Vacation in Sunriver, OREGON

Chapter 8: Interrupted

The next morning, Ziva woke up early in the morning. She glanced at the digital clock on her nightstand. It read 6:15am. Groaning, Ziva sat up and stretched. She was in the mood for a nice, peaceful, scenic bike ride to the Deschutes River.

Her stirring caused Tony to wake up as well. He yawned, and turned his head to see Ziva sitting at the edge of the bed, and stretching her arms.

Tony yawned loudly, and Ziva jumped at the sound.

"Oh, sorry did I wake you?" She asked, while rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, but don't worry about it". Tony said kindly. "Are you going on a bike ride?"

Ziva nodded, and stood up to open the blinds. The sun was starting to rise, and Tony was hit with rays of sunshine peeking out of clouds.

"Hold on, I'll come too". Tony said, getting out of bed.

"You sure?"

"Positive".

Ziva smiled. It would be nice to have a biking partner. "Alright then. I'll pack us breakfast to eat at the river".

Tony grinned sleepily back at her. "Sounds good Sweetcheeks".

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With a pang in her heart, Ziva realized what was missing in her life.

Tony.

She wanted oh so desperately to be loved, and by someone who equally loves her back. Someone to talk to without fear of judgement, and betrayal. Someone who actually pushed her to talk about her past, and what was troubling her in the present. Someone who would be there for her when she was weak.

But with another pang in her heart, Ziva realized that Tony was not that person. Tony was a good person, who deserved a woman who wasn't as broken and damaged as she was.

Ziva thought that she didn't deserve his love. Even though she had very strong feelings for him, Tony did not share the same feelings.

She shook her head at her stupid feelings, and went into the bathroom to change.

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Twenty minutes later, Tony and Ziva were biking through a thick forest. Tony heard Ziva gasp ahead of him, and saw her stop her bike. Tony stopped his as well, and hopped off. Ziva's face lit up with excitement as she pointed to something high up in one of the tree's branches.

With a closer look, Tony saw that it was an owl.

"An owl, Tony. Look! An owl!" Ziva whispered excitedly.

Tony grinned at Ziva's enthusiasm about the bird, and quickly got out his digital camera. He zoomed in, and focused. He took the picture, and showed it to Ziva.

"Wow". She whispered, and she looked at his picture. "Send it to me, please".

Ziva then looked at Tony with her eyes positively shining with happiness. His stomach lurched at her look, and he couldn't help but smile at her.

He had the strong urge to brush a strand of her hair that fell out of place from her tight ponytail. It seemed such an intimate thing, and Tony wanted nothing more than to get close to her, and touch her.

Giving into temptation, Tony placed his fingers delicately on her temple. He brushed the strand of hair away, and tucked it over her ear.

Tony snapped out of his daze when Ziva gave him a suspicious look. He stuttered, before coming up with an excuse. "I-I... There was a leaf in your hair". He lied through his teeth. Tony prayed Ziva would believe him, and let it go.

"Oh. Thank you". Ziva thanked him. She patted his shoulder, before returning to her bicycle. Tony did the same.

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They rode through the heavily wooded forest, through a meadow, and right next to the river.

"Our picnic spot shouldn't be too far!" Ziva shouted to him.

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Sure enough, they rode off-road, and down a tiny hill. They parked their bikes and rested them on a nearby tree. Ziva took out their breakfast from the small backpack she was carrying, and set them on the picnic table. They began to eat as a pair of ducks swam by.

"It's so nice out here". Ziva said to Tony, as she gazed out into the horizon.

Tony hummed his agreeal.

"You know, I wasn't much a fan of nature and the outdoors, until Saleem". Ziva said, her voice faltering at his name. "But now, I don't take natural beauty like this for granted. I try to be outside as much as I can".

Both Tony and Ziva were surprised that she mentioned Somalia. She was usually so tight-lipped about the subject, that Tony almost knew nothing about her capture. Now was the chance to convince her to open up a little more.

"You never talk about it". Tony said, repeating what he had said to her in the warehouse, after they rescued her.

"You do not need to know". Ziva replied cooly. "It is what they say; ignorance is bliss".

"Come on Ziva". Tony said quietly to her, turning to look at her with concern etched in his eyes.

Ziva turned her head to look at him as well. She realized that they were extremely close to each other, and she stared directly into his eyes. Ziva froze when she looked into his eyes. They were full of worry, and care.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she scooted farther away from him. Not was not a time to fall for Tony and his charms. She scolded at herself.

"And what would you do with the information I give you, Tony?!" Ziva asked him accusingly, her voice rising a little. "Will you kiss my tears away? Will you hold me tight? Will you tell me you love me?"

Before Tony had a chance to answer her, Ziva started up again.

"No. You w-wouldn't". Ziva's voice cracked with the lump in her throat that was forming. Tears sparkled in her eyes, but she refused to let any of them fall. She couldn't be weak. Not now.

"And if I did?" Tony asked bravely.

"But you won't. And if you did, it wouldn't be real".
Ziva said softly.

Tony moved closer to Ziva, and lifted her chin up, so that they were looking at each other's eyes.

"Please. Ziva". He begged. "It would mean so much to me if you told me. I want to help you get through this".

Ziva smiled sadly at him. Her eyes were basically swimming in tears now. But none of them fell.

"Maybe. I-I don't know".

"God Ziva". Tony said softly. "You have no idea how much I care about you".

Ziva patted his bicep softly. "You shouldn't". She said in almost whisper.

Tony scooted even more closer to her, and snaked his arms to her hips to hold her tight against him. He traced his finger from her temple, all the way down the side of her neck. Ziva placed the palm of her hand on his cheek, and stroked her thumb back and forth.

"But I do". He whispered, and tilted his head closer to Ziva. "And I want to show you how much I care".

Ziva's gaze fluttered from his eyes, to his lips, then back to his eyes. She leant closer to him, and brushed her nose up against his. They both closed their eyes in anticipation.

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"Hi guys! Nice day isn't it?" A man on a bike said to them, as he walked his bike down the tiny hill to the picnic area.

Tony and Ziva jumped apart. Both startled at the stranger's appearance. Tony was mentally cursing the man for interrupting their 'almost kiss'.

"Yes. It is". Tony said, forcing a smile. "Want to go home now?" Tony whispered to Ziva.

Ziva nodded, and the both of them said their goodbyes to the man, and rode back to their cabin.

Ahh! Please don't kill me for the 'almost kiss!'  😝