Something Different
They spent the next two days acting childish on the beach. They played in the ocean, splashed each other with water, threw sand, chased each other, and tickled endlessly. They were currently locked in a tickling match when the water droplets started to pour out of the sky. Tony's hands stopped on Ziva's sides and hers stopped on his as they felt the rain pouring down and they began to get soaked.
Neither Tony nor Ziva had noticed that the sun had faded behind clouds in their childish acts. They were laughing now about this while it poured on them. "Dance with me," Tony said.
"Tony!" Ziva said, scolding him playfully as she allowed him to pull her up and pull him into his arms.
They twirled in a circle and Tony twirled her under his arm before catching her close to him again, to continue their spiraling dance in the wet sand that they were standing on. They were both soaked now and smiling also. Tony leaned in and captured her lips in his own and their bodies stopped the dancing as they opted for another thing that was good to do in the rain.
When they pulled back from each other they were smiling softly at the romantic gestures that had just been exchanged, but there was a serious look on Tony's face. He looked her in the eyes, his hands still on her face.
"You're not just a friend, Zi," he told her, as though these were the most important words for her to hear in the world.
"Neither are you, Tony," she reassured him and placed her head on his chest. He began a swaying dance again, spinning them in circles while she rested her head on his chest and it continued to pour.
After some time, they decided to go back inside and dry off. They watched a movie and went into their bedroom for the night. Ziva was wearing his shirt and a pair of her underwear and he was wearing a pair of shorts. Ziva stood looking at him and thinking.
They needed to have a conversation. They needed to get it out there. They needed to share how they felt and tell each other everything. They needed to make this official. It was real, sure, but it was unofficial and unspoken.
Yet, Ziva knew that Tony was committed to her and only her. She knew that he was not looking at other women and not thinking about other women. The bar night with McGee had proven that to her on so many levels. He had not enjoyed being at a bar. He had not looked over at the woman that McGee was trying to point out. Then, when he had gotten home, he had called her to welcome her into his home as a piece of his sanctuary.
She knew that this was something different. Coworkers did not hang out outside of work. Partners did not go on dates and vacations together. And friends did not kiss each other, flirt, and tease the way they did. They were something different; something more; something important to each other.
She smiled as she realized this and walked over to Tony. She wrapped her arms around him and insisted on bedtime. She could continue her thoughts tomorrow while Tony cooked dinner, since he had promised her excellent lasagna tomorrow night.
The following day was nearly the same routing. While they were chasing each other in the sand, they stopped rather abruptly and got completely lost in each other's eyes, their hearts pounding hard for the first time in a long time. The way that they had caught each other was a way that suggested that more was about to happen, but Ziva pulled away.
Not here and now. Conversation tonight, after dinner, she promised herself. Tony was feeling the same way. He walked over to her and wrapped one arm around her shoulders, looking out into the ocean instead of at her.
We can't get lost yet. We need to have a conversation first, he told himself.
Soon, Tony suggested that he go to make dinner and Ziva finished her thoughts, while sitting in the living room and staring into the blank television screen. She thought about the major changes between them.
The first, Paris, was the beginning of this and even then it was inevitable and too late to turn around and change it. The second, when she text messaged him and they started hanging out more and not sleeping mutually. The third, when she called him to come over and give her nightmares some relief. The fourth, when she called him after returning from Florida because she missed him. The fifth, when he called her wanting her in his arms and therefore silently committing himself to her. This was the last change. This vacation would make them or break them and she knew that.
She was determined not to let it break them. They would work this out. She needed Tony in her life and he needed her in his life. They at dinner silently as they were both wrapped up in their thoughts of how to start this conversation.
"Go outside, I will be out in a minute," Tony said to her. "I'm going to get the dishwasher going and then I would like to enjoy some fresh evening air with you."
She nodded and exited the cabin, walked down the stairs and stopped, staring westward toward the sun which was sinking lower in the sky.
A/N – A little more fluff, but a little more serious toward the end. At least they are on the same page with each other, no matter how undefined or unspoken everything about them is. That should make their conversation easier. Review and tell me your thoughts!