And… the last chapter for the night. I would like to thank Petunia3116 for the wonderful review.
Time for G and Sam to have a little talk me thinks. I hope you like it.
Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS: LA.
They were on the plane back to LA. Sam had been silent for as long as he could, but now it was all over it was time to discuss what he had seen, and what Tracy had said. It was time to confront G about his relationship with Deeks. Though those were words he had never thought he would say together in a sentence. G in a relationship with Deeks. But he would get over that fact in return for getting all the intel he wanted.
"So how's your boyfriend?" He asked in a friendly tone.
"Last I checked he was fine. How's Michelle?" Callen replied. He knew what was coming, but that didn't mean he had to let Sam get there easily.
"Were you ever going to tell me it was Deeks?" Sam asked disregarding G's weak attempt at distracting him. It wasn't going to work. He had him as a captive for the whole journey, he was going to use his time wisely.
"I hadn't planned on it, no." Callen replied with rare candour. There was no point trying to pretend he didn't know what Sam was talking about. The big guy wouldn't believe it and he would get even more pissed than he probably already was.
"Why not?" Sam asked hurt by G's admission. Why wouldn't he tell him? Then all the words he had said to and about the detective floated through his mind and he felt himself cringe that all the time he had been talking about the man G cared for.
"You have to ask?" Callen responded in disbelieve. Surely Sam knew he knew how he would feel about him being with someone from the team. And before… recent developments, they hadn't even really been together. Not in his mind at least, even if everyone else did see it differently.
"Okay, so I'm not the guy's biggest fan-" Sam started to say trying to think of a way to tell G he should have told him anyway, but the other man interrupted his words.
"That wasn't it." Callen said simply. Because he knew if he had told Sam, his friend would have tried to accept Deeks, for him. He would have tried to like him, for him. No matter what Sam had thought, he knew he would have at least pretended to like Marty because he did and that was what friends did, in Sam's mind anyway.
"Then why? Because you didn't think I would approve of you dating one of the team? Your right I don't." Sam replied with a huff. Of course he didn't approve, it put unnecessary pressures on the team, and made the dynamics skewed. You weren't supposed to date co-workers, it was an unwritten rule in his book. But he had long ago learnt that his book and G's were vastly different on occasion.
"Well then." Callen responded with a shrug as if to say 'you tell me you don't approve and yet wonder why I didn't tell you'.
"G. I'm more pissed you didn't tell me who it was, than who it is." Sam replied with exasperation, though when all Callen did in response was raise an eyebrow Sam had to rethink his words. His partner knew him too well after all.
"Okay, maybe equally pissed. But still. You should have told me." He exclaimed. I mean they were friends, family. He should have told him who it was that was so important to him. That was what family did in his mind.
"We keep it out of work." Callen answered defensively. He could see Sam wanted to lecture him about that. And he really wasn't in the mood.
"Yeah right, that was why I couldn't find either of you when we got back from arresting the arms dealer." Sam replied with a roll of his eyes. He wasn't blind. He had noticed the absence of his partner and a certain detective. G was just luckily no one else had.
"That was different." Callen grumbled. That wasn't a usual situation. And certainly not a usual occurrence.
"How?" Sam demanded. He wanted to know what he was going to have to deal with when they got back, and how much interference he was going to have to run for G and, god help him, Deeks.
"How? He had just had to watch me pretend to care for someone else. He had just watched me kiss someone else just after we had agreed to be a couple. How do you think it was different?" Callen suddenly exploded making Sam sit back with wide eyes. He had never seen G act like that before. It gave him more insist into this relationship and what his friend was feeling than anything else could.
"You really like him don't you?" Sam asked gently but his words were greeted only by silence as Callen turned to look out of the window rather than at him. Okay, his feelings were not going to be discussed. He could accept that, this was G after all. So instead he asked a practical question.
"How longs it been going on, G?"
"Since the Belotov case." Callen mumbled in response making Sam sit up straight.
"Wait, what? That was like a year and a half ago. You've been together that long?" he asked in disbelief that he had missed it for so long. I mean how? How could he not see the depth of Deeks and G's connection in all the time they had been working together?
"It's complicated Sam." Callen sighed really wishing he hadn't said that. Because he knew now his partner would want to know everything. They still had a few hours before the plane landed. He would hound him until he told him it all. But another part of him, a part he really didn't listen to very often, was willing him to do just that. To have someone he could talk to about his new and scary world of relationships with.
"We have a whole flight for you to explain." Sam said echoing Callen's own thoughts making him chuckle before he leaned back and let his eyes cloud over, remembering the first time he had seen Marty's photo on the screen in the old ops centre.
"It started with me thinking he was a way in. Macey was going to take the case from me and give it to you or Renko, so when I saw Eric's profile-"
"Eric knows?" Sam interrupted. He didn't want to now G was talking, but he needed to make sure he knew exactly who knew what.
"I don't think so. As far as I'm aware only Hetty does." Callen replied with a frown. He had never even considered that Eric might have be able to figure out his way in with the supposed lawyer. I mean the techie hadn't ever said anything. No, he doubted he knew.
"Of course Hetty does. Okay, carry on." Sam responded with a roll of his eyes at that. Hetty knew everything, of course she knew. Though he was surprised she had employed Deeks when she knew of his relationship with G. Maybe she had found out after she had given the detective the job?
"I got to the bar and saw him talking to the cop who had arrested me. I thought he was a CI. But we clicked you know? Somehow he…" Callen said through he trailed off when he tried to find the words that explained what had happened that night. Even now, he couldn't work out what it was about Marty that had found its way through the cracks in his walls.
"Yeah I know, G." Sam nodded understanding completely. He had felt that when he had met Michelle on their op. He understood.
"We didn't see each other again after that until the case I brought him into NCIS. He thought I was dead, kind of surprised him to see me I can tell you. After that, we had some time, but then he went under on the Lazik op." Callen continued glad he didn't have to try and find words to explain things he didn't understand himself, even if it seemed Sam did.
"Well that explains your wonderful demeanour for those few months." Sam replied sarcastically. He was seeing G' grumpiness in a whole new light. He was worried for someone he cared for. Someone who was out there doing things he didn't know about, putting themselves in harm's way. Oh yeah, that explained everything about G those few months Deeks was away.
"We started back up when he came back. I never meant for it to be anything. Just a bit of fun." Callen said with a frown. He still didn't know when it had become more. How it had become more. But he had a feeling that even from the beginning, it had been more. Looking back now he could see he and Marty were never what he had said they were. Not really. It was startling to realise just how long he had been deluding himself on that front, and how much he nearly lost.
"But then he told you he loved you." Sam added moving the story along as he saw his friends eyes become distance as if he was thinking of another time. Which no doubt he was.
"He doesn't even remember doing that." Callen replied coming back to the here and now. He wanted to make sure Sam didn't say anything to Marty about that. He needed him to know he had no idea. He didn't want Marty to know what had made him run.
"What?" Sam asked confused now. How could Deeks not know he had told G he loved him? I mean it was usually a rather defining moment in any relationship. Of course then his mind tried to get round the idea that Deeks loved G. Deeks, the goofy detective, loved his partner. Deeks the one who flirted with Kensi constantly, was in love G Callen. It really was something his mind was finding very hard to process.
"He was asleep at the time." Callen replied in a quiet voice. He could just imagine how Sam would take that bit of information, and it was not well.
Sam for his part didn't say anything for a minute as he processed what G had just told him. He had run because Deeks told him he loved him, in his sleep. Was his friend crazy? Yes. No question about that, he was definitely crazy, but he also knew G. He didn't work the way everyone else did when it came to emotions and relationships, so taking a deep breath he let it go. Instead concentrated on thinking about how Deeks had been recently, finding that actually there was more than a little that seemed off about the guy. He had put it down to him being Deeks, but now… now he knew the reason. G had deserted him. And for the first time he felt sympathy for Deeks. G had run and he had had no idea why. What the hell had his partner said to get him back again?
"I see it now, you weren't the only one off the last few days. He was different too." Sam said in a contemplative tone, but he knew he wouldn't ask what G had done to get his man back. That was between G and Deeks, he didn't need to know. All he needed to know was that it had worked.
"I hurt him. I never want to do that again." Callen replied sincerely even if as he said the words he knew he had done just that with Tracy. Damn that bitch for making him hurt Marty.
"That's a good thing, G." Sam responded with a smile. Glad his friend felt that way.
"I hope so." Callen replied with a small smile of his own.
"So he gonna be waiting at your place for you to come home with open arms?" Sam asked changing the conversation from the heavy to something he hoped would be lighter.
"Hardly, he doesn't even know where I live." Callen responded without thought making Sam's mouth drop open.
"G!"
"We spend our time at his, okay? He has furniture and everything, including a bed." Callen smirked while he remembered all the fun times he had had in that bed.
"I don't want to know. Just promise me, this won't get in the way." Sam replied with a sigh. He knew enough for now, and now that he did know he would be there for G whenever he had any questions or problems.
"It won't." Callen agreed. He and Marty had done a good job of keeping their personal life from the professional so far, he was sure they could continue it.
"Okay." Sam nodded before leaning back and closing his eyes so he could process all he had heard. He now knew the truth and as such he could protect G's heart as well as his body. It was his job to watch his partners back after all, of course that didn't mean he wouldn't be having along hard conversation with a certain LAPD liaison when they returned. He wanted to make sure that Deeks really was serious about G. he would not let him get hurt. Oh yeah, with the thought of the fun he could have with that, Sam fell asleep with a smile on his face. While Callen stared out the window and counted the minutes until he could see Marty again.