A/N: And so, here we are. The continuation of chapter 15. I got a lot of reviews asking for this one and so here you are, hope this appeases some of you.

Enjoy!

25 - Outcome

They make a point to never let arguments drag on, with this job you never know if a mission will be your last.

Five.

Rubbing her hand over her face to wipe away the tears, Kensi focused on the lone figure standing at the doors. She'd had so many plans for the two of them. Plans that would now never be.

Four.

Three.

"I love you, Marty," Kensi shouted, unwilling to hold it in. If this were to be the only chance that she had to tell him how she honestly felt then she would take it. She wasn't willing for him to die not knowing just how much she cared because of their terrible communication skills.

Two.

"Kensi, God. I-"

One.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Wipe tears.

"…Kensi?" The voice came over the line, slow and full of disbelief. Raising a hand, trying to hold in the sob, Kensi screwed her eyes shut, trying to erase the images of the building going up in flames from her mind.

The bomb was faulty.

Deeks was safe.

"Are you okay?" Kensi finally choked out, the lump in her throat distorting her voice.

"Yeah, I, uh, it didn't go off Kens. I'm okay," Deeks answered, struggling to keep his voice level, tears still present and dying to break loose.

"Stay there Deeks, the bomb squad's going to check the doors," Kensi told her partner before the phone was taken by Special Agent Hart.

"You okay in there?" The FBI agent asked, showing genuine concern for the first time that Kensi had seen.

"I am now," the shaggy detective answered, sliding down the wall to sit on the floor, head dropping forward.

"You did good in there, Detective. We'll have you out of there in a minute."

"Thank you, sir," Deeks answered, feeling a small smile spread across his face before smiling wider as the doors were finally flung open.

Deeks wasted no time in leaving the cold bank floor behind.

As soon as Deeks was clear of the building, he began searching the crowds for any sign of his partner, gaze flitting from one bystander to the next before finding her, making her way to him through the crowds. The two partners crossed the distance between them in no time and Deeks threw him arms around the agent, lifting her off of the ground slightly. Burying his face into the side of her neck, Deeks held on tighter to Kensi whose own embrace was somehow vice-like and comforting at the same time.

"You're shaking," Kensi told him as he finally set her back down on her feet. "There are paramedics just over there, I'm sure they can-"

"I'm fine," Deeks cut his partner off. "I'll be fine Kens."

Deeks looked down at his partner, noticing her hands playing with the collar of his shirt. Placing one hand under her chin, he tilted Kensi's face to see the tears gathering in her eyes, tears the agent refused to let fall.

"I almost lost you," Kensi whispered, in a voice more fitting for a small child than his bad-ass partner.

"But you didn't, Fern. I'm still here, I'm not going anywhere," Deeks said, smile breaking across his face as her smoother his hand over the agents head, almost as if trying to convince himself that being here with Kensi was real. That he was still alive and that all this was real.

Kensi was beginning to give in and lean her hand into her partner's hand, turning to place a small kiss on the palm when Agent Hart appeared behind her.

"Detective, I want you checked out by the paramedics and your report on the events of today as soon as you can," the agent barked out. "No arguments," he added, seeing the detective open his mouth to fight against the orders.

The next few hours passed by in a blur, Kensi had been called in to the Mission to explain the hostage situation and bomb crisis while Eric and Nell worked over time to find the connection between the dead bomb maker and Detective Deeks. The detective in question had been carted off to the hospital for a few butterfly stitches over a cut that Kensi had somehow managed to miss when reunited with her partner.

Before Kensi had chance to over think anything she found herself standing outside of her partners house, arms wrapped tightly around her middle and wishing, not for the first time, that she'd changed into something more substantial than a pair of shorts and a T-shirt she'd stolen from Deeks and was using as sleepwear.

"At least I grabbed a jacket," the agent said to herself, shifting her weight from one leg to the other, waiting for her partner to answer the door.

Just as Kensi was about to leave, Deeks opened the door. From the towel wrapped low around his waist and the beads of water trailing down his chest, and the haphazardly towel dried hair Kensi concluded that Deeks must have been in the shower. Preparing to make apology's, Kensi was shocked as Deeks' arm shot out to grab her before pulling her back to him, kissing her with for all he was worth.

Kensi was in shock to begin with, taking a few moments to process what was happening before springing into action and putting everything she felt into the kiss; using her lips, teeth and tongue to express her horror, pain, joy and every other emotion that consumed her that day and every day before, ever since she'd met the shaggy detective. Her own hands slid up over toned abs, hardened biceps and broad shoulders before settling at the nape of his neck.

"Deeks," Kensi breathed, pulling back and in desperate need for oxygen. Deeks, in return, moved his attention to his partner's neck, kissing and biting a path towards the agent's ear before pausing.

"I love you," he told her, voice a whisper as if the words themselves could break this fragile moment. "God, Kens, if I'd… If you were still in there, I don't know what I'd do. I love you, Fern." Adding her name, smiling against her skin, Deeks eventually pulled back to face his partner, hands cupping her face.

Kensi tentatively reached up to brush the still damp hair out of her partner's eyes, titling her own head and smiling, tears beginning to prick at the corners of her eyes. Eyebrows furrowed she watched him, stroking her thumb across his cheekbone, trailed her fingers across his jaw, fingertips brushing against his bottom lip, trying to memorise each and every feature, to ingrain this moment in her memory until the end of her days.

"I love you too, Marty."

A/N2: So, was that worth the wait? I remember someone asking for some sibling-like interactions between Callen and Kensi, unfortunately, I didn't manage to get it in this chapter but I do have some cute little family moments planned for an instalment in a few days time.

Let me know how you found this chapter in a review, also, feel free to let me know if there's anything you'd like to see and I'll see if I have a prompt that works with it.

Next chapter, Eric, Nell and Hetty appear, along with the booze. Can't give away more than that...