He only looked away for a second, he swears.
In that second, Monty began to wander off toward the neighbor's yard, and he called Maxwell to bring him back. When he turned his head back around, Callie was on the ground.
She'd just gotten the training wheels off of her bike. She'd been practicing for weeks! Today, this was a big step for her. Deeks had been watching his little girl with such pride and pure joy. He didn't know that all of that would change the moment he looked away.
He ran over to her. She wasn't even crying. But he could see the little scrapes and tiny pieces of gravel in her knew.
"Callie, are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, my knees hurt, and my elbows too."
He took a look at her scuffed up elbows. Blood trickled down her little elbows and knees. Max ran down to the end of the driveway.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Max asked.
Max pulled Callie's bike up the driveway and into the garage. Deeks scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the house, ditching her helment with the bike.
He set her down on the bathroom floor and with a warm washcloth, he cleaned out the little cuts. He dried them off and cleaned them with peroxide, and she hissed as it stung her tender skin. He felt awful.
"I'm so sorry I let you fall off of your bike, baby girl. I should have been paying more attention."
Callie looked at him with narrow eyes. "Daddy, why are you sorry? I was looking at Monty instead of where I was going. It's not your fault that I fell off my bike."
He cocked his head to the side, taking in his daughter's words as he placed little band-aids on her elbows. "I should have been watching you closer."
"But I'm seven now Daddy!"
She wasn't wrong. But how does he explain his past go her? And how no matter what, he's always going to feel like he's failing her?
"I know, Cal. Sometimes I, well, I just want the best for you, okay? And I worry about whether or not I'm doing everything I can to be there for you and to love you," he said, placing the last band-aid on her knee.
She threw her arms around her dad. "You're perfect Daddy. I love you."
He melted, pulling his limp arms around his daughter to hug her back.
What neither Deeks or Callie had noticed was Kensi in the doorway of the bathroom, smiling. She'd witnessed the entire exchange. Of course, she knew how good of a father he was. She was able to pop her head in and say "I second that," before she walked in. Callie ran over to her mother and showed off her band-aids.
"Glad you're okay baby girl. How about we go find Max and get a popsicle from the freezer?" Kensi asked.
Callie got really excited about that, and walked on her own carefully, but not painfully.
Kensi pulled Deeks into her by his arm. "One of these days, you're going to have to start believing me when I tell you that you're an excellent father."
Deeks nodded and smiled. "You're right. I'm sorry."
She shook her head. "Don't apologize. Just believe in yourself the way she believes in you. The way I believe in you."
He kissed her and she laughed. "Anyways, you owe me a popsicle."