On Easter Sunday, Jack woke up alone. She ran her hand over the sheets on Gibbs' side of the bed and discovered they were cool to the touch. Presuming that he'd gotten up early to hide the Easter baskets and eggs, she rolled out of bed to go start breakfast.
As she walked through the dining room, Jack paused to admire the wall of family photos, which served as a timeline of the years she and Gibbs had shared with their four children and granddaughter. Her gaze automatically went to her favorite pictures: Gibbs and Faith at her second grade Field Day, Noah surrounded by all three of his sisters on the day of his high school graduation, Elizabeth and Hannah having a tea party with their dolls, and Izzy Jack fishing with Gibbs. The final photos to catch Jack's eye were in a side-by-side frame. On one side was a picture of herself and Faith on the day Faith was born and on the other side was a picture of Faith and Isabella on the day Isabella was born. It always amazed Jack how much had changed between those two photos. Back when she was lying in the hospital facing the prospect of giving her baby daughter up for adoption, she never could have imagined what their futures would hold. She was endlessly grateful to her grandparents for altering the course of both of their lives.
Jack's reverie was broken by the creak of a floorboard in the upstairs hallway. A moment later, she heard the unmistakable thumping sound of three-year-old Izzy Jack scooting down the stairs on her butt. Jack spun around to look out the window on the opposite side of the dining room to see if Gibbs was done playing Easter Bunny and caught a glimpse of him hiding the last of the eggs. She quickly crossed the room, tapped on the glass, and waved him inside.
Gibbs disappeared from sight as Izzy Jack reached the bottom of the stairs. When Izzy Jack shuffled into the dining room, Jack swept her up and cuddled her close. "Happy Easter, sweetheart."
"Happy Eas'er, Gamma. Bunny come?"
"Sure did. We'll look for the baskets and eggs he hid after breakfast. Do you want to help me cook?"
"I bake eggs," insisted Izzy Jack as she struggled against Jack's arms.
Jack carried Izzy Jack to the kitchen and set the wiggly little girl down next to the stool she used whenever she helped cook. "You can break all the eggs and help stir the batter for pancakes."
"Gamma make bunny pancakes?"
"I'll give it a shot."
"Yay!"
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While Jack and Izzy Jack were cooking, Gibbs managed to sneak into the house without alerting Izzy Jack to his early morning escapades. Once inside, he crept up the stairs to begin the chore of dragging Noah, Elizabeth, and Hannah from their beds. He had them awake and stumbling down the stairs in their pajamas by the time Jack shouted that breakfast was ready.
As they gathered around the table, Noah complained, "It's not fair that Faith didn't have to wake up early for this."
"Your sister's already been at work for two hours," Jack said, reminding him that Faith was stuck working a twelve-hour shift as a nurse.
"Sorry, Mom. Guess my brain doesn't function this early."
"Good to know the three years of tuition your mom and I have paid for has been put to good use."
"Dad, I'm a computer science major. We're basically a bunch of geeks who play video games all night and sleep most of the day."
"That's true or, at least, part of it is," agreed Elizabeth. "Studies have shown that late night gaming is on the rise, particularly among adolescents, and can have negative impacts on their sleep cycles. Late night gamers tend to have later bedtimes, experience more difficulty falling asleep, and get fewer hours of sleep. They also have trouble waking up on time and are more likely to be tired during the day." Throughout her rambling commentary, Elizabeth cut up Izzy Jack's pancake. When the entire pancake had been reduced to bite-sized pieces, Elizabeth looked up and realized everyone was staring at her. "What? It's the topic of my next debate and I've been doing research. I'm thinking of using it for an article for the school newspaper too."
"Sounds like you could both use a break from video games," declared Jack. "It's a good thing we have a lot to do today."
"Bunny comed!" Izzy Jack announced excitedly.
"That's right and after breakfast we're all going outside to see what he left for us."
Noah, Elizabeth, and Hannah let out a collective groan.
Undeterred, Jack continued, "It will be fun just like when your aunts and uncle were little. And, later, everybody will have some time to do whatever they want until people start showing up for Easter dinner." Her tone dared her children to argue with her, but they wisely chose to keep quiet and eat their pancakes.
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Once they were finished eating, Gibbs and Jack shepherded everyone out to the backyard. Begrudgingly, Noah, Elizabeth, and Hannah helped Izzy Jack search for the brightly colored eggs so they wouldn't have to spend all day waiting for her to find them on her own. They wandered the yard with feigned enthusiasm until they learned there was an Easter basket for each of them, not just Izzy Jack. Then, their moods brightened considerably.
During the Easter egg hunt, Jack and Gibbs stood at the edge of the yard watching their children playfully guide Izzy Jack to the eggs she overlooked and listening to their granddaughter's high-pitched shrieks of joy. Jack regarded the boisterous activity as evidence of Gibbs' success in creating a magical memory for their granddaughter. His dedication to their family warmed her heart. Sighing contentedly, she told him, "You did good, Papa."
Gibbs shrugged off the compliment. "Couldn't have her asking why she was the only one with eggs and a basket. Woulda ruined the whole thing."
"Exactly." Jack wrapped her left arm around Gibbs' waist, prompting him to lift his right arm and drape it across her shoulders. "You did good."
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The four hours following the Easter egg hunt passed peacefully, but, by mid-afternoon, the house was full of friends and colleagues, past and present. Due to the number of guests, Jack put the ham in the oven early and spent significant chunks of time in the kitchen preparing the large quantity of side dishes that would be needed to feed everyone. Gibbs, their children, and even their guests rotated through the kitchen. Some offered help and others offered conversation. When Abby Sciuto arrived, she offered both.
Jack greeted Abby with a hug. "I can't believe you're really here."
"I know, I know, I know. I kept meaning to visit, but something always came up."
"You're here now."
"I've learned to delegate," confessed Abby.
"Good for you. I've also gotten better at delegating, so even though I know you didn't come all the way from England to spend the day in the kitchen, I'm going to put you to work."
Abby stood ramrod straight and clicked her heels together. "Just tell me what to do, Lieutenant."
Jack thrust a potato and a vegetable peeler at Abby. "Peel all the potatoes you can find. Leave no survivors."
"Yes, ma'am." Abby saluted Jack with the peeler before placing it and the potato on the counter. As she searched the cabinets for bowls to soak the potatoes and catch the peels, she said, "Speaking of survivors, how is Gibbs surviving retirement? I always thought he'd be at NCIS forever."
Jack chuckled. "So did he, but it was time. Past time really, since he was sixty-seven when he retired."
Having found what she needed, Abby set up a potato peeling station next to where Jack was simultaneously chopping carrots and monitoring the eggs on the stove. "Still, I figured he'd get bored and find a way to go back. It's been three years and, from what I've heard, he hasn't even tried. How'd you turn him into a man of leisure?"
"It's been nearly four years and he's hardly a man of leisure. He takes care of Izzy Jack while Faith works."
"What's he do with her all day? Teach her to build boats?"
"Toy boats, actually. She'll have a whole flotilla by kindergarten."
"Aww," cooed Abby. "That's totally adorable. Do you have any plans to retire and join them? Maybe expand Izzy Jack's horizons beyond boats and the basement."
"Hey!" Gibbs objected from right outside the kitchen. He stepped into the room to scowl at Abby. "We go to the park. And last week I took her to the zoo."
"Don't you have better things to do than eavesdrop?" asked Jack.
"Yeah. Gettin' Fornell a beer," Gibbs replied as he grabbed a bottle from the fridge.
"He's here? Can you check that he brought the extra table and chairs he promised? Leon and Tim too?"
"Got it covered."
"Thank you."
"Welcome." Gibbs kissed Jack's cheek, then, after one last glare at Abby, left to take Fornell his beer.
When they were alone again, Abby pressed Jack for an answer to her question. "So, are you thinking about retirement?"
"Not yet. I've got a few years to go."
With a dramatic huff, Abby lamented, "I guess Izzy Jack is destined to be a master carpenter."
"Maybe. Right now, she's simply enjoying all the quality time with Papa."
"I bet it's nice to have a little kid around the house again."
"It is. Especially since our kids are all at that age where they think they don't need us." The eggs started to boil, so Jack set down her knife long enough to move them off of the stove. As she resumed chopping carrots, she clarified, "Except for Faith. She's past that stage."
"Is Faith still at Liberty Naval?"
"Yes. She's a surgical nurse and she absolutely loves it."
"And the others?"
"The others? Hmm," Jack hummed thoughtfully as she lifted the cutting board and swept the last of the carrot slices into the bowl that already held the pieces of three dozen carrots. She added olive oil and began tossing the carrots to coat them evenly. "The others are good. Noah's finishing his third year at Georgetown. He's working toward a B.S. in computer science and, next year, he's going to start the accelerated master's program. I swear he's the only reason Gibbs isn't a complete Luddite. Elizabeth is a junior in high school. She's captain of the debate team and writes for the school newspaper. Hannah is finishing the eighth grade and has decided she's going to try out for the high school volleyball team this summer."
"Wow. They must keep you busy."
"Extremely. I'm sure you know a thing or two about that Ms. CEO."
Nodding emphatically, Abby took advantage of the opening to launch into a series of anecdotes about board meetings and fundraising events while she peeled potatoes and Jack worked on getting the carrots into the oven with the ham and turning the hard-boiled eggs into deviled eggs. Jack had just slid the tray of deviled eggs into the fridge when Abby finished recounting how a drunk man had disrupted her most recent fundraiser. "Okay," Jack said, cutting Abby off before she could tell another story. "I'm convinced you need a break. Go catch up with Gibbs and McGee and whoever else is out there. I'll handle the potatoes."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Get out of my kitchen. Go."
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Not long after Jack had shooed Abby out of the kitchen, the oven timer buzzed. While Jack was bent over the open oven checking the ham and carrots, she heard someone approach her from behind. "I told you to take a break, Abby."
"I'm not Abby."
Jack jolted upright and whirled around to face the newcomer. "Faith!" she exclaimed, embracing her eldest daughter.
Faith returned the hug, then pulled back. "Hi, Mom."
"What are you doing here?"
"I switched shifts to get off early. I wanted to surprise you," explained Faith, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
"It worked. I'm surprised."
Laughing, Faith moved to help her mother with the pots of potatoes that were boiling on the stove. They were each mashing a bowl of potatoes when Hannah bounded into the kitchen and over to Faith. "You're not at the hospital," she stated, though it came across like an accusation.
"Nope. Switched shifts."
"Huh. Cool." Turning to look at Jack, Hannah asked, "Mom, are we gonna eat soon?"
"It'll be sooner if you help." Jack gestured at the bags of fresh green beans that were stacked near the sink. "Cut the ends off the green beans."
"Okay," Hannah acquiesced. She washed her hands before clearing a spot on the counter next to Faith where she laid out a cutting board, a small knife, and the green beans. Picking up the knife and a handful of beans, Hannah got busy chopping off the tips. After a few minutes, she said, "Hey, Faith?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you please tell Mom I'm old enough to go on a date?"
"Not until you're sixteen," interjected Jack.
"That's so unfair. Right, Faith?"
Shaking her head, Faith declared, "I'm staying out of it. You're not my kid and it's not my decision."
"Faith, Noah, and Elizabeth all had to wait to date until they were sixteen and so do you."
"I thought parents were supposed to be less strict with their youngest kid."
Faith scoffed. "Keep dreaming, kid."
"This isn't productive," Jack gently scolded Hannah. "If you want to talk about changing the rules, you need to talk with your dad and me, not your sister."
"Dad'll never say yes. He doesn't want me to date until I'm thirty."
One corner of Jack's mouth lifted into a half-smile. "Guess that's settled, so there's no reason you can't focus on those green beans," she remarked, giving a pointed look at Hannah's cutting board. "Let's get the food on the table before the villagers find their pitchforks and torches."
Recognizing the subtle warning in Jack's voice, Hannah shifted the conversation to the latest middle school drama. The tension that had been beginning to form gave way to light-hearted banter as the trio finished the side dishes and arranged the food on the various tables that Gibbs had positioned around the dining room and living room. When Jack was satisfied they hadn't forgotten anything, she called out, "It's time to eat."
The message was relayed throughout the house and, within minutes, everyone had claimed a seat at one of the tables. Gibbs and Jack managed to snag chairs at the same table directly across from one another. As their eyes met, they shared a smile, silently acknowledging their mutual pride for the life they'd built with each other and the people surrounding them. It was hectic, and sometimes challenging, but it was theirs and they wouldn't have it any other way.