A/N: Hello! I'm back with another story. It's slash, so if you don't like the genre, please don't read it. It's Hotch/Reid, but I did my best to give you something new and different. The characters are there, but where loyalties lie is a mystery. I hope you'll read and let me know what you think.
I don't own Criminal Minds or CBS Television. I don't infringe either. I'm a borrower! ML
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Chapter 1.
Aaron sat down in the chair next to the teacher's desk as he watched the man push up his black glasses while searching for something in a file cabinet next to his desk. When he sat up and placed a file folder on the desk, Aaron braced himself. It probably wasn't going to be good news. Likely, all of Aaron's shortcomings as a parent would be brought to light.
"Mr. Hotchner, I love having Jack in my classroom. He's truly a delight, and he seems to enjoy learning, which is a joy to an elementary school teacher. He contributes on every subject, and he's an exemplary role model to the rest of the students in his class regarding how exciting it can be to learn.
"Mrs. Burrows, Jack's teacher last year, spoke to me regarding some events that have occurred in his life before he came into her class. I want to reassure you, the guidance counselor and I have been working together to make certain Jack has support here at school this year.
"His grades have slipped a little since first quarter, but not enough for concern. I believe once the two of you settle into this year's routine with his extra-curricular activities and the new classroom dynamic, he'll be fine. He's not behind in the classroom, Mr. Hotchner.
"It's a matter of him dealing with his classroom bully, Paul Brown. I'm working with Paul's mother regarding the boy's bullying of Jack, and if need be, I'm not opposed to transferring Paul to Mrs. Padget's class in order to separate the boys," the teacher explained.
"Paul Brown? He was Jack's best friend last year," Hotch told the man, remembering after they adjusted to Haley's death and Jack's new school, his son had asked to have the boy over for play dates. Jessica had handled it at the time, and she hadn't reported any problems.
"As I said, I'm keeping an eye on it and working with Mrs. Brown, the guidance counselor. The real reason I asked you to come in is because of some recent activity in art class. Ms. Wingman brought me these, and I'm not sure if they're something we should be concerned about. I haven't shown them to Mr. Winchell because as his father, I believe you should be made aware first," the teacher told him.
Aaron took the folder and looked at the pictures inside, seeing they were as vivid as the crime scene photos. It was Jack witnessing most of his mother's death. It wasn't pretty, and if Aaron had known the boy had seen as much as the drawings depicted, he'd have been more proactive in getting his son help.
"Wow. I had no idea he had such a vivid imagination. I suppose I need to speak with our babysitter regarding what he watches on television when she's watching him. He has been having nightmares again regarding losing his mom, and I do have him scheduled to meet with a child psychologist who specializes in children who've lost their parents.
"I should have gotten him help immediately. I was just trying to get him into a routine as quickly as possible, and I thought…I mean, I believed…hell, I was wrong, obviously," Hotch stated quietly as he continued flipping through the pictures. He could feel the tears welling in his eyes, so he swallowed deeply and cleared his throat.
"Mr. Hotchner, please don't take the blame for the way in which Jack has portrayed the incidents surrounding the death of his mother. These situations don't come with a playbook. Every child reacts differently when they've lost a loved one. They're young, and they're not sure what to do with the grief, so they create scenarios in their own heads in an attempt to try to reconcile the bad dreams with reality. They also want to protect the surviving parent, so they try to mask their suffering and put on a brave face if they feel the parent is as upset by the loss.
"Has Jack been overcompensating at home? Doing chores without being asked, or maybe doing things your late wife used to do?" the teacher asked. Hotch thought back to the night before when he returned home from the office.
"Hey Jess. Where's Jack? He usually jumps me at the door," he'd asked with a wide grin.
She'd smiled at him. "He's setting the table. He helped me make chicken casserole. He mated all the socks, and he took the sheets off his bed, insisting it was Thursday and that was the day the beds were changed," Jess told him with a tender smile. Aaron smiled back at her and went in search of Jack to tell him how proud he was of him for helping out at home.
"How'd you know?" Aaron asked the teacher.
The man smiled tenderly and his cheeks flushed a bit. "Aside from my degree in elementary education, I have my doctorate in Psychology, along with a few other things," the teacher explained.
"Oh. I'm sorry for not addressing you as Dr. Reid. I didn't know about your advanced degrees. Pardon me for saying so, but you don't look old enough to have a doctorate in anything," Hotch observed.
Mr. Reid laughed. "Please, don't worry about it. I get that a lot. I don't use my title here at school because it confuses the kids. They hear the term 'doctor', and they immediately think 'shot'. I'm just Mr. Reid. Anyway, I think Jack will be fine. The therapy will help him learn that it's okay to grieve the loss of his mother, along with giving him an outlet for the feelings he's afraid to share with you right now. It will get better, Mr. Hotchner."
Mr. Reid reached into his desk drawer and pulled out an empty file folder. He opened it and wrote something on the left side before he separated Jack's pictures and put the pile depicting the crime scene and his mother's murder into the file folder. He closed it and handed it to Aaron. "These will be helpful to the psychologist. Art therapy is a very effective tool with children Jack's age. It'll give the doctor insight into Jack's current thought processes. Also, if he's having nightmares, see if you can get him to tell you about them and perhaps record them in a notebook for his doctor. That, too, would be helpful to having a better understanding of Jack's state of mind.
"You might benefit from starting a journal regarding your observations of Jack and his interactions at home and with extended family. You know, has he suddenly become shy around people he otherwise wouldn't? If you record these observations, it'll help you provide an all-around picture for the doctor, and it'll help you focus on these behaviors and notice what might trigger them," Mr. Reid explained further.
Aaron laughed. "Maybe we should just make appointments with you."
Mr. Reid laughed. "I've never been in private practice, but I've given you my number if you have any questions regarding what you hear from Jack's doctor. Please feel free to give me a call. Like I said, I really enjoy having Jack in my class and I want to make his time in school enjoyable and productive."
Aaron opened the folder and saw the phone number along with his name, "Spencer Reid." He closed it and stood. "Thank you, Dr. Reid. I appreciate the support. Just so you know, Jack loves being in your class. He enjoys listening to your lessons. He says you get excited and tell them lots of stories."
Dr. Reid laughed. "I'm afraid I get caught up in the lesson and get off topic, spouting out facts that are totally irrelevant to the subject at hand. I can see in their eyes the minute I lose them. I'm trying to rein it in. This is my first year in an elementary classroom, so it's a learning process for all of us."
"What did you teach previously?" Aaron asked. He noticed the pink tint of the younger man's cheeks and thought it was very becoming. That thought didn't disturb him as much as he thought it should.
"Oh, I've taught undergrad and graduate level classes, and I spent one year teaching in a public high school in Las Vegas before I moved to Virginia over the summer. It's been a nice change of pace," Dr. Reid said as there was a knock on the door.
The man glanced at his watch and smiled. "Time got away from me. Thank you for coming in, Mr. Hotchner. It's been a pleasure." The two men shook hands as Dr. Reid escorted Aaron Hotchner to the door. After a quick good-bye to the teacher, and a hello to Amy Barnes, the mother of another of Jack's classmates, Aaron made his way out to the SUV.
He sat on the parking lot for a moment, thinking about the meeting. He'd been dreading the introductory meeting with Jack's second grade teacher because he was sure the man would blame him for Jack's behavior. It was no secret to Aaron that Jack was prone to emotional outbursts, and he'd expected the teacher to cite chapter and verse all the ways Aaron was screwing up his child.
Much to his surprise, it didn't go that way at all. Dr. Spencer Reid seemed like a very compassionate, empathetic teacher who was truly interested in his students. Unlike some of the older teachers who'd been at it far too long, the man didn't seem tainted. He seemed enthusiastic while speaking of teaching his students. Aaron was sure if anyone could help him get Jack back on track, it was Dr. Reid. It certainly didn't hurt the man was damn handsome and had the cutest smile Aaron had ever seen. That was certainly a plus.
When he got back to the office, Aaron had a large smile on his face. He'd analyze his behavior when he was alone later that night. In the meantime, he had to get through the workday.
There was a knock on his doorframe so he looked up into the smiling face of Penelope Garcia, the Unit's technical analyst. "Garcia, what can I do for you?"
"What was that?" she asked with a smile as she moved her finger in a circle, pointing at him.
"What's was what?" he asked, not looking her in the eye.
"That dreamy, smiley-face thing you're doing?" she asked as she walked further into the office and placed a file on his desk.
He immediately schooled his facial expression to his usual semi-scowl. "Nothing. What's this?" he asked, pointing to the folder on his desk.
"You asked me to check out Dr. Marissa Hayes. That's everything I could find. Great doctor. Degrees from Cornell and NYU. Volunteers as a child advocate for the Fairfax County Court System and DCFS. She worked as a psychologist for the Division of Family Services in DC for five years before she went into private practice.
"Married. She adopted two girls with special needs. She's damn near a saint, Sir," Garcia explained.
Aaron held the laugh. One thing about Penelope Garcia was she never did a half-assed job of anything. She was the strength behind his team. She laid the ground work for the team to perform its function…catching the bad guys. Without Garcia, Aaron was sure they wouldn't have achieved the level of success for which they were known.
"Thank you, Garcia. I truly appreciate it," Hotch told her as he opened the file.
As she was about to leave, he had a thought. "Penelope, can I get some information on a Dr. Spencer Reid? He's Jack's teacher. He mentioned he's worked at a high school in Las Vegas, and he's taught college and post-graduate courses," Hotch asked.
He almost hated himself, but he'd become extremely protective of Jack since Haley's murder, and if Spencer Reid was going to be interacting with his child on a daily basis, Hotch's justification was he was only looking out for his son. He'd wrestle his guilt later.
"Sure thing. Anything else?" the bubbly blonde asked.
"No. Thanks, Garcia. That'll be fine," he told her dismissively. Without waiting for her to leave, he pulled on his reading glasses and opened the file of Dr. Marissa Hayes.
Later that evening as he was headed home, Garcia hopped onto the elevator with her usual smile. "Cutting out a little early," she teased him as she checked her phone.
"Yeah, if you can call seven o'clock early, then I'm leaving early. Big plans for the weekend?" he asked as the elevator seemed to stop on every floor.
"Girls night. JJ, Alex, Ashley, and I are going to see 'The Graduate' at The National Theatre in DC. Morgan Fairchild plays Mrs. Robinson. Supposedly, there's a full frontal scene. I'm curious to see what the woman looks like naked," Garcia told him.
He glanced at her and grinned. "Sounds, uh…interesting? You'll have to let me know if I should get a ticket and grab Rossi." They wished each other a good weekend and went their separate ways.
Aaron's weekend would be filled with Jack's soccer games, a birthday party for a classmate, and brunch at Rossi's on Sunday afternoon. The whole weekend, he was haunted by caramel-colored eyes and a bright smile. He didn't contemplate the 'why' of it. He just enjoyed the thoughts.
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Interested? Please let me know! ML