Plenary - Concert Version

Uneasy, Tony watched the crowd from backstage. It felt like all of NCIS was in the crowd tonight. Logically, Tony knew that wasn’t possible, but he couldn’t help the nauseous feeling in his stomach at the sight of all the NCIS agents in the crowd.

They were all dressed in casual clothes, so Tony knew it was really all in his head. Despite issuing most of the invitations himself, he’d not expected the plenary concert to gather this much attention from his coworkers. He knew for a fact that everyone in the MCRT had made sure to come as well as Ducky, Jimmy, and Abby.

Not that the concert was only well attended because of NCIS, it would have been a full house even without the NCIS agents mingled in amongst the rest of the crowd. Tony worried most about his coworkers, only because they’d never seen him like this before and he didn’t want their opinion of him to change drastically. Some of his regulars referred to his ability as a gift, but Tony often thought it was a curse.

As the opening act wrapped up, the air filled with anticipation. Tony could feel the almost electric sensation as the crowd hyped up, eagerly awaiting his entrance. Silence spread throughout the room so thick, you could have heard a pin drop.

Neow loudly broke the silence. The single note hung in the air, still reverberating as Tony’s fingers moved on to strum the next notes on his guitar. The chord resonated with everyone, pulling at their emotions even the ones they normally kept hidden.

Most of his coworkers would have expected Tony to play songs like Ladies Night, Ladies Man, and Lady’s Man, but they would have been wrong. Skillfully playing each note like it was torn from his very soul, Tony strummed the rhythm to Killing me softly with his song. There were no words that could do his rendition of the song justice.

Even as he played and wrung out his soul, tears slipped down his face. Breathtaking, his tears only moved those listening even more. This was someone who truly sung from the very bottom of their heart. By the time, the song ended with it’s closing crescendo there wasn’t a dry eye in the place.

His regulars were full on crying, the NCIS agents speechless. Even Gibbs had tear streaks on his face. Tony couldn’t help a bitter chuckle.

Gift, right. Bringing people to tears with a single song was a gift. More like a curse. Shaking his head, Tony brushed the tears out of his own eyes and walked off stage.