Disclaimer: Don't own it, but I do love it :)
As Long As You Love Me
A Tiva Story
TPOV
I had not let Ziva in the apartment the whole day, telling her I wanted to surprise her. I had been working on this for weeks. Having Ziva live with me, being my girlfriend (after having Gibb's permission to break rule #12), it was kind of hard. And that I spend all of my time with her didn't help, but somehow I did it, getting Jen's help for the ring and Abby to entertain Ziva as I got the apartment ready. I have no idea how Ziva didn't figure it out yet, or how Abby hasn't spilled.
Anyway, so here I am in our kitchen cooking an Italian meal. The music's in the box, the table is all set. I called Abby and made sure Ziva was dressed and ready. She asked to speak to me so I waited until I heard Abby pass the phone to her.
"Hey Sweetcheeks," I said when she answered the phone.
"Tony! What the hell is going on? First you kick me out of the apartment. I get dragged around Washington D.C. Then, Abby throws me a dress and a pair of shoes, helps me get ready… for what? I don't know and – oh my, is that a limo?" she raves while I smile, glad that Barry got there on time.
"Listen, Sweetcheeks. Just go with the flow. Barry is going to take you to the apartment. Please, don't go all ninja on him?" I asked, slightly chuckling.
She giggled and replied, "All right My Little Hairy Butt. I'll see you in a few and this Barry will be fine. I love you."
I smiled, "I love you too."
We hung up the phone and I began to serve the food, turn the lights low, light the candles, and basically check if everything was perfect. I felt my hands start to get clammy. "Dinozzos don't get nervous," I muttered, but then again Ziva had that affect on me. God, I loved her. I really hope she's blown away by this.
Fifteen minutes later I heard Barry pull up. Ziva was about to open the door when I opened it from the inside. She gasped as I held out my hand and walked her in. She looked utterly amazed.
I led her to the table where there lay the spaghetti and red wine. I pulled out her chair for her. "Wow, Tony, this is amazing," she said. "Anything for you," I replied. She grinned and we finished eating in a comfortable silence. After the dishes had been put away I asked her, "Dance with me?"
She nodded and I pressed play on the CD player that was on the small table. I pulled her close and sang softly along with the song that measured my love for Ziva perfectly.
Although
loneliness has always been a friend of mine I don't care who
you are Every little thing that you
have said and done I don't care who you are I've
tried to hide it so that no one knows I don't care
who you are Who you are
I'm leaving my life
in your hands
People say I'm crazy and that I am blind
Risking
it all in a glance
And how you got me blind is still a mystery
I
can't get you out of my head
Don't care what is written in your
history
As long as you're here with me
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you
love me
Who you are
Where you're from
Don't care what you
did
As long as you love me
Feels like it's deep within me
Doesn't
really matter if you're on the run
It seems like we're meant to
be
Where you're from
What
you did
As long as you love me
Who you are
Where you're
from
Don't care what you did
As long as you love me
But I guess it shows
When
you look into my eyes
What you did and where you are comin' from
I don't care, as long as you love me, baby.
Where you're from
What you did
As long as you
love me
Who you are
Where you're from
Don't care what you
did
As long as you love me
Where you're
from
Don't care what you did
As long as you love me
When the song finished I looked at Ziva and saw that a few tears had escaped from the beautiful brown orbs that I love. I gently wiped away the stray tears. The music had stopped and I took a shaky breath.
"Ziva. You hold my heart like no one has before. Since the moment I set eyes on you I felt something and as I got to know you my feelings grew. With Jeanne, I couldn't help but imagine you. You're my soul, my life, my everything. Will you marry me?" I asked as I kneeled down, procuring her ring from my pocket. She gasped. A few minutes passed without a word and I feared I had gone to fast.
"Zi – "I got caught off by her answer. "Yes."
My mouth dropped open and it kept opening and closing like a fish. "Wh – What did you say?" I choked out. She smiled and repeated, "Yes, I will marry you." I couldn't help the stupid grin that had befallen on my face as I slipped the ring onto her finger. I looked into her eyes and just as we were about to kiss the doorbell rang. I looked at Ziva and she shrugged. We walked to the door and opened it, revealing the sight of Abby, McGee, Gibbs, Jenny, Ducky, and Palmer.
"Well?" Abby asked, jumping up and down in excitement.
Ziva and I shared a look when she showed them the hand that held the engagement ring lying on its finger. Abby squealed and hugged us both, while everyone congratulated us. Gibbs came over to me and gave me a hug. He whispered in my ear, "I'm proud of you Tony, very proud. Take care of her, okay?" I nodded and we joined the rest of the guys. I glanced behind me drinking in the sight of Ziva, my fiancé. She looked over and smiled. Damn, I love her.
After everyone had congratulated us they left us to enjoy the rest of our night. I left everything the way it was, not worrying about cleaning up just yet. I walked over to Ziva, where she was seated on the couch, and knelt at her feet. I took hold of her hands. "I love you, Ziva." She leaned forward and captured my lips in a kiss. "I love you, too." We stayed on the couch for a while, simply holding each other. Then we decided it was time for us to go to sleep.
"Tony," Ziva called, "can you help me get out of this dress, please." I sauntered over to her and unzipped her dress. "Thank you," she said. I kissed her neck, "any time, love."
Lying in bed that night, I turned to Ziva and asked her about something that had been bugging me. "Ziva," I began.
"Hmm," she replied.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Of course, my love," she said.
"Sweetcheeks, what were you thinking about when you didn't answer me after I proposed?"
"Tony…" Ziva sighed. "I couldn't believe it. After all this time I never thought it would actually get this far. I knew from the moment I met you that I wanted to be with you forever, but I never imagined being married to you. So, my little hairy butt, to answer your question, I was thinking about how much I loved you and how happy I was you decided to spend the rest of your life with me."
I kissed Ziva sweetly, "I don't know what I would do without you, Ziva. You are the only one I would ever consider spending the rest of my life with. It's always been you." I wrapped my arms around my fiancé that night and we slept soundly, the same way we slept for many, many years afterward.