An Earful

Disclaimer: I'll never own Criminal Minds.

Summary: What happens when you wake up one day to hear what people can think?

A/N: So here's part two, I'm not sure where I'm actually going with this story but enjoy it anyway.

Thanks for reading, please remember to leave a review.

The Buddha said, "We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts, we make the world."

Garcia barged in, "Good morning, Gumdrop."

"Hey, PG" Emily answered, looking up from her case file, "Wow, Morgan you look as bad as Garcia felt last night."

"Very funny, Princess" Morgan muttered, slinking down in the chair tired, while Garcia shot the brunette a perky grin.

He knew that he should have been over the moon at hearing the most inner private thoughts of the people around him. Or more specifically his friends, particularly the women.

As much as he prided himself on keeping his own life private, that was nothing compared to hearing the most intimate of details retaining to the people he was closes to. And there was nothing that was off limit about them.

At least that's what Garcia repeatedly reminded him before they had quietly entered the conference room and took their seats.

Morgan internally groaned as he rubbed his still aching head when he felt a jab at his right side. Looking over he saw Garcia's mischievous gaze stop on him.

"Morgan, are you sure you're all right?" the brunette asked, giving him a sideways glance, 'God, just how much did he have to drink?'

"Oh he's more than fine, Gumdrop" Garcia answered for the man, not missing the look he shot her, 'Trust me, Mocha Man. You do not want her to know.'

"Morgan?" Emily asked again, her eyes softening, 'Please tell me you're ok.'

"I'm fine, Princess" Morgan assured her, "Just a little headache."

"And a nasty bruise" she commented as her eyes zeroed in on his forehead, "Did you get that from under the table?"

"Mm hmm" he nodded, watching her eyes scan over his face, "I'm fine, Princess, I promise I'm fine. No need to make a fuss."

"Ok" she told him pursing her lips, 'Like you wouldn't be throwing a world-class hissy fit if we didn't fuss over you.'

That made him raise an eyebrow, but he let it go while she turned back to her paper work on the round table.

'I am stuck on band-aid brand because germs don't stick on me...' a voice sang out, making the dark man roll his eyes turning to the voice it belonged to.

"Good morning everyone" Reid greeted before taking a seat beside Garcia.

"Morning sunshine" Garcia replied, while Emily shot the younger man a smile before focusing back on her work.

"Say Emily?" Reid called out, and Morgan had to stifle a giggle when he heard the brunette groaned in her mind.

'God, please don't let him ask me...' she began pleading in her mind.

"How would you like to attend the showing of Manos, Hands of Fate?" Reid asked, "They're having a screening at the Cinema next week."

'What? Wait, is this suppose to be some sort of a date?' she said, 'What do I say, 'Sorry, I'm washing my hair?' or 'Not interested?'

"That's really sweet Reid, but I've actually got plans next week" the brunette apologetically stated, "Maybe another time?"

'Nooooo' Garcia thought, shooting Morgan an amused look, while Emily gave the younger agent a sorrowful look.

'Shoot' Reid thought but nodded giving her a boyish smile, "Yeah, maybe another time."

'Do you think that he's got feelings for her?' Garcia thought, her eyes shooting over to Morgan who shrugged.

"All right, Garcia tells us what you've got" Hotch said, walking in with Dave and JJ following behind him.

'Wow, he looks like crap' Morgan heard, looking up to see JJ settle into her seat, 'Man, I hope I didn't look that bad during Hotch's triathlon.'

Morgan cleared his throat lightly, leaning back as he felt a high heel connect to his shin. Looking over to the blonde beside him who was going over the preliminary outline of their current case review.

'Pay attention, Mocha Man' Garcia thought, shooting him a look before continuing her speaking.

The athletic man rubbed his ear, hearing the combination of the scheming Garcia's thoughts along with the teams started merging together, causing him to fidget in his seat.

'Huh' he could hear coming from JJ, while Emily's face looked at him in puzzlement.

'Henry moves like that when he has to go to the bathroom' the blonde thought, sipping her drink.

"Are you all right, Morgan?" Hotch asked, 'Something's off with him.'

"I'm good." the younger man said, waving a dismissive hand at the concern.

"He just had too much to drink I take it" Dave commented, 'Must've had a helluva good time, considering the bruise he has on his head.'

"All right Garcia, I want you and Reid to go over all the files..." Hotch's voice trailed off, looking over at Morgan, 'Huh, he better not be too hung over to work.'

Morgan's eyes popped open at that, and he saw a smirk grow across the amused brunette beside him. Rubbing his temples, he was pleasantly surprised to feel her gently pat his hand in a sympathetic manner.

'Ah, too much carousing, huh?' he heard her mentally chuckle at that, 'Remember that the next time you pick on me and my girls night bender.'

'What the hell?' Morgan heard a voice he knew but never in such an angry tone before.

Looking up, he saw a scowl on the face of his Unit Chief. That look said it all, other than the mental cursing that he could hear from his bosses mind, Morgan knew one thing. Hotch was definitely not happy.

A quick glance reminded the younger man that his hand was still being patted by the brunette beside him.

'Poor fella' Emily thought with a soft chuckle, 'I can see the pissed off look.'

"JJ, I want you and Rossi to contact Lieutenant Miller and ask him for the preliminary findings" Hotch told the blonde.

"Sure thing" JJ said, collecting the paper work in front of her, 'Thank you God for sparing me from the wrath of Hotch.'

The blonde shared a look with Dave, then the two quickly retreated from the conference room, leaving Morgan with a sharp pain in his head.

"Morgan, are you all right?" Reid timidly asked, the older man could hear the underline worry in his tone, 'Oh please don't let him be sick. God, what if it's a tumor? Or worse what if it's cancer?'

"I'm fine" Morgan answered, shutting his eyes tightly, as he pinched the bridge of his nose trying to ward off the noise in his head.

"Are you sure?" she asked, her slender hand reaching over to tenderly touch the abrasion on his face, "Maybe you should..."

'Goddamn it' Morgan heard from Hotch's mind.

"Morgan, did you hear me?" Emily asked softly, her dark eyes searching his, "Do you need something?"

'Yeah, a swift foot up the ass' Hotch grumbled darkly, looking over at the aching man, "Morgan, if you're feeling unwell it'd be best for you to go home and rest."

'And get the hell away from Emily' Hotch mentally added, "Would you like that?"

"I swear I'm fine" Morgan protested, "I'll just go down into the break room and get some aspirin."

"Fine" Hotch said, turning back to his paper work, 'Just as long as he doesn't touch Emily we'll be fine. Prentiss. Prentiss. She's Prentiss.'

'Since when did his teeth get so... white?' Reid's thought rang out as Morgan walked out of the break room, 'Huh, I better ask which brand of toothpaste...'

Morgan took a deep breath as he stood in front of the refrigerator and reached in grabbing a bottled water. Taking a large sip from the bottle when he was quickly spun around causing the man to drop his water all over the person before him.

"Ah, damn it Morgan" Emily protested, 'God, that's cold. This is cold. Great I'm stuck here all wet.'

Morgan couldn't contain the chuckle at that thought, but quieted up when she glared at him.

"Princess, I am so sorry" he apologized only to watch the brunette reach across him, pressing her chest into his arm as she grabbed a napkin.

"It's fine, Morgan." she muttered, trying to quickly dry off her top only to grumbled once she looked down to see entire white blouse was now see-through.

"Em?" he asked, only to read her thoughts as his eyes zeroed down, "I'm so..."

"It's fine" she muttered, but her mind was inwardly cursing her bad timing, his clumsiness and her choice of attire.

"Prentiss?" a voice called out, "Did you get Morgan? We need to go over the specs for the file..."

The two younger agents' heads popped up at the sound of his voice stopping.

'Shit' Emily thought, 'Great, another person to bare witness to my humiliation. Thanks a lot, Morgan.'

"I'm sorry to interrupt" Hotch stated in a detached tone, "Is everything all right in here?"

"Just a little water incident." Emily muttered, moving away from Morgan towards the paper towel rack.

"I really am sorry, Emily" Morgan reiterated, "I'm really sorry."

"I said, it's fine" she replied, turning around giving both men a clear view of her see-through top.

"Oh" Morgan murmured, rubbing his head while trying to avert his eyes.

'Those are breasts. Prentiss' breasts' Morgan heard Hotch's mind screamed out, 'Prentiss, naked Prentiss.'

The dark agent rolled his eyes upwards to look at the ceiling.

'An amazing set of breasts' Hotch's mind reiterated, before shaking himself of those thoughts, 'Focus, Hotchner, Focus.'

"I'm sure it was an honest mistake, Prentiss." Hotch said, clearing his throat.

"I'm sure it was it was" she replied, trying to shake the hem of her blouse dry, "Look, I'm gonna need to..."

"Ah" Hotch said, nodding, "We'll wait for you, why don't go on and change."

"Thanks" she muttered, 'Yeah I'll change. Into someone who doesn't have a see through top, with her boss not even noticing she's practically nude.'

Passing the two men, she didn't notice Morgan's eye roll or Hotch's eye line going progressively lower to her chest.

'Stop thinking about her breasts, stop thinking about her breasts' Hotch mentally chastised himself, 'Stop thinking how it would feel in your hands, or how soft her skin might be. Stop thinking about how she'd look in your...'

"Oh my God" Morgan groaned in frustration, causing the team leader to look at him, "It's just a bad headache."

"Uh huh" he nodded, pursing his lips together in a thin line, "Why don't you go back into the conference room so we can work on the other findings from Lieutenant Miller's files."

Morgan was about to acquiesce his boss, when something hit him. Or rather more like someone's thoughts.

His boss was still thinking about Emily and the wet blouse.

"Morgan?" Hotch called out, seeing the younger man's step falter, "Is there anything else?"

"Uh, yeah" Morgan started, then paused.

"What?" Hotch asked, his tone slightly irritated, 'God, what else can go wrong today?'

"It's about Prentiss." Morgan pursed his lips.

"What about her?" Hotch asked, his mind instinctively going back to a place that would be deemed inappropriate as her boss.

"Well it's just..." Morgan started, not needing to be a mind reader to see the frustration on Hotch's face, "Well..."

'Oh for the love of God spit it out' Hotch thought, taking a deep breath, "Yes?"

"Emily's still in the locker room" Morgan pointed out, not missing the puzzled look on Hotch's face, "And she's the only one on our team that's proficient in foreign languages outside of Rossi with Italian."

'Huh?' Hotch's mind sputtered out, "We can wait for her Morgan, it's not a big deal."

Morgan rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah, that's the thing Hotch... Garcia told me that she lost the translation papers from one of the case notes and its the one that's links the unsub to the Taylor murders."

Hotch's eyes widen, "How did she lose the papers?"

'Shoot, this cannot be happening' his mind rattled off, 'It's bad enough having Strauss hound me day and night over little things, but to deal with this too? She's going to nag my ear off for months.'

"Hotch?" Morgan called out, watching his boss debate himself.

'Maybe I could send someone in to lighten the woman up?' Hotch thought, shaking his head, 'Nah, even roasting at the stake she'd still criticize whoever was lighting her up on proper etiquette on how to commit murder.'

Morgan smirked at that, "Hotch?"

'Besides who'd I send in anyway?' Hotch asked himself, 'The woman can't stand me, she'd eat Reid alive. Morgan? Nah, she'd just offer him my job again... and then there's Rossi?'

Morgan rubbed his aching temples from the man's diligent internal declaration that he'd get nothing with this case. The younger man could tell that there was a lot on his boss' mind, more than the current case file they were suppose to be working on.

'How about...' Hotch started only to be shaken from his internal monologue.

"Hotch!" Morgan startling the older man, "You want me to get Emily so we can get this over?"

"That's all right, I've got it" Hotch answered, his mind flashing to the brunette in the locker room.

"Are you sure?" Morgan asked, trying to tune out the images Hotch had flashing through his mind. He did not need to see them in delicto flagrante.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Hotch turned back to Morgan, "It's fine, go back to the conference room Morgan."

Morgan watched his boss leave the break room and wander down the hall, passing the back offices heading towards the back locker rooms.

'Well, what are you waiting for?' he heard the perky voice of his baby girl from behind him causing him to turn around.

"What?" he asked.

'What do you mean what?' she narrowed her eyes, 'Come on.'

Morgan reluctantly allowed himself to be dragged down the hall when she felt him stop midstep.

"What is it?" Garcia asked turning around to look at the pensive man, "Derek?"

"We shouldn't be doing this" he started, pursing his lips, "I mean I know that we started this but..."

The blonde furrowed her eyebrows, 'What? You cannot be chickening out on me, mon ami.'

"Garcia" Morgan said, using his most persuasive though authoritative tone, "This is Hotch we're talking about here."

"So?" she replied, not seeing the downside to their plan, "Don't you want to see boss man happy?"

"Of course" Morgan stated, "But you can't just lock to people into a room and expect them to do what you want."

Garcia shot him a disbelieved look, "You've got the profiler thing going for you. You can read people even without that whole" she leaned in, lowering her voice, "Mind reading thing. Tell me that you can't see it clear as day, Hotch wants Emily and I know my Gumdrop wants him too."

The man stood still, rubbing his aching head, "I know that, but come on. It's one thing to think something, it's another to act upon it. Baby Girl, please tell me you see my side of this."

The blonde bit her lower lip, "I can understand your opinion, but trust me, I can feel the chemistry thick between the two. Call me a snoop or a busybody, but I am trying to help them."

"Baby girl, I know you've got a big heart, hell that's what we love about you" Morgan sighed, pausing before continuing, "But even the road to hell is paved with good intentions."

'What the hell?' she thought, "What the hell, Derek? I'm not hurting anyone, they are both single and deserve to be happy."

"Garcia" he said, taking a deep breath, "This isn't about you. Whether Hotch and Emily choose to start something or not, is up to them. For all we know, she doesn't feel that way about him, or him about her."

Garcia scoffed at that, "Are you blind, deaf or just a total dimwit? Derek, it's as plain as the nose on your face."

Before either could utter another sentence the sound of a groan made the two BAU employees look over to the locker room door that was not more than a few feet from them.

"What was that?" Garcia asked, looking towards the profiler. A thought quickly crossed her mind, one that made the experienced man cringe.

"Jeez Garcia, did you have to go and think that?" he shuddered, cursing the blonde's overactive mind.

"Can't help it" she said, covering her mouth, "I keep forgetting you've got that whole Johnny Smith, Dead Zone thing going on."

"Again with the tv show references." he muttered, shaking himself of her thoughts.

The blonde looked from the door to him, then quickly shoved the larger man towards it.

"No baby girl, I won't go spying" he protested, trying to wrench himself free of her grasp, "Since when have you been eating your spinach, Popeye?"

"Toot toot" she teasingly answered shoving him at the door again, "Go listen."

Placing his hands on the door frame, Morgan tilted his head to the side, sighing as he tried to listen in on any sounds coming from the locker room.

Frowning when he only heard what appeared to be the sound soft singing, he looked over at the blonde analyst and shook his head.

"Nothing" he whispered, turning his attention back to the door, only to fall backwards on his backside.

"Oh my God, Derek" Garcia cried out, to the wincing man, "What happened?"

"A lot" he muttered, looking up at the cause of his fall, "Hotch?"

"Morgan, what are you doing?" Hotch asked, looking from the rising man to the pink cheeked woman beside him, "Why aren't you two working?"

"We... we are working" Garcia lamely replied, 'Do not tell Hotch what we were planning to do, Morgan.'

"On?" Hotch asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow at her.

"Better question is" the blonde quickly deflected, "Why were you in the women's locker room? Or better yet, why is Emily wearing your white work shirt?"

"Oh" he said, looking from the two then to the brunette beside him, "Well I... well the thing is..."

'What the hell am I suppose to say, 'I had to see her in my top? Crap, even I don't believe that and I'm one of the best profiler's in the world... well not the world but the team.' Hotch thought.

"Huh" Morgan muttered to himself, "Well?"

'I'm thinking, I'm thinking' Hotch's mind shouted out, making Morgan flinch at that, "Prentiss needed a new shirt, since someone ruined hers with water."

'Make him feel the guilt' Hotch said, giving the two a pointed stare, 'Keep eye contact on them. Make them squirm with uncertainty and guilt. Yeah, I'm good at that.'

"Oh" Garcia said, "Really, Gumdrop?"

"Uh huh" she answered, 'God, get me the hell out of this awkward situation in one piece and I really will give up nail picking and abstain from my secret coffee binges. I promise.'

Morgan internally smirked at that, but the look of desperation on her face made him refrain from opening his mouth.

"Whatever" Morgan said, trying to make his tone sound indifferent, "We need to get back to the case files, right baby girl?"

"But..." the blonde protested as Morgan pulled her down the hallway, "But there's so many questions that I've got."

"Enough with the snooping, Garcia" the profiler muttered, the blonde still not relenting at being forced away.

Mentally wincing at the rambling thoughts of not only Garcia, but Hotch and Emily's as well.

"Will you watch how you grab me, my mocha man?" Garcia's voice pierced through the ramblings, "I bruise easily."

Morgan quickly glanced back down the hall with the fidgeting blonde proclaiming her love for the two still standing there.

His eyes instinctively shut as they passed several floor agents, whose own minds were all moving a mile a minute.

Emily's face looked surprised once Morgan's eyes reopened and shot her a look, "Morgan look out!"

As Morgan turned his head to look, his face meeting with the opening of the janitor's door and fell backwards on to the ground.

The athletic man could hear people calling out to him, a mixture of concern and surprise in the voices.

"Derek?" he heard, recognizing Emily's soft tone, "Derek, can you hear me?"

"My poor milk chocolate" Garcia sniffled out, "Watch where you're going next time Franklin."

"I'm really sorry" the younger man said, "Is he all right? Should I call an ambulance?"

"Shh" Emily whispered, "I think he's coming to... Morgan, can you hear me?"

"Yeah" he answered, as he struggled to open his eyes, "I can't feel my nose."

"Yeah..." Garcia slowly replied, "That can't be good, right?"

"Shh" Emily soothingly whispered, "Morgan, can you open your eyes for me?"

Finally opening his eyelids, the man winced as he tried to sit up, "I think I need a hand."

Hotch leaned down along with Franklin, and the two men held on as the down agent pulled himself up to rest against the wall.

"How are you feeling?" Hotch asked, kneeling beside Morgan.

"I've had better days" he muttered, rubbing his forehead then looked up to the four concerned faces before a realization dawned on him making him scoff.

"What?" Garcia asked, pulling out a tissue to tend to the small trace of blood beneath Morgan's now bruising nose, "Are you in pain?"

He looked from Garcia, to Hotch and Emily and heard nothing. No inner voices, thoughts or in Garcia's case, plotting.

He was completely free of his bizarre gift, and that, despite the physical pain he was in, made him smile.

"Morgan are you all right?" Hotch asked, his eyes scanning the younger man.

"I'm fine" he chuckled, startling the four "Believe me, I am more than fine."

"What about..." Garcia started, only for her to focus her gaze on him, "You know?"

Morgan slowly stood up, instantly allowing himself to be helped by the blonde "Baby Girl, I'm all good."

"What?" she asked, as the two slowly descended down the hallway leaving Hotch and Emily standing there in wonderment, "No, you're kidding?"

The brunette looked over at Hotch, "What was that all about?"

"I don't know, and I don't want to know" Hotch replied, giving her a quick once over, "Want to grab some lunch before we get back to work, Prentiss?"

"Sure" she answered biting the inside of her cheek, "Guess we're the only normal ones on this team, huh?"

Hotch inwardly smirked at that, "God help this team then."

The two agents walked down the hall and back to their semblance of a normal life, still unaware of the others feelings for each other.

Confucius said, "Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."

THE END

Well I hope you all liked this. I don't even know how I feel about this story. To be honest this one took me a few weeks to write and I'm not happy about that.

Remember to leave a review.