I absolutely love writing this story, so updating daily is pretty easy to manage. I know exactly where I'm going with this, and I can't wait for you guys to read it:)
Enjoy this super-duper long chapter, and please review as always!
-Hazel
Josh pats Deeks on the shoulder, sitting down beside him at the lunch table that Friday. He was the first one of their usual group to arrive, and is currently scanning the pages of a book he has to read for english class as he awaits some company.
"Hey dude."
Deeks jumps, caught off guard by his friends sudden appearance. "Oh, er, hey."
"How are you?"
The question sounds sincere, which seems odd coming from the type of pal who usually doesn't offer up more than a high five or teasing smile.
They're friends- good friends by most peoples standards.
But this is high school. Nobody really cares.
"I'm fine, I guess. Why?"
Josh shrugs. "You've been kinda distant lately. Is it... a new girl, perhaps?"
Of course. So this is about Kensi, not his father.
Deeks is incredibly grateful for that fact.
"What?" He asks, trying and failing at attempting to sound like he has no idea what Josh is talking about. "That's crazy."
"Is it though?"
"Um... yes."
"You two seem pretty close."
"Well, we're friends."
"Sure, because friends look at each other like that."
"Like what?"
Josh rolls his eyes, giving Deeks his best recreation of a melodramatic, longing stare.
He just snorts, ruffling his hair. "We do not do that."
"Oh yes you do."
Josh just raises his eyebrows- Deeks knows he isn't being convincing whatsoever.
"Okay, fine. Maybe I... like her."
"Yeah, I can tell. You practically melt into a puddle whenever she's around."
Deeks narrows his eyes. "Shut it."
"Only if you try to deny that what I say is true."
"Well, I mean... it depends on how you, um..."
He tosses both hands up in the air, grimacing.
"Yeah, I've got nothing."
Josh winks. "My point exactly."
"Hey guys."
Both boys shoot their heads up to find none other than Kensi Blye staring down at them.
Deeks swallows hard, awkwardly clearing his throat. "Hey!"
Josh rolls both eyes as he continues fidgeting around, straightening his back and brushing down his hair so it's sitting just right.
That boy is wrapped around her finger.
Josh immediately stands up from the table as she sits down, pointing across the room.
"I'm gonna... go over there."
He turns and speed walks away, leaving behind a red faced Deeks and a rather puzzled Kensi.
"What's up with him?" She asks, staring after their friend as he walks away.
Deeks shrugs, trying his best to brush it off. "Oh... nothing."
She awaits more of an answer, but nothing comes. Internally Kensi just brushes it off, grabbing a french fry from her plate.
"Kay."
He wants to ask her something, but wonders if he should wait until later. No, there would be other people around later. Now is the perfect time.
"Kens, um... whatcha doing this weekend?"
She slows down her chewing, eventually finding a way to swallow back the food.
"Well, I... why do you ask?"
He leans forward, resting both elbows on the table. Deeks is trying so hard to play it cool, but his little mannerisms don't seem quite as sly when he's around her.
"A group's going down to the beach this weekend. I was just wondering if you wanted to come."
Her eyes light up, a smile spreading across her face.
"Yeah! That sounds... good. Really good."
He nods. "Good."
"Where?"
"Ventura beach, tomorrow at 8:00 AM."
She gawks at him. "8:00?"
Deeks doesn't share her concern. "Yeah. What's wrong with that?"
"It just seems pretty early for a Saturday, that's all."
"Best waves always come early, Kens," he says, smirking. "You're a California girl, though. You should already know that."
She shrugs. "Maybe. Not really my thing."
"No? Am I gonna need to be your teacher for the day?"
"I think I can manage."
"You sure? It's not as easy as it seems."
"I've surfed before."
She isn't fooling him. "And when was that?"
"A few years ago."
He begins to laugh, and Kensi's quick to cover her tracks. "But I'm was pretty good at the time."
"I don't buy it."
"I'm not lying."
He sighs. "I guess I'll have to be the judge of that."
She smiles, cocking her head to one side.
"I guess."
Kensi checks her alarm clock. It's 6:45, which means that she probably doesn't need to get out of bed for another thirty minutes or so.
But she knows that it will be impossible to fall back asleep. It's Saturday morning.
They're going surfing.
In the back of her mind she knows that it's silly to feel this excited for something as simple as a little trip to the beach, but Kensi doesn't really care. She's far too giddy to care.
And as far as she's concerned, it's only polite that she pries herself out of bed early. Deeks is picking her up, and the last thing she wants is to keep him waiting.
Kensi tosses both feet over the side of her bed, throwing a sweatshirt on over her tee shirt. She splashes some water on her face, more than ready for what the day is going to hold.
Her heart begins to race as she receives a mental image of a shirtless Deeks, catching waves beside her in the bright sunlight-
No Kensi. Pull it together.
They're friends, and that's it. Just friends.
She keeps trying to tell herself that it's enough, and that she doesn't need anything more than that. Friendship.
But Deeks is different, and she likes it. He's not put off by her tomboyish nature, or by the fact that she knows how to track, shoot, fix an engine and wire a house.
Kensi isn't a typical teenage girl, and he's not an average teenage boy.
So it works.
Deeks pulls up to Kensi's house around 7:30, making sure they have some time to spare for the drive. The beach is really only five minutes away, but Kensi probably doesn't know that. He'll take the long route.
Pulling out his phone, Deeks shoots her a quick text.
Look out your window, Fern.
It takes only a matter of twenty seconds for her to reply.
I will not respond to that name, just so you know.
He chuckles, typing away.
It seems that you just did.
His head lifts as the front door opens, a fresh faced Kensi appearing. She's wearing a white tee shirt, blue jean cutoffs and a pair of flip-flops. Her hair's down, flowing over her shoulders in pools of soft waves.
It takes Deeks a moment to realize that he's gawking, his lower chin hanging down. He reels it up as she approaches his car.
"Morning Fern," he says as she tosses her bag into the floorboard of the truck, sliding into the passenger seat.
"I told you, Deeks- I'm not gonna respond when you call me that."
He throws the car into drive. "And yet, you're still talking to me."
Kensi just nods, a tiny smile gracing her features.
"Alright. Touche."
She turns to face him fully, her eyes dancing around the interior.
"I never pegged you for the type of guy who'd drive a pickup."
Deeks shrugs. "It was my dads. I didn't get much of a choice in the matter."
Kensi nods, listening intently as he continues on.
"But the surfboards fit perfectly in the bed, so that works out well."
"Uh-huh."
She's trying so hard to concentrate on what he's saying, but the windows are rolled down and the wind is ruffling his hair. Suddenly breathing is becoming a rather trying task.
"Can you drive?"
"Hm?"
He glances over to her, but only for a second.
"I was asking if you can drive."
She shakes her head. "Not yet. I'm waiting for my dad to get home. He'll teach me."
There's a brief silence.
"Or I could teach you."
Kensi laughs to cover up how taken aback she is by his comment.
"Excuse me?"
"Well... I just mean that if it's gonna be awhile until he returns from deployment, then, ya know... I could show you the basics."
She stares at him for a long moment, mystified.
"Yeah." Kensi clears her throat. "Okay."
"Okay what?"
"Okay you can teach me how to drive."
"Really?"
"It's sorta illegal, but..." She shrugs. "Aside from that I don't really see the harm."
He nods, grinning stupidly. "I can tell that you're a thrill seeker, Blye."
"How'd ya guess?"
"You told me that your dad used to take you shooting every weekend."
"So?"
"That definitely qualifies as a 'thrilling' experience to me."
"Maybe. But there is one very 'Californian' thing that I don't do regularly. It's quite thrilling as well."
"And what's that?"
"Surfing."
They've just reached the parking lot at the beach. Deeks throws the truck into park, simultaneously cutting the engine.
"I think I can rectify that."
He winks, and she automatically rolls her eyes. This boys flirtatious nature is unparalleled.
"Nice day," Kensi utters, brushing her hair away from her face as the wind begins to whip it around.
"Do you see that?" He asks, pointing up to a swarm of birds in the sky overhead.
"Yeah. What about it?"
"Gulls are coming in," Deeks says as they approach the beach, walking slowly and steadily. "That means there's gonna be wicked swell out on the bay this morning."
"You know your stuff," she says, trying not to sound impressed.
He nods. "I'm a surfer. It just comes with the territory, I guess."
"Hmmm."
Kensi can't help but think he's trying to impress her. Hell- she knows he's trying to impress her.
And it's adorable.
"We're early," she adds, trying to change the topic of discussion before things can get out of hand.
"Uh-huh."
"Why is that, exactly?"
Deeks rubs his chin. "Well... it's about 7:45, and everyone is supposed to meet at 8:00, so from that information I can gather that the fifteen minute time gap is due to-"
"You're such a smart ass," Kensi mutters, still grinning.
"Come on, Fern. You know you love it."
She pretends not to hear him, completely ignoring the comment.
"What? Did I say something too truthful?"
Kensi whips her head around, her cheeks growing pink. "No. You just called me Fern, so I'm not responding."
His cheeky grin just grows. That little comment about 'loving it' easily got her to respond.
Deeks isn't saying it, but he's clearly thinking it.
She tosses a punch to his arm, and it carries a surprisingly large amount of weight. He stops, hunching over where he stands.
"Geez, Fern! That hurt!"
Kensi's just gonna have to deal with the nickname, or they'll probably never end up speaking to one another again.
She smirks, backing away. "Sorry, Marty."
Deeks grimaces as he finally manages to catch up with her. "Ooh, no. Please don't call me Marty."
"I like it."
"You do?"
She shrugs. "Yeah... why don't you?"
"Nobody calls me Marty anymore. Except my dad."
Kensi instantly comes to a stop. He does the exact same, rotating his body around to face her fully.
She steps closer, lifting two fingers and gently trailing them along the edge of his jawline.
"Your bruise seems to be healing up nicely."
He swallows, shoving both hands into his pockets. "Yeah. Time tends to do that."
Kensi shakes her head. "Not always."
Deeks looks out towards the water. He knows what she's trying to tell him.
"We can only hope for the best."
The way he speaks is almost painful, in a way. She hates how sad his eyes become when he talks about his father. The usually bright, glossy blue orbs become hard and dull.
Deeks finally breaks the silence as he continues to stare out at the waves that are crashing against the shore.
"I don't think I deserve it," he says, shaking his head. "I keep asking myself the same set of questions over and over again. Maybe it's my fault? Maybe I'm doing something wrong?"
He bites down into his bottom lip.
"I dunno. It could be me. I just can't think of anything I've done that would make him hate me this much."
Kensi moves in closer, growing misty eyed.
"He's the bad guy here, Deeks. Not you."
"But how can you be so sure?"
She stands her ground, speaking firmly.
"Because I know you. I know who you are."
"Who am I?"
The question is loaded and unexpected, but she still manages to come up with a proper response rather quickly.
"You're... Deeks. You always reek of salt water, and you have a fish-tacos jones that you don't think I know about. Your hair is messy and you kinda look like Shaggy from Scooby Doo. You're also funny and smart and kind. You tend to care about people more than they care about you, and that bothers you. But you never let people see that side for some reason."
She shakes her head, looking down to her toes. "I see it, and I know it's there. So you can't try to take the blame for any of this, because none of it is your fault. Your dad is a drunk, Deeks. Blame him."
His chin drops, his tough stance softening. What can he even say to something like that? Thank you? It seems like a rather weak response, one that would certainly pale in comparison to the many grand statements she's just provided him with.
"Kens, I-"
"Deeks!"
He looks towards the sound, closing his eyes for a fleeting moment after he sees that Josh and the rest of their friends are beginning to approach.
Dammit. Another moment, spoiled.
Kensi takes two quick steps away from him, folding both hands behind her back. She gives him the tiniest hint of a toothless smile, one that is silently telling him it's okay. That they'll talk again soon.
He's counting on it.