Hey you guys! Did anybody else watch Captain America 2 this weekend? I did, it was FANTASTIC. I love him so much 3

So I know some of you aren't thrilled with the turn this is making, but just give it a chance; I think you'll all really like it! It's gonna be important for the story and I'm really excited for it. I promise Deeks won't be gone too long, maybe just the next couple chapters after this one. There will be some Leo and the team fluff to break it up too :]

A healthy dose of angst at the end, be prepared.

ok guys, it's gotta get worse before it gets better, just hang with it. and i don't really do case fics, i'm not gonna cover what Deeks is doing. the main thing is he's gone on an op for the LAPD.

Don't own, blah blah blah...

Chapter 13

Deeks walked into OPS the next day feeling better than he did the day before; no, he and Kensi hadn't figured out their thing yet. But, she had said they would, that they were ok. Deeks had made a move and Kensi didn't immediately request for a new partner; they were still Deeks and Kensi.

And that meant she felt something too. And, for now, Deeks was ok with knowing that; it was a big step forward to figuring out their 'thing' to him.

Hand in hand with Leo, wearing matching plaid button down shirts and jeans, Deeks entered the bullpen, sending a smile to Kensi who was sitting at her desk. She'd looked up at hearing footsteps and a grin formed on her pretty face at the sight of the Deeks boys.

"Oh. My. Gosh." She beamed, standing up and tickling Leo's belly. "You look so darn cute, baby boy!" Kensi laughed along with the little boy.

Leo beamed. "I look like Daddy!" He exclaimed.
"As if he didn't already." Callen chuckled from his seat.
"Practically a miniature Deeks." Sam smirked.

Deeks chuckled. "We went and got some new clothes sometime last week and he demanded he have some 'colored box' shirts like Daddy had."

"Well I think you boys look very handsome." Kensi smiled.
"Thank you, Princess." The shaggy detective winked.

"Tank you, Kens!" Leo beamed, letting go of his father's hand to reach up to her. "Up pwease." He said.

Kensi chuckled lightly and picked the little boy into her arms, tickling him and blowing big kisses on his cheek. The boy erupted in laughter and Deeks grinned, shaking his head.

He moved towards his desk, and he had no sooner put his bag down did his cell phone ring. "Go for Shaggy." Deeks answered.

"Deeks, get your ass down here to the station." Bates' gruff voice replied firmly.

The detective sighed, "Oh my way," and hung up.

Kensi quirked an eyebrow and sat down with Leo in his lap, rolling a toy car across her desk. "Where're you goin;?" She asked, drawing the attention of the little boy.

"Daddy where you go?" He pouted. "Can I go?" He asked.

"No, little man. I'm sorry, but Daddy's gotta run down to the police station." Deeks replied to his son before turning to Kensi. "That was Bates. Needs me at the PD for some reason. Probably a routine report or something." He shrugged, grabbing a few files he might need from his desk.

"See you later then..." Kensi trailed off.
"Do you think it'd be ok if I leave Leo here?" Deeks asked, almost nervously.
"We'll watch him." Sam told the detective.

Deeks smiled gratefully. "But uh, what if a case comes up?" He inquired.

"Well he can come up to OPS with me and Eric and I can watch him." Nell smiled, having just walked by the bullpen and hearing the agents' discussion.

"NELLY!" Leo yelled with excitement, causing laughter throughout the bullpen.
The red head smiled at the boy and waved at him. "Hey there Leo." She replied.

Deeks chuckled and threw his bag over his shoulder. "Yea, because my son isn't stuck on you enough already, there, Velma." He smirked at her. "When I told him he was coming here with me today his first question was will Nelly be there?."

Nell laughed and kissed the top of Leo's head. "Of course, I'm always here."
"Yay!" Leo clapped happily.

The analyst smiled before turning and walking back upstairs to OPS.

Deeks' phone rang with a new text message and he pulled it out of his pocket, reading the message from Bates.

NOW.

The detective rolled his eyes. "Be back soon. Oh the joys of the liaison!" Deeks sighed dramatically, sending Kensi a wink and making her laugh. He kissed the top of his son's head and smiled. "You be good, little man. Don't give them any trouble, alright?" He said in his parenting tone.

"Otay Daddy!" Leo replied.

Deeks chuckled and the two fist pumped. "Later little man. Later Fern." He winked, turning and walking out of the mission.

Callen looked around suspiciously, having been quiet for the rest of that conversation. "Didn't Deeks go down to the police department already this month?" he inquired.

Sam thought for a moment before nodding. "Yea, yea he did." He said, his voice full of concern.

"You guys think it's not just a routine report?" Kensi asked.

"What's a woo-tine weport?" Leo asked, looking at all the adults.

"It's a regular checkup." Kensi smiled at him. The boy nodded and started digging through his backpack.

"It may not be. The LAPD doesn't like dealing with Deeks that much." Sam commented.
"I'll see if I can find out." Callen replied, walking up to OPS.

"Hey Eric, Nell, you two don't happen to know about anything the LAPD would need Deeks for, would you?" The senior agent in charge asked.

The Wonder Twins traded quizzical glances before Nell shook her head. "Other than the fact that the LAPD has got a lot of cases piling up very quickly, no. I mean, Deeks could most likely be useful in any of those investigations..."

Callen nodded. "I'm gonna talk to Hetty, if it turns out they are trying to reel him back him, maybe she can stop it."

"We'll let you know if anything pops up." Eric told him.
"Thanks." The older man nodded, turning and walking out.

As the senior agent walked out, he noticed none other than Owen Granger standing on the upper level of the mission. He was on the phone engaged in what looked to be an intense conversation.

"I've got her taken care of, don't worry about it. You do whatever you have to do to grab him for this. There's no other option, and I need you to hold up your end of the deal." Granger said firmly, and hung up.

"So, you here to shake up my team again?" Callen inquired not so friendlily.

Granger glared at Callen. "Agent Callen I'm not here for your team; you're not the only team at NCIS and I've got other things to worry about." He replied gruffly and walked off; leaving the senior agent in charge staring curiously after him.

Deeks was a little nervous and very antsy as he pulled up to the LAPD station. He knew he'd already done his monthly report, and nobody here –especially Bates- would put up with him more than they had to; so this couldn't possibly just be another report, there had to be something else going on.

And the shaggy detective had a bad feeling about it.

Walking through the building, Deeks tried to keep his head down and not draw attention to himself. He wasn't in the mood to catch their insulting comments today. Deeks didn't want to hear about how he "wasn't trustworthy" because he was an undercover cop, and he especially didn't want to hear them ask if "he'd come crawling back because those people at NCIS realized he was just a screw up".

But at least three people asked him that as he made his way to Bates' office, and almost all of them that realized it was Deeks rolled their eyes and did their best to avoid him.

Not only did he hate that they were calling him a screw up –he'd successfully solved more cases than the majority of them- but he hated how the cops here referred to the NCIS agents as "those people". Like they were the weird, outcast kids at school that sat by themselves at lunch.

"Those people" were his family, his team.

Deeks shook his head clear and brushed off their comments as he opened the Lt.'s door, and walked in. "What's going on, Bates? I've already been here once this month, ain't that enough?" Deeks chuckled lightly.

When he looked at Bates sitting in his chair, his laughter died instantly. He couldn't remember the last time that he'd seen Bates look this serious and unfriendly.

"About damn time, Deeks. I need you to go undercover for one of our cases." Bates said, glancing up from his paperwork.

"Uh, how about no?" The shaggy man replied, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Wasn't a question, and you don't have a choice. I need Max Gentry out in the field, taking care of this op, yesterday fast." Bates explained.

Deeks' heart froze -a million thoughts running through his mind. Having to be Max Gentry again, his most hated alias; having to leave Kensi, alone, with no partner; and most importantly, leaving Leo.

"Bates, you don't understand. I can't; I've got full custody of my son now, and I don't have anywhere for him to go if I go on this op." Deeks told him.

The Lt. just blinked at him. "That sounds awfully like a personal problem and you know damn well I don't have time for those." He replied.

Deeks was starting to get angry. "Yea, well this op sounds a hell of a lot like a personal problem. I haven't done an LAPD case in months, why now? You've got other cops to work on this."

"Well I would've used your ass for a lot of cases over the past months but your ninja woman kept me from it." Bates explained.

Deeks' eyebrows rose in shock. "Kensi?" He asked.

"Who's Kensi? I'm talkin' about that tiny old woman. Scares the shit out of me." Bates replied.

The detective deflated a little bit. "Oh, you mean Hetty. Wait, so she kept you from pulling me back here?" He asked.

Bates huffed with annoyance. "Hell yea she did. Threatened to come after me with her letter opener once."

A smirk twitched on Deeks' lips as he thought about that. He would've paid money, a lot of money, to see Hetty threaten Bates.

The man's reaction would've been absolutely priceless.

And the thought that Hetty had tried so hard to keep Deeks from having to do investigations here, meant a lot to him; the fact that she wanted to keep him at NCIS, that he was actually wanted there.

"So why now? Why's she not stopping you now?" Deeks inquired.
"Now I've got authority from someone above Hetty's head approving it." Bates smirked.

Deeks' eyes narrowed. "Granger. You talked to Granger didn't you." He all but growled.

"That's not important. What is important is that you get your ass out of my office and get out there and get this case solved for me." Bates replied.

"Bates, I'm not doin' this op. I don't have a place for Leo to go, and I won't be Max Gentry again. I won't. You can take this case and shove it straight up your-"

"Now hold on there, boy. You're still my cop, and I've still got authority over you. What, exactly, do you plan on doing if you don't take this op? You gonna quit?" The Lt. chuckled.

"Hell yes." Deeks said firmly, looking the older man straight in the eye.
"Well, I'd like to see what you do after that." He smirked.

Deeks arched an eyebrow. "I sign the papers to become an NCIS agent; that's all there is to it."

"Oh really? You think that all you've gotta do is sign the paper and poof; you're on the same team? If you quit, you lose the position you sort-of have at NCIS, making you a civilian. You'd have to go through all their training and academies. And if, by some miracle, you do pass, then you'd be put wherever they chose; and chances are you won't be on Hetty's team." Bates told him, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair.

Deeks was fully ready to tell Bates he was crazy, and he was a liar, but he stopped. What he said made sense. But, Hetty would fight for him, wouldn't she?

"And besides, Owen Granger wants you on this case. And he's above Hetty. Even if she fought for you he's got more authority than she does. I'd be willing to bet that if you refuse to be on this case he wouldn't accept you into NCIS. Those papers would get lost in translation or something." Bates added.

The detective's hands were shaking, his formerly confident stance was falling, and his mind was running a thousand miles a minute. He didn't believe Bates, but then again could he honestly take the chance? What if he was right? Deeks could end up overseas or something for all he knew.

Deeks didn't want to be at NCIS if it meant he didn't get to be Kensi's partner.

Granger would do something like that; put him as far away from the OSP team just out of spite. Granger never liked Deeks, and the detective had never given him a reason to. He was over Hetty's head, Deeks thought.

"I don't believe you. You don't know how things at NCIS run, and even if you did you don't know how far Hetty is willing to go for her agents." Deeks told him.

Bates smirked. "You willin' to bet I'm wrong? You willin' to let go of that pretty little partner you've got? What if you don't get back to her?" He asked.

"Stop it." Deeks hissed.
"And she ends up with no partner, no one to watch her back?" The Lt. continued.

"Bates, you don't know what you're talking about." Deeks growled, trying to fight those very thoughts from raging through his mind.

"What if she needed you and you weren't there?" Bates questioned, apparently enjoying torturing the detective like this.

"Bates!" Deeks said, shaking his head as he tried not to listen.

"Or if she got hurt? It'd be all. Your. Fault. Because you wouldn't do this one little case to make sure you keep your spot at NCIS." Bates told him.

Deeks was so angry his eyes were blurring with tears. Try as he might, he couldn't help but picture Kensi laying on the ground somewhere, injured and bleeding because he wasn't there to watch her back.

"You think she'd miss you? Eh, I doubt it. She'd forget all about you. Probably get a new partner, a better partner. Maybe she'd fall for him. And she wouldn't think about you ever again. Sounds like I'd be doing her a favor." Bates smirked.

"ENOUGH!" Deeks yelled.

The Lt. blinked in shock at the shaggy man's outburst. Deeks' shoulders and chest heaved as he fought to control his rapid breathing. Angry tears were pooling in his eyes and Deeks couldn't handle it anymore.

That was it; Deeks couldn't handle the thought of Kensi forgetting him. Not when they were close –so close- to figuring out this thing between them. He couldn't let her get hurt because he wasn't there to watch her back.

He promised himself he'd be quick with this case.

"Ok..." He said weakly.
"What's that?" Bates asked smugly.

"Ok, I'll do it... I'll take the damn case." Deeks replied dejectedly, dropping into the chair in front of the Lt.

"Good boy." Bates smirked, and slid the case file to him.

Deeks picked up the file and sighed. "How long's it gonna take?" He asked, swallowing.
"About a month. Maybe two weeks if you don't screw up." The Lt. shrugged.

Who was going to watch Leo?
Who was going to watch out for Kensi while he was gone?
How as he going to handle being Max Gentry again?

All these thoughts bounced miserably around in the shaggy man's head.

He nodded and stood up. "We've got a car for you here, you take it and drive to the house programed in the GPS, and get to work." Bates told him.

"I'll be back." Deeks said quietly, moving to leave.
"Be back? Deeks, no, you get on this now. No time to waste!." Bates exclaimed.

Deeks turned around sharply, a look of pure anger on his face. "I have got things to take care of before I do this shit. You want me to take care of this case? Yea, well you'll wait until I get back. If you can't get one of those other damn cops on this case you'll have to settle for my terms." He snapped.

Bates raised an eyebrow but had nothing to say. "That's what I thought." Deeks growled, and walked out; slamming the door shut behind him.

Luckily, the OSP team didn't have a case yet today. Having caught up on their paperwork, the agents were all just hanging around the mission. Callen and Sam were busy with a game of HORSE, with Kensi and Leo cheering from her desk when Deeks came back.

Kensi was the first to notice him, and immediately knew something was wrong. His eyes were red and sorrowful, like he'd been crying, and was still trying to hold it in. His jaw was set and his posture was stiff.

Deeks walked over and immediately picked Leo up into his arms, holding onto him tightly. "Daddy!" Leo exclaimed, wrapping his arms around his father.

"Hey, my boy." Deeks replied, his voice lacing with emotions.

Kensi moved around her desk and placed a hand on her partner's shoulder, rubbing gently so he'd know she was there. "Deeks?" She asked carefully.

The detective sniffled and sighed, setting Leo down on his feet. "Hey little man, why uh, why don't you go talk to Ms. Hetty? Thank her for letting you be here?" Deeks told him.

"Otay!" Leo nodded, running off.

Deeks all but fell against Kensi's desk. He looked up at her and immediately regretted all the worry he was already causing her.

"What happened?" She asked softly, gaining the attention of the senior agents.

"Bates needs me for an assignment. Somewhere from two weeks to a month..." Deeks sighed.

Kensi's jaw dropped, and her heart froze. He couldn't leave! Not now! They were just about to figure out their thing! And plus, Kensi didn't want to be away from him, and have him be out in the field without her. Suddenly an even bigger problem hit her.

"Bu-but what about Leo?" She asked.

Deeks closed his eyes and he frowned. "I have no idea. Jason's on vacation and I don't have another babysitter."

There was silence for a minute, before Kensi realized what she needed to do. She took his hand and made him look at her. "I'll take him. He can stay with me." Kensi told him softly.

Deeks' eyes widened and he shook his head. "No, Kensi I can't ask you to do that. What if this case lasts longer than a month? I can't make you be responsible for my son." He told her.

Kensi smiled softly. "You can't make me do anything, Shaggy. I want to." She assured him.

"But, but what about when you've gotta be here?" he asked.

"Then he'll come too. We can all watch him. Take turns keeping him from the night if Kensi needs a break." Sam told him, feeling the man's pain.

Deeks looked at Sam and was shocked. "Really?" He asked.

"I'll have to ask Michelle, but I'm almost positive that she'd watch him during the day if we needed her to. She already takes care of my son during the day, she could watch Leo too." Sam told him.

Deeks smiled at the older man, feeling more respect growing between the two. "Thank you, so much. And if she says yes then thank her for me, please."

"What's your assignment?" Callen asked.

"Something to do with a drug cartel I've dealt with before; haven't managed to read the whole file yet. Me and Bates got into it, and it got pretty bad. But my alias with this cartel is still intact and no one else can worm their way in so..." Deeks shrugged.

"When do you leave?" Kensi asked sadly.
"I was supposed to leave twenty minutes ago." Deeks replied.

"Can't you say no?" Sam asked.

"I tried. Trust me, I tried. Bates, uh, he has become very persuasive." Deeks explained awkwardly.

"Can't Hetty do something?" Kensi asked.
Her partner shook his head. "No, uh, she can't. Granger's in on this." He explained.
"Bastard." Kensi hissed.

"I knew he was up to something." Callen cursed, looking away.
"Did you tell Bates about Leo? Does he have any sympathy?" Sam asked disgustedly.

Deeks laughed humorlessly. "This is Bates we're talking about. He wouldn't know sympathy if it hit him over the head. I tried, Bates didn't give a shit." Deeks sighed.

"Well you can solve this case. If you've handled this cartel before you can do it again. And we'll be right here if you need us." Callen said with full confidence.

"Thank you, Callen." Deeks said, putting up a fake smile.

He left off the part that he'd have to be Max Gentry. Deeks didn't want them to know that; they think so much worse of him whenever he has to be Max. He sighed and rubbed his hands together, trying to prepare himself for what was to come.

Hetty had heard every word of her agents' conversation, and was furious. She knew Granger was somewhere in this building, and he'd better be hiding, Hetty thought.

"Leo, dear, and drink your tea. I'll be right back." Hetty told him.
"Otay!" The boy replied, smiling and kicking his feet.

Hetty marched upstairs and found Granger in OPS. "You've got a lot of nerve, coming here and stealing one of my team for a case that doesn't even concern you, Owen!" She said firmly.

Nell and Eric, sitting on the far side of OPS and facing away from Hetty, immediately froze and their eyes widened; they knew they should leave but neither wanted to move for fear of being noticed. It seemed Hetty's anger was solely focused on Granger and they wanted to keep it that way.

"Henrietta can this wait?" Granger asked exasperated, looking up from some files on the big screen.

"No, it can't wait a damn minute! You should have spoken to me about this before you go and pull strings at the LAPD and go over my head!" Hetty snapped.

"I'm not sure if you realize this Henrietta, but I am over your head. I needed a favor from Bates so I made a deal." The man replied.

"If you don't stop meddling with my team, you are going to regret it. Mr. Deeks has a child and you're aware of that. What if he gets distracted out there because he's worried about Leo? If something happens to him I am going after you, Owen." Hetty said firmly, and everyone in OPS felt a shudder run down their spine.

You don't mess with Henrietta Lange.

Nell glanced at Eric with wide eyes and he shot her a small smile; neither could deny they were happy Hetty was standing up for Deeks, or glad that someone was finally telling Granger off.

"Hetty if anything happens to the detective it'll be because you've let him work so close to Blye all these years; if anything distracts him it's her. That's what you need to be thinking about." Granger shot back.

Nell and Eric didn't need to look at Hetty to know her eyes were flashing with anger; they could feel her anger radiating through OPS.

"If you're suggesting I separate Ms. Blye from Mr. Deeks, you are far more foolish than I thought. One would more easily see pigs fly than separate those two! And I'll not do it. I suggest you leave my team alone, and focus on the rest of what's on your plate, Owen." Hetty said firmly, before turning and walking away.

In the thirty minutes since Deeks had left the police department, he'd gotten three phone calls and seven text messages from Bates, telling him to get back.

After the fourth call, Deeks sighed. "I need to get going..." He announced.

The team, all standing in the bullpen frowned. Callen and Sam quickly bro-hugged the man, wishing him luck and assuring him that they were there for him should he need anything. Deeks smiled at them and thanked them.

Before he turned to Kensi, Hetty, Nell, and Eric walked up. Nell threw her arms around him.

"Be careful. Please check in with us, ok?" She whispered.

"I will. Watch her for me ok? Make sure she doesn't do anything too crazy." Deeks replied.

Nell smirked against his shoulder and he chuckled; she knew who he was talking about, and exactly how he felt about Kensi.

"What was that you'd said in the grocery store?" She teased.
"Yea, yea, Velma." Deeks smiled, pulling away.

Eric clasped him on the back. "Good luck out there, stay safe."
"Thanks, man." Deeks smiled.

"Mr. Deeks, I am sorry there's nothing else I can do about this..." Hetty frowned.

"Yea, no, it's ok Hetty. Uh, Bates told me you'd been keeping them from taking me back for a while. Thank you, for that." He told her sincerely.

"It was my pleasure." Hetty smiled, a twinkle in her eye.
"You really threatened Bates with a letter opener?" He asked, smiling back at her.

Her smirk was all the answer he needed. "You call us, should you need anything. Backup, weapons, money, a safe house, extraction, you name it." She said seriously, and the rest of the team nodded, emphasizing her point.

Deeks was touched at how much they were willing to do to help him. "Yea, no, hopefully I don't need anything. I'll try not to take too long." He told them.

"Good luck." Hetty replied.

He nodded turned his gaze to Kensi. "Hey uh, Kensi can I talk to you for a second? Alone." Deeks said nervously.

Kensi nodded and they walked away from the team. They went into the tunnel towards their cars and he turned and looked at her. Deeks got caught up looking at her, still amazed at how beautiful she was, and stayed silent.

"So uh... what did you... what'd you need to talk about?" Kensi asked, shifting on her feet.

Deeks tugged her into his arms and wrapped them around her tightly. "Thank you, for taking Leo. It... it means a lot. If you get tired of it, or you don't want to anymore... I'll understand." He told her.

Kensi shook her head. "No. Leo and I will be f... good. Leo and I will be good." She said, stopping herself from saying 'fine'. She knew he'd see through that and worry.

Deeks pulled away and smiled at her. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Blye." He said teasingly, but Kensi heard the truth in his statement.

"Yea, I'd be pretty lost without you too, Shaggy." She smiled, looking away.

Deeks chuckled. "There's a key under the mat at my apartment, you'll need to get his clothes and stuff. If... if you guys want, you could stay there. But not if you're uncomfortable with it... I wasn't saying you have to but, you know... you could. Oh, and Monty's there... I'll need to take him to the kennel." He rambled.

Kensi laughed at her partner's babbling, and put a finger on his lips. "Deeks, stop worrying. I've got it under control. And thank you for the offer, I'm sure Leo would be more comfortable at his house. And Monty can stay with me, I'm pretty sure he likes me better anyway." She teased.

Deeks laughed and shook his head at her. "My kid and my dog, you're taking over, woman." He grinned.

Kensi burst out laughing at that and pinched his side. "You know Leo adores you, Monty likes me better though." She insisted.

Deeks' face fell as he thought about Leo, and having to tell him he was leaving. "What if he hates me, Kens? I'm leaving him, just like his mom did." He whispered.

Kensi shook her head and cradled his face in her hands. "No. Don't do that. Don't think like that. You know that's not true. You are leaving briefly, to make the world a better place for him. She left so someone would take care of her. You are nothing like that horrible woman." She told him.

Deeks nodded and leaned his forehead against hers. "I don't want to leave either of you..." He whispered.

"And I don't want you to go." Kensi whispered back.
Deeks pulled away and searched her eyes. "Really?" He asked.
She nodded and smiled. "Yea."

"Don't worry, Fern, I'll be back." He smiled, trying to ease both of their worries.
Kensi chuckled and stepped back. "You'd better." She told him.

Deeks chuckled; she'd given him no room to not come back. He knew she'd bring him back just to kill him herself if he got himself killed.

"Will you go with me to tell Leo?" He asked softly.
"Of course." Kensi nodded, reaching for his hand and lacing their fingers together.

He smiled and they walked to Hetty's office where the boy was sitting. Leo grinned when he saw them. "Daddy! Kens! Hi!" He exclaimed.

Deeks smiled. "Hey buddy. You havin' fun?" He asked.
"Uh-huh. But Ms. Hetty gibed me some tea, and it taste yucky." Leo frowned.

The two adults laughed and Deeks dropped down to Leo's eye level. "Ms. Hetty likes gross tea, but don't tell her Daddy said that." Leo shook his head, confirming he wouldn't.

"Um... Leo..." The detective tried, but his voice cracked a bit and he sighed. Kensi placed her hands on his shoulders and squeezed, giving him some of her strength. He shot her a grateful smile and tried again.

"Leo... Daddy's gotta go away for a while..." Deeks started.

Leo's eyes immediately began to water and his lip jutted out, pouting. "Did I do some-fing wong?" He asked.

"No, no, no. See, Daddy's gotta go be a superhero and put some bad guys behind bars. Leo, baby, you didn't do anything wrong. You have been so good and I am so glad you are in my life all the time. Ok?" Deeks told the boy, cradling his tiny face between his big hands, drying the boy's tears.

"But I no w-want you go." Leo sniffled.

"I know... Daddy doesn't wanna go either. But you'll get to stay with Kensi, she's gonna take really good care of you while I'm gone. And you'll get to come back here with Callen, and Sam, and Nell, Eric, and Hetty. Kensi will be here too of course, we can't forget about Kensi; she's too special, right?" Deeks smiled.

Kensi smiled and squeezed his shoulders again, and Leo smiled and nodded through his tears. "Wight."

"You be really really good for Kensi, ok? All of them here too, ok? I need you to be a big boy and listen to them, and remember your manners; can you do that for me?" Deeks asked softly.

"Y-yea." Leo replied.
"Thank you. C'mere." The man smiled, pulling his son into his arms.

Deeks sat on the floor and just held Leo, rocking back and forth gently as the boy cried a little more. The man had tears in his eyes as well. Kensi watched sadly, and tried to give her partner some sort of comfort.

"I'll be back before you know it, ok buddy?" Deeks said softly, kissing the top of his head.

"Otay..." Leo replied sadly.

"Hey, Leo you and I are gonna have a lot of fun together. I've got lots of movies, and lots and lots of ice cream that I'll share with you." Kensi smiled warmly, trying to uplift both of the Deeks boys.

"Weally?" Leo asked, rubbing at his eye.

Deeks smiled gratefully at Kensi before turning back to Leo. "Yea, that sounds really good! Kensi's lots of fun, and you can help her with her humor while I'm gone. She needs work on her jokes; they're terrible." He teased.

Leo giggled and Deeks grinned. "You keep that smile on your face ok? And know that I am gonna be thinkin' about you every single day. I love you, Leo." Deeks told him, hugging him tightly.

"I wove you, too Daddy." Leo replied.

Deeks sniffled and stood up. "Alright then, Daddy's gotta go now." He said.

Leo's eyes started watering again and Deeks shook his head. "No, no. No more tears ok? Happy face, you get to hang out with Kensi and the rest of the gang, ok? I need you to take care of Kensi for me while I'm gone, alright?" Deeks told him.

Kensi's eyes were watering from watching the boys and her heart melted when Deeks told Leo to take care of her.

"I'm not gonna say goodbye, ok? I'm gonna say see you later because I will. I promise. Don't worry, I'll be back." Deeks told Leo.

Leo nodded. "See you way-ter Daddy."

Deeks swallowed hard and turned, quickly walking away so his son wouldn't see the tears rolling down his face. He swiped at them and hoped that Callen and Sam didn't notice while he walked by.

Kensi looked at Leo and hugged him tight. "I'm gonna be right back, ok? Can you sit tight for me right here?" She asked.

"Otay, Kens." Leo nodded, pouting sadly.
"How about at lunch time you and I go get some ice cream? Sound good?" She asked.
Leo nodded eagerly. "Yea!" He said, his eyes still sad but looking happier over all.

Kensi nodded and ran out of the mission, trying to catch Deeks; turns out she didn't need to run.

He was sitting against the side of his car with his face in his hand, shoulders shaking lightly. Kensi frowned and quickly made her way to his side, sitting in front of him and gently tugging his hand away.

"His little face, Kens... did you see his little face?" Deeks asked miserably.

"I told him that we'd go get some ice cream at lunch, and he got a little happier. He's gonna be ok, Deeks. I promise you that." Kensi replied.

"I made him cry, Kensi. I'm leaving him. I don't wanna leave him." Deeks said, tears escaping his eyes again.

Kensi frowned, her own eyes watering at the sight of her partner, her best friend, so upset. She gently took his face in her hands and wiped the tears away, and kissed his forehead.

"I know you don't. I understand how Leo feels, trust me. I remember how upset I got when my dad would leave for small missions; I knew he'd be back soon but that didn't stop the sadness. But I got through it. And I will get Leo through it. I promise you that." Kensi told him.

Deeks stared at her intently, amazed by her more and more every day. "Thank you." He whispered.

She shook her head. "You don't have to thank me." She replied.

Kensi stood up and took his hands, pulling him up. She wrapped her arms around his waist and he wrapped his around her too. "You come back to us, ok?" Kensi said softly.

"I promise." He replied, kissing the spot where her neck met her shoulder.

Poor Deeks and Leo :( hope you guys like it! Leave a review, gently people, gently XD More soon!

xox