The line was not moving nor had it moved once during the past fifteen minutes.

Shifting uncomfortably, feeling another thick bead of sweat slowly sliding the same path several had taken down his back over the course of the last hour, Jethro Gibbs squinted beneath his polarized sunglasses and turned expectant eyes toward the sky, searching hopefully for some sign of approaching clouds. The sun was bright and hot overhead, it's position and the growing rumbling of his stomach both indicators it was rapidly approaching noontime. The clear, pale blue of the heavens revealed nothing but the slowly disappearing vapor streams of a commercial airliner on it's journey high above where he stood now, baking and sweating in the heat of the day.

In front of him, showing no signs of the heat or of any discomfort, Tony DiNozzo stared expectantly at the brightly-colored looping tracks suspended fifty-five feet over the hard concrete below their shoes and smiled as a grouping of screaming riders whizzed by overhead, bodies held to the moving device by supporting harnesses and centrifugal force. His young eyes followed their path, watching the car dip and spin, grinning foolishly as the high-pitched yells increased in volume at each apex and continued as it hurled toward the next set of stomach-turning circles. He danced to one side as the woman in front of him momentarily blocked his view and sighed in frustration when he realized he was just too short to see the rest of the coaster's path.

Turning quickly to speak to his companion, Tony saw Gunny's up-turned face and immediately knew he wasn't following the ride's progression but was either lost in some memory or silently wishing he was someplace else at the moment. The twelve-year old boy knew this wasn't exactly the ex-Marine's favorite way of spending the day but loved the man dearly for suggesting the outing and actually following through with the plans. He'd tried, more than once, to get Candace to take him to an amusement park, and he and Jeffery had almost convinced his friend's father to bring them, but something always came up or got in the way. It was easy for adults to find other things needing to be done or to promise to just do it at a later date but Gunny had been the one who'd made it all happen and, for that, Tony was extremely grateful.

He sighed again and placed a hand on the man's arm. "You're not having a very good time, are you?"

Jethro snapped his head down at the sound of the boy's question and looked into the knowing green eyes. Pulling his sunglasses down the bridge of his nose with one finger, just far enough until he was sure his eyes were completely showing, he gazed at Tony's face, seeing the anxiety and concern. He watched, for a moment, as the boy chewed nervously on his bottom lip and continued to wait for a response.

"Now, why would you say that?"

"Gunny, I'm not stupid..."

"Never said you were," Jethro threw in quickly.

"...but this really isn't the kind of place you would come if I wasn't with you, is it?"

"No," he answered honestly and saw the shoulders droop slightly, "but I came because I wanted to spend time with you, doing something you really wanted to do. I'm just hot and hungry, that's all."

"Really?" Tony brightened a little.

"Yes. And, of course, there's the fact we've been standing in this line for the past fifteen minutes and haven't moved an inch."

As if on cue, the line in front of them began to move, a small cheer going up from several of the others waiting to ride the coaster as well. Word was trickly slowly back down the row that someone had gotten sick just as the last car had entered the disembarking area and caused a delay as workers hosed down and sanitized the surrounding seats, harnesses, and floorboards. There was laughter from many but a few began to look a bit skeptical at the prospect of riding something that had caused someone to be so violently ill in public. Jethro watched as several stepped out of line and glanced down to see Tony's reaction.

The boy's face was filled with glee.

"We're getting closer," Tony smiled and looked back to his companion. "Can we ride this and then get something to eat?"

"Sounds like a plan," Jethro agreed, unwilling to do anything to dampen the youth's spirit. "As long as we find a place out of the sun when we eat, I'll be good to go as long as you want."

"Cool," Tony responded, stepping forward to fill the gap as the line continued to move, instantly happy at the turn of events.

Jethro placed his hands on the boy's shoulders and squeezed them gently. He felt Tony lean into his touch, the back of his head coming to rest against the man's sternum, and heard him mumble something under his breath.

"What?" He asked the boy, leaning his head forward so his mouth was close to Tony's ear. "If you expect me to hear you in this place with all the screaming and yelling going on, you're going to have to speak louder."

Tony gently bumped his head back against the man and squirmed a little under the strong hands, seemingly struggling with some inner-problem. Finally, he turned his head enough so he was able to look at Gunny's face.

"I said I love you," Tony admitted, his cheeks flushing somewhat with embarrassment.

Jethro spun the youth around so they were looking at each other face to face and gripped even tighter, shaking him slightly with nothing more than rough affection. He saw the shy smile, recognized the playful eyes, and pulled the growing youngster into a tight hug, squeezing until he heard the appropriate grunt of surrender. Releasing his captive, Jethro grinned and pointed a finger at the beaming boy.

"I love you, too, Tony, but, I swear to God, if you end up puking your lunch all over me later today, I'm never bringing you back to a place like this again. Got it?"

Thirty minutes later, settled comfortably at a shaded table under the graceful arms of a huge oak tree, Jethro watched as Tony tore into his lunch, the two hot dogs and large order of fries disappearing as if he hadn't eaten in days. The boy was really going through a growth spurt and Candace had warned the ex-Marine to be ready to make frequent trips to the grocery while Tony was visiting. Jethro could vaguely remember his own mother complaining to his father about the amount of food consumed by their growing son but didn't recall putting it away like this. Plus, Tony continued to talk while he ate, the stream of words flowing rapidly, like he was never going to be able to get them all out in time, fluidly shifting from one topic to another. There were a few sentences about something that happened during the first week of school, a few more about trying out for his middle school's football team and his opinion of the fat, old coaches, and several more concerning the first sock-hop and how much fun those were going to be when he knew more people. And, then, he started to discuss, at length and much to Jethro's amusement, how the girls in middle school look so much different than when they were in elementary school.

"I don't know, Gunny," he said earnestly, taking a sip of his soda to wash down a fry, "something must have happened
to most of them during the summer because, all of a sudden, they look so much different."

Jethro hid his grin and tried to keep his expression serious. "Different? How do they look different?"

"Well," he frowned a little as he began to put his thoughts into order and, then, was immediately distracted by a small group of teenage girls walking by. Following them with his eyes, their tight shorts and t-shirts effectively shut him up. He absently took another drink of his soda and continued to gaze after them, all thoughts of his conversation with Jethro forgotten.

Jethro leaned back in his seat and closely observed the boy watching the girls until they were completely out of sight. Tony turned back to his lunch, sighed, and resumed eating, all the previously exhibited gusto gone. He kept his face down and, after a few minutes of continued silence, Jethro began to get concerned.

"Something you want to talk about, Tony?" He asked quietly, picking up his own large cup of cold soda and bringing the straw to his lips.

"Yeah," Tony affirmed, finally looking up. "I'm suppose to tell you that I've started masturbating and..."

Jethro couldn't control the spasm the off-handed statement brought to his chest and abruptly spewed a mouthful of cola across the table, a split-second of quick thinking keeping him from baptising Tony with the sweet fluid in the process. He coughed raggedly and grabbed a handful of paper napkins, pressing them to his lips, trying to control the rebellious muscles seemingly intent on stealing his breath away. He looked toward Tony through watering eyes and saw the concern in the wide, green gaze. The boy started to rise but Jethro waved him back down, finally getting a handle on the constrictions. He could see the worried looks he was receiving from a few people sitting close by but pointedly ignored them and focused all his attention on breathing normally. It took a while but, finally, he succeeded.

"Jesus, Tony," he rasped, decided he didn't like the quality of his voice, and tried again after taking a tentative sip from the straw. "Of all the things you could have said to me, that was the last thing I was expecting."

"I'm sorry," Tony said weakly and just sat there, absently wiping at the splattered remnants of Jethro's drink, crushing the wet napkin in his fist.

"Candace tell you to have this talk with me?" Jethro asked suspiciously, leaning his elbows on the table and reaching across to capture one of Tony's hands. He waited until the boy looked up.

"Yeah."

Jethro grunted and released the smaller hand, leaning back and crossing his arms, offering Tony a slight smile. "Okay. I'm sorry about the soda shower. How long have you been masturbating?"

That got him a one-shouldered shrug. "Couple of months, I guess."

"When you started middle school?"

"No," the boy confided, "a little before that. During the summer, maybe."

"Before your birthday?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

Jethro had to think hard of why Candace would want Tony to talk to him about this normal activity, knowing she was well aware of a male's predilection of this pursuit. Then again, he seemed to remember something in one of Candace's old letters...something about her feeling inadequate in dealing with what she perceived as her own sexual shortcomings. Jethro sighed and pinned the boy with a sharp eye.

"Why does Candace want us to talk?"

Tony squirmed and looked away. Jethro was having none of that.

"Tony." His voice was quiet but very sharp and the youth looked immediately back. "Why does Candace want us to talk?"

"Because she thinks I do it too much," he admitted in a rush, his eyes taking on an angry glint.

"Too much," Jethro repeated the words, not really believing what he was hearing. "She thinks you do it too much."

"Yes, that's what I said," the words were clipped, precise.

Jethro eyed the boy, seeing the anger and embarrassment, and knew he had to get a handle on the situation. "Do you?"

"How should I know?" Tony almost snarled his response but saw Jethro's mouth form a thin, hard line and knew he had to tone it down. He huffed out a deep breath. "I can't help it, Gunny. Okay? I get a hard-on and then just do it. It feels so good and I do it and I like doing it. A lot."

Jethro uncrossed his arms and leaned back on the table's edge, recognizing the need to reconnect with the boy if they were going to have a truly open conversation. "It does feel good, doesn't it?"

Tony's eyes widened at the statement and the anger was immediately gone."You do it, too?"

"Sure," Jethro confessed, seeing Tony lean on the table in a reflection of his own posture. "I guess I started when I was about your age. It's something every guy does during his lifetime."

"You still do it?"

"Sometimes," Jethro knew the conversation needed to be steered away from him. "Look, why does she think you do it too much? How often do you do it?"

"I don't know," the boy stated honestly, looking away for a moment. "I guess I never really thought about it."

"You do it in the mornings?"

"Yes," Tony confirmed, eyes coming back. "I usually wake up with a hard-on. Sometimes...sometimes I must do it while I sleep because...um..."

"You have wet dreams."

"Yeah," he wrinkled up his nose and sighed.

Jethro frowned. "It's normal. What? You don't like when that happens?"

"No!" He exclaimed unhappily. "I know it's normal but it just seems like the biggest waste. Why would I like to have it happen when I'm asleep? It feels so good when I can touch myself and make myself come. I like to make myself come. Plus, it really messes up my sheets when I have a wet dream. Maybe that's why Candace is upset."

That caught Jethro's attention. "She's upset with you? For masturbating?"

"I don't know, Gunny. It just gets harder and harder to talk to her about things. She asks about school but all she really wants to hear is how I'm keeping my grades up and that I'm behaving. When I have a question about, you know, sex and girls and stuff, she gets all upset and fidgety and tells me to ask my Health teacher. Gunny, I can't ask old Mrs. Neeley about jerking-off. She tells us sex is just for married people and that it's only for making babies. We all know that's a lie. It feels too good. Plus, there's plenty of people who aren't married who have sex. Even you and Mike..."

Tony's tirade came to a screeching halt and he looked beseechingly at Jethro when the man turned away. The boy reached out a hand but pulled it back before touching the clenched fists.

"Oh, Gunny, I'm sorry."

Jethro swallowed the bitter rise of hurt and rememberance and looked back at the boy, trying to conceal his true emotions. He could see the honest apology in the young eyes.

"It's okay, Tony. I wasn't sure you could recall that time in our lives."

"I won't ever forget Mike," he stated solemnly. "He taught me how to write my name. Remember?"

"Yes, I remember."

Jethro didn't want those memories of lazy days at the cabin to come now, didn't want to think of how much he missed Mike since then, and certainly didn't want to believe he'd used others in an attempt to compensate for his loneliness. He focused on Tony and saw a wealth of unanswered questions in his eyes.

"Ask me."

"You and Mike...you had sex," Tony nervously played with a cold fry.

"Yes, we did," he spoke honestly, glad the surrounding tables were relatively empty.

"Then sex is not just for having babies."

"No, of course not."

"My teacher says sex is suppose to be between a man and a woman. She says homosexuals are confused, sick people. She says we need to always stay away from anyone who's homosexual, that we could get caught in that sinful web, and that anyone who's homosexual will burn in hell."

Jethro swallowed around a rising lump in his throat and wondered how old Mrs. Neeley could still be teaching with an attitude like that. "What do you think, Tony?"

"I think Mrs. Neeley is full of shit."

Jethro had to laugh at the boy's assessment and, together, they shared a few moments of silent mutual agreement. As much as he wanted to get the conversation back to Tony's problems, he felt compelled to clarify one fine point.

"Tony, I'm not homosexual."

The boy was visibly confused now. "You're not? But I thought you and Mike had sex"

"We did."

"Then, I really don't understand."

"Tony, there are people in the world who enjoy being with both sexes, male and female alike. It's called 'bisexual'. That's what I am."

"Oh," Tony frowned. "I don't think I've ever heard of that before. Was Mike bisexual, too?"

"No."

"So, he only liked men?"

"He only loved me, Tony."

The boy looked closely at the man and slowly nodded his agreement. "Yes, I think he did, too."

"Look, we can talk more about Mike some other time. Let's get back to you right now, okay? You said you like to masturbate in the mornings. When else do you do it?"

"I try not to do it at school..."

"God, Tony," Jethro frowned. "Please don't tell me you actually have done it at school. Why?"

The boy had the grace to look really ashamed. "I got a hard-on during Gym class once and..."

Jethro stopped him with an up-raised hand. "Okay. Nevermind. Tell about when you're at home."

"Um...well, it depends. I like to do it during the day and then right before I go to sleep at night. That's the best time, you know? At night. I can stretch out on my bed and just take my time. No rushing. The house is dark and quiet and it just feels really good then. I don't have to worry about hurrying through it. I don't like to hurry."

Jethro noted the glassy look appearing in the boy's eyes and knew he had to get them moving. "Look, why don't we talk while we start toward the next ride? You finished?"

"Yeah, I'm finished," Tony agreed, blinking slowly at the man, watching as the trash was collected. He pushed to his feet and picked up his own wrappers, following Jethro to the waste receptacle and depositing his handful.

"You won't puke up those dogs, will you?" Jethro inquired lightly, placing a warm hand on the boy's back.

Tony moved in close, wrapping one arm around the man's waist, so they could walk side by side. "No, I'm not going to hurl."

"No up-chucking?"

"No barfing," Tony fired back.

"No heaving?"

"Do girls masturbate?"

The question took him completely by surprise and he pulled up short, looking down at the boy and seeing the sincerity plainly there. He sighed and tugged them back into motion.

"Yes, girls can masturbate."

"But they don't have dicks," he stated the obvious. "How do they come?"

Jethro took a deep breath. "They have this little bundle of nerves called a clitoris. If it's stimulated just right, they have an orgasm."

He could feel Tony hooking a finger into one of his back belt loops and waited for the next question, trying to prepare for anything. He noticed another group of giggling girls heading their way and thought Tony would pull from their loose embrace. When nothing happened, he glanced sideways and saw the boy was looking down, focusing on the concrete instead of the scenery, trusting Jethro to guide him safely.

"Do they use their hands like I do to come?"

"Yes, their fingers, really. If they're having sex with a partner, other things can be used."

"Like what?"

"Well, a man can use his penis, of course. Another partner could use the tongue..."

"Oral sex?"

"Yes. You know about that?"

"Um...yeah. Don't get mad, okay?"

This made Jethro stop and turn to face the boy. "Tell me."

Tony squirmed again and looked away, removing his hand and shoving both deep into the pockets of his shorts. He shifted from foot to foot and, finally, looked back into Gunny's face.

"There's this girl at school, a seventh grader, and she's had a couple of parties at her home. Her mom...everyone calls her the 'cool mom'...she has beer and stuff for everyone. Jeffery says she does things with the boys...oral sex and stuff. She shows the girls how to do it, too."

Jethro was seething but managed to keep his voice even. "You weren't at these parties?"

"No."

"Were you invited?"

"Um..yes."

"Why didn't you go?" Jethro asked as calmly as he could.

Tony swallowed nervously and dropped his gaze. "I was scared. I...I heard rumors. Another friend went to one of the parties and...he said...he said Brittany's mom was old and creepy, that she would get drunk and take off her clothes. I...I didn't want that. I don't want to be scared."

Jethro placed a comforting hand on the youngster's shoulder, infinately proud of the confession and the judgment used. "You did good, Tony. I don't want you to ever go to one of those parties, do you hear me?"

"Yes, sir, I hear you."

Jethro got them moving again, wondering how long it would be before they'd have to stop once more. If any more revelations came like the last one, he wouldn't be needing a roller coaster to make him vomit. He and Candace were going to have a very long talk when he took Tony home at the end of the week and, together, they'd figure out how to involve the authorities. Brittany's mom couldn't be allowed to continue partying with minors.

"Jeffery and I masturbate in front of each other sometimes."

Jethro kept his pace even and slow, ignoring the clenching of his gut. No wonder Candace was having problems.

"Yeah?" He asked calmly. "Why do you do that?"

"I don't know," he responded. "It just sort of happened when we were camping out one night."

"You do it often?"

"No, not often. Did you and Mike..."

"Tony," Jethro quickly cut off the question and nailed the boy with a cool look, "I loved Mike very much. Do you love Jeffery?"

"Ewwuuuwww," Tony made a disgusted face. "No, I don't love him. Sometimes I don't even like him."

"Then, please, don't compare what Mike and I might have done to anything you do with Jeffery. Understand?"

"Yes, Gunny. I'm sorry."

They walked several more steps before Jethro voiced his concern. "Do you touch each other?"

"Who?" Tony asked innocently, eyes already straying to the next ride.

"You and Jeffery."

"Oh. No, I wouldn't let Jeffery get his hands anywhere near my dick."

"Why's that?" Jethro was relieved but had to know the reason, especially after hearing the strident tone of the boy's voice.

"When Jeffery jerks-off, he really jerks-off! I don't know how he can stand to yank on himself like he does. The first time I ever saw him do it, I thought he was going to hurt himself. It almost hurt me just to watch him. I like to do it slow and steady but he acts like it's a big race and just pulls and pulls until he shoots. Ouch! No, thanks."

"Did he ever try to touch you?"

"Yeah, once, but I told him no."

"Did he want you to touch him?"

"Yes."

The way the word was hissed out was a sure indication that something had occurred. When nothing else was forthcoming, Jethro sighed and stopped, waiting until Tony turned and met his eyes. He could see it was something the boy really didn't want to discuss.

"Do you need to tell me something?"

Tony swallowed tickly and let his eyes slip away. "He wanted me to jack him off. I...I didn't want to put my hand on his dick. He kept begging me to but I kept saying 'no' and he...he just pushed me down. Hard. Kind of knocked the breath out of me. He,,,he got on top of me and...and I remembered something...something when I was younger...and I just hit him. Gave him a black eye. He never asked me again."

Tony looked back up into Jethro's face, his young eyes full of misery. There was nothing else he needed to say.

"I'm sorry, Tony," Jethro whispered and pulled the boy into a tight embrace, ignoring the push and shove of those who traveled around them. Tony's memory was good, maybe too good, and the hurt he'd received at the hands of Robert DiNozzo would never go away. "You okay?"

"Yeah," came the watery reply, "I'm okay."

"You still want to get on this next ride?" Jethro asked kindly, pulling back so he could see the boy's eyes, making sure everything was, truly, okay. He waited until Tony wiped at his face and looked up.

"Yes, I do," came the honest response. "I mean, if you still want to."

"I told you earlier," the man reminded the boy, "as long as I got to eat my lunch in the shade, I was going to be good to go until you were ready to call it a day."

Tony smiled and pulled himself together, shoving his hands back into his pockets. "I want to keep going until they close the park!"

Jethro groaned but smiled, turning them so they were, once again, back on the path to the next coaster. He looped his arm over the youth's shoulders and got him in a loose head-lock, applying his knuckles to the scalp under the soft hair, bringing an end to all the seriousness of the day. Tony tried, half-heartedly, to pull away, swatting playfully at the older man, twisting until he finally wriggled free of the gentle trap. He walked backwards in front of Jethro and smirked, taunting with a sly smile and devilish eyes, looking like nothing but a normal, fun-loving kid.

"You sure about this one?" Jethro asked as they got in the line that would lead them to the biggest coaster in the park. His eyes traveled up to see a set of cars rising slowly up the track that seemed awfully high, hearing the click, click, click of gears as they drew the riders up by incriments, trying to imagine what the sudden drop on the other side would be like, especially after just finishing lunch. He swallowed convulsively.

"I'm sure," Tony laughed at Jethro's obvious discomfort. "Are you?"

Jethro grunted and smiled, settling his shades firmly back in place and resigning himself to the long wait and the even shorter upcoming ride. He let his eyes drift over the surrounding people and couldn't hide his pleasure when a cloud floated overhead and blocked the heat of the afternoon sun.

Just as they entered the area for the individual seat selections, Tony turned to Jethro and took a step closer, evidently intending to speak. There was a hint of mischief in the face that made the man smile.

"What?" He asked the youth.

Tony's smile was huge. "Tell me about the clitoris."

Jethro groaned. It was going to be a very long week.


TBC