Kensi gave the man, her friend, an uncomprehending look. That was the only thing should could do because what he had just said to her made no sense whatsoever.
"Say that again?"
There was no way that she had heard that right.
Eric gave her that hopeful, puppy dog look of his.
"I was wondering if you wanted to spar with the sticks."
"Spar," Kensi repeated, not fulling taking in what he was saying.
"Yes," Eric said impatiently, tapping a foot on the floor. "With the sticks."
"Bojutsu," Kensi corrected him. "And they're staffs."
He nodded. "Yeah, that."
She went back to staring incredulously at him (had she ever really stopped?). There was no way he actually wanted to do this. Je was joking. Trying to wind her up. Deeks had probably put him up to it.
"Really?"
An enthusiastic nod, which didn't help her concerns at all.
"I've always wanted to do it," Eric said eagerly. "It's in so many of my video games and looks so cool!"
She groaned. Of course, it was a video game thing. Of course.
Eric either didn't hear her or ignored her as he continued. "I've given some moves a go but I don't know if I have them right or if they're even effective..."
"You do realise that I've been doing this," she interrupted him, gesturing at the staffs that they used for sparring and grappling. "For years, right?"
Eric nodded vigorously. "I know, I know. And I don't want you to go all intense on me. Just a friendly spar."
Kensi looked at him doubtfully. Somehow, she thought that his idea of a friendly spar and his idea of one were completely different. Polar opposites, actually.
And she didn't want him to end up injured. Nell would have her head, for one and Kensi did actually like Eric and didn't want him to come to any harm. Which would almost certainly happen if she sparred with him, she was sure. If not by one of the staffs, then by some silly movement that would make him trip over his own feet.
"I don't know, Eric..."
His face fell and he pouted.
"Oh, come on, Kensi! It will be fun!"
She gave him a doubtful look but he didn't seem to hear anything wrong about that sentence.
Shaking her head, Kensi was already to deny him when he upped his pleading look. He really was like a begging puppy.
She hmm'd and ha'd, shifting her balance between her feet. She was ways up for a spar and there was no one else around or available right now, like Eric said. And she could go easy on him and it would still be fun, right?
"Ah, hello," a voice interrupted them.
It was Hetty. Kensi relaxed. Maybe their boss would put a stop to this nonsense. Eric would listen to Hetty, right?
"Kensi's going to spar with me!" He said brightly.
Hetty raised an eyebrow at him. "Indeed."
"I told him it was a bad idea," she tried to excuse herself from any perceived wrongdoing.
Though Hetty wasn't frowning at her. In fact, she looked downright approving. Hetty patted her on the arm as she walked past.
"Try not to hurt him too badly, my dear. He still requires the use of his arms while up in Ops." She then turned to smile encouragingly at Eric. "You've got this, Mr Beale."
"I won't break him too badly," Kensi assured her.
Eric could only gulp at these two statements and suddenly looked very reluctant to begin.
[xxxxxx]
Eric resisted the urge to call Hetty back as she walked away, the need to have someone who might be able to hold Kensi back suddenly very urgent. But he didn't. Mainly because he didn't want to appear stupid and also because he didn't need a witness to his demise, so to speak. Suddenly this didn't seem like such a good idea. Remaining uninjured seemed like a very good idea. And somehow, he knew that doing this and not getting injured were mutually exclusive.
And they very much were, he found out not minutes later. You heard that right. Minutes. He'd only lasted minutes before he got hurt. Eric suspected that it would have happened sooner but Kensi did seem to be trying not to hit him all the time.
"What do you think 'friendly spar' means?" Eric whined, stepping back and rubbing his arm.
"Actually sparring, for one."
"I am!"
"Eric, you have no clue how to hold that staff."
Eric looked down at his hands and frowned.
"This isn't how you hold it?"
She snorted and shook her head. "Definitely not."
Before he could say anything in his defence, she had taken a hold of his hands and positioned them in the right way. Huh. That felt much more natural in his hands.
"Better?" She said knowingly.
"Yeah," he replied, a sheepish smile on his face. "Thanks."
"How are things going?" Hetty appeared in the gym again.
"Not well," Kensi said, much to Eric's embarrassment and she gave him a sympathetic look. "But it should get better."
"I'm not much of a sparring partner," Eric admitted.
It wasn't as much of a blow to his ego as he thought it would be. Kensi was very good at this, after all. And, like she said, she had years on him. Hetty nodded at this.
"Would you like an actual friendly spar, Miss Blye?" She asked, crouching down to pick up Eric's abandoned staff.
Kensi paled at the thought. She'd seen what Hetty counted as a friendly spar and there was nothing friendly about that.
"No, I'm okay, Hetty," she assured her boss.
Eric couldn't help bit snort at that, to get a rather terrifying glare from her as a result.
"You know what? I should probably get back to doing my paperwork. There's a report I need to finish for you," Kensi said hurriedly.
She turned away, trying to make her escape when Hetty called her back.
"Please put the staff away properly," she chided.
Kensi quickly picked up the staff and put it back on the rack with a quick apology. She then excused herself and all but ran out of the gym. Eric just stood there, feeling thoroughly confused. What had just happened?
Hetty turned to give him a satisfied smile.
"Works every time, Mr Beale. Works every time."