Family
A/N: Hello, everyone! Welcome to "Faceless, Nameless!" There's a fair bit of drama/angst-type-stuff in here… didn't come out exactly as I planned, but when does it ever? Um… yes, enjoy?
Ooh, by the way, I am putting out a call for ideas! I'm planning another story-ish thing for this universe which will basically be composed of oneshots. They will take place anywhere between Alex's birth and the present and cover just about anything (holidays, sickness, bonding moments, etc). If there are any situations you'd like to see that you haven't seen in here, PM me or tell me in a review! It might end up being written and you'll receive credit for your idea! Thanks!
Disclaimer: I do not own anything recognizable. Including, but not limited to: Criminal Minds or the characters. Alexander and Juliet Reid are characters of my own design.
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Chapter 36: Okay
Episode: Faceless, Nameless
Julie pulled into a parking space at the hospital and yanked the keys out of the ignition. She grabbed her purse and moved to get out of the car but faltered. This shouldn't be happening again, she thought, staring up at the hospital. This shouldn't be happening!
She slammed the heel of her hand against the steering wheel and leaned her forehead against it. The guy's a freaking genius, can't he go a month without landing himself in the hospital? She wondered, then felt guilty for thinking it. She didn't even know how Spencer was doing and already she was angry. Of course, when JJ had called, she'd said it wasn't serious, but the worry was still there.
"I'm sure he's fine." Julie said to herself, getting out of the Volvo and shutting the door hard. "And once I make sure of that, a gunshot wound will be the least of his worries."
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Spencer shifted uncomfortably in the hospital bed he found himself once again confined to. He was getting rather tired of the hospital. However, if he was completely honest, he somewhat preferred the anthrax trip to this one at the moment. At least then, he'd been asleep- or unconscious, he wasn't quite sure which. Now, there was nothing shielding him from the pain but a large dose of Tylenol. Sleep didn't seem like much of an option and he was beginning to hope that someone- anyone, even a nurse- would come in and distract him from the mind-bending pain of torn muscle and splintered bone. Distract him from the fact that there was surgery and physical therapy in his future and that Hotch was somewhere else in this hospital, also in pain…
And there it was. The sound of familiar voices outside his room. One was JJ's and the other was Julie's. Spencer listened to see if Alex was out there too before he realized, squinting blearily at the clock, that his brother was most likely still at work.
JJ was probably telling Julie how he had gotten himself shot right now and then Spencer knew he was in for one three reactions: begrudging pride and relief (unlikely), disappointment (slightly more likely), or anger (most probable). He became convinced of the correctness of his evaluation when Julie stalked into the room. "What kind of idiot are you?" She demanded, pointing accusingly at him.
"I…" Spencer attempted before Julie cut him off.
"You jumped in front of a bullet! Most people try to avoid bullets, but on, no, not you! You jump in front of them!" She said loudly, tossing her arms up.
"Julie, I really don't want to argue with you right now…"
"Well, you should have thought of that before you decided to jump in front of a gun. I mean, what were you thinking?"
"I was thinking about saving a man from death!" Spencer shouted in return, sitting up straighter. "I saved his life, that was my job. Now, as much as I'd like to discuss this, I'm in a hell of a lot of pain and they're probably going to come in and poke at my gunshot wound soon. If you want to yell at me after that, be my guest."
Julie looked slightly taken aback and Spencer almost felt bad for shouting. If the pain hadn't been clouding many of his thoughts, he probably would have made it all the way to guilty. "I'm not denying that what you did is… heroic, I guess, but… did you think about us at all before you did it? Me? Mom? Alex? JJ? The team? Anyone?" Julie paused and took a deep breath. "You- you never seem to think these things through. There are a lot of people who want you to stick around, you know…"
When Spencer saw the tears well up in the corners of his sister's eyes, he really did feel guilty. "Julie…"
Julie shook her head and rushed out, brushing past JJ as the woman walked in. "Spence?" JJ looked after the retreating teenager and then at the genius in the hospital bed.
"I- I can't go after her…" Spencer shifted as though he was trying to get up and looked pleadingly at JJ, who nodded.
"I'll go." She said, turning to leave the room.
"Thank you." Spencer breathed gratefully as she left.
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JJ caught up to Julie just as the girl made it out the nearest exit. "Julie, wait." JJ said, placing her hand on the teen's shoulder.
Julie whirled around, surprising JJ and revealing the tears still in her eyes. "It's not fair!" She said angrily.
JJ was silent as she let the girl continue. "I feel so… childish for thinking that, but… but it's not! He's not an FBI agent," She sniffled. "He's my brother… My nerdy, gangly, sketching, cooking… bookworm… mothering big brother… I don't want him to die!"
A sob finally escaped her lips as JJ pulled her into a hug and held her close. She continued to allow the emotion flow as the woman rubbed her back slightly. "Shh… shh… it'll be okay…"
"How can you say that?" Julie asked incredulously, pulling back to look up at JJ. "It can't be okay…"
"No, it will be okay." JJ replied, gently leading Julie to a nearby bench. "I know it's hard… it's so hard to lose someone you love. It is."
Julie noted the flicker of sadness that passed across JJ's eyes before the woman continued. "But you can't think about it. You have to think of now. Spence is still here and he's not going anywhere."
"I… I know. But I just… I want to be selfish and… make him stop being an idiot." Julie replied with a small, hysterical laugh.
JJ smiled sympathetically. "I know. Me too." She paused thoughtfully for a moment. "It's hard. Love is selfish. But, sometimes, if you love someone, you have to let them do what makes them happy."
"Even if it means letting them jump in front of bullets?"
"Unfortunately, yes." JJ replied with a small, humorless laugh. "But it will be okay. Okay?"
Julie nodded. "Okay."
The two sat there for a little while, taking time to soak in the events of day. "Hey, what time is it?" Julie finally asked.
"Almost five." JJ said, looking at her watch.
"Wow. I need to go get Alex from work." Julie said, standing up.
"Are you alright to drive?" JJ asked, eyeing the teen carefully.
"I'm not happy, but I'll be okay."
"Alright, see you later."
With a nod, Julie set off in the direction of the parking space.
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Back in his room, Spencer looked up expectantly when JJ returned. "She was pretty upset, but I convinced her everything would be okay." She filled him in. "She went to pick up Alex."
Spencer nodded. "Thank you…" He paused, seeming undecided for a moment. "I… I am sorry. I know it doesn't mean much, but I am… And I'll try so hard to make up for it, I…"
JJ silenced him quickly by placing a finger on his lips and then replacing it with a kiss. "I told her everything would be okay." She whispered, kissing him deeply again. "Don't you dare make me a liar, Spencer Reid."
Nodding, Spencer let his forehead come to rest against JJ's. "Okay."
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A/N: Yes, there was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference to JJ's sister in here (mentioned in "Risky Business"). But, anyway, I hope you guys liked it! The next chapter is "100" and it's the last episode-oriented chapter! After that, it's basically shameless fluff… yeah. Um… a review would be wonderful if you feel like it!
Speaking of which, thank you so very much to clt, cmwinner, Eriks angel 15, Laura Beth loves Jesus, Daisyangel, Slasherrgirl, thatsrebeccatoyou, criminalxxxmindsxxxfreak, xXxOtAkU-444xXx, creative-writing-girl13, Jaye Black, SSAFunbar, Noel Ardnek, CRIMINAL-MINDZ-FANZ, xXxFailingDreamsxXx, Hopeful Writer, 67Chevy, and Red K 5 for your fantastic reviews! You guys are amazing! And so are the people who have added this to their alerts and favorites!