Before Jo could even consider what to make for breakfast that morning, she had a call to make. 

Sitting on her couch, she dialed the one number that could possibly help her out right now. 

Putting the call on speaker, she waited for the pick up. “Hey Jo. What's up!” 

“”Ellie, I need your help.” 

Eleanor Bishop was straight to the point, hearing the slightly panicked tone of Johanna Kaufmann. 

“What's going on? Are you in trouble? Where's your team?” 

Okay, so maybe Jo could have worded it better. She wasn't in any danger, just an embarrassing situation. 

She cringed slightly before calming her friend down. “Not that kind of help. Sorry, I should have worded that differently.” 

Ellie relaxed after that. “Okay, but you still have to tell me what's wrong.” 

Jo took a deep breath before giving a brief explanation. “I was called to Top Gun to assist in a detachment, and since I only got my information two days ago, I was blindsided by one of the pilots. He's here, Ellie.” 

“Well, that's a lot of information to take in,” she replied. “And who's ‘he’?” 

Jo was wide-eyed, gesturing, even though Ellie couldn't see her. “HIM, Ellie! Javy is here. He's part of the detachment!” 

It was now Ellie's turn to be wide-eyed. “Oh shit. That's not good. Oh God, now I see why you need my help.” 

Jo nodded rapidly. “Exactly! So help me!” 

“First, take a breath. Second, what exactly do you need me to do? Talk you out of something? Talk you into something?” 

A deep breath was taken. “I don't know. I really don't. But I'm so confused. It was a one night stand. A hookup! So why am I so stuck on this one man?! This doesn't happen to me, and I don't know what to do. I need to focus on teaching them to survive, not what I'm feeling.” 

She heard a sigh from the other side of the phone. “Obviously, the main focus is doing what you were brought here to do. But I think, in your time off, while at home for the day, you need to do some real thinking. You say you can't stop thinking about this guy. Why could that be happening?” 

Jo was still not completely calm. “I don't know, Ellie! I just said this doesn't happen to me.” 

Ellie deadpanned. “Now I know you aren't that dense. The reason you can't stop thinking about this guy, despite it being a hookup, is because somewhere you developed some feelings for him.” 

Jo started to object, but Ellie stopped her. “I'm not saying you're in love with the man. Just that, somewhere along the way, you realized there were more things to like than just a normal hookup.” 

She couldn't exactly deny that, even if she didn't want to admit it out loud. “So what do I do, Ellie? I don't really have time to think of this. And this mission is dangerous. If he's chosen, there's a high chance he won't come back. I'm not putting myself through that pain. Not again.” 

Ellie felt bad. She knew just how much Jo had lost over the years. “It sounds like, no matter what happens, you'll feel some of that pain. If you do nothing, you still feel something. So it's still going to hurt, just maybe not as bad.” 

The two women went silent as they took in what Ellie had just said. It made sense. There was always going to be pain. 

“My best advice is to figure out if what you feel could develop into a true relationship. Because if you don't figure it out, the next few weeks are going to be torture for both of you.” 

☽☆☾   ☽☆☾   ☽☆☾

Johanna had finally made her way to the base after her talk with Ellie. She arrived later than she had planned to, but still ahead of the majority of her team. 

Unfortunately, Javy had also shown up early. And he wanted to talk to the woman who disappeared but would leave his head. 

“Johanna, we need to talk,” he tried to corner her. No one else was around, they could at least get a few things straightened out. 

Jo tried to slip past him, but he caught her arm. 

“This isn't the time or place for that conversation, Javy. We need to focus on the mission.” Jo was trying to avoid this talk. Sure, she had a discussion with Ellie, but she needed time to figure out her feelings before speaking to Javy. 

He let go of her but kept her cornered. “Answer me this one question. Did you know I was going to be here?” 

Jo huffed out a breath. “I was only brought into this two days ago. So, no. I didn't know you would be here and was also blindsided.” 

Javy believes her. But it's still hard to wrap his head around. “And you never thought to look me up with all your Navy access?” 

Jo gave him a deadpan look. “With what information? We didn't exactly exchange last names or occupations, Javy. We got drunk, had a good time, and that's that.” 

And with that statement, Jo managed to get away. She needed to gather her thoughts before the day started. She couldn't afford to be distracted. 

As for Javy, he was almost frozen in his spot. Jo had a point. They hadn't exchanged anything other than names before spending the night. 

But it was more than just a good time for him. Javy hadn't been able to get her out of his head for over a year. She consumed quite a few of his thoughts when not at work. 

And he had a strong feeling she felt the same way. 

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Word count: 962

Short chapter today but an important one nonetheless. 

We got a guest spot from one Miss Ellie Bishop!! I love her so much, one of my faves in the NCISverse. 

And we got a small look into how Javy is feeling about this situation, which will be delved into deeper in later chapter. 

But Jo will do anything to delay this convo, so buckle up, it's gonna be a while. 

So see you next chapter with some more fun. Bye guys!!