Disclamer: etc...
Yay, an update. Seriously, I'm dying without anymore spoilers. I NEED spoilers. It's quite sad. Anyway, on to the story.
Review with your favourite lines. It makes me happy. :D.
Preview of next chapter at bottom of page.
Night wove into day. Day drifted slowly into night. She was floating, hovering on the brink of consciousness. She'd get snippets, flashes, lost words... All with that same murky feeling, like it may not be real at all.
--
"Think she's gonna wake up, boss?"
..
"She's strong..."
But that's not really an answer, is it?
--
Voices, touches, feelings... Slowly, the puzzle began to form some comprehendible semblance.
--
"Tony?"
"Yes, Abby?"
"Do you think she can hear us?"
..
"Sometimes..."
--
And eventually, she was waking up completely.
--
"Ziver?"
".."
"No, Ziva. Don't try to talk. There's a tube down your throat. The doctors are coming to help..."
--
And she was sure they were, but she didn't notice. Her eyelids were far too heavy...
--
But then they were opening again.
The lights were bright; she winced. Her throat was scratchy, but she was no longer choked by intubation. The man in the seat beside her bed stirred in his slumber. She was careful not to wake him.
Another man dropped the paper he was reading and walked over to her bed hurriedly.
"Ziver?" he said, leaning toward her. "Ziva, are you alright?"
She blinked and turned her head from the light pouring in through the slatted shades on the window. He hurried to pull them shut and return to her side.
Her head was pounding as she took in his worried eyes, his unshaven chin. "What..." she croaked.
He poured a glass of water and held it to her cracked lips. "You're safe now. We saved you." He said it as if he couldn't believe it himself.
"You... saved me?" she asked after a small sip of water. "When... why did I need-?"
And that's when it all came hurtling back. The pain, no, the agony. The endless interrogation. The blood. All that blood.
He must have seen her horrified expression. "Shhh... Ziva." He placed a hand on her back and rubbed comforting circles. It didn't feel comforting. Not to her.
"Don't touch me!" she screamed, shrugging him away.
The other man woke, alarmed. "Ziva?" He put his hand on hers...
"Get off me!" Her hands flew around her in a flurry. "Get away from me!"
She saw hurt, worry, confusion. She saw shock.
The men saw a broken, terrified woman.
The doctors saw nothing a strong sedative wouldn't fix.
She drifted off again...
--
"She's been through extensive trauma. In all my years as a treating physician, I have not seen so much pain and suffering. I don't know how she's still alive."
"She's a fighter."
"She may be a fighter, Agent Gibbs, but her battle is not nearly over. At this point her physical injuries are the least of her worries."
Pressure on her hand. Someone may have been holding it; she didn't know.
"She's going to be fine. I haven't given her permission to give up."
To her:
"You can do it, Ziva. Just wake up."
And, oh, how she was trying.
--
Open. Shut. A blink.
"Ziva?" Hurried footsteps. "Ziva? You waking up?"
Open. Shut. Open. Shut.
"Hey, Ziva? You there?"
Open. Shut.
A squeeze of her hand.
"Gibbs!" A yell. "She's waking up again."
More footsteps.
A tired sigh. "Her eyes are closed, DiNozzo."
"They weren't, I swear." Another squeeze. "Come on, Ziva. Just open your eyes."
Open. Shut.
"See? I told you!" To her: "Do it again, Ziva."
Open. Shut.
"Good! Again..."
Open.
"Oh, thank god."
--
She'd remember that moment later. When the two men were looking down at her; worried, tired, scared.
She'd remember that and think how lucky she was. Really, she needed to remember it; she needed to believe she was lucky, that someone out there cared.
Because the next few days...
Well, they were anything but lucky.
A/N: So, liked? Didn't like? Tell me. What were your favourite lines?
Review for more!
Preview of next chapter: Daddy David comes to visit. Hmm... I wonder if the lack of luck and his surprise visit could be connected.
Thoughts?