Two Years Later

Derek and Spencer had come to the mutual decision that Benjamin would, in fact, be their last child, considering both of their ages and how complicated both of his pregnancies were. Much like Parker, Ben was proving himself to be the son of a prodigy, walking and talking very early on. He was also taking after Derek, or so Spencer claimed, being extremely active and alert since day one. He had been an extremely easy baby, only crying when he'd needed something, and would always have a smile on his face. Though Spencer knew it was gas, it still made him happy to see.

For the first year, the two of them had again taken turns going on cases, because they didn't want to miss any of his firsts, knowing he'd be their last. They talked every night the other was gone, also being sure to talk to the kids. Shortly after his second birthday, they decided to both go again, having Garcia watch the two of them. At first they questioned it, but when she'd moved to a different apartment and set up a bedroom for anytime she was babysitting, they knew she didn't mind.

After a particularly difficult case, Spencer sat on the jet, watching out the window. JJ walked by, patting his knee before taking his own seat. He smiled slightly, knowing this case had affected everyone, especially those of them who were parents. Willing himself not to get upset about it again, he pulled the blanket over himself while Derek was on the phone with Garcia. Derek joined him a minute later, sitting beside him. Spencer leaned into Derek's waiting arms, resting his head on his chest.

"Well?"

"They both went down early tonight, so she can't meet us at the airstrip, but once we get home-"

Spencer just nodded, understanding what he was thinking.

Derek wrapped his arms around Spencer's waist, kissing the top of his head.

He exhaled, reaching in his bag and taking out his photo album, looking at the pictures of Parker and Benjamin to cheer himself up. Derek smiled when he landed on a picture, taking it from him.

"The day I fell asleep on the couch and you let our son draw with a Sharpie on my face."

Spencer gave a small laugh. "He got the marker on his own, and the damage was done. Besides, he looks pretty proud of himself."

Derek leaned down, kissing Spencer's forehead. "He got the pride from his Papa."

Once they arrived home, Spencer thanked Garcia for taking the time to watch them. She insisted it was no trouble and kissed both of their cheeks before leaving. When she left, he walked to Benjamin's room, sitting beside his bed and kissing his forehead. He smiled to himself when he started stirring and looked up at him. "Daddy?" he asked tiredly.

He smirked, nodding. "Hey, buddy. Sorry we're home so late."

He sat up in bed, wrapping his arms around his father's neck. "Miss you."

He rubbed his back. "I missed you too." He kissed the top of his head. "Want to sleep with Daddy and Papa tonight?"

When the answer was a nod against his chest, he picked him up, walking to their bedroom and setting him in the middle of the bed.

Meanwhile, in Parker's room, Derek ran a hand through her hair, sighing. No matter what happened, when a case involved children, he couldn't help but imagine what if it was one of theirs. He sat there quietly watching her for a few minutes before leaning over, kissing her forehead.

"Rise and shine, Princess," he whispered.

She buried her head in her pillow, shaking her head repeatedly. "Nuh uh."

He laughed softly. "Come on, Daddy and I are home."

She seemed to think for a moment before looking up at him, holding her arms up and waiting.

He lifted her, rubbing her back. "We really missed you."

She yawned, resting her head on his shoulder. "I missed you too, Papa." She moved her head over, kissing his cheek before nuzzling into his shoulder.

He stood up, walking to their room and sitting down, setting her beside her brother. He quickly leaned over her, kissing Ben's forehead. "Love you, little man."

With a yawn, Ben curled into a ball. "Love Papa."

He smiled as Spencer reached down, pulling the blankets over them. Spencer then kissed his hand, resting it on Parker's cheek.

She reached up, resting her hand on his briefly. With a yawn and her eyes still closed, she mumbled, "I love you, Daddy."

When they were both asleep, he looked up at Derek. "I know we're not supposed to," he started, whispering, "but… I couldn't help but think about it. If it had been one of them, and-"

Derek leaned over, kissing him softly. "I do it too, Pretty Boy."

He sighed, reaching down and running a hand through Ben's hair. "We're not supposed to make it personal, Derek," he said softly.

"But everyone does. You saw it in everybody on this case. Whether it was as a parent or an aunt or uncle, they were just as scared as we were."

He sighed, nodding.

Derek put a finger to his lips, pulling the blankets down and pointing to the two of them. As always when they shared a bed, Parker wrapped her arms around Benjamin protectively, not wanting anything, not even a nightmare, to hurt her little brother.

Spencer smiled to himself, pulling the blanket back over them. "You know, last week, I caught her getting him some cookies in the middle of the night. And when I asked her why? She told me 'the monsters in Benny's nightmares hate cookies, so I'm saving him'."

Derek bit down on his lip to keep from laughing. "All I'm going to say, is I don't ever want to be the kid on the playground that she catches picking on her little brother. Something tells me we're going to be getting a call from the school that she got into a fight-"

"-and probably won," Spencer finished for him.

Once Derek fell asleep, Spencer watched as he instinctively wrapped an arm around the two of them, reaching over to rub Ben's back. He laid back, wrapping his arms around them and doing the same to Parker. After cases that really got to them, this is how they unwound, and their children didn't seem to mind it, because it gave them extra time with their parents. He knew, eventually, he'd have Benjamin asking about the big bad 'mommy' issue, and he'd also have him pulling out the 'h' word at one of them (hoping it would be Derek's turn this time around), but he couldn't bring himself to care. He had everything he'd ever wanted out of life: a beautiful daughter, an amazing son, and the best husband and best friend he could ever ask for.

Author's Note: Sorry for some of the ending getting cut off when I posted it - been having that problem with the Doc Manager lately on several stories. Finally realized the error and fixed it! I'm glad so many people enjoyed this series. Maybe some oneshots will follow if the inspiration strikes.