Chapter 20

"Daddy, where are we going?" Jack asks from the back of the car.
"To see the team, then we're going to see Christmas lights." Hotch tells him
"Where's the team?" Jack asks
"Aunt Emily is at the hospital with Dylan and Carson. Aunt JJ and Penelope are meeting us at the lights, and so is Uncle Spencer."
"What about Uncle Dave?" he asks
"We're all going there after. And Aunt Jess is coming over tomorrow."
"Aaron, the turn was back there." Beth says as she looks up from her phone.
"Ok, I'll turn around." Hotch says
"Why is aunt Emily at the hospital?" Jack asks
"She's not. But her baby boys are."
"Why are they in the hospital?" Jack asks.
"Because when they were born they were really small. Now they have to stay until they get big and strong." Hotch explains.
"Small like Avery?" Jack asks
"Even smaller than Avery. You'll see in a few minutes. Come on buddy. Hold Beth's hand. I have to carry Avery."
"Ok, what way do I go." Jack asks.
Follow Beth, she'll lead you there." Hotch says as he follows behind.
"Aunt Emily" Jack says as he runs ahead.
"Hi there Jack. How are you?" Emily asks
"Good. Daddy and Beth are here too." Jack says
"Great. I need to talk to them. Can you go sit with Avery for a few minutes. We'll be over here." Emily says as she sees Beth and Hotch come in.
"Hi Emily. How are you?" Beth asks
"Great. I need to talk to you guys." Emily says
"What's wrong?" Hotch asks
"The doctor said that while Carson is breathing better, they think he's partly deaf. And they found a small mass on Dylan's lung. They say it should go away by itself, but if you he'll need surgery in the future. They boys are doing super good for being almost eleven weeks early." Emily explains
"That's good. Are we allowed to see them? We told Jack we probably could." Hotch says
"Should be fine. You can't hold them, but you can see them." says Emily
"Great. Let's go see them then." Beth says
"We can't go in, but they're right by the window so we can just look in at them for now." says Emily
"That's just fine. Come on Jack. You can see the boys now." Hotch says
"Ok" Jack says as he jumps up.
"They're so tiny." Beth says
"I'll be right back, Beth." Hotch says
"Hey Hotch."
"Hello JJ. What's up?"
"We're getting ready to leave."
"Alright. We'll leave here in a few minutes. See you in a bit. Bye."
"See you then. Bye."
"Beth, JJ's leaving. So we've got to leave soon."
"Alright. Are you coming? It'd be good for you." Beth says
"I guess I'll come. Visiting hours are almost over, and I'm just going to go home or sit out here and wait until tomorrow." says Emily.
"Great. We better get going to meet JJ. You can ride with us if you want." Hotch offers
"Ok. Let me just grab my coat. I'll be right out." says Emily
"I'm going to warm up the car then." Hotch says
"Are you taking Avery?" Beth asks as she sees Hotch pick up the car seat.
"Do you want me to leave her?"
"Sure. It's cold out. I'll bring the kids in a minute." Beth says
"Ok." Hotch says as he goes outside
"I'm ready. Let's go see the lights." Emily says
"Jack. Let's go." Beth says
"Are we gonna see the lights now?" asks Jack
"Yes. Are you excited?"
"Yea! Is Aunt Emily coming?" he asks
"I sure am."
"How far are the lights?"
"A couple of minutes. We'll be there soon." Beth says
"Hey buddy. Are you buckled up?" Hotch asks
"Yes."
"Everyone else ready?" Hotch asks
"We are." Emily says
"The turn's right up there." says Beth
"Got it. Hotch says as he makes the turn and then parks the car.
"Hi everyone." Garcia says as they all get out
"Hi guys." Emily says as she walks over
"How are the kids?" Garcia asks
"Carson's breathing on his own when he's awake. And is doing better when he's asleep. Dylan has a small mass on his lung. And Carson might be partly deaf." Emily describes for the second time.
"Is Dylan breathing on his own yet?" Garcia asks
"Not yet. His lungs aren't as developed as Carson's. It's hard to see them with all the wires attached to them. And I still can't hold them since they're so small. I can go in the nursery though. The hardest thing is leaving without my boys. I have a few pictures though." Emily says as she pulls out her phone.
"They're so cute." Garcia says
"Here's one with Derek's hand. They're so tiny. Here's another with my ring. That's Dylan's hand." Emily says
"They're adorable Em." JJ says as she walks p.
"Hi JJ. Who's this?" Emily asks as she sees four kids instead of one.
"Tyler came down. He got here a couple of hours ago. This is his daughter Kylie, and these are his boys Austin and Taylor." JJ says, gesturing towards the kids.
"Hi guys. I'm Penelope. And this is Kevin."
"Hi kids. I'm Emily. Have you met Hotch and Beth yet? Hotch has a son about your age."
"We were just headed over there. Are we all here?" JJ asks
"You, Me, Hotch and Emily. Just waiting for Reid. Then we can go." Garcia says
"Great. I'll take the kids over to Hotch, and I'll be right back." JJ says
"I can take them. Emily has news about the babies and I've already heard it."
"Alright. Ky, can you watch the boys please. Just make sure they don't kill each other please."
"Ok JJ." Kylie says as they walk with Garcia over to Hotch
"She just calls you JJ? Even Jack calls you Aunt JJ." Emily says
"She's only seen me a handful of times. It's kind of hard to see someone when they are always busy." JJ says.
"Good point. How's it feel to have all the people in your house?"
"It's beyond hectic. I went from having one kid and two adults, to having four kids and three adults. Its going to be six kids and six adults pretty quick though."
"Who else is coming?" Emily asks
"My oldest sister, Lacey is bringing her girls down. They should be here Tuesday." JJ says
"That's going to be one crowded house. We have space, if you need it. Is Abby coming? And your mom?"
"Abby will be here on the 23rd, and my mom will be here that night. We might have Abby stay in a hotel though. I think having all of us might be too much at once."
"She can stay with us. I'm sure that would be ok with her." Emily offers again
"I don't know. I'll have to talk to her of course."
"Of course. What are all your nieces and nephews named? I think I've forgotten them all."
"The girl is Kylie. Have fun trying to figure out which boy is which though. One is Austin, the other is Taylor. You get 18 years of trying to tell twin boys apart. Kylie is ten, and the boys are six. Lacey has three girls, Maya just turned 20, Alyssa is 16 and Natalie is 14." JJ tells her
"So your mom has almost eight grandkids. My mom thinks two is crazy."
"Nice. I guess my mom doesn't care too much. She had four kids, she had to expect she'd have a few grandkids. Ty has three, I have two, and Lacey has three. She would've had more I'm sure. She spoils Ty's kids. And she spoils Henry when she sees us. So I guess it's not too bad."
"There's Reid. And I know what you mean. My boys are still in the hospital and my moms already sending stuff for them."
"Let's go look at lights. And how long did it take you to tell her you had them?" JJ asks
"Haha. It took me about two hours to call and tell her. She just happened to be in DC that weekend. And hasn't left yet. She calls every day for updates." Emily says
"It's a mom thing I guess. Mine did the same thing with me, and Henry wasn't early enough to make a huge difference."
"Must be. Let's grab the gang. We'll continue our conversation at Rossi's. Let's get walking."