A/N: Hiya! So here's chapter 5 for your enjoyment ;D Thank you again to everyone who reviewed the last chapter and also thank you to all you wonderful anonymous reviewers who I couldn't thank via PM, You guys are all really awesome! Hope you like this chapter and I'm not sure if the next chapter will be up already tomorrow evening or if it'll be Tuesday before I can get it in posting condition, it depends on my muse (who lives on reviews ;D Sorry I couldn't resist.) I'll just shut up now and let you get on with the ficcie :D
Gibbs clenched and unclenched his hands to keep them from gripping the steering wheel harder than necessary.
He glanced at the man who was dozing in the seat next to him and let out a deep uneven breath as he again clenched his hands enough to make his knuckles turn white, mostly to keep himself from reaching out and taking Tony's hand in his to reassure the younger man.
He knew that there was something deeply troubling the dozing man, but for the life of him he couldn't understand what it was. The answer he'd gotten from the younger man when he asked when he'd eaten last troubled him deeply Doesn't really matter. Tony should really know better than that, it did matter because it was Tony and Tony mattered to him. And he had no idea what Tony had meant as he mumbled something about semantics.
Gibbs was confused. And being confused made him angry because confusion meant that there were things he didn't understand and when it came to the people he cared about, he hated not understanding what was going on with them.
Deciding to approach the situation like any investigation he went through the facts in his head.
Fact one: he and Ziva were seeing each other.
That one still puzzled him somewhat, when he and Ziva had ended up in bed together after a particularly difficult case he didn't think it was more than a one night stand to relieve some pressure. Ziva had surprised him by wanting a real relationship. Even so, he didn't really think that the thing would last, but somehow the young woman had convinced him to announce their relationship to their co-workers. That had been a mistake since the woman obviously took that as a sign that it was okay to flirt outrageously with him at work and he often had to rein her in in private.
And that leads to fact two: Tony was okay with the relationship.
After the announcement Gibbs had been watching his teams reactions like a hawk and he'd seen the shock on everyone's face when they heard he was seeing Ziva and for a reason he couldn't phantom, Ducky, Abby and McGee and hell even Ziva had turned their heads slightly to look discreetly at Tony, who had seemed frozen after the announcement. Only after the younger man had snapped out of his shock and stepped up to congratulate them had all the others moved and done the same.
DiNozzo had seemed a bit pale and sad for some reason so Gibbs had kept a close eye on him for a few days, but the young man seemed to take the news well after his initial surprise. Hell, Tony had been his biggest support during this all which had surprised and disappointed Jethro more than he was willing to admit. The younger man had been nothing but supportive and encouraging the whole time and had even helped to give Gibbs an alibi when he needed time to work on a surprise for Ziva on her birthday.
So DiNozzo was okay with the relationship.
Gibbs again glanced at his passenger as if afraid he might hear his next thoughts and upon finding him with his eyes still closed he went on with his list.
Fact three: He was attracted to Tony.
He had been attracted to the younger man for a while but it wasn't like there could ever be anything between them so he kept the feelings to himself. He had tried to tell himself it was just because of rule twelve, but that excuse had been thrown out of the window when he'd slept with Ziva. The real reason that nothing would ever happen was that he was sure Tony didn't feel the same way about him.
So that little piece of information would be irrelevant in trying to figure out what was going on with Tony, but being a good investigator he was nothing if not throughout. And when he wasn't really sure about much, he couldn't discount anything.
Fact four: Something was wrong with Tony.
That one he didn't need a doctor's degree to see. The younger man was paler, more subdued, he obviously wasn't sleeping well and had lost weight which proved that he wasn't taking care of himself. That's what had led Gibbs to believe that at least part of the reason he passed out in the elevator was the fact that he hadn't been eating for a while. And the answer he'd gotten when he'd asked about it from the younger man was informative enough.
What he didn't know was the cause for the changes in the younger man. He did know whatever it was had been brewing for months now, but he couldn't pinpoint the exact time when it all started.
Fact five: Tony thought he and Ziva were seriously committed to each other. And that went hand in hand with fact six: Tony thought he'd proposed to her.
The mere idea of him having proposed to Ziva was ridiculous. He'd been married enough times to not take that step easily again. And where on earth would have he gotten that idea anyhow?
He went over the things said in the elevator and his eyes widened slightly as he realized what exactly Tony had said.
"I know you love her and Ziva told me about the proposal and I promised her not to tell anyone. Why couldn't you trust me?"
As the meaning of those words registered he had to keep himself from pressing the gas pedal down harder and turning the car to head to her apartment to demand an explanation.
Ziva had told Tony he'd proposed to her and then made DiNozzo think it was a secret so Gibbs wouldn't find out about the lie. And there was no doubt in Jethro's mind that Tony was telling the truth since he trusted the young man more than anyone else. Furthermore the way the younger man had told him about Ziva's words made it clear that there was no way it was a misunderstanding, she had deliberately deceived him. Now why the hell would she lie about something like that?
Gibbs had never been happier to pull up into his drive way than he was at the moment the gravel crunched under the car's tires. He would have been liable to cause an accident driving in the mental state he was in.
He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before doing it again and concentrating on calming down.
So he now had most of the pieces, but he couldn't help but feel there was still some major part missing that would solve the whole puzzle.
He again looked at his still sleeping passenger and frowned as he once more saw the signs how bad the younger man had been feeling. But why? Why was Tony feeling so- so... he struggled for a word to describe it and once he thought back to the younger man's reaction in the elevator it really hit him: desperate, defeated.
It couldn't be just the thought of Ziva and him getting married since that wouldn't fit with the facts, nor could it only be the trust issue Tony had brought out since that didn't seem to fit the bill either. It must be something that ran deeper, that really had Tony rattled and so very near to his breaking point. And it had been going on for a while. Hell it must be bad for Tony to plan resigning. And Gibbs couldn't help but wonder if Ziva had something else to do with the younger man getting so wrung out.
Gibbs growled in frustration as he wondered for what seemed like the millionth time, what the hell was it that was causing all of this.
Turns out that even if the car stopping hadn't been enough to wake the younger man, hearing his boss growl like an angry dog was enough to rouse him.
"Boss? What's wrong?" Bleary eyes regarded the older man carefully before Gibbs saw the confusion sharpen the gaze as Tony looked around.
"And how did we end up here?"
Gibbs almost smiled at the suspicious and puzzled question, did the younger man really think he'd end up anywhere else for the night?
"Well I drove us here." He answered curtly as he got out of the car and rounded the car to open the door to his agent who was looking at him as if he'd lost his mind.
"But Boss- I mean what about Ziva? Isn't she waiting for you and- I mean it isn't really any of my business but I don't really want to be the third wheel-" The nervous rambling might have been amusing if it wasn't for the slightly fearful look in the younger man's eyes
It was also that look that made Gibbs gentle down the usual head slap to a mere tap to the top of Tony's head but it still did the trick as the agent stopped talking and got out of the car.
Gibbs was pleased to note that he didn't look quite as ready to pass out, but he was still slightly unsteady so he took his position as a human walking aid and led the reluctant man inside.
"There's no one here but you and me, so you can relax. I have no idea where Ziva is right now, nor do I really care."
Tony chose to not comment on the last statement but just let Gibbs lead him into the house where he was first deposited in the kitchen and Gibbs rummaged through the fridge while Tony sat at the table nervously wringing his hands.
A moment later a carton of juice was placed in front of him with a glass and a terse order to drink.
"Ah Boss, I don' really-" The words were cut off by a glare.
"You will drink that while I make us something to eat, I will not have you pass out again because your sugars are low."
Gibbs watched him like a hawk until Tony filled the glass and took a drink of the juice. Nodding in satisfaction the older man started to prepare them something light to eat.
There was silence all the while the two men ate only broken by the ringing of Gibbs' cell, but once he saw that it was Ziva he pressed ignore and the silence continued. Once they were finished Gibbs put the dishes into the sink to be dealt with later. He wasn't really satisfied with the amount of food his guest had consumed, but the man had made an effort so he hadn't pushed.
Once the table was cleared and Jethro was satisfied that the younger man had gotten enough energy to not risk passing out, he filled a cup from his faithful coffee maker he'd loaded while cooking, and motioned for Tony to follow him into the living room.
Once there he sat on the sofa and when the younger man hesitated at the doorway, he raised an eyebrow and indicated for him to take a seat next to him.
There was silence for a few more minutes before Tony couldn't take it anymore.
"Look Boss. Thanks for the dinner and all but I'm sure you want to get me out of your hair so I'll just call a cab and we'll agree this day never happened."
Gibbs couldn't read the look in the Italian's eyes but as he shook his head slowly he saw a flicker of uncertainty and apprehension pass over them.
"You're not going anywhere tonight other than the guestroom. You don't need to be alone after what happened today. And pretending it never happened won't help either so you might as well accept that it did."
He saw the crestfallen look in the younger man and he couldn't help but wish to be able to pull the man in his arms and wipe it away. Maybe kiss it all better.
Gibbs shook his head to rid himself of the thought and as he looked at his agent again he could see that he was shaking slightly and appeared to be fighting to keep a control on his emotions.
Seeing the younger man's struggle Gibbs couldn't help but give into the temptation to comfort the man in the only way he knew and so he slid closer and wrapped his arms around the shaking man.
He savored the feel of the man in his arms and he would have gladly had the moment stretch and it might have lasted longer, had Ziva not chosen that moment to storm into the house and the living room.
She seemed to take in sight of the two men sitting together on the couch with Gibbs' arms still around Tony and the look in her eyes told Jethro that this wasn't going to end well.
TBC...