A/N So I don't think I mentioned this before, but in the universe Foyet does not exist. So Haley is still alive. And now on with the show.
Hotch's leg couldn't stop shaking. He looked down and put his hand down and tried to calm his twitchy leg. Emily smiled, put her arm through his, and leaned into him. "It's going to be OK, Aaron. This is just to confirm what we already know."
Hotch turned and smiled. "Yeah. I've done this before. I should be used to it. Well, at least more used to it than I'm acting. ... How are you doing?"
"... I'm ... happy. I guess. OK isn't right. It's weird. But I'm focusing on happy."
Hotch leaned his head down so that their heads were touching, each taking a moment to connect and to feel.
A nurse walked in. "Hotchner, Prentiss. This way."
Hotch and Emily followed the nurse into a waiting room. Emily put on the hospital gown and sat down. After a few minutes Emily's doctor came in.
"Hello, Emily. How are you doing?"
"Well, hopefully I'm doing really good. We are here to get some great news."
"Well let's see what we can do." The doctor moved to the sonogram machine. He picked up the gel container. "This is going to be cold."
"Do you ever get tired of saying that?"
Emily glared at Hotch for asking the stupid question. The doctor chuckled. "It's good to let people know. But sometimes I wonder if it's necessary, because you see it in movies and on TV all the time."
Hotch nodded.
"Are you guys ready to see your baby?"
Hotch and Emily nodded enthusiastically. They stared at the grainy image on the screen. The doctor pointed out a black dot in the middle. "There's your baby. It's too early to tell the sex. But your baby is healthy. I'll leave you alone for a minute."
He walked out and as the door shut Emily turned to Hotch. "It's real."
"It is. We're having a baby." Hotch wrapped Emily in his arms. "We are having a baby. ... I love you so much."
Emily smiled. I'm going to be a mom. I'm finally going to have a baby.
"We have to tell Jack."
Emily's smile faltered slightly. "Do you think he'll mind?"
"I don't think so. He loves you. You are a second mom to him. He's going to love his baby brother or sister."
/
Later Hotch and Emily picked Jack up from school.
"Daddy, Emily. Guess what?"
"What?" Hotch said easily matching the enthusiasm he son had. Emily smiled, this was the Aaron she loved the most. His guard down, no barriers, simply enjoying the world around him.
"I won the spelling bee we had today."
"You did?"
"I did. I spelled equilibrium."
"Wow buddy. Good job."
Jack filled the drive home with the things he had done at school, his new dog, and anything else that popped into his head.
When they stepped into their house Jack took off like a shot for his room. Emily spoke up. "Jack, baby. Daddy and I need to talk to you. Come sit down on the couch."
Jack trudged over to the sofa. "Am I in trouble?"
Emily smiled slightly. "Nothing like that, baby. Daddy and I have something very important to tell you." She and Hotch sat down on either side of Jack.
"What is it?"
Hotch spoke up, "You know Emily and I love each other very much." Jack nodded. "Well, buddy, we are going to have a baby together. You're going to be a big brother."
"I am?"
"Yeah, buddy. You are."
"Am I going to have a little brother or sister? When do they get here? What are you going to call them? Can I see them?" Jack's questions came out all at once without him taking a breath.
"Slow down, buddy. We don't know if you're going to have a brother or a sister. The baby will be here in a little over eight months. We don't have a name yet. And you can't see it yet. It's inside Emily's tummy."
Jack stared long and hard at Emily's still flat stomach. He scrunched up his face trying to figure out how a baby got in to Emily's stomach and where it was. "It's in her tummy?"
"Yes. It's in her tummy. It has to grow inside for a while and then when it's ready it will come out."
"How?"
Hotch put his hand over his mouth. He knew that it had been a possibility that Jack would ask these questions, but he had been hoping to avoid it. He looked at Emily. Help. I don't know what to do. Or what to say.
"Well, baby ... when two adults love each other, sometimes they get lucky and that love helps them have a baby. But it's all boring adult stuff. You don't need to worry about it for a long time."
"OK. Can I go play now?"
"Sure, baby."
Jack ran a couple of steps then turned and ran back to Emily. He stopped in front of her and leaned in so he was close to her belly. "I love you, baby. And I'm going to be the best big brother ever." And with that he turned and ran off again.
Hotch chuckled and pulled Emily into his side. They sat there for a moment allowing themselves to relax and absorb the news of the day. "Boring adult stuff, huh? Are you trying to tell me something here?"
Emily chuckled. "Never. I had to say that. I so did not want to explain that to him. And you didn't either. Don't lie."
"You're right. I didn't."
They lapsed into silence again enjoying the quiet. In about eight months all of the quiet would be gone for a long time.
"We need to tell Haley." Emily broke the silence.
"Yeah. We'll tell her when we drop Jack off."
Emily looked around their house. "We need to baby-proof the place. And we need to start on the nursery."
"We will. But later. Right now I just want to sit here with you. And maybe later you can show me more about that 'boring adult stuff' you were telling Jack about. Maybe you know a way or two that it might not be quite so boring."
"I can do that. I've got a couple of tricks up my sleeve."
/
The next day the knocked on the door to Haley's house.
"Hi Aaron, Emily."
"Hey, Haley. We've got some news for you. Emily and I are going to have a baby."
"Congratulations. I am so happy for you! When are you due?"
"In about eight months."
"Are you going to keep working?"
Emily looked at Hotch. "We haven't talked about it yet."
"Well whatever you decide. I wish you the best."
"Thank you. We'll see you later. Bye, Jack."
"Bye, Jack." Emily said as she waved to Jack. They walked to the car. They climbed in and put on their seat belts. "Aaron. What are we going to do when the baby comes?"
"I don't know."
Emily nodded. She didn't have an answer either. But she knew she needed one soon. The clock was ticking.
A/N So the Haley thing was kind of short, she's going to get more screen time later that will flesh out her interactions and comfort level with Emily and Hotch. Review let me know what you think.
