Author's Note: Hey all! So I have not one, but two unit tests this week in some of my classes, so I won't probably be posting much at all after this. So I made this chapter very long to make up for it! I really hope everyone likes it, so let me know by reviewing. Maybe with a lot of reviews I'll find some motivation and time to write faster this week!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters of Criminal Minds, just the ones I created for this story!

Chapter 9

Avery's POV:

After my phone conversation with Spencer, I just sat on the couch smiling like an idiot. Then after a while, the words began to sink in. I was going to get to see Spencer tomorrow, for at least a while. I got up and began to pace around, beyond excited. Then I remembered that if Spencer was going to be bringing the children and me to the store, then we were going to be needing their car seats. I walked into the kitchen to find something to leave a note for Arrow. Though I was certain to be up at the crack of dawn, if I slept at all, I wasn't sure how early he was leaving. I finally found the paper I needed, grabbed a marker from the drawer with the paper, and wrote:

Dear Arrow,

Happy morning! Since I know you have your meeting I've asked Spencer to take the kids and me for supplies to bake Dave his cake. Dave got me a phone, can you believe it? Insane.

In order for Spence to take us though we will need the car seats out of your car. Could you possibly leave them for us? If not, don't worry. Spencer can come with us on the bus to make sure we're safe. I already have your number, and I'll text or call if there's anything we need!

Love you!

Avery

I capped the marker, and placed the note under his car keys on the counter. Confident that he would find it, I quietly grabbed my P.J.'s from the stroller and headed upstairs. I stopped in front of the boy's room to check on them, and found both sleeping peacefully. I smiled and headed to the bathroom to change. When I padded into my room, I stood over Amelia's Pack n' Play to watch her sleep. I'd always found it soothing, hypnotic even to watch babies sleep. The way that their chests moved up and down, the contented expressions on their faces; everything about them gave me a sense of peace. After a few minutes of watching her, I finally climbed into bed. Laying down I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. I struggled, I was too keyed up, too excited to see Spencer tomorrow.

Oh, Spencer. He was a special, wonderful man. I wasn't sure what it was that made me feel so connected to him, but I didn't really care. He was beyond sweet, he'd made a lasting impression on my little Henry for sure. Even while he was playing with Jack Henry had stopped to ask about Spencer. He wasn't only sweet, but he was so incredibly smart. He'd told me that he had a photographic memory, and that he had a crazy amount of degrees. I'd always wanted to go to college, and I highly respected anyone who could put that much time and effort into higher education. Outside of his amazing brain Spencer was, well, hot. Like seriously, ridiculously attractive. He was tall and lanky, which I would ordinarily hate in a man, but loved on him. I'd always thought that if I were going to date someone that they couldn't weigh less than me, I mean that was just strange. However, on Spencer I didn't really mind that he was so tall and lean; just the opposite, it seemed to work for him in a way I didn't predict. His hair was smooth, brown and beautiful. His eyes brought me peace, sort of like watching babies sleeping. As I thought about Spencer more and more I eventually drifted off into a deep, calming sleep.

Hotch's POV:

When I woke up the morning after bringing Avery, Henry, and Amelia to live with me I felt different. Happier, than I'd been in a long time. I smiled to myself as I got dressed and ready for my meeting, thinking of my family. I couldn't really explain, but I felt incredibly relieved. As I made my morning coffee, I saw a note underneath my keys. Curious, I picked it up to find that it was addressed to me from Avery. In her large, neat handwriting she explained that Reid was coming to pick her and the kids up in order to bring them to get supplies for a cake for Rossi. I felt an unknown emotion bubble up in my chest. I didn't know how I felt about Reid spending so much time with my niece. I wasn't blind, I'd seen how they were looking at each other in the BAU yesterday. I knew that they both had some sort of crush on each other. I'd hoped that it was going to be just that, a crush. Something fleeting that was going to go away.

I gritted my teeth as I realized that I had no choice but to take the car seats from my car and let this day play out. If I left them without car seats they would just use the bus to get their errand done. As much as I wasn't sure that I wanted Avery spending time with Spencer, I certainly didn't want her on the bus anymore. I simply didn't want my niece dating anyone, period. Avery had been through so much, if anyone hurt her… they'd have me to deal with. Under my watch my nieces and nephews were going to have the best life they possibly could, no one was ever going to hurt them.

As I removed the car seats from the back of my car, I wondered if Reid was good enough for my Avery. Clearly I was fond of him, I knew him well. He was a good person, a smart man who would take care of her. Maybe if I had to let her go, he was the best one to entrust her with? My thoughts and uncertainties swirled in my head as I drove to work. I really didn't know what I was feeling, but I was certain of one thing. There was a certain young genius I needed to have a conversation with.

Spencer's POV:

I slept only a few hours, I was too eager to see Avery today to stay still for long. After a few hours of peaceful dreams of her beautiful face, I woke up. I was far too excited to go back to sleep, so I busied myself getting ready for the day: showering, combing my hair, and getting dressed. I agonized over what to wear for the first time in my life. I didn't own a pair of jeans, so a pair of slacks would have to do. Usually I wore a button up shirt of varying colors and a tie, but from the way Avery dressed I assumed that would be too overdressed for a day spent baking a cake. I finally decided on a dark grey button up, without a tie, and a matching cardigan.

After getting dressed I made myself some food, and tried to concentrate on a book. I was failing miserably, and just ended up watching my phone's clock for the better part of the time. I wondered how our day would go, would we get anytime to ourselves? Would it make a difference if we did? Truly I'd never wanted to ask someone out so badly in my life, nor been so terrified of her answer. If she said yes, I would be the happiest man on Earth, but I'd also have to deal with Hotch. I still didn't know how he'd react. If she said no, I think the pain of it would be unreal.

As I did in all the other troubled times of my life, I decided to write my mom a letter. I wrote to her every day, but in times of stress the letters became longer. I poured all of my thoughts surrounding Avery into that letter, in total about four pages long. My scribbly scrawly handwriting was even worse than usual, I'd scribbled as fast as my hand would allow. I somehow needed my mother's guidance about this situation; like she often said when I visited, 'a mother knows'. It was a shame I wouldn't see her answer for at least a week's time, I could use her advice right now.

As I finished my letter and began addressing it I heard my phone's text tone rang. Feeling my heart race, I flipped open my phone so hard that I thought it might break. Sure enough, the text message was from Avery.

Hey! Sorry if it's early, but the kids and I are just making breakfast. I wasn't sure how far away you are, so I thought I would tell you our address now. Its 115 Hickory Ave. Come over whenever! : )

I noted with satisfaction that she used complete sentences and correct grammar in her text message. No 'lols' or 'omgs' in this message; I could practically hear her sweet voice through the words on the screen. I quickly typed back my reply.

I don't live far from there, I will be there soon!

I grabbed my keys, put a stamp on my letter to my mother, and left my apartment in a hurry. I practically threw the letter into the mailbox on my way out to my car. I was more than ready to begin this day.

Avery's POV:

I've never been what you'd call a morning person, by any stretch of the imagination. I liked my sleep that was for sure. So when Amelia began sleeping through the night I was overjoyed, until I realized that just meant she'd be waking me up at 7:00 every morning.

Every. Single. Morning.

However, this morning I beat even Amelia, waking up super early in my excitement to see Spencer. Boy did that speak to how damn eager I was to see him today. I groaned, realizing that it was not an acceptable time to text him and ask him to come over. I was sure that I'd kept him awake late last night, and I didn't want to cause him to lose anymore sleep. Depriving a man of his sleep was no way to try to win his love, I knew that much. So I busied myself getting ready, although my routine was probably shorter than most people's. Eyeing the clock, I decided that I had time for I quick shower before Amelia or Henry woke up. Running downstairs, I grabbed my shower caddy from the stroller and rushed through my already quick routine. After I toweled off, I threw my hair up in a bun (there was no way I was getting dry when it was down) and set off to pick my clothes. Sounding much more like a love-struck highschooler than I cared to admit, I thought to myself that I had nothing to wear. I didn't want to dress like a complete scrub, he'd never take me seriously, but I couldn't very well dress up for a day spent baking a cake. Oh, and speaking of baking there could be no white pieces to this outfit. I'd worked with enough kids to know that, while highly entertaining, baking wasn't exactly the cleanest project. I agonized for a few minutes before deciding on my leggings and a plain grey V-neck. I silently cursed the fact that I hadn't bought makeup in well over a year. Though it'd seemed like an unnecessary expense when I'd be struggling to pay rent, I wished I had at least some mascara or eyeliner to add some definition to my eyes.

After getting dressed and ready I found that all the kids were still asleep. Figures, the one day that I was actually ready and willing for the distractions their early morning schedules would bring, they slept in. Wondering what to do with myself, I realized all I wanted to do was talk about Spencer. Thinking about him was great, but I strongly wanted to share my thoughts with another person; to get their opinion on how to proceed with my day, how to act around him, get another opinion on if he really liked me… But who could I talk to? It was too early to call anyone, and I really didn't have many friends anyways. Suddenly I knew who I really wanted to talk to, it was the same person I always turned to in the rough times in my life. My dad. I dug the old picture of him from the stroller, and sat down on the couch.

"Hey daddy", I said. "I need to tell you about something; I just can't stay quiet, ya know? There's this guy daddy, his name is Spencer. He's the most interesting, wonderful man I've ever met…" As I narrated everything I knew about Spencer, all my thoughts and feelings I couldn't stop the tears from springing to my eyes. Even though I was grateful to even have this one picture of my father, it was hard to only be able to talk to him and not to have him answer back. I knew if anyone saw me talking to his picture like this they'd probably think I was crazy, but I couldn't help it. It wasn't like I thought the picture was him or anything, but I did like to think my daddy could hear me when I spoke to him. I truly wanted to believe that he was an angel, looking down on me.

I wiped my tears away, feeling stupid for allowing myself to cry. I'd never really let myself cry, especially not in front of anyone else. Every time I'd cried after my dad died my mother hadn't comforted me in any way, so eventually I just stopped. Crying didn't solve any problems, and now I just didn't feel comfortable crying in front of anyone. I mean, what if they thought I was some kind of emotional wreck? They'd think I wasn't capable of keeping up with my kids, and they might second guess my guardianship or something. I couldn't let that happen. I sat and looked at the picture for a few minutes longer before I heard Amelia's cries from upstairs. After kissing my father's picture I jogged up the stairs, happy for the distraction from my small pity party. I cooed at Amelia and grabbed her from the Pack n' Play. She calmed down marginally, but I could tell the silence wouldn't last long. Like her big brother and sister, Amelia wasn't terribly fond of waking up. Taking her down the stairs, I picked out some new clothes for her, and changed her PJ's as well as her diaper. After that I decided to make her a bottle and headed into the kitchen. As I was filling her bottle at the sink, I heard a small voice behind me call my name. I turned to find that Jack had woken up, and was standing behind me rubbing his eyes.

"Avery, where's daddy?" He asked. I set the bottle down and knelt in front of him.

"Daddy had to go to work buddy. But don't sweat it, cause you get to spend all day with Henry, Amelia, and me", I said cheerfully. "And don't tell Henry, but there's a super special mission we need to complete before daddy gets home. Do you think you can help?" Jack's eyes got wide, and he quickly nodded his head. "Good. We'll get to that a little later today, for now, how bout you and I hang out before Henry gets up? What do you usually do before breakfast?" I asked.

"Sometimes daddy watches SpongeBob with me before breakfast", he said hopefully. "Can we watch cartoons?"

"Sure we can", I said smiling. "I need to make Amelia's bottle, can you go turn them on for me and we'll meet you there?" He smiled and headed off to the family room. I returned to Amelia's bottle, finishing it quickly and heading over to Jack. I found him sitting down on the couch, watching a commercial for some new cereal made of cookies. I sat down next to him and began feeding Amelia. Jack turned and looked at me curiously.

"Why is she drinking her milk like that?" he asked. I stifled a giggle before I answered. He was just too cute.

"Well she's just a baby. She can't drink from a cup like the big kids like you can", I said kindly. This seemed to satisfy him, and he turned back to the cartoon that had returned to the screen. We chatted here and there during the show, about our favorite colors (mine blue, his red) or how Patrick was a funny guy. It was simple and cute, and I felt a little silly for even thinking Jack wouldn't like us. Eventually Henry made his way downstairs, looking like he had gotten into a fight with his bed. Seriously. Amelia and I may not be morning people, but Henry was the worst of us all. He sat down and cuddled into my side, not speaking for a while.

Eventually Amelia finished her bottle, and I laid her down on the floor with some toys, I'd hoped she'd be crawling soon. She was super close, but usually got frustrated that it didn't just come to her. She was a stubborn one, just like her sister. After a few more peaceful minutes of TV time I focused on the boys.

"Hey, dudes. I think it's time for a little breakfast before we start on our secret mission okay? Let's go see what Arrow left us for food", I said.

"What mission Avery?" Henry asked, finally sounding awake. I'd forgotten that I hadn't told him about our 'mission'.

"Spencer is coming over, Uncle Arrow left us a special mission", I explained. Henry gave out an excited gasp, and Jack smiled.

"Really? Spencer, Spencer's really coming?" Henry said, bouncing up and down. I nodded happily before pointing up the stairs.

"Yep! But he's not coming unless you're ready, so run up and get changed. Then we'll have breakfast, and start on our mission", I said. I started clapping loudly. "Let's go! Move it men, move it!" They responded immediately, falling all over each other up the stairs and out of sight. I laughed a little at their antics, scooped up Amelia and headed into the kitchen. I laid a blanket for her nearer to the door and let her play once more before starting on hunting for food. Before I even made a move to look for food, I made a split decision to text Spencer. If all my kids were up, surely he was too? I grabbed my new phone and sent a text to him, heart beating loudly as I did. When I'd pressed send I set my phone down and turned back to the cabinets, trying to focus on finding food for the boys and me. In reality I was desperately listening for the vibration of my phone. As I pulled out a few boxes of cereal (all gross healthy ones too, blech) and began to look for bowls, I got what I wanted. I heard my phone buzz and I practically jumped at it. I smiled like an idiot as I read that he was on his way, and found the bowls I was looking for. As I prepared the cereal for the boys and me, I couldn't help but wonder just how long it would be until he got here. After Jack and Henry came down (dressed in some, eh, questionably colorful outfit choices) and started eating, I made Amelia some mushy rice cereal out of the dry mix and some of her formula. I went to grabbed her car seat, placed her in it, and began feeding her. As she got about halfway through the mix, I heard a doorbell ring. I practically ran to the door and looked through the peephole. I saw Spencer through the door and smiled before practically throwing it open.

"Hey Spence! I'm happy to see you", I said beaming. I waved him into the house, taking pleasure in the fact that his smile was almost as large as mine. Almost. I led him into the kitchen, saying, "I'm sorry we aren't exactly ready for you yet, but the boys are probably done eating and Amelia is almost finished with her breakfast too. So we can go soon". Ugh my voice sounded so chipper, so girly. I needed to get that in check, fast. Thankfully, Spencer didn't seem to mind, following me into the kitchen still smiling.

"That's alright. I don't mind waiting at all. Hi Amelia!" he said enthusiastically as he bent over to speak to her. "And I'm glad to see you too Avery", he added softly as he stood back up. I couldn't breathe, his face was so close and his eyes were so sincere, so honest. I couldn't stop myself from reaching up and pulling him into my arms for a hug. Just like yesterday, my whole body felt like it was on fire; it was as if every nerve ending stood straight up and said 'yesssss' to his touch. I never wanted to let go, never wanted this moment to end.

"SPENCER". I heard Henry yell. I felt a small body attach itself to my leg, and Spencer's. We broke apart, each looking down at Henry with embarrassment. Spencer composed himself long before I did, clearing his throat and kneeling down to speak to Henry. I took a deep breath and sat back down to finish feeding Amelia. I sincerely hoped that if today went well that Spencer would ask me out. I would never be so bold as to actually ask someone out, the fear of rejection was too much for me. But judging by the way that he held me, the way I felt when I was around him, I thought maybe I could. But then again maybe it would hurt worse, knowing that I felt the way I did about Spencer. I snuck a look at him, still talking to Henry animatedly about something, and felt my heart lift at the sight.

I really hoped today went well.