Thanks to those who are still reading this…

xxxxx

Kensi was on her way back to Deeks' room when she ran into Hetty. "Ms. Blye," Hetty said, relieved to see the young woman back at the hospital. "It's very good to see you. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Hetty," Kensi replied. She certainly was a lot better than any of the men on their team. "Did you see Deeks?"

"I did," Hetty said with a nod as she looked up at Kensi speculatively. "I can't say that he appeared to be particularly happy. However, I couldn't get him to open up about what the problem might be."

Kensi nodded, but didn't give Hetty any additional input into what was going on between her and Deeks. "I just came from seeing Callen," she said, changing the subject abruptly. "He didn't have any idea who I was."

Hetty sighed softly. "No...I don't suppose he would have. The doctor believes that he is suffering from traumatic amnesia."

"Is he going to be okay?" Kensi asked, appearing distressed at this bit of news. "How long will he be like this?"

"I assume he will be okay, eventually," Hetty said slowly. "As for how long it will last? I think that's very uncertain at this point. Hopefully, it won't be a long-term problem."

"He wasn't very happy to see me," Kensi said musingly. "He seemed like a whole different person."

"He's understandably very confused and upset," Hetty said with a nod. "He wasn't very welcoming with me or Sam either. It's a lot to process. I'm having difficulty with it myself. I can't begin to imaging how it's affecting him."

"Everything's such a mess," Kensi said softly, almost to herself.

"If there's anything you'd like to talk about…"

"I don't think so, Hetty...not right now anyway," Kensi said. She felt strongly that what was going on needed to remain between her and Deeks. She didn't want to bring others into it.

"I understand dear," Hetty said, nodding. "But if you change your mind, you can come to me at any time. You know I'll do anything I can to help."

"I know. Thank you, Hetty," Kensi said, smiling at the older woman. "But for now, I'd better get back to Deeks."

"And I will go check on Mr. Callen," Hetty said, returning Kensi's smile. She hoped that Kensi's visit with Deeks would go well. She had no idea at all what she could expect from Callen.

xxxxx

Hetty quietly stepped into Callen's room and was relieved to see him sound asleep. She sat down in the chair next to his bed and smiled fondly at him. No matter what challenges were ahead of him, she was ever so grateful that he and the others had survived. The team was closely knit and she knew they would help each other in whatever way they could to get past these latest obstacles.

Callen groaned softly and moved about restlessly in his bed before he opened his eyes. He was slightly unnerved to see that little woman back in his room. What was her name? Betty? No, that wasn't it...Hetty. He thought that was right. He stared at her silently, wondering if he had the power to make her leave with his stare. She didn't budge though and she didn't say anything either. Well, he could win at this game. He refused to speak first. He reached for the remote control and turned on the television, ignoring her. Maybe if he pretended she wasn't there, she would leave,

Hetty sighed softly to herself when Callen turned on the t.v. and looked away from her. She really had no idea how to handle him when he was just so miserable and had no idea who any of them were. Finally, she couldn't keep silent any longer. "Can I get you anything?"

"No thank you," Callen said, a slight edge to his voice. "It's getting late though. You probably should head home."

"Oh you don't have to worry about me," Hetty said lightly. "I'm quite a capable driver, even in the dark of night."

Callen rolled his eyes, making no attempt to hide his annoyance and just at that moment, Sam came back into the room, carrying a large pizza box and a bag. "Hey G," Sam said casually as he put the pizza box down on Callen's bedside tray. "I just happened to go by your favorite pizza place so I thought I'd pick you up some dinner." He leaned his cane against Callen's bed as Hetty gave him a disapproving look. He had just hooked the cane over his arm as it had been too awkward for him to use the cane and carry the pizza and bag at the same time.

"You should have called me, Sam," Hetty said. "I could have helped you."

"I'm fine, Hetty."

Callen feigned disinterest at first, but the aroma of the pizza was tempting and he was hungry. Sam took some paper plates out of the bag and put a slice on each plate. He passed one to Hetty and then offered one up to Callen. Callen hesitated, but after a few moments, he took the plate from Sam. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," Sam said as he passed him a soda. He decided not to focus on Callen, thinking that might be a better strategy than trying to force him to talk. Instead, he turned to Hetty. "So, did you see Kensi and Deeks today?"

Hetty nodded. "I did."

"How are they doing?"

Hetty shook her head. "Mr. Deeks didn't appear to be doing very well. Physically, he's definitely doing better, but I think there is something amiss between him and Ms. Blye."

"Well, I'm sure they'll get through it, whatever it is," Sam said. He took a bite of his pizza slice and stole a glance at his partner who was almost halfway through his own slice. He smiled faintly, glad to see even the smallest positive sign that G was doing better.

xxxxx

Deeks had drifted off to sleep shortly after Hetty left and remained sleeping soundly when Kensi quietly came back into his room. She sat down in the chair and observed Deeks as he slept. So much had happened over the past few days, but for the moment, all she wanted to do was bring Deeks home and take care of him. She knew they had a lot to talk about, but she didn't see any reason why they had to rush things. They had time to hash out what had happened between them. She was so focused on her own thoughts that she failed to notice that Deeks had awoken until she glanced at him and was slightly startled to see his blue eyes focused on her.

"Deeks...I'm sorry...I didn't realize you were awake."

"I just woke up."

Kensi nodded and there was an awkward silence between the two of them. Finally, she spoke up again. "I went to see Monty. He's doing good. He seemed happy to see me."

"Of course he was happy to see you," Deeks said quietly. "He doesn't understand why we go off as much as we do. It's not like we can explain it to him."

"I know, but he's used to us coming and going by now. . And you know that he loves Jimmy and has a good time with him. He's well taken care of."

"Is it alright with you if I miss my dog?" Deeks snapped, then immediately looked contrite. "I'm sorry, Kens...I guess I'm just overtired...or something…"

"It's okay," Kensi said softly. "At least we'll be home with him tomorrow…"

"We?" Deeks asked, observing her closely.

"Yes, we," Kensi replied, but then she looked uncertain. "Unless...do you not want me there? Do...do you want me to leave?"

"No…" Deeks said, staring down at his blanket-covered legs, "but...nothing is solved...we...we still have a lot to discuss."

"I know we do, Deeks," Kensi replied, putting her hand over his and squeezing it gently. "But there's no rush, is there? We can take our time. I really think we'll be able to get through this."

"You're right...there's no rush," Deeks said, nodding in agreement. He hoped that this would be as easy to resolve as Kensi seemed to think it would be. Unfortunately, he didn't think it was going to be that simple.

xxxxx

"You want any more pizza?" Sam asked.

Callen shook his head. He had eaten two slices and that was more than enough for him.

Hetty glanced at the two men thoughtfully and wondered if perhaps Sam would have better luck if he was left alone with his partner. "I think I'm going to call it a night," she said as she got to her feet. "I'll be back to see you tomorrow, Mr. Callen."

"Goodnight Hetty," Sam said. "Drive carefully."

Goodnight, gentlemen," Hetty said. She then headed out of the room, leaving Sam and Callen alone.

"So, G… Are you feeling okay?" Sam asked, after Hetty had left.

Callen didn't answer the question, but after a few moments he spoke. "G?" he asked, looking a little bit confused. "That's my name? G?"

Sam sighed softly, not sure how deeply he should go into explanations. He really didn't want to confuse or upset his friend any further if it could be helped. "Your real name is Grisha. G is just what I call you."

Callen nodded, seemingly satisfied with Sam's answer. "Why does Hetty call me Mr. Callen?"

"She does that with all of us," Sam said. "It's just something she does. She calls me, Mr. Hanna, Kensi, Ms. Blye, Deeks is Mr. Deeks."

"Deeks?" Callen asked. Another person he hadn't met yet.

"Yeah, he's Kensi's partner. The four of us work together."

"Kensi…" Callen said thoughtfully. "She was here earlier…I told her to leave."

"You and Kensi are really good friends," Sam said, "and you and me...we've been partners for a very long time. You're like a brother to me."

"Partners?" Callen asked curiously.

"We're federal agents," Sam stated. "We investigate crimes that threaten national security. Sometimes we go undercover."

"Really?" Callen asked, unable to hide his interest. At least he seemed to have an exciting job. That was something.

Sam nodded. "You're very good at what you do, G. You're the leader of our team."

"And where do I live?" Callen asked. Now that he had started to ask questions, he found that he wanted to know more. "Do I have a wife? Children?"

"No," Sam said with a shake of his head. "You have your own house, but you don't have a wife or any children. You've got us though. Me and my two kids, we're family to you, and the team. We're all really close, G."

Callen sighed as he shook his head, finally allowing some vulnerability to show. "But I don't remember...I don't remember any of it…"

"I know you don't, buddy." Sam rested his hand on Callen's shoulder, encouraged when his partner made no move to pull away from him. "But you will. The team and I will do everything we can to help you through this. I can promise you that."