Family isn't Always Blood (A Criminal Minds fanfic)

Chapter 43: Epilogue

*1 year later*

Garcia's POV:
I run around our bedroom, looking for the dress I was planning on wearing to Scarlet's first birthday party. I finally find it and walk into the bathroom, closing the door behind me and stripping off before getting into the shower.

I quickly wash myself and get out, drying myself off before getting dressed. I walk out of the bathroom and over to my husband who's sitting on the bed dressed and ready to go. "Hey Babygirl" he says, standing to kiss me, "Hey" I smile, returning the kiss, "You ready to go?" He asks, "Almost" I say, turning to walk back to the bathroom. Derek follows me and sits on the edge of the bath while I do my makeup. "So is Alex coming?" I ask, referring to the new agent who is Emily's replacement and now Rossi's girlfriend, "Uh, yeah I think so" Morgan responds, smiling at me, "She's so nice!" I say and Derek laughs, "Yeah, she is!" He says. "Scarlet is so big now" I say, "Yeah, it's amazing how quickly this past year has gone" Derek responds, "She looks so much like Emily with her raven hair" I say to Morgan, "Yeah but when she's grumpy, she definitely looks like Hotch" he laughs and stands, leaving the bathroom to let me concentrate on my makeup.

Reid's POV:
I hold JJ's hand as we walk out of the fertility clinic, tears forming in her eyes. "It's okay Jage, there are other options" I say, trying to make her feel better, "Yeah, I know" she sniffs and wipes away a tear. "Jage" I say, grabbing her other hand and turning to face her. "I'm so sorry, I know how badly you wanted this to work. Think of it this way: 1.5 million females in the US are infertile, 6%. I know it's a small number but it means that you are not alone. There are adoption agencies out there, we could try that, and it doesn't matter if it is our child biologically or not, it will be our child nonetheless" I say and brush away a tear from her cheek, I know how much having a baby meant to her, "I know Spence, thank you" she says but more tears flow down her cheeks, "What's wrong?" I ask softly, "This is all my fault" she cries harder, "If I hadn't of let my guard down, Garcia and I wouldn't have been kidnapped and I wouldn't have ended up with this!" She cries, lifting up her shirt to show the cause of her infertility. "JJ, this is not your fault" I say, pulling her shirt back down and covering her deep scars, "None if this is your fault. I don't blame you, Garcia doesn't blame you, so don't blame yourself. I can't stand to see you this upset, when you're hurting, I just want to hug you until the pain goes away because I love you Jennifer, I love you no matter what, whether you can have children or not, it doesn't matter to me" I say and pull her into my chest. She grabs my shirt in her fist and cries into it while I stroke her hair, "I love you too Spencer" she whispers and wraps her arms tightly around my chest. We stand there for a few minutes, her tears slowly soaking into my shirt until I pull away. I wipe the tears from her cheeks and take her hand. "Let's go get ready for Scarlet's party" I say and she nods, forcing a smile as we walk to the car.

Prentiss' POV:
"Scarlet!" I laugh as my daughter tries to run away from me without a diaper on. I try to catch her, which would normally be easy considering she only really waddles when she runs, but I can't because I'm doubled over on my knees laughing; this is the third time this has happened today. "Aaron!" I laugh, "Gotcha!" He says, walking around the corner and picking Scarlet up as she runs through the doorway, she does a high pitched squeal as Aaron carries her over to me. He sees me doubled over with a diaper in my hand and starts laughing too. "Mama!" Scarlet squeals, pointing at me, "Yeah that's right sweetie" I say, holding my arms out to take her from Aaron, "Mummy no!" She squeals, knowing I'm going to put her diaper on her, "Daddy! Mummy no!" She says, cowering into Aaron's arms and making us both laugh again. Aaron mouths something to me and I nod, sneaking up behind Scarlet and putting her diaper on her, taking her by surprise. "Ah!" She squeals in a high pitched tone. I take her from Aaron and she buries her face in my shoulder. "Scarlet honey, Mummy's got to get your party ready" I say, sitting her down on the floor, "Oh!" She says and I stand up, smiling down at her. She immediately stands up, running over to her toys and sitting back down again. "She can never walk, she always has to run doesn't she?" I joke, resting my head on Aaron's shoulder as he puts his arm around me.

"Help?" Scarlet asks, pointing at me when she sees me heading into the kitchen, "Sure honey! You can help" I say as she follows me. "Come here so Mummy can tie up your hair" I say, taking a hair tie off the table and pulling her long, dark hair into a ponytail. I do the same with my hair and pick Scarlet up, sitting her on my hip so she can 'help' with the cooking. I hear a shutter sound and turn around to see Aaron taking photos of us while we cook in the kitchen, "You're matching!" He laughs, turning his phone around to show us the photo, "Me!" Scarlet says, pointing at the picture, we both smile and Aaron takes a step forward, hugging Scarlet and I, making me smile. "I love you" I say, kissing him, "I love you too" he says and I turn around to start the cooking.