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“Mrs. Garcia.” Dr. West greets solemnly as he enters the room, a vast difference from when she’d first started her visit , and Penelope is pulled from the email she’s been reading as he does. She plasters a smile on her lips as she fights the urge to correct him for the third time this visit, ( it’s Mrs. Alvez thank you very much ) especially with the bad news voice he’s using. She fidgets with her wedding ring in her lap, it’s not that she hates the doctor’s office, because she doesn’t. Dr. West has always been very nice to her. It's not knowing what’s wrong that she hates. When she’d started gaining weight, she’d thought it had been because she and Luke had been eating out more once she’d gotten back to the BAU. Then she was getting sick all throughout the day and, sure, it might’ve been the crime scene photos but for two full months? Menopause was a fickle bitch. There had to be a way to get it under control.
“Now, most of your tests came back fine but your HCG levels were high so we went ahead and ran a pregnancy test and it looks like it came back positive. I’m not sure how far along you are, but we can do a sonogram today to see where you’re at and talk about how you want to move forward.”
“Wait.” She says, holding up a finger as if it’ll rewind what he’d just said before taking a deep breath. “Uh - you - you ran a pregnancy test. And it came back - positive? Like - like I’m pregnant? That’s why - it’s not - it’s not menopause. It’s a baby. It’s not menopause. It’s a baby ?” Dr. West doesn’t move, waiting patiently for her spiral to end, something she’s sure he’s done millions of times before. “How?”
“Well, as women get older they’re producing more eggs than before. So, are you sexually active?”
“Yes.”
“Are you on birth control?”
“Yes.”
“Do you use protection also?”
“Uh - I - not every single time. We’ve - we’ve been together for, like, three years and married for one. So, there have been .. times when we - oh .”
“It’s ok. Birth control isn’t 100% effective even with 100% prophylactic use. So, we can do the sonogram and see how far along you are and discuss your options. How to move forward.” For the first time in a long time Penelope Garcia is speechless. She must look silly, her mouth open and her eyes wide as the thought settles heavy in her stomach. She can be a mother, right? She could be a great mother. She hasn’t thought about it actually happening in so long that she’d maybe just assumed that it wasn’t ever going to happen. She and Luke hadn’t even talked about it but - oh, she wishes JJ was here. No, she wishes Luke was here - he’s the one she needs right now. More than ever. There are tears in her eyes when she finally looks back at her doctor, and her voice catches as she wipes her nose with the back of her hand.
“The sonogram, please.”
—
Two hours later, she walks quickly through the bullpen and doesn’t stop until she reaches JJ’s office. The pep talk she’d given herself earlier firmly worn off as she was given all of the medicine she’d have to take and the precautions because of her age and weight. Penelope doesn’t wait for her unit chief to look up and tell her to close the door, she just does it. “Hey, Pen. How’d it go? Did the doctor give you any tips or anything?”
“I’m pregnant.” She says breathlessly and JJ’s eyes widen. She watches her take a breath before she drops her pen and closes the case file she’s been working on slowly.
“Ok. What?”
“With twins.”
“Holy shit!” JJ shrieks, before clamping a hand over her mouth. She moves quickly from the view of the window, and the looks she knows are being sent from the bullpen. “Ok, are you happy? Is this … you’re going to be an amazing mom, Pen.” JJ knows there are tears in her eyes, happiness bursting in her chest for her oldest friend. “Does Luke know?”
“No. I haven’t. I’m - ” Scared. More than scared.
“He loves you, Pen.” JJ says quickly, pulling her into a hug. “He’s loved you longer than you guys have even been together. Whatever you think he’s gonna say, you guys can get through it and if not. You can move in with me and Will and the boys. They’ll love their fairy godmother's babies as much as I will.” Penelope sniffles into her shoulder and JJ holds her tighter.
“I know he does. I know he’s going to be … the best dad. I just - I don’t want to let them down if I’m not …”
“Hey. You’re so important to me, Pen. You’re so important to so many people. Your children? They’re going to be beyond blessed to have you as a mom and being a parent is not about being perfect or the best. It’s doing whatever it takes to make sure they know you love them. The rest follows.”
“That … thank you, Jayje.” Penelope says and pulls away smiling, despite the unshed tears shining in her eyes. “I’m - really excited, JJ.”
“You should be. This is amazing! When you can finally tell everyone we will have a party in the conference room. BAU style.” She jokes. “How far along are you anyway?”
“9 weeks.”
“Oh good. It’s - “ Whatever JJ is going to say it’s lost to the sounds of both of their phones going off. “Uh-oh.” JJ pulls her phone out of her back pocket as Penny does and together they pull up the details of the case they both know they’re being assigned. “Well, now you have a few days to figure out how to tell Luke. Do you want me to call in Monty to cover?”
“No. No, I’ll be fine.”
“Seriously, Pen, if you need time off, you have it. Just let me know.”
“You’re an angel of a boss lady, JJ, but let’s get through this case first and let me tell my main man and we’ll figure it out.”
—
The case is gruesome & she misses Luke more than she ever has for the five days that the team is gone but it gives her time. To figure out how she feels. To order her surprise. To anxiously deep clean their apartment. It’s the hardest secret she’s ever had to keep. She rushes home once she knows they’re on the jet back from California, lighting more candles than absolutely necessary and putting on the ‘Big Sister’ bandana she’d bought for Roxy. She changes into the dress she’d picked out for the occasion, a black dress with red hearts that is just short enough to only be worn at home. and she waits. She resists the urge to check his location when JJ tells her that the team has landed and she waits. She waits for what feels like a long stretch of eternity until she hears his key in the door. Her heart starts racing and she straightens the takeout containers as if it’ll calm her nerves, it doesn’t. Until she sees him & every doubt she’s had over the last five days flees from her mind. She runs forward before he can even drop his bag and throws her arms around him, raining kisses over his cheeks before she finally presses a kiss to his lips. “I missed you. I missed you so much.” She says, tears in her eyes.
“I missed you too, baby, but I talked to you every day, like always. Hey, what’s wrong?” He asks, taking her face in his hands and wiping her cheeks with his thumbs as he smiles down at her.
“Nothing’s wrong. Everything’s . . . well, depending on how the next few minutes go , everything’s kind of wonderful. I just - I need you to read Roxy’s new bandana.” She pulls out of his arms reluctantly, wiping her cheeks as she does. There’s a moment of confusion on Luke’s face before he kneels down to Roxy, fingering the edges of the bandana as he reads.
“Big sister?”
“Mhm.”
“I thought we talked about not getting a puppy until we get a house.”
“Well, we’re gonna need a house soon anyway but I didn’t get a puppy.”
“Okay. . .”
“But she is going to be a big sister in, like … 7 months.” She says, fists clenched at her sides and watches as Luke’s face transforms from confusion to . . . happiness. His bright smile as he realizes what she’s saying is everything, absolutely everything and before she knows it he’s sweeping her up in his arms and spinning her around their living room, laughter falling from both of their lips as she clings to him tightly. “Are you happy?” She asks once he’s stopped, putting her back down.
“Are you kidding? You’ve just made me the happiest man in the world.” He says, kissing her hard before she puts her hands on his chest.
“Okay, good because well, there’s another surprise.”
“What else could there possibly be?”
“They’re twins. We’re having twins.” He sits down … They are going to need a house.