"Come on G, hang on buddy," Sam said while holding his partner and waiting for the ambulance.

"Sam," Callen said as he slowly slipped away.

"Stay with me G, come on buddy, stay with me."

A few minutes later the ambulance arrived and they took Callen to the hospital. Sam went with him. Callen was immediately rushed into surgery. Sam called Hetty to let her know what was going on.

"Yes Mr. Hanna," Hetty said as she answered her phone.

"G has been shot," Sam said as he could hear her voice break as Sam told her.

"What happened?"

"Someone was waiting for him when I dropped him off. It was a drive by. He's in surgery right now."

"I'll be right there Mr. Hanna," Hetty said and she hung up the phone. "Mr. Callen has been shot. He's in surgery right now," Hetty told Kensi, Eric and Nate.

"How bad is it?" Kensi asked.

"He's in surgery right now in critical condition. I'm on my way to the hospital to wait until he gets out of surgery."

"Let us know when he's out," Eric said.

"Will do Mr. Beale. You two try to find the guys who shot him. Sam said it happened right in front of his apartment," Hetty said and she left the office.

Sam sat in the waiting room holding onto Callen's gun and badge when Hetty walked in.

"Any news Mr. Hanna?" Hetty asked.

"No, he's still in surgery," Sam said.

"What happened out there exactly?"

"I dropped him off at his apartment. He got out and walked towards his apartment and he stopped on the corner of the street and then this van came out of nowhere, almost cut me off, and I saw a man with a gun sitting in the back of the van. So I got out and tried to warn G, but they had already shot him. I ran after them and fired a couple of rounds at them but they were too far away already."

"Think it has something to do with that Russian girl he saw outside his apartment?"

Sam was surprised that Hetty knew this. He hadn't told her and as far as he knew Callen hadn't told her either.

"Don't know, could be."

Hetty and Sam waited. About 4 hours later Callen came out of surgery.

"How's he doing doctor?" Hetty asked.

"We managed to stop the bleeding, but he has lost a lot of blood. He's still in critical condition. We'll know more in the morning. We'll keep monitoring him closely tonight and see how he's doing in the morning," the doctor said.

"Can we go see him?" Sam asked.

"Sure, right this way," the doctor said and he led them to Callen's room.

Sam saw his partner lying motionless in the hospital bed with all these wires sticking out of him and a tube in his mouth. A feeling of despair went through him. Hetty called Eric to let him know Callen was out of surgery.

A couple minutes later Kensi, Eric and Nate arrived at the hospital.

"How is he?" Kensi asked when they walked into the room.

"He's stable for now, but he's still in critical condition. We'll know more in the morning," Sam said.

"Did you two find anything?" Hetty asked.

"No, we looked everywhere. The van has vanished," Eric said.

"We should take turns to stay by Callen's side," Kensi said.

"I agree Ms. Blye," Hetty said.

"I'll take the first," Sam said.

"Okay, Mr. Hanna. I'll relieve you in the morning," Hetty said and the 4 of them left.

Before Kensi left she put her hand on Callen's shoulder and said: "Get better soon. Don't die on us, we all need you here."

Sam stayed all night besides his partner's bed.

"Don't you dare die on me, G. You've gotta fight, G, fight. I need you here, partner," Sam said.

After a couple of hours Sam finally fell asleep but a couple minutes later he got woken up by alarms sounds coming from one of the machines that Callen was hooked onto. He got up and pressed the button for the nurse.

A minute later the nurse walked into. She took a look at Callen and rapidly pressed the alarm button. A team of medical people came rushing into the room with a defibrillator.

"He's in V-fib, charge the pedals to 200," one of the doctors said and a nurse charged the defibrillator and handed the pedals to the doctor.

"Clear," the doctor said and the doctor shocked Callen.

"Still in V-fib," the nurse said.

"Charge to 260," the doctor said and he shocked Callen again.

"No change."

"Charge to 300," the doctor said and Callen was shocked again.

"Normal sinus rhythm. BP is 80 over 55 and rising."

"Okay good."

"What happened doctor?" Sam asked.

"His heart went into cardiac arrest. We managed to get his heart beating normally again. We'll keep monitoring him closely over the next few hours," the doctor said.

"Will he be alright?"

"It's too soon to tell. For now he's stable but he's not out of the woods yet. You friend is in good hands here. We're gonna do everything to make sure he stays stable."

"Thank you doctor," Sam said and he sat down in the chair again and the medical staff left the room. "You scared me there, partner. Don't ever to that to me again."

The next morning Sam woke up and saw Hetty standing next to Callen's bed.

"Good morning Mr. Hanna. How's he doing?" Hetty said.

"He's doing okay considering. He had a cardiac arrest last night; they needed to shock his heart," Sam said.

"Go home Mr. Hanna, get some rest, I'll stay with him."

"In a minute, I wanna wait until the doctor comes."

As soon as Sam said that the doctor came walking in.

"Morning," the doctor said.

"Morning," Sam and Hetty said.

"How's he doing doctor?" Sam asked.

"My colleague told me what happened last night, I'm just gonna check him over now to see how he's doing," the doctor said and he examined Callen. "His vitals have improved from last night, so it's going in the right direction but he still has a long way to go."

"When will he wake up?" Hetty asked.

"It's hard to say. He could wake in with a few hours but it could also take a couple of days. His vitals are looking good so we just have to wait until he pulls out himself."

"Thank you doctor," Hetty said and the doctor left the room. "I'll keep an eye on him Mr. Hanna, you go get yourself some rest."

"Fine, but the minute something changes I wanna know," Sam said and Hetty nodded and Sam went home.

5 days had gone by and Callen still hadn't woken up yet. His breathing was getting better. The doctor was ready to pull the tube out in the next day or so. Yesterday he did squeeze Kensi's hand when she was holding his hand.

Sam was sitting in the hospital, anxiously waiting for his partner to wake up. He was looking at Callen and he saw his fingers move. He stood up and looked at his partner's face. His eyes were beginning to open.

"Come on G, you can do it. Open your eyes," Sam said and Callen slowly open his eyes.

Callen looked at him with his blue eyes. Sam could see in his eyes that he was happy to see his partner.

"Welcome back partner," Sam said and he saw that Callen was starting to fight the tube and he called for the nurse. "Don't fight it G, I've already called for the nurse, just hang on."

A minute later the nurse walked in and she removed Callen's tube. Callen was coughing heavily as she did so.

"Easy G, just relax."

"Easy for you to say, you didn't just get shot," Callen said.

"Try not to talk so much yet sir," the nurse said and she left the room.

"Did you find out who did this to me?"

"No, we haven't. Kensi and Eric tried to find the van that was used, but it has vanished," Sam said.

"How long was I out for?"

"A couple of days. You all had us worried sick. I'm glad you're back partner."

"It's good to be back. I can't wait to get out of here. I hate hospitals."

"Easy partner, you're not going anywhere any time soon. You may be awake, but you're still too weak and you've got a long recovery ahead of you."

"I know Sam."

A few minutes later Hetty walked in.

"Mr. Callen, it's good to see you awake again. You had us pretty worried," Hetty said.

"Hey Hetty, it's good to be awake again," Callen said.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine."

"You've gotta take your rest Mr. Callen and allow your body to heal properly. You need to take some time off to get better."

"I know Hetty."

"I mean it Mr. Callen, I need you back on your full strength. I won't take you back sooner."

Callen chuckled as those words came out of Hetty's mouth.

"Come on, Mr. Hanna let's give Mr. Callen some rest," Hetty said.

"You better be here when I get back," Sam said and he and Hetty walked out.

"See you guys later," Callen said and he laid his head down on his pillow and just looked at the ceiling thinking about everything that happened. He wanted to find the guys that were responsible for this but he knew that he had to get better first, although he hated lying in the hospital bed.

Later that day the doctor came to check on him.

"How are you doing?" the doctor said.

"I'm okay, bit tired though," Callen said.

"You need to rest and allow your body to heal properly."

"When can I get out of here doctor?"

"Sir, you just had major surgery and you're still too weak. I'd say you can leave the hospital in about 2 weeks."

Callen lay his head down on the pillow and let out a heavy sigh.

"And then you still have to recover at home for about 5 months until you can return to work," the doctor said.

"Great, just great. I really don't like hospitals, no offense doctor. And I'm not good at sitting still. I need to do something," Callen said.

"I understand that sir, but you have to allow your body to heal otherwise you'll be back here within no time. Now get some rest and I'll be back later to check on you."

Callen had been in the hospital for another week and he desperately wanted to get out of the hospital. Lying in a hospital bed all day was not for him. He did appreciate all the visits of his team mates. Hetty and Kensi even brought him flowers and Sam's kids made a drawing for uncle Callen. Eric had brought him his laptop so he had something to do during the day.

A couple days later Callen had enough. During the night he decided that he was going to get out of the hospital. He pulled the IV out of his arm and grabbed his clothes out of the bag and put them on. He carefully looked out in the hallway. When he saw that the coast was clear he walked out of the room. As soon as he walked out of the room he heard a voice behind him say: "Where are you going?"

He turned around and saw Hetty standing in the hallway.

"I'm just going for a walk," Callen said.

"Sure you are Mr. Callen, walking that way, towards your bed," Hetty said.

"Hetty…."

"I mean it Mr. Callen, you need your rest. Now march."

Callen dragged his feet back to his room and put his hospital clothes on again and laid down in the bed.

"I feel fine Hetty. I wanna get out of the hospital. They give me the creeps."

"I know Mr. Callen, but you will not get out of this hospital until the doctor says so." Callen gave her a look. "That's an order Mr. Callen. I will not have you running around half sick and just waiting for you to end up in the hospital again. Don't make me cuff you to the bed."

Callen chuckled.

"Fine Hetty. I'll stay in bed."

"Good. I just want you to get better and I'm just looking out for Mr. Callen. "

"I know Hetty and I appreciate that. I just wanna get better again so I can return to work. I hate doing nothing."

"I know Mr. Callen but you need to rest. Now stay put," Hetty said and she left the room.

A week later Callen was being released from the hospital. He still needed to recuperate for 5 months until he could return to work. He walked out of the hospital and saw his partner standing in front the entrance leaning against his car.

"Hey G," Sam said.

"Hey Sam, what are you doing here?" Callen said.

"I heard you got discharged today, I figured you might need a ride."

"Thanks Sam," Callen said and got into the car.

"Where to?"

"I could actually go for a bite to eat. Some normal food for a change, no more hospital food."

"Alright," Sam said and he drove to their favorite dinner. "Don't forget these," Sam said to Callen as they were getting out of the car at the dinner and he gave him his gun and badge.

"Thanks Sam," Callen said and he grabbed them and put his gun in the back of his pants and the badge in his back pocket and they went to have breakfast.

"So how long do you have to recuperate?" Sam asked.

"The doctor says I could return in about 5 months, which I don't like. I can't sit around all day doing nothing and resting. That's just not who I am," Callen said.

"I know G, but you have to. You could hang out at my place if you like during the day. My kids would be happy to see uncle Callen again."

Callen chuckled when Sam said that. He was living with Sam from time to time and his kids liked it when he was around.

"I'll think about it," Callen said. He liked spending time with Sam and he did appreciate that he could crash there from time to time but he didn't want to impose too much.

"I picked up your things from your apartment. They're at my house."

"Thanks Sam. I've got find a new place to live. Don't wanna live there anymore."

"Sofa is always free at my place."

"Thanks Sam."

After breakfast Sam dropped Callen off at his place and he went to work.

"Would you like something to eat or drink Callen?" Sam's wife asked.

"No, thank you just had breakfast," Callen said.

"Did you get the drawing I made for you, uncle Callen?" Sam's daughter asked.

"Yes I did. Thank you for that. I really liked it."

"Daddy said you were sick. Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes I am feeling a bit better now. Still a little bit tired, but I'll be fine."

"You need to rest, I'll have mommy make you some chicken soup."

Callen couldn't help but chuckle a bit.

"Come on sweetie, let's get uncle Callen get some rest okay," Sam's wife said and she took her daughter into the playing room.

Callen took off his boots and lay down on the sofa. Within seconds he was asleep.

About 3 hours later he woke up again. He stayed at Sam's house for the rest of the day and stayed there during the night. He slept on the sofa.

"Thanks for letting me crash here tonight," Callen said as Sam was about to go to bed.

"Anytime G. You can stay here as long as you like," Sam said.

"Thanks. But I'm gonna look for another place tomorrow. I don't want to impose too much."

"You're not imposing. You can always crash here on the sofa."

"Thanks Sam."

The next morning Callen picked up his bags and left to look for a place to life. After a while he found a room at one of the Vacancy hotels & rooms in Venice. He put his stuff inside and walked out to the beach where he sat down in the sand and just looked at the waves crashing. He was glad to be out of the hospital but he wished he could return to work already. But he knew he couldn't, he didn't like to admit it but he did fell a bit weak still. He knew he wasn't at his full strength yet.

About an hour later he returned to his room. He grabbed his laptop and lay down on the bed. He looked at the report Sam filed after he got shot to see if there was anything in there that would lead to his shooters. But there wasn't anything. Then he remembered that Russian girl. He saw her just before he got shot. Could she have been involved with this? He didn't know who she was or why she wanted to make contact with him.

Callen logged on into the NCIS secure server to see what they had found about his shooting. He was looking at the data they had found when suddenly Hetty's face popped up on the screen. Callen was startled.

"Hello, Mr. Callen," Hetty said.

"Hetty, what are you doing on my screen?" Callen said.

"Just making sure you're alright and that you're taking your rest."

"I'm fine Hetty, honestly."

"You need to take your rest Mr. Callen. You can't go back to work yet."

"I know Hetty."

"Then why are you looking at your case, Mr. Callen?"

"I just wanted to know if you guys found anything that would lead to my shooters."

"So you can go after them yourself?"

"Hetty….."

"I'm shutting you out of the system for now Mr. Callen."

"Hetty…."

"I don't want you to go around chasing bad guys in your condition. You will get your rest and you'll return to work in 5 months. That's an order Mr. Callen."

"Fine."

"And remember Mr. Callen. I know where my agents are at all time, so don't try to do anything expect rest and getting back to full strength," Hetty said and she cut of the signal.

Callen closed the laptop. He knew Hetty was right, but that didn't mean he had to like it. He laid his head down on the pillow and within seconds he was asleep.

…

"Mr. Hanna, may I have a word with you?" Hetty called from her office as Sam came by her office.

"What's up Hetty?" Sam said as he walked into Hetty's office.

"How's Mr. Callen?"

"He says he's okay. Eager to go back to work."

"He needs his rest, Mr. Hanna."

"I agree, but you know how he is Hetty."

"Oh yes I do Mr. Hanna. Keep an eye on him."

"I will Hetty," Sam said and he went back to the bullpen.

….

Callen had an appointment today with his psychical therapist. After doing some tests and exercises Callen walked out and he received a text message.

"Hey, G. Wanna meet me for lunch?" The message read Callen got from Sam.

"Sure, meet me at Patrick's roadhouse in a half an hour," Callen replied.

Half an hour later…..

"Hey partner," Sam said as he joined Callen in the booth.

"Hey Sam," Callen said.

"How are you feeling?"

"A bit better, just had some psychical therapy. He gave me some exercises to do at home."

"That's good. How did he say your fatigue was?"

"It was okay, but I still had a long way to go before I was at full strength again."

"Yes, he's right about that. You do have a long road ahead of you and you need to take your rest."

"I know Sam. It's just. This is not me. I'm not good at sitting at home and not doing anything. I wanna work."

"I know G, but you have to listen to the doctor and the psychical therapist. They know what's good for you."

"So, have you found out anything more about my shooting?" Callen said wanting to change the subject.

"No, nothing. The guys have vanished."

"And what about the Russian girl I told you about?"

"Vanished too."

"Damn. So it's a cold case?"

"Yes it is, but don't worry G. We'll eventually find them. They are not getting away with this."

"I hope you're right Sam."

After lunch Sam went back to the office.

"See you later partner," Sam said.

"See ya."

"Have you found a new apartment yet?"

"Yes, I have. I'm good."

"Alright. Well if you ever wanna crash on my sofa it's always free."

"Thanks Sam."

Callen had just returned to his apartment when his phone rang. It was Gibbs.

"Hey Gibbs," Callen said as he answered the phone.

"Hey Callen, how are you?" Gibbs said.

"I'm good, still a bit tired and weak though."

"Well that's to be expected. Have they found the guys who did this to you?"

"No, not yet. They have vanished."

"Keep at it, you'll find them eventually. Director Vance sends his get well wishes too."

"Thanks."

"Take care Callen and rest up."

"Will do," Callen said and he hung up the phone.

Doing psychical therapy earlier today made him a bit tired. But he really didn't want to admit this. He wasn't used to feeling like this. He was always strong and always being able to look after himself without any help.

He lay down on the bed and he let his head rest on the pillow. Within a minute he was asleep.

2 weeks later…

Callen woke up in the morning, he spent the night at Sam's house. He was feeling better. He wasn't that tired and weak any more.

"Hey G," Sam said as he came down the stairs.

"Hey Sam," Callen said.

"Do the kitchen appliances still work?"

Callen chuckled. "Yes Sam, they still work."

"Good."

"How's work?"

"Work's fine. Moving to the new office soon."

"What's the new office like?"

"It's really nice. Very nice OPS centre. All high-tech stuff. Eric is very happy with that."

"Good, how are the others?"

"Fine. Don't worry about work G, we're managing without you."

"Good. I can't wait to back at work."

Sam left for work. After breakfast Callen grabbed his stuff and went to his apartment and put his training clothes on and his running shoes and went for a run.

Callen was away longer than he planned. It was about 45 later when he was back at his apartment. It felt good to run again. As he was taking of his clothes to go shower he felt how tired his body was. Maybe he had run too far.

He got in the shower, the hot water felt good on his tired and aching body. As he was drying himself off he felt how much his wounds still hurt him. He could hardly get his shirt back on.

After he was dressed he lay down on the bed eager to let his tired body rest. Within seconds he was asleep. He woke up about 5 hours later by his phone ringing. It was Sam.

"Hey Sam," Callen said as he answered the phone.

"Hey G. You're alright partner? You sound a bit tired." Sam said.

"Yeah I'm fine, I just dosed off a bit. What's up?"

"We're going out for a bite to eat. Wanna join us?"

"Sure, sounds good. Where are you going?"

"Diner on Pico."

"I'll be there," Callen said and he got up from the bed. As he got up he felt how badly his chest was hurting. He decided to take a painkiller before going out.

15 minutes later he arrived at the diner. The rest was already there.

"Hi guys," Callen said as he joined them.

"Hi Callen, good to see you again. How are you?" Kensi said.

"I'm good. Getting back to full strength."

Sam couldn't help but notice the pale color on his friend's skin. But he didn't want to say anything in front of the others because he knew how Callen was. They ordered dinner. Sam made sure his partner ate enough.

"See you tomorrow guys," Kensi said as they walk to their cars.

"Goodnight Kens," Callen said and he walked to his car.

He grabbed his keys from his pocket and opened the car door.

"Hey G," Sam said.

Callen turned around. "Hey Sam. What's up?"

"Are you sure you're okay, cus you're looking a little pale?"

"I'm fine Sam, you don't need to mother me."

"I'm just worried about you."

"I appreciate that Sam, but honestly I'm fine. Just need some sleep is guess," Callen said and he got in his car and drove back to his apartment.

Sam didn't like the way his partner was looking. He knew Callen wouldn't show how he really felt. He always said he was fine. He didn't want to look weak to anybody.

Sam drove back home, but he couldn't help but worry about Callen. He didn't want to disturb him more than he needed to, so he decided to let it rest and call him in the morning.

Callen had arrived at the apartment he was currently renting. The run that he took this morning certainly made him tired. Maybe it was too soon for him to run. He took of his boots and his shirt to get into bed. As he took off his shirt he felt his stitches pull and he looked at the mirror. One of his wounds had opened again and it looked a bit infected.

Suddenly he felt really dizzy and almost fell over. He reached for his phone and dialed Sam's number.

Sam looked at his phone. He saw that it was Callen calling and then he looked at the time. It was almost 10pm.

"Hey G, what's up?" Sam said as he answered the phone.

"Sam… need… help." Callen said with all the strength he had left. Then he fell onto the floor. Sam heard the loud crash.

"G! G!" Sam yelled.

Sam quickly got up and grabbed his car keys.

"Be right back, need to check on Callen," Sam told his wife.

10 minutes later he arrived at Callen's apartment. He had asked a key from the manager. He quickly made his way up the stairs to Callen's apartment and opened the door and saw his partner lying there on the floor.

"G," Sam said as he got down next to him.

He rolled him on his back and checked if he was still alive. He was still alive. Sam called an ambulance and he looked at his partner's pale body and he noticed that one of his wounds was open again and infected.

Callen was rushed to the hospital once more and the doctor closed the wound again and gave him antibiotics for the infection.

"How is he doctor?" Sam asked the doctor when he came out of Callen's room.

"He pulled one of his stitches and the wound got infected. Closed the wound and gave him antibiotics. He should feel better soon," the doctor said.

"Thank you doctor," Sam said and he walked into Callen's room.

Sam called Hetty to update her. Hetty was upset that Callen again had pushed himself too far again and to no allow his body to heal properly.

About an hour later Callen woke up again.

"Welcome back partner," Sam said.

"Hi Sam. I'm in the hospital again?" Callen said.

"Yes you are G. You called me just before you passed out and I brought you to the hospital. You pulled a couple stitches and the wound got infected. The doctor stitched the wound again and gave you some antibiotics. You should feel better soon."

"Thanks Sam," Callen said and he lay his head down on his pillow and closed his eyes.

"It could have been far worse G. I told you not to push yourself too far. And you did it anyways. You have got to let your body heal first."

"Sam, stop mothering me."

"No G, I will not. You need someone to look after you. Someone to make sure you don't push yourself too hard until you're fully healed."

"He's right Mr. Callen," Hetty said as she walked into the room.

"You called her?" Callen said as he looked at his partner.

"Yes he did Mr. Callen. He is just looking out for you. As am I. You pushed yourself too hard again. You have got to let your body heal first."

"I just went for a run, didn't think it could hurt."

"Did your psychical therapist say you could?"

"No, he didn't but I figured it couldn't hurt going for a little run. It was only 3 miles."

"Mr. Callen….."

"Hetty, don't start again. I'm not good at sitting around and doing nothing. That's just not who I am."

"I know Mr. Callen, but you have to. You got shot and you barely survived that. You have got to let your body heal. This time it was only a stitch you pulled and a wound that was infected. What if next time it is worse? We don't wanna lose you Mr. Callen."

"I know and appreciate you guys but I don't need anybody to look after me. I'm absolutely fine of looking after myself."

"Sure you are," Sam said. "How come then you ended up in the hospital once again?"

"Just bad luck. It won't happen again."

"Yeah right."

"Sam…"

"Mr. Hanna is right, Mr. Callen. At this point you are not capable to look after yourself," Hetty said.

"Hetty….."

"No, I'm having none of it Mr. Callen. If we let you go out on your own again, how do we know you won't end up here again?"

"I'm absolutely fine Hetty, I don't need anyone to look after me."

"Yes you do Mr. Callen. We all care about you and we don't want you to end up in the hospital again. So either you're going home with Mr. Hanna or you're coming home with me." Callen gave Hetty and angry look. "I mean it Mr. Callen. There's no way I'm letting you out of this hospital alone."

Callen knew that there was no way he was going to win this battle with Hetty.

"Fine, I'll stay with Sam for now," Callen finally gave in and he lay back on the bed just staring at the ceiling.

"Take care of him Mr. Hanna," Hetty said and Sam nodded and Hetty left the room.

"I appreciate it Sam but I don't need anybody to look after me," Callen said once Hetty was gone.

"Yes you do G, you're coming home with me, no arguments," Sam said.

The next day Callen was released from the hospital. Sam went to pick him up after work and drove him back to his place.

"Hey hon," Sam said when he walked into his house. "G will be staying with us for a while. Hope that's okay."

"Sure, he's always welcome here," Sam's wife said.

"Thank you for letting me stay here. I promise I won't be a burden. I'll even help around the house if you need me too," Callen said.

"Easy G. Don't push yourself again," Sam said.

"I'll try not to."

"Better hope so."

For a little more than a month Callen stayed at Sam's house. Sam noticed that his partner was starting to feel better and acting more like his old self. In the middle of the night he had heard Callen getting up and fumbling around with the kitchen appliances and he heard him practicing his Russian.

Sam was happy that his partner was feeling better again, but he did not like the lack of sleep again. He would never understand that his partner needed this little sleep and that he still could function normally during the day.

The next day Callen returned back to his own apartment again.

2 months later….

Callen was feeling up to his old strength again. Although he still had one more month of recuperation time left he felt well enough to go back to work again.

He called Sam.

"Hey G," Sam said as he picked up his phone.

"Hey Sam, listen, can you come pick me up tomorrow morning?"

"What for?"

"To go to the office again."

"Seriously G? You're ready to come back again, you still got a month left."

"Yes Sam I'm fine. So are you coming to pick me up?"

"Yeah okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya," Callen said and he hung up.

The next morning Callen was awake early and he opened the curtains and looked out the window and remembered the day he got shot and how close he came to dying. He thought about going back to work once more. He was sure that was ready again. He put his shirt on and grabbed his stuff and walked outside to get a cup of coffee for him and his partner.