Come True
By: Michelle Rose Landau
Summary: A perfect apology B-Day cake sets off an argument, and as a result, wishes are made.
Pairing: Deeks/Kensi
Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS: Los Angeles, nor any of its characters. They are the sole creative property of CBS.
~four~
Dr. Classen grins a bit as she crumples up her gloves into her hand.
"We were able to revive her," she informs them, and Deeks nearly cries at the news, he is so relieved.
"That's great," he sighs.
"Yes," Dr. Classen agrees. "She's breathing on her own again, her heart rate is good...she's awake and alert. We're taking her to radiology momentarily. She's got a broken leg, and wrist. She'll likely need surgery to repair her wrist, but we'll set and cast her leg. Far as we can tell, she's responsive to stimuli, which indicates that she doesn't have any spinal injuries."
"Thank God," Julia sighs. "Can we see her?"
"Yes," Dr. Classen says. "But I must warn you, Kensi can't speak properly right now. The loss of oxygen to her brain is likely the cause. We're going to run some tests to see if there's any permanent brain damage, but I think that she'll regain her normal speech within the next few days. Overall, once she gets through surgery, and gets casted, she'll be on the mend. She is going to need some physical therapy as she recuperates, but I project that she will make a full recovery."
"I need to see her," Julia says.
"Sure, follow me this way," Dr. Classen says.
"Deeks, you go too," Sam says.
"Yes, just a couple of you," Dr. Classen says.
Dr. Classen escorts Julia and Deeks into the ER, and she slides the door open to Kensi's suite.
There are still some nurses working with her, and Julia immediately finds her way through and kisses her daughter's forehead.
"M-M...mum," Kensi slurs tiredly.
"Shh, honey," Julia whispers. "You're alright. I love you, darling. I'm happy you're okay."
Kensi is crying, and she reaches her good hand up, and Julia takes it. "You'll be fine, darling."
Kensi looks over and sees Deeks, and comes up beside Julia.
"You scared us for a sec there, Fern," he grins. "Good thing you're really stubborn when it counts."
"D-D..."
"Hey, you don't have to say it," he grins. "I know you're happy to see me."
Kensi manages to glare at him.
"That's my girl," Deeks smiles.
He leans in and kisses her cheek, then he smoothes over her hair. "You're going to be fine. And no, I'm not busting you out, so just forget about asking."
"We need to get her going," a nurse informs them.
Julia kisses Kensi's hand, then she and Deeks head out.
Deeks feels as though his heart is going to beat right out of him as he lets the relief and happiness wash over him. His knees feel unsteady, and he goes over and collapses into a chair, resting his elbows onto his knees, face in his hands. He is reeling, the anxiety draining from him, and the fatigue and nausea hit him full force.
Sam notices Deeks physically deflating, and he goes over to the agonized young man.
He can identify; when Callen got shot three years ago, and was barely hanging on, he thought he would go crazy too. The hours Callen was in surgery were pure torture, and he refused, absolutely refused to entertain the thought of having to work with a new partner. They'd come too far for Sam to have to start all over with some stranger. Callen is his best friend, his brother, and the thought of losing him scared him. He didn't let it show, of course, he had to be the strong one, but inside, his nerves were as steeled as linguine noodles. There's a certain brand of pain that comes with having to face the possibility of losing a partner, a friend who knows you better than you know yourself, to lose likely the only person in your life that is willing to take a bullet for you.
In Deeks' case, though, Sam suspects that there is something going on below the surface of it all. Sam was young once too-still is-but not as young as he used to be. He knows that the two youngest agents he works with are beginning to see possibilities for something more. He knows that of the two, Deeks is the one more willing to accept that notion. Kensi, not so much.
"Hey," Sam says, gently patting Deeks' shoulder.
Deeks sniffles and lifts his face, taking in a deep breath.
"Hey," he says, his voice trembling.
"Kensi's gonna be fine, man," Sam says. "You can breathe now."
Deeks nods.
"Yeah," he says with a slight chuckle. "Yeah, I know, man. I just...it hurts...it really hurts seeing Kens down like this..."
"I know," Sam says. "Deeks...breathe."
Deeks nods again, and he takes deep breaths.
"I understand how you feel," Sam says.
Deeks shakes his head. "This is different, Sam. I-I would explain it to you, but...I'm still trying to muddle through it myself and-"
"Who you think your talking to?" Sam asks rhetorically. "Look, I been workin' intelligence for longer than I care to admit...I've been in your shoes before."
Deeks snorts. "I doubt it."
"Just listen to me, Deeks," Sam says with a surprising patience and gentleness that he's never had for Deeks before. "I know what it's like to fall in love on the job."
Deeks looks up at him.
"Y-you're talking about Michelle?"
Sam nods. "I thought I was going crazy...told myself I was crossing too many boundaries. I'd worked with females on the job before, and I always knew where the line between friendly feelings and romantic feelings were. Sure, you joke, there's some flirting, you get close, but...you just know the difference. So, when it hits you, you know it's real, man. You know what it feels like, especially if you've had strong feelings about someone before, or if you were even in love once or twice before. You just know."
"I know I know," Deeks admits. "I just..."
"You want Kensi to know," Sam finishes, and Deeks nods.
"But...at the same time, I don't," Deeks says. "I-I don't know if I'm feeling this way because of our argument, or because of the crash...I'm confused right now, Sam. I don't want to screw anything up. Especially not now. All these months we've been pushing, and pushing...spending more time together outside of work, talking more, sitting or standing closer, trading little touches here and there. It's completely spiraled, and I don't know if there's any going back. And the craziest thing about it is that I'm not even sure I want to go back, but when she forgot my birthday, everything that I'd been trying to bury, everything that I'd been trying to hide just came out tonight, and I..."
Deeks shakes his head.
"I told her that I was going to go back to LAPD for a bit, and she was completely crushed. We left it at that. Then she called me, right before the crash...I knew that she was upset. She wanted to tell me something, and that's when the crash happened. I have no idea what she wanted to tell me, and then I had to face the possibility that I may never get to hear anything she has to say to me ever again...it's been too much."
He trembles, his stomach rolling, and he gets up and heads down the hallway to the restroom.
Callen comes over to Sam.
"How's Deeks holding up?"
Sam sighs.
"He's miserable."
"The doctor said that Kensi will be fine," Callen says.
"That's not the reason," Sam grins, and after a moment, Callen catches on.
Callen chuckles, shaking his head. "Good luck, Deeks."
The dreams Deeks has, as he sleeps fitfully, are strange and silly. He first dreams about Kensi singing jazz ballads on the first landing of the stairs in ops and Sam blowing bubbles, then he dreams that he is back in high school taking a test, and the last dream he has is about a car wreck, only in this instance, he and Kensi are both in the car, and he'd just leaned over to kiss her.
He jars awake before he can know either of their fates once the nocturnal crash occurs, and he sits up. As he does, he hears his bones pop and feels his muscles protest in a violent way, punishing him for falling asleep on the unforgiving hospital chairs.
He'd sprawled out at around three thirty, feeling incredibly exhausted, his stomach achy and queasy from vomiting, and a raging headache beginning to creep around the edges of his brain. One of the nurses who'd tended to Kensi informed him that it would be a couple of hours before they had any updates, and that even then, she'd be in post-op ICU for another hour. She told him that he may as well go home, but he quickly informed her that he wasn't going anywhere until he saw Kensi awake. Another nurse had graciously given him an aspirin and a bottle of water, and he took the items gratefully. He washed down the pills, and soon, he felt tiredness enshroud him. He stretched out in the waiting room, and as soon as his head rested upon his jacket, which was moonlighting as a pillow, his eyes slipped closed.
He rubs his eyes, then he rakes his hand through his hair as he slowly moves his legs so that his feet rest onto the floor.
"Good morning, Mr. Deeks."
He blinks a few times, then he sees Hetty approaching, with two searing hot cups of coffee.
"Anything on Kensi?" He asks.
Hetty gives him a scolding look.
"I realize that the condition of your partner has become your singular focus," she says indignantly. "However, that's no excuse for rudeness, Mr. Deeks."
"I'm sorry," he grins. "Good morning, Hetty."
"Indeed," she sighs as she sits down beside him. She hands him a cup of coffee and he takes it gratefully.
He takes a sip, and he lets the taste of it soak into the buds on his tongue, and he furrows his eyebrows.
"This...isn't from the hospital cafeteria."
"I couldn't possibly let you sip at the pig swill that this medical facility passes for coffee," she insists. "Not after the night you've had. This is a smooth, energizing blend from the Caribbean."
"It's good," Deeks chuckles slightly, then he rubs a hand over his face.
"You look like hell, Mr. Deeks."
"Well, I've been through it the last few hours," he sighs.
Hetty lays a hand on his shoulder.
"Kensi is alive, and she is safe," Hetty reminds him.
"Did LAPD make anything of the suspect?"
"Yes," Hetty confirms. "Her name is Laura Chambliss. She's eighteen. Her parents are very wealthy, and likely to contend with the district attorney over the charges against her."
"That kid almost killed Kensi," Deeks says angrily. "This deserves more than just a slap on the wrist."
"I have friends who owe me favors," Hetty says. "Justice will be served, Mr. Deeks, I can assure you."
Deeks nods.
She takes him in. There are dark circles around his eyes, his eyes are bloodshot from fitful sleep, he is pale, and more scruffier than usual.
"You should go home," Hetty advises. "Get cleaned up, get a few hours' rest."
"I need to see Kensi," he says. "I have to see her awake."
Hetty has never seen the detective like this before, but she knows the cause of the extraordinary amount of stress that he has been under over the night.
"In situations like this, emotions run high," she begins.
He looks at Hetty, who gives him a knowing look.
"Mr. Deeks," she warns. "Let things settle. Think about exactly how you feel. Think long, and hard, detective because this too shall pass, and you will still have to face each other, you will still have to work together. Be absolutely sure."
"That's just it, Hetty," he sighs. "I have thought about it. I've spent way too long thinking about it, thinking that I would have plenty of time to say what I feel. Then last night happened. I almost lost Kensi, Hetty, and I realized, what the hell am I waiting for? The bottom to drop out? Well guess what? It almost did the moment I almost lost Kensi, and I..."
He stops as he almost chokes on his next words, and Hetty puts her hand on his shoulder.
"I understand, Mr. Deeks," she sighs. "But, I caution you...tread carefully. Raw emotion makes even the most controlled of us foolish."
Deeks nods, and he wraps his hands around his cup of coffee, letting the warmth cut through the chill. The hospital is unbearably cold, and he shivers.
"Are you sure that you would like to return to LAPD for a while?"
He shakes his head. "No...I just...I was angry and hurt when I requested it, you're one down on the team. I don't want to make it two."
"I'm thinking about you, right now, Mr. Deeks," she insists. "What you need."
"I'm fine," he says. "I mean...I will be. I just need to see Kens. I need to see that she's okay."
"Yes," Hetty says, getting up. "Let's go."
He grabs his coat, then they head up to Kensi's floor.
They check in with the nurse in the reception area, then they go into Kensi's room.
Deeks goes over to her and he smoothes over her hair.
She is sleeping heavily, likely from the pain medication her doctor is pushing. Her left arm and leg both have casts on them, and there is a bandage on the top of her forehead. She has several small scratches on her face from glass, which are going to heal quickly.
"Kensi will require several weeks for her to recuperate fully," Hetty begins. "I've already drafted the paperwork for her leave of absence."
Deeks sighs. "She's gonna be pissed."
"Yes, I imagine she will be," Hetty chuckles. "But Kensi's no fool. She can't possibly expect that I will allow her to hobble around OPS."
"Oh, but she sure will try," Deeks chuckles. "Aw man...Kensi isn't going to be a happy agent when she wakes up."
"No, she won't," Hetty says. "But...we must be gentle, yet firm, Mr. Deeks."
"Yeah, no," he begins sarcastically. "'Cause that approach always wears Kensi down."
The diminutive woman fixes him with a look. "Go home and rest, Mr. Deeks. I'll keep watch over Ms. Blye."
He nods. "Thanks, Hetty."
With that, he heads out, and Hetty takes a seat in the chair in the corner of Kensi's room, keeping watch over one of her youngest agents.
Julia jars awake from her quick nap, and she groans slightly as she rubs at her neck.
She looks at her watch, and she sees that it is a little after ten. She'd come earlier in the morning, around seven, when visiting hours had just begun, and she came just in time to snicker at the sight of Kensi's deep, frustrated frown at being bothered by her attending nurse. Kensi attempted to snap at the young nurse and tell her off, but her speech was still slow and slurred, and Kensi instead resorted to glaring at the nurse the whole time, making her contempt and discomfort known.
"You need to keep trying to speak," the nurse advised, which made Kensi even more angry. "You'll get your normal speech back."
Once Kensi was showered and settled for the day, breakfast was brought to her, and Kensi picked over it, eating a few bites before her exhaustion took over once again.
She is still sleeping, and Julia gets up and leans over and kisses her daughter's forehead.
Julia is beyond relieved that Kensi will be alright, because she can't bear the thought of losing her child, not after all the years without her in her life.
Julia still has so much to learn about her girl, and she's glad that she can still do that.
"I'll be back, darling," Julia whispers, then she heads out to get a cup of coffee.
She is just passing the reception area when she sees Deeks stepping onto the floor, with a bag in one hand and a carrier with two cups of coffee in hand.
"Morning," he says when he spots her.
"Good morning, Marty," Julia smiles.
"I called your house," he says. "I was going to ask if you wanted me to swing by to pick you up, but I figured that you must have been here already."
"Yeah," she confirms.
"I brought you some coffee," he says. "And I have some stuff for Kens."
"Thank you," she says as they head back to Kensi's room.
"How is she?" Deeks asks quietly as they enter her room.
"The nurses got her up earlier and helped her shower, brought her some breakfast," Julia grins. "It wasn't too appetizing to her."
"Yeah, Kensi prefers greasy breakfast burritos, or doughnuts," he grins.
"She gets her sweet tooth from me," Julia confesses.
"Yeah, I think she's successfully deluded herself into thinking that grease and refined sugar are another food group," Deeks quips, and Julia chuckles. "I brought some stuff from her apartment. Couple magazines, some mini chocolate doughnuts, and her iPad. The three of us? We're playing Words with Friends."
Julia smiles. "Yeah, she'll need something to pass the time. Thank you."
Deeks nods.
"You look better," she says.
"I feel better," he says.
Julia opened up her coffee and she poured some cream and sugar into it.
Kensi stirs with a groan and she awakens slowly as she inhales the smell of coffee. She blinks slowly, and she sees her mother grinning at her.
"Good morning, darling," she says, and Kensi offers a slight smile.
"Morning Sunshine."
Kensi looks toward the end of her bed, and she sees Deeks smirking around his cup of coffee, and her smile forms into a frown.
"What? You're not happy to see me?"
She points at his coffee.
"Y-you din...I..." She pauses and closes her eyes, finding her resolve to speak her thought clearly. She thinks what she wants to say faster than she can say it, and it is extremely frustrating. "I...I don' g-gee..."
She releases a growl of frustration.
Deeks figures out what she wants to say. "What? Why didn't I bring you a delicious, venti double shot mocha with whole milk and whipped cream on top from Starbucks? Because, you're going to be down and out, Fern. I'm thinking about input versus output, Kens. You eat a lot of junk food, and that would be okay because you exercise and burn it all off, but like I said, you're gonna be sitting around for some time coming up, so sugar? Not a good idea."
Kensi frowns deeply and she flips him off.
"Ha," Deeks jokes, taking it in stride. "What're you gonna do about it? Your punching arm is out of commission."
Kensi glares at him, her lips forming a tight line as she grabs her notepad and pencil. She angrily scrawls a response and shows it to him.
"Kensi!" Julia scolds.
"Oh, those are some choice words there," Deeks gasps. "And in front of your mom?"
She writes 'Sorry Mom' underneath, then she writes: 'Super hungry. Hospital food is CRAP.'
"I think I can smuggle in some contraband," Deeks smiles. "I've learned a thing or two from the bad guys over the years. But, so far, I brought you your next issues of People and Cosmopolitan, your iPad, and...wait for it...mini chocolate doughnuts."
Her eyes light up as she takes the doughnuts immediately. She gets it open, and she stuffs two into her mouth.
She writes 'Thanks' on her pad, then she starts up her iPad.
"Alright, game. On," Deeks declares. "Words with Friends. Let's do this!"
Julia looks at her daughter, who shrugs.
"I'm going to go run some errands," Julia says. "I'll be back in a couple of hours."
"What? C'mon," Deeks smiles.
Julia kisses Kensi's forehead. "Try speaking some more, okay?"
Kensi nods.
Julia gathers up her purse and heads out.
The partners look at each other for a long moment, then Deeks clears his throat.
"I uh," he begins. "I'm glad you're okay, Kens."
She grins a bit, then she writes a note on her iPad and shows it to him.
'Thanks. It's good to be okay.'
He smiles.
She opens up Words with Friends.
"Alright, let's see what you got," he challenges.
After a moment, she grins smugly.
He looks at his phone and he smirks. "You would play that."