It was another ordinary California day, traffic jamming the highways, the heat increasing as the sun began rising through the bright blue cloudless sky.

Special Agent G Callen sauntered into work, tossing his bag on the floor beside his desk before dropping down into his chair and checking his phone for messages. Glancing around he saw Hetty sitting at her desk, with Nell seated across from her. The two were engaged in a serious looking conversation. Hetty was leaning forward, her hands clasped in front of her and her lips pursed. Nell looked tense, nervous even, biting down on her lower lip and wringing her hands together.

As Callen subtly watched, glancing over as he played with his phone, he wondered what this meant for his day. Did they have a big case, something dangerous and likely to cause everyone several sleepless nights? As he pondered what they were discussing, Nell suddenly rose from her chair, thanked Hetty, then hurried across the floor and up the stairs to Ops, not even glancing in Callen's direction.

He followed her with his gaze for a moment, until he was distracted by Hetty calling his name. Glancing back over to her he nodded and rose from his seat, making his way to her oversized desk and slipping into the chair Nell had occupied only moments earlier, slouching down a little.

"Good morning Hetty." He nodded and smiled at his mentor.

"Mr Callen, Ms Jones came to me this morning with some concerning information regarding her personal safety." As Hetty spoke, Callen sat up straight in the chair and leaned forward, the conversation having taken a turn he wasn't expecting.

"What's going on Hetty?" he asked, concerned about what Hetty was getting at. The older lady sighed and looked down at her hands briefly.

"Ms Jones believes someone has been following her." Hetty explained. "She can't be sure, but she felt strongly enough about it to tell me this morning."

"But she hasn't actually seen anyone following her?" Called asked.

"Not clearly. She told me this morning she thought she saw the same man walking behind her outside her apartment building and at one of her coffee shop stops across town, but she didn't get a clear look and can't be certain."

"So we don't know for sure there's anything going on." Callen leaned back in the chair, hoping this was just the overreaction of someone new to their world. "Nell's been with us a few years now but she's still green, maybe she's just overthinking." He rationalised, not wanting to believe one of his team might genuinely be in danger. It was one of the downsides to their work and a risk they all knowingly took, but it didn't make it any easier when it happened. At some point they'd all been in danger...most of them multiple times, at least the agents had. Eric and Nell were usually safe and sound in Ops, not exposed to the same risks.

"Ms Jones may be new, Mr Callen. But she is smart and aware, and I trust her instincts." Hetty nodded and leaned forward. "But let's not get carried way, perhaps you can keep an eye on Ms Jones for a day or two." Hetty raised her eyebrows a little. "Let's see if someone is indeed keeping an eye on her first."

Callen glanced over in time to see Nell hurry down the stairs with a tablet in her hand, rushing off to see someone or do something, and he shook his head slightly before looking back to Hetty.

"On it." He said simply.

--

When work was done that night and everyone was heading home, Callen sat in his car, waiting for Nell to leave. He was parked a few spaces up the street from her and watched as she calmly walked to her car, subtly looking around as she made her way along the street before she deposited her bags in the back and climbed into the driver's seat. She was quickly on the move and after she had pulled away, he turned the engine over, pulled out and began to follow.

Callen had been tailing Nell for around fifteen minutes when she pulled her car into the side of the street and parked up. Callen eased his car into a spot up the street a little, and watched as she exited her car, looked around, then headed down the street. She picked a good spot, opting for the space near a street light. A quick glance ahead suggested she was going to the Chinese takeout on the corner. He settled in, keeping his eyes on the petite woman as she stepped inside. He could just see her through the window, ordering then stepping to the side.

Hetty was right, Nell did have good instincts and was very much aware of her surroundings. She had positioned herself where she had a good view of anyone coming in or out the door and a good view of the street outside too. Maybe ten minutes later Callen watched Nell leave the takeout and start walking back to her car. And that was when he saw him. A young man, around 6ft tall with short dark hair and a five o'clock shadow, wearing jeans and a black shirt. The man fell into step about ten feet behind Nell, matching his pace to hers for a few moments, then speeding up to close the distance. Callen sat up in his seat and readied his hand at the door handle, prepared to move at the slightest hint of trouble.

Nell knew as soon as she walked out of the takeout that she was being followed. She sensed his presence behind her, but she didn't panic. She kept her pace the same and kept walking towards her car. But she was preparing herself. She switched carrying her food from her right to her left hand and curled her right hand, her dominant one, into a loose fist. She could feel him getting closer but she didn't speed up to run, didn't slow down either. Her senses were heightened and the adrenalin was pumping through her veins, her breath coming faster. When she was almost at her car she could practically feel his breath on the back of her neck and then it happened.

Callen watched for only a second before reacting. The man following Nell grabbed her upper arm and spun her around. In the next second Callen leapt from his car, drew his gun and with it held low at his side he sprinted down the side walk as he watched the scene unfold before him.

But he had no need to sprint. Closing the distance between him, Nell and her attacker, Callen watched, almost stunned, as Nell wrenched her arm free, dropping her takeout in the process, then took a swing at the attackers face and connected her small fist with his jaw. As he was disoriented by the unexpected blow, she grabbed him by his shirt and thrust her knee into his groin. The man dropped like a rock to the sidewalk, groaning in pain as Nell stood over him, still prepared for him to fight back. As she took in who was rolling around in agony on the ground before her, she realised she knew exactly who this was.

"Clark?" Nell realised the man she had just hit was the same man she had been on two dates with about six months prior. It wasn't going to go anywhere and she had ended things, amicably she thought.

"Nell, you okay?" Callen asked as he got to her side, reaching out to just briefly touch her shoulder. She spun around in surprise and as she realised who it was. She also realised that Hetty had told him her suspicions and that he had been following her. A frown crossed her face and she held her index finger up, indicating to Callen he had to wait, she still had the man on the round to take care of once and for all. Taken slightly aback at her reaction, Callen just held his hands up in resignation and took a step back, holstering his weapon when his assessment of the situation indicated it would not be needed.

"Clark, what the hell are you doing following me around?" Nell demanded, shaking her right hand a little as pain started to set in.

The man groaning on the ground fumbled for his words.

"I didn't mean anything by it." He grunted. "I was just building up the courage to speak to you. I tried calling but you never answered."

"That was you?" She asked, realising the half dozen unknown numbers she'd had a while back that she had ignored were him. She had figured they were those irritating sales calls so she just never picked up. "It wasn't a big enough hint me telling you six months ago I didn't want to see you again?"

"I'm sorry." Clark said again, as he clambered to his feet and rubbed his jaw. It was then he noticed the man beside Nell and he glanced over, momentarily meeting Callen's eyes. The agent was throwing him a trademark glare and Clark knew instantly this was not someone to mess with.

"Just go, I don't ever want to see or hear from you again, and I swear if I so much as catch a glimpse of you anywhere near me you'll have a lot more than a sore face." Nell stated firmly. Clark lowered his head and like a dog with his tail between his legs, he slinked off without even glancing back.

Once he was gone, Nell grabbed her right hand, rubbing it and grimacing.

"Your hand hurts?" Callen asked, knowing full well it would.

"Yes, and don't try to distract me." She glared at him and Callen suddenly felt like he was 10 years old getting told of by his teacher. "Hetty told you about this and you've been following me. Did she ask you to follow me or did you decide yourself that I needed help?" she asked. She didn't give him time to respond before she continued. "You know, I'm perfectly capable of looking after myself. I'm weapons and combat trained, and Clark's face proves that."

"I know." Callen laughed gently. "And yes, Hetty did ask me to, but I would have been here even if she hadn't..." he trailed off. "Here, let me take a look." He said, changing the subject and reaching out for her hand. Nell kept looking at him as he examined her hand, not quite sure what to make of this whole situation. She was mildly irritated that Callen seemed to think she needed rescuing, but it also meant a lot that he cared enough to be here to help.

As Callen took her hand in his, he noticed immediately how small her hand was compared to his, and also how red her knuckles were becoming. For a fleeting moment a strange emotion passed through him, turning his stomach into knots and leaving him a little breathless. Whatever this feeling was, he hadn't felt it around her before and it threw him a little.

"You're going to need to ice this tonight." He said as he quickly let go of her hand and took a step towards her bag of takeout.

"And you may need to reorder dinner." He added, peering down at the bag and seeing the spilled boxes of noodles and dumplings.

"Well that's just the icing on the cake." Nell sighed heavily as she crouched down and started trying to sort the bag and see if any food was salvageable. "That idiot has had me scared for days, I probably broke my hand on his face, dinner is ruined and I don't even have ice at home for this" She sighed, gesturing to her injured hand. Callen did a double take as she spoke. He had no idea she'd been scared for days over this. She hadn't shown it at work, at least not that he could recall. If Hetty hadn't mentioned it to him, he wouldn't have known anything was wrong at all. He needed to pay more attention. Maybe he was too caught up in his own worries and work, and he was missing cues from his friends that they were having troubles of their own. He hated to think what could have happened if this hadn't just been a regular guy with a crush on a girl who turned him down who went about contacting her the wrong way. He needed to make amends, even if she didn't know why.

"Come on, food's on me." Callen said. Nell snapped her head up then slowly rose to her feet, surprised at what he just offered. "It's the least I can do after seriously underestimating you, Nell Jones." He shook his head as he reached out and took her elbow, steering her back towards the Chinese takeout.

"Damn straight Agent Callen." Nell nodded with a wry smile on her face. "Do you think they'll have ice too?" She laughed.