Lie Again

Class Clown

Tony knew something had to be up. Ziva had a certain happiness about her, which Tony hadn't seen since their fight at his apartment a few months ago.

"Whatcha got there, Zee-vah?" he asked playfully, noticing the stack of envelopes she was carrying.

"Invitations," she said. Her eyes narrowed for the briefest second, and he got the message: Make one comment about Ray and I will not hesitate to burn your invitation right in front of you.

"Finally chose a date?" He didn't mean to sound snippy, but they had been moving extremely slowly with the whole wedding planning gig.

"Yes." She held one out to him, his name written across the front in Ziva's neat handwriting.

It was silly of him, but he really didn't want to open that envelope. Seeing the wedding details in print would only finalize it. 

But he saw the swirl of emotions creeping into Ziva's eyes when he hesitated, and that made the decision for him. "Thanks. I assume this is a black tie event?"

"You assume correctly." She flicked a glance at his old sweatshirt. "You will still have fun."

"Inviting any of your friends?" Tony asked, mostly to get a rise out of her.

"Of course, but not for you, Tony." She smiled and then walked away to give invites to a few other agents.

***

"Oh my gosh, this is so exciting!" Abby squealed as she read the invitation. "Wow! And it's going to be so classy! I can't wait!"

"That was the idea," Ziva said softly. She fidgeted with the remaining invites. "Do you know if Tony is alright? He acts like he is, he makes his jokes like usual, but I know he just does that to cope."

Abby gave her an indiscernible look. "Well..."

"Abby."

She shrugged, trying to turn back to her computer.

"I am not leaving until you answer me. Has he said anything to you?"

"Of course. We talk every day."

"About Ray or the wedding, Abby."

"Ohhh... Right. No."

"You are a horrible liar." Ziva didn't know whether or not that was a good thing.

"Okay, okay, yes, maybe he said something. But it was a while ago, and we were both very drunk, so I don't really think it counts."

"Abby, please just tell me. I am tired of going round and round with him."

She could've sworn she heard Abby mutter, "That makes two of you," before she continued on, "I really don't feel comfortable having this discussion. I think Tony's the one who should tell you, if anyone's going to say it. But as a friend to both of you, I'm advising him to keep his mouth shut."

"Are you pretending to be a lawyer now?"

In answer, Abby mimed locking her lips.

"Fine. If you are going to behave like a child." Ziva spun on her heel and left. She had better things to do than coax Abby into telling her something she might regret hearing. She still had invites to pass out to Ducky, Jimmy, and Gibbs.

***

"Gibbs!" She wanted to catch him before he got around the corner, so Tony and the rest of the squad room wouldn't be watching.

"Ziver." He stopped by the staircase to let her catch up.

"I... I have this. For you."

Gibbs lit up with a smile when Ziva handed him the envelope. "I was starting to think this got lost in the mail," he said.

"You would have heard Abby going on and on about hers, if they had already been sent," Ziva replied, even though she knew he was only joking. She had taken forever to write them out.

Almost as if she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

But she wasn't quite sure what the other shoe was.

Gibbs made a show of trying to read the invitation without his glasses. Ziva nearly laughed at the way he held it at arms' length, tilting it to get better light. "Is your father attending?"

Her heart sunk a little lower in her chest. "I do not know. He is always so busy."

"It's your wedding, Ziva." His eyes burned into her.

"Yes, well, he already missed everything else. Might as well miss this, too." She took a deep breath and smiled again. "But I know you will come, no matter what..."

His smile grew a little wider as he realized what she was getting at. "I'd be honored." He pulled her in for a quick hug, but it was better than any hug she'd ever gotten from Eli.

They returned to the bullpen, where Tony was obviously waiting for them. "Hey, Boss. I know you've been to a lot of weddings, but have you ever been to one that wasn't yours?"

Ziva couldn't hold back her laugh as Gibbs slapped Tony upside the head, making him yelp.

"Okay, I deserved that."

***

"Sure did, DiNozzo."

"Is this what I can expect from you as a wedding gift?" Ziva asked. "Insults and insensitive jokes?"

Tony rested his chin on his hand. "Would you prefer something else, Zee-vah?"

"Traditionally people go to a store and actually spend money on the couple," McGee chimed in. "You know, rather than, say, re-gifting movies or ruining the day with bad jokes."

"Hey. Palmer enjoyed my gift."

"Yes, and I am sure Breena enjoyed it as well." Ziva rolled her eyes.

"In all seriousness, Ziva. What gift would you want from me on your special day?" He regretted it the moment he asked, even more so when it was followed by silence.

He couldn't read her face, and he wasn't sure what scared him more: that he couldn't tell what she was thinking, or that she was taking so long to think.

Finally she got up and approached his desk, leaning in close so only he could hear. "I would love for you to be happy."

He glanced at her in surprise. "Money can't buy happiness," he quipped, immediately jumping into joke mode.

"No, which is why it would mean even more to me. I know you are upset with me, Tony. But this is supposed to be a happy day for me. And I will not be truly happy unless you can accept the reality in front of you and learn to be happy with it. That is what I want from you. I want to see you move on with your life. Have a fling with one of the bridesmaids, if that is what you need, but please, please, be Tony DiNozzo again. I need you to be the class clown, the man nothing sticks to."

He hadn't noticed it until then, but his heart was racing. "I don't think I can-"

Her words were filled with a burning insistence. "I know you can."

*****

What do you think? Is Tony maybe starting to come around?

And aw, that Zibbs scene. I really liked Tony's zinger about all of Gibbs's marriages.

An all-around enjoyable chapter to write.

As usual, feel free to check out my other stories. I'm thinking of starting another one soon, after I finish the first part of All Your Fault. I have two ideas in progress, so it will either be The Assassin's Daughter or I'll Love You Tomorrow (both teen fiction, so don't get your hopes up for another fanfiction right away!)

You can probably expect the next update for this story Sunday or Monday.

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