A/N – Here we are at Abby's house and celebrating Tony and Ziva! Exciting!
Arlington, VA
Tony held Ziva's hand as they walked into the house and everyone was smiling at them from the living room that was immediately to their left. Ziva moved a little closer to Tony as she realized exactly how they were around each other outside of work and knowing that their coworkers would see that tonight, because they weren't at work right now and they both knew it. They were here celebrating their engagement thanks to Abby.
Abby walked over to them, beaming. "I'm so glad you're here!" she nearly squealed. "I honestly wasn't sure you would come. You know, you two have been hiding this for over a year and we have a lot to celebrate. First, we need to celebrate Ziva healing and both of you opening up to each other and your relationship and the steps during your relationship that we all missed and Tony's commitment and your engagement! It's going to be so much fun! Gibbs brought the drinks! I just hope he brought some celebrating stuff! You know!"
"Abby," Ziva said warningly as Abby's face flushed with color and excitement.
"So, come in! Sit down! We're waiting on pizza because I know that both you and Tony love it! Your favorite, pepperoni," she said excitedly.
Gibbs and Tony both chuckled as Ziva's face turned scarlet and then returned to normal. She sat on the couch and leaned into Tony's side. His arm went naturally around her waist, holding her in place and protecting her from non-existent dangers. There was a soft "aw" from Abby and they both blushed. McGee was staring as though he couldn't believe his eyes.
Ziva noticed that Ducky was beaming, Gibbs looked content, Breena and Palmer were exchanging glances, and Gibbs was looking content. The only one in the room not looking somewhat pleased about this was Vance. He was watching these two curiously, as though waiting for them to start fighting or something. He knew that they were in a relationship secretly. They had gone up a couple of weeks ago, after announcing to the team that they were in a relationship to fill out the paperwork.
Vance had not been happy that there was an inter-office relationship on the same team that had been kept a secret for so long and that it had gotten to the point of engagement before they shared with anyone. He, however, was personally happy for the two, which was the reason he was there. He needed to remind himself that right now they were not coworkers, they were simply life-partners and they were going to act like it. He had to take away the mentality of the boss for a moment and just be happy for Tony and Ziva as they were.
"I'll get the drinks," Gibbs said, getting up and going to the kitchen. "Tony, care to join me in carrying them out to everyone?"
"Sure," he said as Abby spoke.
"No, Gibbs. They are the guests of honor. They don't help," Abby argued.
"It's alright, Abby," Tony said. "I want to help Gibbs."
"Seriously, Tony? You want to help someone? When they could do the work for you? Ziva really has changed you," Abby said. "I insist. Sit down."
They were locked in a staring contest. Ziva stood up and tugged on the sleeve of Tony's shirt, like a small child trying to catch their parent's attention when they were in the middle of a conversation. Tony looked at her.
"It is alright, Tony," she whispered quietly, her face looking vulnerable, though she was trying hard to hide it.
He sighed and sat down with her again. Gibbs and Abby left the room. There was no door between the kitchen and the sitting room where they were all sitting. They could hear the conversation between Abby and Gibbs.
"Sparkling cider Gibbs? What is this? Tell me you grabbed the wrong thing by accident! Please just tell me that was an accident! It's a Friday night, why in the world would you get sparkling cider? We're not working on a case and aren't on-call this weekend!" Abby nearly bellowed as she spotted it.
Ziva began to tremble a little in Tony's arms. How was Gibbs going to cover this up? What would he come up with? Tony's arm was tight around Ziva's waist, having the same thoughts.
"Tony asked me to get some for him and Ziva," Gibbs stated. "I simply assumed that they weren't drinking tonight. I have regular wine for anyone who wants some."
"That's ridiculous! Put that stuff away. You know, and everyone else should know, that everyone is welcome to stay here if they aren't okay to drive home!" Abby said angrily.
There was silence for a moment. Then, the two of them came out to the living room. Gibbs started with Tony and Ziva, he handed them each a glass of what appeared to be wine. Ziva looked in Gibbs' eyes and he shook his head "no" just slightly. That was her sign to not drink it. She set it on the table beside her and Tony copied her action.
Abby was beaming at everyone as she sat back down on the couch. Ziva shifted beside Tony, feeling slightly emotionally uncomfortable with the situation she was forced into now. She had a glass of alcoholic wine next to her and she was sitting with Tony who also had an alcoholic wine beside him on the table in front of him.
"You two drinking tonight?" Abby asked, already knowing what she heard Gibbs tell him a little while ago.
"No," Ziva said, shaking her head slightly and avoiding eye-contact with Abby.
"We've got plans all day tomorrow and we don't want to end up hung over or stuck here, Abby," Tony explained quickly, thankfully coming around for Ziva. She quietly thanked him with her eyes and he nodded that he got the message.
"You two are always welcome to stay and I can make sure you're up at a certain time?"
"It would have to be earlier and we do really enjoy sleeping in. besides, I think Tony and I would be happier at our place," Ziva explained, going a little pink in the cheeks.
"Then just a glass," Abby insisted.
Neither argued, but neither reached for their wine either. They just held onto each other. Luckily, the doorbell rang before Abby could become much more insistent upon them drinking at their engagement party. Abby went to answer the door and Gibbs quickly stood up and took Tony and Ziva's glasses for them, dumped them and poured them a glass of sparkling cider. That was what he had planned on doing for them and when he returned Abby was none-the-wiser to it, though she would be at some point and they all knew it.
They ate and drank happily and then Abby stood up. "I am going to get more wine and then we are going to get some details out of these two. Does anyone else want anything?"
Some shook their heads no, but McGee shook his head yes and then joined Abby in the kitchen, where they could all hear the conversation.
There was a growling sound coming out of Abby as soon as she had entered the kitchen. "Someone is drinking the sparkling cider," she commented. "That means someone, or rather two people are being extremely stubborn tonight and not following orders at my engagement party for them…. That means that they really aren't drinking… I think there's got to be some other reason behind it…. I mean, honestly, I've never seen Ziva turning down alcohol and Tony drinks at every opportunity that he can get!"
"Abby," McGee said.
"I mean, seriously, why aren't they drinking? Why are they being so stubborn about it? Why didn't anyone say anything to me about those two coming in here and dumping out their wine-glasses and pouring themselves sparkling cider? Why did Gibbs even go to this trouble for them? He's usually all for drinking! I mean, look at him, he does that every night in his basement while building something!"
"Abby," McGee repeated a little louder.
"But tonight, when they know they are having an engagement party they aren't drinking! Shouldn't this be a cause for celebration, for drinking, especially since they're together and drinking? I mean, it only makes sense. But, this, this doesn't make any sense! They're here and they are obviously happy with each other and yet they aren't drinking the wine that I gave them. Perhaps I should dump out the sparkling cider!"
"Abby," McGee nearly shouted, along with Gibbs who joined them in the kitchen. "Perhaps they just don't want to drink and you know how stubborn both of them are! If they don't want to drink and their minds are made up already they aren't going to drink! Seriously, just let it be, Abby!"
"Fine!" she huffed and pouted, pouring herself another glass.
She walked back into the room and looked at Tony and Ziva who were currently lost in each other's eyes and there noses were practically touching each other's noses. The expressions on their faces were ones of absolute adoration, trust, loyalty, and love. Abby nearly sighed and couldn't really be mad at them anymore.
"So, I need details," she said suddenly. "When did this start?"
"About a year ago," Ziva said.
"Over the last summer," Tony responded.
"Why now? Why not earlier and why not later? Just, why?" she asked.
"Why? Because we love each other. Not earlier because I was Mossad and it was against international laws for both of us. Why not later, because I did not want to wait any longer. Why now, because now was the perfect time and we love each other and were ready for this," Ziva said honestly, looking Abby straight in the eyes, her arm going around Tony without her even noticing.
"How exactly did you manage to hide this at work?" Abby asked, staring at the way they were wrapped around each other with an expression of incredulity.
"It was not easy," Ziva responded.
"Not at all," Tony added. "Now, given, there were plenty of slip-ups: days late to work; nearly saying something at work; getting lost in each other's eyes; not focusing on our jobs; being late to work a little more; needing comfort while at work and needing to wait until we were home; you know, the works?"
Abby nodded. "So, what's it like relying on each other for everything?"
"We are still independent people, Abby," Ziva corrected. "We are just very deeply in love with each other. We can rely on each other and we do when we need to, inside and outside of work. We also can trust each other inside and outside of work. That is why we work together in both settings."
Abby nodded again. "When did you fall in love with him, Ziva?" Abby asked.
Ziva thought about it. She had never really thought about it before. She had loved Tony for a long time, but she had to think hard. She blushed and then turned to look at Tony.
"Probably that night that he was ordered to follow me and I caught him doing so," Ziva said quietly. "We were standing outside of my hotel room talking about my sister, Tali, sharing coffee and pizza. It was then that I realized he wasn't the childish person that I had met in the squad room earlier that day and it was then that he crept so far into my mind that I no longer could keep him off of it or out of my life."
Tony smiled and placed a kiss on Ziva's nose, which got quite a reaction out of the people watching them.
"What about you, Tony?" Abby asked.
"Definitely the comment about phone sex," he said quietly and stared deep into Ziva's eyes. "I was sitting in the office and picturing Kate dressed in a school-girl outfit, as my perverted younger mind did often with her, even though she was like a sister to me; she still did have a pretty nice body from everything I had ever seen, which thankfully wasn't much. Most I ever saw of her was on an autopsy table and that wasn't even everything, because I kept her covered the entire time I was in there.
"I was talking to my little self-made vision of Kate when Ziva came in and she thought I was having phone-sex, because I tried to cover my tracks by hitting the end button on the phone," Tony said.
Ziva giggled. "If you had not stuttered over the button on the phone then perhaps I would have believed it. But, probably not, Tony," Ziva said quietly.
"When did you two realize you were in love with each other?" Abby asked curiously, feeling a little foolish for asking the last question at all.
"That summer," Tony whispered.
"Yes, that one. I have to agree," Ziva affirmed.
"Which summer?" Abby asked confused.
"Somalia," they both said at the same time, without taking their eyes off of each other.
This was the first time that either of them uttered those words and Ziva didn't at least cringe. She was too deeply in Tony's arms to be afraid of anything that could possibly haunt her. Tony was too deeply in grained into her life that she couldn't suffer anymore from what had once happened to her in some desert somewhere in the world. It didn't even matter which desert, when, or what part of the world.
"What about the summer that Gibbs was in Mexico? What was going on with you two them?" Abby asked.
Ziva blushed a little. They had agreed not to bring that up ever. That was an agreement with the two of them that had been spoken out loud.
"We were more or less dating," Tony said quietly. "We never did anything, if that's what you're curious about, because we knew that Gibbs was coming back at some point and we knew that we had to work closely with each other. We were also afraid of what the consequences were of us dating. It was more of an experiment than anything else. When Mossad was in town, Ziva was taken and questioned about it and then we had to call things off, because Mossad was threatening… what were they threatening exactly, Ziva? You never told me that much?"
"Your life and my freedom," Ziva said. "I did not care about my freedom so much as I cared about your life. I could not lose you. You were too important to me. I did not really understand that feeling then, as I did not understand many feelings then."
Tony nodded.
"What really happened in Paris?" McGee asked.
Now they both looked at the others who were staring incredibly at the couple on the couch. They chuckled and chuckled for a while then turned to face each other.
"It is not important," Ziva said.
"Oh, I think it is," Abby argued. "Without Paris you two probably wouldn't be sitting here like this now."
Ziva's face grew red. "I learned that I could trust Tony. That is all," Ziva said quietly.
Abby wasn't satisfied with the answer but the others were and were even touched by the answer.
"It was a necessary change," Tony said quietly. "We weren't anything like what we used to be and weren't doing our best work. I wish you hadn't waited so long for any kind of help. I could have helped you."
"I know," Ziva said with a node and pressed a kiss to his lips to which he pulled her into him and they nearly got lost there as someone cleared their throat.
They pulled apart and smiled. Ziva shrugged and they looked at their audience nervously.
"When are you getting married?"
Tony shrugged this time and looked at Ziva. "Not yet," she said. "We have not decided on a date, but we do not want to wait too long. Perhaps the beginning of next summer sometime… what do you think Tony?"
"I think that sounds like a perfect time," he said quietly, knowing that somewhere in Gibbs house there was a dress that was already fitted to Ziva. They had planned on making it in the winter, but the dress would not fit Ziva in the winter and they both knew that, so they had to wait until the baby was born. "We'll work on a date and get back to you."