Secret Part 5: Rejuvenation
(Author's Note: Slash!)
-Tony-
Bodies crashed together like waves’ crescendo on the shore. They fit together as only two bodies made for one another could. Arms and chests were bathed in light sheens of sweat, eyes were closed and opened and uneven intervals, breath came in short gasps and moans. Their frames locked; their bodies twisted and rolled, struggling for dominance that neither would relinquish.
Their cocks were hard and straining against each other.
Lips met brutally, sucking, biting, licking, kissing, exploring the other’s body with passion ignited like a wildfire. The lights were dim, but they didn’t need to see. They didn’t need to speak. Fingers brushed through hair, slid gently across ribcages, wrapped around wrists, fingers interlocked, fingers wrapped tight around each other’s shafts, pulling and tugging, each firm stroke drawing their partner closer to completion.
One of them yelped as a mouth landed on the junction of the neck and shoulder, biting down hard and sucking lightly, raising an instant bruise, nearly bringing his partner to instant climax. The other groaned into his partner’s neck as he slid his cock deep into the other again and muscles clamped down hard on him, squeezing him just right, nearly bringing him off at the same time.
Finally rolling so they were facing each other, they made eye contact, and they met in a passionate kiss that would leave their lips swollen and bruised well into the next day. Just before it all came to a blasting finish, Jethro pulled back and looked at Tony, whose green eyes were nearly onyx in the heat of the moment.
“Together,” one of them gasped, “we go together.”
The other stared up at his mate and nodded. Their legs were tightly interlocked, as were their gazes. Hands were in hair, cupping faces, on the backs of necks, pulling closer--anything to feel as close as humanly possible.
They roared to a finish, one right with the other, finally collapsing in a boneless heap on the bed…
Tony had seen this place before…been here before…he couldn’t remember when or where the place was, but Tony knew it was familiar. He also knew that the details weren’t important. No only one thing here was important…
“Together. We go together.”
They were always together. Would always be together. That was all that mattered.
-Jethro-
“He’ll be deeply undercover for two weeks. We’ve been watching Hatcher for months; all we need to do is gather the evidence we need to convict him.”
“Who will have his six on the op? Who is his backup?”
“We’ll have agents tracking his every move, Agent Gibbs. You have nothing to worry about.”
-Flash-
“Agent Gibbs we’ve lost contact with Agent DiNozzo. We can’t find him. The last we saw his tracker was at…”
-Flash-
“I’ll find you Tony. I swear to you, I’ll find you. I will protect you. I have your six Tony. I’m coming. Just hang on.”
-Flash-
“I have a location on Tony, Boss,” McGee called across the bullpen. “We need to hurry though; his signal is picking up at the house that belongs to Hatcher.”
“Grab your gear! Let’s move!”
-Flash-
“He’s moving Gibbs! He’s on the go--heading toward Bricker Street in the downtown district.”
“Got it McGee. Phone Wilson and let him know where we’re heading. Tell him to go on to Hatcher’s house and secure the scene there.”
“Signal’s stopped boss. He’s in this alley here--”
Gibbs was already out of the car and running for the alley before Tim could finish the sentence.
He saw Tony’s feet sticking out from behind the garbage cans that his attackers had half-heartedly hid him behind. Gibbs fought down vomit as he saw Tony--his beloved Tony…God they’d hurt him…his poor head…Gibbs’ hand shook as he reached out to search for a pulse, not wanting to know, but denying himself the right to turn away. This was his partner. HIS partner. He’d be damned if he’d leave this mess for someone else to handle--for some rookie, some Probie to fuck up.
Gibbs felt his knees weaken when he felt a pulse beneath his fingers. It was light, but it was steady. Gibbs very gently supported Tony’s neck and with McGee’s help they turned him over. Someone had taken a magic marker and on his forehead had written one word. The one word had told Gibbs all he needed to know.
PIG
“He’s been made, McGee,” Gibbs said hoarsely. McGee didn’t hear him though, he was too busy screaming into the phone to get the paramedics here as soon as possible; they have an agent down; they need help…
Gibbs sat still in the alley, cradling Tony’s broken body to him, begging him “hold on, just hold on a few more minutes baby, there’s help coming, it’s going to be alright, please don’t give up, I haven’t given you permission to die, you can’t leave me like this Tony, I’ll find the bastards who did this and I will make them pay, starting with Director Vance…”
-Flash-
“You really should consider what is best for him, Agent Gibbs. He’s in a great deal of pain and the chances of him coming out of the coma are very, very low.”
“What’s the percentage?”
“What do you mean?”
“What’s the percent chance of him making it?”
“Oh I’d say very low…maybe 20 or 25 percent.”
“I’m leaving him on the life support. He can beat this. He will beat this.”
-Flash-
The soft groan, the twitch of fingers and flutter of eyelids--the happiest moment of Jethro’s life.
“He’s waking up!”
xxx
Gibbs jerked awake and sat straight up in bed. His breath was coming in short gasps and his heart was pounding. Dammit he’d had the dream again. He glanced over at Tony, asleep on his back, eyes shut tight…
Tony was dreaming too.
It was a good dream, if the tent in the sheets was any indication.
Jethro sighed. He knew dreams like this often disturbed Tony who just didn’t quite understand the images in his mind--or the reaction of his body. It all depended on his state of mind. Lately, Tony had been doing very well. He hadn’t taken too long to readjust being back at the center. He’d quit hitting himself in the head. He’d quit calling himself retarded.
Gibbs leaned over and turned on the bedside lamp. He put a gentle hand on Tony’s shoulder, giving him a gentle shake. “Wake up Tony,” Gibbs said softly, pressing a kiss to the underside of Tony’s jaw. He glanced at the clock. 2:43am. Shit.
Tony stirred and opened his eyes, blinking in confusion for a few moments. Jethro knew that darkness really bothered his partner, so he made sure that there were always working flashlights, nightlights and bedside lamps close at hand during the dark nights. He finally looked over at Gibbs who was propped up on one elbow staring down at him.
He yawned deeply and stared up at his partner.
“You were dreaming,” Gibbs said softly. “I know sometimes dreams bother you so I thought it best to wake you up.”
“W-weeeeird d-dr-dream, Jeh-throw,” Tony commented sleepily.
Gibbs raised an eyebrow. “What were you dreaming about Tony?”
Tony stared up at Gibbs. “B-bad,” he said softly, diverting his gaze. “Jeh-throw m-mad.”
“Hey you can’t help what you dream, sweetheart. If you want to tell me about it you can, but if you don’t want to you don’t have to. If it isn’t bothering you it’s completely fine for you to keep it to yourself.”
Tony let a hand drift lazily to his groin. “Toh-neee…f-feel…s-st-stran--w-weird,” he said hoarsely.
Gibbs sighed, recalling a time when “weird” wasn’t how that particular feeling was described. Now he leaned over and he kissed Tony gently. “It’ll pass sweetheart. What were you dreaming about?”
“Toh…neee…B-bosss…wr-wres-wresslin,” Tony said softly, a light pink tinge coloring his cheeks and ears.
“We were wrestling?”
Tony nodded slightly.
Gibbs grinned. He knew what Tony meant by ‘wrestling.’ “Who was winning?”
Tony thought for a minute. He recalled how they flipped and rolled, both vying for dominance but…
“N-Nooo w-winns?”
“No one was winning?”
Tony shook his head. Gibbs let out a long breath. “Tony before you were hurt, you and I started a very special relationship. We fell in love with each other.”
“Toh-neee love Jeh-throw,” Tony commented.
“And Jethro loves Tony,” Gibbs responded. “Sometimes when people love each other like we do, they find it fun to…wrestle. And instead of no one winning, Tony everyone wins. You and I were very good wrestlers.” Gibbs couldn’t help but grin slightly. He couldn’t believe he was having to explain to his life partner what it meant for a couple to have sex.
“Toh-neee…th-tinking…wr-wressle now!” Tony’s eyes lit up, but his expression remained shy. Suddenly Gibbs had an idea.
“The whole reason for people to wrestle with each other is to feel close to each other. I have an idea for us to feel close. Would you like to take a trip, Tony?”
Tony thought about it for a moment then nodded his head. “T-trippp y-yayy,” he said. “W-wherrrrrre go?”
“Well Tony before you were hurt, you used to love to go to the beach.”
“Wh-whattt…is…b-beaaach?”
“It’s got an ocean and sand and waves and birds…it’s really nice. We could go there if you want. It isn’t far away.”
Tony nodded. “G-go n-now?”
Gibbs looked at the clock and sighed, knowing he’d be getting no more sleep tonight. “Sure Tony. Let’s go.”
xxx
The beach was deserted on the early Saturday morning when Gibbs and Tony arrived at the shore. Gibbs helped Tony into his chair and then propped a bag in his lap, lying Tony’s hand on top of it. “That’s our breakfast Tony; don’t let it fall, alright?”
Tony nodded. Gibbs locked his car and set off toward the boardwalk, pushing Tony through the rough terrain. Once the other members of his team woke up, Gibbs would call and invite everyone to join him and Tony at the beach, but for now it was just the two of them.
Tony smiled in the predawn light as his eyes took in the pier, the waves, the shoreline, the sand, and the row of hotels along the beach. Far off in the sky, he could see it beginning to change colors. He and Gibbs found a good spot, away from lots of the hotels, away from the pier, down the beach where no one was likely to go.
Gibbs laid out a blanket and put down a cushion to support Tony’s back while he sat on the ground. He made sure the chair’s brakes were locked before he carefully unstrapped Tony from his chair and helped him down on to the ground. Tony leaned back against Jethro’s chest as they watched the sun come up together. Tony smiled at the beauty of it, taking in the bright lights, the sounds of the birds as they looked for food, the smell of the waves and the feel of the sand under his hands. He leaned his head back to look up at Jethro who smiled down at him.
“This is your favorite beach Tony,” Gibbs said softly, cradling the young man close to him. It suddenly dawned on Gibbs why he’d had the dream he’d had, and why it was suddenly so important to give Tony some connection to his past.
Today was the fourth anniversary of Tony’s attack. To most people it would be just some random Saturday, but to Jethro today was the day when his life had changed so drastically, on such a fundamental level, that all he could do was be grateful for what he had left afterwards. Gibbs pressed a gentle kiss to Tony’s hair and saw Tony smile.
It was all different. But it was all good too.
xxx
Gibbs was nice enough for a change to wait until half past eight before he called anyone on the team to wake them up. Ducky answered his phone first. Next came Tim. Abby called him back an hour later, and Ziva sent him a text message once she’d finished at the gym. Today was a special day--today was the day that made them remember how grateful they were that Tony was a fighter--that he was as strong as he was. Of course they would all come join them at the beach for the celebration.
It wasn’t really a celebration, not in the sense of party hats or cake and ice cream. Abby brought some shovels and buckets. Tim showed up with some pizza and sodas. Ziva brought a portable radio with speakers that played music loud enough to be heard over the sound of the ocean. Ducky brought sunscreen for everyone. Tony didn’t know why they were all playing together today, but he didn’t care. He was happy that his whole family was with him, and they were at this awesome place, and most importantly, that Gibbs was with him.
Ziva surprised everyone with the camera that she pulled out of her bag. Normally she was not very demonstrative and keepsakes, mementos and photographs usually did not come from her. However, Ziva had seen how affected Gibbs was by this chain of events. She’d seen how hard Tony worked to make the progress that he’d made. She knew that in the four years that passed, things had changed completely--for them all. Today was a celebration of things accomplished, a day of hope for things to come. Ziva spent the day clicking pictures, promising to email copies to everyone.
Tony spent the day smiling. He was the happiest anyone had seen him (except for when Jethro was putting sunscreen on him--he did NOT like that) in months. Weeks earlier, the team had been shocked to learn what had taken place with Tony’s father at the center on his first day back. Tim had gotten the ball rolling to set up the restraining order that was now in effect to keep Tony’s father as far away from Tony and his life insurance policy as was humanly possible. No one mentioned Senior in Tony’s presence, for fear of a backslide in his progress.
When Gibbs picked Tony up and carried him down toward the ocean, Tony squealed in delight and tried to get away from the water. He clung hard to Jethro who ran a soothing hand over his back.
“Not gonna let you drown Tony. You used to love getting in the water. Just wanted you to be able to get your feet wet is all.”
In the end…they were both soaked. The water was colder than Tony was expecting and he jerked suddenly when his skin made contact. The jerk caused Gibbs to lose his balance and the ensuing stumble had left them both soaking wet. Jethro chuckled and Tony whimpered in cold. Jethro immediately set about getting Tony’s clothes changed so he wouldn’t catch cold and towel drying his hair.
Tony agreed to sit in his chair and be wheeled barefooted up to the water’s edge by Abby while Gibbs watched from their blanket. Abby picked up a handful of shells and was teaching him how to skip stones. After a few throws, Tony successfully skipped one and Abby jumped up and down clapping and squealing in excitement. She didn’t mention that Tony was the one who had originally taught her to skip stones.
Tim suggested that they have a race, and Tony heartily agreed. Gibbs would push Tony’s wheelchair, while Abby rode Tim piggyback. They would race down to the house with the pink shutters, turn around and the first one who got back to Ducky first would win. Ziva had sprained her ankle the week before at work, so she didn’t want to race. She’d spent hours at the gym trying to stretch her injury back out and keep the muscles from knotting up. She did not want to have to begin the process over again.
The team raced off down the beach, Abby and Tony squealing to go faster, to run harder, to win, to go, to come on, while Gibbs and Tim were nearly evenly matched the whole race. In the end, it was Tim and Abby who won the race, but only because Abby could reach her arm out farther to tag Ducky’s hand before Tony could. Tony and Jethro were graceful losers, congratulating their friends on being “s-sup-per f-fast.”
The beach grew more crowded as the day wore on, the sun went higher and the temperature rose. Couples and families joined the team on the beach and the stares didn’t go unnoticed by anyone. One particular couple seemed absolutely flabbergasted that anyone in a wheelchair could possibly be on the beach. Ziva caught them staring more than once and finally went over and asked them if there was a problem.
When the ignorant couple questioned why these people would bring a cripple to the beach, Ziva’s eyes flashed with anger. She pointed at Tony. “Do you see how happy he is? Does it look like he is having any difficulties here? The only difficulty my friend is having, is people are staring at him like he is some kind of freak.” She stepped closer to them, the look on her face pure danger and malice. “Let me explain something to you about my friend though. He is one of the smartest people I know. He is the most loyal, the most honest, one of the most trustworthy people I know. He is smarter than the two of you put together. And if you do not leave him alone and quit staring at him, I will be forced to take drastic measures.”
Ziva didn’t spell out what those drastic measures were, but the couple moved on down the beach without asking anymore questions.
Gibbs patted Ziva on the shoulder when she returned. “What’d you say to them,” he asked, his blue eyes shining with pride.
“I told them the truth. I told them that Tony is happy and surrounded by friends and having a good day and if those cretins want to mess that up then I would be forced to take dramatic measures.”
Gibbs chuckled. “What measures?”
Ziva smirked, and then used one of Tony’s famous lines. “I will stab them. In the eye. With sporks.”
Tony laughed at Ziva’s statement and held up the spork that he was digging in the sand with from his spot on the blanket. “B-borry this?”
“No Tony, I do not need to borrow your spork for now, my Little Hairy Butt,” she said affectionately, “But I will let you know if I need it.”
“Ohh…kayy…Zeeee-vah.”
xxx
They stayed on the beach until late in the afternoon when Gibbs could see how tired Tony was becoming. He was leaning heavily on the cushion on the ground and his digging motions were becoming clumsier as time went on. Abby had fallen asleep next to Tony on the blanket, Ziva, Tim and Ducky had gone for a long walk, and Gibbs sat on the sand beside his lover and smiled over at him.
“Have you had fun today Tony?”
“B-bestt p-pl-place e-everrr,” Tony said smiling at him. His eyelids were getting heavy though, his words were beginning to slur and his smile looked slightly drunk. Tony was exhausted.
“Are you ready to go home?”
Tony looked wistfully at the ocean and then up and down the length of the beach before he nodded. “Toh-neee t-tiredd,” he said softly.
Gibbs nodded and rose to his feet. He pulled out his cell phone and called to tell the others that they were going to pack it in for the day. After he hung up, Gibbs slowly pulled Tony up and helped him into the wheelchair directly behind him. Tony’s leg muscles quivered as they attempted to hold Tony’s weight. Once he had Tony safely strapped back in his chair, Gibbs woke Abby and told her it was time to go home.
Tony and Gibbs bid Abby farewell and slowly got themselves loaded in the car. It wasn’t a terribly long drive back to Gibbs’ house, only about three hours according to internet directions, two and a half if you were riding with Gibbs. Tony was dozing by the time they reached home. Gibbs helped him inside, helped them both take a quick shower, helped him into bed and then crawled in next to him.
“What was the best thing about today Tony,” Gibbs asked. He asked Tony lots of questions. It was one of his speech therapy goals to be able to interpret and answer questions. Ironic because Tony had been such a great interrogator--asking and answering questions was what he did best, next to undercover…
Tony smiled as his eyes drifted shut, then he blinked them back open.
“Toh-neee…Jeh…throw…t-to-together, w-we g-go…to-together…” Tony said as his eyes drifted shut and he slipped away into sleep.
Gibbs blinked as the memory surfaced--the last night before Tony’s near-fatal undercover operation began, they had made love--and those had been Tony’s words to Jethro as they battled for dominance and pounded one another into the mattress,
“Together, Jethro, we go together.”
Gibbs spooned up to his lover and smiled as he followed Tony into sleep. They certainly did go together.
TBC…
Chapter End Notes:
Slash!