Six months pregnant...
Ziva DiNozzo was late.
Tony had apparently turned off the alarm when it went off, she apparently didn't wake up, Tony apparently thought that she 'needed her rest', and she was apparently two hours late for work.
This wasn't the way that she had planned to start off her Tuesday morning.
Throwing on a pair of maternity pants and a maternity shirt that Tony had bought for her last week, she grabbed the key to her Mini hurriedly off of the counter, drowning a glass of orange juice from the breakfast that Tony had set out for her before hurrying out of the door.
Breaking a couple more speed limits than normal, the car screeched into the only available parking space left; one that was definitely far from the elevator that she needed to get to to get up to the squad room.
Growling inside and muttering things about Tony and how he didn't wake her, she started her long walk towards the elevator, her feet dragging on the ground. She looked down, but realized that she could barely see her feet, in fact, at a certain angle, she couldn't see them at all thanks to her growing baby bump. She smiled and rubbed it affectionately, resting her hand there. Her tiny feet rebounded off of the walls in the garage, echoing as she made her humble way over to the elevator, thinking about her baby.
No, their baby.
Part of her wanted to know the gender of the baby, whether or not they were actually going to be having a boy or a girl, that way making it easier to buy stuff for it, but then part of her desperately wanted it to be a surprise.
And thinking about the baby brought her back to thinking about Tony.
And thinking about Tony brought her back to thinking about how he didn't wake her up to go to work.
Gritting her teeth together, both her back and her feet ached as she pressed the button for the elevator, calling it to her. Taking in a deep breath, the elevator doors dinged opened quietly, and she stepped in, putting her hands on her hips, her thumbs on her back to support her womb as she stretched. It had gotten increasingly painful for her back. So painful that she even stopped running. Well, that and the doctor nearly passed out when she told her that she woke up early every morning to go for a run.
The elevator doors finally opened up into the squad room and she slung her backpack back over one shoulder before stepping out, several people staring awkwardly at her.
She hated that.
She hated it when people just stared at you, and they thought that you weren't looking.
Or couldn't see them.
She made her way towards the bullpen where Tony was sitting at his desk, looking at his computer. She smiled at him, "Shalom, Tony." Breaking her stare at him, she threw down her backpack behind her desk and sat down in her seat, Tony looking up at her.
"I thought you were sleeping in."
She shook her head, "It is extremely boring by myself at the apartment."
"Apartment." McGee interrupted, chirping in just as Tony was about to open his mouth, "Uh...shouldn't you guys be thinking about buying a house? You know, for the baby?"
Ziva looked at Tony and tilted her head to the side, "Well?" She questioned, "What do you think?"
Tony sighed, "Yeah, I guess little McGoo's right....we gotta start looking at at least a townhouse. Something with a guest bedroom for the little DiNozzo."
She nodded, "I will start looking for ads in the paper, yes?"
"Yeah, that sounds good." He said before returning to his paper.
Gibbs chose that moment to walk into the bullpen, coffee cup in his right hand. He took a sip as he paused in front of Ziva's desk, "Officer DiNozzo." He said, and she looked up at him. Tony grinned. He couldn't help it.
Officer DiNozzo.
"Yes?" She questioned kindly, looking up into the boss' icy blue eyes.
"I thought you were taking the day off. That's what DiNozzo one said." he pointed his finger at Tony.
"What are we?" He demanded, "Thing 1 and Thing 2 like in Dr. Seuss' the Cat in the Hat?"
"Well you're something all right, Tony." McGee muttered as Gibbs smirked.
Tony narrowed his eyes at him, "Can it, McAuthor."
"I am not." Ziva responded, looking back at Gibbs, "It is too boring home alone." She admitted.
He just nodded and then left, walking out of the bullpen. Ziva turned around in her seat to grab a cold case file out when her phone rang. Turning back around, she picked it up, "Officer David-DiNozzo." She responded and Tony watched her on the phone, her face draining of color as she listened to whomever was on the other end, "I am...too busy, I-" She stopped as the other person on the end of the line talked to her some more, "Director Vance, I can assure you that-" She was cut off again and Tony could see the fear in her eyes from across the bullpen. He and McGee looked worriedly at each other as she sighed, "Yes, I will be right there," And then hung up the phone, burying her face in her hands.
"Who was that?" Tony questioned, but then realized he sounded stupid, "I mean...what did Vance want?"
She looked up at him and pushed some of her hair backwards, "My father has requested to speak with me. Via MTAC feed."
Tony gulped, "If he sees you, Ziva he's going to-"
"I know, I know." She quietly muttered, her eyes darting around, "I cannot speak to him. If he finds out I am pregnant, which should not be that hard with this-" She gestured towards her belly, "-being so large, then he will get quite angry."
They sat in silence for a while before Tony abruptly stood up, "I'm gonna go up there and talk to him."
Ziva stood as well, "Oh no, Tony, you cannot talk to him. That would make him suspicious."
"Like I care?" He demanded as he started out of the bullpen. Ziva followed quickly, "Look, I don't give a damn what he thinks, okay? Besides, I'll just tell him that you're...tied up in the moment."
"With what?" She demanded.
"Interrogating a suspect?" He questioned, "I don't know, I'll make something up! I'm a trained investigator Ziva, it's kinda what I do."
"You are not very good at lying." She pointed out, "Well, actually, you are. Sometimes. You have gotten better though." She admitted as she followed him up the stairs. She was exhausted by the time she was halfway up and started walking slower.
"You okay?" he asked, concern definite in his tone as he turned to look at her.
She nodded, "I am fine. Just a little...tired...that is all."
He placed a hand on her shoulder, "Why don't you take a rest right here, and I'll go and take care of Daddy dearest, okay?"
She slowly sat down onto the step, her legs stretching out to a step two down from the one that she was sitting on.
He kissed the crown of her head as she slumped her head against the railing, closing her eyes for a second or two as Tony scanned his eyes and started into MTAC, the door closing behind him.
He walked down the stairs and stood in front of the screen, turning to the 'techies' as he called them, "Hi." He grinned, "I'm here for Ziva, she's kinda tied up at the moment, so she asked if I could take the call instead."
They all looked at each other before shrugging their shoulders and pressing a couple of buttons, the rainbow bars replaced with the Director of Mossad's face instead.
"Agent DiNozzo?" He questioned, obviously shocked to see his face.
Tony nodded, "Yeah, hi, Ziva can't come to the MTAC call at the moment, so could you please leave your name, number, and a detailed message and I'll try to have her get back to you as soon as she can." He grinned, reminding himself of an answering machine.
"Where is my daughter?"
"She's uh...a little tied up at the moment. Interrogating this suspect wanted for child abuse?"
Eli chuckled, "Well Agent DiNozzo, I only want to talk to her for a couple of minutes. Not long."
"I said she's tied up." His joking facade was gone and was replaced with a serious one nearly instantly.
"Well I suppose that I will talk to her soon anyways..."
"Excuse me?" He cut him off.
"I just called to inform her that I am going to be flying in to see her tomorrow."
Tony gulped and his heart started beating a million times faster, "T-t-t-tomorrow?" He stuttered. Oh no...he was going to find out. Find out that they were married, find out that she was pregnant, find out everything. And Tony knew that, for a fact, Eli wasn't going to be a happy camper.
"Yes, Agent DiNozzo, tomorrow! I have realized my actions towards Ziva have been wrong, and I would like to make it up to her. You do not mind that, do you, Agent DiNozzo?"
He paused, trying desperately to soak in the information before responding, "No, of course not, not at all, sir."
"Good. Then I will see you and my daughter tomorrow. My flight is supposed to land at around 1000h DC time, but there is no need to call a cab, for I have a driver that will take me to NCIS. Perhaps I could take you both out to lunch? Or dinner perhaps?"
Tony just nodded, unsure of what to say, "Yeah....that sounds...great." He lied. His heart continued to race.
"See you tomorrow, Agent DiNozzo. Tell my daughter that I send my love." And, with that, the line was disconnected, and Tony just continued to stand there, shoving his hands into his pockets.
"Agent DiNozzo?" one of the techies asked, breaking him out of his trance. He turned to look at them.
"Yeah?" He demanded, sighing as he shoved his hands deeper into his pockets.
"You didn't tell him that you're...married to Officer David...DiNozzo...did you?" He just stared at them, blinking, "Or that she's...pregnant?"
"Do I know you?" He demanded and they gaped at him like fish, trying to find the words to say as they continued to stare.
"Well...you see...I....well...I...uh....you...her...uh...she....I...the whole building...I....uh..."
He nodded, "That's what I thought." Turning sharply on his heel, he all but stormed out of the room, finding Ziva sitting in her same spot. He took the stairs two at a time, slowing as he reached her, sitting down carefully next to her. He straightened his jacket as she looked at him.
"What did he say?" She questioned.
"Well..." He started, staring at nothing in front of him before looking at her, "He asked me where you were."
"And?"
"You were interrogating a suspect that was wanted for child abuse."
"Tony!" She nearly shouted, a grin on her face.
He ignored her, "And he also said..." He ran a hand through his hair before taking a deep breath, his heart still beating like it was before, "...that he's coming by to see you tomorrow."
The smile completely dropped off her face as she stared at him, blinking, unsure of what to say. Subconsciously, her hands automatically went to her belly, as if she was protecting the baby from harm, "Tony he will..."
"I know." He whispered, looking her deep into her chocolate brown eyes, "I know." he repeated.
"I do not think that I am ready for that." She admitted, "I cannot even imagine his reaction to-"
"I won't let anyone hurt you." He cut her off and she paused a moment to read his reaction that was painted on his face. His tone was strong, firm, and extremely adamant as he carefully took one of her hands off of her belly and into his, squeezing gently, keeping a lose grip on it, "Especially not him. Again." She nodded, "You're my life." He squeezed her hand once before placing it on her belly. She looked down, but his eyes never left her face, "This is my future life. And Ziva?" He questioned, and she looked up at him, connecting their eyes as he spoke softly, nearly under his breath, but his words were completely and utterly powerful, "I'm not ready to die."
Ziva David rolled her eyes and slammed her cell phone shut, walking back to the squad room in a huff. She looked at the two men sitting there, Tony and McGee, who were both staring at her, overly confused.
"Everything ok, sweetheart?" Tony asked, even though he knew what the answer was.
Ziva stared at him. She was 6 months pregnant, her back was killing her, not to mention every other limb in her body, her husband was trying his best to drive her wild by looking incredibly sexy, and to add to her madness, they weren't even really working on a case.
Paperwork.
But the one thing that annoyed her the most, past the paperwork, Tony's blatant hotness, and her whole body in pain, was the fact that her father was probably within 300 miles of her. Her gut clenched.
She finally sat down at her desk and sighed, pulling a rather large stack of paperwork closer to her, "I am fine."
Tony stood from his desk and walked over to her, squatting down so that he was closer to eye level, "Who was on the phone?"
Ziva sighed, for Tony's scent wasn't helping her either, "My father." She said.
Tony rolled his eyes, "Is he on his way?"
"No." Ziva replied, "He wants me to pick him up from the airport."
Tony stood and started to lightly message her shoulders, "I'm going with you."
"That is not necessary, Tony." She said. Tony laughed sarcastically and leaned down, speaking into her ear softly.
"It is necessary. I'm going." He said, and then placed a kiss on her cheek before walking back to his desk. "When does the plane land?"
"About an hour and a half." She replied.
"Great." Tony replied sarcastically, and then turned to his computer.
McGee looked between the two and then stared at Tony, "Not looking forward to seeing your father-in-law, Tony?"
Tony stared at the junior agent, all of his anger summed up into one word, "No."
About an hour later, Tony and Ziva walked to the elevator. As the silver doors slid closed, Ziva let out a small sigh. Tony reached down and grabbed her hand, "He's not going to touch you, Zi."
Ziva chuckled, "You do not know what my father is capable of, Tony."
Tony wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer, so that their hips were touching, "Maybe not, but I know what I'm capable of." Ziva only shook her head as a response and then Tony continued as they walked to one of their cars, "Are you telling me that your father would actually try to harm you and my child?"
"As far as physical violence? No." She sighed, "Or at least I do not think he will."
Tony sat down in the drivers seat, "He won't." He reiterated.
The drive to the airport was silent.
They walked into the airport, Tony's hand never leaving Ziva's as they walked through the people, towards Gate C. Tony looked up at the screen, "Yeah, it landed." He said, joining his wife as she sat down.
"Now, we wait." She said. A few minutes later, they both looked up when they heard Ziva's name.
"Ziva!" Tony stood first and helped Ziva up, wrapping his arm around her waist as they walked over to him, "Hello, Ziva my love."
Tony grinned. He didn't take it personally anymore, "Jarib, how are you?" Ziva asked softly. She leaned up and gave him a kiss on each cheek, the usual greeting. He then shook Tony's hand. "I did not know you were coming as well."
"Yes, well, your father asked if I would like to go, and I took the opportunity." Jarib looked down at her stomach, "My, Ziva. I see things have work out lovely for you." Ziva chuckled slightly and nodded.
"So where is the beast?" Tony asked.
"I am right here, Agent DiNozzo." Eli spoke from behind him, causing Tony to turn around quickly, staring his father-in-law directly in the eyes. Eli held out his hand, waiting for the senior field agent to shake his hand. Tony shook it quickly as Ziva turned around, revealing her pregnant belly.
Director Eli David stood there, staring at her for several seconds. When Ziva couldn't stand the silence anymore, she spoke, "Hello Eli." She said softly.
Eli closed his mouth, "Hello Ziva." He said, and then walked in front of her, kissing both of her cheeks, "How are you my dear?" He finally said, his eyes steady on her stomach.
Ziva looked down at the floor and then back up at him, "We should go."
Eli finally looked into her eyes, "Yes. We have lots to discuss, do we not?"
Jarib and Eli walked ahead and out of the airport.
Tony reached down and grabbed her hand, which was really what she needed.
This was going to be a long week.
Once back at NCIS, Tony, Ziva, Eli, and Jarib all walked into the squad room. Gibbs stood from his desk and walked over to the Director, wanting to punch him in the face, but instead, just shook his hand. Tim was next, and then the place was filled with an awkward silence.
"Well, I will not keep you from your work any longer, I understand that you are in a middle of a case." McGee looked at Ziva, Ziva looked at Tony, and Tony looked at Gibbs, trying to convey with his eyes the lie he told.
"We are very busy." Gibbs said, earning a sigh of relief from his senior field agent.
"Very well." Eli replied. "I will go and talk with my friend Leon." He turned to Tony, "Agent DiNozzo, will you escort Jarib and I? I do not want Ziva to climb all those stairs in her..." He turned and looked at Ziva, "...condition."
Tony let his anger build internally before standing. "Sure, this way." He said through his teeth, after a warning glance from Gibbs to 'keep it professional'."
"So, Agent DiNozzo, I see you have gotten married." Eli said, once at the top of the stairs, and out of earshot of Ziva.
Tony replied without stopping, "I did." He wanted to get the little walk over with as soon as possible.
"To my daughter?"
Tony turned to him and spoke through his teeth, "I'm not getting into this here. Director Leon Vance's office." He opened the door and held it, waiting for them to walk in. Eli stopped in front of him.
"Then we shall 'get into' it later, yes?" And with that, they disappeared behind the silver door.
Once Tony returned to the squad room, Gibbs walked over to him, a small smirk on his face, "Something you need to tell me, DiNozzo?"
"I told him we had a case. I might've lied a little."
Tim scoffed, "A little? We haven't had a case in a week."
"Well fine, I lied a lot. I didn't want Ziva to talk to him."
Gibbs smirked again and walked back to his own desk, "Looks like your plan backfired, DiNozzo."
"Yeah." Tony sighed, looking at Ziva, "I know."
The two hours of work they had left went by way too quickly, and it was off to the apartment. "Ah, I see you drove two different cars to work this morning." Eli said, and then pointed at Ziva, "Jarib, why don't you ride with Zivalah, and I will ride with Agent DiNozzo here. Lots to...catch up on." He said, a small chuckle escaped his lips.
Ziva stared at Eli for several seconds before walking over to her husband, placing a kiss on his lips. "Be careful." She whispered as she left him, quickly sitting down in her mini." Tony let out a long sigh and sat down in his Mustang.
After they were out of the Navy Yard, the conversation started, "So, Agent DiNozzo-"
"We've been through this. Call me Tony." He said.
"-I see that you have married my daughter."
Tony had to resist the urge to make a Sherlock joke, "Yep."
"Without my permission."
"Didn't need your permission."
"That is customary for Americans, yes?"
"Most."
"And you felt that you did not need to ask my permission?"
"You're not a father to her." Tony finally said, "You sent her on that suicide mission. To kill her."
"That is where you are wrong, Agent DiNozzo, I sent her on that mission because it is part of her job."
"Being dead is part of her job?" Tony snapped.
"Going on missions is part of her job."
"Not anymore. She's staying here. Forever. With me. And our child."
"Are you bitter towards me because Ziva was assigned that mission?"
"Part of it." Tony said.
"And the other part?" Eli snapped, his tone now loud.
"The fact that you wanted to kill not only the love of my life, but my unborn child as well!" Tony yelled back. He parked in front of their apartment and turned to Eli, his fist curled into a ball.
"I did not know she was pregnant." Eli admitted softly.
"Would it have mattered?" Tony replied.
Eli stared at him for a few seconds before speaking softly, "Probably not."
Tony gritted his teeth together and curled his fist up more.
He wanted to hit him.
Oh, how he wanted to hit him.
He quickly got out of the car and stormed up the steps, the director of Mossad not far behind him. As soon as he walked in the door, he walked passed Ziva and Jarib, who were sitting on the couch, and straight into their bedroom, closing the door behind him. Ziva stood, as the front door opened again. Ziva narrowed her eyes at her father, "What did you say to him?" She asked as she walked to the door.
Eli smirked, "The truth, my dear." He replied.
Ziva said nothing as she walked into the room. "Tony?" She called softly.
"Yeah?" Was heard from the bathroom. Ziva walked over to him, and suddenly felt out-of-breath. Tony furrowed his eyebrows together and immediately became concerned, "You okay?"
Ziva smiled, "I am fine. Are you okay?" Tony turned the water off in the sink and used a towel to dry is wet face.
"Yeah. Just trying to...cool off a little."
Ziva turned and walked over to the bed, sitting down on the edge. "What did he say to you?" She asked.
Tony walked over to her and sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her waist. "I asked him if it would have mattered if he knew you were pregnant before you went on the suicide mission."
Ziva stared at him, wanting him to continue, "And he said?"
Tony shook his head and sighed, really not wanting to hear the words again, even if it was out of his own mouth. He leaned over and pressed his lips to Ziva's neck, speaking into it softly, "Probably not."
Ziva brought her hand up to his neck and played with the bottom of his hair, "Tony, did you expect anything more from him?" She asked softly.
"Yeah, Zi." He said, "Respect."
Ziva sighed, "I have never thought of my father giving me respect. He never will, Tony."
Tony looked her directly in her eyes, "You deserve all the respect in the world." He whispered. Ziva leaned up and placed a quick kiss on his lips.
"We will make it through this week, Tony."
Tony nodded, "Yeah. Hopefully." He chuckled, "I may have to punch him at some point."
Ziva chuckled. "Then you should punch him once for me as well." Tony smiled and kissed her on the lips, and she responded by placing her hands on his face, pulling him into a deeper kiss. She laid back on the bed, pulling his face with her. He straddled her lap and eventually broke the kiss, only because the need for oxygen became an issue. He lifted her shirt and placed a kiss on her belly.
"I love your Mommy." He said softly. Ziva smiled and sat up on her elbows. He kissed her again and then helped her off of the bed, "We better get back out there."
Tony walked over to the door and allowed her to walk out first, again closing the door behind him.
Eli and Jarib stood when the pair walked into the room, "Are you finished with your discussion?"
"For now." Tony snapped.
"Excellent. Then we shall have some dinner and after we can discuss sleeping arrangements?"
Tony, Ziva, and Jarib all snapped their heads towards the man, "Sleeping arrangements?" Tony repeated.
Eli stared at him. Did he speak English? "Yes, Agent DiNozzo, sleeping arrangements."
Jarib spoke up, "Pardon me, sir, but I assumed that we would be staying in a hotel." The floor in Tony and Ziva's apartment looked really, really hard and he would really prefer a nice, soft hotel bed in his own room.
Eli chuckled, "Do not be ridiculous, is plenty of room here."
"No, there really isn't." Tony said, "We only have one couch."
Eli pointed to the armchair that was in the corner of the room, "I am sure that you have fallen asleep in that many times before, have you not?"
"I'm sleeping in my bed." He pointed to the door behind him, and then to Ziva, "With my wife."
"While Jarib and I are here, Agent DiNozzo, it is only respectful that you and your-" he turned and stared at Ziva, "-wife sleep in different places so there are not any temptations." Eli put his hands behind his back, "I will share the bed with Ziva, Jarib will take the couch, and you, dear boy, can have your armchair. Now that is settled, we shall go and eat, yes?"
Tony and Ziva only stared at each other in response.
The week suddenly became that much longer.
The man in Ziva's bed was not Tony.
The man, who was on the opposite side, with his back to her, snoring away, was not her husband.
And that was weird.
Ziva looked at the back of his head again, wanting nothing more than to push him out of the bed with her feet. Sighing, she stared at the ceiling and wrapped her arms around her belly. A few minutes later, she felt baby move.
And she smiled.
She began to wonder what he or she would be like. If it was a boy, would he be like Tony? A complete womanizer who always got his way with the ladies? Would he be like McGee, a computer genius? Or would he be like Gibbs, a leader?
And if the baby inside her was a girl, would she be like Abby? Or herself, a tomboy?
Then she realized that she really wanted to know. She took her stare off of the ceiling and at the door.
Tony was on the other side of it.
With brown hair, green eyes, a stunning smile, and a body that was irresistible.
And that's when she'd had enough. She looked over at her father again, who was still sound asleep. She slipped out of the bed silently and opened the door, closing it behind her. She walked past Jarib, who appeared to be asleep, and over to Tony, who was snoring loudly, Ziva guessed from the uncomfortable position he was sleeping in. She put her hand on his shoulder and shook gently, "Tony."
He opened his eyes slowly and breathed out a sigh of relief, "I'm glad it's you."
"Who did you think it was?" She asked.
"Your father with a knife from our kitchen with an intent of killing me." He said, rubbing his eyes gently. Ziva sighed and Tony pulled her down into his lap before propping up his feet again. "So what brings you here? Did you miss me?" He asked.
"No, I want to know." She replied.
Tony furrowed his eyebrows together, "Know what?"
"The sex."
Tony chuckled, "Okay. Lets get started." He placed a kiss on her lips, but she pushed him back with her hands.
"No, the sex of our baby."
Tony shook his head, "You told me not to tell you. Under any circumstances."
"But that was when I did not want to know. Now I want to know."
"Nope." Tony said.
"Tony!" She said, rather loudly.
"I'm not telling you Zi."
Ziva groaned, "Tell me or I will kill you with a knife from our kitchen."
Tony grinned, "Then you would never know."
"It has to come out sometime."
"But you'll be in prison and they won't tell you."
"Tell me!" She whined.
Tony shook his head again, "No, Zi."
She leaned up to him, her lips touching his ear as she spoke, "I have ways to make you tell me, Tony."
"Really?" He grinned as she leaned in, pressing a passionate kiss on his lips as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She managed to straddle his lap and put her hands under his shirt, disposing of it quickly. Tony trailed his kisses down her neck, and she let out a moan.
"I am still in the room." Jarib mentioned, and all feeling and kissing stopped.
Tony chuckled nervously, "Sorry dude. Forgot you were there."
Jarib laughed, "I understand. But may I ask you a question?" Tony nodded, "Are you trying to make her pregnant again? Or your child pregnant?"
Tony and Ziva looked at each other and then back at Jarib, "It does not hurt the baby to have sexual relations."
"And that's good because she can't keep her hands off of me." Ziva turned to him and hit him lightly in the chest. "Ow!" He pretended to be hurt, holding his hand over the bare spot. "Besides, it would be hard to get baby pregnant if he was a boy."
Ziva looked at him, a smile on her face, "It is a boy?!"
"No, I said 'if'." Tony reiterated.
"Then it is a girl."
"I'm not telling you." He said, placing a kiss on her cheek.
Ziva let out a sigh, "Like I said, my love, I have ways to make you tell me."
"In front of Jarib?" Tony asked, a smile plastered on his face.
"Do not mind me, Ziva. I will lay down and sleep, and I can sleep through anything."
Tony wasted no time, "You heard him, Zi." He said and then continued with his kisses, and Ziva let out another loud moan. Jarib sat up again, just as Tony was about to rid of her shirt.
"I am sorry, how long does this usually last?"
Tony grinned again, "Well our longest was in July. That lasted about 3 1/2 hours and it was great." He looked up at the ceiling, as if he was deep in thought and then he continued, "Her loudest was..."
Ziva gaped, "Tony!"
"What? I remember these things."
Jarib nodded, "Then perhaps you should leave, so that Director David will not hear you, yes?"
Tony looked up at his wife, "He's got a point. You do get pretty loud."
"And you do not make any noise?"
"Nope."
"The day you are quiet will be the day when goats fly."
"Pigs, Ziva. The term is pigs. 'When pigs fly'."
"But goats do not fly either!"
Tony pinched the bridge of his nose. "We may have to wait for sex." But then he stopped, "Nope. Can't do that."
Ziva stared at him, "Then where should we go, Tony?"
"I know, come on." He said, and she got off of his lap, as he pulled on her hand and out the door.
Jarib laughed and then lay back down, a small smile on his face.
Somehow, they ended up in the back of Tony's mustang, their love making session one of the best. Ziva lay on top of Tony, her rather large belly off to the side. They both breathed hard, and their bodies were covered in a thin layer of sweat.
"Tell me, Tony. Or you will have no sex. Ever again."
"Fine, fine, fine." He said, "It's a boy."
Ziva smiled and pressed her lips to his, "Thank you."
Tony grinned and wrapped his arm around her waist, placing a kiss on top of her head, "Or a girl."
She hit him again.
Deciding that waking up, naked, in a car, wasn't the best way to get on Eli's good side, the two reluctantly dressed and after a long good night kiss, returned to the beds they were assigned to.
Ziva slipped back into her bed, staring at the ceiling for probably 2 hours before her eyelids won the battle, taking her into a deep sleep.
"Ziva, I can't do this anymore." Tony said, holding both of her hands.
"Do what?" She asked.
"Be married to you. A father to your child. I'm...not good enough."
"What?" Ziva demanded. "Tony...that's not true! I love you."
"I can't...Take care of baby." He said, walking away from her, then into a light jog, and then into a run.
"Tony stop!" She yelled, running after him, as fast as her pregnant body would allow her to. "Tony!" She called, "Tony, no!" He continue to run until there was nowhere else to run, and then he jumped. Ziva fell to the ground, tears pouring out of her eyes. She turned when she heard laughing behind her.
"I told you he was not good enough."
"You did this to him." Ziva said, her voice breaking.
"No. He did it to himself. It is for the best." Ziva continued to bawl, "You should have listened to me, Ziva. Now the he is gone forever, you may rid of the child and return to Mossad."
Ziva sat up quickly in the bed, breathing hard and looking around frantically. She put her hand over her chest, and then around her belly just to make sure the baby was still there. Eli wasn't in the bed anymore, and the sun was bright outside. She then looked at the clock 1035h. "Tony." She whispered, her voice breaking. She got out of bed, showered, dressed, and proceeded to the door in less the 20 minutes.
"Where are you going, Ziva?" Eli asked.
"To check on Tony." She said simply, and slammed the door behind her, leaving the two men inside.
Eli shook his head, "Come along, Jarib. We have to stop this insanity before it goes any further." Jarib only shook his head in disbelief as he followed Eli out of the door.
Ziva broke her own personal record as she parked her Mini in the garage at NCIS. Swiping her entrance card, she almost broke the button on the elevator, the one that would take her to the squad room. Tony and McGee both looked up when they heard the elevator ding. Ziva saw him and ran, as fast as she could with her belly, to Tony, hugging him tightly. Tony furrowed his eyebrows together and hugged her back, "Uh, hey Zi." He said. He broke the hug and stood from his chair, allowing her to sit in it. "You okay, what's wrong? What did Eli do?"
"You would not stop, Tony." She said softly. He was even more confused.
"What?"
"You would not stop!" She yelled. Tony looked at McGee and then over to Gibbs, who were both staring at her.
"Come here." He said, helping her stand. He wrapped his arm around her waist and walked with her to behind the stairs. "What are you talking about, Zi?"
"You let him win."
"I let who win, sweetheart?" He asked. He was desperately trying to understand her, he really was, but she wasn't making any sense.
"My father. You ran. You kept running."
A light bulb went off, "This was a dream?" He asked.
"You told me..." She fought the tears that were on the edge of falling, "...that you could not be married to me and you could not be the father of our child." Tony started to speak but she continued, "And then you ran! I kept calling you, but you would not stop! Why didn't you stop, Tony?"
"Ziva, I'm not going anywhere. I'm not letting you go anywhere, do you hear me?" She couldn't hold back her tears anymore, "There's nothing I want more than to be a father. You and I are together forever, okay?" She only nodded and fell into his embrace again, and he squeezed her tightly. With the combination of her father in the same house, not to mention the same bed, and her pregnancy hormones all bundled into one, he knew that was causing this weirdness from his wife. He stood there holding her for several more minuets until he heard her stop crying. He rubbed her back gently, "You okay?"
Ziva backed up from him slightly, but Tony still had his hands around her, "I am fine. I am sorry it just...seemed so real."
"I know, sweetcheeks." He placed a kiss on her lips and she smiled. He sighed, "I should probably get back to work." He looked down at his watch, "Why don't you stay here and we'll go to lunch, okay?" She nodded in response and he leaned down to place another kiss on her lips when Gibbs cleared his throat from his position behind his senior field agent. "Oh, hey boss." Tony said, a smile on his face. Gibbs had no expression as he looked around Tony and right at Ziva.
"You okay, Ziver?" He asked.
Ziva nodded, "I am fine Gibbs."
"Good." He then lifted his right hand and placed a firm smack on the back of Tony's head.
"What was that for, boss?"
"Kissing Ziva at work. Lets go, DiNozzo. That stack of paperwork is calling your name." Tony groaned.
"Right." He turned back to Ziva and kissed her again anyway, "You want to sit at your desk and wait or would you rather go to the break room?"
Ziva sighed, "I guess I will sit at my desk. I have paperwork to do as well."
"You don't have to, you know. Technically, you're already on maternity leave."
"From the field." Ziva corrected. Tony locked hands with her and started to walk back to the squad room.
"We haven't been on the field in like 2 months."
Tim, from his desk, decided to speak, "We were on the field three days ago, DiNozzo."
"Can it, McAccurate." McGee only rolled his eyes and Ziva laughed from her own desk.
"Tim would you like to join Tony and I for lunch?" She asked sweetly.
"Thank you, Ziva, but I have a lunch date with Abby."
"I will take you up on that offer, my dear." Eli said, walking into the squad room. Tony rolled his eyes and started to work on his paperwork, trying to ignore him. "We will meet here at 1200h for lunch, yes?" He added, and then walked up the stairs again, straight to Vance's office.
"Wonder what him and toothpick do up there?" Tony said. Ziva and McGee both chuckled.
Tony no longer wanted to go to lunch. As soon as Eli invited himself, he lost his appetite.
Big time.
He prayed that Eli would be to wrapped up in conversation and forget about said lunch, but, when 1200h rolled around, him and Jarib, (who sat in the break room for about an hour), were standing in the middle of the squad room. "Shall we?" Eli asked, with his arms spread. Tony and Ziva both stood up, slowly, and Tony added his gun to his side, as if he planned to shoot someone.
Once at Carlyle's restaurant, a favorite of the NCIS bunch, they were escorted to a table. As soon as they sat down, Eli wasted no time, "So, when did you two get married?"
"October 17th." Tony said quickly.
"I see." Eli said. "Was it a nice wedding?"
Tony looked at Ziva. It was her turn to answer, "Yes, it was."
Tired of the silence, Jarib spoke next, "So, Ziva, when is the baby due?"
"April 10th." Ziva replied, a slight smile on her face.
It was quiet again. The food was served and Eli spoke again. "So I suppose you would like to know the truth as to my visit." Ziva only stared at him, waiting on him to continue, "I was informed that while you were on that mission that you were...touched inappropriately." Tony snapped his head up and glared at the man.
"Excuse me, sir, but I don't want to discuss this."
Eli stared back, "Then I suggest you close your ears, Agent DiNozzo." Ziva put her hand under the table and onto his leg, for she could see the anger building in his veins. "You could not stop this man from doing this, Ziva?"
"We don't want to talk about this!" Tony reiterated, his voice louder.
"Tony..." Ziva warned. He only looked at her when she spoke again, "I could not. He had me tied up."
"Ziva, stop. That bastard's dead. We don't have to discuss this."
"Agent DiNozzo I am trying to have a word with my daughter, and it is very hard with your constant interruptions." Eli said.
"She's not your daughter."
"Tony!" Ziva said.
"No, Ziva. Now he wants to call you his daughter? After all he let happen to you? No. I don't think so." He stood from his chair, his fist into a ball.
Ziva grabbed his wrists, "Tony, please. Sit down." She said.
"I gotta use the head." Tony spat and turned, walking away from the table quickly.
Ziva sighed, "Excuse me." She said and stood. Once inside the men's restroom, Tony looked at her and chuckled.
"Ziva, sweetie, you gotta quit walking in the men's restroom." Ziva walked over to him.
"What is wrong, Tony?"
"I don't like talking about that. It's over. Done. That guy is rotting in hell."
"Come back to the table." Ziva said softly.
"Why does he want to 'discuss' that? He didn't care then, why does he care now?"
"That is just the way he is, Tony."
"He's not your father, Zi." Ziva only looked down at the ground and then back up to Tony, "A father doesn't send his daughter on suicide missions."
"It is his job."
"I don't give a damn. You don't do that. To anyone, much less your daughter. I would never do that to my daughter."
Ziva smiled, "It is a girl!"
"I didn't say that."
"Then it is a boy." Tony laughed and leaned down, kissing her on the tip of her nose.
"I'm still not telling you, Zi."
Ziva sighed, "Fine. Lets go back to the table." She said, slightly pulling on his wrists. They walked out to the table, Ziva's hand in his, and sat down, their hands never parting.
"Are you finished with your temper tantrum, Agent DiNozzo?" Ziva squeezed his hand. Tony reached for his water and took a sip, stopping him from saying what he wanted to. "Even though Agent DiNozzo does not think so, Ziva, I am sorry for what happened to you."
Ziva looked at Jarib and then back at Eli, "Thank you, Papa."
He cupped her face, "You are quite welcome, my dear."
Tony's gut clenched. Most of the conversation was about NCIS and Mossad cases, until dessert came. "And my other reason for my visit."
"Oh boy." Tony mumbled.
"I know that you have married Agent DiNozzo, and you claim that you love him-"
Ziva cut him off, "I do love him."
"-but I am your father. And I know what's best. You are to have the child here in the states, and then return to Mossad, leaving the child with Agent DiNozzo."
"What?!" Tony piratically yelled, causing everyone in the restaurant to look at him.
"You must be retrained, Ziva. You cannot do that here. You will not return to the states."
"Hold up just a second." Tony said, but Ziva squeezed his hand again.
"This is my home, Eli. I will stay here. With NCIS, with Tony, and with my baby."
"Your child will be fine with just a father."
"I do not want he or she just to have a father." She returned.
"This is not what I prepared you for in life!" Eli said.
"This is what I want!" Ziva said, her voice growing with every word. And with that, Eli stood, fixing the cuffs on his shirt.
"You do not have a choice, Ziva." He said, promptly turning and leaving the three in the restaurant.
Tony looked at her, "You're not going anywhere."
Ziva laughed and cupped his face, pulling him into a kiss, "I do not intend to, my love. I will talk to Vance." Tony sighed and so did Jarib, and they finished their meals, the mood rather light since Eli's departure.
Tony was right.
She was not going anywhere.
This was home.
Tony's mood was officially ruined.
All he had wanted was to have a nice little lunch with Ziva in an attempt to calm her down and lighten her own mood. All he had accomplished was one thing: ruining his own mood, and it was all because Eli David had invited himself to lunch with them.
And then he had brought up the fact that Ziva was...violated...when she was on that suicide mission.
And now, Tony couldn't get the image out of his head, no matter how hard he tried.
He had come back from lunch in a huff, throwing his gun down so hard into his drawer that it almost cocked itself and went off.
And then he disappeared; not even Ziva knew where he went, but she knew that she needed to find him to calm him down. However, she also knew that he needed to calm down himself sometimes. Honestly, she had never seen him this upset over something.
Jarib was currently in the bullpen, sitting awkwardly on the very edge of Tony's desk, in case Tony came back still pissed off.
Ziva glanced up at him from her own desk, shifting her position again, "Jarib?" She questioned, and he looked at her, something that looked like relief passing through his eyes as his met hers.
"Yes, my dear?"
She stood, "You may have my seat. Tony does not mind if I sit in his seat." She gave him a small smile and McGee, from his desk, spoke up.
"She's the only one that can sit at his desk." He chimed in and Jarib smiled as Ziva crossed past him and sat down in Tony's seat, making herself comfortable.
Jarib took Ziva's seat, leaning back, letting out a sigh, "This is more comfortable, thank you, Zivalah."
She just nodded and it was silence for a while before Ziva spoke again, "Where is my father?" She questioned.
"He informed me he was up with Director Vance."
"Of course." she muttered under her breath before returning to the paperwork, keeping her left hand, the one she didn't write with, on her belly, rubbing it soothingly, subconsciously. She didn't really realize what she was writing, for her mind was fixed on her future.
What was to become of it?
She surely wasn't going to have her child and then leave it with Tony. Not that he wasn't capable of the job, but that wasn't what she wanted at all. She wanted to be with her husband and her child...forever.
Briefly, she thought back to when she had requested to be a full time NCIS agent, a couple of months ago.
Vance spoke nothing of it, and she wondered if Eli's visit was part of this reason.
She glanced down at the paper and realized that she had nearly been writing her thoughts down onto the paper, the most repeated words 'NCIS, agent, Eli, child, husband, Tony.' She also noticed that she was out of ink. Sighing, she opened up Tony's right drawer and found a pen before her eyes caught something else.
A book.
Furrowing her eyebrows together, she pulled it out and smiled slightly as she read the cover 'Pregnancy for Dummies'.
Shaking her head, she put it back into his drawer, pulling out the black pen she needed before closing it.
Silently, she moved back to her paperwork.
Tony appeared about twenty minutes later, looking as if he had just rolled out of bed. His Armani jacket was wide open, his dress shirt dangling out of his pants, two of the buttons undone as well. His red tie hung loosely around his neck, his face coating a thin layer of sweat.
He stopped in the entrance of the bullpen, staring at Ziva, in his desk. She didn't truly understand the look he was giving her, but he was definitely still pissed off.
Ziva stood quickly, nearly banging her belly up against the underside of the desk.
He shook his head, "Sit, please." He quietly said and she obeyed, sitting back down in his chair. He walked around his desk so that he was standing next to her and stared down at her. Ziva captured his gaze with hers.
He said nothing as he carefully bent down and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her up onto her feet. He barely gave her time to stand as he pulled her into a hug, tightly, holding her head to his chest as he stroked her hair. He kissed the crown of her head multiple times, "It's okay...it's okay..." He whispered and she just sighed, "It's not your fault."
"Tony I..." She started, but then stopped. He was just blaming himself for what happened. And there was no sense in arguing.
All she could do was hug him back.
And that was what she did.
The day was long.
Tony was in and out of the bullpen, randomly standing up and slamming his chair in, stalking around his desk as if he was going to kill someone. However, he always stopped in front of Ziva's desk, bent down and gave her the softest kiss and then stood up straight, glared at everyone else, and then left the bullpen.
Jarib had decided to 'get lost' and join the Director and Eli up in the office. Gibbs spent a total of ten seconds in the bullpen all day, just walking in to throw down something onto McGee's desk, throwing away his coffee, which was cold, and then leaving.
McGee desperately tried to find excuses to get away from Tony and his rage, so, periodically, he slipped down to Abby's lab or Autopsy, anywhere to get away from Tony. Ziva also noticed that he had to pee more than normal.
The sun started to set and Tony eventually returned to the bullpen, running another shaky hand through his hair. He sat down in his seat and looked up at Ziva, their eyes connecting over the two desks. McGee was packing up at his seat, trying to avoid looking at Tony as much as he could.
He swung his backpack over his shoulder, "Drink?" He suddenly asked and Tony snapped his head towards him, his eyes murderous.
"She can't drink you idiot!"
"Tony..." Ziva said, quietly. Her eyes were burning. She wanted to know what was wrong. Actually, she knew what was wrong. She just wanted to know how to help him.
"I meant you, Tony." McGee said, his voice quiet like Ziva's.
He sighed and ran a hand over his face, "Sorry, McGoo, it's been a long day." He let his hand drop, "But no...no drink."
McGee shrugged his shoulders, "Night DiNozzo's." And, with that, he left, leaving the two in silence in the bullpen.
Their eyes connected once again, the dim lights illuminating the dark bullpen, "I'm sorry." Tony whispered.
Standing up, she walked towards him, putting a soothing hand on his back, rubbing gently, "You acted..." She sighed, looking up slightly, "Tony, it was..." She looked down at him, "Perfectly normal."
Tony opened his mouth to say something when he was interrupted, "Are you two ready to go?" Tony looked up and was thankful to see Jarib standing there. He continued without a response from either one of them, "Director David is still up with your director, discussing what seemed to be top secret." The DiNozzo's looked at each other before looking back at Jarib, "He asked if you would like to go home. He will call a cab to pick him up."
Tony stared at him, blinking once as Ziva stood to her full form, resting her hands on her belly, subconsciously, "Fine by me." Tony said, quickly, standing up as he swung his backpack over his shoulder, throwing open the drawer and pulling out his gun, holstering it to his side. Ziva did the same, Tony reaching out for Ziva's hand as they started out of the bullpen.
Once back at the apartment, the car ride abnormally quiet, Tony immediately ordered dinner, instructing Jarib to pick it up. Jarib nodded, took the keys to Ziva's mini, since Tony wouldn't let him drive his car, and left.
The apartment was quiet as Tony sighed and hung up the phone. He furrowed his eyebrows together. Too quiet. Walking into the living room, he realized that no one was in sight, "Zi?" He questioned, looking around. He made his way to the bedroom, opening up the slightly ajar door.
She lay in the bed, flat on her back, staring up at the ceiling, a blanket over her body. She scrunched her face up and turned to the side before nearly immediately moving to her other side, trying to find a comfortable spot.
He sighed and pulled off his tie and his jacket, throwing them carelessly on the floor, "You okay?" He questioned as he walked towards her, undoing the buttons on his shirt.
She nodded, "Yes." She paused, "But it is entirely too uncomfortable. I love our child..." She said, "But..." She sighed, "It makes it uncomfortable to sleep."
Tony shrugged, "That's why men can't get pregnant."
"What?" She demanded, furrowing her eyebrows together.
"I don't know." He admitted, throwing his shirt on the ground as well. He made his way over to the dresser, fixing some of his chest hairs in the mirror before turning back around and pulling off his pants. Ziva, who was on her side looking at him, just stared as he picked up a pair of black sweats. He was about to pull them on when he stopped, "Are these dirty?" He questioned and she groaned, reaching a hand out from under the covers, gesturing for him to come towards her.
She took it from his hand and sniffed it, her nose wrinkling up as she coughed, "Oh yes...you must have worn them last night, they smell like sex." He grinned as he took them from her.
"So they smell like you?" He questioned and then grinned as he slipped them on.
She groaned, "Ew, Tony, take those off."
Sighing he pulled them off, grabbing the pair of jeans he threw over the bedpost a couple of days ago and slipping them on instead. Walking over to the dresser and throwing open a drawer, pulling out a simple t-shirt.
"Much better." He smiled, walking towards her, "You sure you're okay?" he questioned and she just reached over and threw the pillow next to her at him. He caught it before it hit his face and then smelled it, "Ew...smells like your father's old cologne." He made a face as he threw it back down on the bed, "Remind me to wash the sheets once he leaves."
"I will." She said, looking up at him, "I miss you...in bed."
"I miss the sex." He admitted, plainly and she shook her head at him.
"We just had sex. Last night."
"Yeah, in the car."
"We still had sex..."
Tony was about to open his mouth when there was a knock on the door, "That must be Jarib, back already with the food?"
Ziva shrugged as she carefully crawled out of bed, Tony's hands attached to hers as he guided her out, till she was on her two feet. The two started towards the door, opening it up with small smiles on their faces.
They dropped instantly, for before them was Ziva's father.
"Agent DiNozzo." He nodded, his hands behind his back, "I need to speak with you."
"About what?" he demanded, "Because I really don't want to speak with you."
Ziva said nothing as she stood next to her husband, still as close as she was before as her father continued on, "Alone."
"Ziva's staying right here. If you have a problem with that, I suggest that you leave. Now."
He frowned as he stepped into the apartment, "Ziva will not be too happy to hear what I am going to say."
"Then neither will I." Tony battled back.
He sighed, "I will be very blunt about what I think about you and my daughter."
"I know what you think-"
"No. You do not. I am going to tell you your future, so listen closely." Tony stared at him, as if he was unsure that what he was hearing was...real, "Your...outburst at lunch was completely uncalled for-"
"Completely uncalled for?" He demanded, "Now hold up-" He started, but stopped when Ziva hissed at him.
"Stop."
He was quietly immediately as Eli paused, waiting for absolute silence before continuing, "You need to grow up and be a man, and just accept what happened to Ziva. That is just what life is like, Agent DiNozzo, even though that should have never happened to someone like my daughter. She was too involved with you. She is returning to Mossad, Agent DiNozzo, whether you like it or not."
"Like hell she's returning to Mossad!"
"Do not worry, you will still have three more months with your wife until the baby is born. Shortly after, she will be returning to us. To Mossad. The baby shall be raised without a mother, here, in the States with you."
Ziva placed her hands over her stomach, as if she was protecting the baby from Eli, "I will send the divorce papers over once I get them finalized."
And that was when Tony couldn't take it anymore, "WHAT?!" He shouted, "Who the hell do you think you are?!" he ripped his arm out of Ziva's grip and started towards him, his hand itching to grab the SIG that he had moved from his dress pants to his jeans and shoot him dead, "You can't take her away from me! No one will sign those stupid divorce papers! You...you...bastard!" He ran a hand through his hair before taking another step towards him, "You know what? Why don't you just go and fuc-" He started, but Ziva interrupted him, grabbing onto his arm, pulling him back, her heart racing.
"Tony!"
He turned quickly on his heel, "No, Ziva." He pulled his arm away from her, "No!" fuming, he moved over to the coffee table, picking up his car keys. Without saying a word, he threw the door open, banging it into the wall before slamming it shut, the picture from their wedding falling off of its hanger on the wall and crashing on the ground.
She had never seen Tony so angry before in her life.
Her eyes moved between the indentation of the handle he had made in the wall to the broken picture on the ground.
She didn't even want to know where he was going.
The bar was relatively quiet for it being a Friday night, but it was still noisy enough for him to drown out his thoughts.
He almost hated himself for leaving Ziva there by herself with Eli, but he knew that, at any moment, Jarib was going to be back with the food he had ordered, and he trusted Jarib.
Scanning his eyes across the bar, he spotted the junior field agent right where he said he would be when he called him about five minutes ago. He sat at the end, secluded, drinking a martini. Seeing him almost made him smile as he literally felt his mood lighten slightly at the amount of jokes he could make about McGee at the moment.
Walking towards him, he sat down next to him on the bar stool, "Leave it to the probie to order a girly drink."
He rolled his eyes, "Martinis are not girly."
"Whatever." He picked idly at the dark brown wood of the bar, the color reminding him of Ziva's beautiful eyes.
His heart paned at the thought, "So..." McGee started, "What brings you here?"
"Eli pissed me off."
He laughed, "So what else is new?"
"Not the time for jokes, McClown."
"Right..." he nodded, "So..." he sighed, "What'd he say?"
"Well..." he sighed and leaned back, holding onto the bar before leaning forwards again, stopping and letting go of the bar, "He's determined that Ziva's not going to raise our child with us." McGee just stared at him, unsure of what to say, so Tony continued, "He also said that after the baby was born, I was going to be left to take care of it while Ziva went back to Mossad to 'retrain' or something like that." He ran a hand through his hair, "And he said he'd have divorce papers sent for me to sign. Even if he has me at gunpoint, I won't sign that damn document." He twisted the gold band on his left ring finger, mesmerized by it.
McGee sighed, "I'm sorry, Tony."
"Damn it!" he shouted, slamming his hand down onto the bar. Several people turned to look at him and McGee motioned towards the bartender for a drink. He set down a shot of whiskey and Tony stared down at it, "What is this?" He demanded and McGee sighed.
"Look, Tony, I know all about your little 'I don't drink of Ziva doesn't drink' thing, but..." He sighed, "Look...I think you might need it."
"For what?" He demanded, "No...no..."
"Just one? You really need to calm down. Even Gibbs would want you to drink it. I even think that...Ziva would want you to." He gestured towards it again, shoving it slightly closer towards him, "Just one shot Tony, it's not even a drink." Tony shook his head and Tim sighed. He knew that there was only one way that Tony was going to drink this shot and ultimately feel better about the entire situation, "I drowned three of these in thirty seconds."
Tony snapped his head towards him, "No." He shook his head, "I can do four."
Tim gulped as Tony brought the shot glass up to his lips, drowning it as he slammed it down onto the bar, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
And, before McGee knew it, one became two.
Two became four.
Four became eight, and they just keep doubling up.
Tony had, in front of him, enough shot glasses to collect urine samples from nearly everyone at NCIS with. And he continued to tell the story of he and Eli and Ziva, "I mean..." he slurred his words as he moved back and forth in his stool, "What kinda father....sleeps wit....his own..." He hiccuped, "...daughter?!" He nearly shouted as everyone turned to look at him, disgusted, "Hey!" He shouted the bartender, his eyes all but rolling in their sockets as he put his hand up, "Another....shot ova...here..."
The bartender gave McGee a nervous glance and McGee just stared disgustingly at Tony, "Tony you don't need anymore..." he said carefully and Tony threw his arm lazily over Tim's shoulders, "Hey!" he shouted, causing everyone to turn and look at him, "Dis...is my best bud...e!" He grinned, rocking him and McGee back and forth, "I loveee...youuu..." He grinned as Tim slipped out of Tony's 'embrace', standing up. He examined him as Tony demanded another shot.
Whiskey was dripping down his shirt, his hair untidy, a five o'clock shadow on his face, his pants falling off of him.
"Come on, Tony." He pushed at him, the smell of alcohol and tobacco from the woman next to him who was smoking reeking off of his body. He pulled on his arm, "Let's go." Paying quickly for Tony's shots, reminding to kill him later for around a hundred dollars down the drain, he heaved Tony's drunk, limp body out of the bar. He hobbled as they made it out of the bar, Tim letting go of him and reaching into his pocket for his cell phone.
"McGeeeee!" He called as he leaned up against the window of the bar, "Check out my..." he hiccuped again, "Singin'...." he cleared his throat as best he could before belting out a tune he made up himself and Tim had definitely heard before. He groaned as Tony's voice, groggy and cracking at every letter was shouted into the DC night air, " My probie has a first nameeee...it's T-I-M-M-Y.....my probie has a second nameee....it's M-C-G-E-E....." Several people turned to look at him as they passed him by, Tony moving drunkenly from his spot as Tim pulled out his cell phone, trying to look like he wasn't with him, "I love to tease him everyday...and if you ask me why I'll say...." He let his voice get higher at the 'say', "Cause little probie doesn't have a way with F-E-M-A...." He paused, "Z-Q...AMPERSAND!" McGee turned and looked at him, shaking his head as he dialed a number.
He watched as Tony walked over to the trash can, poking at the cigarette butts in the sand. A couple of women walked past him and he stopped and stared awkwardly at them as they stared at him as if he was an alien, "DON'T TOUCH ME!" He shouted, putting his hands up as he fell backwards onto the ground, the women hurrying out of the way as the person the on the other end of Tim's phone picked up.
McGee sighed and hurried over to Tony, helping him off of the ground as he shifted the phone to one ear, holding it on his shoulder.
One thing was sure.
Ziva was going to kill him.
Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs sighed as he stared at Tony DiNozzo, who was laying on the ground in the middle of the sidewalk. Tim had took off as soon as Gibbs got there, his only words not comforting 'good luck'.
"Hey!" he laughed, pointing rudely at a woman passing by, "Your skirts...ridin' up!" he laughed, clutching his stomach as he rolled around on the ground.
"Get up." Gibbs firmly said, looking down at his senior field agent who just continued to laugh, "Now." He said, his tone firm yet cool. This wasn't the first time Gibbs had had to deal with a drunk Tony before, but he could safely say that this was the first time he was this drunk, "Get. Up." Tony stopped laughing and looked up at him.
"Gibbss!" He grinned, "You're my boss!" He changed his voice to one as if he was talking to a baby or a dog, "Who's my boss! You're my boss! YES YOU ARE!"
Groaning, Gibbs bent down and grabbed his arm, jerking him up to his feet. He all but dragged him towards the car as Tony continued, "Boss is mad, mad, mad!"
Gibbs threw the door to the car open and shoved Tony into the backseat, not even bothering to buckle his seatbelt for him like he normally would, "You got that right, DiNozzo." He closed the door and then got into the driver's seat, "Ziva's gonna be a hell of a lot madder."
"Zeevahhh!" Tony grinned, rolling down the window as he stuck half of his body out of the window, Gibbs taking off down the street, "I LOVE ZEEVAHH!" He shouted into the DC traffic, the cold air nipping his skin as Gibbs made it to around sixty miles per hour, "ZIVA'S MY WIFE!"
Even Gibbs was embarrassed.
"Where is he?" She demanded and Eli just shoveled the pasta that Tony had ordered for himself into his mouth.
She checked her watch once again as she paced in front of the door in the living room.
It was almost 2400h and Tony had been gone for nearly three. She had called him more times than she could count, but she got nothing but voice mail everytime.
Jarib seemed concerned for her as he too checked his watch periodically, but Eli did not seem phased; he just continued to watch the television. Fuming, she stormed, as much as she could with her belly the way it was, over to Eli, picking up the remote and flipping off the television set, "You did this to him." She hissed, "Now you tell me where he is."
"Probably ran off." He shrugged his shoulders, "Come now, Ziva..." He sighed, "You must understand that you will not be with Agent DiNozzo much longer anyways. Him running off is the best."
Right as she was about to open her mouth to fire something back, her cell phone rang. Picking it up hastily she put it to her ear, "DiNozzo."
"Ziva." The voice from the other line wasn't Tony, like she had hoped. She sighed and dropped her shoulders, as if she was defeated, "Tony came over to see me today. He got too tired and decided to stay the night."
Ziva breathed out a sigh of relief, "May I speak to him?"
Gibbs paused for a moment or two before answering, "He's...uh...asleep."
She furrowed her eyebrows together, "Already?" He was so angry the last time she saw him. Though three hours was a long time...
There was a slight disturbance and what sounded like rustling through the other end of the phone before she heard one distinctive voice, loud and clear in her ear.
"ZEEVAHH!" She heard through the phone, "HEY! How are YOU?! I lovee youuu...babyyy..."
She gaped and opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before nearly shrieking, her voice cracking at the end, "You are drunk!"
Jarib just stared at her in almost fear, Eli smirked slightly and flipped on the television again. She moved to the bedroom and all Jarib and Eli could hear were muffled voices as she started back into the living room, this time changed into a pair of sweatpants and a shirt, her baby bump still incredibly visible as she grabbed her car keys off of the coffee table and then leaving before Eli even had a chance to open his mouth.
Even outside of Gibbs' house, Ziva could hear Tony's voice, screaming about...nothing.
She went to pick the lock when she realized it was open and walked in, starting towards the stairs to the basement, where she had followed Tony's voice.
She made her way down the stairs and stopped at the bottom when she saw Tony sitting on the ground in the middle of Gibbs' boat, the bars around him, "I'm in prison!" He truly looked like a little kid, and it almost warmed Ziva's heart.
Almost.
The rich stench of alcohol mixed with the sawdust in the air and she could barely breath as Gibbs' eyes caught hers, "Evening, Ziver." Gibbs quietly said and she nodded as Tony's eyes scanned the room, resting on hers.
"ZIVA!" he shouted, standing up quickly, his head hitting one of the bars. It didn't phase him as he tripped through two of the pieces of wood, stumbling with his footsteps towards her. For once, she was disgusted with him. He smelled horrible, he looked horrible, and he was acting like...well...a drunk. And he was drunk.
She took a small step backwards from him and scrunched her nose up in disgust. He held his arms wide as he nearly tripped. She jumped to the side and he fell onto the ground face first. Sharing a look with Gibbs, she bent down and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear before putting one hand on each of his shoulders, trying to pull him up with her belly in the way. Gibbs broke into a light jog over to her and helped her up easily, Tony slumping down onto a step, his head against one of the poles.
Sharing yet another look with Gibbs she sat down carefully next to Tony, stroking his hair with her fingertips, like a young child or a puppy dog. She was disgusted with him, she truly was, but she understood why he did it.
If she could drink, she would have probably been as drunk as Tony was at the moment, if not, worse, "Ziva..." He breathed out as she pushed his hair back with her hand, feeling his forehead slightly.
"Yes?" She questioned, trying not to get extremely upset with him.
She knew why he did it.
More importantly, she understood why he did it.
She tried desperately not to get upset. He turned his body towards her and rested his head on her shoulder, allowing Ziva to notice the dirt on his nose. She wiped it off with her finger before cradling his head against her body. He rested one of his hands on her stomach, "I love you." He whispered and she just sighed, stroking his hair some more, running her fingers through it.
"Oh Tony, I know."
Ziva woke up fairly early, not bothering to wake up the sleeping Tony next to her. They had moved up to the guest bedroom that Gibbs had in his house after Tony had fallen asleep, snoring loudly on Ziva's shoulder.
Both she and Gibbs had had to carry him up the stairs and into the bed.
She threw the covers off of her and climbed out of the unknown bed, heading downstairs. She stretched her aching back as much as she could. Gibbs was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in his hand, sipping it as he read the newspaper.
"Gibbs?" She called out and he stood, quickly.
"Yeah, Ziva?" He questioned and she entered the kitchen.
"Do you have any advil around here?" She asked and he smirked.
"For Tony?"
She nodded and he walked towards one of the cabinets, by the sink, pulling out a pill bottle. He opened it up and was about to pour three advil into his hands when he stopped, looked at Ziva, and then put the cap back on, handing her the bottle, "He's gonna need more than just three."
She smiled slightly as she got him a glass of water. She also grabbed a pad of paper and a pen before starting back up the stairs.
She was winded half-way up them, but continued to walk.
It took her longer than she was supposed to as she set the advil bottle and the glass of water down onto the bedside table, scribbling Tony a short note, explaining that she was going to go home and get changed before heading into work.
She made it home, still trying to convince herself that Tony did what he did for a good reason. Eli demanded to know where she was last night, even though she knew that he knew, but she ignored him as she changed her clothing quickly, "If you would like a ride to NCIS, I suggest that you get into the car now." She called over her shoulder at Jarib and Eli who looked at each other and then hurried out of the apartment, following her as she got into her Mini Cooper.
Unlike everyone else, excluding Tony, who was used to it, Jarib and Eli both weren't phased by Ziva's erratic driving. They made it to NCIS headquarters in record time, the tires squealing as she parked the car into the parking lot.
Once they made it up to the squad room, Eli attempted to talk to Ziva, "Ziva....I think that you should go and see Director Vance..."
"No."
"Zivalah, please."
She whipped her head around, so that she was facing him, "Do not call me that." She nearly spat through her teeth at him. Throwing her backpack down, she realized that Tony wasn't there. And neither was Gibbs. Just McGee, who took one look at her and then bolted out of the bullpen. She furrowed her eyebrows together but ignored the junior field agents problems.
"Officer DiNozzo." She looked up at where Director Vance was standing on the catwalk, looking down at her, his hands clasped together, "My office. Now. And bring your father with you as well. And Officer Brock."
Jarib and Ziva looked at each other as Eli gestured towards the stairs, "Shall we?" He questioned and she sighed.
"Yes..." She turned to McGee, "Inform Tony, when he arrives, that I am in a meeting with Officer Jarib, Director Vance and David."
He nodded, "Yeah, sure."
Ziva sighed and looked at the elevators one more time.
Tony really need to hurry up and get his hungover ass to work.
And now.
"Worst. Hangover. Ever." Tony groaned as he leaned his head back on the headrest in Gibbs' car, "I should not have taken that twelfth whiskey shot." He shook his head, "Or was it fifteenth?"
Gibbs just rolled his eyes as he turned down a street, running over a speed bump. Tony was jostled in the car and he groaned, "Aw boss, why'd you have to go down Euclid? You know there are speed bumps..." He groaned, closing his eyes and trying to ignore the searing pain that was running trough his head as Gibbs ran over another speed bump.
"I bet Ziva hates me." He groaned, rubbing his temples with his fingers, trying to make the pain go away.
"She stayed with you all night." He muttered.
"Really?" He questioned, "I don't remember that."
"You also rolled around on the sidewalk laughing outside of the bar."
"Oh." Tony said, pausing for a moment as he looked forwards, "So I didn't say anything stupid?"
Gibbs ran over another speed bump.
"Probie, do you have any jasmine tea lying around?"
He furrowed his eyebrows together, "Why?" he cautiously asked and Tony threw his backpack down behind his desk.
"Cause I sure as hell don't. And this hangover's a killer."
"So why do you need jasmine tea?"
"And lime." Tony finished as he walked over to Ziva's desk, pulling open one of the drawers, searching through what she had in there. He sighed, not finding either one as he stood up straight, pausing as he saw her NCIS backpack behind her desk. He looked up at McGee, "Where's Ziva?"
"Oh, she wanted me to tell you that she, Jarib, Director Vance, and her father all had a meeting up in Vance's office."
Tony's heart kicked into overdrive as he looked up the stairs.
Was she being forced to transfer to Mossad?
Through his blistering headache and his all around sore body, he managed to break into an all out sprint up the stairs.
"What is this about?" Ziva questioned as Vance pulled out a chair for her. She took it graciously, but sat on the edge, as if she was ready to leave at any second.
"Remember a couple of months ago you came to me requesting a transfer to NCIS to become a full time agent?"
She nodded her head, "Of course." Had he truly thought that she forgot?
"Well that was your father's reason for his visit."
She sighed and looked down at her lap. She vividly remembered yesterday's lunch conversation and remembered her father insisting over and over again that she leave the child and transfer full time to Mossad.
And now it was time.
She twisted her engagement and wedding rings on her fingers as she looked up at Vance, "And?" she finally questioned. Part of her wanted it...no...all of her wanted it to be that Vance was calling her in to tell her that she was going to become a full time NCIS agent.
"Eli and I have had a very long discussion, and we have come to the conclusion that the best fit for you would be-" Vance stopped as the doors to his office flew open, revealing Tony DiNozzo.
His head throbbed.
He tried to ignore it, "No! I can't let you do this."
"What?" Vance demanded, "What are you doing here, DiNozzo?"
"You called me here." Ziva responded, looking at him and Vance groaned.
"You!" He pointed towards Tony, "Why are you here?"
"I can't let you take Ziva away. We're legally married, you can't separate us unless you kill us."
"Tony!" Ziva hissed under her breath and he moved so that he was standing next to her, placing one hand on her shoulder.
"I can't let you take her away from me. I'm sorry Director Vance."
Vance chuckled, "That's where you have it all wrong, Agent DiNozzo."
He furrowed his eyebrows together, "What?"
"Or should I say...Agent DiNozzo's?"
Ziva looked at him, her eyes growing wide as Tony found the words for her, "Agent DiNozzo's?" He repeated and Vance nodded. He looked at Eli and then at Vance, "As in...plural?"
"Congratulations." He reached out his hand towards her, "You're now officially an NCIS agent, Special Agent Ziva David-DiNozzo."
Ziva smiled up at Tony and then jumped up, kissing him quickly on the lips. She smiled at Jarib and then at her father, "Thank you." She whispered.
"Hey!" Tony grinned, looking at Eli as he wrapped his arm around her waist, "You actually do have a heart!"
Ziva jabbed Tony in the ribs as Vance started getting together papers that she had to sign in order for it to be official.
Eli stared into his daughter's chocolate brown eyes and for once, he saw one thing he never thought he'd see in his direction after Tali died.
Love.
And for him.