Chapter 12:
Gibbs had never been good at expressing his feelings, especially with words. He was the kind of guy that preferred to let his actions speak for him. It was the main reason he tended to head-slap Tony more than any one else on the team. Gibbs was trying to show him that he noticed and cared about what he was doing.
He knew that Tony had to be puzzled at the very least by what he had said to him in the truck. However, Gibbs was determined to his conversation with Ducky a secret. He wouldn't want Tony thinking that Abby had betrayed his trust either.
Behind him he heard the truck door open and close, Tony jogging to catch up to him. Gibbs just hoped he could eventually somehow get Tony to open up to him, to get him to talk about his relationship with his father, or lack there of as the case seemed to be.
Tony's mind was seized up in a whirlwind of thoughts as he moved to catch up with Gibbs. It had caught him off-guard hearing Gibbs say something like that. He honestly wasn't quite sure what to make of it. The only thing that he was certain of was the fact that Gibbs never said anything he didn't mean. He didn't like to waste his breath with false hopes and promises, it was one of the reasons why whenever Gibbs complimented him or gave him advice he took it to heart.
Gibbs opened the door just as Tony caught up with him. They walked inside and, much to their surprise, quickly seated at a booth.
"You would think it would be packed in here," said Gibbs.
"Nah, not at this hour. Maybe in another couple though," said a woman about Gibbs' age walked up. "My names Molly and I'll be your server today. Would you like something to drink while you look over the menu?"
"Coffee," said Gibbs. "And don't add any crap like milk or sugar in it."
"I'll have an iced tea, thanks," said Tony.
"No problem. Be right back with those," and the waitress left them to look over their menus.
"Did you really have to growl at her about the milk and sugar?" asked Tony as he opened the menu.
"I did not growl, I merely made a specific order," retorted Gibbs.
"Uh huh, and how long ago did you run out of your thermos coffee?" teased Tony, obviously enjoying himself.
Recognizing the teasing, Gibbs decided to continue the banter. "I wouldn't have run out so fast if I was able to drive the speed limit."
"Oh, don't tell me your one of those fellas that lives and breaths coffee as though his life depended on it," said Molly as she returned with their drinks.
"More like anyone around him depends on him having his coffee," muttered Tony. "You should just leave the pot and start up another one while you're at it."
Molly chuckled at that. "I'll see what I can do. Although I can't say I blame you, got to have something to keep you going, especially with kids. That what got you hooked?" she asked Gibbs.
Smiling, Gibbs nodded. "They do tend to keep you busy."
"From the looks of your son I'd say he was a handful," Molly said to Tony. "So have you boys made up your minds yet or would you like a few more minutes?"
"Still is. I'll have the roast beef dinner platter," answered Gibbs with a laugh.
"Yea, well, they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I'll have the hot turkey sandwich platter," replied Tony with a grin.
Molly laughed. "Good choices. Boy, you two are a breath of fresh air. Most people that stop in here are too grumpy to have a friendly conversation. Just give me a wave when you need a refill on that coffee," and she went to place their orders.
"So since you can't drive at your normal Daytona racing speed, you want me to drive the rest of the way?" asked Tony, still in a teasing mood.
Gibbs just rolled his eyes. "I swear, who ever said that damn thing runs good is insane. You'd never get anywhere at all at that pace."
"It does run good, I checked the transmission myself. It just doesn't run at your pace," stated Tony.
Gibbs gave him a curious look. "And since when did you become an expert on the mechanics of a vehicle other than a sports car?"
"Since I used to work part-time at an auto-repair shop during college," answered Tony smugly.
"I thought you worked as a bar tender?" questioned Gibbs.
"Yea, during the summer. It was easier to work out a schedule around practice, games and classes at the shop then at the club," replied Tony.
'Interesting,' Gibbs thought. Tony never gave much information away about his past, unless it was a girl. He had never stopped to wonder how Tony got by before being a cop. Gibbs realized that that was a mistake on his part. Tony did once mention that his father had cut him off, but never let on as to how bad. The athletic and academic scholarships that Tony had received, courtesy of an extensive background check, would have paid for anything he needed in relation to school. Anything else, it seemed, Tony had to provide for himself. It would seem that he played up his jock boy, goofball image a lot more than Gibbs realized.
"Any other careers that you taped into that I should know about?" Gibbs asked lightly.
Tony answered with a laugh. "I think we would need a hell of a lot more time than what this meal's gonna take to have that discussion."
"Later then," Gibbs said, his voice clearly stating he wouldn't forget to remind him about it.
"Ok," Tony said, trying to hide his surprise. Not many people wanted to know what he did before he became a cop, especially while in college. Most people only ever saw the typical jock. 'But then again,' Tony thought, 'Gibbs isn't most people.'
"Ok guys. One roast beef dinner for you," and she placed a plate in front of Gibbs. "And a hot turkey sandwich dinner for you. Anything else you need?"
"More coffee in a few minutes please," said Gibbs.
"I'm fine, thanks," Tony said.
"Ok, enjoy!" Molly said as she walked away.
The two started eating, enjoying the silence for a few minutes. Tony himself couldn't believe how easy things seemed to be going. Of course they weren't going full out, this was just a step to ease into things. But still, conversation wasn't difficult to form, and the teasing was welcoming enough as well. 'Maybe I was making a big deal earlier,' Tony thought. 'Things might actually be better than expected.'
If only he knew that Gibbs was having similar thoughts of his own, for he had noticed how comfortable it felt to just talk to Tony. Even with the mild teasing, it felt, well, normal, all things considered. At that thought Gibbs had to laugh inwardly. He had never thought he would use the word normal when describing a conversation with Tony. But that's what it was. They weren't on a case, or being forced to listen to the latest gossip going around the office.
Gibbs rather liked this type of communication with Tony. Already he had learned more about the younger man than he ever would have at the office. And Tony had agreed to tell him more. That was a big plus in Gibbs' book.
At that moment both of their cells decided to ring. Giving each other a look, they both flipped open their cells to see who was calling.
"Abby," they said at the same time with a laugh.
They hit the 'Answer' button, but before either of them could say anything Abby started talking. "Are you guys ok? You didn't break down on the side of the road, did you? I told McGee he should have gotten a newer model, but he kept insisting that it just had a tune-up and…"
"Abby!" Gibbs and Tony interrupted at the same time.
"What?" she asked.
"We stopped to get something to eat," Gibbs told her.
"And more coffee," added Tony.
"Oh, ok. Good," Abby answered, seeming to calm down.
"But you were right about one thing," Gibbs said.
"When am I not? What was I right about this time?" she said.
"The damn truck. It drives like…" Gibbs started to say, but Tony interrupted and finished for him. "It drives fine, just not up to his normal speed, Abs. Don't worry about it."
"Gotcha. Well, I'll let you get back to eating. Be careful! I'm watching you!" Abby teased.
"We will," both Gibbs and Tony promised before hanging up.
Molly came back to give Gibbs a refill, and asked if they wanted any dessert. They decided not to, not knowing how the traffic was and not wanting to get too far behind schedule, they asked for the check.
"Hey, Molly, maybe you could fill up my Dad's thermos for the road? Ya know, for the safety of other drivers since it doesn't look like he'll be giving up the keys anytime soon," Tony asked.
"Sure thing," Molly replied with a laugh.
"Just because you got me more coffee doesn't mean I'm letting you drive," Gibbs teased Tony with a smile. On the inside he was grinning from ear to ear. Tony had called him 'Dad', and there was no awkwardness about it, either. Gibbs couldn't help but feel as though they had crossed a turning point in their relationship.
Tony returned the smile. "And there's no way I'm letting you drive without your regular portion of coffee. Its called self-preservation." The opportunity came up unexpectedly, but being a well-trained field agent, he was not one to let such an opening pass. He found it oddly satisfying to be able to call Gibbs 'Dad' without any real thought to it. It felt almost as natural as it was to call him 'Boss' at the office.
Molly returned with the thermos and their check. They left her a nice tip, and headed back to the truck. Getting back out onto the highway, Gibbs figured they had another 2 hours or so left to drive, if traffic didn't let up. Not wanting to return to silence after having seemed to make some progress with Tony, Gibbs decided to use the time wisely.
"So you want to tell me about your previous occupations, however many there are?" asked Gibbs.
"You want to hear about all that now?" asked Tony.
'All of what?' Gibbs wondered to himself. Out loud he said, "Unless you've got a better idea of how to pass the time?"
"No, not really," said Tony with a shrug. He couldn't believe how insistent Gibbs was being on this, not that he minded. Although it wasn't exactly easy to surprise Gibbs, Tony had a feeling that some of the jobs he's had over the years might do just that.
"Ok, then," encouraged Gibbs. Somehow he got the feeling that this was going to be a very enlightening conversation.
Chapter End Notes:
Well I have to say that I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I hope you all enjoy it just as much. More Gibbs/Tony bonding coming next chapter! Please review! Thanks to all who continue to do so!