Prentiss
I took a deep breath, looked him in the eyes and froze.
A short while passed as I stared at his dark eyes. He stared back at me expectantly and it didn't take him long to realise that I was panicking inside, "Hey, Emily, calm down. You can tell me, you know that." He put his hand on my arm comfortingly.
I moved away from his touch, "You're not going to want to be anywhere near me when I tell you this…"
"What?"
"…Sit down." I motioned to the couch that sat against the wall directly opposite Rossi's desk.
He didn't want to sit but he knew it would make me feel better so he sat down, "Seriously, what's going on?"
"I'm just going to ask, can you please not speak until I'm completely finished explaining everything? Promise me?"
He nodded with a confused look, "I promise…"
"And please know that I am so, so sorry and I never meant to leave it for so long." He nodded and waited for me to continue. I stared pacing in front of him to calm my nerves.
"Emily, you're scaring me…"
"Oh, no. It's nothing bad," I shook my head, "It's just really difficult and I have no idea how to tell you so I'm just going to go straight to the point. Four years ago, the night before I left for London, do you remember what happened?"
"We slept together?" He said it as a question, as if asking if that's what I was referring to.
"We did," I nodded, "And we were drunk and we weren't as smart as we could have been…"
His eyes widened, "No…" He caught on. "Don't tell me—Emily, what is going on?"
"Well…we didn't use a condom, apparently…and I wasn't on the pill at the time and I'm not sure whether I was lucky or not yet, but I kind of…you kind off…I got pregnant."
His eyes bulged, "Are you serious!?" He stood up in anger. He was furious. "Did you keep it?"
"Yes, I kept it…her. I kept her."
He was speechless as tears filled his eyes and he blinked them away, "You're not joking."
I had tears in my eyes. This was terrifying me. "I wouldn't joke about this."
"You're telling me that we have a child together and you never told me!?"
I went to speak but he stormed out. He didn't know where to go or what to do so he went back towards the round table room where the team still sat. I ran after him, "Morgan—"
"No! How could you—"
"I was scared!" I snapped, "I was in London and I had just started at Interpol. You were here in a completely different country and you had everything going for you. You still do. I said I was sorry that I kept it from you for so long but I came here twice to tell you but it just never came out."
"I cannot believe you!" He yelled.
"I'm sorry!" I had tears streaming down my face, "I really am."
He sat down and dropped his head into his hands, the stress, shock, anger and confusion all very visible in his body language.
"What's going on—"
"Nothing!" He snapped at Garcia in anger and frustration. He took a breath and looked at her shocked and slightly scared face, "Sorry, baby girl. Nothing is happening."
"Look, I don't expect you to do anything about it. I've got it covered; I just thought you might have wanted to know."
"I did want to know. Four years ago would have been a better time to tell me."
"I was—"
"Scared. Yeah." He finished the sentence and shook his head.
"Hey, you're not the most approachable of people," I defended myself, "How was I supposed to know how you'd react to it?"
He sat back and looked at me in disbelief, "Not the most approachable? How many years have you known me, Emily?"
"That doesn't mean anything." I shook my head.
"So what now? You're going to tell me and run off again? Go back to London? Or maybe you'll choose a place where I won't be able to contact you."
"I told you before; I don't know what I'm doing yet. I had more but seeing your reaction to this, I'm not so sure I want to tell you."
"There's more!?"
I looked down and ran my fingers through my hair. "Wow, I just noticed that it's shorter. Me likey." Garcia smirked at me.
I forced a smile to her, "Thanks."
"No, don't change the subject. What else is there?" He asked me more forcefully.
"Do you remember three months ago?" I asked hesitantly, looking down.
"Yeah…"
"Well I came then to tell you about…" I skipped saying it in front of the team but he knew what I meant, "But then you kind of distracted me and—"
"Wait, you were here three months ago?" JJ cut me off, "And you didn't see anyone but him?"
I went to apologise but Morgan spoke before I could, "JJ, please let her finish. I think I'm about to have a heart attack if it's what I think it is…"
"Well…I cheated on Mark and that's part of the reason he broke up with me. The other part was because…well…he was elated that I was pregnant…until he found out it wasn't his."
Morgan groaned and dropped his head onto the desk.
"Oh my god!" JJ said loudly with excitement, jumping up and running to me. She hugged me tightly, "I can't believe it! Wait…" She turned and looked at Morgan, then back to me and repeated the switch several times, "Oh…it just clicked…" He lifted his head and shook it at her.
"There's going to be a little Emily-Derek running around?" Garcia asked with a huge grin, "I'm so excited!"
"Morgan?" He was silent and was staring motionless at nothing, "Please say something; this is scaring the hell out of me." He still didn't reply, "You don't need to be involved or anything if you don't want…"
"You want me to miss its first four years and then maybe come into the picture after that?"
I looked down and sighed, "You've been in the picture since day one…literally. I have a photo of all of you and I show her every night and she sleeps with it under her pillow," Tears welled in my eyes, "She calls you her "protectors". She's convinced that if she, Sarah or mummy is in trouble, you'll be there to rescue us. She talks to everyone before I turn the light out and every night she kisses daddy and wishes to wake up and see him in the morning before sliding it back under her pillow." Tears were streaming down my face now, "When we were leaving London, she forgot to bring the photo and she cried and screamed her little heart out until I turned the car around, went back to the house and got it for her."
"Oh, now I'm just completely confused. Are you pregnant now or did you already have a baby?" Rossi asked.
I looked at Morgan to see what he wanted them to know. "Both." He answered.
"And is the first one yours too?" Hotch asked. We both nodded and he sat back, raising his eyebrows, "This is crazy."
"So this is why you didn't come back for four years." Rossi concluded. I nodded and wiped the tears.
"I can't believe you didn't tell me…" JJ said quietly.
"Don't worry, she didn't tell me either," Morgan said, "And the kid has half of my DNA."
"I know this is slightly off topic, but who's Sarah?" Reid asked.
"She's like a babysitter…kind of. I pay her to take care of Ainsley when I'm at work or have somewhere to be but she lives with us permanently and she's just my best friend."
"Ainsley?" Morgan asked quietly. I nodded, "That's what I always wanted to call my daughter if I ever had one…"
I smiled, "I know…that's why her name is Ainsley. Do you want to meet her or not because I'm tired and I'm going to go back to the hotel if you don't."
He hesitated, not sure whether he was ready to see her or not. "Well, I want to…and the rest of us want to, so yes, he does." Garcia said.
I smiled, "I'll text Sarah to bring her." I said as I took my phone from my pocket.
After about 10 minutes of answering questions, I saw Sarah and Ainsley walk back into the bullpen through the windows. I stood up and walked down the catwalk. Ainsley walked up the steps and ran to me, "Mummy!" She ran into my arms and I lifted her up, smiling at her. She put her arms around my neck to hug me and I kissed her hair, looking at Sarah.
"How'd it go?" She asked.
"He was furious, speechless and happy all the same. I don't really know where I stand right now but all six of them are pretty excited."
She nodded, "The second part is good, right?"
"Yeah," I nodded with a smile, "Come on." I motioned for her to follow me and I walked back towards the round table room. Ainsley kept her arms around me and her head was resting on my shoulder.
"Sarah, team. Team, Sarah." I introduced. She smiled and shook their hands as they all introduced themselves individually. I crouched down and stood Ainsley in front of me as they did. "What's this?" I asked, motioning to the folded paper in her hand.
"The picture," She said quietly, unfolding it and showing me the smiling team with me in the middle, "Our protectors, because they do the good."
"Do you want to meet them in real life?" I asked her with a small smile.
Her eyes widened, "That's scary." I wondered if she had realised them all standing to her side in the room.
"And what do we say before we do something scary?"
"We say: I am strong, I am smart, I am beautiful, I am loved and I can do it!"
"Nice!" I held my hand up and she high fived me with a big, proud smile. I turned her so she faced the team but I stayed at her height by her side. Her eyes widened as she looked at them all.
"You're all like her idols," Sarah said quietly to them, "Like superheroes."
They were in sort of a line, Morgan was at one end and Hotch was at the other. She looked at Hotch first and pointed, "Hotch, Rossi, Reid, JJ, Garcia and…Daddy!" She ran forwards to him quickly and he dropped to his knees. She ran into his arms and he hugged her back, closing his eyes to try and stop the tears that I still saw had fallen. My eyes teared up again and I cried at the sight. I had waited four years to be able to see this and the time was finally here. She had dropped the photo of them on her rush to him and I picked it up and stepped back to the doorway, looking at it. No one looked different. JJ's hair was longer, Garcia's hair was still blonde, Reid looked slightly older but not by much. Hotch, Rossi and Morgan looked the same. I had changed the most out of everyone. Granted, I had a rather recent child and I was pregnant with another at the moment.
She eventually moved from him to Garcia, then to JJ, Reid, Rossi and ended with Hotch. She ran back to me after her hugs and clung to my leg. I put my hand on the back of her head and caressed her hair. "Why don't you tell them your full name?" I asked her.
She looked up at me, "Prentiss or Morgan?"
"…Stick with Prentiss for now…" I said quietly and glanced at Morgan. She took one step in front of me and looked at them all, her eyes landing on JJ. She knew her middle name was after her.
"Ainsley Jennifer Prentiss."
JJ cupped her hands over her mouth as a few tears ran down her cheeks. She moved to me quickly and hugged me tightly. I returned her gesture and smiled to myself as she whispered a very quiet "thank you" in my ear.
Sarah and I had sat down in the room with the others and talked more. Ainsley was sitting on JJ's lap at the moment, talking nonstop about something I wasn't paying attention to.
"Emily…" JJ got my attention. I looked up.
"Hm?"
"Are you okay? I said your name like three times."
"I'm fine; I was just thinking…and feeling a little nauseous."
"Well what is this your daughter is telling me about Mark being "mean" to you?"
"What?" I glanced at Sarah and then moved my eyes back to her.
"She said he's mean to you and he hurts you." She said as she put Ainsley down. Ainsley ran around the table to Morgan and he lifted her up, smiling at her and then turning his attention back to this conversation.
"Oh, no, she misunderstood." I lied.
"Em…" Sarah said quietly, "Just tell them…at least you might have some much needed protection if he decides to come looking for you."
I shook my head and glared at her, "Thanks for throwing me under the bus there."
"You taught Ains to speak up if anything like that ever happened to her…"
"I also make her say that small oath every morning and before she does what scares her. I don't say that oath every morning or before I do something that scares me. I just cry."
"That's because you're pregnant." She rolled her eyes.
"Emily…" Rossi said quietly, urging me to explain to them what Ainsley was talking about.
I sighed and looked down, "He gets violent when he's drunk." I shrugged my shoulders.
"But he's always drunk," Sarah added, already giving up on trying to make me tell them, "She's left him twice in the past five months and both times, he has forced her into coming back. It's not a great environment for Ainsley to be around, either. She sees it a lot."
"Are you done?" I asked her once she stopped speaking.
"Unless I think of something else." She nodded.
"So…what? Did he hit you? What else?" Reid asked me.
"I don't know…" I shrugged my shoulders, "He was just…him."
"He beat her, he abused her emotionally and mentally as well and he raped her once or twice."
"No he didn't." I shook my head.
"It doesn't matter whether you're in a relationship with him or not; if you don't give consent, it's rape. You said no, you cried and he hurt you."
"I am this close to kicking you out of this room." I said to her, holding my index and thumb dangerously close to each other.
"Hey, I'm helping here."
"You really aren't. Let's change the subject."
"You know, I never really used to see you as the motherly type…" Garcia said, "But then when she ran up to you on the walkway and you asked her to say that little oath thing, you're like the mother children always want."
"She's too protective." Sarah said.
"You haven't seen the things I've seen." I said to her, defending myself.
"Okay, dinner tonight? Partners and children included." Rossi asked everyone. They all accepted and looked at Sarah and I.
"It's a Friday night and none of you had premade plans with partners?"
"I'm still the only one with a partner and we live a pretty miserable life." JJ said, raising her hand.
"None of you? Really?" I looked at Hotch, "What happened to Beth?"
"Long gone." He shook his head.
I looked at Garcia, "Kevin?"
"No." She shook her head too.
I looked at Morgan, "Come on, you're always seeing someone."
"…Not for three months…" He said quietly. I felt the awkwardness fill the room instantly after he spoke. I tried my best to ignore it, but they all felt it too.
"Wow…" I looked around at them.
"Was that a yes to dinner?" Rossi asked.
"Oh, sorry, I got distracted. Yes, we'll be there."