A/N: Okay, this chapter gave me so much trouble. The last scene was the hardest one to write, so please grace me with some reviews to tell me if I did it right. If not... Well, it's too late. So, here's hoping I get lots of happy reviews (going off of feedback so far, I think there's a good possibility of that), and you all enjoy Chapter 24!

It was about 9:30 the next morning when Tim poked his head into Tony's room. He was laying there with his eyes closed, so McGee, assuming he was sleeping, went to shut the door again; he could come back later.

"Come in, McGee. I'm awake."

Doing so, he said, "Sorry, Tony. I thought I was being quiet."

"You were; I've been awake for a while."

"So…" McGee hesitated. This was a bit awkward; they didn't usually have talks like this. Then again, they were family now. "You really told Ziva?"

Tony grinned. "Yeah. It felt great, getting it off my chest. And then she told me she loved me too and… Darn."

"What?" McGee asked. What went wrong?

"Well, when you walked in, I was concentrating on getting myself to stop smiling, and now all that work was for nothing."

He really didn't want to ruin Tony's good mood, but he needed to know… "What did Gibbs say?"

To McGee's surprise, Tony kept on smiling. "He just told me not to hurt her. I'm good with that; we've both gone through enough pain as it is."

"And Rule 12?"

Tony's smile began to fade a bit. "So you haven't figured it out yet?"

"Figured what out?"

"Nothing; never mind."

Knowing that was all the answer he was going to get, McGee decided to find an answer to something that was eating away at him. "Tony, I have a question for you."

"Shoot."

"It's about that thing you said…"

"I say a lot of things, McGee," Tony joked.

"Trust me, I know," Tim teased.

"Hey! I'm lying here in a hospital bed with holes in my legs! Cut a guy a break!"

"Okay, okay," Tim knew Tony was joking, but he still felt too guilty to find it funny. "You said we're a family…"

Tony's grin grew a bit wider. He's getting it!

"And Abby's a part of that family…"

Yes! "Yeah, she's the best little sister I've ever had. But everyone sees her as something different…" Come on, man, don't make me spell it out for you!

Tim's smile began to mirror Tony's. "And family comes first."

"Absolutely," Tony agreed.

"Does that mean we wouldn't be breaking the rules? If we're family before we're coworkers…"

"Yes!" Tony couldn't control himself anymore.

Neither could Tim. Their grins were wider than the Cheshire Cat's.

"Does Abby know?" McGee asked.

"About the loophole? Honestly, I'm not sure. But she does know that as Gibbs' little princess, she can get away with anything."

"Do you think – ?"

"Why are you asking me?" Tony interrupted. "Ask her."

Tim turned to leave; he needed to talk to her before he had time to chicken out.

"Wait." Tim stopped and turned back around. "I have some things I need to say to you.

"First of all, you've got to stop blaming yourself, all right? It's really killing me to see that look on your face. What we do is dangerous, but we signed up for it. Think about what kind of a world we'd live in if we didn't make these sacrifices."

"What movie is that from, Tony?"

"I resent that! That was all me! Anyway, I wasn't done.

"Second, I'm really proud of you, Tim."

"Proud? Why are you proud of me?" He was completely confused.

"Ziva told me what you did to get us back. It couldn't have been easy, working with Eric, but you did it anyway. We may not be blood related, I may pick on you all the time, and you may annoy me with all that geek-speak, but I don't think I could ever find a better brother than you."

Tim almost asked, "Really?" but he could see that Tony meant what he said. "Thanks Tony, I feel the same way… Your movie quotes are unbearably annoying!"

Tony's smile – which had been ear to ear – was frozen in shock for a minute. Then he began to laugh. It was contagious; soon the two had tears rolling down their cheeks. Tony tried to calm himself down. Gasping for breath, he said, "And about your… punching Eric… I say… Good job, McGee."

Tim frowned. "You're the only one who's saying that. Abby completely hates me, and Gibbs isn't too happy with me, either."

Tony shook his head. "The list of people Abby hates is a short one, and your name will never be on it; trust me. And Gibbs is never happy. You'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

Tony took a minute to pretend to think about it. "Yeah, I got your six. It's the least I can do."

"For saving you and Ziva?"

"Yeah, that works, too… But I was saying for helping me win my bet with Ziva."

Tim narrowed his eyes. "What bet with Ziva?"

Tony grinned. "On the plane out to LA, we were talking about how you'd treat Eric. I told her you'd punch him in the face, but she said you 'couldn't hurt a flea.'"

"I don't know whether to be mad about the bet, or laugh at the 'hurt a flea' comment."

"Well, you don't have to do either. I'm done; go find Abby."

Tim didn't need to be told twice.

He all but ran into the bullpen, knowing that he should check in with Gibbs as soon as he got to work, even before seeing Abby. Vance had decided that he needed the team back at work today; Tony was awake, and Ziva was well enough to take care of him, though she was on medical leave. Gibbs, Abby, and Tim were told – ordered – to go back to work today. Luckily, he'd thought to call Gibbs to let him know he was going to check on Tony this morning, so he wouldn't be yelled at for being late.

"Morning, Boss," he said quickly as he threw his bag toward his desk. "Hettie, Kensi, Dom," he greeted belatedly.

Gibbs just nodded, but the other three returned his greeting.

Wasting no time, he asked, "Is Abby in?"

Gibbs looked up, wearing a look that was almost amused that he'd figured it out, but he said nothing.

"Yes… Ms. Sciuto is down working in her lab."

"Thanks, Hettie!" he called over his shoulder.

"Wait! She said not to bother her!" Kensi called to him, but she was too late; the elevator doors were already closing.

He exited the elevator to the strain of her music through the closed door of her lab. It was hardly ever closed; the last time she'd closed it he'd walked into it. This time he was somewhat prepared.

He hesitated before entering, knowing that she wouldn't want to be interrupted now. On the other side of the door, she would be double, triple, and quadruple checking every test. When cases got this personal, she didn't trust anyone to get the job done the right way, not even herself. She needed the guilty party to rot in jail, and if she made any mistakes, that might not happen. So she made sure not to make any mistakes.

He checked his watch. 10:30. Knowing Abby, she'd gotten here at 5 o'clock, which meant she'd been working for five and a half hours, with no breaks. She'd have several empty Caf-Pows filling her trashcan, and her fridge would be holding many more waiting for consumption. She would also be trying to raise her salt intake to reduce the number of times she would have to leave her work. It wasn't healthy.

With that thought, he shoved the door open.

"Abby! Abby!" he shouted. He couldn't understand how she concentrated with all the noise, but experience had taught him not to turn it off, or even down. "Abby!"

She turned toward him, but didn't reach to lower the volume. "Go away, McGee; I need to focus."

"No, you need to take a break. We've already caught the guys; Tony and Ziva will testify. This case is as good as… Abs, my voice really can't take this. Please turn it down."

She sighed, and it was more visible than audible. She turned down the music, and then responded to the first part of what he said. "A break? Are you kidding? McGee, we don't have time for a break! Tony's still in the hospital; we don't even know if he'll walk again! We need to do everything we can to keep this from happening again!"

He rolled his eyes at her dramatics. "Of course, he'll walk again."

She interrupted, "He has two holes in his legs, Timmy!"

He walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders, looked into her eyes. "He will walk again, Abs. He's survived the plague, and his car blowing up – which you know is worse than a deadly disease in Tony's mind – and daily Gibbs slaps, and Kate's death, Ziva's death – don't look at me like that, you know what I mean – Director Shepard's death, Jeanne's death… He's a fighter, Abs. He won't stop fighting for anything; if anything, he's found a new reason to fight."

"Ziva," she realized. She looked at him for a minute before saying, "I don't know if that was Timothy McGee or Thom E. Gemcity talking, but thanks." She hugged him.

"Come on. I haven't eaten yet, and you haven't eaten anything good for you. I'm taking you out to breakfast."

"But –"

"It'll wait, Abs. And Gibbs will understand."

"But Leon said –"

Again, he cut her off. "Abs, I told the Deputy Secretary of State to stick it. For you, I'd say much worse to our director."

She hugged him again, only slightly uncomfortable from the way he'd said "for you," and followed him out of the agency.

He hadn't been sure how he'd felt when the IHOP had shown up in the Navy Yard a few years ago. He'd wished it would have been a coffee shop, or a McDonalds. But now, he was more than grateful as he looked over the menu.

"What are you getting?" he asked.

"Those strawberry pancakes look really good…"

He laughed. "Then get them. I'm going to get French toast, eggs, and sausage."

She looked at him.

"What?"

"You really are hungry, aren't you?"

"Yeah. I slept in later than I should have, and then I went to the hospital to see Tony. He still looks pretty weak. I'm eating half of this for him."

Now it was her turn to laugh. "I'm sure he'd appreciate it more if you actually got him something."

He pretended to look confused. "Why would I do that?"

They laughed together. When their food came, however, McGee turned serious. It was time to tell her what he'd meant to in the lab.

At the same time, Tony's words came flooding back into Abby's mind: "It's worth the risk. She's worth the risk."

Looking at the man across the table, she decided he was worth it, too.

"Tim –"

"Abby –"

They grinned. Speaking at the same time further proved what they already knew.

"You go… No, you go… Fine."

Abby narrowed her eyes, and Tim leaned back in his seat, both thinking the same thing: We spend too much time together.

No, Abby corrected herself, I could never spend too much time with him.

"Can I talk now?" he asked, his amusement clear in his voice, as well as in his expression.

"Yes. Please do."

"Okay… I think," he said, taking a deep breath. She said nothing, just waited. "Abs, I went to see Tony this morning. He really told her…Ziva, I mean. He was so…happy. I don't think he's ever been that happy, that I've ever seen, at least. I mean, he's always got a smile, but he's never been happy. Do you understand that? I don't know if I understand it…"

"Yes, I get it," she assured him.

"And Gibbs didn't even kill him. I guess I knew he wouldn't… and I haven't seen Ziva yet, but I'll bet she's just as happy as Tony."

"Oh, she is. She called me last night, and I can't even tell you what she said; I just remember that I couldn't hear much past her smile. It was like screaming at me."

He knew exactly what she meant, no doubt from years of hearing Abby-logic. "Anyway, When I saw Tony like that – heard him tell me that it takes all of his concentration to stop smiling – I got jealous."

Her eyes narrowed again. "Jealous?"

"What? No!" It didn't take long to realize how bad that sounded. "Abby, not about Ziva!"

"Then what? About Tony?" she teased.

"Abby, please, just let me finish! I want what Tony has. Not with Ziva, with you. I've always wanted that, since I first heard your voice. I know you said that you don't want to choose between us, but, Abs, if you feel like I do… There's no competition. I…" he trailed off, making sure she wouldn't run away again. He needn't have worried; she was rooted in place. "I love you, Abs."

She gasped. She couldn't help it; she'd been too caught up in the words as he was saying them to guess what he would say next. As the shock wore off, however, she said, "You're right. There's no choice involved. I talked to Tony last night before he talked to Ziva, and he was so ready, so sure… And I realized that I was jealous, too."

"If you tell me that you love Tony, I might throw up."

She almost laughed, remembering so many of his early cases when he'd turned green at the crime scene, then realized he was serious. "Well, I don't know how to answer that…"

"With a 'No, of course not, never!'" Tim exclaimed desperately.

Now she couldn't stop the laughter. "Tim, I love Tony, but just as a big brother."

He gave a huge sigh of relief.

"And I l—" She cut herself off, leaving her next sentence hanging.

"I know, Abs. You don't have to say it. Last time you said it, you added 'like the way I love puppies.' I think I'd prefer hearing you say you love Tony over that," he told her, wincing at the memory.

She smiled apologetically. "Sorry. I might not be able to say the L word yet, but I can tell you one thing."

He looked at her expectantly.

"I pick you."

His smile began to grow, just as it had in Tony's room that morning, but faster, wider. "You pick…me?"

"Of course I do." She walked over to his seat, sat in his lap. "It will always be you," she said, right before she kissed him.

When they returned to NCIS, they both went directly down to the lab. Abby needed help – whether she wanted it or not – and he was the only one trusted enough to do it. He usually helped her out anyway, and there would be…problems, if they hired an assistant for her: Gibbs wouldn't approve, Abby would definitely be paranoid, no one would trust the assistant to be careful with the evidence… The list goes on. So McGee stepped in. His first priority was Abby. He rationed her Caf-Pow, made sure that she sat down every once in a while, took a small ten minute break every two hours.

At nine o'clock, they were both fighting to stay awake. She'd been there for about sixteen hours, and he'd been too worried about her caffeine intake to think about his own, or lack thereof. Gibbs had called down to the lab and told them to leave; the evidence could wait until tomorrow. Abby had tried to protest, but McGee had taken the phone and told him they'd be right up.

In the elevator, Tim informed Abby, "You're coming home with me tonight."

"Ooh, really?" she asked mischievously.

He looked down at her, trying to look disapproving, but he ended up looking amused. "Yes, really. Jethro misses you."

"Is he the only one?"

"You know the answer to that. Besides, you've had so much Caf-Pow today, I don't know if you should be driving."

"It's caffeine, Tim, not alcohol," she told him.

"I know, but caffeine is a drug, too."

Her response was sticking her tongue out at him. "Always the responsible one."

"Not always," he said. "This is a risk." He leaned down to kiss her. It was the first one since breakfast, because once they got back to the agency, work had been the first priority. But here, in the elevator, there were no cameras, no one watching…

Ding!

The door opened before they could break apart, and when they did they found themselves face to face with Callen, Sam, and Eric. The rest had already gone back to the hotel, but these three had been too busy, apparently. The first two looked somewhat amused; the latter was furious.

Abby stepped out of the elevator, making it a point to stand between McGee and Eric. Callen and Sam each put a hand on Eric's shoulders.

"I'm so sorry, Eric. I didn't want you to find out like this…"

Shrugging off his teammates and stepping around Abby, he coldly replied, "That's okay. Hey, McGee, I think I owe you something."

"What?"

"This!" He pulled his arm back, and then let it fly into McGee's face. It connected, hard, with his jaw.

Abby stomped her foot. "Not again! No, stop!"

Eric, not listening, pulled back to punch again. Before Callen or Sam could intervene, McGee ducked and quickly had Eric pinned to the ground.

Callen and Sam finally stepped in, Sam taking care of Tim, and Callen holding Eric back.

"Tell me, Eric, what made you think that was a good idea?" Callen demanded. "He could charge you with assaulting a federal agent!"

Sam, noticing that his partner had things with Eric under control, addressed McGee. "Where'd you learn that move? That was pretty impressive."

Tim refrained from saying what he wanted to: that Eric was just a super computer nerd with no real muscle, so it had hardly been a challenge. Instead, he answered, "I wrestled a bit in high school. And Gibbs makes us go down to the gym sometimes to practice fighting, too."

Now it was Abby's turn to bite her tongue and keep from saying that Kate had taken him down when she was alive, and quite easily. She decided, however, that Eric had already embarrassed himself enough; he didn't need another crushing blow to his ego.

"Can I let you go now?" Callen asked. He was pretty angry about one of his own embarrassing the whole team.

"Yeah," he muttered.

"Good. Come on, Sam. I think it's time we get some sleep."

"Right behind you, G."

When the elevator doors had separated the DC and LA counterparts, Tim put his hand up to his jaw.

"Are you okay?" Abby asked. It was already starting to bruise.

"Yeah," he answered as he went to grab his stuff off of his desk. "What do you say we get some sleep, too?" he asked with a grin.

Wearing almost the same smile, with just a hint of concern, she replied, "Well, bed definitely sounds like a good idea."

A/N: Well? At first, I had Abby telling Eric before she told McGee, and he was okay with it, and then I realized that that had absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the story! Then I had a huge writer's meltdown, and I was freaking out because I wanted to have this done by the end of 2010, and now I'm too late. The good news: I only have one chapter left! And if you think that's bad news, I'm flattered, but every good story must come to an end. After this, however, I am writing two other fanfics for NCIS, and one of them (Justified Injustice) will end up being the first in a trilogy! Sorry, I'm done advertising now. Please review!