Tony came home to find Ethan sitting on the couch with his friend Brandon. Nothing too unusual about that. Brandon was the friend who was always at their house. With Maria it had been the other Maria who would run away to the DiNozzo's anytime she didn't get her way. With Trevor it was Gene who would sneak junk food onto the family's shopping list. With Ethan it was Brandon. Today Brandon seemed distant and depressed. He wore a pair of pajamas that Ethan had received for Christmas and loathed.

"Hi dad" Ethan greeted.

"Hello, Mr. DiNozzo." Brandon added.

"Hey Ethan, Hello Brandon" Tony replied.

"Hey dad when is mom going to get home?" Ethan asked.

"Soon she had to run some errands for Maria." Tony explained.

"When she gets home. Uh Brandon and I need to talk to you." Ethan replied.

"OK I have to move some stuff around upstairs. The McGee triplets are staying with us while Delilah has C-Section." Tony explained.

Donna returned home after collecting some groceries for Maria. She carried in her grocery bags and set them on the counter. She noticed Brandon sitting on the couch in Ethan's pajamas. That was her first red flag. She wondered if Brandon's parents had finally caught on and thrown him out of the house.

"Oh hi boys, where is your dad?" Donna asked.

"Upstairs we actually need to talk to you." Ethan replied.

"I am going to run to the bathroom and then I will call your father down." Donna replied.

Tony moved the junk from Ethan's room up to the attic. They would have to completely redo the upstairs soon enough. May as well get started now. The guest room would be set up for the boys and Charlie would be staying in Ethan's old room. He had the junk moved but needed to put sheets on the mattress and somehow get rid of the smell of sour milk that somehow lingered after ten years. He was just getting ready to set up the room. When he heard Donna calling. He knew that the boys had some sort of news to share with them. He hadn't heard anything about two teenage boys starting fires or urinating on anything other than a urinal. So he wasn't too worried about what the news would be.

"What's the big news?" Tony asked as he entered the kitchen.

"Brandon's parents kicked him out. I was wondering if he could stay with us." Ethan questioned,

"Absolutely not! I know about that little lifestyle choice of his and I will not have it under this roof! I sure as hell don't want him exposing you to that life!" Tony snapped.

"Dad! How could you! He is my best friend!" Tony cried.

"Anthony DiNozzo I am surprised at you! I thought that you were far more lenient than that. This poor child was already kicked out of his home for being gay." Donna snapped.

"Wait he's just gay?" Tony asked.

"Yes dad! That's why his parents kicked him out and it is not a lifestyle choice by the way." Ethan explained.

"Of course it isn't." Tony replied.

"Wait so what were you talking about?" Ethan asked.

"I thought that he was a Michigan fan. They Maize and blue outfits and how he acted so frazzled around Issac." Tony explained.

"Those are just my favorite colors. I act frazzled around Issac cause I have a crush on him." Brandon explained.

"In that case I am sorry and you are more than welcome to stay here." Tony apologized.

"Thank you, Mr. DiNozzo" Brandon replied.

"Thanks dad" Ethan added.

"Ethan do you swear one hundred percent that you are not gay?" Tony asked.

"I am certainly not." Ethan laughed.

"OK then Brandon can stay in your bedroom until after the McGee triplets leave." Tony explained.

Tony was happy to welcome Brandon into the house. Now that he knew that Brandon was not a Michigan fan. He had no problem with him staying in the family's home. It was funny how their empty nest was becoming full again. Though Brandon would likely only stay through the school year and maybe through the summer.

"I am glad that you are letting Brandon stay here. I remember how hard it was on Ruth growing up gay in a Catholic household. My parents came around pretty quickly but the rest of our family not so much. There are still people who won't talk to her. I think that is why I wandered away from the church until the kids were born." Donna explained.

"My first partner was gay. This was when the HIV panic was still going on. I remember going through all those stupid fears and paranoia. Steve was a great guy and really helped me come around. Unfortunately he had some stuff happen and ended up resigning." Tony explained.

"That part of why you were so willing to follow me? You really loved Peoria." Donna asked.

"Part of why" Tony replied.

"So how does it feel to have two teenagers in the house again?" Donna asked.

"Terrifying" Tony laughed.

Tony could hear the boys laughing from downstairs. He was happy to be able to help young Brandon. He logged onto Facebook and saw Maria had posted twenty more pictures of Mollie and that Trevor and Jasmine had made their pregnancy public on Facebook. Beside him Donna was resting her eyes. He reached over and placed his hand on her stomach. He could almost feel their newest addition. He could not wait to meet his new baby. To see if he was having another boy or if Maria would finally get her little sister. He loved all four of his biological children, his children through marriage, and whatever Brandon ended up being. Unless Brandon was in fact a Michigan fan. Though that would be a lot harder to accept than the kid's sexuality.


A/N: I can't write Tony as homophobic but I can write him as hating Michigan that much. New chapter will be up soon. Thanks for reading and please review.