Sight
It was Jack who had collected the videos with Haley in them. He had put them all in his new room, and brought several out every night to watch. Not to see them as a family-to see her.
As she was, with short blonde hair. His birthday parties, Christmases past, when she had been pregnant with him, before. He had even found the video of his parents wedding.
That was in the player now. Haley in an ivory dress that skimmed the floor, a family heirloom. Hotch in his rented tuxedo-he hadn't been promoted to the BAU yet, still just a regular agent with a smaller paycheck. They were cutting the cake.
It was a work of art, that cake, created by her mother and sister, tiers constructed as a reflection of her dress, with yellow roses like what was in her bouquet and her hair. He was carefully slicing a piece off the top, her whole family teasing loudly-"Careful, Aaron!" "Don't bust it, bud! I can't save you from them!" "You be that careful with the bride, now!"
He had extracted a piece of cake and held it out to her. She leaned over and took a bite, getting icing on her nose, giggling. "Nice, man! Classy!" " Shoulda just shoved it in her face!" An off-camera punch from another to the speaker, a couple of Haley's cousins, and then "Stupid, that was how you got your nose broke on your wedding day!" "Oh yeah, I forgot. Never mind that one, man!"
He had leaned over and kissed her, getting the icing on his face and accidentally dropping part of the piece on his tux. The shop had charged him extra for the cleaning.
It had been a summer wedding at her parents house. As the day wore into evening, when the party and the dancing wound up, she had changed into an equally pale confection, a lacy cocktail dress, and they had waltzed around the grass of the lawn.
Technically, Jack should be going to bed. He should go up and tell his son it was time for pjs and brushing his teeth. He went and sat down beside him. Jack snuggled up to him.
"Did you see the one where Mommy and I are having Thanksgiving dinner with Grandma and Grandpa and Aunt Jessie, and Aunt Jessie decided she was going to pour gravy all over me and Mommy?"
"No she didn't!"
"Yeah she did. Want to watch that next?"
"Sure. Aren't you gonna tell me its bedtime?"
"It's Friday. Everyone stays up late on Friday."
"Can I stay up late next Friday, too?"
"And we'll eat ice cream, too. Chocolate with chocolate chips. Just don't tell Aunt Jessie."
"No way, Daddy. I like eating cookies for dinner."
He shifted Jack a little closer as Haley threw her bouquet.
Author's Note: There's one more chapter left that I need to write, about Hotch going to see Haley's headstone. I haven't decided yet if Jack should go with him. Thoughts, please! And why does this thing keep underlining all my stuff? Jeez Loiuse.