Disclaimer : I own nothing, but the typos.

Warnings : Rated T for violence and language.

Author's Note : Thanks to everyone who's read, favorited, and followed. And a huge thanks to everyone who reviewed! It was great to see what you guys think of the story.

Here marks the beginning of the end. Enjoy!

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Thursday, January 15, 2015 - 12:51am - St. Boniface Medical Center Emergency Department – Washington, DC –

Gibbs haunts the hallway outside his team's hospital room, too afraid to enter in case he might wake them, but too anxious to let them out of his sight again. Sighing, he leans against the door frame to watch them. Even though they're sleeping in the most uncomfortable positions imaginable, they look so peaceful.

Tony's propped up in the bed, his face a disconcerting mélange of butterfly sutures and jet-black bruises. Bandages hide so many stitches that Gibbs stopped counting after a hundred because he didn't want to – couldn't – know how many times Mishnev drove his blade into Tony.

The senior agent's slinged right arm is a testament not only to that, but to Tony's damn blind luck. Another inch to the left on that one cut, the doctor said, and it would've nicked the nerve bundle and, possibly, the brachial artery. Then Tony would've lost, at best, the use of his shooting arm. And at worst, -

No, Gibbs can't bear to think about that.

The brain contusion is bad enough.

Scrubbing his hand across his chin, he forces his gaze on Ellie and Tim. Nothing more than bumps and bruises, their injuries look far worse than they really are. Just a couple of days of rest, the doctor promised, and things will heal quickly from there. Less than a week, and his agents'll be back to active duty.

Looking at them now, Gibbs doesn't know whether he believes it. The youngest members of his team look so battered and so damaged in the dim glare of the television that he thinks they might be broken.

Curled up in a chair, Ellie sleeps with her knees to her chest. Her right arm hangs free to accommodate the IV buried at the crook of her elbow. Her golden hair cascades over her face, hiding her black eye and the splotchy bruises across her cheeks.

Tim managed to spread out in his seat with his head propped up against the back of his chair. His feet just graze Tony's, like they still need to, even in sleep, remind each other of their presence. His twin black eyes glow an angry purple.

So this is what my revenge almost cost me.

Licking his lips, Gibbs sinks deeper against the wall.

The bullet he put in Mishnev brought him everything he could have ever wanted, dredging up the memories of the hill where he sniped Shannon and Kelly's killer all over again. But this time…this time was different. This time he experienced everything he expected to feel that day twenty years ago: closure, the ability to let his loved ones rest, a sense of finality. Peace.

But to see the consequences of his actions written across his team's faces brings another surge of guilt.

He almost lost them.

"I made a mistake today," he whispers.

"You're damn right."

Blinking, Gibbs turns to find the heavyset nurse from earlier next to him. She hides masked concern underneath her anger. "You escaped on my time, Agent Gibbs. I haven't had a jailbreak in fifteen years. But I guess – " she sneaks a peek into the agents' room " – it might've been worth it."

He nods. Hosting a jailbreak from the Emergency Department was certainly worth recovering his agents alive and well. Even being stuck in the ED under armed guard with this nurse might be worth it. But when she grips his arm, he debates about signing out AMA instead.

One of the leads from his EKG slips out from underneath his hospital gown and he tucks it back into his scrub pants. She clenches her jaw and rolls her eyes as though he's the worst patient ever.

Just wait 'til DiNozzo wakes up, lady.

The nurse jerks her chin towards the empty room up the hall. "We should get you hooked back up, Agent Gibbs. The doctor wants to confirm that taser didn't injure your heart."

He gives his team one last, long look. "I don't think it did."

"Yeah, you might be right, but – " her broad smile chases away the anger as she drags him back to bed " - it's doctor's orders. And don't think I'm letting you out of my sight again."

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3:23am - St. Boniface Medical Center Emergency Department – Washington, DC –

"…almost died, Tony," Ellie whispers, her voice muffled and broken. The way she sounds is all messed up and wrong.

Tim stays still in his chair, pretending to be asleep. He assumes Ellie and Tony are having some sort of meaningful conversation, sharing secrets like they do sometimes. For all he knows, they've been at this for hours. Maybe he'll be lucky and fall asleep again.

"It happens sometimes, Bishop." Tony's tone is surprisingly serious. "Wait until it happens a few more times. Then you won't even notice it."

She laughs hollowly. "I won't want to get used to it. That was…"

"The most terrifying thing you've ever been through in your entire life?"

"Yeah, yeah." She sighs like everything's too much to bear. "The whole time I just kept thinking what would happen if I never got a chance to say goodbye to Jake. We had a huge fight before I left this morning." She sighs again. "And do you want to know the worst part?"

"What?"

"I don't even remember what we were fighting about. Could you imagine if that was his last memory of me?" She pauses for a long time. "That would be his last memory of us?"

"Then tell him that when you see him."

"Tell him what?"

"That you were about to die and all you could think about was him." It's Tony's turn to laugh. "Trust me, significant others eat that kind of stuff up."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah."

They grow quiet, leaving on the quiet beep of Tony's heart rate monitor to be their conversation. The strong and steady pulse fills the room, lulling Tim back to sleep. Just as he starts to drift away again, Ellie jerks her chair closer to the bed and the metal shrieks across the linoleum. Tim's body tenses.

"Shit, Bishop," Tony says, "that's not helping my headache."

"I don't want to wake up McGee."

Tim relaxes in his chair, tries to even out his breath. Adrenaline courses through his veins again, readying him for fight or flight. With the direction this conversation's taking, he'd prefer flight. Or maybe he'll just pretend to stay asleep.

Yeah, that's a great plan.

"I'd be surprised if you didn't wake up everyone in the hospital, let alone McGoo." Both of them laugh quietly, obviously comfortable in their silence until Tony says: "Ellie, what is it? You keep looking at me like something's on your mind."

She emits a strangled cough. "How do you make it work, Tony?"

The heart rate monitor's beeping increases. "The easy answer is that I don't."

"What about Zoe?"

"Sometimes I don't know what she's still doing with me." He shifts in the bed, rustling his hospital gown. "I cancel on her all the time, fall asleep while we're on the phone every night. And that's if I even remember to call her. I should be asking you how to make it work."

She clears her throat. "It used to be so easy. College was cake and so was grad school. Then we got picked up by the NSA and it was perfect. A couple of beers after work while we discussed our active cases used to be our nightly wind-down. After I transferred to NCIS, we just stopped talking."

"You have to talk to each other."

"We do, but we don't really." She lets out a huff. "I don't know how else to explain it."

"You say words that don't mean anything," Tony says sagely. "Like going through motions."

"Yeah. How did you know?"

He snorts, but buries it in a low cough. "It happened to me once. It felt like I was sleepwalking for years. Then all of a sudden, it just got better."

"What'd you do?"

"I woke up," he says. "I learned the limits of the job and only then could I be honest with the person I really cared about. I can be open with Zoe and it works for now."

"I'm glad that men's support group is working for you," Ellie replies, a smile in her voice.

A long pause before he whispers: "How did you know about that?"

"McGee told me."

Even though Tim feels two sets of eyes bore into him, he just keeps pretending to be asleep. Maybe if he's lucky, he'll pass out again right now. He can't help but feel like, against his best intentions, he trespasses into this private conversation.

Tony's foot taps his, as though to say payback is imminent, but Tim still doesn't move.

"Did Dr. McPhil tell you about his relationship secrets, Bishop?" Tim grits his teeth, but stays still. "Long distance gives you the perks of a relationship, but without all the work. Plus, every time you're together, it feels like a vacation."

"So you're saying I should ship Jake off somewhere warm."

"Why stop there? Pick a place with a really good beach." There's a short pause. "Doesn't the NSA have a place in the Virgin Islands? Do you think he'd spend the day in the sun or actually working?"

She giggles. "It's a toss-up, but he would probably be at the beach all day."

Tim jerks his head up. "Hey, Delilah's actually working in Dubai. She isn't goofing - "

His voice dies in his throat when he notices the cat-ate-the-canary grins his teammates share. He played right into their trap. He leans back against the chair, lets his eyes roll towards the ceiling.

Son of a bitch. I have to stop doing that.

"I knew you weren't asleep, McSleepingBeauty," Tony says.

"Yes, I was."

He shoots Tim a skeptical glance. "And you woke up just in time to defend the honor of your long distance girlfriend?'

Underneath the bruises, Tim's cheeks blaze. He waits just a second too long to say, "Yeah."

Both Tony and Ellie roll their eyes and laugh, but he decides not to add his two cents about their earlier conversation. Instead, he pushes higher in his seat and drops his feet to the ground. They feel like they weigh thousands of pounds as the pins and needles prick their way through them. He rubs his hands against his thighs, encouraging the blood flow to return.

"Has anybody seen Gibbs yet?" Tim asks.

"He came by earlier while you actually were asleep," Tony says.

Tim returns the snark with a scowl. Before he has a chance for a retort, there's a heavy knock on the door. All of them glance up to find Ellie's husband, Jake Malloy, in the doorway. His eyes are red-rimmed behind his glasses and his suit is rumpled, his tie loosened.

"I came as soon as I heard," he says. "I got stuck in a deposition and I missed your phone calls."

His cheeks go pale and he stares at Ellie as though she might be a ghost. She's on her feet and in his arms within seconds, taking the IV pole with her.

"I'm just so glad you're okay," he murmurs.

"I'm fine. Everything's fine." She glances over her shoulder at Tim and Tony. "These pretty awesome people at work have my six these days, while someone even more impressive – " she smiles up at Jake " – has it at home. All I wanted to do today was see you again."

He gapes at her as he shoves his glasses higher. Then he yanks Ellie into a hug so tight it seems impossible for them to break. As though he'll never be able to let her go. He closes his eyes and his face goes slack as he melts into her.

When he glances over at Tony, Tim's eyebrow rises. Pride is as much a part of the senior agent's face as the bruises and the stitches. They share a knowing smile before they glance back to their probie.

After what feels like forever, Jake and Ellie separate from their embrace, but he keeps a protective arm around her waist as they turn to the male agents.

"They're discharging Ellie," he says, swallowing hard, "and you too, Tim. You're welcome to come spend the night at our place. It's the least we can do."

"We've got a really comfy guest bed, McGee." Ellie's eyes light up. "And Jake makes a mean pancake."

"Blueberry, rhubarb, and bacon," he says, as though it could seal the deal.

Just thinking about the crimes Jake commits against breakfast food turns Tim's stomach. When he hazards a glance at Tony, the senior agent is busy inspecting his sling, so he looks back to Ellie and Jake.

Smiling politely, he shakes his head. "I think I'll stay here."

"Are you sure? The hospital won't discharge you unless you go home with someone who can take care of you." 'You have no one else to take you,' goes implied, but unspoken.

Tim presses his lips together and shakes his head anyway. He'll deal with the whole 'out of area next of kin' thing when he has to. Right now, he just needs to be with Tony.

Jake nods slowly. "Call Ellie tomorrow when you two get discharged. You'll stay with us as long as you need to."

"Only if you promise not to make us pancakes," Tony says.

Jake's eyes go wide. "What? Who doesn't – "

"It's okay, sweetie," Ellie assures as she leads him from the room. "You can make me pancakes."

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Up Next: Time for some Tim and Tony bonding.