WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS
Ack! I am so sorry that it has taken so long to write and post this chapter. It has been in my mind for a long time but working out all of the logistics of it was not easy for some reason. Anywho, I hope that you all enjoy it! Chapter 7: Growth-spurts Kelly was sitting on the floor at the coffee table in the living room doing her homework – actually it was more like attempting to do her homework for she kept glancing up at the clock and in the direction of the front door every couple of minutes. Ducky was reading in one of the armchairs. Her father and Jenny had been away on a mission for a few weeks, during which Ducky had been looking after her. However they were due back any minute and Kelly could hardly hold still from her excitement. Her head snapped up at the sound of the front door being opened and she was off running toward the entrance like a shot. "Daddy! Jenny!" she squealed as she ran up to them. She threw her arms around her father but immediately leapt back when he let out a hiss of pain. "Oh, my gosh, Dad are you ok?" She did not wait for, nor paid any attention to, his answer of: "I'm fine." Instead she turned immediately to Jenny and asked, "Is he ok?" "I said I was fine!" her dad protested. Jenny smirked at Kelly's complete disregard for her father's answer. "He was shot," the teen gasped. "He is going to be fine, but he is still recovering." She gave her lover and boss a glare. Kelly was frowning seriously; she took her father's hand and led him into the sitting room. "Come on, Dad, you should sit down on the couch." Jenny smothered a laugh behind her hand at Jethro rolling his eyes. "I'm fine, Kel. You don't have to treat me like an invalid," he groused. "Oh, I'm not," she said off-handedly as she gently pushed him to sit on the couch; then stood in front of him with her hands on her hips. "If I was treating you like an invalid I wouldn't have let you walk; I would have made you sit in a wheelchair." She turned and went to the kitchen, calling over her shoulder, "Ducky ordered pizza; it should be here soon!" Jethro glared at his chuckling friend and grinning lover. Ducky cleared his throat and managed to say, "I wonder where she gets it from?" NCISNCISNCISNCISNCISNCIS Jenny was glad to be home. The assignment in Positano had been far too long for her tastes and it had nearly ended very badly for them. She shuddered inwardly at the memory of Jethro being shot. Kelly glanced up as the redhead entered the kitchen and grinned at her. "So how much trouble has my dad been giving you?" The older woman returned her smile. "Enough. You know how he is." They shared knowing looks. That was when Jenny noticed that the girl's right sleeve was empty starting just below her elbow and she was only using her left hand for doing things. Kelly noticed the woman's debating/thoughtful stare, following it to where it landed on her right arm. "I'm trying to decide," the redhead began, "how best to put this…" "You wanna know where my arm is?" the girl put with blunt humor. Jenny rolled her eyes, nodding. "I suppose that's a way to put it." The teen grinned, mischief glinting in her eyes. "Well, it is my arm." "So," the woman's look became pointed, "where is it?" Kelly became rather focused on the salad she was making. "I just haven't really wanted to wear it much lately." At Jenny's continued intense stare, the girl shrugged. "It's just become kinda uncomfortable." The redhead frowned. Kelly had never complained about her prosthetic before and she had never seen the teen go without it before. She took a mental step back and looked closely at her lover's daughter; remembering the first time she saw her. Kelly had been quite short for her age though puberty had obviously already hit her and certain parts of her body had grown beyond the rest of her. As she looked at the teen she realized that Kelly had grown several inches over the last few months, very quickly; and now was probably average, if not above average for her age. "Kelly," she began thoughtfully, "can you outgrow your prosthetic?" The teen's eyes lifted, almost guiltily to look at her father's lover; she reluctantly nodded. "Kelly! What didn't you say anything?" The girl fiddled with the tomato in her hand. "I didn't want to bother Dad, he's got so much going on, and prosthetics are expensive." "Sweetheart, nothing and no one is more important to your father than you, and he would never want you to be uncomfortable like that!" Jenny placed her hands on the Kelly's shoulders. "You're in the middle of a growth-spurt; this happens at your age." The doorbell rang, announcing the arrival of their pizza. "I'm going to go get our dinner, and while we are eating you are going to tell your dad about your arm," the redhead told her firmly. "Yes ma'am," the teenager nodded. "Good." She pulled her into a hug before heading to the door. Kelly told her father over dinner about outgrowing her prosthetic; when he asked her why it took so long for her to tell him she explained her reasoning. Jethro noticed how his daughter briefly glanced at Jenny, who nodded encouragingly, before giving her explanation. Eventually Ducky left for the night and Kelly went up to bed, she had riding the next morning and needed to be well rested. Jethro made his way into the kitchen where Jenny was cleaning up what little mess there was from dinner. "Jethro!" she cried out, when she saw him enter. "You're supposed to be resting!" She all but pushed him into a chair; then went back to the dishes. He just kept looking at her. "Kelly doesn't really like to admit when something's wrong." "Gee, I wonder who that sounds like," she commented sarcastically over her shoulder. He ignored the comment. "How did you get her to tell me about her prosthetic?" She stilled for a moment; then placed the last dish in the rack and turned to look at him. "I reminded her that you would be more upset if she kept it from you than if she told you. That you loved her too much to ever want to see her unnecessarily uncomfortable." She moved toward the door; he caught her wrist as she passed him. He locked eyes with her. "Thank you," putting every ounce of sincerity he felt into those two words. She smiled and leaned down, kissing him. "I care about her too much as well," she said once they pulled apart; then she headed into the living room to make sure there was not anything left out from their dinner. Jethro watched as she moved around the room, marveling over the remarkable woman who had entered their lives, and thoughts of her staying began to truly take root. Sorry about it not being that long, but it just did not want to be any longer. The next chapter unfortunately is also being uncooperative. I think it might involve Kelly's birthday – did they specify on the show when that was? Work has gotten even busier; I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can. Thank you so much for all of the encouragement you guys have given me!
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