DISCLAIMER: I don't own Criminal Minds, "Friend" by Bob Evans, or "World of Warcraft."
Emily opened the front door with a grin. "Girls!" she cried out, standing back in the door to let JJ and Garcia in. Emily gave them each a hug before she led them through the house. "How are you Em?" JJ asked, following her friend through to the kitchen. Emily smiled and nodded, "We're doing really well," she replied. Hotch looked up from the TV, where he was lying down with the babies. He waved at the girls, keeping his other hand firmly held on the lounge next to Matty's tiny body. Garcia and JJ grinned in reply, the former wandering over to the couch to say hello to the babies.
JJ turned to Emily as she put the bags she was carrying on the counter. "So how's it going? You adjusting?" she asked. Emily smiled and looked over at the lounge. "I really am. I thought it'd take longer than just five days of motherhood, but I really do feel like I'm getting the hang of it," she explained. JJ smiled and rubbed Emily's hand. "You look tired," she said sympathetically. Emily shrugged. "I can say with absolute certainty that I am thankful for all those sleepless nights on cases. Best training ever!" she cried out. JJ chuckled and nodded, smiling when Garcia joined them.
"They are beautiful," she said, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder. Emily smiled and nodded, "They are," she replied. "Just like their Mom!" Hotch called from the lounge. JJ and Garcia glanced over their shoulders at Hotch, who was smiling at Emily. When they turned back to their friend she was blushing. Emily cleared her throat. "So, who wants a coffee?" she asked her friends. They both nodded and the three of them stood in the kitchen, chatting while the kettle boiled. Emily filled the four mugs, making a green tea for herself, and handed the girls their drinks.
She carried Hotch's mug to him. "Do you want me to go upstairs?" he asked, not wanting to intrude on what was likely to be a very girly conversation. Emily leaned on the back of the couch, smiled and shook her head. "No, the twins are settled and you've got your…" she paused as she looked at the TV, "PGA?" she asked. Hotch nodded and smiled, leaning up to kiss her gently. She ran her fingers through his hair and smiled as she pulled away. "We'll just go and sit out on the deck." Hotch watched the three girls walk out the back door, before turning back to watch Ogilvie putt his last shot.
Emily sat down and sighed. "You ok there sunshine?" Garcia asked, sitting on one side of Emily. She nodded in reply, "I'm fine." JJ smiled. "I know that look. It's the "I still can't believe I'm a mom" look. Sometimes I swear, on the right day, I still feel that one," JJ added. Emily smiled and nodded. "I honestly don't know what I did right," she replied. Garcia smiled and took a sip of her coffee. The women sat in silence for a few moments, enjoying the peace and quiet of the big backyard.
"So Em. You miss work?" JJ asked. If she'd been asked if she missed having Emily around, the answer would be a resounding yes. EXCLAMATION MARK. She missed having another woman around, especially when the locals decided police-work was too difficult for a member of the fairer sex. It was usually then that Emily would step in, tackling an un-sub or putting a sexist officer in his place with a properly-worded but still polite comeback. Emily sighed and nodded. "I do. But I've been reviewing some of my old cases, catching up on paperwork, and looking at some of the files on Hotch's desk. It's kept my head in the game," she replied.
If she was completely honest though, it wasn't the work she was missing, but the team. It had been said many times before, the BAU was a family. They took care of each other, supported each other, and made each other laugh. She missed Morgan's stories from his weekends, Rossi's stories from his golden days, and even Reid's fact-filled anecdotes. She missed seeing Hotch in the office, though she missed him less considering he'd been around for the past three weeks. She missed having regular coffee dates with JJ and Garcia, and hearing the latter's long-winded greetings on phone calls.
"As much as I'm loving this time at home, I honestly can't wait for the twins to get settled and for my body to heal so I can get back to work," she confessed, sitting forward and lowering her voice. It was no secret that Hotch wasn't all too keen on Emily returning to work too soon. JJ smiled and looked at Garcia. They all understood. They were agents, trained to deal with the most horrific crimes in the world. And though JJ loved Henry more than life itself, and Emily was just finding out how incredible it was to be a mother, all three of the women knew that none of them would be happy to stay at home.
"So when's the boss gonna be back?" Garcia asked. "Uh, he still has about three weeks left. The end of April/beginning of May. He didn't really have an exact date, just deciding when the time came I suppose," she replied, "How's Morgan doing as boss?" Emily asked. JJ and Garcia exchanged a look. "He's doing well. Of course, he already had a chance to show off his skills when Hotch stepped down year before last, but he's picked it up again, no worries," JJ explained. She knew not to lie to her friend. And it shouldn't be a secret that Morgan was doing well. Emily and Hotch both knew he would.
The women talked for about an hour before Lexi started to stir. Hotch walked through the sliding door onto the deck, carrying both kids. "Hey," Emily said, looking up. Hotch smiled and passed over his daughter. Emily held her to her chest and kissed her forehead. "She's a bit warm, she probably needs a diaper change and a feed," Emily said. When she looked up she found the faces of her two friends, looking at her like she'd just spoken another language. She rolled her eyes. "She gets really warm when she needs her diaper changed. It's a girl thing. They don't like to sit in their own filth," she explained. JJ smiled and held out her arms. "Here. We'll go upstairs. I can change her and then you can feed," she said as she took the tiny girl. The three women walked inside and up the stairs, leaving the two Hotchner boys alone in the lounge.
The girls stayed another hour, sitting with Emily while she fed both the babies. When Hotch brought Matty up for his feed, he blushed. Emily chuckled at the shy look on his face. He wasn't usually one to get embarrassed, but he also wasn't usually around a semi-naked Emily at the same time as JJ and Garcia. Not that Emily was dancing around in her state of undress, but that particular body part was out nonetheless. His staring, not a practice he wanted two of his agents to be so painfully aware of.
JJ and Garcia traded amused looks with Emily when she draped the towel over her chest. While the twins' very existence spoke volumes about her and Hotch's relationship, they'd never really displayed their affection in front of others all that often. And since they were mostly around JJ and Garcia at work, it wasn't at all appropriate to be that way in front of the girls. Talking about their relationship was one thing, seeing Hotch stare at Emily's breasts was another. So this was one of those rare instances where Hotch felt a little embarrassed. He passed their son to Emily and cleared his throat. He said nothing, before turning and hurrying out of the room.
The girls chuckled quietly when they heard him running down the stairs. "He's so funny," JJ giggled. Emily blushed and nodded. "He's so relaxed when it's just us… or even Jack. But we had my parents over last night and the moment I whipped these things out to feed the kids, Dad and Hotch bolted, making up some excuse to go into the rec room," she laughed. Garcia chuckled. "Well, can you blame him? Those things arelike a freakin solar eclipse. And, even though it's not like we don't know you guys… well you know, it's still gotta be strange for him. I mean, it's Hotch," she pointed out. Emily and JJ nodded.
After Matty was fed, burped and changed, Garcia placed the little guy in his crib, kissing his cheek. "I want one of these," she said quietly. Emily chuckled. "Well you can't have one of mine. You'll have to take it up with Kevin," she teased. Garcia rolled her eyes. "Yeah right. Even if I could pull him away from "World of Warcraft" long enough to have a serious conversation, chances are he'd run screaming into the night," she joked. The others chuckled as they closed the nursery door.
The three women walked into the kitchen to get the girls' bags. They said a quick goodbye to Hotch, saying they'd see him on Saturday for the barbecue. He thanked them for dropping by, putting his arm around Emily's waist. JJ smiled and hiked her bag up on her shoulder. "Alright. We should go. We've spent way too long bugging you guys," Garcia joked. Hotch said goodbye to the girls, then sat back down on the couch, waiting for the Spurs/Knicks game.
Emily hugged the girls and thanked them for coming. "I really appreciate it. I mean, I know you'll probably be in trouble for being gone most of the afternoon," she said, grateful for the visit. She hadn't realized how much she truly missed her two girlfriends. JJ smiled and nodded. "We don't care. You're worth the pain from Strauss. And we couldn't go much longer without seeing those two babies," she replied. "Ok. Well I guess we'll see you Saturday. Don't worry about bringing anything. Morgan's bringing his homemade coleslaw and Dave said he's got a surprise for dessert. I've already picked up the meat and salads and Reid's bringing drinks," Emily explained. The girls nodded and said goodbye again, before walking down the path to Esther, Garcia's car.
Emily stood on the porch and waved to them as they drove off. Then she turned and went back inside. There was no way she was missing this game. The Knicks were going to kick the Spurs' ass. And then Hotch would owe her a massage.
A/N: This was part two of the "welcome home babies" arc. I just thought a little girl time would be good. Given the field they work in, their relationships with their female colleagues would be important so a missing colleague out on leave would probably be missed even more. It also gives me the chance to bring some of Hotch's character out, thus the embarrassment. He is a private guy in the show so I tried to bring that out here. Please read and review.