Gibbs hadn’t actually expected Tony to ask his opinion on what movie to watch after they’d ordered room service. He thought the younger man would simply scroll through what was offered, pick whatever he liked and that would be that. And Gibbs wouldn’t have minded if Tony had, after all, it wasn’t as if the older man was known for taking an active interest in pop culture or as a huge fan of movies. He’d suggested room service and a movie because he wanted to indulge Tony, to show that he wasn’t always a hard ass, that they could spend time together and not have it be exclusively about the job, to make up for the number of times he’d rudely brushed off an invitation, to make up for just being an ass so many times period; the chance to stick it a little bit to Vance in the process was just icing on the cake.
So when Tony turned to him and asked what he’d like to watch, Gibbs was decidedly unprepared. He found it oddly endearing to have Tony offer him a choice--as if he had an opinion on the subject, as if his opinion mattered.
It was on the tip of Gibbs’ tongue to say he really didn’t care, but he stopped himself. Saying he didn’t care what movie Tony selected would also imply that he wasn’t actually going to watch it with him. Gibbs wasn’t leaving the room, and he knew himself well enough to know he wouldn’t be able to completely ignore what was playing. If he was going to sit through the movie, then Gibbs decided he should put some thought into it. At least give it some consideration before dismissing it out of hand.
He studied the display on the TV screen. He didn’t recognize any of the titles. They weren’t things Tony had mentioned before, although, that only stood to reason if they were relatively recent releases. It was possible Tony hadn’t actually seen any of them yet. Unlikely, but possible.
“I don’t know anything about any of them,” Gibbs finally admitted.
Tony nodded, seemingly not at all surprised by Gibbs’ lack of knowledge. “We can eliminate them by genre if that helps.”
“Sure.”
“You care for horror films at all?”
“See enough blood and gore on the job,” Gibbs admitted with a grimace. Not to mention the shit he’d seen in actual combat. He didn’t particularly find most horror films terrifying or entertaining.
“Animated?”
“I look like a kid to you?”
“Not the sort with an all day sucker, no. But everyone is a kid at heart.”
Gibbs couldn’t resist sticking his tongue out at Tony"proving what point he wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t sorry he’d done it. It earned him a disbelieving look and then peals of laughter. Tony was gorgeous when he was happy; his hair in disarray, skin flushed, green eyes sparkling. For a moment, it was all Gibbs could do to drink the sight in. He nearly missed it when Tony got control of his amusement and started speaking again.
“Not all animation is for kids any more, Gibbs. Seriously. Cool World definitely wasn’t, but then it as a blend of live action and animation. Kind of like Who Framed Roger Rabbit, only not as G-rated. It was released in 1992, Cool World that is, not Roger Rabbit. Brad Pitt, Kim Bassinger and Gabriel Byrne were in it. You might remember Byrne from the Usual Suspects. Great film that one. Seriously. I think you’d--“’
“DiNozzo.” Gibbs managed not to put as much bite into Tony’s name as usual, but still bring his rambling to a halt.
“Right, right. No cartoons. That leaves out The Tale of Despereaux and the Kung Fu Panda.”
Tony cocked his head, eyes once more on the selection screen. “Comedy?”
Gibbs shook his head. He didn’t find a lot of shit in comedies all that funny.
“I’m tempted to make you sit through Don’t Mess with the Zohan, but honestly I think it would be funnier to see Ziva’s reaction to that one.”
“Why?”
“It’s about an Isreli counter terrorist army commando who fakes his own death in order to pursue a dream of becoming a hairstylist in New York City.” Tony laughed. “Just imagine her expression?”
Gibbs was wondering if Tony would survive if he invited Ziva to watch that movie. And suddenly he didn’t want to think about her with Tony at all. The two of them laughing, talking, snuggling up on the couch was not an image he wanted to dwell on. If I can’t snuggle with him, then neither--Gibbs stopped himself abruptly. What the hell? He didn’t want to snuggle with Tony. Okay, so yeah, last night he’d got a little close, but he’d moved away as soon as he was aware of it…or almost as soon as he was aware. A few minutes delay didn’t matter. And so what if he’d almost kissed him. It didn’t mean anything. Tony was leaning in to him too. That thought stopped him cold. He’d been aware of it at the time, but had been too embarassed and awkward to truly acknowledge it or even think about what it meant. Would Tony be open to more? Gibbs mentally slapped himself. Enough. None of that mattered. His thoughts just needed to shut the hell up.
“Thinking we can forgo Witless Protection.” Tony snickered. “Definitely not your cup of tea.”
“That leaves us with drama or the action adventure film where not much has to makes sense as long as something blows up.” Tony pursed his lips. “We’ve got the Other Boleyn Girl. I have to admit that one isn’t really something I’ve given much thought to. It a historic piece that deals with Henry the eighth. Pretty sure it’s a chick flick. And we’ve got The Bank Job, which is based on a real bank robbery in London that happened in 1972. Might not be too bad. Jason Statham is never going to win an Oscar for best actor, but the man knows how handle a kick ass fight scene and look good doing it. And last but not least we have, Ironman.”
“Ironman?” Gibbs frowned. “Like the comic book?”
“Exactly like the comic book.” Tony looked at him, both eyebrows up. “You read comics as a kid, Boss?”
“Yes, DiNozzo, they had them when I was young.” Gibbs glared at Tony. He wasn’t that damned old. “The rocks were cool by then and everything.”
“I know they pre date you, Boss. I wasn’t being an ass.” There was the lightest bit of hurt and reprimand in Tony’s voice at Gibbs for snapping at him. It was something very few people could do and actually make Gibbs feel genuinely chastised for letting his temper get away from him. He shouldn’t have assumed Tony was making a crack about his age.
“I just never figured you as the sort to read comics. Or if you did, I guess I thought you’d be more GI Joe, or maybe a Superman fan.”
“Why?”
“They have a code.” Tony smiled. “Rules to live by. Always on the side of truth, justice and the American way. Sounds a lot like you.”
Gibbs wasn’t sure if he liked the idea of Tony believing he’d always had a code he lived by, one he’d never violated and that he was always one of the good guys. It was an attractive image--the unsullied hero, but in real life they didn’t exist. In real life, Gibbs had to commit a felony, murdering a man, before seeing the value in upholding and enforcing the law. He was no Superman. He had feet of clay.
He didn’t want that to make him less in Tony’s eyes. He wanted to be the guy Tony looked up to, that he could trust and rely on. But he didn’t want to be some unreachable paragon either, an unfeeling idol on a pedestal. Maybe there was a middle ground, but Gibbs doubted he’d find it. He’d been denied the often sought after happy medium before. Most of Gibbs’ life had been all or nothing. He sighed silently. Why would this be any different?
“I always kind of preferred guys like Tony Starke and Bruce Wayne.” Tony said thoughtfully.
“Rich guys with neat gadgets.” Gibbs teased, trying to shake his own morose thoughts.
“Well yeah. There is that. ” Tony grinned and then sobered. “But a guy like Tony Starke, well, he had to stumble into being a good man. It didn’t come naturally and he didn’t always get it quite right. Kind of the same thing with Bruce Wayne. I mean, the Dark Night wasn’t exactly a warm and fuzzy kind of guy"he was on the right side but not always the side of right, if you know what I mean.”
Gibbs nodded. Being a vigilante meant Batman went after people society could readily agree were bad guys, but he didn’t exactly use sanctioned means. He worked with the police but he wasn’t a cop. Technically, he was a criminal, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t one of the good guys.
“You ever think they were bigger heroes for that?” Gibbs asked softly. “For being human, having faults and foibles and still trying?”
“Definitely.” Tony murmured softly. His gaze shifted to the middle distance, clearly looking at something not in the room. “In elevating our heroes we remove any trace they were like us, and eliminate the chance we’ll ever be like them. What makes our heroes worth emulating is not who they ultimately become, but how it was they managed to get there. No one knows the true value of virtue without being well acquainted, at least once, with vice.”
Gibbs stared at him. Did Tony really believe that? If he did…Gibbs didn’t want to guess about this. “What--”
“Nothing,” Tony shook his head, his expression suddenly uneasy. “Sorry about that. Was something I had to memorize for history class once.” He made a meaningless gesture. “Not sure where it even came from. Just forget it.”
Tony typically shied away from showing how deep he could really be. What he thought would happen if he allowed people to realize he had more depth than a parking lot puddle, Gibbs didn’t know. The face of a clown was as much a shield for Tony as Gibbs anger was for him. Neither of them was comfortable letting people see too much of what was hidden behind the mask.
Tony pointed to the TV with the remote, bright frat boy smile once more in place. “So what movie did you want to watch?”
Knowing it was too late to ask for more, Gibbs let it go. “I think the winner was Ironman.”
Tony hit a button on the remote. The screen shifted to let them know the movie would cost them $15.95 and would be billed to their room.
“You think Vance will even notice?”
Gibbs snorted. “He’ll notice.”
The man had every requisition order coming across is desk. Details like a pay-per-view movie and room service wouldn’t escape his scrutiny. The agency was saving a good bit by Gibbs only booking one room for them, so if Vance got in his face about it Gibbs was sure he could put him in his place. And it wasn’t like this actually cost more than the standard per diem the agency officially allotted for agents.
Just as the movie was starting room service knocked at the door. Gibbs had ordered steak, a baked potato and in a rare concession to Ducky’s many lectures something green and leafy. Tony had also ordered a steak, but opted for steamed vegetables as his side and a cup of the tomato bisque soup. The hotel bar stocked a selection of beers from the microbrewery down the street where they’d grabbed lunch so they were both able to get a beer to go with their meal. Gibbs had ordered the stout curious to see if the dark beer would be as good as others he’d sampled; Tony selected the pale ale.
Since the waiter had placed the tray on the small table, and it had a clear view of the TV, it made sense to simply eat there. The setting was intimate, but Gibbs felt too comfortable and relaxed to be bothered by that. Nothing about being alone with Tony felt awkward. It was a sharp contrast to the last evening meal he could remember sharing with anyone in such a private setting---that had been with Shepard in her office. Until sitting down with Tony he hadn’t realized how tense and on guard he’d been with her. And it wasn’t just her, it was pretty much everyone he dated. With them he’d felt obligated to make some sort of small talk, to keep up appearances, to perform in some way. With Tony, he knew he didn’t have to make an effort to be charming, or overly pleasant, or do anything more complicated than simply enjoy his meal and the movie.
Gibbs was struck by how nice it was, similar to lunch earlier but better. There was no cold weather to contend with or other people to interrupt. He had Tony all to himself, which was probably something he shouldn’t think about. But even so, Gibbs wouldn’t mind doing this more often.
He sat back when he was finished eating, sipping his beer. He wondered if Tony would want to do this again. Maybe when they got back to DC they could go out for dinner or he could invite Tony back to his place. It could be like a real date. Gibbs shook his head. Thinking that was dangerous and it was best to stop now. Tony might have leaned into that almost kiss earlier, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. Gibbs finally felt like he might be well on his way to repairing a lot of the damage he’d unintentionally caused. Now would not be a good time to screw things up again.
He covertly studied Tony. The younger man looked as relaxed and comfortable as Gibbs felt. There were no overly bright smiles, no blithe commentary, and no fidgeting or obvious signs of unease. Green eyes focused on the TV, clearly enjoying the unfolding storyline.
Gibbs hadn’t expected Tony to be so engrossed by the movie; at least not so much he didn’t speak. He thought for sure Tony would offer up information on the director, the actors, where the action was filmed and how. Talking was part and parcel to who Tony was. At times Gibbs was sure he’d be able to talk under water if need be. It was oddly disconcerting to have him be silent.
Tony glanced over at him. “What?”
“Just surprised you’re so quiet.” Gibbs admitted.
Tony shrugged. “I might never have mastered the right fork to use, but I got a good handle on movie etiquette.”
“Never understood why more than one fork was needed myself,” Gibbs said with a smile, turning his eyes back to the movie.
Tony chuckled. He got up from the table and settled in on the bed, back against the headboard, his half full beer resting on his stomach, and long legs stretched out in front of him with his stocking feet crossed one over the other. Gibbs envied how comfortable Tony seemed, and realized there was no reason he couldn’t be equally comfortable.
Gibbs removed his shoes, and joined Tony on the bed. He bunched a pillow behind him, settling in to watch the rest of the movie. There was more than enough room on the bed that they didn’t have to even come close to one another, but Gibbs didn’t mind that they’d somehow ended up close enough for their shoulders to touch.
It was a shame the room service menu didn’t offer popcorn. It would have been nice to have it to munch on, but after the meal he’d just eaten, Gibbs wasn’t really hungry.
Settling in, Gibbs took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He took another breath and was suddenly aware of Tony’s scent. It was similar to what he’d noticed last night when Tony had wrapped around him in his sleep, but not exactly the same. He could make out the faint mint that had to be from either Tony’s soap or shampoo. It was overlain by his cologne and deodorant that created a musky spice Gibbs found rather attractive.
He fought down the urge to wrap an arm around Tony’s shoulders and draw him closer. Gibbs’ jaw clenched. Maybe getting on the bed was a bad idea. But he was enjoying the quiet companionship and close proximity too much to really regret it. And he sure as hell wasn’t going to move.
By the time Tony Starke had escaped from his captors and gone home to California Gibbs had become sufficiently engrossed in the movie he could overlook where he was and who he was with. He could see why action movies made for such an easy escape for most people. The flow of events didn’t have to make sense, the science didn’t have to be sound, and the details didn’t have form a continuous or logical plot. It just had to be entertaining, get the heart pumping and make people cheer for the hero.
Gibbs found himself honestly enjoying the film. Tony Starke was a surprisingly complicated character given his comic book origin. He was not nearly as one dimensional as Superman or Scott Summers of the X-men. He could be charming, annoying, thoughtlessly juvenile, humorous and hostile. He was a filthy rich playboy with a conscience and a compulsive need to fix the horrors his weapons had created. Turning over a new leaf hadn’t come cheap, and it appealed to Gibbs that the cost ultimately didn’t sway Starke. In the end, that was what made him heroic"a willingness to pay the price being asked, standing strong in the face of adversity.
By the time it was over Tony Starke grew a lot. But the way the movie ended nicely showcased he was still had a lot in common with who he was at the beginning. He was still narcissistic enough to want full credit for his invention; still cocky enough to be sure he could get away with it; still juvenile enough not to see all the consequences of his actions. In a very real way, Tony Starke reminded Gibbs a lot of Tony DiNozzo. He wondered if the younger man saw the same similarities.
“That was pretty good,” Tony said as the final credits scrolled by. He turned his head to look at Gibbs. “You like it?”
“I did.”
Tony smiled shyly. “Thanks for watching with me.”
Gibbs didn’t think he was owed any thanks, but nodded his acceptance of the sentiment.
Tony pointed the remote at the TV and deftly switched the channel to CNN. He offered the remote to Gibbs as he got up from the bed. “I’ll put the room service tray in the hall.”
Gibbs blinked, pleasantly surprised Tony offered to clean up. Not that Tony was a slob, but he wasn’t exactly the neatest guy around either. Gibbs suspected Tony only cleaned up because they were sharing the room, and he knew Gibbs liked things orderly. It had been a long time since anyone catered to his preference for anything that wasn’t directly related to the job.
“Thank you.”
Tony smiled at him, once more making it hard to breath easily. Gibbs was starting to think he might need to let Ducky check him out. That was happening far too often.
Tony grabbed the packet of information they’d been given on the seminars. He settled in on the bed with a pencil and small notebook.
“What are you doing?”
Tony looked up. “I only had time to look at what was going on today at breakfast. I thought it would be a good idea to look at the rest of the week.”
It was a good idea. Gibbs hadn’t look though everything either. He got his own packet of information. It would save time in the morning to have it sorted out now. Not that they would likely run short on time, but Gibbs believed in being prepared.
The news made for background noise as they reviewed what was being offered. It didn’t take long to sort out what seminars they’d be attending in the morning. Tony wanted to sit in on the one that focused on how to build a profile of terrorist--what sort of people were attracted to extreme views, how did they justify attacking non-combatants, what sort of people were susceptible to the call of radical action by zealots. Gibbs was more interested in the session on global efforts to deal with terrorism. Many countries had been dealing with the issue for far longer than the US had.
Gibbs had already decided to attend the FBI’s seminar in the afternoon on tracking illegal aliens with ties to terrorist groups. Tony had considered attending as well before opting for the session on coordinating efforts with local law enforcement.
“Not sure it’ll be anything more than a lot of lip service, but better we split up and hit as many of these things as we can.” Tony grinned. “And I’m pretty sure Tammy will be in that one. I want to see if she and Craig will be free for dinner tomorrow night, see if we can spend a little more time catching up.”
Gibbs had forgotten about Tony’s old partner and her husband. He bit his tongue against giving voice to the sudden rush of disappointment that Tony wouldn’t want to spend tomorrow night with him.
“You want to come along?”
Gibbs was surprised by the invitation. He hadn’t expected to be included.
“If you don’t have anything better to do that is.” Tony immediately offered, clearly taking Gibbs’ hesitance to respond as a negative. “I mean, it’ll probably just a few drinks and dinner. You wouldn’t be missing out on much. I’m sure you’ve got better things to--“
“I’d like to meet your old partner.”
Tony’s grin was blinding. “Really?”
Gibbs smiled pleased to see Tony happy again and no longer nervously babbling. Still, that didn’t mean he couldn’t tease him a little. “I’m sure she’ll have some good stories to tell about you.”
“Oh, a few.” Tony laughed softly. “Might cost you a bit to get them though.”
“You think I’m too cheap to pay it?” Gibbs challenged.
“Hell no, I’m hoping you do.” Tony grinned. “I’m good with getting spillover perks.”
“Spillover perks?” Gibbs chuckled.
“Yep.” Tony waggled his eyebrows. “Just so you know, she likes the expensive vodka and has a real weakness for cheesecake, and if you don’t buy enough for everyone she won’t tell you a thing. Tammy is a firm believer in sharing her bounty. Course she expects everybody to share theirs too. Tit for tat isn’t just an expression to her.”
“Good to know.”
“We done with this stuff?”
“For now.”
Tony moved put away the materials until they were needed tomorrow. The younger man disappeared into the bathroom, returning a few minutes later dressed in a pair of sweats and a t-shirt. Tony slipped under the covers on his side of the bed. He had the crossword puzzle book he’d been working in while on the plane.
Gibbs knew Tony liked to downplay his intelligence, claiming to only be able to do the easy puzzles or those that focused on the trivia from movies and TV shows. But the book he was working contained puzzle that were from the Sunday New York Times. They weren’t easy, or mainly trivia, but Gibbs didn’t call him on it.
Tony would occasionally ask for Gibbs’ input. Although, Gibbs had never said so, he liked working the puzzles with Tony. It was similar to working a case, without the time crunch or intense pressure.
The news was starting to repeat when Gibbs noticed Tony hadn’t said anything for several minutes. He looked over and saw the younger man was sound asleep. He gently slipped the book and pencil out of Tony’s hand, trying not to wake him. Tony started, eyelids fluttering.
“Boss?”
“Shhhh…It’s all right. Go back to sleep, Tony.”
“N’ght, Boss.” Tony mumbled, curling up on his side, facing away from Gibbs.
Gibbs smiled fondly. “Good night, Tony. Sleep well.”
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended.