They had removed the breathing tube that morning. Ziva had been asked to leave the room, she nearly pitched a fit, but McGee cut her protests off with a few calming words. He had then brought her out to the hallway, sat her down, and told her to wait. She wasn't happy, he could tell, but that was the way it had to be.

"Look on the bright side," he had said sitting down next to her, on the floor.

"There is a bright side?" Ziva had asked curiously, dark eyes meeting green.

"He's breathing on his own now," McGee had responded shrugging.

"I guess that would be a bright side."

Once the doctors were through they allowed both agents back into the room. Tony now had a nasal canal draped across his face. He was still unconscious, but looking slightly better now that he didn't have a tube hanging out of his mouth.

"Do you not have work?" Ziva asked slowly, sinking back into her chair again.

"Took the day off," McGee responded sitting next to her. He hadn't been sleeping well, was supposed to be using the day to get some sleep, but just couldn't quite manage it. So, he drove to the hospital, thought he'd sit with Ziva. Maybe alleviate some of the guilt he felt.

He knew it wasn't his fault Tony and Ziva were hit, not even close, but his last words to DiNozzo hadn't been the best. And he had been so angry at Tony before he heard about the accident; pissed that he was always pulling the 'I am the senior field agent' crap. Now it just seemed so trivial. What if Tony died and Tim never got to say he was sorry.

"Quarter for your thoughts," Ziva said quietly.

"It's penny, Ziva," McGee corrected giving her a ghost of a smile.

"What is the difference?"

Tim shrugged, almost hearing Tony say, 'About twenty-four cents.' He shook his head and said, "It's nothing."

"Your eyes say differently," Ziva responded, pulling her knees up.

"Where's Gibbs?" McGee questioned after a few seconds hesitation, just wanting the subject to change.

Ziva's eyebrows furrowed, but she otherwise allowed the distraction. "He went to get coffee. He said he will be back later. What about Abby?"

"Palmer's trying to convince her to come back to Tony's room."

"So no one is working today?"

McGee made to answer, but froze with his mouth hanging open. It seemed everyone close to Tony had taken the day off or just not bothered to go in. Vance was going to be pissed. "I guess so," Tim finally replied.

"When Tony wakes up, he will be pleased, yes?"

"What? All this attention? Of course he will. He's Tony DiNozzo," McGee said trying to sound nonchalant, but having a feeling he didn't quite pull it off. Especially when Ziva's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

"Do you believe he will wake up, McGee?" Ziva questioned slowly, her dark eyes locking on his green ones.

"What? Y…yeah…"

"I do not believe you."

"Ziva, he's going to wake up," McGee said hurriedly, praying she would let it go. He didn't want to have this discussion, he didn't want to admit to anyone what he was feeling. It was bad enough he told Gibbs, who wasn't nearly as upset about it as he thought his boss would be. In fact, if Tim wasn't mistaken, Gibbs agreed with him.

"I know that, but you doubt it."

"I…I never said…"

"How could you doubt Tony? How could you not think he will wake up?" she was on her feet now, towering over McGee, her voice a mere hiss. But damn was it scary. "He is your friend, your colleague. And you are going to sit there and give up on him."

"I…I…"

"If you do not believe in him you can leave."

Tim sprang to his feet, something inside snapping. He towered over Ziva and shouted, "You know why I don't believe he's gonna wake up, Ziva, because if he was going to he'd be awake by now! I'm sorry you just don't know when to give up…!" whack. McGee's head snapped to the side when Ziva's hand met his cheek. It stung; both his words and the slap.

Regret started to flood him, but before he could apologize Ziva had already pointed at the door and said, "Get out." He nodded, heading toward the door, glancing back one last time to see Ziva's back to him, eyes locked on Tony…

NCIS

Abby was silently debating whether or not to go see Tony, Jimmy having given up for a few minutes to use the bathroom, when McGee appeared around the corner. As he moved closer to her, before she could greet him, she noticed the red hand print across his cheek.

"Oh my God," she whispered getting to her feet. "What happened?"

"A misunderstanding," Tim responded moving past Abby to sit down. She turned, staring at her friend, waiting for him to elaborate. When he didn't, she sighed heavily and said, "At least let me get you some ice."

"I'm fine," McGee said slowly, his eyes locking on the floor. Timothy McGee had never been hard to read. Yes, he kept to himself a lot of the time, Abby barely scratching the surface of all his secrets, but his eyes could give him away in a heartbeat.

"Timmy, you are not fine," Abby said softly, taking a seat. "Tell me."

"Have you ever said something you regret?" it was such an innocent question, but Abby could easily hear the double meaning behind it.

"What do you mean?"

McGee was saved the trouble of responding when Jimmy came back. He stopped, watching both Tim and Abby carefully, and then continued to his chair. "So, I heard they took DiNozzo off the ventilator."

"Yeah, they did," McGee responded looking up. Palmer balked at the red mark across his cheek. "Don't ask," Tim said sharply pointing at Jimmy. He stood up suddenly, heading toward the exit.

"Timmy, where are you going?" Abby called after him. He didn't respond. Abby watched until his retreating form caught the closest, opened elevator.

"What was that about?" Palmer asked curiously.

"I don't know," Abby responded getting to her feet. "Let's find out." Jimmy shrugged and stood, following Abby toward the elevators. She had to see what was wrong with McGee, it was only fair. He was there when she had her breakdown over Tony. She needed to return the favor.

After a short elevator ride, Palmer and Abby found McGee sitting outside on the ground, back against the stone half-wall. His legs were drawn up, face buried in his hands. Jimmy and Abby watched him for a second before Abby moved forward, ignoring Palmer's hissed, "Abby, maybe we should leave him alone."

"Timmy," Abby said softly, once in touching distance, resting her hand on his shoulder.

"Why can't I have the same faith you guys have?" McGee suddenly burst out, looking up. Abby jumped back, noting the several emotions flashing across his face, and in his heavily bagged eyes.

"W…what do you mean?" Abby questioned timidly.

"Everyone else believes Tony's going to wake up. You two, Ziva, Ducky, hell even Gibbs has some hidden desire to see Tony wake up. Everyone, except me. I just…" McGee ran his hand down his face, taking a deep, shuddering breath.

"Timmy, you think you're the only one with doubts," Abby said quietly, kneeling down next to him, resting her hand on his back.

"Gibbs said the same thing," Tim said quietly.

"And he's right. We can't all be like Ziva. And I doubt she's one-hundred convinced Tony's going to…" Abby trailed off, unable to bring herself to finish her sentence. "We just have to keep in mind that this is Tony we're dealing with."

"Yeah," Palmer said moving to sit down on McGee's other side. "He's the guy who insisted he do that stupid movie quiz over and over again until he beat Carson."

"He also asks you the same question a billion times until you answer," Abby reminded him.

"And how many hits has he taken since you've met him?" Palmer asked curiously.

"He survived the plague," Abby pointed out.

"Because Gibbs ordered him to," McGee said quietly.

"Then maybe Gibbs needs to order him to wake up," Abby responded equally as quiet. "He's never been able to ignore Gibbs." McGee smiled weakly, running his hand down his face again. Abby threw her arms around him, he leaned into her hug. At first, Abby believed Palmer was going to join their hug, but then he just stood up and moved to the side.

"Did Ziva slap you?" Abby asked quietly, pulling away from McGee. He didn't verbally respond, but his eyes answered for him: yes. "She shouldn't have done that." Abby pushed herself to her feet, starting toward the entrance.

"Abby don't…" McGee called after her, but she ignored him. She had to talk to Ziva…

NCIS

Ziva's anger had left the moment McGee left the room, and now she just stood, numb, staring down at Tony. Perhaps McGee was correct. Perhaps Tony wasn't going to wake up. He'll forever be trapped in his own body, minimal brain activity, a shell of his former self.

Ziva didn't want to think that way, didn't even know where the thoughts came from, but she couldn't stop them. She couldn't stop them and it hurt, physically hurt, leaving her breathless. She sank into her chair, gasping for breath, watching as Tony blurred.

"Ziva, I need to…" David whirled around at the sound of Abby's voice, a stray tear falling down her face. "Oh, Ziva," Abby whispered, her determination leaving her face. She moved forward, enveloping the Mossad Officer in a hug.

"What…what if he does not… wake up…?" Ziva questioned, feeling another set of arms wrap around her shoulders. She recognized the scent, after working with him for three years, and clung to his hand. "Come on, Jimmy," Ziva heard Abby say and a third set of arms wrapped around her.

Ziva cried for a few more minutes, surrounded by her friends, only to stop when she heard a gruff voice say, "Did I miss something?" The group broke apart, turning to find Gibbs standing in the doorway.

"Uh, boss…" McGee trailed off unsure how to continue.

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

"Aren't you?" Abby replied without a hesitation. Gibbs didn't verbally respond, but the slight smile told Ziva that he approved of Abby's response. "Would you like to be a part of the group hug, Gibbs?"

"No thanks, Abbs," Gibbs responded sipping his coffee.

"Just thought I'd ask…" Ziva smiled slightly at Abby's reply, her eyes landing on Tony again. Her eyes widened when she saw his hand move. "He moved again," she said quietly.

"What?" Abby looked past Ziva, watching Tony herself. Her green eyes were sad, but she wasn't leaving. Ziva could tell. She had finally broken her fear. They waited, breath held, but Tony didn't move again.

"I am sure he moved," Ziva insisted pointing at Tony's hand. "His fingers twitched."

"Maybe he's slowly waking up," Palmer suggested shrugging.

"Perhaps," Ziva responded nodding. New hope filled her, her eyes meeting McGee's. She internally flinched at the red mark across his cheek, and she mouthed the word: Sorry.

He shook his head, his eyes clearly saying 'don't worry about it…' At least he forgave her, she just wished she could forgive herself…

NCIS

Friday and Saturday day were fairly uneventful, although Gibbs' words still bugged Tony. 'You'll never know what's real until to stop lying to yourself, DiNozzo' and 'Go home, Tony. Go see your wife, your daughter. Spend some time with your family. You might not have them tomorrow.' But Gibbs never mentioned them, so Tony kept his mouth shut.

He did get those tickets from Ducky. To Ziva's favorite musical: The Sound of Music. Tony wasn't thrilled about spending a night listening to the Von Trapps sing, but if it made Ziva happy he was willing to give it a shot. By Saturday night he really wished he hadn't thought that.

After the musical, Ziva humming one of the songs, Tony couldn't get the frigging title song out of his head. He sighed heavily as he led Ziva to the car, but he couldn't be annoyed. He was in too good a mood.

"Happy anniversary, Bumble Zee," he said opening her door for her.

"And to you, Fuzzy Bear," Ziva responded kissing him. He hoped he kept the shock off his face, but by the way she was smiling curiously he had a feeling he didn't quite manage it.

"Just wasn't expecting that," he lied smoothly giving her a peck on the cheek. "So, what do you want to do now?" he asked waiting for her to get in the car.

"There are a couple things," she responded seductively sliding into her seat. Tony chuckled awkwardly, closing the door. He moved around the car, getting into the drive seat.

"You sure? Don't you… don't you want to talk?" he mentally kicked himself for trying to get out of being with Ziva. It's not like they hadn't been together before. Granted they were on assignment. But, it still seemed weird.

"You want to talk?"

"Yeah, why not?"

Eyebrows furrowed, Ziva shrugged and said, "Fine, we will talk."

"Okay."

But there was no talking. Ziva glared out the window all the way home, arms crossed. Tony did try to start a conversation, twice, but she would not respond to him. He'd really put his foot in it now.

Once Tony pulled into the driveway, Ziva opened the door and headed inside. DiNozzo sighed heavily, shaking his head. He screwed up…

He opened the door, slowly heading into the house, trying to think of a very good apology. He walked inside, finding Ziva sitting in the dining room. He stepped into the room, resting his hands on her slightly shaking shoulders.

"I'm sorry," he said silently, resting his chin on her head. "I just…" he felt weird saying this, and it wasn't like he was lying. "I just don't want to hurt Jenny."

"What?" Ziva whispered sniffing, a smile creeping in her voice.

"Yeah, I just… I can't think about that without wondering if I'll hurt the baby. You know?"

"Tony you will not…" she trailed off, shaking her head. "So, you want to talk. Let us talk."

"Seriously?"

"Sure."

Tony broke away from her, moving around the table to sit across from her. They stared at each other for a few seconds, green eyes on brown, and then Tony questioned, "What happened between you and your dad?"

Ziva looked down, fiddling with her wedding ring, and said, "You know I do not like talking about that."

"So, you've never told me?" she gave him a curious look, but still shook her head. Score, something 'vivid dream' Tony didn't know, too.

Ziva was quiet, still fiddling with her ring, but then sighed and said, "When I had gotten pregnant with Katie I had not planned to tell my father. I did not want her raised like I was, and I knew he would try to talk me into it. But he had heard whispers, and about four months into my pregnancy he confronted me in a phone call. I had never been able to lie to him, so I told him." she fell silent again taking Tony's hand between hers. "At first, he was happy for me, proud to be a grandfather, until he asked who the father was.

"I did not want to tell him, but he started guessing. Someone I met at work, someone outside of work." She laughed once, "He even asked if it was McGee's."

"Really?" Tony couldn't help smiling, too.

"Well, he called him the 'computer genius', but yes. He then told me anyone could be the father except for 'that Agent DiNozzo.'" Tony could hear the bitterness she adopted while imitating her father's voice. "I told him that was exactly who the father was, he had just made me so angry. We had been together three months, you were wonderful, and I was starting to…" she blushed slightly, Tony not hating the look on her. "He told me to give Katie up, cut off all ties to you, and I told him I could not do that; that I would not do that. He told me I either did it or I can kiss my spot in our family good-bye. I told him to go to hell and hung up on him."

She fell silent again, absentmindedly fiddling with Tony's ring now. DiNozzo thought she was done talking, but was proven wrong. She took a breath and said, "That night you kept asking me why I was upset, and I would not tell you, remember?" Tony nodded just so she would continue the story. "Instead I said 'I love you.' And you responded by saying 'Ziva will you marry me?'" It was so blunt, so not DiNozzo. He would never just blurt out that question unless he really, really, really couldn't imagine his life without the girl. He guessed Ziva was that girl…

"At first I thought about saying 'no, not yet.' But then I got to thinking, and I knew I could not let this opportunity pass. I loved you, you obviously loved me, and stacking…"

"Sticking," Tony corrected automatically.

"…sticking it to my father was just a bonus…"

Tony chuckled once, shaking his head. "What?" Ziva asked confused.

"You married me to stick it to your father," Tony responded in a fake, hurt voice. "I… I don't if I can trust you anymore."

"I just…" she trailed off, realizing he was joking. "You are an ass." She pushed his hand away from her. He chuckled again, and she smiled slightly, shaking her head.

"You think Katie's having fun with Abby?" Tony commented after a comfortable silence.

"She always has fun with Abby," Ziva responded with a shrug. They lapsed into silence again.

"McGee's thinking about asking Jeanne to marry him," Tony blurted out after a few seconds.

"What?" Ziva looked outraged.

"He showed me the ring."

"She does not deserve McGee. She deserves a hole in the head." Ziva continued to grumble in another language. After a few seconds of ranting, she took a breath and said, "But I guess it is not my place to say anything."

"Hey," Tony whispered catching her hand. "Let's not worry about McGoo. He'll make the right decision in the end."

"Yes, I guess you are right." Ziva yawned, looking at the clock on the wall. "I am tired."

"Let's go to bed then," Tony said quietly, getting to his feet and pulling Ziva up with him…

NCIS

Tony lay awake, looking at the ceiling. He listened to Ziva's soft snores, wondering how he could have gotten so lucky. He had a beautiful daughter, a stunning wife, a damn near perfect life. Dream, real, who cared? Because he had it all, everything he always subconsciously thought about. And it didn't matter what Gibbs said, he did have it all. He slowly drifted off to sleep.

He hadn't been asleep long when he heard a faint cry of pain, Ziva's voice saying, "Tony, there is something wrong." His eyes flew open, he reached over to turn on the lamp, worry pulsing through his veins. He sat up, eyes landing on Ziva, feeling his stomach clench and his heart stop at the sight. Blood was coating her hand…

NCIS

Yeah, we left it there (*Evil cackle*)

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