Jan 23rd, 2013
Hotch placed his gun in the hotel safe and laid down on the bed exhausted. They'd been in rural Oklahoma for 2 days now and there still wasn't an end in site. The case had been brutal - women were being raped and tortured before having their bodies tossed in dumpsters as if they were trash. He'd decided to send the team back to the hotel to get some rest but with the images of the women burned into their brains he wasn't convinced anyone would find sleep. Hotch glanced at his phone - it was 11:15 but that meant it was only 10:15 in New York. It was a weeknight but it was possible Beth was still awake.
"You up?" He sent her a quick message - knowing that if she was in bed that her phone would be on 'do not disturb' an it wouldn't wake her.
"Sure am. Netflix is getting the best of me tonight. What's up?"
Hotch called her and she picked up almost immediately.
"Aaron are you alright?" Beth asked him, worry evident in her voice.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just stuck in Oklahoma and wanted to hear your voice before I went to bed."
"Has it been a hard case?" she asked him softly.
"Yeah," it was the only answer he offered. Beth didn't push him for more details. "How was your day?" He asked her hoping she could distract him.
It worked. She went on about art and clients and phone calls and things she wouldn't normally bother to go into so much detail about but she knew the content of the conversation didn't matter. He just wanted to relax, to hear something familiar, to know that she was safe and at home. He could feel his body releasing the tension it had been carrying and relaxing into the bed - he wished he had the forethought to change into his pajamas before calling her so he wouldn't have to get back out of bed once he hung up.
Beth came to an end clearly running out of minute details of her day to tell him. "I miss you. And Jack," she told him.
"We miss you too. He always talks about you, asks when we'll see you next."
"Well I have events all weekend but next weekend I'm fairly open. I could take the early morning Saturday train and then head home Sunday night. Are you and Jack free?"
"Well you know how my schedule goes but yes, barring any national emergencies we'll be around. I feel bad you're always coming to us though. You spend half your weekends on the train."
"Trust me, it's worth it. I'll wait to buy the tickets that way if something comes up with work you can let me know. But I really hope nothing comes up because I really, really miss you."
"I miss you too. I love you, I'll talk to you tomorrow?"
"Sounds good. I love you too, Aaron. Bye"
"Bye." Hotch hung up the phone and felt much more at ease than he did 10 minutes before. He forced himself out of bed to brush his teeth and change into pajamas before climbing back into bed to get what little sleep he could.
Feb 2nd, 2013
"Do you see her Daddy?" Jack asked excitedly.
"Not yet, bud. We're a little early. Her train doesn't get in for a few more minutes"
Hotch smiled down as his son. He was holding his hand in the crowded train station and they were both eagerly awaiting Beth's arrival.
"There she is dad! There she is!" Jack jumped up and down and pointed in the general direction of the train platforms.
Aaron scanned his eyes and found her. She looked off. Paler than usual but still, when she saw them, she gave them a huge smile. Jack released his grip on his dad's hand and ran toward Beth yelling her name.
"Hey Jack! It's so good to see you!" Beth exclaimed as she crouched down and gave Jack a big hug. She stood back up and reached out to hug Hotch as well. "It's good to see you too!" she said to Hotch in his ear as he hugged her. He pulled back to get a better look at her.
"Are you okay?" As happy as he was to see her he could tell she wasn't feeling the best.
"Totally fine. Just a little nauseous from the train. That's the last time I sit in a backward facing seat."
Hotch gave her a worried look but she brushed him off and quickly kissed his lips. She grabbed his hand and Jacks hand as they walked towards the exit, Aaron carrying her weekend bag.
"So!" She said excitedly "What's the plan for the day?"
"Well Jack has a new found love for the board game Clue, so I think a few games of that are on the itinerary. And if Jack gets all his homework done today he would like the three of us to go see a movie tomorrow before you catch your train back." Hotch ignored the feeling he got when he mentioned her leaving tomorrow when she had only been here a few minutes.
"That sounds perfect!"
"Yay!" Jack exclaimed.
Hotch smiled at the two of them. He wasn't sure who loved Beth more; him or his son.
They piled into the car and headed towards home. Shortly into the drive Hotch noticed Beth wasn't feeling well again. Jack was chatting to her from the back seat and she was barely responding which wasn't like her. He could see her taking deep breaths in through her nose and out through her mouth. She interrupted his train of thought before he could ask if she was okay.
"Can you pull over I think I'm going to be sick"
Hotch immediately pulled into a gas station on his right and she jumped out of the car before he was even in park. He watched helplessly as she puked into the gas station trash can over and over again. He turned back to Jack who looked rightfully worried and told him to stay in the car.
By the time he got to Beth she was standing back up straight and wiping her mouth.
"Sorry about that" she looked at him embarrassed.
"Go sit in the car with Jack, I'll be back."
Beth got back into the car and caught her breath while Hotch headed into the convenience store. He came out only a couple minutes later and hopped into the driver's seat.
"Here take these, they'll help you feel better." He handed her pepto-bismol and dramamine and pulled out ginger ale and gatorade from the bag. She smiled softly at him.
"If I take the dramamine it'll knock me out for the rest of the day. I won't be conscious enough to play Clue with Jack."
"It'll be worth it if it means you don't puke the entire way back home. Besides he can work on his homework while you nap. You probably need the rest."
Beth was annoyed that her random bout of motion sickness was ruining their time together but she appreciated his thoughtfulness nonetheless. She took the medicine and washed it down with light blue gatorade.
"Thank you," she said.
"You're welcome. Just let me know if we need to stop again.
"Are you sick, Beth?" Jack piped up from the back seat.
"I don't think so bud, I think the train just made my head spin a little bit. I'll be just fine."
Jack seemed satisfied with that answer but Hotch not so much. He continued to give her worried looks throughout the rest of the drive.
Finally they made it back to Hotch's apartment and Beth was feeling the effects of the Dramamine. She could hardly keep her eyes open.
"Go lay down. I'll check on you in a bit"
Beth didn't argue. She quickly settled in to his comfy bed and snuggled into the blankets. They were clean and crisp, clearly he had washed them prior to her arrival. It didn't take long before she succumbed to the drug induced slumber.
Beth slowly opened her eyes. All feelings of nausea were gone and replaced with an intense sense of hunger. She glanced at her phone. Nearly 4 PM. Had she really napped for that long? She was sad she had missed a whole afternoon with them but glad she was feeling better. Beth walked out of the bedroom and found both of her boys on the couch; Aaron reading Chamber of Secrets aloud to Jack. She smiled and joined them on the couch.
"Beth! You're awake! Do you want to play Clue? I want to play Clue but dad says you can't play with two players and we needed to wait for you to ask you if you'd play with us so will you play Clue with us Beth?!"
Beth grinned at the boys excitement.
"I'd love to play Clue with you Jack! As long as I get to be Mrs. Peacock. She's my favorite. First I may need a snack though. All that sleeping made me hungry!"
"Jack and I had grilled cheese and tomato soup for lunch? Want me to whip you up one while you guys set up the game?"
"That sounds wonderful, thank you." She pecked him on the lips as he helped her off the couch.
The afternoon passed in a haze of board games, laughter, and snacks. Before she knew it, the three of them were on the couch watching a movie before bed. Jack sprawled out on his belly, his head resting on Beth's thigh and she leaned into Aaron. He mindlessly stroked her hair and she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so relaxed. The final credits of Wall-E played on the screen and Jack lifted his head.
"Do you really think that could happen Dad? Could we really have so much trash that we have to move to a whole new planet?"
"I don't know, Bud. I think it's possible if we're not careful. But there are a lot of things we can do to prevent it - like recycle, buy fruits and veggies, take shorter showers. We can talk more about it tomorrow. Right now, what I do know is it's time for you to go to bed. Go put PJ's on and brush your teeth, Beth and I will come say goodnight to you in a couple of minutes."
"But dad, I'm not even tired." Jack whined.
"I already let you stay up past your bedtime because it's a weekend and Beth is here. But now it is time for you to get some rest. I don't want to argue with you."
Beth watched on. Impressed that Aaron balanced the no nonsense parenting with being a nurturing and supportive caregiver so well.
"You're an amazing dad, you know that?"
"Shipping my kid off to bed so I can have alone time with my girlfriend is being an amazing dad?" Aaron joked.
Beth chuckled. "Well as much as I love Jack I'm not going to pretend I don't love our alone time. But you know that's not what I mean. Jack is a well adjusted happy kid - and that's because of you, Aaron. He idolizes you and you've never given him a reason not to. You're his hero."
Aaron let a moment of vulnerability cross his face. "I'm his hero now. But superhero's fail Beth. I don't know what I'm going to do when he stops understanding why I'm gone all the time, when he starts truly wondering why his mother died…"
Beth wrapped her arms around him clutching the back of his t-shirt in her palms. "All he needs is you, Aaron. Just keep doing what you're doing. Be present when you can but let go of the guilt when you can't. Your commitment to helping people is shaping him into the wonderful man he is going to become. And I know when the difficult questions come you'll be ready with the best possible answers."
Aaron just held on to her. Letting her comfort him. Allowing himself a rare moment of vulnerability with her - he knew it wouldn't scare her off.
"Let's go say goodnight to that sweet boy," Beth whispered in his ear.
He nodded and they headed into Jack's room to kiss him goodnight finding him already sound asleep underneath the covers.
"Why don't conserve some water and shower together?" Aaron asked suggestively as he gently closed Jack's door behind them.
"Mm I'll get the water going," Beth grinned.
