Title: Rebuilding Broken Lives
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: A quick update time, and a long chapter... I'm on a role. :P This chapter is another goodie in my opinion, but I guess that you all will have to read and judge it for yourselves. I want to say thank you all for your AMAZING reviews, they're a major part of what helped me make this chapter so long (and write it so quickly) so... keep it up? Please? ;)
Anyways, you came here to read the story, not hear me talk, so... enjoy!
"How is he?" Ziva jumped at Jenny's question, as the young woman hadn't heard her mother walk up behind her.
Turning around quickly, she couldn't hold back the smile that came with what she'd just realized. She was in love! The thought was almost too much too handle, but Ziva didn't mind. She subconsciously lifted two fingers and touched them to her mouth, walking away with a small smile on her face as she remembered her kiss with Tony.
All Jenny could do was stare at her daughter, confusion written all over her face.
"What's wrong?" Gibbs, who had sent Jen ahead of him so that he could buy them both coffee, questioned as he walked towards his wife and noticed the look on her face.
"I'm not sure." Jen took one of the coffees from her husband's hand and smiled as she took a sip. She nodded her appreciation, then continued. "I asked Ziva how Tony was, and she just smiled and walked away."
Gibbs quirked an eyebrow and fought back a smirk as he glanced in Tony's room. "Must be feeling pretty good right now, considering the huge smile on his face and the way he keeps touching his mouth… almost like someone might do after someone they really cared for kissed 'em."
Jenny's mouth dropped open in surprise, and her eyebrows shot up. "I guess that explains the smile, and why Ziva was touching her lips too." She sent her husband a look, "I'm not sure why I didn't think of that."
"You've been out of the field for too long." Gibbs smirked at his wife as she glared at him. "Might need to polish up those investigative skills, Madam Director."
"Jethro…" Jen warned, but her words fell on deaf ears as Gibbs simply smirked before entering Tony's room. She quickly followed, and smiled at the goofy grin that looked ready to split Tony's face in two. "Have a good visit with Ziva?"
Red crept into Tony's cheeks, but he didn't let on that he was embarrassed in any other way. "Yeah," He flashed them his signature grin, "she told me all about how worried you guys were about me."
Gibbs and Jenny shared a knowing look.
"Actually Tony," Jen began, "Ziva was quite worried about you herself. She didn't even think twice about leaving us behind to run up to your hospital room and double-check that you were okay. Even the nurses assurance that you were fine wasn't enough."
Tony didn't know what to say, so he simply nodded, but the little sparkle in his eyes didn't go unnoticed by his mother-in-law.
"I'm getting another coffee." Gibbs stood up and threw his empty cup into the garbage pail next to his chair. "Refill, Jen?"
The redhead nodded and sent one last smile Tony's way before turning to her husband. "I'll come with you to make sure my coffee's not all gone by the time you get back upstairs."
Tony chucked, Jen smirked, and Gibbs let out a barely audible sigh before marching out of the room in search for more, hopefully stronger, coffee.
~~~NCIS~~~
Tony watched with a smile as Jen followed her husband out of the room. As soon as the two adults were gone, however, the smile faded. Was Ziva really that worried? Or were they trying to make him feel better?
Thinking back to the way she entered his room earlier, ploughing over the nurse and looking incredibly relieved when she saw him, Tony couldn't help but wonder if they were telling the truth. He couldn't help but wonder if maybe, just maybe, Ziva really did care for him.
For one quick moment, he let himself think that she did, bringing a smile to his face. The feeling that he used to get around Ziva suddenly returned—the feeling that they had each other, and nothing in the world could tear them apart.
His heart skipped a beat, and that feeling sparked something inside of Tony. Without really understanding why, he began to laugh. The laugh grew louder and for some reason he found himself unable to stop. All the emotions that he'd been keeping locked up inside were finally released in one, uncontrollable laughing fit.
The worry, fear, stress, and everything else he'd been fighting back for so long suddenly disappeared, and Tony knew that everything was going to be okay. He was going to be okay. Ziva was going to be okay. But most importantly, they were going to be okay.
"Tony?" The voice from the doorway sounded concerned, and Ziva stepped towards her husband, looking as if she thought he was crazy. "Tony, are you okay?"
Finally sobering up, Tony realized that to Ziva, who had absolutely no idea just how hard the past few weeks had been on him, must think that he'd gone absolutely insane.
"Never better Sweet cheeks." The smile on Tony's face only widened as he realized that, unlike weeks before, there was no awkwardness as he called her by the 'pet name.'
"You are sure?" Ziva sounded completely uncertain of what she should be doing, and in reality, Tony couldn't blame her. The way he was laughing, after just fainting, hitting his head, and learning that he'd have to stay overnight in the hospital… he must've looked like a mad man. Still, he couldn't fight back the smile that seemed permanently stuck on his face.
"You know Sweet cheeks, I was just thinking… you sure seemed eager to see me sooner. I mean, you practically tackled that poor nurse to the ground just because she had the unfortunate position of blocking your path to my room."
Ziva blushed furiously and glared at her husband. "That is not quite how it went."
"Really?" Tony flashed his wife a grin. "Because your parents were just telling me about how worried you were when you found out that I was hurt. They were saying something about you being completely lost without me."
Ziva snorted and rolled her eyes, causing Tony to backtrack. "Okay, well, maybe they didn't say that…" The idea that he was wrong about her feelings and was just making a fool of himself suddenly popped into Tony's mind, cutting off any coherent thoughts.
The smile he was wearing faded, and he suddenly became much more serious, which worried Ziva.
"Is something wrong? Do I need to get the doctor? Is it your head?"
Tony shook his head, then instantly regretted it as he winced in pain as it began to throb. "No I'm fine. You did seem a little concerned though…"
"Of course I am concerned!" Ziva realized her outburst a little too late, and looked at Tony with the same wide-eyed look he was giving her. Blushing, she lowered her voice and tried to change the subject. "You should be happy to know that I asked my father to drive you home tomorrow."
Tony nodded meekly, but didn't dare say anything. He tried to keep the disappointment off of his face, but inside, he was calling himself the biggest idiot that ever lived.
He thought Ziva might finally be starting to care for him too, and then he went and pushed it. Made her mad. Teased her for the one time she showed true feelings for him—the day after rejecting her kiss—and undid the past two months of progress on their relationship.
An awkward silence fell over them, and Tony hated himself for ruining any chance of proving to her that he was a good guy—the right guy—for her. She deserved nothing less than perfection, and that was something he could never be.
~~~NCIS~~~
Ziva noticed the second Tony's mood changed. It wasn't hard to tell, really, as he was smiling like a madman one moment, then looked ready to cry the next.
One look in his eyes was enough to break her heart, causing her to instinctively reach out to him. He looked at her, but didn't say anything, so Ziva realized she had to. "Tony, are you okay?"
No answer.
"Is it your head?" She questioned further, and this time Tony spoke.
"No." It's my heart that's broken.
"Then what is it?" Ziva stared at her husband in concern, and couldn't fight off a wave of annoyance when he insisted that he was fine, even though they both knew he wasn't. "Tony, why do you not trust me enough to tell me how you feel? I am your wife!"
"Yeah, well. Don't feel as if it has to stay that way." To Ziva, Tony's bitter tone felt like a punch to the stomach that left her gasping for air.
"What are you saying?"
The question was rhetorical, of course. She knew what he was saying, she just couldn't believe he was saying it. After all that they'd been through—all that he'd done for her—and now he was leaving. Now, when she was sure she couldn't live without him?!
"I'm saying that you aren't stuck in this marriage." Tony couldn't stop himself. Inside, he was screaming at himself to shut up, yet he seemed incapable of doing so.
"What if—"
"What if I don't want to hear it?!" All the fight left Tony at once, and his angry shouts were replaced by a heartbroken whisper, "What if I can't take anymore, Ziva?"
"Then I will not force you to."
Tony watched as Ziva grabbed her coat and stormed out of the room. He wanted to call out to her, beg her to stop and tell her that he didn't mean it—tell her that he loved her and that he always would, no matter what. He wanted to tell her that he could never have too much of her—of them—and that they could work things through.
He wanted to tell her that he was sorry, and that he wanted to be with her more than anything else in the world. He wanted to… but he didn't.
Instead, he watched as she left him, paralyzed with the fear that she might not ever return.
~~~NCIS~~~
Ziva forced a smile as she waved goodbye to her parents, who had just dropped her off at the house she shared with Tony. How much long she'd share that house with him, she wasn't sure.
Tears threatened to spill over, but she blinked them back and continued to smile until her parents were gone. Then, and only then, did she allow one small tear to slip down her cheek.
Making her way up the stairs to her front porch, Ziva sighed before stepping inside her home. She shrugged off her coat before entering the kitchen, where a glass of water helped soothe the lump in her throat.
A glance at the clock on the wall told her it was a little after two in the afternoon. She had the whole afternoon to sulk.
The more rational side of Ziva knew that Tony didn't mean what he had said. He loved her, his actions had proved this to be true so many times, and he'd given up so much to be with her. She knew that he was frustrated, tired, and in pain when he said the words that broke her heart… but that didn't change the fact that he broke her heart.
Still, Ziva was just as angry with herself as she was with him because, if she was honest with herself, she was the one to blame.
She knew that Tony had done a lot for her. He'd made a lot of sacrifices. He'd worried about her.
Ziva shook her head in disappointment with herself as made her way to her bedroom. She should've realized that it was becoming too much for him. She should've realized that he was getting tired and needed a break—it was because she didn't that things had turned ugly between them.
Sure, the past couple of months hadn't been easy on her either, but she didn't have it as hard as he did for one simple reason: she knew he loved her… a privilege Tony didn't share. He didn't know that she loved him too. Maybe if he did, he'd worry less and smile more. Maybe then, the load he was carrying wouldn't seem so heavy.
Ziva sighed as she laid down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. It was stupid of her not to tell him that she loved him. She had nothing to be afraid of, and he needed to hear it. More than anything else, he needed to hear it.
Now… tears burned at the back of Ziva's eyes. Now it might be too late.
Right then, Ziva made up her mind. Tony had put his heart out on the line for her so many times… tomorrow she'd do the same for him. She'd risk the heartbreak and possibility of denial. Tomorrow was the day she'd tell Tony she loved him.
With that thought in mind, a soft smile graced Ziva's features as she fell asleep, only to wake up a few hours later with a horrible feeling. It was a feeling she couldn't quite describe, but one she knew she shouldn't ignore.
The clock on her nightstand read one thirty-three, and Ziva bit back a groan. She always had problems falling back asleep after waking up, and tonight would be no different. Her frustration was quickly forgotten, however, when she heard the sound of shattering glass only a few seconds later.
Her blood ran cold, and the "horrible feeling" that woke her up now proved useful as she slipped out of bed so she could determine the source of the noise. When she heard soft voices coming from the living room, however, terror seized her, making it impossible for her to move.
Ziva knew she wasn't alone in the house.
So... was that a good enough twist for you? Though they're not NCIS agents in this story (well, Jenny and Gibbs are, but Tony and Ziva aren't) I have to put a few different kinds of twists in this story, but that doesn't mean they have to be minor and boring. :P
Again, a longer chapter, with a quick update time. :D I'd love to hear back from you all, so please, if you liked this chapter, have anything (positive or negative) to say about the story, or have a suggestion/idea for the story, I'd love to hear from you. :)
Thanks for reading!