Penelope looked out into the bullpen and sighed deeply, wondering how she had let things get so strained between her and Derek so quickly. Really, it hadn't been his fault that their first attempt at a date had ended in a complete disaster.
Turning away from the window, she thought about their date and shook her head. From the very start, everything had gone wrong. First, he had given her a look when she ordered what she really wanted from the menu. She had recognized that look from her stepfather, it was one he had given her mother whenever she had done something he wasn't particularly happy with. And then, he had gone and ordered wine for her, not bothering to ask if it was a type that she liked.
When she had frowned at him, he shrugged and said that he knew what would go well with her meal. Penelope had had to bite her tongue in order not to snap at him, but he could still see that she was frustrated. The last straw, though, was when their food had come. He tried to grab her dish from the waiter's hands and it had ended up all over her. Standing up, with tears in her eyes, she had reached out and smacked him hard on the shoulder before stomping out and hailing a cab home.
Derek had started calling her the moment she slipped into the cab, and she sent the first few calls right to voicemail before turning that phone off. Once he had figured out what she'd done, he switched to her backup phone, and she immediately turned that one off before pulling out her work phone and turning that off, too. The cabbie smiled at her sympathetically and she nodded before letting the tears she had been holding in begin to fall.
The cabbie hadn't wanted to take her money when he dropped her off, but she insisted and added a large tip on top of it before stumbling up the stoop steps and into her building. She had cried the entire way up to her apartment and once she was locked inside, safe and sound, she let herself sob.
That had been Friday, and she had deliberately ignored her phone all weekend long, needing to rebuild her defenses. It had been so hard not to talk to her best friend for two whole days, but she had done it, and now she was standing in her office, wishing she could bridge the gap between them and make everything all right again.
Shaking her head, she drifted over to her computer and booted up her systems. A soft knocking interrupted her thoughts minutes later and she turned to face her door. "Enter!" she called out, wondering who was coming to see her this early.
"Garcia, can we talk?" Hotch looked at her in concern and she felt herself tear up once more as she nodded. He closed the door and came over, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Something happened this weekend, something that's causing you to walk on eggshells around Morgan and causing him to snap at everyone. Blake gave as good as she got." A tiny smile flitted across her face. "So, since you seem to be the one more open to talking, tell me what happened."
"I never realized what a jackass he can be!" she blurted out. Hotch nodded, indicating she should continue. "We went on a date Friday, to see if the chemistry between us translated into something more. It did not end well, and I refused to talk to him all weekend, I was so upset."
"What could possibly cause you to react like that?" he said as he relaxed against the closest computer desk.
"Everything. First, he judged my choice of meal, then he ordered wine for me, and not a kind that I like. The final straw was when he went to set my food down in front of me. Instead, it ended up all over me. I couldn't believe he acted that way!"
"Maybe he was nervous."
"That man does not have a nervous bone in his body," she snapped, and a fatherly smile spreading across his face.
"It sounds to me like you each had high expectations on how the night would go, and that may have affected how you reacted. I'm going to send him up here, you are going to talk, and then, you're heading out to an early lunch on my dime. I don't want to see either of you back here until tomorrow, when you're both in better moods."
Penelope wanted to protest, but knew that she would lose that particular battle. And really, she should be trying to make his life easier, since he had to do so much paperwork now. "All right, I'll agree to that. As long as you agree to taking Rossi out for lunch. He still seems to be a bit adrift."
"A perfectly fair compromise." He smiled at her again and then took out his wallet, handing over some money. "Please, patch things up. Life is too short to be mad at the ones you love." His eyes filled with tears, and she nodded before stepping forward to hug him tightly. "Oh, and Garcia?"
"Yes, Sir?"
"Sometimes, that which was lost can be found again."
His words confused her and she nodded to hide the fact that she had no idea what he was talking about. "Of course!" Turning, she stepped out of her office and found Rossi talking to Derek. He was nodding about something, and then he looked up at her. A shy, tentative, smile curved his lips and she nodded, taking the stairs down to meet him. "Hey."
"Hey."
"Look, I'm sorry I didn't give you a chance to explain why you did what you did Friday night."
"And I shouldn't have been so controlling. I just wanted everything to be perfect for you, Baby Girl." She nodded again, trying to stop her lip from trembling as she did so. "You deserve perfect."
"So do you, Sugar. So, Hotch said that we could take the day and work things out. He even gave me money for lunch. What do you say to blowing this joint?"
He curved his arm around her waist and laughed lowly. "I would say that that sounds like the best idea he's had in some time. Let's go before he changes his mind."
She giggled lowly and let him lead her over to the elevators. "You know, I was lonely these past three nights. I've grown too used to talking to you before I go to sleep."
"I was lonely, too. You fill up my life and my dreams, Penny."
"Why, that sounds dangerously close to an admission of love, Derek Morgan," she teased, only to feel the arm around her waist tighten. "Der?"
"Would it really be a bad thing if I've fallen in love with you?"
She stepped onto the elevator with him, thinking of what to say. "No," she finally whispered. Daring to look up at him, she saw that he was smiling gently. "Because I've loved you for a very long time. And with this business with the Replicator, and losing Strauss the way we did, maybe it was time I told you just how much you meant to me."
"Oh, Penelope," he breathed out, pulling her into a tight hug. "I miss her, too. She really was becoming a part of our family, the mom to Rossi's dad. It's okay to grieve for her."
She nodded against his shirt, nuzzling her cheek into him. "I didn't think it would hut this badly. And then, Hotch has to go and be all cryptic about how sometimes lost things can be found. This isn't a videogame, you can't regain a life once you lose it."
"Emily did."
"Em was the exception, not the rule. Besides, you were there, you saw her body."
"There is that. I, I just want to hold on to some sliver of hope, though. I don't want to admit that a psychopath can hunt us down and steal one of us away. It's happened too often to our family. First Hotch, then Emily, then Reid, and now Rossi. It's not fair that we constantly have a target on our backs."
"I know, Sugar, I know. But would you do anything different with your life? Could your conscience be quiet if you were doing a desk job?"
He shook his head and she smiled through her tears. "You always know the perfect thing to say to me, Penelope. I am so glad that you're my God-given solace." Their embrace tightened once more and she let herself cry quietly as she thought about the women who had been violently taken from them. "We're here," he murmured in her ear moments later and she nodded, letting him lead her out of the elevator.
"Oh, excuse me," she said lowly as they bumped into an unfamiliar redhead. The woman's perfume tickled Penelope's nose, and she tried to place the familiar scent.
"It's no problem," the woman replied, a light British accent coloring her words. "Have a wonderful date."
And then she was in the elevator, disappearing from their view. "Did that woman seem really familiar to you?"
Derek chuckled. "I was going to ask you the same thing. Her perfume was like a memory breathed to life. But I can't imagine either of us knowing a ginger. Even her hairstyle was familiar to me. Maybe we just ride the elevator with her a lot and never took time to notice her until today."
"Maybe. Though she did know that we were going out on a date."
"Anyone could infer that from the way we're holding hands, Baby Girl. That means nothing. Well, it means something to me, but…damn, I'm messing this up again."
She shook her head. "No, you're actually sort of cute right now. Go on, tell me how these sweet gesture mean nothing, Boo," she gently teased, knocking him with her shoulder.
"This is what we should have done in the first place, you know. None of that fancy schmancy stuff. Oh, I know you like that, too, but we work best when it's us, playing around. I wouldn't have gotten so nervous if I had just taken you to a good movie."
"A scary movie, so I could curl up into you, clutch your arm during a jump scene. That would have been nice." She rested her head on his chest. "We could still do that now. Hotch didn't specify how we spent his money, as long as it was on a date."
"Or how about we head down to the popcorn and candy store, buy ourselves some snacks, and go over to your place to watch that romantic movie you've been bugging me about."
"That sounds like an even better plan, Sug. I love An Affair to Remember. You know, the two main characters reminded me of Rossi and Erin. You'll see what I mean when you watch it." She linked arms with him as they walked over to his car. "And maybe we could watch something you like afterwards, since you're being so sweet to me."
"Does that mean I can finally talk you into watching Syriana with me?"
Penelope nodded. "That would be fine." He smiled as he helped her into the car and then went around to the driver's side and started the car. Once he had pulled into the parking lot of the popcorn place, she looked over at him and grinned. "Wait right here, I'll go get our snacks!"
She popped out of the car and almost skipped her way into the store. Picking up a basket, she plucked down things that looked good to her, knowing that she could spread it out among the others if she got too much. As she was deciding which type of popcorn to get, her phone rang, and she fished it out of her purse. "Hey, Jayje! What can I do for you?"
"Rossi has a visitor."
"Really? Who?" she asked, suddenly intrigued.
"None of us know. Some redhead just breezed past the rest of us up to his office, and the door has been closed ever since! He even drew the blinds so none of us can peek in. Anderson is taking bets on it being an ex-wife of his. We know Carolyn has passed already, which leaves two unaccounted for. Was one of them a redhead?"
Penelope placed the medium bag of buttered popcorn in her basket before heading for the line. "I don't remember, Jayje. I seem to recall that he had a thing for brunettes. That could have changed, of course, since hair color is something simple enough to redo."
"I suppose. Man, I really want to go snoop."
A soft giggle escaped her lips as she shook her head. "I have rubbed off on you too well. I wish that you could peak in on them, but his office has no cameras, just like Hotch's. It figures that I get told to go home and have fun with Der the one day something truly mysterious happens in the office. Keep me posted, hun."
"Will do, PG." They hung up and she waited for the person in front of her to finish paying before setting her basket down. It didn't take long for the transaction to be completed and she thanked the clerk before heading back out to Derek.
"What took you so long?" he asked as he backed out of the space and pulled into traffic.
"I got a phone call from JJ. Turns out that redhead we ran into went up to see Rossi. They're ensconced in his office as we speak. If she finds out any more, I'm going to be the first call she makes."
"And you want to be there, don't you?"
"Yes and no. The no is outweighing the yes at the moment. I know Jayje has my back, she won't let any of the good gossip pass me by. Whereas a day with you is something rare to treasure. Keep driving, Hot Stuff."
"Yes, Ma'am." He pressed the gas pedal to the floor a little harder and she smiled as the car picked up speed, closing the distance between her house and them quickly. After he'd parked in her usual spot, Derek came around and helped her out of the car, taking the bags from her hands. "Penelope, you know I love you. Right?"
"Yes, just like I love you." She reached out for his free hand and led him up to her apartment. "Now, make yourself at home while I dig out the movies." She kicked off her heels and went over to her bookcase, pulling out the case that held her movies and picking out the two discs. When she turned around, Derek was pouring their popcorn into a bowl and she grinned. "A girl could get used to this, you know."
"That's what I'm hoping." They cuddled up together on the sofa and she popped the disc into the player and pressed play. They had just made it to the point where Deborah Kerr's character had been hit by a car when her phone rang. She sent it to voicemail without looking at the display, not wanting to ruin the last bit of it.
And then, Derek's phone went off, and she sighed, pausing the movie. "I suppose we should see who's trying to reach us, Der." Leaning over, she kissed his cheek and picked up his phone. "It's Rossi. I wonder what he wants?"
"Answer and find out."
She nodded and answered. "Hello, my handsome Italian Stallion. What can we do for you?"
"Hiya, Kitten. I don't want to interrupt date day, but the team is having supper at my house tonight. Everyone, no exceptions. I'll be putting the plates on the table at seven, sharp."
"Do we need to bring anything?"
"Nope. We just want to see your smiling faces. I will give you a hint, though, of what's to come tonight. I will be having no more lonely nights."
"Way to be so cryptic, Dave! You know I'm going to be in a tizzy until I get there."
"Well, I suppose you could come over early. Though the big reveal will not happen until supper. So, even then, you'll be kept in suspense. I'm good this, Kitten."
"I know you are. We'll see you tonight." Hanging up, she handed the phone back to Derek and then looked at him. The longer she looked at him, the more odd she felt.
"What is it, Pen?" he asked, reaching out to caress her shoulder.
"Three very odd things have happened today. The first was when Hotch was talking to me. He told me that lost things can be found. Then, that redhead we ran into, who holed herself up in Rossi's office. And then this surprise supper with Rossi. Something big is going to happen, isn't it?"
"Maybe someone is going to pull an Emily." She felt her eyes grow wide as her mouth dropped open. "Don't read too much into that. I have no idea if that is the right line of thinking."
Penelope cut off his words with a hard kiss, pushing him back onto the sofa. "We won. This time, we won. Evil didn't touch us this time. You cannot take that away from me," she hissed when she broke the kiss, grabbing hold of his lapels. "I love you, David loves Erin, Hotch loves Jayje, and all is right with the world. Finally!" She kissed him once more before snuggling close to him.
"I'm not trying to ruin anything, Mama. I just don't want your hopes to be dashed. Okay?"
She nodded, trying to tamp down some of the excitement coursing through her veins. Lonely nights were a thing of the past for them all, and she eagerly looked towards their happy future.