Playing Games by JuliaBC
Kate found herself outside of Reid's apartment the next day, holding her pregnant stomach and really hoping that he came home soon.
She was getting tired, and the little one inside of her was getting active and impatient, so she knew that if Reid didn't show in the next five minutes she'd have to be going and try again another day.
But she didn't want to wait that long. She wanted to speak to him now.
She heard the doors open downstairs, there was someone walking up and she blessed herself when it was Reid whose head emerged.
"Kate!" He greeted. "What are you doing here?"
"I have something to say," she said.
"Don't take this the wrong way, but you look really fat right now," Reid joked, brushing a hand over her stomach as he unlocked his door. "You look so much farther along than last I saw you."
"Really?" Kate asked, following him inside. "I get so used to the changes I almost don't see them anymore."
"I can understand that," Reid said.
"So, what have you been up to?" Kate asked. "I've been trying to find you and no dice."
"I've had plans," Reid replied, a quiet smile on his face. "Want some tea or coffee or whatever?"
"You're such a hospitable host," Kate said. "I'd love some whatever."
Reid shook his head at her, his smile growing bigger. "But what brought you by the office yesterday? I did get your text, but too many hours later for it to do me any good."
"I was saying...goodbye," Kate said, jumping right into it.
"Goodbye?" Reid asked. "Why? Hey, I just remembered. I was passing a bookshop yesterday, this used book store from the 1920s, or something. I walked in and they had something that I know you'll love. Wait here for a minute, will you?"
"Yeah, of course," Kate said automatically and, when Reid left, finally settled herself into a chair.
She wondered what it would be, and sighed as she tried to straighten her back but this pregnancy was not allowing for good posture so she leaned back instead.
Reid returned, carrying a game box in his hands.
"Oh, you're not serious," Kate said, bouncing up.
"Did you remember the tagline from the 1980s tv show?" Reid said. "Every man dies. Not every man truly Scrabbles."
"I do," Kate said. "Oh wow."
"This is vintage, of course," Reid said. "A set from the fifties and I think a few 'e' tiles are missing but that's okay since 'e' is the most common letter anyway. Have you ever read the Sherlock Holmes story where he breaks a code by simply filling in the most common letters with an 'e'? I've tried to do that sometimes and it's really worked."
As he rambled, he set up the board with alacrity and handed Kate the letter bag. "Seven," he said.
Kate took seven and shook her head at him. "We're not even playing with JJ," she said. "Your revenge will be wasted."
"But look at the set, it's so quaint," Reid said. "And the tiles are so musty smelling."
"What about chess?" Kate said. "I left my Lord of the Rings set here, didn't I?"
"What about Scrabble?" Reid protested. "I need to win my honor back."
"But JJ isn't even here!" Kate protested back. "I'm not the person you need to beat."
"You're the person that I want to distract, though," Reid said and suddenly trailed off.
"You know why I'm here," Kate said.
"I do," Reid replied. "It's painfully obvious. Why else would you seek me out?"
He put Scrabble back into the box. "I'll get the chess set," he said and was back in a minute to set it up.
Kate watched his fingers fly as the soldiers went into place. "It's not permanent, I hope," she began.
"Oh?" Reid asked.
"I want to take time off to be with my baby," she said, her voice almost breaking. "Um. I did it with Meg. Took a year off of everything. It was such a good thing to do, just the best choice I ever made."
"It's okay," Reid said suddenly. He looked up and met her eyes. "I know it shouldn't be but it is, Kate. I am feeling good this year. I think that there was something I needed this year, to learn or to realize or I don't know. But you gave me that lesson. I laughed again. I laugh when I remember Maeve," he said. "I went to her grave yesterday."
"Oh!" Kate said. "That is not the outing JJ and I were speculating."
"You thought it was Dorian," Reid said. "Profilers. You weren't that off, though. I went to talk to her about that, about everything. About you, too."
Kate blinked.
"Every year teaches you a lesson, or it should," Reid said. "I know it's been that way for me. Every person in my life teaches me a new lesson. You were one of them and the lesson was...live life. But more than that, not so sappy or simple. You suffered huge loss, Kate. But you can remember your sister and laugh. You can play these games to remind you of her and it doesn't hurt."
"I never said it didn't hurt," Kate said and realized she was crying.
"It amazed me," Reid said. "You told about your sister and I shared too and then you turned that around and gave me one of the most valuable pieces of wisdom I've ever come across. It doesn't hurt to remember, Kate. It feels good and it makes me smile and I think that's what you gave me, most of all. And not just Maeve. I can remember Elle and Emily and Alex and it's good, Kate. It feels good to remember but it feels even better to know that they are the past and if they appear in the future, I will surely rejoice but right now I can't think of them like that."
He moved his white pawn two spaces forward.
Kate copied the move.
"So that is why it's okay if you leave," Reid said. He moved his knight and Kate moved another pawn.
"Five moves?" She asked.
"Okay," Reid said.
"There's something I have to say too," Kate said. "Something that it was too hard to say to anyone else but it's hurting me too much to not tell someone. I don't want to leave."
Reid picked up another pawn and moved it to free his bishop.
"And I heard you telling stories about JJ and about how she returned to work so early after giving birth to Henry," Kate said and moved her knight. "And I thought to myself, I want that. I like these people and they like me and so let's do that. Let's stay here and let Chris do more this time around. He wouldn't mind, he'd love it. And he's really good with children."
Reid moved his king, not even realizing that this was the fourth turn already.
"But then, we had that case," Kate said. "In the prison. I had to confront myself with the realization that I was pregnant and that I'd almost lost the baby, or at least, if things had gone farther I could have lost her. Or him. I don't know. But everything changed that day for me. I thought to myself, what if this happens again? Don't I want that time with her? At least a year? And I got selfish. I couldn't return to you guys for the possibilities, I did not have JJ's courage. So I decided. I'd take another year off."
Kate moved her rook.
Reid moved his knight and captured a pawn.
"That was five moves," Kate said.
"We'll keep playing," Reid said. "Because what's the point of playing the game if you don't finish? Even if it ends differently than you planned, you keep playing."
"Thank you," Kate said and moved her bishop. "Check."
Reid moved his rook to capture her. "Did you not see that coming?"
"I didn't," Kate said and blew her nose loudly.
"Go," Reid said. "It's your turn."
"It's my life," Kate said. "And the choices are harder than ever. Can we keep doing this? When you're back from cases? Please, just call me and I'll come over with a board game and a baby in a carrier."
"That could work," Reid said. "Because I still haven't enlisted anyone for my book club."
"You might have more luck if you suggested something like Harry Potter," Kate said. "Have you ever read Harry Potter? Meg and I read it together a few years ago. That was also a precious time. I was on this undercover case for six months, but I would email her about where we were in the books and what was happening. We had a deal that if we finished a book we couldn't start another until the other had also finished. So we had to keep reading, and, thereby for me, staying alive to read."
"Harry Potter," Reid said. "The Boy Who Lived, right? I haven't read it yet."
"Why not?" Kate asked.
"I was waiting for the right time, I guess," Reid said. "You know, that sounds like a really good idea. I'm going to suggest that next. Emily and Penelope will back me 100%. We'll all read it. Maybe I can even get Alex in on the action."
They'd moved several times now and both of their armies had diminished.
"Check," Kate said.
"I was wondering if you'd do that," Reid said. "I have to apologize. Check mate."
A/N: Is Harry Potter even mentioned in the show? I don't think so. Anyway, if I get myself unlazied, then that's something I might actually write. Peace!
And no, this is not over.
Somehow I had convinced myself, in the past month, that it had been just a few days since I updated but then just realized that no, it had actually been a month. But summer is doing that to me in all areas of my life.
I hope this satisfied the individual reader. Thanks so much for all of your reviews and favorites and suggestions and follows.