It seemed like hours as he waited for his mother to arrive. Derek kept vigil over his friend, who didn't move from his position on the bed. He was worried, but didn't want to say anything to upset him. Emily hovered unseen outside of the door, and was the first to see Diana Reid rushing to her son's room. She knew better than to stop her beforehand. This was a woman on a mission.

Spencer could feel her presence when she entered the room. He looked up and there she was. She wasted no time in going over to her son and enveloped him in a hug. Spencer was immediately calmed by her familiar scent. She smelled like home.

"My baby..." She breathed in relief, gently kissing his forehead. Spencer perked up immediately.

"Hi Mommy."

"How do you feel, sweetheart?"

"Tired."

"Do you want me to read to you?"

Spencer's eyes lit up and he nodded. It made her smile. She pulled a few books from her purse and laid them out for Spencer to choose one. Derek smiled at them before exiting the room to give them some privacy, and went to get a cup of coffee with Prentiss.

"Prose Life Of Alexander. Good Choice." She moved her chair right next to the bed, opened the book, and began to read. "How Anectanabus fled Egypt to Macedonia: The most learned Egyptians who know the size of the earth, the waves of the sea, and the order of the heavens (betokening the way of the stars and the turning of the skies), have bequeathed these things to the whole world through the highness and the wisdom of magic knowledge..."

She continued to read, not unaware of her son beginning to fall asleep beside her. By the third page, he was out completely. She always knew when he was really asleep and when he was faking. She gently closed the book and put it back in her purse in favor of watching her son dream. She smiled when she saw his thumb slip into his mouth, and gently ran her fingers through his hair. He smiled in his sleep.

She didn't know how long she sat there, watching over him. Silently ruminating over how blessed she was to have him. He was the best thing that ever happened to her. She gently leaned over and tenderly kissed his forehead.

Then, in an instant, everything changed.

Everything still looked the same. Spencer was still asleep, Diana was still sitting beside him, but there was a presence just outside the door that made her hair stand on end. She turned around to see her husband standing in the doorway. Her instincts had served her well. She led him into the hall and made sure she was far enough away so that Spencer couldn't hear her.

"What are you doing here, William?" She asked.

"Your hospital called me." He said. "Your doctor wanted you supervised."

She put that item into mental storage for later.

"You shouldn't be here, Will." It was only slightly angry. "I took care of my son for eight years without your help. I think I can manage a temporary set back."

The not-so-subtle stab at his desertion pierced his heart like a blade, but he kept a straight face. The other members of the team had come back from the cafeteria and were witnessing the confrontation. As much as they wanted to leave, they were rooted to the spot. Neither William or Diana noticed.

"I want to help you."

She looked up at him. "Why?" He was quiet for a few minutes. "Well?"

"I want to make it up to him."

"What?"

"I want to make my amends."

Her voice was calm, but she flung every word at him with venom. "If you think I'll let you near him of my own free will, I'm not the insane one in this relationship." She turned to leave, but he grabbed her hand.

"Diana, wait."

She slowly turned to face him, arms crossed.

"Can't we talk about this?"

"The time for talking was twenty years ago. When you left me, I knew that it was coming. I understood why. But you turned your back on your own son. I will never understand why or how you could have done that to your child. He was just a baby- just barely ten years old, and you chose to leave him. Was your freedom really worth losing your family? Was it really that bad?" She looked up at him, confused as to how he could do something that to her was so blasphemous.

"It wasn't like that."

"Then tell me what it was, because I'm not understanding you."

He sighed. "I just wanted to get away for a while. I wanted to come back after some time off. But the days blended together and then I looked at the calendar and a month had gone by. By then I was too embarrassed to go back. I had found who I was without you and Spencer. As much as I wanted to come back, I thought you'd be better off without me."

"Better off?" She hissed angrily. "You forced our son to be my caretaker when I wasn't around. You forced him to grow up too quickly, and you made him believe that it was all his fault!"

"I was trying to protect him!"

"You know nothing about protecting him!"

"I know more than you think. I was trying to protect him from having a father that didn't deserve him."

Diana was stunned. "Is that what this is about?" She asked, quietly. "You thought you were unworthy of him?"

"Yes."

For a minute, she couldn't speak, but her features softened notably.

"Will, if anybody is unworthy of Spencer it's me." She said, quietly. William looked up at her in shock.

"What?"

"Are you kidding? With my disease? They should have called child services years ago." It was physically painful for her to admit it. "I've been trying so hard to protect him from you for years, but what kind of mother am I if I can't even protect my own son from me?!" The last word came out as a sob.

Guilt washed over William like rain, and he put a hand on his wife's shoulder.

"Diana, you're an amazing mother. Look at what you've done, look at who he grew up to be. If it wasn't for you he wouldn't be who he is today."

"But I failed him!" She said, frustrated and overwhelmed by her own anguish.

"How so?"

"I wasn't there for him! I couldn't be there when he needed me, I couldn't get out of bed half the time!" She cried, then tried to compose herself slightly. "I tried so hard to make a good life for us, but I lived with the knowledge that if my condition wasn't there I could have given my son the life he deserved. Do you know what that feels like?" She asked, gaze pleading. He clasped her hands in his own.

"You didn't fail him. You worked hard with what you had. That's all you could do. You are a strong woman, Diane. Stronger than you know."

"How do you know what I'm like?" She asked, searching his eyes for an answer.

In that moment, she looked so vulnerable and fragile that he was half tempted to sweep her up into his arms and whisk her away. He still loved her deeply, illness or no. It's why they never divorced. There were tears streaming down her face, and he reached up to wipe one away, and whispered:

"Because I married you."

Before either of them knew what was happening, they shared a passionate kiss.