"Hey Ry, It's Tony, Gibbs approved my vacation time so I'll be in Miami on Thursday. It's a late flight so if you can't get me I understand. I know I am gonna meet with my Frat brothers but I really want to spend some time with you. You've sounded... I dunno... off or something ever since you started this new job in the labs. Anyway Gibbs is giving the evil eye I gotta go. Give me a call and leave a message so I know if you can come and get me..."
Ryan listened to his message with half an ear. He would have to call his cousin back and tell him that barring a case he would come and pick him up at the airport. It would be fun to have his cousin come for a visit. They had no seen one another since Ryan had left patrol. Ryan had been unable to attend the yearly Columbus Weekend in NY because he had only started in the lab a few weeks prior to the holiday.
He had initially planned to attend and try and distract himself with all that the city had to offer plus the company of close friends and family. Within the first few days in his new position he realized that would be a bad idea. That asking for a few days off would be met with scorn and ridicule.
At the time he thought that at least he would be able to try and get a couple of days off for some of the holidays be it Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Years thinking that he could take the long drive up to Orlando and spend some time with Tony�s family at least see his nieces if nothing else. Unfortunately for some reason he wasn�t able to get any time at all off for any of the holidays.
Ryan had at least hoped to be able to take a few days in the beginning of January off. No one else should need those days and since Tony's family celebrated Eid he had would have settled for going to that holiday. It wouldn't have been turkey with all the fixins, more likely than not some unusual Moroccan dish, but at least it would be somewhere that he knew he was liked, loved even.
When he asked for the days off, the reaction he got, he was still bewildered by it. A quick no, a decisive no from Horatio, no reasons given. Even when Ryan tried to explain to Horatio that Ryan would be losing accrued days, Horatio had just looked at Ryan would not let him finish his sentence and told him to go to autopsy to get a report from Alexx.
He heard about it later from Delko of all people. Heard him telling Calleigh that the new guy thought he could just go and ask for time off not even in the lab for 6 months. You overheard it and knew that normally Delko would be correct except in the case of someone who was already part of the PD BEFORE they joined the lab, that time carried over in terms of days accrued off, time spent on the job for purposes of seniority and granting vacation time and preferences.
Ryan knew that he could have pushed the issue with the union and he would have most likely been successful. No one else had requested the time he wanted to take off. He had time that he was going to lose on the books. In the end he realized it wasn't worth it. He was already shunned by his coworkers, if he pushed this issue he knew that he would make no friends. Plus he didnt want anyone investigating too closely exactly which days he was taking off. He had learned Ezra's lesson well, better to bury any connection to an Islamic family even a tenous one.
Mary however, was well and truly upset. He had had to do some very fast talking to prevent her from making a trip down I-95 to visit him. Both Joe and Sam had stopped in for very quick visits in the past month. Just meeting him for coffee before they had to catch a commuter flight back to central Florida when they were in the area on business, but he knew that Mary had sicced her minions on him. Considering how long ago the last visit was it would not surprise him in the least if Tony's seemingly last minute trip to Miami wasn't somehow orchestrated by his cousin's adopted mother.
Ryan continued listening to his messages, the rest were solicitations with one from his Uncle Ron checking in on him. He deleted all but Tony's message and put the mail he had been sorting through in a neat pile next to the phone. He was tired, it had been a long day with a child killer nearly going free because they left nearly no evidence behind. Days like this he almost hated his job. Seeing how a parent a mother could kill her baby only 5 months old.
Ryan looked at the kitchen the sofa and the bedroom door trying to decide if he wanted to eat something, sit down before he passed out. Or just skip all of that and head directly to bed.
Ryan finally decided to skip everything he didn't need to eat and just walked to his bedroom stripping down to his boxers and climbing into bed after neatly placing his clothes in the hamper.
His last conscious thought before sleep overtook him being 'I wonder if Tony is bringing Gibbs with him.'
Story Notes:
I just went back to look at Bikini Wax and the trip Tony took was to Panama City. In my story he really goes to Miami.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Set In my Terrorist trap Universe but future to where the story is now. What does Tony do on his Miami vacation OTHER than drink?