Chapter 2
The next morning Tony woke up with a slight headache. He went to the bathroom and took care of business, then looked in the mirror. As expected, his eyes were slightly swollen but not too bad. An ice pack would take care of that. The lump on his head wasn't as prominent as it had been the day before and was only a little bruised. He took a couple of Tylenol for his headache then went into the kitchen for an ice pack.
Gibbs was already awake and dressed, drinking coffee and reading the paper. "Let me see," he told Tony and winced when he saw the bruising and swelling.
"It's not that bad," Tony said with a shrug. "I have a little bit of a headache but I took some Tylenol. Twenty minutes with an ice pack will take care of the swelling. Then I'll shower and be ready to go."
With a nod, Gibbs went back to his coffee and paper while Tony grabbed an ice pack from the freezer. "Call me in 20 minutes in case I go back to sleep," he said as he went back to the bedroom.
An hour later, Tony was showered and dressed in jeans and a black sweater. He was on desk duty for the day, but luckily it was Friday and they weren't on call for the weekend. Locking the door, he and Gibbs headed for the Navy Yard.
Ziva was already at her desk when they arrived. She looked at the bruise on Tony's head and smiled. "It is good that you have such a hard head, yes?" she teased. "Did you get yet another concussion?"
"Not even a concussion this time, Ziva," answered Tony. Leaning toward Ziva, he asked, "Do you want to kiss it and make it better?"
"Sit down, DiNozzo," growled Gibbs. "You have a report to write."
Sighing dramatically, Tony sat at his desk and booted up his computer.
About an hour later, Abby and Tim arrived at the bullpen. "Whoa, McShiner!" called Tony. "That is truly spectacular!"
And indeed it was. Overnight, the bruising around Tim's eye had darkened considerably. The eye was still swollen completely shut and the bruising extended from just below his eyebrow down into his cheek where it blended into the bruising of his jaw.
Abby helped Tim into his chair and said, "I tried to get him to stay at home but he wouldn't. He said he had to get his report done."
Gibbs walked over and surveyed the damage to Tim's face. "She's right, McGee. You shouldn't be here. Go home."
Tim stubbornly shook his head. "I'm fine, Boss. I can stay."
But Gibbs was just as stubborn. "Go see Ducky. If he says you can stay, then you stay." Turning to Tony, he added, "You too, DiNozzo. Let Ducky take a look at your head."
Tony rolled his eyes but got up. "C'mon, Probie," he said, taking Tim's arm. "Let's get this over with."
"What happened to your head, Tony?" asked Tim. "I didn't know you got hurt."
"Lee slammed his head back into mine when I stopped you from hitting him in the fist with your face. It's nothing. Now let's go get you checked out." They headed for the elevator while Gibbs went up the stairs to the director's office.
Abby stared after Tony and Tim with a strange look on her face. "Why did Tony say that?" she asked.
"Say what?" Ziva said. "He was just telling Tim what happened."
"Yes, but he didn't have to say it that way. It makes it sound like Timmy couldn't handle himself and Tony had to rescue him. Timmy's the one who saved the girl."
"You know how Tony is, Abby. He likes to tease and make jokes. That is how he handles difficult situations. He was very worried about McGee."
"Yeah, I know how Tony is. And he likes to be the center of attention. He doesn't like it if someone else is in the spotlight. He'll do things to get the focus back on him and if that doesn't happen, he'll go pout."
"Really, Abby, Tony is not that bad. True, he does like attention but he would never be jealous of McGee or anyone else for that matter."
"Just wait and see. Mark my words; he'll do something to turn the attention to himself. He just can't help it." Abby sighed. "I love Tony – I really do – but he needs to grow up. Well, I need to get to the lab. Take care of Timmy for me."
Abby left the bullpen and headed for her lab. As she left, Ziva considered her words. Yes, Tony could be immature but she didn't think he would be jealous just because Tim was getting more attention that he was. Not even Tony was that childish. She decided that she would watch and see what happened.
In Autopsy, Ducky had just finished looking at Tim's eye and jaw. "You really should be at home, Timothy, but if you insist on staying, you must continue with the ice therapy. That will get the swelling down but the bruises, unfortunately, must run their course. I expect that this black eye will be around for at least two weeks."
"Two weeks!" exclaimed Tim. "I have to walk around like this for two weeks?"
"Hey, wear it proudly, Probie," Tony interjected. "You're a hero, remember? Look at it like a badge of honor and milk it for all it's worth. Chicks love the injured hero, and for the moment, that is you. Enjoy it! Now grab an ice pack, go upstairs, lean back in your chair and look pitiful – the mother hens will flock to you."
Looking a little better, Tim took the instant ice packs that Ducky gave him and headed for the elevator. He turned back to Tony and asked, "You coming?" forgetting that Ducky was supposed to look at Tony's injury as well.
"I'll be up in a minute," Tony answered. "I need to ask Ducky a question."
As soon as Tim was gone, Ducky said, "You realize that you are going to have a similar badge of honor in a couple of days – times two. The blood from your head injury is going to pass through the tissue of your upper nose and collect in the soft tissue under each eye, if not by tomorrow then most definitely by Sunday."
Tony sighed. "Yeah, I know. I took a line-drive to the face when I was in college. Had a big lump, just like this one and three days later I had two black eyes that lasted about a week. I was hoping I would dodge the bullet this time, but I don't think that's going to happen. Oh, well. Nothing I can do about it." He sighed again. "Listen Ducky, can I lay down in your office for a few. I've got a killer headache and I just need a few minutes with an ice pack of my own to get it under control."
Ducky frowned. "Certainly, Anthony. Just let me have a look at you first. Have you taken anything for the headache?" When Tony shook his head in the negative, Ducky tut-tutted then brought him some Tylenol. "Take these and lie down for a few minutes. I'll let Jethro know where you are."
"Thanks, Ducky." Tony gratefully took the Tylenol and lay down in Ducky's office, ice pack over his eyes. He was looking forward to the end of the day followed by two days of nothing but rest and relaxation.
TBC