I Will Never Let You Go (A Maxcer Fanfic)

First Ultrasound.

Shortly after Max found out she was pregnant she scheduled an appointment with her doctor to confirm it, and to estimate how far along she was. She was only around four weeks, so they wouldn't give an ultrasound since the baby would probably be too small to see. They scheduled her next appointment to be when she was eight weeks, which seemed like a long time to Max. She feared that something could go wrong in that month's time, but her doctor and Spencer reassured her that if she ate right and didn't participate in any risky behaviors, she and the baby would be fine.
Max finally got to the eight week mark, having gone through the typical early pregnancy symptoms with no end in sight. She couldn't eat Mexican food with Spencer anymore, or even be in the room when he'd brought burritos home from having them during lunch. She got moodier, causing Spencer to feel more sympathetic towards her. She'd been having battles with herself over leaving her job at the school and going to work at the Smithsonian, something she always wanted to do. However, she did like working with kids, which made her even more excited to know that she was having her own. A lot of her contemplations either brought her to tears or had her almost pulling her hair out. When she got like that, Spencer learned to just sit her down and hold her tight, letting her cry or grumble about whatever was on her mind. She'd always apologize to him, but he was gracious towards her, reminding her that she was having major hormone surges that she's not used to. Max ended up making a joke about it after she'd gotten mad that he couldn't go to the first ultrasound. He had a case in New York and it was already seeming like he wouldn't be home in time . Spencer did really want to be there, but he had to be in the field, which after rationality set back into Max's mind she understood.
Max took a deep breath while she sat in the waiting room. It was the normal doctor's office she'd gone to for years, but today she felt nervous. She wanted to know that her baby was healthy and growing, since she wasn't showing yet.
"Maxine Reid?"
Lost in thought, Max didn't acknowledge the nurse at first when she called her name. "Oh sorry. That's me." The nurse smiled at her and said "Right this way." She led Max down the hall and into one of the ultrasound rooms. In the room there was your normal doctor's office counter and sink with the essential sterile items, the patient table, but now there was also the ultrasound machine which was connected to a computer. Just by looking at it gave Max chills. "The doctor will be right in." Max nodded and smiled, but when the nurse closed the door behind her, Max started to panic. She sat herself down on the table and put her face into her hands. When they first decided they wanted to have a baby, Max didn't feel anxious about carrying a child. Now actually being pregnant, Max couldn't help but feel something would go wrong. Part of her thought it had something to do with one of her mother's and sister's pregnancies, and how they both ended tragically; while another part of her felt that it had to do with Spencer, and how he seemed to be well educated on the topic. He knew the effects, the different stages, the risks, and having that knowledge scared Max. There was a knock on the door and Max picked her head up from her hands. She hadn't realized that she'd been crying, and quickly wiped her cheeks with her sleeve. Doctor Malcolm opened the door and smiled at Max. "I was hoping I'd see you one of these days for this very reason. How have you been?" Her cheeriness made Max feel less tense, so she grinned back and said "Pretty good. Symptoms haven't been too bad I suppose."
"Well that's good to hear. You've been eating right? No drinking, caffeine? You're not on any prescriptions?"
"Thanks to Spencer I have. He's been making sure I get all the proper nutrients. I've cut off my wine intake, coffee, and the only things I'm taking are the prenatal vitamins I was prescribed at my last appointment."
Doctor Malcolm wrote some things down in her file as Max talked. "Perfect." She said nodding. She turned in her chair to put the file on the counter then swung around to face Max again. "Are you ready to see your little one?" Doctor Malcolm asked. Max bit her lip for a moment then nodded. Doctor Malcolm sensed that Max was nervous but she didn't say anything. She had Max lay down on the table, causing the paper to crickle beneath her. She then instructed Max to lift her shirt up so that her abdomen was exposed. She pulled some of the blue ultrasound gel from its holder and said "This is gonna be a little cold." Max nodded curtly and watched as Doctor Malcom squirted some of the gel on the lower half of her stomach. It didn't seem that cold to Max, but she felt like that was a line Doctor Malcolm was accustomed to saying. Tapping at the keyboard, Doctor Malcolm put the ultrasound wand to Max's stomach, causing some static to appear on the screen. She moved it around until a clearer picture showed a small blob, that appeared to have stubby arms and legs. In the middle of the blob, there was a little flicker. "This larger part is the head and these little nubs are the arms and legs. And that right there is the heart beating." Doctor Malcolm explained. She clicked another button on the keyboard and a small heart monitor showed on the screen. Max then heard the sound of a heart beat fill the room. She put a hand over her mouth to hold in a sob. She was so relieved, and she almost felt silly for worrying so much. Doctor Malcolm gave Max a small smile and handed her a box of tissues. "There's always fear when it comes to this. Some people are more at risk of miscarriage than others for various reasons. But if you constantly believe that something bad is gonna happen, you're gonna stress yourself out and not enjoy this experience. It's a beautiful thing. And stress isn't good for the baby." Max chuckled at that last part, wiping her eyes. Doctor Malcolm cleaned off the wand and put it back in its holder. She clicked a few buttons on the keyboard and in thirty seconds three pictures were printed out of Max and Spencer's baby. After Max got the gel cleaned off, she sat back up and pulled her shirt down. Doctor Malcolm handed her the three pictures and said "Everything seems to be going great. They are right where they should be. And as long as you're feeling alright, you don't have any further questions..." She trailed off, waiting for Max to say something but instead she shook her head. "Alright then. I should be seeing you around twenty weeks for your next appointment and if you choose you might be able to get a gender confirmation. You can go sort that out at the front desk." Max thanked her doctor and went to go set up her next appointment.
Spencer and his team walked up to the plane, put all their stuff down and started to disperse into different seats. It was around five; they had worked very late last night, only to get up very early the next morning. Emily, JJ, and Matt had fallen asleep already, and Luke, Tara, and Rossi had served themselves drinks. Spencer sat in a single seat, away from the sleeping passengers and took out his phone. One look at the time and he knew he had missed Max's first appointment. He wanted to be there to see his child for the first time, but he couldn't miss work. For certain things he could, but something like that didn't need his full attention. He'd hear about it from Max when he got home, and the fact that she hadn't called led him to believe everything went fine. Spencer could sense that she was anxious about the appointment, which was probably why she went off on him when he couldn't be there. He planned to surprise her tonight, bringing home cannolis since she'd been craving them.
An hour later and the plane landed back in Virgina. They had to go to the BAU first to fill out some paperwork, which Spencer thought wouldn't take him long so he would have enough time to go to the bakery. Walking into the BAU with his messenger bag over his shoulder, he put it down next to his desk. He cleared some of the files off the middle and plopped them into one of his organizers. Spencer didn't realize how tired he was, covering his mouth as he yawned. Just then, arms wrapped around his waist from behind, causing Spencer to regain some alertness. He then felt the familiarity of the hug.
"Max? What are you doing here?"
He heard her hum against his back, sending chills along his body. Max let go of him and he turned around to see the grin on her face. "I asked Penelope when you guys should be getting home, and I was surprised to hear that that would actually be tonight, so I thought I'd come here to surprise you." Spencer chuckled and wrapped his arms around her waist. "That's what I was gonna do. And bring you cannolis." Max laughed and brought his mouth to hers. She slowly pulled away and slid her hand into her back pocket, revealing the three pictures from her appointment. Spencer's face was priceless as he gazed at the photos.
"I love them already."
"Love who?" JJ asked. Max and Spencer looked up at her and by her expression she already knew. They had decided to wait a while before telling everyone that they were expecting. Now that they had some closure that things seem to be going smoothly, they thought it would be a perfect time to tell Spencer's team. Max looked up at Spencer with a smile, nonverbally asking if she could say it. She looked back to JJ, where more of the team members had gathered and said "This family is about to get a little bigger." With that, the room erupted in cheers and laughter. Rossi kissed Spencer and Max on both of their cheeks, and everyone gave them hugs and congratulations.
"Oh no, did I miss it? Please tell me I didn't."
Garcia walked into the bullpen exasperated. Luke put a hand on her shoulder and said "I think you did." The rest of the room laughed while Garcia fake scoffed at them. "Well at least I knew before all of you. And you--" She pointed at Spencer, walking towards him. "You are gonna be a dad. That's amazing, but insane. But mostly amazing. I'm so happy for you." Garcia hugged Spencer tightly, then the rest of the team went along with their business. Spencer decided that the paperwork could wait till tomorrow and grabbed Max's hand. They had gotten into the elevator when Max asked "Can we still get those cannolis?" Spencer looked at her while she tried to keep a straight face. She turned to him and broke into laughter. Smiling, Spencer pulled her against him and kissed her head. "Of course."