A/N: -surfaces for air- Okay. This chapter was a labor of love. Especially considering the fact that I should be studying for one of my tests at the moment. But it was worth it. Thanks so much to all those who patiently waited for this chapter. Next chapter is already shaping up and I hope to get it out in a week or two, depending on how much stuff accumulates in my schedule. However, for everyone else in the USA: Did you see that premiere? Who else wanted to snatch Tony and give him a hug, and some tissue, and some actual clothes to wear? This season looks like its gonna be a good one.

Chapter Twenty Nine

Me and Ziva are going to the store and then we're gonna go eat. We're going to the store cause Boss has to get a room ready for someone who is coming to visit. He has to get the room ready cause it's the room that Elijah sometimes stays in and Elijah sometimes forgets to clean it even though Boss doesn't mind. Elijah is staying to help clean it though and then Elijah is going away for awhile cause he's going on vacation with his mom to someplace warmer so Boss is helping Elijah clean the house so Elijah can leave. He's sweeping everything which is weird cause he doesn't do that all the time. He only started now cause someone is coming.

It's Boss' Boss.

No, that's not right. Boss doesn't have a Boss like I have a Boss. At least I don't think has a Boss like I have a Boss. Boss doesn't need someone to watch movies with him or to rub his bad hand when it hurts. He doesn't have anyone that helps him and smiles at him and laughs like the rumble of a bear or the engine of our truck.

But Boss has…he has…

Dad. It's Boss' dad that's coming. He's coming to visit. Boss has a dad. Boss' dad name is…is…

Jackson.

That's Boss' dad's name and he's coming to visit.

Boss is all grumbly though, and I don't know why. But that's okay. Cause Ziva said he isn't really angry but that Boss is grumbly cause he always is when his dad's gonna come and visit. She said that's just how Boss is.

And that's okay. Cause Boss kinda sounds a little funny when he grumbles.

"Come Tony," Ziva said softly, her hand gently smoothing his wrinkled jacket, "Would you like your beanie on?"

"Blue. Yes please," Tony smiled almost shyly. He was a little nervous cause this was the first time Ziva had taken him somewhere by himself without Boss or Elijah or Probie or Abby, "Snow. It's still cold."

"It is," Ziva nodded and helped Tony down from the backseat of the truck. It took a few miles for her to get use to the bulkiness that driving the F-150 had as opposed to her Mini Cooper, but because they were not going towards DC but instead farther into Virginia, parking had not been a problem.

"Do you have Baron's leash?" Ziva asked, already seeing that Tony did not. She watched as Tony looked around and with a much steadier hand than he had had all those months ago when he had first come home, before reaching for Baron's blue leash.

"Cold. Yes," Tony said and reached over to fiddle with Baron's service dog vest, smoothing the vest just as Ziva had smoothed his own jacket, "Blue. Ready."

"Then let us go," Ziva carefully placed her hand in the crook of Tony's elbow on his bad side. If he were to fall, Ziva did not doubt her ability in helping her friend. However, she smiled when Tony turned to her and blushed slightly after she placed her hand there.

"You're really nice Ziva," Tony said and crooked his head ever so slightly, as if he were trying to gain a different perspective on her. The look reminded her of the old days, back when they would trade the occasional idiom or innuendo.

But just when she thought Tony was going to say something else about it, Tony's smile widen, the skin around his eyes showing that his face smiled a lot these days, "Blue. Ziva, can we get pizza for lunch?"

Ziva paused momentarily before letting out a small laugh, "Yes Tony, I would love to get some pizza for lunch."

Tony laughed too, though Ziva knew it had more to do with her laughter than anything else that cause the man to laugh, "Pizza. I like pizza."

"I know Tony," Ziva nodded, thinking of that one rainy night, all those nights ago, when he had given her the last slice of a pizza he was going to throw away, "You always have."

Gibbs finished sweeping the kitchen before he threw out the trash. Elijah had left a few minutes ago, off to pick up his mother so they could catch their flight on time. They were visiting family down south and would be gone for just over a month. Elijah hadn't wanted to stay gone so long but when Jackson had agreed to stick around for that month, Gibbs had persuaded Tony's aide to take a much needed and much deserved vacation.

Thinking of his father, Gibbs glanced out his window. It was cold outside and it had started to snow again. Thankfully, Jackson was having a friend drive him down so Gibbs didn't have to worry about his father driving on the icy roads.

Letting out a deep breath, Gibbs looked around his humble house. Having his father visit always turned him into a slight neat freak, and the only explanation he could come up with was the fact that his father, not his mother, had drilled into him the importance of having a clean and presentable home.

With that thought, Gibbs smiled sadly as he thought of his mother. He missed her, in that way that made his heart ache when he thought about her, but now that she had been gone for over three-fourths of his life, Gibbs found that most of the time when he thought about his mother, he thought about her smile, and the way her voice had always sounded happy.

Though he had forgotten what she sounded like a long time ago, Gibbs would sometimes catch a breeze of roses and for a split second, his brain would take him back to the days when he was young and he would come home from school and find his mom working in the garden.

"Leroy?" a voice called out as his front door opened, squeaking only slightly, "You home?"

"Hey dad," Gibbs stood, and walked into the foyer, "How was the drive?"

"Good, good," Jackson nodded as his son took his bags. He stomped his feet gently on the mat to get the last bit of snow off his shoes before he closed the door and took off his coat, "How was your new year?"

"Better than last year's," Gibbs said before he gave his father a quick hug. He had tried to keep his dad at arm's length since Tony's accident but despite that fact, Jackson had made sure to keep in touch, whether it had been through Gibbs or even Ducky.

"That's good," Jackson nodded looking around his son's home, "Where is Tony? Is he napping?"

"No," Gibbs shook his head, "He went out today with Ziva. She's taking him to the store and then out to lunch."

"Well that was very kind of her," Jackson nodded, "Now, speaking of lunch, I assume you haven't eaten anything yet Leroy?"

"No dad."

"Perfect then, I will make the sandwiches while you come and sweep this kitchen," Jackson spoke as he walked through the living room and into the kitchen itself.

Gibbs smiled and rolled his eyes. Years ago, the comment would most likely make his blood boil. But now, now that he understood things, he knew that it was best to humor his old man for it wasn't every day he got to spend it with his son.

"Coming dad," Gibbs hung his father's coat on the rack before setting his bag by the staircase.

Tony sat in the booth, Baron laying underneath the table. The boss of the place almost didn't let Baron in when Tony got hungry enough to eat food, but Ziva gave him a big glare like Boss did when he got angry at other people, and told him that Baron was a service dog.

Tony knew that the boss of the pizza place was wrong because service dogs like Baron could go anywhere he could go. And since his head wasn't broken anymore, Tony wanted to go into the pizza store.

"Here you go Tony," Ziva smiled as she placed the pizza on a little stand in front of him. He already had his plate ready for the pizza.

"Green. No sausage?" Tony looked at the pizza sadly, as if someone had just robbed him of his favorite thing in life.

Ziva smiled, "Yes Tony, there is sausage. But only on your half, see?" Ziva said as she gave the pizza a half-turn. Tony had wanted his favorite, pepperoni, sausage and extra cheese, and because she did not care much for sausage or pepperoni, she had ordered her half with onions and bell peppers instead.

"Gross. Ziva, someone put green things on your part of the pizza," Tony whispered, as if the fact that a pizza was green was a great atrocity, "Green isn't supposed to be on the pizza."

"I like green on my pizza Tony, just like you prefer sausage on your own pizza."

"But," Tony frowned for a moment before sighing, "Okay Ziva. But I don't have to eat your part, right?"

"No Tony, I will eat my part, you do not have to eat anything green," Ziva smiled at him. In all reality, despite the fact that Tony often picked pizza to eat, Elijah and Gibbs rarely gave in to Tony's demands. Pizza, while high in carbs, did not have any other nutritional value, other than being incredibly delicious, and because of this, Elijah often found ways to distract Tony from pizza and instead put his focus on eating other things, such as fruits and veggies instead.

Though Ziva was certain that Tony would be just fine if he ate pizza every day, Tony had once told her that true Italians could eat as much pizza as they wanted and still be fit as a banjo (or maybe it was a fiddle), she was glad that her friend was eating more greens in his diet.

"Ziva," Tony said again in exasperation. He had been calling her for a few seconds most likely and Ziva hadn't even noticed, to busy caught up in her own thoughts.

"Yes Tony?"

"Green. Gross. I need help," Tony looked at the pizza on his plate, "Can you cut it for me?"

"Not a problem Tony," Ziva quickly reached over and cut up Tony's pizza into more manageably squares. Tony, receiving his plate back, smiled and Ziva.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome Tony."

It was quiet for a few moments as they ate their own half of the pizza. Ziva watched Tony out of her peripheral vision and let a small smile show. Tony's movements were so much steadier than they had been months ago. She was so proud of her friend and so thankful that with each passing week, things seemed to be getting easier for Tony.

"Secret. Ziva?" Tony said, once again breaking her out of her thoughts.

"Yes Tony?"

"Can," Tony's face pinched up as if he had tasted something sour before he bit his lip, "Do you have a secret?"

Not knowing where this was going, Ziva decided to tread carefully, "Everyone has secrets Tony."

"Quiet. But," Tony bit his lip again and looked passed her, out of the window and into the street, where it was starting to snow again, "But are secrets okay to keep? Are they bad?"

Ziva lifted an eyebrow and wondered what Tony was thinking, "Some, yes. Some can be very bad to keep. But not all secrets are bad Tony. Sometimes, a secret can be happy, like when someone throws a surprise party for another person."

"Secret. Surprise. But how do you know if they're bad or not?"

Ziva thought about how to explain it to Tony before sighing, "How does it feel in here?" she said, gently touching Tony's chest, "And here?" she used the tips of her fingers to gently touch his brow, "Does it feel bad or good in those places when you think of the secret?"

"I don't know," Tony shook his head and set his pizza down. Vaguely, Ziva heard the jangling of Baron's ID and rabies tags and knew the dog was most likely sitting underneath the table now, his head on Tony's knee.

Her assumption was proven right a few moments later when Tony looked down at his lap and started petting Baron's head.

"Tony, do you have a secret that you want to tell me? Or Boss?" she asked quietly in the quiet pizza parlor. She had waited till after the lunch rush before taking him here, not wanting him to be overwhelmed by how crowded the pizza place could get. Now she was thankful for her decision in taking him to a much quieter place.

"Secret. Ssshh. Um," Tony bit his lip and shook his head, "No. It's…it's not a bad secret. It…it makes me feel happy."

Despite the fact that she wanted to know what secret Tony was thinking about, she knew that even though Tony suffered from a horrific TBI, he was still his own person and was quite capable of making decisions such as these, "Alright then Tony. But if it makes you feel bad inside, you will promise me that you will tell someone, yes?"

"Green. I promise Ziva," Tony nodded and smiled shyly at his friend.

"Alright then. Let us finish eating so we can go home."

Me and Ziva went to the store. But after that we went to a pizza place cause Ziva let me have some pizza. Pizza with pepperoni, sausage, and extra cheese. That was my favorite. I wanted to give Baron some but Boss told me not to give Baron lots of my food cause it could make his stomach hurt.

But I still gave Baron a little piece of my pizza when Ziva wasn't looking.

I want to see my dad again. Boss is gonna see his dad and his dad doesn't have to be a secret. I asked Ziva about secrets cause I know she knows a lot about them but even her answer made my stomach go flip-flop like it does when I think about my dad.

But I got to meet Boss' boss.

No, Boss' dad.

His dad's name is Jackson. But I can call him Jack cause he said that's okay. He was really nice and his face was really wrinkly, like he smiled so much his face just wants to stay that way. He smiled at me lots and he's really nice.

He even brought me a sweater, a nice one like the once Boss let's me wear all the time. It's really soft and nice and it has a zipper on the front.

And Boss's dad is nice. Jack is nice.

He even watched a movie with me.

And now that he's here, he makes Boss smile, which is good.

I really like Jack. And Baron likes him too.