A few things before we begin. OMG you guys! The response to this was unreal! To everyone who followed/favorite and reviewed...I am blown away. Thank you!

To justareader07 - your insight and help with this is so greatly appreciated, you have NO idea! THANK YOU!

Kenzalina - you, my friend, are awesome and amazing and I can't thank you enough - ever - for all of your help and encouragement. No matter what I write, you support it. Saying thank you all the time can't do it justice.

Without further ado - hope you all enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer - sigh. still aren't mine.


Deeks eyed Kensi as she came back from the bathroom. He had watched as she took off a few minutes earlier, and as much as he wanted to go after her to make sure she was okay, he just sat there.

Being Max for so long had taken its toll on him, and he was having a harder than normal time coming out of it. In fact, instead of getting the old Deeks back a little more each day, he felt himself slipping away. He had only gone surfing once since he had gotten back, he found himself ignoring Monty more, but the thing that killed him the most was his attitude towards Kensi.

Every night when he laid down, he would think back over the day, and on more than one occasion he would be physically ill thinking of the things he had said to her. And he would vow to himself that the next day, as soon as he woke up, he would find a way to fix it. Except he found himself waking up as Max, not Deeks, the dreams he was having pulling him back under, and his good intentions would fly out the window.

He remembered when he came back, excited but nervous to see her. But the look on her face when he smiled at her had concern on it. And they hadn't really talked since he had been home. He had been hoping they could pick up where they left off, but her reluctance to acknowledge that night had him second guessing everything. Deeks knew he didn't regret anything that had happened between them, but he was now worried that Kensi thought it was a mistake. They had yet to talk about anything of importance, and with the way he was slipping away, he was worried they never would.

Deeks knew at the times he was in control that she was only letting him decompress, to get back to being home again. But that hadn't mattered much. She was the only thing that kept him from turning into Max completely, the only light in his tunnel. And as much as he wanted to ask for her help, he was also worried about dragging her down with him.

He was brought back to the present when Kensi started hyperventilating. Sam was the first to move, he and Callen not far behind. The concern he had, it was real, and it was Deeks. When Kensi sat down, Deeks wanted to sit next to her and rub her back, but he knew it wouldn't be welcomed right now. When Callen told her he was taking her home, he could feel Max coming back to the forefront, pissed off that someone else was replacing him. His eyes got hard as he watched Callen help his Kensi, and when Kensi looked at him, he knew she saw Max, not him.

He followed them out, Sam next to him. Max had overtaken him now, and he said the first thing that came to mind.

"She should really lay off the liquor. Especially if it's going to make her sick. She's hot, but pale isn't a good color on her." The moment the words were out of his mouth, he heard the car door slam, knowing she had heard that. He should have felt shame - Deeks would have felt shame - but whatever he felt quickly turned to anger when Sam turned on him.

"What the hell Deeks? What the fuck is going on in that head of yours, huh?" Sam put his finger on Deeks chest, pissed off to the point of no return right now. "That's your partner. Your partner. But you seem to have forgotten what that is. It should be you who is taking care of her right now, not Callen. But you can't get your head out your ass long enough to figure out who you are." Sam turned and walked back inside as Callen drove off.

"Hey, I know she's my partner. I was just making an observation. You can't tell me that she looked good today. I just assumed she'd been drinking. That girl does like her beer." He smirked a little, but it was more menacing than anything.

"Who am I talking to right now, huh? Are you Marty Deeks or Max Gentry?" Sam turned, dead serious on this question.

"Aren't they the same person?" Deeks cocked his head to the side, not backing down from the death glare Sam was sending him.

"No Deeks. They are not the same person. Marty Deeks would have taken his partner home, made sure she was okay. Max Gentry is a douche bag who needs to stay away from her." Deeks heard the challenge in his voice.

"Oh yeah? Well, being the good partner I am, maybe I'll stop by tonight and check on her." His mouth twitched at the thought.

"You go over there as Max Gentry, you will never step foot in this mission again." Sam stared at him, wondering if and when Deeks would make a reappearance.

The guys had been watching out for Kensi without her knowing when they were in the field. They didn't know what was going on with Deeks, but they had to make sure he had her back when it mattered. And so far, he hadn't let them down. He was always Deeks when they left the mission, always making sure he did what he had to do to keep him and her safe. But as soon as it was over, it was like Max was waiting on the sidelines to take back the reigns. You could almost see the transformation take place. If it had been anyone else, it would have been fascinating to watch.

But it wasn't just anyone else. This was Deeks. Kensi's partner. Callen and Sam's team mate. They all had each other's back at the end of the day. And now, Sam realized, he and Callen were going to have to figure out how to get rid of Max for good.

An hour later, Sam pulled his phone out and saw that Callen had texted him. He looked over at Deeks who was busy filling out paperwork.

"Callen is going to stay with Kensi today. Apparently she's pretty sick." Sam narrowed his eyes a little, watching Deeks's reaction.

Deeks immediately looked up. "Is she going to be okay? Does she need anything?" Sam had to blink. Apparently old Deeks was back.

Sam nodded at him. "He just said she was sick and he was going to stay there with her. I didn't get any other details." He threw his pen on the desk and leaned back in his chair.

"What's going on Deeks?" He watched as the younger Detective brought his hands up to face and rubbed his eyes.

Deeks wanted to talk to Sam, knew he needed to talk to someone, but Max Gentry was still too close, making him keep quiet. Deeks looked up, locking eyes with Sam.

Sam sat there patiently, watching the battle in Deek's eyes. He could see the thoughts swirling around, wondering if he should talk to him or not. Sam just hoped the right person won out. Because one way or another, this talk was going to happen, and he needed to know which way it was going to go.

A few minutes later, Sam hadn't lost eye contact with Deeks, and he saw the resolve slip into place. Deeks sighed, knowing if he was going to get past this, to get better not only for himself but for Kensi, then he needed to start somewhere.

"I don't know man. One minute, I'm me, Marty Deeks. The next, Max… Sam it makes me sick to think back on what was said. Did I really say Kensi should lay off the liquor?" He looked at Sam, already knowing the answer, and having it reaffirmed with a nod of a head.

"Oh my God. Sam, how do… what… I have to fix this. I don't want to be Max, but I can't just turn it off." He put his head in his hands, elbows resting on the desk.

Sam thought about it for a minute. "You have to be stronger than Max Gentry. And you are MartyDeeks. If anyone is going to overcome this, it's you. Anytime you feel Max slipping back in, do something or say something to remind yourself that you are Marty Deeks." Deeks just sat there, watching him.

"And talk, Deeks. To me. Callen. I'm sure Hetty can get Nate back here from wherever the hell he is. But especially to Kensi. She needs you. You, her partner, Marty Deeks. Not Max." Deeks nodded at him.

"Yeah, okay. You're right. Just gotta talk about it. I can do that. I mean, if anyone can talk, it's me, right?" He started rambling, and Sam let out a soft sigh. The real Deeks was back for a while.

"Look Deeks, I know we all should have brought this up earlier, and I'm sorry we didn't. I know Callen and I were trying to give you some space, work things out. We both have done the long term covers with some unsavory aliases, and we know how hard it is to remind yourself that you are one of the good guys. I think we sometimes take for granted that Kensi hasn't done a real long term cover before. Her aliases – while sometimes not the best – have never been too bad. And she's always had us at the end of the day. And you… you have us too, Deeks. We will all help you through this." Deeks smiled at him, grateful for his words and knowing he would need their support. Sam just chuckled, picking his pen back up. He stopped, ruffled Deeks's hair making him laugh and got back to the never-ending paperwork.


By the end of the work day, Deeks had managed to stay Deeks, but it wasn't without some tremendous work on his part. He was filing out old reports, and having to recount some of the things he'd had to do made it easier for Max to try and take over.

Sam had heard Deeks mutter 'fern' and 'Twinkie' during the day. It seemed Deeks had taken some of his advice and whenever he started feeling like Max was showing up, he would associate a word with the old Deeks. Sam had to chuckle that almost everything he said had something to do with Kensi.

"So, you going to go see Kensi tonight? See how she's feeling?" Sam watched him when he asked this, making sure it would Deeks going to see her, not Max.

"Uh, yeah, I was thinking about it. I have some fences to mend, so I was going to take some dinner over. Maybe some chicken soup from the cafe down the road." Sam nodded at him.

"Good idea. Just… make sure you stay Deeks, okay. That's who she needs right now." Deeks frowned a little, already getting tired of hearing that, no matter how true it was.

"Stay Deeks. Got it. I'm good Sam. I've managed to stay Deeks today… well, most of the day." Sam just looked at him.

"I'm good Sam."

"Okay." They both stood up, grabbing their stuff heading out.

Deeks called in the chicken soup, making sure it was ready for him when he got there. He paid and walked out, feeling a little lighter than normal and loving that feeling. Maybe he would take Monty to the beach tomorrow morning, get some surfing in. It had been way too long since he had done that. He was thinking about the beach when he pulled up to Kensi's house, a smile on his face, when he saw Callen's car. He automatically felt some of the irritation and anger from earlier, and he had to force himself to try and stay Deeks. But he knew that Max was already there. He grabbed the soup and walked up to her door, knocking.

As soon as she opened the door, she regretted it. One look into his eyes and she knew who was in front of her, and she didn't want to deal with it.

"What do you want." She tried to keep her voice neutral, hoping this would end soon.

"Now, is that any way to talk to your partner?" He smiled at her, but it wasn't his smile. He waved the soup in front of her. "I even brought soup for you."

Kensi didn't budge. "Thanks but no thanks. Callen got me some soup earlier." The mention of the team leader's name took the smile off Deeks's face.

"Where is our fearless leader, huh?" He tried to move past her, but she planted her feet. At that moment, Callen walked up, seeing the tension in Kensi before he even saw who was at the door.

"Hey Deeks." He looked at the other man, knowing instantly what was going on. He gently took Kensi's arm and moved her, standing in front of her and blocking Deeks.

"Hey Callen. Just brought my partner here some dinner. But I hear you already took care of that for me." Deeks's eyes narrowed slightly at him.

"Well, seeing as her partner wasn't there this morning to help her out, I did. Speaking of, why don't you come back when Deeks shows up. Neither one of us is in the mood for your shit tonight." He went to close the door when Deeks threw his hand up, hitting the door and stopping the forward motion. The slap his hand made caused them all to jump a little.

Deeks looked at Kensi, seeing the tears in her eyes again. She was only one who could bring him back, the one thing he had to hold onto to keep the old Deeks here. And the tears he saw, they managed to push Max out of the way.

"Kensi. Oh God, I am so sorry." He hung his head, ashamed of what had just happened.

Kensi turned and went back to the couch, giving Callen a nod to let him in. Callen moved away from the door and Deeks walked in.

They all sat there in silence for a minute, unsure of what to say. Kensi decided to break the ice.

"Deeks, I don't know how to help you with this, but I'm here for you, no matter what. I'll do whatever you need me to do to get through this. But you have to talk to me." He looked at her, a sad smile on his face.

Callen spoke up next.

"She's not the only one here for you. I am, too. You've got people around you who love and care about you, Deeks. Whatever you need, just say the word." Deeks nodded at him, suddenly feeling overwhelmed with the support he was getting. He had always been on his own, having to find his way back alone. He wasn't use to this, but he knew he would take them up on their offer of help. Because he wasn't stupid, he knew he needed it.

"Thanks. I uh, I gotta use the bathroom. I'll be right back." He stood up, smiling at Kensi once more who returned it.

As soon as the bathroom door closed, Kensi let out a gasp.

"Oh my God, Callen. The test. It's on the counter." She got up, pacing the floor and feeling sick all over again.

Callen stood up as well, ready to go into protective big brother mode if he needed to, unsure of which person was going to come out. He meant it when he said he would help Deeks do what needed to be done to come back to his old self, but he wasn't going to stand around and let Max hurt Kensi, either. He didn't think it would get physical, but some of the things Max would say could be nasty, and Kensi didn't deserve that.

Deeks glanced over at the counter when he walked in and his jaw fell open. There was a pregnancy test sitting there. His eyes narrowed as he walked up to it, seeing the large plus sign staring at him.

He grabbed it, throwing the door open and marched into the living room. He saw both of them standing there, Callen close to her. Deeks would have known it was a brotherly concern that was being shown. Max saw a lover wanting to protect what was his. And Max won out.

"Well, isn't this cute." He pointed to the two of them, leering at Kensi. "I see six weeks was a long time to go without someone in your bed, huh Kens?" He threw the pregnancy test onto the table.

"Deeks, it's not what you think." Kensi desperately wanted her Deeks back, she needed him to understand what exactly was going on instead of jumping to the wrong conclusions.

"Oh darlin', I'm pretty sure it's exactly what I think. You got lonely. I wasn't around. But I bet Callen was, weren't you?" He turned to Callen, eyes narrowed. Callen just folded his arms over his chest and stared at him. He knew he couldn't argue with Max, it wouldn't do any good.

"See, no denying it. Jesus Kens, you really get around, huh? Let me just ask you this, was he better than me?" Kensi couldn't stand it anymore. Tears were streaming down her face now, knowing it was Max talking to her, but it didn't keep the pain from hitting her full force.

Callen took a step forward. "Enough." Deeks just laughed at them.

"Yeah, okay. You're right. This whole thing is bullshit." He turned, and before Kensi could say anything to him, he slammed the door closed.

She came to her senses and ran after him, knowing she had to at least try. She saw him opening the door to his car and she stopped.

"Deeks!" She yelled his name and he turned to her.

"Just can't stay away, can you?" She kept walking towards him, not answering him. As soon as she was close enough, she grabbed his hand and put it on her still flat stomach, the words rushing out before he could do or say anything else.

"It's yours Deeks. This baby, it's yours." She watched as the fight went out of him, and the man now looking at her was her partner. She let out a sigh before wrapping her arms around him, holding on for dear life.

Because Kensi knew, no matter how good it felt to be with Deeks right now, Max was looming close by and he would make more appearances before this was over. And she vowed right then that no matter what, once Max was gone, he was going to be gone forever. Now, she just had to figure out how to do that.


AN - I would love to hear your thoughts on this chapter. It would mean the world if you left a review on your way out. :)