Criminal Minds One Shots

All Right

Morgan and Prentiss stopped in the doorway to Reid's hospital room, spotting McDowell curled up next to Reid on the hospital bed, both of them asleep.

Reid had been in the hospital for a week with a severe concussion, a punctured lung, and a gut wound thanks to an unsub takedown gone horribly wrong, and McDowell had hardly left his side.  Rossi had convinced her to go home and take a shower two days ago, but otherwise she was at the hospital.  She hardly slept and the only time she ate anything was if one of them brought her something and stayed there until she swallowed a few bites.

"At least she's finally getting a little sleep," Prentiss said.

"Do you still think we should wake her up and tell her?" Morgan asked.

"Probably not but you know how pissed she'll be when she wakes up later and finds out we didn't tell her what the doctor said right away," Prentiss remarked.

Morgan sighed and walked over by the bed, touching her shoulder to wake her. She didn't move, so he lightly shook her and then she bolted upright, her hands out defensively.

"Hey, take it easy McDowell.  It's just me," Morgan said gently.

She relaxed slightly, dropping her hands to her sides and glancing at Reid who was still out.

"Has the doctor said anything yet?" she asked.

"He was just coming to tell you when we got here so that's why we woke you up," Prentiss said.  She knew McDowell would have a lot easier time hearing it from them versus hearing it from the doctor, considering the worry growing in her eyes as she glanced between the two of them.

"He said that though Reid's injuries are healing, it's taking longer than expected and he's worried about an increased chance of infection cause Reid's not responding to the meds like he's supposed to," Morgan summarized what the doctor had told them.

McDowell glanced at Reid and sighed, absent-mindedly grabbing his hand and rubbing circles on the back of it with her thumb.

"Hey, you know Boy Genius here has a lot more going for him than just his brain.  He's tough, he'll be all right," Prentiss attempted to reassure her.

McDowell didn't look at either of them, she kept her eyes trained on Reid like he was about to wake up fine any second.  Silence filled the room until Prentiss spoke again.

"I'm sure the last thing you want to do right now is leave, but I should take you home for just a few hours to get some sleep in your own bed."

"I'm fine," McDowell answered stonily.

"Just a few hours, kid.  I'll keep an eye on him and call you if anything happens, I promise," Morgan said.

She stayed silent, her mouth set in a grim line.

"Come on.  You look almost as bad as Reid does, getting out of here for a little while can't hurt," Prentiss again tried to convince her.

"I swear I'll let you know if a nurse so much as comes in to check his chart," Morgan said.

McDowell sighed but reluctantly let go of Reid's hand, climbing off the bed.  She pulled her combat boots back on and grabbed her jacket from where it was abandoned on a chair, and Prentiss stepped towards the door, waiting for McDowell to leave the room first.  McDowell hesitated, glancing back at Reid.

She turned away and stepped out into the hall, Prentiss following.

"He'll be okay, Charlie.  You know that, right?" Prentiss said softly.

"Yeah, but how long until that happens?" McDowell asked dejectedly, and Prentiss stayed silent because she didn't have a response to that question.