Original prompt: Could you write a story set during the early seasons where Deeks is finally fed up of everyone's unfair treatment towards him he decides to quit and now the team must find a way to make it up to him before they lose him for good and maybe a certain teammate might realize her real feelings for him. This is part 2.

A/N: Sam and Callen don't come off looking the best here. So if you don't want to read that, give this one a pass. Again, with the prompt, this fic was designed to be pro-Deeks and a bit negative towards everyone else (at least how I interpreted it). And it's set in the first few season when Deeks was not treated so great sometimes.

Ok, PSA over.

"You did not have him at all. In fact if I hadn't stepped in, that guy would have killed you," Callen insisted sitting on the edge of Sam's desk. Kensi rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything. They'd been arguing for at least ten minutes and were starting to get on her nerves. She had a dull headache that refused to go away.

She glanced at her watch and then entrance to the bullpen. Deeks was late. And not his normal five-minutes-late-because-I-went-surfing late. It was going on 9:30; he had never been that late without texting her.

Since Deeks had revealed his plan to leave, things had been a little tense between them. Kensi hadn't told anyone else, automatically keeping his secret as her own. He hadn't said exactly when he was quitting, but Kensi treated each day like it was the last.

She found herself unconsciously memorizing his expressions, the sound of his voice, his smile, his laugh. At the end of the day, she'd taken to hugging him too. If Deeks thought it was strange, he didn't say anything, but hugged her back and gave her a bitter sweet smile. It was strange how the things that always annoyed her about him, were suddenly endearing.

She checked her watch again. It was now 9:45. Maybe today was the day. It didn't seem like something Deeks would do, leaving without an official goodbye, but then again, she hadn't realized he was apparently miserable working with them.

Sam and Callen's voices rose, drawing Kensi out of her thoughts.

"You do not get partial credit, G," Sam was saying, sounding perturbed. Callen smirked, clearly enjoying riling his partner up.

"What about a fourth of the credit? I was the one who handcuffed him after all."

"No! And they were my handcuffs."

"Then what about-"

"I hate to interrupt this important conversation," Hetty said, appearing in the doorway. "But I have some news to share with you all." She clasped her hands together and sighed deeply.

Something about her demeanor made Kensi's stomach clench. Sam and Callen seemed to notice it too because they both turned their full attention to Hetty, instantly serious.

"Why do I get the feeling this isn't going to be a fun talk?" Callen asked and Hetty nodded shortly.

"Well, it's certainly not good." She pursed her lips and looked down at the floor before continuing. "This morning I received Detective Deeks' letter of resignation." There was a moment of stunned silence from Sam and Callen and Kensi's stomach grew even tighter.

"He's quitting, why?" Sam asked as Callen said,

"It must be some kind of joke." Kensi didn't say anything, feeling vaguely nauseous. Somehow, deep inside, there's been a tiny part of her that thought he wouldn't go through with it.

"I'm afraid it's not a joke, Gentleman," Hetty said gravely. "And as to why, Mr. Deeks declined to say."

"Where is he now?" Callen demanded.

"Mr. Deeks merely informed me he would be taking a personal day, he didn't mention his plans beyond that. When he returns tomorrow, he will begin his final two weeks with us." Hetty's voice dipped a little and Kensi thought she saw a hint of regret in her eyes.

She started to say something else, but stopped herself, pressing her lips together and abruptly left the room.

"I can't believe it," Sam muttered. He looked disappointed and angry. Kensi wondered what he would think if he knew why Deeks had resigned.

"This doesn't make any sense," Callen said. He looked like he was trying to solve a complicated algorithm. He swung around to look at Kensi. "Did Deeks mention anything about this to you?"

Kensi pressed her lips together, uncertain what to say. Deeks hadn't actually sworn her to secrecy or anything, but it certainly seemed like a betrayal, especially when he wasn't there to defend himself.

"He might have said he was putting out feelers," she answered vaguely. Sam frowned at that.

"Where?"

"A law firm."

"Why's he going back to law? I thought he hated when he was a public defender." Kensi shrugged at Callen's question. Deeks had never hated being a lawyer; he had hated defending criminals.

"I bet he found some shiny, high end place that pays a lot better than NCIS or LAPD," Sam speculated, shaking his head with that same disappointed look. "I thought he had more integrity than that, but I guess anybody can be lured away when there's enough money involved."

"Actually," Kensi said through her teeth, beyond angry now. She couldn't believe he was actually criticizing Deeks without knowing anything about his reason for leaving. "It's a small law firm. Deeks said they mostly work with middle and lower class clients and they do a lot of pro bono work. So no, he isn't doing it for the money." Her voice was shaky and she felt close to tears again.

Sam and Callen both seemed surprised by her outburst and exchanged a look. God, she hated when they did that. If Deeks were there, they'd probably have joked about it when they were alone. But he wasn't and soon, he wouldn't be coming back at all.

"Kensi, do you know something that we don't?" Callen asked, his voice oddly gentle. Kensi groaned, pressing her palms over her eyes. She missed Deeks. He would have had something snarky to say, something to break the tension.

"We're the reason he's leaving," she finally said. No matter how much Deeks insisted, she knew she played a part in his decision. "He said he feels like we don't respect him and he's never truly felt like he's a part of the team."

"That's ridiculous," Sam said. "Of course he's a part of the team." Kensi raised a brow at him.

"Really? Because when I think about it, Deeks is right. We don't treat him the same way we would another colleague."

"That's cause he's not an agent, it's a learning curve." Sam's tone was dismissive and Kensi shook her head, seeing a little bit of what Deeks had experienced so often.

"You know that's not true. Deeks came here knowing more than any new agent would. He caught up in a few months," she argued and Sam looked momentarily flummoxed, then made a dismissive hand motion.

"We all ride each other," he insisted. "It's part of working in this field and before you say we go too far, Deeks does it too." Kensi pressed her lips together, not feeling like arguing anymore.

"Well, whatever you might think, Deeks is still leaving. He's had enough arguing about it isn't going to make him stay."

"Well, then there's an easy solution," Callen said, looking between them like the answer was obvious. "Deeks obviously got his feelings hurt. So tonight we'll go talk to him, tell him we want him back, and that'll be the end of it." He swung his legs onto his desk, apparently pleased with himself.

Sam nodded, agreeing with him, but Kensi just shook her head. It was going to take a lot more than a half-hearted apology to get Deeks back.

The now familiar feeling of imminent loss rocked through her again.

A/N: And now I've set myself up for a third part. Help.