The door to the hotel room opened, revealing a surprised DiNozzo Sr. "Junior!" he smiled. "What are you doing here? How did you know I was in town?"

"I know where you are, most of the time," Tony replied.

"Oh," Sr seemed slightly taken back by the revelation. "Well," he smiled, "Come in!" Tony followed his father into the room, closing the door behind him. "Would you like a drink?" he asked, pouring one for himself.

"No."

"Well then...what can I do for you?" he turned, taking a sip from the glass.

"You stop watching the news, Dad?" he asked, calmly.

"You know I'd never miss a day," he smirked.

"Then you heard about NCIS."

"I did," he replied, casually.

"You never called."

"I figured you had your hands full," he shrugged.

"How did you figure I even made it out of the building?" his anger started to build up.

"Well clearly you did!" he smiled.

"You didn't know that, then, though! Did you even care?"

"Of course I care, Junior. I'm your father."

"Right. My father," Tony scoffed. "You said you were gonna start acting more like my father. But you didn't even take a minute to pick up a phone and check to see if I was okay, let alone alive. Five months, Dad! Not one phone call!"

"I was out of the country," he defended.

"Oh, right. Paris doesn't have phones. I forgot," he mocked.

"Junior, you're overreacting."

"No, I'm not. You're under-reacting. You don't really care about me at all, do you?"

"That's nonsense," Sr shook his head and took another sip from his glass.

Tony shook his head, then. "You're unbelievable."

"Listen, son," he began, taking a seat on the foot of his bed. "The truth is, I was scared."

"Ha...right."

"I was," he told him. "When I saw the news footage of the NCIS building, I froze up. I couldn't call you. I couldn't handle trying to call, and having you not answer. I...I wasn't ready to handle it if you'd been killed."

"So you just told yourself I was fine, and carried on with your life," Tony cocked his head.

"In a manner of speaking, yes."

"You're a damn coward," Tony said in almost a whisper. "I could've been wounded and dying in a hospital, wishing my father would come say his goodbyes before I died."

"I'm sure someone would've contacted me, if that were the case."

"Someone contacted you when I had the plague, Dad! You never showed them, either! You never even returned the damn call!"

"I was afraid then, too."

"You're full of so much shit!" he laughed.

"I...I'm sorry, Junior. I didn't think you'd really care..."

"Nah, you're right," he replied, calming himself, and giving his father a slight smile. "I don't. Not anymore. I'm done." He turned toward the door.

"What does that mean?" Sr asked, standing from the bed.

"It means I'm done, Dad. I'm through expecting anything from you. I shouldn't have started to, anyway. That was my mistake." He paused with his hand on the doorknob. "What are you doing in DC, anyway?"

"I...came to see you," he told him. "That and I have an associate I've been meeting with about a deal... But I did plan to see you."

Tony laughed again, shaking his head. "Well. Guess you can check that off your to-do list." He pulled the door open and walked out. "Bye, Dad," he told him, then pulled the door shut.

*~.~*

Gibbs looked out the front window when he heard a car pull up. It'd been about an hour since Tony left. Tim had gone home not long after that. The senior agent had been hoping Tony would come back by and let him know how things went. He was relieved to see him.

Tony let himself in, as he'd become accustomed to doing. And just as Gibbs expected, the mask was up and strong as ever, from the moment he walked over the threshold. "Didn't toss my steak, did ya, Boss?" he asked as he entered the kitchen where Gibbs had gone back to.

"In the oven," Gibbs told him.

"Thanks," he replied, gratefully, and fetched the plate. "McGee take off?"

"Little after you left."

Tony sighed. "I need to apologize to him. I shouldn't have snapped." Gibbs set a beer down in front of him, then made his way to the other side of the table and sat down. "I know he was just trying to help."

"Wasn't his place to go do it, though," Gibbs said.

"Yeah."

"So...did you find him?"

"Yep," he started cutting into the steak. "He's in town for business. Surprise surprise. Tried to say he was gonna come see me, too."

"He's been here for three weeks."

"Yeah. Pretty sure he only said that because I found out he was here," he stuck a forkful of steak into his mouth.

"I'm sorry, Tony."

"It's fine," Tony shook his head. "Really." He swallowed the mouthful. "I was disappointed because I thought things were gonna be different. But it's really not that big a deal."

"It is."

"No," Tony shook his head again, narrowing his eyes at his boss. "It's not. It's not a big deal, because...well, my dad, he's just blood. He's not the only family I have. I've got you, Boss. And, aside from the fact that you're way too young for it, you've always been more of a father to me than my dad." Gibbs stopped mid-sip of his beer, looking his agent in the eyes for any sign of joke in those words. He found none. It touched him somewhere deep in his chest; somewhere he hadn't felt in a really long time. He couldn't even speak to respond. "McGee, Ziva and Abs, well they're like my brother and sisters I never had. I wouldn't trade any of you... Not for anything." He looked down at his plate again, taking another bite of his steak in the silence.

Gibbs finally found his voice. "I'm honored you feel that way, Tony," he told him. "'Cause I've always thought of you as a son." Tony looked up at him, a bit wide-eyed. "You're right, though. You're too old to be my kid," he smirked.

Tony smiled at that. "Well, maybe if you had been really horny and irresponsible twelve year old." Gibbs raised a brow at that. Tony just laughed at the response. "All kidding aside, I mean it. I've got all the family I could want. Of course, that'd make Ducky the grandpa; Palmer the...awkward cousin." Gibbs snorted. "Vance, the strict uncle that means well, but no one's ever happy when they've gotta visit him."

"Keep 'em comin'," Gibbs shook his head. "This is entertaining."

"Fornell, of course, would be the uncle no one liked in the beginning, but then realized he's actually a really good guy we can count on."

"I'll tell him you said so."

"Don't you dare!" Tony narrowed his eyes. "If he finds out I like him, it'll be weird." Gibbs laughed again, though he tried to hold it in. "Bob the front gate security guy," he continued. "I'd say he was like the family pet..." Gibbs wasn't sure whether to hug him, or headslap him. But he did know that there would never be another soul on the planet that could replace his senior field agent. Not as a coworker, friend, or...son...

~Fin~