Bit By Bit

Chapter 1: Quantico

"You'll be sleeping in here, Ashley." Uncle Aaron explained, dragging my suitcase behind him. I looked around the fairly large room and began to wonder how much Uncle Aaron was being paid.

There were dark wood-based furniture everywhere. There was a stereo by the bed, and the bed was covered with a deep green color. The pillows were decorated red and green, leaving a very Christmas-like aura to the room. I smiled as I saw a painting of a snowy-wooded area. That definitely left me with a Christmas feeling. I suddenly couldn't wait to decorate a tree with my uncle this year.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." I said.

"You're welcome. Bu the way, we are going to a party tonight at one my co-worker's house tonight. We need to leave her by five-thirty. Do you have enough time to be ready by then?" He mentioned kindly.

I glanced at my silver and gold Citizen watch with a blue face on it. I always had a difficult time reading analog clocks, so I decided that I'd always wear one to train my mind to learn to read it. My mother bought it for me, deciding that if I was going to wear one, I'd need a one by a good brand. It was on sale too, and jumped when she saw the color was a powder blue. I swear she almost bought it for herself as well.

My clock read that it was about...three forty-five.

I nodded and said, "I have time to unpack as well. I got a shower before the drive here, so I should be alright." He nodded and kissed my cheek. "Alright, the bathroom is down the hall, and I have one in my room, so you don't have to worry about any accidental intrusions."

I laughed and opened my first suitcase.

"Thanks, Uncle Aaron."

I heard his footsteps become softer, signaling that he had walked away. I saw that the stereo had a USB plug-in so I could plug my phone in and play my music. I smiled and pulled my phone out of my pocket and plugged it in. I slowly turned the volume up, Taylor Swift's Tied Together With A Smile filling the quiet room.

I began to sway as I put my clothing in drawers and shirts on hangers. I placed my laptop on the bed and turned it on. I left to put my toiletries in the bathroom, my sock-covered feet quietly tapping the wooden floors as I did. The bathroom was a bit small, but definitely satisfying.

When my father bought our house in Elizabeth City, North Carolina; he decided that our house had to be ginormous, each room being ten by ten feet. I guess his mindset was "go big or go home." But then again, he was born in Texas...you know what they say: "Everything is bigger in Texas." He's a pretty bug guy as well.

I walked towards my room and decided I should get dressed. I furrowed my brown and leaned my head out of the hallway. "Hey, Uncle Aaron, how should I dress?"

"Semi-formal," was his response.

I shrugged and went to my closet and pulled out a knee-high dress, that gripped my torso, but flowed nicely down. It was light orange at the top, and slowly turned into a dark orange as it flowed towards the bottom. It was really cute, and I seriously got it for $15 at the store. Simple yet effective, as Harry Styles once said.

I slipped it on and stuck some Chapstick on. I looked at myself in the mirror and touched up my hair. I felt fairly happy with my appearance and grabbed a black coat and a black beanie.

Very Halloween-ish.

I shook my head and proceeded into the hallway. I remembered my black half-calf boots were downstairs, so I walled to my uncle's open doorway. I opened my mouth to say I was ready, but closed it when I saw him struggling with his tie. He looked back at me and sighed. "Don't tease." He begged, seeming to be stressed enough as it was.

I smiled and placed my things on his bed. I walked towards him and fixed his tie. When ever my mother was out on business trips, I helped my father with his tie. He's look at me with his brown eyes and said, "This is so if you get a husband, and he can't figure out a tie, you can help him." I simply nodded, letting him use that excuse, me already knowing he can't do his tie to save his life.

He smiled at me and said, "Thank you. Ready to go?" I nodded and walked out, him following with his keys in his hand. "Yeah, my boots are downstairs."

I slipped my boots on as we arrived at the bottom of the carpeted staircase, and Uncle Aaron helped me put my coat on. I put on my beanie and we walked towards his car. I couldn't help but smile as I saw that with every exhale I made, came a cloud. This was proof that winter was coming.

And I couldn't wait!

~*~*~*~*~*~

We arrived at the large house, and I couldn't help but gaze at it. It was absolutely beautiful, decorated with lights, and seeing a few cars parked outside.

My uncle opened my door and helped my out of the car as I continued to admire the house. I blinked and rubbed my eyes. "No way...this is gorgeous!"

"Why thank you." I jumped at the new voice and spun around to see an Italian man behind Uncle Aaron and I.

"Ashley, this is David Rossi. Rossi, this is my niece, Ashley. She's living with me until she's done with college to minimize her student loan fee." David walked over and held out his hand. I placed my hand in his and shook it. Before he let go, he kissed my hand kindly and gestured towards the house.

"Shall we?" I nodded, and my uncle held out his arm, offering me a smile. I smiled, feeling more comfortable, and he escorted me inside the large house. David took my coat and hung it on the rack that held a few other coats. I heard laughing and a clink of glasses.

I saw a group of people sitting in the living room, smiled painted on their faces. There were three females, one a long-haired brunette and two blondes. There were two other men, one a tall brunette as well as a well-toned African American. It was obviously he had a charming personality, and it was easy for him to get a number or two. But, he was extremely good-looking, nonetheless.

It wasn't him that caught my eye, it was his friend, the brunette that did though. He was tall, and lean, definitely a build that I had been drawn to before. His brown eyes sparkled and crinkled as he grinned from ear to ear at something the darker male had said. I don't know what it was, but it was definite he was a good-looker as well.

"Hey, Hotch! Glad you could make it!" said the female brunette.

Uncle Aaron smiled and waved as the attention was drawn to the two of us. The male I was goggling looked over at me, and I quickly looked towards my uncle as he introduced me.

"This is Ashley, my niece, who is here for college. Ashely, this is my team."

The way my dark-haired relative said 'team' made it seem he had more emotion with then than he liked to state. I smiled as they introduced themselves.

A skinny blonde lifted her glass and said, "Jennifer Jearau, but call me JJ."

I nodded and the other blonde grinned at me. "Penelope Garcia, the tech analyst!"

The female brunette stated, "Emily Prentiss. Nice to meet you Ashley."

I smiled in reply as the dark male approached me, holding out a hand in a friendly way. "Derek Morgan." I shook his hand and smiled. "Nice to meet you." I said.

The male that was my eye-candy smiled a bit and said, "Spencer Reid."

I smiled at him, and it felt like I couldn't look away from his eyes.

I was definitely going to love it in Quantico.