Missing scene – Legend

"Hey, McGee." The quiet call from Macy had gone nearly unheard, with all the commotion from the room as the Los Angeles OCP team sent their good-byes, but her voice held enough authority that it wasn't to be ignored.

"Yes, ma'am?" Tim replied, turning to where she stood at a closed door.

"You ever get tired of the cold, there's always a spot for you here."

"Really?" The comment had taken him off guard.

"You bet. I can always use a tech-savvy agent who catches on quick. And I promise, next time, you won't be stuck here in the dark for the entire mission."

"Thanks for the offer," Tim said, his mind racing. "But I'm good where I am."

"Good. But keep us in mind, okay?"

Before he could reply, Gibbs was behind him, wondering what was taking his junior agent so long to join him.

"You comin', McGee?" It was a question that had more meaning that the boss realized, having not heard Macy's offer.

"Yeah, I'm coming." And as he turned to follow Gibbs, he exchanged a nod with the 'other' boss. Message received.

As Tim McGee sat in the coach section of the airplane, trying to get comfortable, he couldn't get the offer out of his head. Should he even consider it? He loved where he was, loved the people with whom he worked. Even DiNozzo had come to mean more to him than a mere co-worker over the years. But was he better suited to working in L.A.?

He had to get his mind off it, he realized. Opening the issue of Snipers Monthly that Callen had given him, he wondered how rattled he had to be to actually read this stuff. Gibbs was asleep beside him, they had barely taken off, and it was not like he was much of a conversationalist at the best of times. If he had heard what Macy had said, would he say anything? Would he even care?

He could easily admit that he had his doubts about his place on the team. Sometimes, he felt like the odd man out. And not just because of the teasing he endured. Some might even call it bullying, but he didn't buy into that. But still, he was always the one left behind. And while he loved what he did, the in-office stuff as much as the field work, it didn't exactly make for cohesion with his teammates, and everybody knew it. The look on Tony and Ziva's faces alone when Gibbs had announced that it was Tim who was going to L.A. had been enough to prove it. Tim wasn't usually the one who went anywhere. Usually, he wasn't needed. Maybe he was needed on the other coast.

"Penny for 'em," a quiet voice came from beside him. He looked over at Gibbs, but the man's eyes were closed, his face relaxed. Had he even spoken?

"Boss?" Tim whispered, not wanting to wake him if his ears had been playing tricks on him.

"The gears in your head have been spinning so fast since we got on this plane, I can almost hear 'em," Gibbs responded, still not opening his eyes. "It usually only gets this loud when you're working on a case."

"A lot of things on my mind, Boss," Tim answered, trying to be intentionally vague – never one of his strong suits.

"Is one of those 'things' going to possibly take you from the team, Tim?" It was a rare occasion when Gibbs called him by his first name, speaking volumes. The Boss opened his eyes, steel blue meeting Tim's own green.

Tim found he couldn't lie to those eyes, even if he wanted to. "So you heard." It wasn't a question.

"Yeah, I heard. Are you considering it?"

"Thinking about it, yes, but I haven't gotten as far as considering it."

"That's a fine line."

"I know. But did you see the equipment they have?"

"You're gonna take it because of the toys?"

Tim chuckled at the misunderstanding. Would this man ever truly understand him? "No, it's not the toys. But that whole room was filled with people like me. People who understand what I do," he took a deep breath before plunging in with both feet, "and respect it."

"You don't think that we respect you?" Gibbs huffed.

"Maybe respect wasn't the right word. But it's just different. You and Tony, and even Ziva, are investigators. I'm just the guy that gets all the technology to back them up. To back you up."

Gibbs reaction was immediate, but unexpected. He pushed himself to sit up straighter, and his face suddenly showed a frown. "Is that what you really think? That you're not as important to the team as any of the rest of us?"

"I'm not, it's just the way it is. You don't depend on the technology like they do in L.A."

"You're wrong." Gibbs said it so bluntly, that it took McGee completely off guard.

"What?"

"You got it wrong, Tim. Just because we have other means of investigation doesn't mean that we don't need and rely on what you can do. That's why you're sometimes back at the office while Tony or Ziva and I are in the field. Because while you can do what they do in the field, nobody can do what you do with a computer. And I, we, value that. And if that hasn't been clear to you over the years, then I've done you a disservice."

McGee was stunned. It was the most words he thought he'd ever heard Gibbs string together. The functional mute wasn't as mute as they thought.

As if reading his mind, Gibbs smiled a bit. "Don't look so stunned – I can talk when I need to, McGee."

"Boss, I didn't…"

"I know. And you have to do what's best for you, but believe me when I say that, if you left, you'd be missed. And nobody would be able to replace you or do your job as well as you do. I know that."

"Thanks, Boss. I'll keep that in mind."

Gibbs seemed to relax, feeling that, for now, his team was safe. "Besides," he said, closing his eyes again and leaning back in his seat. "If you left, Abby would never forgive me."

"Like she would care," McGee said self-deprecatingly.

"Don't sell yourself short, Tim, and don't give up on her. I wouldn't be surprised if you returned to a full-fledged Abby welcome."

"Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it." And he did.