This story is set just after Boxed In. I hated what the rest of the team did to Tony.
I wrote this quite a while back but have only now gotten the chance to type it.
Chapter 1
Tony sighed as he climbed into his car. It had been a very long day and he wanted to get home quickly, have a long shower, a bite to eat and sleep.
His arm was throbbing from the gunshot wound and the last thing he wanted to do was have to drive home but he had told Ziva he was tired and to postpone dinner for another night.
He turned on the engine and while it warmed up he called his local pizza place and placed an order for collection.
He pulled carefully out of the parking garage and made his way home, with a quick stop to collect the pie.
It took quite a bit of effort to unlock his front door while holding the pie and not using his injured arm. When he finally got in he dropped his backpack on the floor and put the pizza on the counter in the kitchen. He then headed for a long shower. He removed his sling and clothes as carefully as he could, trying not to cause any more pain. He then cover the bandage so it wouldn't get wet and turned on the shower as hot as he could stand it and stepped under the spray.
When he had finished the shower he dried himself and put on pyjama pants and a t-shirt. He went to the kitchen and grabbed a soda and the pizza and then went to the sitting room. He collapsed back into the couch and pulled out a slice of pizza.
"Much better than Ziva's stupid cooking." He sighed, switching on the T.V. and turning on the news.
He continued watching the news until he had finished his pizza; he then tidied up and headed to bed. Although he fell asleep quickly, his dreams were plagued with images of the group having fun and doing things without him.
He woke numerous times during the night because of the nightmares and when it was finally time to get up as he was exhausted. He reluctantly got up and got ready for work. He dressed in his charcoal gray Armani suit with a dark gray shirt and tie. After having a quick bowl of cereal, he grabbed his back pack and headed to work.
Looking around, Tony realised he was first to arrive in the bullpen so he quietly went to his desk and after powering on his computer, he started writing his report.
Half an hour later the elevator dinged and both Ziva and McGee got off.
"Good morning Tony." Ziva greeted.
"Morning Tony." McGee added.
"Morning." Tony replied coolly not looking away from his computer.
"How is your arm?" Ziva asked.
"It's fine, just a splinter right." Tony replied sarcastically.
"Tony I......"
"Its fine Ziva" Tony interrupted her.
What's going on?" McGee asked
"Nothing" Tony replied hotly, ending the conversation.
They sat without talking, the only sound to be heard was furious typing from McGee and slow one handed typing from Tony.
Gibbs arrived a while later carrying his usual cup of coffee.
"Morning Gibbs" Ziva called
"Morning Gibbs" McGee called when he heard Ziva.
There was no greeting from Tony.
"Morning." Gibbs replied taking a seat behind his desk and casting a worried look at Tony.
"How's your arm DiNozzo?" He asked
"Fine." Tony replied without looking away from his computer.
Gibbs looked to Ziva and McGee to gauge their reaction to Tony. They both were looking worriedly at him. Gibbs turned back to his computer and started working.
Again they all worked in silence until Abby and Ducky arrived.
"Anthony how is your arm this morning?" Ducky asked.
"It's fine Duck" Tony answered quietly.
"Mm yes I'm sure it is." Ducky sighed. "Do you have the report from the ER for me to add to your file?"
"Yeah sure" Tony replied and reached into his drawer ,pulling out the file and handing it to Ducky.
"Thank you." Ducky said and started looking at the file. "Another 11 stitches to add to your ever growing list."
"I thought it was just a scratch." Abby said. "You don't need 11 stitches for a scratch."
"It was a bit more that a scratch my dear." Ducky said. "It was deep graze from a bullet. And why aren't you wearing your sling."
"Oh, my poor Tony." Abby cried and quickly ran to Tony and gave him a hug.
"I'm fine Abbs." Tony assured quietly with a forced smile and pulled away.
"You look a bit tired my boy." Ducky noted.
"I'm fine." Tony assured again.
"Ziva said it was just a scratch from one of the boxes." McGee commented.
"Yeah well." Tony mumbled and went back to typing his report.
"I want you to come down to autopsy Anthony, so I can have a look at the wound," Ducky instructed.
"There's no need Duck, its fine." Tony assured.
"It wasn't a request." Ducky said and made his way towards the elevators.
Tony gave a quite sigh and then followed Ducky to autopsy.
When they arrived Ducky instructed Tony to remove his jacket and shirt, while he got his equipment ready.
When he had what he needed, he moved beside Tony and gently removed the bandage.
"It doesn't look too bad." He noted. "Did they give you antibiotics and pain killers?"
"Yeah." Tony replied.
"And did you take them."
"I took the antibiotics." Tony replied.
"You should take the pain killers Anthony." Ducky sighed knowing that Tony very rarely took the pain medication unless he was forced. "They are there to help you."
Ducky cleaned the wound again and put on a clean bandage. He then pulled out a blood pressure cuff and put it around Tony's arm and inserted a thermometer into his mouth. After making note of the readings he put on the stethoscope and after warming it he listened to Tony's heart and lungs and again made note of his findings.
"Ok my boy you can get dressed again." Ducky said
Tony quickly jumped off the table and started putting on his shirt. Ducky quickly grabbed the shirt and helped Tony put it on and then he helped him with his jacket.
"Thanks Ducky." Tony said and stated walking away.
"Wait a minute Anthony." Ducky called "I'm not finished."
"What's wrong Duck?" Tony asked.
"Your temperature is up and your chest is a bit wheezy. And frankly you don't look well."
"It was very cold in that box yesterday." Tony defended "It's probably just a cold."
"And for you that could be deadly." Ducky scolded. "You need to take better care of yourself."
"I know." Tony sighed tiredly.
"I want you to go in to my office and take a nap. You look dead on your feet."
"But…"
"No buts Tony. You will go in and lie down. I will speak to Jethro. Now off you go." Ducky said as he gently pushed Tony into his office.
He watched to make sure the younger man was lying down before leaving the room intent on going upstairs. He was stopped just outside the doors by Jethro himself.
"Is he alright Ducky?" Gibbs enquired.
"He will be fine, he needs some rest. His arm is very sore I'm sure, not that he would admit that." Ducky explained "He hasn't taken any pain killers for it and I fear he may be developing a cold."
"Damn it DiNozzo." Gibbs growled. "What am I going to do with him?"
"Let him rest." Ducky suggested. "He's tired and he seems a bit down in himself."
"Yeah he doesn't seem himself." Gibbs sighed in agreement.
"Let's go check on him." Ducky suggested and led Gibbs into his office. They found Tony curled up in a ball, fast asleep on the couch, cradling his injured arm.
"I didn't think he'd fall asleep so quickly. He must have been very tired." Ducky observed.
"He looks it." Gibbs agreed as he grabbed a blanket and gently spread it over his sleeping agent. "He looks cold."
"Indeed. He did say it was cold yesterday." Ducky agreed. "Now let's leave the boy to rest."