Tony stared at his reflection in the mirror. He had chosen a classic for tonight. A black tux with a white button shirt underneath, with a lilac-colored bowtie, which he had gotten from Ducky. He thought that it would be best if he and Ziva matched tonight, so when Ducky found out the color, he adamantly requested that Tony take one of his ties.
Now, he stood in front of his mirror looking at his reflection. He was nervous about tonight. He was excited to see Ziva but was nervous that something would go wrong. He wanted to make sure she had the best time that she possibly could. It was her first American dance after all. He just couldn't shake this gut feeling that something was going to happen tonight. If there was anything that he learned from his dad, it was to always trust your gut.
He knocked out of his reverie with a knock coming from his door.
"Come in." The door opened to reveal Tim, standing in his sharp black tux with a black tie. He was taking Abby, even if they agreed to go as friends. Tony looked over at him and gave him a smirk.
"About time to go?"
"Yeah. Got a text from Abby a minute ago saying that you weren't going to be able to speak when you see Ziva." Tony chuckled at that, Tim along with him.
"I have no doubt that she'll look beautiful. But hey, when doesn't she?" Tim smiled at that.
"You really like her, don't you? This isn't some fling or experiment." Tony smiled at him.
"No, Tim. This is far from that. I couldn't imagine being with anyone but her, and I'll never want to." He gulped, preparing for what he was about to say.
"I think I'm falling in love with her." His voice was quiet, deep. Tim could barely hear the declaration, but he did. Tim's eyes went wide.
"Really?" Tony gave him another small smile and nodded.
"Everything about her makes me happy. Makes me want to spend time with her. Do you know what we did today? We went and got movies and a TV. Voluntarily. It was her idea." Tim smiled at that.
"She said she wanted to watch them with me and enjoy them with me. Can you believe that? She actually wants to do it, I don't have to beg her." Tim shrugged his shoulders.
"If what Abby has told me, I think that she might feel the same about you." Tony's head shot up to look at him.
"Really?" Tim nodded at him. He and Abby talked a lot. They were best friends after all. While Ziva was getting ready, Abby had been texting him nonstop about how Ziva couldn't shut up about Tony. How her face would light up at the mention of him. He had no doubt that these two were going to go the long haul. And not just to graduation. He meant marriage and kids, but that was a big topic to bring and they had only been officially together for a week. If only he had enough courage to ask Abby out.
He was too terrified to do that. She was his best friend, his partner in crime. He didn't want to risk messing all of that up.
Tony could sense that his brother was in a faraway land. He could sense what he was probably thinking of.
"So, what about Abby?" Now it was Tim's turn to be surprised.
"Uh, what do you mean?" Tony gave him a look.
"Come on, Tim. I know you have feelings for her." Tim blushed and looked down at the floor. After a few seconds of silence, Tim shrugged his shoulders.
"There's not much that I can do. She doesn't feel the same about me as I do her. I don't want to ruin everything." Tony walked over to him and put his hand on his shoulder.
"Tim...if my eyes haven't deceived me, which I don't think they have, then she feels the same about you." Tim shook his head.
"I'm too terrified to find out. She's my best friend." Tony patted him on the back.
"I know. Ziva's my best friend too. That's good to have in a relationship. Tell her how you feel. You would be surprised at how good it feels to actually do that." Tim gave him a small smile.
"Maybe I should." His voice was barely below a whisper, but Tony heard it. He smiled at his younger brother and hoped that he could summon enough courage to ask her.
Tony looked at his watch and noticed that it was about time to go. He pulled on his suit jacket, looking at his reflection once more, and grabbed the corsage that he got for Ziva. It was a mixture of lilac and white-colored flowers. It would go perfectly with the color that they had chosen. Tim had Abby's in his hand. It was all black, of course, it was. It was for Abby after all.
They began the trek down the stairs to the living room. They knew their mother would want to take some pictures before they left. Jenny gasped when she saw them at the end of the steps. They looked so handsome. She smiled at them and Gibbs gave them a smirk. Silently telling them that they looked appropriate. They both sent a small smile his way and looked back at their mother, who wanted to take what seemed like a million pictures.
Finally, Tony looked at his watch and noticed that this time, it really was time to go.
"Mom. We have to go pick up the girls. I'm sure Rivka will get some more pictures to you by the end of the night." He walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, Tim doing the same.
They already knew that since it wasn't a school night, they didn't have an early curfew. As long as they were at one of their homes by midnight, they didn't care. The plan was to stay at the Gibbs residence after the party, but you never know what could happen.
Tony and Tim made their way to Tony's car and got in. The drive to Ziva's house was mainly nervous silence. They both felt the overwhelming emotions that were making themselves known. Soon, Tony pulled into Ziva's driveway, slowly turning the ignition of the car. He let out a few breaths, seeing Tim do the same. They slowly got out of the car and made their way to the door. The nervousness was replaced by excitement. Tony reached over and rang the doorbell. Within seconds, Rivka was opening the door for them and allowing them inside.
"They are almost ready." She sent Tony a wide smile. Knowing how she was about to knock his socks off. Tony sent her a warm smile back. He already knew that Ziva was going to look beautiful. It didn't matter what she was wearing. The first to come down was Abby. Her dress was all black with the top being covered in sparkles. It was sleeveless with a v-neck shape down the front. The skirt was flowy but wasn't too over the top. It fit her personality perfectly. Her makeup was natural looking. She had smoky eyes with red lipstick. She wore black earrings with a matching necklace. She looked beautiful. She giggled at Tim, who kept raking up and down her form, taking her in. Tony could see him gulp and blush as he noticed everyone was looking at him. He pulled out the corsage that he got for her and placed it onto her right wrist. It was all black as well.
"You look beautiful." Tim finally managed to say to her. She giggled again at him.
"You look good too, Timmy." She pulled him into a hug, for which he accepted without question. Tony could only laugh at them.
Tony was brought out of his laughter when he saw something catch his eyes at the end of the stairwell. Holy crap. Ziva was standing there, looking at him with a sweet smile on her face. Her dress was beautiful lilac color and fit her frame perfectly. Like Abby's, it was also sleeveless, but the v on the front went down a little further. The skirt went all the way down to the ground and hugged her in all the right places. He could only look at her and stare. Now he knew how Tim felt. Her hair was left curly and was half up half down. He knew he was staring but he couldn't help it. She was a magnificent creature.
Rivka took many pictures of them looking at one another. The one of Tony standing there wide-eyed and jaw on his chest would definitely be printed. Ziva's look towards him was nervous admiration. She didn't know if it was too much or if it was just right. She had never done something like this, especially not for a boy.
Tim and Abby couldn't help but laugh at his loss of words. Tim reveled in it, as he was just making fun of him for staring at Abby. Tim moved over to him and delivered a not so delicate headslap to the back of his head. That seemed to snap Tony out of his stupor. He gulped one more time and slowly made his way over to her. She looked up into his eyes and smiled up at him. Tony looked down at her lips, resisting every urge in his body to not kiss her.
"You...look...amazing." Her smile got brighter. She liked being the one to make him speechless. She leaned in and placed a small kiss upon his lips, making him respond eagerly. She pulled back quickly as she didn't want things to get too heated. Especially with her mother and friends in the room. He smiled at her and placed the white and lilac corsage on her left wrist.
"I don't if I can stop saying this but...you look beautiful." Ziva blushed at his words.
"You do not look bad yourself." They stared into one another's eyes, getting lost in them before Abby cleared her throat making them pull away.
Ziva looked over at her mother and smiled at her. She could see the tears in her Ima's eyes and went over to give her a quick hug.
"(You look beautiful, Zivaleh.)" She spoke in Hebrew as she always did when she got emotional and Ziva hugged her tighter.
"(Thank you, Ima.)" When Rivka finally let her go and wiped her tears, she pulled out her camera and took many pictures of the four of them together, as well as them in their pairings. Finally, Ziva had to tell her they had to go if they wanted to make it on time.
They piled out the door with a wave and got into Tony's car. The drive to school was more active than it was earlier with just Tony and Tim. Tony and Ziva were in the front while Tim and Abby were in the back talking amicably about some new video game coming out next month. While Tony was looking at the road making sure that they didn't get into an accident, Ziva was staring at him. He looked very handsome tonight, not that he didn't every night, but tonight the suit he was wearing added appeal to him. He looked over at her, sensing that she was staring at him. He gave her one of his most charming smiles and she couldn't help but feel butterflies in her stomach. He pulled her hand towards him and placed a kiss upon her hand.
They pulled into the parking lot and noticed that many people were already there. Tony turned the car off and went to open the door for Ziva. He took her hand, guiding her out of the car, and offered her his arm. She smiled up at him and gladly took it. Tim did the same with Abby.
The crew made their way into the school and made their way to the gym, where the dance was being held. They walked through the doors and were struck by the immediate sound of music. Students and staff were crowding the gym and dancing to the songs that they were playing. They weaved through the crowds and found a table that was not in use.
"You guys want any punch?" Tony asked. They all nodded in affirmation that they would like one. Tony placed a kiss upon Ziva's cheek and made his way towards the snack bar/punch area. He was pouring the third glass when a hand rested against his bicep. He looked up to see Jeanne standing less than a foot away from him and batting her eyelashes at him. He was not in the mood for this.
"What do you want Jeanne?" His tone was cold, unwavering. He looked over to see Ziva looking his way and if looks could kill, Jeanne would be dead on the floor.
"Care to have a dance?" Tony shook his head. When would she get that he wasn't interested? That he was never truly interested in her?
"I'm here with someone. My girlfriend actually. So no, I don't want to dance with you." He picked up the cups and made his way back to the table. What he didn't see was Jeanne's eyes narrowing, her hands on her hips. Silently saying that this wasn't over.
He made it to the table and sat down with a huff. Instantly, he reached out for Ziva's hand. He wanted to assure her that he wasn't interested in Jeanne or any other girl that passed his way. He only wanted her for as long as she would have him. Hopefully, that will be forever. He felt her give his hand a squeeze. This was only the beginning of the night.
Ziva knew that Jeanne and her lackeys were watching them. Knew that they were glaring at her for "taking" Tony away from her. She didn't care. Tony was hers. She wasn't the type to share what was hers. Especially with bitchy cheerleaders. She decided to forget all about Jeanne and just focus on the moment with Tony and their friends. They saw Jimmy enter the gym with a blond on his arm. She was very pretty, about 5"5 with blue eyes. Tony had to smile at them. That was Breena Slater, one of the nicest girls that he had ever met. She was always kind no matter who you were or what you were doing. She was beautiful, but many stayed away from her because her father was the town coroner, and everybody knew that she wanted to take over for him when she got older. Nobody wanted to be friends with someone who wanted to be around dead people.
Jimmy saw them and smiled. He made his way over to them.
"Hey, guys! This is Breena." Tony and Ziva both sent her a kind smile, which she gladly returned showing her bright white teeth.
"It is nice to finally meet you guys." Tim and Abby made their way over to them, Abby wanted another Caf-Pow! And who was Tim to deny her? Abby went over to her immediately and pulled her into one of her hugs.
"It's so good to see you. How was the conference?" Everybody looked at her, except Jimmy and Abby, with a confused expression upon their faces.
"It was great! Got to talk to a bunch of college deans and they all told me they want me at their school. Now, I just gotta choose one." Tony, Ziva, and McGee all looked at one another with a 'what is she talking about?' look. Abby noticed this and decided to explain.
"She went to a Coroner Conference this weekend. It was a plan to see what schools were available." Breena nodded, while Jimmy just looked at her with admiration. They knew that he wanted to possibly work with Ducky as a Medical Examiner, so for him to ask her out was probably a match made in heaven. They all smiled at the pair as the song changed. They changed the speed of their dance but stayed in each other's arms. They all swayed to the music.
Tony leaned to where his forehead was resting against Ziva's. He looked into her eyes and smiled. Nobody could compare to her. Not now, not ever. He could stay like this forever, with her in his arms. She looked up at him and leaned in to place a kiss upon his lips. The kiss quickly became heated and many basketball players whistled at them. He didn't let it deter him from him and just deepened the kiss even more. She complied willingly.
They pulled apart when a yell from Fornell rang through the gym. They resumed the dance and got carried into the music.
People were starting to file out of the gym, probably to head home. The crew continued to dance. Tony turned to look at Jimmy and couldn't help but smile at the sight that greeted him. Breena's head was on his shoulder as they swayed and his arms were wrapped tightly around her. They made a good pairing.
"Hey, Jimbo." Jimmy looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.
"We're going back to my house after this. Wanna join us?" Jimmy smiled at him and leaned to whisper something in Breena's ear. They both looked at him.
"That would be awesome, Tony." Tony nodded his head.
They were practically the last ones in the gym at this point, save for a few students and teachers. They decided to call it a night and made their way back to their table to gather their things. Ziva grabbed her "purse" and announced that she was going to the restroom and she would be back soon.
She went out the doors and down the hallway. When she entered the bathroom, she went to her business and went to wash her hands at the sink. She got the sense that she was being watched. She looked up to see Jeanne standing behind her, glaring. Ziva returned her glare.
"What do you want Jeanne? I have somewhere to be." She wanted to get back to Tony.
"You know what I want. Stay away from Tony if you know what's good for you." Ziva let out a chuckle.
"He left you. He came to me." Jeanne huffed at her.
"You probably manipulated him or something. Aren't you some terrorist anyway?" Ziva smiled at her.
"No. But I do know how to kick your ass in many different ways. So I suggest that you leave me and Tony and the rest of us the hell alone, or you will get what's coming to you." With that, she walked out of the bathroom and back to the gym. She was stopped once again by Ron Sacks.
"Hey, baby. Wanna get out of here and have some fun?" She gave him a solid glare and moved to walk away from him. He grabbed her arm, not so gently, and pulled her back to him. He pulled her to where their faces were millimeters apart. She could see the lust in his eyes.
"Get away from me." Sacks gave her a crude smile and tried to get his body closer to her. She was so close to breaking his neck, even though that would be frowned upon.
"Get away from me. I will not say it again." Again, he smiled at her. Before she could think about what was going on, a fist came flying through the air. Landing its mark upon Sacks' face. He fell to the ground. She looked over to see Tony, angrily standing there. He moved over to Sacks and landed another punch to his face then another. Ziva moved over to him and pulled him off of him, even though she really didn't want to. Tim, Abby, Jimmy, and Breena all came running towards.
"Stay away from her you son of a bitch!" He moved to hit him again but Jimmy and Tim helped hold him back. Fornell came running into the hallway along with Ms. Sterling and saw what all the commotion was about.
"Tony, what the hell are you doing? Do you want to be benched again?" Tony was still staring angrily at Sacks.
"I don't care what you do. He messed with my girl." Fornell had a look of understanding cross his face. Tony again tried to move for another blow, but instead of being held back, his force caused Jimmy and Tim to fall back, and him to leap towards Sacks with surprising speed. He barely got another hit in when they pulled him off again. Ziva moved in front of him, trying to draw his attention to her.
"Tony." She spoke softly, kindly. He looked at her and his anger soon started to give way.
"He is not worth it. Let's go home. Watch a movie. Have fun with our friends and family." He closed his eyes, trying to get the remaining anger out of his system. Ziva always knew what to say to make him feel better. He nodded. She held out her hand for him and pulled him towards the door. Fornell stopped them.
"You have got to stop doing this, Tony. But, you won't have to worry about him anymore. He's off the team and I'm going to Vance first thing Monday morning to get this bastard out of here." Tony smiled at his coach.
"Thanks, Coach." Fornell nodded and patted Tony on the back. He was surprised as normally all the other teachers would've lectured him and given him detention, or tried to get him expelled. The crew made their way out of the building and to their vehicles. Tony, Ziva, Tim, and Abby to Tony's mustang, and Jimmy and Breena to his Morgan, something that Ducky gave him for his 16th birthday.
"You guys still coming tonight?" They all nodded towards him and got in their cars. The ride back to the house was filled with talk about the fight and Ziva filled them in on the conversation that she had with Jeanne in the bathroom. Tony would need to talk to her. Get her to fully understand that she had no control over him, that she didn't own him or his heart. Ziva did.
They pulled into the driveway and Tony shut the ignition off. They all got out of the car, Jimmy and Breena joining them on the porch. They opened the door to see Jenny and Gibbs on the couch in the living room. They turned their heads to look at them and Gibbs' eyes immediately narrowed at Tony.
"What happened?" Tony knew that his father would know something happened. He had bruised hands to prove it. He looked at his shoes. What was the best way to go about this?
"Dad. I..." He cut off mid-sentence. Ziva took his right hand in her left and squeezed lightly. She looked up to face them.
"It was my fault. I should have paid more attention to my surroundings." Everybody looked at her. Tony wouldn't let her go down for something like this again.
"No, it wasn't. I got into a fight after the dance." Gibbs huffed out a breath and his mother gave him a look. Gibbs could see the glint in his eyes though.
"Who was it?"
"Ron Sacks. One of the bullies at our school." Gibbs cursed under his breath.
"Son of a bitch." Jenny stood up and made her way over to the bunch. She cast a look towards Ziva.
"What was it about?" Anger flared inside Tony again.
"He was trying to make a move on Ziva. She kept telling him to back off, but every time he kept getting closer to her. Son of a bitch thinks he can take my girl, he's wrong." Ziva blushed at his words. It also kind of turned her on. She liked him talking like this. Jenny gave them a sympathetic look.
"Well. Everything is done now. Or at least for the rest of the weekend. The bonus room is all set up for you to watch movies and play games. Have fun. Don't let this ruin your night." They all nodded at her and with a last wave, headed upstairs. Jenny looked over at Gibbs.
"We need to do something about this punk." She could tell he was done. That he wanted this finished, she did too.
"We should call Vance on Monday. See what we can do. I imagine a bunch of other parents want him gone too." Gibbs nodded and gestured with his hand to come over to him. She sat back down on the couch and cuddled up next to him. They went back to the Cowboy film they were watching and reveled in the constant laughter radiating from upstairs.