It had been a mediocre week at the BAU. The team had a case right in Virginia, so Spencer was able to work on the case and still feel like a valuable asset to the team. Luckily this unsub was very sloppy in covering his tracks and finding him was extremely easy. On Friday afternoon, Spencer walked into JJ's office.
She looked up. "Hey, Spence. Something wrong?"
He shook his head. "I actually just wanted to ask you something, if that's okay?"
"Of course, what's up?"
"…Is that offer to babysit Henry still out there? I mean I know I'm not in the best physical shape to be chasing after a four year old but I'd like to at least get some time with him, see what I'm getting myself into. I know it's not the same as a newborn, but I still need some one-on-one experience with a kid."
"You want to watch Henry?" He nodded. "When works for you?"
"I'm available all weekend, really. So anytime you and Will want to go out on a date or do something on your own."
"How about I call Will, and I'll get back to you?"
"So you'll let me watch him?"
"You're his godfather, Spence. He loves you. And once he finds out he gets some alone time with you? He'll be ecstatic."
"Really?"
"Really. Now get back to work. I'll talk to Will, and let you know what he says."
He gave a quick nod and walked back to his desk. A few minutes later, as he was looking through a file, JJ walked up to his desk.
"What's the verdict?"
"Will wants to know if you can watch him tonight. We'd leave not long after work and probably be home around 11."
"11?" Morgan asked. "Well, well, what are you going to get yourself into, Ms. Jareau?"
"Dinner and a movie with my fiancé, then going home and going to bed."
"What, not making Henry a little sibling?"
"Will's pestering me and he's hoping that with Spence being pregnant, I'll want another one."
"Is it working?"
"Not yet. So," she said, looking at Spencer, "after work I'll just drive us back to my place, I'll get ready, Will and I will go out, you'll watch Henry, and I'll drive you home after?"
"I can take the subway. It's no big deal."
"You think I'm going to let my very pregnant little brother take the subway after dark? Not a chance."
"Fine. See you at five."
The rest of the day seemed to fly by and it was five before Spencer knew it, and the nerves started setting in. He'd watched Henry before without having any issues, but back then he wasn't expecting his own baby and getting practice in.
JJ walked over to his desk. "Ready to go?"
He nodded, putting his bag on his shoulder and getting up. "What if I mess up?"
"Spence, he likes being read to, coloring, and watching Disney movies. There's no way you could mess it up."
When they got to JJ's house, he looked at her before he got out of the car. "Is it too late to take it back?"
She smiled. "You'll do fine. Come on, you're Unca Spen. He loves you and he's not going to be difficult at all."
"Let's hope so," he said, getting out of the car .Before he knew it, the front door practically flew open.
"Unca Spen!" he looked down and saw Henry running over to him, then hugging his leg. He reached up and put a hand on his bump.
Spencer smiled. "That's your little cousin. Your little girl cousin, to be more specific. She's going to be here in less than 10 weeks… or 68 days to be more specific. Are you going to be a good big cousin?"
He nodded, patting his bump.
JJ picked up Henry. "Come on, little man. Let's get you inside." She walked inside the house, setting him down. Spencer quickly followed.
Will walked over, kissing JJ softly. "How was work?"
"Just another day of paperwork at the BAU. Nothing too exciting. Henry already eat?"
"Chicken nuggets, his favorite. Didn't have time for his bath though."
"I can do it," Spencer spoke up.
JJ looked over. "You sure, Spence?"
"Yeah, it's no trouble at all."
Before they left, JJ went through a checklist in her head. "You have my number and Will's, and the emergency numbers are on the fridge, which include his doctor and my mom in Pennsylvania. No snacks for Henry after 7, though help yourself if you need anything. Bath time is usually at 7:30, though you can do it earlier or later if need be. His favorite Disney movies are on top of the DVD player already, his coloring books and crayons are on the dining room table, and his books are on the nightstand in his bedroom."
"Jayje, breathe."
"Very funny," she said, exhaling. "Really, if there's any problem, don't hesitate to call. I won't get mad."
"I'll be fine. It's only 5 hours."
She nodded, kissing his cheek, then giving Henry a hug. "Be good for Uncle Spencer, okay?"
"'Kay, Mama."
Will grabbed the car keys and walked outside, JJ following.
Once he was sure they were gone, Spencer looked through the movies.
"Which one's your favorite?" he asked, holding them out to Henry. Henry didn't hesitate pointing to Peter Pan. Spencer took the disc out, noticing that it was very worn. He'd have to get him a new copy the next time he went shopping. While waiting for the disc to load, he grabbed some blankets and pillows, as well as some chairs from the dining room.
"Ever watched a movie in a fort?" Henry shook his head and Spencer gasped. "Well, we're just going to have to change that!"
He laid down two of the blankets, then put the pillows on top. He set up the two chairs, and draped the sheets over them. He grabbed the remote, squatted down, and climbed into the fort. "Come on in."
Henry smiled, climbing in and sitting beside Spencer.
"Pretty cool, isn't it?"
"Yeah, Unca Spen!" he reached over and hugged his arm.
Spencer smiled, pressing the play button on the remote.
"You know, Henry, this is based on a book by J.M. Barrie."
He gasped. "It is?!"
"Next time I go to the bookstore, I can grab you a copy if you'd like. I read it to the baby at night and she loves it."
He smiled. "Tank ya, Unca Spen!"
Spencer pulled Henry into his lap, ruffling his hair. "Anytime."
After the movie finished, Spencer's phone rang.
"Yes, Jayje?"
"We just finished dinner and we're headed to the movies now. Is everything okay?"
"Everything's fine. We watched a movie, we built a blanket fort, and now we're having apple slices and coloring."
"Sounds like quite the adventure."
"And, as instructed, after coloring time, I'm going to give him a bath, then read to him and get him to bed."
She smiled. "Looks like you can handle everything just fine. See you in a few hours."
He hung up his phone, putting it on vibrate, and sat beside Henry.
"What are you coloring?"
"Baby."
"My baby?"
He nodded, picking up the pink crayon and scribbling.
"…Can I have that after so I can put it up in her bedroom?"
He gasped, looking up at Spencer. "You do that?"
"Of course. It looks amazing, and she's going to love that her cousin made it for her."
He squealed, continuing to color. Once he declared he was done, he handed it to Spencer, who put it right into his bag with the promise it'd go right into the baby's nursery.
Once he had given Henry his bath, he tucked him into bed and laid down beside him, book in hand. While one hand held the book open, he ran his other hand over his bump. Tonight, he was able to kill two birds with one stone, reading to both Henry and his daughter at the same time. He read through 'Cat in the Hat', making voices for each of the characters. Before he reached the final page, both of them had dozed off, and the book lay beside Spencer, wide open.
As soon as JJ got home, she went directly to Henry's room to tuck him in. She couldn't help but smile when she walked in and saw Henry tucked in and Spencer above the blanket with his hand still on the corner of the book, both fast asleep. She walked over, reaching for the book and closing it, setting it on the nightstand and turning off the lamp. She leaned over and nudged Spencer.
"Spence?"
He opened his eyes, mumbling. "Sorry, must've fallen asleep."
"It's fine. Come on, I'll get you home."
He pushed himself off the bed, careful not to wake Henry. He flipped on the nightlight and walked out.
"You two have fun?"
He nodded, putting the crayons back in the box. "We watched a movie, spent some time in our blanket fort, had a snack, colored, he had a bath and brushed his teeth, then I tucked him in and read to him." He closed the box. "I'm sorry for using all your blankets and pillows for it. I'll go clean it up."
"Why, so Henry can whine that we ruined it tomorrow? Not a chance. It's staying as long as Will lets it."
"You sure? I can go fix it right now, it won't take any more than five minutes."
"You'll do no such thing."
He straightened up the stack of paper and set the box of crayons on top of it.
"Ready to go home?"
He picked up his bag. "Yeah, when Henry gets up, can you tell him I'm sorry for falling asleep during the story?"
"It's no problem, I'm sure he did too."
"Thanks for the chance, Jayje. It means a lot."
"I'm sure I'll be hearing about how much fun he had with Unca Spen all weekend. It's no problem at all. And after this, I'm sure the little princess is going to be no problem."
He half-smiled. "Let's hope she isn't a problem anyway."
Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for all the awesome reviews and comments on the story. I can promise you that baby daddy is going to be revealed, and this story may (possibly) get a sequel!
