Chapter Two

Ziva was just stepping out of the shower when she heard a knock on her door. She didn't really want company right now, but it could have been important, so she called out, "I will be there in a minute!" before slipping into some lounge pants and a loose top and jogging to the door, running a hand through her wet hair.

When she opened the door, she was not entirely surprised at who she saw standing there. She leaned against the door as she greeted him. "McGee. What a surprise."

"Hey," he said, knowing his presence probably wasn't wanted. "Can I come in? Gibbs wanted me to check on you."

Ziva gave him an incredulous look. "You told him?" she hissed.

"Of course not!" McGee responded, looking insulted that she would even think that in the first place.

Ziva shook her head. "I know. You would not do such a thing. You are a good friend, McGee." She gave him a small smile and stepped aside, giving him an unspoken invitation to come inside.

"So, um, you feeling any better?" McGee asked as he walked in, turning as he reached the sofa, watching as Ziva closed and locked the door, then turned to face him.

"I have not thrown up since this morning, if that is what you are wondering," she said, and McGee nodded. An awkward silence fell between them and Ziva knew it was up to her to break it. "Ah, I made a doctor's appointment for tomorrow morning. He will be able to tell me for sure."

"Look, Ziva," McGee started, "I don't know what kind of situation you're really in or anything, but if you need anything -"

"You have already done more than enough," Ziva interrupted him, nodding. "I will figure things out."

The cryptic nature of her response had McGee worried, but he thought it best to not mention it. Ziva knew what was best for her, and he couldn't change her mind about something she was set on doing. He returned her nod. "Whatever decision you make, I'll support it."

Ziva gave him a confused look. "I am not sure I follow you, McGee. Do you . . ." Her eyes widened. "You think I am going to get an abortion." Her voice was quiet.

"No!" McGee responded, maybe a little too quickly. Ziva closed her eyes and shook her head, knowing that was exactly what he'd been thinking. "I was just thinking . . ." He sighed. "No, I should've known better. You wouldn't do that. I just . . ."

"You cannot picture me as a mother," Ziva finished, and McGee shrugged. She let out a deep breath. "I know. It isn't exactly easy for me to accept, either. And this is certainly unexpected." She looked down at her stomach as she spoke. "But I would not be able to take an innocent life, even if . . ." She cut herself off before she revealed too much, but McGee wasn't about to let it go that easily.

"Even if what, Ziva?" he asked softly.

She smiled slightly and looked up, meeting his eyes again. "The baby's father. I, ah, it was a one time thing."

McGee narrowed his eyes in confusion. "So . . . a date that went badly? Or . . ." He paled as another thought entered his mind. "No. Oh, Ziva . . ."

Ziva reached out and placed a hand on McGee's arm, shaking her head. "No, no, nothing that drastic, thankfully." She gave a laugh of disbelief. "Just me making a bad decision." McGee nodded, not saying anything, but the look on his face said he wanted to know more. Ziva sighed and flipped her hair behind her back. "Some guy from a bar that I should not have been at in the first place." Her voice dropped as she finished. "I do not even know his name."

McGee remained quiet as he took in Ziva's latest revelation, and when Ziva looked up, she found he had a look of deep concern on his face. "You can't do this alone, Ziva," he found himself saying, his voice thick with emotion. "You just . . . Whatever you need, Ziva."

Ziva smiled at him, her appreciation genuine. "Thank you, McGee. I will let you know."

"I'm serious," he said, not sure if she had really heard what he said. "I mean, I know you think you're so tough and you can handle anything - and I don't doubt that you can - but I mean, pregnancy messes with you. Well, so I've heard. I don't have any real experience, except for when my mom was pregnant with Sarah, but I was so young then . . ."

"McGee," Ziva broke in, laughing. "I heard you. And I know. This will not be easy, and I will need help." She smiled at him. "Now I know who to ask for it."

He returned the smile. "Hey, everyone else is going to be just as supportive once you tell them. I can guarantee it."

She scoffed, walking to the couch and plopping down on it, then rubbing her forehead in anxiety. "I am not as sure about that as you are, McGee. Abby, yes, and Ducky, but I never know about Tony, and Gibbs . . ." She blew out a breath. "He will be disappointed in me. I have screwed up. I am disappointed in me, too."

"Ziva, we all make mistakes," McGee said, edging his way to a chair diagonal from the couch. That statement only seemed to deepen Ziva's anxiety, and McGee kicked himself mentally for his choice of words. "That's not what I meant. I just meant that . . ." He shrugged, and Ziva looked up to see what he would say. "You're not alone. If Gibbs is angry at first, that's just his way of dealing with things. But he'll come around. You know he will. He cares too much not to."

Ziva felt tears pricking at her eyes again and quickly blinked to rid herself of them, not wanting McGee to see her cry. "You are right," she said, nodding. She gave a shaky laugh. "I see my hormones are already at work. I am not usually so emotional."

McGee smiled, his expression soft. "Hey, no comment." Ziva laughed at that and McGee's grin broadened. "See, that's more like it. Everything will be fine. And you know what the best part will be about you being pregnant?"

Ziva narrowed her eyes at him. "If you say anything about my breasts, I may have to kill you."

McGee's eyes widened. "Uh, no. Noooo. That's not at all what I was thinking." He paused. "Though now that you mention it . . ."

Ziva picked up a magazine from her coffee table and chucked it at McGee, muttering, "Tony has been a terrible influence on you," as McGee laughed at her reaction.

"No, what I was going to say," he started again, his eyes twinkling with mirth as he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, "was that you'll have the perfect excuse to torture DiNozzo." His grin widened as Ziva took in his suggestion, a smirk forming on her face. "You can just blame it on your hormones, and no one can say a word."

Ziva gave him a look out of the corner of her eye. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, McGee." McGee laughed and Ziva smiled, leaning back into the couch. "Thank you for checking on me."

McGee's smile faded to a soft glow and he nodded, taking the unspoken message that it was time to go. "Yeah, well, I suppose it's getting late. I'll let Gibbs know you'll be a little late tomorrow morning and . . ." He shrugged. "I'll see you then." He pushed himself to his feet. "Have a good night, Ziva."

Ziva stood up, as well, and followed him to the door, bidding him a good night as he exited and she shut the door behind him. As she slid the lock into place, she smiled. This did not have to be so bad. She would not be alone, she would have the support of her "family" at NCIS . . . But her smile faltered as the reality of the situation set in again. She couldn't really expect McGee, or Abby, or whoever, to be there at any time, whenever she needed something . . . or someone. McGee was right about that - she may have thought she was a strong person, someone who could handle anything life threw at her, but even she knew she couldn't do this alone.

She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against the door. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe she wasn't pregnant at all, just stressed more than usual, something that was causing her nausea . . .

. . . but she was pregnant, as confirmed by her doctor the next morning.

"You're about eight weeks along," the doctor, a kindly man named King, said, nodding over her charts. He looked up from the papers and smiled at her. "Everything looks to be perfectly fine, though I know your line of work, Ms. David, so I'd cut down on the gunfights, just for now." He winked at her and Ziva tried to smile, but she found the action hard to do. "I'll let you get dressed and once you sign this, you can head back to work." Ziva nodded and he exited the examination room, leaving Ziva alone.

She looked down at the pants in her hands - pants that in a few months, would no longer fit her. Simple things, like her clothes no longer fitting, suddenly had so much meaning. She shook the thought from her head and hopped down from the table, changing back into her clothes. The next order of business once she returned to NCIS would be to tell Gibbs, and that was a conversation she was not exactly looking forward to having.

Ziva stepped off the elevator at NCIS, and shortly heard, "The elusive Ziva appears from her habitat. Careful, Probie, I think this one bites."

Ziva rolled her eyes at Tony's antics, but chose not to address him, instead turning to McGee. "Where is Gibbs?" she asked, relaying to him through her eyes that the doctor had confirmed what she had suspected.

He opened his mouth to answer when Ziva heard, "Right here," from behind her.

She spun to face Gibbs, surprised that he had snuck up behind her. "Ah, Gibbs. May I have a word with you?" She could sense Tony's eagerness to hear what she had to say, so she quickly added, "Privately?"

Gibbs nodded and turned, tipping his head toward the elevator. Ziva let out a breath and followed him, mentally preparing herself for the conversation they were about to have.

As they stepped into the elevator, Gibbs waited until the doors closed and the car started moving, then flipped the switch to stop the elevator and turned to face Ziva. He waited for a moment, then asked, "You okay?"

"I suppose that depends on your definition of okay," Ziva said quietly, then looked up at Gibbs. She decided to be blunt. "I am pregnant."

Whatever Gibbs had been expecting her to say, that was not it, as he was unable to hide his surprise. "What?"

Ziva cracked her neck, knowing the terse response she had given McGee to his similar response the day before would not go over with Gibbs. "I made a bad decision a few months ago and now . . ." She shrugged. "I imagine you will be needing someone to take my position on the team -"

The gentle head slap cut Ziva off and she looked up at Gibbs with a surprised expression, her eyes wide. He was looking down on her with the look that said he was disappointed, how could she do this? Ziva closed her eyes, waiting for the reprimand she knew was coming.

When Gibbs didn't say anything for a few minutes, she opened her eyes again. He looked directly into her eyes, to make sure she understood what he was saying when he did speak. "Deskwork. We can borrow another agent for the field when we need someone."

"But Gibbs . . ."

"No, Ziva. You're a part of this team, whether you like it or not, and that . . ." Gibbs balled his hand into a fist, shaking his head. "Damn, Ziva. You screwed up."

That was the reaction Ziva had expected and she nodded, feeling tears prick at her eyes. "I know," she said quietly, and Gibbs mumbled something to himself before touching Ziva's chin with his finger, making her look up at him.

"You screwed up, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna abandon you," he said, his gentle side coming out. "You need anything, you let me know."

Ziva let out a sigh of relief, but it took her a moment to regain her senses. She eventually nodded and gave him a small smile. "Thank you. McGee has already offered the same thing."

Gibbs gave her a curious look. "Tim knows? Ziva, is there something -"

"No!" Ziva quickly corrected him, her eyes wide. She shook her head, smiling again. "No, he just happened to be there when I, um, realized." She nodded.

Gibbs echoed the nod, saying, "Okay. Good. You need someone like him." He paused. "We'll have to tell DiNozzo, and he's not gonna be happy about being the last to know."

"I know," Ziva said. That was the conversation she was least looking forward to having out of them all. "I may as well get it over with, yes?" She turned and reached for the switch to turn the elevator on, but Gibbs covered her hand before she could. She looked up at him.

"You're not in this alone, Ziva."

She smiled. "I know." Gibbs removed his hand and Ziva flipped the switch, starting the elevator.

A/N: I know some people took issue with Gibbs being disappointed and I wish I had written that differently myself, but it is what it is.