DATE: August 2009
TITLE: Grateful Humanity
AUTHOR: losingntrnslatn (LosingInTranslation,
Jennifer)
DISCLAIMER: Don’t own anything associated with the show… I just like
playing with the characters in it from time to time. Dance Monkeys! Dance!
RATING: T - Teen
SPOILERS: Through US Aired Episodes of Season 4 – Post Ep for 4X24
PAIRINGS: J.J./Will
WORD COUNT: 1003
SUMMARY: J.J. has a lot to think about after a major anthrax exposure
with the public.
A/N: This is a Post-Ep for
“Amplification.” It’s also an answer fic for why I
think J.J. & Will really work as a couple. If it’s not your thing, I hope
you at least enjoy the writing.
REVIEWS: Reviews are the way I know if people are enjoying the work or
not. So, if you leave one, THANKS! And if not, I hope you found at least a
little something to brighten your day, and thanks for taking the time to read.
Grateful Humanity
Driving
home, all Jennifer can think about is how incredibly precious life really is,
and just how fast it can all be taken away. In her work, she is reminded of
this fact every single day, but never as powerfully as it has been demonstrated
to her today.
Knowing
that the entire country could have been put at risk by a single person’s
actions was frightening by itself. To also know that her family, her child, was at ground zero for this
attack on humanity was a humbling experience, to say the least. The only thing
that gave her comfort in the face of such destruction was knowing that she had
a small part in protecting everyone from not only that kind of devastation, but
from even possessing that terrifying bit of knowledge.
Turning
off the highway, she feels the weight beginning to lift from her heart. In a
few short minutes her arms will be filled with a sleepy, warm and safe baby
Henry. Everything she does, everything she endures has new meaning since the
arrival of that precious giggling mass of arms and legs and smiles.
She
had heard from countless people about how much parenthood changed their lives,
but she always attributed it to hyperbole. That was, until she had Henry in her
arms. Now she has to fight the urge to spend all of her time talking about the
second man to completely change her life.
As
she pulls into her neighborhood, Jennifer thinks about Will. She never wanted
it, never wanted to go down the same road as her mother, but sometimes life has
other ideas. Will represents everything she was sure she never wanted. He is
old fashioned, and devoted, and committed.
He is everything she never knew she needed.
Will
reminds her that she is more than a mouthpiece, that she has value as a human
being. But most of all, he reminds her that she is a woman; a beautiful, caring
and valuable woman. He is always the one to make the first move, to concede, to
give in when it means making her happy and providing for their family.
As
much as she fought against the very idea of him from the very start, she is
eternally grateful that life had other ideas, because she thanks God every day
for him. Will understands her; sometimes better than she does herself. He gives
her space when she needs it, but he also knows when to stand up to her demands.
Will is much more than the father of her child and a lover, he is her equal and
he is her partner in life. He accepts her completely, warts and all, and loves
her all the more for it.
Finally
reaching the driveway, Jennifer slowly backs the car in and another thought
drifts into focus. She remembers walking to Hotch’s
door and hearing his desperate phone call to his son. While it was good to see
the man embracing his own humanity, the more she thinks about his call the
sadder it makes her.
Hotch
is a man who deals with all the pain and evil in the world, and has to do it
with a stern face and a hardened heart. He has to be the cement that keeps their
team together, and he does so at the expense of everything else in his life. And at the expense of everyone in his life.
It
makes her heartsick to think of anyone subjecting themselves to such an empty
life. And it makes her even more grateful for the men waiting for her inside
their little house as the porch light flickers to life when she turns the
engine off.
Hotch
let the job get in the way of his marriage, in the way of his relationship with
his son. Sure, his wife should have understood who she was marrying to begin
with, but Jennifer has to wonder if Hotch was as clueless about the personal
side of his own life as he seems to be with the team.
Gideon,
with all his arrogance and appearance of detachment knew more about the
personal lives of the team than Hotch could ever grasp. He understood Spencer’s
crush on her, her girlish crush on Hotch, Elle’s problems with authority, the
weird dynamic between Morgan and Garcia, Spencer’s drug problem after the
abduction, and even his own breaking point. Losing Gideon was hard, but
Jennifer still respects the way he handled his exit from the team.
Hotch,
on the other hand, is so oblivious to the human element he is surprised at
every turn when the team does something outside his direct view. He can’t see Morgan’s
struggle to find meaning in his life, or Prentiss desperately looking for her
place in the team, or even Rossi trying to find his place with Prentiss. But
the worst of it centered on her. She still remembers the look of shock, the
betrayal on his face when she told him she was pregnant. It wasn’t the way she
wanted to tell the team, but once again, Will came in at just the right time to
remind her about her humanity.
Everyone,
excluding Hotch, was thrilled about the announcement,
but watching that façade of calm fall on his face after he got over the shock
made her very sad. She tried to explain it to him when he walked away, but she
quickly regretted it. His feelings of betrayal came through as he tried to
shrug off her concerns, and what she saw that night continues to color her
dealings with the man.
But
none of that matters tonight. Not when her two men are happy, safe and standing
on the porch anxiously waiting for her to come in. Will’s smile is bright
enough to out shine the porch light, and he is waving Henry’s pudgy little arm
at her as he bounces up and down in his Daddy’s arms. Mommy is home with her
guys, and that’s what really matters.