Rifiuto: Non Miriena
Tim jolted awake; Ziva still slept soundly by his side, her soft curves melded with his as he curved around her, holding her to him. She had one hand tucked beneath her pillow, the other had loosely tangled with his, her pinkie wrapped tight around his ring finger, resting against his wedding ring. Still sound asleep, she shifted, burrowing deeper into her pillow, tightening her grip on his ring finger. After a moment, he sat up, slowly and gently extracting his hand from his wife's. A quick glance at the clock told him it was five after four, and after a moment, he turned back to her. Sound asleep and snoring; at least one of them was getting some rest. Chuckling softly, he leaned over, pressing a kiss to her head. "I love you, Zi."
Then, he got up and slipped out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him, only to turn back. After a moment's confusion, he knelt down to examine the doorknob. It was then that he found a dark green ribbon tied around the knob. Confused, he stood, rushing to the nursery. As he reached to push open the slightly ajar door, a soft voice caused him pause.
"Hi Liron, it is your big brother. Asher."
His older son, talking to his baby brother, being quiet and gentle so as not to scare him. Watching through the slightly open door, Tim stayed quiet, paying close attention to Asher as he stood by the crib; he smiled at the baby, before going to the window and opening the curtain a few inches. Once done, he returned to the crib and knelt down, slipping his hand through the bars. The baby reached out, grasping Asher's pinkie tightly. The older boy smiled, giggling as he talked softly to his brother.
"Ima and Abba are still asleep. After the last time, Ima told me to come get them if you were awake, but I did not want to wake them. Ima and Abba are NCIS agents- that is like regular police, only they work for the Navy. So I tied a green ribbon to their bedroom door instead, to let them know I would be in here if they woke up." The boy watched the infant for several minutes, lost in thought, before,
"I did not want you at first. I thought you would replace me. But Ima told me that I have to be a good example for you." He licked his lips. "Abba let me help paint your room. Mr. Gibbs and the rest of Abba's team helped, and so did Sarah Doda, and Tali Doda, and we painted it for Ima when you were still in her tummy."
Tim chuckled softly, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest. "Timothy?" He turned, surprised to find Ziva pulling his robe over her small shoulders and wrapping it around herself, tying it loosely about her waist. She wore a pair of his boxers and a blue tank, her dark hair pulled back in a loose, messy ponytail, one long strand curling into her eyes. She reached up, brushing the strand away, and Tim reached out to take her hand, bringing a finger to his lips.
"Shh."
"What is going on, Tim?" She asked, as he pulled her into his side, wrapping his arm around her waist and holding her against his chest. She followed his gaze, surprised to find Asher at Liron's crib, talking softly to the baby as though he were talking to Tony or Gibbs or Sarah.
"You made Ima so big, but you were so small, I do not understand it." The boy shook his head. "But Abba was here, when you were born." Asher rested his head against the bars, trying to gently pry his pinkie from his brother's grasp, but the baby held on tighter. "You were lucky. Abba was not there when I was born. I was born in Israel. It is this... this country where all there is... is dirt and olive trees and... and dirt." Tim chuckled softly, meeting his wife's eyes briefly. "I think you are lucky. Ima said that... that Abba did not even know about me... because of their parents. She said that I was a shock." The boy stopped, biting his lip. "But Abba loves me. You know how I know? Because he has a tattoo! Lots of them! One for Ima and one for me; it is on his wrist." He thought a moment. "He has one for you too, Liron! It is on his other wrist! I know because I got to watch the man put it on him! And it is permanent, they never come off."
"Should we interrupt him?" Ziva whispered, leaning further into her husband's embrace. Tim shook his head.
"No. He's just talking to Liron. No harm, no foul. Leave him be." But neither parent moved from the door; they were too entranced by their oldest son's constant chatter.
"America is a really strange place; when Ima and I came here to find Abba... well, you were not even thought of yet, let alone in Ima's tummy." He bit his lip. "Did you know that they eat pork here? We did not eat pork in Israel. It is not kosher. Abba eats pork, and so does Mr. Gibbs and Sarah Doda. But... every once and a while Ima eats pork, too. I will not tell if you will not." He whispered, bringing smiles to his parents' faces. They shared a glance before Ziva laid her head on his chest, taking his hand and lacing their fingers. "Tali Doda lives here. I thought she was dead, because Ima was told she was dead, but she was not. She lives here, in America. She helped Ima take you out of her tummy. She does that a lot, with other people. She..." He licked his lips, speaking slowly so the baby understood. "She takes... babies out of... tummies. Like when you were born."
Ziva chuckled as her son focused on using small words to describe his brother's birth, even though the baby didn't understand a word of what his brother was saying.
Asher stopped, thinking for a moment, before leaning close to whisper,
"I did not want you, Liron, but now that you are here, I want to keep you. I hope Ima and Abba say yes."