On her way down to the elevator, Ziva tried to push Tony out of her mind, push all disappointment and emotion out of her body. Yet the Mossad face couldn't stay on. She was trained to withstand torture, to kill without remorse, hell she had been groomed as an assassin since she was a teenager.

And yet one person had managed to find their way into the mighty ninja's head, and soon, he had made it into her heart.

Anthony DiNozzo.

Somewhere between all of the stakeouts, paperwork, and long nights of shameless, flirty banter, all of her walls had been worn down.

He wasn't trained.

He majored in P.E.

He was annoying, juvenile.

The man cared more about his hair than some women Ziva knew.

But she came to love him, and the man he pretended not to be.

As a partner, a friend, a brother, and...

Ziva wouldn't let herself finish the thought.

Opposites attract, but the more she thought about it, the more the lines separating them blurred. It was becoming increasingly easy to count the similarities between the couple, and she didn't know how to feel about that fact.

Ziva didn't remember getting onto the elevator, let alone pressing any buttons, but a soft ding brought her back to reality, and face to face with a breathless DiNozzo. His hands held the doors open wide, and trapped Ziva in the car. His head hung down as he panted, and Ziva waited for him to make eye contact.

"I sprinted...you took...and all the way...from the hotel room...one minute..." he managed to get out, and held up a finger for a second before looking up at his partner.

She met his gaze expectantly, and Tony finally opened his mouth to speak, completely serious.

"Ziva, I--" he started.

"There you guys are! We were looking all over for you and..oh..are we interrupting?" Abby and McGee ran up, and stopped when they saw their friends' faces.

Ziva looked back at Tony. "Are they interrupting something?"

His green eyes flicked between the trio, and after a moment he straightened up and gave a dazzling smile.

He cleared his throat. "Ah, um, no, not at all. Let's get us some food!"

The emotion in ZIva's eyes nearly killed him, but Tony was not about to bring the subject up in front of McGee and Abby. He mentally Gibbs slapped himself as Ziva pasted on a weak smile, a false happiness that didn't reach her eyes.

"How about we just eat here?" she suggested.

No one objected, and they all headed for the hotel restaurant. They passed a distressed Jenny, who was visibly trying to hold herself together. She walked by without a glance in their direction, and the team stared after her for a second in concern. Knowing that they wouldn't be of any comfort, they continued on to the restaurant.

It was a dimly lit cafe, and a feeling of warmth emanated from the space. The group of friends made their way to the bar and sat down. As Ziva and McGee plopped down on either side of Abby, Tony hesitated, contemplating whether he should take the seat next to Ziva or not. Abby turned back to look at him.

"Come on, Tony, sit down!" she called.

He sighed, and moved beside Ziva, sitting on the far edge of the stool. The tension between them was running high. They were both in and out of conversation, trying to flow over several awkward moments.

After a while, Abby downed another glass of alcohol and spun on the stool to face Tony and Ziva.

"So, what did we interrupt earlier?" she asked.

All attention was on Tony. He coughed uncomfortably.

"I did say nothing, right?"

Abby shot him a knowing look. "Sure, nothing."

They all sat silently for a few moments.

Abby spoke again, without looking at Tony.

"You know what? I think it was about what you said in the hospital."

DiNozzo visibly choked on his drink, while Ziva and McGee faced him. Abby grinned, staring straight ahead.

McGee scrunched up his face in thought. "Was that what you were talking about?"

"He never actually got around to talking," Ziva hissed.

All three looked at the senior field agent expectantly, waiting for an answer.

He laughed lightly. "What did I say again?"

Tim rolled his eyes and Abby sighed in response. They faced forward again, leaving Tony and Ziva to lock eyes for a brief second. Ziva broke away first, rising from her seat.

"I will be right back."

She strode off without a look back. Emotion was beginning to overwhelm her again, and she headed for the restroom, trying to clear her head. Walking in, she found the several stalls empty, and she slid down against the wall. Her hopes had crept too high once again, and she had let herself believe that DiNozzo had truly meant what he said in the hospital. Ziva let her lids slide shut and rested her head back against the cool bathroom wall.

DiNozzo ran his hand through his brown hair as he watched his partner walk away, again. Abby moved to follow her, but Tony was already out of his seat, and McGee put out a hand to hold the scientist back.

"Thanks, Probie," Tony said, patting the younger man's shoulder as he passed.

He didn't stop as Abby called, "You can't follow her into the women's bathroom!"

It didn't matter, DiNozzo didn't hear her. His eyes didn't move from the restroom door.

McGee chuckled. "I don't know Abs, Ziva never has trouble walking into the men's room."

-----

She didn't have to look to know who had just walked through the door. He slipped inside as the door clicked shut behind him. He remained standing, watching her sitting figure on the floor. Her brown strands fell down into a curtain on the side of her face, acting as a shield against the green eyes burning into her from several feet away. He shoved his hands down into his pockets, trying to formulate a sentence.

He opened his mouth, nothing coming out.

He shut it promptly.

Open.

Closed.

Open.

"How many times are you going to open your mouth before something really comes out?"

Nothing.

She sighed, and stood up, trying to avoid his gaze. He blocked her path.

"Ziva..."

"What, Tony? You want to say something, then speak. But do not waste more of my time."

The Israeli tried to move past him again, but DiNozzo backed up and stayed in front of her, not letting her reach the door.

"What if I don't know what to say? Huh?" he asked, trying to capture her eyes.

"Well, then maybe you should not have said anything earlier!" she shot back. She reached for the handle one more time, but Tony stood in front of it.

She finally looked up at him.

"DiNozzo, if you do not move, I will hurt you."

He grinned and leaned down, daring her. "Go ahead, free shot!"

He had his one good arm out to the side, so Ziva jumped at the opportunity and flung the door open, leaving him alone.

Tony reached up, his fingers finding their way through his hair again.

A young woman walked in, giving him a curious glance. He smiled a false DiNozzo smile.

"Hi...wow, they should really make the signs on these things clearer."

The girl nodded, obviously not impressed. Tony walked out in time to see his partner blowing by McGee and Abby.

For the second time that night, he watched her walk away.

-----

Ziva let the cool Parisian night engulf her as she strode out of the hotel lobby. She inhaled deeply, enjoying the feeling of slight calm for a small moment.

A voice behind her brought her out of serene state.

A voice, that she thought she had left behind.

The same voice that had pushed her through a swift childhood.

"Shalom, Ziva."


A/N: Okay, I'm sorry once again that I didn't update sooner. I really needed the extra time to study for finals, but now I have an abundant amount of free time, because my school year is over! Next stop, high school. :D

I know I said you'd be in for it in this chapter, but I'm not sure it delivered as much, due to the fact that I decided to make the next chapter more important. Hoped you liked it! If not, I won't disappoint next time. Please review!