Re: Marty and Doug
"Like I said, I'll have to get you to consult." Chuckling, Marty finished off his beer and tucked his pinky under Jamie's curled fingers to let the baby play. He was never really sure if babies were really grabbing for fingers to play or if they just didn't notice adults sticking fingers in their hands. Still he laughed. "He's going to keep his sisters busy if he's like Ray, too. We didn't name him after docile and biddable men, did we? Ray is my best friend," he explained, though he doubted Douglas cared. "We grew up together. I was an only child, so Ray was like a brother to me. Close as I could get, at least. His life hasn't always been, shall we say, straight and narrow and I don't mean his sexuality? But, we've always had each others' backs when it counted."
Marty sighed inwardly. "No offense, but that's only normal in your world. Not the dimension you come from, either. Most people, the average Joe just working to make a living and take care of his shit isn't thinking about any of that. Then again, this family isn't really normal, either. Even if you take away the unconventional way we came together. The best undercover agent there is, a SEAL, a cheerleader, LAPD, NYPD turned Federal agent, An Air Force pilot from the upper class, a Juilliard student, a basketball star, a genius turned agent, a Marine. Anyway, I'm from L.A. What would I know about normal?" he added with a grin. "We're all either actors or crazy beach bums out here...man, I miss the beach."
Shaking his head, he looked at Douglas in silence for a moment. "No, that's not the same thing. Having your back and taking a bullet aren't the same thing at all. Sure, I would if I had to. But, it's more than that. It's things like leaving that door open for when you want to talk. It's looking after Thomas for you if, for any reason, we were all separated. It's what Thomas did for Savannah in helping her bring our son into this world and talking her out of rash actions that could have gotten both of them hurt. It's making sure the three of you had a direct line to someone who could and would help if you ran into problems on your own in Pittsburgh. It's Travis coming back here when we needed him and you having your brother's back by coming back with them. It's not giving up on you one day opening up just a little, not because I need you to talk but because someday you're going to need to talk to someone who isn't family and doesn't put that family name ahead of your well being." Marty snorted. "I'll let you in on a little known fact, but I wasn't friends with any of my colleagues at LAPD. In fact, I was pretty universally despised by the other detectives. But, working with NCIS, I learned a different truth. When you're part of a team, it's more than simple work colleagues. Those are the people who really will be there for you through everything. It's not friends and it's not family, but something that takes the best of both and throws in that willingness to take a bullet for you."