Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds; I have just borrowed their characters.
My title, of course, is taken from the 1970 song composed by B. Scott and B. Russell
Thanks, as always, to mablereid for allowing me to bounce ideas off her.
Morgan and Reid lugged the last of the boxes into the modest bungalow on Lakeview Lane in Washington DC. The fairly spacious brick house featured a large welcoming front porch supported by four brick columns while the white metal railing gave it an airy feel. There were many windows which flooded the home with sunlight. The living room was dominated on one side by a beautiful stone fireplace and on the other side by a bookcase colonnade. There were three bedrooms, two of which were being used for that purpose and a third to be used for an office. This was the new home of Janice and Evan Reid.
"There, that about does it," Morgan said setting the last box down in the brightly painted space that was to be Evan's room. The boy, grinning from ear to ear, high fived Morgan, excited to be starting fresh in a new city, going to a new school and meeting new friends who knew nothing about his recent battle with leukemia but most of all he was excited to now be living close to his brother, Spencer.
Janice was smiling as well when Reid put the last of the boxes marked kitchen on the gleaming granite countertop of the recently renovated room. The floor and new appliances shone. She too was excited about her new life. Since her divorce from Spencer and Evan's father, she had longed to leave Philadelphia and her old life behind her. She had not worked in her profession as a librarian since Evan was born so she was dumbfounded when she was actually hired to one of the many librarian positions at the Library of Congress.
As a history major in university while obtaining her library sciences degree, working at the Library of Congress was a dream come true. She was awestruck just setting foot in those three buildings so steeped in history, literature, art, science, religion and politics. Janice had been amazed by the brilliant stained glass ceilings, the sculptures, the splendor of the reading rooms and the engraved inscriptions from some of the world's most famous authors. The magnificence of the grand inner hall left her breathless. Everywhere she turned, she was astounded by the vastness of the book collections, the endless opportunities for learning and all that that encompassed.
Janice looked at her former stepson as he helped unpack the boxes and put the most unused items on high shelves for her. It amazed her to look at him sometimes. When they were discussing a serious topic or he had some point he was trying to make he could look so much like William it almost scared her. At other times, when he was doing something carefree with Evan, playing a game or Evan was teaching him some childish thing that he had never had the fortune to learn as a child himself, since his childhood was cut so short when William deserted him and his mother, his eyes would fill with such joyful innocence that he looked so much like a little kid you sometimes wondered who was older, him or Evan. She was so pleased that he had taken such an interest in Evan. He was nothing like William's description of him. The 'freak' turned out to be a kind and gentle man whose heart could match his expansive brain in all that it was able to hold. She was delighted that they had become friends. She had also found someone whose love of books rivaled her own and they had had many discussions on various books and authors. She found there was no subject on which he did not have some knowledge or opinion.
As well as her new job, Janice was looking forward to meeting new people. Evan's illness had taken much of her time and she had lost touch with many of her friends and had not been able to participate in the activities she had enjoyed before her son's battle with the dreaded disease. Although she was new to the city, she already felt she had some friends in the area. Spencer's team had been wonderful to her. Aaron Hotchner, true to his word, had found her a very effective divorce attorney and when Janice had broached the subject of a move to Washington to Spencer, she had soon received a call from Haley Hotchner asking if there was anything she could do to help Janice in this endeavor. Janice was concerned that it would not be easy to get a job as she had been out of the workforce for so long; hence she was totally amazed when she was offered the position at the Library of Congress. Even though Janice knew she was an excellent librarian, she felt such a position was out of reach and she now strongly suspected that someone on Spencer's team had had a hand in her getting this job. Nothing had ever been said but Janice somehow felt a request had been made or a favor called in. Whatever the case, she was grateful. She had no illusions that it was done for her benefit. These people loved Spencer and if having his brother in Washington would make him happy, they would do all they could to make it happen.
The Hotchners were not the only ones to provide assistance. Everyone in Spencer's 'other family' wanted to do everything they could to make sure things went as smoothly as possible for Janice and Evan. Penelope Garcia had used her computer skills to look into housing and schools. JJ and Emily had toured many of the houses weeding out the bad ones and saving Janice a lot of time when she made the trip out to look for housing. The women also helped with shopping for the things she needed for the new home. They had all become quite good friends. Morgan and Gideon had driven her around to take care of the errands involved with the purchase of the house and getting the move in place. One evening they had had a painting party as the wall colors were not exactly what Janice had wanted. The team plus Haley, little Jack and Spencer's friend Allie had all landed at the house and the rooms were painted in no time. When they were done, Reid insisted that they send out for pizza earning a wink and a high five from Evan.
Janice had been concerned about Evan after the divorce. She did not want her ex-husband around her son but she worried about Evan not having a male influence in his life. She saw now she had no cause for concern. Evan had four wonderful role models in the members of the BAU. They all took an interest in him. Gideon was almost like a second father, Hotch, a very close and concerned uncle and Morgan was like another big brother. But most of all it was Spencer who was always there for Evan, for both of them actually. He had become a huge part of their lives. He was always doing something with Evan whenever he had spare time or a day off. Even before the move to Washington, he had often driven up to Philly to see them and help them get their lives back on track.
Reid had just placed a punch bowl and cups on a top shelf of a cupboard when the pair heard two thuds, a groan and the sound of breaking glass. They went running down the hall toward Evan's room to find a broken lamp from the bedside table and Evan and Morgan facedown on the floor!