Chapter Nine

The next day began with Megan belly-flopping onto Tony's midriff. Tony couldn't be sure if she had tried rousing him with a more gentle method, without his noticing, forcing her to revert to more extreme measures or if she was merely practicing some kind of wrestling move on him; either way it would not make his Top ten list of favorite ways to wake up. Later, once he had stopped gasping and spluttering like a freshly caught fish, he would give thanks that Megan hadn't pounced any lower down, otherwise he may well have folded like a cheap deckchair. With Megan's laughter ringing in the hallway, Tony flopped out of bed, quite literally. Clutching his stomach, he rolled over – uncaring that he was at the edge of the mattress – and just allowed gravity to pull him to the floor with a soft Flump. He let out a low groan and hugged his throbbing stomach. He really hoped Megan wouldn't make this kind of wakeup call a regular occurrence; he might end up with internal bleeding if she did! Oooooooooooooohhh, he thought, groaning again. His ears pricked up at the light pitter-patter of Megan's footsteps and a moment later her little bare feet appeared in his line of vision. Tony made no move to get up, still not fully recovered from having an almost-four-year-old fling her whole body on top of his unsuspecting belly. Megan wiggled her toes and giggled.

She got down and sprawled out on the floor next to him, laying her head inches away from his own. Tony tried giving her the evil eye but it was pretty hard to maintain when she was looking at him with such a happy and mischievous expression on her face. In spite of himself, Tony smiled. Seeing this, Megan sat up and began to push and shove at Tony's shoulder until he reluctantly rolled over onto his back. He jumped in surprise when Megan grabbed the hem of his undershirt and yanked it up and out of the way, baring his stomach and lower chest to her view. Tony tilted his head off the floor to see what on earth she was up to.

"Yeouch!" he cried, when Megan gave his stomach a sharp poke. The pain wasn't as bad as it had been, it was more like a dull ache, but that didn't mean he appreciated being poked and prodded by little fingers. Before Tony could make any real complaint, he felt his eyebrows arch in surprise when Megan started to tenderly rub his sore spot. Tony was torn between being touched by such a sweet gesture and embarrassed that he was having his belly rubbed like a dog. "OW!" he cried a moment later when Megan yanked on some of his chest hair. He grabbed her wrists and slowly sat up. "Okay, let's just stop yah there. We don't tug on Daddy's …" Tony trailed off, a look of surprise on his face, as he realized he'd just used the D-word.

Tony went very still and stared at Megan who stared right back. He was amazed how easily the word had rolled off his tongue; almost as if he said it every day. Given how he had felt about all this when he had discovered Megan at his doorstep, Tony had expected it to take much longer for the word 'Daddy' to enter his vocabulary but apparently that wasn't the case. He only wished Megan had heard him say it. Tony gave himself a mental shake. No use thinking about that, he thought, pulling a wide grin onto his face and using the bed to help him stand. Megan scampered along ahead as Tony headed towards the main living area. He found her hopping about in the kitchen, so he picked her up by the armpits and held her up so she could open the cupboard and pick out a box of cereal; today it was Lucky Charms again. A few minutes later, Tony sat sedately on the couch munching on his cereal, watching Megan as she sat cross-legged on his coffee table, slurping Lucky Charms and watching Dora the Explorer on TV. He was feeling rather tired and sluggish this morning and the reason for that was sitting in front of him. Megan had woken from yet another nightmare last night and although Tony had managed to stop her crying, and settled her back to sleep without much fuss, he had lain awake for hours afterwards until exhaustion finally got the better of his restless mind. He couldn't help but be troubled by these nightmares. He thought he might know what they were about but he hoped to God that he was wrong. Problem was there was no way to know for sure unless he did a little digging. Which is why, after breakfast, Tony retreated to his bedroom with his cell phone and made a call.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Josephine, it's Tony," he greeted awkwardly.

"Tony dear," she exclaimed happily. "I didn't expect to hear from you so soon. Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," said Tony, pacing back and forth in front of the bed. "I just . . . I just wanted to ask you some questions."

"What sort of questions?" Josephine asked curiously.

Tony hesitated. "Er . . . Megan's . . . kind of been having these bad dreams, and I was wondering . . . I mean . . . did she . . . what happened when Madge died?" There was silence on the other end of the line. "Josephine?"

"Yes, I'm still here, Tony," she responded quietly. He heard her take a deep breath. "I was away that weekend . . . visiting my sister in Maryland," she explained, almost apologetically. "I didn't get back until late Sunday afternoon. The doctors told us . . . told us she must have died early that morning . . . not long after she woke up."

Stomach clenching with dread, Tony stopped pacing. He ran a hand through his hair and glared up at the ceiling. "Megan found her . . . didn't she?"

He heard Josephine take a shuddering breath. "Yes …" she whispered.

Tony screwed his eyes shut and fisted his hand in his hair. Even though he had suspected as much, it was still hard to hear someone confirm it. It felt like he'd been punched in the chest and for several minutes, Tony forgot how to breathe.

"When I got back, I noticed the mail hadn't been taken in, so I went to take it to her – I should have suspected something was wrong but …" her voice trailed away for a moment and Tony could hear her taking several more deep breaths as she tried to compose herself. "I let myself in the house with my spare key, like I always do. I called out a few times but didn't get a response – and I still wasn't concerned; I just thought she was out or something. Then I walked into the kitchen and found them; Madge was sprawled out on the floor, holding a broken coffee cup in her hand . . . and Megan was curled up beside her, fast asleep."

Tony collapsed onto his bed, cradling his head with his free hand whilst clutching the cell phone to his ear with the other. "H-how . . . how was she when you err . . . you know . . . when she woke up?"

"Upset . . . confused," Josephine said sadly. "Oh, Tony, I'm so sorry! I should have been there – if I had then –!"

"It wasn't your fault," he cut across her. "You couldn't have known. No-one could have. I just wish . . . she shouldn't have had to go through that alone ..." I should have been there for her, he added silently. "Thanks for telling me, Josephine."

"Are you going to be alright, dear?" she asked anxiously. "You know if you need me to do anything all you have to do is ask."

"Thank you, Josephine, but that won't be necessary; I think this is something I have to handle by myself." God knows how I'm going to do that though, he thought miserably.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

No not really. "Yes I'm sure," he lied. "And if I need you, I'll call I promise."

"Alright . . . I need to go now, dear, Andrew wants his breakfast. You take care now."

"Okay, I will. Bye, Josephine."

"Goodbye, Tony. Give Megan a kiss for me."

"Okay." Tony hung up the phone and tossed it onto the bed. He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees and laced his fingers together, letting his chin settle upon them. He sat like that for several minutes, staring off into space, trying to sort through his jumbled thoughts.

Tony was taken aback by just how much it hurt him to know Megan had gone through an experience like that. He also felt incredibly guilty. Yes, logically he knew it wasn't his fault – since he hadn't even been aware of Megan's existence when all this happened – but he couldn't help but put some of the blame onto himself. Perhaps if things had been different, if he had been the kind of guy a woman could come to and admit she was pregnant then maybe, just maybe, he would have been there for Megan from the very beginning and she never would have gone through all that. He got up and started pacing again, a little slower than before. He could sit around all day contemplating all the 'what-ifs' and imagine how things could have been different if he'd only known but it wouldn't fix anything or change what had already happened. No, the important thing now was to figure out how he was going to stop Megan from having these nightmares.

"But how the hell do I do that?" he thought aloud.

He needed some time to clear his head, so he grabbed a change of clothes and headed to the bathroom for a quick shower. Tony let his mind go blank as the water cascaded onto his head and shoulders. He would have liked to stay under the hot spray until all the tension drained completely from his body, but it wasn't long before he felt the anxious flutter in the pit of his stomach as he began to worry about Megan being left alone and unsupervised in the living room. He switched off the water, stepped out of the shower, grabbed a towel and started drying himself. By the time he had changed into a pair of faded jeans and dark grey long-sleeved t-shirt he had already formulated a rough plan in his head. He had no idea if it would actually work, but it was worth a try. With a determined nod at his reflection, Tony made his way back to the living room.

"Agh!" he squawked, stopping in his tracks and taking in the scene before him.

It seemed that while he'd been gone Megan had taken it upon herself to empty the contents of every cardboard box labeled 'toys' and now there was toys scattered all over his living room floor. Tony gazed about at the mess with his mouth hanging open. How long was I gone for? Megan peered up at him from where she was playing with a group of plastic farm animals, an expression of blissful innocence on her face. It was almost as if she was saying 'I have no idea who made this mess but look at these lovely farm animals I found.' Oh boy, with a poker face like that we're definitely going to have issues when she becomes a teenager, Tony thought with a twinge of trepidation. He held out his arms and gestured at her to come towards him. Megan obediently climbed to her feet and tip-toed through the mess, when she was in arms reach Tony picked her up and set her on the floor next to him.

"Who made this mess?" he asked sternly, gesturing at the chaos with his hands since his pen and notepad were on the opposite side of the room; he only hoped Megan would understand what he was trying to ask.

Apparently she got the message because she glanced at the mess as if seeing it for the first time and then threw her arms into the air in the universal sign for 'I don't know'. Tony crouched over until he was more or less eye level with her and pulled on his best 'skeptical' face. Megan folded her arms and stared back, trying to imitate his expression. They remained like that for several minutes before Tony admitted defeat and rose to his full height.

"We'll deal with this later," he said, taking Megan's hand and leading her towards his bedroom. "Right now we have somewhere to be and you need to get dressed before we can go."

Unfortunately, Megan had other ideas. With the knowledge that her possessions were just down the hall – meaning she had more options to choose from – Megan decided that there wasn't anything packed in her suitcase that she wanted to wear. She just stood next to the bed with her arms folded and shook her head over and over again; refusing to even set eyes on the suitcase let alone pick any clothes out of it. When Tony tried to select an outfit for her, Megan frowned, stuck out her bottom lip and began to breathe very quickly through her nose; reminding Tony of an angry bull about to charge. Fearing she was about to have a tantrum, Tony threw down the offending items of clothing and hastily led her back to the living room. He had no idea how to handle a tantrum and he had no desire to learn how to do so while Gibbs and Abby were at work and unable to come to his rescue. So, begrudgingly Tony cleared a path through the toys which littered his floor and got down the boxes labeled 'clothes'. While Megan took her time selecting an outfit to wear, Tony came to the conclusion that Megan's obsession with her attire was probably a trait she had inherited from him; right now he couldn't quite decide if that was good or bad thing. Eventually she settled on a rainbow colored tie-dyed t-shirt which looked homemade, a pair of lime green cotton shorts, bright yellow socks with thin black stripes and a bright purple zip up hoodie. The only thing Tony was allowed to pick out was a fresh pair of underwear; he got the distinct impression that Megan really didn't care what her underwear looked liked since they weren't on display like the rest of her clothes.

Once that was all sorted out it was fairly easy to get Megan dressed. Of course, then came the matter of which shoes she was going to wear because apparently the ones she'd been wearing the past few days were no longer good enough. When Tony opened the box labeled 'shoes' he was alarmed by just how many pairs the box actually contained. There had to be twenty pairs at least! Surely that was a little excessive for someone so young?

"Dear God. You're not even four years old yet and already you have an unhealthy obsession with shoes!" he muttered, staring at all the tiny sets of shoes in astonishment. "You know what this means, don't you?" he thought aloud. "We're gonna need a bigger wardrobe!"

He couldn't help but chuckle a little as he paid tribute to his favorite quote from the movie Jaws. After what felt like hours but was in fact only a few minutes Megan pulled on a pair of pink sneakers with Velcro straps. Hiding his relief, Tony led her to the bathroom. He had just closed the door behind him so she could do her business in private, when he heard an odd noise, reluctantly he peeked inside and to his horror discovered Megan with her arms braced against the toilet seat, her bare butt in the air and her head almost in the bowl! He didn't have time to feel embarrassed; he just rushed inside and grabbed her before she could give herself a swirlie. He sat her down in the correct position and felt a rush of shame wash over him as it occurred to him for the first time that Megan was too short to actually reach the toilet; she must have been clambering onto it the whole time she'd been staying with him. That was something he would have to fix and fast! Having seen Abby do it a few times before, Tony made the sign for 'sorry'. Megan gave him a funny look when he did this and for a second he wondered if he had done it wrong but then he figured she might feel a bit awkward with him standing over her when she was basically naked from the waist down. Suddenly the embarrassment was back with a vengeance and Tony spun around and marched back to the door but didn't go through it; feeling slightly jumpy about leaving her alone again. Fortunately, Megan didn't seem too bothered by his presence as she immediately went ahead and relieved herself. When he heard the toilet flush, Tony turned back, lifted Megan off the seat before she could climb down and set her back on the floor. After that, they brushed their teeth as if nothing odd had occurred – while Tony mentally kicked himself for letting it happen in the first place.

Back in the living room, Tony made the lazy decision to clean up the toys when they got back. He forged a path through the chaos so he could grab his pen and notepad and also Madge's camera – which he had charged up yesterday for just such an opportunity – and then ushered Megan towards the door. A few seconds later he burst back into the apartment and ran to his bedroom, appearing moments later with Cubby clutched in his hand. He handed the teddy bear to Megan, waved her into the corridor and locked the front door behind him.


(Set a few hours before Megan and Tony woke up)

McGee glanced up when he heard the elevator ding, smirking slightly as he watched Ziva step off with a bright, cheerful expression on her face. Oh this is gonna be good, he thought smugly as she rounded the partition and stepped up to her desk.

"Good morning, Ziva," he greeted pleasantly.

"Morning, McGee," she returned brightly, saluting him with the cup of coffee he had left on her desk.

He took a sip from his own coffee and picked a few sprinkles off his donut, giving Ziva time to settle in before he brought up the subject that so amused him.

"So . . ." he began casually, trying unsuccessfully to hide his smile. "How was your date with Tony last night?"

McGee bit back a laugh as Ziva's head snapped up; a startled expression on her face.

"How did you –?" she broke off, a sharp expression appearing on her features. "Abby!" she hissed, irritably.

"Uh huh," replied McGee, grinning from ear to ear. "So, did you guys have fun?" he asked, his tone dripping with innuendo.

Ziva narrowed her eyes at him. "When did you become DiNozzo?" she asked. McGee looked appropriately insulted. "And for your information, McGee, it was not a date," she stated firmly.

"Oh really?" McGee said sarcastically.

"Yes, really. Last night was just dinner between friends. It was also an opportunity for us to soothe things over," said Ziva, powering up her computer.

"Smooth," McGee said automatically.

"What?" Ziva asked, looking up in confusion.

"I think you mean 'smooth things over'," he explained.

"Oh, yes . . . that too," she said, turning back to her computer.

McGee rolled his eyes. "So you guys okay then? No more fighting?"

"I'm sure Tony and myself will always find reasons to argue with each other, but yes, McGee, we are okay," she assured him, looking up with a small smile.

"Well that's good to hear, Ziva. I'm proud of you guys," said McGee, genuinely pleased that his friends had patched things up.

The clomping footsteps of black, leather platform boots signified the arrival of Abby as she traipsed her way into the bullpen. She was wearing a chipper, eager expression on her face as she made a beeline for Ziva's desk.

"Hey! How'd your date go last night?" she asked excitedly. "Did you guys make up?"

"Abby!" Ziva exclaimed irritably. "It wasn't a date!"

"Oh . . . I guess I shouldn't have sent that email to everyone in the building stating that you two are now an item, huh?" she asked awkwardly.

"What?" Ziva yelped, looking horrorstricken.

McGee stifled a snigger.

"Just kidding," said Abby, laughing at Ziva's furious expression. "So did you guys make up or what?" she persisted.

Ziva was still giving Abby the evil eye when she answered. "Yes, Abby, Tony and I talked and worked things out."

"Oh I'm so happy for you guys," Abby gushed, clapping her hands together in delight. "What did he cook for you?" she asked, perching on the edge of Tony's desk.

McGee rolled his eyes. Oh God, he thought with a grimace, girl talk. Wait, did she say cook? He glanced over at Abby, his brow wrinkled in a small frown.

"He made me risotto – an old family recipe, apparently – and it was surprisingly good," explained Ziva, leaning forward in her seat and taking a sip of her coffee.

"Ooh, I love his risotto but you have to get him to make you his famous spaghetti and meatballs; it rocks! I swear it's like the best spa–"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Tony knows how to cook?" McGee asked incredulously.

Abby stared at him as if he'd grown a third eye on his forehead. "Duh, McGee," she said, in a tone that suggested that this was a well known fact.

"Our Tony?" he said, convinced the pair of them were pulling his leg because there was no way they could be describing Tony DiNozzo, junk-food-junky extraordinaire.

"Why is that so difficult for you to believe, McGee?" Ziva asked curiously.

"Well, because . . . it's – Tony!" said McGee, struggling to explain himself. "He's always ordering takeout!"

"That's just because it's convenient, not because he can't cook," scoffed Abby.

"Well . . . he's never cooked for me," he said, cursing himself for the slightly petulant tone that leaked into his voice.

Abby and Ziva shared a look across the bullpen. "Are you jealous, McGee?" Ziva asked, with a chuckle.

"No!" snapped McGee, wincing inwardly when his voice came out sounding high and defensive.

"Aww, Timmy, you totally are, aren't you," said Abby, sounding very much like she was trying very hard to hold back her amusement. "I'm sure if you just asked him –"

"I'm not jealous, Abby!" McGee snapped hotly.

"Not jealous of who, McGee?" asked the gruff voice of Gibbs as he marched into the bullpen, the ever present cup of coffee clutched in his hand.

McGee jumped so hard he almost toppled out of his chair. He shot an annoyed glare in Abby's direction when he heard her stifle a giggle. "Nobody, boss," he said, hoping the lead agent would let the subject drop.

"Aww, don't be embarrassed, McGee," Abby said bracingly, ignoring the panicked look McGee aimed in her direction. "Gibbs doesn't care that you're jealous of Ziva because Tony cooked for her on their date last night."

"Abby, for the last time it was NOT a date!" Ziva hissed from across the bullpen.

Abby just grinned broadly; completely unfazed by the death glares she was receiving from both Ziva and McGee.

"Don't listen to her, boss, I'm not jealous – I mean why would I be? It's ridiculous …" McGee broke off, noticing that he was getting that look from Gibbs – the same one he got anytime he started babbling on in 'Geek-speak' as the others called it. "I'll just shut up now and get on with some work, boss."

"You do that, Tim," said Gibbs with an exasperated roll of his eyes. He turned to look at Ziva.

"Gibbs, it wasn't a date!" she assured him hastily.

"I know that," he replied casually.

"You do?" Ziva asked in a tone of surprise.

"Well yeah, Ziver, how many people do you know who have dates with a three-year-old chaperone?" he deadpanned.

Ziva smiled in relief. "You make a good point, Gibbs."

Gibbs' gaze was fixed to his computer when he continued. "And if anything ever did happen between you two, I'm sure you know that I would have no choice but to reassign one of you; I hear Hank is looking for an assistant," he said in a calm, neutral tone.

Ziva stared at Gibbs in alarm. "Hank? Who is Hank?" she asked in confusion.

Abby giggled. "He's the night janitor," she explained cheerfully.

Ziva stared at Abby with her mouth slightly open, before slowly turning back to her computer screen.

"Abs," said Gibbs, after a few moments of silence. "Don't you have work to do?"

"No, why do you think I came up here? I'm so bored!" she exclaimed, heaving a huge dramatic sigh. "Seriously, why haven't you guys caught a case yet? Did someone declare world peace and forget to send me the memo?"

"Abs, it sounds to me like you're hoping for some poor marine to drop down dead somewhere just so you can have something to do," said Gibbs arching an eyebrow.

"Well . . . when you put it like that it sounds really morbid but . . . yeah!"

Gibbs shook his head, a small smirk playing about his mouth.

"I wish Tony was here," Abby sighed, glancing sadly at Tony's chair. "It's so boring without him here."

McGee just barely stopped himself from nodding in agreement. Although he heartily concurred with Abby's assessment, the last thing he needed was to give her more ammo so she could continue teasing him about his so-called 'jealously' over Ziva's evening with Tony.

"I wonder how Tony is getting along with Megan all by himself," Abby mused, redirecting her gaze out the window. "I hope he's okay."

"He'll be fine, Abs," said Gibbs matter-of-factly, never once looking up from his computer.

Abby just heaved another sigh and continued to stare out the window.


Tony glanced over his shoulder, a smile on his lips, watching Megan as she clapped in delight. He had brought them to the East Potomac Park and had just pulled the car over in a parking lot opposite the large playground. Grabbing his camera from the passenger seat and looping the strap around his neck, Tony got out of the car and went round to Megan's side. It took him a few minutes to get her out of her car seat on account she was squirming so much. When he finally did get her free he grabbed her before she could jump out and carefully lowered her to the ground. He locked the car, took Megan by the hand and set off towards the playground; Megan bouncing along at his side the whole way there. When they reached the grass which preceded the playground Megan took off – giving Tony the distinct impression he was slowing her down – and made a beeline for the Jungle gym. The Italian watched in amusement as the little girl scrambled up the Jungle gym and then a few minutes later came whizzing back down on the slide with a huge grin lighting her face.

There was about a dozen or so more kids running around, screaming and playing besides Megan, their mothers and nannies scattered about in small groups occupying park benches and picnic tables. As Tony made his way towards Megan, switching his camera on as he did so, he was aware of many sets of eyes following his every move; feeling suddenly self-conscious, Tony realized he was the only guy around for miles. Trying to ignore the sensation of being watched, Tony focused instead on Megan who was taking a second trip down the slide. This time she slid all the way off and landed on the ground with a soft thump, she let out a peal of laughter as if it was the funniest thing in the world before climbing happily to her feet. Tony crouched down, pointing the camera at her. To his delight Megan looked straight into the lens and gave him a beautiful megawatt smile, without hesitating Tony snapped the shot. With that, Megan climbed her way back up the slide. Tony followed her around as she explored, taking photo after photo which Megan seemed only too happy to pose for. He'd never been much into photography – taking crime scene photos didn't count, it was simply part of his job and not one he took particular enjoyment in – and even though he had no problem having his own photograph taken, that was more down to vanity than anything else. However, with Megan for inspiration, Tony suddenly found himself trying very hard to capture images that were at least half as good as the ones Madge had taken and perhaps it was because the three-year-old associated the camera with her grandmother or maybe she was just a tiny bit vain like her father but Megan really lapped up the attention she was receiving. She really seemed to enjoy having her photograph taken probably almost as much as Tony enjoyed taking them.

Unfortunately, the experience was tainted slightly by the fact that Tony was still being closely scrutinized. More than once he glanced up and caught one or more of the mothers eying him with unguarded suspicion. As time went on Tony began to get more and more annoyed with the way they were acting toward him. Was it really such a crime for a single father to bring his kid to the playground and take pictures of her while she played? Tony, a little startled, paused as this thought crossed his mind. It was the first time he had actually considered himself as a 'single parent' and to his surprise he discovered that the idea didn't fill him with mind-numbing fear. Oh sure, he still had his doubts and worries about whether or not he was capable of pulling this off, but he was determined to do everything in his power to make it work.

They stayed at the playground for about an hour or so before Tony decided they should explore the rest of the park. At first Megan was content to hold Tony's hand and walk at his side; at least she was until she saw a butterfly flutter past. Detaching herself from Tony she ran off in pursuit, her face alight with innocent joy. Unable to resist, Tony took a few more photos, fascinated by Megan's reaction. After ten minutes of harmlessly leaping into the air and following the butterfly around, Megan somehow managed to get the insect to perch on her finger; Tony was afraid she might hurt it but she was perfectly gentle, holding the butterfly aloft almost reverently, staring at it in wonder. Tony kneeled down and snapped a photo just moments before the butterfly took off again. Megan watched as it slowly spiraled into the air and vanished through the tree canopy above them. For the next half hour the pair of them meandered along the path, pausing occasionally when something innocuous such as a stone, a leaf, or a ladybug struck Megan's interest.

"Well that was fun," Tony declared, as he strapped Megan into her car seat. "How 'bout you and me do some grocery shopping before we go home?"

Along the way to the supermarket Tony stopped off at a small furniture store that caught his eye and spent ten minutes searching for what he wanted; a pink, wooden step-stool for Megan to use in the bathroom. Grocery shopping turned out to be quite an experience; Tony had never used the kiddy-seat in the shopping cart before, or had anyone turn their nose up at the food he picked out, or point at the food they'd rather have instead and then try to eat that food before it was even paid for. As well as picking up all the essentials that would keep Megan and himself fed and watered for a week at least, Tony threw a few kid-friendly DVDs in the cart along with a SpongeBob Squarepants Sippy-cup. He was just on his way to the cash register when he heard someone call his name.

"Tony?" said a vaguely familiar voice.

Shit, thought Tony, freezing on the spot. Please don't be an old girlfriend. Please oh please don't be an old girlfriend, please, please, please! Slowly, Tony turned around, bracing himself to duck.

"Lucy!" he said, his tone a mixture of surprise and relief as he set eyes on the young woman. Lucy Goldman, a pretty brunette with stunning blue eyes and a great figure, was engaged to Tony's fraternity brother Steve Adler. The couple had been dating for about three years and Steve had finally proposed just last month; and to Tony's amazement, Steve had asked him to be best man. "Hi," said Tony cheerfully.

"Hi," she said. There was an awkward moment where they couldn't decide if they should hug, shake hands, or do neither. It was Lucy who finally took charge of the situation and stepped forward to envelop Tony in a (thankfully) brief, yet uncomfortable, embrace. When she pulled back she was wearing a slightly self-conscious smile. "Wow," she said, running a hand through her hair. "I had no idea you had a daughter." She peered around Tony and smiled at the little girl sitting in the cart.

Tony blanched. "Ah . . . yeah," he glanced over his shoulder at Megan, "neither did I until a few days ago," he explained, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Lucy stared at him in disbelief. "Seriously?" she asked. Tony nodded. He would have found her expression of wide-eyed astonishment comical if they hadn't been discussing his personal life. "Does Steve know?"

"No . . . not yet," said Tony. "It's kinda been a lot to process, I haven't had much time to think about telling anyone."

"Yeah, I get that. Suddenly becoming a father, that's a big change," Lucy said sympathetically. She stepped to the side so she had a better view of Megan. "She sure is a pretty little thing, isn't she? What's your name, sweetie?" This last question was directed at Megan.

"Oh . . . uh, that's the other thing . . . um . . . she's deaf," said Tony. "Her name is Megan."

"Deaf?" said Lucy, again in a tone of surprise. "You mean she can't –?" Tony shook his head. "At all?"

"No, afraid not."

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry. What about her mother, is she –?"

"No longer in the picture," Tony interrupted.

"And you're taking care of her, all by yourself?" she asked, sounding rather amazed. Tony nodded, doing his best to keep his expression neutral. "Wow, that's really good of you, Tony."

Tony couldn't help but be slightly annoyed by this statement. She made it sound like he was doing some kind of service simply because he was taking responsibility for his child who just happened to have a slight disadvantage.

"Yeah, well I should pay for this stuff and head home. Megan will be getting hungry," he said, by way of excusing himself.

"Yeah, of course, I have some more things I need to pick up myself. It was good seeing you again," said Lucy, holding out her hand to shake, which Tony did; albeit reluctantly. "Good luck," she added, in an infuriatingly sympathetic tone, squeezing his arm with her other hand and making it sound like he was taking on some huge burden.

Tony ground his teeth and forced a smile onto his face. "Thanks," he said, setting off for the cash register again. He glanced over his shoulder, watching as Lucy turned the corner at the end of the aisle and then disappeared. He turned back to Megan and muttered in an undertone: "You know, up until now, I kinda liked Steve's choice of wife, but now I'm not so sure."

Megan, totally oblivious to his words, stared up at him with her big eyes, all the while trying to tear open a packet of Oreo cookies with her teeth. Tony took the cookies off her and placed them back in the cart, smirking when Megan made a small sound of protest. He ruffled her hair affectionately.

"C'mon, kiddo, lets get out of here," he said, as he searched for a cash register that wasn't too crowded.


Tony panted slightly as he climbed the second staircase that led to his apartment. In his arms he carried three bulging grocery bags, which not only weighed him down as he trudged up these dammed stairs, but also obscured his view of where he was actually stepping! The plan had been to get all the groceries up to the apartment in one trip, so Tony had emptied half of the contents of one bag into the three others – so that they were fit to bursting – and then handed the half empty bag to Megan before grabbing himself an armful of groceries. Now he was seriously regretting his decision. Hell, making two trips up here surely would have been better than this. Every step was becoming an effort, his arms were beginning to ache and there was the constant fear that one of the bags might split at any second, spilling all of his food down the stairs, there was also the very great possibility that he might misjudge his footing and take a tumble himself. Megan was just ahead of him, climbing each step with deliberate care as she cradled her small burden securely against her chest. Megan also carried with her Cubby the bear who was stuffed inside the grocery bag for the time being and the camera which was slung over her head and shoulder like a purse. After what felt like an age, Tony reached his front door but before he had time to feel relieved he found himself faced with yet another dilemma; how did he get his keys out of his pocket when his arms were full?

"Definitely didn't think this through," he wheezed, glancing up and down the corridor hoping in vain he might spot a neighbor who could help. "Dammit!" he said, slowly and awkwardly lowering himself to the ground where he carefully set the grocery bags on the floor outside his door.

Letting out a relieved sigh, Tony stood back up and pulled his keys out of his pocket and let himself into the apartment. After putting away the groceries, Tony made them some macaroni and cheese for lunch, when they were finished eating he decided to tackle the mess of toys cluttering up his living room floor. His endeavors to clean up were hindered by Megan, who kept pulling out the toys which Tony had already tidied away. Eventually they compromised by leaving out a few toys for Megan to play with while the rest were packed back into their boxes. Tony had just settled onto the couch with the large sign language dictionary Josephine had given him open on his lap, when he heard the buzz of the doorbell go off. He dropped his head onto the back of the couch and let out a heavy sigh.

"Now what?" he demanded to no-one in particular.

The doorbell buzzed again and was immediately followed by loud, rapid knocking. Someone certainly was eager to be inside. Grumbling under his breath, Tony got to his feet and went to answer the door.

"Steve!" he exclaimed in surprise, finding his old friend and fraternity brother standing on his threshold with a huge, stupid grin splitting his face. "How did you –? What are you –?"

"Oh come on, you didn't really think my fiancé would keep something as big as you having a kid to herself, did you?" Steve asked incredulously, beaming at him with his annoying, boyish grin. "Where is she? Can I see her?" he added excitedly, leaning from side to side trying to catch a glimpse of Megan.

Steve Adler was roughly six foot tall, lean and athletic with boyish good looks, short blonde hair and twinkling light blue eyes. He was currently dressed in an expensive dark grey pinstriped Armani suit with a light grey shirt and a black skinny tie. He also happened to be holding a black leather briefcase in his hand.

"Shouldn't you be at work?" asked Tony, still a little thrown by his best friend's sudden appearance.

"Dude, I'm a partner in my own law firm, I'm entitled to take a long lunch break every now and then," Steve replied nonchalantly, shoving his way past Tony and strolling into the apartment. Tony rolled his eyes and closed the door.

Steve made a beeline towards Megan who was sitting on the floor, playing with a brightly colored toy caterpillar which had wheels instead of legs. "Hi!" he said exuberantly when Megan glanced up at him. He unbuttoned his suit jacket, set his briefcase on the kitchen counter and crouched down in front of her, a huge, cheerful grin on his face. "Can I pick her up?"

"She's not a dog, Steve!" Tony said, exasperated.

"I know," said Steve, picking her up anyway. "So this is Megan," he said, standing up and bouncing Megan in his arms. "She's a cutie-pie . . . you sure she's yours?"

Tony gave a loud, fake laugh. "Really you missed your calling, Stevo, you shoulda gone into standup instead of becoming a lawyer," he said sarcastically.

Steve's only response was a wide unrepentant smile. "So, who's the mom? No wait! Don't tell me . . . it's . . . what was that girl's name again? Charlotte? No, Courtney? Yeah that's it, Courtney. Oh no, no wait it's Lisa isn't it? I remember you telling me she was blonde. Or how about Jessica? Cindy? Mona? Oh, I know it's . . . oh, what was her name? You know the one who filled your closet with dog crap?"

Tony folded his arms and stared at his friend. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?" he said, feeling exasperated and slightly amused.

With his free hand, Steve held his thumb and forefinger a few inches apart. "Little bit," he replied cheekily. "So, come on, give. Who else do I owe for my adorable little niece?" he persisted.

"Niece?" said Tony, arching an eyebrow and hiding a smirk.

"Yeah, I am your fraternity brother after all, ergo that makes me her uncle," said Steve matter-of-factly. He bounced Megan in his arms again. "That's right, I'm your uncle Steven," he cooed, smiling down at the three-year-old affectionately and gently tweaking her nose.

Tony watched them enviously; Steve had always had a great rapport with kids and by the looks of it Megan was already beginning to fall for his charms, even though she couldn't hear that ridiculous, high-pitched baby-talk tone he was using on her. Speaking of which …

"Hey, did Lucy tell you that Megan's –"

"Deaf? Yeah I know. Doesn't mean she can't respond to my facial expressions, does it?" said Steve, all his attention still on Megan. "No, you don't need to hear me to know I think you're adorable, do you?" He tickled Megan's belly, causing her to giggle. Steve's response was to contort his face into an absurdly exaggerated expression of surprise. "Did you giggle?" he asked, still speaking in that sickly-sweet tone which was beginning to give Tony the creeps. "Did you just giggle?" he repeated, tickling Megan again. "Are you a clever girl? Are you?"

"Do you really need to talk like that?" Tony interrupted; sure he might vomit if he heard anymore of that baby-talk. "It's creepy."

"It is not."

"It is so, it's also unnecessary . . . and kinda patronizing," said Tony irritably.

Steve rolled his eyes. "Your Daddy's no fun," he said to Megan, thankfully in his normal voice. He glanced over at Tony. "You still haven't answered my question."

"Huh?"

"Don't even try playing dumb with me," Steve said warningly. "I wanna know what idiot walked away from a beautiful kid like this. I mean, you do know who it is, right?"

"Yes I know!" snapped Tony. He pushed a hand through his hair, causing it to stick up. He really didn't feel like getting into this right now, but he knew Steve well enough to know that he wouldn't let this drop until he got an answer. He sighed and glared at his old friend. "Do you remember . . . Erika?" he asked reluctantly.

Steve frowned at the ceiling, clearly trying to place the name. Tony braced himself, waiting for the bomb to go off. He didn't have to wait long. Steve's eyes widened, his mouth fell open and his face transformed into a look of utter astonishment. Tony actually flinched when Steve's head snapped back in his direction. "The Booty Call girl!" he exclaimed incredulously.

"Steve! Don't call her that in front of Megan!"

Steve actually glanced apologetically down at Megan before turning a frown back on Tony. Oh boy, thought Tony, here it comes.

"I told you something like this could happen!" Steve hissed, jabbing an accusing finger in Tony's direction. "I told you to break it off with her! I told you that it was the wrong time for you to get drawn into an affair like–!"

"I know!" yelled Tony. "I know alright?" He turned away, hands on hips, taking several deep breaths in an attempt to cool his rising temper. He remembered all too clearly the hell Steve had given him when he had drunkenly confessed about the no-strings-attached relationship he was having with Erika all those years ago. "You were right I was wrong," he ground out. "Are you happy now?" he demanded, shooting Steve a furious glare.

Steve set Megan on the floor and took a few steps towards Tony. "No I'm not actually …"

Tony held up a hand to cut him off. "Steve," he began wearily. "I really don't need a lecture right now. I get it, okay? I screwed up, I didn't think about the consequences of my actions and . . . well, here we are!" he said, gesticulating with his arms spread wide. "I never imagined that one bad decision would lead to all this . . . but, even though I'm still pretty scared about how things might turn out . . . I wouldn't undo it for anything." He shifted his gaze away from Steve and onto Megan who was once again playing with her toys. He stared at her for several moments feeling a keen fondness swell in his chest for the little girl; there was also something else, a stirring of an emotion he wasn't quite ready to name yet. "If I hadn't had that fling …" he said quietly, "… then I wouldn't have Megan."

"Wow," said Steve, staring at Tony as he was seeing him for the first time. "When did you grow up?"

Tony rolled his eyes. "Steve, come on, man –!" he began hotly.

"No I'm serious," Steve interrupted. "I've never heard you say anything like that before, I'm actually kinda impressed."

Tony, who felt utterly exhausted by this point, just shrugged and retreated to the couch; collapsing onto it with a grateful sigh. Steve followed him and perched on the coffee table.

"So, you're serious about this?" Steve asked after a pause. "You're really going to be a dad to Megan? You're going to raise her as a single parent even though it's a huge responsibility and you know next to nothing about kids or how to care for them? And let's not forget the added issue that your child is deaf, do you really think you can handle that?"

"Is this supposed to be a pep talk or something? Because if it is, it really sucks!" Tony snarled angrily.

"Come on, Tony, I need to know. Do you think you can do this?" demanded Steve.

"I don't know!" yelled Tony, heaving a frustrated sigh. "But Gibbs seems to think I can and . . . I wanna try, Stevo, I wanna be there for her, take care of her . . . I wanna watch her grow up . . . I-I …" He sighed again, and turned his head so he was facing his friend. "I don't know if I'll be any good at this or if I'm what she needs but I'm all she's got and I won't abandon her!"

A slow smile spread across Steve's mouth. "Okay then."

"That's it?" cried Tony incredulously.

"Pretty much," said Steve nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders in a cheerful, carefree sort of way.

"Really? No more words of wisdom you'd like to endow? No lectures, nothing?"

"No. Although I wouldn't mind going over some legal issues with you."

"Huh?"

"You know, like custody rights. I mean has Erika –" he pronounced the name as if it left a bitter taste in his mouth "– officially given up her parental rights?"

"Well, she just dumped Megan here like she was a sack of potatoes, doesn't that count?" Tony asked in confusion.

"Not really, it would really be best if we drew up a consent document and have Erika –" again the name was said in mild disgust "– sign it so she can officially surrender her parental rights to the child. That way she can't show up anytime she feels like it and try to take Megan back."

Tony closed his eyes and groaned. "That means I'll have to contact her, doesn't it?"

"Hey, relax, I can handle all that if you want and as long as Erika goes along with it – which I assume she will – then it will be a fairly simple business."

"Thanks, Steve," Tony said gratefully.

"You should also get Megan's birth certificate changed," Steve stated after a slight pause.

"Why?"

"Well I'm assuming you're not listed as the father which will definitely need to change if you're going to have full custody. And I'm guessing right now Megan doesn't share your last name so we can ask for that to be changed at the same time," explained Steve.

"Yeah, I'd like for her to have my name." Tony glanced back at Steve and smiled. "I appreciate you doing all this, Stevo. And about before, I'm sorry . . . I didn't mean to snap …"

"Ah forget about it," Steve interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. "You're a parent now; you're entitled to a few mood-swings every now and then."

Tony grinned for the first time since this discussion had begun. "You're a good pal you know that?" he said seriously. "Even if you are a blood-sucking lawyer," he added teasingly.

"Ho, ho, ho," Steve said sarcastically. "Really, Tony, you need to get a new line, that one's gettin' pretty old."

Tony just laughed in response.

"Hey, Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"Since I'm doing you this big favor, does that mean I get to tell the rest of the guys about Megan?" asked Steve, his eyes alight with mischievous glee. Tony slapped his palm to his forehead and gave another groan. "Is that a yes?"


Author's Note:

Hi Guys, sorry it's taken me so long to update but I had a bit of writer's block at the beginning of this chapter. Anyway here it is so I hope you enjoy. Also I can't promise to have weekly updates like some writers, I'm a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to my stories which makes for slow writing, but I can promise that updates will come until the story is complete.

Kind regards, All Hail Hufflepuff