Into the Grey
It had three weeks since Erin had buried her husband. And a small part of her as well. She was still adjusting. Adjusting to not seeing his face everyday, not receiving the random text, or late night phone call as he drove home from the office. But her heart still ached for him, for the father of her children, for her best friend.
Erin glanced down at the sonogram in her hand, her perfect little baby was thriving inside of her and it brought her a sense of peace and comfort that she couldn't put into words. She knew that Grant was looking out after her, after them.
As the car approached the stoplight Aaron looked over at her in the passengers seat. "Happy?"
"Incredibly." she replied. "You're not disappointed are you?"
"What? No. Why would I be disappointed?" he asked. "The baby is healthy and so are you. That's all that matters."
"Yes, but I know you were hoping for a girl."
"A girl would have been nice." he admitted. "But so is a boy. I have lots of experience with boys. I am one. I have a younger brother and Jack. Familiar territory."
Erin laughed. "Girls are hard. And all the drama that comes along with them is unbearable at times." she told him. "Consider yourself lucky." she teased. "Since I'm starting over a boy seems like the best option."
Aaron drove through the stoplight. "Silver linings are everywhere." he laughed. "How about lunch to celebrate and maybe this weekend we can do a little shopping?" he suggested. "He'll be here before you know it and he'll need clothes and things."
"Okay." she agreed. "Do you still have Jack's crib?"
"Crib, changing table, the whole nine yards." he replied. "It's in storage at my moms."
"Good because my baby stuff is long gone." she told him. "Looks like we'll be taking a trip to Pottery Barn."
"You just look for excuses to go in there, don't you?"
Erin laughed. "This one is valid."
"Okay but I if I have to suffer through Pottery Barn then I get to go to the Lego store."
"Deal." she agreed. "Are you going to tell Jack in person?"
"I'm going to get him one of those cupcakes with the thick blue icing." he told her. "He's pretty excited about being a big brother. I'm pretty sure the idea of a brother over a sister will thrill him."
"Dashiell was so upset when I brought Olivia home from the hospital." she laughed as she thought about the past. "He was convinced that the doctor had made a mistake and that she was really a boy. It all worked out in the end though."
"Maybe we should tell them all together." he suggested. "There's power in numbers, you know."
"Yeah and they've got us beat by two."
Over the past few weeks they had tried their best to get the children to spend time together. It was still a rough for Erin's children adjusting to life without their dad and Aaron in no way wanted them to feel like he was stepping into that position. But everyone was trying. And so far they were meeting their goal of having one meal together a week. The rest would fall together in time.
Erin's phone buzzed and she looked down at the name that appeared on the screen. "It's David." she told him. "He wants to know how the appointment went."
Erin and David had gotten friendlier over the past few weeks. And while he wasn't jealous, he wasn't completely comfortable with the situation either. David was one of his best friends, but Erin was the mother of his unborn child and that trumped everything.
"Something wrong, Aaron?"
"Have you told him..."
"No." she quickly replied. "Of course not. I figured that it would be your place to tell him."
"It's just as much your place as it is mine."
"The two of you are close." she pointed out. "He's one of your best friends."
"I think he might already know." he finally said. "He suspects something is going on between us, at least. Besides I don't want this to be a big secret. It shouldn't be a secret. There's no reason to hide it. I'm incredibly happy."
"I would still feel better about it if you told him."
They had agreed to have this baby together, to co-parent. The idea of their relationship being anything more friendship never came up. There was no romance to be had. But Aaron was still fiercely protective of her and she needed him, his support and his comfort, and nothing would ever change that.
Everything went well. It's a boy. - Erin typed back.
Congrats! Free for dinner tomorrow?
Possibly
My world famous lasagna?
Definitely free
6?
See you then.
/
Aaron knocked on Dave's open office door. "You have a minute?"
David looked up from his paperwork. "Sure." he laid his pen down on the desk. "What's up?"
He closed the door behind him and walked the three steps over to the chair. "It's about Erin."
"Something wrong?" he asked. "Erin said her appointment went well."
"It went very well." he sat down in the chair. "Both Erin and the baby are healthy."
"That's a really good thing." he said. "But I can't help but think there's something else you want to tell me."
"The baby is mine."
David nodded slowly. He had always known something was up between Hotch and Erin but he couldn't seem to put his finger on it. "Then I guess...Congratulations." he said. "That's excellent news."
"Thank you." he smiled. "It was a big surprise but we're really excited."
David couldn't help the grin that pulled at the corners of his lips. "So I was right about the affair."
Aaron shook his head. "There's no affair." he replied. "It's complicated."
"You knocked our boss up from a one night stand?"
"There was more to it than that." he tried to explain himself, why he wasn't sure. "I care about Erin and we're going to do this together."
"I know you care about her." he told him. "It's evident when you're with her. Question is do you love her?"
"Of course I do." he replied immediately. "We're always going to be connected by our son."
"But the two of you aren't together?" he clarified. "You're not building a relationship?"
"No." he said. "Erin and I are friends. We're both committed to raising this baby together and with his siblings."
"Do the children know?"
"Yes." he answered. "It was easier for me with Jack than it was for her children, they actually understand what happened. Erin has been open and up front with them from the very beginning. It's been an adjustment but things are going well."
"Sounds like the two of you have it all figured out."
"Far from." he replied. "We're just taking things as they come right now."
David was silent for several long moments. It was as though he was taking everything in. He was struggling to bog down his feelings. He was taken aback how strong they still were after all these years. "I don't understand why you're telling me all of this."
"Because we're friends and there's no reason to hide it." he told him. "Besides you and Erin have history."
He nodded in agreement. "And that's exactly what it is. History."
tbc...
Feedback is welcome and appreciated.
