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After working at NCIS for fifteen years, Tony walked away. He didn’t run. He didn’t carry on. He left on his own terms, sauntering away in the quietness of the night, and didn't look back.
Some might say it was cowardly. But things had changed. Tim was no longer a probie. Ellie was doing fine and coming into her own. And Gibbs… Well, after all the years that it had felt like he and Gibbs were perfectly in sync, suddenly, they weren’t anymore.
Tony hadn’t wanted any sappy goodbyes. Gibbs about pushed him out the door, saying he was wasting his time playing second fiddle. Gibbs thought it was time Tony led his own team, and had spoken to Vance about it plenty of times.
He was surprised when Vance said that Tony had been offered his own team to lead more than once and always turned it down.
“Why would he do that?” Gibbs asked.
“Maybe the baby bird needs a push?”
“He’s not a baby bird. He’s the best agent I’ve ever worked with.”
But somehow, it seemed to anger Gibbs that Tony was happy staying with the MCRT all these years. So, he pushed. And Tony didn’t like being pushed.
If they were fine without him, then Tony would leave. He made an appointment to see Vance to hand over his letter of resignation. But it had conditions. He had vacation time coming up, and he wanted to take all those days. He’d work his job, then go on vacation, and he wouldn’t come back.
“Why would you want me to come back if I’m leaving anyway? I’d be stuck on cold cases, or filing, or some other useless task. And I don’t want anyone to know I’m not coming back until I’m gone. I don’t want any party or whiny, sobby crap. I just want to walk away into the proverbial mists of time and disappear.”
“What should I tell them?” Vance asked.
“I don’t really care. Tell them I found another job. Bartender in Aruba.”
And that was that. Tony packed up his apartment and put his things into storage. Then asked his father to rent the place to cover the mortgage, plus a little extra. He had no idea Senior would rent it to Tim, but as long as McGee paid the rent on time, Tony really didn't care. At least he knew Probie would keep the place in good shape.
~~~***~~~
What no one at NCIS knew was that Tony had been offered a job with the FBI’s BUA team. He’d been friends with Derek Morgan since their rookie days in Peoria. They’d kept in touch, and Derek thought Tony would be a great fit for their BAU team.
As a side hustle, Morgan rehabbed houses. Sometimes he lived in them, sometimes he didn’t. So, they worked it out that Morgan would buy the houses and Tony would help him rehab them. And Tony could stay in any of the houses for free until it was sold. That suited Tony fine. Sometimes he lived with Morgan, sometimes he lived on his own. But no matter, there was no mortgage or lease under Tony’s name. He asked Morgan to buy a second phone under his name for Tony to use. He’d told his father to tell the NCIS team that Tony's car had been placed into storage along with all of his things. As best he could, he wanted to leave no trace.
Tony spoke to the higher-ups at the FBI, and since members of the BAU had been targeted in the past, their personnel records were kept under tight security. Not even Fornell would know Tony was working for them. And if he ever found out, Tony was prepared to explain how blabbing that information to Gibbs or anyone else over at NCIS would be a breach of security.
Tony enjoyed the job and the travel. They often spent as much time traveling as in DC. He remained close with Derek, but also developed an intimate relationship with their team leader, Aaron Hotchner.
A few years passed, and he moved in with Hotch, developing a solid relationship. The only one who knew was Morgan. Even when Tony moved into Hotchner’s home, he told people he was tired of moving around every time Morgan sold the house Tony was using, and Aaron had offered him a steady place to stay. The excuse was accepted. Tony and Aaron kept their private moments and displays of affection to themselves and locked behind closed doors.
Yes, his life was good. No one at NCIS had any clue. Even Tim, who was renting his apartment. And Tony liked it that way. He’d moved on.
~~~***~~~
Tony and Aaron did go out to events and to restaurants. They knew that eventually, someone connected to NCIS was likely to spot them. But they pushed that aside, saying they’d deal with it when the time came.
One thing they both enjoyed was going out shopping on Christmas Eve. There was something special about the hustle and bustle, the last-minute shopping, the full, noisy restaurants, all the lights, decorations, and holiday music that they both enjoyed.
They’d bundled up and gone ice skating, then shopping, and chose one of their favorite restaurants for lunch. Jack was spending the day with his aunt. As far as she knew, Hotch and Tony were busy buying gifts for Jack. To avoid lying, they did buy a couple of new books for him, but in truth, most of his gifts were already purchased, wrapped, and tucked beneath the tree.
The truth was, they wanted Christmas Eve to themselves, both day and night.
That evening, they hadn’t been home all that long when there was a knock on the door. Tony was in the front room looking for a movie to watch, and Hotch was in the kitchen pouring a couple of glasses of wine and putting together a snack tray.
Tony glanced at the door, then called out, “Are we expecting anyone?”
“Not that I know of,” Hotch called back.
Picking up his weapon, Tony tucked it into the back of his waistband and went to see who was at the door. Peering through the peephole, it appeared to be an older Tim McGee with a beard. Tony shook his head, but opened the door.
“Proooobie, finally realize you miss me?”
“I saw you on the street and followed you here. When did you get back to DC?”
“I never left,” Tony admitted.
“What? But you –”
“I left NCIS, not DC. Senior told me you’re renting my old apartment. Thanks for paying on time. Anything else? Merry Christmas, Tiny Tim,” said Tony as he began to close the door.
“No!” shouted Tim as he pushed his way inside the door. “You’ve been here the whole time, but didn’t tell anyone?”
Tony shrugged. “Vance knew. But I did ask him not to tell anyone.”
“Why? We were a family. Why would you walk away –”
“It was clear I wasn’t appreciated anymore. It was time for me to go.”
“How can you walk away and not tell anyone? We were a team. We shared everything. I don’t understand why you just left without even saying goodbye.”
Tony turned, hearing Hotch bringing in the wine and snacks. Then he faced Tim and smiled. “Allow me to explain this to you in terms you can understand. Okay, Gibbs is Kirk—”
Tim's brows furrowed. “What? No, way. Gibbs doesn’t even know who Captain Kirk is. If we’re doing Star Trek, I’m Kirk—”
Tony chuckled merrily. “You are most definitely not Kirk. Gibbs is Kirk, you’re Science Officer Spock. Ducky is McCoy, Jimmy is Nurse Chapel, Abby is Uhura, and Ellie is Checkov; she’s the youngest on the bridge.”
“And who are you in this scenario? Scotty?”
“No, I’m Riker.”
Tim huffed and shook his head. “Riker is on TNG, not the original.”
Placing his hands on Tim’s shoulders, Tony nodded to Aaron and said, “Now, you’re getting it. I’m Riker, Hotch is Picard.” Pointing back and forth between himself and Tim, Tony added, “We’re no longer on the same show.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re part of NCIS, the original. I’m on the new show. I work with the FBI’s BAU team. You’ve got your team, and I have mine. Look, Tim. We’re all busy and live crazy lives. Why complicate things?”
“But we used to be friends. We used to hang out.”
“It’s not like we can talk cases anymore. So, enjoy the apartment, tell everyone I said hi, and you…” pausing, Tony patted Tim’s chest, “You have yourself a nice evening and a very Merry Christmas.”
“Tony, we never stopped thinking of you as family. If you’re in DC, it’s crazy that we don’t ever hang out. Why don’t we get together for dinner sometime?”
Tony glanced back at Aaron again. “I’m in a relationship. Wherever I go, he goes,” he nodded to Hotch on the sofa.
“That’s uh… perfectly fine. Let’s have dinner together sometime, Delilah and me, and you two, we can do Dutch couples, so there’s no fighting over the bill. I still want to be friends.”
Tony’s eyes met Hotch’s. They didn’t need words to communicate. It was okay. Turning back to Tim, Tony smiled and said, “Sure, we’d love to. I’ll text you my new number.”
Stepping forward, Tim wrapped his arms around Tony and embraced him tightly. “We all really do miss you. We still think of you as family.” Pushing back, he smiled. “Merry Christmas, Tony.”
~The End~
12/29/2025
© 2025 by Jacie