"I love this movie." Tony smiled slightly, trying to ignore the rough feeling in his throat. Ziva elbowed him in the side softly.
"Ducky said no talking." Tony scowled, but didn't say anything else. They sat and watched Top Gun, a bowl of popcorn wedged between their thighs.
Today had been… eventful. Not only had Ziva saved Tony's life, but Tony had realized that he had missed the old Ziva more than he and Ziva herself believed, and also that he missed Ziva altogether. He hadn't spent very much time with her since Somalia.
Things weren't the same anymore, that was a fact. In a way, they both had a stronger (unspoken) love for each other and neither was sure if the feelings were just family love or not. Tony had traveled all the way to East Africa to save Ziva's life and they both knew how much faith, love, care, and stupidity that took from Tony. Ziva wasn't sure if that feeling could be classified as strictly platonic. I mean, you don't risk excruciating torture and your life for someone you just think of as a friend or sister, right? Maybe she wanted Tony to love her and really love her.
On the other hand, they couldn't be farther from each other. This was the first movie night they had had in almost a year. They used to do this every Friday of every week of every year for the past 5 and a half years. But, since Somalia, they had just... Stopped. And, honestly, both of them had missed the closeness of the situation and the silent comfort it brought to them. Neither of them had even planned on this to happen this Friday, but it did.
Somehow, throughout the course of the movie, Ziva had ended up in Tony's lap. It wasn't an awkward position. It actually felt fairly normal, considering they had never done anything of the sort, counting out the countless undercover shenanigans, their many heroic, life saving acts, and their joking, sexual innuendos (which really counted for nothing since they came from faked and hidden feelings).
Ziva could, but didn't want, to hide the fact that she loved Tony. She just didn't want to get hurt, not that she thought Tony would hurt her, because she didn't. She knew that, despite Tony's rough uncaring exterior, he was soft and extremely caring (as shown with Jeanne). She just knew that everyone she got close to always left her life in one way or another, and Ziva couldn't bare anything happening to Tony.
"Ziva," Ziva poked Tony.
"No talking." Tony nodded and closed his mouth. He was losing his nerve to say what he really wanted to anyways.
Tony and Ziva sat there for the rest of the movie in a comfortable silence and when the movie returned to the menu screen, neither of them had the energy or willpower to get up and turn the TV and DVD player off.
By twelve, the TV had automatically shut off by itself after the hours of inactivity. Still, Tony and Ziva didn't move. They sat in the pitch black until they were both about to fall asleep. Only then did anyone speak or move.
Tony adjusted Ziva on his lap, away from the spot on his leg that was beginning to go numb. "Ziva," He said again.
Ziva sighed, but answered him. "Yes, Tony?"
Tony took a deep breath. He wasn't going to back out again. He was going to say it. "I love you."
Tony practically blurted it out, causing Ziva to chuckle quietly. She sighed and smiled, a sense of relief and happiness falling on her shoulders as she mumbled into Tony's chest. "I love you too, Tony."