AN: This is meant to pick up right where 13 left off. My night has taken a turn for the worse since I finished that so this could get a little emotional at bits, though I will try to avoid that. Also, there is another midchapter time jump here.
MN: I wrote the last one, I call not it on this.
When Spencer returned to her room his hair was damp and he was wearing cotton pants and a t-shirt. She had ordered their pizza and, when he had knocked, she was channel surfing for something decent to watch. He had joined her on the bed and together they had decided on Braveheart, which was going to be starting in a few minutes.
When the front desk called that their pizza had arrived, it was Spencer who went down to get it. As he returned, their movie was starting. They sat together watching it as they ate their pizza. On the first commercial break after they were done eating, she got up to brush her teeth. While she was in the bathroom, he cleaned up from their dinner.
When she returned to the bed, he had already repositioned himself. Ever since the night a few weeks ago when the team had gone out for dinner, they had started making it a habit to watch a movie together in bed when they were home. Most nights she would fall asleep and he would turn off the TV and leave, but on a few occasions, he had dozed off and spent the night sleeping beside her.
She laid on her right side to keep the pressure off her tender ribs while he stretched out on his back, propped up on pillows. They had just gotten settled when the commercial break ended and the movie resumed. JJ was asleep before the next break.
"Mommy! Come see what we did!" Henry had met her at the front door and her keys were barely out of her hand before her son had hold of it, dragging her through the house.
She couldn't help but laugh as she entered the living room. The furniture had been pushed back and the couch cushions had been arranged into a large platform on the floor and draped with sheets. "What is all this?"
"We are gonna have a campout in here and watch movies and stay up late and sleep in here!" Her son was bubbling with energy as his godfather appeared in the room.
"I told you we had to ask your mom permission, Henry." She could tell he was sure she would agree as he carried his pillows in his hands.
"I forgotted. Mommy, can we please have a sleepover in the livingroom? All three of us?" Her son's face smiling up at her would have convinced her if she hadn't already decided it was a good idea.
"I think it sounds like fun. Have you spent all day getting this ready?" She had spent most of the day out with Garcia and Blake, having some girl time and doing some early holiday shopping and giving Spencer some much desired time with her son.
"No. We went to Jack's soccer game and he scored four goals! And then Uncle Dave took us all out for lunch. And then we came home and we was playing outside until it started to rain. When we were playing dinosaurs is when I thought about having an inside campout!" The boy's energy was infectious.
"Wow. That sounds like a pretty great day. Did you guys plan dinner for this inside campout?" She laughed again as the boy took her hand and dragged her toward the kitchen.
"Of course. We made hotdogs and beans and salad and we went to the store and got the stuffs to make s'mores in the fireplace." He led her to the kitchen table and pulled out her usual chair for her as Spencer followed them in.
"Sounds like you guys thought of everything. This is going to be the best inside campout ever!"
After they had eaten, they had all gone to change into their pajamas. Despite the fact that they were planning to make s'mores, JJ still insisted that her son brush his teeth before going back downstairs.
They had started their movie marathon with How To Train Your Dragon of course, since it was Henry's favorite. They had made s'mores before starting Wreck It Ralph (Spencer's choice) and now, barely twenty minutes into Lilo and Stitch (her decision), Henry was fast asleep between herself and Spencer.
She looked across at her roommate and smiled, keeping her voice low. "Thanks. This was a great idea."
He grinned back. "Thank Henry. It was all his idea. I just helped. I'm glad we got to stand down for the weekend." His face turned serious suddenly. "Are you going to be okay sleeping down here with your ribs?"
"They're fine. The bruise is gone and they barely hurt at all anymore. And I took some ibuprofen upstairs just in case." She reached over her son to squeeze her best friend's arm. "But thanks for taking care of me. You're pretty amazing, you know that?"
His cheeks flushed at the compliment. "I'm just trying to do for you what you do for everyone else. You're the amazing one."
Henry shifted between them and she withdrew her hand and pressed her finger to her lips. He responded with a nod and they both turned back to the movie.
JJ bit back a sigh. They had almost managed a full week at home before she had walked into the briefing that morning. There were no pressing cases taking them out of town this time, but that wasn't the only thing the BAU was responsible for handling.
Hotch passed files out around the table. "Blake and Rossi, you're going to be teaching classes to NYPD next week. They want you there Friday to go over scheduling with the liaison at the department so you have today and part of tomorrow to work on your presentation before you leave. I've arranged an SUV for you. Morgan, you are going to be consulting with the local PD in Conway, Arkansas via phone and internet. You'll have Garcia at your disposal. I'm going to handle the stack of open cases that need simple consults as well as any new files that come in."
"JJ and Reid, you two will be leaving tonight on the jet for Colorado. You have a custodial to perform at Florence ADX. He hasn't responded well to interview attempts in the past with myself or Rossi. I'm hoping sending the two of you will make him feel unthreatened and we might be able to get a full list of victims out of him. We've gotten you authorized to be there for up to a week. Take the rest of the day off to pack and have dinner with Henry. You're wheels up at nine tonight."
With that he shoved back from the table and stood, signaling the end of the meeting. The group dispersed quickly, leaving JJ and Spencer alone in the briefing room. As she gathered up her files, he shoved his hastily into his bag. "I'm going to stop by Garcia's office and ask her to get everything she can find on the guy we're going to interview together for us. I'll meet you at your office and we can head out, okay?
She forced a smile. "Sure. It shouldn't take me long to be ready to go."
She walked with him into the bullpen. As he turned to his desk, she exited to go to her office. She was surprised to find Hotch waiting for her inside. "Hey. You here for my open case files? It's going to take me a few minutes to get them organized."
He put a hand on her arm to stop her. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you. We've been gone a lot lately. I know you were home for a few weeks after you got shot, but you were still working the hours that we were trying to help us. I took a look and you have a lot of vacation time built up. I think you should think about taking some. Spend a week or two at home. Have dinner with Henry every night. Read a book just for fun. Detox from the job a little."
JJ sighed and rounded her desk. "I don't like sitting around at home, you know that. And with Henry in school I can't go visit my parents. I've already got a few days scheduled at Thanksgiving and a week at Christmas."
Hotch rolled his eyes as he plopped himself into the chair opposite her. "That accounts for seven days. You have twenty left for the year. The new section chief is on me about making sure people take their vacation time and you and Reid are the top offenders on my list. Hell, why don't you take a week and just hang out with him? Maybe with the two of you gone I can pry Rossi out of his office and to his cabin. The only people around here I can seem to get to take time off are Blake and Morgan."
Now it was her turn to loop her eyes as she stacked files on her desk into a single neat pile. "Oh, and you take all of your vacation time? I'm calling B.S. on that one."
Her boss shook his head. "JJ, this really isn't optional. Everyone has to get down to five days of unused time before the end of the year, no exceptions. Figure out when you want to take yours while you're gone and let me know by the end of next week. And help me out with Reid."
She sighed again loudly. "Fine. I'll figure something out."
He stood and she handed him the stack of folder. "Thank you. Have a good trip."
AN: What do you guys want to see for the vacations? Any requests?