Disclaimer: Criminal Minds and all its characters belong to CBS. I own nothing. Feel free to read and review, but please don't copy.
Previously on Criminal Minds- The crying boy looked at Rossi and then slowly turned and gazed at the door. He blinked his eyes a few times to clear them. Spencer sat up and reached out as the blurry figure came into view. "DADDY!"
CM
Aaron hurried across the room to his son. Taking the sobbing boy from Rossi, the young father sat down on the bed and gingerly settled the youngster in his lap. "Shhhh Spencer! Shhhh! You're alright. I'm here now." He assured the upset child. "Come on buddy. Calm down for me. You're going to make yourself sick."
No sooner had the foul word left Hotch's mouth than Spencer did just that. Sitting straight up, he began to retch into the kidney shaped bowl a quick thinking Dave had thrust under his chin. Reid cried and cried as he leaned over the bowl and forcefully vomited. The sobbing amped up the pounding of his headache which in turn increased the roiling of his stomach causing him to throw up again. The vicious cycle went on for several pain filled minutes.
Aaron and Dave did their best to calm and comfort the boy through wave after wave of sickness. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime to the two men, the heaving stopped.
The tiny profiler fell back against Hotch's chest totally spent. "F-f-fat ssssssssuted(sucked)." He rasped, wincing as speaking hurt his already tender throat.
"I couldn't agree more." Rossi seconded as he stood and headed for the bathroom with the filled emesis basin.
"Me too" Will voiced, reentering the room. "I just talked to the RN on duty and she's calling Dr. Sawyer for us. He should be up in a few minutes."
Spencer started to shake his head but thought better of it. "Nnnno" he rasped.
"Yes" Aaron countered, frowning at the pained expression on his son's face and the tiny hand rubbing his throat. Needing to sooth the pain away, he snatched up the beige plastic pitcher and partially filled the cup on the nightstand with water. After popping a straw into the cup, he held it out to the injured boy. "Rinse" he instructed.
Spencer obediently took a miniscule sip of the water, sloshed it around in his mouth, and spit it back into the cup.
Aaron exchanged the cup with a bottled water Garcia had in her pocketbook. He helped Reid take a few small sips before setting the mostly full bottle on the night stand. He then turned, pulled his legs up on the bed, and reclined against the headboard. Wrapping his arms around the sick youngster, the worried father waited for the doctor.
As luck would have it they didn't have to wait long. Less than half an hour later an extremely somber looking Sawyer walked into the room. "You rang?" the physician intoned in the deepest voice he could muster before breaking into a grin. "I've always wanted to say that."
Penelope sniggered. "That was awesome!"
"Thank you! I'm here until seven." the doctor replied, taking an exaggerated bow. He smiled as he walked over to his patient's bed. "What's going on with Little Britches Papa Bear?"
"He started vomiting and couldn't stop for a good five minutes." Aaron explained, rubbing the now sleeping boy's back.
"He had just talked to Morgan and Prentiss on the phone and I think that's when the afternoon's events finally hit the kid." Dave added. "He started crying and babbling about the accident and all that crying probably set off the puking jag."
The physician nodded. "I figured that would happen." He said as he finished his examination of the tot. "Well, it's too early to give him anymore anti-nausea meds and since he's sleeping so peacefully, I don't think he needs them anyway. But on the off chance I'm wrong, I'll add a little note to his chart allowing for another dose in four hours if needed." Sawyer tucked the blankets back around the little agent and then glanced around the room. "Well lookie here! It's the squirrel family union!" He said. Gazing at the unfamiliar faces, his smile widened. "And it looks like you've added a few nuts to the tree since last time, too."
Garcia smiled. She was starting to see why the others liked this guy. Stepping up to the nice looking young man, the tech analyst extended her hand. "Hey there handsome. I'm Penelope Garcia the all-knowing oracle of the BAU." She greeted.
The family snickered at the dumbfounded expression on the physician's face. Feeling a little sorry for the doctor, JJ stepped in. Throwing an arm over Will's shoulder and whispering 'go with it. I'll explain later.', she said, "And this is my brother, Will and his son, Henry.
"Hey there kiddo!" Dr. Sawyer greeted as he walked over to the trio. He stopped when Henry buried his face in Will's shoulder.
"No offense Dr. Sawyer but Henry's not too fond of doctors." Will told the physician.
Sawyer nodded before squatting down in front of the frightened child. "Even ones who carry these?" he questioned, pulled a grape popsicle out of his lab coat pocket.
Curious Henry peeked out from his hiding place. Spotting the frozen treat, he grinned and reached out for it. "Henwy have popsisle?" he asked.
"Sure Sport" the doctor replied. He handed the treat to the boy and then stood. Henry's shout of 'Loot Mommy, him gived me a popsisle!' caused Sawyer's eyes to widen comically.
JJ blushed. "I can, ummm, I can explain." She stammered.
"No! No need for that." The physician quickly refuted. "What y'all get up to in your free time is none of my business."
"But, but…"
"No, really I do not want to know." Sawyer reiterated, backing away from the couple. Doing a one eighty, he hurried over to the only person he hadn't met yet and also the safest looking of the bunch; Fran. "You must be Agent Morgan's mama. It's nice to meet you ma'am." He politely said. "If you'll follow me, I'll take you to your daughter-in-law's room."
"My…"
"Momma!" Derek cheerfully greeted as he pushed Emily's wheelchair into the room. "I am so glad to see you!"
Seeing the bandages on her son was all it took to divert Fran's attention. She rushed over to Morgan and tenderly placed her hands on his cheeks. "Baby, are you alright? What are you doing out of bed?" she interrogated. "You should be resting, not gallivanting around the hospital!"
"Relax momma! I'm fine. They didn't even keep me." Derek assured his anxious mother. "Honest. You don't need to worry your pretty little head about me."
"I'll always worry about you." Fran said, pinching her son's cheeks. Glancing from Derek to Emily and back, the older woman's expression then turned stormy. Hands on hips, she growled, "Something you want to tell me, Derek?"
"And that's my cue to leave" Dr. Sawyer announced. "The RNs on duty will be checking on Little Britches every hour. Let them know if something's wrong or he's in a lot of pain. And don't hesitate to use the call button if you need to."
"Will do" Rossi answered, chuckling as the doctor practically ran out of the room. "Now that was awesome! Did you see the look on his…"
"Dave" Aaron softly called. He gestured to the now restless boy on his chest.
The room went utterly silent. The family held their breath as they watched the hurt little boy squirm. When Spencer rolled over, tightened his hold on his newly repaired toy, and then stilled, the group smiled.
"I think we should take this party to Prentiss' room." Penelope whispered. After nodding their agreement, the troop silently crept out of the room, leaving Aaron and Spencer alone.
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The jackhammer pounding away at his skull roused Spencer from a sound sleep. Moaning, he slowly wrenched open his eyes and blinked at the dimly lit ceiling.
"It's alright buddy. Daddy's got you." Aaron murmured, carding a hand through the boy's chocolate locks.
"D-d-dad *yawn* ddddy?" Reid called.
"Right here" Hotch softly replied.
"Huuuu'ts daaaaady" Spencer stammered around his thumb.
Aaron took one glance at his son's face and hit the call button. After explaining the problem to the answering RN, he wrapped his arm around the little boy once more. "Shhhh Spencer! Shhhh! Help is coming. Just hang on, buddy." Seeing the tot becoming more agitated, the young father did the only two things he thought might help. Rubbing the trembling youngster's back, he quietly hummed what he hoped was a soothing lullaby. He rubbed and hummed and hummed and rubbed as they waited for the pain medication Reid needed. He stopped long enough for the RN to ask Spencer a few simple questions and then began the soothing motions once more.
After RN Brown checked the chart and added the allowed medication, she padded over to the cabinet in one corner of the room. She opened the doors and pulled out a thick blue, car themed blanket and tucked it around father and son. "I'll be back to check on him in about fifteen minutes." She softly said. "Don't hesitate to call if he needs me before then."
"Thank you" Aaron gratefully mumbled, keeping his focus on Spencer. Hearing a soft sigh as his son relaxed back into sleep, he smiled. "Night buddy. Daddy loves you." he whispered. Kissing the little boy's forehead, Aaron settled in for a long sleepless night.