Chapter 29:
Morning came fast for Tony, which really surprised him considering how slow the day had been. Something was up, he was sure of it. The memory of the nurse coming in to wake Gibbs so that the doctor could speak to him was still fresh in his mind. Despite his curiosity and concern about what the doctor had said to Gibbs, he couldn't help but smile at the nurse's mistake. It still amazed him that people would actually think that they really were father and son. What amazed him even more was the fact that Gibbs didn't correct her.
Tony sighed to himself as he flipped through the morning news stations. Gibbs had gotten up about an hour ago to get a fresh cup of coffee and to 'stretch his legs some more.' He had said the exact same thing when he came back from talking to the doctor, although Gibbs didn't know that he knew that was what he had been doing. What had the doctor told Gibbs? It couldn't be anything bad; otherwise he would have been told as well. Either that or he would have noticed a nurse inserting more medication into his IV line.
Speaking of which…
No one had come by to check or replace the IV line. Tony grinned as a light bulb suddenly went off in his head. Just when Gibbs was saying he wasn't going to get him out of the hospital until the doctors said he was ready! That's what the doctor wanted to talk to Gibbs about, it had to be. Probably wanted to make sure he would have a ride home or something.
Then suddenly Tony realized that no one had bothered to tell him anything about being released yet. Realizing that he had a rare moment of opportunity here for some fun, he grinned to himself as he began to figure out plan.
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When Gibbs told Tony he was going out for coffee and to stretch his legs, he wasn't lying. He just wasn't telling the whole truth, either. On his way out he had stopped at the nurse's station to pick up Tony's prescription. He wanted to hide them before Tony got a hold of the painkillers and flushed them. Plus it gave him an excuse to get out of the hospital for a bit.
He made a quick stop at Tony's apartment to pick up some things that he would need before stopping to pick up a cup of coffee and some breakfast for Tony and himself. He figured he would go back out again later to stock up on food once he was sure Tony was resting.
When he arrived at the hospital Gibbs quickly filled out a few forms and handed them back to the nurse, who told him she would let him know when the paperwork had been processed. After thanking her he went straight to Tony's room.
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Tony had been able to smell the breakfast burrito out in the hall, so he knew Gibbs was on his way in. Setting the beginning of his plan in motion, he pretended to be asleep.
When Gibbs walked in he saw that the TV was still on and a peaceful looking Tony on the bed. Thinking that he had good timing, Gibbs quickly hid the bag with a change of clothes for Tony in the corner before waking him up.
Gently shaking his shoulder, Gibbs spoke quietly, "Come on, Tony. Time to get up."
Tony groaned and shifted away from Gibbs, who rolled his eyes and said, "Fine. I'm sure I can find another patient in this hospital that would appreciate a decent breakfast."
Tony couldn't help but give in as he turned back around and glared at Gibbs. "That's not fair. Everyone is telling me I need to rest but then you all keep waking me up when I actually am resting."
Gibbs laughed as he handed over the burrito. "You fell asleep watching TV again?"
Tony shrugged and answered as he took the wrapper off of the sandwich. "Please. There's nothing on but the news and cheesy soap operas. How could I not fall asleep?"
"Fair enough," Gibbs said as he settled back into his chair. They ate in silence for a few minutes before Tony broke it.
"So where else did you go?" he asked.
Gibbs looked up confused. "What?"
"This is a hospital, Boss. You don't get good food like this around here. You would have had to leave the perimeter of the hospital to get this stuff," Tony explained. "I just figured you would go somewhere else while you were out."
Gibbs looked at him. "Is that so?"
Tony gave him a cheeky grin as he replied, "Well, aren't you always telling me that NCIS agents never assume, they always double check?"
Gibbs returned the grin. "Smart ass. Of course I went somewhere else. Do you honestly expect me to drink the watered down sludge they have here for coffee?"
It was taking all of Tony's self control to not burst out laughing. Whether Gibbs realized it or not, he was playing Tony's game very well. He had noticed how Gibbs had not actually confirmed or denied the fact that he had gone somewhere else other than to get food.
"No, I guess not," Tony answered. "So what are you doing today?" He would let Gibbs think he got one over on him, for now at least.
"I'm supposed to be resting, just like you are," Gibbs told him.
"And you always do what the doctor tells you to," Tony teased.
"When its convenient, yes I do," Gibbs laughed.
Having finished his breakfast, Tony turned onto his right side again to give his neck a break from constantly turning. "So you took almost two hours to get coffee and breakfast?"
That question took Gibbs mildly by surprise. 'Tony's getting suspicious,' Gibbs realized. Out loud, he said, "Didn't realize my hall pass expired."
"Very funny," Tony said with a sigh in an effort to cover up a grin that might have escaped. "What did the doctor want last night?"
The look of surprise on Gibbs' face was priceless, and Tony suddenly wished for a camera, because he was sure he wouldn't see it again.
"I thought you were sleeping," Gibbs told him.
Tony shrugged. "I was. I saw you follow the nurse out into the hallway. So either she made you an offer you couldn't refuse or she was playing messenger for the doctor. So which is it?"
Gibbs was impressed. Obviously Tony's observation skills have not suffered from his recent injuries. Then Gibbs began to wonder how much Tony had already figured out. Thinking that Tony just might be playing him, he said, "I don't kiss and tell."
Gibbs knew that Tony was good at undercover work and what he saw right now was evidence to support that knowledge. The only way Gibbs was able to know for sure if Tony was playing a game or not was his eyes. There was an obvious glimmer of humor there, Gibbs was sure of it. He had worked too long with the younger man to miss it.
"Yeah well, you must have pissed off the entire nursing staff with whatever you didn't do because no one has been in here all morning. Yesterday there were two; one to change the IV and one to check on my side for swelling and stuff," Tony pointed out gruffly. He had his mask on and he wasn't letting go, this was simply too much fun. He was pretty sure that by now Gibbs must have picked up on something, but if he wasn't going to call him on it Tony saw no reason to continue their banter.
"So you're automatically assuming its something I did?" Gibbs questioned, enjoying the game that Tony had started.
"I didn't do anything. You're usually the one who make the nurses cry, remember," Tony said.
"I do not make nurses cry," Gibbs shot back.
"Right. You forget, Boss. I was the one who gave you a ride home the last time you were shot. You made three ER nurses cry," Tony reminded him. "Plus I heard it from a reliable source that you did it again when they were trying to help you out with your broken nose."
"So you're blaming me for the negligent care you're receiving here?" Gibbs asked, knowing full well that the only way Tony would have been able to find out about his latest visit to the ER was through Ducky. He was going to have to have a talk with him later about that.
"Yes, since you didn't talk to my doctor last night you must have done something to scare off the nursing staff," Tony said in an attempt to get Gibbs admit that he spoke to his doctor about his discharge.
"An entire nursing staff would not risk a law suit just because of something I might have done," Gibbs replied, not willing to give in. If Tony wanted to know something more specific, he was going to have to ask outright.
Tony laughed. "Look at some of the cases we've had, Boss. Can you honestly say that it's not possible?"
"In this situation, yes I can say it is not possible," Gibbs said. He wanted to see where Tony went with this.
'Ha, nice try Gibbs,' Tony thought to himself. "So are you implying that…"
"Ah good. Glad to see you're back, Agent Gibbs," the doctor interrupted as he came in with the discharge papers. "All the paperwork is filled out. He can leave at any time."
Gibbs nodded as he accepted the paperwork from the doctor. "Thanks. I think he's ready to leave now."
"Well, duh!" Tony exclaimed as he began to move to get out of bed.
The doctor nodded. "Of course. I'll leave you to it. See you next week to remove those stitches."
After the doctor laughed Gibbs asked, "You want to finish what you were going to ask?"
Tony grinned. "Nope. I figure I'll hold on to it for next time."
"Just as long as it doesn't take place in a hospital," Gibbs told him as he went to retrieve Tony's clothes.
"Agreed. So, how much longer do you think you would have been able to keep going?" Tony asked with a grin in reference to their jesting.
Gibbs grinned and replied, "I think the question is how much longer would you have been able to keep going?"
They shared a knowing look and started laughing. It would soon become a private joke between the two because neither one of them would be willing to admit defeat of any kind.
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After helping Tony get dressed Gibbs had gone out and located a wheelchair. When he returned to the room with it Tony had taken one look at it and said, "No."
Gibbs had simply looked at him, causing Tony to defend himself. "Come on, Gibbs! I've been lying down for the last two days! It's my turn to stretch my legs out!"
"If you want to leave this hospital, you get in the damn wheelchair. Otherwise I'll return these discharge forms to the nurse," Gibbs threatened.
"You can't do that! Who says I need your permission to leave, anyway?" Tony asked.
Gibbs smirked at him. "Actually, according to your doctor, you do need my permission. The hospital released you into my care."
Tony blinked at him. "What?"
"Get in the chair, Tony. I don't have all day," Gibbs told Tony, who promptly sat down with a sigh of exasperation.
"So how long am I gonna have to stay with you for?" Tony asked Gibbs as they headed towards the exit.
"Until the stitches come out," Gibbs answered.
"Whose medical advice is that?"
"Mine."
"Why?"
"Because knowing you you'll probably end up pulling out your stitches, which will keep you on desk duty for that much longer," Gibbs explained to him. "I don't like going out in the field without you to help me keep an eye on things."
Tony grinned. "Really? Does that mean…"
"Don't start," Gibbs interrupted him.
"Aw, come on Boss. You could at least wait to hear what I have to say before you shoot it down," Tony complained.
"That's because I don't want to hear it. It won't change my answer," Gibbs said.
"That's not fair," Tony said.
"Life isn't," Gibbs replied as he walked through the hospital doors. Neither man was aware of the nurse from the night before laughing as she watched them leave.
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'Finally,' Tony thought to himself as Gibbs gave him back his cell phone. Once they had arrived at Gibbs' house and Tony was comfortably seated on the couch Gibbs had relented and given Tony his phone back. Of course his reasoning for it was in case he needed anything while he was out getting more food for later.
The moment Gibbs left the house Tony started checking his messages. There were three. One was from Ducky, reminding him to take his pills, all of them, and to rest. The second was from Abby, McGee and Ziva. They all wanted to congratulate him on surviving the undercover op with Gibbs and to wish him luck on surviving living at his house for the next few days. Tony found it funny that they all seemed to think that Gibbs could be difficult to live with. It wasn't, not really, just as long as you followed all of his rules and didn't try to find any loop holes in said rules. Which of course, Tony didn't, at least not all of the time.
The final message surprised Tony. It was from Ray.
"Hey Tony, its Ray. Got your number when I called NCIS headquarters. Not sure when you'll get out of the hospital, but give me a call back when you get the chance. I'll hook you up with a fresh stash of coffee since Gibbs seemed to like it so much. Can't hurt to have some on hand, especially with the crazy job you guys have! Hope you're doing ok, talk to you soon!"
Tony laughed after he had listened to the message. Ray was right; you never knew when a decent cup of coffee would come in handy, especially when you worked with Gibbs.
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Tony wasn't the only one who wanted to get back in the information loop. While Gibbs was driving he had put on his speakerphone to listen to his messages. He had five messages. The first one was from Fornell, telling him that they had just arrested Sanatos and promised to keep him posted. The second was from the Director, basically saying the same thing in addition to telling him to actually get some rest during his time off. The third one was Ducky, lecturing him on what food was acceptable and what was not and a reminder to make sure Tony took his medicine. The fourth was Abby, who of course, warned him of Tony's attempts to steal the pain medication and get rid of it before he would have to take any more.
The final message was from Gary. Gibbs figured he would be hearing from the other man at some point. He along with the rest of their group had been concerned about Tony when he was flown out by helicopter. He suddenly felt bad for not having sent word to them letting them know that Tony was doing all right.
"Hey, Gibbs, Gary here. Just calling to check in to see how things are going. I'm sure you've been busy dealing with Myers and all, so no complaints here from not having heard from you yet. When you get the chance, give me a ring. I'll set you up with some real coffee to help keep you from going crazy. No doubt Tony probably helps keep you on your toes more often than you would like. I'm sure he's fine, give him my best. Catch you later!"
Gibbs smiled as he pulled into the parking lot of the grocery store. Gary was right, Tony did somehow manage to 'keep him on his toes' in his own way. That extra stash of coffee would definitely come in handy.
Chapter End Notes:
Well everyone I think this story is just about over. I'm thinking one more chapter, we shall see. Already got the outline set for the next story, a sequel yeah! Hope everyone will stick with me and read the next one! Any requests for a mini spoiler:D