Good Morning, everybody!
I was happy o see that quite some people seem to read this story but before I say anything else I need to complain about something. It's basically the same thing all the time - I want reviews. More reviews. I love getting & reading them and I'm leaving at least a few words to most of the stories I read, too. Excpt to the few I think are really crappy and I just can't think of anything not-rude to say.
So please, please, please do me the favour and write what you think about this story. Can be good or bad things, I welcome both!
Okay, so I'll count on getting some more this chapter.
Oh - and of course thatnks for the two I already got, to those who put this on Alter & to everyone else who read this.
This chapter is rather short as most chapters in this story will be.
I hope you like it though.
&& nothing belongs to me. Wht a pity.
We call them fools
Who have to dance withing the flame
Who chance the sorrow and the shame
That always comes with getting burned.
Monday mornings.
He hated them for a reason.
Nothing was harder than leaving the bed to an upcoming week of work, work, work and a little son, which boiled down to the same thing.
Could life be any harder?
Sure. It could be quater to eight, for instance.
Shoot!
"Jack! Jack, are you coming?"
"Just a minute, dad!"
Hotch rolled his eyes as he watched his son running up and down the house. Once again he wondered where exactly five year old kids got as much energy from. Did they hide it at some secret place? He remembered very well how enhausted Jack had been yesterday night. He had fallen asleep even before Hotch had tucked him in - and now he seemed to be in the mood to run a marathon. How was this even possible?
The next time Jack passed his range Hotch reached out to gently wave down the energetic boy.
"Okay, what are you up to?"
"I can't find my shoes."
Hotch sighted. "They are right next to the door. I found them under the couch yeserday."
"But they are the wrong ones!"
"What's... nothing's wrong with them, Jack, they are perfectly fine."
"Yes they are. But not for now!"
"Then which pair would you like to wear instead?", Hotch asked, clueless about why Jack appearently couldn't wear his beloved soccor-ball patterned winter boots today but at every other time. What kind of kid worried about shoes anyways? Except from that weird girl with the dyed pigtails in Jack's preschool class, of course.
"The ones with the shoelaces. Not the childish ones with the hook and loop fasteners", Jack explained and made a serious face, "the older children are doing a field trip today. I don't want the soccer shoes."
"But you're still having trouble to tie the lace-pair", Hotch tried to convince, "plus I have no clue where they are either and we're gonna be late anyway. Just take the boots, they're fine and quite cool."
"Oh I think I remember where they are now. I forgot 'em at Aunt Penelope's. She always wants me to wear them because she thinks they're looking good." He grimaced and then smiled, obvioulsy relieved. "We simply need to stop by to get them back."
"We don't have time for that and she'll be at work by now. Where I, by the way, should be, too."
He gently lifted his son up and went to the door.
"Why do you want to wear those anyway? You always told me you hate them and you're right, they are nasty. Remember when you tried to burn them in the backyard?"
"Yes, cause they're useless. But I need them today. Okay?"
"What- Jack-? No, we don't have time to drive across the whole city to get you a pair of shoes while you have a couple of alternative, good pairs. Why do you want them?"
"I just told you we're going on a fieldtrip."
"And where would this be? I can't remember being informed about a field trip to any place that's fancy."
"To elementary school so that we see what going there is like."
"You do know that it's the same building, right? You're only going to be in different rooms."
"Yes. But I need to look more grown-up or they'll laugh at us, daddy! You can't let them love at me, I don't want them to and it wouldn't be fair because they aren't much older than I am but I'm sure they'll feel like they're way better and smarter than us and it's just not fair and really totally so not-"
Hotch threw his hhands up in orror and tried to think about an easy solution. A short glimpse on his wristwatch told him that he'd be about 15 minutes late and if he should happen to be out of luck Strauss would take note and beat a dead horse about it, even though she had been very understanding in every issue that concerned his care for Jack since Haley's death.
"Calm down, buddy, nobody's gonna laugh at you."
"You don't know that."
"Yes I do. They all were in preschool when they were younger and they'll know what its like. Okay? You can wear your Sketchers. They're easier to handle and have nothing child-like on them. Deal?"
Jack frowned lightly, and adorable enough to make it impossible for Hotch to be mad at him for the delay, and ran back up the stairs to get the brand-new pair of shoes. He walked back down, legs apart and shoulders squared, supressing his smile in an attempt to look grown-up and serious.
"Lets go", Hotch smiled and opened the front door. Jack ran to the car and tried to open the doors, even though they still were locked, all of a sudden forgetting about not being childish and jumping up and down next to it.
"Do you realize I'm almost in school? Like real school?" He didn't wait for his dad to answer. "That means I'll be old soon which means I should get to sit in the front of the car.´Only children sit in the back and I'm almost not a child so I shouldn't sit there either."
Hotch didn't bother to answer. Winning an argument against a child was basically impossible since they wouldn't run out of, although bad, reasons for why they were right and everyone else wasn't. Jack went into the back of the car without complaining and climbed onto his booster seat.
"Seatbelt on?"
"Yes dad. I know how to drive, you know? I could probably drive this car all by myself if you'd let me. You break the rules when you driven which is weird cause you'e the cops and you catch people who do that. But they do worse things like the man whom I hid from cause I'm smart, remember? However, the other day you were driving too fast. Now how do I know that? I saw the flashlight of the cameras that see if a car's too fast. It's called radar and it's real good and you shouldn't drive too fast. It's dangerous and people can die from it."
Luckily driving to school didn't take long. Due to their tardiness, the morning rush hour was already over and the parking lot in front of the preschool section was almost empty. They went in fast and Jack got more and more excited about getting a look at elementary school in the afternoon.
They met Miss Campbell, Jack's teacher, outside of the room. She smiled widely as she saw father and son hurrying down the hallway. She knew what had happened to the Hotchner family and had helped Hotch to arrenge a sitter for Jack when he had to leave all of a sudden several times. She liked the man and the little boy who at first seemed to be nothing like his father. But as soon as one took a closer look it became obvious that Hotch once had been just as happy as Jack was now and that those parts of his self shined through whenever he was with his boy.
"Mr. Hotchner, Jack. I'm glad you're here. I was just about to call you to check whether everything's alright or if Jack is sick."
"Believe it or not, he had serious womenhood-problems concerning his footwear."
"Well, I'm glad you got that solved. Hey Jack, I'll be waiting inside while you say bye to your daddy, okay? Kim and Ezra have been asking for you. They'll be glad you're here."
"Okay Miss Campbell", Jack answered and turned towards Hotch, giving him a few seconds to crouch down before he wrapped his arms around his father's neck.
"Bye Jack. Be good, okay? Have fun at school - and don't worry about the firstgraders. You're a smart, big almost-grown-up and you're gonna be awesome. I love you."
"Love you too."
The boy gave his father a smile, turned around and ran through the door to play with his Kim and Ezra.
He arrived in Quantico about half an hour later.
Little did he knew that he wouldn't return.
"It's what Jack told me", JJ whispered and repeated it before the prosecutor had the chance to tell her to speak up.
"He stays with FBI's tech analysis Penelope Garcia. She's the one who still had the shoes he wanted to wear that day and she is my son's godmother. But Hotch decreeded in his will that if she's okay with it she could care for Jack if anything happened. He knew too that she wouldn't ever let him down. When I was released from hospital in January Will had already moved to an apartment and she refused to let me live all by myself from the beginning on. stayed with her for about two weeks and then she agreed I could become more independant."
Hang in there, JJ, hang in there.
Don't you dare trying to leave me ever again! I'm hurt too. And you're going to be there for me!
You'll always be my little gumdrop. You are beautiful. End of story.
JJ smiled as she remembered how they had argued about whether JJ could be let alone or not. "She's been the one who made me go to a therapist. It's just... she's the most amazing person ever and the one who keeps me involved in life. He'll always find a family in his father's friends. But he became an orphan withing the first five years of his life. He's doing good though. Brave kid."
"Please continue to tell us what you know. I'll ask you for details after you finished."
She nodded shortly and wiped away a tear, shivering as she touched the abnormal scar tissue.
"I'll try."