A/N: I'm so fucking emotional about Criminal Minds ending today, but I swear I'm gonna keep it alive through fic! This story has a LONG way to go!
"Now that you're home and your schedule has opened up, I wanna take you out on a date. A proper one. Dinner, dancing, the whole lot"
JJ stared at him for a moment, an amused smile slowly crossing her face. "Oh yeah?"
"Yeah," Will replied, giving her a handsome grin as he reached out to take her hand. "So how about you get yourself all dressed up and I'll pick you up at seven on Friday night"
She'd thought she would be more nervous, given she had never been on a date before. But, as she went about getting herself ready for the evening ahead, she found that she wasn't so much nervous as she was excited. Every time she and Will had gone out over their ten year friendship, whether alone or with friends, she had always come home having had a great time. Knowing Will and his propensity for planning, she was sure tonight wasn't going to be any different.
A soft knock sounded at her door, making her turn away from her dresser to find her mom looking into the room.
"Nearly ready?" Sandy asked softly, sliding into the room and taking a seat on the edge of JJ's bed. JJ smiled, nodding as she ran her fingers through her long blonde hair. "You look pretty"
"Thanks," JJ replied, getting up from the dresser and smoothing her dress down. It was white, with tiny black polka dots, and sat off her shoulders. Fitted to the waist, the skirt flared out, sitting in two ruffles about halfway down her thigh. It was a little more revealing than what she usually wore, while still being reasonably modest.
"Where's Will taking you?" Sandy asked as JJ came to sit beside her on the bed.
"Uh, I'm not sure actually. He just told me to dress nice," JJ said with a little laugh. "But knowing him… I'm sure it'll be somewhere nice. He's always been a bit of a charmer"
"No kidding," Sandy teased, nudging JJ's shoulder. She let out a wistful sigh, gazing across the room as JJ leant down to put on her black wedges. "I still remember my first date with your dad"
Straightening up, JJ looked expectantly at her mother. "Yeah? How did it go?"
Sandy chuckled. "I was so nervous. I mean, I had known your dad for a little while before he asked me out, but nothing like you and Will. He took me to dinner, and then we went to the cinema, to see Endless Love of all things"
JJ let out a laugh. "A romance movie? That doesn't sound like Dad"
"No, and it was terrible too. Which is probably why we spent most of it fooling around in the back row"
"I don't need to know details," JJ scoffed, getting a laugh out of her mother as she reached down to tighten the strap on her shoe.
"But you know what… even though the movie was terrible… and we were both nervous… we still went back for a second date," Sandy chuckled. "Your dad is also quite the charmer. He hadn't totally won me over by the first date, but he definitely had by the second"
"You fooled around in a movie theatre with a guy you weren't totally sure on?" JJ asked, raising an eyebrow. Sandy shrugged.
"What can I say, JJ, I was 21. It was the 80's. I wasn't a prude. I had needs-"
"Ok, ew, no, I'm good," JJ cut in, making her mother laugh again as a soft knock sounded against her open door. She looked up, finding her dad standing in the doorway.
"Will's here," he said gently, smirking as he looked at his wife. "Were you talking about our first date?"
"Telling me way more than I ever wanted to know," JJ said dryly, picking up her purse and phone from the bed as her dad laughed. She made her way out of the room, both of her parents behind her as she headed down the stairs.
When she reached the bottom, she looked into the lounge room, where she found Will waiting for her on the sofa. He looked up as she came in, breaking into a wide smile as he got up and crossed the room towards her. He was dressed in a neat button up shirt and jeans, looking very handsome.
"You look gorgeous," he said warmly, looking her up and down as he reached out and took her hand.
"Not so bad yourself," she replied, just loud enough for him to hear as her parents joined them in the lounge room.
"Shall we go?" Will asked, getting a nod from JJ as she turned to face Sandy and Michael, letting go of his hand as she did.
"You kids have a good night," Sandy said with a smile, leaning into Michael as the young couple passed them and made for the front door. "Don't stay out too late, you know what the city can be like after dark"
"Don't worry, the crack heads won't get past Will," JJ said with a grin, patting his chest as he reached for the door handle. He looked at her incredulously as her parents laughed.
"Oh, so I'm just your bodyguard now, I see how it is," he teased, shaking his head as he pulled open the door. "Don't worry Sandy… we won't be super late"
With a last wave, the older couple watched as the two teenagers disappeared out the front door towards Will's truck. With a happy smile, Sandy leaned into Michael, resting her head against his shoulder.
"Can't believe our baby girl is going on her first date," Michael mumbled as they slowly turned away from the closed door. "Where has the time gone?"
Will hadn't disappointed. He had booked a table at a nice Italian restaurant, where they had enjoyed an incredible meal. The entire time, Will's eyes seemed to be lighting her on fire. The way he looked at her was indescribable… but it made her feel like the only girl in the world.
JJ had walked out at Will's side feeling warm and full, but excited for whatever was coming next. They had then walked up the street to a lively little club. It was one of the few establishments in Pittsburgh that catered to an underage crowd, and in every way, it resembled a standard club. The only difference was the drinks coming out from the bar were all non-alcoholic, albeit, delicious.
So that was where they now found themselves. In the middle of a crowd of people on the dance floor, laughing and dancing around as the night wore on. It was goofy, relaxed, and so much fun that JJ felt like she would burst.
As the song finished and changed to another one, Will swooped her back in towards him, wrapping his arms around her waist as she laughed and collapsed against his chest.
"I told you I couldn't dance," she said breathlessly.
"I don't know Jayje, those moves were pretty killer. You should put them in your next floor routine," Will teased, making her laugh again and slap his chest playfully.
"You should've taken Aly dancing, at least she's been picked for Dancing With the Stars"
Will grinned. "Maybe I will. Two girlfriends is twice the crazy fun, right?"
JJ had to laugh, tipping her head back as she hit his chest again. "You're terrible"
"Come on. Let's go sit down for a bit and have something to drink," Will said gently, still grinning as he took her hand and led her off the dance floor towards the plush booths at the back of the establishment. They slid into a free one, JJ sidling up against Will and slipping her hand into his. He pressed a kiss to her temple, sending the butterflies racing through her again as he dropped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer.
"This has been a lot of fun," he said through a smile. "I didn't even know this place was here until Clayton mentioned he'd brought Lani here once"
"It's pretty cool," JJ replied, unable to keep away the smile as his fingers rubbed gentle circles against her upper arm. "I still don't dance though"
"You dance in your floor routines"
"That's not dancing dancing," JJ scoffed, making him laugh again. "That's gymnastics dancing, which, if you ask any dancer, is most certainly not actual dancing"
"Well for someone who doesn't dance dance, you sure did dance dance just now," Will chuckled, nuzzling her temple again. She couldn't help the giggle that escaped, her smile feeling as though it was wider than ever.
"How about I go and get us a drink, it's kinda warm in here," Will said, slowly pulling away from JJ and starting to slide out of the booth. "What do you want?"
JJ pressed her lips together as she thought about it, before looking up at him with a smile. "Surprise me"
He chuckled, making his way out of the booth and towards the bar over to their right. JJ sat there, unable to keep her eyes off of him as he walked up to the bartender and started talking. She hadn't thought it possible, but ever since they had made things official, she'd found herself falling completely for him. Every time they spoke, the charm and kindness in his voice made her heart swell. Every time he touched her, whether it was a hug or just a brush of the hand, the butterflies in her stomach made themselves known again. Of course, nothing about him had changed. He was still sweet, genuine, beautiful Will, who always made her laugh, never put her down, and cheered her on in everything she wanted to do. He was just unapologetically himself, the same Will she had known since she was eight years old.
She had no idea how she had never fallen for it before the Olympics, but now, she couldn't see their relationship going any other way. Of course… it certainly helped that he wasn't bad on the eyes either. Another thing she wasn't sure how she had missed.
"Alright… I got you some kind of strawberry mocktail thing. I asked what was in it but he lost me about four ingredients in," Will cut in, breaking her from her thoughts as he placed the drink down in front of her on the table. She laughed, pulling it closer to her as he sat down with a drink of his own.
"What did you get?"
He looked down at the glass, frowning. "It's called a Hipster. I have no idea what's in it, but I couldn't decide on a drink either, so the guy surprised me"
JJ giggled, settling back in against Will as the music changed and more people got up to dance. She bopped along to the song ever so slightly, sipping at her drink as they sat comfortably together. Will's arm came around her shoulders again, holding her close.
At his side, she felt so small, safe, and protected… but simultaneously, larger than life.
It was nearly midnight when Will pulled into JJ's driveway and turned off the ignition to his truck.
"So I told your mom we wouldn't be late," he said softly, breaking into a grin. "She's never gonna give me your dad's lasagna again"
JJ laughed, shaking her head. "It's fine, you're still the favourite child"
Smiling, Will leaned over the console, capturing JJ's lips in a sweet kiss. She happily reciprocated, sliding a hand up around the back of his neck to try and pull him ever so slightly closer. Will deepened the kiss by capturing her lower lip between his, making her tip her head as she slid her hand further up into his hair. In the awkward tangle across the center console, JJ never noticed when Will's hand came to rest on her knee.
The porch light came on, startling them both apart. They stared at each for a moment in the half light, before laughing softly.
"Come on. I'll walk you inside," Will said, opening his door.
They walked side by side up to the front door, before turning to face each other, smiles on both of their faces.
"I had a really good time tonight," JJ said softly, reaching for his hand. "Thanks for making my first date so… special"
Will cracked a small smile, squeezing her hand gently. "My pleasure, Jayje. I had a lot of fun"
"You gonna kiss me goodnight?" JJ asked, a cheeky glint twinkling in her eye. Will laughed.
"Didn't I just do that?" he teased, before leaning down and pressing another sweet kiss to her lips.
"Goodnight Will," she said softly as they broke apart, her free hand reaching for the front door. Will stepped away, giving her one last handsome smile.
"Goodnight Jayje"