The Perfect Fan

After everyone left and the three were settled in, Norman was laying on his couch with his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling. Paige had went back to not speaking and hadn't eaten anything no matter how much Norman and Leo had begged her. Norman was filled with guilt, knowing he had accidentally started everything. He had lead the monster straight to her. A sound came from the hallway, making him sit up. He looked behind the couch to see Paige making her way towards him. She was wearing dark blue pajama pants and a tight tank top.

" What's wrong? Are you okay?" He asked softly.

She didn't say anything as she walked around the couch. She grabbed the blanket off him and climbed onto the couch. Norman laid down, watching her quietly. Paige laid down so her head was against his chest. She tucked her right hand against his side and her left arm went around his waist. One of his arms went across her shoulders and his other arm was at her waist. She sighed deeply as she settled into him. He felt lucky that she choose to move towards him for comfort instead of Leo when Leo was closer to her.

" I don't want to be alone." She whispered.

" Let's go lay in my bed than. There will be more room and it will be more comfortable." He whispered as his fingers began to play with her hair.

" I'm sorry you got involved."

" This is why we aren't dating, isn't it?" He asked. Paige took a shaky breath and nodded against his chest. " I'm not like him."

" I know." They laid quietly together for a few more minutes before he squeezed her.

" Let's go to bed, okay?" He asked.

Paige and Norman sat up together. He pushed the blankets off them as she stood up. She waited for him to get up then she put her hand into his. He led her back down the hallway to his room. After she walked in, he closed the door behind her. Paige moved to the left side of the bed and sat down. She started to look nervous again as she looked at the door. He looked at it then back at her.

" Do you want me to lock? Will that make you feel better?" Norman asked.

" Yes." She whispered. Norman nodded and looked back to the door. He clicked the lock into place then moved through his bedroom. She laid down under the blankets while he climbed in. He laid down and moved closer to her. He brought his front into her back and put his arm around her waist. She took a hold of his hand and closed her eyes.

Norman knew the minute she finally fell asleep. All the tension slowly left her body and she sank down into the bed. Her hand loosen it's grip on his and then she sighed. He, on the other hand, couldn't fall asleep. He couldn't shake the feeling that it was all his fault. He felt awful and promised her silently that he would protect her. He was going to call his ex and briefly explain that was happening so their son would be safe. Then he wasn't going to leave Paige's side until the whole thing was over.

XXXXXX

In the morning Paige was laying on her right side, facing him. Her hands were under the pillow and he was watching her as she slept. He couldn't count the number of times he had wished he was waking up beside her. Only in his fantasies she had either been wearing one of his shirts or naked. And she would wake up, pull him to her, and sigh as he joined them together.

Norman cleared his throat and shook his head. The part of him that made him male was tight and wide awake. He covered his eyes with his hands and rubbed them with his palms. He cursed himself hard for his condition and was embarrassed by himself. He pushed his images of his fantasies out of his head. He tried hard to not think about how he woke up with her wrapped around him during the middle of the night. His cat jumped up onto the bed and headed over to Paige, meowing.

" Shut it." Paige heard Norman whispering in the morning. " You are going to wake her up." A soft meowing answered him. " No, shut it. You are not going to crawl on her." Paige rolled over unto her left side and sighed.

" It's okay." She said. " I like cats." She felt the bed move a second before he came into her back.

" Sorry. My cat wants me to feed her. It's breakfast time." He said, rubbing his face into her hair.

" Then why aren't you feeding her?" Paige asked him. Norman laughed softly as the cat started crawling up her side.

" Because I kind of didn't want to leave you yet." He admitted. " You're really comfortable to lay with, warm and soft." Paige smiled. " Why don't you take a shower and I will make the three of us breakfast."

" So you cook?" Norman chuckled.

" I can cook a little." He said.

XXXXXX

The agents and Veck showed up at Norman's right after the three finished eating and showering. It was decided that Morgan and Reid would follow Norman and Paige to the book store. Prentiss would go with Leo. The others would work the street, trying to find Mike or gather information about him. The cars were all checked then they left for the day.

The cars were parked in the back with Reid, Norman, and Paige waiting outside while Morgan checked the inside of the store. When Morgan decided the store was safe and empty, the four walked in. Paige had become quiet again no matter how much Morgan and Reid tried to talked to her. Norman knew the moment she shut down but he was determined to not let her pull away. He took a hold of her arm and gently pulled her to her office.

" You're getting quiet, don't. Don't close us out." He said. Paige sighed and nodded.

" I'm not trying too. I just feel a little overwhelmed right now." She said. Norman brought both his hands up to her arms and started to rub them.

" Well don't. You are surrounded by people that care about you. When it starts to become too much for you, lean on us, please." He said. Paige swallowed hard and took a deep breath.

" I'll try." She said.

Later that day, Norman was sitting on one of the couches, facing her, and reading a book. Morgan and Reid were ' working', re-shelving books while watching who came into the store. Paige went along with her regular daily duties only she stayed up front instead of doing any work in her office. The back door was locked but they didn't want to take any chances.

" Hey Reid, " Paige started, making Norman's head come up as he looked at her. The tall, brown haired Agent who was also a doctor started towards her from across the room. " I got this book in the other day and I kept meaning to call you about it." She pulled a large book out from behind the counter and set it on the top. " It's an old medical textbook."

" Oh really?" Reid asked with a smile.

" Yeah. I bought it because I thought of you when I saw it and I thought you would get a kick out of it." She said as he walked around the counter to look at it with her. Norman looked back down at the book he was reading.

" So what's going on with you and her?" Morgan asked softly as he took a seat across from Norman.

" We're just friends." Norman said, looking up at the agent. Morgan glanced behind him at Paige and Reid as they looked over the textbook and talked.

" You're pretty involved for someone who is just her friend." Morgan said. Norman smiled.

" You guys all seem pretty involved with her for just being FBI agents." He commented, making Morgan smile.

" We have all stayed in close contact with her since she found." Morgan explained. " We were looking for her boyfriend for a while. When she was kidnapped, it reached us because it matched the kidnapping and murder of another young girl that had been involved with Mike. We worked with her friends and family until she was found." Norman leaned forward, putting his book down.

" So what happen after she was found? Leo said she had to go into counseling for a while."

" She did. She was in the hospital for a long time. She was half dead when she was found. He had been starving her and she was dehydrated plus she had injuries that he had inflicted on her. They weren't sure she was going to live." Morgan explained.

" But she did." Norman said.

" She did but from what I understand she is a completely different person now. Leo said before she was kidnapped, she was very independent. She partied, she loved her friends, she did whatever she wanted and didn't mind being alone. She was happy and smiled all the time. Afterwards, she became terrified of everything. She refused to talk to anyone after she was found for a while. The first time she started to become aware of things, her family and Leo left her room to talk to the doctors and Paige just lost it. She started screaming and crying. She was too scared to be alone."

" Yeah, Leo said he moved her in with him and she couldn't even sleep in the bed alone. She slept in the bed with him until they moved out here." Morgan nodded.

" The first people she spoke to was me and Rossi. We got her to open up by having her draw or write her answers to our questions. I think she was scared if she talked, he would hear her somehow. My team and I just took over her care. We helped get her the best therapy we could but she still isn't the same. She talks to me and Rossi everyday. Hotchner checks in with her once every two weeks. Reid and Prentiss she talks to once a week." Morgan explained.

" You guys really think Mike is here to kill her?" Norman asked. Morgan's mouth tighten as he nodded.

" I do. So I spoke with Leo about you and I think you should know something about her. She isn't going to be able to date anyone until we find him. He pounded it into her head that if she ever dated anyone, Mike would kill him as well as her. According to Leo you have a thing for her. Is that right?" Norman looked over at Paige as she laughed at something Reid said.

" Yeah." He admitted, looking back at Morgan.

" Well she wants to be with you too but she won't let herself. She is scared. She knows you aren't like him but she can't let herself become attacted to anyone knowing he is out there. You have to be patient with her. If you can be patient it will be worth the wait. She's a good girl with a good heart." Morgan said.

" Well, my buddy wants to teach her some self defense moves. He wants to take her to this gym he works in. He's here for a job for the next few months and wants to show her how to defend herself." Norman said.

" That's actually a really good idea. I can work with him too." Morgan turned around so he could face her. " Hey BabyGirl! Did you hear that? Your friend has a friend who wants to teach you some self defense moves." Paige looked up at him and nodded.

" Yeah okay." She glanced at Reid then back at Morgan and Norman.

" You know, learning self defense moves might actually help put your mind at ease. Knowing you can fight off an attacker will give you more confidence." Reid said. Paige dropped her eyes back to the text book.

" Yeah, I heard that." She said softly.

" Don't be worried, BabyGirl." Morgan said.

" I'm not I guess I just never thought I'd ever have to learn how to fight in order to save my life." She said.