Prompt: Kensi, with help from Roberta, makes Deeks's favorite meal for a special date night. She's trying to make up for the events of 11×19 & 11×20
"Hey Roberta," Kensi said as her mother-in-law finished up for the night. She was closing down the register and doing a few other odds and ends.
"What's up, Honey?" Kensi hesitated, nervously chewing at her lip.
"You know how Deeks loves your lasagna?" Roberta nodded.
"Sure. I swear he could eat a whole one on his own when he was a teenager and not put on a pound," Roberta reminisced, smiling fondly at the memory. Worried me for a while cause didn't grow much for a couple years, but then he eventually caught up. Why'd you ask?"
"Um, I was kind of hoping you would teach me how to make it," Kensi explained hurriedly before she chickened out.
"What's with the sudden interest in cooking?" Roberta asked, facing Kensi with an expression that said new something was up.
"I feel like I haven't exactly been the nicest to Deeks recently. Plus there's the whole him tripping over the box I left in the hallway and breaking his toe thing. And we haven't spent much time together recently, so I just wanted to do something nice," she said, instantly regretting the verbal diarrhea the second it left her mouth.
Roberta eyed her seriously for several long moment and Kensi waited for the inevitable slew of invasive questions. Surprisingly though, she just nodded again and said,
"Ok, when were you hoping to have this little celebration?"
"Next week?"
"Well, that doesn't give us much time to work with, but we should be able to pull something together," Roberta decided, patting Kensi's shoulder. "How about you come over on Saturday and we'll make a day of it? That should give me enough time to get the ingredients. And bake an extra one in case this turns out to be a disaster."
Kensi just shook her head, reaching out to hug Deeks' mom.
"Alright," Roberta said in a take charge voice as she pulled what seemed like a dozen different dairy products from her fridge. "So the secret to my lasagna is that I use a mixture of cottage cheese and ricotta. That way it doesn't get dried out."
Kensi looked down at the array of items laid out on the counter in dismay. She'd gotten better at cooking in the last few years, but she was starting to wonder if this was a terrible idea.
"Oh, don't look so scared. You'll be fine. And even if it's not perfect, Martin will appreciate the effort." Handing Kensi a bowl, she added, "Start cracking eggs."
A few hours later, they looked down at a freshly baked lasagna. The edges were maybe a little crispier and the layers uneven compared to what Roberta normally turned out, but all in all it looked about right.
"Good job, kiddo," she praised Kensi.
"I don't know if I can do this," she said doubtfully. "Maybe this was a bad idea."
"Give yourself some credit. You did a great job."
"Yeah, because you helped me. I would have made a huge mess of everything if you weren't standing over my shoulder."
"That is not true," Roberta protested. Kensi didn't say anything, already feeling like a failure. "Kensi, I'll write down all the steps, with details and all my little tips. Now that you've practiced, it'll be a cinch."
"Thanks, Roberta," Kensi said gratefully and reached over to hug her again.
"Of course." Deeks' mom patted her back encouragingly and then added, "But just in case, freeze this one."
"Hey baby, what smells so good?" Deeks called through the house, just getting home from an LAPD training. He followed the smell into the kitchen and found Kensi standing in front of the table, her hands tightly linked together. "What's this?" He tried to look around her but only got a glimpse of a couple candles and what looked like a casserole dish.
"I made dinner," she answered, stepping forward. She kissed his cheek and he distractedly returned it, looking at the perfectly arranged table. "Surprise." He took a deep breath and sighed.
"Is that my mom's lasagna?" Kensi nodded.
"Yes. Well, your mom's recipe. But I made it, so it might actually be terrible." Deeks didn't seem to pick up on her anxiety and pulled her tighter against his side, leaning down for a kiss.
"This is incredible," he said as she led him to his seat. He watched her turn off the lights and lit the three candles placed down the center of the table. So what's the special occasion? Wait, I didn't get fired or something, right?" Kensi rolled her eyes and said,
"No. I just wanted to show you how much I love and care about you." She shrugged, feeling suddenly shy. Especially with Deeks staring at her with such open fondness. "I just hope it turned out alright."
"Baby, it's perfect. I love it," he assured her. Kensi chuckled darkly.
"You haven't tried it yet." Tugging her towards him, he cupped her jaw, eyes flicking over her face.
"It doesn't matter. The fact that you put all this effort is enough, even it if is the worst tasting lasagna in the histories of lasagnas. Which it won't be." Before Kensi could criticize her cooking skills any further, he leaned in and kissed lingeringly.
When they parted, Kensi curled a hand in his hair and smiled gently.
"I love you, Marty Deeks," she said, hoping he felt the weight, the unspoken meaning behind the words.
"I love you too."
A/N: Thanks for the prompt!
Also, does anyone else like their lasagna filling on the gooey side?