Drabble of the Week: Reflected in Your Tears

She settled against the wall to his right with nothing more than a small thunk and slight sniff, moisture glazing over her eyes reflecting every gleam of light in the building, and God, he knew his features reflected the same horror, same hollowness, same failure, because they were here, a wall away from bringing her home safely, a few seconds away from avoiding all of this.

“Kensi?” Her name falling from his lips with an unspoken question filled with worry, he slid a palm down her forearm, attempting to link their fingers together, give them each a measure of comfort.

“Deeks, we-“

“Did everything you could,” Callen interrupted, flickering gaze only momentarily meeting theirs, hesitant, fearful to drift from where his partner sat. “We all did, this day… it was never meant to end well.”

“What happens next?” Deeks’ own eyes darted away from their team leader to the woman beside him, feeling the tremors of her body as she fought tears, knowing she could feel his own shaking, own fear, because how easily this could have been her, how close he’d come to almost cradling her lost body to his chest just months before, the reminder still fresh within him.

“Go home,” G took a breath, resolutely meeting his eyes. “Take a shower, eat something, just… try to sleep. I’ll see you in the morning, we can figure out the rest then.”

“And Sam?”

“Especially Sam, I’ll take him back to the boatshed, see if he’ll talk to Kam.”

“And that’s it?”

Shaking his head lightly, the older man’s eyes drifted downward, lingering on their linked fingers for a half second. “That’s all there can be tonight. Go home, Deeks.”