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Today was Tony's first day home alone with Theo who was now five days old. Gibbs was in the shower getting ready for work. He had taken a couple of days off work to stay with him and the baby. Tony's chest felt heavy with sadness. He had enjoyed their few days off, together as a family. Now one of them would be at work all day while the other stayed with Theo. Tony would be at home for a month with the baby and then Gibbs was retiring from NCIS and would take over staying at home while Tony went back to work. Having a baby together and working at NCIS wasn't an option. That's why they decided Gibbs would retire. Plus they had decided, after much discussion, that staying home with Theo was best for their family.
Gibbs walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. Tony was sitting on the side of the bed beside a sleeping Theo. "Tony, why don't you lay back down and get a few more minutes of sleep? Theo should sleep a while longer. Put him in the crib and rest." They had taken to putting Theo in bed with them at night. But Gibbs wasn't comfortable with Tony sleeping with the baby; he tended to be a restless sleeper. Tony understood Gibbs's concerns and respected them.
"I might. I'll wait until you're gone and see if he's still sleeping then. You planning to drop that towel?" he waggled his eyebrows. He was rewarded with a laugh. God, he loved that laugh. Tony was pretty sure he was one of the few that was lucky enough to hear it.
"Don't start something right before work. I'll never make it there on time." Tony grinned, "I like that plan." He stood up from the bed and smiled.
"What are you up to? Sit your butt back down." Gibbs said suspiciously as he backed away. Tony kept walking forward. "What? I'm not doing anything. Why are you suspicious, Jethro?"
Gibbs grinned, "Because I know you? Because your name is Tony DiNozzo? I could list a million reasons why I'm suspi-…"
Gibbs was cut off as Tony's mouth landed on his. Tony suddenly found himself turned and backed against a wall, a tongue invading his mouth. He pulled back and pushed Gibbs back a little before grabbing his hand and tugging him along with him to the guest room…
Tony was smiling as Gibbs rushed out the front door. He knew his lover would be late for work, but he couldn't bring himself to feel sorry about it. He heard Theo upstairs and ran to get him.
"Hi baby," Tony said as he picked his son up. "What's wrong? Time for a bottle?" He changed Theo's diaper, somewhat less awkwardly than his first few, and headed downstairs. The first part of the day went rather smoothly. Theo ate and napped; Tony got some stuff done around the house and even managed a catnap. And then Theo got fussy.
Tony tried rocking, gentle patting and bouncing, walking, talking, and even singing. Theo was screaming mad and seemed to be inconsolable. "Why is your first real freak out the first day we're alone together?" He was starting to feel a little panicky. Theo hadn't cried like this before, he only cried when he was hungry or needed to be held. He was fed, changed, and held.
Tony laid him down on the couch, where he continued to wail while his arms flailed and his legs were kicking. Tony paced and grabbed his cell phone. He put it back down and sat down on the couch beside Theo. He wouldn't call Gibbs on the first day. He could figure this out.
"Shh, Theo. Shh. You're okay," Tony said in soft, soothing tones. He gently rubbed his hand over Theo's stomach. He decided to lie back on the couch with Theo on his chest, he seemed to like that. Theo slowly calmed down as Tony rubbed his back and continued to talk quietly to him. The baby eventually fell asleep on his chest. Tony sighed and turned the TV on with the volume low.
Just as he was getting really relaxed, Theo's shrill cry made him jump slightly and tense. He wouldn't be calmed this time. Tony, in desperation, called Gibbs.
"Yeah, Gibbs."
"Uh…"
"Tony, what's wrong?"
"Jethro, he won't stop crying. I finally got him calm and asleep and then he just woke up and started screaming again. I've tried everything. He's fed, he's changed, I've swaddled, I've un-swaddled, I've rocked, I've patted, I've…"
"Okay, okay. Calm down. I'm sure he's fine. He's a baby; babies can get pretty pissed off. Did he burp when you fed him?"
"Yeah, good burp too."
"Still, could be gas. Maybe he's got a stomach ache."
"What am I supposed to do about that?" Tony asked, feeling overwhelmed with Theo crying in his lap. He heard Gibbs sigh. "Ah, rub his stomach? Try burping him again, see if he burps? I don't really know what to tell you…" Gibbs told him, sounding helpless. "If all else fails, I guess he'll eventually wear himself out crying and fall asleep."
"I don't like him crying this long, he's still so little."
"I don't like it any more than you do, but if he's pissed, he's pissed. Do what you can for him and hopefully he'll fall asleep soon."
Tony sighed and closed his eyes. This parenting stuff was already proving to be really hard at times.