He awoke an hour later to his phone buzzing with her flight details, and the message 'Don't go back to sleep again!'.
He smiled at that. She knew him far too well for his own good. He sat up, rubbing his chin self consciously. He had let himself go a bit after she left. He hadn't even been aware of it until Reid brought it up in the unconsciously blunt way of his. He hadn't cared, but made himself more presentable after that. The rugged look he had carried in these last few months had stayed however. The team had collectively agreed to let him figure things out himself.
He rubbed his eyes tiredly, then went to get the coffee going while he took a shower.
He was in his car an hour later, not expecting her to land for another hour or so. He had plenty of time, until he hit a five car pile up blocking the road, very effectively trapping him in.
Two hours later, he had barely made any progress. She had probably landed by now. He looked at the flight information on his phone, and cursed. Her flight, if it was on time, had landed five minutes ago. He sent her a text, hoping her phone was on.
'Baby girl, I'm stuck in traffic, I might be awhile. If you don't feel up to waiting, take a taxi and I'll take you out to dinner tonight to make up for it.'
He got an immediate response.
'I would wait an eternity for you sweetness, but I'll take a taxi, and freshen up for tonight. Let me know when and where, and I'll be there.'
He chuckled, and quickly typed a reply.
'I couldn't let you drive yourself after such an exhausting day. Besides, it's supposed to be a surprise. Can't ruin the surprise now can we?'
Her reply to that made him laugh out loud, drawing attention from the driver next to him, who gave him a weird look.
'Esther's been bugging me to drive her after sitting gathering dust for so long. Don't give me that look, my car talks to me, even if yours doesn't.'
He shook his head, admitting defeat. It was good to banter with her like this again.
'Fine. Don't say I didn't warn you.' He then sent her the address of one of the more expensive restaurants he knew.
'We can't go there!' She sounded aghast.
'Yes, we can. I'm paying of course.' He replied smugly. A honk reached his ears. He glanced in the mirror, and realized that traffic had moved without him realizing it, and he might actually get somewhere in the next couple minutes.
'Baby girl, I need to go, can't afford to get in a crash when we have a date coming up tonight. I'll meet you there at 6:30, be sure to tell me you got home safe.' He told her quickly.
'Drive safe my chocolate god. Can't wait until tonight.' He smiled, and turned his signal on to get out of the traffic jam, and drive back to his apartment.
Back at his apartment, he immediately fell into bed, not even bothering to take off his shoes. Strange dreams haunted his sleep, making him toss and turn, until he sat up suddenly with a gasp. He looked around wildly, his senses on high alert. Clooney stared at him woefully. He fell back into the pillows, relieved that nothing was wrong. He couldn't remember what exactly was wrong in the dream, but something had gone dreadfully awry.
He shook his head, and swung himself out of bed, heading straight for the shower. He glanced at the clock, and gave a startled curse. The clock read 6:05. He rushed through his shower, still trying to shake himself from the haze that surrounded him. He got dressed quickly, and turned around at a whine from Clooney. He was standing near his food bowl, and Derek realized belatedly that he hadn't fed him this morning.
He groaned, and grabbed a scooper, filled Clooney's bowl, and grabbed his keys. He stopped near the door, glancing around to make sure he hadn't missed anything. He shook himself, and hurried out the door, locking it behind him, and jogging to his car.
He made it to the restaurant with three minutes to spare. He thanked his lucky stars as he hurried inside that he had called in a reservation on his way home from the traffic jam. The place was packed. He sat down at the table, ordered an appetizer he knew she liked, and sat back to wait. Scanning the restaurant, he saw two girls pointing at him and giggling. He turned away, wishing he had more privacy.
However, a minute later he heard a drop in conversation and turned around to see what it was about. When he saw the person walking towards him, his eyes widened in shock. The Penelope Garcia coming towards him was not the one that had left a year ago.