I'll Love You Forever, a ncis fanfic

A/N: When I heard this song, it reminded me so much of Tim and my character Diana that I just HAD to write this. My very first NCIS fic so the characters may be a little out of character. The song is I Finally Found Someone by Bryan Adams & Barbara Streisand.

Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS or any of its characters.

NCIS : I'll Love You Forever

Diana Rowe gave herself a nervous smile as she stared into a mirror in the woman's bathroom. Tonight is the annual ball where all NCIS agents are asked to attend. Timothy would have come with her as her escort but she's been unreachable for the last week. She's always given 250% at work and 100% into her writing which has left no energy for much of anything else. Finally she decided she needed time to just go away and think. It also did her some good to rest. Being on the go 24/7 is never healthy for anyone. Only her boss, Agent Gibbs, knew how to get a reach of her. She didn't even tell her boyfriend and coworker, Timothy McGee, where she would be. Her showing up tonight is a surprise but a request from Tim. He'd told Gibbs to ask her if she would come. Diana knows she probably hurt Tim when she disappeared without a word to him but she needed time to think. Not just about her novels and work, but about her relationship with him. Its NCIS code to not date within the workplace but her relationship with Tim started before she became an agent. And she would give it all up for him in an instant. He means more to her than being a NCIS special agent ever could.

Diana shook her head to clear it. She needs to show up soon but she's nervous walking in by herself. Usually she's not nervous but the way Gibbs said Tim asked if she would be here had meaning behind it. If Gibbs knew, he wouldn't spill. Taking a deep breath, she walked out of the woman's room into the entrance way. As she walked towards the table to get her name plate, she heard an older man's voice behind her, making her smile as she turned around.

"You look beautiful tonight, my dear." He said

"Ducky! Hi."

"I'm surprised Timothy isn't escorting you but I've heard about your surprise leave of absence."

"I just needed to get away for awhile." She said softly.

"You work yourself nearly to death sometimes."

Diana smiled, knowing how often Ducky sees death because he works in autopsy. Diana, who grew up with a lack of a father figure, considers Ducky to be the closest thing she'll have to a father. Her eyes trailed from Ducky's face to the far wall where the awards for past agents are hung and she got a faraway look in her eyes. A gentle hand on her shoulder brought her back to the present.

"You need to let her go sometime." Ducky told her.

"I don't know how to. Mother taught me everything she knew except what made her such a good agent. It's the 10th anniversary of her death tonight and they're honoring her. It means a lot, but it also brings up painful memories. She was such a good agent and I…"

"You are as good of an agent. She would have been so proud of you."

"Are you sure Ducky? Tim's so good with computers, Gibbs was a Marine, Kate protected the president, Ziva is a trained Massad assassin, and Tony was a cop. All I did was go to school to learn how to be a writer and get a degree in criminal justice."

"You were also trained by one of NCIS' finest, Diana." Gibbs said coming up behind her.

"Gibbs, I…" Diana started to say but he cut her off.

"We all have had it rough Diana, but instead of thinking of what you can't do, try thinking about what you can do."

"Like what?"

"You're a damn good agent, Rowe, and everyone here knows it. You work harder to prove yourself to the agency than you actually have to because you think you'll never measure up to anyone standards of you. Stop worrying about what everyone else thinks of you and just work hard at being yourself. I think that's all Maria would have asked for."

Diana didn't know what to say but she knew Gibbs was right. Suddenly she really wanted to see Tim so she turned towards the table and picked up her nameplate, fastening it to the top of her dress. Normally they don't have name plates but a lot of the newer agents are here so everyone, even the older agents, are required to wear them.

"Shall I escort you to Timothy?" Ducky asked

"That would be lovely." Diana replied.

As Diana walked into the ballroom, her arm draped around Ducky's, her eyes scanned for Tim. It took her awhile before she placed him with Abby by the far wall. She'd also seen Tony flirting with other agents and Ziva keeping mostly to herself. Tim had his back to her so when she and Ducky walked up, Abby saw her first. She grinned before running past him and hugging Diana tightly.

"Diana! I was so worried! You never called or anything."

"Abby, I'm fine, honest!"

Abby looked like she wanted to say something else but when she saw the look in Diana's eyes as she gazed towards Tim, Abby knew that they needed to be alone right now. Within the team I is no secret that Diana and Tim are in love, but they try to keep it away from the director as much as possible. After giving Diana another squeeze, Abby took Ducky's arm and the two left Diana and Timothy alone. Before he could say a word, she rushed into his arms, hugging him tightly. For awhile they just stood there, holding each other tightly. Finally, he broke the hug to get a good look at her and saw her eyes were glossy with tears.

"Diana, what's wrong?" He asked her softly, leading her out of everyone's sight.

"I feel like I don't deserve to be here Tim, or even be an agent. The only thing I ever wanted to do with my life was write but after Mother was killed, I felt like I needed to prove that I could make something good come out of her death."

"That's why you work so hard, isn't it? You're trying to prove to the world that you can be as good of an agent as Maria was?" At her nod, Tim spoke again. "You don't need to. Just be yourself. I don't think she would have wanted anymore than that."

"Gibbs said that ten minutes ago when he heard me talking to Ducky." She replied with a soft smile. "But who I am isn't an agent Tim. I dreamed about being a writer ever since I was little but it was always looked down upon because my father didn't think being a writer was worth anything." Diana took a deep breath. "That's why I left without a word. I needed to find who I was again because I was feeling like everyone was expecting something of me and I didn't know who I was anymore."

"Did it help, to get away from it all?" He asked after a moment and she nodded. "I'm glad. I was worried." He told her as he brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

Before Diana spoke again, she leaned forward so her forehead was resting on Tim's shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, knowing she needed it right now.

"I almost wish they weren't honoring her but I know she deserves it. It just… brings up a lot of bad and painful memories. Memories I want nothing more than to forget." Diana said, causing Tim to hold her tighter.

"I know Di, I know…"

Their conversation was cut short by the director tapping on the mike. It looks like the awards are about to start being given out. There are only a few agents that are here that will get awards since most of the awards are being awarded to agents who have lost their lives on the job or died for one reason or another. Finally Diana heard the director call out her name, saying she would be receiving for her mother, Maria Rowe. As she left his side, Tim gave her hands a tight squeeze. After getting her picture taken as she received the award, Diana stepped up to the mike to say a few words about her mother.

"If there's one thing I knew about my mother, it was how much she loved NCIS. Being her daughter, I didn't get the chance to know her as an agent but I've heard countless stories about the many lives she helped save. I wish she could have been here tonight to receive this award herself because although it means so much to me, it would have meant so much more to her. I just hope that I can become as good of an agent as my mother Maria was."

When she finished, the entire room burst into applause, making Diana blush a rosy pink. As she stepped off the stage, her entire team greeted her. While she talked to Tony and Ziva, Tim noticed a change in her. He can tell the difference between Diana when she's being herself and when she's being a special agent and right now she's being an agent. She may claim to not be agent material or like it, but Tim has a feeling it's just resentment because if her mother hadn't been an agent, she would have never met Diana's father. Tim doesn't know much about him, just that he treated Diana and her mother like dirt and murdered Maria.

It wasn't long after Diana got her mother's award that the DJ started putting on some music. It wasn't the kind of music Tony would dance to at a club, but it wasn't quite slow dancing music either. As he talked to Gibbs, Tim noticed Diana head towards the exit so he excused himself. Something tells him that tonight he should stick with her. Once outside the ballroom, Diana walked towards the wall that her mother's picture is hanging on with the other agents who are regarded highly. She stood for a long while, just staring at her mother's picture. Finally, Tim said her name, getting her attention.

"…Diana?"

"What? Oh Tim, I didn't notice you there."

"I know. Everything alright?" He asked, coming to stand next to her.

"Yeah… I just don't feel like I should keep this. She earned it, not me."

"But she was your mother."

"Still… I think it should stay here, with her. If I take it home, I'll only remember her death when I look at it." She said as he squeezed her shoulders. "I love her Tim, but until I kill him, I won't be able to let go of the memory of her death."

"I know darling." Tim whispered softly as he kissed her cheek. He let go of her so she could place her mother's award under Maria's picture before returning to his arms. He wrapped his arms around her waist and closed his eyes, wishing he didn't have to hide his love for her anymore. Tim would do anything for Diana, all she'd have to do is ask. After awhile he spoke again. "We should get back inside before they wonder where we went."

"…Do we have to?"

"For now. If we leave this early we'll never hear the end of it from Tony."

Diana laughed as she unwrapped herself from his arms, but laced one of her arms through his. Just as they walked inside, a slow song came on. Dating within the agency may be against the rules but it's not like everyone listens. Plus slow songs aren't just for lovers, but friends can dance to a slow song too. After all, this ball is honoring the agents who have lost their lives for NCIS. After dragging Diana over to the sidelines where they could dance, Tim held her close to him. Diana smiled as she laid her head on his shoulder, letting him move ever so slightly as he held her. She's so tired of proving herself to everyone but if she doesn't, she'll feel like she's letting someone down somehow.

As they danced, Tim caught Gibbs' eye who nodded. Earlier, Tim had asked Gibbs if he could get the DJ to play a special song, just for him and Diana. Gibbs told him he could probably arrange it and that nod told Tim that yes, he had gotten it done. As the song started to end, Gibbs came up behind Tim and placed a microphone in the hand Tim moved from Diana's waist to his back. As she heard the music change, Diana lifted her head to look at Tim, her eyes widening as soon as she placed the song. His answer to her unspoken question of 'Is this our song?' was to start singing.

[AN: Tim is in bold, Diana in italics, both are bold italics]

I finally found someone
That knocks me off my feet
I finally found the one
That makes me feel complete

As he started to sing, the room went silent. Diana looked to Gibbs who simply handed her a microphone of her own. Knowing Tim was finally expressing his love for her out in the open; Diana couldn't help but sing along. She doesn't know what will happen at the end of the song but it doesn't matter right now.

It started over coffee
We started out as friends
It's funny how from simple things
The best things begin

As they sang, the room opened up and pretty soon Diana and Tim found themselves in the center of the room. But they didn't notice anyone but themselves. Tony walked over to Gibbs to whisper into his ear.

"Gibbs, does McGee know what he's doing? Its forbidden to date inside the workplace."

"We've all done it, or wanted to, right DiNozzo?"

"Most of us already know about Rowe and McGee but the director doesn't. Couldn't he lose his job for this?" Tony replied and was about to say more when Gibbs gave him a look that told him to shut up.

This time is different
And it's all because of you
It's better than it's ever been
'Cause we can talk it though

Tim thought back to when he first met Diana, waitressing at a coffee shop for some extra money to attend nightly writing classes while she worked hard at becoming an agent during the day. At first they didn't talk much but the day she noticed a copy of Deep Sixx in his backpack, she revealed the woman behind the waitress. She even took off the rest of her shift so she could just talk to him. Once he found out that she was, in fact, one of his writer friends, they stayed up half the night talking. Even before he knew who she was, there was just something about her that made him want to get to know her so much better.

My favorite line was
"Can I call you sometime"
It's all you had to say
To take my breath away

Diana smiled as she remembered back to the first time she met Timothy. She was waitressing at a small coffee shop to earn some extra cash. As she served his coffee, she realized he was one of her favorite writers: Thom E. Gemcity. They ended up talking half the night away because she revealed to him that she was one of his good writer friends, Selena Rowland. That was the beginning of their relationship and ever since it's only gotten better. Sure, sometimes they get into it but what couple doesn't? The difference between the ones that break up and the ones that don't is they know how to talk things out.

Timothy smiled as he looked into his love's eyes which were sparkling with love as she looked at him. They're taking a huge risk of losing their jobs by revealing their love for each other. But its time they stop hiding it like a bad thing and he wants to stop waking up at night, wondering if she needs him or not. This is the song that reminds Diana so much of how she felt when she first realized she was in love with him and then again when he told her he loved her. It describes the words she felt like she could never say.

Did I keep you waiting? I didn't mind
I apologize, baby that's fine
I would wait forever just to know you were mine

You know I love your hair
Are you sure it looks right?
I love what you wear
Isn't it too tight?
You're exceptional
I can't wait for the rest of my life

Abby smiled as she watched them together in the center of the room. When Diana first joined the team as an agent, she didn't like the attention she gave Tim, even after she found out that Diana was a friend of Tim's, before she joined the team. After awhile, Abby started to open to her and soon found that she is a lot like Kate was. In other ways, Diana's different. She knows that together Diana and Tim make a really good team and she wants what's best for both of them. It would make her really sad to not see them on a daily basis if the director decided to fire one or both of them.

This is it, oh I finally found someone
Someone to share my life
I finally found the one
To be with every night
'Cause whatever I do
It's just got to be you
My life has just begun
I finally found someone
And whatever I do
It's just got to be you
My life has just begun
I finally found someone

As they finished, the entire room clapped as Tim pulled Diana to him and kissed her as he's wanted to do all night. She dropped her mic as she reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck. When they parted, Diana's eyes widened as Tim got down on one knee, reaching a hand into his pocket and pulling out a diamond engagement ring. The center diamond is a star while the two on both sides of it are little hearts.

"Diana, you are the love of my life. I don't know where I would be without you. You make life worth living. From the day I met you, I knew you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I know I'm asking you to give up something your mother valued so highly but I promise I'll take care of you. I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy. I can't imagine another day without you by my side. …Will you marry me?"

As soon as he pulled out the ring, she'd started crying but they were tears of happiness. As soon as he asked her the four words the entire room was waiting to hear, she could only nod for a moment before finding her voice. "Yes Tim, yes I'll marry you!"

The entire room clapped as Tim slid the ring onto Diana's finger. He kissed her again, this kiss lasting a little longer than the last they shared. They know that in a few moments the director will want to speak to them but both of them will speak from the bottom of their hearts. They're meant to be together and will find a way to be together, no matter what anyone says.