The curtain was pulled in between their beds as the cardiologist came to speak with Tony. Ziva had only pretended to continue to sleep when they closed the curtain. She listened intently to the doctor's voice as he spoke.
"All the tests came back showing that your heart is in perfect health," he told him. Ziva felt relief flush through her. "Do you have any history of panic attacks?" the doctor asked him.
"No," Tony replied.
"What my diagnostics team and I have concluded is that you may have had an esophageal spasm caused by the slight heartburn the tomato soup must have induced."
"What's that?"
"The pain you felt in your chest was your esophagus squeezing into spasm. This is a problem that's usually inflamed by stress, but it's manageable."
"But I couldn't breath, Doc. Is that another symptom?"
"Normally, no. But given the stressful conditions you were in, my guess would be that you were experiencing an anxiety attack as well, not knowing why you were in pain. I'm going to write you out a few prescriptions I'd like you to start taking," he pulled out a script tablet. "One of them is to treat acid reflux. I'd like you to take this every day. If the pain returns, you need to come back in to be checked out. The other is something you should take at bed time. It's given to patients who suffer from anxiety, but I'm mostly concerned about process of elimination."
"Could it interfere with my performance at work?" he asked with furrowed brow.
"The medicine? No. But if you were to have an anxiety attack, your job being what it is, it could be a problem for you." Tony looked down at the blanket that lay over him. His eyes openly showing his feelings of insecurity and uncertainty. "Like I said, Agent DiNozzo, these are preventative medications. If you stick to them, I don't foresee it happening again any time soon. Especially since this is the first time it's happened."
"Thanks," he replied in a whisper.
"I'll have the pharmacy fill these downstairs, then we can get you ready to be discharged."
Tony looked up at him. "What about her?" he motioned toward the curtain that separated him from Ziva.
"Miss David is ready to be discharged as well. I'll be back in to talk to her in a few minutes," he turned to leave.
"Hey, Doc?" Tony sat up to grab his attention. The doctor turned back toward him. "What about the HIV test results?"
"It could be several days or even weeks before we can get that information back, Sir. I suggest you take precautions, of course, until those results come in." Tony gave a nervous nod before laying his head back down on his pillow, watching the doctor continue out the door. He briefly glanced at the closed curtain before fixing his gaze out the window at the mid-day, clear sky.
He didn't hear Ziva open the curtain, or walk up beside his bed. But he felt her hand when it settled gently on his arm, and his head shot over to it, then up at her. "Didn't know you were up," he said softly as he grinned up at her slightly.
"I was glad to hear that there is nothing wrong with your heart," she said, concern still washing her features.
"Me too," he said, looking back down at her hand, "But my gut won't quit nagging."
"I know," she said as her thumb lightly brushed up and down on the little patch of skin beneath it. It gave him goosebumps.
"Hey, guys," McGee said as he walked into the room, turning to shut the door behind him before heading over to them, carrying two black carry-on bags. "Sorry I'm late. Traffic was insane."
"Don't worry about it, Probie," Tony said as Ziva walked back to her bed, "You're right on time. Doc says we're getting outta here soon. You can give us a ride, right?"
"Yeah, sure, no problem. Gibbs had me bring your overnight bags," he said as he set them down in the chair. "But I guess you won't be needing them."
"We did need something to wear out of here, McGee," Ziva said. "Thank you."
"You're looking a lot better today," he told Ziva with a small smile. Then he looked at Tony. "Gibbs brought your shirts to Abby to run," he told him. "She said he wanted her to check for any other DNA besides yours. I'm guessing to try and rule out Yates' blood getting on either of you," the look of concern on his face told them he knew about the possible danger they were in.
"She find anything?" Tony asked in a small voice.
Tim's eyes darted around for a moment. "Nothing yet."
"You lyin' to me?" Tony asked, noticing his hesitancy.
Tim looked at him, pursing his lips, aggravated at himself for not being able to hide what he knew. "There was a very small...amount of blood splatter on Ziva's shirt," he said, glancing at Ziva. "But Abby says it wasn't anywhere near the holes in your shirt from the taser, Ziva," he told her in an attempted comforting voice. He glanced back at Tony, whose face had paled at the information. "I'm sure everything's gonna be okay."
Tony looked over at Ziva. She was sitting on the side of the bed, looking down at her hands in her lap. When her eyes met his, she scooted off the bed. "I am going to get changed," she said, picking up her bag. They both watched her disappear into the bathroom.
Tony sat up and swung his legs off the side of his bed. "Hand me mine, would ya?" he asked McGee. Tim grabbed the bag and handed it to him. "So Gibbs went by my place?" he asked as he slipped on his pants before taking off the gown.
"Uh...yeah. I went with him," he said nervously. "Abby was pretty freaked out when she saw what was left of your shirt." Tony stood, turning his back to him as he riffled through the bag for a tee shirt. McGee's eyes met the stitched up lacerations on his back and swallowed. "God, Tony...I- I- I'm sorry about what they did to you..." Tony spun around, only then remembering that his back was no longer bandaged.
"Just flesh wounds, McGee," he half smiled as he threw on the tee shirt. "Nothing to worry about."
"Does it hurt?" he squinted.
"Not so much with the pain killers they gave me," he sat back on the side of the bed and pulled out a pair of socks. Tim sat cautiously down in the chair beside the bed.
"What about Ziva?" he asked quietly and Tony looked back at him. "I know tasers aren't life-threatening or anything, but when I saw her the other night..." his sentence tapered off as his eyes darted somewhere in the air between them.
"I am fine, McGee," Ziva said, coming out of the bathroom, dressed. He looked at her.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry..."
"It is alright. I know you were concerned," she said as she sat on the edge of her bed and put her shoes on.
A nurse came in with some clipboards then. "I have your discharge papers and some self-care sheets for you to take home," she told both patients. "If you can read over them and sign the discharge sheet at the bottom, the doctor will be back up shortly with your prescriptions." They both took the clipboards from her and watched her walk out.
"When we go, you wanna stop and grab something to eat before I drop you off?" McGee asked.
Tony glanced at Ziva. She considered the question; though she wasn't very hungry, she didn't want to go home just yet and be separated from Tony. "Sure," she replied.
"Great," he smiled and stood. "I'll go pull the car up and wait for you to come out, if that's okay with you."
Tony nodded and moved to the chair Tim had earlier occupied. Ziva moved across the room after McGee exited, and sat on the edge of Tony's bed, facing him as he sat in the chair.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" he smirked.
She knew him better than that. She watched him as his gaze fell to his hands. "My car is still parked at your apartment," she said. "So McGee can drop me off with you."
He looked back up to her again. "If you wanna hang out a little before you leave...I wouldn't mind the company," he told her. She smirked at him, raising a brow. "We can watch a movie or something. If you want to, I mean...I'm not gonna force you..." his brow furrowed as he looked down again; memories flashing into his mind from the night before last. She recognized his hesitation.
"I would love to," she said and the corner of her mouth turned up when he looked up at her again.
He returned the smile. "You can pick the movie."
"I trust you," she said, standing and grabbing the clipboard to look it over. "I suggest something with a happy ending, though," she said when she sat on her bed.
"I think I might have something..."
"Oh good," the doctor said as he walked into the room, "Both of you are awake. I have your PEP meds here," he handed a bottle to Ziva, "And yours, as well the other prescriptions we discussed earlier," he handed the bottles to Tony. Tony looked them over before throwing them into his overnight bag. "Now, the PEP meds can cause some mild side effects, such as upset stomach, headaches, fatigue... but not in all patients. If it does happen, give me a call and I should be able to call something in to help. Other then that, you're free to go if you're finished signing the paperwork."
"Got it right here," Tony stood and handed it to him as Ziva did the same.
"Thank you," Ziva said, then made her way out of the room...
*~.~*
"I can not believe you talked me into watching this," Ziva said from her spot on the couch.
"Willy Wonka is a classic, Zee," he said as he took a sip of his iced tea. "I know it's not as magical as when you see it as a kid; thinking somehow, someday, you just might get to be in a room made entirely out of candy."
"I must admit, the edible teacup was intriguing," Ziva said, raising brow. "But the chocolate river is...well, frankly, unsanitary."
"It is now anyway," he said as they watched the fat little boy on the screen get pushed up the tube.
Ziva laughed through her nose. She glanced over at him as he pressed the glass to his forehead.
"Headache?" she asked.
"Not too bad," he replied. "Probably just need sleep."
"We can watch the rest of this tomorrow," she suggested.
"No, it's okay, Zee. I'm just gonna jump in the shower," he said as he stood, "Maybe that'll loosen up my muscles. Pretty sure that hospital bed destroyed my back. Probably why my head hurts. You keep watching. I'll be out in five minutes."
She gave him a small smile as she watched him disappear into the bedroom. Then her attention went back to the television as some strange little green-haired dwarfs began to sing. She cocked her head and squinted before hearing a knock at the door.
She stood from the couch, thankful for the distraction from the movie, and listened to the sound of the shower running before going to answer the door. Through the peephole, she saw Gibbs and opened the door, making room for him to enter.
"Hey, Ziva," he said as he entered, glancing over at the TV. "What's DiNozzo got you watching?"
"Willy Wonka and the apparently exceedingly over-funded Chocolate Factory," she sighed as she made her way back to the couch. Gibbs smirked. "He is in the shower," she told him. "Said he has a headache."
"Take it everything came back okay with his doctor?" he asked as he sat on the arm of the couch.
"With his heart? Yes. They said it was a...um...an esophageal...spasm?" she hoped she was saying it right. "He was given a prescription to take to stop it from happening again."
Gibbs nodded, then scratched his cheek. "How about you? How are you doing?"
"I am fine, as I have been telling you," she squinted. "If you came here to tell me to take some time off, it is not needed."
"Ducky told me about the side effects of those drugs," he told her, looking at her face for a reaction.
"We have been on them for three days now, and we are fine," she said with a calm face. But Gibbs looked at her, his eyes briefly squinting as he waited for her to continue. "If something should happen while we are at work, then we will take time off," she negotiated. But she could see that he wasn't convinced.
She looked down at the coffee table in front of her. Her eyes caught the reflection that glared down on it from the television. It made her glance up at the television as Veruca Salt began demanding her father buy her a golden goose.
Ziva heard a small laugh from Gibbs and glanced at him. He was looking at the screen, seemingly amused. Then his eyes glanced to her. Then to the floor. "I remember this movie now," he said with a smirk. "This was Kelly's favorite part."
Ziva watched his face as he continued to watch the screen. She couldn't imagine what he felt in that moment. She was drawn back to the scene that played on the screen. The spoiled little girl was singing now, destroying the room she was in as she demanded her father allow her a party, until she stood on a platform and the floor opened up underneath her, and she fell down the shoot.
"Guess she was a bad egg..." Willy Wonka said. Ziva smiled, amused, and looked back over at her boss who was doing the same. Then his eyes fell back upon hers.
"I need to be at work," she said, her eyes pleading with his. "I cannot spend my days watching the phone, waiting..."
He watched her eyes as they changed from certainty to desperation. "Okay," he said as he nodded. The fear in her eyes diminished as she smiled in relief.
"Boss?" Tony came out of the bedroom dressed, but his hair was still damp.
"Hey, Tony," he said as he stood from the couch and reached into his coat pocket. "Got your requisitioned phones," he handed them each their new cells.
"Thought McGee recovered them?" Tony questioned as he turned his phone in his hands.
"He did," he said as he shifted uncomfortably where he stood, scratching the side of his head.
"Yates used them to record audio," Ziva said, and they both looked at her, "They should be in evidence."
"Didn't wanna take any chances," Gibbs added. "Anyway, I'm gonna go. See you both at work, tomorrow?" he glanced up at Tony as he nodded, then turned toward the door. Tony followed him.
"Thanks for...cleaning up in there," he told him quietly, referring the bloody comforter that had been changed. Gibbs smirked as he thought.
"Ducky's idea, DiNozzo. Thank him."