By Fabrisse
Pairing: None
Characters: Aaron Hotchner, Jack Hotchner, Spencer Reid and the team
Rating: FREveryone
Summary: Jack and Hotch talk while driving in the car.
Author Note: A response to the June 2010 challenge at lj user ="criminal_prompt" which is "You are Beautiful."
"Daddy, do you think Auntie JJ is pretty?"
Hotch looked at his son in the rearview mirror. They'd just come from a team dinner at JJ and Will's house. She'd had them a few times once Henry had turned about six months old, but once Haley had died, they'd become regular events. The third Saturday of every month, if they were in town, the team came over. Sometimes, it was a potluck; sometimes Will cooked. Once or twice, Dave brought all the ingredients and cooked a traditional Italian Sunday meal. One month, Reid and Prentiss had taken them all to a restaurant for dim sum, and next month Morgan and Tamara were going to make barbecue.
He liked it. The meals gave Jack an extended family beyond his Brooks' cousins. When he got older, he might ask Uncle Dave for driving lessons, or Uncle Spencer for help with his homework, or Uncle Derek for advice about girls.
More than that, Jack saw JJ and Emily and Penelope, women who weren't like his mother and Aunt Jessica. As much as he still loved Haley and appreciated Jessica, Hotch knew that Jack needed a wider range of people and role models.
Jack repeated more emphatically, "Do you think Auntie JJ is pretty?"
"Yes. Why do you ask?"
"I think she's the prettiest of the girls."
Jack was quiet for a moment. "I think Uncle Spencer is pretty too."
"Did you tell him that?"
"He said thank you. But then he said it was more con -- I don't remember the word."
Hotch thought. "Conventional?"
Jack brightened immediately and repeated slowly. "Conventional to call boys handsome."
"That's right. There's no real reason for it, but girls are pretty and boys are handsome."
"Do you think Mommy was pretty?"
Hotch wasn't sure whether he loved or hated these moments. He was so glad that Jack remembered Haley and spoke of her often, but his son could re-open all the wounds around their marriage.
He answered, "Your mother was beautiful."
"Beautiful like Cinderella?"
"I thought so -- from the very first time I saw her."
"Me too." Jack ran his toy car across the bar of his car seat. "You're handsome."
Hotch glance up at the mirror briefly and smiled. "Thank you."
"Uncle Spencer thinks so too. I asked him who he thought was the prettiest girl and the handsomest boy."
Hotch shook his head to himself. They used to think kids didn't like Reid, but either Henry had mellowed him or the team had missed the mark. Hotch was inclined to think the latter. Jack, and Henry now that he was toddling, would run to other adults for play and shouting, but when he just wanted someone to be quiet with, Jack would go sit beside Reid. Sometimes they'd have long talks like they'd apparently had today, and sometimes Jack just would fall asleep against him.
"And what were his answers."
"He asked me lots of questions 'cause he wanted to 'define the terms.' What does that mean, Daddy?"
"You know how you just asked me about whether Spencer was right about the word handsome? That was you defining your terms, Buddy. Spencer just wanted to make sure he understood what you were asking."
Jack played alone for a few minutes, and Hotch thought he'd forgotten about the conversation.
Then he said, "Spencer said he thought his Mom was pretty, but I said it had to be someone I know."
Hotch mentally gave a point to Reid for trying to keep anyone else from finding out his answer. "That seems fair," he said.
"He said he thought Emily was prettiest and you were handsomest."
"That was very nice of him." Hotch pulled into the parking spot. Once the car was shut down, he got Jack out of his car seat and gave in to his request to be carried. Soon, Jack would be too heavy or wouldn't want his father's arms around him and Hotch was determined to cherish every minute like this they could have.
Jack sighed against his shoulder, and Hotch kissed his forehead. "I asked him if he thought mommy was pretty. I didn't understand his answer."
Hotch helped his son get ready for bed. "Well, Spencer gives answers that other people don't understand a lot. It's because he's so smart."
"I think you're smart, too, Daddy."
"I appreciate it."
As he crawled into bed, Jack gave him a hug then snuggled under the covers. "Will you ask him?"
"Sure, Buddy." Hotch handed Jack the stuffed gorilla that he slept with and went to turn off the light. "The nightlight is on. Sleep well."
"Good night, Daddy." Jack's voice was already drifting toward sleep.
About ten minutes later, Hotch heard his son begin to snore and knew he wouldn't wake up easily. He dialed Reid.
"Hotch. What's the case?"
"No, no case. Jack said he'd asked you about whether Haley was pretty, and he didn't understand the answer. I was told to find it out from you so I could explain it to him."
Reid laughed softly. "I said I didn't know her well enough to judge, but I knew she was beautiful from the way you looked when you talked about her."
"I understand," was all Hotch could say.
~
end