NCIS: Best Shots

Chapter Twenty-Three: If Tomorrow Never Comes

Sometimes late at night

I lie awake and watch her sleeping

She's lost in peaceful dreams

So I turn out the lights and lay there in the dark

And the thought crosses my mind

If I never wake up in the morning

Would she ever doubt the way I feel

About her in my heart

Tony DiNozzo rolled onto his side and gazed at Ziva's sleeping form beside him. She looked so peaceful, undisturbed by nightmares. He switched off the bedside lamp and lay there, drinking in her scent. All of a sudden, he thought, Will she ever doubt how I feel about her?

If tomorrow never comes

Will she know how much I loved her

Did I try in every way to show her every day

That she's my only one

And if my time on earth were through

And she must face this world without me

Is the love I gave her in the past

Gonna be enough to last

If tomorrow never comes

Memories floated through his head: when they were undercover as assassins; then they were back in Somaliawith Saleem. I couldn't live without you, I guess. Next they were trapped in the container, with him looking up at her. . . . Did I try every day to show her how much she means to me?

'Cause I've lost loved ones in my life

Who never knew how much I loved them

Now I live with the regret

That my true feelings for them never were revealed

So I made a promise to myself

To say each day how much she means to me

And avoid that circumstance

When there's no second chance to tell her how I feel

Suddenly, other memories crowded out the ones of Ziva: Kate, killed by Ari—Ziva's half brother; Jeanne, who accused him of murder after he'd revealed that he was an NCIS agent; Paula Cassidy, who also died in the line of duty when she'd tackled a suicide bomber into a secret room to prevent them all from being killed.

Silently, he made a promise to himself to say to Ziva how much she meant to him. That way, he'd avoid the incident where there was not a second chance to tell her how he felt about her. Although he was pretty sure he knew, seeing as he was crazy in love with her was always shining in his eyes.

'Cause if tomorrow never comes

Will she know how much I loved her

Did I try in every way to show her every day

That she's my only one

And if my time on earth were through

And she must face this world without me

Is the love I gave her in the past

Gonna be enough to last

If tomorrow never comes

If tomorrow never comes, Tony thought, will she know how much I loved—love—her? Staring at Ziva's sleeping form, he hoped she did.

So tell that someone that you love

Just what you're thinking of

If tomorrow never comes