anything or go snooping around. Understand?"
"I have to write even more! I thought I was done! I wrote the rules like five hundred times!"
"These one's are different," he said simply. Amelia groaned and rolled her eyes but kept her mouth shut, remembering Ziva's words from lunch. Walking into Autopsy Gibbs led her to one of the desks where a pencil and even more paper sat. She starred at the items hatefully but sat down at the desk anyway. Once he was sure Amelia had begun writing Gibbs and Ducky made their way into the hall.
"She's not allowed to do anything else right now Duck. She may try to convince you otherwise, but all she is allowed to do is write those lines and go to the bathroom."
"It won't be a problem Jethro. I will make sure she stays on track," Ducky assured him, "Now go, you have a suspect to hunt down." Gibbs nodded and made his way back to the elevator,
"Thanks Duck," he called as the doors closed. Ducky nodded to himself and walked back into Autopsy, not too surprised to see Amelia slumped down in the chair, pencil abandoned beside her.
"Now I do believe that is not what you are supposed to be doing right now," Ducky said, causing her to jump.
"I need a break, all I've done today is write these stupid lines," Amelia whined.
"That's what happens when you break the rules," he told her, reaching over and handing her the pencil. Amelia groaned but took it from him anyway and began writing again.
Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter and all the advice/suggestions I get are awesome! Don't forget to review to let me know what you think :D
