Tiva tales

First Aid

Ziva lowers herself into the chair positioned behind her desk, attempting to hide the wince at the sharp pain that shoots up her leg. She is tired and unwilling to look at it, despite the fact Gibbs' orders were to go and see Ducky. She has survived worse.

Slowly she tilts her head back and closes her eyes to try and get some sleep, after all it's past midnight and the suspect has already been caught - the paperwork can wait till the morning. It has been a long time since she has been in the bullpen at this hour and she is grateful for the silence that surrounds her. For once there is not the consistent tap of McGee's keyboard or slurp of Gibbs coffee scalding his mouth. The world fades from around her and the beating of her heart takes a slow and steady rhythm as she drifts off to sleep.

Suddenly the elevator dings and she is alerted to the world around her once more. Wearily she peeks at her watch; it's not even 1am yet - who is coming back to the Navy Yard at this hour? Whoever it is needs something better to do with their time she thinks as she attempts to sit up. Unfortunately the pain in her leg when her foot hits the ground is much more intense than she expects and she groans in agony.

 "Are you okay?" a concerned voice comes from behind her. Sighing she tries to turn around to see who it is, leaning on her desk for support. She manages to catch a glimpse of the person now hurriedly walking towards her, rucksack slung over his shoulder and streaks of mud on his face. He circles round to where she is propped up and throws her arm over his shoulder - Ziva knows it is an attempt at a helpful gesture but it feels more towards sympathetic and makes her feel uncomfortable.

"Tony I am fine." She protests, awkwardly trying to remove his arm from around her neck. Her resistance is futile and he only holds on to her tighter to make sure she doesn't fall. Not that she would if he would just let her stand by herself. 

"What did Ducky say?" He asks. Ziva rolls her eyes and looks longingly over at the chair that is now just out of reach, she would really rather be sleeping than playing twenty questions about the insignificant scrape on her leg with DiNozzo. "Ziva." He presses. 

"I do not need Ducky." She protests, hopping along towards her chair and pulling Tony along in the process. If she could just reach out and grab it to pull it closer... crap. She underestimates her distance from it and looses her footing, swaying towards the floor. Quickly Tony slides his arm down to her waist to stop her from coming face to face with the carpet.

 If Ziva was expecting a sarcastic comment from Tony about her balance she does not get it. Instead neither of them say a word and all that can be heard is the sound of their breathing. They have caught one another's gaze and neither of them can will themselves to look away; despite the fact they are still awkwardly close and Tony's arm's clutching her waist. Ziva thinks she sees a small smile form on Tony's lips and it makes her heart skip a beat - it always does. Of all the people that could have come back to check on her she is secretly glad it was Tony. This is where she wants to be, held safely in the arms of someone she trusts... someone she loves.

After what seems like a lifetime Tony breaks the silence by clearing his throat. "Okay... right... okay." He says; his face is flushed and he trips over the words. "Sit. I need to take a look at your leg." For reasons unknown to herself Ziva follows the instructions and lets Tony carefully pull the chair over and lower her into it. This time she refrains from showing the pain her leg is causing.

Tony picks up his rucksack from beside Ziva's desk and pulls out the medical kit. Then he kneels in front of her and starts to roll up her trouser leg. "It's bleeding Ziva." He points out, examining the wound before looking up at her. She says nothing but runs her hand through her curly hair, pulling it away from her face. "This might sting." Tony warns, as he takes a wipe out of the kit and gently cleans the wound, Ziva bites her lip and looks up at the skylight. The stars are so beautiful it helps take her mind off the pain. "You don't always have to hide your pain you know." He says. Then he lowers his voice, "Showing pain doesn't make you weak." Ziva smiles sadly at him, she wishes it were as easy as hearing him say it but it has been ingrained in her that pain is weakness. 

Before she knows it Tony has finished sorting out the wound and is placing a large plaster over it - it doesn't hurt as much any more and she is grateful. Carefully he rolls her trouser leg back down. "Thank you Tony." She whispers as he puts the medical kit away and stands up. He nods and smiles at her. 

"Do you want a lift home?" He asks. 

"I think I will stay here tonight, there is not long till morning now anyway." She replies, attempting to get comfortable in the chair. 

"Okay." He walks over to his desk and Ziva closes her eyes once again to get some rest. She hears Tony moving things around over on his side of the bullpen but tries to block it out. It continues for several minutes. 

"Tony shush." She mumbles peering at him. He apologises as she realises he is wheeling his chair over towards her. As quietly as possible he positions it next to her and sits down before reaching over and laying a blanket over her. She smiles, even though her eyes are still closed and pulls it across so it will cover both of them.

"Night Tony." She whispers.

"Night Ziva."