Pairing: Rossi/Garcia

Date: December 8, 2013

Baby, It's Cold Outside by Dean Martin and Martina McBride (or by She & Him if you want a slightly different twist to the song.)


Rossi bit back a curse word as he entered the BAU, his finger stinging.

"What's wrong?" Alex Blake's voice met his ears, and he turned to see her enter after him.

"I just got a blood blister," he said. "I got my finger stuck in my binder."

"Ouch!" She exclaimed. "What are you going to do for it?"

"I have no idea," Rossi said. "But I guess I should wash up."

He turned around and headed back out of the bullpen, heading for the men's room and sliding his hand over the binder to close it, when a voice behind him startled him.

"Rossi, I have to show you this!" Reid's voice, excited, surprised him, and he jammed the binder into his finger again.

"Merda," he cursed, instinctively putting his finger into his mouth.

Reid, understandably, looked slightly disgusted, germaphobe he was. "What are you doing?"

"You made me pop a blood blister," Rossi bit out.

"Whoops," Reid said, looking truly apologetic. "Sorry. Um. You could ask Garcia for help. I know she has a mini first aid kit."

"Thanks," Rossi said. "What were you going to tell me?"

"Oh, I'll tell Alex," Reid said, tucking a folder under his arm. "It's just a new study done."

"Tell me later," Rossi said, and went over to Garcia's den, knocking before entering.

"Come in!" Came her voice, and he walked in.

It was dark, as usual. She was seated at her desk, her headset strapped on and she looked to be doing a million things at once, typing furiously and talking someone through setting up a new system.

He waited until she was done on the phone before saying anything.

"What's up, Rossi?" She asked brightly, her attention fully on him for a few moments and he privately marvelled at her. He'd never known someone as luminescent as Penelope Garcia.

"I popped a blood blister and Reid said you had a first aid kit," he related, showing her his finger.

"Damn," she said, surprising him. Garcia wasn't usually one to curse, not with traditional swear words, at least. "Come here," she urged, shoving her rolling chair over to a different section of her desk, flipping a light over the work space and grabbing his hand with one smooth motion.

Damn.

She took the first aid kit in one hand as she looked at his finger, ably opening the box and finding the sterile wipe. "This should be all you need," she reflected, swabbing it down and finding a bandaid, which she wrapped carefully around his finger. "That and this." She pressed a kiss to his finger before looking up at him, eyes sparkling. "A little love goes a long way, after all."

"It does," he smiled, trying to not react to her words. Love. Well, Garcia loved all of her teammates. It wasn't unusual for her to express that. Yet...it was rarely alone in a darkened room with the one who was in love with her.

Not that she knew that.

Not that he should call it love.

And yet what other word was there? He felt a deep fierceness in regards to her, a protectiveness that ran deeper even than Morgan's or Hotch's, who both watched over the tech with alacrity.

One of Rossi's first encounters with her had been when she'd been shot. He'd learned almost right away about her capacity for love and compassion, and how they could both lead her into trouble...deep trouble.

And since then, he'd watched her continue to be loving and silly and professional and to try her damndest at a job she didn't really 'love' but she loved her teammates and she loved rescuing people so she stuck it out.

And he loved her for it. He couldn't help himself.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something to her. "Thank you," he said, his voice earnest.

"Of course," she replied, slipping back into Tech Genius/Goddess mode as a call came in on her headset.

He slipped from her lair, feeling even more blue than he'd been when he'd walked in.


Later that day, Hotch had taken the team out on a consult, everyone but Rossi and Blake. Blake and Rossi had been relegated to staying behind and directing movements...which, for this case, amounted to sitting in the round table room shooting the breeze while waiting for word to come in that they were needed.

"All I wanted to tell her was that, while loquacious was indeed a word, it did not mean loose bowelled," Blake said, and they both exploded with laughter. "I think she was one of my...slower students, and that is being kind."

"I would not want you as my teacher," Rossi said, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

"Why not?" She posed the question deadly seriously.

"Because you'd bust me in two seconds," he said. "All of my secret plans for disrupting your class...poof!"

He waved his hands in the air and she noticed the bandage on his index finger. "Ah, who did that for you?"

"Garcia," he said, feeling his voice soften as he said it.

If Blake notice it, the only indication she gave was a slight hike of her eyebrow.

"I thought she didn't do well with blood," she quipped.

"She'll give you 200% in every situation, if you tell her she's needed," Rossi said. "Bar nothing."

Blake's eyes widened. "I believe you," she said. "She's quite an amazing woman."

"That's not even half of it," Rossi muttered, as the tech goddess herself hurried into the room, her high heels' clopping giving her away.

"Okay, the team is away and I need to ask you guys," Garcia said, placing her hands on the table.

Rossi quietly admired the picture she made, in a figure hugging black dress with bright green tights to liven the look, a pink hat with pink fishnet over the face, and red and white arm warmers. She was beautiful. She was always perfectly lovely.

"What is it, Garcia?" Blake asked, all business. She was obviously pleased to be asked whatever Garcia was going to ask of her, instead of Garcia going to someone like JJ or Morgan as she usually did.

Rossi was also pleased, wondering what she was going to say.

"So you guys know that I have a reputation for always having the best gifts in existence for everyone on this team, right?" Garcia asked. "Mainly because I stalk people's online history and drop hints and...never mind. I'll stop giving my techniques away. But this year, I have given Hotch everything perfect already and I do not know what to give him."

Rossi felt disappointment settle in, even as Blake perked up, already eager for the challenge.

"What about books?" Blake said. "A legal thriller, or maybe he gets enough of that at the office."

"Definitely," Rossi said. "Though Prentiss occasionally read Jodi Picoult, I think all of us stick to milder things when we're out of the office."

"I've already given him books anyway," Garcia complained. "And I have perfect gifts for everyone!"

"Even us?" Blake asked, smiling.

"Indeed, of course, how could I not?" Garcia hurried.

"Perfect?" Rossi asked, eyebrow arching and Garcia blushed as she looked at him.

"If I do say so myself, and you guys have always been satisfied before now," Garcia said. "Even your first Christmas with us. I gave you that joke tie and you actually wore it."

"I did," Rossi said.

"What did the tie have on it?" Blake asked curiously.

"It had reindeer antlers," Garcia said wistfully.

"Yes," Rossi said and thought hard for a minute. "What about socks?"

"Socks?" Garcia said, crinkling her nose. "Isn't that more Reid's type of gift? I mean, Hotch only wants regular ol' socks, maybe fancy weave but he buys them himself. I'd only buy crazy socks and Hotch would not wear them."

"True," Blake agreed. "I cannot see Hotch wearing something ridiculous unless it was because of a dare."

Garcia became alert, listening to her wireless headset. "They're on," she hissed and scrambled from the room.

Rossi and Blake also became alert, tuning back into the case.


That night, Rossi ambled into Garcia's lair again. It had been a long day and Garcia's involvement had been extreme, as she had taken upon a huge job of seeing if the victim's story was true.

"You feeling okay?" He asked. Her hands were behind her head, rubbing her neck, and he hesitated before walking forward.

"I'm tired," she said softly.

He reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders, and she let her own pair fall to her sides as he began his mini-massage.

"God, that feels good," she murmured. "Thanks, Rossi."

"You do such a good job," he told her. "You have to know that. I hope I've told you before now."

Garcia sighed. "You probably have. Ooh, right there...oh god," she said, leaning back to melt into his hands. Rossi tried to ignore how almost-primal the sounds were becoming, sounds that brought to mind images of lovemaking...Garcia underneath him...

No. He wouldn't go there. He admired her too much to use this as an excuse to think dirty thoughts. And yet, Garcia would be the last person on earth to protest something like that.

Hell, she'd probably want to know what they were. He laughed aloud and Garcia's eyes popped open.

"Why are you laughing?"

"I had a ridiculous thought," he said, realizing that, with her head tipped farther back, he could almost see down her shirt.

"What?" She asked, before her eyes widened. "What in the world?"

"What?" He asked, as she jerked out of his grasp, standing up and grabbing at something hung overhead, but she couldn't reach it. "Is that...mistletoe?" He asked.

"Yes!" She exclaimed. "And I have no idea how it got there!" She turned to face him, her face crimson and clapped her hands over it. "I swear, sir, I didn't put it there intentionally to trick you or something. I mean, yeah, I might have a little crush on you but who in this unit doesn't, and..." She trailed off, moving her fingers to peek at him.

"Oh, Penelope," he breathed and moved in. Her eyes widened but she comprehended what he was doing, and returned the kiss wholeheartedly, putting her hands on his chest.

They stayed in a tight embrace for a few long moments afterward.

"Your place or mine?"

The words echoed in the air.

They left together, their hands tightly entwined, neither going home to an empty house for once.


Next time:

Pairing: Hotch/Emily

Date: December 9, 2009

Song: Hard Candy Christmas by Dolly Parton