A/n: Yay for college starting...not. It seems my muse absolutely hates me and chooses the first week of my sophomore year of college to bombard me with story ideas.
Gah. Such is life. Here's Chapter 8! Enjoy!
8. Suspicions and Surprises
Jake Gibbs paused in his transit through the living room of the Gibbs home, his slate-grey eyes fixing on the slumped form of his father on the couch. This was the fifth straight night in a row Dad had slept on the couch, and to be honest, J.J. Gibbs was worried. He frowned, his eyebrows contracting together as he noted that his father still wore his clothes from the previous day, signaling that Jet hadn't even been allowed upstairs.
Something was up.
Jake let out a low sigh, walking over to the couch and tapping Jet's ankle, years of practice with waking the Marine cautioning him from doing the customary shoulder tap. "Dad?"
Jethro Gibbs grunted, his head lifting off the couch. "Mmm?"
"It's almost 0600, Dad." J.J. watched as Jet sat up slowly, wincing as his neck and back sounded off a ripple of pops.
Gibbs gave a noncommittal grunt in reply, ignoring his disheveled hair and three days worth of beard as he padded upstairs to change, his cerulean eyes taking in the empty bed without so much as a second glance. He jerked a grey polo shirt over his torso as he walked back downstairs, toeing on a pair of shoes. "J, you ready to go? I've gotta get in to work!"
J.J. appeared in the kitchen doorway, his bag slung over his shoulder. "Yeah, I'm ready. Am I goin' with you today? Jenny wasn't here when I woke up."
"I dunno, buddy, you'll stay with us unless we get a case, okay?" Jet hid the flash of guilt that crossed his face at the mention of Jenny, ushering his son out the door and to his car.
Ziva David had an innate talent with observing people, picking out the nuances in their behavior that suggested stress or bad times. Her amber eyes tracked the movements of her boss as he made his way slowly into the bullpen, followed closely by J.J.
Gibbs' normally straight posture was slightly slumped, his hair less ordered than usual, a hastily trimmed beard shading his jaw and upper lip. He looked physically exhausted as he sank into the chair behind his desk with a long sigh, rubbing a hand over his face.
J.J. settled into the unoccupied desk next to Jet's, pulling a pack of Pop Tarts and his Game Boy out. He glanced up as a shadow fell across his screen, meeting Ziva's eyes with a quizzical look. Ziva jerked her head towards the elevator, J.J. following after a moment.
"Jake…is there something wrong with Gibbs?"
He sighed, lifting his left shoulder in a half shrug. "Dunno, Zee. He's been sleepin' on the couch all week, though, and he gets home after Jenny goes to bed. She leaves before either of us wake up, and the one time they did talk, she ended up yellin' at him. I dunno what's goin' on, but I don't like it."
Ziva nodded, leaning back against the elevator wall with a heavy sigh. "Yes, I noticed Jenny has been quite a bit more…emotional than is usual for her."
Jake mirrored her casual posture against the wall, his eyebrows contracting in a frown. "It's like she gets upset over the weirdest things. She cried yesterday 'cause me and 'Nomi made chocolate chip cookies after school."
Ziva frowned, thinking. "Hm. Well, let me talk to Jenny and see what I can find out." Her cell phone rang, cutting through the silence in the elevator. "David. Yes, Gibbs, I just took Jake to get a soda, we will be back upstairs momentarily."
They both exited the elevator moments later, a Coke can in J.J.'s right hand. His face fell slightly at seeing McGee and Tony standing at the entrance with their gear. "You got a case, didn't you?"
Jet sighed, nodding. "Yeah, I'm sorry, J. Look, why don't you head down to Abby's lab 'til we get back? You don't have to go to Child Care if you don't want."
"Looks like we're late to the party."
"Assume a 100 meter blast radius from the sandtrap." Gibbs ignored Tony's muttered comment as they walked to the scene, taking in the uniforms of Army CID with a barely concealed eye-roll.
"It's called a bunker, Boss, not a sand trap." Tony flinched at Gibbs' glare, quickly setting down his pack to begin searching the scene. "Blast radius, 100 meters, got it Boss! Probie, you got the woods, I got the far side."
"Uhhh…" The team turned to look at their most junior member, frowning.
"What, MaGee?"
"Poison ivy, Boss. I just look at the stuff and I break out."
Gibbs shrugged, already turning around again. "Don't look." He crouched by the edge of the bunker, staring down at the blackened sand.
"Agent Gibbs?" He turned, meeting the hazel eyes of a middling height blonde woman in Army fatigues. "Lt. Col. Hollis Mann. I believe your Director cal-."
"She did." He cut her off mid sentence, gesturing to introduce Ziva. "Officer Ziv-."
"Ziva David, yes, I know. Army Criminal Investigative Division has excellent intel." Mann set her hands on her hips, looking up at Gibbs.
"Good, you can use it to support our investigation." Gibbs had already turned to walk away, Col. Mann catching up after a few steps.
"Our joint investigation, with Army in the lead. This isn't the Navy-Army club."
"Yeah?" Gibbs stopped, pointing at the body. "That is a dead Marine in the Army-Navy club."
Mann sighed, following him back to the lip of the bunker. "I had E.O.D. sweep the rest of the sand-trap."
"Bunkers."
"Excuse me?"
"Call 'em bunkers, not sand traps." He turned to face her again as he spoke, eyeing Tony searching a garbage can in the distance warily.
Mann rolled her eyes, moving on with her findings. "The Col's son said he saw something like a spiderweb in the bunker."
"Trip wire?" Ziva crouched on the ground near them, looking at the blast site.
"Possibly. There's not much to go on with this one." She turned in a slow circle, surveying the golf course. "Course, we've got a lot of land to cover."
"Eighteen holes on a golf course."
"Yep. You wanna divide them up?"
"Sure. We'll take this one, you take the other seventeen."
Mann smiled faintly, setting her hands on her hips again. "You're not taking away my crime scene. Though, if you ask nicely, we'll give you the body."
"Well, I don't have to ask, seeing as my ME got here first." Gibbs smirked, folding his arms across his chest.
Mann sighed, mirroring his posture. "Okay. If this is going to be a pissing match, you better bring your umbrella."
Tony's jubilant voice cut through the tension in the air. "O-ho! Got something, Boss!" He ran up, ducking under the crime scene tape easily.
"Whaddaya got, DiNozzo?"
"Found this, off the next tee. Was outside the blast radius, wind must've carried it. Looks like part of a detonator." Tony held up the burnt piece of plastic.
Mann looked peeved, her hands snapping back to her hips. "I checked the neighboring tees myself."
"Well…maybe you shoulda checked the trashcans. Looks like a hole in one, Boss." Tony smirked at the Col., dropping the detonator in the evidence bag Gibbs held out.
"Is it just me, or did SecDef seem nervous?"
Jet followed Jenny out of MTAC, running a tired hand over his face. "Probably has a tee time tomorrow." He turned to look at her. "You were gone before Jake and I woke up this morning."
Jenny shrugged, turning to stare down at the bullpen. "Something came up. What's she like?" There was a slight undercurrent of something in her voice, but he couldn't place it.
Jet rolled his eyes, glancing over at her.
"I just meant, is she up to the job?"
"I dunno, Jen, I'll let you know." He glanced down as his phone rang. "Gibbs."
"Hey boss, DiNozzo here. The CID lady stole Jake's desk, and she's trying to steal credit fo-." Tony whispered into the phone, unaware that his bosses were standing on the catwalk behind him.
Jet rolled his eyes, taking the phone away from his ear. "Hey, DiNozzo!"
Tony looked up, and then turned around. "Heh…ha, ha…hey, Boss, I didn't see…I thought you were still…I thought you were still in MTAC."
"Whaddaya want, DiNozzo?"
"Oh. We uh, we fo-."
Lt. Col. Mann cut him off, raising her voice to be heard. "We just found an unaccounted for vehicle from the Army-Navy club."
Jenny watched as Jethro made his way down the stairs, already barking orders to his team. She didn't notice the boy at her side until he spoke up. "I don't like her."
"Jesus, Jake, you scared me."
Jake merely shrugged, glaring down at the Army Colonel as she picked up her gear from his desk. "She stole my desk, and she keeps checking Dad out and it's creepy."
"Jake…we're only working with CID because we have to. It's not like she's a permanent member of the team."
"Yeah, I guess…" He trailed off as they watched the joint team head to the elevator. "Jenny…why'd you leave so early this morning?"
"Something came up, I got called in early." Jenny glanced down at her watch. "Jake, I really have to go, I've got a meeting in MTAC in five. Why don't you head down to Child Care?"
She was already turning away, missing the flash of hurt that crossed Jake's face before her trudged downstairs, his thin shoulders slumped.
"Agent Gibbs?" Gibbs looked up from pouring paint into a small jar to the top of the basement steps, seeing Col. Mann standing dressed in civilian clothes. J.J. sat hidden under the stairs, an X-Men comic book in his hands.
"I—I've been ringing your bell for three minutes."
"Hm. Yeah, been meaning to fix that." Jet met Jake's eyes with a smirk as he sat down behind the Kelly.
"Well, then the door was unlocked, so…" She made her way down stairs.
"So, this would be trespassing, not breaking and entering."
"Uh huh." Mann made it down the last few steps, moving closer to read the name on the back of the boat, not seeing Jake's hiding spot yet. "Kelly?"
Gibbs' face closed down, irritated, as he turned around to glare at her. "There a reason you broke into my house?"
Mann stood her ground through the glare, flicking her hair to the side. "This is a joint investigation, I thought maybe we could share some information."
Jet sat back after a minute, suppressing a sigh. "You want a soda?"
"Soda?"
He leaned back slightly, pointing to the mini-fridge in the corner.
"Sure." She removed her jacket, making her way over to the fridge. "I got the results back on the swabs from the Toyota. Traces of diesel fuel and uh, fertilizer." She popped the top off of the beer with a rag, turning back, noticing Jake for the first time. "I wasn't aware you already had a visitor."
"This is Jake." Jet didn't elaborate anymore, returning to his painting work quietly. J.J. hid a smirk as he watched Col. Mann discreetly check out Jet's back as he stood to adjust his paintbrush.
"Hello, Jake. I'm Hollis, Hollis Mann."
Jake raised a vague hand in greeting, moving out from his hiding spot to sit on a stool near the boat.
Col. Mann seemed extremely uncomfortable and unsure of how to respond to the situation. "So, um…that's what we found."
"Hm." Gibbs studiously worked on the first "L" in Kelly, his head bent to survey his work. "Well, the car belonged to the greenskeeper, so…"
"It's a dead end." Mann sighed, taking the free stool next to Jake. "Jake…the file I got from CID doesn't mention…"
"Jake is my son." Jet turned around and leaned against the bottom stair banister.
"Oh. Right. Well, if that's um, all we have, then I'll just be going." Col. Man stood and quickly retrieved her jacket, heading up the stairs quickly.
Both Gibbs men leaned against the boat, smirking as they heard the door close. "Well, that was awkward."
"Dad, she was looking at your butt."
"I know…I figured I'd get more info out of her if she's allowed to flirt." They trudged upstairs, turning off the lights in the house as they went.
Neither Hollis Mann nor Jet and Jake noticed Jenny's black Mercedes Benz drive away after Mann's car, the driver visibly upset.
"All I've got is 300 wasted man hours. We're looking in the wrong direction."
Gibbs stood in MTAC in front of Jenny the next morning, his arms folded across his chest.
"Hm. Well, I might be able to help with that. Danielle, pull up that file from the CIA, please."
Jet turned to look as three pictures flashed up on the MTAC screen. "Why are we just now hearing about this?"
"Probably the same reason we didn't hear about those flight lessons 'til after 9/11." Jenny shrugged. "I've already notified Colonel Mann, CID will meet you at the scene." Her face twisted minutely at the mention of the Army Colonel, masking her irritation quickly. "Now, go. I have work to do, Agent Gibbs, as do you." She turned her back on him, a clear dismissal.
"Oh, I'm a cheap date."
"Date?"
"It's a figure of speech, Gunny." Jenny stood in the back stairwell, listening to the voices clearly broadcast to her from the bullpen, her blood boiling.
"So, I got the food, you solve the case?"
"Almost, until you broke my concentration."
"That easy to break, huh?"
"When I'm hungry."
Was it just her imagination, or did the Lt. Col.'s voice take on a seductive undertone with that comment? Jenny huffed, glaring at the sparkling platinum ring on her finger. "Bastard." She disappeared back upstairs to her office, her eyes red.
"Do you know how many packages of Ring Dings are sold a day, Gibbs?" Abby and Jake stood in front of the plasma in her lab, watching the footage from Sharif's convenience store.
"Abs, the customers?"
"The customers! They're talking about everything from the weather to hemorrhoid cream, to…"
"Ding Dongs, the price of a twelve pack of beer, how much gas is…" Jake joined in with Abby's list, spinning around in his computer chair.
"There's no audio, how do you two know…?" Col. Mann stepped up closer to the plasma, her brow furrowed.
Jake smirked and tapped his lips, signing something rapidly with his hands.
"Ah, you read lips."
Abby raised her eyebrows, turning around to sign something to Gibbs, who replied back in kind.
"Alright, you guys wanna keep talking about me, or get back to the case?"
"Um, after watching like twelve hours of the worst reality TV ever, we've narrowed it down to one suspect, this guy." She clicked the remote, freezing the image on screen. "He refers to himself as Abraham."
"He didn't mention the golf course, but he said somethin' about the Day of Judgment is coming." J.J. stopped his spinning chair long enough to grin up at his father. "Sounds like Magneto from X-Men."
"Yeah, Jake, well, this Abraham guy is a lot worse than Magneto. You did a good job, bud."
Jake slipped into MTAC behind a harried looking tech, hiding in the back row of seats. Jenny was in fine form, shouting orders into her headset as they waited for Army CID to send the feed of the arrest of Abraham over.
"Going live in three, Director."
Jenny spun to face the screen, watching as Team Gibbs and Col. Mann hurried through Georgetown Promenade, slipping earwigs into their ears. "You read me, Tango One?"
"Loud and clear, Director." Jet's gruff tones resounded out of the speakers in MTAC. "Clear the civilians, quietly."
They heard radio chatter for the next few seconds, Col. Mann giving orders to her team rapidly. "There, Abraham, on the bench."
The cameras zoomed in on the man from the convenience store, sitting on a bench on his own.
"If he sees us clear the civilians, he might detonate." Ziva's accented tones rang through the speakers.
"If there's a trip wire, anyone could detonate."
"He used a cell phone for the second bomb." Tony hurried after the team on camera.
"Trip wire, cell phone, who knows." Gibbs was already removing his jacket.
"Dead man switch?" Tony let out a sigh as Gibbs jerked his other arm out of the jacket. "Or not…"
"Agent Gibbs, get back to your team, I repeat, get back to your team, that is an order." Jenny paced in front of the screen, watching as Gibbs ignored, her, removing the earwig from his head, his last transmission relaying through.
"DiNozzo, you keep your ears on me." He set his jacket down, picking up another man's coat from a bench.
The rest of the team ducked down near a vendor, Col. Mann's voice issuing through the speakers. "What the hell is he doing?"
Tony sighed, by now ignoring the screaming Jenny in his earwig. "What he always does."
"Three marriages? Negotiation's probably not his thing." They watched as Jet 'borrowed' a man's hat, picking up a discarded newspaper from the bench next to Abraham.
Tony snorted. "Eh…you'd be surprised."
Jet's voice abruptly came through the speakers again, loud and clear. "Cell's not the detonator."
He walked over to Abraham, eyeing the cell phone in his hands. "My son, Jake, he plays that same game. What's your name?"
"Abraham…" The suspect's voice came, garbled through the mic.
"Hey, Abraham, my name's Jethro." Jet reached out to shake his hand, revealing a cable strapped to Abraham's wrist.
"Jethro?"
"That's the name they gave me." Gibbs took a seat on the bench next to Abraham, ignoring the crowd of bystanders held back by the police a ways away.
"That means Friend of God, the father in law of Moses! He walked with the Israelites, when God parted the Red Sea!" Abraham leaned towards Gibbs, still clutching his backpack. "You know why God parted the Red Sea?"
"No."
"To show the people that sea creatures were totally dependent on God's will."
"What is he talking about?" McGee's voice came over the comm, sounding confused.
"I'd say this guy's a few puppies short of a pet shop." Tony chimed in next, shaking his head.
"Most suicide bombers are." Ziva spoke calmly, keeping a wary eye on her boss.
Gibbs shifted closer to Abraham, keeping his arm casually leaned against the back of the bench. "Abraham, can I ask you a question?" He waited for Abraham's nod, continuing. "You think it's okay for someone to hurt people?"
"No, Jethro!' Abraham shook his head vehemently.
"Yeah, I didn't think so." Jet leaned closer, shaking his head slightly. "What are you doin' here, Abraham?"
Abraham glanced around, looking confused. "I'm waitin' for my friend. He's gonna take me to dinner."
Gibbs nodded, pointing at the backpack. "The friend give you the backpack?"
"Mmmhmm. 'Bout an hour ago, said this is so I don't lose it." Abraham gestured to the cable around his wrist.
"What's this friend's name?"
"Sharif."
"So who's laying in autopsy, then?" Tony sounded confused.
Abraham looked around again, frowning. "He was sposta' meet me here at 3 o'clock!"
"ZIVA!" Gibbs was already up and calling her over, crouching in front of Abraham. "Abraham, is it alright if we take a look in your backpack?"
Abraham nodded calmly, staring around as the team surrounded him.
"E.O.D.'s still on their way, Boss." Tony and the others leaned over Abraham in the camera, blocking Jenny's view of the proceedings.
"We're out of time." Col. Mann sounded harried and afraid.
"You still want me to diffuse it, 'cause before you said you'd kick my ass if-." Ziva seemed unruffled, a muted beeping coming through the background of her mic.
"DO IT!" Gibbs moved over to make room for Ziva. "The rest of you get out of here." He waved them away, McGee giving him a defiant look before crouching by Ziva's side, Tony following.
"Thirty seconds." McGee's voice rose in intensity.
"Tony, army knife." Ziva reached a hand over her shoulder, taking the knife Tony provided.
Abraham turned to McGee. "What's your name?"
"Uh, Tim."
"It means he-who-is-about-to-wet-his-pants." Tony hovered over Ziva's shoulder, his cutting sarcasm evidence of his mood.
Ziva clipped the wire after a few tense seconds, letting out a low sigh.
"Wh—why is he gonna wet his pants?"
Ziva's accented chuckle rang out of the speakers. Col. Mann approached Gibbs, who paced a few yards away, looking around warily. "He's here."
"No…not anymore."
"You self-serving, lying, cheating BASTARD!" Jenny confronted Gibbs as he re-entered the bullpen, ignoring the shocked looks from the team and Col. Mann. "You don't follow orders, you're never home, you had her over for dinner twice this week, you-you…" A sharp slap resounded through the bullpen, Gibbs rocking back a few steps as Jenny flung something small and flashy on the ground by his feet, storming out of the bullpen and up the stairs. He put a hand up to his lip, gingerly feeling the cut there.
"Here, Gibbs, take these." Ziva handed him a few tissues, pressing one against his lip. "You should probably see Ducky, that looks bad."
"What was that?" Col. Mann stood next to McGee's desk, thoroughly confused. Gibbs shook his head, brushing past her to head for Autopsy. She looked over at McGee, then Tony, her gaze finally settling on Ziva. "I'm serious, am I missing something here?"
Tony stared shellshocked at the ring on the ground. "I—McGee?"
"I dunno, Tony. Jake said she's been making him sleep on the couch all week, and they only time they do talk, she's started arguments over the weirdest things."
"What is going on?" Mann repeated her previous question, crossing her arms.
"I, uh…I think Director Shepard might uh, might think that Gibbs is cheating on her with you. Er…ma'am…uh, Lt. Colonel."
"What?" Mann glanced at the ring on the floor, comprehension dawning. "Oh, my. They're engaged? I—I didn't…his file didn't mention…oh, no."
"Have been for three weeks now. Jenny was gonna adopt me, but now she's bein' all crazy." J.J. spoke up from his desk, staring at the floor. "I don't know how to fix it."
"This is all just a big misunderstanding. I need to go explain." Lt. Col. Mann straightened her shoulders and headed up the stairs to the Director's office, leaving the team and Jake behind.
"Duck, I need a favor."
"Besides me fixing up this cut on your lip?"
Jet rolled his eyes, leaning back on his hands on the autopsy table. "I think Jenny's pregnant."
"What?" The ME stepped back, surprised. "You're kidding me."
"It's the only thing that makes sense, Duck. She's been more emotional than usual lately, she won't even let me in the damn bedroom, and she loses her temper at the drop of a hat. I checked her trashcan, it's not her time of the month. I don't know what else it could be."
"Director Shepard?" Lt. Col. Hollis Mann knocked quietly on the door. "Ma'am?"
"Go away!" Something that sounded mysteriously like a high heel hit the other side of the door loudly.
"Ma'am, you have this all wrong, I'd like a chance to explain, please." She interpreted the silence on the other side of the door as a signal to go ahead, holding up both hands cautiously as she entered.
"What do you want?" Jenny Shepard looked livid, her eyes red. She folded her arms across her chest aggressively.
"Ma'am, I don't know what you saw or heard, but it's not what you think."
"Oh, really? So you leaving Jethro's house at 2130 hours the other day was just innocent? Your dinner in the bullpen last night was nothing?"
"That's correct, ma'am, you can even ask Agent Gibbs' son about the night at his house, I dropped by to go over the case, nothing more, ma'am." Lt. Col. Mann stared solidly at the wall just above Jenny's head, her posture straight. "I apologize if my behavior made you think otherwise."
Jenny stared at her for a solid minute, her green eyes wary. "You're being completely honest with me."
"I don't make a habit of lying, Director Shepard."
She sat back after a long minute, looking devastated. "What have I done?"
Mann relaxed her posture, glancing down to the floor a minute. "Agent Gibbs is downstairs with Dr. Mallard, ma'am."
Jenny muttered a reply, already flying by on her way out the door.
"Look, I'm not saying you're wrong, it is entirely possible that she might be, Jethro, but how in God's name do you propose I test that?"
"Hell, I dunno, tell her she needs her medical files updated! She won't talk to me, dammit, so there's no way I can ask!"
Jenny slowed her headlong rush out of the elevator outside Autopsy, hearing the slightly raised voices of Ducky and Jethro issuing through the closed doors.
She took a deep breath, and walked through the doors. "Jethro…" She stopped dead as she noticed the cut on his lip. "Oh, no…Jethro, I'm so so-."
"Don't say it, Jen." Jet levered himself off of the table, walking over to her. "Sign of weakness."
"I split your lip open, and assumed you were cheating because I'm a helpless bag of emotions, Jethro. You better damn well let me apologize for it." Jenny blinked back a few tears, winding her arms around his waist. "I don't even know what's come over me, I just…I got so angry."
He smiled faintly, wrapping his own arms around her shoulders, settling his chin atop her head. "It's alright, Jen." He took a step back after a minute, smiling down at her. "And, as to why you've been so emotional, I've got a theory."
Jenny raised her eyebrows, smiling back. "Oh?"
"Jethro and I both think this is the most likely cause of your…ah, mood swings, Jennifer. All I need to verify is a simple blood test."
The smile faltered slightly. "I—I don't understand. What are you talking about?"
Jethro took a deep breath, resting his hands on her upper arms. "Jenny…I think you're pregnant, babe."
"I'm what? No—I—I can't…I haven't missed…oh." Jenny thought back to the last time she could remember her 'monthly gift'. "I didn't even notice…"
Ducky chuckled softly, leading her to the chair by his desk. "Just sit tight here, won't take but a moment, and we can run these on up to Abby."
Jenny gripped Jethro's hand tightly as Ducky took the blood, settling comfortably into his side. She waited until the ME left for Abby's lab to broach the subject that had been eating at her. "Jethro…I really am sorry, about this past week. I don't know what came over me. I was angry at you Sunday for that stunt Tony pulled with the press on your last case, and then it all just…spilled over, I guess."
He merely smiled, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. "You don't have to apologize, Jenny. It's okay." He pressed a finger over her lips, shushing her protest. "What's done is done. Shannon broke my nose, Sarah gave me a black eye, you split my lip. It's okay."
Jenny let out a disbelieving chuckle. "Shannon broke your nose?"
"I, um…I may have told her I thought she was pretty when she was on a rampage about how all of her clothes didn't fit." Jet ducked his head sheepishly. "And Sarah gave me the black eye because I told her I wasn't going out at 0400 hours to buy Fudge Ripple Ice Cream."
She laughed along with him for a few minutes, relaxing back in his comfortable embrace. "Well, I promise I'll try my best not to castrate you in the coming months, if we do happen to be having a baby."
Jet let a low chuckle rumble through his chest in response.
"Do you want another child?" Jenny glanced up at him, voicing her thoughts aloud.
"I'm happy with you and Jake, but I always promised Kelly she'd have a few little brothers and sisters. I—I know she's not here now to see them, but…I mean, Jake's always wanted a little sister, to protect." He lifted his shoulders in a half shrug. "I want you guys to be happy."
Jenny nodded after a moment, satisfied with his answer. "Boy or girl?"
"Healthy." He met her quizzical gaze, shrugging again. "The doc told us Kelly was gonna be a boy, and Sarah didn't even find out what Jake was gonna be."
The doors to Autopsy slid open with a hiss, bringing both of them out of their conversation. Jenny tilted her head, staring expectantly at the ME.
Ducky's face creased in a wide grin as he nodded slightly. "Congratulations, Jennifer, Jethro. You'll be adding an addition to your family sometime later this year."
"Do you know how far along?" Jethro spoke quietly, his arms circling Jenny's waist from behind.
"I can't tell that from a blood test, you'd need to get an ultrasound." Ducky stepped forward and gave her a tight hug. "Congratulations, my dear."
It had taken a little string pulling for Jenny to get a rush appointment with her doctor the next day. Jethro sat by her side in the waiting room, twining his fingers through hers. He reached out and settled a comforting hand over her incessantly tapping foot, catching her gaze. "It's gonna be okay, Jen."
She smiled nervously in reply, her grip on his hand tightening slightly. "I—I know, I just…"
He chuckled softly, shifting to wrap his arm around her shoulder. "C'mere. We're gonna be just fine, Jenny, I promise."
"Jennifer Shepard?" A nurse poked her head out of the door. Jenny stood, still gripping Jet's hand tightly. "The doctor will see you now."
"Ah, Jenny, it's been a while." Dr. Alex Wilson smiled brightly and clasped Jenny's hand in a brief handshake, her high heels clicking on the floor as she walked next to them. "And I assume this is your, ah…"
"This is my fiancée, Jethro." They followed the doctor into an exam room, settling into the chairs as Dr. Wilson calmly flipped through the file in her hands.
"Lovely to meet you, Jethro." Dr. Wilson leaned back against the counter, eyeing her patient. "So, what brings you here so early on a Friday?"
"I—that is, we, are having a baby. I need an ultrasound to, um…check on things."
The doctor smiled again, gesturing to the exam table. "If you'll just hop up there and lift up your shirt, we can go ahead and check how this baby's doing."
Jenny let out a low hiss of breath as the cold gel was spread over her lower abdomen, gripping Jet's hand tightly. They both watched the screen as Dr. Wilson moved the ultrasound probe over Jenny's skin.
"Looks like you're about eight weeks along, Jenny." Dr. Wilson moved the probe again slightly to the side, her eyebrows raising. "Huh."
"What? Is something wrong?" Jenny sounded a little panicked, her grip on Jethro's hand tightening.
"No, no, nothing wrong." The doctor grinned, tilting the screen slightly. "If you look right…there, you'll see that you two should be expecting multiple surprises in about eight months. You're having twins."
"I…what?" Jenny stared in shock at the screen in front of her, showing two small shapes with vaguely beating hearts. "Twins?" She felt a low chuckle rumble through Jethro's chest, tilting her head back to glare at him. "I don't know why you're laughing, mister."
"Well, Duck always did say we never did anything by halves." He grinned happily at her, pressing his lips to her forehead in a gentle kiss.
Jenny laughed along with him, shaking her head as they left the doctor's office with a few copies of the ultrasound picture. "You're telling Abby."
"What?" He stopped dead in the middle of the parking lot, looking positively terrified. "Jenny, no…she's gon-."
"She's going to flip out, I know, that's why you're telling her." She finished his statement matter-of-factly, her lips twisting up in a smirk.
He let out a muffled groan, catching up to her quickly, his hand automatically falling to the small of her back. "Fine, then you call and tell Jackson."
"What?" This time, it was her turn to stop dead, halfway ducked into the yellow Charger.
They drove away to his roar of laughter, heading back to NCIS.
Jake eyed Jet and Jenny quizzically as they both sat him down on the couch in the living room, looking extremely serious. "What's going on? If you're mad about the paintball fight in the garage, it was totally Tony's idea, I promise!"
Jenny laughed softly, shaking her head. "You're not in trouble, Jake. Your Dad and I have something to tell you."
Jake sat up abruptly, surprised. "Oh. I thought…you're still getting married, right? And you're still gonna adopt me, right?"
"Yes, J, we're still getting married, and Jen's still going to adopt you, son. Just sit back and listen a moment, okay?"
J.J. let out a low sigh, relaxing back into the couch. "Okay, fine."
Jenny twined her fingers through Jet's, smiling widely as she looked the boy about to become her son in the eye. "Jake, Jet and I were trying to tell you that I'm pregnant, honey. You're going to have a couple of brothers or sisters sometime around Halloween."
They watched with growing amusement as a number of expressions flickered across J.J.'s face, finally settling on excited. "I get a baby sister?"
"Two." Jet squeezed Jenny's hand, the corner of his mouth turning up in a smirk.
"Huh?"
"We're having twins, J.J." Jenny smiled at him kindly.
Jake let out a happy yell, launching himself forward to wrap his arms tightly around both of their waists. "ThankyouThankyouThankyou! I've always wanted a baby sister or brother and now I get two! Wait 'til I tell Zach, he'll be super jealous, he's only got a baby brother!"
Jet laughed, bending down to lift Jake up in the air, hugging him tightly. "And I'm sure you'll be the best big brother anyone could ask for, kid."
Jake grinned happily, twisting in his father's embrace to wrap his arms around Jenny in a hug, muffling his voice against her shoulder. "I love you, Mom."
Jenny looked over at Jethro, tears shining in her eyes as she pressed a light kiss to the side of his head, murmuring a soft reply. "I love you too, Jake."
J.J. lifted his head from her shoulder to meet her bright green eyes. "So you've been all crazy this month 'cause you're pregnant?"
The Gibbs house rang with Jet's loud laughs as the family settled down to watch their customary movie, content in the knowledge that they would be expanding soon.
A/n: So, there we go, Chapter 8. I managed to finish this bugger in half a day, which is good, considering that the first half has been sitting on my laptop since I posted Chapter 7. I know it's a bit shorter than the others, but I needed to get this bit of the plot hashed out to continue with the storyline I've got planned.
Most of the case-related dialogue is from Season 4 Episode Sandblast, if you hadn't noticed.
Please review, they're always appreciated!
-meg.