Wardrobe
Summary: Interactions between Nell and other team members regarding Eric's wardrobe choices. Neric.
Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS: LA or any of its characters.
Author's Note: Got this idea from a few tumblr posts. This is a series in four parts, based on the four main arguments that have been made against Eric's clothing choices. The first part is in regards to his shirts, the second will be his footwear, the third will be his pajamas, and the fourth is his pants. For this first part, I took some liberties with Eric's backstory. Takes place in the second season.
Though Nell's first few weeks were a bit rocky, within a month she had settled into a routine with the team. She arrived at the Office of Special Projects early one morning to finish the last paperwork for the team's latest mission. As she entered the building, she heard Kensi's voice echoing through the empty halls and followed it to the bullpen.
"It's been over a month, though. You would think that they would reappear at some point," Kensi argued.
"Don't tell me you miss them," Sam retorted. "Those things were hideous!"
"What was hideous?" Nell asked as she entered the area. Sam and Kensi looked at each other for a moment before turning to her.
"Now that I think about it, I haven't seen them since you started working here," Kensi realized. Sam smirked. Kensi's eyes lit up.
"Haven't seen what?" Nell directed her second inquiry to Kensi, hoping to get a proper answer.
"Eric used to have these shirts," Sam admitted, stealing Nell's attention. "Neon colors, patterns, the whole nine yards."
"Think of the tackiest Hawaiian shirt you've ever seen, only worse," Kensi elaborated. Nell held back a laugh.
"You should have seen the one he found for the holidays. Surfing Santa," Sam added. Nell jumped, slightly startled when she heard Eric's voice float down from the top of the stairs.
"I thought we all agreed that you wouldn't talk about it if I never wore it again."
"You can't honestly expect us to not discuss that one," Sam argued. Nell turned to face Eric, her gaze meeting Kensi's briefly as it passed.
"Warn a girl?" she mouthed when she was certain that Sam couldn't see.
"Morning, Eric," she greeted, knowing that the argument between the two boys would only grow if she didn't step in. The conversation turned to the usual morning pleasantries. "I'll see you both later?" she checked, turning back over her shoulder. They nodded, refocusing on the work at their desks. Kensi pushed her chair away from her desk.
"More fun this way," she whispered as she passed Nell on her route to Wardrobe, carrying a shirt for cover. Nell ascended the stairs to the OPS center. She sat beside Eric and entered her login information. She waited for him to speak, but when he didn't, she voiced the thoughts on her mind.
"Santa on a surfboard?" she asked, barely containing a giggle.
"It was Christmas!" he defended. He relaxed when he looked at her, exhaling. "I admit it probably wasn't the smartest choice." She swiveled her chair away from the computer screens, devoting her full attention to him.
"So why wear them?" she prompted. He searched her voice for a hint of degradation, but when he found only curiosity, he began to recount the story of his now-infamous shirts.
"I went to private school growing up. We wore uniforms every day except for our senior year, when we got 4 casual Fridays. The tradition was to wear something completely outrageous because the teachers couldn't do anything about it. A bunch of my friends decided that we should be tourists, so we all went out and bought matching Hawaiian shirts. We even put sunscreen on our noses. At some point, they became almost a symbol of our group. I got more of those shirts than I can count for graduation and my birthday that year. We made a rule that we would pick a day every so often when we would all wear them, no matter where we were at the time. We would try to pick days that would embarrass each other, like first dates or parents' weekend." They both laughed as he recounted the pranks the boys would plan, or the instances when a second friend would become a victim as well.
"And you kept wearing them after college?" Nell checked. Eric nodded.
"I showed up in one my second week here, but luckily Hetty just kind of let it go. We aren't supposed to tell anyone why we're wearing them, just show up to work in them. The longer we're out of school, the less frequently it's been happening. It's been a while since the last time anyone picked a date." As the last statement fell from his mouth, an email popped up on his screen. Nell glanced over in time to see the subject line. She quickly turned back to her own screen, knowing that prolonged exposure to the message would unveil the humor in her reaction. They continued to work quietly until they both received an email from Hetty. Eric closed the messages he had received that morning and walked to a computer on the other side of the room. With a few quick keystrokes, files flew up on the screen, providing basic information on a new case.
"I'll go get the team," he announced. Nell nodded, preparing their surroundings for the briefing. A few moments later, Callen led his teammates into OPS. Nell turned to face them when she heard him call her name.
"I heard you got briefed on Eric's shirts this morning," he commented, reminding Nell of both conversations she had had since entering the building that morning. Before she could reply, Eric stepped in, returning their attention to the screens and the case at hand, escaping from another discussion. As he shared the information that had been collected, the words of his friend's email earlier that day ran through his mind.
He should never have told them about his newest coworker.
Author's Note: If anyone's wondering, I picked Kensi and Sam for the beginning because they both commented on Eric's holiday shirt. Kensi's comment, "oh dear lord, Eric, that shirt is wrong on so many levels" was one of my favorites. Please review!