A/N: Were any of you guys kind of disappointed with the 250th? I was very surprised that Senior didn't even mention Ziva. We all know he was a shipper lol. Anyways, here is your chapter 9! Enjoy!
Chapter 9
He closes his eyes for a brief moment to the point where he thinks that the world had gone still. As if she was another dream. But as he opens his eyes once more, there she is in front of him - giving him a weary and shocked look.
He stands his ground when emotions suddenly fill his body. A sudden lump formed in his throat, enabling him from talking any further.
When he observes her silently, she is looking downwards to the extent of her also biting her bottom lip. He wishes he could say something that would not make him seem like a jerk, but it's hard attempting to talk to her. In all honesty, all he wants to do is get past everything and be with her. Unfortunately, he knows he has to face this. He needs answers.
"So, how long have you been in DC?" he says after minutes of silence, masking his vulnerability once again, however instead of showing his comedic antics, a feeling of sudden anger fills inside him. When she finally looks into his eyes, she opens her mouth to speak. "Tony..," she begins but gets cut off.
"Not even a phone call Ziva? No text? What happened back there?" He hissed. Not even the softness of her saying his name calms him down.
"I was exploring my roots, as you said," she laughs weakly, trying to liven up their first conversation after months of no communication.
"I don't understand. After all the times I called you, when I needed you, you never answered your damn phone," he lets out loud sigh and places both of his elbows on the desk firmly, their hands only inches apart.
She looks up and sees the vulnerability and insecurity in his bold green eyes. Immediately she feels tears welling up on the inside of her eyes. Ziva tries her hardest to blink them back but to no avail. When they fall, she quickly wipes them away with the back of her hand.
"This is as hard for me as it is hard for you. Coming back to America felt right. But I was not ready to face the team again. I just needed to settle down first, find a job, a new apartment.."
"So me being here is just a total coincidence?" Tony looks up at her harshly.
"I do not believe in coincidences," she says firmly.
Rule 39, he thinks.
The silence brought between them gave him time to calm himself. When he thinks he should say what he truly feels to her, he says it with no hesitation."I've missed you." She nods.
"I know," she replies. He takes her hands into his then, caressing her fingers. She smiles brightly at him.
"How about we blow off this job and have something to eat, my favorite Israeli?"
She laughs at his remark. "I cannot, it is only my first day." She leans into him and kisses him on the cheek. Then Ziva adds,"My break starts at 3, you can come and pick me up then."
When he breaks their embrace, Tony smiles a genuine smile and proceeds to the front exit. But before he leaves, he says,"Be ready."
It was 1500 hours when he arrives at the library. He had to make up an excuse to the all-knowing Gibbs so he could have lunch with her. But knowing his boss, Gibbs probably knew exactly why Tony had to leave. Tony smoothly walks into the vicinity immediately looking for her. When he does see her, she is engaged into a conversation with Helen. Walking over to the two women, he plops himself to the nearest chair, watching them intently.
Ziva was the first to notice him. She turns from Helen and gives him an intimate smile. God, her seeing him enter the library gave her instant butterflies. It's funny how he still has that effect on him. When Helen sees Ziva turn her head towards the door, she does the same - a smile instantly formed on her lips.
"Tony! It is good to see you! This is my new librarian in case you were wondering, sweetie. Her name is Ziva David. She is a remarkable and beautiful young woman, don't you agree?" Helen beams.
As Tony is about to reply, Ziva cuts in. "Helen, Tony and I are already friends. In fact, he came here to pick me up so we can eat lunch. Do you want to join us perhaps?"
"Oh, that's wonderful to hear, dear. And that is quite an offer but I'm afraid no one will be here to watch the library." She gestures to Tony, "Go, you two have fun. He is a sweet man."
"Thank you, Helen. I will be back by 4:30, yes?" Ziva says.
"Oh no, no. You don't have to come back, sweetie. I'll be fine. You two just have fun, alright?"
As Ziva was about to protest, Tony cuts *her* off. "Thanks Helen. You are always my favorite librarian." Helen smiles.
When they make it to his car, he opens up her door. "M'lady." She gives him a hesitant look but continues to smile as she sits in the front seat of his convertible.
He closes her door and proceeds to his. Inserting the key, the two of them feel the car spark to life. After minutes of silent driving, Ziva begins to speak. "How long have you known Helen?"
He looks at her and begins,"I've known her for a couple weeks, actually. She is a very nice lady."
"Do you know a lot about her?"
"No, not really. Whenever I would come in we would acknowledge each other. Say hi, hello and whatnot." He pauses. "She would recommend books and stuff."
"I see."
Tony looks at her again then questions her. "What about you?" He adds softly,"You never answered my question."
"What? How long have I been in DC?" He nods. She continues. "Not long really. Almost two weeks."
"So.. you never considered contacting anyone? Not even Gibbs?" He inquires.
"No," she says quietly.
"Why?" he says, although he immediately regrets it. He turns slightly to face her to see if he had indeed gone too far, but her face remains like stone. When she finally finds the words she is looking for, she speaks. "I do not know. I think it would have felt right to see everyone after I have settled down again."
Tony presses his lips into a firm line. Ziva grabs Tony's hand - their fingers instantly interlocking. Then she continues,"Tony, I am sorry if I hurt you. It was not my intention. You have my back. But I didn't have yours. For that, I am truly sorry." She feels the grip on their hands tighten, as if it was a response. She looks at him, he smiles. As he opens up his mouth to reply, the car comes to an abrupt halt, arriving at their destination. A small white diner underneath a bridge.
The two unbuckle their seat belts in sync and begin to make their way to the doors. As Ziva is about to pull the door open, Tony stops her. He opens his mouth. "Please, Ziva. Promise me you will never leave me again. I need you in my life."
She furrows her eyebrows, showing him that she's shocked, but she regains her composure and touches his shoulder tenderly. "I promise."
The third day after Tony found Ziva in that library the two of them began to talk as if it were old times. It was a Saturday evening and Tony just got home from finishing a case. When he opens his door the first thing he sees is a figure visible from the moon light coming from the window. He places his things on the ground and moves closer to the figure.
"I wanted to surprise you," she laughs as she moves closer to him - obviously revealing herself.
"Well, you did. I thought I was coming over tonight?"
He takes off his jacket and hangs it in his closet. When he comes back, she is sitting on his couch. He sits next to her. "I thought we could change things up a little," she says, shrugging.
"Well now the question is, are we ordering take out?" He says smugly. She laughs at question and mumbles a noise that sounds like a yes - he grabs his cell-phone from his back pocket and begins to call his favorite take out restaurant. When the delivery man arrives at his door, Tony takes in the beautiful smell of food known as fried rice and kung pow chicken. Tony then proceeds to the kitchen to grab plates for him and Ziva, commencing dinner.
Just after finishing their meals, Tony allows Ziva to pick a movie. Like always, she picks The Sound of Music to which Tony complains. He inserts the disk into his DVD player and sits back down next to Ziva. Although, they sit noticeably closer together than before. Halfway through the movie Tony looks at Ziva, who is enjoying the movie even after all the times she has watched it. Tony takes this distraction as a sign and begins to move his arm to grip her waist. She looks up at him and then rests her head on his shoulder, giving him the opportunity to pull her closer. By the time the Von Trapp family sing 'So Long, Farewell," Ziva is fast asleep on Tony. When the credits roll in, he turns the television off with the remote and carefully picks up Ziva. He proceeds to his bedroom to place her onto his bed. Before he leaves the room, he covers Ziva with the blanket and kisses her head lightly. Then when he finds the couch through the dark, he himself, finally lets sleep consume him.
A/N: Please don't forget to review, follow and favorite! And thanks to all of you who take the time to read this story, it means the world to me.
~edancel x