Chapter 6

Deadly bronchitis… why couldn't it be a bunny named Vlad that delivered cookies? Tony rubbed his forehead with his hands, letting his gaze rest on the delicious smelling pancakes. He smiled at the shape, thinking of Gibbs sitting by his bed last night and how he probably did it for his daughter. He didn't want to be a burden to them, but he couldn't go back to the blue lights and IVs in his arm, coughing up his lungs as he waited to die. Never again.

"Anthony, we will do our best to prevent that from happening. You will need to be taken care of before this can develop any further. I can contact Doctor Pitt if you would like," Ducky began.

"No," Tony interrupted. "No, I don't want to spend more time in the hospital, being pumped full of drugs and needles, unable to breath. Until its necessary, I'm not going to Bethesda."

"You need someone to take care of you," the older man protested. "Your condition will continue to deteriorate without medical care."

"I can take care of him, he'll stay with me," Gibbs spoke up.

"Boss…"

"You're staying with me."

Gibbs went into the kitchen, keeping his back to them as he ran water into the sink. Tony didn't really listen as Ducky informed him that he would have McGee and Abby fetch some things from his apartment, along with a bunch of his DVDs to keep him company while he was on bed rest. He focused on his boss, wondering what would possess the man to want to take care of him. He knew that he was whiney when he was sick and Gibbs had taken care of him after he had the plague, sacrificing his nights to make sure that Tony was still breathing and helping him remove the junk from his lungs. Tony reached down to pick up his fork and dropped it, accidentally causing it to fall to the floor. He reached down to pick it up, but was quickly taken by a coughing fit. There was a loud crash as Gibbs dropped the pan he was cleaning and ran to Tony's side, catching him as he started to fall.

"Boss," Tony gasped, trying to catch his breath.

Ducky brought of glass of water from the kitchen and gently coaxed Tony into taking a sip. The coughing subsided and the young man was limp in Gibbs' arms. He looked up at his boss, seeing the concern in his eyes and frowned.

"You don't have to do this."

"It's called sick leave DiNozzo, I've got plenty of it and so do you. Come on, let's get you to the couch so you can sit down and eat some of those pancakes."

Gibbs helped Tony to his feet, sensing how weak he was and guided him to the couch, pulling out a blanket and covering him up with it before going to get his breakfast. Ducky checked his temperature as Gibbs pulled out a tray from somewhere in his kitchen and set the food on it, gently placing it on Tony's lap.

"Eat up," he ordered.

"Yes, Boss."

He felt like a child, pouring on the syrup and taking a bite of the delicious pancake, feeling it melt in his mouth. Tony smiled, managing to eat half of his breakfast and drink a little of the orange juice before feeling full and he pushed the plate away, leaning back against the soft cushions. Gibbs took the plate into the kitchen and washed it as his listened to Tony coughing on the couch. Bronchitis could kill the young man. It didn't seem fair; he risked his life almost every day to save someone else and this was the price he paid. It was a heavy price to pay. Ducky came up behind him, holding a towel and dried the plate.

"Jethro…"

"I know Duck. If he gets too worse, I'll take him to the hospital myself."

"That wasn't what I was going to say. I was going to say that you are the best person to do this, Jethro and Anthony trusts you. I trust your decisions when it comes to him."

"Thanks Duck."

"You're welcome. I will talk to Doctor Pitt and see what advice he will give, along with any medications. I also have access to an oxygen tank and mask if needed. Let's just hope that it doesn't come to that and his body can fight off the infection on his own."

"I agree."

"It's most likely viral bronchitis, but I'll take a blood sample later to verify the results. If it's viral, antibiotics won't help him. Anthony will have to fight this on his own."

Gibbs shook his head. "No, he's not alone in this. I'm gonna be with him through all of it."

Ducky looked into the agent's eyes, seeing the sincerity and trusted him fully. They finished washing the dishes and putting them away. Tony was quiet in the living room, and Gibbs wondered if he had fallen asleep again. Turning around, he saw the young man holding a book in his hand and flipping through the pages, not really reading them. Gibbs smiled lightly as he walked into the living room with some water for Tony and a bowl in case he tossed his breakfast.

"That book doesn't have pictures," Gibbs pointed out.

"Book have no pictures? That's why it doesn't interest me. So, you guys talking about me?" Tony inquired.

"You're not that interesting, DiNozzo."

Tony half laughed before coughing once into his hand and put the book on the coffee table. Gibbs put the movie from last night back in and resumed it from where they had stopped before Tony got sick. Ducky took a blood sample from Tony to take back to Abby to analyze and made note that his fever was back, but it was low. He made Tony promise to get some rest and listen to whatever Gibbs told him to do, though it wasn't necessary to tell him. The younger man knew what he had to do. Ducky excused himself, promising to check back in later. Tony and Gibbs proceeded to watch the movie. Gibbs found himself slightly interested in the movie, smiling as Tony quoted some of his favorite lines. After a while, he noticed that Tony was commenting less. He glanced over to see that his agent has fallen asleep, no doubt exhausted from his poor sleep the night before. In sleep, Tony looked so young and innocent. Gibbs felt like a father to the man; the father that Tony deserved. He turned the movie off and went into the kitchen to call Ziva and McGee, remembering that he hadn't informed them of the change in circumstances. He also needed to put in for some sick leave.

"Hey Ziver," Gibbs began.

"Is he worse?" Ziva quickly interrupted.

"Ducky says he most likely has Bronchitis. I'll be taking my own sick leave to watch over him and make sure that he doesn't get worse. You and McGee will be pulled from the rotation and put on cold cases until I return."

Ziva didn't answer for a moment and Gibbs thought that she had hung up the phone until she spoke again. Her voice was soft and it broke his heart.

"Could this kill him?"

Gibbs didn't sugarcoat things, especially when it was important. "It's possible."

"What can McGee and I do to help?"

"I don't know –"

"I can make dinner tonight to start. Would that be okay? I know that Tony is quite fond of my cooking or so he tells me. It might cheer him up a bit. McGee could bring some dessert," Ziva suggested, sniffing slightly in the background.

Gibbs smiled at her dedication to her friend and partner. "That sounds good. See you at six. I'll make sure that Tony behaves himself this time."

"Okay, I will see you then."

Thanks for all of the lovely reviews! I always enjoy reading your comments! Please keep them coming.

Emma