Chapter 29
Jacob sat down beside Gibbs in the chair outside Tony’s room. Tony had been admitted when the nurses found him unconscious on the floor in Olivia’s room. One of Olivia’s nurses had been heading to her room and had seen Tony fall. Also, a nurse who had just been passing by the room had seen him and had come rushing in to help.
Because Tony’s condition was not critical he had not been put in the same ward as Olivia. He was, in fact, two floors down in another ward. He had been hooked up to an IV almost immediately. He had been diagnosed with dehydration, malnutrition and fatigue. He had been asleep almost 8 hours and showed no signs of waking anytime soon. So Gibbs left him under Ziva’s watchful eye and took a seat out in the waiting room area. He, too, expected Tim back any minute with food and coffee.
“How’s Tony doing?” Jacob asked as he took his seat.
“Sleeping.” Gibbs said, stretching and yawning. He had been sleeping on and off in Tony’s room between keeping an eye on Tony and looking in on Olivia.
“Good.” Jacob said. “You know…I wasn’t sure how…how I would feel when the day finally came. You know…for…for Olivia to meet Tony. Not that I didn’t want it to happen for her…I did.” Jacob paused. “It’s just…I didn’t want her to get hurt. I didn’t want her to get hurt and I was not sure I wanted to share her. I mean…she was mine. She has been for 18 years. I…I knew the day was coming…years ago. The first time she asked about, her dad…about Tony. I just…I thought I had prepared myself for what to expect. I had…” Jacob shook his head. “…there was no way I could have prepared myself for Anthony DiNozzo.”
Gibbs just looked at Jacob and laughed.
Jacob smiled. “So you know what I’m talking about.”
“Only too well.” Gibbs replied.
“I had decided, long ago, I was NOT going to like Olivia’s dad. No matter who he turned out to be. I just couldn’t see how a man could go through life and NOT know he had a child. I thought that Sallie just couldn’t face that fact that Tony hadn’t wanted Olivia. I refused to believe otherwise. But, somehow…” Jacob said. “…he’s gotten me to actually LIKE him. Tony has managed to make himself a huge part of Olivia’s life. He is 100% her dad and he hasn’t made me feel any less of a dad to her. He hasn’t tried to diminish my role in her life. ”
“It’s called the DiNozzo charm. I thought it only worked on the women he dated. Apparently no one is immune.” Gibbs mused.
“He’s such a good guy.” Jacob said. “I have always wondered where all that come from in Olivia. The depth of caring and selflessness, I see that now. I see that in Tony.” Jacob said as he glanced through the open door at Tony. “I can appreciate that in Olivia so much more now.”
Gibbs smiled. “She is very much like her father.” He replied, thinking of the times he had recognized it in Olivia.
“You’ve worked with Tony a long time?” Jacob asked.
“Almost 10 years.” Gibbs stated.
“Long enough to REALLY get to know someone’s habits.”
Gibbs nodded.
Jacob stood. “Look. I’m sorry to just come out with all this to you. But I have seen you with Tony over the past couple days, you and the rest of your team. I know you all care a great deal about him. And Tony has come to mean a lot to me and my other children as well. They think of him as an uncle.” Jacob offered his hand to Gibbs and they shook. “I just…these last several months have just meant the world to Olivia. She has…she has never been happier.”
“You can tell Tony….”
“I’ve talked to Tony at length about all this stuff. He knows how Sallie, my other kids and I feel about him. He knows he is welcome in our home and that he is a huge part of our family. I just wanted you to know. I wanted to extend that…invitation to you also. I know…I know Olivia thanks of you as a grandpa. She calls you Grampy Gibbs at home. She…she is a very good judge of people, of character. Another trait she gets from Tony. So, if she trusts you….”
Gibbs nodded. “Thank you. And I’m honored.”
“Dad! DAD!”
Jacob turned to face his son Jeremy as soon as he heard him called.
“What!? What is it son?” Jacob asked, noting the excitement on his son’s face.
“Mom sent me to get you! Olivia…her fingers…” Jeremy was jumping up and down, practically vibrating. “…Mom was holding her hand and she moved her fingers!”
“What!?” Jacob asked, stunned.
“She moved her fingers, Dad!” Jeremy repeated. “She moved her fingers.”
“Agent Gibbs…?” Jacob said as he headed towards the elevator.
“Jethro…and go ahead.” Gibbs said as he turned back to Tony’s room.
Jacob nodded and headed off.
Jeremy lagged behind for just a moment. “Is Uncle Tony going to be okay, Agent Gibbs?” He asked staring through the door at Tony’s sleeping form lying on the bed.
Gibbs nodded. “He just needs his rest. He will be fine.”
Jeremy nodded. “You’re coming to see her, right?” He asked, referring to Olivia.
Gibbs nodded. “I am. I just need to check on Tony first.”
Jeremy nodded and then headed to the elevator. Jacob had been holding the door open, waiting for him.
Gibbs waited for the elevator to shut before he turned and headed into Tony’s room. Gibbs told Ziva the news. Tim arrived moments later. He repeated himself to Tim. He then took his coffee and sandwich and made his way to Olivia’s room.
Sally was shaking her head. “Just a twitch.” She said as she paced the floor in the waiting room area.
Gibbs poked his head into the room for a quick look he then went over to where the Martins were sitting.
“Just a twitch. That was more than some…random muscle twitch, Jacob.” Sallie could feel herself getting loud and angry and she didn’t really care.
“They just don’t want us to get our hopes up.” Jacob said, trying to be the voice of reason.
“WHO’S side are you on here, Jacob!?” Sallie challenged.
‘Wow!’ Gibbs thought. He was having very bad flashbacks to ex number 2.
And, to add to an already stressful situation, there had been talk of more surgery. But the timing of which could be delayed by Olivia’s current comatose state. The doctors had scheduled another EEG for that afternoon. Then the talk of the surgery to repair the bones in Olivia’s leg could proceed. Jacob and Sallie had been told that her leg could be repaired. But it would take a long, extensive surgery and the placement of an external device to hold the bone fragments in place as the bone mended. She would likely have long, intensive physical therapy afterwards. And, depending on how she did with all that, she COULD, possibly, get the full use of her leg back. But they did not sound hopeful. They didn’t make it sound like it was the ordinary outcome for this sort of injury.
Gibbs, phone rang shattering the tense silence in the small waiting room. He grabbed it and answered it quickly. He was not able to even get the word Gibbs out before he heard Tim telling him to hurry. Gibbs excused himself from the Martin family. He told them that Tony was awake and that they had called to tell him. He had neglected to mention the scene he knew he would see when he entered Tony’s room; Tony climbing out of bed, pulling out his IV and stalking down the hallways in search of his daughter. Gibbs got there just in time to stop Tony from getting out of the room. Ziva had somehow managed to keep the IV in his arm but neither had been able to keep him in his bed. He was about to leave the room when Gibbs turned the corner to enter.
“WHERE do you think you’re going?” Gibbs demanded.
“I…I just….” Tony stammered stopping in his tracks and looking very similar to a ‘deer caught in the headlights.’
Gibbs stood firm, taking in his senior field agent. He was pulling his IV along. Ziva, only seconds earlier, managing to grab the pole holding the bag of IV fluids before it fell over behind him. Tim looking disheveled, as if he had lost a round or two in a boxing match. Gibbs had to fight back the urge to laugh. He knew his SFA was scrappy, but he had no idea. The scene in front of him was comical two rumpled agents and the other one with a very large, gaping, ‘wardrobe malfunction.’
“You feelin’ a breeze there, DiNozzo?” Gibbs asked a huge grin on his face.
Tony just looked at him, not quite comprehending.
“Yes,” Ziva spoke up. “…my hairy butt….”
Tony actually blushed a little as his hands went to the back of his gown and closed it the rest of the way. He then turned, one hand still holding his gown closed and got back into bed.
“What’s…?” Tony started, desperately wanting to change the subject.
“Are you ok?” Gibbs asked.
“I’m fine, Boss.” Tony said. “Look, I know I was being stupid. Not taking care of myself, but….”
“There’s actually been some improvement.” Gibbs looked from Tim to Ziva and back. “I would have thought….”
“The minute he woke up and realized where he was, he was trying to get out of bed.” Tim explained. “Ziva was trying to keep him from pulling out his IV and I was trying to actually keep him IN the bed….” Tim said, exasperated.
Gibbs nodded and laughed. There wasn’t too much Tony could do that would surprise him. “There has been some improvement.” Gibbs watched Tony’s surprise and excitement as he continued. “Sallie felt Olivia’s hand move as she was holding it. It could just be muscle twitches…the doctors are basically telling everybody not to get their hopes up.”
“But it’s something.” Tony said.
“DiNozzo.” Gibbs said, in a warning tone.
“It’s all I have, Boss.” Tony explained. “It’s all I have.”
TBC
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