The cold air had enough strength to travel through clothing and thick skin to find solace in the bone. Wind blew soft enough to encourage the voyage. Trees stood barely hanging onto their leaves as if it was their last chance of cover from the upcoming winter. The sun tried to make a dominant presence, but offered no comfort or warmth with the clouds blocking.
Tony, his boss Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and their partner Kate stood on a roof a building. Kate was lying on the ground after pushing her boss out of the way of an upcoming bullet. While Gibbs instantly fired his weapon at the perpetrator, Tony fell to Kate's side. He could not believe that his partner just got shot especially when he was supposed to have her six. He had failed. The guilt began to crash down over him when she opened her eyes.
"Am I dead?" Kate asked.
Tony's eyes darted up to her face to see her warm smile. Relief threw out the guilt and invited itself in. He allowed a goofy smile to take over his face. He could have nearly kissed her beautiful pink lips in absolute joy, but knew he couldn't get away with that quite yet. He needed to express his long hidden feelings first.
Over dinner. That night.
"Hey DiNozzo, are you going to stand there and let your drool fall on my face or help me up?" she questioned with a sneer bringing him back to planet Earth.
Tony let an embarrassed laugh come out, as he offered her his hand. He helped pull her up as she grunted. Kate placed her hand on her chest and pulled off her jacket. Underneath, her bullet proof vest caught the bullet before it could enter into her heart. The hit area was a bit sore nothing compared to what it could have been. She breathed a sigh of relief escaping death once more.
Gibbs came over to check on her. Seeing both men she had grown to respect and trust her life with be full of concern was a weird adjustment. She did not know if she could get used to it. Probably wouldn't last long anyway. Tony's genuine concern lasted shorter then a kindergartner's attention span. Or at least that's what he the facade he put on. Some days, Kate truly wished he would let his caring side out. She truly enjoyed it.
When the two were in the hospital just three weeks ago and Tony found that Kate was "infected" with the same virus, his fascade crumbled longer then it normally did. Even in the blue lights, she could see his eyes descend in color as he apologized. It took everything in her not to wrap her arms around her at that moment and be the one to apologize. He was the one who was about to die. Not her.
"You did good." Tony alleged as he took a step to the right.
"For once, DiNozzo's right." Gibbs added his own short but sweet compliment.
Kate would take it. Compliments from Gibbs were rare. She found herself chuckling. "Wow. I thought I die before I would hear a compliment-"
A sound of a gunshot sliced through the air. Before anyone could blink, the bullet ran past where Tony just stood and intruded Kate's forehead at full force. Her blood splattered all over her partner's face as she fell to the ground. Her head made a sickening crunch as it connected with the pavement. Tony watched her like it was slow motion horror scene. He went to grab her, but his arms didn't move.
Blood pooled around Kate's head. Her dark eyes failed to blink and began to decrease in color. Tony's knees gave out. He fell down next to his partner's dead. All his abilities of keeping his emotions in a locked closet crumbled, as he watched the color drain from her skin. He grabbed her jacket with trembling hands. His hammering heart fell to his stomach. He could feel the bile rising in his throat, but fought it.
Generally, anytime Gibbs was around Tony made sure to put on a brave face. He tried to impress his boss with his courage, strength, and fortitude. Something he wished his father was able to see in him, so he often channeled his efforts to focus on his boss. But with Kate dying right in front of him, Tony disregarded any attempt to put on a brave face. Everything in him crumbled.
It was all his fault.