𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 ↠ a. hotchner

chapter twenty-six - needles.

PENELOPE WAS trying her best not to panic. She was frantically following JJ and Ophelia around as they gathered their things, occasionally stopping so Ophelia could ride out her contraction.
"Please never have kids, P," Ophelia joked, wincing as another wave of pain came over her. JJ chuckled and offered her hand to her, and she gladly accepted. Penelope was pacing around the bullpen as JJ was trying to collect her things from her office, unaware of what they had said.
"Okay," She breathed. "You can go now," JJ nodded and grabbed her briefcase and jacket. Ophelia held out her hand again, clutching on to JJ as she led her out into the bullpen once more.
"P, it's okay," Ophelia chuckled. "I'm gonna be fine," Penelope stopped to face her, worry camouflaging her usual smile.
"I know, Spencer just got in my head with all his scary statistics and things," She blabbered, scrunching her nose in frustration. Ophelia offered a gentle smile and leant in to kiss her cheek.
"I'll call you, okay?" She nodded and kissed her cheek in return.
"Bye guys! Be safe!" She waved as the two disappeared into the elevator.

"I don't need a wheelchair, Jen," Ophelia whined as JJ returned from the emergency room entrance with a wheelchair in her grasp. Ophelia gripped on to the car seat, trying to pull herself up. JJ rushed to her side and helped her stand.
"Trust me, you're gonna want to sit as much as you can," She led her over to the chair. "Since you're early, you need to rest," Ophelia nodded and fell into the seat. JJ pushed her through the automatic doors with ease and up to the reception window.
"What's the problem, ma'am?" A sweet, older woman sat behind the window. She smiled at JJ.
"My friend is having contractions five minutes apart, she's only 36 weeks," JJ had tried to stay calm for Ophelia, but saying it out loud was terrifying.
"The name?" The woman had started to type.
"Ophelia Holmes, May 26th, 1982," Ophelia breathed. She clutched her chest, not in pain, but an attempt to slow her breathing. The woman met them in the waiting room, folding a plastic bracelet around Ophelia's wrist. When she did, Ophelia noticed the familiar glint of the diamonds that still draped around her wrist. She reminded herself that she was okay as long as Aaron was around. A second woman in pink scrubs walked through a pair of big doors, a cheeky smile on her face. Ophelia tried to return the gesture.
"Your doctor will meet us in the exam room, Ophelia. Follow me," Her voice was smooth and calm, which made Ophelia feel somewhat better. If she were in a lot of trouble, they wouldn't be so nonchalant, she reasoned. JJ oblidged and pushed her through the corridor. Ophelia tried to drown out all the noises of the busy emergency wing, focusing on the warm presence of JJ behind her. It felt so good to have her there. They reached a set of elevators and the nurse pushed the up button with her elbow. Luckily, the carriage came soon and it was empty, allowing them to spread out.
"You said you're 36 weeks?" The nurse never let her smile diminish. Ophelia nodded. "Have you thought about names yet?"
"Uh— Yeah, we have two picked out," Ophelia gulped. Small talk was definitely a bad sign. The nurse nodded as the doors revealed the delivery wing. Several obviously pregnant women walked with their husbands, or sat, and Ophelia's stomach flipped. She knew she was ready to have this baby, but she never considered having to give birth without Aaron. She always imagined being full term, holding onto him as they walked the halls, biding their time until the baby came. Now, a month early, Aaron was half-way across the country and the uncertainty consumed her. Once they finally reached the exam room, the doctor was preparing an ultrasound in the center of the room.
"Ophelia! How are we feeling?" The nurse helped her out of her wheelchair and JJ met her at the side of the exam table, ready to hold her hand.
"A little out of breath," She huffed, trying to get comfortable on the bed. The doctor smiled.
"That's to be expected," She flipped Ophelia's shirt up and squirted the familiarly cold gel onto her stomach. "Your little one is pushing on all your organs and making it hard to breathe," She pressed the wand to her stomach and spread the gel around her stomach. JJ placed her to her hand on her shoulder as she saw the outline of the baby on the monitor.
"There they are," The doctor chimed, still looking intently at the screen. "Everything looks fine from here, but I need to run some more tests to figure out why you're going into labor so soon, okay?" She wiped the gel off of her stomach and threw away her gloves. Ophelia nodded. "I'll be right back," She slipped out of the room with her chart in hand, closing the door behind her. The nurse approached the bed with a thin gown folded in her hands.
"I'm gonna give you some privacy while you change into this, and I'll be back with the doctor," She smiled and handed the gown to Ophelia, leaving just as the doctor had a few moments before.
"That's not good," Ophelia gave an amused huff as she slowly sat up on the bed.
"Hey, they just wanna make sure it's okay," JJ reassured her, setting Ophelia's bag in the chair in the corner of the room. She helped Ophelia into the gown, tying it around her back and folding her clothes into her bag. A few long moments later, both the doctor and the nurse returned with a tray of utensils, equipped with gloves and masks. Ophelia's heart nearly stopped when she saw the size of the needle on the tray. She squeezed JJ's hand and let her head fall onto the bed.
"Okay, Ophelia," The doctor turned the ultrasound back on and handed the wand to the nurse, who lifted Ophelia's gown and pressed it to her abdomen. "I saw fluid in your uterus, so we're just gonna test to make sure it's amniotic, okay?" She lifted the blanket over Ophelia's legs and opened an alcohol swab. After she cleaned the area, she opened the package to the large needle and attached it to her syringe. Ophelia just looked at JJ. Tears welled in her eyes as she felt a sharp burning erupt in her abdomen.
"Shh, it's okay," JJ cooed, not looking away from what the doctor was doing. They squeezed each others hands. "It's almost over," What felt like an eternity passed before the burning finally subsided and the doctor placed a large bandage on Ophelia's stomach. Ophelia let out a deep breath and wiped the sweat from her face.
"That was really good, Ophelia," The doctor soothed, placing the cap on the needle and laying it on the tray. "It looks like amniotic fluid to me but we're gonna test it to make sure," Ophelia nodded and fell back onto the bed. JJ smoothed her chestnut hair away from her face.
"Do you wanna call Hotch?" She offered, digging her phone out of her pocket. Ophelia nodded once more, biting her lip as she tried not to cry. She dialed the familiar number into JJ's phone and pressed it to her ear.
"JJ, how is she?" She could immediately sense how terrified he was.
"Hey, Aaron," She choked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Hi, Ophelia," His voice was so soothing. She wished with every part of her being that he was there to comfort her.
"Just got prodded with a big ass needle," She mused, trying to hopefully make him smile. It worked.
"I'm sorry, baby," He wanted to cry for her, but he knew he had to be strong.
"I wish you were here," She squeaked, letting a tear escape her eye. He sighed.
"Me too," JJ clutched her shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"As good as I can be," She wiped her cheek and sniffled.
"That's good, that's all you need to do," He reassured her. "I'm sorry I can't be there,"
"Are you close to catching him?" She sat up in the bed and fixed her hair. She wanted to think about anything but what just happened.
"Yeah, they're searching the woods near his last dump site," She nodded, it felt good to have just a sliver or normalcy from work. "I'll be there soon, Ophelia," She was trying her best not to worry him but she couldn't help but cry.
      "Please hurry," She sobbed quietly. To Aaron, that was all she had to say.
      "Forget it, I'm going in there," She couldn't tell what he was saying, but she knew he was yelling. "I'll be there soon," The call ended and she handed the phone back to JJ.
      "I hope he doesn't do anything stupid," She sniffled, wiping the tears away from her cheek.
      "Are you kidding? He's gonna be on the top of his game," JJ smiled. "If anyone can make him do that, it's you and this baby," Ophelia returned the gesture and let her head fall back. She closed her eyes for a moment and thought about him. She was terrified, but as long as she had Aaron, she would be okay.