Tony glanced at his computer's clock. 3:17 AM. He sighed and leaned back into his chair. He had been sitting at his desk at NCIS' headquarters since Gibbs announced his departure earlier that evening. He wasn't doing anything to speak of, just sitting, soaking in Gibbs' words, his leaving.
A soft sliding sound announced the arrival of someone from the elevator. Tony sighed as he put his hands behind his head and propped his feet on his desk, crossing his legs.
"Hey, Abs," he said, only the slightest bit of melancholy tingeing his words. "Couldn't sleep, either? Gotta stop drinking all that Caff-Pow!."
"Sure. Blame me for Abby's insomnia."
Tony flung himself out of his lounging position as if a Caff-Pow! itself has said the words. "Bo-" The "ss" died on his lips as Gibbs shook his head. "Right. Gibbs. What are you doing here?"
Gibbs sat on the corner of Tony's desk. "Well, DiNozzo, I could ask you the same question, couldn't I?"
Tony narrowed his eyes. "It's 'Tony' now, Gibbs. And I don't have to answer you."
Gibbs shrugged one shoulder, took a swig of coffee, and said, "No. I suppose you don't, To-ny."
Tony launched out of his chair like something had bit him in the ass. "How the hell can you be so calm about all this? You're leaving, Gibbs. You're leaving NCIS."
Gibbs bobbed his head in agreement. "Yeah. I'm leaving. I know what I'm doing."
Tony gaped at him. "You're so goddamned smug, you know that? Always have been. I've just never been able to tell you before because I, you know, actually wanted to keep my job."
Gibbs smirked. "Shoulda said something. I would've left before now."
Tony's eyes bored holes through Gibbs. "You wanna be a bastard, Gibbs? You got it." With his jaw set in a look of determination, he lunged at Gibbs, pressing him against a file cabinet. "You don't just mess with people's lives the way you do, Gibbs. We're supposed to have each other's backs, not turn our backs on each other. Don't you know that? Or is that only a Marine thing?" Flames flickered in the younger man's eyes, threatening to blaze into a full-blown wildfire.
Gibbs didn't waver. Keeping his eyes focused on Tony, he swung around, pinning Tony against the same file cabinet to which he was just pressed. "I don't care what you think I'm doing here, but I am not turning my back on you. Not on you, not on the team, not on NCIS. I trust you, Tony. I know you'll make the right decision, whatever the case may be."
Tony still looked pissed, and his facial expression hadn't changed from the time Gibbs pinned him against the cabinet. Then his expression changed, and it surprised Gibbs.
A single tear slid down Tony's cheek as he began crying.
Gibbs sighed, releasing Tony's shirt and lightly embracing him. "It'll be okay, Tony," he said, his chapped lips scraping Tony's clean-shaven cheek.
Tony pulled back enough to look Gibbs in the eye, then seeing that Gibbs was right - things would be okay - did the only thing he felt appropriate in the situation.
He kissed him.
Even as his lips descended on Gibbs, Tony mentally slapped himself upside the head. What the hell was he thinking? Gibbs certainly wasn't going to stand for another man kissing him. And it wasn't like Tony spent a lot of time kissing other men, either.
Tony was so caught up in how much Gibbs was going to kick his ass for the kiss that it never registered to him that Gibbs hadn't pulled away. So he broke the kiss instead, backing slightly away - as much as he could with the file cabinet in his way.
"Sorry," Tony said, not quite looking at Gibbs, but more at the wall behind Gibbs. "I guess I just got caught up in the moment. Won't happen again."
Gibbs realized Tony wouldn't look at him and tried to divert his attention back to him. "Tony, look at me." Tony turned his eyes to Gibbs, a look of embarrassment and a hint of lust shading them. "You don't have to apologize. I know I'm a bastard. And I'll let you do whatever you need to do to make you feel better. Well, short of killing me, that is." That comment elicited a grun from Tony. "Deal?"
"Whatever I need to do?" Tony asked. There couldn't be any loopholes. He didn't want Gibbs to think any differently of him because of one night of strained emotions.
"Anything, Tony," Gibbs responded, not taking his eyes from Tony's as he said the words. What they saw in each other's eyes said more than any words ever could, and Tony foresaw Gibbs' next three words. "I trust you."
Tony sucked in his bottom lip and nodded. "My place."
Gibbs finally stepped away to a conversational distance. "Meet you there." He started to walk away, but Tony grabbed his arm as he walked out, stopping him.
"Come with me." Gibbs eyed Tony, questioning the implications of that request, then nodded. The pair headed for the elevator, and as the doors slid shut, the stony expressions on their faces hid the cavalcade of emotions each man was trying so desperately to keep from the other.
Story Notes:
Recommended listening: "Breakdown" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Fits the story and also fits Tony & Gibbs. Also, this is my first attempt at Gibbs/DiNozzo fic, so feedback as to I'm doing in that regard would be highly appreciated! This story will end up DiNozzo/Abby, so don't expect much Gibbs/DiNozzo romance type stuff after about the second chapter.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Tony finds a release after the events of "Hiatus."
Chapter End Notes:
Recommended listening: "Breakdown" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Fits the story and also fits Tony & Gibbs. Also, this is my first attempt at Gibbs/DiNozzo fic, so feedback as to how I'm doing in that regard would be highly appreciated!