An extra special thanks to my beta 26hannah26 for not only looking this over, but for also helping me with the DNA stuff. *cyber five* Yeah, I'm a dork :D

NCIS

Gibbs could tell Tony was worried. They had searched every one of McGee's usual haunts, but they couldn't find him anywhere, and he wouldn't answer his phone. They kept in constant contact with Ziva, who hadn't found Tim either.

"Boss, I think we'll have to call Abby," Tony said when they left the arcade. Gibbs gave Tony a look and he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Abby's number. "Hey, Abbs. Yeah, before you start, I need you to do me a favor." He nodded, Gibbs hearing Abby's voice from across the car, but she was talking too fast for him to understand her. "Can you please…" she kept talking. "…track…" Tony was attempting to get every word in when she paused for breath. "…McGee's cell?"

Abby stopped and Gibbs clearly heard, "What?"

"His cell phone, Abby. We can't find him."

"Hold on," he heard Abby respond after a few seconds pause. She was quiet for a moment, probably on one of her computers, and finally her voice appeared, "He's at Gibbs' house."

"What? Are you sure?" Tony had obviously asked the wrong question, Abby practically yelling at him, her tiny voice emitting from his phone. "Okay, thanks Abbs," DiNozzo shouted over her and hung up.

Gibbs turned the car around in a screeching U-turn, Tony visibly turning green, and started towards his place. As he drove, Tony called Ziva and informed her that they had found Tim.

"…let's talk to him first before we have a swarm of people over at Gibbs'. But you can head…" Tony nodded, "Good, thanks Z." He flipped his phone shut, placing it in his pocket. "She said she'll head Abby off." Gibbs nodded, speeding up a little.

He didn't think McGee was in trouble or anything. He just needed to kick his ass for making the entire team worry about him.

NCIS

McGee didn't know what he was doing there. It wasn't like he made it a habit of showing up at his boss' house. Hell, besides the one time during a case, McGee hadn't ever visited Gibbs' house. It actually made sense, in a way. And it would definitely be the last place any of his team would look.

He thought about his 'great' escape. He had used the fire escape below his window, the same way Mikel used to get down when he was stalking Abby. It had been a two foot drop, Tim was certain he had almost wet his pants when he looked down, but he had to get out of his apartment. He couldn't deal with Tony and Ziva being there, especially if they started to hover. He couldn't tolerate the hovering.

He was sitting on Gibbs' front porch steps. He didn't feel comfortable walking into someone's house without an invitation. And whether the door was unlocked or not, Tim didn't feel like he was allowed inside Gibbs' house. He just stared at his phone, having turned it on a few minutes beforehand, wondering if Gibbs and Tony had Abby trace it, yet.

Before he took off, he had heard Tony talking to Gibbs. He was surprised Abby hadn't shown up, screaming at him for not saying anything. He really wished she didn't, he wasn't in the mood right now to deal with her. He might say something he'd regret.

Gibbs' car pulled into the driveway a few minutes later. Tony was out of the car first, before it even stopped, stalking across the lawn. McGee pushed himself to his feet, waiting for the onslaught of screaming and name calling.

Tony slapped the back of his head and said, "Don't ever do that again. God, you had Ziva so worried about you." McGee knew Tony wasn't telling the whole truth, but opted to let it go.

Gibbs had a more subtle approach. He just slapped the back of McGee's head and pointed at the house. Ears ringing slightly, from both head slaps, Tim turned on his heel and started up the porch steps, Tony and Gibbs following him.

The door easily opened when he turned the knob and McGee stepped inside. He stood in the entryway, not exactly sure where to go. When Gibbs and DiNozzo walked past him, towards the living room, McGee trudged behind.

"Sit," Gibbs said pointing at the couch. McGee sat, placing his hands in his lap. He watched as Tony paced back and forth, shaking his head, muttering inaudible words. Gibbs stepped in front of a surprised DiNozzo, grabbed his arms, and steered him to the couch.

Once both younger guys were sitting, the older man took a seat on his coffee table and met their eyes. "McGee," was all he said, but Tim knew he wanted him to explain.

"I had to get out of there, boss," McGee muttered looking down at his hands.

"By climbing out a window?" Tony balked. "You could have gotten yourself killed. And aren't you afraid of heights? Why would you risk…?"

"DiNozzo," Gibbs' sharp voice cut Tony off. He turned his attention back to McGee. He wanted Tim to continue.

"I just couldn't sit there anymore. Not after my mother and… and Senior went at each other's throats." Now that he wasn't facing his mother, now that the anger had dissipated some, Tim couldn't bring himself to call DiNozzo Senior his 'father.' "I kept hearing their words over and over. I just didn't want to be around anyone, boss.

"And I know it's no excuse, but I thought maybe if I came here no one would look for me for a while. Just so I could sort through all these jumbled thoughts I have roaming around my head."

"And did you?" Tony asked softly.

"I wish," McGee replied giving them a sad smile.

The door was thrown open, Tony and Tim jumped while Gibbs scrambled to his feet. They heard a hissed argument before Abby appeared around the corner, Ziva right behind her.

"I tried to stop her outside, but she was insistent," Ziva informed them wearily.

"Oh my gosh, McGee, are you okay?" Abby exclaimed, crossing the room. She hugged him briefly then pushed herself away from him and punched his arm.

"Ow, Abbs."

"That's for scaring me." She then punched Tony. "And that's for not telling me you two are brothers. We're supposed to be a family, and this is big news for our family. I mean, you two are actually family. And I could have easily run the DNA test to prove it. Senior wouldn't have had to ask, and I could have easily told him I was running the test if he tried. Why didn't you tell me? Is it because you two weren't sure to begin with? Or was it something else?

"But really, who cares what the reason is. What matters is you two are brothers. Flesh and blood brothers. Well, half flesh and blood brothers, but you still have the same DNA. Maybe. But I don't doubt it, I can feel it. I always knew there was something about you two." She squeezed herself between the two guys, putting her arms around both of them.

"It's up to you, McGee," Gibbs said softly.

"You still want to take it?" Tony asked curiously.

McGee thought about it for a moment. He had agreed when Senior and his mother were arguing just to shut them up. But now that he was sitting down, without the fighting, he wondered if he really wanted to know. Would anything change? Or would everything change? Would he have to call Senior 'Dad' or could he stick to Senior? And what about his dad? Jack had as much stock in this as Cecelia, Senior, him, and Tony. And who was going to tell Sarah?

All these questions kept floating around his head, giving him a major migraine. He remembered something Penny told him when he was younger, 'You'll never know until you find the answers.' It was those words that helped him clear his head and decide.

"Let's do it."

NCIS

Ducky was the obvious choice to take the blood samples which meant they had to let him and Palmer in on the secret (though was it a secret anymore?). Gibbs stood in the corner, his eyes locked on Senior, while Cecelia stood next to him, her arms crossed, glaring at the floor. She didn't necessarily have to be there, but Gibbs had a feeling she wouldn't leave unless she was dragged out. And even then she'd put up a fight.

Palmer was flitting around the lab, still trying to wrap his head around what he found out. "I mean, actual brothers. That's just insane. I mean mind boggling. It's just…"

"Mr. Palmer, please," Ducky snapped as he pulled the needle from Senior's arm and handing the other man a cotton ball for the slowly dribbling blood.

"Sorry, Dr. Mallard," Palmer muttered.

"It's fine. Please take these to Abby," Ducky said placing the last of the blood on a tray. Palmer nodded, carefully took the tray, and walked out of Autopsy. "The boy means well," Ducky said to Senior and Cecelia, "but sometimes I wonder about him."

"About how long until we get the results?" Cecelia questioned ignoring Ducky's comment about Jimmy.

"I'd say about three days. These types of tests take time, and I am sure Abigail has work of her own to do."

"I'm getting a very Maury-esque vibe," Tony muttered leaning against the Autopsy table McGee sat on.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs' quiet voice carried across the room and Tony shut up.

"This reminds me of the time when my friend Dennis' mother revealed she had had a…"

"Duck, not the time," Gibbs interrupted the older man. "DiNozzo, McGee, go back to work." The two guys shared a quick look before the latter jumped down from their Autopsy table and both walked out of the room.

Ducky exchanged looks with Gibbs and nodded. "I should go check on Mr. Palmer. He's been gone a while." And he exited Autopsy through the sliding doors. Once he was gone, Gibbs beckoned Cecelia over to the table Senior sat on.

She was hesitant at first, but slowly she walked over to the older man, keeping a good three feet between them. Gibbs fixed them with a hard stare and said, "We are only doing this because Tim wanted it done."

"I know this, Agent…"

"He already told me…"

"That means," Gibbs continued over the other two, "that when these results come in, regardless of whose favor it's in, I want you two to act like adults. Am I clear?"

"I will not be spoken to like that," Cecelia protested.

"This isn't some pissing contest between you two!" Gibbs snapped and Cecelia recoiled slightly. Senior closed his mouth, letting whatever he was going to say die on his lips. "This is McGee's life we are talking about! He doesn't need you two acting like children! You don't have to like each other, but you better damn well act civil when you are around him!"

Before either one could respond, Gibbs turned on his heel and walked out of Autopsy. He rode the elevator up to his floor, his cell phone ringing when the doors slid open. "Yeah, Gibbs."

"I want to see you in my office," Vance's voice said from the phone's speakers. Gibbs hung up, pressing the fourth floor button. The doors slid closed again.

NCIS

McGee was sitting at his desk, trying and failing to get his work down, when his phone rang. At first he thought it was his work phone, but then he realized the ringing was coming from his jacket. He pulled his cell phone from his coat pocket, checked the ID, and answered, "What, Sarah?"

"Dad just told me,Tim." Oh great, Sarah knew. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? I mean we knew something had happened between Tony and Mom but this. Tim, this is huge. I mean, now Auntie Milly can stop talking about the time you ran her cat over with your bike. This is bigger than…"

"Sarah, I really don't want to talk about it," McGee snapped cutting his sister off. "It's only been two days, I am still trying to wrap my head around it, and I really don't care what Great Aunt Milly has to say on the subject." And he hung up before she could say anything else, feeling really bad about it. She hadn't done anything to him. She wasn't the bad guy. But he knew she would want to talk about it. He couldn't talk about it with her. Not yet anyway.

He looked up to see Tony and Ziva staring at him. "I know I shouldn't have snapped at her," he started wearily before either one could open their mouths, "but if I know Sarah, and I do, she's the type who would want to talk about this. And I don't want to talk about this."

"Duly noted," Tony responded nodding once. He glanced down at his computer, but Ziva still stared at Tim.

McGee tried to ignore her, tried to get back to work, but he knew she was going to continue to stare. Her eyes were drilling into him, almost seeing through him. Finally he glanced up and said, "I'll apologize after work."

She smiled once before going back to work. McGee shook his head, putting his head down on his desk. He hated that everything seemed to be riding on one test. He already found out his life was a lie, what more could go wrong?

"Tim," he heard a voice say. He slowly lifted his head, looking up at his mother. Senior walked past her, gave the entire bullpen a quick wave, and got on an elevator. "Can we talk?" Cecelia asked quietly.

Anger and resentment, towards the woman standing in front of him, fought with the love he felt for her. She was his mother, she never meant to hurt him, but she had hurt him. She had done the one thing she was trying to avoid.

"No, Mom, we can't," he said softly shaking his head. "I'm sorry."

She sniffed, nodded, and turned towards the elevator. McGee watched her go with a heavy heart, a part of him knowing he hadn't done the right thing. Hell, he wasn't even sure what the right thing was anymore. Maybe he was more like Senior than he realized.

NCIS

Hi, what's new? That's good.

So, I know this is shorter than last chapter (I think... yeah it is) but good news is I am working on the next so that should be up soon. WOOOOOOO! Nothing? Okay.

Anyway, thanks for reviewing, alerting, and just plain supporting this story. I really hope I hear from you again, thanks for reading, and I own nothing.

PEACE OUT...