Reaching Out

It was Ziva calling. She had never called before. She had always sent only a text message. She was calling now at two o'clock in the morning right after Tony had thought about what would happen when she called. He knew that she needed him. He didn't hesitate; he simply answered the phone.

"Ziva?" he asked into the phone, his voice concerned.

"Tony, I... I need you," was all she said. Her voice was quivering as though she was very upset and afraid and he knew what she needed. She needed him to not just come over, but to go up the stairs and give her the comfort she had been denying herself for too long.

"I'll be right there, Zi," Tony said quietly. "You at your place?"

"Yes, upstairs," she said. That was all. The conversation was over.

Tony jumped from the bed and found his shoes. He had a spare key to her apartment, from when she had first gotten this one. She had told him that she wanted someone she trusted to have a key in case she was in trouble in the middle of the night or something, or needed help with something.

Ziva hadn't ever asked Tony to use that key or told him that she needed him. This was huge and Tony was responding to it well. She was so independent and he knew this and sometimes that frustrated Tony, but not lately, because she had been opening up to him in recent months.

Today, however, Ziva reached out to Tony. She had called him when she needed him. She had called him and specifically told him that she was upstairs, which was his invitation to come in and comfort her, something they had both been waiting for through four long months of recovery.

Tony wondered what triggered this phone call as he climbed into his car. He knew it had to be a nightmare that would make her place the phone call. It was definitely a nightmare about Somalia, but with how hurt she felt he was sure it was a nightmare about his short time in Somalia and not just her long time there.

Tony drove too fast and was lucky enough to not see any cops on the road. He was glad it was a Sunday night and no one was actually on the roads of DC as he drove. He knew that normally they would be clogged no matter what the hour. He was thankful that it was tonight that she was calling.

He slammed on the brakes, double parking, which he knew would annoy Ziva when she saw it. But he had to get to her. He entered the building for the first time since she had first come home. He went straight to the elevator and climbed in, pressing the button that took her to her floor. He was bouncing on his toes as the elevator climbed slowly upward. He was nervous.

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open and he rushed out and found her door, pulling out the spare key that would let him inside her apartment.

Ziva heard the lock click five minutes after placing the phone call. How fast had he driven to get there that soon? She didn't know and she didn't want to know. The door creaked a little as it was pushed opened and then it creaked again as it was pushed closed. She listened as it clocked back into place and the lock was turned again. There was also a rattling of keys hitting the floor as they were dropped and picked up again, only to be placed on the hook by the door.

There was silence for a short moment, which felt like an eternity. She finally heard his footsteps on her wooden floors coming toward her bedroom, where she was sitting on her bed curled in a ball and fighting off tears.

She was clutching at her Star of David necklace a little tighter as she heard his footsteps. Was it bad that she knew his footsteps from everyone else's in the world, without his shoes on? Perhaps. Today, though, she thought it was a good thing. Otherwise, she would have had to find the gun that used to rest under her pillow. She had removed the gun sometime ago, realizing that she was safer in DC than anywhere else. Now it lived in her nightstand drawer at night.

Ziva was safe with Tony. She had been safe in Paris and she would be safe for the remainder of the night with him there and she knew it. But, she felt vulnerable to the fact that she had invited Tony into her apartment, wondering if it was the right move or not, knowing that she was following her instincts without hesitation again.

Tony didn't knock on the bedroom door, he only pushed it open to find Ziva curled in a ball on her bed and clutching at the necklace that he had given to her, looking afraid and hurt. He walked over to her slowly and sat down on her bed, hoping that he could actually give her whatever comfort she needed. He put a hand on her knee and looked at her carefully.

"What's wrong, Zi?"

"Another nightmare," she responded.

"Like the one that got us running together?" he asked and they both remembered that moment.

She shuddered. But, this was worse. Ziva shook her head and she finally let the tears go. They were streaming down her face and her eyes met Tony's.

"No," she whispered.

A/N – Finally! Ziva called Tony and Tony came over and all the way into the apartment! Now she's taken another step in the right direction, even though she's hurting. I know she'll end up comfortable with it! Let me know what you think!