Sorry, I realize this chapter is a bit of a snooze lol. I am getting near the end - I promise. In any case, I really appreciate those of you who are continuing to support this story. It really means a lot to me. Thanks so much :)

xxxxx

The team lunch was a nice one. The food was good and both Sam and Hetty were pleased to see Callen eat over three-quarters of the steak tip dinner he had ordered. Hetty had been afraid it might be too heavy for him, but she hadn't said anything, not wanting to discourage him from eating anything he might want. In any case, he seemed to tolerate it well. After lunch, they spent some time making small talk about light-hearted things, keeping the topics away from medical issues and Bart.

At a little bit after three, Sam stood up. "So, I'm going to head to the boat to take a shower and get a change of clothes. You want anything while I'm gone, G?"

Callen shrugged. "I don't think so, Sam." He actually wanted his laptop but it was at the office and he didn't want to make his partner go there to retrieve it.

Sam looked at Callen dubiously, not quite believing him. "Are you sure? It's no trouble, whatever you want."

"Perhaps your laptop?" Hetty asked. Callen gave her a surprised look, wondering if she had picked up mind reading skills, perhaps from some gypsy fortune tellers over the years.

"It's at the office...I don't need it."

"I believe Mr. Beale and Ms. Jones are coming here after work today. It will be no trouble for them to bring it."

"Really? Well okay then, that would be good," Callen said. "I really need to start working on my report for this whole mess."

"I'm not having them bring it for you to work," Hetty said. "Read stories, play games, do jigsaw puzzles, or write your memoirs. I just want it to give you something to do, not for you to work. In fact, I insist that you do not work."

"My memoirs?" Callen asked in amusement. "Who on earth would be interested in reading that?"

"I would be your first customer in line for an autographed copy," Hetty said, smiling at him.

"I'll hold you to that, Hetty."

"So are we in agreement then? No working."

Callen nodded. "Fine, Hetty. I promise. No working."

"Okay, I'll be back soon," Sam said. "I can see you're in good hands, G."

"Sam, you know, it's perfectly okay if you stay at the boat for the night," Callen said. "Get a good night's sleep for a change. Come back tomorrow."

Sam hesitated for a few moments. "I'll think about it, G. I'll see you later."

"Bye Sam," Callen was pretty sure Sam wouldn't take him up on his offer, but he hoped he would.

At 4:30, Kensi and Deeks decided to head back to their room. Deeks was tired but insisted on walking back. "We'll see you tomorrow, Callen, okay?"

"Take care, Deeks. I really hope you're able to be released," Callen said earnestly. He couldn't help but be envious about Deeks getting out of the hospital, but he hoped for the best for his younger teammate.

"Thanks, Callen. Like Kensi said, you'll be out of here soon, as well," Deeks said. He and Kensi then left and headed back to his room.

xxxxx

"So, I think Callen seems a lot better, don't you?" Kensi asked, after Deeks was safely back in his bed and she had finished fussing over the sheet and blanket covering him, much to Deeks' amusement.

"I did," Deeks said with a nod. "Much better."

"I really do hope you can go home tomorrow," Kensi said. "Monty must miss you terribly."

"I think he misses both of his parents," Deeks said. "I miss him too. It'll be good to see him."

"Definitely," Kensi agreed. "So...are you going to stick with the hospital menu tonight or do you want me to get you something? I'll be heading down the cafeteria later to get myself some dinner."

"Why don't we just see what they bring me," Deeks suggested. He didn't have particularly high hopes for it, but he could be wrong. In any case, if he was released the next day, he'd be able to have whatever he wanted to eat, whenever he wanted. "We're going to have to clean out the fridge when we get home...There's going to be a lot of spoiled food in there."

Kensi wrinkled up her nose in distaste. "Don't remind me. I don't even want to think about it."

Deeks grinned. "Sorry I brought it up, baby. Let's not think about it until we have to."

Just then, Nell and Eric came into the room. Eric was carrying a large stuffed Snoopy and Woodstock with get well balloons and Nell had a large stuffed Scooby Doo, also with get well balloons. "Hmm...I wonder which one is mine," Deeks said with a grin.

"We couldn't have you in here without your best friend," Nell said teasingly. "When I saw it, I just couldn't resist."

"That's really cute," Kensi said, admiring it.

"Thanks, guys," Deeks said.

"You're welcome." Eric put Callen's gift down on the edge of Deeks' bed. "So, how are you doing? You look well."

"I'm doing good," Deeks replied. "I'm hopefully getting out of here tomorrow."

"So soon?" Nell asked. "Well, that's good news."

"Not soon enough for me," Deeks said. "I can't wait to get out of this place."

"I imagine that's true," Nell said. "The sooner you can try to put all of this behind you, the better off you'll be."

"Sometimes that's easier said than done though," Deeks said. Kensi gave him a curious look but didn't say anything.

"So, can we get you anything?" Eric asked. "I have no problem with running out for you."

Deeks shook his head. "No thanks. I've been very well taken care of since I've been here."

"And Callen?" Nell asked. "How's he doing? Do you think there's anything we could bring him?"

"He's definitely doing better," Deeks replied. "He's improved a lot."

"There's a little ice cream place down in the main lobby," Kensi said. "You may want to get him a shake or something from there. I think it would be a nice treat for him."

Nell nodded. "Okay. We'll go there before we go to see him."

The four friends then chatted easily for a short while before Eric and Nell decided to head out to go visit Callen.

xxxxx

Hetty sat by her sleeping boy, happy about the turnaround in his health. She had been so afraid he wasn't going to make it and to see him doing so well now seemed like a miracle. She was praying he would continue to progress with his recovery and that he wouldn't experience any setbacks.

"Hi Hetty," Nell whispered as she and Eric came into the room.

"Hello, Ms. Jones, Mr. Beale." Hetty gave a welcoming smile to the two technical team members. "It's good to see you."

"We don't want to wake Callen," Nell said softly, sitting beside Hetty and putting down the large chocolate shake they had gotten for Callen on his bedside table.

"I'm sure he'd like to see the two of you," Hetty said. "If he doesn't wake on his own soon, I'll wake him."

"Deeks said he's doing a lot better though?" Nell asked, sounding a little bit nervous.

"Yes, dear," Hetty said reassuringly. "I'm happy to say he's made a remarkable improvement."

"That's good news."

"Definitely," Eric said as he put Callen's laptop on his bed and the Snoopy stuffed dog on the nightstand.

"Hey, guys," Callen said as he looked at his visitors sleepily. "It's good to see you."

"It's good to see you," Nell said as she gave him a gentle hug and kissed his cheek. "We've been really worried about you."

"I'm doing a lot better," Callen said. He reached for the control button to his bed and raised it into more of a sitting position.

"We can see that," Eric said.

Callen glanced at his nightstand and saw the stuffed Snoopy sitting there. "Thanks," he said, smiling. One thing he knew, when he was injured, his team was really good about bringing him things and letting him know they cared. It was a far cry from when he'd been in the hospital as a child. He'd had no visitors that he could remember and if it wasn't for some kind-hearted medical personnel, would have had no one to show him the tiniest bit of caring.

"You're welcome," Eric and Nell said in unison. "We brought you a shake too." Nell handed it to him. "We can get you whatever else you might like."

Callen took the shake gratefully. "This is perfect. Thank you." He took a sip and sighed in satisfaction. His appetite was definitely returning and this was a perfect topper to dinner that night. He hadn't eaten much because of the large lunch he'd had, but had eaten half of a grilled cheese sandwich and some Jello. The french fries that had accompanied it, hadn't appealed to him. He'd eaten one, which had been cold and somewhat soggy, and that had been more than enough for him.

The two visited for a little over an hour and were just about to head off when Sam stepped into the room, looking clean and well rested. "Hey, Sam," Nell said, smiling at him. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Nell, Eric," Sam greeted them. "Good to see you two."

"Good to see you too, Sam," Eric said. "Although Callen led us to believe you'd gone home for the night."

"Sorry, G," Sam said, grinning at his partner. "Guess you're stuck with me here for another night." He wasn't quite sure why he was so hesitant to leave his partner alone. There was a part of him, that was afraid Bart could somehow escape. Even though he knew the likelihood of such a thing happening was miniscule, he knew he wouldn't be able to forgive himself if he left Callen alone and vulnerable.

"Thanks, Sam," Callen said. He knew Sam staying with him was entirely unnecessary, but it showed him just how much his friend cared about him and he wasn't really inclined to chase him away.

"We're heading out," Nell said. "We've got a pretty high tech case we're working on so we'll be getting an early start."

"Yeah?" Callen asked, his interest peaked. "What's it all about?"

"No shop talk," Hetty said, effectively putting an end to that topic of conversation. There's another team working on this case so no need for you to be worrying your heads about it. I'm going to walk out with the two of you. Good night, Mr. Hanna, Mr. Callen. Have a very good night."

"Good night, Hetty," Callen said as Sam echoed him.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Hetty said as she headed out the door with Eric and Nell.

xxxxx

Deeks was watching the Lakers on t.v. and he could feel Kensi's eyes on him. "What is it?" he asked, turning down the volume and facing her.

"Nothing," Kensi said with a shake of her head.

"Come on, Kens...it's obviously something," Deeks said.

"It's just what you said earlier to Nell…"

Deeks gazed back at Kensi, confusion in his eyes. "What did I say?"

"About it being easier said than done putting what happened past us."

"Come on, Kens...You can't say you've put it all behind you either," Deeks said. "What happened to us...it was a lot. You can't just wrap it up in a box and put it away."

Kensi sighed. "I guess that's true, but...I just had a feeling you're still upset over what you had to do to me."

Deeks hesitated for a few moments, trying to think of exactly what he wanted to say. "Kensi...you're the most important person in the world to me. I love you more than anything. I would never, ever want to hurt you. For me to have been forced to do so, even if it wasn't my fault, it isn't something I can just forget. I'm trying to come to terms with it, and it gets a little easier to deal with each day, but, it's still going to take some time."

Kensi got up from the reclining chair and curled up next to Deeks on his bed, wrapping her arms around him. "I understand," she said softly. "There are things I'm going to have a hard time getting over as well...I guess we just need to do the best we can with what happened and be there for each other when we need to be."

Deeks nodded. "That sounds like a really good plan, Kens...I know there's no one I'd rather work through this with than you. I love you so much."

"And I love you too."