Just a bit of Tiva family fluff as a reminder to be thankful for what we have instead of crying over what we lost. (Happy July 10th.)
"Are you just going to sleep away your vacation?"
Ziva's tone was amused more than annoyed, but even in his sleepy state, he could tell that she was displeased with his desire to sleep in on a beautiful Tuesday in July. "Yes?" he asked, his voice practically asking for permission for a single-day reprieve from getting up early and facing the day.
If the sunlight streaming through the window was any indication, it was truly a gorgeous day, one not meant for someone to be cooped up in an office or an apartment or a hotel room.
Even if the Coronado Springs Resort at Walt Disney World had what was perhaps the most comfortable bed he'd ever slept in. Or perhaps that was just an illusion his brain had constructed after fifteen hours of wandering around the Magic Kingdom with his excited wife and toddler. His back had been sore, his feet felt as though they could have literally fallen off his legs, and he had been practically incapable of uttering complete sentences last night as he had dragged his feet into the elevator to their hotel room, Tali passed out in the stroller she was rapidly growing too big to use.
But at least he hadn't had to carry her. On tired legs, that might have been too much to ask.
And getting up now? Also too much to ask. They had the entire week, and Disney World wasn't going to instantly disappear the moment they left its magical clutches.
"What time is it?" he asked groggily, still resistant to turning over and facing the day. His back did feel better after sleeping, though he knew it was only a matter of time before it started to bother him again. Why had he waited so long to start a family?
"8:30," she replied, shaking her head when he immediately groaned and buried his head back in the pillow.
"The park doesn't even open until nine, Ziva, let me sleep a little longer," he whined, reaching behind him to pull the cover up over his shoulder, burrowing deeper into the cocoon he'd built for himself.
Ziva sighed audibly, but Tony didn't seem to be bothered in the least about staying in bed and wasting precious park hours on being in bed. "Yes, and we need to have breakfast before that, get dressed, you need to shower, we need to catch a shuttle into the park, and we have a fast pass experience beginning at 10:20. And you know Tali is going to resent you forever if we miss out on meeting Elsa and Anna."
One word caught Tali's attention, and she looked up from the video she had been watching on her tablet to join the conversation. "Elsa?"
"Yes, we're going to meet Elsa, if your daddy will get out of this bed and get his lazy butt in the shower," she replied, talking especially animatedly to in an attempt to use his child against him. It was a dirty tactic, she knew, but it often worked, and Tali almost always played along.
As if on cue, she jumped off the other bed and over to the bed where Tony was still playing at sleeping in, climbing up on it and jumping twice before toppling and landing right on Tony's back. "Ouagh," he grunted in mock pain, causing his little girl to erupt in a fit of giggles.
"You not sleepin', dad," she said matter-of-factly, and Tony had to agree with that statement. He was definitely not sleeping anymore. He rolled slightly and that signaled Tali to jump off his back to let him get up, and the first thing he did was catch Ziva's eye from the other bed, where she had sat down to watch as his daughter finished the task she had started.
"You are evil," he said with not a shred of malice behind it. Using Tali against him was a known tactic, but he could never find it in his heart to be mad at its use. Life was better with the two of them than without, and he bore it as the mildest of burdens of a life so full.
"Go meet Elsa!" Tali shrieked as she began jumping on the bed again, watching as her father finally got out of bed and headed toward the bathroom. Tali continued to jump on the bed, shouting, "Go meet Elsa!" in time with each of her jumps, and Ziva went to answer the knock at the door signaling that their breakfast order had arrived.
With Tali this excited about meeting Elsa, it was probably a good idea that they were having breakfast in the room, despite what was sure to be an exorbitant room service bill.
From inside the bathroom, Tony could hear Ziva struggling to calm Tali down and get her to eat breakfast, and as he turned the shower on and stepped under the stream of hot water, he couldn't help but feel a little smug about the fact that Ziva was now dealing with the aftermath of merely mentioning Elsa's name in front of their easily excitable four-year-old.
Then again, he would also be dealing with said aftermath when he was finished showering. He only hoped that Tali's princess experience would be everything she hoped for and that they could avoid any unnecessary tears.
Somehow, Ziva had managed to get Tali to sit down and eat her breakfast – a huge Mickey-shaped waffle – and had set out her dress for the day, an Elsa princess gown, without Tali noticing that it was there. "Feel better?" Ziva asked as she acknowledged his return from the bathroom, and he nodded, drying off his hair before tossing the towel back into the bathroom. The food smelled amazing, and he wasn't too proud to admit that if room service had come while he was still in bed, it would have enticed him to get out from under the covers.
Tony sat down at the table, taking the cover off of his plate and found his own Mickey-shaped waffle, along with some scrambled eggs and bacon. "I could have slept a little longer," he said between bites of his eggs, doing his best to maintain the facade he had constructed – that he would be much happier lying in bed than enjoying this delicious breakfast in the company of his two favorite people on earth, while vacationing in the happiest place on earth.
"No sleep, daddy, we go to see Elsa!" Tali protested, and Tony couldn't help but look over at his daughter and smile, heartened by her excitement at what was to come shortly. He would take so many pictures his phone would explode with the magic of it all, if only it made her happy.
"Okay, no more sleep, princess," he said, taking another bite of his food and chewing his food in an animated fashion, causing her to erupt in a fit of giggles and try to imitate his actions, before she finally put her piece of bacon down and declared she was finished with breakfast and ready to go meet Elsa.
"I could be persuaded to compromise, love," Ziva said, walking over to him and kissing the top of his head. "Perhaps we will come back this afternoon for a power nap."
The way his face lit up had him feeling like – for a moment – he really had found his way to the most joyful place on the planet. "You promise?"
"We'll see," she said, a teasing glint in her eye as Tali finally caught sight of the Elsa gown that was laid out on the bed for her.
"Eat faster, daddy, we gotta go!" She exclaimed, and Tony decided right then that there would be plenty of time for sleeping, and today was not going to be that day.
Don't mind me, I'm just over here pretending that only good things are happening in Tiva's world.