AN: Just thought I'd try my hand at a little Thanksgiving tale. The character of Chris was borrowed from "Dinner Interrupted." He and his family were mentioned in that one and it seemed appropriate to slip them into this story.
If you like this story, I'm thinking of doing something similar for Christmas :) Enjoy!
xxxxx
Tony rolled his eyes and glanced at the digital clock in his car. He knew he should have left earlier. He was going to be late. The Thanksgiving Day traffic was heavy with people who were traveling to spend time with their loved ones. He glanced at the occupants of the car next to him...a family with a small boy in the back seat. His mind started drifting...bringing back memories of the day before Thanksgiving, many years ago...
The little pilgrims and Indians stood in a line on the stage and bowed awkwardly as the auditorium erupted into loud applause. 6-year-old Anthony DiNozzo's hat, which was a little too big for his head, slipped down over one eye. He reached up to straighten it as the curtains closed and he and the other children traipsed backstage.
"Hey Bobby, that was pretty funny when you tripped and fell," Johnny Miller laughed at the red-faced little boy.
"It was not funny," Bobby retorted, his lower lip quivering.
"Why don't you leave him alone, Johnny," Tony said. "You're just mean. You wouldn't think it was funny if it happened to you."
"Well it didn't happen to me. I'm not a clumsy oaf!"
"He's not either. Come on, Bobby...let's go," Tony said. The two boys headed out to the front hallway of the school where all the parents were gathered, waiting for the pint-sized actors and actresses. Tony stood off by himself, leaning against the wall and watching as parents hugged and kissed their children. Moms and dads, with pride in their eyes, told their sons and daughters how wonderful they had been and how proud they were of them. Tony sighed softly and remembered back to that morning before he left for school. He had been sitting at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of oatmeal the ccok had made for him, when his mother had come into the kitchen, holding a cold cloth against her forehead.
"Don't forget, mommy," Tony said, smiling up at her. "The play is at 2 o'clock. You should get there early so you can get a good seat. I've got a really big part, you know," he ended proudly. He was playing Miles Standish and was really excited for his mother to see him. His father was away on business, as usual, but at least his mother would be there.
She had sat down across from him then, still holding the cloth and moaning dramatically. "Anthony, darling...You know mommy would like nothing better than to go to your play, but she isn't feeling very well today."
"What?" He looked at her crestfallen. Even at his tender age, he knew that disappointment was looming ahead. It was a feeling he was very familiar with. "But..but mommy you have to go! Everybody has their moms or dads going. Some kids have both parents. I'll be the only one with no one there. Please?"
"Now, Anthony. I don't want to hear another word about it," she said, her voice becoming shrill. "You know how mommy's headaches are. Mommy's nerves just can't take any arguing. Do you want me to feel worse and end up in the hospital? Is that what you want?"
"No..." he whispered as he put down his spoon and stared down at the table. He wasn't hungry anymore. In fact, he felt sick to his stomach. He couldn't believe she wasn't going to come to see him in the play.
"Good boy," she cooed, all smiles now. "I called Bobby's mother and she's going to take you and Bobby out for ice cream after the play. Won't that be fun?"
"Yes...it'll be fun," he said automatically, doing an admirable job of holding back tears.
Now he watched as Bobby's mother hugged her son and told him how great he had been and that nobody had noticed when he tripped and fell. Even Tony knew that wasn't true, but Bobby was smiling delightedly and seemed to believe her. She came over to Tony then and gave him a hug as well. "Anthony, you were just wonderful," she exclaimed. "You were a perfect little Miles Standish. Its such a shame your mother wasn't able to come, but you can tell her all about it and how you did such a good job."
"Thank you, Mrs. Perkins," he replied, giving her a polite smile that didn't quite meet his eyes.
"Look." Mrs. Perkins opened up the brown paper bag she was carrying and pulled out two teddy bears, handing one to Bobby and one to Tony. "These are for doing such a beautiful job in the play today. I am so proud of both of you. Now come on, let's go get some ice cream. You can get the biggest, gooiest ice cream sundaes that Friendly's makes."
Tony smiled to himself as he remembered Bobby and his mother. Bobby had moved away the following summer and they hadn't kept in touch, but he remembered them fondly. He was pretty sure Mrs. Perkins had known his mother had a drinking problem and she had always gone out of her way to show kindness to him.
The next Thanksgiving that really stood out in his mind was the first Thanksgiving after his mother died. Even now, after so many years, the memory still gave him a knot in the middle of his stomach.
Anthony...This is Hannah Brookfield," his father said, smiling. "She is going to have Thanksgiving dinner with us."
Tony's eyes had widened in shock and he stared at the woman without speaking. She wore a really short, skin-tight dress and had the hugest boobies he had ever seen. If his friend Brian was with him, he knew they would have started giggling uncontrollably. By himself though and seeing this woman with his father, it just wasn't very funny at all. Tony knew his mother wouldn't have liked her being in her house one little bit.
"Hello, Anthony. Its very nice to meet you," Hannah said, reaching out to shake his hand. "Your father has told me so much about you..."
"Why is she here?" he asked, turning his eyes towards his father accusingly. "I thought it was just going to be you and me. Are we still going to the football game?" His father had told him he would take him to the big high school football game and he couldn't wait. He had never gone to one before and all his friends were going. They had been chattering excitedly about it all week in school.
"No, we aren't going to the football game and don't be rude. You know better than that," his father snapped. "Ms. Brookfield is a guest in our home. You apologize to her at once!" Tony crossed his arms over his chest and stared sulkily at his father.
"Anthony..." his father's voice had a warning tone that Tony knew better than to cross.
"I'm sorry," the boy said sullenly. He couldn't believe they weren't going to the game. His father had promised.
"Its alright," she said, obviously more than a little bit uncomfortable with the situation.
The dinner had been horrible. The three of them had eaten at the custom-built mahogany dining room table that could seat up to twenty people. Tony had always hated that monstrosity of a table. He had thought it ludicrous that they even owned such a thing. He couldn't recall them ever having that many people over at one time. The meal had mostly been eaten in silence except for inane comments by the adults about how delicious the turkey and stuffing were. He hadn't said a word and nobody had noticed or cared.
There was still a part of him that had never forgiven his father for that Thanksgiving. He was sure his father had been sleeping with Hannah, which was inappropriate enough, but to have her over for a major holiday, only a few short months after the death of Tony's mother was even more appalling. To this day, Tony had no idea what the man had been thinking. Then again, having any kind of consideration for his son during the holidays had never been Senior's strong point. Case in point being the Thanksgiving of his very first year of boarding school.
"Your headmaster tells me you have a nasty case of bronchitis," Tony's father's voice boomed over the phone at the 12-year-old who was standing ramrod straight in Headmaster Wilson's office. "I don't think its a very good idea for you to travel home if you're sick."
"I'm not that sick, dad," Tony protested, unsuccessfully trying to stifle a cough. What was his father trying to pull? Didn't he want him to come home for Thanksgiving? "I want to come home." I miss you, he had added silently, but dared not voice the thought. Don't you miss me?
"You don't sound good to me, Anthony. I think you should stay at school and get yourself better. You don't want to end up with pneumonia. I'll see you for Christmas vacation. Its only a few weeks away. Think of something extra special you'd like for a gift. I think Santa's feeling extra generous this year! Now let me talk to your headmaster again. Happy Thanksgiving, son."
Tony didn't return his father's Happy Thanksgiving wish. He didn't even say goodbye, just silently handed the telephone to Headmaster Wilson. He couldn't believe his father was doing this to him. Whereas most people kept their children home when they were sick, his father was doing the opposite. Tony had barely managed to hold back tears as the headmaster stated that he would spend the next few days in the infirmary. "Nurse Billings will take good care of you and we shall make sure the two of you have a fine, catered turkey dinner. No crying now, Anthony. Life is full of little disappointments. You might as well learn that now." He had wanted to tell the headmaster that he had learned that a long time ago, but he had remained silent and kept a stiff upper lip.
Looking back on it now, Tony realized that Nurse Billings had probably been just as lost and lonely as he was. The woman was a widow with no children and had showered attention on him in a way he had never really experienced before. She had given him hot tea and homemade chicken soup. She had baked him chocolate chip cookies from scratch and an out-of-this-world apple pie they had devoured after their Thanksgiving meal. They had watched television together and played cards and board games. She had even taken him to see a movie. He'd actually had quite a good time, but the fact that his father hadn't wanted him home had gnawed at him, making the boy feel even more unloved and unwanted.
"Why are you doing this to yourself. DiNozzo?" Tony shook his head and stared out through the windshield at the traffic in front of him, mentally willing the cars to go faster. He needed to think of something happier. Not all his Thanksgivings were associated with bad memories. He thought back to his sophomore year of high school. He had gotten friendly with a boy from school, Chris Paulsen, who had invited him to his family's home for Thanksgiving dinner.
"Tooony...Do you have a girlfriend?" 10-year-old Alicia giggled as she gazed at Tony.
Tony shook his head with a friendly smile. "No. Nobody serious," he answered.
"Good because Cassie is in loooooove with you."
12-year-old Cassie's cheeks turned bright red as a horrified look came over her face. "I am not, you little brat! Mother! Will you please talk to your daughter!" she screamed.
"Come on girls. I want you to set the table," Mrs, Paulsen said, giving an apologetic look to her son's young house guest.
"Sorry about that, Tony," Chris said, shaking his head as he rolled his eyes. "You know how sisters can be. Pains in the butt, both of them."
Tony actually didn't know how sisters could be, but he had been more than happy to borrow Chris' sisters and his younger brother as well to find out. The Paulsen family was everything Tony had always imagined a family should be, the kind of family you saw on t.v. and didn't think existed in real life, at least not in Tony's life. They had gone out of their way to welcome Tony into their midst. He'd started spending holidays with them and they had always been warm and loving to him. Chris and Tony had gone their separate ways in college, gradually losing touch, but even now, Tony remembered those days fondly and hoped Chris and his family were well.
Finally, the traffic opened up and Tony gave a relieved sigh as he started moving and a few short minutes later pulled up in front of Ducky's house. He got out of the car, then reached inside for the three large pies he had bought at Percival's Bakery. Balancing them carefully, he headed towards the front door. When he got there, he rang the doorbell and waited, but he didn't have long to wait. After only mere seconds, Abby opened the door. "Tony! Happy Thanksgiving."
She tried to move in for a hug, but Tony side-stepped her. "Pies, Abby."
She laughed and took one of the pies from his arms then led him inside. Once they had put the pies down safely, she flung herself into his arms. "Happy Thanksgiving, Abs." He waved at McGee and Ziva who were sitting in the living room watching in amusement. "Happy Thanksgiving."
"Happy Thanksgiving, Tony," McGee said and was echoed by Ziva who came over and gave Tony a kiss on his cheek.
"DiNozzo! McGee! Get in here and make yourselves useful!" Gibbs' voice bellowed from the kitchen.
"I thought women were supposed to do the cooking," Tony whispered to McGee as they headed into the kitchen. "Aren't the guys supposed to lounge around and watch football games?"
The head slap came out of nowhere and Tony yelped in surprise. "Not today," Gibbs said, grinning at him. "Happy Thanksgiving, DiNozzo."
"Happy Thanksgiving, boss," Tony replied as he rubbed the back of his head.
Ducky proceeded to hand Tony a large spoon. "Its good to see you, dear boy. If you would be so kind to scoop all of the stuffing from the turkey and put it into that bowl. Timothy can you stir the gravy, please? Make sure it doesn't burn."
Tony's eyes lit up at his assigned task, his mouth watering at the thought of tasting Ducky's delicious homemade stuffing.
"He said scoop it, DiNozzo, not eat it," Gibbs said, reading the look in his Senior Field Agent's eyes all too well.
Tony set to work, managing to sneak a taste when Gibbs' back was turned.
"I saw that," Gibbs stated, earning an incredulous look from Tony.
"How could you have possibly seen that, boss? Do you have eyes in the back of your head?"
"You'll never know, DiNozzo," Gibbs smirked.
Finally, all the food was brought out into the dining room and everyone was seated at the table ready to eat the delicious-looking meal that filled the table. As they raised their wine glasses in a toast, Tony looked around at the people who meant so much to him. Each and every one of them had become an important part of his life. This was the way Thanksgiving was supposed to be, a day shared with those who were most important to you.. This was Tony's true family and for that he was truly thankful.