A/N: Geez its been so long huh? I'm sorry for the hiatus, hope you're all still interested in reading this! Leave me comments and suggestions!

It had been a week since Reina had drunk too much at the bar and Callen had driven her home. When Reina woke up the following morning she found herself in bed, fully dressed minus her shoes, a throbbing headache greeting her. She had stripped herself of last night's clothing, hopped in the shower and pulled on a fresh pair of yoga pants with an old tank top. When she wandered into her living room, she had been startled to find Callen asleep on her couch. He was on his stomach, snoring lightly with one arm hanging off the side. Her surprise caved in quickly as hazy memories of the blue-eyed agent carrying her into her own apartment and gently tucking her into bed had flooded into her pounding head. She smiled at the peaceful sight and had made him breakfast when he woke up, thanking him with flushed cheeks. He had been just as embarrassed when he told her that he was too tired and tipsy to go home and had unceremoniously crashed on her couch, apologizing for being disrespectful. She waved off his apology, stating she didn't mind at all.

And now a week later, things had changed for Callen. The memory of eating breakfast in Reina's kitchen seemed distant and faded. He couldn't push the image of Schrieber's pale face as his body dropped to the ground. Now back in his house, Callen felt loneliness pressing at him from all sides. He felt the tear roll down his check, his mouth frozen around the word family, his fingers clutching the scrap of paper in his hand. The tape ended, turning the makeshift screen in his living room black. Callen sat still in his chair, unsure of what to do with the night's revelations. He felt an undeniable sense of happiness at the unlocking of a major piece of the puzzle. He had struggle to make sense of his life and now things seemed clearer. He had had a family, a loving family. He wasn't abandoned; in fact, his parents had done what they could to protect him and Amy. And yet, despite the relief, he felt a pressing weight of sadness on his shoulders. What he would give to see them again.

He was jolted from his thoughts when a knock sounded against his door. Hastily wiping a hand across his face to remove evidence of the tear, Callen walked to his door pulling it open, his face already a mask of annoyance. "Sam, what part of I want to be left alo-" But Callen couldn't finished his sentence because the person currently standing on his doorstep was most certainly not his burly partner.

Reina glanced up at him, suddenly incredibly nervous. "S-sorry, Sam called me, told me you wouldn't talk to him," her voice shaking slightly. "He told me what happened, the unclassified parts anyway, and I thought I'd…bring you food," she offered, smiling sheepishly at the end of her sentence and holding out a takeout bag from his favorite Italian restaurant.

Callen cleared his throat, his voice thick. "You didn't have to do that,"

"I wanted to," she replied simply. She waited a beat, but he made no move to let her in so she continued hurriedly, tripping over her own words. "I-I'm sorry, I should have called. I didn't mean to invade your privacy. I-I get it, you need to be alone. At-at least take the food, you should eat something."

His demeanor changed at her comical spluttering and he chuckled lightly. She beamed unabashedly back at him, happy that she had achieved her goal. "There, isn't that better? Laughter is always the best medicine, trust me I'm a medic," she joked winking at him. He thanked her, taking the takeout bag from her hand. She turned with another warm smile heading towards her car. As she walked away, something clicked in his head and he suddenly felt very clear and light.

"Wait!" She turned at his call, to find him jogging down his porch stairs towards her.

"There's enough in here for two. Stay," It wasn't a question nor was it a demand.

"Okay," she responded simply.

It had been a long time since he had invited someone, not including Sam and Hetty, into his nearly empty house. He nervously led her to his living room where she helped him take apart the impromptu theater. She gave him space to put away the photos that were spread out across the table and made no comment about the sparse nature of his house. Instead, she grabbed the take out bag and headed to kitchen. She found two mismatched plates and emptied out the boxes of food. When she reentered the living room, the table, his single chair and the photos had been set aside. Callen was sitting on his air mattress with his back resting against the wall, legs spread out in front of him and his laptop resting on his thighs. He was scrolling through a list of movies.

She handed him a plate piled high with steaming fettuccine alfredo and smiled as he patted the space beside him. She settled down, digging into her plate and asked between bites, "What are we watching?"

"Any requests?" Reina shrugged indicating that she didn't really care. So he put on a random movie setting the laptop in front of them and began to eat, neither of them really watching the screen.

"You know, I just realized I hardly know anything about you," he spoke suddenly.

She chuckled, "What do you want to know?"

"Where are you from?"

"Well my parents are from Pakistan but I was sort of raised all over the world. My dad's job caused us to move a lot."

"Do you have a favorite place?"

"I spent a lot of time in South East Asia and Oceania. Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, Australia. I guess I don't really have a favorite. I miss the travelling though."

"So you came here to the US for college and…never went back home?"

"Ha, back where? We never stayed in one place long enough to call it home."

"Must have been tough," he said sympathetically.

"Not really," she responded nonchalantly. "Being a third culture kid was the best thing that could ever happen to me. I honestly hate the idea of identifying myself based on a place. I'm not from anywhere really, I'm kind of from everywhere and I love that about me."

Callen blinked in surprise.

"What?"

"I'm just…I'm just blown away by your sense of self-assuredness."

She chuckled, "I learnt a long time ago that no matter what anyone says to you, or what the world throws at you, if you aren't steady on your feet and sure about who you are, you'll get swallowed by the tide."

He was silent, taking another bite of his food, as he took in her words. Before he could ask his next question, she admitted softly, "I guess it was hard not having a place to feel rooted,"

"I know how you feel," he replied honestly. As soon as the words spilled from his mouth, he regretted them. He realized he would have to explain his statement, talk about his foster homes and then eventually…his family. Callen felt instantly sick at the idea of having to talk about them. He took a deep breath and steeled himself.

"We don't have to talk about it G," Reina's voice was smooth, light and filled with understanding. He let go of the breath he was holding and sent her a grateful expression. "Is it okay if I call you that? G?"

He chuckled, "Of course it is."

They sat in silence again, eating and watching the movie.

"But you must go visit your family? Where do they live now?" Callen broke the silence.

She opened her mouth and then shut it, looking stumped by the question. She cleared her throat thickly, momentarily abandoning her pasta. Callen realized then, that he had crossed an invisible line. He mentally berated himself, she had just allowed him to avoid talking about his past and now he was digging up hers.

"Never mind, forget I asked," he said hastily. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry."

"No, it's okay. It's not that I don't want to talk about it. I just…don't have an answer for you. I haven't talked to my folks in a long time, so I couldn't tell you where they are."

"Oh," he replied dumbly. She smiled sadly back at him but stayed silent.

"Let's talk about something else," he said abruptly, her silence troubling him.

To his relief, she let out a laugh. "Okay ask away,"

"Tell me about you and Deeks." For the second time that night, Callen internally slapped himself when he realized how nosey and jealous the words sounded.

It seemed she could read minds because she responded, "Deeks and I are friends. Completely platonic friends." Her warm smile returned to her face as she remembered how her friendship with Deeks began. "We met at UCLA-"

"At a party. I remember you told us."

She chuckled at his hasty interruption. "Yeah, he totally saved my ass. This guy was hitting on me and I was not at all interested so Deeks, a complete stranger at the time, came over and swung his arm over my shoulder. He called me 'babe' and asked if the guy was bothering me. The guy left with his tail between his legs."

He chuckled at the story. "That sounds like Deeks." She chortled in response. "Why do you call him Tintin?"

"It comes from Martin. We were hanging out at the beach this one afternoon with a bunch of other people and we'd been drinking. He came out of the water with his hair in a quiff and we all started teasing him about it. Later when he became a detective and adopted Monty, I couldn't resist bringing back the nickname," she smiled.

"You guys are really close," he stated.

She shrugged, "He helped me through a pretty dark period in my life. I had a massive falling out with my family and it was rough. He was going through some things as well and we just sort of leaned on each other. He knows me better than I know myself. We're…best friends for lack of a better term."

Reina looked over to find a curious expression on Callen's face. She knew he wanted to more about their relationship. But why? Perhaps for a better understanding of his team mate or perhaps…a better understanding of her? She blushed at the idea that she might have feelings for the attractive man sitting beside her, and at the idea that he might reciprocate them.

"Listen, I know you want to know more, but he's your colleague and I don't want to say anything that would affect your work, or accidentally reveal something about Marty that he's not comfortable with. Our past is exactly that, our past; it's not just for me to tell," she said, her eyes casted downward.

There was something off about her tone. He knew instantly that this wasn't about Deeks or his working relationship with the shaggy haired detective. This was about her. Before he could stop himself, his hand had found its way to her chin and was raising her head. His fingers ghosted over her cheek.

"I would never make you tell me something you're not comfortable with telling me. Okay?"

She nodded sheepishly, pulling away from him, and resumed eating. From that point on, their conversations flowed effortlessly as they moved away from the touchy subjects. When their empty plates laid abandoned to the side and the movie was over, they sat side by side talking into the wee hours of the night.

When Callen woke up, he was aware of two things. Firstly, bright sunshine was pouring through the blinds, indicating that he had slept through the night. He couldn't remember a time when he felt so well-rested and he felt his eyes shut once more as he snuggle back into the warmth of his pillow. That's when he had the second realization. His pillow smelt like lavender, and it was most certainly not the source of the warmth. His eyes snapped open as he took in the presence of the petite woman cuddled beside him. A few rays of light fell across her face illuminating the tanned skin and the dark lashes splayed across her skin. Her breathing was slow and heavy in her slumber.

Hastily, Callen looked down and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw they were both still dressed in last night's clothing. The last thing he wanted was to make her feel like she was a casual hook up or that he was using her as an escape from his troubles. His movement woke her, and he watched as she twisted her back, stretching. Her brown eyes fluttered open, meeting his blue ones and his lips turned in a small smile. She took a sharp intake of breath and shot upright. His smile instantly faded and he scrambled into a sitting position as she hoisted herself off the mattress.

"God, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep,"

"Don't-don't be sorry," he responded quickly, pulling himself onto his feet. "Seriously, it's fine. I, uh, appreciated the company."

She smiled in reply and grabbed her purse, pulling on her jacket. "I should head out. I hope you're feeling better."

"Much," he said genuinely, as he walked her to the door and pulled it open for her, "thank you."

"Whatever for?"

"For the food, for just being there," he answered, his gaze lowering to the ground.

"Always," came the response. His eyes shot up as she leaned forward and her lips connected with his cheek. And then with another smile, she walked down his porch steps and got into her car, pulling out of his driveway. He stood there stupidly, leaning against the frame of his front door, his fingers lingering at the spot where she'd kissed him.