Title: Growing up Genius Part 2: On the Mend
Author: Trista Groulx
Disclaimer: I don't own these folks, never claimed to as they belong to their creator, network, writers and actors and actresses that bring them to life.
Rating: T
Summary: Reid and Prentiss' daughter is now four years old. What's she like?
Notes: Sorry for the cliffhanger, but it's all cleared up now. I had to figure out how to make this four parts, and this the only way I could make it work. I hope Sonya is a believable kid.
Prentiss had arrived at the hospital. Will ran right over to her, Henry was sitting a waiting room, tears falling down his face. He was worried about his friend. Prentiss just wanted to see the Sonya really was all right. She needed to see her daughter with her own eyes, and she knew that she would feel better.
"What's going on?" Prentiss asked.
"I'm so sorry, Emily," Will told her. "They need to some x-rays to see if she broke anything, they don't think she needs an MRI. Said it was just a mild concussion. I just went in to use the bathroom. I wasn't more then maybe ten minutes, and Henry came running into the house telling me that she had fallen."
"You can't watch them twenty four seven, and Sonya does like to climb," she explained, then looked at Henry. "I'm not mad you, sometimes kids get hurt."
"Okay Aunt Emily," Henry whispered. "I didn't think she'd actually climb up there and try to walk on it!"
"I know, I told you I'm not mad."
A nurse came in. "Are you Sonya's mother?"
"Yes, I am," Prentiss replied.
"Sonya won't calm down, why don't you come with me?"
"Thank you." She followed the nurse.
As soon as she got close to the room she could hear the unmistakable cries of her daughter. It broke her heart every time she had to hear her daughter cry in pain. She wanted to be the one who took that hurt away from her. She knew that this was going to take more then kisses to heal. She went into the room and Sonya's eye lit up as soon as she saw her mother. She held out her arms, tears pouring down her cheeks.
"Mommy!" sniffled Sonya.
"I'm right here," Prentiss assured the little girl, gently soothing her long dark hair.
"It hurts."
"What hurts?"
"My head, and my hand, and my arm, and my shoulder, and my tummy," Sonya explained.
"That's why Daddy and I tell you not to climb things you can fall down and get hurt."
"I'm sorry. I won't do it again, can I go home now?"
"No, sweetheart, you can't go home just yet. The doctors need to fix what's wrong first. They are going to have to take some pictures of your bones."
"How do they do that?"
Prentiss was glad that her daughter took the bait, Sonya loved to learn. She was just like her father that way. There were times where the child still amazed her. Sonya might only be four years old but she was smart. The nurse seemed surprised that Prentiss was trying to explain what the x-ray machine was, but didn't say anything.
"They have a special machine called and x-ray machine," Prentiss explained. "You have to go into a special room, with a special hospital gown, and they take a picture of your bones and they see if any of them are broken."
"Oh okay, I guess that's not too bad," Sonya whispered. "Can you hold my hand?"
"I'm sorry sweetheart, but you have to be alone for that. But I will give you a big hug when you're done."
"Okay," she sniffled uncertainly.
"I know you can be my big brave girl, Sonya."
"I guess, where's Daddy?"
"He's on his way. It takes a long time to get from California to here."
"But he's coming?"
"Of course he is. He's going to want to see that you are okay, and I bet give you hugs and kisses."
"Okay, I think I'm ready to be brave."
"I'm so proud of you Sonya."
The nurse came over and took Sonya's hand and brought her into another room to do the x-rays. Prentiss watched as her daughter went, she was expecting Sonya to get upset, but she didn't. It didn't take long for the nurse to come back with Sonya. Prentiss smiled at her daughter, and Sonya went right over to her mother, curling into her.
"The doctor will be in in a few minutes," the nurse said softly before leaving the room.
"Can we call Daddy?" Sonya asked after the nurse had left. "I wanna hear my story now."
"All right, I'm sure he'll tell you your story."
Prentiss smiled she thought it was amazing that any time something was upsetting Sonya she would want to hear the story that Reid had read, her every night. By now Reid was able to tell her "I love you Forever" by Robert Munsch by memory. He had made time to tell her the story at least once every day since she was born. Sometimes it would be before bed time, and other times it would be when he was able to get away for a few minutes when he was on a hectic case. Somehow the little girl never got sick of her father reciting it, and Reid never seemed to get sick of telling it to the child. Prentiss dialed Reid's number.
Reid was on the plane trying to focus on re-reading case files on the flight back, when his phone began to ring. He was glad for the distraction. He smiled when he saw that is was his wife calling him. It put his mind at ease about his daughter. He put the phone to his ear.
"Hello?" he said.
"Hi, Sonya would like to hear her story," she told him.
"So she's doing all right?"
"Yes, she has a mild concussion and she just got some x-rays done to see if she's broken any bones."
"All right, I should be there within an hour, put her on."
"Hi Daddy!" Sonya's excited voice boomed through the receiver.
"Hi, Amorino, how are you feelings?"
"My head hurts, and my arm hurts, and I wanna go home, but the doctors here won't let me."
"They want to make sure you won't hurt more when you go home."
"I guess, can you tell me my story?"
"Of course."
Reid began to tell her the story by memory. When he had first read it, it reminded of his mother, and he thought it was a sweet story to read to his daughter. He soon realised that he always ended up reading it to her at some point during the day when he was reading stories to help calm her down. After a while he decided he would read it to her until one of them got sick of it, and so far neither of them had. It took his mind off of her being hurt, and how long the flight felt as he pictured her face lighting up as he told her the story.
"I gotta go Daddy," Sonya said after he had finished the story. "The doctor is back."
"Okay, I love you Amorino," Reid replied.
"I love you too Daddy."
The doctor had told Prentiss that Sonya was going to need a cast for her arm. She had broken her wrist, but her shoulder was only bruised. Prentiss was glad that there was nothing more serious going on. They went into another room where the doctor put the cast on her arm, then they set her up in a room, they wanted to keep her overnight because of the concussion. Once Sonya was set up in her room there was a soft knock at the door, then Will and Henry came in.
"I'm sorry Sonya," Henry told his friend.
"It's okay Henry," Sonya replied. "Maybe you can sign my cast when it dries?"
"Sure."
"And then when I'm better can you teach me how to use the swing all by myself?"
"I can try."
The two kids then began talking about how much fun they had had playing together that day. It always amazed Prentiss how her daughter could be a genius like her father, and still be a typical little girl with her friends. Prentiss and Will smiled at each other, amazed at how easily the two kids had just been able to forgive each other for what had happened. There was a knock on the door, and Garcia let herself in.
"Auntie Penny!!" both the kids exclaimed.
"Oh no! Now I don't know who to hug first," Garcia told the kids. "I guess the little sickie, who has a cast. Sonya Hope little girls are not supposed to break their arms."
"Auntie Penny it doesn't matter if you're a boy or you're a girl, when you fall off of high things you have a good chance of breaking a bone," Sonya stated matter of factly.
Garcia couldn't help but smile at the little girl, it was like she was channeling her father, minus the stats about the percentage of girls to boys who broke bones. "All right sweetpea you're right girls and boys are not that different. I nearly forgot your Uncle Dave asked me to bring this to you."
Garcia handed the little girl a bag with a new book in it. Sonya he told him once that she liked the smell of old books. SinceRossi had slowly been giving her his old books. Her face light up and she began to flip through the pages. There was another knock on the door, and Reid came in the room. Will, Henry and Garcia excused themselves, knowing that the family would want some alone time.
"Daddy!" Sonya exclaimed.
Reid went over and hugged his daughter. "How are you feeling Amorino?"
"I'm tired."
"Sometimes the medicine the doctors give you to help you feel better make you tired. Do I get to sign your cast?"
"Of course Daddy," she giggled. "The doctor hasn't said it's not dry yet."
"I can wait until the doctor says that it's okay."
"Are you gonna stay with me tonight? I gotta stay at the hospital."
"I'm not sure that I can, I am supposed to go back to work. I just wanted to make sure that you were okay."
"But Daddy," she whispered, tears starting to form in her dark brown eyes, which were just like her mothers. "I want you to stay here with me so I'm not scared."
"I can try," Reid promised, unable to argue when those eyes began to water. "Amorino I said I'd go back to work after I saw you. Your mom will be here with you."
"I want both of you, please Daddy?"
"It's not up to me. I'll see what I can do."
"Okay," she whispered, she began to fall asleep.
Reid gently began to caress her temple, knowing that it would make her fall asleep. Her eyes slipped shut, and within a few minutes her breathing had slowed down slightly. He knew that she was asleep. Reid then looked up at his wife, feeling defeated. He wanted to stay with his family, but he had told Hotch that he would return to the case when he saw that Sonya was all right.
"I don't know what to do here," Reid admitted.
"What do you want to do?" Prentiss asked.
"Stay, but I told Hotch that I would come back and work the case."
"You never said when. Even if you go back tonight she's going to call you every time the nurse wakes her up, so that you can tell her a story."
"What do I tell Hotch?"
"The truth, you'll fly back once Sonya is home."
"All right, my mind won't be in it when I know she wants me here."
"Exactly, you're not any help to them if you're not one hundred percent there."
Reid made the phone call to Hotch, who did not seem surprised to learn that Reid had decided to stay at the hospital overnight, and return to work in the morning. After he had made the call a nurse had come into the room. He was glad that she had been brought to a children's hospital, which allowed the parents to stay. The nurse got maintenance to bring in a cot for them. Prentiss and Reid curled up together on the small cot, hoping to get some sleep that night.
End part 2
Notes: You had know it wasn't something too bad! Lol.. hope that I am doing this part some justice, the thing with the temple works, I've used it on kids a couple times. It kind of goes in a different direction in the next two parts.