My goal is for shorter chapters compared to my last story so I can update daily or every other day.
I haven't done a proofread for this chapter so I apologize in advance for errors.
She was pretty sure when it had all happened. Granted, she had slept with Mick Rawson more than a few times after that night, but it would have been just her luck to wind up pregnant from the first time- when they had both botched it a little. Well, mostly him, what guy doesn't have condoms? Anyway, narrowing it down did have some benefits because she was pretty sure the exact date, which she was able to put into a pregnancy calculator to spit out that she was around nine weeks pregnant. Apparently, there was a benefit to having only slept with one guy over the past year…and a half.
She grimaced at her lack of a sex life as she waited for Hotch in his office. It was nearly a week after she had first found out the news. If she thought her sex life was bad before, imagine her as a single mom? A single mom, which was why she found herself telling her unit chief before anyone else. It was just a weird situation she had found herself in. Under normal circumstances she would probably tell JJ first, but JJ was on her honeymoon after her recent marriage to Will. It was funny. Hotch was probably sure she was meeting with him to confirm she was moving to London to take the Interpol job, but that had been put on hold. It had been put on hold- just for a year because Clyde had promised her he would be after her again in a year's time, because she couldn't pretend the father didn't exist. He deserved a chance to get to know, or reject getting to know his child. Either or, Emily could handle either situation. But since they weren't together, she found herself in Hotch's office, telling him first.
"Very sorry, Prentiss," Hotch breathed out as he jogged into the room. He had been in a meeting with Erin Strauss, and dreaded the next one he was likely going to have to have about who to hire as Emily's replacement. It would be a difficult task. He would need a linguist who also had specialties in child advocacy and terrorism. Wasn't exactly the easier mix to find. "What did you need to see me about?"
Emily found herself digging her nails into the leather chair sat across from Hotch. It was just Hotch, but there was still something so unnerving about the whole thing. What was it about her that made talking about pregnancy so embarrassing? She was a grown woman. She could have any baby she wanted. Emily cleared her throat and used her internal pep talk to get some confidence. "You know I haven't been feeling well lately."
"Yes? Are you…ill?"
It was the slight look of fear that played across his features that made Emily soften her tone and lean forward so far that she was almost touching the desk, "Oh, no. No, nothing like that. I just found out that I'm, uh, newly pregnant." Newly pregnant? Who says that? Emily chided herself.
"Oh, congratulations, Prentiss," Hotch offered warmly. He found himself relived for two reason. Number one, there was nothing wrong with her. Number two, he didn't have to have a new team member for longer than a few months while she was on maternity leave. "Are you– I didn't know you were seeing anyone."
"I'm not," She clarified. This was awkward. "It just happened. There's not much to tell…Anyway I am technically what they call a high-risk pregnancy, and I needed to tell you—"
"–Take you out of the field."
"Yeah," Emily said as she sat back in the chair and moved to pick at her fingernails in her lap. "I can still travel and do the rest of my job normally, but probably no kicking down doors or getting shot at."
"That's probably not a good idea," Hotch smiled with a small chuckle. "Well, I am happy for you. Thank you for keeping me in the loop. When you first came on, JJ wasn't in the field much and we got on just fine. I don't see why there would be any problem with you staying behind at precincts, checking out leads, unless..."
"No, that's all totally fine," Emily waved him off as she got up from the chair. She wasn't going to get stuck on desk duty just because she was pregnant. "Thanks Hotch," she added just about as she was going to slip out the of the office.
"Prentiss?"
"Yes?" She asked, stopping right in his doorway.
"Good luck."
It was sweet and said with a smile. She had merely nodded in reply and thought of how much things had changed over the past five years. She never thought that Hotch would be congratulating her on an accidental pregnancy, let alone that he would be the first one she would tell.
Emily let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding out, but it was at the wrong time because Penelope Garcia was right there to witness it.
"Oh my god!" Garcia shrieked as her eyes quickly fill with tears. The blonde pointed accusingly at the the other woman, "You're leaving us!"
"No," Emily shushed and started to briskly walk to Garcia's lair, motioning for the technical analyst to follow her. "No, I swear I'm not."
"I, I, just, why?" Was all Garcia got out before they were both in her office.
"What?" Emily laughed. "No, I—"
"You're leaving! You just didn't want me to make a scene! Well, Emily Prentiss, I am making a scene. You cannot leave this team! You can't leave us we barely got you back. I—"
"Garcia!" Emily cut in with a voice that was a mix between laughter and a huff. She shook her head at the other woman's dramatics and dropped into the spare chair by the wall of computers. "I was talking to Hotch. I haven't told anyone yet, well beside Hotch, but—"
"—You're pregnant."
"Wha…" Emily trailed off and scratched at her temple in confusion. "How did you know?"
"Oh-my-god!" Garcia exclaimed with a clap of her hands before she let out a huge gasp. "I was kidding. Oh my god, you're preggars. You are with child! You're all knocked up with nowhere to go."
Emily nearly choked on a laugh at the odd expression, "Yeah, that."
Garcia let out another squeal and plopped into her chair. She rubbed her hands together in anticipation. She just loved a good gossip session, and what is better than a gossip session involving a baby? "How the hecksy did this happen? I need details. I need to know everything. How far along are you?"
"I have to get that exact number from my OBGYN, but probably around nine weeks. So please let's just keep it quiet until I get out of the first trimester." She was nervous when she added, "I don't want to lose it and then have everyone know. We can keep this just between us, yeah?"
"Oh, honey," Garcia cooed and put her hands comfortingly on the other woman's knees. "First of all, you're not going to. This is happening. I can feel it deep in my bones. And second, even if it did happen, which it won't, there is nothing to be embarrassed about. It happens."
"Yeah, well I just hope it doesn't."
"It won't," Garcia reassured again. "Hey! Don't think this news about your 'occupied' Prentiss hotel means I'm not mad at you. I didn't even know you were seeing anyone! I still want, nay expect, those deets."
"I'm not seeing anyone," Emily defended with hands raised in surrender.
"Well…" Garcia drawled out before flashing an evil grin. "Either you got turkey basted or you were out locking legs and switching gravy with some hunky man. So which is it?" Emily couldn't help but groan and rub her temples at the question. She was not sure which was worse: Garcia's question or her answer. "Gumdrop!" Garcia said a little louder, snapping her fingers in front of Emily's face. "Is the daddy a one night stand?"
"It's not exactly that, but mostly, yeah."
"Do you not know his name?" Garcia gasped a little. This was gossip she needed.
"God, I wish," Emily slightly groaned and pinned a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's Mick Rawson."
If Garcia had thought she was interested before, she really was then. "Supervisory Special Agent Mick Rawson? That hot Brit gone done knocked you up!"
"Something like that," Emily sighed.
"You've been seeing him for how long and haven't told me!" Garcia exclaimed with a slight swat to Emily's knee. "And now you've made me hit a pregnant."
"It didn't happen like that. I meant what I said two years ago. I haven't seen him, I mean come on Garcia…" Emily drifted off with a pointed look that said: Did you see him at my fake funeral? "I saw him at a bar," Emily clarified. She really wished JJ was there to curb some of this enthusiasm. Even Morgan or Reid would do the job. Okay, maybe not Morgan.
"Go on," Garcia motioned with her hand. "Tell me how my little gumdrop found herself knockin' boots with the sniper."
"Just to make this clear, we are not together. This just happened," Emily was quick to clarify. "I got a call from an old friend, Fiona. I knew her from Italy and later at Yale. She and another girl I knew, Mallory, went out for drinks in Dupont and Mick was there. And we talked...ish."
"What do you mean 'ish'?" Garcia questioned and moved her chin to rest on her joined hands. She loved this day. "Actually, skip to the good part. Because, honey, you did way more than talk," Garcia reminded with a point to Emily's flat midsection.
There was nothing there, but Emily still moved to straighten out her sweater. "You know, we, had fun."
"How much fun?"
"Enough fun."
That was when Garcia had wished JJ was there too. She knew the blonde could help her get more details out of Emily. "So it was only one time then?"
"Yes, mostly."
"Mhmmmmmm."
Emily couldn't help but break into laughter at Garcia's interrogation. This was normal. It was a normal girl-talk and she needed this. She needed some lightness to the situation. As annoying as it was, it felt nice. It felt real. She had spent the last few days trying to come to terms with the news, and she thought she was finally getting there. To have someone else genuinely happy for her would help. It wasn't perfect by any means, but she had wanted this. "It was one time. And then I called him a couple times after that. I had a really old condom, though, and I think with the timing it must have been that time."
"What was he like?" Garcia didn't add 'in bed' because she was sure Emily knew what she meant. Emily did, she just chose to answer the question in another way.
"He's the same he always was."
"Hot!"
Emily rolled her eyes, "Arrogant."
"He's confident. So is my baby boy."
"Well, I'm not sleeping with Morgan am I?"
"You should be so lucky!" The technical analyst scolded before she giggled. "Well, I always liked him."
"He's egotistical."
Garcia waved Emily's complaints off, "That's the same as arrogant."
"He's— He's overly flirty."
"And thank god for that. Or else those eggs would be expired and I wouldn't have gumdrop junior coming into the world."
"He's just..."
"—Dreamy."
"Annoying," Emily argued. She tried to suppress a yawn, but this baby was really draining her of all her energy. Typical of something that was the product of Mick Rawson.
"The annoying father of your baby."
"Yeah."
Garcia was just about to let the other woman go before her last question popped into her head. "Wait! What did he say? Is he excited to be a daddy. Actually, he was always a daddy, but is he excited to be a daddy-daddy?"
Emily's eyes darted away from the blonde as she quickly spit it out, "Haven't told him yet—"
"—You told Hotch before you told the baby daddy!"
"I told you before him too!" Emily defended.
"Well, that's different. Of course you told me! I'm the all-knowing."
"I'm waiting. I don't want to talk to him unless I have to. Garcia, it's so weird to tell this guy you've only slept with a few times that you're pregnant. It's not like JJ and Will. I know nothing about him."
Garcia softened her expression, "Oh, Emily, my sweet Snarky McSpy. You need to stop living in the world of worst case scenarios, and tell that man he knocked ya up!"
"I know you're right…"
"There are no buts. Go tell him."
"Can I—"
"You cannot send him an email of your sonogram!"
Emily narrowed her eyes at the other woman, who had by then pulled her off the chair to her feet, "I was going to say text him."
"No!" Garcia yelled and pushed Emily out of her office door. "Do it in person like a normal person. My god, do I have to do everything around here?"
She stared at her cell phone sitting on her desk. Garcia was right. As much as she dreaded it, and as superstitious as she was being, she had to tell Mick Rawson. He was the father. And maybe he wouldn't be interested in raising it and it would be left to her. She could handle that. That would be easier in its own way. But until it got to that point, she had to tell him.
So far she had been lucky. She had found herself pregnant right around the bombing case, and by the time it was real the BAU had been pulled off rotation for a couple weeks. But she had told Hotch because their number was being called up again in two or so weeks. She could have probably hid her pregnancy a little longer, but the fact was the team would likely find out in two weeks time, at 11 weeks. And she didn't really want to hide it beyond that. She was done with the secrets and lies. She couldn't do that anymore. They had made her want to pack up and run away again. If she was going to be able to stick it out in the BAU, after all that had happened, she had to start being honest. She had to be a 'real person.'
So yes, at 11 weeks when she would be back in the field otherwise, she was going to tell the team. Which made Garcia right. She couldn't tell the team before Mick Rawson. There was something mean about that. If she were to admit it to herself, the man wasn't awful. He was just Mick Rawson. There wasn't any reason why the entire team should find out before him. Telling Hotch was fine because he made tactical decisions, and if a case did pull them out from their vacation, he needed to know she was not good to go. Telling Garcia was fine too because otherwise she would have had a meltdown about Emily "leaving." But telling Morgan, and Reid, and JJ, and Rossi before Mick? That would be pushing it. Maybe telling JJ would have been okay, but outside of her that was something that even Emily had to admit was a little unkind.
It was the internal rambling of being 'unkind' that made her pick up the phone and call Mick. He had picked up on the third ring.
"Hello Agent Prentiss, I have to admit I'm surprised by your phoning me! So early too, normally I expect a one word text at two in the morning," He exaggerated in a cheery voice. She sent two word texts, for the record.. "How can I help you?"
"Uh," She found herself incredibly nervous at the sound of his voice. "Can you come over to my house tomor— tonight? Can you come over around six tonight?"
"Sex?"
"Six."
"Quick shag for ya?" He questioned in a smug tone.
"Six! Seriously, it's important, okay? Can you be an actual adult person for once? I'm practically begging you."
She heard him laugh on the other end of the phone. "I love it when you beg for me."
"Mick!"
"Fine," Mick relented with a smirk. "You phoned me for something serious. I'm touched—"
"—Shut up."
"This is more than a bit surprising, but got it. You want me to bring over some take away?"
It was a nice offer and Emily couldn't help but let out a small smile at the consideration. "Yeah, sure, whatever you want."
"A curry? Pork pie? Kebab?"
All of those options made Emily want to retch, "Anything but those. I have to go." She had quickly dropped her phone before she rushed off to the BAU bathrooms.
In the meantime, a very confused Mick Rawson was left on the phone, "Emily? You said I could pick anything. Sushi? Pizza? Emily?"
The big convo will be next chapter.
Also, are people more interested in a boy or girl? It doesn't really matter for the story so I'm open to hearing preferences.
