Hey! Lookie there! A second chapter this week! :D Some more NSFW stuff in this chapter. Kinda took a fun leap, and I hope you like it!
Chapter 19
Vance debated with himself for a few minutes after watching the video. It was touch and go. The saving grace was the point where you can audibly hear Critten say, "This time don't let me pin you." That made it sound like a fighting lesson. And the fight continued after the kick to the head. It looked painful, but not so much that they should've stopped the fight. The problem was that the fight had continued at all after the broken nose. Usually, in their gym, once blood has been shed the fight stopped. It's not a written rule, but rather an unspoken understanding between the agents.
He knew he was being biased though. Sommers had never struck him as an exemplary agent, and his constant trouble making with sexual harassment and his antagonistic approach to the Gibbses made him almost a villain. Critten on the other hand had most definitely become exemplary over the past few months and he had great hopes that the younger man would make big waves in the organization one day. He was smart, innovative, coming into his own as a leader, and political. However, he was also very protective when it came to his team and Gibbs'. There would be no doubts in anyone's mind about where his allegiances lay.
Coming to him directly though with the admission showed integrity and courage. He wasn't trying to hide behind the pretense that it was an accident that he kicked Sommers in the head. Vance knew that he wasn't going to lie about it when asked. He just had to coach him not to give up more than asked, because the guilt and shame he obviously felt was being pushed out there for the world to see.
He sighed and picked up his phone. This was the worst part of it. He opened the app and searched through the menu before he found what he was looking for. It didn't take long.
"Leon?" Jethro asked.
"Sorry to interrupt the honeymoon, Gibbs. We have a situation you need to be aware of."
"What's going on?" he asked. Suddenly Tony joined him in the frame of the video from over Jethro's shoulder. They were sitting outside at some kind of café or restaurant with a beautiful sunset in the background, and Vance felt the pang of regret that he was delivering this kind of news while they were on their trip.
"Good, you've got Tony with you. You both need to hear this."
"That doesn't sound good, Director," Tony said with a grimace.
"It's not. This morning there was a sparring match between Agents Critten and Sommers."
"Please tell me he didn't kill him," Tony said with a painful expression.
"Well, after the fight everything was fine, but now Sommers has been taken to the hospital with what sounds like a bad concussion. He passed out in the bullpen and is unresponsive. They think he's slipping into a coma."
"Shit," Tony said under his breath.
They were silent for a minute.
"How's Critten taking it?" Jethro asked.
Vance almost smiled at the concern. "Not well. He's with him at the hospital. Actually, I'm pretty sure both teams went. My bullpen is empty."
"I'd expect so, Director," Tony said. "Sommers may be a dick, but he's still a member of the team. None of us would let him go alone."
"And none of Tony's men would let Critten sit there and wait for bad news alone."
"I fully expected it," Vance said.
"We'll be on the next flight we can get," Tony said.
"I was afraid you would say that," Vance said. He started typing something into his computer while Tony and Jethro watched. "Looks like there's one that leaves out tomorrow at noon. I'll make arrangements for you to be on it."
"We can just get our tickets transferred," Tony said.
"Not for this one you can't. I'm getting you on a cargo plane into Norfolk. I'll have someone meet you there with a car." Both men nodded.
"I'm going to call McGee," Jethro said.
"And I'll call Critten," Tony echoed.
"Please do. I'm sure they both need it right now. I should warm you that Agent Critten is taking this very personally, but I've reviewed video from the match, and there was no indication that the blow to the head had that kind of impact." Tony nodded again. "And gentlemen, I'm sorry for ruining your honeymoon. We'll make it up to you."
"Let's just take it one day at a time, Leon," Jethro said with a nod. "We'll call in that favor one day."
"Understood," Vance said with a smirk.
They hung up and Tony looked at Jethro. "I'm so sorry, Jethro."
"Not your fault."
"But it's the result of what one of my guys did, and now our honeymoon is being cut short."
"We both knew that fight was going to go down, and we did nothing to stop it. And with Amira being mad at us, I'm kind of relieved to be going home."
Tony smiled at him. "I had the same thought. Okay, I'm going to call Critten. He's probably a mess right now."
"And McGee is probably having a meltdown."
Tony returned to his seat at the table of the patio café at the hotel and called Elly. The phone was answered on the second ring and the video kicked in to expose a very pale Elly. He was obviously distraught.
"Boss!" Elly said, the panic in his voice. "Boss, I did something… and…"
"Whoa! Calm down, Elly. I just heard from the director. I know what happened."
"Then you know I did this! I-"
"Stop! Tony almost growled. "You need to stop saying that right now. There are risks we take when we spar and he knew what they were. You did too. But unless someone asks you directly what happened, I don't want you to talk about it until I get there. Do you understand me?"
"Until- until you get here?" Elly asked in confusion. He stopped bouncing and looked at the phone's camera with shock. "You're coming home?"
"Of course we're coming home. You need me and Sommers needs Jethro."
"But- but it's your honeymoon!" Elly protested.
"There are much more important things than sightseeing and hotel romance, and I'm looking at them."
Elly reached up to wipe his eyes. They sat in silence for a long minute. "I- I didn't mean for this-"
"I know, Elly. It's going to be okay." There was a long few seconds of silence. "Do you believe me?"
Elly shuddered and wiped his eyes again, but nodded.
"Where are you?" Tony asked quietly.
"In the waiting room at the hospital. Ducky is trying to work it out so I can go back there with him."
"Do you think that's the best thing?"
Elly nodded. "He'd opened up to me about why he is the way he is. I want to be there for him."
Tony's eyebrows arched and he pulled his head back a little in surprise. "So, why is he the way he is?"
Elly swallowed. "He doesn't want to be an agent. He's only in law enforcement because of his dad. And Ducky told me that what he really wants to do is forensics."
"Wow, I… I wouldn't have expected that."
"Yeah. I know. I'd told him earlier that he had until tomorrow morning to decide if he wants to be on the team any more, and that if he really did, if he was really going to let us in, then I'd work it out so that everyone gave him a second chance."
"A big promise."
"The thing is, I think he really needs it."
"Well, let's just take this one day at a time and see what happens. We're getting on a flight into Norfolk tomorrow at noon. Call me if anything changes, and don't beat yourself up over this. Vance said that the video doesn't show any reason why the fight should've stopped after the blow to the head. He was a boxer, you know. If he doesn't see a reason why you should've stopped, then you're probably good."
"Oh! I needed to hear that so bad! Thanks for telling me!" Elly started crying again, only this time with a smile to his lips. The relief was palpable.
"We'll get through this."
Elly nodded and looked back at the phone. "I'm sorry you have to come home, but I'm really glad you are, Boss."
"Yeah, I kinda am too."
"Really?" Elly asked in surprise.
"Yeah. This has been great, but I miss Amira, and you guys."
"Awww… I know Amira will be ecstatic that you're coming home. Sierra will be, too. She's agreed to keep Amira for us tonight so I can stay at the hospital."
"Who is with you?"
"Everyone but Jimmy and Abby. They stayed back to hold down the fort."
Tony nodded. "Hang in there, kiddo. Call me later and update me, and call me as soon as possible if he wakes up."
"I will. Thanks, Boss."
"Not a problem."
Tony looked at Jethro who was talking to Tim as he leaned against the railing that looked out over the city. He took his phone back out and got a picture of him with the sunset as a backdrop, then got up and joined him.
"Yeah, McGee. I'll see you tomorrow night."
He hung up the phone and Tony leaned against the railing next to him. "What did he say?"
"That Critten is freaking out, but he was too. I could tell. He was trying not to care, but he did. What did Critten say?"
"That it was all his fault. He also told me that he got Sommers to open up to him earlier. Said that he never wanted to be an agent, but wanted to make his dad proud. Wanted to do forensics."
"Huh. Wouldn't have guessed that," Jethro said, turning to lean against the railing in with his back instead of his stomach.
"Yeah. He also said that he told him that he had until the morning to decide if he was going to stay on the team and that if he chose to, he'd make everyone give him a second chance."
Jethro let out a small bark of a laugh. "Kid's got balls, I'll give him that."
"Yeah, but he seemed to think Sommers genuinely deserves that second chance. And now he's in a coma. Funny how life does that."
"Yeah."
Jethro looked at the message that came through on his phone as it chimed at him. He squinted, holding it out from his face to read it, then smiled. She'd come through for him.
"What?" Tony asked, an eyebrow quirked in curiosity.
"It's a surprise," Jethro said with a smile and wink.
"Oh?" Tony asked. "What type of surprise?"
"We're going to make the most of our last night in Italy."
"Oh? A night on the town to forget about this disaster?"
"This is something special that we can't do back in the States," he said.
"Okay," Tony said, turning towards Jethro. "I'll bite. What should I wear?"
Jethro thought about it for a minute, then picked up his phone and texted her back.
Dress code? He asked. She replied that it was up to him, just don't come in looking like a bum. She continued giving him instructions on what to do when he got there and what to expect.
"Dress nicely?" Jethro said, unsure of what to say that wouldn't give away the surprise.
Tony chuckled. "Okay. I'm sure you'll tell me if I'm not dressed appropriately."
"And take anything I don't like off of you," Jethro murmured before turning and resting his hands on Tony's hips.
"Don't give me any ideas," Tony said with a bright and disarming smile. "We won't make it to your mystery location."
********WDYG?********
Ned went with the rest of the team to the cafeteria to find some food and was gone when Elly had gotten the call from Tony, so he'd gotten word from Tim that their bosses were coming home. He sighed in relief. He needed Tony there. He had no idea how to help calm Elly down. His solution was to go get him a Mountain Dew and some fruity Danish. He lucked out and found a lemon one, and was heading back up to Elly when his phone chimed. He tucked the Mountain Dew under his armpit and balanced the Danish on top of the coffee he'd gotten for himself as he reached for his phone. To his surprise, it was Other Ellie.
Ellie: Just had a breakdown. I feel better. Told my dad I want to be an NCIS agent.
Ned's eyes lit up and he started texting back.
Ned: I'm sorry that you had a breakdown, but it's totally understandable. I'm glad you feel better, and I'm psyched to hear that you want to join our crew!
Ellie: Yeah, I think it's what I need to do.
Ned: Well, we're in the middle of a situation. You know how Elly kicked Sommers' ass in the gym this morning? He apparently gave him a concussion. He passed out at work and now he's in a coma at the hospital.
Ellie: OMG! That's horrible! Poor Sommers! Poor Elly!
Ned: Yeah. He's freaking out pretty bad. And it's so bad that our bosses are coming home early from their honeymoon.
Ellie: Yikes!
Ned: Yeah… we're all at the hospital.
Ellie: Tell Elly that I'm thinking about him. What's everyone's reactions? Are they coming down on him pretty hard?
Ned: What?! Of course not! We know he didn't mean for something like this to happen. We've all got his back. And Sommers may be a prick, but we're all feeling really guilty because we orchestrated today's fight with the intention of watching him get his ass kicked.
Ellie: Wow. If something like that would've happened at NSA, everyone would be pointing fingers and isolating Elly, and there would be so much blame game going on. You guys really are something else.
Ned: Really? Well, just goes to show that you belong here with us.
Ned reached Elly finally and gave him the Dew and the Danish. He smiled and gave him a quick kiss of thanks.
"Tony is coming home!" he announced excitedly.
"Yeah!" Ned said, sitting down next to him. "Gibbs One called McGee. I'm so relieved."
"Yeah, me too."
"I bet!"
Greg flopped down on the other side of Elly and started talking to him, and Ned looked back at his phone as it chimed.
Ellie: I know that you meant that I belong at NCIS, but I can't help but feel like I should be there at the hospital with you guys. I can remember when you guys found me at the warehouse that Sommers took his jacket off and put it around me as I sat on the ground with Ziva. It's weird, but I'm worried about him.
Ned twisted his lip between his teeth and texted back.
Ned: Well… you'd be welcome, but you need to take care of yourself right now. You've gotta process all of this.
Ellie: Yeah, I do.
Ellie: But I feel safe with you guys.
Ned smiled at that.
"What are you smiling at?" Elly asked quietly.
"Ellie is texting me," he said, and handed the phone off to him for him to read the messages.
Elly smiled at it, then frowned. "Well, the position on Gibbs' team isn't available yet."
"May become available," Ned said. "We don't know yet if Gibbs is going to fire Sommers. Won't know that until he wakes up and the bosses get home."
Elly's face scrunched up. "Or, you know, if he never wakes up."
"He's going to wake up," Greg said confidently.
"What are you talking about?" Ziva asked from the seats across from them.
"Ellie Bishop wants to join NCIS. We were encouraging her to take Sommers' place when he got fired," Ned said.
Ziva nodded. "Could be a good fit," she agreed. "She's smart and capable, but she is going to need some time to handle everything that just happened to her."
"Well… that's not all." Elly said sheepishly, then told them about his ultimatum in the morgue earlier that day and what he'd found out about Sommers.
"A big promise," Parke said.
"Yes, but if Elly thinks that we should give him another chance, then I would not be opposed to trying," Ziva said with a small smile for Elly. "I have picked up on some of this tension over the past week myself. He is not a happy man."
"No, he's not," Elly said with a nod for Ziva of thanks for the support.
Ducky came out to join them in the lobby with one of the doctors. They all got to their feet to hear what had to be said.
"Hello everyone," Ducky greeted. "This is Dr. Shandra. She's got some information for you on Agent Sommers."
"Hello," she said with a small wave of greeting. "As you know, Kyle is in a coma from the concussion he received, but the good news is that there is a lot of brain activity. We fully expect him to wake up. We were able to relieve some of the pressure on his brain with a drainage tube. It was minimally invasive and we're watching for any additional pressure to build, but so far we haven't seen any. There was a slight fracture to the back of his skull, but we expect that to heal fine. Right now we're just waiting to see if the drainage was all that was needed, but we should know in the next 24 hours whether we need to take additional measures. We have him on some medications, and he's as comfortable as possible. We're playing a waiting game right now."
Everyone was relieved to hear the news, but Elly was so relieved he turned to rest his head on Ned's shoulder, and as he did so, Ned pulled him into a hug.
"I understand you'd like to see him. It should be okay for you to go back one at a time and someone can stay with him if you'd like."
Elly's head snapped up. "Me. I'll stay with him."
The doctor nodded, a little confused by the adamance.
"Elly can go see him first, and then we'll rotate out and then Elly can stay with him," Tim said.
The doctor nodded again. "Dr. Mallard assures me he can oversee this. Kyle is lucky to have a great support network like you."
"Thanks, Doctor," Greg said with a nod. The doctor nodded back then turned and nodded at Ducky.
"Elly," Ducky said, and Elly jumped at the chance to follow him to the back to see Sommers. Once they were alone inside the double doors of the corridor that led back to the rooms, Elly rested his hand on Ducky's arm.
"Ducky, how is he? Really?" he asked quietly.
Ducky rested his hand on Elly's. "We have full faith that he's going to be okay, my boy. I know you feel a great deal of responsibility for this. I must say, I do as well. I didn't see it."
"It's not your fault, Ducky. You're not the one that-" He stopped himself, remembering what Tony had told him. He shook his head. "By the way, the Gibbses are coming home."
"Oh my. I thought that may happen."
"Yeah. I felt both guilty as fuck and relieved as hell."
"I know how you feel. Shall we?"
Elly nodded and Ducky led him to the room. The sight that was before him was surreal. Sommers was laying in the bed with an IV tube out of his arm and another tube coming from the back of his head with a slightly yellow liquid coming from it
"Drainage tube. There hasn't been any additional drainage since they first put the tube in and started suctioning. They can't remove it from his head in case they have to drain more, and you can see on the bag that there are measurement lines to monitor it. If you'll be sitting with him, something to watch for is that it's at 17 milliliters right now. If it grows, let a nurse know. They'll be in periodically to check on him."
Elly nodded.
"I'll give you some time alone with him," Ducky said, patting his shoulder. Elly watched him go then looked back at Sommers.
After a long minute of silent staring, Elly whispered, "Dude, I am so, so sorry."
********WDYG?********
Tony came out of the bathroom to find that Jethro was dressed in his best black slacks and the button-down blue shirt he had worn at their wedding. Only this time the shirt was unbuttoned at the top and he was wearing a jacket. His new belt and his best black shoes completed his outfit.
"Damn," Tony said. "You look hot. Why do I feel underdressed?" he asked, turning slightly pink. He was dressed similarly, navy blue pants and jacket with the dark green and white pinstriped shirt he'd gotten before the trip that he hoped Jethro would like.
"You're definitely not underdressed," Jethro said, taking him in. Tony padded over to the couch and sat down to slip his shoes on with that endearing look of shyness he got only when Jethro complimented him.
"Okay," Jethro said, standing in front of Tony looking nervous and out of place. "If you hate it, just let me know and we'll leave right away. It was just a thought."
Tony squinted at him curiously. "You're nervous. I can count the times I've seen you nervous on one hand." He raised an eyebrow at him. "Where are we going?" He got to his feet until he stood in front of Jethro, his hands reaching out for Jethro's hips to pull him closer, enjoying the slightly pink tone to Jethro's cheeks and the embarrassed grin. He grinned back.
"You'll see," Jethro said. He took a deep breath and schooled himself. He had to put himself in a different headspace for this. He looked into Tony's eyes, then his right hand came up behind Tony's neck and pulled him towards him, kissing him. The kiss deepened and he let it. He was getting lost in the passion of it and bringing Tony's desire to the forefront. He suddenly pulled back, then moved to take Tony's hand. "Okay, let's go."
"But!" Tony coughed out with a laugh.
"You got everything you need?" Jethro asked.
Tony bent over and picked up his wallet and phone from the coffee table, slipping them into his pockets with his left hand. "Ready," he said with a smile.
Jethro led Tony down the hallway and with every step he was regaining his confidence. He had to tap into it for this and he was stamping down the nerves that kept trying to bubble up. It was going to be a fifteen minute drive to their destination and he knew he still had some things to explain to Tony when they got there so he could translate for them.
They got into their cab and Jethro gave Tony the address to give to the driver, who raised an eyebrow at him before nodding and driving off. They made small talk along the way with the driver and then they turned down a darker industrial street. Tony raised an eyebrow at Jethro, who smiled, but was having a hard time controlling his nerves. He knew that he was going out on a limb with this. The driver pulled into a lot with a series of nice cars. There was a canopied entrance to a door with a tall bouncer looking man next to it and a neon sign next to it. It was an upside-down blue triangle with an X in it.
"We're going clubbing?" Tony asked, raising an eyebrow. Jethro handed some money to the cabbie and got out, taking Tony by the hand. They were a good distance away from the bouncer and the cab drove off but Jethro wasn't moving. He took a deep breath.
"Okay. This isn't a normal club," Jethro said, and he was glad it was dark out there because he knew he was turning red because sweat was dripping down his back. He was worried about Tony's reaction. It could go a myriad of different ways, and many of them were negative. Tony tilted his head and squinted his eyes as he looked at Jethro, his lips parting slightly as if he were trying really hard to understand.
"You're always hinting at your exhibitionist side," Jethro said quietly.
The dawning realization was more than evident on Tony's face. "W-w-wait… are you? Is this? Really?" he asked.
"I figured if there was any time to do it, it would be now," Jethro said, trying to tap into the logical process that had led him to taking this leap. "We're thousands of miles away from anyone who would recognize us. We can pretend not to speak the language to get out of uncomfortable situations. And we never have to see anyone here ever again. It's not like we're going to bump into them on the streets of D.C."
"Wow, you're serious," Tony said in awe.
"It might be too much. We might get in there and want to turn right back around, and if so, that's completely fine. This is totally at your pace. I just didn't want to get so lost in our family and life that we never took this risk when sometimes it seems like you really want it."
Tony nodded slowly as he thought it through.
"We don't have to go in," Jethro said, feeling a little stupid suddenly.
"I've done a lot of crazy things, Jethro. This might be the craziest," Tony said. "But… you're right. It's something for the bucket list. But some rules?"
Jethro nodded.
"Your comfort means just as much as mine. If you're not comfortable, we go." Jethro nodded, and Tony nodded back. He thought for a moment and took a deep breath. "And it's just us. No one else."
"Of course!" Jethro said, taking Tony's hands.
"No one ever finds out. No Abby, no Fornell, no anyone."
Jethro nodded.
"We drink, but stop at tipsy."
Jethro nodded again, seeing the sense in that. He explained what he'd been told.
"When we go in, there's going to be someone to pay the cover and they'll ask you what color band. We want red. The colors all mean different things about what you're open to, and red means you're here with someone and don't want to play with anyone else."
Tony nodded. "Okay. I like that. That's helpful."
"Do you want to do this, Tony?" Jethro asked.
Tony smirked. "You mean take the opportunity to let everyone know who has stolen my mind, body, and soul? Yeah… yeah, I think I do."
"Okay," Jethro said, swallowing hard as he realized that he was going to have to go through with this. He took a deep breath and leaned forward to kiss Tony again. Tony kissed him back passionately and Jethro was surprised to find the heat in it. He pulled back, smirked, and pulled Tony towards the door. The bouncer nodded at them and they entered the large industrial door to find a dimly lit interior with a man talking to two women, one of which was standing dressed in a leather thong, bustier, and collar complete with leash which was held in the hand of the woman next to her. Both men took in the sight and then turned to each other with a raised eyebrow.
The women turned and walked between two large and heavy black curtains that kept the rest of the club from view. The man motioned for Tony and Gibbs to move forward. Tony took over the conversation and Jethro watched him, enjoying the way the language rolled off of Tony's tongue. Tony pulled out his wallet and paid the cover charge and the man pulled two red bands from his podium and Tony held out his wrist. The band was snapped around it, and Jethro offered his wrist for his. He smirked at Tony as it clicked into place, and then his eyes darted to the man before he nodded and led Tony through the curtains, summoning all his confidence.
They stopped once they got through into the actual club to take it all in. It was a large room with smaller curtained off cubbies along one wall. Low bass driven music was playing that made the floor vibrate under them and blue, purple and red lights flashed everywhere. There were people in all states of dress, some fully dressed, some not dressed at all, and many dressed in various leather outfits that left nothing to the imagination.
There was a long glass bar lit by blue lights on top of black wood off to their left. Tony's eyes fell upon it and looked at Jethro. "Drink," he said.
Jethro nodded. "Definitely," he said. At the bend of the bar they both noticed a man sitting on a stool with his pants around his ankles, a much younger man on his knees in front of him with his dick in his hand as he talked to one of the bartenders and drank from his beer. His free hand moved to guide the younger man's head, and Tony and Jethro both moved along down the bar to find a couple of free stools to sit on for a moment while they got their bearings.
A young bartender approached them that looked eerily like Elly and asked what he could get them to drink. Tony ordered them their favorites and the man nodded. He struck up a conversation with Tony, asking if it was their first time there.
Tony told him that it was and the man nodded with a disarming smile as he poured Jethro a double bourbon. He looked at their bands and pointed casually at them, telling Tony that they would keep them safe. Everyone respected the bands there, and if they didn't they were thrown out on the spot and banned. There were no second chances. Tony nodded, thanking him for his drink and handing him his card to pay.
He turned to Jethro and paraphrased what he'd been told, and Jethro nodded sipping his bourbon.
He concentrated on Tony. He wasn't really interested in everything going on around him, and he decided that he wasn't going to let it interfere with the real reason why he was here. Tony was why he was there. Why he was in Naples, why he was on his honeymoon, why he was in a sex club. The man next to him loved him more than anything and he'd do anything to prove that he loved him back just as much. He rested his hand on Tony's thigh and Tony sipped his drink as he looked back into Jethro's eyes.
The bartender handed the card back to Tony who took it with his left hand. He noticed Tony's ring and nodded at Jethro. "Honeymoon?" he asked, a thick accent to his English. Tony nodded with a smile and Jethro smirked at the bartender. "I hope you enjoy!" he said, smiling at them as he turned to his next customer.
"I plan on it," Jethro said, leaning in to kiss Tony, catching him by surprise. It was the type of kiss that simmered with passion, but didn't explode. It was the type that would build up if you simply let it, but Jethro wasn't ready to let it. He knew he needed a little more liquid courage, and by the way Tony shook just a little he knew Tony did, too. He pulled back and smiled. Tony slowly opened his eyes and smiled back. He took a drink of his Long Island and Jethro took one of his bourbon. They both looked out over the club, wondering where they'd be most comfortable. There were dark places everywhere, only lit occasionally by the roaming lights that moved with the music.
There were also multiple areas with colored spotlights shining down on them. Most of them were occupied by people already. One had four men laying in a square and giving each other blowjobs. Another had a woman licking another's feet in a prostrate position while her ass was smacked with a riding crop. Each was as different as the next. Tony was comforted to see that in one of the spotlights there was a couple with red bands on their wrists, but otherwise they were naked, and the sex they were having was much tamer than everyone in the other spotlights. He wasn't interested in being the center of attention like that, but it was nice to see that they wouldn't be the only ones not interested in the harder BDSM displays they saw around them.
The thought made Tony think of their cuffs waiting back in the room. He imagined himself cuffed around one of the large stone pillars in the room while Jethro fucked him from behind as he held on. He was partially turned on and partially embarrassed. He looked over to one of the dark areas and saw that there was a couch that faced the crowd. There were end tables on each end of it for drinks and other belongings, but it was currently unoccupied. There was one of those stone pillars near it, so there wasn't anyone grinding on one another close by. It looked nice and secluded while still being out in the open.
"How about we go over there?" Tony asked, nodding towards it.
Jethro turned to look over his shoulder at where Tony was gesturing and looked back. "Okay," he said. They picked up their drinks and made their way over to the couch. It was black patent leather and there was a bowl of condoms and tiny packets of lube sitting on the end table next to it.
"That's convenient," Jethro said with a dark chuckle. "Condoms would mean less mess to clean up." He took a drink from his glass and sat it next to the bowl. Tony was downing his drink behind him, ignoring the burn of the different liquors as they went down this throat at rapid fire speed. Jethro turned to sit on the couch and as he fell he saw Tony finish the glass. Tony smirked and sat the glass on the table next to him, then instead of sitting on the couch he straddled Jethro's lap.
"No condoms," he said as hands fell to either side of Jethro's head and leaned in to him. "I want to feel you inside of me until you take me back to the hotel and wash me clean in the shower." Jethro was suddenly on fire as Tony leaned in to kiss him passionately, that explosion that was missing before more than evident now. Jethro's hands went to Tony's sides under his jacket, feeling both his body and his tongue at the same time. They slid up Tony's body and soon the jacket was on the floor.
Tony rocked over Jethro's lap, both of their cocks hard against each other. Jethro felt like he was on fire. Tony thought he was going to suffocate under the weight of his clothes. He started to unbutton his shirt but Jethro's fingers were soon taking over and Tony's shirt joined the jacket. Tony arched his back as Jethro reached up to tweak his nipples and he rocked down on Jethro again. His hands reached forward to start working on Jethro's buttons. He wanted to feel him. They started kissing again, their hands roaming across each other's chests now that Tony had access. They took a few minutes to explore, Tony leaning forward to let Jethro suck and bite on his nipples.
Tony's breath caught in his throat and his mouth opened as he tossed his head back.
"If you're going to open your mouth like that you'd better be putting my cock in it," Jethro murmured as he licked up Tony's throat.
"Fuck!" Tony gasped. He knew he was flushed. He wondered if anyone was watching them, but didn't want to look. Just the knowledge that they could be was turning him on so much that he thought would explode if only Jethro would reach out and stroke his cock. He slid down and off of Jethro's lap until he was on his knees in front of him. Jethro ran his fingers through Tony's sweat-damp hair. Tony looked up into Jethro's eyes seductively as his hands expertly undid Jethro's new belt and unzipped his pants. He reached up and Jethro arched up off the couch so Tony could pull his pants down to his feet. The line had been crossed.
Tony kept his eyes trained on Jethro's as he took his cock in his hand and enclosed his mouth around the head. Jethro's head fell back on the couch with a moan and Tony closed his eyes as he started an earnest sucking and stroking with his tongue and lips. He could taste Jethro's precum and relished in it. He made sure he slurped with precision in case anyone was watching. He wanted to show them that he knew what he was doing, and that Jethro was getting what he deserved. He still couldn't bring himself to look anywhere other than at Jethro though.
Jethro's fingers carded through Tony's hair as he looked down at Tony working him over. He didn't have the same convenience though that Tony did. He was facing the rest of the room, and he could see that there were a few people watching them intently, including the woman holding the leash of the woman that had walked in. She watched them as her collared friend went down on her, a smirk on her face. The bartender that had served them was also keeping an eye on them. Jethro wondered fleetingly if he got off on watching the new people experience their first time, or if he was watching with some kind of protective nature over the newbies. He didn't hold that thought long though as Tony turned his attention to his balls.
"Damn it, Tony," he groaned. "Get up here." He reached into the bowl next to him and grabbed a packet of lube, tearing it open with his teeth before lubing himself quickly as a now naked Tony straddled him again. They didn't have to talk about it. Their eyes locked as Jethro held his dick and guided it into Tony's ass. Tony's face melted into ecstasy and his head went back as he balanced himself with a hand on each of Jethro's shoulders and slid down until Jethro was entirely in him. He looked down and met Jethro's lips in a filthy kiss that continued as he started to slowly ride him.
"That's it," Jethro said quietly, pulling back from the kiss as Tony's speed increased. "There you go. Atta boy," he said with a smirk. Tony smiled as he rose and fell over Jethro again. "Can you see them?" Jethro asked quietly, his hands coasting down the muscles of Tony's chest and stomach. "Can you see them watching you?"
Tony shook his head no, but rode Jethro harder and faster than before, his brain unable to form a complete thought.
"That's right… take it…" Jethro said quietly, his eyes watching Tony but taking in their spectators in his peripheral. The bartender was openly watching, causing a few people from the bar to watch as well. The woman on the leash was giving her dominatrix an obvious orgasm as she watched them. The couple that had been in a spotlight earlier with the red bands had curled up in a leather armchair together and were watching them intently.
He found himself with an inexplicable urge to demonstrate his dominance over Tony in front of these people's gaze. He grabbed Tony's hips and slammed him down on him, holding him in place while Tony whined. "Stay there," he said firmly, then took Tony's cock in his fist. He gave him a series of fast strokes that made Tony let out a high-pitched keening sound. "Come for me, Tony," he beckoned.
Tony cried out in almost a howl that cut through the music as he came quickly all over Jethro's hand. He looked down at Jethro, his eyes glazed over and his mouth open as he was lost in his post orgasmic haze. Jethro held his hand up to Tony. "Clean it up," he demanded and Tony nodded lazily before leaning forward and licking the cum off of Jethro's fingers and palm. Jethro could see the bartender's expression and smirked to himself. His mouth was hanging open slightly and he'd given up all resemblance of trying to help customers while he and the others at the bar watched with open interest. The entire experience was keeping Jethro hard deep inside Tony.
Once he was sure that Tony had gotten all of the cum off of his hand, he nodded at him. "Come here," he said, taking a deep kiss from Tony to taste himself on his tongue. "Okay, now you can finish me off." Tony nodded and started his ride again. Jethro had to balance him and he knew that the Long Island had definitely kicked in. He watched Tony closely, ignoring everyone else as he got closer and closer to his own orgasm. When he finally came it was with his head back, his eyes closed and a moan that lasted for what felt like forever. Tony fell forward, his chest against Jethro's and his head in the crook of Jethro's neck. Jethro turned his head and kissed Tony on the cheek.
"Don't fall asleep yet, Tony," he said, reaching for his glass of bourbon and knocking it back. He did an inconspicuous glance around and everyone else's attention was elsewhere now except for the bartender which kept looking over despite having gone back to serving customers. He felt a little weird about that suddenly because the kid looked a lot like Critten, and he imagined Critten seeing them like this and had to push it out of his head.
"Come on, Tony," he coaxed, running his fingers through Tony's hair. "Let's head back to the hotel."
Tony nodded, then climbed slowly off Jethro's lap and slipped back into his pants and boxers. Jethro picked up his shirt and jacket and handed them to him one by one as he put himself back together. Tony looked a little embarrassed suddenly, and Jethro pulled him towards him and back into his lap for another deep kiss.
"You were wonderful," he whispered to him, his forehead falling against his as he wrapped his arms around Tony and felt the most protective feeling he'd ever felt for Tony come over him. "Slip your shoes on and let's head out."
He got up and balanced Tony as he stepped into his shoes, then guided him to the door. Tony seemed to be a fog, but Jethro caught the bartender's eye by chance and got a wink. Once they stepped out into the cool night air, Tony shivered and took a deep breath. Jethro could see him coming out of the fog.
"I'm going to need you to come back, Tony," Jethro coaxed. "You'll need to tell the cab driver where we're going." Tony nodded and took another deep cool breath. They walked over to the street and saw a couple of cabs hanging out on the next corner. The rest of the industrial neighborhood was empty other than the club patrons and a couple of people walking a distance away. They started walking towards the cabs and Tony found his voice.
"Holy shit, Jethro!" he said excitedly. "Did we really just do that?!"
Jethro started laughing and couldn't stop. Now that they were away from the club the whole experienced seemed surreal. He wiped at his eyes as Tony turned to start walking backwards so that he could look at him.
"We really just did that!"
Jethro nodded. "Yeah, we did."
"Wow…" Tony turned so that he was walking side by side with Jethro again. He checked his watch. They'd only been in the club an hour and a half. "We kinda rushed it."
"Yeah, but I think the situation required it."
"Yeah, I agree," Tony said with a nod.
They reached the cabs and climbed in the back of one. Tony gave the driver their hotel info and they sat back as they watched the streetlights pass.
********WDYG?********
"Oh, god. What the fuck happened to me?" Sommers tried to say, only it came out as a series of mumbles.
"Whoa! Hold on! Take it easy!" a familiar voice said to him, resting a hand on his shoulder to keep him from trying to sit up. The hand was removed and the familiar voice could be heard a little further away yelling for a nurse. "He's waking up! He's waking up!"
He took a few deep breaths and found out that his ribs still hurt, but that pain was negligible over the pain in his head. He slowly opened his eyes and saw that Critten was standing next to his bed. A smiling nurse joined him on the other side and stared down at him.
"Welcome back!" she said softly. "We were worried about you. Got quite a concussion."
"You were in a coma for the past 12 hours," Critten said, sitting down in a chair right next to the bed. "We were all super worried about you. I'm so, so, so sorry, man."
"You, you were?" he asked, trying to sit up again.
"Careful there," the nurse said, helping him sit up and raising the bed so he could. "You have a tube in the back of your head. Do not move it. I need to go get the doctor."
"There's a what where?" Sommers asked drowsily.
"You've got a tube going to your brain. They had to drain some fluid off of it. That kick I gave you to the back of the head gave you a concussion and caused fluid to gather along in your head. They drained it, but now it has to be removed."
"Tube to my brain?" he asked.
"Yeah," Elly said.
"And you-" Sommers asked, in shock that Elly was there of all people.
"Yeah, it's my fault. I am so sorry, man."
"You stayed?" he asked.
Elly blinked. "Stayed? You mean with you? Of course I did!"
"Huh," Sommers said, blinking himself awake.
"Both of our teams stayed. They've been in the lobby all night. Dr. Mallard is with them, too. We were all really worried about you."
Sommers let that sink in as he tried to get his bearings. These people cared about him. He suddenly remembered his time in his memories and the flashes of what's to come. He remembered laying on the bed and feeling so lonely. But these people stayed with him.
"I don't want to be alone," he croaked out, and a tear slipped over his cheek.
"Aw dude, you're not alone. I'm not going anywhere."
"Where's my dad? Where's Aaron?" he asked.
"We called them. Your dad was planning on getting a flight out tomorrow morning, well in a few hours really, and your brother is trying to arrange leave to come see you."
"Really? They're coming?" he asked, trying to wrap his head around that.
"Yeah. I mean, we weren't sure if you were going to wake up."
"Oh. They don't have to come now. I'm okay, right?"
The nurse and the doctor came back into the room.
"Welcome back!" Dr. Shandra said, smiling at him and going to look at a bag hanging from a pole with the yellowish liquid in it from the head tube. She looked at a machine that was reading out something attached to it, and nodded. "Can you tell me your name?"
"Kyle Sommers."
"And who is this guy next to you?" she asked.
"Elly Critten," Sommers confirmed. Elly nodded at him with a small tight smile.
"Very good. The pressure in your brain has gone down substantially. We can remove the catheter." She turned to the nurse who nodded at her and went to get a tray of stuff from the cabinets. It only took about ten minutes and the tube was out of the back of Sommers' head and the wound it left was packed and dressed.
"You're going to be in here a couple of days while we monitor you for signs of relapse and get some medications in you. You had a small skull fracture that led to some pressure build up in your head. You'll be 100% in no time."
"Thanks," Sommers said, reaching up gingerly to feel his head. "My head hurts."
"It's going to for a while. We'll get some stronger pain killers in your IV soon," the doctor said, nodding again to the nurse. They both headed out of the room and Elly sat back down.
"I should go tell everyone you're awake!" He moved to get back up as he remembered they didn't know yet. Sommers reached out and grabbed for his arm though. He missed, but Elly sat back down.
"Wait. Don't go yet." He was quiet for a long minute while he thought about what to say.
"You okay?" Elly asked.
Sommers shook his head no. "I had dreams. Very real dreams."
"They say that can happen in a coma," Elly assured him.
"These were more like memories," Sommers said, trying to clear his voice and convey what he was feeling and thinking. "And I don't like what I saw. I- I don't like me." He looked at Elly and shook his head a little. "I don't like who I am. I want to be better. I want to be different."
Elly blinked. He wasn't sure what to say about that, so he just said, "Okay."
"Do you think…" Sommers swallowed hard, and another tear fell over his cheek. "Do you think you guys can teach me to be different? I want- I want to be happy."
Elly swallowed, feeling his own eyes burn a little. He rested a hand on Sommers' elbow. "You should be happy. Everyone deserves to find what makes them happy."
"I don't know if I do."
"Sure you do," Elly said with a small smile.
"I don't want to be alone."
"You're not," Elly assured. "I'm right here."
"No. I'm so alone."
Elly suddenly understood what Sommers meant. "You mean, big picture alone. You're lonely."
Sommers nodded. "And you guys are just all so… happy… and not… alone. You're all just together. And I think I've been so angry about it because I don't have anyone to be together with."
Elly gave Sommers a sad smile. "Well, you're not alone anymore. You've got us. And it's not like we don't have our problems. Like I was telling you, we've all got-"
"Yeah! But that's just it. You've got these problems, but you're still happy, because you're not alone. And I've never known how to be that."
"What about your dad and brother?" Elly asked.
"We just… we're not like that, you know? We might've been, once. I was happier when I was younger, but now we're just… not. I don't know what happened."
Elly nodded and sighed. He thought for a moment before speaking again. "You know that my dad and brother are both Navy, right?"
Sommers shook his head. He hadn't realized that.
"Well, they are. And my brother and I sat down together at one point this summer and had a good talk. And I realized that he's a good guy, just very different from me. And because he's so different, in ways that my dad wanted me to be different, I'd put up this wall against him. I'd shut him out because I'd lumped him together with my dad, and my dad… well, I told you that he's now banished me."
Sommers nodded slowly.
"Eric though, Eric was supportive. And I've been talking to him more, and I've found that though we're different in a lot of ways, we're the same in a lot of ways that I'd taken for granted. He's much older than me, so I had always had this idea in my head that he was always going to look at me as his baby brother, but he treats me like an equal now that we're adults. He's still protective, and I even believe that he loves me, but he knows that I'm an adult that's capable of making my own life. And my stepmom! Damn, she's amazing. And I'd never let her in for a number of reasons, but I feel like I have a mom again, you know? Maybe it won't be the same for you, but you should reach out to them. Try to make a connection."
Sommers nodded again. "Do you think they'll come?" he asked quietly.
"To see you? I don't know if your brother can right now, but you should try with your dad. He was really worried when we told him what happened."
"Really?"
"Yeah. McGee said he wanted every little detail. You want to call him while I go tell the others that you're awake?"
"I don't know what I'd say to him. Will you call him for me and tell him I'm okay. I don't know if I can handle that right now."
"Yeah. I will."
"Thanks," Sommers said, laying back with a sigh.
"I've got a question for you," Elly said quietly. Sommers looked at him. "Do you really want to be a member of this team? Do you really want to get sucked into our crazy family?"
Sommers got a flash of a memory from his coma. It was him holding a baby, and Gibbs standing there saying, "You did good, kid." He felt a surge of hope fill him. Hope and longing. The tears spilled over and he nodded. "Yeah, I do."
"Okay then. We'll work together and make it happen."
"Together?" Sommers asked.
"Of course. You'll never have to face anything alone again with us. We're your team."