Jethro had been acting strange the last few weeks, distracted, secretive. She was worried. It wasn't usual for him to act this way towards her, despite his reputation as a hard core bastard he was nothing but a loving and attentive boyfriend. He confided in her, shared his thoughts regularly and always expressed his love for her. All behind close doors of course, he did have a reputation to protect. But recently, well it was the exact opposite. He avoided her, shielded his emotions and held secret phone conversations, quickly shutting his phone of when she was around him. She didn't know what to think.
She knew that he had a very shady past in relationships, failed marriages, even more failed relationships. He'd always told her she was different, this was different, but he must have felt that in all of the other relationships, otherwise there wouldn't have been other relationships, let alone so many. Perhaps he'd grown bored of her, tired of this thing that they had. Maybe there was another woman. The thought made bile rise in her throat. God she hoped that wasn't the case.
Even though Jethro had loved many other women, she herself had never loved like she did for Jethro.
He completed her, accepted her for all of her mistakes and the shadows forever lurking in her past. He allowed her to just be her. She was relaxed and content in his company, her heart full and happy. She wasn't ready for that to end. Wasn't sure if she'd survive if it did. She didn't know how to approach the situation, but she knew she had to find out once and for all what was going on with her man, for her sanity's sake. Looking across the bullpen at the object of her thoughts, she made up her mind. Tonight she would get to the bottom of this.
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Jethro was sat on the couch, staring of into space, clearly thinking hard about something when she entered the living room. She sat next to him, studying his features, memorizing every detail just incase this night turned south and everything she held dear was destroyed. Her gaze snapped him out of his funk, guarded eyes fixed on her face as his arm casually tugged her more snuggly into his side. She sighed deeply as his scent surrounded her, bodies molded together, perhaps for the last time.
"Jethro". Her voice held questions, just his name was enough to alert him to the fact she was highly on edge and troubled.
"Yeah, what's up".
"What's going on",she took a deep breath, steadying herself, preparing for the worst, " with us".
"What do you mean,with us, Ziver?"
"You've been avoiding me".
He looked away from her, obviously wracking his brain for a plausible explanation to his behaviour towards her recently. He felt her stiffen beside him as his pause dragged on, the gig was clearly up.
"I haven't Zi, not intentionally anyway".
She pulled herself away from his side, not wanting to have this conversation whilst she was so intoxicated by the scent and feel of him against her.
"That's a lie Jethro, and you know it . You've been having secret conversations, coming to bed late, even now you cant even look me in the eyes!"
The hurt in her tone, the defeat, made him face her properly, this really had gone completely wrong. He hadn't thought his actions would cause this reaction. Tears were fighting hard to fall from her eyes but she wouldn't let them.
After another pregnant pause as he tried to find the right words to speak, to lay bare the true reality of what had actually been going on with him these last few weeks. She stared at him, willing him to say something, anything, and when no words came forward,she'd had enough. She loved him, but she was nobody's fool. She stood up, jaw set, angered heat flaring in her eyes.
"I love you with all my heart, but i cant do this Jethro, not anymore."
She made to leave the room, a strategy already forming in her mind of how efficiently to get her things together and leave, when his hand grabbed hold of her own.
Her words had awoken his spirit, snapped him out of the daze he'd succumbed to as she'd began her questions. He turned her, heart clenching at the tears in her eyes, she'd gotten it wrong, so wrong and of course it was his fault. He never was good with matters of the heart, especially when this feeling he had was entirely new, all encompassing love.
He'd been hoping to surprise her, a difficult feat when it was for her, she was sharp was his Ziver. He'd cloaked his intentions in a veil of secrecy, going behind her back and keeping quiet lest she caught on. That had backfired on him, big time. Gazing at her face, seeing the pay there, he knew it was ruined, it was now or never.
Zivas hand flew up to cover her mouth as she watched him bend in one knee before her, velvet box clasped between his fingers. A bashful smile on his face as he looked up at her adoringly.
"Had this all figured out, was gonna take you away to a nice place, wine and dine you, but I guess I better just do it now. "
She caught on immediately, understanding instantly how her mind had conjured up something completely opposite to what had been going on with him. These past few weeks he'd been trying to put a plan in place to propose, and she'd wrecked it by being a paranoid mess. She conveyed her apologies through her gaze, silently asking for his forgiveness for misreading the situation. His gaze told her she had nothing to be sorry for, he understood her reasons, he always did.
"Ziva David, I love am completely head over heels for you. You made me feel alive again and I never want there to come a time when your not on my six. Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"
She didn't even have to think, no doubt was in her mind. This is what she wanted, all she'd ever want.
"Yes, of course, I love you so much".