Sorry I haven't gotten back to the most recent reviews, but I'm in a rush to get to work and I figured that you'd rather have the next chapter compared to the review reply.

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Jack sat by Abby's bedside, observing how her pale skin was marred by the blue-purple bruises from the crash. She looked small, and frail against the crisp white hospital sheets, and it worried him. He was at a loss of what to say, so instead he picked up her hand and held it between his. Her fingers were cold, but slowly heated, sandwiched between his warm hands.

"You should go see him. Spend some time with him. Let him know you're here. He'd like that."

"But you-"

"He's your son, you should be with him. I'll be okay. I'd feel better if I knew someone was with him."

"Should I call your friends back?"

"No. They've been here all night; they need to get some sleep. Go." Pulling her hand from Jacks', she continued, "I'll just try and sleep." Abby closed her eyes as if to prove her intent.

"Alright then, I'll be back soon." Jack dropped a tender kiss to her forehead and stepped out the door. He wasn't all that sure he wanted to see his son. Of course he wanted to see him, but to see him just lying there, in a coma no-less, it wasn't how he wanted to think of his boy.

Jack took in a long, ragged breath before pushing through the door to his sons' room. He flinched when he saw his son lying in the dimly lit room. The diverse medical equipment reminded him of the same equipment that had kept his wife alive while he had said his goodbye all those years ago, and now here it was keeping his son alive. He refused to say goodbye. Not again. After Shannon and Kelly's funeral, he had been sure he had said goodbye to his son for good and now? Now they were just getting to a comfortable place again.

"Leroy." Jack took one tentative step towards the bed, and then another. "Leroy, it's me. Jack. I'm here, son." Jack reached the side of the bed and gently took his son's hand.

"My boy," Jack swallowed against the lump in his throat. "There is so much I want to tell you. So much I should've already told you, but I was too stubborn, too…" Jack wiped at the tear threatening to fall. "I'm proud of you son. You've accomplished so much, and I wish I could've been there for you. I should've been there for you. To encourage you, to celebrate your achievements, I should've taken care of you after they died. Instead, I left you to deal on your own. You needed me, and I walked away. I won't walk away this time, son. I'll take care of you, and that beauty of yours."

Jack sat quietly for a few minutes to contemplate the woman in the other room. "I don't think I made it clear enough to you, how much I adore Abby. She's perfect for you, and you her. You need to hurry and wake up, if not for me, do it for her. She's a mess worrying about you. From what Tony told me, it was head on, but that there are marks on the road saying that you swerved. You did it to protect her, didn't you? You kept her safe, you know that? She's a little banged up, and her wrist is broken, she'll be okay."

"But you saved her." Jack took another deep breath. He was getting into dangerous territory, and he knew if his son was awake he'd change the subject, but since he wasn't, Jackson took advantage of the silence and continued on. "I know you think you didn't keep Shannon and Kelly safe, but there was nothing you could've done. I wish I could have made that clear to you, it might have saved you some pain throughout the years."

Jack stopped. His son was in a coma, he needed reassurance to wake up, not to dwell on the past.

"After you were gone… Son, after you were gone from my life I didn't realize how much I needed you. Not until you came back, and then… then you called and wanted to come visit. I can't even begin to tell you how happy that made me."

Sitting quietly, Jack listened to the steady beat of the heart monitor. Finally he stood to leave. As much as he wanted to stay by his son's side, he knew his boy would want him with Abby, reassuring her that everything would be alright. He took a few steps towards the door, but returned to kiss his son's forehead, much like he had done to Abby. "I'll be back."

As promised, Abby was asleep when he returned to her room, but the moment he sat in the chair by her bed, she spoke in a sleepy mumble. "He okay?"

"He's doing just fine, Abby. Go back to sleep. I'll be right here." Abby had been given a bit stronger pain medicine and it pulled her into a deep and dreamless sleep.

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Tony and Ziva had driven separately to the hospital when they had heard the news, but as Ziva started in the direction of her car, Tony stopped her. "Will you come over?"

Ziva was tired. She had been at the hospital for over 24 hours, but the look on Tony's face was something she'd never seen before. "Yes. I will just drive home for a change of clothes." Though they were in a committed relationship, they had never spoken about living together. Neither one was ready for that step. Both agents needed their space and the occasional silence that came with living alone.

Tony headed home, and went right into the shower. He wasn't sure how long he'd been in, but eventually the water started to run cold and he stepped out. He pulled on a pair of sweats and an old Ohio state shirt and headed towards the living room wondering what was taking Ziva so long.

He startled briefly when he found Ziva digging around his refrigerator. Her hair was damp from a shower of her own, and she had changed. "You need to eat, Tony. I didn't see you eat anything the entire time we were at the hospital."

"I'm not hungry."

"Tony." Ziva stood, pulling out supplies for a sandwich. "You need to eat. You need to stay strong for Abby. She needs you to be at your best. That means you need to eat, and you need to sleep."

"Yes, Dr. Daaa-vid." Tony didn't mean to snap, but he couldn't help it. He turned and stalked out to his sofa and sat down. He listened as Ziva moved around his kitchen, and then round the corner, two sandwiches, both on paper-towel, in hand.

She tried handing one to him, but when he didn't take it, she set it on the coffee table in front of him, and took her place beside him. She was halfway through the first bite of her own sandwich when he finally spoke.

"I nearly lost my best friend. We still might lose Gibbs." Tony dropped his head back against the couch and struggled against the lump in his throat.

Ziva sat her sandwich down. They were all fond of Abby, and as grumpy as he usually was, Gibbs played a major part in all of their lives, not just as a boss. But Abby was Tony's best friend. From what Ziva knew, Abby had been there almost from day one, made sure he didn't spend the holidays alone, took care of him when he was sick, and never said no to a trip to the movie theater, no matter how uninterested she was in the film.

"I know, Tony. I know." Ziva set her sandwich down next to Tony's and pulled him against her. She still wasn't the best when it came to emotional situations, but for Tony she would try. "But Abby will be okay, and Gibbs… he will pull through. He would not let his life be ended like this. Not with everything he has with Abby."

"I don't know what I'd do if I lost her." Tony told her the truth. He remembered losing Kate. It had been hard, he'd had nightmares for months afterwards, always waking up to the damp feel of her blood across on face, only to find it was his own sweat.

Ziva didn't have a response for that, so she sat quietly as she held him. Eventually she felt him begin to relax. "Come on Tony, eat your sandwich and then we will go to bed."

Tony picked up the sandwich and mumbled a 'thank you' between bites. Once they were finished, Ziva tossed the paper towels and then led Tony back to his bedroom. Tony slipped under the covers as Ziva sat on the edge of the bed setting the alarm on her phone. "It's 0200, is 0800 okay?"

"0700."

"Tony."

"Fine, 0800."

"Good." Ziva stood again and dug through Tony's drawer for an oversized tee to sleep in. Slipping easily under the covers, Ziva curled up to Tony and hugged him tight. "Sleep Tony. Everything will be alright."

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TBC….