Jenny Shephard smiled as she felt his familiar arms around her as she watched their 'kids' drop to the floor of the bullpen in exhaustion, Tony and Tim on either side of Kate and Abby, protecting them even as they slept. It had been another hard week for the team, especially for Tony. The poor boy had refused to speak about what he was feeling after the arrest and the trial of his 'father' and resorted back to drinking in the bar a few blocks from the office after work which has resulted in each member of the team being called to come and collect the drunken SFA at least once during the week. The team had finally had enough of Tony's self wallowing and had each had a talk with him during the past week about how his drinking had affected each of them.
For Abby it was not having her big brother to protect her against the guys that looked at her the wrong while out clubbing.
For Kate it was not having Tony's hugs every time they came into the office every morning, if they had separate things to work on during a case when they left at night, and hearing his whispered "I love you Katie" in her ear every night before she went to her car.
For Tim it was not being pranked by his older brother.
For Palmer it was not being called "Autopsy Gremlin" whenever they saw each other.
For Ducky it was not hearing Tony's good natured "shut up" whenever he spoke of his past.
For Jenny it was not hearing his laughter throughout the bullpen.
For Jethro it was not seeing a smile on his son's face.
Tony eventually broke down and cried in Abby and Kate's arms about how he thought everyone would hate him and treat him like a victim because of his childhood. It was clear to the team that Tony hadn't been allowed to cry as a child so they simply let him cry everything he'd ever felt out in their arms. He had finally promised his family that he'd stopped drinking so much and tell them when he was feeling depressed.
"They're much more than a team, Jen, they're family." Jethro said from behind her.
"Yeah they are." She agreed with the love of her life.
You can't choose your biological family but you can choose who your family is.
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Family is family
FanfictionTony is forced to confront his demons when a case that has him flashing back to his childhood. Will Tony let Gibbs help him face his demons and open up or will he push the only father he's ever known away?
