Not Beta'd; Standard Disclaimer applies

Moving and Standing (S6)

Tony had given some serious thought to McGee's question before realizing, that yes, he often did share everything with them. In fact, Kate had often said that he shared too much. There might be one or two little things he didn't share, but if he didn't share something, it was usually because he couldn't, like an undercover assignment, not because he didn't want to. And he definitely would have told his teammates if he had become a father or had moved. So why hadn't McGee told them? Perhaps it was because of where he moved to?

"So, Probie, you moved," Tony stated, "Do we already have your new address?" He asked, his eyes quickly darting to Gibbs's desk.

Tim frowned, "Why would you have my new address?" He asked, bewildered. "Unless Abby share that information with everyone as well," he angrily snapped.

"Uh, no," Tony replied, not used to dealing with an angry Probie. Annoyed and frustrated, yes, but Tim usually didn't get angry…and never at Abby. "So, if you didn't move for love, why did you move?"

"It was a labor of love," Tim snapped, before feeling guilty about his reactions, after all, Tony was just asking questions. And maybe he did owe them something Tim thought deciding to answer. "A couple of reasons," he began, before explaining. "My place was too small as it was, add in two babies and all their paraphernalia..." he let his voice trailed off rather than state the obvious.

Tony snorted, "That's for sure. Don't know why you stayed there so long," he commented.

"Because it was so small, it was cheap," Tim stated. "Oh, I could've afforded something bigger," he informed them, when a look of worry overcame his coworker's face. "But paying less rent allowed me to save more money. After all, we practically lived here, why pay so much for a place I spent so little time in? I figured my next move would be because I was buying a house," he added.

"Not to mention the fact that I hate moving, it's such a pain. Packing, loading everything in a truck, driving it to the new place, lugging it all in, unpacking," Tim shook his head. "Took almost all day," he added. "I moved almost two months ago and not only haven't I unpacked everything, but my new furniture still hasn't been delivered," he shared. "I really wanted this next move to be the last one, or at least for it to be quite a while before I had to do it again"

Tony looked at him, "You could've had more help If you told us what was going on," he commented. "We, your team, could've had you packed, loaded, and completely unpacked in hours."

"So, did you buy a house?" Ziva asked before Tim could respond to Tony's words.

Tim scrunched his nose, "No," he said before explaining, "couldn't find a house I liked that was big enough."

Tony raised an eyebrow, "But you found an apartment big enough?" He asked skeptically.

Tim shrugged, "Big enough for now," he stated. "The kids are fine sharing a room at this age, as they get older, they'll need to separate," he explained.

"So, what? You're looking for a three bedroom house?"

Tim shrugged, "Got a three bedroom apartment. With a house I would like at least four, plus a study," he explained. "With a yard, a porch, near a good school, and a park," he added. "A nice kitchen would be good, open floor plan. Would love it if there was a play room."

Tony snorted, "Yeah, no wonder why you couldn't find one you like."

Tim shrugged, not shy about his expectations. "I plan on being there a while, if not forever, so yeah. Might have to find something close enough and add on or renovate," he admitted. "Just didn't have time right now since I didn't want the kids living in a construction zone."

"That is very sensible of you," Ziva commented, giving Tim a smile.

"What would be sensible is someone telling me they have something," Gibbs commented as he once more returned to his desk.

"DiNozzo?" he asked when no one spoke.

"Checking into his family, no known enemies," Tony replied.

"Ti-McGee?"

"Still looking at the financials," Tim told him, missing the speculative look Tony aimed at him.

"Ziva?"

"I have nothing," Ziva replied.

"We need something," Gibbs growled. "Somebody go see if Abby has anything yet," he commanded glaring at his team when none of them moved.

"McGee?"

Tim pursed his lips and shook his head before tilting his head downward to focus on the screen in front of him.

"I will go," Ziva offered.

As Ziva left, Gibbs gave Tim a worrying look for a moment before he too left the bullpen.

Tony looked down at the piece of paper in front of him checking off one of the items on the list. The paper comprised of a list of everything he had remembered from earlier conversations this morning. The top half had several items listed, some of those were confirmed, like the fact that Probie had moved-though not in with Gibbs. Of course, he could have moved closer to the older man, Tony noted, fully aware of the fact that Tim had not shared his new address with them. He wondered what else he might be able to confirm before Gibbs returned. He took another look at the list

"Fornell?!" Tony suddenly exclaimed causing his teammate to look around for the FBI agent.

"Where?" Tim finally asked when his perusal didn't find Gibbs's friend.

"Your new place apparently," Tony drawled, staring at Tim. "You told an FBI agent before you told your team," his tone accusatory.

"No, I didn't," Tim denied.

"If he helped you move, then yes, you did," Tony argued.

"I didn't," Tim repeated, and before Tony could argue, awkwardly admitted, "Gibbs did."

"Oh," Tony replied. A second later repeating "Oooohhhh," as he looked at Tim knowingly.

Tim rolled his eyes. "Tobias and Emily, his daughter, stopped by Gibbs's place just as he was leaving to help me move and followed him. On the way to my place, Gibbs called me and updated me on the situation, said I could turn them away or not tell them anything, that it was up to me."

"And did you tell them?" Tony asked staring at Tim.

"No," he replied, causing Tony to sigh in relief that Fornell didn't know after all. "But I did give Gibbs permission to fill them in," Tim softly added. "I'm not exactly sure what he shared," he admitted, "But I do know that they were told about the kids, Fornell has helped me out a bit."

Tony looked at his Probie, his voice hopeful, "So if I had happened to show up that day, you would've told me and had me help you move?"

"I...no, probably not," Tim reluctantly admitted.

"I see," Tony replied before walking away without another word or look in Tim's direction.

"Abby! Abby!" Ziva called out over the loud music playing in the lab.

"Ziva! Hi!" the forensic scientist happily greeted her coworker as she turned the music down a notch.

"Gibbs would like to know if you have anything."

Abby shook her head, "Nothing yet," she responded, her focus back on the computer in front of her.

"Oh," Ziva replied, not moving.

"Something else you needed?" Abby asked when the other woman remained silent, just watching her.

"I am just trying to figure out why you did it."

"Did what?" Abby absently asked.

Ziva just glared at her.

"What?" Abby asked again this time turning to face Ziva. "Oh, that," she said seeing the look on the assassin's face. "Like you wouldn't have been curious," Abby stated dismissively turning back to her computer. "I know Tony is," she smirked.

"Curious, yes," Ziva admitted, "But that is no excuse for what you did. A real friend would not have done such things behind Tim's back nor would she have betrayed his confidence like that."

When Abby didn't respond, Ziva continued, "He invited you over to his new place and introduced you to his kids," Ziva stated softly, "Something he had not even told anyone else about. Why do you not see that as the honor it was?"

"I do!" Abby protested, "I didn't know why he had invited me and was a bit nervous, then when I heard a noise in another room, I thought Jethro had puppies. I was so surprised to find two babies behind that door," she stated. "And the kids, they are so adorable! So cute, I just wanted to eat them up," she gushed. "I think only one of them will inherit McGee's green eyes, though," she sadly said, shaking her head at the injustice of the situation.

"So, it was later that you got mad," Ziva stated crossly.

"I didn't get mad," she protested.

"Then why did you share everything you thought in front of the entire bullpen?"

"You guys deserved to know what was going on."

"Do you even know what is going on?" Ziva asked as she raised an eyebrow, her skepticism clearly showing. "We might have deserved to learn the truth," Ziva commented stressing a few words for emphasis, "But not your speculations or theory. Regardless, it should have been up to McGee what to tell us and when, not you. He should have been the one to tell us about his children."

Abby shrugged, not seeing why Ziva was making such a big deal about it.

"Did you even believe your theory yourself?" Ziva asked, staring at Abby. "Or is it part of some scheme you are working at?"

Before she could answer, Ziva's phone rang.

"Yes, Tony?" Ziva asked impatiently as she answered her phone.

"Gibbs wants you back up here, like five minutes ago," Tony said before hanging up.

"I have to go," Ziva said, glaring at Abby as she left. What was Gibbs's problem? How could he expect her back five minutes ago when she had barely left five minutes ago?

She had been rushing towards the bullpen, not wanting to make Gibbs madder when Tony met her in the stairwell.

"Tony!" She yelled, wrenching her arm free, "Let me go. Gibbs is wait-"

"Gibbs isn't there," Tony informed her.

Ziva let out her breath. "Then why did he have you call me and tell me to come back up? I was trying to talk to Abby."

"Did she have something?"

Ziva shook her head, "No."

"Then what were you talking to her about?"

Ziva just looked at him.

"I already did that, so, you can talk to me about that instead."

"I already did that," smirking at him, she echoed his words. Her smile changing to a frown when she caught the look on his face. "Tony, what is going on?"

"Nothing," Tony replied avoiding her gaze.

"Tony,"

The SFA turned and glared at her, "You didn't hear him," Tony snapped. "Fornell followed Gibbs to his house and Probie allowed that…that…that"

"FBI Agent?" Ziva supplied, trying to hide her smirk.

Tony glared at her before continuing, "to help him move and find out about his kids before his own teammates."

Ziva shrugged, "Do not take it personal, I am sure it was just due to the circumstances."

"HA!" Tony scoffed. "It's very personal. I asked him if it was me that had showed up that day instead of Fornell would he have let me help or have told me. He said 'no'," Tony informed her bitterly.

"Maybe you should ask him why that is," Ziva suggested. "Why he was so reluctant to tell us about his girlfriend, the move, his kids."

"I have," Tony protested.

Ziva looked at him, "Not that I have heard," she replied. "You have asked him many things, but not once have you seriously asked him why he didn't tell you about the kids or moving. You have also made snide or rude comments, teased him, laughed at him, to-"

"Okay, I get it, you can stop now."

Ziva shrugged. "All I am saying is that it certainly would not hurt for you to be nicer when talking to Timothy."

"Doesn't matter," Tony muttered. "I know why. Obviously, he doesn't care about us or the team anymore, he's got his own family now."

Ziva shook her head, "Rule 8," she reminded him. "Do not assume that you know the facts."

Tony rolled his eyes, "That's the only thing I can do since he won't talk to us about anything," he grunted.

"If you will not ask McGee, then perhaps you should ask yourself why that is," Ziva stated, before leaving Tony alone to think about things.

Heading back to the bullpen, Tony and Ziva slowed their approach when they heard voices,

"I need to know where you stand with Abby,"

"As far away as possible," Tim immediately muttered before he could censor himself.

Gibbs stared at the younger man in surprise. He was slightly surprised by the anger that was still present, Tim usually didn't hold onto that for long, but what he was really surprised at was the fact that Tim's words were so acidic. Usually he was of the can't say something nice, don't say anything school of thought.

"Tim," Gibbs said softly,

"Look, I know how you feel about her, but it might be best for our relationship if you don't ask me that right now," Tim admitted. "Right now, I would be very happy if I never have to see her, talk to her, or deal with her again."

Gibbs closed his eyes, he had warned Abby that she might have gone to far this time.

"I just can't believe she-" Tim stopped himself before he said anything else. He knew Gibbs didn't want others to know, and there were always listening ears around the bullpen. "Damn it!" He hissed. "Why did I think I could trust her? Why did I even introduce her to my kids? Anyone else would've been a better choice," he stated. "Ducky, definitely; Jimmy, sure; Ziva, eh, why not; hell, even Tony probably would've been better," Tim muttered.

"Tim," Gibbs repeated softly, "are you going to be able to work with her on this case? On future cases if needed?"

"Of course," Tim replied, trying to keep the hurt out of his voice. Did Gibbs really think that he would put his own feelings above that of the victims or their families?

Gibbs looked at him, "You didn't go down earlier."

Tim glared at the older man, "And I couldn't believe that you asked me to," he snapped. "Yeah, sometimes the lab is a sanctuary for me, a place to get away from Tony, Ziva, and their antics, but seriously? After everything that happened today, after learning what Abby did, you expected me to just merrily skip down there when it wasn't necessary and pretend nothing had changed?"

"What do you mean not necessary?" Gibbs confronted him, "We needed to know if she had anything."

"You could have called, or had one of us do that, or, as Ziva demonstrated, someone else could've gone down. It didn't have to be me, even if it usually had been in the past."

"Did you really want to give Tony a chance to talk to Abby?"

"But you ordered her not to talk to anyone," Tim stated sweetly, "Are you saying that you expect Abby not to follow your orders?"

Gibbs didn't respond, causing Tim to smirk for a moment at that slight victory.

"And I don't care what she says anymore, it doesn't matter, as you said, the cat's out of the bag now, I just need to deal with it."

"That's not,"

"Don't, just don't, Gibbs," Tim injected, cutting off the older man's response. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do, want to make sure I'm giving 200 per cent after all," he added as he stood up.

"Tim," Gibbs's voice was filled with regret only to be ignored by the younger man leaving the bullpen.

After Tim had stormed out, Tony had quickly changed directions, leaving Ziva to enter the bullpen alone, contemplating what she had overheard.

"Abby did not have anything yet," she informed the SSA as she approached her desk.

"Gibbs?" she called when he did not respond. "Are you okay?"

"Ziva," he returned, shaking himself out of his thoughts. "Did Abby give you something that will help us break this case?"

"No," Ziva replied, shaking her head, "She did not have anything."

Gibbs snorted, "Of course not," he muttered.

"Are you okay?" she repeated her question from earlier.

Gibbs glared at her, "We have an unsolved case, no leads, half my team is not here, all of them seem to care more about the latest scuttlebutt than work, so, no, I am not okay," Gibbs snapped.

Ziva looked at him for a moment.

"What?" He snapped.

"We are trying with this case," she began. "And it is only natural that sometimes our minds drift to what occurred here this morning," she admitted. "It is clear that something is going on, and while it might not be as Abby said, the fact that no one will talk about it makes it even more obvious."

Gibbs just glared at her, "And none of that matters to your victim and his families," he snapped before turning and glaring at the empty desks of her teammates. After a few minutes, he returned to his desk, the scowl on his face deepening with every moment that passed without his entire team present.

"Trouble in Paradise, Probie?" Tony asked when Tim stomped out of the bullpen.

"Hmph," Tim snorted as began to he push past the other man, "Paradise is gone, if it ever existed in the first place," he muttered.

He had really thought his relationship with Gibbs had been changing these last few months. The older man had been patient, helpful, even talkative, Tim thought since informed about his agent's upcoming fatherhood. He honestly didn't know if he could've survived the last few months without him; without the help and support Gibbs had provided. And the last few weeks, Tim thought. The first night he was home alone with the twins, Gibbs had rang his doorbell to check in on him, Tim had been confused, had even asked the older man if he was there because they needed Tim for a case. Gibbs had stared at him in surprise before sharing that he was there to help Tim. Tim had actually begun looking forward to his visits, and not just because it meant he would be able to get some sleep, a shower, or even five minutes of peace. He had begun to see the man how he suspected Abby, Tony, and even Ziva had seen him, as a father figure.

He should've know that it wasn't going to last, that at the first sign of conflict with one of his 'real' kids, Tim would be the one left to hang, the one pushed aside.

Tim was jolted out of his musings by the beeping of phones.

"Uh-oh," Tony muttered looking at his phone. "Ziva's telling us to get back to the bullpen pronto. Gibbs is on the warpath,"

Tim sighed as he read the same message and turned around, what else could this day bring?

"'Bout time you two got back," Gibbs snapped as Tim and Tony entered the bullpen and headed to their desks, Tim mouthing a thank you to Ziva for the warning.

The three agents exchanged looks, looked like it was going to be one of those cases, they realized.

"Well? Why don't we have anything yet?"

"We're working on it, boss," Tony replied.

Gibbs snorted, "Really? You've spent more time away from your desk today than at it," he accused.

"Well, I would say something I ate disagreed with me, but I haven't eaten anything yet," he stated.

Gibbs glared at him, "And how do you think our victim and his family is doing right now? Do you think they're sitting down to a nice meal?" He retorted before addressing another member of his team.

"McGee?" Gibbs asked. "What's your excuse?"

Tim glared at the older man. "The day hasn't exactly gone how I thought it would, I just needed a little break,"

Gibbs shook his head, "I'm sure our victim and his family didn't expect the day to go like this either. And unless we get a lead soon and solve this case, no one will be getting a break, let alone going home."

Tim groaned. Great, his first day leaving his kids and he might not even get home today. He knew that they would get these type of cases, that there would be days like this, he just didn't expect it to be so soon.

8-10-19