Garcia sat anxiously by JJ's bedside, waiting. Morgan had said it would be a good idea if she was there when JJ woke up because out of all the unit, she was the least threatening. He had joked that it was a close tie between herself and Reid but the joke had fallen flat; neither of them could really believe that they were in a situation where they needed to consider how threatening each team member would appear to another.
She had agreed with Morgan, wanting to be there for her friend in any way she could. But now she was nervous. What if she said something wrong? What if she did something that made JJ afraid? What if she made everything worse?
She went over the advice Morgan had given her for the umpteenth time. Don't make any sudden movements. Don't try to make physical contact unless she gives you permission. Don't raise your voice. Don't stare at the scar on her face.
She picked at the cuff of her pink cardigan anxiously.
Her attention was drawn by movement on her left. Oh God, she was waking up. Okay, Pen, calm down, she thought to herself, everything will be fine. She's still JJ.
Jay felt groggy as she came to; her eyelids were heavy as she blinked, trying to clear her vision. What had they injected her with this time? But something out of the corner of her eye stopped that train of thought in its tracks. Colors, bright colors. Pink and orange. Was she hallucinating? She stared at them in fascination, drinking them in. They were so vibrant, so warm. She hadn't seen colors like that in a very, very long time.
She was jumped out of her reverie when someone near to the colors spoke.
"JJ?" it said.
Her eyes flickered upwards to where the voice had come from.
Garcia.
Jay refocused her eyes on the colors, colors she now knew belonged to Garcia's clothing, unable to look her former friend in the eye. How could she bear to be in here, next to her? Penelope Garcia, the eccentric computer genius who couldn't even look at crime scene photos, let alone bring herself to meet or talk to an Unsub, the cause of those photos. And yet, here she was, doing exactly that.
She looked away, and as she did so felt something tickle behind her ear. She cautiously reached up to touch it, to work out what it was. Her eyes widened a little as she realized that it was her hair. It was beginning to grow out, it had lost the spiky feeling that accompanied stubble. It could only be a few millimeters longer but it was long enough now that it felt soft and downy.
She ran her hand over her scalp, reveling in the foreign feeling beneath her palm. Then she ripped her hand away, her heart rate jumping up several notches. It shouldn't be long. The Lieutenant won't like it. She'll get into trouble.
She rubbed the base of her thumb, feeling the familiar ridges of the sigma scarred into her skin, trying to calm herself but it wasn't working. She tried to focus on her breathing, to breathe slow and deep, but it hurt. With each breath her ribs groaned in protest as a jab of pain flashed across them.
She forgot the pain for a moment as a woman in a white coat walked into the room, probably a doctor. She watched her warily as she smiled at her and walked around the bed.
"Hi Jen- JJ" The doctor caught herself just in time. "I'm Doctor Corali and I'm in charge of your treatment."
Jay didn't reply; better to say nothing than to say something that would get her into trouble. Not that her ribs would allow her to say anything anyway.
"Are you in any pain?" The doctor asked, examining her patient closely for any signs of discomfort.
Only the weak require more than they are given. She was not weak. She shook her head a little.
