When Gibbs got to work later that morning, he knew instinctively that something was wrong. He could feel it in his guts. He went up to the bullpen and wasn't surprised to see that no-one else in his team had arrived yet, since he had told them the night before that they didn't have to be in until 11 am, unless something happened of course, so they could get some proper sleep. It was now 10.30.

Gibbs sighed and walked over to his desk. He frowned when he saw that neat stacks of documents and files on Tony's desk as he passed it. He couldn't remember if they had been there the night before. Besides, Tony never stacked his files and documents that neatly. The desk even looked like it had been cleaned.

Then it struck him. The desk was too clean. There was no personal things whatsoever and the walls behind it were clean, while the dust bin beside the desk was jammed with paper, old wrappers and some other stuff. Gibbs felt his stomach turn into a knot as he walked around the desk to check the drawers. He almost couldn't believe his own eyes when he saw that they were all empty.

"He has left, Jethro."

Gibbs looked up when he heard Jenny Sheppard's voice and saw her standing just a few feet away. He hadn't even heard her coming.

"What do you mean, he has left?" he asked sceptically took a threatening step closer.

"He resigned this morning", Jenny said and calmly met Gibbs' angry gaze.

"He did what?" Gibbs could hardly believe his own ears.

"He's gone. He came to me this morning and said that he couldn't stand it here anymore. That he needed to leave."

"And you let him?!" Gibbs was now standing so close that Jenny could feel his breath on her face.

"Jethro, please, calm down."

Gibbs looked around and saw that the others in the bullpen were staring at him. He scowled at them before putting a hand on Jenny's back and pushing her towards the elevator. Jenny waited until he had pushed the emergency switch, making the moving elevator to come to a smooth halt, before speaking again.

"I couldn't have stopped him, Jethro", she said. "He had already made up his mind. He even said that even if I didn't give my consent, he would've left anyway. He had already cleaned his desk."

"You could have forced him to stay! He's my agent, Jen. You had no right!" Gibbs was more or less shouting now and Jenny was glad that they had moved someplace more private. Most people would even have been scared by the furious look he gave her, but she just straightened her back and looked him straight in the eyes.

"I did have the right, Special Agent Gibbs", she said with her firm Director's voice. "You might have been his boss, but I am your boss and that makes me the boss of your entire team. He was very unhappy, Jethro. Something was clearly bothering him. I had to let him go. I care about him too much to forcing him to stay when he all wanted was to be out of here as soon as he could. If you had seen him you would've understood."

"Then why didn't he come to me?" Gibbs asked with a dangerously low voice, chest heaving with ice-cold anger, eyes turned to steel.

"Because he thought that you would've forced him to stay."

"What?"

The words shocked Gibbs more than he would have admit. Did Tony really think that of him?

Apparently, the dry voice said. Gibbs growled and forced it way. He certainly didn't have time for voices right now.

"Did he say why he needed to leave?"

"Only that it was no other way. That it was because something that didn't happen, something that he apparently wanted to happen, and that it was a personal matter between him and someone else. Have you any idea of whom it might be?"

"No."

Gibbs looked away and clenched his jaws. It felt like his entire world was falling apart around him. Why did Tony feel like he had to go? Was it because of him?

So you have finally realized that?

Gibbs winced. Could it be? Then he remembered that strange look he had seen in Tony's eyes once in a while, every time the boy had caught him looking at him in a yearning way when Gibbs had let his guard down. A look of hope. And then a look of misery when Gibbs had got his emotions under control again. Was it possible that Tony felt the same way about him? That he loved him back?

Jenny frowned when Gibbs suddenly began to chuckle, and all of a sudden he became more relaxed, and she could even see relief on his face.

"God", he mumbled. "How could I have been so blind?"

"Jethro?"

Gibbs looked up at her and she suddenly found herself basking in his beautiful megawatt smile, but she new that it wasn't meant for her.

"He loves me, Jen", Gibbs said and a single tear fell down his cheek.

Jenny couldn't help but stare at him in shock.

"What do you mean?"

"Tone loves me."

Gibbs took a deep breath and the smile never left his face. Jenny couldn't remember the last time she had seen him so... happy. She couldn't even remember if she had ever seen him so happy before, not even when they had been together. There had always been something holding him back, something that she hadn't been able to put her finger on, but than restrain seemed to be all gone now.

"Do you love him back?" she asked carefully.

"I do, Jen. I think I have loved him since the first day I saw him."

"What happened to rule #12?"

"To Hell with that rule!"

"Jethro!"

"What?"

"You never break your rules."

"Rules can be changed. Even mine."

"So what are you planning to do now?"

"What do you think? I have to go look for him. There's no way I'm letting him get away from me that easily. He's mine, Jen! And I am not gonna lose him to someone else."

tbc?

(I know that I am making it a bit too drawn out, but you just have to bear with me. There are only a few chapters left, anyway.)