NCIS Femslash Abby/ZIva "Newsflash" Chapter 2
Posting for International Day of Femslash: July 17, 2010
NEWSFLASH
by
Lisa Countryman
Fandom: NCIS
Pairing: Abby/Ziva
Rating: Eventually R
Summary: A news report makes Abby Sciuto realize she may have missed her chance with Ziva.
Warnings: Angst, some violence, disturbing descriptions of accident aftermath, mentions of past torture (non-graphic), scenes of women in love expressing that love (kinda graphic).
Chapters quote Jewish proverbs. As is the Jewish custom, the word “god” is not spelled out, instead the “o” is an underscore. Proverbs are taken from www. special-dictionary.com/proverbs/source/j/jewish_proverb/
Chapter One
CHAPTER TWO: G_d is closest to those with broken hearts.
Gibbs reached Bethesda faster than even he could believe. He parked at the emergency entrance and abandoned the car. He had to sprint to catch Abby who was covering the uneven ground faster than anyone with three-inch boot heels should be capable of. He had her by the arm as she pushed through the double doors and made her way toward the nursing station.
“Ziva David?” Abby yelled. “Where is she?”
Gibbs sighed and pulled his badge. “My Agent was brought in by a Navy chopper,” he said.
The nurse nodded. “The woman from the Potomac? It’s all over the news.”
“And?” Gibbs barked.
“Are you family members?” the nurse asked gently.
“Yes,” Abby said. She wrung her hands and dropped them below the desk, out of the nurse’s view. She yanked off one of her silver rings and moved it to her left hand ring finger. “She’s my wife.” She held up her hand as proof.
The nurse nodded and stood. “Right this way, Mrs. David. She’s in ICU.”
Abby let out a huge sigh. “ICU, not the morgue. She’s gonna be fine,” Abby insisted as she followed the nurse.
The nurse waved her badge to open the electronically locked door.
Gibbs stayed silently at Abby’s side, the Goth’s bold lie leaving him too stunned to speak. They moved to an area at the back of a large open space. Each bed faced the nurse’s station so the patients could be seen easily. At the far end, a tiny, fragile woman was in a bed with three people working on her.
Abby’s legs buckled and Gibbs caught her, barely keeping her upright.
“She’s so…” Abby shook her head. Ziva looked weak, which was a word no one normally used for the former Mossad.
“Get over there and tell her,” Gibbs whispered in Abby’s ear. “She needs a reason to fight.”
“What?” Abby looked at him, and then her eyes widened. “You think she…”
He nodded.
“Really?” Abby’s voice was as tiny as Ziva looked.
“Abby. I’ve seen how she looks at you when she doesn’t think anyone can see her.” Gibbs sighed, disgusted that he had missed Abby’s now obvious feelings. “You, however, had me completely fooled.”
Abby edged closer to the bed as a nurse moved away. Now she could see that Ziva had a clear tube tucked under her nose. A machine was beside the bed, but it was not hooked up to Ziva. It was a respirator, and it looked as sinister as any omen of death Abby knew. “Is she in a coma?” Abby asked, her voice stronger than she thought possible.
The doctor turned and looked to the nurse.
“This is Mrs. David’s wife,” the nurse said.
“Abby, Abby…David,” the young Goth said as she stared at Ziva’s face. “She’s so pale. When will she wake up?”
The doctor nodded. “They intubated her in the air and shocked her three times. She’s breathing on her own so we extubated her and she has a normal sinus rhythm. Her vitals are better than I would expect. We’re monitoring her. I’d like to see her temperature coming up a bit faster. We’ve got her core temperature up to 92 degrees.”
“That’s way too low,” Abby said, her eyes widening.
“We’re using warmed IVs, heated, humidified oxygen, and a forced air heating system,” the doctor said. “She’s actually sleeping, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Forced air? Is that like a respirator?” Abby asked.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s a forced air heating blanket. Her oxygen is passive. That’s good. She’s strong and we want her breathing on her own to avoid pneumonia.”
“Can I sit with her?” Abby asked.
“Of course, Mrs. David.” He motioned to a chair next to Ziva. His eyes went to Gibbs. “We should keep things as quiet as possible. Too much stimulation will disturb her rest.” He cleared his throat. “I’ll check back soon. Just ask if you need anything.”
“I need her well,” Abby pointed out and sat, then gently lifted Ziva’s hand from under the blanket. There was a soft hum from the other side of the bed where the machine was forcing heated air around Ziva. It made Ziva’s hand warm and that made Abby smile. “Hey, you need to wake up after you’re all rested. We need to talk,” she whispered.
As soon as the doctor and the other nurse left, Abby was alone with Ziva. Gibbs stood near the nurse’s station keeping a watchful eye.
Abby sighed and tucked Ziva’s hand under the blanket again, leaving her own hand intertwined with Ziva’s.
After several minutes, Gibbs went to Abby’s side and rested a hand on her shoulder. “I need to go find DiNozzo.” He also needed to call Ducky and let him know Ziva had once again beaten the odds.
Abby looked up, her eyes full of righteous anger. “He left her in that damn river alone. Tell him there isn’t enough Caf-Pow in the world to make up for that.”
Gibbs nodded. He’d try to reason with Abby later. He would have preferred that Ziva had stayed out of the frozen river. For the moment, he didn’t mention that because Abby needed her anger to keep her going. “I wasn’t kidding,” he whispered. “Tell her.” He kissed the top of Abby’s head.
She smiled and watched him leave before turning to Ziva’s still form. She scooted closer and moved her face next to Ziva’s. “So… wake up and I’ll confess all my darkest secrets.”
Ziva’s chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Every sound in the room meant Ziva was alive. It was more beautiful than any music. Abby rested her head on the side of the bed and closed her eyes. The sound of the motor humming rhythmically, warming Ziva’s body, provided the beat and Ziva’s quiet inhale and exhale was the only melody Abby ever needed to hear.
Waiting was something Abby Sciuto did not do well. It was one of the only things she didn’t do well. She passed the time going over everything that had happened, or rather, everything that hadn’t happened. She had not told Ziva when she first felt an overwhelming attraction. That had been during the time Mikel Mawher had stalked Abby. Ziva, sweet, sexy Ziva, had given Abby a taser. Abby had smiled brightly and thought it was the sweetest gift she’d ever received.
She remembered the day she knew she had fallen in love with Ziva, the cupcake day, at least, that was what Abby called it. Ziva had stayed with Abby while the former Mossad’s apartment was being fumigated. During Ziva’s short stay, the two women had shared lively conversation and even comfortable silences, which Abby rarely experienced with anyone. Abby had been dicing onions for an omelet. Ziva had been standing next to her, humming while using a small knife to slice a zucchini faster than any television chef could ever aspire to. Ziva had felt the observation and smiled and winked at Abby. She’d said, “You see, my skill set fits quite well in the kitchen.” Abby’s heart had fluttered and she had been overwhelmed with the need to kiss Ziva. But she hadn’t.
“Mrs. David?” the doctor asked from behind Abby.
Abby crinkled her brow and then remembered that she was ‘Mrs. David.’ She sat up and turned. “Any change?”
He glanced at the monitors and the rested a hand on Ziva’s forehead. Ziva wiggled her nose and shifted away from his touch. “She’s stronger,” the doctor said with a relieved smile.
Abby ran her hand through Ziva’s hair. “She’s the strongest person I know.”
“Your wife has a great many scars,” he mentioned. “Some old, but more that are recent.”
Abby felt her throat constrict. She nodded. “She was held captive.” She looked into his eyes. “Tortured.”
“I saw your other friends out there,” he said, realizing he’d wandered into an emotional minefield. “She can only have one visitor other than you, and they are all rather insistent.” He pointed at the door. “Perhaps you could go pick one to join you first?”
Abby sighed and looked at Ziva.
“I’ll stay with her,” he promised.
Abby stood and paused. She leaned down and took a liberty she wouldn’t while her friend was awake. She pressed a lingering kiss to Ziva’s forehead. “Be right back,” she whispered.
The doctor watched her go and smiled. Her love for his patient was obvious. He glanced down at Ziva. The unconscious woman reached her hand out to the place where Abby had been resting. Ziva realized Abby had left and was searching for her. She inhaled deeply and whimpered. Her eyes fluttered and then her alert, intelligent eyes scanned the room. She was confused and trying to figure out where she was.
Ziva tried to speak but her throat was painfully dry and rough.
“Mrs. David, you were injured. Do you remember what happened?” he asked.
Ziva closed her eyes. She remembered a chase. “Car chase?” she asked, her voice sounding like she’d smoked a dozen cheap cigars and spent the night screaming at a rock concert.
“That’s right,” he said. “Your wife just stepped out,” added.
“My wife?” Despite years of training to not react even when she didn’t know the situation, both of Ziva’s eyebrows rose high onto her forehead. “Really? She did?” she asked, stalling.
“She seems quite devoted,” he said with a smile. “Beautiful too.” He chuckled. “Love the collar.”
“Abigail?” she asked slowly.
“Should I get her?” he asked.
She slowly shook her head. She needed to figure out what was going on. “My partner? Was he injured in the accident?”
“No,” the doctor slowly. “You weren’t actually in an accident.” He explained. “You jumped into the Potomac.”
“Not likely,” Ziva said with a lazy smirk. “I do not like the cold.”
Abby came back into the room with DiNozzo. Abby wasn’t looking at him, despite the fact that he was following along like a puppy that had just been smacked with a newspaper and wanted to be forgiven. “Ziva!” Abby exclaimed. She rushed to the bed and took Ziva’s hand. “I was so scared, Ziva.”
Ziva stared at their joined hands and suddenly the earlier events poured back into her mind like the water had poured into the sinking car. She remembered the promise she had made to herself.
DiNozzo nodded toward the machines around the bed. “Okay, so the next time you leap into a frozen river, I’m having Gibbs headslap you into next week.”
Ziva rolled her eyes. “I expected you to help me,” she said with a yawn. She smiled at Abby. “Tony, perhaps you could leave Abigail and I alone, yes?”
“She’s been in here with you alone this whole time,” he complained.
Abby shot him a glare, but Ziva squeezed their locked fingers. Abby smiled, only then noticing that Ziva was as eager for the contact as she was.
Ziva tugged Abby’s hand. “Are you not going to kiss your wife?” she asked in a teasing tone.
DiNozzo’s eyes widened.
Abby smiled shyly. She met Ziva’s eyes, expecting her to be mocking, but what she saw was no joke. Ziva’s eyes were earnest and they held a bit of nervousness as well.
Abby nodded and leaned down. She pressed her lips to Ziva’s and closed her eyes.
Ziva sighed and her eyes fluttered shut. She tangled her hand in Abby’s hair and cradled her reverently as the kiss continued. A tiny sigh escaped as her lips moved in perfect synch with Abby’s.
Abby inhaled without breaking the languid kiss. As first kisses went, it was… perfection. Neither escalated the kiss, both content to let lips suffice. Each woman’s tongue had peeked out only enough to tease the other’s lips without seeking entry into their partner’s mouth. It promised of things to come and told each woman that their feelings were whole-heartedly reciprocated.
“Uh, Abs?” DiNozzo asked. “Is this a hypothermia cure I haven’t heard of?”
Abby broke the kiss and turned toward DiNozzo. “Out,” she said dangerously. “And if you ever abandon Ziva again, there won’t be enough of you left to get a DNA sample.”
“Agent DiNozzo, I think you should go.” The doctor cleared his throat again. “Mrs. David, we’d like you to stay for observation for at least the night.”
Ziva stared to protest, but Abby spoke first. “She’ll stay and she’ll like it,” Abby promised.
Ziva smiled and lifted her right hand up and pressed her fingertips to her lips where they had touched Abby’s.
Abby saw the look of bemused pleasure on Ziva’s face. “And how was it?” she asked.
Ziva looked down shyly before answering. She lifted her gaze. “Every kiss is as magical as our first kiss,” she said. “Which I will never forget as long as I live.”
The doctor’s eyes sparkled. “I’ll leave you two alone.” He quickly exited.
Ziva bit her lip and blushed. It was a welcome change after her deathly pallor when she’d been plucked from the water. “So, Mrs. David, did you have a plan, other than to claim me as your sleeping bride?” she asked Abby.
“My plan was to tell you how I feel about you,” Abby said honestly. “I promised myself I wouldn’t wait.”
Ziva dipped her head. “I made myself a similar promise.”
Abby fidgeted. “And what were you wanting to tell me?”
“You first,” Ziva said. She trailed a finger down Abby’s arm and tucked her fingertip under a thick black leather bracelet at Abby’s wrist.
Abby nodded. The kiss Ziva had requested had made her pretty sure she wasn’t facing rejection. She leaned closer and looked into Ziva’s mirth-filled eyes. “I love you,” she said with a quiet intensity.
Ziva smiled and her blush darkened until her cheeks were the color of a dusty rose. “Abigail Sciuto, I love you, too.” She closed her eyes, a weight lifting from her as the words were finally spoken after years of yearning.
Abby leaned down and took her second kiss from Ziva’s lips. This kiss was longer, and their tongues darted out for a brief introduction, but they kept their passion in check.
“So where do we go now?” Ziva asked. She was clinging to Abby’s hand.
“Well, I hate being predictable,” Abby said. “So, since we’re married, maybe we should try dating?”
Ziva nodded and pretended to consider the offer. “That is a bit out of sequence,” she pointed out. “Unorthodox even.”
“That’s me,” Abby said. “Because orthodox is not a word anyone would ever use to describe me.”
Ziva nodded and yawned. “I have many words to describe you, and not one of them suggests anything remotely orthodox or ordinary.”
Abby smiled and blushed. “You should get some sleep.” She wiggled to get comfortable in the chair next to the bed. “I’ll be here all night, and no arguments.”
Ziva closed her eyes and sighed. “Believe me, Abigail, I am not a fool. I would never argue against spending the night with you.”
Abby smiled and decided that she would have to think of a very special first date. It wasn’t everyday you asked out a woman who you fake married and kissed in an ICU before even admitting you liked her in a romantic way.
***
The next day, Abby was late for work. She’d stayed the night sleeping in the chair at Ziva’s side. She’d slept in worse places, but she’d never wanted to be next to someone more than she had wanted to be next to Ziva. She and Gibbs had driven Ziva home and settled her in for another day off, leaving her with strict instructions to rest.
Now Abby was back in her lab and she couldn’t stop staring at the empty screen on the wall. That screen was where she had watched Ziva hauled from the icy water of the Potomac looking more like one of Ducky’s autopsy guests than the vibrant woman Abby knew Ziva to be. Abby ran to the side of the room and vomited into the trashcan. She was spitting into the same can when McGee came into the lab.
“Abby, you okay?” he asked gently.
Abby nodded and wiped her mouth. “Just in desperate need for a toothbrush. Good thing I keep one in my office,” she said with forced cheer. “What do you have for me, McGee?” she asked.
He studied her for a moment, clutching an evidence bag in his hands. “Got a pair of panties from the crime scene.” He held up the bag. “That should cheer you up.”
She took the evidence bag and hid a tiny smirk. “A used pink thong? Not what I would call the most Abby-friendly gift, Timmy.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not exactly Navy issue. So, I’m hoping you can get a manufacturer and maybe trace the person who bought it.” McGee looked around the lab, noticing that Abby’s normal music was not pounding loudly in the small lab. “Um, Abs?” he asked as he realized the instrumental music sounded decidedly non-death metal-ish. It was sultry jazz.
Abby looked at him curiously, and then understanding dawned. “New Orleans Jazz,” she said.
“So it’s true,” he said with a genuine smile. “You kissed Ziva?”
Abby blushed. “Tony has a big mouth,” she said quietly.
“Yes,” McGee agreed. “And you listen to New Orleans Jazz when you are feeling…romantic.” He watched as her pale cheeks slowly turned crimson. “I only have one thing to say,” he whispered as he put his mouth next to her ear. “It’s about damn time.”
Abby rubbed her forehead. “How did you catch what Gibbs missed?” she asked.
“Gibbs never dated you,” McGee reminded her.
“Ew,” Abby said, shuddering. “The Gibblet may be a silver fox, but he is also daddygibbs.”
“Abs, when we dated, I saw you when we were at our best.” He picked up her hand. “For a time we shared love.” He met her eyes and his smile became slightly bittersweet. “We were never ‘in love,’ but I know you.” He shook his head. “Abs, your eyes practically light the entire room when you talk about Ziva.”
“I don’t want to screw this up,” Abby admitted. “Let’s forget that we work together, and that if we go down in a fiery ball of… well, flames…which is rather redundant…fiery flames…”
“Abby,” McGee said, giving her hand a gentle shake.
“Right,” she said. “Okay, so setting aside the coworker thing, Tim, I really want this to work out. Really, really want it to work out.” She sighed. “And I tend to screw up relationships.”
He nodded. There was no sense denying what they both knew to be true. “Plus, well, most of Ziva’s dating relationships end with her lover’s being international spies bent on killing her or us,” he pointed out.
“Yeah!” Abby said gleefully.
McGee tilted his head to one side. “Okay, that isn’t really a ‘yeah’ kind of point.”
“It is,” Abby insisted. “I am not an international spy bent on killing her or the team.” She frowned. “Well, maybe Tony, because, seriously? When your partner dives into a frozen river and then sinks, it’s kind of in your job description to freaking jump in after her.”
“Abs, Tony was securing the scene on the bridge. Plus, well, the first thing they teach every LEO in this area regarding frozen rivers? Do not enter the water unless you’ve got a survival suit. It just makes more victims.”
“Hmpt,” Abby grumbled, unconvinced. “And if Ziva hadn’t jumped into that river, a little girl and her mother would be dead right now.”
McGee nodded, and his chest tightened. He’d watched the replays of the rescue on CNN dozens of times, each time more horrified by the footage of Ziva yanked from the water. “We almost lost her,” he whispered. He remembered seeing her face when the hood had been yanked off her head in North Africa. It had been like seeing a ghost. The CNN footage was like seeing that ghost ripped away.
“But we didn’t,” Abby said. “And now I have to come up with the perfect first date for the former Mossad spy who has everything, well, who has every weapon.”
“Romantic picnic at the outdoor firing range?” he suggested with a wicked smile.
“No, I vetoed that,” Abby said as she paced. “That’s a spring date.” She waved a hand at him. “And an indoor range just doesn’t have the same romantic flair.”
He stared, his mouth hanging half open.
“Well, I mean, maybe I’m worrying for nothing, right?” Abby asked. “Maybe she’ll think all my romance and fluffy cuddly ideas are just silly.”
“Because a firing range is far too fluffy and cuddly,” he said slowly.
The door to the lab opened and DiNozzo poked his head into the room. He was holding something in his hands, which were still in the hall. “Okay, you ruined Ziva,” he said. “You turned her into a girl.”
Abby growled. She still hadn’t forgiven him. “Just what does that mean, Tony?”
“She sent you flowers,” he said with a shiver. “Flowers. Ziva David sent flowers.” He came into the room and revealed a bouquet of black irises.
“Oh, my god,” Abby exclaimed. “Those are exquisite.” She rushed forward and grabbed them. She carried them to her lab table and leaned side to side to examine them. “The’re not dyed,” she said as her smile grew. She turned to McGee. “These are naturally black. Black flowers. From nature.” She squealed and bounced up and down.
McGee smiled. “Guess black roses just moved down from the number one spot as the go-to Abby gift.”
“No, you guys keep sending roses,” Abby said as she circled the table. She was taking note of each detail of the dozen flowers. “Back roses are not real. They’re fabricated. They don’t exist in the real world.” She smiled as she noticed that each bloom had slight differences in shape or shade, some with a tiny bit of orange or purple on its beard. “These are real. Like Ziva and me.”
DiNozzo rolled his eyes and pretended to put his finger down his throat as if trying to vomit.
“You can leave now, DiNozzo,” Abby said, her tone harsh with no hint of humor.
“Don’t you want the card?” DiNozzo held up a small black envelope. It had been opened. The sealed flap was torn.
“You read the card?” Abby yelled. She rushed forward and yanked the card out of his hand. “You son of a bitch.”
“Big deal. She quoted some lame poem.” He backed away, seeing fire in Abby’s eyes. “You totally turned her into a girl, Abby.”
“Out,” Abby said, pointing at the door.
“Fine,” DiNozzo said. He backed out. “You’re welcome, by the way. I signed for the flowers.”
“Move, before she kills you.” McGee took DiNozzo by the arm and shoved him out the door, leaving Abby with a black card in her shaking hands.
“Okay, so I can do this,” she whispered. Her eyes darted from the beautiful flowers to the card and then back again. “I know she likes me. Heck, she got me actual black flowers.” She lifted the torn flap, and pushed her anger toward Tony aside so she could focus on the gift in her hand. The card contained a folded piece of black paper. The writing was in Ziva’s crisp print, and the silver ink gave it an otherworldly quality. Abby smiled. She recognized the poem by Lord Bryon, and it was one of her personal favorites, a fact she had shared with Ziva more than a year earlier.
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow'd to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
Abigail, my midnight flower,
this poem and these flowers remind me of you,
though your beauty eclipses them in every way.
Yours, utterly and completely,
Ziva
Abby held the card to her chest and fought back tears. “Okay, I so need to come up with the best first date in the history of first dates,” she said to the empty room.
END CHAPTER TWO
NEWSFLASH
by
Lisa Countryman
Fandom: NCIS
Pairing: Abby/Ziva
Rating: Eventually R
Summary: A news report makes Abby Sciuto realize she may have missed her chance with Ziva.
Warnings: Angst, some violence, disturbing descriptions of accident aftermath, mentions of past torture (non-graphic), scenes of women in love expressing that love (kinda graphic).
Chapters quote Jewish proverbs. As is the Jewish custom, the word “god” is not spelled out, instead the “o” is an underscore. Proverbs are taken from www. special-dictionary.com/proverbs/source/j/jewish_proverb/
Chapter One
CHAPTER TWO: G_d is closest to those with broken hearts.
Gibbs reached Bethesda faster than even he could believe. He parked at the emergency entrance and abandoned the car. He had to sprint to catch Abby who was covering the uneven ground faster than anyone with three-inch boot heels should be capable of. He had her by the arm as she pushed through the double doors and made her way toward the nursing station.
“Ziva David?” Abby yelled. “Where is she?”
Gibbs sighed and pulled his badge. “My Agent was brought in by a Navy chopper,” he said.
The nurse nodded. “The woman from the Potomac? It’s all over the news.”
“And?” Gibbs barked.
“Are you family members?” the nurse asked gently.
“Yes,” Abby said. She wrung her hands and dropped them below the desk, out of the nurse’s view. She yanked off one of her silver rings and moved it to her left hand ring finger. “She’s my wife.” She held up her hand as proof.
The nurse nodded and stood. “Right this way, Mrs. David. She’s in ICU.”
Abby let out a huge sigh. “ICU, not the morgue. She’s gonna be fine,” Abby insisted as she followed the nurse.
The nurse waved her badge to open the electronically locked door.
Gibbs stayed silently at Abby’s side, the Goth’s bold lie leaving him too stunned to speak. They moved to an area at the back of a large open space. Each bed faced the nurse’s station so the patients could be seen easily. At the far end, a tiny, fragile woman was in a bed with three people working on her.
Abby’s legs buckled and Gibbs caught her, barely keeping her upright.
“She’s so…” Abby shook her head. Ziva looked weak, which was a word no one normally used for the former Mossad.
“Get over there and tell her,” Gibbs whispered in Abby’s ear. “She needs a reason to fight.”
“What?” Abby looked at him, and then her eyes widened. “You think she…”
He nodded.
“Really?” Abby’s voice was as tiny as Ziva looked.
“Abby. I’ve seen how she looks at you when she doesn’t think anyone can see her.” Gibbs sighed, disgusted that he had missed Abby’s now obvious feelings. “You, however, had me completely fooled.”
Abby edged closer to the bed as a nurse moved away. Now she could see that Ziva had a clear tube tucked under her nose. A machine was beside the bed, but it was not hooked up to Ziva. It was a respirator, and it looked as sinister as any omen of death Abby knew. “Is she in a coma?” Abby asked, her voice stronger than she thought possible.
The doctor turned and looked to the nurse.
“This is Mrs. David’s wife,” the nurse said.
“Abby, Abby…David,” the young Goth said as she stared at Ziva’s face. “She’s so pale. When will she wake up?”
The doctor nodded. “They intubated her in the air and shocked her three times. She’s breathing on her own so we extubated her and she has a normal sinus rhythm. Her vitals are better than I would expect. We’re monitoring her. I’d like to see her temperature coming up a bit faster. We’ve got her core temperature up to 92 degrees.”
“That’s way too low,” Abby said, her eyes widening.
“We’re using warmed IVs, heated, humidified oxygen, and a forced air heating system,” the doctor said. “She’s actually sleeping, and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Forced air? Is that like a respirator?” Abby asked.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s a forced air heating blanket. Her oxygen is passive. That’s good. She’s strong and we want her breathing on her own to avoid pneumonia.”
“Can I sit with her?” Abby asked.
“Of course, Mrs. David.” He motioned to a chair next to Ziva. His eyes went to Gibbs. “We should keep things as quiet as possible. Too much stimulation will disturb her rest.” He cleared his throat. “I’ll check back soon. Just ask if you need anything.”
“I need her well,” Abby pointed out and sat, then gently lifted Ziva’s hand from under the blanket. There was a soft hum from the other side of the bed where the machine was forcing heated air around Ziva. It made Ziva’s hand warm and that made Abby smile. “Hey, you need to wake up after you’re all rested. We need to talk,” she whispered.
As soon as the doctor and the other nurse left, Abby was alone with Ziva. Gibbs stood near the nurse’s station keeping a watchful eye.
Abby sighed and tucked Ziva’s hand under the blanket again, leaving her own hand intertwined with Ziva’s.
After several minutes, Gibbs went to Abby’s side and rested a hand on her shoulder. “I need to go find DiNozzo.” He also needed to call Ducky and let him know Ziva had once again beaten the odds.
Abby looked up, her eyes full of righteous anger. “He left her in that damn river alone. Tell him there isn’t enough Caf-Pow in the world to make up for that.”
Gibbs nodded. He’d try to reason with Abby later. He would have preferred that Ziva had stayed out of the frozen river. For the moment, he didn’t mention that because Abby needed her anger to keep her going. “I wasn’t kidding,” he whispered. “Tell her.” He kissed the top of Abby’s head.
She smiled and watched him leave before turning to Ziva’s still form. She scooted closer and moved her face next to Ziva’s. “So… wake up and I’ll confess all my darkest secrets.”
Ziva’s chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Every sound in the room meant Ziva was alive. It was more beautiful than any music. Abby rested her head on the side of the bed and closed her eyes. The sound of the motor humming rhythmically, warming Ziva’s body, provided the beat and Ziva’s quiet inhale and exhale was the only melody Abby ever needed to hear.
Waiting was something Abby Sciuto did not do well. It was one of the only things she didn’t do well. She passed the time going over everything that had happened, or rather, everything that hadn’t happened. She had not told Ziva when she first felt an overwhelming attraction. That had been during the time Mikel Mawher had stalked Abby. Ziva, sweet, sexy Ziva, had given Abby a taser. Abby had smiled brightly and thought it was the sweetest gift she’d ever received.
She remembered the day she knew she had fallen in love with Ziva, the cupcake day, at least, that was what Abby called it. Ziva had stayed with Abby while the former Mossad’s apartment was being fumigated. During Ziva’s short stay, the two women had shared lively conversation and even comfortable silences, which Abby rarely experienced with anyone. Abby had been dicing onions for an omelet. Ziva had been standing next to her, humming while using a small knife to slice a zucchini faster than any television chef could ever aspire to. Ziva had felt the observation and smiled and winked at Abby. She’d said, “You see, my skill set fits quite well in the kitchen.” Abby’s heart had fluttered and she had been overwhelmed with the need to kiss Ziva. But she hadn’t.
“Mrs. David?” the doctor asked from behind Abby.
Abby crinkled her brow and then remembered that she was ‘Mrs. David.’ She sat up and turned. “Any change?”
He glanced at the monitors and the rested a hand on Ziva’s forehead. Ziva wiggled her nose and shifted away from his touch. “She’s stronger,” the doctor said with a relieved smile.
Abby ran her hand through Ziva’s hair. “She’s the strongest person I know.”
“Your wife has a great many scars,” he mentioned. “Some old, but more that are recent.”
Abby felt her throat constrict. She nodded. “She was held captive.” She looked into his eyes. “Tortured.”
“I saw your other friends out there,” he said, realizing he’d wandered into an emotional minefield. “She can only have one visitor other than you, and they are all rather insistent.” He pointed at the door. “Perhaps you could go pick one to join you first?”
Abby sighed and looked at Ziva.
“I’ll stay with her,” he promised.
Abby stood and paused. She leaned down and took a liberty she wouldn’t while her friend was awake. She pressed a lingering kiss to Ziva’s forehead. “Be right back,” she whispered.
The doctor watched her go and smiled. Her love for his patient was obvious. He glanced down at Ziva. The unconscious woman reached her hand out to the place where Abby had been resting. Ziva realized Abby had left and was searching for her. She inhaled deeply and whimpered. Her eyes fluttered and then her alert, intelligent eyes scanned the room. She was confused and trying to figure out where she was.
Ziva tried to speak but her throat was painfully dry and rough.
“Mrs. David, you were injured. Do you remember what happened?” he asked.
Ziva closed her eyes. She remembered a chase. “Car chase?” she asked, her voice sounding like she’d smoked a dozen cheap cigars and spent the night screaming at a rock concert.
“That’s right,” he said. “Your wife just stepped out,” added.
“My wife?” Despite years of training to not react even when she didn’t know the situation, both of Ziva’s eyebrows rose high onto her forehead. “Really? She did?” she asked, stalling.
“She seems quite devoted,” he said with a smile. “Beautiful too.” He chuckled. “Love the collar.”
“Abigail?” she asked slowly.
“Should I get her?” he asked.
She slowly shook her head. She needed to figure out what was going on. “My partner? Was he injured in the accident?”
“No,” the doctor slowly. “You weren’t actually in an accident.” He explained. “You jumped into the Potomac.”
“Not likely,” Ziva said with a lazy smirk. “I do not like the cold.”
Abby came back into the room with DiNozzo. Abby wasn’t looking at him, despite the fact that he was following along like a puppy that had just been smacked with a newspaper and wanted to be forgiven. “Ziva!” Abby exclaimed. She rushed to the bed and took Ziva’s hand. “I was so scared, Ziva.”
Ziva stared at their joined hands and suddenly the earlier events poured back into her mind like the water had poured into the sinking car. She remembered the promise she had made to herself.
DiNozzo nodded toward the machines around the bed. “Okay, so the next time you leap into a frozen river, I’m having Gibbs headslap you into next week.”
Ziva rolled her eyes. “I expected you to help me,” she said with a yawn. She smiled at Abby. “Tony, perhaps you could leave Abigail and I alone, yes?”
“She’s been in here with you alone this whole time,” he complained.
Abby shot him a glare, but Ziva squeezed their locked fingers. Abby smiled, only then noticing that Ziva was as eager for the contact as she was.
Ziva tugged Abby’s hand. “Are you not going to kiss your wife?” she asked in a teasing tone.
DiNozzo’s eyes widened.
Abby smiled shyly. She met Ziva’s eyes, expecting her to be mocking, but what she saw was no joke. Ziva’s eyes were earnest and they held a bit of nervousness as well.
Abby nodded and leaned down. She pressed her lips to Ziva’s and closed her eyes.
Ziva sighed and her eyes fluttered shut. She tangled her hand in Abby’s hair and cradled her reverently as the kiss continued. A tiny sigh escaped as her lips moved in perfect synch with Abby’s.
Abby inhaled without breaking the languid kiss. As first kisses went, it was… perfection. Neither escalated the kiss, both content to let lips suffice. Each woman’s tongue had peeked out only enough to tease the other’s lips without seeking entry into their partner’s mouth. It promised of things to come and told each woman that their feelings were whole-heartedly reciprocated.
“Uh, Abs?” DiNozzo asked. “Is this a hypothermia cure I haven’t heard of?”
Abby broke the kiss and turned toward DiNozzo. “Out,” she said dangerously. “And if you ever abandon Ziva again, there won’t be enough of you left to get a DNA sample.”
“Agent DiNozzo, I think you should go.” The doctor cleared his throat again. “Mrs. David, we’d like you to stay for observation for at least the night.”
Ziva stared to protest, but Abby spoke first. “She’ll stay and she’ll like it,” Abby promised.
Ziva smiled and lifted her right hand up and pressed her fingertips to her lips where they had touched Abby’s.
Abby saw the look of bemused pleasure on Ziva’s face. “And how was it?” she asked.
Ziva looked down shyly before answering. She lifted her gaze. “Every kiss is as magical as our first kiss,” she said. “Which I will never forget as long as I live.”
The doctor’s eyes sparkled. “I’ll leave you two alone.” He quickly exited.
Ziva bit her lip and blushed. It was a welcome change after her deathly pallor when she’d been plucked from the water. “So, Mrs. David, did you have a plan, other than to claim me as your sleeping bride?” she asked Abby.
“My plan was to tell you how I feel about you,” Abby said honestly. “I promised myself I wouldn’t wait.”
Ziva dipped her head. “I made myself a similar promise.”
Abby fidgeted. “And what were you wanting to tell me?”
“You first,” Ziva said. She trailed a finger down Abby’s arm and tucked her fingertip under a thick black leather bracelet at Abby’s wrist.
Abby nodded. The kiss Ziva had requested had made her pretty sure she wasn’t facing rejection. She leaned closer and looked into Ziva’s mirth-filled eyes. “I love you,” she said with a quiet intensity.
Ziva smiled and her blush darkened until her cheeks were the color of a dusty rose. “Abigail Sciuto, I love you, too.” She closed her eyes, a weight lifting from her as the words were finally spoken after years of yearning.
Abby leaned down and took her second kiss from Ziva’s lips. This kiss was longer, and their tongues darted out for a brief introduction, but they kept their passion in check.
“So where do we go now?” Ziva asked. She was clinging to Abby’s hand.
“Well, I hate being predictable,” Abby said. “So, since we’re married, maybe we should try dating?”
Ziva nodded and pretended to consider the offer. “That is a bit out of sequence,” she pointed out. “Unorthodox even.”
“That’s me,” Abby said. “Because orthodox is not a word anyone would ever use to describe me.”
Ziva nodded and yawned. “I have many words to describe you, and not one of them suggests anything remotely orthodox or ordinary.”
Abby smiled and blushed. “You should get some sleep.” She wiggled to get comfortable in the chair next to the bed. “I’ll be here all night, and no arguments.”
Ziva closed her eyes and sighed. “Believe me, Abigail, I am not a fool. I would never argue against spending the night with you.”
Abby smiled and decided that she would have to think of a very special first date. It wasn’t everyday you asked out a woman who you fake married and kissed in an ICU before even admitting you liked her in a romantic way.
***
The next day, Abby was late for work. She’d stayed the night sleeping in the chair at Ziva’s side. She’d slept in worse places, but she’d never wanted to be next to someone more than she had wanted to be next to Ziva. She and Gibbs had driven Ziva home and settled her in for another day off, leaving her with strict instructions to rest.
Now Abby was back in her lab and she couldn’t stop staring at the empty screen on the wall. That screen was where she had watched Ziva hauled from the icy water of the Potomac looking more like one of Ducky’s autopsy guests than the vibrant woman Abby knew Ziva to be. Abby ran to the side of the room and vomited into the trashcan. She was spitting into the same can when McGee came into the lab.
“Abby, you okay?” he asked gently.
Abby nodded and wiped her mouth. “Just in desperate need for a toothbrush. Good thing I keep one in my office,” she said with forced cheer. “What do you have for me, McGee?” she asked.
He studied her for a moment, clutching an evidence bag in his hands. “Got a pair of panties from the crime scene.” He held up the bag. “That should cheer you up.”
She took the evidence bag and hid a tiny smirk. “A used pink thong? Not what I would call the most Abby-friendly gift, Timmy.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not exactly Navy issue. So, I’m hoping you can get a manufacturer and maybe trace the person who bought it.” McGee looked around the lab, noticing that Abby’s normal music was not pounding loudly in the small lab. “Um, Abs?” he asked as he realized the instrumental music sounded decidedly non-death metal-ish. It was sultry jazz.
Abby looked at him curiously, and then understanding dawned. “New Orleans Jazz,” she said.
“So it’s true,” he said with a genuine smile. “You kissed Ziva?”
Abby blushed. “Tony has a big mouth,” she said quietly.
“Yes,” McGee agreed. “And you listen to New Orleans Jazz when you are feeling…romantic.” He watched as her pale cheeks slowly turned crimson. “I only have one thing to say,” he whispered as he put his mouth next to her ear. “It’s about damn time.”
Abby rubbed her forehead. “How did you catch what Gibbs missed?” she asked.
“Gibbs never dated you,” McGee reminded her.
“Ew,” Abby said, shuddering. “The Gibblet may be a silver fox, but he is also daddygibbs.”
“Abs, when we dated, I saw you when we were at our best.” He picked up her hand. “For a time we shared love.” He met her eyes and his smile became slightly bittersweet. “We were never ‘in love,’ but I know you.” He shook his head. “Abs, your eyes practically light the entire room when you talk about Ziva.”
“I don’t want to screw this up,” Abby admitted. “Let’s forget that we work together, and that if we go down in a fiery ball of… well, flames…which is rather redundant…fiery flames…”
“Abby,” McGee said, giving her hand a gentle shake.
“Right,” she said. “Okay, so setting aside the coworker thing, Tim, I really want this to work out. Really, really want it to work out.” She sighed. “And I tend to screw up relationships.”
He nodded. There was no sense denying what they both knew to be true. “Plus, well, most of Ziva’s dating relationships end with her lover’s being international spies bent on killing her or us,” he pointed out.
“Yeah!” Abby said gleefully.
McGee tilted his head to one side. “Okay, that isn’t really a ‘yeah’ kind of point.”
“It is,” Abby insisted. “I am not an international spy bent on killing her or the team.” She frowned. “Well, maybe Tony, because, seriously? When your partner dives into a frozen river and then sinks, it’s kind of in your job description to freaking jump in after her.”
“Abs, Tony was securing the scene on the bridge. Plus, well, the first thing they teach every LEO in this area regarding frozen rivers? Do not enter the water unless you’ve got a survival suit. It just makes more victims.”
“Hmpt,” Abby grumbled, unconvinced. “And if Ziva hadn’t jumped into that river, a little girl and her mother would be dead right now.”
McGee nodded, and his chest tightened. He’d watched the replays of the rescue on CNN dozens of times, each time more horrified by the footage of Ziva yanked from the water. “We almost lost her,” he whispered. He remembered seeing her face when the hood had been yanked off her head in North Africa. It had been like seeing a ghost. The CNN footage was like seeing that ghost ripped away.
“But we didn’t,” Abby said. “And now I have to come up with the perfect first date for the former Mossad spy who has everything, well, who has every weapon.”
“Romantic picnic at the outdoor firing range?” he suggested with a wicked smile.
“No, I vetoed that,” Abby said as she paced. “That’s a spring date.” She waved a hand at him. “And an indoor range just doesn’t have the same romantic flair.”
He stared, his mouth hanging half open.
“Well, I mean, maybe I’m worrying for nothing, right?” Abby asked. “Maybe she’ll think all my romance and fluffy cuddly ideas are just silly.”
“Because a firing range is far too fluffy and cuddly,” he said slowly.
The door to the lab opened and DiNozzo poked his head into the room. He was holding something in his hands, which were still in the hall. “Okay, you ruined Ziva,” he said. “You turned her into a girl.”
Abby growled. She still hadn’t forgiven him. “Just what does that mean, Tony?”
“She sent you flowers,” he said with a shiver. “Flowers. Ziva David sent flowers.” He came into the room and revealed a bouquet of black irises.
“Oh, my god,” Abby exclaimed. “Those are exquisite.” She rushed forward and grabbed them. She carried them to her lab table and leaned side to side to examine them. “The’re not dyed,” she said as her smile grew. She turned to McGee. “These are naturally black. Black flowers. From nature.” She squealed and bounced up and down.
McGee smiled. “Guess black roses just moved down from the number one spot as the go-to Abby gift.”
“No, you guys keep sending roses,” Abby said as she circled the table. She was taking note of each detail of the dozen flowers. “Back roses are not real. They’re fabricated. They don’t exist in the real world.” She smiled as she noticed that each bloom had slight differences in shape or shade, some with a tiny bit of orange or purple on its beard. “These are real. Like Ziva and me.”
DiNozzo rolled his eyes and pretended to put his finger down his throat as if trying to vomit.
“You can leave now, DiNozzo,” Abby said, her tone harsh with no hint of humor.
“Don’t you want the card?” DiNozzo held up a small black envelope. It had been opened. The sealed flap was torn.
“You read the card?” Abby yelled. She rushed forward and yanked the card out of his hand. “You son of a bitch.”
“Big deal. She quoted some lame poem.” He backed away, seeing fire in Abby’s eyes. “You totally turned her into a girl, Abby.”
“Out,” Abby said, pointing at the door.
“Fine,” DiNozzo said. He backed out. “You’re welcome, by the way. I signed for the flowers.”
“Move, before she kills you.” McGee took DiNozzo by the arm and shoved him out the door, leaving Abby with a black card in her shaking hands.
“Okay, so I can do this,” she whispered. Her eyes darted from the beautiful flowers to the card and then back again. “I know she likes me. Heck, she got me actual black flowers.” She lifted the torn flap, and pushed her anger toward Tony aside so she could focus on the gift in her hand. The card contained a folded piece of black paper. The writing was in Ziva’s crisp print, and the silver ink gave it an otherworldly quality. Abby smiled. She recognized the poem by Lord Bryon, and it was one of her personal favorites, a fact she had shared with Ziva more than a year earlier.
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
Thus mellow'd to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
Abigail, my midnight flower,
this poem and these flowers remind me of you,
though your beauty eclipses them in every way.
Yours, utterly and completely,
Ziva
Abby held the card to her chest and fought back tears. “Okay, I so need to come up with the best first date in the history of first dates,” she said to the empty room.
END CHAPTER TWO