Rifiuto: Non Miriena
Asher looked around; he'd never been in the bullpen, but it fascinated him. He sat at one of the desks, looking at everything, watching as his mother sat at the desk beside the one he sat at. His father- it was still strange to think of this American man as his father- was pacing nervously back and forth. "McGee." Instantly, the man straightened, turning as another man, one with silver hair, entered and immediately made his way towards his desk. But he stopped short, seeing the child sitting at it. Gibbs slowly blinked, looking from the kid to his agent and back. After a moment, he moved away from the desk, towards the elevator. "My office, McGee. Now."
A moment passed, as Tim shot a glance at the boy and his mother before following. Once he stepped within the box, Gibbs flipped the switch. "Boss-"
"You mind telling me who they are and what they're doing here?"
"You asked for them to come in-"
"I don't mean in the bullpen, I mean in America." He replied. Tim sighed; he knew his childhood would come up sooner or later, he'd just hoped it would have been later. Taking a deep breath, he whispered,
"Ziva and I- Officer David and I-" He amended. "we met when we were teenagers. In Israel. My father was the American Ambassador to Israel, long before he ever became a UN Ambassador. We were only there a year. Ziva and I..." He stopped, meeting Gibbs eyes briefly. "We hung out, but we were never close. We never dated; her older brother and younger sister and my sister Sarah were always there..." Gibbs stepped closer. Tim took a deep breath. "The night Asher was conceived, we... we snuck out of this... embassy ball and dinner and went to this small coffee shop. Eventually we returned to her parents' apartment and..." He shrugged. "We slept together. We were both virgins and... we gave ourselves to each other. It wasn't planned, it was a complete... a complete spur of the moment thing and..." He sighed, leaning back against the wall and sinking to the floor. After a moment, he looked up at Gibbs. "It's true, that saying- 'It only takes one time', and it did for us." He licked his lips, thinking. "Neither one of us knew. She found out two weeks after Sarah and I returned to the U.S."
When he looked up again, Gibbs was joining him on the floor. "Her father disowned her when he found out; tried to kill her by shoving her down the stairs, in hopes that she'd miscarry. Her mother and siblings took her to a house outside of Tel Aviv, and she lived there; they would come take care of her and check on her." He sniffled. "They were there when she went into labor and... and she had my so-" He stopped, taking a deep breath. "Her son," Gibbs could tell that Tim's refusing to acknowledge Asher as his came from a deep fear that the boy would be taken from him, that Ziva would be taken from him. "was born after eighteen hours. She said he was perfect." He turned to meet his boss's gaze. "What do I do, Gibbs? I don't know the boy, I barely know Ziva. He's my son... I've lost eight years of his life, how do I get them back?"
The older man watched his young agent, before laying a hand on his shoulder. "You get to know him now, and spend time catching up." Then he stood, helping McGee to his feet. As they left the elevator and returned to the bullpen, two figures came up from taking the stairs- Anthony DiNozzo and Abigail Scuito. Both carried cups of caffeine and were silent, realizing the importance of being there early. When Abby saw Tim, she rushed to him, throwing her arms around him.
"Timmy! Ducky finished Kate's autopsy-" But he pulled away from her, moving around his coworkers and going to his desk. Tony, taking a seat at his own desk, finally caught sight of the two extra occupants.
"Um, Gibbs? Who's... you're that Mossad officer, but who's-" Ziva took a deep breath, as Asher rushed to her, hiding behind her. It was Tim that answered.
"Tony, Abby, this is Asher." He glanced at the child, who watched him from behind his mother. "My son." The pair shared a glance; Tony was the first to speak.
"I... you have to be... kidding, Probie. Did... did you say... son?" Tim nodded, and slowly, Asher moved out from behind Ziva, who laid her hands on his shoulders. Gently, she pushed him forward.
"Go on, my angel." Silence filled the bullpen as the boy stepped forward, holding out a hand. Tony glanced at Gibbs before taking the child's hand and shaking.
"It is... nice to meet you." Asher whispered, as Tony shook the boy's hand. He leaned down, and that was when he saw it. The green eyes, the features were a mix of the Israeli officer and his coworker- Tony glanced up at Tim, mouth dropping open. But before he could ask, Gibbs cut him off.
"You two, explain." Tim and Ziva shared a glance, debating which should go first.
"Agent Gibbs." Everyone turned, to see Director Shepard on the catwalk. "Bring them to my office. All of them."
Abby, Tony, Ducky and Palmer- who had shown up after Gibbs called them- all took seats on the sofa in the Director's office. Gibbs stood by the door, and Asher stood with Ziva, who held her son close. Tim sighed, pacing back and forth, unsure of where to start. He glanced around, his gaze landing on the boy who shared so many of his features. Asher watched the young agent, suddenly afraid that he'd done something to get his mother and the agent in trouble. He turned to Ziva.
"Ima, did I do something wrong?" Gently, she laid a hand on her son's head, and then knelt down. Tim looked up.
"No, my angel. You did nothing wrong."
"But-" Everyone watched as Tim went to them, kneeling to stare into his own green eyes.
"It's not you, that did anything wrong. The one who did something wrong is me. I kept a secret from the agency, and I need to take my punishment."
"What secret?" The boy asked. Tim smiled softly, slowly reaching out to cradle his son's cheek in his hand.
"You."
"But Ima says you did not-"
"I know. But it doesn't matter. A secret is still a secret, even if you don't know about it." He stood, turning to Director Shepard, who sat at her desk. "Where would you like me to start?"
Jenny raised an eyebrow. "At the beginning, Agent McGee."