Disclaimer: I wish I owned CM, but sadly I'm not that lucky. I only own my imagination.
Things That Go Bump In The Night
Something Penelope Garcia had never understood, was the complexity of the human mind. Maybe that was the reason she found herself drawn towards the people who did. The ones who were all knowing, who she didn't need to explain anything to, as they already knew it from looking at her. Those people were who she had made her family. Those people were her team. Not just that, they were the threads holding together the quilt that was her life. And whenever that quilt was damaged, or ripped, or torn, they kept it together, no matter what. They didn't even have to try.
The bar they were in was nice; loud but homey, fun and well lit. Garcia got the feeling she should head on home, as she was tipsy, and she was beginning to fall asleep on Reid's shoulder, fully aware that the team was looking at her with amusement.
She announced her departure, and Rossi flicked a straw at her, questioning her mental awareness. She assured them she was fine, and Derek stood up to let her out of the booth.
Penelope said her goodbyes, and in her slight drunkenness, she tripped into Morgan's arms. Of course she didn't mind, him being her best friend of course, but she blushed as the team chuckled at her.
"Get home safe, aye Baby Girl?" Derek told her, sitting back down beside Reid, who scooted over slightly.
"Only if you're in my bed by then, honey bunches." She teased, leaning in to kiss JJ on the cheek, and give Emily a half-hug.
With one last wave and a beaming smile (and a whistle from Morgan), she was on her way.
Her heels wobbled ever so slightly as she left the bar, the cold night air washing over her, wakening her mind.
She was glad she'd gotten a ride from Morgan, as now she didn't have to worry about driving. Instead, she decided to take the late bus, and turned to walk along the side of the brick building, to the bus route that went right past her apartment.
Garcia never saw anything coming. Everything had been so well lately, she was in a daze. Her family was well, and that had consumed her the last few weeks. Even now, as he snuck up behind her.
As the man pushed her back against the wall, her thoughts all but ran to the team. She tried to call out for help, but his sweaty hand covered her mouth, causing her to whimper.
He pushed her head again, her skull hitting the bricks with force that blurred her vision and shook her thoughts.
His eyes bore into her, blue and ice cold. She began to shake, fear consuming her entirely. It set fire to her veins, and goose bumps to her delicate skin.
Again, she tried to call out, but his palm shoved further against her teeth. Her body seemed to freeze, terror stopping her from reacting.
She whimpered again, eye lids fluttering closed as he moved his free hand up, up, up...to where his hand should not be.
Penelope's sobs wracked her, she being unable to accept that this...this crime she read about every day for her job, one she continually tried to stop...it was happening...to her.
The man smelled of alcohol, and she reeled away from him, and began struggling. Struggling for anything. Escape, help, prevention even for just a moment...anything.
"Don't fight it. I have a gun, and it'll be your last goddamn day on earth. Got it?" Her attacker said, a harsh growl.
She didn't nod like she knew he wanted her to. She instead, bit his hand with all the force she could muster. He swore and pulled it away, allowing her the chance she needed.
"I'm an FBI agent!" She said loudly, but it wasn't loud enough for anyone else to hear.
"Oh I'm sure, honey." He growled, and his arms went to places she hated him for.
"Help!" She called, strangled and terrified. His palm once again caught her off guard.
His free hand, with skill she didn't want to think about why he had, undid the buttons on her shirt, all the while, whimpers escaping her. Tears streamed, and she continued to try and yell, to no avail.
He hiked her skirt up, and she tried to struggle again, but less so, for fear that he might keep to his promise. Everything was hopeless and tainted red.
His fingers found the top of her panties and her body went numb, despite her extreme struggling. Her cries worsened and she began to writhe, trying to escape his strong hold, earning scrapes along her back and arms.
Just as she was losing hope, his hand travelling to somewhere sacred, she heard a gasp.
"FBI, freeze!" She heard Reid's shaking voice yell.
The man holding her against the wall, immediately let go, and she fell to the concrete ground, her sobs becoming loud and forceful.
Her attacker began to run, his efforts forgotten. Penelope's head hit the brick wall, just as forceful as before. She continued to cry, feeling just as violated as the victims she and the team tried to save.
Suddenly there was a deafening shot, and she jumped and let out a loud whimper. She couldn't even look as he fell. As he cried out, she did too.
And then Reid was in front of her, and Rossi rushed past, to where she forbade herself to glance. Spencer's eyes were red, and after a minute, she realized he was crying too. Too many tears.
She looked down and realized her shirt was still undone, and her bra was readily visible. She tried to button it back up, but her hands were shaking to the point where they were a blur. But Spencer stepped in, much to her surprise, and did it for her, all but the top button, due to the fact that Rossi called out to him.
Garcia didn't hear what he actually said; just that it was a question.
"Go get the team!" Reid yelled, and Penelope cringed at the volume of his voice.
Rossi yelled again.
"You shot him in the chest, he isn't going anywhere!" Spencer shouted.
Garcia was running through the last few minutes in her head, unable to force it out. Everything was foreign now, violated and strange.
Spencer put a hand on her shoulder, and she flinched away. But he didn't back away. Instead he sat beside her, and began muttering comforting words. They were clichéd and common, but that didn't stop them from helping slightly.
"Baby Girl!" She heard her best friend yell. For some reason, she didn't move. Her sobs worsened, to the point where she was gasping for breath.
She never wanted him to see her like this. To see her so weak, so harshly disrespected. He was her everything. And he was breaking down in front of her.
"What did he do to you? I'll kill him! What the hell did he do?" Morgan was yelling, and she couldn't answer.
She couldn't keep it together, seeing the looks on everyone's faces. JJ and Emily had both rushed to her, tears in their eyes, hands shaking. Neither seemed to be able to find the right words. Hotch on the other hand, was visibly shaking with anger and regret. His eyes continued to search her for any injuries, and she hated his gaze.
"Are you okay?" JJ asked quietly, and she jerked her head to look through her streaming eyes. Her best girlfriend was earnestly looking at her, cheeks pink and lip bleeding. How it had got that way, Penelope didn't know.
"Do I look ok-okay...to you?" She stuttered through sobs, her voice as harsh as her attacker's had been. It was an angry attack, something out of her character.
But what was her character anymore?
She wasn't sure.
...
The lights from the ambulance made her cringe. What was bright and flashy to others, was violent and blinding to her.
Sitting on the curb, she continued to cry, soft steady tears. It was cold outside. Colder than she remembered, even with Morgan's jacket around her shoulders.
Each of the team members had given their best to get through to her, and she knew that, but she pushed them away anyways.
All but one. All but Reid.
Whether it was because he had gotten to her first, or because he was so strangely innocent, she didn't know. But she didn't get up and leave like she'd done to both Emily and Rossi. She didn't turn away like she'd done to JJ and Hotch. And she certainly didn't yell like she'd done to Derek.
No, with Reid she allowed him to put a long, delicate hand on her knee. He was obviously trying his best to be gentle, non-threatening and soft. And yes, he was doing so. It didn't help per say, but it didn't make it worse.
Besides feeling utterly worthless, the whispers were the worst. She could hear her family asking each other unanswerable questions, and she hoped they weren't aware she could hear.
She stared at the pavement as she listened.
"Do you think she'll recover?" "What exactly did the bastard do?" "How is she gonna come back from this?" "Why do you think she's latched on to Reid?" "I just wanna talk to her...do you think she'll come around?" "Who knows."
Another tear fell from her eye and splattered on the concrete, along with every ounce of self worth she had left after such an event.
A half-gasp, half-sob escaped her lungs.
"Garcia?" Reid asked tentatively. "Penelope...would you like to go home?"
She looked up at him, his amber eyes soft and earnestly questioning. She felt her resolve crumble as she nodded, a small whimper sounding from her lips.
"Okay, let's go." He said, light as a feather, and held out his hand for her to take as he stood.
She tried to stand without help, but her legs wobbled and he was forced to grab her hand. But something about the way he grabbed it, brought memories crashing to the surface.
He grabbed her with force, his hand tight on her arm, pushing her against her brick wall harshly. She was trapped. Confined, with nowhere to go.
There was no way Spencer and the others missed her gasp, and the way she pulled away from him, shocked. It was just too similar for her to bear.
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." Reid said, shaken and regretful.
Penelope didn't say anything.
"PG, you wanna stay at my house? You shouldn't be alone." Emily offered, but Garcia was already shaking her head.
"What about my place?" JJ offered as well, but again, Penelope muttered a denial.
"Baby Girl, you can stay with me. Alright?" Morgan said, and she looked into her best friends eyes.
"No. No, it's okay. I wanna stay at my own apartment." She protested, her voice sounding odd, even to herself.
"Then let me stay with you." Morgan said.
"We could all come." JJ told her.
"Or some of us." Rossi added.
"Whatever you'd like." Hotch concluded.
They'd metaphorically backed her into a corner there. How could she choose? She certainly didn't want them all there. But she definitely didn't want to be alone. If she was alone, nightmares would plague her.
"Um...I...well..." She stuttered, finding a simple decision to be hazardously difficult.
Alright, that's the end of part one. This was originally intended to be a oneshot, but so much for that. It will probably be a threeshot. Thanks, and please review! xo