The Stone Wall and His Weakness [A.H.]

XLII

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I glanced around the desks as I walked through the bullpen. It was early, but people milled around, papers piled in their arms and on their desks.

I shifted the bundle in my arms as my eyes dropped to her. She was wide awake, eyes staring at me as we moved towards the meeting room. For a two month old, she was certainly awake far more than I had been expecting. All the books, all the advice I'd received on newborns said that they slept more than they're awake, until they're about four months old. Well, I call bullshit.

Elsie's brown eyes stayed on me as I smiled at her, holding her tightly against my chest.

It was strange being back in the office. I had remained at home since giving birth, aside from helping as a consultant on the occasional case. I decided to take a step back from being a full time agent once I had Elsie. With Aaron having left the program but refusing to come home, I couldn't imagine parting with our daughter. I wouldn't put myself in harms way and leave her alone.

So I worked from home, enough that I didn't have to worry about bills or affording things.

I shifted her in my arms again so that I was cradling her as I stopped in front of the meeting room. The team had requested I bring in their "new favorite team member", after their last case had ended. I knocked once before pushing the door open, the loud conversations ceasing as I stepped in.

I smiled brightly at the team as they stood around, turning to face me. "Hey, we came to visit-" The words died on my tongue as I stared at the man in front of me. He whipped around at the sound of my voice, his brown eyes wide as they met mine.

"Alex?" His voice was low and rough. Familiar, but foreign. He had changed since the last time I saw him. He held himself with more ease, as if the weight of the world had been lifted off of his shoulders. His hair had grown out slightly, but still short, and unkempt. He wore jeans and a tshirt, an outfit that he rarely was able to wear when he was still here.

"Hey, let me have her-" JJ stepped towards me, hands outstretched, but I shook my head, taking a step back towards the door.

As if just noticing the small bundle in my arms, Aaron's eyes dropped to my chest. She was barely visible around the blanket wrapped around her, but he stared down at her as a thousand emotions crossed his features.

"You- you had a baby?" He stepped towards me, slowly, as if approaching a scared doe. I stepped back again, ignoring his question. Then his eyes shifted again, taking me in wholly. From my brown hair, which I had chopped down to my shoulders last month, to the slight tan of my skin, "When... How old...?"