Relenting had been such a terrible decision, Ziva thought to herself as she anxiously twisted her hands together in the passenger seat of Diego's car. She was staring fearfully out the window at the passing houses as they grew ever closer to Felipe's. She had never actually been to Felipe's house - the only house she would visit, before she turned eighteen a couple months ago, was Diego's.
In fact, she would often sneak out of the window of her bedroom in whatever foster hellhole she was in then (provided it was on the first floor) and take a taxi over to his place just to sneak into his bedroom window and hang out with him and forget the world and society. These were often the nights when she felt most anxious, but he always let her in, and always sat and played, and his mom was always really sweet about stuff.
Of course, she knew the moment she laid house on the baby blue house with a couple kids hanging on a tree in the lawn that that was Felipe's house. "I-I don't know about this, Diego..." she said uncertainly, but still got out of the car when he miraculously found a parking spot and followed him up to the front door.
A kid was standing with a bowl on the front porch, listening to loud music out of his headphones. "Keys," he demanded when they approached, and held out the bowl for the desired item.
"What's that for? Why does he want your keys?" Ziva murmured to Diego in confusion, clutching his arm with both hands nervously.
Britters
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 4:13 PM
Post #272
When Ziva had officially agreed to go with him to the party, Diego had considered it a minor miracle. He had started to think that she was almost definitely going to refuse. His barely contained excitement when she finally gave her answer had lasted the rest of the afternoon. He had finished his lunch eagerly and then taken her home so they could both get ready for later. He had showered quickly and put on one of his nicer shirts and a fresh pair of jeans. He was going to make sure tonight was perfect.
The drive to Felipe's house had gone about as well as Diego could have expected it to. Ziva was nervous, but she hadn't insisted they turn around and drive home halfway there which was a good sign. He parked the car with surprising ease, and got out to open the passenger door for her. They both walked up to the front door, his eyes taking note of their surroundings. He wanted to keep on the lookout for anything that might cause Ziva to get anxious...well, more than she already was anyway.
"Relax, Z," he said soothingly, fishing his keys out of his pocket and dropping them in the bowl, "It's just a precaution in case anyone gets too intoxicated to drive." He gave the guy at the door
a quick smile and then placed his hand gently at the small of Ziva's back and urged her forward into the house.
Things inside were...a bit rowdier than Diego had expected, but it still wasn't that bad. He remained calm for Ziva's sake as he led her through the entrance hall of the house. He muttered greetings to several people, but his focus remained on Ziva. His goal was the punch bowl and they made it safely to the table. He poured each of them a drink and then handed a cup to Ziva with a spectacular smile on his face that seemed to light up the room.
"See?" he said to her, "I told you it wouldn't be too bad." He spoke with confidence so that she might be able to feed off of his energy and loosen up a bit.
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 4:27 PM
Post #273
"Intoxicated?"
Ziva had whisper-shouted the word to Diego, anxiety riding high once again. She had absolutely no intention of consuming any alcohol - she was only eighteen! She didn't need to be drinking and partying like some of these people were. This was surely a bad idea... "There's non-alcoholic drinks, right?" she muttered to Diego as he crowded her over to the punch table.
She tentatively sniffed the cup that was offered to her. Well. She had seen him pour it directly from the bowl, so no one specifically slipped anything into the cup, and it smelled, well, like punch... She trusted him. Didn't she? Of course, there was no one she trusted more than Diego, she chastised herself. He wouldn't have brought her to this party if there was any danger to it.
After all, he used to go to parties like this almost every Friday night, during football season. And he was fine, wasn't he? With a moment's hesitation and absolutely no intention of relaxing like she was instructed to do, Ziva took a sip of the punch. It tasted...like punch.
She took a few more sips, standing close to Diego as he spoke, and was surprised when she suddenly felt someone brush past her.
"Didn't know you'd be here, nerd," laughed one of the more...jerk people that was in their class, Jaime. On her other side, Tomas shouldered his way in, seemingly nudging Diego out of the way as he nudged her aside.
"I didn't really think this was your style. Wouldn't you much rather be at home, burning your eyes out of their sockets with a screen?" Tomas plucked the glasses from her face as he and Jaime continued to push her out into the fray.
Ziva frowned, feeling her heart pound in her chest. "Hey, give those back," she argued, reaching for the glasses. However, Tomas just laughed and, in all of his six-foot-two glory, held them high above her head, so her own short stature could never possibly reach.
Britters
Level 72
The Eggstraordinaire
Joined: 8/25/2014
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 5:51 PM
Post #274
The party was definitely not exactly what Diego had been expecting. Usually when Felipe hosted the parties things were exceedingly chill. While Ziva was beside him cautiously examining her drink, he looked around with interest. Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly spied Felipe's older brother, and things suddenly made a bit more sense. Nico, who had probably come to town for the graduation ceremony, was much wilder than his younger brother and was probably influencing the party heavily.
"Yeah," he said to Ziva, momentarily distracted, "Of course there are non-alcoholic drinks." He turned himself to the side and gave his own cup an inconspicuous sniff. Smelled like punch, so that was good at least.
It was obvious that Ziva was still extremely tense, but Diego hoped it would wear off at least a little bit once they'd been here a while. He contemplated seeing if Felipe was willing to break out Guitar Hero instead of hte karaoke machine. That would probably make Ziva feel a little bit more at home. He was just about to suggest to Ziva that they go find Felipe and make the request when Jaime and Tomas seemed to come from seemingly nowhere and started to pester Ziva.
There was this one crazy uncle Diego had on his mother's side that used to be an actual matador, and he used to tell Diego about how angry the bulls would get about the red capes matadors flung around which (according to his uncle) was where the term "seeing red" came from.
In that moment, watching these two guys bothering his friend and stealing her glasses, Diego felt like a bull. His vision actually seemed to become tinted red and he felt hot with anger. He stepped forward with purpose, his grey eyes stormy as he looked directly at Jaime who was only a mere two inches taller than he was. He didn't even speak at first, his hand simply snapped forward like a striking snake and grabbed the other guy's wrist firmly.
"Give them back, Jaime," he said sternly, casually reaching over with his foot and placing it over Jaime's, "This is supposed to be a celebration for all of us." He only needed to concentrate briefly and he could feel the tip of his right foot become much heavier as metal spread across his skin, hidden by his shoe. He applied just enough pressure to become extremely uncomfortable for Jaime, and smiled with mock pleasantness.
Creativity
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Threads: 255
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 6:03 PM
Post #275
It was true that Ziva had dealt with bullies her whole life. She was small, but not in the ideal slender type guys liked, but more scrawny, and short. She didn't have curves, only curved shoulders that often hunched around her when she was in public. She wasn't really a pretty person, either, and she wore "nerdy" glasses. Add that onto her enviable intelligence and constant obsession with video games, and her lack of speed and physical prowess, and she was really the perfect target.
She wasn't truly bothered by the bullies anymore. They were just a thing that she dealt with. They were annoying, but hey, being thrown in a trashcan every now and then wasn't bad enough for her to break down over.
Just like at school, she wasn't expecting Diego to step in. He still had a reputation with these people, and it didn't even occur to her that they were likely never going to see many of these people again. When Diego did step in, generalizing the ordeal with his words, it was the same as when they had first actually met, when she had been getting shoved into a locker by some offended boys, and Diego merely said that they should really not be doing such a thing when one of the vice principals was nearby. It wasn't much, but it showed her that this jock maybe wasn't as bad as the others.
The lights flickered, briefly, when Diego stepped in, and Ziva frowned a little, thinking some idiot might have spilled a drink onto the cord or something. When Jaime grunted and brought down the glasses, his face showing a bit of pain, Ziva immediately snatched them and placed them back on her face, the world once again coming into focus.
"Thanks," she muttered to Diego, feeling a little weak at having been overpowered by the two boys so easily, but she was never one to fight back. Throat dry, she took a long drink of her punch and leaned a little bit in Diego's direction, watching the party around them.
Britters
Level 72
The Eggstraordinaire
Joined: 8/25/2014
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 6:42 PM
Post #276
The flickering lights made Diego frown, and distracted him long enough that he left his foot on Jaime's slightly longer than he'd meant to. By the time he moved his foot and concentrated on letting the metal layer disappear again, the other guy had a very pained look on his face. That didn't matter to him as much as it might have a week ago, and he simply scowled after the other two as they scampered away. He realized as he stood there tall and stern, that the feeling that came with protecting Ziva was pretty great.
"No problem," he said to Ziva, reaching out without thinking about it and putting his arm lightly around her shoulders, "Lets go play some games."
(Timeskip - 1 Hour)
"Come on, Z!" Diego shouted amidst the cheering crowd that had gathered in Felipe's living room, "You can do it!" As he shouted, he took another large drink from his cup, sloshing some of it onto his hand.
Something had definitely been put in the punch. Even given the state he was in Diego was still definitely able to surmise that much. The problem now was that he didn't care. The punch being spiked didn't matter to him in the slightest. What did matter was that Ziva was currently on a particularly difficult level in Guitar Hero, one that no one else here had been able to complete and she was blowing everyone out of the water. He felt pride for his friend and elation that she was enjoying herself so much. Part of him knew he should be more concerned about the fact that they were both getting wasted, but it was being drowned out completely by the punch.
"Thats it, thats it!" he started shouting as the song was coming to a spectacular ending, and then she finished with a flourish, "Woooooo! Thats my girl!" He reached forward and grabbed Ziva from behind, swing her in a quick circle before setting her down, his arms still hanging loosely in front of her. They needed more punch...
Creativity
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 6:56 PM
Post #277
Never would Ziva have ever imagined herself, standing on a table in the middle of a room overflowing with people, some making out in corners, others throwing balls around the room, others actually cheering her on as her fingers flew on the buttons and lever of the toy guitar in her hand. This was certainly not a scenario she thought she'd ever find herself in, but quite frankly? She didn't really care.
She was having fun, and she felt great. In fact, she couldn't remember a time she felt so carefree as now. Here, at this party, she could forget about her grades and her scholarship, and her abandonment issues and anxiety, and just enjoy it.
It was a little surprising that she retained enough hand-eye coordination to master the expert level on the hardest song in Guitar Hero, but she was a gamer at heart, and no game would she bow to.
She yelped a little when Diego suddenly swung her around, but that was merely in surprise, and by the time her feet were back on the ground, she was grinning from ear to ear. "They like me, Diego!" she shouted over the music that was blasting. "They actually like me!" No one had ever liked her, except for, well, Diego. And the occasional teacher, but that was in a different setting and a different scenario, and she didn't really feel like thinking about it all that much. So, she didn't.
"We should go somewhere quieter!" she insisted, and hopped a foot away energetically. She linked her hand with his and began pulling him in the direction of a bedroom, only stumbling a couple of times. "I've got something I want to tell you."
After all, she and Diego had been best friends for years. What difference did it make if he knew she was special or not? She had wanted to tell him for longer than she knew about her Ability, but she didn't even know it until now. So what if she told him? Maybe, maybe she might just be able to make him like her, in the same way she had always wanted to like him, but never trusted herself to.
Britters
Level 72
The Eggstraordinaire
Joined: 8/25/2014
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 8:32 PM
Post #278
Things around Diego had started to blur slightly, but he could see Ziva in clear, sharp detail. It was like, despite how much he'd had to drink, she was still the thing that centered him. In many ways this felt just like how being around her always had, but he could tell there was something that was different. For example, his arms were lingering around her shoulders for much longer than normal, and yet the position felt so comfortable to him.
"Of course they like you, Z," he said to her loudly over the cacophony, "You're amazing!" He leaned down and pressed his cheek into her hair. It smelled nice...
Suddenly, Ziva was springing away from him and then she grabbed his hand. Diego's entire body seemed to jolt and he was certain he was grinning like a fool. He allowed himself to be pulled away from the living room, pausing only long enough to refill their cups at the punch bowl. There was no hesitation as he followed her in the direction of one of the bedrooms, reaching out at one point to brace her hip as she stumbled. He could only smile and chuckle a bit, loving every moment of this.
"Hold your horses, Z," he said to her as he reached up to open the bedroom door so they could go in. He let her inside ahead of him and as he came after her he absently shut the door behind him.
With the noise dulled slightly by the walls, Diego felt things come more into focus, but when he turned around to look at Ziva he felt like his mouth had gone dry and his heart pounded painfully in his chest. The dim lighting in the bedroom almost seemed to make a halo around her dark hair. Her eyes were lit with a confidence and energy he had never seen in them before. He had never really thought about whether or not she was pretty, but now he knew without a doubt...she was beautiful.
"What was you it you wanted to tell me, Z?" he asked her with his same grin, handing her the cup he had filled for her and sitting down on the bed, "Come sit down, you're probably exhausted from the game."
Creativity
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 8:43 PM
Post #279
Gratefully, Ziva took the cup from Diego, gulping half of it down thirstily. Why hadn't she come to parties before? It was suddenly as if things didn't matter before. Her vision was a little blurry, but she just figured she had lost her glasses at some point during the Guitar Hero. Who really cared, though? As she sat on the bed and looked at Diego, though, all thoughts completely fell out of her head.
He was so gosh darn handsome. It wasn't a super rough handsome, though, it was... a sweet handsome. Her cup fell to the floor, having been abandoned in her hand and left to the fate of gravity, but she hardly noticed it. She was focused to fully on Diego, and he wasn't blurry at all. Nothing was blurry. It was just her and Diego, and she knew right then and there that it would always be her and Diego.
She sat besides him on the bed, and opened her mouth to say something, perhaps what she had been meaning to say before, but she couldn't even remember what it was now. All she knew was that she wanted Diego in a way she wasn't certain she'd ever wanted anything or anyone before.
Was he beckoning her towards him? She couldn't tell, but his lips were so alluring...
In a bounce of courage, unleashed by the alcohol in her system and the utter lack of common sense she seemed to have now, she leaned forward, capturing Diego's lips in hers. It was a little clumsy, and she hadn't ever kissed anyone before, but now she knew why everyone else at the party was doing the exact same thing, she thought as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him hungrily.
Britters
Level 72
The Eggstraordinaire
Joined: 8/25/2014
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Posted: 1/6/2019 at 10:30 PM
Post #280
Everything began to happen in slow motion. Diego's vision was no longer blurry, but it was as though his brain had been rendered incapable of speech. As soon as Ziva sat next to him, it was as though the entire atmosphere around him changed. She was gorgeous...breathtakingly so, and he had no idea why he'd never noticed it before. It was almost like he was seeing her for the very first time, but better because he still knew she was his best friend.
When Ziva practically pounced on him, as her lips met his, there was a few seconds when some distant part of Diego's mind said that it was wrong, but it didn't last long. How could it be wrong? She was his, and he was her's. It had always been that way, they just hadn't realized the truth. There was no longer any hesitation whatsoever as he wrapped his lean arms around her and held her close as he kissed her back as though he were a starving man.
"Ziva," he murmured as traced kisses up to her ear, "You're so beautiful." He let his lips wander back to her's as his hands buried themselves in her thick, dark hair.
There was no telling how long they spent just like that, but after a while it was no longer enough for Diego. Again, there was that little voice that told him to slow down, but all he really cared about was how good it felt to have Ziva in his arms and to kiss her until she gasped. He hooked one arm securely around her waist and rolled her over so she was laying on the bed. He laughed brightly when she looked surprised, the sound sharp yet wonderful in this room that fell like their own little world.
"I told you you this was a great idea," he said to her in a husky voice, bending down and kissing her eagerly again, "I'll always be here for you now." Nothing was going to ruin tonight for either of them. He had planned for it to be about the two of them and thats exactly what it was going to be.
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