Her Past Catches Up With Her
I don't own Criminal Minds or Higher Ground.
Chapter 26
Peter was the first to enter. His hand holding a smaller hand. She still can't see her behind Peter. Sophie's right behind the unseen child. Then a person JJ hadn't expected to see, Roger. They all make their way to the foot of JJ's bed.
"Jennifer, I'd like to introduce you to our daughter, Andrea. You can call her Annie." Peter says, moving to let JJ gaze upon a mini version of herself.
"Hel… loo." JJ says, staring at Annie in awe.
"Hello Ms. Jennifer. Sorry, but I don't know your last name." Annie says, very intelligently.
"You can call me JJ. My last name's Jearau. But everyone calls me JJ." JJ says, she can't take her eyes off Annie.
"You look a lot like that girl… Shelby. Mom and Dad talk about her all the time. Is she your sister?" Annie asks, innocently.
"No dear. Shelby was me. I had to change my name and I could never talk to your mom and dad again." JJ says, holding back tears.
"I'm sorry to hear that. They missed you so much. When I make them mad, they sometimes yell 'Shelby' at me. So you must have really been trouble then." Annie says, giggling. JJ notices that the giggle sounds almost like a mixture of hers and Jess'. JJ can't hold the tears back any longer. Shawn holds her.
"It's ok." Shawn whispers into her ear.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to lose it like that. It's just been a bumpy couple of days. I sure would love to talk to you more Annie. Maybe if I get out of here soon, we can spend a little time together. I have a mess of stories I can tell you about your mom and dad." JJ says, smiling again.
"I'd like that." Annie says.
"I'm sorry. I'm so rude. This is Shawn Michaels. He's a friend and a co-worker." JJ says, squeezing his hand.
"Hello Mr. Michaels." Annie says, nodding a hello.
"Hello, you can call my Shawn." Shawn says, smiling. The room falls into silence. JJ looks over to Roger.
"Hey Roger! You still look the same. But it's great to see you again." JJ says, as he steps over and hugs JJ.
"It's really good to see you too. Never had to worry about you running." Roger says, smiling.
"I hope you all stay around long enough for me to get out of here and we can spend some time together. But I'm burning out fast. I'll call and let you all know when I'm coming to the hotel. It was nice to meet you Annie. Great to see you again, Rog." JJ says with a little giggle.
"Same here Shel, sorry JJ." Roger says, getting an uncomfortable look on his face.
"Call you later. Drive safely. Say hey to the other cliffhangers." JJ says as the four people leave. As soon as the door closes, JJ lets out a deep breath that she didn't know she was holding.
"JJ, what are you thinking?" Shawn asks, standing next to the bed and rubbing her back comforting.
"Just that she's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. I hope I did the right thing. She looks healthy and happy. I don't think I want her to know who I am. At least not yet. She seems so content with life. I don't know if I can answer all the questions she might have. Hell, I don't know if I have all the answers to my questions." JJ says, leaning her hear against Shawn.
"It's ok, JJ. We don't have to figure this all out right now. Why don't you lay back and get some rest. The doc should be I soon." Shawn says, still holding the woman he seemed to be falling deeper into love with.
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Sorry this chapter's so short. I just couldn't decide where I should break it up for the chapter. I'm still a little spacey. So please bear with me for a little while longer. Thanks for the reviews. Please keep reading and reviewing. It means a whole lot to me.