Work Text:
URGENT
Tony DiNozzo yawned heavily as he flipped through the channels. How was it possible that daytime TV sucked this bad? Talk shows, game shows, news, crime dramas, ugh! He just wasn't in the mood for any of it. He was sick of watching old reruns of sitcoms, when they played any good ones and there was no way he was going to sit and watch the endless number of crime dramas all day. He got enough of that at work and the TV shows were so unrealistic, it annoyed him more than entertained him.
He shut off the TV and set the remote down. Thank God Gibbs had a ton of books. He was bound to find something that would at least be educational, if not entertaining.
He just wished he didn't feel so tired. He was recuperating well from the pneumonic plague, he was still tired and his ribs were sore from having coughed so much. At least his lungs weren't burning and when he coughed up mucus now, it was cloudy instead of infected, and that horrible taste from the mucus was gone. His appetite improved a little more every day though he still couldn't eat as much as he had before.
Speaking of appetite, Tony looked at the clock on the wall. Gibbs would be arriving with lunch soon.
He smiled as he thought about Gibbs. When Tony convinced the doctors to let him leave the hospital, Gibbs had graciously (for him) offered to let Tony stay with him while he recovered. Tony had been prepared to go back to his apartment, but as Gibbs pointed out, he was still too ill to do anything. Gibbs, Abby and Ducky had taken care of him round the clock for several days until Tony could be by himself for a few hours at a time. If Gibbs couldn't bring him lunch, Ducky or Abby did, but it was usually Gibbs.
Tony forced himself to get up and took his medication, hit the head and then returned to the couch. He'd just rest his eyes a bit until Gibbs showed up with lunch.
~*~
A gentle hand on his shoulder startled him awake. He jumped and blinked blearily, surprised to see Kate Todd standing there, a plastic bag in her hand and a soft smile on her face. Tony stared at her a moment, bewildered. He wasn't used to seeing her smile like that and never at him. He rubbed at his eyes.
"Hey Kate, what are you doing here?" he asked, his voice a little hoarse from sleep. He coughed a little.
"Afternoon, Sleepyhead," she said. "Thought you might be hungry."
Tony's stomach answered for him by growling loudly and they both grinned. Kate walked over to the table and set the bag down. "Gibbs said to bring you Chinese so here it is."
"Thanks."
"What cupboard has the plates?" she asked.
Tony pointed to the right one and Kate found the silverware by herself and Tony walked to the refrigerator and poured water into glasses.
Kate sat down and distributed the food.
"Whoa, not so much," he said as Kate poured a heap on his plate. "Can't eat that much right now."
Kate nodded and poured some of it back into the container. "Better?"
Tony nodded. "So, you brought me lunch today."
Kate nodded and took a bite, chewed and swallowed before she spoke. "Gibbs got called into a meeting with the Director, was told it would last a while. Abby is processing evidence for Randolph's team and Ducky is doing an autopsy. None of them could get away." Kate seemed engrossed in stirring the food on her plate.
Tony's eyes narrowed at this. "Sucks for you."
Kate's head snapped up in surprise. "What do you mean?"
Tony shrugged. "You had to bring me lunch. I'm sure that's exactly what you wanted to do today."
Kate looked taken aback. "Tony, we eat lunch together all the time."
"Usually with Ducky or Abby or both, not alone."
Kate shrugged. "It's okay. I wanted… to see you anyway."
"Really? Why?"
Kate looked uncomfortable and set her fork down. "It… uh… it's not the same without you at work."
Tony looked at her, puzzled. "That's a bad thing?"
"Well, it's…I-We miss you at work. Gibbs…has been difficult. Tim is almost always on the verge of needing to change his pants." She grinned at him.
Tony smiled a little, but his heart wasn't in it. Something was off here. Kate missed him? He caught the "I" she started to say but she was downplaying it. He knew they didn't usually do sentimental but right now, the way he felt, he wouldn't mind it. He'd nearly died. Knowing his team cared wouldn't go amiss.
Tony picked at his food, ate a few bites. "That the only reason you want me back at work? Because Gibbs is difficult?"
"That a trick question?" Kate asked with a grin.
Tony huffed and stabbed his fork into his rice. He stood up. "I'm not as hungry as I thought I was."
"Huh? What? Tony! What are you doing?"
Tony went over to the couch and sank back down and closed his eyes. "Nothing. Finish eating and go back to work, Kate. Thanks for lunch."
Tony felt her upset like a shock wave. "Are you actually upset?"
Tony rolled his eyes. "No, Kate. I don't get upset, remember?"
"You are. What'd I say?"
"Nothing."
Kate stared for a moment. "Tony!" She dragged his name out, her voice a warning.
"Go back to work."
"Dammit, DiNozzo! What is your problem?"
"Why did you come here? And don't give me any crap about Gibbs being in MTAC. We both know that's a lie."
Silence dropped like a rock over both of them. Their eyes never left the other as Tony waited and Kate just stared.
Finally, Kate sighed in resignation. "I told you I wanted to see you."
"Why?"
Kate shifted uncomfortably. "I… well, I do miss you."
"And I thought you'd enjoy the peace and quiet without me."
"Sometimes when you're there, yes, I would like you to just be quiet so I can focus on work. Other times…I enjoy matching wits with you. And… you make working with Gibbs easier."
"Wow, did you just admit I'm not completely useless?"
Kate's scowl turned lethal. "What's with you? I brought you lunch and to keep you company, and you're acting like a jerk."
"Right, and you never have."
Kate turned on her heel and walked back to the table and grabbed the container her food came in and started scraping the contents of her plate in it. "I'm going back to work. I'd rather eat alone than…"
Tony's big hand covered hers and stilled her movements. She jumped, not having heard him get back up and walk over. "You stayed with me even though you shouldn't have. You could've got infected. Why?"
Kate looked up at him then, her anger suddenly dissipating as Tony confronted her. She didn't speak, just stared.
"Why?" Tony repeated quietly after a moment.
Kate inhaled sharply and then swallowed. "I… I couldn't leave you to face that on your own. I stayed as long as they would let me so you would know."
"Know what?"
"That I really cared."
"Why?" Tony asked quietly, letting go of her hand.
"What?"
"Since you started at NCIS, you've gone out of your way to make me think you couldn't stand me and then you do a complete 180, stayed with me when I nearly died. Why did you do that? Why did you stay with me when you don't even like me?"
Kate's jaw slacked open.
"I need to know."
Kate hesitated a moment, then her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "When I thought you were going to die…" she trailed off and a tear streamed down her face, "I couldn't imagine a worse day." Another tear escaped. "I was really scared. You were so close. Too close. It… I… I had to face things I never wanted to think about."
"Yeah, me too."
Kate wiped a tear from her face. "What do you mean?"
"When I thought I was going to die, I realized I never told you how I really felt about you."
Tears forgotten, Kate's eyes grew wide. "How…do you feel about me?"
Tony smiled a little sadly. "At first, I was too sick to focus on anything except my next breath. Once I was starting to feel better, I could think again. I realized you stayed with me, even when you could’ve got sick, too. I was upset that you risked your life like that. You could've died! It made me realize how much I cared about you. Not… in a romantic way," Tony said and paused to breathe, “It wasn’t like that, but still a bond. I don’t know how to explain it.”
Kate smiled a little. “Like a sibling, maybe?”
“I don’t know. I don’t have any. I just know I don’t want anything bad to happen to you. You could’ve died.”
"You almost did."
"Exactly!"
"I won't apologize for staying with you. You needed me whether you want to admit it or not."
"I know and I love you for it but don’t do anything stupid like that ever again! You can’t die, Kate. You just… can’t."
Kate smiled sweetly. It was Tony’s favorite of her smiles. "I can’t promise that."
"Not asking you to promise. I’m just warning you. If you ever do that again, I’ll take you to the gym and…" Tony suddenly gasped and coughed and gasped again and sat up straight, his eyes watered and he coughed again hard. "N--neb!" He managed to gasp.
Kate ran to the bathroom to get the nebulizer and the medicine and returned quickly to set it up, thankful that Gibbs had told her exactly where it was should he need it while she was there. It dawned on her then that it was a good thing she knew how to use a nebulizer since her brother had needed one when he was young.
She stayed close but out of the way as Tony did the treatment, coughing again as he finished.
She sat down close to him and rubbed his back soothingly. "You okay?"
He wiped his eyes and he sank back against the couch, weary from the effort. Finally, he nodded.
"Tried… to talk too much at once."
"See, I told you your mouth would get you in trouble one day," she teased lightly.
"Yeah, no kidding."
It took Tony a little while to normalize his breathing. "I wouldn't wish this on anyone," he said quietly. "I'm so glad you didn't get sick, too."
"Me too," she said. "I wish you hadn't." After a moment she took a deep breath and looked at him. "Before I met you, the last thing I wanted was another brother. At first, you're right. I couldn't stand you. I thought you were just another chauvinist in the boys’ club… but, well, you are, but you always have my six and…"
"And a lovely six it is," Tony butted in, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, but his grin was teasing.
She half-heartedly smacked his arm. "Tony!"
He laughed, careful to keep it quiet so he wouldn't have another coughing fit.
"And I didn't realize how much I cared until I thought you were going to die. I've never prayed so hard in my entire life."
Tony was so surprised he couldn't even respond.
"Gibbs isn't really in MTAC today. Uh, Abby and Ducky are working on a case though. I just… I needed to see you, wanted to tell you… I just… I needed you to know. I don't know why it was so important, but that's why I'm here."
Tony smiled a little sadly. "I never had a sister," he said quietly. "But if I had, I hoped she'd be like you."
Kate smiled brightly at this and another tear escaped down her face. Tentatively, she hugged him and once he brought his arms around her, she squeezed him a little tighter. "I'm so glad you're alive."
"Me too. Uh… thanks for… you know, staying with me."
"I'd do it again, too."
"No way! If I order you to move away, you do it."
Kate smiled a slightly watery smile. "If you need me, I’ll be there," she said quietly. “No matter what.”
They released each other. "Come eat, please," Kate said, holding out her hand to pull him up. "Gibbs'll kill me if he finds out you didn't eat lunch."
Tony knew she was right so he rolled his eyes and let her help him up. They resumed eating after Kate poured her food back on her plate.
"It's cold." Tony made a face.
"I'll heat it back up." Kate took his plate. "Any plastic wrap around here?"
Tony pointed to the drawer and watched her as she re-heated their plates in the microwave. They ate in silence for a little while and when Tony had enough, he scraped his back in the container. "Thanks."
"You sure you had enough?"
"Yeah."
"I probably should get back to work. You need anything before I do?"
"Just tell everyone I said hi."
"I can do that."
Kate gathered her purse and put her container of food back in the bag she brought it in, intending to take it home to re-heat for dinner. "Oh… just… one more thing," she said, a smirk teasing her lips.
"What?"
"I'll be really glad for you to get back to work."
"Awww, thanks Katie."
"Yeah, you never told me how much paperwork you had to do. You can have it back."
Tony laughed then but got it under control before it became a coughing fit. "I knew that was the only reason you wanted me back to work."
"I don't even know what to do with all those forms and Gibbs is no help."
"You know I'm off another week, right?"
Kate groaned.
"Ask Balboa’s SFA, he'll walk you through them. He taught me."
"Yeah? Okay, thanks." She sighed. "I hope this week goes fast." She paused a moment before being serious again. "I never realized how fast the weeks go because of you."
"Remember that next time you tell me you wish I'd just shut up."
"I'll never forget… but you could just voluntarily be quiet now and then when you see I'm getting fed up."
"What fun would that be?"
"Okay, if you want to go to the gym so I can drop kick you, that can be arranged."
"Pfft, you hit like a girl."
Kate's eyes grew wide and her face looked caught between wanting to get mad and wanting to laugh. "In case you haven't noticed, I am a girl!"
"Oh, I noticed," he said and stuck out his tongue to let her know he was teasing.
Kate rolled her eyes. "I thought you didn’t think of me romantically." Kate said.
“I don’t, but you’re still a woman and you’re still beautiful. I’m not blind.” Tony took another deep breath. “You’re my partner and I… I really appreciate you,” Tony said softly. “I never expected you to stay.”
Kate walked over to him, leaned down and kissed the top of his head. “I know, and I’m not sorry. Even if I had got sick, I wouldn’t have been sorry. She straightened and looked at her watch. "You sure you don't need anything else before I go?"
"Nah, gonna take it easy."
Kate nodded. "I guess… I'll see you next Monday then."
"Can't wait."
Kate smiled a little then. She looked at him a moment, her eyes full of unexpressed emotion but her shoulders seemed more relaxed than they had been. Tony met her gaze and let his affection for her show in his eyes, something they had never done before, but now… it seemed right to do so.
Kate gave him a little smile and a nod and she left, closing the door softly behind her. Tony returned to the couch and closed his eyes, exhausted by the emotional exchange, one he never expected to have with Caitlin Todd. Somehow, he felt better for having had it. It was nice to know she truly cared, even if she didn't always show it… not that he was any better.
It was less than two weeks later that she was killed in front of him. As he scrubbed his face until it was red and raw to wash away the blood and gore from his face, he remembered the conversation, remembered seeing her look of affection right before she left, and tears escaped his eyes, remembered what she said about it being important that they talk. He escaped the bullpen and drove himself home. When he got there, he found the picture he had taken of her about a month before when she wasn’t paying attention. She’d stood with her back to the sun and it had created a halo around her head, giving her an ethereal appearance and she was smiling as if something had just made her laugh. He smiled back even as a tear escaped his eye. He couldn’t help but feel grateful that they had talked. He couldn’t imagine how he would’ve felt if she’d died without them having cleared the air. In seconds, he was sobbing, unable to hold back his grief any longer.
“Love you, sis,” Tony whispered as he wiped his eyes and stared at the picture. “I’ll never forget you.”
FINIS