"I am going to shower."
Ziva carried her coat and bag to her room, closing the door behind her. She was still silent on the ride home, but this time she looked out the front window, her thumb now rubbing Tony's hand. Tony walked into the kitchen and set down the bag of greasy food they had stopped for on the way home.
As he heard the shower turn on, his phone began to ring from his back pocket. "DiNozzo."
"Tony, how's Ziva?"
Tony smiled at Abby's voice on the other line. She could hear McGee in the background. "She is fine. She's in the shower right now. The doctor said there is just deep bruising. And she had a few stitches. But she'll be fine, just lots of rest."
"Wait, she's in the shower and you are on the phone with me? Tony, are you in love?"
Tony coughed. "Abby, I am not in love. Calm down. I'm just taking care of a friend. Could you tell McGee to settle down in the background too? I promise, Ziva is going to be fine here."
"Tony, are you sure you should be taking care of someone? Especially a woman?" McGee's voice make Tony's smile fade. "I mean, not that you can't take care of people, but Ziva is strong-willed."
"McGeek, we'll be fine. Tell Gibbs everything is under control and we'll be there tomorrow morning."
Tony snapped his phone shut and pulled the two burgers and fries out of the bag, setting them on plates he had found in the cupboard. He had just poured two cups of tea when he heard the shower turn off. He carried them out to the living room and set them on the small table.
A few minutes later, she stepped out of her bedroom, dressed in a white t-shirt and black cut-off sweatpants. Her dark brown hair was still damp and hung down her back. She smiled as she noticed Tony sitting on the couch, eating his burger. She silently sat down on the couch next to him and picked up one of the mugs.
"Thank you," she said as she leaned back, her still-swollen hands wrapped around the navy blue mug.
Tony grabbed his own mug and said, "For what?"
"For taking me to the hospital. For sticking around here. You do not have to stay all night. I will be fine."
"I am not leaving you." Tony leaned forward and brushed Ziva's hair from her face. He ran his thumb over the bandage where a set of stitches were, her skin warm. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, in between two sets of stitches. Then, he pressed one to the tip of her nose, both cheeks, and then her lips.
"Tony, wait." He pulled away and looked into her tired eyes. "I do not want this to be a fling. You and I, it needs to be real or I will not do it."
But Tony covered her lips with his finger. "Ziva, this is real. I'm not messing around this time. What I feel for you, it's something I've never felt before, even with Jeanne. But I don't want to mess this up, and I have an act of messing that up. So please, give me a chance. Give me a chance to prove that I can do this."
That was all she needed to hear. She didn't need a detailed reason as to why he wanted this chance, or what he was feeling. All she wanted to hear was that he was feeling the same way she was. She moved his hand away from her lips and then kissed him, and suddenly, her entire body relaxed. Her kiss became more intense, but Tony quickly pulled away and said, "Ziva, you are supposed to be relaxing."
"I am relaxed."
Tony laughed. "I understand that, but if we keep going like this, you aren't going to be relaxing."
Ziva smirked. "But you would be helping the pain."
"I doubt that. Look, I want this to happen again just as much as you do, but I need to put your health first."
Ziva planted one more kiss on his warm lips and said, "I have you racked around my finger, Tony."
She leaned back against the couch, grabbing her mug again, and turned on the TV, as Tony said, "Honey, it's wrapped."
And then she smiled and leaned into him, both of them watching the television until they fell asleep.
"Gibbs, I think-"
Suddenly, I felt someone hit me in the back of the head. As I fell to the ground rapidly, I heard glass shatter.
"You shouldn't wander around a killer's house alone, such a pretty thing like you."
I searched for my gun as best as I could, the pain overbearing. I couldn't see it, so I lifted myself off the ground, coming face to face with Jackson. I got one punch off before he hit me hard, my gut immediately in pain. I backed into the wall and slid down, not able to fight any longer.
And then the gun shot.
Ziva jumped from her deep sleep, awaking Tony in the process. Her face was covered in sweat and her hands were shaking. "Ziva, what's wrong?" Tony asked as he rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up.
She shook her head. "Nothing, there is nothing wrong. I was just sleeping the wrong way. I am fine." She tried to get up off the couch but Tony grabbed her wrist. She stopped walking but faced away from him, refusing to let him see the tears that were streaming down her face.
"Ziva, talk to me."
"Tony, I am scared."
She stepped backwards and Tony lowered her onto his lap. "Of what?"
"Everything. This job. Our relationship. I do not want to lose it," she said, the fear coming out in her voice. "I cannot lose it."
Tony pushed her hair behind her shoulders. "What makes you think you are going to lose it?"
"I thought I had lost it all today. When I heard that gunshot, I thought it was me. Even when I did not feel any pain, I had assumed you just did not feel pain when you were shot. I did not know. But then, I saw your face. I heard your voice. And suddenly, I realized if I had been killed, you never would have known how I felt."
Tony reached up and wiped a tear from her face, a small smile forming over her lips.
"Tony, I love you. I have since day 1 and I am still not exactly sure why, but I do know it is true."
His lips were on hers within seconds. He knew she needed to rest, and honestly, he did too, but this was more important right now. When they finally pulled away, he said, "I love you too, Ziva. And I promise, I am never EVER letting you out of my sight again. You are too important in my life for me to risk losing you like I thought I did today."
She smiled and kissed him again. "So this is real?"
He nodded.
"Good. You get to tell Gibbs."
He groaned and she kissed him again before standing up and grabbing his hand, them both heading to the bedroom for some much needed sleep.