Callen walked into work 1 day and saw Hetty asleep at her desk with a ton of tissues.

'Hetty? You awake?' He gently asked.

'Mmm. What time is it?' She sleepily asked.

'Whoa, you look terrible! How long were you here?' Callen asked when he saw her droopy eyes and red nose.

'Achoo!' 'Sniff. Head cold, started last night I think. Can't stay here.'

'Then, why are you still here? Where's Granger?'

'Overseas meeting. (achoo!). No idea who can fill in.' Hetty sniffled.

'I can. I can take calls for the day.' Callen offered.

'That's very nice, but (achoo!) Sniff. There's more to my job then calls.'

'Well, I can be your substitute for the day. No exceptions. You need to go home and rest.'

Hetty wanted to argue, but it's hard to sound serious when you have to sneeze in every sentence.

After she waddled off, and after disinfecting her desk, Callen got to work.

At first it was easy, just answering a few calls and doing paperwork. Which was also a bit boring, and he got curious enough to snoop in a few of her drawers, and found some very interesting old pics.

But then in the afternoon, the case of the day got complicated, and he had to deal with LAPD and the FBI. Then he started to see what Hetty meant by 'more to the job.'

He was really glad when it was over.

He went to visit Hetty, who thankfully was feeling much better.

'Sounds like you had an interesting day.' Hetty said.

'Yeah. Started off easy, but then it got complicated. LAPD, then the FBI. Oof. No wonder you get so frustrated over the phone.' Callen replied.

'Ah yeah. Those honchos are a real pain, especially when they cause the mess!'

'You coming back tomorrow?'

'Yes. My methods of curing colds worked, and I'm feeling good.' She happily replied.

'Oh thank goodness! I hate being behind a desk all day, and I only agreed to help because I felt bad for you.'

Hetty wanted to be offended by that, but she was also touched by his kindness.

'Well, thank you for deciding to fill in for the day. And I hope you didn't rifle through my desk because you were bored.'

'I wasn't bored, and I didn't go through your desk.' Callen replied.

Hetty definitely didn't believe him.