Chapter 10
"I can't believe that Haley and your wife and son are buried in the same cemetery," Harry commented as they left the gravesite.
"When we came here to bury Haley, I couldn't believe it as well. I'll have to get Dr. Reid to figure out the probability on that one," Dave answered.
Harry looked at Dave as they made their way out of the cemetery. "Thank you Dave; for all of this. You know how much I think of Zach, and now Jack. It was an honor to visit their mother," he said, looking at him. "And your family as well. How did Carolyn die?"
"She had ALS and didn't want to go through that spiral downward with her body. She was a vibrant, active person. Carolyn couldn't do that. She took her own life." Harry looked out the window as they drove to Dave's home in silence.
As they got out of the vehicle and entered the house, with Dave letting Mudg out, Harry looked at him. "So the big surprise is out. Do I get to know what the hell is going on the rest of the day?"
Dave smiled at him. "A big ass Memorial Day picnic with the whole BAU gang. I think you might need a pair of shorts to change into." They waited for Mudg and then headed upstairs.
As they ascended, Harry stopped Dave. "I don't want no Italian fancy ones Dave." Dave laughed, continuing to move up the steps. He entered his Master bedroom with Harry following him and fished out a pair of cargo shorts from one his dresser drawers. He handed them to Harry. "And the top part of the uniform of the day," Harry asked with a smile.
"Your t-shirt will do. We relax today Harry and have fun." Harry went to his room to change as Dave did the same. They both took the time to stop and reflect a bit on their morning before meeting at the top of the steps. Dave handed Harry a pair of flip flops that matched what the Hotchner boys wore. Harry smiled as he took them, set them on the floor and slid in his feet.
"Holy shit Dave, you have big feet," he brightly smiled as his toes reached nowhere near the top. Dave just growled at him as they made their way down the steps of the mansion. By the time they got to the kitchen, Mudg was barking greetings to Zach. He was dressed in cargo shorts, t-shirt and flip flops that matched the ones Harry were wearing.
He set two bags of groceries on the counter, looking at the two men. "There's more to come." Aaron hauled in two more, with Beth carrying another. Jack glided in with his best bud at his side. Zach went back outside and returned to the kitchen with a huge watermelon on his shoulder as Dave was digging out of the cabinets every strainer he had in his possession.
"What's going on?" Harry said to no one in particular as he helped Beth and Aaron pull out the stuff from the bags.
"It's fruit salad Harry," Jack said.
Beth handed the paper plates, the upper tier, heavy, divided kind that Dave requested along with the plastic utensils. "There's a first in my home," Dave said, pulling out a crock pot to gently warm the three large cans of baked beans that were bought as well. Beth got them going, with Harry opening the cans for her with Dave's can opener on the kitchen countertop.
Beth looked at her assembled troops. "Jack and Harry, you two are on washing the fruit that needs it. Dave, you're with Aaron and me in slicing and dicing. Zach, you're on craving and balling the watermelon," she said. Zach held up the utensil two different semi-circle heads that would make perfect melon balls. Haley had bought it at one time.
Zach looked at her. "You do know what you just said sounds like an unsub's paradise, right?" Jack started to giggle.
Aaron looked at her. "He's right." Jack roared.
"And we're off duty if you don't mind the lovely Ms. Clemmons," Dave smiled at her, kissing her check. Jack and Harry exchanged a high-five.
"Hey, I'm still learning how to hang out with superheroes. Give the girl a break," she smiled. They all laughed and dove in. Dave turned on the small version of a flat screen TV he had in the kitchen to the Nationals baseball game just starting.
Zach, knowing his way around Dave's kitchen a bit, grabbed a jelly pan from one of the cupboards. He put the watermelon on it. He grabbed the long blade from the chef's woodblock and cut off the top of the melon and set in the sink. Harry and Jack were using the other side of the duel set-up to start their job with the raspberries and blackberries. Zach made some slices into the curved top that Harry stopped to watch. Zach pulled out a stripe of watermelon rind from the "straight edge" and sectioned it into four pieces. Using a smaller knife, he trimmed the fruit from the rind, handing the sweet, red pieces to Jack and Harry, who gobbled them down.
With the four trimmed pieces, he put them under the curved part against the four corners of the watermelon, with the straight edges against the pan. Harry looked at him. "This puppy isn't rocking and rolling on me," he smiled, sticking in toothpicks to the arches he then broke off so they wouldn't protrude into the fruit. Harry shook his head. Zach had made a perfect arch support for the melon.
"Zach, I think you should be an engineer," Harry smiled.
"Been sorta thinkin' about that Harry," he smiled back. The group dived in. Zach quickly got the watermelon craved out using the balling utensil, putting the melon in a large bowl Dave provided. Dave's largest metal bowl was quickly being filled by the washed and cut fruit. The strawberries Harry and Jack had washed first, now cleaned and cut by Aaron and Beth. Dave added the two apples he had peeled and cut up. He added the two large cans of mandarin oranges he had opened and drained. Beth and Aaron worked together to cut the green and red grapes, along with the cherries that had been rinsed as well.
Aaron looked at the cherry juice stains under his fingernails. "That will make a great impression on the Director when I meet him tomorrow."
Zach looked at his dad. "Two laps in the pool will take care of that." Aaron looked at his oldest son. "A pool purified with chlorine dad. Hel-lo?"
Beth pointed at him. "You're busted Hotchner." He shook his head with a smile.
Harry and Jack worked together on the blueberries to make sure all the stems were off before they added them to the growing mound in the large metal bowl.
Zach began to carve a waving pattern into the top of the remaining rind. When he finished, he cut the cantaloupe and started making fruit balls from that as well. Jack looked at him. "I know JP; not my fav either; but's its Uncle Dave's party."
"And the old guy eats cantaloupe," Dave smiled at him.
"Uncle Dave? You're old?" Jack asked with the fiendish smile he had learned from his older brother.
Harry roared. "Who's busted now?" he said to his friend. Laughter filled the kitchen as they finished the fruit salad, and Aaron helped Zach get the rind into Dave's beer fridge. Beth covered the large metal bowl full of fruit with plastic wrap and put it on the bottom shelf of Dave's huge fridge.
Jack looked at her. "Just before its dinner time, I'll cut up the bananas, add them in along with some sugar, mix it all up and then we'll put into the watermelon boat," she smiled.
"Too cool Beth," Jack smiled.
"I feel like a sticky mess," Zach said, rinsing his hands off. His white t-shirt showed the stains of his work. His dad's showed the same. Zach's eyes narrowed, the competitiveness shining brightly. "Race ya," he challenged.
"You're on," Aaron laughed, bursting for the door. Zach, having fifteen pounds on his dad with much more muscle, pushed him aside in the garage and reached the pool area first. They both striped off their cargo shorts to reveal their swim trucks, while tossing off their flip flops. Both grabbed their t-shirts, tossing them aside as the rest of the group entered the area. They hit the pool water at the same time. As Zach had predicted Friday to Harry, the day weather-wise was absolutely gorgeous.
Dave grabbed Jack, starting to pull off his clothes. "Champino, this is dad and Zach's time together. Let them have that." Beth nodded at Jack. Jack, so much younger than Zach, got much of their father's time and attention. That didn't bother Zach. Yet the time Aaron could spend with his oldest son, especially given both their busy schedules, was gold to them both and they cherished their moments. They frolicked for a bit, seeing who could pull down each other's swimsuit, teased each other and then started to swim lazy laps.
Dave rubbed Jack's shoulder. "Now Champino," he smiled at the young lad that held his very heart and soul in the palm of his little boy's hand. Beth helped him get him out of his cargo shorts, revealing his swimsuit as well, pulled his t-shirt off and Jack jumped in. Harry beamed at the Hotchner's sharing their time together.
Beth wrapped her arm around his waist, smiling just as brightly. She, Dave and Harry sat down in the comfy, padded chairs Dave had around his pool and talked as the Hotchner men shared some quality family time. Mudg plopped down in the still shaded area of the pool and took his afternoon nap.
As the sun started creeping over the roofline of Dave's home, bathing the pool area into more sun, Beth chased out the three men that she loved out of the pool. As Mudg, still in the shade, snored soundly in his nap, Beth and Aaron got the boys well covered in suntan lotion; Beth did the same to Hotch and the three of them jumped back into the pool, Jack using the diving board like his big brother.
Harry, at Beth's asking, told his perspective on the weekend he spent with Dave and Zach. She peppered him with questions about his new life, sincerely interested in how he was doing. As they were talking, Mudg, from his deep sleep, lifted his head and then rose to his feet.
Harry looked at Dave. "He's on alert; but his hair isn't up on his back."
Dave smiled at him. "You becoming a profiler on me?" he said as he rose out of his chair. He knew who the visitors approaching would be.
John, Hannah and Jessica Brooks walked into the pool area. Dave warmly greeted them, shaking John's hand and brushing a kiss to each of the women's cheeks, which was returned. They had learned long ago how much David Rossi meant in the lives of the men that loved their loved one, now in heaven.
Jack swam to the edge of the pool. "Hi grandma and grandpa! You too Aunt Jess!" the pool water dripping off his face, including his long eyelashes. Zach reached the side of the pool, pulled himself out, grabbed a towel from Dave's stack he had in a bin and quickly dried himself off. Aaron chased Jack out and did the same.
Reaching them first, Zach gave them all hugs, completely making Hannah and Jess disappear against his torso with his muscular body and long arms. Jess rubbed Zach's muscled bicep. "The flowers in the urn on the stand at your mom's gravesite; what prompted that?"
Zach smiled. "It was Beth's idea. Rather than taking a bouquet of flowers out there that would last about two days, she suggested doing that. Jack and I water them every day," he smiled at her.
"Beth let me help her plant them," Jack said as he powered into Jess for his hug. She hugged him back.
Hannah looked at Beth. "They are beautiful Beth. Thank you."
Beth smiled back. "It is my sincere pleasure. Jack and I had a lot of fun planting them. Haley was a wonderful mother and I want the boys to always remember that, and her, as much as you do."
The Brooks had first met Beth at Easter when Zach cooked for all of them. He pulled off the meal exactly like his Uncle Sean had taught him. It was tense, understandably, for a while; yet the Brooks family had quickly learned her respect for their daughter and sister. They returned the respect.
Jack got Jess a bit wet. But she didn't mind. She had re-connected to her youngest nephew, helping Zach out when he was traveling with the Patriots on road games. And she had re-bonded with Zach after he had pushed her away from himself and his brother shortly after Haley had died. She couldn't move on; Zach forced her to by taking himself and Jack away from her, and her parent's lives. Zach could juggle that back then as a high school student.
Being a college student was different. Zach knew he needed help with Jack when their dad was away, and Jess readily and eagerly had stepped in to cover that gap, once Zach's baseball season started. They were a happy family again. Zach took the chocolate cake and the Seven Layer bars that Hannah and Jess had made into the kitchen. The two desserts were the boys' favorites. John carried in Zach's other favorite: deviled eggs.
Jack, now more dried off, gave his grandparents his usual monster hugs. They loved simply loved it.
Dave introduced Harry to Haley's family. Harry shook their hands. "I cannot put into words the wonderful sons Haley brought into my world by chance; through Dave. I did thank her this morning for the special gift she, through Aaron and them, gave me."
The Brook's family smiled. John looked at Dave. "As usual, you choose your friends well, Dave."
"John, he saved my life in Vietnam." John Brooks was a veteran of Vietnam as well, serving in the early battles of the mid 1960's.
Hannah Brooks looked at Dave and then Harry. "Enough said; God knows how much Dave helped this family." She smiled at Harry. "Welcome to our big, happy family," she said, pulling him into a hug.
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