Title: More than One
Prompts: My Name is Earl: Something to Live For & The Golden Girls: 72 Hours
A/N: So like many of you I almost had a nervous breakdown after watching the season finale instead going through with that though I wrote this for the TV Prompt Bonus Challenge because I don't see how they can possibly kill off Hotch. Anyways for some reason when I sat down to write this it mostly came out in Morgan's POV, but like I said it is clearly about what happened to Hotch at the end of finale. As always enjoy and don't forget to do me a favor and review!
More than One
Three days had now passed since Derek Morgan's boss was shot and looking back now so many things about that night still seem off. First off on the team's way back from Ontario they were all quieter than usual. Sure it made perfect since because they were all struggling to make sense out of what had happened. 90 plus lives forever changed though was a thing to come to grips with though. Second off instead remaining in his office long after the rest of them had left—like he usually did— Hotch had followed them all onto the elevator mere minutes after they'd arrived back.
Maybe that's why once home even after having a drink Morgan hadn't been able to shake the bad feeling he'd had. Therefore he'd given in and had begun calling each member of his team one by one. They'd all answered and reassured them they were okay except for Hotch and so with hesitation he'd grabbed his keys and gun and headed for his boss's apartment.
He'd arrived there rather quickly only because he'd broken the speed limit by almost twenty miles and the bad feeling he'd been unable to shake all night only grew stronger as he used the key his boss had given to let himself in. Thank God Hotch had insisted on them all having keys to each other's places.
"Hotch," Morgan remembered calling out as he'd entered the apartment.
His only reply had been a gunshot that had narrowly missed him and adrenaline had immediately kicked in as made his way over to where the shot had come from. Pulling his own out he'd fired two shots of his own and watched the hooded figure fall before he'd heard his boss weakly call out his name.
"Hey man hang in there alright I'm going to call an ambulance," Morgan remembered saying as he crouched down beside his boss and noticed the gunshot wound to his upper right chest.
After quickly doing that he'd quickly taken off his shirt and begun to use it to stop the bleeding. "You still with me," He'd called out noticing his boss's eyes were fluttering closed.
With a weak nod Hotch had forced them back open.
"Good because you and I both know you've got more than one reason to live." Morgan had then remarked.
"Jack," Had been his boss's labored reply.
"Yep that's right boss man," Morgan had agreed, "Remember our talk after he was born.'
Hotch nodded again.
"Alright because I'm holding you to our agreement, Jack's not going to know what it's like to grow up without a father."
Morgan heard the sirens so he knew the ambulance was getting closer nonetheless though he kept on talking about all the reasons his boss had to leave. "The team. We would fall apart with you man. You're our voice of reason. The one that reminds us why we keep on doing this. More importantly man I'm about to admit some thing here I've been wanting to say for awhile. You may be right about me not trusting me people but I want you to know that there's only been one other man besides my dad that I've ever respected and that's you."
"Morgan," Hotch had said as he tried to catch his breath and weakly placed his hand on top of the one he's been using to apply pressure to his bosses wound.
"I'm not finished," Was the last thing Morgan remembered saying as he heard the paramedics enter the apartment. "And it's because of that respect that I promise you this. If you even think about dying on me I'm kicking your ass."
"Don't worry, you're right, more than one," Was what his boss had somehow found the strength to say before Morgan had called out to the paramedics.
Once they'd arrived Morgan had moved out of the way to let them do their job and as they were doing that Morgan had taken the time to call the team once again one by one to let them know what had happened. Foyet meanwhile lay dead where Morgan had shot him. He had then ridden in the ambulance with his boss to the hospital where he stayed the rest of the night. Only leaving the next morning when Rossi had said, "When he wakes up and finds out you haven't written up your report about what happened he's going to be the one kicking someone's ass."
'How'd you know," Morgan had asked on his way out of the hospital room.
"Because Morgan I know these things," Rossi had replied back a grin, "Not to mention the fact that I would've said the same thing."
With a final nod and a wave at the rest of the team Morgan left to do that report he could just see Hotch asking about after he woke up.
Hours later that day Morgan had been at the office when he'd gotten the phone call from Prentiss that Hotch was awake and asking about him/
"Tell him I'm alright so all he needs to do is keep on breathing and I'll hand this report over to Strauss so she'll shut up," Morgan had replied.
"Okay I will but do us all a favor and go grab a few hours of this new invention called sleep before you come back to the hospital alright," Was Emily's reply.
Surprisingly Morgan had been able to go home and at last do that. Meanwhile back the hospital members of the team rotated their vigil over their leader as Hotch continued to recover from the bullet that had deflated his right lung and caused some internal bleeding.
On the second day after the shooting Haley had arrived with Jack and Morgan and the rest of the team had then watched as he quickly climbed up on the bed next to his father.
"Daddy Mommy said the bad guy got you this time," Jack had then remarked when Hotch had opened his eyes and smiled at his son.
"Yeah Buddy he did but the good news is Morgan over there got the bad guy so you and I don't have to worry about him anymore," Had been Hotch's reply.
"He did," They all watched Jack question.
"Yep you want to tell him thank you," Hotch had whispered quietly to his son. Or at least that's what Morgan was guessing he'd sad because the next thing he knew Jack was nodding and then reaching out to him.
Finally today nearly 72 hours after the shooting Hotch had been moved out of the critical care unit and into a private room where he would remain for the next three days. And Morgan knew that come Monday when he and the team had to return to work that they would do so gladly for more than one reason. The main one being that their boss had lucked out and would be coming back as soon as he was cleared.