Gibbs just couldn't sleep worth a damn without the warm, solid presence of Tony nearby. So Tuesday and Thursday mornings now saw him at the office earlier than usual. Fortunately, no one had even noticed. Mostly because there weren't that many people in the office even at his usual arrival time.
Gibbs traded small talk with Martin, the security guard on duty, for a few moments. He made a point of always stopping to say hello. Security often knew more about what went on in the building than anyone else...and so they should. It was the late shift that had told him about Tony's habit of working late. Tony worked late less often now; usually Mondays and Wednesdays.
Gibbs took the stairs up, knowing he could get to his floor faster that way. He grinned. It was a good exercise and helped him to stay fit. He also appreciated the surprise factor; his team rarely looked for him to appear from the stairs rather than the elevator.
Gibbs cocked his head, listening intently. He hadn't entirely believed Martin when he said Tony had left around midnight. The younger man liked to see if he could sneak in and out of the building and elude security. Gibbs knew the game kept them all on their toes so he didn't comment on it.
He nodded when the only sound he heard was silence. Tony really had left at midnight then. Gibbs strode toward his desk, ready to start his day.
He set his coffee down and reached for the bag of mail that now routinely came only to him. Gibbs had laid down the law after Tony was infected with the plague. No one opened anything until he saw it first. No exceptions. Period.
The usual letters and interoffice stuff was quickly taken care of. Gibbs casually stuffed it back into the bag for Kenny to deliver later. The only thing remaining was a small package wrapped in brown paper. He grimaced as he was forced to dig out his reading glasses to confirm who it was addressed to.
It was for Tony. Damn. Gibbs tried not to see it as a bad thing. It wasn't like the infected later had come addressed to Tony. Gibbs quickly checked the sender's name. He breathed easier recognizing the name of Mike's youngest brother, Gabriel Capanzini.
It had to be a birthday present. He wasn't sure why Gabe would have sent it to the office and not Tony's place. Given the sort of hours Tony put in, maybe Gabe knew Tony would get it at the office sooner than he would at his apartment.
Gibbs carried the box over to Tony's desk. He was sorely tempted to open it, curious to find out what Gabe had sent. He mentally slapped the back of his head. Tony wouldn't appreciate his peeking.
Gibbs shook it anyway, listening for any tell-tale rattle. It didn't make any noise. Gibbs glared at it before he realized that Gabe's gift might give him a clue of what he could get Tony.
Gibbs glanced at his watch. Tony would be in soon. It didn't matter what time the younger man left; he was back in the office by 7:30 am at the latest.
Gibbs went back to his desk. He powered up his computer and started to read his e-mail. He read one message and deleted another before his gaze was drawn back to the box on Tony's desk.
Gibbs reached for his coffee. He told himself to stop being stupid and get back to work. He forced himself to wade through his e-mail, sipping his coffee the entire time. He finished the coffee well before he finished with the messages. He scowled at the screen in front of him, wondering why the spam filter they had couldn't block more of the crap that filled his inbox.
He looked up when he heard the elevator ding, struggling not to smile when he recognized Tony's long, confident stride. Gibbs quickly refocused his gaze on his computer screen, and schooled his features into bland disinterest. The security cameras weren't angled to catch a frontal view of Gibbs, but he was still cautious of giving too much away.
Gibbs was impressed by how easy Tony had made acting normal seem. The younger man hadn't behaved any differently. Gibbs had to stay on his toes to catch the subtle heated glances, an occasional wink and soft smile. It was a challenge that he was rapidly coming to enjoy.
"Morning, Boss." Tony's greeting was the same casual one he gave every morning. The smile though was something Gibbs knew was reserved for him alone.
He smiled in return. "DiNozzo."
His smile got bigger when Tony placed a cup of coffee on his desk. "Thanks."
"De nada."
Gibbs tossed his empty cup away. He sipped from the new one as he watched Tony head for his desk. The younger man cocked his head when he saw the package sitting on his blotter. Green eyes flickered back to Gibbs.
"It's been checked."
Tony nodded. When he picked it up, Tony grinned with obvious delight. He pulled out his knife to slice through the paper and tape. Gibbs couldn't resist walking over to get a closer view.
Tony opened the box carefully. The bubble wrap Gibbs could see definitely suggested whatever was inside might be breakable. It also explained why it hadn't made any noise when he shook it.
On top the bubble wrap was a card. Tony used his knife as a letter opener before closing it and slipping it back into his pocket. Gibbs expected to see the usual 'Happy Birthday' or something similar across the front. Instead the card was the sort Gibbs recognized because Shannon used to send him similar ones. It had space for a photo to be slipped into the front, letting the card act as matting for it.
Gibbs studied the photo Gabe had sent. It was a shot of the beach at night. The full moon looked as though it was rising directly out of the water; the white foam of the waves in sharp contrast to dark sand of the beach.
"Nice shot."
"Photography is sort of a growing hobby for Gabe." Tony grinned. "That shot I've got mounted above the fire place that you like so well is one he took."
"He took that?" Gibbs raised his eyebrows, impressed. The shot was of an older, wooden sailing vessel running with the wind. It looked like a restored clipper ship from the 1800's. The shot was so crisp and clear Gibbs expected to feel the wind on his face and hear seagulls every time he looked at it.
"Gabe loves the ocean." Tony grinned.
Gibbs knew the reason Gabe gave the photos to Tony was his lover was just as enamored of the ocean as Gabe seemed to be. It wasn't just pretty girls in bikinis that drew him to the beach, although, Gibbs was sure at one time that had been part of the appeal. No, Tony really loved the entire experience; the sight and sound of the water, the feel of hot sand in his toes, the smell of salt water. It was a shame they didn't have enough time to make a weekend getaway to the shore. That would have been a great gift. Gibbs filed the thought away as something they could do later--maybe for Labor Day weekend.
Tony smiled fondly at the photo card in his hand. "Still remember pretending to be pirates with him and looking for buried treasure."
"You ever find any?"
Tony chuckled. "No, but we're still looking."
Gibbs had no trouble picturing a younger Tony eagerly looking for riches. Tony loved puzzles and digging for information. It made him a damn fine investigator. And he loved a good story even more. He'd probably read Treasure Island and the Gold Bug as a child, which no doubt prompted the game of pretend with Gabe.
Tony opened the card and read it. Whatever message Gabe had written made Tony laugh with obvious delight. Gibbs wanted to know what the card said but couldn't bring himself to ask. So far, Tony hadn't even mentioned why Gabe would be sending him anything at all. Was his lover assuming Gibbs already knew about his birthday or that Gibbs wouldn't care so it wasn't worth mentioning?
He would love to ask but was almost afraid of the answer. Nana always told him not to ask questions he wasn't sure he wanted the answers to. Maybe it was better not to know.
Tony pulled out the bubble wrapped item still chuckling as he removed the protective covering. He snickered as he held up his unwrapped prize. Unlike the traditional garden gnome that had sat forlornly in Mike's flower bed the one Tony held in his palm was only four inches tall. And Tony's gnome's hat and clothing was painted black, he wore a pair of sunglasses and had what looked like a gun belt added to his waist.
"Meet the mini Agent K."
Gibbs raised an eyebrow, amused by the gothic looking little gnome. Even in dark clothing the gnome couldn't be anything but whimsical. Abby would love him. "Agent K?"
"From Men in Black." Tony rolled his eyes. "Never mind. It's not in important."
Gibbs winced internally. Tony made a dozen movie references on a good day, usually regarding films Gibbs hand never even heard of much less seen. He hated knowing so little about something his lover so obviously enjoyed.
Well, this at least I can fix, Gibbs thought. "You own a copy of Men in Black?" Gibbs asked.
"Yeah." Tony frowned. "Why?"
Gibbs smiled. "We could watch it tonight."
"Sweet." Tony grinned. "I'd like that."
The soft ding from the elevator reminded Gibbs they weren't alone. Not that they were doing anything suspicious but better safe than sorry. He made his way back to his desk as Tony shoved the now empty box under his desk.
Tony placed 'Agent K' just to the left of his computer monitor. The gnome wasn't exactly out of sight but he wasn't in direct view either. And Tony had enough personal items in and on his desk it was unlikely anyone would notice one more. Gibbs was curious what would be said when ?Agent K' was finally noticed, and who would make the first comment. His money was on Abby.
The photo card, Tony casually tacked to the partition that separated his work space from the hallway. It fit seamlessly with a post card from Panama City that had come from one of Tony's frat brothers, and one from Cuba that Paula Cassidy had sent. Gibbs wasn't sure who had sent the ones showcasing treasures from the wreck of the Atocha and the Central American.
"Good morning, Ziva," Tony greeted her with a smile.
"Good morning, Tony."
"Ziva." Gibbs rarely wished anyone a good morning. Their surname was greeting enough as far as he was concerned.
She tipped her head to Gibbs. "Good morning, Gibbs."
Tony looked at his watch, frowning. "You catch a different bus?"
It was a good twenty minutes before her usual arrival time. Gibbs tried not to glare at her for being prompt. It was hard not to. She'd cut short his time alone with Tony.
"No." She beamed at him. "I got my own car."
Tony sat down at his desk, leaning forward on his elbows, eyeing her eagerly. "So what did you get?"
"A mini cooper." Ziva was obviously proud of her purchase.
Tony pursed his lips. "Okay."
Ziva frowned. "It is a perfectly good vehicle, Tony."
"I'm sure it is." His tone made it clear he didn't believe what he just said. If it wasn't for the twinkle in his eyes, Gibbs would never have known Tony was obviously jerking Ziva's chain.
Gibbs ignored their bantering in favor of focusing on the problem of getting Tony a gift. The gnome the sort of almost gag-gift a long term friend with shared stories would send. It had made Tony laugh and would no doubt make him smile every time he looked at it.
Gibbs sighed. Amusement wasn't quite the emotion he wanted so something silly was out of the question. His eyes drifted over to the picture Gabe had sent. The scene was calming and suited Tony as much as ?Agent K' had.
The post cards of the ship wrecks suddenly caught his attention. And just that quickly, Gibbs realized he had a great gift idea. It was perfect. He only barely managed to suppress the urge to pump his fist in the air and shout ?yes' in victory.
All he had to do was make a quick phone call, preferably where no one would hear him do it. Assuming what he wanted was available, he could pick it up after work. Gibbs locked his computer, grabbed his coffee, and stood up.
"We have a case?" Ziva asked, attention no doubt drawn to Gibbs by his abrupt movements.
"No," he replied shortly. He gave Tony a little wink on his way past the younger man's desk; he didn't want Tony to worry. Tony lightly touched the side of his nose in return.
As much as he resented not being able to communicate openly, Gibbs actually enjoyed all their secret little signals. It was fun to know they could speak without saying a word. He hadn't experienced that even with Shannon.
Gibbs headed for the closest secluded spot he could find. If what he wanted couldn't be had, he'd have to keep looking. Gibbs sent a quick thank you heavenward for the inspiration. He tacked on a brief request for luck locating what he wanted. Maybe Nana was right to have faith in prayer
"Worked once," he muttered to himself, laughing silently at what his grandmother would have to say about his grudging admission. If it kept working, he might have to change his mind on the whole issue of faith.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Gibbs gets inspired
Chapter End Notes:
This story is a bit AU. Last five munites of Hiatus didn't happen.