Tony and Tim entered the bar and immediately noticed Gibbs, sat at the bar, looking as though he'd come straight from work.
"Hey Boss." Tony greeted as he sat beside him and took the beer that he passed him. "I don't suppose you've seen Josh or Freddie?" Tim sat beside his colleagues and started sipping his beer.
"Not yet DiNozzo, no. How's Ziva?" Tony smiled, as he did every time his fiancé was mentioned.
"She's doing really well Boss. She's huge! Apparently she's quite small in comparison but given the fact that it's Zi, she looks huge."
"Is she bored of being pregnant yet?" Gibbs asked while memories of Shannon's last few months of pregnancy and how impatient she had become, flashed behind his eyes. Tony chuckled into his beer.
"She can't wait to get back into the field; you know what she's like. I like to think at least some of it is excitement to meet the baby, but for now at least I think most of it is just being bored of having to get me to do everything for her." Gibbs tried and failed to hide his smile behind the neck of his beer bottle. "You know, I think it may end up just being us Boss." Before he had uttered the words fully, his phone buzzed in his pocket. Both men accompanying him turned to him expectantly. "Liam: the baby's colicky. He doesn't feel right leaving Beth all by her self." Tony explained before texting him back telling him he understood and wishing him luck. "Got that all to look forward to don't I huh?"
"Yeah." McGee piped up. "Sarah was a colicky baby. It kept my parents up all day and night for weeks."
"How olds Sarah now?" Tony asked.
"Twenty two." McGee sighed. Tony's phone rang on the bar, alerting his attention.
"DiNozzo, oh hey Josh. Oh jeeze dude is she okay? Yeah no course. Okay well let me know how you get on. Okay. Nah, no problem. Cheers. Okay bye, bye."
"What's up?" McGee asked signalling at the bartended for three more beers.
"Pippa, his three year old, she fell down the stairs. They're currently in the ED. She's okay but he can't leave her." Tony sighed and put his cell back on the bar. "What happened to the days where we all went out and just got pissed, before kids got involved?" Gibbs chuckled.
"You'll get used to that DiNozzo."
"What about Freddie and Harry?" McGee asked, starting on his second beer. Tony checked his phone just as it went off and shook his head slightly as he answered the text.
"Freddie has just been reminded by his wife that Craig's got soccer in the morning so he could only stay for a couple of hours, I've told him not to bother and Harry? Well Harry hasn't got in touch yet but I'm sure he'll cancel too." Tony's phone buzzed a fourth time. "Ah, speak of the devil; he's been called into work, emergency op apparently."
"What's he do?"
"Paediatric cardio surgeon." McGee laughed quickly before catching himself. "What?"
"The jock and the Paediatric cardio surgeon, just not a pairing I'd come up with."
"Well then, that's everyone. Just us three then." Tony laughed. "So, anyone up for shots?"
"No, thanks Tony." Tim piped up while Gibbs gave him all the answer he needed in a stare.
"Okay then." He did a quick view of the bar before standing and facing the tables that took up most of the surrounding space. "Anyone that can drink me under the table will get their drinks for the night paid for by me!" A couple of laughs rang out before a couple of voices piped up.
"Sure."
"Alright then. You're on." Both guys, who couldn't have been out of their twenty's yet, sat at the empty table near the front and waited for DiNozzo to bring over their first round of shots.
"Keep 'em coming McGee!" He shouted before sitting down and passing out the other vodka shots. "Tony DiNozzo." He introduced, shaking both guys by the hand.
"Mike Peters." Replied one of the guys, picking up his shot as he did.
"Johnny King." Said the other, following course.
"Nice to meet you. On the count of three; one…two…three…"
While the commotion went on of the three men downing shot after shot each washing down every third with a pint and the majority of the bar now watching, McGee fiddled nervously with the zipper on his jacket.
"They'll be fine McGee. Tony can handle himself." Gibbs assured the junior agent.
"I'm not worried about that Gibbs."
"So, what's bothering you?" He asked, turning away from the contest for the first time since it had started.
"I…I wanna ask you something." McGee stuttered.
"You waiting for a gilded invitation?"
"I love Abby. We both want to be together but she won't allow it until you give her permission. You're like a father to her; she won't do anything to hurt you." Gibbs smiled gently.
"Looks like rule twelve is well and truly out of the question huh?" McGee's eyes lit up.
"Is, is that a yes?" Gibbs nodded and McGee only just stopped himself in time from hugging his mentor.
"Same goes to you as DiNozzo and Ziva: as long as it's out the office, I don't mind."
"Thanks Boss." The two men shared a smile before turning back to the competition.
"N-number e-eleven, eleven." Johnny slurred as the three men drank again. Each we're seriously feeling the effects now. Once their eleventh was drunk, Johnny left the table in a hurry running in the direction of the toilets.
"One down, one to go." Tony slurred slightly as he eyed Mike.
"How about, we drink this last one and go on to a club. It is your bachelor weekend after all."
"Alright. If you can handle this last one, then we'll go out." Tony returned challengingly. Both maintaining eye contact, they downed their last shot and their last pint. "Not bad kid." Mike laughed a little too over zealously. "Mate, where do you live?"
"About a twenty minutes walk in that direction." He replied, his arm swinging enthusiastically in a general direction. Tony got up from his seat and was about to help Mike up when he misjudged the distance and tripped face first into the side of the table. Gibbs and McGee were immediately on their feet and by his side. Either side of him, and each taking an arm, the two agents pulled him to his feet.
"It's just a scratch." Tony tried to wave off the fall by wasn't accounting for the blood pouring from his nose and onto his shirt.
"I still want to take you to Bethesda just in case." Gibbs assessed his nose more gently than usually and was pretty sure it was broken.
"Okie, dokie Boss." Tony giggled. "What about Mikey?" Mike stood up rather steadily and waved to a young woman sat at the end of the bar, she was quickly wrapped around his side protectively.
"I'll drive him home. Just take care Tony okay?" Tony nodded before McGee put a hand on his forehead to stop him.
"Come on you." McGee chastised while, with Tony's arm around his neck, Gibbs lead the trio out into the car park.
"Hello?" Abby answered Ziva's ringing phone quickly and as quietly as possible in order to not disturb her post-pizza sleep.
"Abby?" McGee asked, equalling her hushed tone but not quite sure why.
"Where are you? What's going on?"
"Where's Ziva?"
"Sleeping. What's up?" She heard McGee take a steadying breath.
"Tony got very drunk and fell over a chair. He's okay, just a broken nose and a split lip but we're currently in Bethesda." Abby gasped.
"Is he okay? Where's Gibbs?"
"Abs, he's fine. Gibbs is with him, Tony's very immature when he's drunk." Abby sighed.
"Do you want me to come get you?"
"No, Gibbs is gonna take Tony back to his as planned and I'll probably stay over too. How's Ziva?"
"Asleep, for now. Shall I tell her?" McGee weighed it up.
"No. I don't think Tony can handle his pissed, pregnant ninja fiancé when he's in this state. Wait until the morning." A crash echoed through the halls as Tony accidently knocked over the table that was holding all the things needed for the stitches in his lip; followed by a giggle from Tony and a stern word from Gibbs. "Listen Abs, I'd better go. See you tomorrow. Love you."
"Love you too Timmy, be careful, let me know if you need me."
"Will do, love you, bye." McGee hung up and ran to the aid of his very stressed Boss as he tried to keep Tony still enough for the nurse to get him stitched up.
It took more than ten minutes before they made it to the car and then another twenty till they reached Gibbs' house, by which time Tony had fallen asleep. Gibbs picked up the sleeping agent and placed him of the couch while McGee fetched him the spare blanket. The two men then said goodnight to each other before both ascending the stairs and parting on the landing: Gibbs actually making it to his bedroom for once and McGee going to the spare one. It had been a long night.
