Chapter 12

Tony tried to remove the oxygen mask from his face and Abby swatted at his hand.

"Tony, don't touch that mask. It's helping you breathe. Gibbs is on his way and I need you to keep breathing so he doesn't yell at me. He said that you are not allowed to die."

He tried to speak, but could only cough and gasp more as black spots formed in his vision from the lack of oxygen. Tony lifted his hand and reached out for Abby. She quickly took his hand and tried to rub warmth back into them. He was fading quickly. Tony's eyes fell shut and he made a choking sound that resembled water running down a drain. Abby held back tears as she tried to help him sit up more to keep him from aspirating.

"Please Tony. You have to hold on. Gibbs is coming."

It took her a moment to realize that Tony's chest had stopped rising and falling. He was so still. Tony had stopped breathing. Abby panicked, climbing up on the bed and removing the oxygen mask. She heard the front door open with a click and close behind the man arriving.

"Gibbs! Tony just stopped breathing!" Abby shouted.

There was the sound of a cup dropping to the floor and spilling as Gibbs hit the stairs and ran as fast as he could. The thumping was loud in her ears. Abby checked for a pulse, finding that his pulse was weak and erratic. The door burst open as his pulse disappeared and Tony was no longer fighting. Gibbs rushed up to the bed and placed a hand on Tony's neck, looking for the same pulse. Nothing. He brushed away Abby's hands and continued CPR, breathing into Tony's mouth and then ordering Abby to call 911. She took her phone and stepped into the hallway, yelling for the paramedics to hurry. It was the longest few minutes of her life. Gibbs swore as he pressed down on Tony's chest, feeling several of his ribs break from the pressure needed to keep his heart pumping blood. He breathed into Tony again and again. Gibbs heard the sirens approaching his house and the paramedics running up the stairs with Abby right behind them. He felt a little light-headed as one of the men pushed him backwards, promising to take care of him.

"Come on Tony," Gibbs whispered.

Gibbs took Tony's hand as they moved him outside and to the waiting ambulance. A few of the neighbors were gathered outside, curious about the noise. It wasn't even noon and the day kept getting worse. Gibbs watched as Tony was loaded into the ambulance. He grabbed his cell phone as Abby instructed the paramedic to take him to Bethesda Naval Hospital, where his doctor would be waiting.

"Ducky," he gasped, out of breath.

"Jethro, what's wrong?" the Scot asked.

"Tony stopped breathing. He's on his way to Bethesda. I'll be right behind him with Abby."

"Good Lord, I will meet him in the emergency room."

Gibbs ran his fingers through his hair, standing in the rain as the ambulance quickly pulled away from his house. "Do me a favor, Duck."

"Of course."

"I want Doctor Pitt on Tony's case. I don't care if he's at home sleeping, wake him up and get him to Bethesda. I want him with Tony right away."

"I will."

Gibbs didn't answer. He closed his phone and stuffed it into his pocket, seeing Abby standing at the end of the driveway. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, smearing her mascara. He wrapped his arms around her, hauling her towards his car and carefully putting her in the passenger's seat. There were no words to express his pain as they drove to the hospital. First Tony was sick and then McGee was in a serious accident, and now Tony wasn't breathing. He felt like he was doing a shitty job of protecting his team.

Sitting in the waiting room was extremely painful. Ziva had still been upstairs with McGee and quickly came down to join them. Gibbs didn't say a word, just held her tight. She showed no emotional response and that concerned the older man even more. Ziva released him and took a seat next to Abby, giving the young Goth a hug to comfort her. There was no sign of Ducky or Doctor Brad Pitt. He sat in the hard plastic chair, desperate for information on his agent. Abby went to sit with McGee after a nurse came downstairs to tell them that he was agitated and was refusing medical treatment, anxious for news about DiNozzo. She was the only one that could calm him down and keep him from injuring himself further.

Three hours passed with no word in Tony's condition and the stress was getting to all of them. Palmer had brought them all something to eat on Ducky's request, but they weren't eating anything. Ziva had even gone as far as throwing away the food and sitting alone, trying to take deep breaths. Food wasn't important, only Tony. Gibbs walked over to her and sat down, holding out a cup of water. She didn't take it.

"I am not thirsty."

"Ziva, you need to drink something."

"No!" she yelled, standing up. "I do not need that! I need Tony. Tony!" Her voice dropped. "I need him to be okay."

Gibbs didn't say anything, just motioned for her to sit back down. Ziva didn't move until he repeated the action. Her shoulders were tense and she didn't look at him. Gibbs leaned over close to her and whispered his words.

"Ziva, I need you to drink this cup of water. I can't have you getting dehydrated. You would be in the same room as McGee getting fluid through an IV and unable to find out what is happening with Tony. I know that you don't want that. I am sure that Ducky will be through that door to tell us what's going on. Tony does not have permission to die. He would not leave us or you."

Ziva nodded. "Gibbs… I am sorry –"

"Don't apologize."

"I know it's a sign of –"

"You are not weak Ziva," he spoke softly and with purpose.

"Thank you."

She quietly drank the water, keeping her eyes on the floor and avoiding eye contact. Gibbs and Ziva looked up as the doors opened and Dr. Pitt, accompanied with Ducky walked over to them. The two quickly jumped to their feet and met them half way across the room.

"How is Tony?" Ziva demanded to know.

"Tony is stable at the moment," Brad responded. "He's in the ICU. He is suffering from a complication of the bronchitis, which has developed into pneumonia. Tony's lungs weren't able to cope with the added stress and lack of oxygen causing the respiratory failure that you witnessed. We had to put him on a ventilator to regulate his breathing and his oxygen levels."

"Anthony has developed a fever and his body is fighting to overcome the infection. We have him on a regimen of antibiotics to give his immune system a boost," Ducky added.

"Will he be alright?" Gibbs inquired.

"The next twenty-hour will be crucial."

The answer was met with silence. Gibbs couldn't find any words to say as Ducky put a hand on his shoulder and inquired to Palmer if they had eaten anything. Brad made a comment about letting Abby and Tim know about the situation and disappeared. Ziva didn't move. Her thoughts were elsewhere and she had to see him. She couldn't relax until she saw that Tony was alive.

"Ducky," she began.

"I will take you to him," he replied, giving her a soft smile.

Ziva tried to smile, but couldn't. Gibbs squeezed her arm gently, promising that he would be up in a little bit. He wanted to go check on Tim and Abby. Ducky put out his arm, offering it to Ziva. She hesitated for a moment, but then let him pull her close as they walked to the intensive care unit.

Nothing could have really prepared to see her partner lying in the hospital bed. A tube protruded from his mouth, giving him the oxygen his lungs greatly desired. There were several wires emerging from the gap in his hospital gown and an IV in his hand. Ziva could hear the hissing of the ventilator as it helped Tony breathe. She fell into the chair beside his bed as she looked upon his face. His hair was sticking out in every direction and there was stubble on his chin that she didn't notice the day before. Tony was so pale and there were beads of sweat on his forehead from the fever.

"Oh Tony…"

Ziva gently lifted a shaking hand and ran her fingers through his hair to make it look the way that he liked it. She would have to ask Gibbs if he could bring Tony's razor tomorrow. She watched his chest rise and fall, finding herself breathing in the same rhythm to stay calm. It didn't really help that much. Ziva bit her lip to keep back the emotions desperate to escape. Tony's hand suddenly grabbed a handful of the blanket and he moaned in pain, still unconscious. Ziva pried the material from his hand and slipped her own hand into his grasp.

"I am here Tony."

He didn't make an acknowledgement that he heard her and it broke her heart. Ever so gently, Ziva leaned over and kissed Tony's hand, barely brushing her lips against his too warm skin. A tear fell from her eyes, landing on his skin. She did not have the heart or the strength to wipe it away. She sat up and ran her fingers through his hair again and down his cheek, vowing not to leave him until he was breathing on his own. Tony wouldn't face this alone.

I wrote this yesterday during the football game, I was really only watching it to see the new Glee episode after, I'm gonna admit that. I decided to wait until today to post this chapter. I'm hoping to make it to 300 today, but I won't cross my fingers too much. :)

Thanks for reading and please review!

Emma

P.S. A fun little fact about me; my favorite episode of NCIS was on TV today. "Chimera" from Season 5. I love the team being trapped on a ship that doesn't exist!

Tim: I'm dealing with my boat phobia. Tony's dealing with his rat phobia. And Ziva's dealing with her ghost phobia.

Abby: So what's Gibbs dealing with?

Gibbs: Them.

OR

Tony (singing): Baa baa black ship, have you any wool? Yes sir, yes sir. But in order to see it, you're gonna need top secret government clearance.

So many wonderful and funny lines in the episode! You really get to see the team working together and its just hilarious! If you want to, you should go watch that episode. I know I will. :)