Chapter 3

"Gibbs, he's upset. He needs some time to adjust, but I think your girl might be right." Abby threw her arms around her boss, giving him a huge squeeze. "I'll talk to him, he asked to stay with me for a little while. You're going to need to fix this at some point. I don't know how it's fixable, but you need to figure it all out."

"Let me talk to him first. You two stay here. Abby, I want you on Kelly's six. Take care of her while all of this is going on."

Abby wrinkled her nose at her boss before he walked away, then turned her attention to Kelly. "Take care of you, like you're a five year old. You're the daughter of the great Leory Jethro Gibbs. You're like my hero, Kelly. And you're in a room with the best agents and smartest agents in the world, and Madame Director and..." Abby trailed off, giggling. "I think Timmy is checking you out!"

"Which one is Timmy? Is he the computer guy Dad was talking about?" She couldn't be someone's hero. She was the girl who always got saved, not the other way around. "Dad's a little freaked out I think by all of this. The last time he saw me I wasn't old enough to have an opinion for myself. He's going to need to adjust his thinking because I've got plenty of opinions and like to think I could take care of myself."

"Short hair, cute in a geeky way. The one who didn't just break up with your dad." Abby shouldn't have said that. "Uh, young Gibbs, maybe you should forget that, seeing that your mom and dad were all hetero when it all happened."

"They were, but if he isn't anymore, it's not like I'm going to get angry at him. He's not really cheating on my mom or anything, he didn't know she was still alive." She'd like her parents together, because that's how she remembered them, but she wouldn't be angry if it didn't work out that way. That she even had her dad back was enough for her now. "I might be kind of sheltered, but I'm not going to make a big deal about it. It's his life, not mine."

"Tell him that. I bet he needs to hear it. He and Tony have been a couple for a long time." She looked at the door. "You should get to know Tony too. Whatever happens he's important to your father."

"I will, when he comes back. I'm probably the last person that either of them wants to see right now. I'll have to figure out something, because I can't just say that in front of my mom. I can tell I'm going to have to walk a fine line between the two of them. I don't want to be supportive and hurt my mom, but I don't want to hurt my dad either."

"Why would you say that, Young Gibbs? Your Daddy looks at you like his princess just came back into his life. And if you're worried about the relationship, go talk to them in the hallway. Tony could use a friend. The team, sometimes they bicker like brothers and sisters and Tony's feeling like he's the one everyone wants to fail so your mom and dad get a fairytale."

"That's why I bet they'd rather not see me. I'm just a reminder that everyone wants Tony to fail. I mean, come on. I bet neither of them really wanted this to happen. Dad has this whole life without us, and we just came in and stomped on it. It's not fair to either of them that we came along." Kelly hung her head, wishing she could just disappear and then everything would go back to how it was. "Maybe when this is done, my mom and I can go someplace and leave the two of them alone. They deserve that much from us."

"The team are like siblings and sometimes they just push too hard. They did that today." Abby took Kelly gently by the arms. "Young Gibbs, listen. Your daddy has spent his entire life missing you and mourning you and hurting for both of you. You were all cheated out of so much time and you don't get to take off because it's difficult. Your dad and Tony are a team, but so were your dad and mom. And they're all going to have to work it out while you sit on the sidelines. Sucks, but that's how it is. And anyway, you have a friend now. Me! You would look so hot with those eyes highlighted in black."

"I'll talk to them, see if I can at least say that they don't need to worry about me when they're making their plans. I will bounce back from what ever they decide, and it will be fine. I just want my mom and dad to be happy, together or not."

Kelly hadn't had a friend, not like what Abby was offering. Not someone to hang out with or do girly things. She'd never had a friend to do make up with. "I don't know about doing my make up like yours. I don't really wear it, and I'm not sure how I'd look in black."

"You have your Daddy back, and he's got a lot of scars and I bet his hair was a lot nicer the last time you saw him. Just another change is him and Tony together, which is kind of sexy. You probably don't want to hear that, but it is hot! And trust me, I could make you look like a sex kitten or a schoolmarm, your choice."

"He was a lot younger when I saw him, and I would like to think he wasn't sucking face with anyone but my mom. Something I don't want to consider as being hot. I mean, that's my dad. You think he's hot, I'll think he's old and yucky, just like a daughter should." Abby would be good for her, there was no room to be shy with the young woman with all the multiple piercings and tattoos. "Maybe I'll try some of your makeup when we get settled. I've never had like a slumber party or a girls' night. We could try it, see how it goes."

"We could. Do you like stuffed animals? I have the greatest Bondage Bear shop, like Build A Bear for the naughty girls like us. There's a naughty girl in there, young Gibbs. Everyone has one, just depends on how deep she's buried. We'll find her. And if you don't want to be naughty, we can always bowl with the nuns."

"Bondage bears? Somehow I think that you have seen way too many things for me to even consider keeping up with. I think I need to go a bit slower. Maybe starting with sleepovers and temporary tattoos might be a good start, and then branch out to teddy bears in leather."

"And the bowling nuns? They are so much fun! Instead of cursing, they say things like 'oh sugar'."

"Bowling nuns? You lead an interesting life, Abby. Do they know about your leather-covered bears? You don't wear that around them, do you?" Kelly couldn't even imagine what else Abby had done and how much she'd lived. She was so much more interesting than a shy girl who had never been able to live outside of her little bubble. "I can't imagine all the things you've seen and done."

"Sometimes. They learn to look beyond outward appearances. They're great that way, Kelly. You'd really like them and they listen and give great advice. I don't always agree with them, but they care. They care about what you're thinking and how you're feeling."

She cocked her head and squeezed the other woman's arm. "You'll see. We're going to be really great friends, Kelly."

"I'd really like that. Never had one before, and you seem like you're pretty nice, and you're the only one who really has come up and talked to me. I guess you look beyond outward appearances too and don't mind that I'm not a whole lot of fun, or really flashy."

Abby wrapped an arm around Kelly's shoulders. "You're little Gibbs. That is what matters. The rest will fall into place."

"You can call me Kelly. Little Gibbs makes me sound like I'm seven and playing t-ball again." She normally wasn't comfortable with strangers, but Abby was making it easy. "I'm trying to get rid of the little girl lost aura I have."

Abby chuckled. "I'm sorry, Kelly. You're right. We're probably pretty close to the same age, actually."

"It's ok. I'm sure any story you've heard about me was from before everything happened, and my dad sees that little girl when he looks at me. But I'd like everyone else to recognize that I'm an adult, even if I'm not as worldly as all the rest of you."

"It'll take time but trust them. These guys are great people, Kelly, and we all love bossman beyond reason."

"I'll try. Trust, not something that we do. Trust gets you killed, Abby." Kelly's life hadn't been normal. Her mom taught her the golden rule, then a list of other rules to keep them alive. Trust no one was right up near the top of the list. "But doesn't mean I don't really like you all. Just need to work up to the rest."

Abby nodded, silently vowing to help Kelly learn to trust.

Jethro walked out of Autopsy, following after DiNozzo. "So that's it? You get to play the martyr, but what do I get? You can't just storm out and expect me to accept what you're doing. We're closer than that, and you can't make that kind of decision without me."

"I'm not playing the martyr. I'm giving you your freedom. I'm not playing a role in a movie." He raked his hands through his hair, moving in jerky motions that showed his discomfort. "I thought you were having a damn heart attack out there, Jethro. What do you want from me? Your wife is standing off with me, talking about visitation like you're a possession, then telling me I don't fucking matter because she has the kid and I'm only the guy you fuck. Ziva and McGee are making jokes about you kicking me out. Everyone in there knows how deeply in love I am with you except your wife and daughter, and for most of them, like Ziva and McGee, it's a joke. My feelings, a joke. Your chest pain, a joke."

Tony tried to swallow his tears down. "While you and the family are reuniting, what do you want me to do? It's their house, Jet. Not ours, not mine. Not any more. You're her husband. I don't want to take that away from you or leave you conflicted. Don't you understand..."

Tony reached out and hugged the other man tight. "Don't you understand how much I love you? Don't you understand what I'm trying to give you?"

"I understand, and I hope you know how much I love you back. That's why I can't let you just walk away. Damn it, Tony, this only changes things in that I need a few days to process. I'm not losing you because I found Shannon and Kelly." He should have seen how much this would affect Tony, but he'd been so caught up in his wife and daughter. How stupid could he be?