Spencer sighed and put the faulty plug socket back on the ground. He pushed himself up to standing and shouted through to his girlfriend;
"JJ, it STILL doesn't work!" He walked out into the open, bright hallway and leant against the wall.
"Did you try turning it off, replacing the one lead fuse bulb, and turning it on again?" she replied as she joined him in the hallway, a hot cup of cocoa in her hand. Spencer huffed like a moody teen at this response;
"Yes, of course I did, it was the first thing I tried," his voice carried an almost whining tone, at this point. He traipsed back into the living room, and sat down in front of the light-up Christmas tree and picked up the blasted plug again. He used a flat-head screw driver to open the plastic casing of the plug, and JJ frowned, perching on the couch:
"Is that a good idea, Spence?" she knew he was clever, but she worried about him; he didn't always take as much care as he should.
"Yes, yes, it'll be fine. Did you know that the leading cause of house fires after chip pans, fryers, and arson is electrical plug malfunctions?" he was beginning to ramble again, and JJ simply smiled and sipped her cocoa, nodding, as punctuation in her boyfriend's incessant, yet somehow still adorable, rambling. Spencer continued to fiddle with the plug, and once he'd satisfied his curiosity of the inner workings of it, he resealed the casing and pushed the plug into the socket. The tree sparked, and Spencer yelped as he jumped about, flailing his arms at the current disaster.
"Son of a bitch!" he exclaimed as he shook his hand about, a slight shock having gone to him. Once he'd stopped panicking and gotten to a point of composure, he heard snickering behind his back. He turned and half glared at JJ, who was muffling her giggling with her mug.
"I'm glad you find it funny. I could have died," he was only half serious, and he was fighting the smile that was twitching at his lips.
"I'm not laughing at that," she giggled and had to take in deeper breaths, her composure long gone. "Look in the mirror," her eyes wept with mirthful tears, and Spencer sidled across the the large golden, rustic mirror above the mantle piece. The image that greeted him, was much like the historical images you often find of Albert Einstein; his hair had taken on a mind of its own, and was sprawling about like an octopus. He snorted and covered his eyes;
"Well that's just, I don't even, I don't have words," he laughed and tried his hardest to flatten it down, with little success.
"You'd better get that sorted out before Hotch and Jack get here," she smirked and rose to her feet, sliding her cream-coloured slipper boots on, and stretching. Spencer looked at his watch and immediately, his mind started tripping over itself as it fought to relay every item on his to-do list, its estimated completion time, and the Hotchners' arrival time.
"I think I can make it work, I- yes, it'll be fine. How are we on the dinner? I'm-I'm not a cooking kind of person, we learned this at Thanksgiving. Please don't make me cook things, I will do anything else, just not that," he gave JJ what could only be described as a mournful, pleading gaze. JJ shook her head and sighed;
"Fine, you don't have to cook, but I have a list of things that need doing that aren't food-related," Her voice became a diminuendo as she left the room, remnants of her words became muffled murmurs, and he picked up the iron fire poker, from beside the marble fire place. He added a few fresh logs, and a tiny amount of cinnamon, and he lit up the fire. It began as a small kindling, but as the minutes drew on, it became glowing and vast in its still subtle amber glow.
JJ opened the stove for just a moment, turning her face away from the steam that permeated the area. The turkey was browning and sizzling divinely in its cocoon of drizzled butter, salt and pepper, a just a little paprika. She nudged it closed again with her hip, and she opened the soft redwood cabinet, above her head. She pulled out four plates the colour of crimson, and placed them upon the granite counter. She had already laid the table, and the plates were the only thing missing, aside from the people she loved placed around it.
This was her first Christmas with Spencer, and she wanted it to be special. She initially been a little concerned by the prospect of her boss spending Christmas with them, but with Beth away on a vacation with the girls, Spencer had blurted out that there was room around their table. She had come around to the idea, and was even looking forward to it, now. She picked up the plates, and headed into the dining room. She smiled softly to herself, as she placed the plates upon the special Christmas place-mats she had used since she was twenty one. They were white, with silver snow flakes embossed upon them, each with a solitary snow man in the centre.
She had just laid down the final plate, when she felt familiar and comfortable arms, wrap around her waist from behind. Spencer placed a loving kiss upon the nape of her neck, sweeping the blonde tide of her hair away from the delicate skin. She giggled as his lips tickled her skin and she yelped, as the cold drips of water from his freshly-washed hair, trickled down her back like Tibetan rivers.
"Spencer, we have so much to get done," she smirked, and didn't pull away from him. He ghosted his fingers down her arms and to her waits, the contours of her body familiar and arousing to him.
"Just twenty minutes," he nipped at her ear as his voice carried through the air, sending shivers down her spine. She moaned softly, and turned to face him, giggling softly, a swift hand grabbed the towel around his waist and tugged it, dropping it to the floor. He raised an eyebrow and licked his lips. He slid her lilac pajama vest over her head, and dropped it to the floor. She giggled and guided him to the living room, her body pressed up against him. She pushed him down onto the sand-coloured sofa, her hair falling to feather against his slender chest. He panted softly as his tongue met hers, his hands reaching up to tangle in her soft, gold-spun hair, and caress the porcelain skin of her back. She reached behind her back, and took his wrists into a lock, pushing them up behind his head, as she straddled him, her strong thighs maintaining her position. Her eyes slid shut, and she arched her back as he filled her. His soft whimpers trembled from his lips, his wrists broke free from the grasp, and he tugged her hair hard.
Lost to the rest of the world, they jumped when they heard the intrusive sound of the door bell, breaking their tryst. They both growled in frustration, a small sigh rasped from JJ, as she pushed herself back to a standing position.
"Can we ignore them?" Spencer asked hopefully, sitting up to run a hand through his now-only-damp hair. JJ smiled haughtily;
"I wish, Hotch is probably early, you know he has no patience," she walked out of the room.
"Does he realise the difference between twelve and four?" he replied, mildly annoyed. The doorbell persisted, the caller anxious to be granted entry. JJ scuttled back into the kitchen, and hastily pulled the vest top back on, and tied the drawstring on her sweat pants. Her hair was disheveled, and she pulled her fingers through it lazily. She jogged to the door, peeking cautiously through the peep hole before opening it. Stood on the front door step, was the looming figure of her boss; Aaron Hotchner, who for once, adorned a smile, instead of a stoic scowl. The other figure, was the little boy she had come to love almost as her own; little Jack beamed as he looked up at her, with eyes wide.
"Aunt JJ!" he piped up exuberantly, and he bounced like a coiled spring. Aaron smiled and tried to stabilise his his over-zealous son.
"I know we said three, but someone just couldn't wait any longer to see his Auntie JJ and Uncle Spencer," he smiled wryly, his left hand in the deep pockets of his black woolen coat, the other leather-gloved hand around a sizable gift back, embellished with glitter and festive cheer. JJ smiled and stood to the side;
"Come in, come in, we have loads to do, but Will should be by with Henry soon, it's my turn to have him for the holidays," she smiled, as the Hotchner family entered the fray. She had barely even begun to close the door, when a hand caused resistance against the oak door.
"Whoa, hold up, I'm here!" Will called out and poked his head around the door. Henry scuttled in under his Dad's arms and sounded an unintelligible squeak of delight when he saw that Jack had already arrived. The two boys thundered up the stairs, whooping and laughing, as Will lingered in the door way.
"Will you call later? So I can talk to him before I go to sleep?" Will looked at his ex-wife, his lips pulled into a thin-lipped, grim expression; tension still rife between them.
"Of course, around eight, just before bedtime, is that alright?" JJ replied, trying to get through one interaction with him, that didn't end with a domestic shouting match. She heard the deep lull of conversation between her boyfriend and her boss, and she tried her best to focus on the words Will was saying to her.
"Yeah, yeah I suppose, you always do decide what's best," he bit back, his words offering a black and yellow sting in their bitterness.
"Not now, Will, it's Christmas," she retorted, her voice dry, angry whisper. He held her gaze in a steely lock for a moment, before conceding, walking away from the door, his hands in his pockets, mumbling things JJ took no pleasure in being able to hear. Spencer popped his head out from the living room;
"Is everything okay, sweetheart?" his brow furrowed in an awkward concern, as it always did when it involved Will. JJ's shoulders slumped a little with the tension of the mild altercation, and she sighed lightly;
"Yeah it's just...yeah," she waved off Spencer's concern and closed the door, turning the locks. Spencer walked up and placed his hands on her shoulders, and kneaded them soothingly.
"Let's just enjoy the day now, okay? Hotch is taking a look at those lights that are clearly faulty," Spencer's eyes shifted sheepishly. Aaron, whose hearing was that of a bat's it seemed, called out from the living room;
"You mean the lights that you clearly broke when you fiddled with the fuse, Reid?" he had a smile in his voice, and Spencer pouted, JJ giggling softly.
"I'm going to start dinner, if I have any chance of getting it ready for four. You need to go and wrap the table gifts, change, unless you're planning on wearing that bathrobe that you've just thrown on, make up the guest room, and then you can help me with the food," JJ chattered away as Spencer nodded, his mouth gaped a little at the last item of the list;
"You said I didn't have to help with dinner!" he sounded a lot more childish than he'd wished to, when he vocalised his thoughts. JJ smiled wryly and winked;
"I say lots of things, Spence," she strode off into the kitchen;
"Get Hotch to do it! At least then the house won't blow up!" he called after her. He heard the dry, yet mirthful laughter that emanated from the living room, as once again, the joke was on him. He chuckled to himself and lightly jumped up the stairs. He looked into Henry's room to check on the boys, and he smiled, as he saw their little faces pressed up close to the television, as "It Was The Night Before Christmas," blared from the speakers. Spencer had always loved that poem. He pulled the door to, and headed into the bedroom he shared with JJ. It had been six months since she'd moved in, and he'd impressed himself with how well he'd adapted to another presence in his space. He pulled open the closet door and made a calculated decision on his outfit based on the colour of other people's outfits, the themes JJ had put into place, and his need to remain comfortable. He settled on black dress pants, a burgundy shirt, open collar, the top two buttons undone, a black waistcoat with burgundy lining inside the pockets, and silver, rounded cuff links. He picked up the small, glitter-covered box, from the inside of his locked desk drawer, and slipped on his socks and shoes. He headed down the stairs, and unlocked the front door, stepping out into the brisk December air. He took a deep breath, and placed the box upon the bird perch, that resided in their front yard. He smiled a little and pulled out his phone. He highlighted JJ, and Aaron, and tapped out a message;
Outside. Join me. Bring the kids.
S,
JJ picked up her phone and frowned. Her face was a mask of confusion, one she shared with Aaron, whom had walked into the hallway.
"Jack, Henry, come down here please," JJ called up to the higher level, and obediently they pattered down the stairs.
"Uncle Spencer wants us to go in the garden," she smiled and chucked at their confused, yet amused faces. Spencer looked up at the pale grey sky and smiled, as the first white flakes began to fall. The two adults and two children filed outside and accumulated in a huddle in the front yard, their arms wrapped around themselves, in their cold. Spencer cleared his throat;
"Um, okay, so I'm not exactly the greatest wordsmith in the world, but I-uh-I suppose I'll give it a try. I love you, JJ, impossibly, and with uh, with everything I've ever known. Sometimes it scares me a little, actually, but not in a real scary way just in-I'm rambling again aren't I? Six months ago, you came to live here with me, and I got to know my Godson more and more. I felt like we were almost becoming a little family of our own, you know? Of course you do, you were there-" Spencer cleared his throat again;
"Any chance of getting the point, Reid? I'm freezing my...fingers off, out here," Hotch spoke in a manner that was only half serious, but Spencer gulped with anxiety, all the same.
"Yes, yes, of course, yes um. Okay, so I got you all out here because today is one of those um, special days you always want to remember. Not because it's Christmas, although I could see why you'd think that," the snow was becoming heavy, settling in a cool dusting around their feet, the kids scraping it from the mail box and the car in wonderment.
"Just, um, okay, I put your gift on the bird table, I'd like you to open it now, well if you want to, I mean," Spencer put his hands in his pockets and looked at the ivory ground. JJ took the seven paces to the bird table, and plucked the delicate box from it, dusting the snow from its fine ribbon. She pulled the lid off, and peeked inside. There, in blue satin, nestled a diamond ring, that glistened from all angles. It was platinum, and it was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. Even Hotch, took a second look, and nothing really rattled him.
"Marry me?" Spencer spoke softly, shaking his head in an attempt to dislodge the snow that was now soaking his hair. JJ plucked the ring from its box, slid it on her finger and ran to him, her eyes moist with tears. She kissed him forcefully, encompassed with love and devotion. Aaron smiled, and the two boys cheered, before cheekily throwing snow balls at them both.
"You know, you still didn't say yes," Spencer smirked. JJ rolled her eyes;
"You didn't pick up on that, huh?" she grinned and kissed his nose.
"I did, I did, I just needed a definitive yes," he chuckled and cuddled her into him, a smile radiating from his face, a picture of happiness. They began to file inside the house, happy and in a surreal bubble, as they closed the door behind them.
"Good luck topping this year's gift," JJ poked Spencer in the ribs playfully, and he bit his lip, in a mock-nervous way. He chuckled and wandered towards the kitchen;
"Mmmmm that turkey smells delicious," he pressed his face up to the oven door to peer at it.
"That's the plan, now go on, go and make yourself useful," JJ chuckled, as Spencer skulked off into the living room. He beamed, as the light up Christmas tree, was now full aglow, thanks to Aaron's help. Aaron had acquired two glasses from the side bar, and poured brandy into each. He handed one of them to Spencer and smiled;
"Congratulations, Reid," he clinked their glasses and sipped the warming liquid. Spencer held his drink up in agreement, and swallowed it whole.
That Christmas, was the beginning of something wonderful, and many years from that moment, it remained the story of all stories, between the BAU. They were, to some, just another hopeless couple in love, but to those they held dear, they were the plinth upon which they placed all further expectations. They were THAT couple; the ones that when you look at them, it falls into place. The stars aligned, for one moment in time, and they were so infinitely grateful that they had.