Hurt: K+, Tony D. and Kate T. Hurt and comfort.
Kate dates Tony's frat buddy and can't work out why he becomes so upset.
One shot, but there will be two versions. The other one is going to be called 'lost for words' and will be humour based. I do not own Ncis wish I did, sometimes I dream that I do. But I don't. Enjoy my story anyway. It takes place mid-season 2 (2.13 meat puzzle to be exact). This is my turn of events…
Monday morning 7:30…
Tony was sat at his desk, putting the finishing touches on last week's case.
"Hey Tony," Kate greets as she walks out of the elevator and into the bull pen with a bounce in her step.
"Morning Kate, what's got you so happy, new boyfriend?" he asks as he wiggles eyebrows as he walks over to her desk leaning on the front of it.
"Yes as a matter of fact, not that it's any of your business." she said smiling, her mobile bleeped and Kate smiled when she read the text.
Tony decided it would be fun to tease her, and grabs her phone. "Did you take any pictures of him Katie pie," he says as he scrolls through her images. And that is when he sees it.
"You're going out with Steve, Steve from Ohio State?" he asks waiting for her conformation or denial, and he hopes it's the later.
"Yeah, so? How do you know him DiNozzo?" Kate asks.
Tony put's down the phone and walks away, turning his head at the last minute. "Frat brother." He says and walks towards the stairs heading up towards the roof.
"Tell Gibbs I've gone for a coffee break."
Kate was completely puzzled, what happened to Tony, and where was he going, as far as she knew there was no coffee on the roof.
The elevator dinged and Gibbs stepped out, coffee in hand of course. "Where's McGee?" he asked.
"He booked the day off and okayed it with the director said it was a family emergency." Gibbs nodded and sat down looking at the open file on his desk.
Then Kate spoke up. "Aren't you going to ask where Tony is?" Curious at Kate's statement Gibbs looked up.
"No, he's not usually in the office till at least 8." Gibbs told her, but the concern was starting to show in his voice in his voice. "What happened?"
"He took the stairs up towards the roof and told me to tell you that he went for coffee, which he obviously didn't and he sounded really sad. I don't know why, he sounded really happy about 3 minutes before." She explained.
"Back up a second, at what point did he seem sad and what happened?" he asked moving towards Kate's desk.
"He was teasing me about my new boyfriend"-Gibbs raised his eye brows- "Steve" she said. At this his eyebrows arched even more.
"Did Tony see a picture of him?" Gibbs asked as calmly as he could manage.
Kate brought her phone into Gibbs' view he looked at the face on the screen and knew why Tony had fled.
Gibbs ran up the stairs in search of Tony, leaving Kate at her desk completely out of the loop and confused. She decided to give them some time but after several minutes followed where Gibbs had gone after Tony and walked up the stairs.
Up on the roof:
It's quite on the roof. That's why Tony often went there; it was a good place to think. He sunk down against the wall and wrapped his knees and cried, silent tears. He remained there for several minutes when he felt a warm arm wrap around his shoulders, he lent into the warmth as cried once more.
"I thought he loved me dad, you know, why does this always happen, am I not good enough?" Tony wept into Gibbs shoulder.
"You're plenty good enough son, you just need to find the right person, okay, so cheer up, I'll buy you coffee" the last part made Tony smile.
"Okay," Tony sniffled, wiping his teary eyes. Gibbs stood up and gave his son a tap on the shoulder for reassurance, "I'll be back in 10 minutes okay?"
Tony nodded into his knees and began to calm his breathing. Gibbs knew he would remain there unmoved until he returned. Out the corner of his eye he could see Kate standing by the fire exit.
He walked towards her and motioned her to follow him.
It wasn't until they were in the elevator that they spoke to each other. "Ask." Was all Gibbs said. He may be a man of few words but the words he said were always needed.
"Why was he upset when he saw a picture of Steve?" Kate asked not knowing if she wanted to know the answer.
"Steve is Tony's boyfriend, and Steve just cheated on Tony with you." He said simply.
"What do you mean DiNozzo's boyfriend, he is the straightest man I know, one hell of player." Kate says not wanting to believe she had done this to Tony.
"it's an act Kate, he thinks people won't like him if he is being himself." He tells her.
It isn't until they walk out of the navy yard and down the road that Kate speaks again. "I feel terrible, he seems so sad and I should have known I'm a profiler it's my job." She stops and walks over to the bench on the edge of the park and takes a seat.
She waits until Gibbs sits beside her before she asks, "Why did he call you dad, back there I've only just noticed, why did he do that?"
Gibbs takes a deep breath in. "My first wife, Shannon and my daughter Kelly meant the world to me. One day Kelly came home from school and said she made this friend, Tony. He came round one day after school the next day, nervous as hell, he thought I would beat him, thought he had been bad and he deserved it. When his father came to pick him up he pushed him into the car and when he moaned he was struck across his face by his father." Gibbs said this was as hard for him as it was for Tony.
"Oh my god, Tony always makes out he had a happy childhood, a rich one at that." Kate exclaimed.
"I'm not finished yet, but let's get coffee first." Kate nodded in agreement.
After they had brought the coffee they walked back to the same bench they had been seated at previously.
"Tony visited every week you know, he looked forward to spending time with Shannon, Kelly and me. We were happy family. But everything changed; I went on a tour in Iraq and was caught in an explosion, lost my memories for weeks. Meanwhile back home my wife and Kelly had been in a car accident and had been killed.
I didn't see Tony for months after that. But slowly after a while, Tony came back; he would tell me about school and basketball, even making things in memories of Kelly and Shannon for me and I taught him how to carve wood and cook steaks, things like that.
Anyway by this time Tony was about ten. Kelly and Shannon had died a year ago (when Kelly was only 8) and his father sent him off to Rode island military school. I barely saw him, once every few months if I was lucky. I felt a place in my heart was gone, my surrogate son was drifting away from me, and then on the eve of his 13 birthday I found him soaking wet standing on my door mad, tears streaming down his face. I let him in and dried him off. He said his father had disowned him, he asked me if I wanted to do the same to him. I asked why and he told me how he was caught kissing another boy by one of the teachers and expelled. His father disowned him saying no son of his would ever kiss a boy and chucked him out on the streets."
By now Kate was crying she felt as if she never really knew the real Tony, and after two years of working with him things were about to change.
Gibbs wiped away the tear that ran down Kate's face and continued. "Tony told me he would understand if I hated him, that I had every right to, but I told him that my son can kiss whoever he wants, as long as he wants to and it was fine by me. He asked if I was being serious and I was. He smiled at me and looked into my eyes and said 'thanks dad, I love you,' in his sleepy state. That was the first time he called me dad. I carried him upstairs and put him to bed. And that's where he spent almost every night since except college of course. I legally adopted him 6 months after that, he changed his name to Gibbs; he just uses DiNozzo at work."
Kate wiped a tear from her eye, "so why do you head slap him so much?"
"it gives him reassurance he's doing okay, that I care about him, he just needs it, just as much as I love coffee" Gibbs stood up and helped Kate to her feet. "we best be heading back, Tony will start to wonder where we are."
Kate nodded. They headed back towards the navy yard with a coffee with hazelnut cream for Tony and a cookie.
Gibbs tells Kate to go ahead and take the gifts to Tony saying he'll be up in a bit.
When Kate reaches the top of the stairs she finds Tony, unmoved but breathing more calmly now. She took off her coat and put it around Tony.
"Hey, Tony," she said stirring him from his day dream, "are you okay, I'm really sorry you know. I didn't know. God I feel like such a terrible person, Tony can you forgive me?" she asks rambling as she goes along.
"Tony's head lifted and his body began to shake, Tony was giggling "Kate, it's not your fault, you couldn't have known of course I forgive you." He said and engulfed her in a hug.
"Hey Tone, is there room for one more sibling in that little family you've got going with Gibbs?" Kate asked curiously.
"Sure why?" Tony asked taking the coffee and cookie out of Kate's hands.
"cos you seem like you need a sister, sorry I mean another one. I'm always here if you want to talk Tony, always, okay." Tong nodded and thanked Kate for the coffee. He liked Kate and was pleased to have a sister again after so many years.
He may have lost a boyfriend but he found someone who cares so much more instead. Yeah he could handle having a sister again.
Tony smiled to himself as he walked down the stairs back into the bull pen he decide that today, today would be a good day. And it was.
The End
AN: hope you enjoyed the story, there will be an alternative turn of event that is quite humorous if you want to check it out, it's going be called 'lost for words'. Please read and review.