A few days later, Spencer was released from the hospital, despite what he thought was the best decision.
"But, Derek, what if I need help with her or I'm not healing right? Or what if something's wrong with her that hasn't really presented itself yet?
Morgan shook his head, slipping shoes onto Spencer's feet. "She's fine and you're fine. If anything does happen, we can come back. It's not like you're being banned."
"But maybe I should see if I can stay an extra day, just in case."
"Pretty Boy, they've done all they can do. You're taken care of, and so is she. It's our turn to take care of her now."
"But-"
"But nothing," he said, getting up and picking up Parker. "Besides, we've got to get her into the adorable homecoming outfit that Aunt Penny got for her."
Spencer smiled slightly, taking it out of her bag. "Are you sure this is going to be okay on her? Maybe we should put her in a onesie."
"She's going to be fine," he said, laying her on the bed.
Spencer took the tags off of the outfit and took out the hanger.
"Is she trying to make our daughter her mini me?"
"I guess so," he said, slipping the dress over her head. "Where'd her socks and hat go?" Morgan handed them to him. Spencer put her socks on, smiling. "You look so adorable." He slipped the beanie onto her head, then sat her up in his lap, kissing her forehead. "Absolutely perfect."
Morgan smiled, taking out his phone and taking a picture. He then sent it to his mother. "Pretty Boy, we've got to get her into the carseat."
"Are you sure it's safe?"
"Positive." Morgan set the carseat on the bed in front of Spencer. "Just put her in, then buckle her."
Spencer bit his lip, picking her up and setting her in a carseat. He was careful that her head was supported in the cushion, then buckled her in, tightening the straps. "Did I do it right?"
"Perfect. JJ's on her way up to help you into the wheelchair and get you down to the car. And before you ask, yes, you do need to be in a wheelchair."
JJ walked in a few minutes after, wheelchair in tow. She walked over, looking in the carseat. The little girl, with her soft caramel skin and tuft of light brown hair to match Spencer's, was sucking on her hand.
"Oh, she's so adorable in that outfit! Look at her little dress!"
"That's all thanks to her Aunt Penny."
"I can tell," she said, looking at Spencer. "Ready to go?"
He sighed. "Help me up?"
She nodded, taking his hand and pulling him up. He groaned, wrapping an arm around his stomach and easing himself into the chair. "Why are they letting me go home?"
"Because they know you can take it from here, despite what you might think."
She glanced over at Morgan. "Ready, Derek?"
He nodded as he put a blanket over her and adjusted her beanie.
She pushed Spencer's wheelchair out of the room and toward the elevator.
"The nurses told me they're going to miss her in the nursery. She was always able to put a smile on their faces."
"You've got a charmer. Not necessarily a bad thing," she said, pressing the button.
"Derek, would you be insulted if after we got to the apartment, I took a nap?"
"No problem. I'll take Parker and go pick up some dinner for us."
"What? No, you can't do that! What about the germs? She could get sick. I don't want a sick newborn."
"She's going to be fine. I'll put her in the carriage and put the cover over so she can relax and not have a bunch of people staring at her, though if they do, I can't blame them."
"Can you do something else? JJ, can you watch her while he runs to a restaurant and grabs the food, please?"
She sighed. "No problem, Spence."
Morgan looked at JJ. "When's that going to stop?"
"Mine with Henry lasted a while. It eventually just fades out."
When they got in the car, Spencer made sure the carseat was secure. JJ turned back to look at him.
"Spence, she's fine. I installed it, and I've done this before. She's going to be fine."
He bit his lip, nodding, stroking her cheek with his finger. "We're on our way home, Parker. I can't wait for you to see your room. We worked really hard on it so it'd be perfect for you."
"Yeah, he even made me move your crib six times so it was in the right spot," Morgan said, keeping his eyes on the road.
"I just wanted to be sure you'd be sleeping in the perfect spot, though you won't be in your crib for a little while. We've got your pack and play and the bassinet next to daddy's bed. I hope you like it."
JJ smiled, reaching back and squeezing Spencer's hand. "You're going to be fine. You know how to be a great parent. What you didn't read? It'll all come to you and be instinct."
He nodded, squeezing back and watching Parker sleep.
As soon as Morgan pulled up to his apartment, he looked out the window. "Welcome home, Parker," he said softly. JJ got out and opened his door.
"Can I grab her?" Spencer asked.
"With how your staples are? You won't want to be picking up a pillow. Come on, let's get you inside."
She helped him up, taking his hand and walking him inside.
Morgan smiled, opening the back door, lifting the handle and picking up her carseat. "This is definitely going to be an adventure, little lady. Let's hope it goes well."
He walked up the steps, and pushed open the door when they made it to the apartment.
"Oh my god, she looks so cute!" Garcia squealed, kneeling beside the carseat after Morgan set it down.
"What are you doing here?"
"What, I didn't have work, did you really expect me to just wait and see how coming home went?"
"I guess not. I need to go pick up some dinner for him, can you and JJ keep an eye on her?"
"Not a problem."
Morgan set down her bag. "The hospital gave us some of the small bottles for her formula, so I'm going to pick up more of those while I'm out. She has some diapers leftover, but Pretty Boy says there's some in the pack and play and there's even more upstairs in her closet. If you need anything-"
"Derek Morgan, are you panicking?"
"What?"
"He is totally panicking," JJ said, walking in and setting some burping cloths and swaddling blankets in the pack and play. "Spence is down for a nap now. He should be awake by the time you get back."
"Do you guys want anything while I'm out?"
"We'll text you if we need anything. Now go."
He knelt down, kissing Parker's forehead, then gave a quick wave before leaving the apartment.
Garcia looked at JJ. "And you didn't want to tell him."
While Morgan was out grabbing dinner, JJ and Garcia sat on the couch.
"How is he with her?"
"Spence says he's perfect. The other night? He called me panicking because Parker wouldn't stop crying no matter what he did. I tried telling him what to do, but he wouldn't calm down long enough for me to help him. Before I knew it, she'd stopped crying. Turns out Morgan got her down without a sweat."
"How's his mom taking the news?"
"She calls to check up on them every few hours, practically like clockwork. She makes sure they know what they're doing and they're taking good care of her."
"Has Boy Wonder told his mom?"
"He wrote her a letter yesterday and sent it with some photos." She ran a hand through her hair. "He's really nervous that she's not going to like her."
"It's her grandchild, how can she not?"
She shrugged.
"Any word on how the living situation's going to work?"
"From what I heard, Spence is going to be in his room, and Derek's going to be on the pull-out couch."
"So what, they can make a baby, but not share a bed?"
"That was ten months ago. I doubt it'll be easy for Spence to get that comfortable with him again."
Garcia sighed, lowering her voice. "I heard Hotch talking to Strauss at work on Friday. Morgan has the next few weeks off to help him around the house, and Hotch refused to let either of them be penalized for fraternization."
"Did she really try playing that card?"
She nodded. "Tried saying that two people on the same team being involved is only going to cause trouble."
JJ rolled her eyes.
"So when Derek comes back to work in a couple weeks, she's going to have a discussion with him."
"Of course, why wouldn't she trust Hotch's judgment when he knows us better than himself?"
"Because she's a permanent hardass without a clue?" Garcia suggested.
"What are we going to do without Morgan for a few weeks?"
"Well, because of that, I'm going with the team as media liaison, you're in the field, and Seaver's coming earlier than she planned. How well is Boy Wonder going to handle not being in the loop on the job?"
"As well as he handled sitting at home watching episodes of Doctor Who? You know at one point, he called me crying because of an episode."
"Which one?"
"Doomsday I think."
"I don't blame him, I would've too!"
When Parker started stirring and whimpering, they heard Spencer move on his bed.
"Spence, stay in bed."
"But she needs me," they heard him whine.
"No, she needs you to rest up and be in good health when we're not here, get back in bed. We'll wake you when Morgan gets back with dinner."
He sighed, laying back on his bed. "If she needs me, you'll let me know?"
"In a heartbeat."
Meanwhile, Garcia walked over, picking her up.
"You're okay, little princess," she said, kissing her forehead."Is she due for a feeding?"
Spencer looked at the alarm clock on his nightstand. "Right on time."
JJ went through her bag, taking out a bottle. After warming it, she tested it on her wrist, and handed it to Garcia.
She smiled, sitting on the couch, holding Parker against her chest and feeding her.
"God, Morgan and Reid made a cute baby."
"She certainly got the best of both worlds when it comes to genetics."
"Oh, she did. Such a perfect little cutie."
"Just imagine when Momma Morgan gets a hold of her. We might not see her again."
"I guess I can share her," Garcia said, holding the bottle up, "hungry, aren't you?"
JJ stretched. "Henry made me promise him something."
"What's that?"
"That when she's older, he can play with 'Par-er' in his tree house."
"Those two are going to be double trouble once she learns to talk."
"Definitely."
Once Morgan got back to the apartment, he walked inside, setting the bags down on the table in the living room.
"How was she?"
Garcia put a finger to her lips, pointing to the pack and play.
"She's eaten, she's gotten a diaper change, and now she's down for a nap."
"What about Spencer?"
"Having trouble accepting the fact that he can't do everything for her."
"Is he still sleeping?"
JJ nodded, getting up. "I'll go wake him for dinner."
While Garcia unpacked the bags, Morgan stood beside the pack and play, smiling.
"Someone's a proud papa," Garcia said, looking up at him.
He smiled. "How can I not be? Just look at her."
"So you're not mad at him?"
He shook his head. "If I were in his shoes? I probably would've done the same thing."
"You would?"
"Yeah, I mean, despite how well I know someone, I'm not going to force them to commit to a one-night stand."
"You know an awful lot about one-night stands, don't you?" she said with a wink.
He pointed a finger at her. "Watch that mouth of yours around my daughter."
She sighed. "Fine, if you insist."
JJ sat beside Spencer, rubbing his back. "Time for dinner, Spence."
He sighed, looking at the clock and groaning. "I'm not going to be getting enough sleep, am I?"
"It's going to be quite the adventure," she said, pulling off his blanket. "Now come on."
"Who has Parker?"
"She's down for a nap right now, and Morgan's sitting beside the pack and play as we speak."
He sat up, wincing slightly. "But she's okay?"
"She's fine. We know what we're doing, and she's in good hands."
He nodded, sighing. "Sorry."
"Don't be. You just have to get used to help. Hotch gave Morgan the next couple weeks off so he can be around for you, and for Parker while you're healing."
"I could handle her."
"After major surgery on your stomach? I don't think so."
He bit his lip. "He's taking good care of her, right?"
"Spence, all I can say is… he's a natural. You have absolutely nothing to worry about with him."
He smiled slightly, pushing himself off the bed.
"What'd you get for dinner?" Spencer asked, sitting on the couch and exhaling.
"Chinese," Morgan said, handing him a tray and chopsticks.
"You don't know me very well, do you?"
"What?"
"I may have an IQ of 187 and an eidetic memory, but chopsticks are my sworn enemy."
Morgan shook his head, handing him a fork. "Happy?"
"Ecstatic."
While they were eating, Spencer looked over at him. "When's your mom coming?"
"She can get time off work next Friday and spend the weekend, if that's okay with you."
Spencer nodded, setting his tray down. "That's fine." He looked over at the pack and play. "She moved, maybe I should check on her."
JJ pointed a finger at him. "You will do no such thing. It is a curse to wake a sleeping child."
"What if it was a sign or something?"
"It was," Garcia started, "for 'Daddy, leave me alone, I'm sleeping'."
He sighed, sitting back on the couch. "Fine. But the second she needs me…"
"You'll go right over. We know."
Author's Note: Coming up - their first night.
