As requested by ilovencisladens on Tumblr, here is my interpretation of what would happen if Kensi and Deeks were at a game and the kiss cam pointed at them. Hope you like it!
Note: This is Pre-Descent/Ascension, since my heart still hurts just thinking about everything going on right now.
The blonde detective slowly made his way through the ever-growing crowd, carefully balancing two cardboard carriers full of sodas, popcorn, and candy in his hands. Not for the first time, Deeks wondered why he was always the one stuck being the boy who played fetch. He sighed to himself and kept walking, weaving his way through the swarms of cheering Clippers' fans until he spotted their seats. As he approached he couldn't hold back a smirk as he watched Kensi jump from her seat, yelling furiously at the referee after a bad call.
She hadn't always been this way—Deeks had been training her since the beginning of the new season. He would come over to her place without explanation, ignoring her weak protests of another John Hughes classic currently being recorded to the DVR, instead changing the channel over to the game. She had tried to deny it but it was a little too easy to get her hooked, and he was more than a little proud of the basketball fanatic he was slowly turning her into.
Finally reaching his partner, he grinned down at her and handed over one of the carriers before settling down into his seat.
"Thanks" Kensi said gratefully as she went straight for the bag of M&Ms.
"Please, Kens... What kind of person would I be to deny my partner her daily junk food craving?" he teased, though the glimmer in eyes only conveyed utmost affection.
She gave him her famous eye roll—just adding to the typical fluttering in his chest whenever she was near—and turned back to watch the game.
"Hey, you guys gonna share all that with the rest of us?" Callen's cheery voice rang out from the row behind them as Sam's booming voice yelled out bits of encouragement to the players on the court below.
"Yeah, I thought you were getting stuff for all of us; and where's that beer I asked for?" Nell slurred as she looked across to Deeks from Kensi's other side.
"Oh, I think you've already had one too many" Eric chuckled next to Nell as he pulled her back into her seat, keeping her from drawing attention to herself by jumping up and down like a maniac as the Clippers took back the lead. Tipsy Nell was definitely an interesting sight for the others—particularly Eric—to see.
"Do you guys not want us here or something?"
Apparently tipsy Nell was much more straightforward, too.
Deeks' eyes shifted over to Kensi for a split second before turning back to the others. Kensi, of course, pretended as though she hadn't heard a thing, focusing instead on picking out all of the blue M&Ms from the small bag and stuffing them into her mouth.
"Of course we do; why wouldn't we?" Deeks replied as he started passing around the food and beverages.
Of course he couldn't confirm Nell's drunken suspicions by telling the others he and Kensi were, in fact, supposed to be there alone.
It was supposed to be just the two of them, Deeks' way of thanking her for watching Monty the weekend before while he went to catch some new waves in San Diego with a buddy from LAPD. But of course Sam and Callen had overheard him talking about it to Kensi, and of course they had insisted on coming along. But then he couldn't exclude Nell and Eric, either, and so the invitation extended to them as well. Hetty, thank God, had claimed she already had prior arrangements. Still, though, there the others were, six instead of only two, like one big group date instead of, well… another thought Deeks originally had in mind.
No other words were said between the team as they all consumed themselves in the excitement of the game. With the Clippers leading the Heat 54-42 at halftime, things were looking pretty promising.
As the buzzer signaled the end of the first half, fans all around them stood to either head to the bathroom or concessions, but most of their group stayed put. Sam and Callen stood up to stretch, while Eric went to retrieve Nell a bottle of water to help dilute some of the alcohol her body had already consumed. Deeks and Kensi remained in their seats, far too engrossed in their own conversation to pay mind to anything else.
"Kens, I'm telling you, Chris Paul could run over Griffin any day. His free-throw percentage was better than anyone else in the league."
"Hah!" Kensi snorted in response. "Get your head out of your butt, Deeks. Griffin is clearly better than Paul. His rebound stats are off the charts and his zone defense at the bottom of the key is better than anyone I've ever seen. Plus," she added, lightly nudging Deeks with her elbow, a devilish smirk playing across her features, "he's not exactly hard to look at, either."
Deeks scoffed. "Kensalina, please. What did I say about turning the conversation into which guys you'd make into your own personal Chippendale's escorts? And remember what I told you: if you go there, then I get to talk about my own Top Model preferences for the next Victoria's Secret fashion show, which, by the way, I've already set to record on your DVR if you wanna watch it with m-"
"Okay, Deeks. Just shut up already" Kensi retorted, rolling her eyes at him yet again. "It's fine. I get it. I won't talk about all of the players that I know are sexier than you while we're watching sports."
"That'd be a very short list, Princess" Deeks replied without hesitation, his smug grin indicating he now had her exactly where he wanted her.
They would have continued their back and forth banter for hours if the hammering of music playing in the packed arena hadn't drowned out their conversation, signaling the start of the halftime show as the building faded into darkness.
Twenty minutes later, after a very… expressive display of so-called dancing and uncomfortably vulgar gyrating by a group of scantily clad women labeling themselves as "professional" dancers, the players made their way back into the arena as the game was set to resume.
But not before one more halftime treat.
Callen groaned from behind them as he recognized the familiar pink border lining the screen, bright red lips included, lighting up the giant video scoreboard in the center of the arena. Awkward pecks on the lips to entirely inappropriate displays of affection ensued while laughter and amused reactions echoed throughout the stands as the all-too-familiar tune of "Kiss Me" droned on in the background.
Never missing an opportune moment to poke fun at his teammates, Deeks leaned over briefly to whisper in Kensi's ear. "Callen's just bitter because last time the Kiss Cam landed on him. Oh, and Sam wasn't exactly too thrilled about it, either."
Kensi's snorts of laughter were never heard as something apparently had the audience so captivated that the roar quickly became almost deafening. Utterly confused, the blonde detective and the female agent both turned their heads toward the enormous screen, only to stop dead in their tracks as a pair of shocked faces glared back down at them from above.
It was them.
Nell was going completely nuts beside Kensi as Eric laughed in sympathy for his two friends, while Sam and Callen stared down at them in wonder, already placing silent bets in their minds as to how hard Kensi would slap Deeks across the face if he even so much as moved an inch in her direction.
Panic quickly formed in Deeks' chest as he tried desperately to think of the right thing to do. He glanced all around him, subconsciously looking for any form of escape, but doing his very best to look somewhere, anywhere, but the one place his eyes absolutely could not come into contact with—her.
Out of his peripheral vision he could just make out Kensi giving a menacing glare to the screen, but he cowardly moved his head the other way as her dark eyes turned to search for his.
Low grumbles of the crowd soon followed as it was made clear the "couple" would not be kissing today, but all turned back to normal as soon as the ball was tipped and the second half began.
Eric was finally able to somehow restrain Nell from making even more of an idiot out of herself as he pushed her back down into her chair.
Sam and Callen had turned to each other, amused smirks on their faces as they wordlessly communicated their reactions to what had just transpired between the two junior agents.
As for Deeks and Kensi… Well, it was safe to say they didn't share another word, or even a single glance, for the remainder of the evening.
Later that night, after an explosive ending to what was apparently the "best game of the season" according to Callen, Deeks led Kensi up to the steps of her front door.
He still could hardly bear to look at her, shame and embarrassment consuming his every thought. Kensi's total silence made it more than clear she wasn't going to be the one bringing it up. She quickly unlocked her door and turned the handle, her usual offer to him to come inside for a few minutes never leaving her lips.
Before she could shut the door in his face, though, a shaky voice sounded over her shoulder.
"Kensi, listen… I, uh, just wanted to say I'm sorry about wh-"
"Don't worry about it, Deeks" Kensi quickly cut him off. She did not want to talk about this. And what was there to say, really? He clearly didn't want to kiss her, and that was the end of it. She wasn't totally sure she would have been ready had he tried, in truth, but that was beside the point. When that camera fell on the two of them, he refused to even look at her. She felt as though, all of a sudden, she was fifteen years old again, realizing the boy she had been crushing on since middle school still didn't know she existed.
"But Kens, just let me expla-"
"No, really. It's okay, Deeks. I… I understand. You-"
He quieted her then, tenderly bringing his hands to caress her face as his lips softly melted into hers.
It was brief but no less sweet, and when they parted Kensi found herself gaping up at him as he looked back at her with what could only be described as longing.
"I'm sorry, Kens, for being such a coward back there. I just… couldn't do it in front of everyone. It wasn't how I imagined our first kiss would be like."
It took a moment for his words to hit her fully, the realization that he had even thought about this, hoped for it, even, slightly overwhelming her.
As if he knew exactly what she was thinking, Deeks nodded his head and brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. "You don't know how long I've been waiting for this moment, Kens."
She smiled back up at him then, the affirmation of her feelings for him suddenly never having been more clear. "Actually, I think I do" she muttered, bringing her lips to meet his once more.
And in that very moment, as the partners acknowledged their love for each other for the very first time, everything in the world fell right into place.
Thanks for reading and, remember, reviews are very much appreciated!