Late Saturday morning, after Sam had showered and shaved, he went looking for Callen. He wasn't in any of the usual places he hung out in the house so Sam went out to the last place Michelle had seen his missing partner, the swing set. It was empty as was the yard. Sam was beginning to think the man had gone Houdini on him when he noticed the side door to the garage was ajar. Walking over, he cautiously pushed it open and was relieved to see the only thing amiss in the garage was his partner snoozing on his weight bench. Sam drew closer but still stayed an arm's length away, knowing his partner might wake up swinging. "Please tell me you're not out here lifting weights. That is so not the definition of resting your shoulder."
Callen didn't open his eyes. "I was planning to but you didn't own heavy enough weights to make it challenging."
Sam grinned and was actually a bit relived. The quick witty response led Sam to believe Callen had heard him as he entered the garage which spoke well for his general well-being. "Where's the sling?"
Callen paused a beat then answered. "The dog ate it."
Sam scowled. "We don't have a dog."
"Huh," Callen replied casually. "Must have been the neighbor's dog. Michelle up?" he asked shifting the conversation.
"She's in the kitchen whipping up some eggs. And for the record, none of my neighbors have dogs."
"Must have been a stray. Why aren't you in there helping her," Callen queried as he opened his eyes and used Sam's out-stretched hand to leverage off the bench.
"Because I'm out here, looking for you and bullshitting about an imaginary dog," he responded as they headed back towards the house.
Callen grinned at his non-plused partner.
Sam shook his head. "Ya know I thought you went AWOL on me. Silly me, I expected to find you sleeping on the couch inside the house."
Callen couldn't stop himself from smirking. "Wrong. I did consider leaving but I knew you would kill me if I took the Challenger, Michelle would kill me if I took the BMW and you both would kill me if I hot-wired a neighbor's car, not to mention what Hetty would do to me if she ever found out."
"You mean when she found out. Hetty doesn't miss a trick," Sam pointed out.
"I stand corrected," Callen conceded. "When Hetty found out. So I gave up. Too much trouble."
Sam smiled. "That is one of the smartest conclusions you have reached in a long time. I'm impressed."
Callen stopped and cocked his head at his partner. "Impressed enough to make me waffles for breakfast?"
"I said Michelle is making eggs and tofu bacon. You want waffles you go tell her," Sam suggested.
Starting back towards the house again, Callen said, "I might just do that. Eggs are good, but waffles are better. What is tofu bacon?"
Sam opened the back door to the kitchen. "Michelle, Callen has a question for you."
"What's that honey," she asked Callen turning away from the stove with a spatula in her hand and taking a few steps away from the noisy exhaust fan.
"Ah, would you like me to make coffee?" he back peddled.
"Thanks G, but it's already done. Sit. You're supposed to be taking it easy." She turned back to the stove to attend to her eggs.
"Chicken," Sam whispered in his partner ear.
"Maybe. Still rather have waffles," he sulked.
"You say something Callen," Michelle's voice drifted across from the stove.
"She's got hearing like Hetty," Sam added for his partners benefit and a look of discomfort crossed Callen's face. His eyes pleaded with his partner to get him out of this situation. Sam grinned and nudged his friend towards the table. "Callen was just wondering about tofu bacon. He's never had it," Sam said walking over to the toaster and plucking the four golden brown pieces from the slots and plopping them on a plate. He brought it over to the table and set it down in front of Callen who had seated himself in his customary spot. Sam disappeared for a minute then returned with the sling and held it out to Callen. Ungraciously, Callen slipped it over his head and inserted his right arm in it.
Michelle joined them with a platter of scrambled eggs with peppers and mushrooms and the aforementioned tofu bacon. "You'll like it. It is good for you," she lectured sliding into her own seat.
Even if Callen hated the bacon, he wouldn't tell Michelle. After all, he was a trained agent who could fake anything not to mention he had survived in the wilderness on grubs, bugs and other disgusting things. How bad could a piece of tofu bacon be? To show he was a good sport, he took three strips when he was offered the platter. He took a bite from one piece and plastered a huge smile on his face. "You are so right, Michelle. Really good."
Author's Note: Short one. Natural break point. Next chapter is extra long.
