"Hi, Tony," said Abby as she entered her best friend's hospital room. "Bert and I have missed you."
Tony smiled. He looked up at Abby for a second, then reached out with his right hand to pull her down next to him.
"I think it's obvious that you missed us too," laughed Abby.
"Can I have one of your famous hugs?" Tony asked softly.
"Definitely!" Abby dropped her stuffed hippo onto Tony's lap and wrapped her arms around him, being careful not to hurt him. "Are you hungry?" she asked when she let go.
Tony nodded. He picked up Bert and cuddled the toy as Abby pulled containers of food out of her bag.
"How did you manage to smuggle those in here?" Tony asked.
"I told the nurses that I brought lunch for the two of us. They smiled and said that they were happy to see you eat something you would actually enjoy."
Tony laughed a little. "That's good," he said. "Hospital food is so disgusting. A few days of it is enough."
"Good, cause I brought you some of the leftovers we had at work last night. There's some lasagna, and some ingredients to make wraps. I've got some juice too, if you want any."
"I have plenty of juice here." Tony pointed to the bar fridge. "Check it out."
Curious, Abby opened the fridge door and peeked inside. She laughed when she found that not only was there juice in the fridge, but also coffee. "Did Gibbs leave this?" she asked, showing Tony the coffee bag.
"Uh, no. I asked Brad to get the coffee so that Gibbs could have some if he wanted it. Is it the right brand?" Tony asked, feeling a little overwhelmed and worried.
"I don't think Gibbs has a brand," said Abby as she returned to the bed. "He just drinks whatever the coffee shops have. He'll be fine with it."
Tony relaxed again. "Good," he said softly.
After lunch, Tony yawned sleepily. "Sorry, Abbs," he said.
"It's okay. You get some sleep. I'll leave Bert here with you, and head back to work. Do you need anything?" Abby asked as she fixed the blankets and moved the heart monitor cords out of the way. She was relieved that Tony had been taken off the rest of the monitors, allowing him more freedom to move around in bed.
"No. Can you tell Gibbs to come over after work?"
"Of course I can, Tony." Abby kissed his head. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Tony pulled Bert into his arms and squashed the toy, smiling briefly when it farted. Then he closed his eyes, fell asleep, and was dreaming of happy times in a matter of minutes.
Gibbs was so tired by the time he got to Metro PD, but he refused to give in until he had some answers. He strode up to the front desk and waited, almost impatiently, for the clerk to ask him what he needed.
"I want to speak with Detective Frond please," said Gibbs.
"Just a moment. May I ask your name?"
"NCIS Special Agent Gibbs. He should be expecting me."
The clerk nodded and lifted her phone. She spoke quietly for a moment, then smiled at Gibbs. "You can go up to Detective Frond's office, Agent Gibbs. He's waiting for you."
"Thank you." Gibbs gave a quick nod and disappeared, wanting to deal with the detective quickly so he could get back to the hospital.
"Agent Gibbs, nice to meet you," said Detective Frond in a somewhat rushed tone.
"Could be better circumstances. I know you're busy, so I'll make this quick," said Gibbs. "Have you gotten anywhere with Agent DiNozzo's case?"
"We got video footage of the actual crash, finally. Our techs are tracking the driver's movements as we speak, but it's been five days, so I don't hold much hope for a positive outcome..."
"Excuse me?! Agent DiNozzo is currently laying in a hospital bed with two broken legs; a missing appendix; part of his right kidney is missing and the left one had to be stitched up; majority of his ribs are broken; his skull is broken and his brain is bruised; his left wrist is swollen from all the bruised tissue in it; and he's lost half his memory! So don't tell me that you're thinking of giving up. You will find the person that put Tony in this position, and I don't care how long it takes. You will find him!" shouted Gibbs angrily. "Is that clear?"
Detective Frond smiled. "I didn't say we were giving up, Gibbs. We'll find the guy, but it might take us a while. That's all I was saying."
"If you give up, I'll come back here and deal with you. I couldn't care less if I get into trouble for it."
Gibbs turned and stormed out, huffing as he went.
"Detective Frond, what's going on out here?" asked the detective's captain a second later.
"It's alright, sir. Agent Gibbs is just hurting, that's all."
"How's his agent?"
"From what was just said, I'd guess that he's still in a very bad shape. I can't say I blame Gibbs for being so angry. If I was him, I'd think that I was giving up too."
"Next time he comes for answers, send him to me. I'll see if I can calm him down a little."
Detective Frond nodded. "Of course, sir," he said, though he had no intention of sending Gibbs into the lion's den.