Gibbs sat in the hospital room, watching Tim as he slept. He never woke up on the way to the hospital, not even when the paramedics inserted the IV. The doctor, Dr. Long, checked and bandaged his hands without a movement from him. Dr. Long told Gibbs that Tim passed out from exhaustion, which Gibbs already figured, and he probably wouldn't wake up for a day or so. Tim's head was hit pretty hard, but since he already made it passed the first twenty-four hours with the concussion, that was the least of the doctor's worries.

The fact that Tim might not wake up for a day or more didn't matter to Gibbs. Tim didn't want to be left alone, so Gibbs would not leave him alone.

Tony and Ziva entered the room quietly. They had had to stay back at the scene for a while before heading to the hospital. Gibbs looked up at them, but didn't speak.

"How is he?" Ziva asked in a whispered tone.

"Doctor says he'll be okay as long as his hands don't become infected. He might have to go to some physical therapy for his hands, but besides that, he'll be okay… physically."

"What about mentally?" Tony questioned.

Gibbs shrugged, "You'll know when I know." He looked back and forth between Tony and Ziva, "The doctor told me only family was allowed in the room. Who did you say you were?"

"I'm his brother," Tony replied. He looked over at Ziva and smiled, "And this is my foreign wife."

Ziva glared at him, "He is lucky I did not shove my boot up his a-"

"Let me guess," Tony interrupted, he pointed at Gibbs, "You're papa McGee?"

Gibbs shook his head, "Nope, I'm Gibbs… Tim's step-father."

Abby and Ducky came walking into the room. Abby had been running down the halls, but Ducky made her slow down, and she was now holding onto Ducky's hand.

"You two got here fast," Tony said as they walked over to the rest of the team. Ziva had waited until she and Tony were on the way to the hospital to call them.

"No traffic," Ducky replied.

Abby let go of Ducky's hand and walked over to Tim's side. Tears filled in her eyes, "He's gonna be okay, isn't he, Gibbs?"

Gibbs stood up and went over to her. He put his arm around her, "He'll be fine."

Abby rested her hand on Tim's forehead, then she began gently stroking his hair, "He looks so small lying here. I hate the man that did this to him."

"We all do, Abbs."

"So, how'd you two get in?" Tony asked curiously.

"Well, I am the dear boy's grandfather," Ducky replied, "And Abigail is his wife."

Tony smiled slyly, "I can't wait for McTim to wake up now. Just wait till he hears he's McMarried."

"Tony, will you ever grow up?" Ziva asked.

"Never ever," Tony replied without hesitation.

Just then a nurse walked into the room. She stopped at the doorway and looked around at each person, "This looks like a lot more than our two visitors in a room limit."

"Everybody meet Nurse Hastings," Gibbs said with a small smile. They had had the pleasure of meeting just a little after Gibbs arrived with McGee.

They all plastered smiles on their faces, "Hello."

"Hi. Now, let me guess… You're all Agent McGee's family?"

They nodded.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Well, I'm going to need all of you to shuffle out of here and let me check Agent McGee's bandages and IV. Plus, visiting hours are almost over anyway."

Tony walked over to Ziva and put his arm around her, "Let's go, honey. We can come back tomorrow."

She gritted her teeth, "Alright, poopy."

"It's poopsie."

"I know."

Ducky walked over to Gibbs, "I am going to find the doctor and go over Timothy's condition with him."

"Take Abby with you," Gibbs replied.

Abby looked away from McGee and at Gibbs, "I'm not leaving! I can't. I just got here. What if he wakes up? What if h-"

"Abbs," Gibbs interrupted, "Go home, get some sleep, come back in the morning. You can sit with him for a while."

"Do I have to go?" She asked sadly.

"Abigail," Ducky began, "You can come with me to talk to the doctor and then I will drive you home. Timothy is resting, and you should be too. You can come visit-" He paused as he looked at Nurse Hastings face, "Your husband, tomorrow."

She sighed, "Okay. But I will be back bright and early," She warned, "Like really bright… sun's up and I'm here!"

Gibbs gave her a hug and kissed her cheek, then she reluctantly took Ducky's hand and they left.

The nurse stared at Gibbs.

"I'm not leaving," He said sternly.

"And I suppose I couldn't make you go?"

"In a body bag… maybe."

She sighed, but gave him a small smile, "Then would you please step back so I can check the patient?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Gibbs replied as he walked back to the chair and sat down.

"So, what are you to Agent McGee?" Nurse Hastings asked as she began to check Tim's hands.

"I'm his step-father."

She glanced over at him, "I've been working as a nurse for over thirty years. I can tell you aren't related to him… Don't worry, I won't tell a soul."

Gibbs smiled, "I'm his boss."

"His boss? I don't think I've ever seen a boss come an stay with an employee like this."

"It comes with the job. You get closer than you would in other jobs."

She placed a hand on her hip, "Honey, you may have forgotten, but you're at Bethesda. I deal with Agents from every agency that exist in DC and I've never met a boss like you. Sure we have the ones who come and visit for hours at a time, but none that would stay overnight with only a chair to sleep in."

Gibbs took a deep breath, "My team is my family… every single one of them."

The nurse smiled and continued her work. One she was done she walked over to Gibbs, who had gone back to watching McGee, and placed a hand on his cheek, "I guess I was was wrong this time, honey. You are his step-father… Have a good night. Nurses and the doctor may be coming in periodically, but you just rest."

"Thanks."


Gibbs was sound asleep with his legs propped up on the hospital bed. His head was leaning back in a position that he would come to regret when he woke up.

"No, no, no,no…" Tim began to whisper in his sleep, "Get me out." The whispering became louder, "Get me out. Get me out! Get me out!"

Gibbs eyes popped open and, as soon as he realized what was going on, he jumped up and ran over to Tim, "McGee. McGee, wake up."

Tears began to fall out of Tim's closed eyes, "Please, get me out!"

Gibbs took a hold of Tim's shoulder, "McGee! Wake up!"

Tim's eyes opened quickly and he gasped. He began looking around the room, "Where am I?"

"You're at the hospital," Gibbs replied as he slowly let go of Tim, "You've been here since yesterday evening."

Tim looked at Gibbs strangely, as though he was putting everything together in his mind, "You… You saved me. You, Tony, and Ziva… you found me."

"Yeah."

"I… I was buried in some sort of box."

Gibbs nodded, "But you're fine now."

Tim went to rub his eyes, but stopped when he noticed the bandages covering his hands, "I did this," He said in a sort of awe.

"When you were trying to get out."

"It hurts."

"Does anything else hurt?"

Tim thought for a moment, "My head, and… my legs ache… My whole body aches."

"That's probably from barely being able to move for almost forty-eight hours."

"Forty-eight? That's it?"

"I'm sure it seemed like a lot more."

Tim nodded, "A whole lot more."

"You want me to call the nurse and get you some pain meds? It'll help you sleep."

"No," He answered quickly, "No, I don't want it."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

Gibbs had a look of concern on his face. Tim was being so monotone and emotionless. He had stopped crying the second he woke up and he never acknowledged the tears, or the nightmare.

His thoughts were interrupted by someone stepping into the room. "Abby? What are you doing here? It's four in the morning." Gibbs asked as she stood in the doorway.

"I couldn't sleep. How's-" She looked over at Tim, "He's awake!" She ran over to him, "Timmy, how are you? Can I give you a hug?"

He looked up at her, "I'm okay. Yes, you can."

His short and direct answers confused her. She expected him to be filled with enthusiasm and joy. She smiled, hiding her true feelings, and embraced him in a warm hug. It took him a moment before he returned it, but he finally did, giving her a small squeeze, "Ow!"

She pulled back, "I'm sorry. What did I do?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, nothing. It's just my hand. I'm fine."

"Are you sure, Timmy?"

He smiled at her for a moment, showing his first emotion since he woke, "Yeah, I'm sure. Thanks for the hug."

"Anytime, Timmy."

Just as soon as the emotion came, it went. He looked down at his hands and stared, ignoring both Gibbs and Abby's watchful eyes.

Abby walked over to Gibbs, "He seems so… different," She whispered.

"He's been through a lot, Abbs," Gibbs replied, "Just give it some time."

Abby took a deep breath. She hated keeping such a big secret from Gibbs. She knew he needed to know what Tim tried to do, but she had told Tim she wouldn't tell... and she didn't want to hurt her Timmy either. She just hoped that not telling wasn't hurting Tim even more.


So, it took me an hour to go through all of my reviews last night... Funnest hour EVER! You guys are so amazing! Thank you for reviewing.

And yes, I did say I probably wouldn't write today, but I ended up not taking the SAT. My mom decided it would be pointless because I already got the score I needed from the ACT. So, whether i went or not, it would be a waste of money. So, I wrote half of this chapter until 1:30 this morning, and the rest of it from 9-11:30 this morning. Please review and let me know what you think!