"No."
"Garcia, I..."
"No."
"Garcia--"
"No! Fine, we have a new agent, but he is NOT a replacement for Morgan! Not a replacement, just a...I don't know, a 'spot fill-in' or something."
Hotch didn't know what to say. "I think it's best if we all just go home now. I'll see you all in the morning. Same time as always." With several mumbles and nods, the team dispersed.
Rossi approached JJ as she was walking out. "Your car is still at the office—do you need a ride?"
"That would be nice, thanks," JJ said quietly. She slowly got into the passenger side and buckled up. "You have my address, don't you?"
"Yeah, you don't live too far, right?"
"Right," JJ nodded, coughing.
"You feel alright?" Rossi asked as he drove away.
"Fine."
"You sure? If you need a day off or something, I'm sure Hotch will--"
"I'm fine," she insisted. After a moment of silence, she elaborated, "If I take a day off, they'll think I'm weak. I'm not weak."
"They won't think any less of you. Everyone gets sick, Jennifer."
"That's not what I mean and you know it. If I take some sick days, they will think it's because of Morgan. I can deal when he's not here, but they are going to think I'm inferior or something."
"You can't possibly know that."
"Yes, I do."
"How?"
JJ sighed. "Don't go all profiler on me, Rossi."
Rossi shrugged, presumably defeated until JJ continued. "They blame me. All of them."
"No, they don't," Rossi lied. The truth was, he knew that they all did. He even did—that was why he offered to drive her home. He believed that if he spent more time with her, he would pity her and not feel like this was her fault. Because he didn't want to feel like this, he really didn't, but he couldn't help it.
"Don't lie to me, Rossi. I've picked up some tricks working with you guys for years. I know what people are thinking, especially when they don't even try hiding it."
Rossi turned onto JJ's street. "Thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow."
"Bye, JJ. Feel better. And remember, if you need anything, I always have my phone on."
JJ smiled sweetly and closed the door.
She rummaged through her purse until she found her key. Opening the door quietly as so not to wake up Henry, she stepped inside and wiped off her shoes on the rug.
"JJ," Will muttered, pulling her into a hug. "I heard what happened—is it true?"
"Depends," JJ whispered, clearing her throat. "What did you hear?"
"Derek was shot while giving a press conference. Twice in the back. Is he okay?"
"He's not dead, but he's not okay either. He's looking at loads of tough years in physical therapy."
"I'm so sorry, honey. I wish there was something I could do." He pushed her hair out of her face and kissed her softly on the lips, his mouth lingering over hers a little longer than necessary. "You feel okay? You're a little warm and I know you haven't been feeling well..."
"I'm fine," JJ snapped, then sighed. "Sorry, but everyone's been asking me that today. Just tired of it."
"I know, I just don't think all the stress is helping. Don't kill me, but do you think maybe taking a few days off will help?"
"I've already had this conversation with Rossi. What I know will help is getting some sleep."
"Okay, babe. Oh, one more important thing."
"Yes?"
"My mother just got her new house and wanted me to come and help her move, so I am taking Henry down with me to New Orleans tomorrow." JJ smiled slightly at the way he said his home city, but frowned quickly.
"Tomorrow?"
"I was going to tell you earlier, but I knew this was an intense case and I didn't want you to be distracted--"
"I understand. So how long are you going to be down there?"
"One week, maybe two. You can come if you want to, but you probably want to be here for Morgan."
JJ sighed. "Yeah, I do. Let's go to bed, okay?"
"Sounds good."
***
"Bye-bye, sweetie. Love you," JJ smiled as she said goodbye to her son.
"Mommy! Bye, mommy," Henry leaned up to kiss her on the cheek, but she turned away. "Mommy?"
"Mommy's not feeling well. I want you to be perfect when you see Grandma LaMontagne."
"Mommy sick?"
JJ sighed. "Yes, mommy is sick. But mommy has to go to work now. Have fun with daddy and grandma for me!"
"Okay Mommy!" JJ pulled him into a tight hug.
"Bye, Will," JJ said as he kissed her on the cheek. She smiled a fake smile and waved goodbye as she started her car.
CMCMCMCMCM
"Hey, any news?" JJ asked Hotch when she arrived at work.
"No."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing."
JJ nodded slowly. One-word answers were never good. "Um, so when is the new agent coming?" She refused to think of him as a replacement for Morgan.
"Today. Around 9."
"Okay," JJ said as she made her way up to her office.
She heard Prentiss from behind her, "Hey Hotch. Any news on Derek?"
"No, just that he is trying to convince the doctors to let him go. Obviously, it's not going to work; he has to stay there for therapy also." JJ wondered why she didn't get this information.
Emily sighed. "So, when is the new agent coming?"
"Around 9. His name is Daniel Cooper and he is actually around Morgan's age. He is transferring from the Montgomery County Police Department in Maryland."
JJ stopped halfway up the stairs to listen to the rest of the conversation.
"Oh, so he's not moving very far. What else can you tell me about him?"
"Just that his father was in the force too. He was born in Miami, and I've heard that he had a rough time adjusting to both the cold and the small county, but he fits in fine now."
"This will be tough for him. Nobody is going to give him an easy time."
"No, probably not."
JJ hadn't notice Rossi approach her. "You okay there?"
"Hmm? Oh, yeah I'm fine," JJ said as she began walking again.
"I guess you didn't take the day off."
"Nope. That would be why I'm here." She paused for a moment, debating whether or not to say something. She decided to ask Rossi if he could talk for a minute.
"Uh, actually I, um, have stuff to do," he mumbled as he walked away.
"O-kay," JJ said quietly to herself. "That's fine. Wasn't important anyways."
JJ walked quickly into her office. It looked just the way she left it—messy, disorganized. She gasped slightly as she took in her surroundings. How had she worked like this before? Her office space was a disaster zone, with papers and files piled high on top of each other.
She decided it was time to start fresh, time to clean. But she had no idea where to begin.
So she started on her desk. She organized all of the files, making sure there were no loose papers. She put all of her pens and pencils in one jar. She even adjusted her computer screen so that it was at just the right angle.
She had no idea how much time had passed by until she saw a new face in the bullpen.
He had a sharp, angular face. He was tall and very muscular. His pale skin contrasted with his deep brown hair. He was cleanly shaven, though, accenting his sharp features even more.
His gray eyes were bright and had a kind of gleam in them. An anxious gleam.
JJ walked out of her office slowly, listening to the conversations going on as she went to greet her new team member.
"Daniel Cooper," He introduced himself, holding his hand out to Reid. He should know better, JJ thought. Reid doesn't shake. "Daniel is fine, though."
"Spencer Reid." To JJ's surprise, Reid took his hand and shook it lamely. New beginnings, new traditions, she figured.
"The genius of the group," Prentiss said, holding out her hand as well. "I'm Emily Prentiss."
"Emily Prentiss," he said as though trying it out for sound. "The beauty of the group?"
Emily smiled widely at him, then turned to Reid and Rossi. "Uh...have you met Agent Morgan before?"
Daniel thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Nope. Never. Why?"
Prentiss grinned. "No reason."
"David Rossi." Rossi shook his hand as well. "Our boss, SSA Aaron Hotchner, is upstairs in his office, along with—oh, there she is! JJ!"
JJ didn't miss the slight looks of disgust on her teammates' faces. "Hello, I'm Jennifer Jareau." JJ winced at the sound of her voice. It was still hoarse from being sick. "You can call me JJ."
"JJ, nice to meet you," he smiled like a real gentleman.
"Likewise. I'm the media liaison of the team—not a real profiler, I just hang out with you guys." JJ joked, smiling. The rest of the team rolled their eyes at her lame joke and went back to their work.
"Hmm, sounds fun," Daniel laughed absently. JJ coughed. "You okay?"
She waved him off. "Fine, fine."
"Guys, we got a new case," Hotch informed, storming out of his office and down the stairs.
"Already?" Prentiss asked.
"Emergency," Hotch explained. "Briefing room, now."
Somewhere in the back of her mind, JJ wondered why she wasn't informed beforehand like she usually was.
On the way to the briefing room, Emily explained to Daniel how these things usually work, but JJ wasn't paying attention. She sat down as far away from the screen as possible.
"Olney, Maryland," he began, but Daniel cut him off.
"You're kidding?" When Hotch shook his head, Daniel explained, "I used to work for the or Montgomery County Police. Some of the county is in Olney." Daniel sighed. "And so is my home. I guess I was just excited to go out of the small town."
"Sorry," Hotch said, "but this is important. People are being murdered at Sherwood High School. More specifically, people on the school's track team. One by one, random order. One every other day. The MO suggests multiple unsubs."
"What's the COD?" Rossi asked.
"Asphyxiation and blunt force trauma. Five victims, two MO's."
"So we are most likely looking at two unsubs. Where did the murders take place?" Daniel said officially. The team looked at him, confused for a moment. He shrugged. "I did my research."
"They occurred in different places in front of the school, but all five bodies were dumped by the street."
"When was the last murder?" Prentiss asked.
"Yesterday."
"So we have until tomorrow to catch this guy," JJ nearly whispered.
"Yes. Wheel's up in twenty."
"So, Jennifer--" Daniel began as the team left.
"JJ, please."
"JJ." Daniel chuckled. "I think I may need some help adjusting to this place. Care to help?"
"Sure, what can I do for you?" JJ asked sweetly.
"Just show me around, tell me how things work."
"Of course. First off, we have less than twenty minutes to get on the jet, so what we do now is gather our things and get ready for our case."
"Okay. See you on the plane?"
"Yeah, see you," JJ said, walking away.
She's the one, Daniel thought as the blonde beauty left the room. It's perfect—she's perfect. She's the one.
Suddenly, Daniel was very glad that the new case was near his home.
Ooh, suspense!
I haven't updated in a while, so I put this chapter up before re-re-re-reading it like I usually do ;) so PLEASE, tell me what you think!
I'm trying to get the story moving faster so it's not like 800 chapters, but it's not working very well. Whatever, more story! Yay!