-Six weeks later-

It had been the best six weeks of his life. It'd all started with a harmless little bit of flirting and the proposal of a little challenge and now, there weren't enough adjectives in the language to describe just how amazing the past two weeks had been with Ziva. Not only had the sex been out of this world, but everything had just been so much easier. Even at work, where they had had to conceal their emotions, there had been less tension between the two partners, although they had definitely kept up the sexual tension in the knowledge that they could relieve it after hours. It was beyond him how one night could change everything, and it wasn't just sleeping together; it was the fact that both of had let their emotions just flow freely. It was well known that Anthony DiNozzo was a bit of a player, and usually went out with a different woman each week and this was something he'd never really felt so strongly about but he could really see this...thing, actually going somewhere.

Life seemed so much better now that he wasn't bottling up any emotions and feelings and it definitely showed in the way the Italian behaved. He sat at his desk, the early sun shining through the window to his left, paperwork scattered over his desk. He already had a pile of finished files towered up on the edge of his desk, and thankfully, he only had a few more to go. A fresh cup of coffee stood within reach, small puffs of steam rising from its hot liquid contents. The Senior Agent had been there for quite a while, and now the later arrivals were dribbling into the work place. To his surprise, he hadn't seen his partner come in yet. Leaning back in his chair, his emerald eyes narrowed a little as stared across the bullpen at the Israeli's empty seat. By now, he knew her incredibly well, and for Ziva to be late in the morning was quite unusual. He considered ringing her just to check that she was alright, but he decided against it, figuring that it was probably just traffic holding her up. He would only take that action if her absence hadn't been rectified within the next half an hour.

Whilst time was on his mind, Tony had been so concentrated on his paperwork and filing that he barely heard the footsteps fall in to the bullpen, coming to a stop in front of his desk. It was only felt a small shadow cast over his desk did his switch his gaze from his paperwork to look up, seeing Ziva stood before his desk in complete silence. His eyes instantly locked with hers but something was different, almost uneasy. "Is everything alright?"

"We need to talk." Ziva said simply, her voice unusually quiet.

The difference in her tone only confirmed Tony's first suspicion that something wasn't right, and a gleam of worry shined in his eyes, "Is it important?" He questioned. When his partner answered with a nod, Tony stood from behind his desk, taking a few steps around the structure to meet her on the same side. "Do you want to talk about it now?"

"It would be best to," The Israeli replied, taking Tony by the hand as she led him to the elevator. Although it was a small space, it was perfect for two people to have a meeting without interruptions. As soon as the two were inside, and the doors had closed, Ziva pulled on the emergency break, bringing the elevator to an abrupt halt, the backup generator illuminating the room in a soft blue-ish light.

Swallowing softly, the Israeli turned to face her partner, though he was far more than that now. She could see the worry, the concern in his eyes and it made her feel awful. She hated being the one causing the all this new tension, but they'd never be able to leave this unspoken.

"Well?" Tony prompted, the feeling of not knowing almost becoming too much to bare.

A gentle sigh slipped past the woman's lips as her gaze dropped to the metal floor beneath them, "This was not supposed to happen and I know you probably don't want anything to do with it. Actually, it was probably my fault, well, our fault but it's okay if you don't want to. I understand. I just…" Her ramble stopped when she felt Tony's strong hands on her shoulders, forcing her eyes to meet his.

The senior agent scoured her expression in search of some sort of answer. Despite her ranting, he had no idea what she was referring to. Did she regret that past six weeks? "Ziva. I have absolutely no clue what you're on about. Just tell me."

Her heart began to race at his order, knowing that the words which were about to be voice would change everything. Keeping her eyes totally focused on his own gorgeous sea-green orbs, Ziva let out a quick breath before saying the words as quickly as she could, "I'm pregnant." It was like ripping off a band aid, aiming to be quick and painless but it turned out the words still gave as big a shock as when she had said to herself three days ago.

At first Tony thought he had misheard her, but once to words finally registered it felt like his stomach knotted, muscles cramping. He ran his fingers through his hair, pacing back and forth as he let the implications run through his mind. Pregnant? His eyes soon turned back to his partner, "You're sure? Like…it wasn't a false positive?"

Ziva shook her head. The three tests she had taken all came up with the same result, and she couldn't doubt three same answers. "I'm sure, Tony."

Tony sighed slowly, the initial shock slowly leaving his system through the breath. This wasn't just about them now, it was a far bigger picture than he had ever imagined and he had to take that into account. "We forgot to use anything…" He stated obviously. There had been plenty of times where Tony had been in the same heated moments he had shared with Ziva over the past few weeks and he had still remembered protection of some form, but this time he forgot. This time of all times.

"Look, Tony, I understand if you just want to end this. I'm pretty certain a child was not on your agenda and I am perfectly fine to go through with this on my own and if you want have some contact or something…" Ziva was silenced by Tony pressing his finger to her lips, a look in his eyes which she only saw rarely. It was a look of utter sincerity, utter commitment. Each word she had spoken caused the realisation to sink in further, causing a few tears to well up in her big chocolate eyes. She managed to bite them back, not allowing such a situation to get to her so quickly.

"Listen to me. You will not, and never will be, alone in this. Yes, I know this is totally unplanned and we're both a little out of our comfort zone here, but doesn't that mean we can learn about this together? Whether you like it, our baby has a little bit of DiNozzo and that's not easy to handle. I will be there for you through all of this; appointments, scans, mood swings, everything. I know we can do this, somehow." Tony's voice was full of comfort, his eyes gentle as he slipped his hand down into hers, their fingers tangling together.

As much as his words comforted her, Ziva had to think pragmatically. Were they ready to take on such a responsibility? "Tony, what about our jobs? Neither of us have great connections and you know that past always catches up, and with a baby involved, I just don't think it'd be safe. I do not want to put such a heavy responsibility on you after only a few weeks." She argued as if trying to weigh out each view of the situation.

The Italian gently pulled Ziva into his arms, allowing her head to rest softly against his chest, "It'll be fine. I know it's not the greatest of times, but we can think this over, okay? I tell you what. You come over to mine this evening, I'll cook us something and we'll have a really good talk, alright?"

As much as she didn't want to admit it, Tony was right. Maybe she had dived into it far too quickly and gone straight to the worst possible conclusion. Neither of them was ready for a child, but that did mean they could go through it all together. Shifting in his arms, Ziva gave a gentle nod in acceptance.

"Good decision." Tony whispered quietly before leaning down, capturing her lips in a soft, tender kiss with no passion intended. The past six weeks had been fun and games, but now it was more than serious. Now, there were three.