Playing Games by JuliaBC
They wanted to keep him overnight for observation, but Hotch had flat out refused the offer and had driven home alone, before any of the BAU had a chance to stop him.
"I already called Jessica," Rossi said, standing in the hospital corridor next to Garcia and Kate. "She's waiting there, so that she can take Jack if Hotch needs that."
"Of course," Garcia said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was a little afraid to be around his son. Considering what happened." She winced and trailed off in miserable silence.
"Morgan is going to go see him later," Rossi said. "Check in on him and make sure he's doing all right. You two ladies can go home."
"That does sound like a good idea," Kate said. "I just can't stop thinking about Hotch."
"I know," Rossi said quietly.
"Here, let me give you a ride," Garcia offered. "You shouldn't be driving this late in term."
"Thank you," Kate said. "I was wondering who I'd ask."
Garcia leaned over to squeeze Rossi's hand. "It will be okay. What are you waiting for?"
"A report on Hotch he couldn't wait for," Rossi said. "So I'll be along to his place later, too."
"And make it a party?" Garcia said, then shook her head. "Sorry, I don't know why I said that."
She led the way for Kate to the elevators, pushing the button for down.
"How are you feeling?" She asked. "This was a high stress case. Still feel good?"
"Yeah, I think so," Kate said. 'I've noticed that my kid gets a little more active when I am, though. Moms says that it's often the other way around, that when they're trying to sleep is when the baby really wakes up. Thankfully, this one is on schedule with me. Here," she offered, and placed Garcia's hand on her stomach.
"Omigod, a kick!" Garcia cooed.
The elevator dinged and, about to step onboard, they instead stepped aside for the big group inside.
"I wonder who they're here for," Garcia mused after the large group had gone, guiding Kate into the elevator. Kate took her assistance with amusement, leaning against the wall once they'd made it in.
She was a little tired.
Scratch that. She was almost dead on her feet. Adrenaline had kept her going the past few hours, but that had departed after Hotch's unceremonious departure from the hospital, followed by a panicked JJ and Reid.
Now she was just tired.
"Did you tell Chris?" Garcia piped up.
"Huh," Kate said. "Wow, in all the confusion I didn't." She winced as she checked her phone. "And he noticed it."
"Do you want to call him?" Garcia asked. "While I get the car?"
"I'll just text...no, I should call him," she agreed. "Thanks again."
"No problemo," Garcia said, charging out of the elevator and letting Kate linger behind.
The home phone rang once, twice. "Hey, this is the Callahan residence," Meg picked up.
She must have been upstairs, Kate reflected. It was the only phone in the house that didn't have caller ID.
"Hey, Meg," Kate said.
"Kate! Where have you been?" Her daughter/niece exclaimed, relief and anger in her voice. She held the phone away from her mouth, but Kate could still her the shouted, "Chris! Pick up the phone!"
"I'm so sorry, darling," Kate said. "It was a bad case, and it just went really far. I forgot to call or text until now."
"Are you okay?" Meg asked, her voice harsh.
Chris picked up, mellowing the call just by speaking. "Hey, Kate. So you got busy?"
Though Chris was calm, as he always, always was, she could hear the tension in his voice and felt even more guilty.
"Yeah, I'm actually just leaving the hospital," Kate said.
"Who's hurt?" Chris asked.
"It was just routine," Kate said. "Really it was."
"It's too bad I'm not on shift," Chris said. "I could have met you there."
"I was just wishing the same thing," Kate reflected. "Listen, I asked Penelope for a ride home, and she's pulling up to the curb right now. I have to go, but I'll be there in fifteen minutes."
"Fine," Meg said, a sudden click filling the line.
"She's still mad," Kate said quietly.
"No, this is about you not calling, pinky swear," Chris said. "She was talking about the baby earlier, you know. Getting excited, planning names."
"And I missed it?" Kate asked, knowing that her throat was getting choked up.
"Honey, I hate to say it, but if you were there it wouldn't have happened."
"I'll see you soon," Kate whispered. "Love you."
"I better see you soon," Chris returned. "Love you more."
She hung up and hurried to the car, not looking back.
Exhaustion, apparently, did not always make for good sleep.
Kate reflected on this unwelcome idea at five a.m., lying in bed and staring at the ceiling.
Chris had left, a few moments before, to his early shift. He'd pressed a kiss to her forehead to not wake her up, but, he hadn't realized, she'd been awake since three that morning.
And sleep wasn't getting any closer.
With just a bit of extra effort, she climbed from the bed, placing her hands on her stomach as if to steady herself and laughing at the motion.
"You're making me a little crazy, big guy," she told her stomach as she headed towards the bathroom. "And I've been holding this too long."
After finishing in the bathroom, she went back to the bedroom and opened the curtains. It was early, and only the first rays of sunlight pierced the sky.
Kate remembered Meg's ninth birthday, when all she'd wanted was to watch both the sun rise and set.
To make it even better, Kate had driven them to the beach the night before and they'd woken at the first rays of light, and that night, they'd seen the sun set twice on the water.
Those days were gone, Kate thought as she briefly considered calling Meg in to watch the sun. She wouldn't welcome it, not anymore.
Her phone buzzed with a text, and she picked it up to read it.
From Reid, it read: I know you won't be up but I just wanted to say that Hotch won't sleep at all, but he's doing better now. I just left his apartment with Morgan.
Kate read the words slowly and considered replying but instead let the phone drop to the bedspread. So, Reid and Morgan had stayed the night. That was probably a good idea, considering what shape Hotch was in.
She again glanced at the clock, feeling an idea creeping up on her. Today was an off day for Meg; something to do with teachers. She'd be sleeping in.
So Kate dressed quickly, wrote a note on the dry erase board in the kitchen, just in case Meg did awake, and drove across town in the morning light, daring to only because the streets were deserted.
Hotch didn't answer the first doorbell, but Kate waited a long moment before pressing it again and now he came, banging the door open.
"I thought I got rid of you," he snapped, but then jerked to see Kate standing there. "What are you doing here?" He asked, surprised.
"I couldn't sleep," Kate said, pointing to her stomach. "And Reid texted me that you were all alone."
"Maybe I want to be," Hotch said, rubbing his jaw.
Kate realized it was the first time she'd seen him unshaven.
"I don't think that's really a good idea," Kate said and Hotch sighed as she pushed past him into the apartment. "Wow, what happened here?"
The couch had almost been torn apart; its cushions were scattered everywhere.
"This is Morgan's idea of a sleepover," Hotch grumbled, heading to the kitchen. "I did not want them here. I don't want you here, Callahan."
"Did either Morgan or Reid by chance leave with a bloody nose?" Kate asked lightly, stepping over one of the cushions.
"Yeah, they did," Hotch said. "That's why I don't want them here."
"Hotch, you didn't do it intentionally," Kate said.
"Were you here?" He asked coolly.
He slammed the coffee pot down on the counter.
She dared to place a hand on his arm and he flinched. "Isn't sleep what you need, not caffeine?"
"I don't dare sleep," Hotch said, suddenly letting bare honesty into his voice. "I can't sleep. He'll come back. He already did. And even Reid couldn't stop him."
"It'll pass," Kate vowed. "Peter Lewis does not own you."
She took the coffee pot away from him. "Come on. We can play a game."
"There are times for that, and this is not one of them," Hotch bit out.
She headed back out of the kitchen. "The games are in the hall closet, right?"
She'd only been to Hotch's apartment once before, but she called on her memories of that visit and when she opened the door, games were indeed waiting there.
"Stratego?" She called. "Or maybe you'd like to try Othello again."
Hotch materialized behind her, shaking his head. "Why are you doing this, Callahan?"
"I just thought it was my turn to help," she said. "I don't want to be a burden, or a nonentity, on this team."
Hotch just shook his head and walked back into the living room, his footsteps heavy.
She followed him. "Good idea," she said when she saw the TV and Jack's gaming system. "We can play Donkey Kong."
"I hate Donkey Kong," Hotch said. "I always miss the jumps."
She squatted to set it up, Hotch watching her with folded arms. "Come on, Meg has this," Kate said. "It was all the rage at her school last year and she bought it with her allowance."
She carefully sat down on one of the sofa cushions that lay on the floor, holding one of the controllers and handing the other off to Hotch, who only took it after he realized she wouldn't stop offering.
"I don't like this game," Hotch said as Kate navigated the menu.
"Well, my favorite is Dance Dance Revolution," Kate agreed. "But you don't seem to have it."
Hotch just looked at her, raising one eyebrow.
She pressed play on a minecart level. "You can be Kong," she assigned.
"Great," Hotch said, sarcasm embedded into his voice.
They played in silence for a few minutes, only broken by occasional swearing.
"Hotch, stop missing all of the jumps, you're messing the score up," Kate said.
"This is impossible," Hotch said, biting back another curse word as Donkey Kong plummeted off the edge of the screen and they were sent back to the beginning of the level.
"Come on, Bossman," Kate said. "Show me your moves. You've definitely played this more than I have."
"Oh, please," Hotch said, but he made a double jump and Kate's lips twitched.
They both got into the groove of the game then, making it past the halfway point before dying again, and this time they weren't sent all the way back to the beginning, and Kate could tell it cheered Hotch to see this.
They played until the doorbell rang. Kate checked her watch as she turned the player off. 6:58. Still time to get back home to Meg before she woke up.
JJ was at the door, looking unsurprised to see Kate standing beside Hotch.
"I brought breakfast," JJ said, pushing past a slightly less surly Hotch. She exchanged a look with Kate and both women saw relief in the other's eyes.