Story: Tidings of Comfort and Joy

Chapter 1: The First Noel

Rated: K+

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of NCIS LA or the characters.

Summary: This will be a collection of holiday drabbles and short one-shots. Some will be related to episodes and some will not.

The first chapter takes place after the holiday episode in season 2.

The First Noel

"Here Marty, take this to your girl and make her take a break," Sandy instructs as she hands Deeks a plate of piping hot food.

He's used to taking orders from Sandy when he volunteers. He tries to make it once a month, but sometimes it ends up being once every few months. "Not my girl," he corrects as he takes the plate, "just my partner."

"Well she's sweet, and she's the hardest worker in here even with that bump on her head, so you go take care of her."

Deeks thought that was what he was doing. That's why he brought her here with him, to look out for her and make sure she was alright physically and emotionally. Apparently he's not doing it up to Sandy's standards though.

"Take her some ice too," Sandy suggests, but Deeeks knows it's really not a suggestion.

"Ah," he hedges, "That might come better from you. She's kind of stubborn." He uses what he thinks is a more accurate adjective for Kensi than sweet. He can think of a lot of s adjectives for her actually: sarcastic, self-confident, snarky, and super competitive just to name a few. Sweet isn't the first word that comes to mind when describing Kensi, but maybe that's just because she's not sweet to him.

"Oh all right, go on then. I'll be there in a minute with the ice."

"Hey there, break time," Deeks says coming up to Kensi with the plate of food.

"If I sit down, I might not get up," she admits having no intention of stopping what she is doing to take a break.

"That's the point," Deeks tells her as he removes the serving spoon from her hand. "Sandy insists and no one argues with Sandy."

"It does smell good," Kensi comments letting Deeks lead her to a table. "This is a side of you I didn't expect," she adds as they sit.

"You should know by now that I'm full of surprises."

She gives him a little half smile as she digs into the mashed potatoes.

"You okay?" Deeks asks a few minutes later. She hasn't eaten much and he knows that's not like her.

"Yeah, I'm just…" She can't bring herself to admit that she isn't feeling the best, but she unconsciously wraps one arm around her middle. She pushes her plate toward Deeks with the other hand.

"Here you go honey," Sandy says handing Kensi a bag of ice as she hustles past.

"Thanks," Kensi replies. She gingerly presses it to the bump as she leans back in her chair.

When they head back to the kitchen to see what they can do to help clean up, Sandy sends them on their way. Marty has been the last one to leave besides her the past two years. To thank him for his help she hopes to give him some quality time with this lovely young lady he brought tonight.

"You up for one more stop?" Deeks asks as they get into his car.

"Sure," she replies.

"I don't have anyone to buy presents for," he explains as if it's no big deal when they arrive at their destination and he pulls a large box of toys out of the trunk. He downplays the gesture, but it is a big deal to her. Half the men she knows would spend their extra money on video games and beer. She's happy to discover that even though Deeks is immature in some ways, he's quite thoughtful and responsible in others. They stop in at a homeless shelter where Deeks is also known by name. They stay to help some of the other adults wrap a few presents and are sent on their way with hot chocolate. They walk to a park nearby that has a Christmas tree and small ice skating rink and find a bench to sit and watch the skaters for awhile.

"This is nice," Kensi says wrapping both hands around her hot chocolate as she watches a little boy holding onto both of his parents' hands, all of them trying to keep their balance.

"Want to take a spin?"

"No, I'm good here. It's just nice to see happy people on Christmas."

"For the record, I think it's pretty crappy he left on Christmas."

"That was pretty much the only crappy thing about him. He wasn't like that before…" Kensi trails off and changes the subject back to the present. "It felt good to actually help tonight. Thank you for bringing me with you."

"It was my pleasure," he responds changing his opinion in favor of sweet being an adjective to describe Kensi. "In fact, I think we should spend the night together."

Kensi nearly spits out her hot chocolate and turns to him with wide eyes.

"Um, what!?"

He'd said it in a flirtatious way, but as soon as she looks at him she knows that's not what he meant. Her cheeks get a few shades pinker than they were already from the cool evening.

"This needs more ice," he observes as he gently touches her forehead.

"Ouch! Don't touch it!" she reprimands swatting his hand away. She regrets it for a second after she does it because his touch didn't actually hurt. His thumb gently caressing her forehead had felt nice. It is nice having someone care about her like this.

"You're also queasy. You have a concussion and you shouldn't be alone," Deeks insists.

"I'll be fine. I don't need you to…" she begins, but doesn't know how to finish because the truth is she knows she needs to stop keeping people from getting too close. She needs more friends to confide in, especially ones who understand what she does for a living. She figures why not start with her partner, someone she needs to trust anyway. After all, Sam and Callen are friends and partners.

"We can watch Miracle on 34th Street and I make amazing pancakes on Christmas morning." Deeks uses every ounce of charm and persuasion he has. This is his best Christmas in years and he doesn't want it to end.

"Okay, you won me over with the pancakes," Kensi agrees.

"Do you need anything else?" Deeks asks as he hands her an ice pack once she is settled on the couch after a quick tour of his apartment.

"No, this is good," she replies.

They watch the movie silently for the most part. Every so often Deeks says something witty making Kensi laugh. They both fall asleep during parts of the movie, but wake up to see the little girl get her house and family. Both of them think how they used to wish for a happy, whole family when they were little, but keep the thoughts to themselves.

"Are you sure you don't want the bed?" Deeks asks as he shuts off the movie.

"I'm good here," Kensi replies snuggling into the couch feeling cozy and comfortable. And for the first time in a long time she doesn't feel alone on Christmas Eve. She is actually looking forward to waking up on Christmas morning and having her new partner, and now friend, to share it with. "Merry Christmas, Deeks!"

"Merry Christmas, Kensi."

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