The Midnight Watch

Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or anything else copyrighted, for that matter.

Author's Note: Hey, guys! This is the first fiction I'll be posting under this name. It's something that came about as a desire to prove that Reid isn't the only one who needs reassurance about the job. I'm strategically ignoring the Henry-and-Will-storyline. Nothing against them, but they're in the way.

…But the rain,
Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh,
Upon the glass and listen for reply…

~Edna St Vincent Millay

JJ flinched as another crack of thunder shook the earth. She sighed, glancing at the clock. It was 11:45. She had actually gotten home at a reasonable hour tonight and had spent the evening relaxing. She had gotten into bed at 10:30 and was lulled to sleep by the sound of rain on her windows and the thunderstorm in the distance.

Now, however, in the middle of the night, the storm was much more jarring. The thunder was less of distant and comforting rumble and more of a terrifying crash that was reminiscent of gunshots. Like the gunshot she had heard over her earpiece when Reid had been shot yesterday. He'd been wearing a vest, so he was alright, of course. Bruised and sore, but fine. She'd spent the past two days making sure of that.

She didn't understand why she was so shaken by a simple thunderstorm. Nor, for that matter, why she was so shaken by Reid being shot. He was fine, the UnSub had been shot after that, the girl he had taken was rescued, and the case was closed. But she found herself sitting in the dark, near tears for some reason, flinching every time there was a crack of thunder because she swore she could hear Reid's cry of pain accompanying every blast.

JJ decided she would just give him a call. Hearing his voice would calm her fears, she was sure. She would just call him, talk for a few minutes, apologize for waking him, and then go back to sleep. She reached for her phone and pushed speed dial four and waited for someone to pick up on the other end. "Reid."

JJ found herself smiling, there were no traces of sleep in his voice, though he did sound distracted. He'd probably been buried in a book or some interesting case. "Hey, Spence." She said quietly, hoping her voice wouldn't betray how shaken she felt.

"JJ," She could hear the surprise in his tone; he probably hadn't checked his caller ID. "Do we have a case?"

"No, I was just calling to, um… say 'hi'." She said, barely able to keep from slapping her forehead at how ridiculous she sounded.

There was silence. "JJ, are you okay?" He asked finally. Damn profilers.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" JJ told him, trying to inject confidence into her voice.

"You were really glad to being going home on time tonight, you said you were going to relax and go to bed early, but it's midnight."

JJ sighed. "Alright, so I'm having a little trouble sleeping. I just… wanted someone to talk to."

"Oh… okay. What did you want to talk about?"

Damn, she hadn't counted on having an actual conversation. She finally blurted the first thing that came to mind. "How's your chest?"

"It's sore, but like I've said the last five times you asked: I'll live. Is this what this is all about? Because you did seem a little shaken up after that raid."

"No, I'm just having trouble sleeping." JJ could feel her confidence failing again. She'd have to end this call soon.

"Is there anything you need?"

Okay, she'd just tell him no, she was fine, and that she'd see him on Monday, simple as that. "Do… do you think you'd want to… come over and talk?" Wait, what? Why did she say that? Where was the universal 'undo' button when you needed it?

"JJ, it's pouring rain out there."

"I know, I just… no, you know what? It was a silly idea, just forget it." JJ was about to tell him goodbye when he spoke again.

"Well… it seems like it might be letting up a little. I can be over in 15 minutes, if you really want me to…"

Say no, JJ told herself. Say goodnight and end the call. "That sounds great. Thanks so much, Spence."

"Sure. See you soon." He ended the call.

JJ sat staring at her cell phone, wondering when her brain had decided to betray her. Then, she stood up out of bed and wondered exactly what she should wear. Wait, why did she care what she wore? This was Reid. Nothing special. No, that wasn't right, he was very special. Just not like that. Shaking her head to clear it a little, she decided to just pull on a pair of sweat pants and t-shirt and hoped that Reid wouldn't come still dressed in full work attire.

10 minutes later, she opened the door to see Reid standing in front of her apartment, dressed in, to her surprise, jeans and a t-shirt. His shoulders were damp and his hair hung in his face, dripping a little. "Hey, Spence. Why are you all wet?" She asked, standing aside to let him in.

"It's- um, raining outside." He said, attempting to push his wet hair behind his ears, to no avail.

JJ found herself wondering why he didn't let his hair loose more often, it looked good framing his face like that. He also looked good in jeans, he should wear those more often, too. Wait, where had that come from? "I know it's raining outside, but you can park right outside the building."

"Oh…" He looked a little sheepish. "I thought that was for tenants only; I parked down the street."

JJ held back a small laugh, but smiled nonetheless. "Well, thank you for coming… I don't really know why I'm so shaken up, it's just a thunderstorm, but for some reason it's really getting to me. I'm really glad to have company." She said quietly, reaching out to brush his arm. He felt wonderfully solid beneath her fingers; and she was glad she'd asked him over to calm her fears.

She led Reid into her living room and sitting down on her comfortable blue cloth couch.

"It's fine… to tell you the truth, I was having a little trouble sleeping, too." He admitted, sitting down next to her.

"Really, why?" She asked, genuinely concerned.

Reid shook his head. "I'm fine. I'm here for you tonight." JJ tried to smile at how nice that sounded. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Anything… anything that isn't work, anyway." She said, involuntarily jumping at another crack of thunder.

Instinctively, Reid reached out to steady her, placing a hand on her forearm. She looked up into his warm brown eyes and saw worry there. "I'm fine." She told him dismissively.

He didn't move his hand, but spoke instead, looking down at his other hand in his lap. "It does sound like a gunshot, doesn't it?" He asked quietly.

JJ's eyes widened a little. "How did you…?"

"You really seemed upset about what happened. More upset than me… I just assumed. But I can see Albert Monroe pulling the trigger with every crack of thunder and I swear I can feel the bullet hitting my vest again and again. I know it's silly, but…"

"No, it's not silly, Spence. You got shot, you have a right to be upset." JJ reached out to grab his other hand, which was fidgeting in his lap. He blushed at the contact but did not pull back. "I'm the one who's overreacting."

"You're not overreacting. It's natural to be upset when someone you care about is hurt. I'm sure you would have the same reaction if Hotch or Morgan or anyone else had been hit." Reid told her, not meeting her gaze.

He looked a little forlorn at this admission. Suddenly, the feelings JJ had been suppressing bubbled up to the surface again. No, she didn't feel this way because she just cared about him. She liked him. A lot. Maybe even loved him. The depth of that last thought scared her a little, but she pressed on. Something inside her told her to stop speaking, but something else, something stronger, told her to keep going. "No, I wouldn't have the same reaction. I care about the rest of the team, but…"

Reid looked up, a spark of something in his eyes. Hope, maybe? "But…?" He prompted quietly.

"But I just care more about you. A lot more about you. Maybe I just didn't realize that until I thought I had lost you. I was scared that day, Spence. I was so terrified that I had lost you. I…" She looked up and nearly jumped, finding him much closer than she remembered him being a minute ago.

He opened his mouth as if to speak, but shut it again. He looked conflicted but happy. Very happy. And that was when JJ would swear that she lost her mind, at least temporarily. She leaned forward and kissed him. Tentatively at first, but when he overcame his surprise he deepened this kiss. 'Where on earth did he learn to kiss like this?' Was one of the only coherent thoughts that floated through JJ's mind. It was soft at sweet and passionate and amazing. Of course; he was good at everything else, why not kissing?

They pulled apart for a moment for air and then came back together. Their kisses became more heated and JJ placed her hands on his chest and pushed Reid back against the armrest of the couch. He groaned as she leaned on his chest, pushing up against him. She took this as a good sign and ran her tongue along his bottom lip. However, instead of opening his mouth for her, he placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back a little. "Too fast?" She asked breathlessly.

"You're leaning on my chest…" He wheezed, a pained look crossing his face.

It took only a second for JJ to make the connection and she then nearly jumped off of Reid, pulling him up with her. "I'm so sorry, I forgot! Are you okay, do you want some ice, or…"

Reid held up a hand to silence her, gingerly testing the bruises with the other. "I'm okay. They're just bruises. I don't need any ice, but maybe…" He leaned over and kissed her again, this time it was he was pushing her back against the couch. "Maybe I can, uh… lead?"

JJ smiled against his lips as they kissed again. "Only until your chest heals." She admonished and he nodded eagerly.

They remained on the couch through the night, heated kisses giving way to soft ones and eventually they simply lay there in each other's arms, resting peacefully. Neither one was the least bit frightened as the thunderstorm roared overhead.

Weather is a great metaphor for life- sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and there's nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella.

~Terri Guillemets

Author's Note: Aw, that was fun to write. I'm not sure I've ever written something quite like that. Well, this concludes story number one. Until next time, my dear readers!