A/N: Aaaaaaaaand, there goes my updating schedule... I'm so sorry everyone, this wasn't supposed to take this long, but - as you'll see at the end of the chapter - it contains some seriously emotional scenes that just didn't want to come out right...

I probably won't be updating Saturday, just a warning. It might be Wednesday... I've got a lot on my plate right now, not to mention the other 5 fanfics that I'm trying to juggle (and am completely stuck on).

Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter 8:

Seriously, it was just a trip to the grocer's, Annabelle just couldn't understand why she was feeling so jittery. Maybe it was just because she'd left Matthew alone with a babysitter for the first time.

Kaylee, the girl who'd been their regular server at S&G's, had recently quit her job, because her usual ride couldn't take her all the way to Quantico anymore. When Annabelle had discovered that on her last visit to the restaurant, she'd asked the girl where she lived. Apparently, she lived a few blocks away from her own flat. Considering how good Kaylee had been with Matthew the few times that Annabelle had brought him there, she'd offered the teen a kind of probation period. The girl would come to the apartment, and take care of Matthew, while Annabelle tried to read instead of hovering. When that went well, Annabelle decided she needed to go to the store, and figured the baby would be fine with just Kaylee for an hour.

Apparently, she wasn't as fine with it as her now-2-month-old was.

Annabelle was really trying not to be the cliché, anxious parent, but she just couldn't help it. She checked her phone for the hundredth time as she absently selected a pizza from the freezer in front of her. Honestly, she wasn't paying attention to what exactly was on it, but she didn't really care. She wasn't very picky, and she was in a hurry to get back home.

Shoving her phone back into her pocket, Annabelle stepped back from the freezer, and nearly ran into the person standing behind her.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you," she said, turning around to face the man. He was sort of handsome, she supposed, but he showed a few signs of dishevelment. He was sporting a stubble, and there were slight bags under his eyes, his clothes were very casual and a little wrinkly. Not that she looked any better, but she could blame it on her little cry-monster at home.

"That's alright. In a hurry?" he asked, probably noting her shiftiness.

Annabelle was swaying from one side to the other, putting weight first on her left foot, then on her right, and she was fidgeting with the bag she'd been holding, but none of that had anything to do with her haste to get back home. The man's mere presence was causing her to stiffen, and she was getting nervous. No reason to let him know all that, though. "Yeah, first time leaving my son with a babysitter," she offered by way of an explanation.

The man smiled. "I know the feeling. My daughter is two now, but I still get anxious every time I leave her. It'll pass eventually," he assured her.

She eased up a little at the mention of a daughter. "I'm not sure, my son's only two months old." She offered a smile. When the man didn't reply immediately, she glanced at her watch. "I should get going, I really want to get back home," she said, hoping the man wasn't in a chatty mood.

He nodded. "Me too, take care," he said, turned on his heel, and walked into the next isle. Annabelle let out a sigh and relaxed her muscles again. This was getting ridiculous, that guy was just being nice, and here she was, nearly panicking.

She shook her head to clear it, and turned back to the freezers behind her. Pursing her lips, she went over her mental grocery list, made sure she had the M&M's Spence liked, and made her way to the cash register. As she was loading her groceries into the bags she'd brought with her, she realized that, as always, she'd bought a lot more than she had intended to – though she was sure she needed all of it – and it would be seriously difficult to carry.

However, she somehow managed to get a grip, however dubious, on all the bags. She managed to get within a few feet of her car before one of the bags ripped, and her groceries spilled all over the ground. Annabelle groaned as she –somehow – managed to press the button on her keys and open the trunk of her car. She dumped her remaining groceries in, and crouched down to pick up the rest.

Luckily, most of the items now strewn over the ground were well-packaged and not very fragile. After she'd picked up about half of her stuff, a hand reached out, out of nowhere and grabbed the same can she had been reaching for. As their hands grazed, she jumped back and stared wide-eyes at the man she'd been talking to in the store. "I'm sorry," he said, putting the can in my open trunk. "I saw you having trouble, and I figured I'd help out. He picked up a few more items and deposited them in her car. "Are you okay?" he asked concernedly.

Her heart was pounding, and she could feel her hands tremble. With a shock, Annabelle realized that the emotion she was feeling was fear. No, not fear, sheer terror. She was frozen in place, but when the man reached out to touch her shoulder, she recoiled sharply. "Don't touch me!" she shouted, and ran for her car. She barely had enough presence of mind left to slam the trunk shut, before she jumped behind the wheel and sped out of the parking lot, leaving the incredibly confused man behind.

It took about two minutes for Annabelle to realize that she probably shouldn't be driving when she could barely see the road ahead of her. She pulled over by the side of the road and rested her head on her hands, trying to get some control over her breathing again. As ragged sobs tore through her, she fought the urge to curl up into a fetal position and not move, ever again.

A loud honk startled her enough to bring her out of her frozen state, and she managed to lift her head and slow her tears somewhat. She knew she couldn't stay there forever, and – without thinking – dialed a very familiar number.

"Reid," he said as he answered on the second ring. He sounded distracted and probably hadn't looked at the number before picking up. A split second later, she realized that calling him had been foolish; he had no car, and he was at work. No matter how flexible they were, they wouldn't like him running off every time she wasn't feeling okay.

"Hello?" he asked, when she didn't reply.

"It's Annabelle," she said, hating the crack in her voice.

"Annabelle?" he responded urgently. "What's going on? Are you alright? Is it Matthew?"

She could hear some rustling on the other side, and knew that he was moving to a quieter area. "No, I'm fine, we're both fine… I just… I just wanted to hear your voice, know how you were doing, but I guess I'm interrupting your work, aren't I?"

"It's no big deal… Are you sure you're alright? You know you can tell me," he said hesitantly. Annabelle could just imagine the expression on his face, all worried.

She sniffed once. "No, I'm okay, really. I was just watching a sad movie earlier, and I wanted to call you. I'll see you tonight, okay?"

Spence didn't answer right away, and she knew that he didn't entirely believe her, but he let it go eventually. "Okay. I'll see you tonight."

Annabelle hung up and stared at her phone. Who could she call now? She knew she was in no state to drive, but she didn't really have anyone to contact. Her parents were back in New York, and she wouldn't have called them anyway, they didn't know.

The only real friend she had left was JJ, and therein lay the same problems that she faced with Spence. She was at work and couldn't exactly come get her. Kaylee was out too. While the girl could drive, and had a car of her own, she didn't have a car seat for Matthew, and Annabelle was reluctant to let the young girl see her like this.

Immediately, another name sprang to mind; Mary Tyler. She was a classmate from the evening classes she'd been taking, and had been helping her catch up after Matthew had been born. Though she wasn't really her best friend, she was a really nice and gentle person, and there had been a kind of connection between the two of them since day one.

Annabelle scrolled through her contacts and paused at the name. She bit her lip as her thumb hovered over the dial button. She didn't have to tell her everything, and she was fairly sure that Mary wouldn't press her if she didn't want to talk about it. Taking a deep breath, she dialed.

Mary picked up after the first ring, but sounded a little distracted. "Hello?"

"Hey Mary, it's Annabelle."

"Oh, hey! Please tell me you have some kind of emergency so I can get out of here," she pleaded, sounding a little breathless, but amused at the same time. Some laughter could be heard in the background.

"Well…" Annabelle started, and Mary immediately picked up on the tremor in her voice.

"Tell me where you are, I'm on my way," she replied immediately, and Annabelle almost started crying again at the other woman's willingness to come to her aid.

She told her what road she was on and where exactly to find her, Mary assured her she'd be there in a few minutes and hung up. Now there was nothing more to do but wait.

Mary arrived – true to her word – a few minutes later, but as soon as she opened the driver's side door, Annabelle broke down again. She just felt so lonely and confused, and afraid.

Mary never said a word, just pulled her into a brief hug, and then led her back to her own car, going so far as to settle the younger woman into the passenger seat and buckling her seatbelt for her. As the car started to move, Annabelle's tears had slowed to the point where she could at least breathe somewhat normally.

They only drove for about three minutes, and when they arrived at their destination, Annabelle realized it was a small coffee shop. "I come here all the time, because I live close by. They have the best coffee ever. I thought you could use it."

Annabelle gave a watery smile, and wiped the last of her tears from her cheeks. She was aware that by now, her eyes must have been puffy and red from crying, but she didn't particularly care. Knowing Americans, they were unlikely to ask any questions, or even wonder what was wrong.

She sat down at a small table in the very back, away from the other customers, while Mary went to order their coffees. They didn't say anything as they waited for their drinks, but Mary had grabber her hand in silent support. Annabelle was grateful for it.

After the waiter had come and gone, Annabelle sighed shakily. "Thanks for coming out here for me. I didn't know who else to call…"

Mary waved a hand. "That's okay. My family's visiting, but they can be a bit… much, so I was actually glad for the distraction," she said, taking a sip. "How about yours? How's Matthew? And the guy you've been seeing, he treating you alright?"

Mary was from the south, though her accent was rarely audible. Annabelle loved the sound of it, though, it felt… homely, if that was the correct term. It made her feel safe and warm. "They're both fine, Matthew's with a babysitter, and Spence is at work, or I would've called him…"

Mar moved to the chair next to her, as opposed to the one opposite her, and put an arm around her shoulder. Annabelle could tell she was curious, but she held her tongue, apparently satisfied with just comforting her.

Another quiet sob escaped Annabelle, and she turned to bury her face in Mary's neck. The other woman just put a hand on her back and stroked it in slow circles. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Annabelle recalled that Mary was a mother of two, and that blubbering children were probably an everyday occurrence for her, but she couldn't help but feel embarrassed at the behavior she was showing. Her own mother would never have stood for it.

"It's just so hard." It came out as a whisper, though Annabelle had never meant to open her mouth at all. "I mean, Matthew, he's not… Spence…" She closed her eyes, backed out of the other woman's embrace and took a few calming breaths. Little hiccoughs still hampered her, but she could feel a calmness inside her that hadn't been present since she'd stepped into that store. Before she could really stop herself, she started telling Mary about how Matthew had truly come to be, every detail.

Mary never interrupted, and didn't look disgusted, as Annabelle had expected her to be. She simply nodded and listened, the only expressions crossing her face concern and worry. The words just poured from Annabelle's mouth, as if she couldn't stop herself. On the one hand, she was a little embarrassed and ashamed that she was telling this story to a virtual stranger, but on the other; the weight that was being lifted was like an ache she'd come to ignore, and was now finally going away. It was like she could finally breathe again.

When she finished her tale, her coffee was cold between her fingers and Mary had an unreadable expression on her face. Annabelle bit her lip, afraid that she might have said too much. She'd included the encounter in the parking lot that had set off her panic attack, but maybe Mary was finally realizing that she had been listening to a lunatic. Maybe she'd be too disgusted to driver her back to her car.

Without warning, the other woman leaned forward and nearly crushed her in a hug. "I am so, so sorry."

A/N: I got the name 'Mary' from my best friend 'MaryEvH', who is an amazing author of Les Mis fanfics (go read them!), and who helped me through this emotional tangle at the end.

I have to say, most of that last bit came out this well because I'd just had an argument with my sister and (while not nearly on the same scale) it left me with some emotional turmoil of my own, since she's one of the most important people in the world to me, so it inspired me to write.

Also, two teeny tiny Doctor Who references, for those who were paying attention! :)

review reply
'justsaying: don't worry, Morgan will get what's coming to him, especially if he keeps pushing Reid the way he has been. At some point, the man might snap... Anyway, thanks for the review, I hope this reply reached you!

Anne