NCIS: Origins Season 2: The Fun Elton John Reference That's More Important Than You Think

Contains spoilers for "NCIS: Origins" Season 2, Episode 4 — "No Man Left Behind"

Mary Jo (Tyla Abercrumbie) is having a terrible time in "No Man Left Behind." She's been made an object of ridicule by the anonymous secretary known only as FBI Wanda, who has sent around an email blast blaming Mary Jo for leaking private information on Mike Franks (Kyle Schmid). With everyone now believing that Mary Jo is incompetent, comfort comes from a surprising place — Cliff Wheeler (Patrick Fischler).

Cliff tells Mary Jo a story about his past, describing a negative relationship he had in his youth. While he explains that the relationship was doomed, he says that they would scream at each other to Elton John's "Daniel," because the eight track tape in the car's stereo had gotten stuck. Wheeler concludes, "You are the furthest thing from a hack. And there are some things that not even a perfect song can fix. No use getting worked up over things that you can't control."

Later on — her reputation on the mend and her outlook rosier — Mary Jo starts to sing "Daniel" aloud. Noah Oakley (DaJuan Johnson) overhears her and remarks that the song reminds him of a bad date. He then repeats Wheeler's story down to the letter, looking sad about how it turned out but evincing an admiration for Elton John. Mary Jo is now the only member of the team who knows for sure that Oakley and Wheeler were once together, but one Season 1 scene strongly hinted that there was more between them all along.

Noah Oakley and Cliff Wheeler's long-ago romance was subtly hinted at during the "NCIS: Origins" Season 1 episode "Darlin', Don't Refrain." The 17th episode of the debut season had Wheeler open up to his son about an affair that rocked his marriage. Wheeler admits to his son that the person he had an affair with was not a woman. Later, while speaking to Oakley about the state of his marriage, he confesses that his wife is holding back on divorcing him due to a lack of money. Oakley takes his hand before they are interrupted.

When you add up what we know about them now and what we were told back in Season 1, it's clear that there are unresolved feelings between Oakley and Wheeler. It's unlikely that he's the man Wheeler had an affair with, judging from the car story, but it's evident that they still find comfort in one another in spite of the bad memories. Fans will have to hold tight while this fascinating plotline plays out. There have been some memorable pairings in the "NCIS" universe (Tony and Ziva's relationship timeline is a real rollercoaster), and we can't wait to see what the writers of "NCIS: Origins" have in store here.