Chapter 2: Aftermath
Ducky hurried into the room to find Tony lying unconscious on his bed, blood all over his body and the sheets. “Oh my dear boy, what has he done to you?”
“Duck, is he gonna be okay?”
“Give me a minute Jethro, I won’t know until I examine him.” Ducky walked over to the bedside and set down his bag. He pulled the sheets down so that Tony’s body was exposed and surveyed the external damages. “All of these cuts and bruises should heal, nothing is too deep. No stitches are necessary. Although, his nose may be broken.” Ducky placed his hand on Tony’s abdomen and pressed slightly to check for internal damage. Tony began to stir and groaned when he started to come back to consciousness. “Oh dear,” Ducky whispered.
Tony’s eyes weren’t open yet but he felt hands on him and the last place he remembered being and yelled out, “No!” Before he began to cry, “no… no… no…” Ducky pulled his hands away immediately and looked over at Gibbs.
Gibbs had already started moving to Tony’s side when he first yelled. He sat on the edge of the bed and reached out for Tony before taking his hand back, thinking it was better not to touch him any more than was necessary right now. “Dinozzo,” Gibbs started, “It’s me. It’s Gibbs. It’s only me and Ducky. Its okay Tony, open your eyes, your safe now I promise. I promise.”
Tony slowly opened his eyes to see Gibbs sitting next to him and Ducky standing on his right. He calmed down a little bit and tried to sit up. “How do you feel Anthony?” Ducky asked when Tony failed to sit up and instead fell back down.
“It hurts Ducky.” Tony placed his hand around to his back and drew it back covered in blood.
“Oh dear, you must have a tear. Anthony, I need you to do something for me. I need you to roll over so that I can make sure that the bleeding will stop.”
Tony, humiliated and ashamed at everything that was happening, rolled over onto his stomach and shoved his face into a pillow. Ducky put on a pair of rubber gloves and got out some kind of medical tool that Tony did not want to turn around and see out of his bag. “Alright dear boy, this may hurt a bit but it is necessary. Try to stay as still as possible, it won’t take long at all, I promise.”
Gibbs still sat on the edge of the bed. He was speechless. He wondered if this was truly happening and felt sorrow for Tony. He had worked with Tony for a long time and was very fond of him. It was hard to see him hurt like this and know there was no way to help.
“Are you ready Anthony?” Ducky asked. Tony nodded a small yes and grasped the bed. Flashbacks started as soon as he felt Ducky behind him. When Ducky slowly shoved the instrument into him he whimpered and grabbed Gibbs’ hand tightly. Tony turned his head on the side and clenched his eyes shut. “It hurts Boss.”
Gibbs felt tears well in his eyes but he fought them back, he had a lot of experience in fighting back tears. He just held Tony’s hand tight until Ducky finished and announced that it was a minor tear and would just need some antibiotic ointment to heal properly. No hospital visit necessary.
Tony curled up in the bed, and tried not to cry. He hated that Gibbs was seeing him this way. He wanted Gibbs to think he was strong but right now he appeared to be weak.
Ducky covered Tony back up with sheets and exited the room to attend the corpse on the gurney, ready for the morgue. He rejoined the others who berated him with questions, asking if Tony was okay. He just nodded and kept quiet about it. The whole team seemed worried about their senior field agent, their friend, but Ducky knew this was private.
Gibbs sat in the room with Tony in silence for what felt like an eternity before Gibbs broke the silence. “I’m going to have to get a detailed description of what happened from you. It doesn’t need to be now.”
Tony lay wide eyed, starring into the abyss. His eyes seemed glassed over. Gibbs decided that Tony could not be left this way. He knew exactly where his agents mind was and that is dangerous territory. “Dinozzo, either I am sleeping on your couch tonight or you are staying in my spare room. I’m not leaving you alone. This is not open for discussion.”
“I’ll pack some things.”
“I’ll wait in the living room until you are ready to go.”
Gibbs left the room and dismissed the team back to the office to go over all the evidence and told them that he would be taking care of Tony for the time being. “Call me if you get anything.”
After they were gone he walked around the room, surveying the surroundings. He had never been in Tony’s apartment before, sure he had dropped him off but he always dropped him outside and left. The place was very clean, very plain, unlike Dinozzo. Tony Dinozzo was anything but plain. At least in Gibbs’ eyes. He was a wonderful agent and friend.
After a good amount of minutes of waiting, Tony exited his bedroom dressed in sweats and held a small duffle bag. “Can I shower when I get to your house?” He never made eye contact with Gibbs, his eyes stayed locked on the floor.
“Yeah. Yeah Dinozzo that’s fine.”
Gibbs opened the door and waited for Tony to walk through. When Tony took a step forward he stumbled and began to fall. Gibbs lunged forward and grabbed Tony, hoisting him back to his feet. He gently took away the duffle bag and put Tony’s arm over his shoulder. “Lean on me, Dinozzo.”
Tony was embarrassed that he couldn’t even walk on his own. His face turned beat red and he apologized, “I’m sorry Boss. I’ll be stronger soon, then you won’t have to do this.”
“Don’t apologize; it’s a sign of weakness.” Gibbs started moving them both forward and shut the door behind them. Soon they would be back at his house where he could properly care for Dinozzo. “You are not weak Dinozzo, you are strong and I will do this as long as I have to to make sure you are.”
Gibbs placed Dinozzo in the passenger seat of his car and closed the door. He had noticed that Tony had refused to make eye contact with him since this had all began. He had looked into Ducky’s eyes though, why was he any different? Gibbs pushed the thought aside and walked around the car. He opened the car door and threw the duffle into the back before hopping into the driver’s seat.
The ride back to Gibbs house was very silent. Both men were lost in thought. Tony trying not to remember and hoping that Gibbs would be able to forget. And Gibbs trying to decipher why he was so important to Dinozzo that he could not lock eyes with him. It wasn’t long before the car came to a stop in front of Gibbs’ house.
Author's Chapter Notes:
What happens when Ducky examines Dinozzo and where Gibbs and Dinozzo go.
Chapter End Notes:
hopefully you will like this second installment