Pretending was one of those things that was a lot easier when Jimmy Palmer was a kid. It was fun to pretend you were an astronaut, cowboy, dragon, wizard, or Jimmy's favorite doctor. It was easy to pretend when your friends were joining in and adding to the fun. The ways Jimmy had to pretend as an adult were a lot harder. He had to pretend everything was OK when Breena could not get pregnant. He had to pretend it was OK when she did but their daughter was stillborn. He had to pretend it was OK when Tony found out he had a daughter with Ziva. He had to pretend it was OK when McGee got Delilah pregnant without really crying. A paraplegic getting married without intervention or at the very least a mapped out plan. That was a miracle but it still stung Jimmy to the core. Breena had just lost their second baby and the doctor had pretty much told them it would never happen. That if Breena got pregnant again it would have the same outcome as the first two pregnancies. Stillborn at thirty-five weeks or miscarried at thirteen. Breena's blood pressure had shot up before the last miscarriage too. If they had not miscarried, a medical abortion would have been necessary. Those were the words the doctor spoke. Breena had just come home from the hospital and Jimmy had no idea what to say.

"How you holding up?" Jimmy asked stepping into the room.

"This whole thing. I know it's my fault. They said you were fine. I on the other hand do not have a uterus compatible with supporting life." Breena explained.

"I honestly have nothing to say. Nothing about this is OK." Jimmy replied.

"I don't know when I will be OK." Breena replied.

It took two weeks for Breena to come around. She got out of bed after ten days but it took another four for her to really start living. Those first days all she really did was sit around watching sad movies and binge eating. On the fourteenth day Jimmy finally convinced her to go out. It was just a short drive to a small restaurant. The restaurant had a small room for adults wishing to dine without children present. It was separated by a narrow hallway from the large family dining room. Breena was pretty shell shocked, so Jimmy to to rush her to the smaller dining room.

"We could have eaten in the regular dining room." Breena commented.

"I didn't want to risk you being upset by a baby." Jimmy replied.

"How fragile do you think I am?!" Breena snapped.

The meal was eaten in silence and the drive home was equally silent. Afterwords Breena stormed upstairs and locked herself in the room. She sat on the bed and ran her hand over her arm. She wanted a family but she did not know how it would happen. They had tried adoption but that had brought as much heartache as the pregnancies. They had agreed to step back after the birth mother changed her mind a few years back. They had discussed adoption when Breena was pregnant but the loss of their daughter set them back again. They had discussed adoption again before the second pregnancy but Breena so badly wanted a baby that was genetically hers. She knew the risks but she still wanted the baby. Her mind flashed to all the babies she could have had. The babies that may have missed out on a family. While she was trying for this genetic miracle. Adoption was not for everyone but it was part of the Palmer's plan. Maybe this latest loss was a sign that they needed to go back to their original plan. Adoption was just as special as a genetic baby. Maybe more. Adoption meant being chosen or maybe choosing a baby. It was a beautiful thing. A beautiful thing that would be Breena's saving grace.

Jimmy made his way up to his wife's room. He eased up the stairs and slowly headed down the hall. The Palmer's door was ajar. Jimmy looked in and saw that Breena was actually sitting up. For the first time in seventeen days she actually seemed to be at peace.

"May I come in?" Jimmy called from the doorway.

"Sure" Breena replied.

Jimmy made his way into the bedroom and took a seat by Breena's side. He put his hand on her shoulder and gently stoked her hair. Her hair had barely been washed in the past two weeks and it was painfully obvious. Still he continued to stroke her hair. He just wanted to make things as normal as possible for her.

"I want to adopt a baby." Breena said out of the blue.

"When?" Jimmy asked.

"As soon as possible." Breena replied.

"Are you sure that you are up for it?" Jimmy asked.

"It's what I need." Breena replied.

"I will call the agency in the morning." Jimmy replied.

Morning came but Jimmy was indesive about calling. Breena was actually doing OK that day. She wasn't up to leave the house but she had turned on Comedy Central and had laughed at a few jokes in the stand-up set. Jimmy crossed his fingers that this good trend would continue and he would be able to return to work in the next few days. Ducky and Director Vance were very understanding but he was missing the normalcy. Around noon Breena asked about the agency and Jimmy knew he needed to make the call. Even if they had to go through the process again. He just wanted his wife to be happy. He had changed phones since the last exchange but the number was still saved to Breena's phone.

"Making Families how may I help you?"

"This is Jimmy Palmer. I was wondering what it would take to reopen my case."

"Everything looks good. You updated your information at the start of the year. We will just need to do a quick home study."

"Great and then we can start the process?"

"Actually. Are you still open to adopting an older child? One with special needs or trauma?"

"Yeah"

"OK we are going to send somebody out to do the home-study within the next couple of days. We have an emergency case and he needs to be placed right away."

"What are the circumstances?"

"He was surrendered by the birth mother shortly after her engagement. He is three years old. He is healthy but he's been through a lot."

"I will talk to Breena and get back to you right away." Jimmy replied.

A/N: What do you think? New chapter will be up soon. Please review and thanks for reading.