Title: A Walk To Remember

Chapter: 10

Disclaimer: I do not own ANY of the original characters from the show, they belong to the writers of NCIS but i do however claim ownership of all other non-original characters from the show.

Author's note: Okay…. So this chapter is the long-awaited date! I, again, want to thank everyone for their reviews. Thy really are wonderful and they seriously inspire me to write more when I know someone is enjoying my work. :) I won't say anything else, other than thanks and enjoy!

Ziva smiled to herself as the doorbell rang. She took one last look in the mirror, checking to make sure that everything was perfect before leaving her room and slowly descending the stairs. Jenny was pretending to be busy in the kitchen, but Ziva knew that she was simply hanging until Tony arrived.

Ziva stopped in front of the door and took a deep breath before pulling it open. Tony was standing before her, dressed in a light blue dress shirt and black pants. His eyes grew wide as he saw Ziva.

Her curly hair cascaded down her back, a mute testimony to her natural beauty.

"You look…" Tony's mind was scrambling for words as he took in Ziva's deep blue dress, which ended at her knees. "Amazing."

Ziva smiled widely, "Thank you."

Tony returned her smile before motioning to his car. "After you."

Ziva flashed Tony another smile, causing his heart to skip a beat before they started walking towards his car. Once inside, Tony started the engine and began driving, stopping only a few minutes later in front of a restaurant.

Ziva's eyes widened as she looked around, "Alexandria's? Tony this place is very expensive!"

Tony merely grinned and got out of the car, "That's for me to worry about. All you have to do is have a good time."

Walking up to the maître d', Tony asked about their reservations and the dark-haired man nodded.

"Right this way." He led Tony and Ziva to a table outside on the patio, and gave them their menus before leaving silently.

Ziva was looking around, awed by the place's beauty. The only light was given by candles, which were placed at every table. They had a view of the lake and gentle music was playing softly in the background. Once she finished looking at her surroundings, Ziva directed her gaze towards Tony, whose eyes were trained on her.

He flashed her a smile, "Like the place?"

Ziva smiled and nodded, "It is very beautiful."

"Best view I've ever had." Tony agreed, and Ziva blushed when she realized he was talking about her.

"You don't look too bad yourself, Tony."

Tony grinned, "Thank you. Have you figured out what you're going to order yet?"

Ziva looked at her menu and bit her lip as she debated, "I don't know… what do you think?"

Tony thought for a moment, "Try the lobster, it's delicious."

Ziva grinned, "Don't you say that about all food?"

Tony rolled his eyes in mock annoyance, but the smile never left his face. "That may be true, Miss Da-veed, but the lobster here really is great."

"I have to agree." The waiter spoke up, alerting them of his presence. "Have you decided on what you will be eating tonight?"

Tony looked at Ziva, who nodded her head. "Yes…" She flashed Tony a smile before returning her attention to the waiter, "I'll have the lobster, please."

"No problem, mademoiselle." The waiter turned to Tony, "And you sir?"

"I'll have the same." The waiter nodded and jotted down their order before leaving the couple alone again. Tony smiled and took Ziva's hand in his own. "Are you having a good time?"

Ziva smiled softly, "Yes."

"Good." Tony grinned, he opened his mouth to say something but the waiter returned with their food before he could.

"Thanks." Tony offered before turning his attention towards Ziva. He watched as she took a bite of her lobster and sighed in content.

"This is delicious."

Tony grinned, "Would I lie to you?"

Ziva smirked playfully, "Maybe."

Tony rolled his eyes, but the smile on his face grew. He and Ziva sat in a comfortable silence as they finished their food. When Tony realized Ziva was done he smiled at her, "Did you want dessert?"

Ziva smirked playfully and raised her eyebrows, causing Tony to blush and stutter. "I didn't, I uh... I didn't mean it like that. What I meant was… would you like some cake?"

Ziva smiled at Tony's bright red face but decided not to embarrass him any more. "No thank you Tony, the lobster was wonderful."

Tony grinned, "I'm glad you liked it."

His eyes caught Ziva's and for a moment they simply stared at one another. Tony was amazed at how easy it was to get lost in Ziva's chocolate brown eyes, meanwhile Ziva was thinking the same about his green ones.

"Ahem." They both looked up to see the waiter biting back a smile, "Will you be having dessert?"

Tony and Ziva blushed at being caught in their 'moment' but Ziva was the first to recover. "None for me, thank you."

The blonde waiter nodded and turned towards Tony, "And you sir?"

"Not for me either, thanks."

The man nodded and disappeared, only to return with the check a few moments later. Tony thanked him and left a generous tip, partly to impress Ziva who smirked as he laid down the money.

"That was a large tip." She offered and Tony bit back a grin, she noticed.

"Great service."

Ziva smirked at him, "Really? Because for a moment there I thought you might have been leaving a big tip to impress someone."

Tony felt the blood rush to his face and decided to change the subject, "Did you want to go for a walk?"

Ziva's smile grew as she realized she was right about the tip, but didn't dwell on the topic any longer. "That would be nice."

Tony flashed her a grin and Ziva couldn't help but return it. She allowed Tony to lead her down the beach and he waited until they were ankle-deep in water before taking her hand in his.

Ziva smiled as their finger intertwined. Looking up at Tony, she smiled even wider when his gaze met hers.

"You have beautiful eyes." Tony stated, then blushed a deep red when he realized he said that out loud.

Ziva's smile simply grew, taking Tony's breath away. The couple walked for a few minutes in comfortable silence before Tony couldn't take it anymore.

He stopped walking and turned to Ziva, who was looking at him curiously.

"You really are beautiful." He admitted, a slow smile crossing his face as he added, "Both inside and out."

Ziva's cheeks grew pink and Tony grinned, happy that he had that effect on her.

His eyes met hers and they both began to lean in slowly, unable to resist the magnetic pull the other had on them.

Tony placed one hand on the small of Ziva's back and the other on the back of her head, running his fingers through her soft hair as he pulled her closer to him. Ziva wrapped her arms around his neck and played with his collar, moaning when softly when Tony deepened the kiss.

Both teens were amazed at how right the kiss felt, and Tony ended it reluctantly when he needed air. He gently placed his forehead on hers and smiled softly as they regained their breath.

Staring into the dark brown depths of Ziva's eyes, Tony found himself unable to keep the words in any longer.

He brushed a stray strand of hair behind Ziva's ear and gently ran a finger down her jaw line. His voice was nothing but sincere as he admitted, "I love you."

The moment the words left his mouth, Tony regretted them. Ziva's eyes widened and it was easy to see the conflict happening behind them. Tony fought the urge to run his hands through his hair as he waited for her to reply.

I ruined it. It's too soon, she's not ready.

Ziva still hadn't said a word and Tony was beginning to panic as he realized that he just may have ruined the best thing that had ever happened to him. The realization that Ziva didn't love him back was enough to bring tears to his eyes.

Ziva stared at Tony in regret, the three words he had just spoken would change both their lives forever. She felt her heart break as tears filled Tony's eyes, yet she was unable to resolve the conflict within her.

On one hand, she had never been happier than at this moment. Hearing Tony say that he loved her was more than she could ask for and of course she loved him in return, but would he still love her after finding out her secret?

"Ziva," Tony whispered, not bothering to hide the pain in his voice, "please say something. I need to know."

Ziva closed her eyes as she realized that Tony was right. He did need to know, not only about her feelings, but also about what she'd been hiding from him.

"Tony…" Ziva's words were barely above a whisper, but the next ones to leave her mouth were enough to break her heart. "I'm dying."

Wow. That was really sad. I knew this was coming, but it still is extremely sad. Man this news is going to break Tony's heart. I'll explain how she's dying in the next chapter.

(Only those who have seen the movie or read the book should read the rest of this note.) You guys knew that this was coming and a lot of you have asked me to save Ziva, but I really don't know yet. On one hand, I don't want Ziva to die. On the other hand, this is based on the movie and I don't want to cheapen the story by having her live. Basically, I would love to hear what you guys think, but in the end I have to think about it and will decide what I think is best for the story. :)

Thanks for reading and please review!