JJ still had one hand against Spencer's side as she waved the ambulance over. The team weren't far behind and despite Derek being the one that usually rode in the ambulance with him when something went wrong, Derek knew that JJ was the one that now belonged by his side. So, he and Emily drove behind the ambulance and met Penelope at the hospital. While Hotch and Rossi stayed behind to tie everything up, before also heading over to the hospital.

Spencer was taken to the OR immediately and the team took their places in the waiting room, similar to how they had before. JJ had been forced by Hotch to get checked out and after a couple hours with the doctor and some x-rays, she had been cleared with no serious injury. She was given pain medication and told to go home and rest, but she had stayed in the waiting room the entire night anyway.

It had taken hours to finally get word about Spencer, with his injury reopened the doctors had a lot more work to do to repair the damage. The longer the team were there the more anxious they got, but they also knew that if they were still working on him that meant he was still alive. Finally, after hours in surgery the doctor came out to greet the team.

"You're here for Dr. Reid, right?" He asked when he came out, looking tired but happy.

"Yes, is he alright?" JJ was the first to rush over to him.

The doctor looked at her and assumed that she was the girlfriend, as well as addressing the entire team.

"There was extensive damage the first time around and having it reopened only made that worst. However, thankfully the wound wasn't reopened too deeply or else he probably would have died before we had gotten there. We were able to stop the bleeding and repair everything, but the recovery will be hard," the doctor looked through the team, "who's the leader here?"

Hotch stepped forward and the doctor addressed him personally, "he shouldn't return to work for at least two weeks, and even after that I'd say to give him at least six weeks before putting him in the field."

Hotch nodded, "of course, so he's going to recover completely, right?"

"He will, but he'll be in a lot of pain for the next couple months. I have prescribed high pain medication-"

"Our pretty boy can't have narcotics," Derek interrupted.

"Is there an issue I should know about?" This doctor wasn't the same that had treated him before.

"Off the record, yes," Hotch answered, "is it possible to give him a medication that's not as strong?"

The doctor thought it over for a moment, "I suppose so, but he'll be in even more pain for a while."

"He can handle it, and we'll be there," Derek said.

The doctor nodded, "I'm sure you will be, all of you waited the entire time?"

He hadn't had to ask as he could tell by their tired faces and the incredulous look they were giving him, as if asking them that was a stupid and crazy question.

"It's good that he has a great support system to lean on, especially after such a traumatizing experience," the doctor continued, "I'd be sure to get him some help through therapy, at least until you can see how he's doing. And to make sure that 'the issue' doesn't resurface."

"There are therapists that we send agents to through the bureau, I'll see to it that they both see one," Hotch assured.

"That's good, I'm not sure when Dr. Reid will wake up, but two of you may go in and wait with him until then. The rest of you should go home and come back during visiting hours."

That was the last thing that the doctor said before leaving them, and nobody questioned who'd stay with him. JJ and Derek were shown to the recovery room and when they saw him they were shocked.

Spencer was hooked up to the heart monitor and also had multiple tubes hooked up to him, most of them they didn't know what they were for. However, they could tell that he had needed a blood transfusion as blood was being streamed into him from one of the tubes attached to his arm.

"Oh Spence," JJ sat on the side of the bed and touched the side of his face.

"He doesn't look so pretty right now," Derek joked, "but he'll recover from this. In all ways."

She looked over at him, "what if he relapses?"

"He won't, we won't let him. We're going to be there for him every step of the way. We won't let him go down that path, and we won't be ignorant like we were last time. I'm sure you'll be able to keep a closer eye on him too, now that it's official. I also want you to remember that I'm here for you too."

She smiled and looked back at Spencer, "We will be there for you, nothing else is going to happen."

Derek echoed that and they sat in silence for several minutes before JJ said, "he told me he loved me."

Derek smiled, "when was this?"

"When we were outside of the warehouse, just before the ambulance showed up and he lost consciousness."

"Did you say it back?"

"Of course I did, and I think he heard it," she sighed, "I can't believe that this is what it took to get us together."

"I'm sure it would have happened one way or another."

"I was dating Will, and I truly cared about him, but I knew that something was stopping me from fully being into it. I didn't know what it was, and I never even thought that it could be this."

"You two have been dancing around it for so long, and Reid didn't think it'd happen, especially after the baseball game. I know he kept hoping, it was so obvious from the beginning that he felt that way."

"I didn't feel that way for him back then," she said, "I almost wish that I had, then we could have had more time, but I saw him as a child. He was so young and I just wanted to protect him from the horrors we saw everyday because I knew, or at least I thought, that he had little experience."

"We all took him under our wing like that, and even knowing all this, I still feel the urge to protect him. I promised after Hankel I wouldn't let anyone hurt him again, and I know that's hard with this job, but he has become like the brother I always wanted. He has been my best friend, and I know he'll be okay."

"You don't think he'll be tempted to relapse again?"

"Maybe he will, but it won't matter," Derek told her, "we'll be right here throughout his recovery. I'm sure Penelope's already getting ready to take care of him while he recovers. Probably has bought out the entire gift shop."

JJ laughed, "yeah, probably. She's just going to fill Spence's apartment with stuffies and fluffy things."

"Yeah, pretty boy will love that."

The two of them continued speaking about how the team would help Spencer recover, while Derek also reminded her that he'd be there for her too. And she knew that was true, and Spencer would be there for her. She knew that despite everything that had happened, and everything that had been learned, the team would find a way to cope with this new reality.

Spencer hadn't lost anyone the way he had thought he would, and when he woke up, the team would help him build a new life away from the CIA and Michael. This time, they'd do it together.

It took two days for Spencer to wake up, and when he did he was as sore as the doctor had said he would be. Despite this, he was happy when he realized JJ sleeping in the chair beside his hospital bed. Apparently, she hadn't left his side and he didn't want to wake her up. He was content in just knowing she was still there, and he also wanted to think before he got bombarded by the team.

It was hard for him to wrap his brilliant mind around everything that had happened over the course of only a couple days. When JJ had put that file in his hands, he had thought his life was over. He had been sure that he would lose everything including her, and yet here she was sleeping in the chair beside him. He had gone back to his apartment, already having the intention to run like he had from the hospital. He had returned to CIA headquarters, only to be sent back to the team that he loved like family. He had gone to look for JJ with the intention of telling her that he was never leaving them again, and perhaps even, that he loved her. Nothing had gone the way he had thought, and when he finally got to tell her, he had been dying. He had been at peace with it, ready to die because he knew that she was safe and knew the truth. However, nothing had gone the way he thought it would, and for the most part he was thankful for that. He wished that he had gotten to JJ's apartment in time for her to not be attacked. He hated himself for the fact that she had to go through that. He looked over at her, and even in the dim light he could still see the bruises. They weren't as bad as they could have been.

'She could be dead,' a voice in his head said, and he shuddered at that possibility.

He remembered when Michael had gotten up from his knees, and he had known what he intended to do.

"I'm a coward Agent Reid, I'd rather die and if you won't kill me then I have no choice, but to make you."

Spencer had seen it coming while Michael was speaking and it had been then that he had noticed the forgotten knife beside Michael. He could have shot Michael before he rose and grabbed JJ, but something had stopped him. As if it would have been wrong for him to shoot Michael before he rose the knife. JJ hadn't had any time to realize what was happening as she stepped around Michael. She just felt him grab her and saw the fleeting gleam of silver striking down towards her chest.

Spencer could still hear the shot ringing in his head and he leaned back on the pillows and sighed. JJ's scream had followed, and that was a sound he never wanted to hear again. All he wanted to hear, were those words again;

"I love you too, you're going to..."

He hadn't heard anything after that, but he slipped away knowing that she felt the same way and that was all he had to hear.

He looked over at her again, 'on second thought, I think I want to be bombarded by them.'

He whispered her name a few times, not really wanting to wake her either.

JJ stirred slowly, having not been too deep in sleep due to the uncomfortable chair she had spent the last two nights sleeping in. She had been told to go home, but she had wanted to be here when he woke up. She sat up before turning to look at him, and upon realized he was awake, she smiled widely.

"Spence!" She got off the chair and threw her arms around him, slightly awkwardly because of their positions, "how long have you been awake?"

"Just a couple minutes, just enough time to think," Spencer replied softly, and she pulled away sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Enough time to think about what?" She was worried that he had been thinking that it was his fault, or thinking about Dilaudid.

"Well," he answered slowly, "at first I wanted time before you guys started asking me questions and before Garcia attacked me with stuffed animals, but I really was thinking about everything that happened. I thought about when I pulled the trigger, but then I thought about you and when you said that you loved me and I wa-"

"I love you," JJ cut him off, with a gentle smile, "I love you, and I'll repeat it as much as you want."

Spencer smiled, "I wanted to hear it again, I wanted to know that it was real and not just me passing out and imaginin-"

"You weren't imagining things Spence," she interrupted again, "I love you too, I have for a long time."

Apparently the nurse had heard them talking because she came in and told them that she had called the doctor to notify him that Spencer was awake. She took his blood pressure, listened to his heartbeat and then left them alone again.

There was a silence between them for a couple moments before JJ said, "I want to hear it again too."

Spencer smiled, "I love you JJ."

She leaned forward, still sitting on the edge of his bed and trying carefully not to get tied up in any of the wires still attached to him. She leaned so close to him that he could feel her breath and his breath hitched slightly, anticipating what she was about to do. He hoped that she hadn't noticed, but she had.

She smiled, "I love you too Spence," she said before pressing her lips gently to his, just for a moment.

The doctor walked in as she had pulled away, and Spencer was smiling like a fool. He had wanted that for years. He had even thought about kissing her back during the baseball game. Though, if he had it probably would have just made things awkward due to it not being the right time.

Nine months ago when Spencer was abducted by Hankel, things had changed between them. They had felt it, but neither had done anything about it. Michael had been the final traumatizing push that had forced them together. While it would have been better to end up together another way, perhaps a way that was happier and more romantic, it didn't truly matter. They had been dancing around it for years, but that had come to an end and a new dance was beginning. The why and how didn't matter, all that mattered was that they were both alive, they were both safe and because they were together, happy.

The tubes and wires attached to Spencer were taken out, and when the hospital's visiting hours came around the team showed up like they always did. They were happy to find him awake and all of them noticed how JJ was holding his hand and smiling in a way that she never had.

"You'll need to tell us everything later," Emily and Penelope whispered to her, while Derek, Hotch and Rossi bombarded Spencer.

They asked him how he was feeling, and what had happened at the warehouse. Hotch reminded Spencer that he'd have to make an official report when he was released from the hospital and he knew this, but wasn't excited about it. They filled him in on what they had managed to find without him, and told him about how John had sent over the files upon finding out what happened to JJ.

Penelope swatted them away from him after several minutes, reminding them that he needed to rest not think about such terrible things. She told him that she had cleaned up his apartment, as well as JJ's and had even replaced their broken furniture. He had insisted that she hadn't needed to do that and that he'd pay her back, but she had insisted that he forget about it. There was no use fighting with her, Derek pointed out.

The team stayed with him during the entire day and Derek went and got Spencer food that was actually edible instead of the food the hospital was giving him.

"I think we should arrest them, for trying to poison you," he had joked, "I'll bring you a coffee too."

The hospital had insisted that Spencer spend another day or two and while he tried to argue with them about it, he had eventually relented. His only condition being that JJ went home and got some comfortable sleep. She did, but returned immediately at eight o' clock when the doors opened. Along with the rest of the team, who were refusing to leave him alone longer than they had to.

They were going to be there, every step of the way. No matter what the next few days, weeks and months had in store. They were a family, and they'd stick together.