A/N: For today's prompt. Original idea from mashmaiden. Did you ever wonder why Deeks had a restraining order against his ex-girlfriend? Takes place in the last few seasons.
"What do you mean 'no'? It's not like I'm asking for a lot here." Kensi paused on her way out of the Squid and Dagger kitchen, frowning as she heard a woman's voice-a loud woman's voice-coming from the main room. She couldn't quite catch what Deeks said in return, but she recognized his even tone.
She hesitated in the doorway. It wasn't opening time yet, so obviously Deeks had invited this woman in and she wasn't sure she should interrupt.
"You know, you're just as much as a jerk as I remember," she said and this time she understood Deeks perfectly.
"Sylvia, I'm sorry that I didn't handle things better, but I was not ready to move in with anybody right then," he said, apologetically, yet very firmly. Kensi tensed, warning bells going off in her head. She recognized the name Sylvia. The name of the ex-girlfriend Deeks once had a restraining order against. She'd always been curious about the woman, but Deeks always avoided the topic so she didn't push.
"You broke my heart!" Now Sylvia was shouting.
"And you broke my wrist." Kensi's eyes widened at that piece of information Deeks had ever shared with her, taking a step towards the door. The sound of something crashing to the floor, possible a tray of glasses, had her running towards Deeks without thinking.
She entered the bar in time to see a woman with shoulder length black hair throw a bottle of unopened beer at Deeks' head. He sidestepped it, wincing as it crashed against a table a few feet away, leaving behind a spray of shattered glass and foamy liquid. Sylvia snarled something under her breath and flung herself at Deeks, but Kensi intercepted her first, grabbing her by the arms and shoving her against the bar.
Based on Deeks' total look of surprise, he hadn't noticed her come in.
"Get off me!" Sylvia shouted, trying to claw at Kensi's hands.
"Not a chance," Kensi murmured grimly. "You just attacked an LAPD detective."
"So what, he deserved it. Let me go you, bi-"
"That's Agent Blye. Oh and did I forget to mention I'm his wife?" It wasn't jealously, but rather pure anger speaking now. Kensi's arms shook as she fought the urge to punch Sylvia's lights out.
"You're married," Sylvia said, some of the fight leaving her. She struggled to turn her head, presumably to look at Deeks, who was standing off to the side, apparently too stunned for words. "I just wanted to have dinner." She managed to sound slightly pathetic, even innocent this time and Kensi's distain for her grew.
"And I told you why that wasn't a good idea," Deeks told her his voice low and a little rough. "I got that restraining order against you for a reason, Sylvia. Kens, you can let her go now."
"Not happening, Deeks," Kensi said, glancing over her shoulder at Deeks. He looked deeply uncomfortable. "We need to to press charges." Sylvia stilled completely, apparently realizing that Kensi was not messing around and wasn't as forgiving as Deeks.
"I'm sorry, I-" she started, trying for remorse. Kensi had loosened her hold slightly and she appealed to Deeks again. "I just want to talk to you. I didn't mean for it to turn out like this. Please, Marty."
"I won't press charges," Deeks decided. "But you need to leave. And if I ever see you nearby again, I will renew the restraining order." Kensi let go of Sylvia reluctantly, but stayed nearby, making a partial barrier between her and Deeks.
Sylvia rubbed at her arms and glared at Kensi. She seemed more subdued now, but there was still considerable defiance in her eyes as she headed for the door. Glancing over at Kensi, she stopped directly in front of Deeks, and brushed his arm.
"Marty-" He stepped back, letting her hand fall away.
"Go before I change my mind." Kensi almost thought Sylvia would disregard his warning, but after a moment of hesitation, she gave him a disgusted look and stalked out the front door.
"Are you ok?" Kensi asked, rushing over to him the minute the front door closed. "You didn't get cut, did you?"
"Yeah, I'm good, that was..." he trailed off and blew out a long breath, glancing at the glass covered floor. "Sylvia never was a very good shot." When Kensi didn't respond to his attempted joke, he added, "I should, uh, probably start cleaning this up."
"Deeks, I don't think it was a good idea to let her just go like that. She could be dangerous."
"I don't think she'll try anything else."
"Really, 'cause I just saw her throw a bottle at you and try to hit you," Kensi said, gesturing back to the broken glass. "What would you have done if I wasn't here?"
"I don't know," he mumbled.
"Would you have let her hit you?"
"I don't know, maybe."
"Deeks, she could have seriously hurt you. Is that what happened the last time? Did she attack you?" Kensi asked, knowing she sounded a little belligerent, but she was still angry, and a little scared, on his behalf.
"Kensi, it wasn't like that," he insisted.
"You said she broke your wrist. It sounds like that's exactly what happened."
Sighing, he hooked his foot around a chair and sat down, motioning for Kensi to do the same.
"I met Sylvia during my first couple years at LAPD," he began. "We started dating pretty quickly and it was good for a while, but, uh, then she started pushing for us to take it to the next step."
"And you weren't ready for that," Kensi guessed.
"No. I mean, we'd only been dating for a few months at that point and she was talking about moving in with me or getting a house together." He paused, glancing at Kensi briefly before he continued. "At first I evaded the subject or found excuses for why it wouldn't work. My apartment wasn't big enough, it had mold, I couldn't afford to move to a bigger place."
"Did it work?" Deeks shrugged.
"Maybe for a little while, but the more I tried to get out of it, the harder Sylvia pushed. Then one day I came home and she was waiting for me inside my apartment. She demanded to know why I wouldn't commit to anything.
"I probably could have handled it better, but I was tired and, honestly, a little freaked out that she was there. I told her the truth. She started screaming at me, cussing me out; said I was stringing her along. I think she even accused me of cheating on her with another cop."
Kensi winced at the picture he created. Even though she knew Deeks was perfectly fine now, she still felt tense, especially now that Sylvia knew how to reach Deeks.
"Did you ask her to leave?" Kensi asked. He rubbed at his upper lip, shrugging a little.
"Sort of. I said if she felt I was stringing her along, maybe we should just end things. I probably could have phrased it better," he continued, making a face that suggested he was to blame. Kensi covered his hand with hers, encouraging him to go on. "As soon as I said that...it's like a switch flipped. Sylvia started throwing anything in reach, kicking at me. It was insane."
"But you still didn't fight back." It wasn't a question. Just like today, she knew he'd been unable to hurt a woman he viewed as relatively defenseless.
"No. I just tried to keep out of her line of fire. Then she picked up this chair-thank god it was old and made out of wood-and tried to smash it over my head. I managed to block it." Absentmindedly, he encircled his left wrist with his thumb and third finger.
"Please tell me you called the police," Kensi said and he chuckled humorlessly.
"I didn't have to. One of the neighbors heard the fight and called. By the time they arrived, Sylvia came to her sense and was begging me to make them go away. I didn't press charges then either, just told her to go."
"So that was the first time you saw her since then?"
"No. A couple weeks after the fight, she started showing up around the precinct and outside my apartment. That's when I filed the restraining order." He looked across the room, his eyes a little distant. "God, I should have handled it so much better," he repeated.
He sounded regretful and Kensi grabbed his hand again, leaning forward. She gently gripped his chin, wanting to make sure he understood what she said.
"Deeks, don't you dare feel guilty for what you did. If the situation was reversed, you know you'd be ready to kill any guy who hurt me. It's no different with Sylvia."
"I guess." He was quiet for a minute and then added, "It was weird seeing her again. I haven't thought about Sylvia in years, but the minute she walked in, I felt this overwhelming...dread I guess."
"Well, I don't think you have to worry about her anymore," Kensi said with mild satisfaction. "And if she does try anything, I'll be here."
"Thanks," Deeks whispered. He kissed her gently and then pushed himself to his feet with a groan. "I better clean up that mess before mom gets here and starts asking questions."
"Always," she promised. While he grabbed a broom, bucket, and mop, Kensi sent a text to Nell to put Sylvia Gray on their watch list. It was better to be safe than sorry, she figured.