#Hotchniss fanfiction

[sequinsmile-x]

The Way to the Words

Emily struggles to tell Aaron she loves him. At least, she struggles to tell him in English.

AKA - 5 times Emily tells Aaron she loves him in another language, and 1 time she says it in English.

-x-

Hi besties,

This is an idea I've been playing around with for a while, but was spurred on to write it after I got an anon about Emily and all of the languages she speaks.

This is soft (because we all deserve softness right now) and hopefully funny in parts! These idiots love each other a whole lot.

Also, just a note that I don't speak any of the other languages in this. Where possible, I have run the line past someone I know who speaks it, or I have run it back and forth through several online translators to make sure it's as correct as I can make it, and read articles on word positioning/how it should be written.

(Second also: I know Arabic is meant to go from right to left, but Tumblr won't let me format it like that, but it is correct on Ao3)

As always, let me know what you think <3

-x-

Warnings: the tiniest, smallest, bit of spice possible. Blink and you miss it kind of stuff. (Rated T)

Words: 6.5k

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

One

Technically, she’s the one to say it first. It’s something she tells him years down the line when they talk about the early days of them, her smile soft and sleepy as their baby rests on her chest as she insists that she’d whispered those three little words weeks before he had. 

She just so happened to say them in a language he didn’t understand. 

The first time, she doesn’t plan it. 

They walk back to her apartment after their first date, their hands tangled together as they swing them back and forth ever so slightly. She was anxious. Shy in a way she hadn’t been in years, and she knows it’s everything to do with him and how he makes her feel. It’s something about his smile and the way he looked at her that would make her feel giddy. It would feel ridiculous if it was anyone else. If it wasn’t Aaron, the man she’d been in love with for longer than she could admit even to herself, she’d tell herself to get it together, would remind herself she wasn’t a lovesick teenager but a grown woman. 

With him, it didn’t seem to matter. She didn’t care that she’d spent hours picking something to wear, or that she’d curled her hair twice. She wanted to make the effort, to take her time for what she knew would be her first last date. A small part of her had worried at first that things would be awkward, but it had been like their dinners usually were, only with hand holding across the table and the occasional kiss exchanged between anecdotes. She wanted to know everything about him, everything big and small, and she wanted him to know everything about her too. Wanted him to help her break through the walls she didn’t know how to tear down herself, wanted to hand him the tools she’d never shared with anyone else. 

Her shoulder knocks against his as she digs her keys out of her bag, and he smiles at her, his hand slipping to her hip as she unlocks the door. She looks up at him, sees the uncertainty in his eyes, and leans up to kiss him, her lips catching the corner of his. 

“Do you want to come in?” She asks, smiling when his eyes go a little wide, his own anxiety about what to do and how to act obvious. He’d told her it had been a long time since he’d been out on a date, that he was unsure how to act and what to do, and she’d kissed him, barely pulling back to tell him that she was out of practice too and that she didn’t expect any more than just him. He had arrived to pick her up with flowers nonetheless, a bunch of sunflowers squished between them when she kissed him as he explained he’d picked flowers that wouldn’t poison Sergio. She places her hand over his on her hip and squeezes, “For a drink,” she smiles and winks at him, “And maybe some more kissing.” 

He laughs and nods, “Of course, I’ll come in Em.” 

She leads him inside and locks the door behind them, secretly hoping she won’t unlock it again tonight, that he’ll stay in whatever capacity he’s comfortable with and that she’ll wake up next to him in the morning. 

“Wine?” She asks, as she walks towards her kitchen, “Or I have a very nice scotch that Dave bought me along with a cast iron skillet as a moving in present.” 

Aaron had been her first visitor to her apartment upon her return from Paris, and Dave had been her second. It wasn’t the best place she’d ever lived, but also not the worst. It was good enough for what she needed for now, and the best she could do for a person whose credit score had reset when she’d ‘died,’ and who had only just gained access back to her trust fund. For a few months, whilst legalities were unravelled and everything that had been put in place in the wake of her death was reversed, she’d lived like most people did - on her salary. 

Aaron chuckles as he follows closely behind her, his hands in his pockets as he looks her up and down and makes no secret of it, “He got me the same thing when I moved out of the house and into my apartment,” he says, leaning his hip against the kitchen island, “He said no home is complete without one.” 

“He said the same to me,” She laughs, “I wonder if he just has a closet full of the things for when someone he knows moves.” She lifts up the bottle of scotch, “So scotch?” 

“Yes please.” 

She pours them both a generous measure and hands him one of the glasses, her fingers skipping across his as he takes it from her, “Let’s go sit down.” 

She sinks against him on the couch, giving him no chance to overthink their closeness or what she’d want. She pulls a nearby throw over their laps and rests her head on his shoulder, the mix of the smell of him and the scotch enough to relax her, a contented sigh escaping her before she could even try to contain it. He wraps his arm around her, his hand against the bare skin of her arm so he can trace patterns against her, chasing a shiver he causes with the callouses on his fingertips. 

“You okay?” He asks, and she hums as she nods, tilting her head upwards so she can kiss him, the hand not wrapped around her glass on his cheek so she can hold him in place. 

“I’m fine. More than fine,” she says, kissing him again, “Thank you for a lovely date.” 

He smiles and holds her closer, “You’re welcome,” he clears his throat, the anxiety he’d felt earlier making a speedy return, “We should do it again soon. If you want.” 

“Of course I want to,” she replies, as if it’s obvious - because to her it is - but her smile slips when she sees relief in his eyes and she frowns as she takes his glass of scotch from him and places in on the coffee table with hers, “Aaron, why wouldn’t I want to go on another date with you?” 

He shrugs as she turns to look at him properly, her knees pressing against his thigh as she uses the hand on his cheek to make him look at her. He sighs and his hand falls to her knee, his thumb catching the hem of her dress as he runs it back and forth. 

“I don’t know,” he breathes out, “I guess I’m waiting for you to realise you could do better than me.”

That’s what does it in the end, what makes the admission she’d been holding back all night escape without warning. Her concern that it’s too soon kicks in too late to say nothing, so she falls back on an old trick from when she was young and wanted to curse at her parents without them knowing. 

She speaks in another language. 

“Я люблю тебя.” 

He furrows his brows together and fights a smile. “Sorry, sweetheart,” he says, the use of the nickname making her breath catch in her throat, “I don’t speak…I want to say Russian?” 

She chokes on a laugh and nods, “Yeah, that…was Russian,” she presses her lips together, “Sorry, I said ‘nothing’s better than you.’”

If he knows she’s lying, he doesn’t say anything. He nods as he accepts her answer and he leans in to kiss her, his lips stamped against hers before he pulls back. 

“Nothing is better than you either.” 

He stays the night, and when she wakes up with his arms wrapped around her she wishes she’d been brave enough to say it in a way he understood.

___

Two

She grumbles as she sinks onto the couch, curling in on herself as a cramp rolls through her belly. She’s about to talk herself into getting up to take painkillers, her medicine cabinet never having felt further away, when there’s a knock on the door followed by the sound of the key in the lock. 

“Sweetheart?” 

She groans as she sits up, looking at her boyfriend over the back of her couch, “What are you doing here?” 

“It’s nice to see you too,” he quips as he steps into her apartment, holding up a bag from CVS, “I brought you some supplies. I can leave afterwards if you want.” 

She hums and watches as he locks the front door behind him, “Where’s Jack?” 

“By the time I left the office he’d already eaten with Jess, and when I told him you weren’t feeling very well he told me to come look after you.” 

She smiles as he sits next to her, “I really am fine,” she says, taking the bag as he hands it to her, her eyes going wide when she sees the bag full of her favourite candy, painkillers and a couple of boxes of tampons. She looks up at him, embarrassed in a way she doesn’t entirely understand, “How did you know? I only told you that my stomach hurt.” 

He smiles at her, his dimples carved out deep in his cheeks, “I lived with Haley most of my adult life. And I am a grown-up. I know what a period is, Em.” 

It makes her ache. Makes her feel stupid for even trying to hide this from him in the first place, her jaw tight and her temper wearing thin when she’d almost yelled at him when he asked if she was okay for the dozenth time that day. She’d left the office the moment she could and told him she’d call him later, forcing a smile as familiar cramps she’d felt for most of her life rolled through her. If she was honest with herself, she’d wanted to bask in his comfort. To lean against him as he laid his giant, warm, hand on her stomach like he was her own personal heating pad, but she didn’t how to ask. She should have known that she didn’t need to ask. He’d always been better at figuring out what she needed before she did anyway. 

She nods and presses her lips together, “You even got the right brand.” 

He shrugs, “I only bought the ones you have in your bathroom.” 

She laughs, “I once asked a boyfriend to buy me tampons and he looked at me like I’d asked him to murder someone for me.” 

“Well, it sounds like he didn’t deserve you.” 

She looks up at him, her lips pressed tightly together, and she reaches out for his hand, “Thanks honey, this is…really sweet.” 

“You don’t have to thank me,” he says and he leans in to kiss her cheek but she turns her head to capture his lips instead. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay,” he kisses her again, lingering a little longer this time, and she sighs into it, “I can go home if you’d rather be alone.” 

She’s shaking her head before she can even really think about it, “No,” she replies, “I want you to stay.” 

He kisses her before he pulls back, “I’ll make us some hot chocolate, and bring you some water so you can take your painkillers. And then we’ll watch whatever sci-fi nonsense you want to watch.” 

She scoffs in fake annoyance, “It’s not nonsense,” she grumbles, narrowring her eyes at him playfully, “And I’ll have you know I was thinking of watching Die Hard.” 

He furrows his brow as he turns to look at her, “That’s a Christmas movie.” 

She groans and flops back onto the couch, tearing a pack of the candy he’d brought her open, “Don’t tell me I’m dating a guy who thinks Die Hard is a Christmas movie.” 

He raises his eyebrow at her from her kitchen counter, the tin of hot chocolate mix in his hands, “It’s set at Christmas.” 

“That doesn’t make it a Christmas movie, honey. There’s no small town girl visiting home from the big city for the holidays,” she says, unable to fight her smile when he smiles widely at her, the warmth of it settling over her like a comforting blanket from across the room, “And there’s no Santa Claus, and Kate Winslet doesn’t swap houses with Cameron Diaz,” she pops some candy into her mouth, “It’s not a Christmas movie.” 

“You’ve given this some thought,” he replies, smiling fondly at her, his eyes sparkling like she’d hung the stars themselves, “I guess we can watch it. Even if it is set at Christmas.” 

She throws a piece of candy at him, her fake irritation dying when he picks it up from the counter and eats it, the way he waggles his eyebrows drawing a laugh out of her. 

She rests her head in his lap when he joins her on the couch, her back to him as they watch the movie and he switches between playing with her hair and placing his hand on her belly unprompted, once again anticipating her needs. It was strange feeling loved like this, because she knew that’s what this was even if they hadn’t admitted it to each other yet. She’d never been cared for and enjoyed it or felt as if the other person wasn’t doing it out of obligation. 

She finds herself stuck again between wanting to say it and not being able to push past her fear. Instead, she reaches for his hand and links their fingers together, dragging them to her lips so she can kiss his knuckles as she mumbles against them, whispering so he doesn’t hear the Arabic she presses against his skin.

"أحبك"

“What did you say, sweetheart?” 

She shakes her head and turns back to look at him, “Nothing. Just…thank you for looking after me.” 

He stops himself from repeating what he’d said earlier and he nods, pushing her hair from her face, “Anytime.” 

___

Three

She’s bored of feeling like an exhibit at the zoo. 

Ever since she and Aaron had told the team about their relationship they’d been watching them closely, their attempts at hiding their fascination with their relationship almost non-existent. At work, it was bad enough, but here, in Dave’s house, as they had dinner together, it annoyed her. Every time they touched each other, or showed each other the tiniest bit of affection, the team would smile and nudge each other. 

She eventually excuses herself from the living room to the kitchen to get another glass of wine, needing a moment without being stared at so she doesn’t snap at some of the people she loves most in the world. 

She sighs and takes a large gulp of wine, closing her eyes as she swallows it, desperately trying to calm herself down, to soothe her fraying nerves. 

“Are you okay sweetheart?” 

She turns and smiles when she hears Aaron’s voice and she blows out a breath, “I just needed a minute.” 

He nods and points over his shoulder back towards the living room, “Do you want me to go?”

She loves him for it. Loves how well he knows her and how well he loves her, and she shakes her head and offers him a hand, “Never.” 

He walks over and wraps his arms around her, “They mean well. They just have to get used to it.”

She hums and loops her arms around his neck, “I know. I just wish they’d get used to it faster,” she huffs, “I hate feeling like a zoo animal.” 

“I know,” he says, running his hand up and down her back, “Me too.” He says, and she leans in to kiss him, pulling him closer as she sighs into it. When she pulls back, he stamps another kiss against her lips, “That’s a nice wine.” 

She chuckles, running her fingers through the short hair at the base of his head, “Barolo del Comune di La Morra,” she says, nodding towards the bottle on the kitchen island, “It’s Italian. Very nice wine. Not that you’d expect anything less from Dave.” 

“Say that again,” he says, his smile wide and bright, his eyes sparkling with as close to mischief as they ever did, “The name of the wine.” 

She presses her lips together and leans in to kiss him again, punctuating each word with a kiss, “Barolo…del…Comune…di…La…Morra.”

He barely hides a moan as she pulls back, just about able to remember where they were as he squeezes her hips, “You’re so beautiful,” he says, “Say something else.” 

She giggles, something only he was able to draw out of her, “In Italian?” She asks, and he nods. It feels like an invitation to carry on doing what she’d unintentionally started, and she leans in to kiss him, only pulling back far enough to speak, “Penso che tu sia l'amore della mia vita.” 

He smiles, even though he doesn’t understand, “What does that mean?” 

“I love the wine,” she says, hating that she can’t tell him the truth, that she can’t push past the fear she isn’t entirely sure she understands, “And you’re handsome.” 

He leans in to kiss her again, but they are stopped by someone clearing their throat in the doorway. Emily feels her cheeks go warm when she looks up to see Dave standing there, the look on his face letting her know just how much he’d heard. 

“Well, this is adorable.” 

She feels Aaron’s grip on her tighten and she lets her arms slip down from around his neck and she squeezes his hand. 

“Why don’t you go back through, honey?” She suggests, squeezing his hand again, “I’ll be there in a minute.” He almost questions it, she can see the argument he has with himself over it, but he nods instead, leaning in to kiss her cheek before he steps away, his hands in his pockets and his smile tight as he walks past Dave. She waits until he is out of earshot and she crosses her arms over her chest, “How much of that did you hear?” 

“Enough to know you’re playing a dangerous game,” Dave replies as he walks closer to her, “So…you love him?” 

“I…” she trails off, the words caught in her chest and she groans, tightening her arms over her chest. 

“Relax, bella. Even Reid only has to look at you to know you two love each other,” he says, smirking when she glares at him, “So why didn’t you tell him the truth? Worried he doesn’t feel the same way? Because I think it would be less of a waste of time to wonder if the Pope is Catholic.” 

She sighs and shakes her head, “No, it’s not that. I know he feels the same way. It’s just…” She blows out a shaky breath and laughs at herself, “I’ve never felt like this before. I’ve never loved someone this much. It’s like my happiness depends on his, and it’s fucking terrifying.” 

He stares at her for a moment, his smirk disappearing as he nods in understanding, “I know it is,” he replies, patting her shoulder, “But you’ll get there. Take it from an old man who’s been around the block a few times. What you two have is rare,” he smiles at her, “I’m actually annoyed at myself for not seeing it sooner.” 

She smiles, “What, me and Aaron?” 

He nods, “I should have put money on you two years ago. You’ll get there, Emily. And he won’t mind if it takes a while. Because he loves you too.” 

She presses her lips together and nods, because she knows he’s right, “Thanks.” 

“No need to thank me,” he says, winking at her, “Just make sure Aaron makes me best man when you get married.” 

She rolls her eyes and fights off the desire to tell him to shut up, or deny that it was where this was all going, “I think that’s his choice, don’t you?” 

“Okay,” he says, shrugging at her, “Godfather of your firstborn then.” 

She scoffs, the sound turning into a laugh when it’s halfway out, and she can’t stop herself this time, “Oh shut up, Dave.” 

The thought of it makes her giddy, makes her stomach flip in a pleasant way, and she can’t shift her smile for the rest of the evening. 

___

Four 

Emily sighs contentedly as she flips the page of her book, snuggling further into the comfort of Aaron’s bed, the scent of him lingering on the sheets. 

The bedside table on her side of his bed was starting to look like hers. It’s where she kept the book she was reading and her favourite hand cream and other trinkets that had somehow ended up at his place. A necklace she’d taken off after work one day and left there. Her father’s watch. It was already starting to feel like home. But she had a feeling that had more to do with the little boy asleep down the hall and the man whose bed she was in, not the apartment itself. 

She was starting to spend more of her nights here than she wasn’t. She’d go home to feed Sergio, to scratch his head and sit with him for a while, and then she’d go to Aaron’s, let herself in with the key he’d given her weeks ago, and spend the night. He kept telling her to bring Sergio over with her, that he’d happily get a litter tray, food and whatever he needed, and it made her love him more. She was slightly resistant, not only because Sergio didn’t seem to like him that much, but because it felt like a huge step forward. An admittance that she couldn’t bring herself to say yet no matter how much she wanted to. 

The bedroom door opens and she looks up, her smile wide as she puts her book down, “Is Jack okay?” 

Aaron nods as he climbs into bed next to her, “He’s asleep,” he says, smiling as he pulls the covers over his lap and tugs her close, “He said he wants you to do bedtime next time.” 

She bites her lower lip, desperately trying to hold in a smile, her love for the two of them threatening to burst out of her, “Really?” 

“Really,” he says, kissing her forehead, “I’m not the only Hotchner in love with you.” She freezes, her shoulders tight as the admission washes over her, a choking sound of sorts escaping her. It seems to alert Aaron to what he’d said, and his eyes go wide. He swallows thickly and tucks some of her hair behind her ear, “I…mean it Em. I might not have meant to blurt it out that way,” he says, smiling when she does too, “But I mean it. I love you.” 

Her silence is loud, echoing around them before it weighs heavily on them, settling on their shoulders as she tries and fails to say anything, “I…” 

She feels like a failure. Like a coward, because what was so wrong with her that she couldn’t tell the man she was in love with that she loved him. She curses every bad relationship she’d ever had, she curses her parents, and everyone who ever made it hard for her to accept love and affection, because Aaron deserved someone who could give that to him without thought. 

He deserved so much more than she could give him right now, and it made her ache. 

“Em,” he says, his smile too kind, “I’m not expecting you to say anything back,” he adds, pulling her closer, “I didn’t even mean to say it myself yet,” he stamps his lips against hers, “It’s okay.” It doesn’t feel okay. It feels ridiculous and she surges forward, her hands on his cheeks as she holds him in place, deepening the kiss so she can show him how she feels even if she can’t say it yet. She shifts so she’s in his lap, rolling her hips against his as she wraps her arms around his neck. He tenses, his hands firm on her hip as he tries to pull back “Sweetheart-”

She can see the doubt in his eyes, not in her, but in what she was trying to do, “Aaron,” she kisses him again, knocking her nose against his as she rests their foreheads together, “Please.” 

He looks at her carefully, tries to see the tiniest piece of uncertainty in her eyes, and he nods when he doesn’t find it, leaning forward to rest his forehead against hers before he kisses her again. They undress each other slowly, and he rolls them so she’s under him, trapped between the warmth of his body and the sheets beneath her. It’s soft. Tender in a way she hadn’t known existed before him, something that she thinks would make her feel exposed with anyone else, and she links her fingers through his afterwards, lifting their hand to her lips to kiss his knuckles as she smiles at him, hoping he knows what she can’t put into words he understands yet. 

He falls asleep before her. It’s rare. Usually, she fell asleep first and woke up last, comforted by his arms and the safety that seemed to come with them. She lays there in the dark next to him, his arm heavy and warm over her waist, his breath even as it skips across the back of her neck, and she berates herself for not being able to give him what he needed, what she so desperately wanted to give him. 

Eventually, she turns in his arms, looks at him in the dark, his features just about visible now her eyes had adjusted to the lack of light. He looked younger like this, boyish almost, and it makes her love him more. She reaches out and strokes his cheek, smiling when he twitches but doesn’t wake up, his head moving in the direction of her hand, chasing her and her presence even in sleep. 

“Aaron,” she whispers, waiting to see if he’s awake, if his breathing changes, and when it doesn't she sighs, “Te quiero. Siento no poder decirlo todavía. Pero te quiero.”

She leans in to kiss his cheek and lingers there for a moment before she lays back against his chest, snuggles into him as deeply as she can and she closes her eyes, hoping she’ll fall asleep. 

When she wakes up in the morning, he’s already awake and smiling at her, and it somehow makes her feel worse.

___

Five 

“I can’t do it.” 

Aaron tries to hide his smile, she’ll give him that. He tries to swallow it down but fails as he turns to look at her and raises his eyebrow at her. She glares at him from her side of the couch and kisses the top of Sergio’s head twice in quick succession, scratching under his chin as she does so. 

“I’ve seen you stare a serial killer in the eyes and not blink,” he clears his throat to hide a laugh, “But you can’t give your cat medication?” 

She huffs out a breath and holds Sergio closer as she pouts in a way she’d deny if Aaron brought it up. Sergio had an ear infection, and whilst he’d been strangely okay with her cleaning his ears, he was resistant to medication. He’d eaten around it when she’d tried to hide it in his food, had ignored treats she’d tried to stuff it inside. He was refusing to take it, and that meant she had to make him take it. 

“I don’t want him to hate me,” she says, tearing her gaze away from Sergio to look up at Aaron, “Or for him to be afraid of me.” 

She watches as Aaron nods, once again stifling a smile, and she wonders if he’s going to tell her she’s as being as ridiculous as she feels. Instead, he sighs and offers his hands out, “I’ll do it.” 

She tilts her head at him in confusion, “What?” 

“He already hates me,” Aaron says, smiling when she rolls her eyes. 

“He doesn’t hate you-”

“He does, sweetheart,” he replies, his smile getting wider, “But if I do it, it’s not like he can hate me anymore, and his love for you will remain intact.” 

She knows it’s irrational, but she almost wants to be mad at him for the way he makes her love him even more. He was willing to do this for her, willing to accept her, admittedly silly, concerns about her cat hating her, and do what she couldn’t bring herself to do. For a moment, she pictures him holding a baby that was half her and half him whilst they took them to get their shots so she didn’t have to, and then passing the baby back over as soon as the deed was done so she could be their source of comfort. She has to shake her head to get rid of the image, to remember the soft weight in her arms was Sergio and not a small baby, and she sighs and nods as she passes him over. Sergio meows in displeasure, wiggling as he proves Aaron’s point as he tries to get a hold of him. 

“Do you have the medication?” Aaron asks, raising his eyebrow at her as she actively ignores his poorly hidden smirk as Sergio pushes his paw against Aaron’s face. She nods and hands him one of the pills and he takes it from her. He’s gentle as he grasps Sergio’s head and tilts it backwards until his nose is pointing upwards and his jaw opens slightly. Aaron drops the pill into his mouth and then lowers his head back down, holding his mouth closed until he visibly swallows, “There we go,” Aaron says, smiling at her as he lets go of Sergio, who immediately walks over to Emily’s side of the couch and climbs in her lap, meowing all the way, “And look at that, he still loves you.” 

She smiles at him, ignoring the warmth in her cheeks, and she snuggles Sergio against her chest, making sure she’s giving him plenty of head scratches as she does so, “Tell me all about it, baby. What did the mean man do to you?” 

Aaron chuckles and leans in to kiss her temple, “If he didn’t hate me already, he will by the time his course of antibiotics is done with.” 

She hums and turns her head, capturing his lips with hers, “Thank you. I know it’s silly-”

“You’ve never been silly a day in your life,” he says, kissing her again, “Do you want a drink?” 

“Yes please, honey,” She nods and presses her lips together, the words getting the closest to escaping as they ever had, the way he looked after her in ways she never could have pictured almost tipping her over the edge, whatever had been holding her back getting weaker by the day, “There’s some red wine on the counter.”

“Coming right up,” he says, winking at her before he stands. It makes Sergio hiss at him, and Aaron throws her a look that could only say I told you so as he walks away. 

“You have to be nice to Aaron, you know,” she says, talking to Sergio as she scratches between his ears, “He’s not going anywhere,” she sighs, “Je l’aime aussi. Je ne peux juste pas le dire.” 

“Did you say something, sweetheart?” Aaron asks as he walks back into the room. She shakes her head when she looks up at him, smiling when she sees the two glasses and the bottle of wine in his hands, and the pack of her favourite candy dangling off his finger. 

She wanted to say it to him, but after everything, after not being able to say it back when he’d said it to her a couple of weeks ago, she wanted it to mean something. 

“No,” she replies as he sits next to her, “I was just talking to Sergio.” 

He nods in understanding and puts the wine and her candy down on the coffee table, “Speaking of Sergio,” he says, opening up his palm to reveal a treat in his hand, “I thought he deserved this for being so brave.” He offers his hand out to Sergio who looks at him suspiciously for a few moments before he happily eats the treat out of his hand and starts purring. Aaron laughs and takes the opportunity to scratch between Sergio’s ears, which the cat leans into, “Maybe he’ll love me after all.” 

“Yeah,” she replies, biting the inside of her cheek to contain her smile, “He’d be a fool not to.” 

___

+  One 

“Anyone want to go for a drink?” 

Emily drops her pen down on her desk and turns to face the others, “I’m up for it.” 

“Of course you are, princess,” Derek says, smirking when she glares at him, “Do you think you could convince Hotch?” 

She smiles, “I could convince him of anything.” 

Derek groans, “God, I don’t want to know that.” 

She laughs as she stands up and she winks at him, “You asked. You okay to gather everyone else?” 

He nods and she walks up to Aaron’s office. She takes a moment to watch him through the window. He has his head down, his focus on the paperwork in front of him, and he looks every part of the stern, focused man she’d first met. He looks up at her, his eyes meeting hers, and then he smiles at her, a flash of her Aaron peeking out from beneath Hotch in the very room she’d met him in. He gives her a small nod and she walks in, making sure she closes the door behind her.

“Everything okay, sweetheart?” 

She nods and walks over to his desk, keeping a respectable distance because she knows the others will be watching, “I’m okay. Derek is organising everyone to go out for drinks. I’ve been sent to rally you.” 

He chuckles, “They already know I can’t say no to you.” 

“Honey, we all know that,” she replies, “So is that a yes?” 

Aaron smiles, “I’d love to, but I have budgets to do, unfortunately, they’re important,” he says, his smile getting wider when she looks disappointed, “I could meet you later though.” 

“Yeah?” She asks, sinking her teeth into her lower lip, and he nods, “Okay, so we’ll meet you there?” 

“I’ll meet you there,” he smiles, her smile, and winks at her, “See you later.”

She smiles and turns to the door, reaching out for the handle as she replies, “See you later. Love you.” 

It takes her a moment to realise what she’s said, and she freezes, her breath caught in her chest as the words float in the air around them, as light as a feather in comparison to the heavy weight it had been on her shoulders for weeks now. She almost laughs, the absurdity at the easy, simple way she said it after she’d overthought it for so long not lost on her. The admission as simple as it was beautiful, as if they’d exchanged it as often as they had kissed, as if it wasn’t the first time she’d said it. Like it was something she’d said countless times before. She smiles to herself as she turns around because, in some ways, she has said it before. 

This was just the first time he’d understood her. 

She smiles nervously at him when their eyes meet, “Sorry,” she says, clearing her throat, “That…that wasn’t how I intended on saying that for the first time.”

He stares at her for a moment like she’s a skittish animal, like she might bolt if he made even the slightest of movements. He’d been careful to not tell her again since that first time a couple of weeks ago, like he was scared he’d push her away. He’d get part way through and then stop himself, smiling at her in a way that could only mean you know how I feel. It had hurt more than she thought it would, something that made her feel hypocritical because she hadn’t said it at all. 

She’s mad at herself for letting it slip like this because she’d wanted it to be special. But then he smiles at her in a room he’d once scowled at her in on that first day they’d met, and she doesn’t think it could have been any more perfect if she’d planned it. It was like their love story had permeated the walls. Like it was carved into them in a way someone would find in years to come when they were gone. When they’d moved on to somewhere new, their future still laid out in front of them as they stood by each other’s side. 

“No, don’t apologise. Never apologise for this,” he says, finally snapping into action, his pen hitting his desk with a thunk as he stands up. For a moment, she thinks he’s going to pull her into a hug or kiss, but then he remembers where they are, his eyes darting to the window of his office and the team all in the bullpen. He stops right in front of her and grabs her hand, their linked fingers out of view from everyone else, “I love you.” 

She presses her lips together and nods, every reason she had for being too afraid to tell him gone as if they’d never existed, “I love you too. I have for a long time. I hope you know it was never because I didn’t love you. I just…”

“I know,” he replies, squeezing her hand, “And I would have waited forever.” 

She chuckles, the sound wet as it catches in her chest, “Forever? That would have been awkward at our wedding one day.” 

He laughs too and runs his thumb back and forth over her pulse point, “We would have made it work.” 

She wants nothing more than to kiss him, but she knows she can’t, not here anyway, and she blows out a breath, “I really wish I could kiss you right now.” 

“Me too,” he says, looking at her like she was the only thing in existence, like the world could burn around them and he wouldn’t notice because he was looking at her, “Later.” 

“Later,” she repeats, “I don’t want to go for drinks with the team anymore. I just want to go home with you.”

“We’ll have plenty of time for us, sweetheart,” he says, squeezing her hand again, their palms practically fused together, as if they were merging into one, one soul that had been split into two for all eternity until now, “Let’s go spend some time with our friends. 

“Plenty of time?” She repeats in a question, as if she didn’t already know he was it, that they were it, and he was the answer to the question she’d never known to ask. 

“Forever,” he confirms, and she swallows thickly, her heart almost beating out of her chest as she nods in response. 

“Forever.” 

[forhappysake]

[sunlightgalaxy]

heating up in here

hotchniss alaska au

warnings: smut, case talk, the usual

a/n: this got looooong oops ! for the sake of the story we’re pretending they weren’t matchy matchy and that she is in fact wearing his sweater

(gifs by @aaronwhorechner )

**

“i’m not sleeping with reid.”

emily stifled a laugh, watching as penelope instantly claimed dibs on sharing with morgan.

“come on, spence, we can share.” jj spoke, placing an arm around the young agent to turn him towards the stairs. and then there were three.

rossi wordlessly looked between emily and aaron before sticking his hand out for a key. 4 rooms, 7 people; the math wasn’t hard, there was one single room. and dave knew he had it to himself.

“guess it’s you and me tonight,” hotch said, picking up his bag and making his way towards the room. emily followed in tow, doing her best to keep up.

“you think they have heat?” she asked as she trailed behind, arms rubbing against herself as best she could to keep warm. emily was a cold woman. not emotionally, well, not anymore, but physically cold almost all of the time. needless to say, she was not doing too well in the alaskan weather.

“let’s hope,” hotch said, stopping at the hotel room door. he unlocked the lock, taking a little longer than emily pleased.

“what, did you forget how to open a door?” she teased.

“it’s an old hotel, prentiss,” hotch sighed, finally pushing the door open. “the lock probably hasn’t been changed in decades.” he walked in, flicking on the light and stopping in his tracks. which, naturally, caused emily to walk straight into his backside.

“ow, hotch!” emily yelped, her hand reaching for his shoulder to steady herself. she was about to ask why the hell he stopped walking two steps into the room when she noticed what caught his attention: the lone, king-sized bed in the middle of the room.

“you can have it,” hotch said, moving in further and digging clothes out of his go-bag. “you get cold.” emily rolled her eyes, grabbing her own pajamas from her bag.

“don’t be stupid, there’s no couch and you’ll kill your back laying on the floor every night.” she reasoned, watching him make his way to the bathroom. “we’re adults, we’ll be fine.”

“yeah,” she heard hotch call as he shut the door. emily dug through her go-bag, grabbing her pajamas and groaning. the case had been called in hours after they returned from their previous one, meaning she hadn’t had time to properly pack her bag. which meant she had no sweatshirt. sighing, she threw on her sweats and t-shirt and waited for hotch to be done in the bathroom.

he walked out moments later, breath catching in his throat when he caught sight of emily. his eyes flitted down to her chest, nipples visible through the fabric of her shirt. clearing his throat, he looked back up at her and spoke. “no sweatshirt?”

“forgot to pack one,” she mumbled, walking into the bathroom and closing the door. splashing water onto her face, emily sighed as she resigned herself to sharing a bed with her boss. her very attractive boss, no less.

stepping out, her eyes landed on hotch, sitting in bed looking over the case file. he looked up, eyes meeting hers momentarily before reaching behind him. “here,” he said, tossing his brown quarter-zip sweater towards her. “it’ll keep you warm tonight.”

emily smiled gratefully, pulling on the warm fabric and watching it pool around her arms. “thank you,” she mumbled softly, climbing into the bed next to him. “goodnight hotch.”

“goodnight prentiss,” hotch replied, taking a moment to look at her before shutting the light off. god, she looked so good in his sweater. he laid there for a moment, the darkness and silence of the room really putting into perspective his situation. he was sharing a bed with his subordinate, arguably his most attractive one, in the middle of alaska. truly not how hotch had expected his day to end.

emily, meanwhile, had the same thought about her boss looming in the back of her mind. however, she couldn’t bear to focus on that, instead channeling all of her energy into not shivering. as warm as hotch’s sweater was - and fuck, it was warm - she was still freezing. arms wrapped around herself, doing her best to not hog the covers, emily tried her hardest to keep warm and still.

it was no use though, hotch could feel her body twitching every so often. plus, her teeth were chattering so frequently that he thought they would chip. he debated for a moment whether he should sacrifice his own warmth and give her the blanket, or cross the line and give her his embrace. and as much as he wanted to just give her the blanket, he didn’t want to be cold either.

she felt the bed dip first, feeling hotch roll to his other side. then, she felt the warmth encapsulate her body as his arm wrapped against her. finally, she felt his body directly against her back as he pulled her flush to him. oh. she was definitely warm now. their close proximity meant that when he whispered to her, his words went straight to her ear, hot breath tickling her skin. “think you can sleep now?”

no. absolutely not. “yeah,” she whispered back, making a feeble attempt to relax her body and find a comfortable position. instead, however, she found her ass pressed directly against him. she was sure her skin was fucking boiling at this point, cursing herself internally for even moving half an inch. she felt hotch breathing heavily against her, and all she could do was pray he was asleep and close her eyes.

he was not asleep, instead focusing everything on trying not to get rock hard against emily’s ass. unfortunately for hotch, no amount of steady breathing could stop his dick from growing harder. feeling the sudden warmth on her ass, emily smirked to herself. “think you’ll be able to sleep now?” she whispered, stifling a giggle.

“emily,” hotch groaned, his tone somewhere between a moan and a warning. keeping her lower body in place, she turned her head around to meet hotch’s eyes. the smirk fell from her face when she was met with nothing but lust from the man in front of her. gasping, she felt hotch’s hand wrap around her waist, snaking its way up bottom of the sweater.

“aaron,” she whispered, a moan catching in her throat. her free arm wrapped around his neck, fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled him closer. she could feel his breath on her lips, inches away from making contact with her own.

and that’s when they heard a scream.

***

“his name’s craig ramey. fisherman.”

the team gathered around the latest victim, all clad in their pajamas and jackets. as the discussion about the unsub’s accelerated schedule picked up, emily’s attention only strayed further. she could practically feel hotch’s eyes boring into her cheek, and if she was still enough, she could almost feel his breath on her skin.

aaron was doing all he could to maintain his professional manner in this moment, but all thoughts led him back to emily. he forced his eyes on the victim in front, around the team, at the cops, but they always found their way back to her.

“it’s still late,” hotch spoke suddenly, clearing his voice. “i’m sure none of us got much sleep, why don’t we all take a couple hours to rest and get ready for the morning?” it wasn’t a question, and he knew there wouldn’t be any rest in his room.

the team trickled apart, each making their way back to their respective rooms. emily stopped at hers, waiting for aaron to make his way from back of the group. he opened the door, and when emily stepped inside it was only a matter of seconds before the door was locked and she was pressed against it.

“aaron,” she gasped, arms wrapping around his neck to stabilize herself. he looked into her eyes, pupils blow.

“what, sweetheart?” he asked, voice about a whisper.

“kiss me.”

and kiss her he did. lips against each other, breathy moans traveling from emily’s throat to aaron’s mouth. she could feel his stubble against her face, turning her on more than she already was. his hips pushed towards her, causing emily to gasp when she felt his cock press against her pulsing core. aaron pulled back, lips beginning to nip along her neck. one hand braced her hip against the wall, the other finding its way through her layers of clothing.

“look so fucking good in my sweater, baby,” he muttered, eliciting a moan from emily as he twisted her nipple. “gonna fuck you so good while you wear it.”

“aaron,” she whined, his name apparently being the only word her brain could form. she released one hand from his hair, bringing it down to fumble with his jeans. before she could even get them unbuttoned, however, he was pressing his hips forward, cock straining against her hand. “fuck,” she groaned. “need you so badly.”

“is that so?” he asked, emily practically feeling the smirk radiating off of him. “take me then.”

she didn’t need to be told twice. she had his pants and boxers dropped in seconds. eyes blowing wide at the size of his cock. emily sunk to her knees, taking her time to work him with her hand. “emily,” hotch moaned, almost as if it was a warning. it was then she wrapped her lips around him, moaning at the string of curses he muttered while she swirled her tongue around his tip. inch by inch, she took him in her mouth, jaw aching from the size of him. she bobbed back and forth, increasing speed ever so slowly and wrapping a hand around what couldn’t fit.

hotch looked down, pupils blown at the sight of emily beneath him. he let out a groan, even more turned on when he felt her gag around him. they locked eyes, emily watching his expressions as she moved back and forth. it became too much, then, hotch tapping her cheek twice as a sign to release.

“too good at that,” he murmured, thumb wiping away the stray tears that fell from her eyes. “would’ve cum if you kept going, and i’m saving that for when i’m inside you.”

it was emily’s turn to groan, which no sooner turned into a squeal as hotch swept her off her feet and placed her on the bed. true to his word, he removed all her clothing, save for his sweater. taking of the remnants of his clothes, aaron climbed on top of her and pressed two fingers to her lips. instinctively, she opened her mouth, sucking the digits nicely until he pulled back.

within seconds those same fingers delved into her wet, soaking cunt. emily moaned, to which aaron placed his free hand on top of her mouth. “can’t have you being too loud, can we?” she shook her head, mouth opening and closing against his palm as aaron’s pace picked up.

“aaron, oh my god,” emily whispered, nearly biting his palm to keep from screaming. he smiled, planing a kiss to her head as he added a third finger inside her. she groaned, head pushing away from his hand and dropping to his shoulder. “fuck, aaron, please,” she whined, feeling herself getting closer to the edge.

“come for me, baby,” he muttered in her ear, groaning softly as he felt her tip over the edge. “good girl, so good for me.” he fucked her through her orgasm until it was too much, emily removing his hand and panting into his chest.

“holy fuck,” she breathed, slowly catching her breath. she looked up at hotch, meeting his soft smile with one of her own.

“you okay?” he asked.

“yeah,” she said. “so okay.”

“good.” he didn’t waste a second before pushing her back onto the bed, spreading her legs as he followed and lined up inside her. she gasped, locking eyes with him.

“please,” she whispered, staring at his hard, leaking cock at the edge of her equally soaked cunt.

“oh god, emily,” he moaned, watching his dick disappear under his sweater and into her pussy. “so fucking tight, so fucking good.”

“aaron,” emily whine, relishing in how good the pain was as his dick stretched out her cunt. she didn’t even want time to adjust to his size, she needed him to fuck her. “move.”

he wasted no time, fucking her with a rapid pace. “oh, emily,” he moaned, a string of curses following under his breath. emily groaned at the sensation, his tip hitting her perfectly. aaron looked up and felt himself getting closer as he watched emily, her mouth agape as she bit back a whimper. “so good for me,” he said, leaning down to capture her lips in a kiss. “i’m so close.”

“inside,” she responded, no hesitation. “please.”

“of course,” he whispered, picking up the pace and moving impossibly faster. he felt emily’s orgasm before she did, her moans combined with the clenching around his cock pulling his own. he spilt into her, stilling as they came down from their high.

he pulled out, laying down next to emily and turning to look at her. she turned to him, a soft smile on her face that matched his. “what?” she asked.

“you’re beautiful,” he responded, pushing her grown-out bangs out of her face. “pretty girl.” she blushed as he planted a kiss to her cheek, pulling her into his arms.

“you’re not so bad yourself,” she spoke, her voice muffled against his chest. “can i keep the sweater?” she asked a moment later, feeling his chest vibrate with laughter.

“for the rest of the trip, sure.” he said. “i have others i can wear. but i want it back, that’s my favorite one.”

“yeah,” emily sighed. “me too.”

[ssaemilyhotchner]

new fic: kiss the cook

Read on AO3 here!

1998 & 2006 | With his brother Sean as his matchmaker, Aaron Hotchner has given up all hope on finding the woman of his dreams—until he meets a gifted chef and aspiring profiler named Emily Prentiss. Previously posted to FFN, where it won the 2012 Profiler's Choice Awards Winner for Best Hotch/Emily.

“—her name is Emily. She’s twenty-seven, I think? Supermodel gorgeous. She’s got a great sense of humor, albeit a dry one, like yours. And she’s sweet. And gorgeous,” Sean said again. “Hell, I’d date her—” “Why aren’t you?” Hotch countered. Sean glanced behind him as he heard the telltale sound of quiet giggling. “She turned me down because I’m quote unquote ‘a caricature’,” he groused. Hotch couldn’t suppress his bark of surprised laughter. “I like her already.”

[cloudlessly-light]

Hi!! Would you consider writing hotchniss thigh riding? There’s so few of them 😔 and maybe coupled with spit kink if you can? Your previous spit kink fics had me WILD. Thank you!!

A/N: Hi Anon! I hope you like this and that you don't mind that I added some other stuff as well, please enjoy!

Title: Gonna make you sweat Summary: Emily usually never disturbs him when he’s working from home, but sometimes she just can’t help herself. Word count: 2,3k Rating: Explicit Warnings: Smut, thigh grinding, spit kink, breath play/choking, verbal humiliation, dom Aaron, sub Emily, filth, absolute filth

It’s quiet when she unlocks the front door to their home. The lights all turned off except one and she smiles at the way Aaron always leaves a light for her when she comes home later than him. She kicks off her shoes and groans happily, the heels she’s worn for a night out with Penelope and JJ, as stunning as they were, are not worth the pain. The stillness of their house is soothing, knowing that Jack was tucked into bed and that Aaron was probably in bed waiting for her making adoration flutter in her chest.

But as she goes up the stairs and sees the light on in his home office she turns towards it instead of their bedroom and sure enough, he’s sitting there, still in his slacks but the tie off and the first couple of buttons of his shirt unbuttoned. Today had been a tiring day for him, she knew that, and even if she wouldn’t tell him as much, it was part of her reason for cutting girl’s night short.

For a few seconds she takes in the way he’s looking sitting there, so effortlessly gorgeous, as he concentrates on putting pen to paper. He’s been at it for hours, she can tell by the slightly strained expression on his face, the way he’s flexing his fingers before grabbing the pen again.

Emily rarely disturbs him when he’s working, and she isn’t sure if it’s the way he looks as he sits there, or the wine she’s had, or the want she always felt toward him, or maybe it’s knowing that he needs to release some tension after the difficult day he’s had, maybe it’s the mix of all of it. But she finds that she can’t help herself as she quietly unzips her dress and lets it fall to the floor. She steps out of it and then clears her throat as she takes a couple of steps toward him.

“Hi honey.” She smiles when he looks up at the sound of her voice and watches in amusement as his eyes move over frame slowly.

“You’re home early.” He says and pushes back on his chair to turn fully to face her and motions for her to come closer.

“Henry is sick.” She shrugs just as she comes to stop in front of him. His eyes move over her body slowly once more and she feels the familiar rush from it as his tongue licks over his bottom lip.

“And you thought that you’d come in here and distract me?” His hands graze the outside of her thighs as she nods and when she shivers in response to his touch he raises an eyebrow in amusement. “You know better than that, sweetheart.”

She smirks as he grabs her fully, large hands holding her hips as he pulls her toward him to straddle his lap.

“Can I really be blamed when you’re this sexy?” She muses, her lips brushing against his as she speaks before she kisses him. Her tongue is quick to seek out his, a happy sigh sounding from her when he licks into her mouth as his hands move over her body. The familiar feel of his warm, slightly calloused fingers sends goosebumps across her skin, the heat of his palms quickly making her entire body feel hot even in the slightly cool room.

Aaron groans lowly when he feels her hips start to grind on his lap, the heat of her evident even through her silk panties and his pants. When he breaks their kiss her dark eyes are hazy, her cheeks flushed pink and he swallows down the urge to take her right there. But there was something about Emily, needy and desperate, drunk on him, that was unlike any power rush he’d ever felt before. And tonight, after hours of paperwork and a day consisting of bureaucracy and red tape, he needed that power.

With that thought in mind he unhooks her bra, dark eyes locked on hers as it falls to the floor and before she has the chance to say anything else, he slowly wraps his hand around her throat, making sure he has her attention as he squeezes the tiniest bit. When he feels the way she swallows down a moan he smirks at her.

“You want me that bad, baby? That you can’t even wait until we’re in bed?” He squeezes harder and her hips roll against his lap in response.

“Aaron I-” Her voice is breathy, but it’s not what he wants to hear so he cuts her off with another squeeze, this one hard as he holds her gaze for a couple of seconds before letting go.

“Try again.” He watches in amusement as she fights the internal battle with herself, knows that in the end what they both want is for her to give herself completely to him, but sometimes she would put up a bit of a fight. Tonight however, it looked like her need for him was bigger than her need to be defiant.

“I want you so bad.” She whispered, the flush on her cheeks all but disappearing as her entire body flushes with the admission.

“Aww, you poor thing.” He keeps his hand around her throat as he pushes her off his lap only to tug her underwear off her hips before standing up too. There was something about Emily completely naked when he was still fully clothed that made heat flutter in his belly.

“Open.” He tilts her head back just slightly, a dark groan rumbling in his chest when her mouth opened, already knowing what was coming. When he spit into her mouth and she swallowed with a moan he hummed happily. “Good girl.”

Emily is sure she must be dripping from arousal as she watches how he sits down on his chair again, legs spread and body leaning back against the backrest, his entire being demanding respect. She knows what he wants before he says it, but she doesn’t move until he nods.

“You know you can’t always get what you want.” He pulls her closer but this time lets her straddle one of his thighs instead of his lap. The way she sucks in a breath at the feeling of fabric against her clit causes his fingers to dig into her waist slightly. “You want to act like a desperate little thing, and because I’m so nice I’m going to let you get off on my thigh. Let you prove to me how much you want it.”

His low voice and slightly condescending tone only make her flush harder, her body feeling like it was on fire and he hadn’t even touched her yet. She knew she was already staining his slacks, the wet spot already visible when she rearranged her body slightly and Aaron smirked, something smug and self-assured that she would have been irritated by if they had been in any other situation but this one. Instead it only turns her on and she slowly starts to grind on against his thigh, a soft moan falling from her lips at finally getting some relief.

Her hands move to grip his shoulders, her hips rolling and rocking against the strong muscle of his leg as his hands stay on her waist, letting her set the pace. His intense stare on her only makes her grind harder, something about knowing that he loved to watch her, getting her off. It always did.

“Look at you, it’s barely been two minutes and you’ve already soaked me.” He muses as the wet spot on his slacks get bigger, the feel of her wetness against his skin making his cock jerk in it’s confines. “What do you say to that?”

It takes her a second to find any words at all, but as her eyelids flutter open and she sees the furrowed eyebrows and lips pressed together in a thin line she gasps.

“I’m sorry.” Her grip on his shoulders must be hurting him but he only encourages her by pushing his thigh against her.

“Sorry for what?” Aaron lets go of her waist as he speaks, instead he grabs the back of her neck with one hand, the other moving to toy with her nipples.

“Sorry for ruining your pants.” She moans, the way he’s rolling one of her nipples sending pleasurable sparks to her clit, and her hips buckle slightly.

“That’s okay baby,” He coos before pulling her into a kiss that’s more tongue than anything else. “that’s what happens when desperate girls can’t help themselves.” He squeezes around the back of her neck and then let’s go, knowing from Emily’s slightly frantic movements that she’s getting close.

“Fuck, Aaron…” She whimpered as she rolled her hips against his thigh, dragging her clit against it harder as she felt herself squeeze around nothing. “Feels good.” Her words are mumbled between breathless moans and pants, her orgasm building slowly.

“I know, you’re so wet sweetheart.” He sits up straighter and wraps one arm around the small of her back to keep her steady as he sucks a nipple into his mouth. When he tugs it between his teeth, Emily’s hips buckle in desperation and he presses his leg harder up against her, making sure she gets as much pressure against her clit as possible.

She jerks, her body chasing her release as she rolls her hips harder and faster, nothing but lewd moans and his name falling from her lips as her body starts to strain.

“Good girl, come for me.” His cock was hurting from how badly he wanted to feel her, aching from being hard for so long without getting any relief, but as Emily started to spasm on top of him, he knew that any waiting, or uncomfortableness was worth it. He watched as her eyes rolled back and mouth fell open, felt how her hips jerked and grinded against his leg as she continued to ride out her pleasure with a cry that was almost too loud.

She felt her orgasm in her entire body, the pleasure of it making her eyesight blurry as she continued to grind down on his clothed thigh until only aftershocks rocked her body. Her eyes, heavy lidded and hazy found his and she smiled lazily.

“Thank you.” She mumbled and he chuckled, the sound raspy and low. When he carefully pushed her off his leg, only to quickly move her to his desk, she didn’t fight him, still happily dazed and sated. Her eyes moved to the wet spot on his leg and she blushed at the mess she had made, but she could tell that Aaron loved it, he always loved when she fell apart, it didn’t matter how it happened.

“Now it’s my turn.” He muttered as he made quick work of getting his pants and boxers off. He stepped between her spread legs and groaned at the feeling of her soft skin against his heated shaft, enjoyed the feeling as he shallowly thrust against her thigh while unbuttoning his shirt, knowing that he was smearing precum on her skin.

“Please, fuck me.” She whispered when he continued to tease her, a smirk on his face as he rubbed the tip of his cock through her folds repeatedly. It was enough, his desperation for her finally clear when he pushed inside of her and quickly setting a pace as he groaned against her lips.

“How do you always feel so good?” He grunted, the pleasure of her slick walls making him crazy. His hands gripped her hips tight to keep her in place as he started to move with hard, fast thrusts and when her legs wrapped around his hips, he hissed her name.

“Do it again.” She whispered against his neck and when she pulled back her eyebrow arched and her head tilted back as her lips opened.

“Dirty fucking thing.” He growled and spit in her mouth again, watched with heated eyes as she swallowed dutifully with a filthy smirk on her lips.

It’s rough, fast and desperate as he grabs at her and she claws at him as they chase their release in each other’s skin. When Emily let’s out a sound close to a whine and her pussy starts to clench around him, Aaron groans against her neck, his teeth digging into the soft skin there.

“Come with me.” She pants through blurry pleasure and she feels him nodding. The feeling of his labored breathing against her neck and the feeling of him inside of her as he grips her hard enough to bruise, is sensory overload and she comes only a few minutes later, clinging to his sweaty body.

“Jesus Christ, Em.” He hisses as his orgasm hits him like a freight train, knocking the wind completely out of him as his hips stutter against hers and pleasure makes his knees buckle. The way her center is still trembling around him draws out his pleasure, the feeling of release close to euphoric as he tries to catch his breath.

She isn’t sure how long they stay like that but when Aaron takes a step back she can see the relaxation, can see how much he needed this and she smiles at him.

“I should come in here more often.” She stands on slightly unsteady legs and wraps her arms around his neck.

“I don’t know, I might not be able to focus on work in here ever again.” He nuzzled her nose with his as she laughs before kissing her. “Thank you.”

“For what?” She stamps another kiss to his lips and then sees the knowing look on his face.

“You know exactly what, you brat.” He tickles her waist quickly before pulling her against him. “Come one, lets shower and then I’m having you sit on my face until I’ve had my fill.”

She’s never headed to the shower that quick in her life.

[em-prentiss]

love to keep me warm

----

“I’m in my pajamas,” Emily mumbles, teary-eyed.

Aaron looks up. His mouth opens, no doubt to console, but Jack beats him to it.

“It’s okay, Mom.” Emily looks up to find his eyes wide and earnest. “Me and Dad are in our pj’s too. We won’t change, right?”

She never imagined she’d cry before even stepping foot in the damn hospital.

Or, Emily goes into labor on Christmas Eve.

Word count: 3.6k

For @leavemurph <3 because she's the best <3

----

“Is it a Nintendo?” Jack interrupts through Home Alone 2.

Emily is watching the movie with blank eyes, the fist she has clutched in her pajama pants doing nothing to help her through her contractions. They’ve become more frequent in the past few weeks, unexpectedly rolling through her as her due date looms closer; January 9th seems far to her, but apparently her body thinks it’s tomorrow. Her back has already been aching for a week, and the increasingly intense contractions aren’t helping any. They went from uncomfortable cramps to sharp pain just over the course of this afternoon, fiery stabs suddenly attacking her abdomen. Still, Emily waves them away. A nagging voice whispers in her ear, but she ignores it. Because it couldn’t be. Not yet.

She’s breathing through the pain, lips parted, when Jack touches her shoulder.

“Mom.”

Emily jolts.

“Sorry, honey.” She sucks in a breath, blinking the haziness from her eyes and turning to look at him. “Were you saying something?”

“My present,” he catches her up, hazel eyes bright, “is it a Nintendo? The 3DS—”

A small laugh worms its way out of her chest. “You’ll know tomorrow.” Fondness seeps through her words, drenching them until they’re dripping saccharine. “It’s just a few hours away, Jack. Wouldn’t it be better if it stayed a surprise?”

Jack’s pout is half hearted. “Will you tell if I get you another cookie?” He bribes. It seems a dangerous skill for a ten-year-old.

“Not even if you got me all the cookies in the world.” Emily ruffles his hair, earning a grumble. Speaking of cookies—“Can you help me up, please?”

He’s up and in front of her in seconds. Emily smiles as she takes his hands, both of them a little cold despite the steady fire burning in the hearth. The moment she stands the pressure returns on her hips, Lucy weighing on her bones as she wriggles around restlessly. 

“Thank you, honey,” Emily presses a kiss to Jack’s brow.

He hums, eyes already back on the TV. “Y’welcome. Tell Dad he’s missing the good parts.”

Emily manages a small laugh.

Her short walk to the kitchen is, in fact, a waddle, each shuffle of her feet sending pain down her pelvis. She makes a face and ignores it, placing a hand on her bump as if she can physically stop her daughter from dropping lower. A small flutter greets her hand; Emily smiles despite herself as she walks into the kitchen, her mission accomplished when she breathes in the warm scent of the cinnamon sugar cookies Aaron is taking out of the oven.

“Your daughter’s abusing me,” she grumbles, shuffling over to the piping hot cookie tray. Heat radiates from it in waves. Emily grabs a cooled one from the previous batch and pops it whole into her mouth.

“I’ll have a talk with her,” Aaron says, wiping a crumb from the corner of her mouth. Emily hums at the taste of cinnamon on her tongue, the cookie warm and sweet, crumbling easily beneath her teeth. But she can’t even enjoy it; mid-swallow, the pain rushes through her again, making her groan into her closed mouth. 

“What?” Concern knits Aaron’s brows, “What do you feel?” 

Somehow, Emily manages to swallow the cookie. 

“Contractions,” she croaks. They’re not anything new, but, “They hurt like a bitch.” She all but whines, tears misting her eyes as Aaron’s hand wraps around her elbow.

“How long have you been having them?” He’s nudging her into a stool. Emily sits, her fingers clutched in his shirt as he helps her down. 

“I don’t know.” Her voice shakes. Sweat slicks her skin. “Uhh…since lunch? Before—before we started the movie. Way before.” Her lip is suddenly between her teeth. “I’ve been—fuck,” she hisses, her nails sinking into Aaron’s flesh. Pain flares in her abdomen, shoots up her back. She whimpers.

“You’re in labor.”

Emily clutches at the counter. She can’t be. It’s Christmas tomorrow, almost two weeks from her due date. Two.

She was supposed to have more time.

“N-No,” she’s shaking her head, cool air slapping her cheeks from the vigorous movement, “I can’t be. I’m not ready.”

“You are,” Aaron soothes, so calm it makes her want to break something. “Honey, we have to—”

“It’s early.” She chokes out. “She’s not supposed to be here until January, Aaron, it’s still—it’s still early.” Her voice wavers again, but not from the pain. “How can you be so sure, anyway, they could just be—”

“Have they been getting closer? Lasting longer?” At her silence he cups her cheek, gentle but firm. “She’s coming now. You gotta let her, Em.”

Emily closes her eyes, her whimper stifled into her bitten lip. She’s shaking her head as Aaron holds her up, carrying her weight against his chest. There’s a quick press of his lips to her hair, a murmured, I know that pushes tears to her eyes.

She’s having her baby tonight.

The contraction is still rolling through her when Aaron calls for Jack. She feels the vibration of his voice through his chest, the pattering of footsteps on the floor static in her ears, muffled as if she’s underwater. Emily twists her fingers in Aaron’s shirt. He palms the back of her neck.

“—shoes on and come here when you’re done, stay with Mom while I get the baby’s things, okay? I’ll stay with her till you come back.”

She doesn’t need anyone to stay with her. Emily opens her mouth, about to say it, when another contraction hits. It sends pain across her abdomen, burying the feeling of Lucy shifting around. She closes her eyes and gnaws on her lip.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

“She’s having the baby now?”

“Yeah. Let’s go, we have to get to the hospital.”

“But isn’t it too ear—?”

“Jack,” Aaron says tightly, feeling the way Emily tenses, “buddy, it’s okay, it happens. Babies are rarely born on their due dates. Can you do what I asked?”—a soft, breathless yeah—“Quick, bud, c’mon.”

A swish of air. A hand skating up the length of her arm, the warmth of Aaron’s fingers cupping her cheeks. Emily opens her eyes, finding his blurry outline crouched in front of her.

“Hey,” he says quietly. “How are you holding on?”

She shakes her head. Her tongue is heavy, her jaw tightly clenched against the pain.

Aaron’s eyes are pinched with poorly concealed concern. He stands up and rubs her arm, mouthing some reassurances she can’t hear into her hairline. They vibrate through her skin until Jack’s sneakers come into view, from the corner of her eyes. He’s holding a pair of her shoes—the only pair that fit her anymore—which Aaron takes in hand and kneels down to fit on her feet.

He slips her right, already sock-covered, foot into her shoe, deftly tying the laces together in a double knot. When he’s done he moves on to her left, and through the haze of pain she can only think of one thing.

“I’m in my pajamas,” Emily mumbles, teary-eyed.

Aaron looks up. His mouth opens, no doubt to console, but Jack beats him to it.

“It’s okay, Mom.” Emily looks up to find his eyes wide and earnest. “Me and Dad are in our pj’s too. We won’t change, right?”

She never imagined she’d cry before even stepping foot in the damn hospital.

****

Forty eight minutes later she’s shivering in a hospital gown, numbed from the waist down from her epidural. Six centimeters dilated and the clock inches closer and closer to 9.

It’s there, under the annoyingly bright fluorescent lights of her hospital room, that it hits.

She’s having her baby on Christmas.

Emily’s vision is blurry before she knows it, hot tears rolling down her cheeks with all the ease of a hot knife slicing through butter. Her control on her emotions hung on a thread that has long since snapped, pregnancy a pair of scissors that rendered her a puppeteer with no control over her puppets. From the first few weeks she started crumbling, compartmentalization blown to pieces before she even started to show. It’s something she despises, even more than the aches and pains almost continually rolling through her body. Tears drop at wrong delivery orders and itchy clothes, unsatisfactory baby names and ugly shades of paint for the nursery. And now her daughter is going to share her birthday with a major holiday for the rest of her life.

The sob doesn’t build long in her chest before it breaks free. 

Aaron straightens from where he’s sitting next to her bed. “Emily,” he perches on the edge of his chair, leaning against the handle separating them, “what is it, sweetheart? Are you still in pain?”

Emily’s lip wobbles. “Our daughter is gonna be born on Christmas. Do you know how much it sucks to be born on Christmas?” Her voice breaks on the last word, thick with the taste of her tears.

Aaron blows out a slow breath. The sound irritates her, a flash of annoyance sparking under her skin. But then he takes her hand and rubs his thumb into the tight skin stretched over her knuckles, replacing the bone-deep cold with his warmth.

“It would suck,” he agrees quietly. Emily chews on a sob and turns away, the confirmation in his voice too much for her to take. Aaron brings her back with warm fingers under her chin, gently forcing her eyes on his. “It would suck,” he says again, “if we weren’t her parents. We’ll make it special for her, Emily, you know we will.”

The distant feeling of a contraction ripples through her body. Emily clutches his hand, blinking back superfluous tears until it passes. “How?” She croaks.

His brows tick the slightest bit upwards. Aaron idly brings her hand up to his lips, muffling his thoughtful hum into her knuckles. “Well…we could split the day. Merry Christmas in the morning and happy birthday in the afternoon.” He murmurs. A few more ice-cold breaths and the corner of his mouth ticks up. “Gingerbread pancakes for breakfast and a cake after lunch?”

“...Gingerbread pancakes?” Emily frowns tearily. “Do those even exist?”

“We’ll make them exist. We’ll make up a new tradition for her—for us. It’ll be ours.” Aaron reassures, squeezing her hand. It warms in his grip. “We’ll make it work, Em. It’s hardly the hardest thing we’ve had to do.”

Truthfully, he almost convinces her. It’s hard not to; his eyes are warm, his hand warmer still and his voice bucketfuls of cloud-like softness to calm her down. Emily sniffles, seeing gingerbread pancakes, and almost starts to smile.

Until a thought unfurls in her head and more tears spill down her cheeks. 

“J-Jack’s not gonna have a normal Christmas anymore.” She hiccups, eyes burning. “Neither of them will. And”—she aggressively wipes the hot tears on her face—“I think I traumatized him. Fuck, he saw me crying—”

“Emily—”

“We should tell him we got him the Nintendo.” She sniffles, “He’s probably upset. God, what kid wouldn’t be upset that their sibling is being born on Christmas—”

“Honey, you’ve got to save your strength.” Aaron says gently. He wipes her tears, uselessly, because more spill down her cheeks. “Jack isn’t upset, okay? Jess just texted that he can’t sleep, he’s so excited.” 

Emily blinks damp lashes at him. “She did?”

Aaron’s smile is endlessly patient. “Yeah, she did. Come on now, let’s think of the good stuff.” He slips the hem of his sweater over his heel and gently dabs under her eye. “In a couple of hours, we’ll have our baby. And, just think about it—we’ll have more time with her than we thought we would. Fifteen more days than we thought we’d have. Isn’t that—” Aaron swallows, his hand faltering as a faint shine gleams in his eyes. “Isn’t that good, Emily?” 

Fifteen days. Fifteen more days to know her baby, to get to speak out her name and run her finger down the length of her cheek. 

More tears pool on her lashes. God, she’s sick of them. “Yeah.” Emily croaks, half laughing, half sobbing. “Yeah, it’s good. Fifteen days.” She wipes under her eye.

Aaron smiles softly. “She just couldn’t wait,” he lays his palm on the curve of her stomach, “must’ve heard about all the fun we’ll be having and got jealous. Did you, Lucy?” Impossibly, his voice softens further. “You just wanted to be part of it, huh?”

Emily smiles blurrily as she dries her face with the heel of her hand, watching Aaron lean over the handle to talk to her bump. That in itself isn’t unusual, but:

“You’re talking so much,” the thought slips past her lips before she can catch it, half delirious already from the pain and her epidural. Her hand finds his face, the pad of her thumb dipping under his jaw. “You never talk this much.”

She must really be on the ledge.

“Well, you’re freaking out. I have to do something.” Aaron murmurs. “What, should I stop?” The teasing lilt to his voice makes her cringe.

“No. Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.” Emily mumbles, apologetic even though the brown of his eyes is warm. “S’mean.”

Aaron’s hand covers hers. Their fingers lock together, the metal of their rings notching with a tiny click. “You’re in labor, Emily. I think you saying a few mean things is warranted.”

“So you do think it’s mean?” Her eyes brim up with tears again. Great, she traumatized Jack and is bullying his father—

“No, baby.” He smothers a sigh into her knuckles. “I think you should stop worrying about my feelings and focus more on getting this little princess out,” his other hand drops to her stomach, knuckles gently tracing over the scratchy material of her hospital gown. Lucy stirs, but she doesn’t jab an elbow into Emily’s gut in response. “She’s not kicking anymore,” he notes.

“Mmm,” Emily sniffs, stealing her hand from his grip to place it on the palm lying on her stomach. It’s a bit of a useless exchange. “S’weird. She’s, like…rolling. Shifting.” Her brows furrow, even as Aaron smiles. “Can’t really explain it.”

A contraction makes her lace their fingers together, squeezing his hand though it doesn’t hurt, not really. When it passes he grabs a water bottle off her beside table and pushes it into her free hand, murmuring something about restoring all the water she’d lost. Emily glares at him weakly but takes it, her throat drier than she’d like from what seems like hours of crying. Neither of them are surprised when she drains the whole bottle in one go.

Emily’s eyes restlessly flit to the clock again; she groans when she finds it’s not even 9:30 yet, the clock’s long hand hovering between 4 and 5. The exhaustion is heavy in her bones, though it seems she’s hardly done anything but cry. Aaron makes her down yet another bottle of water at that, and when she’s done he wordlessly conjures a wet wipe and wipes the dried tears from her face.

She’s about to scold him for opening up their unborn daughter’s pack of wipes when a knock sounds and the door opens. The nurse comes in, cheerily announcing that it’s time for another checkup.

“How are we doing, Mrs. Hotchner?” She asks as she pokes and prods, pressing the transducer to Emily’s stomach. Lucy’s heartbeat comes through, and both Aaron and Emily exhale.

But the relief quickly disintegrates.

“Tired.” Emily grumbles.

Izzy smiles sympathetically. “You’re still at six centimeters. You could take a nap, if you’d like. It’ll probably still be a while.”

“It’s a good idea,” Aaron says when she’s gone. “Today was busy.”

It was busy. They’d been up since the morning, wrapping presents and hiding them—Jack’s—in their closet. Aaron had gone to the mall for some last minute gifts that slipped through the cracks, and she’d stayed home with Jack, hanging stockings while stepping through mountains of wrapping paper, half of them shredded to streamers from Sergio’s claws. But it was a good kind of busy, a good kind of ache that lingered alongside Lucy’s constant presence. It’s a kind of busyness she never thought she’d get to have, fated to celebrate holidays surrounded by friends but ultimately on her own. Now warmth flows from a home she can call her own, a family that makes her count lucky stars she never even believed in.

“Yeah,” Emily hums, abruptly closing her eyes at the feeling of another contraction. She lays her hand on her bump, thumb drawing circles as she tries to imagine meeting the little girl beneath her skin, finally getting to hold her, place a face to the name. She’d already imagined Aaron’s eyes, their dark hair—and hopefully those Hotchner dimples that she wouldn’t stand a chance against. The vision makes her breath hitch.

“Does it hurt?”

“Mm, no,” Emily mumbles, trying to open her eyes. She does it with some difficulty—forehead scrunched, squinting into the same alert pools she just saw beneath her closed lids. He is a little blurry again, but she blinks forcefully. “I fucking love drugs.”

Aaron laughs lightly and leans over the handle of her bed, kissing her temple. “I think that’s your cue for that nap. Close your eyes,” as soft as his voice, he adjusts the blanket up to her chest, “it’ll probably be the last good sleep you’ll have in a while.”

Emily snorts weakly. “If you can call having the whole bottom half of your body numb good…” 

But she can’t complain too much. Except—

“I’m cold.”

Aaron reaches for the hem of his sweatshirt. The pajama shirt he’s wearing underneath rides up his stomach as he pulls it off, exposing a sliver. Emily chews on a smile, trying to hide it as his pajamas come into view. Jack had insisted on them—she kind of had, too—and Aaron stood no chance in refusing the bright red pajamas. He tried, but not very convincingly; Emily thinks she—impossibly—loves him all the more for it.

Aaron fishes his arm through the neckline and folds the sweatshirt back the right way. Softened strands of hair wilt into his face, shaken loose in raven threads above his eyes.

“Here,” he kisses the skin between her brows before gently stretching the neckline of his sweatshirt and guiding it over her head. Her hair gets trapped under it; Aaron pulls it out as she clumsily shoves her arms into the sleeves. Warmth settles over her, stretching over half her belly, though the blanket over her legs doesn’t do much.

Hospital beds always leave her with a distinct chill. The ones for her checkups were different, but beds like these remind her of the crushing fear she’d been left with last time, the loneliness and pain knowing her friends thought her to be gone. Now the extra space is heavy with the cold, even though she’s not anymore. 

Emily stretches her hand over the handle. Aaron takes it, pressing his lips to her knuckles before encasing them between both of his warm hands.

“You’re in your pj’s,” she mumbles, a half smile getting squished into her pillow. Christmas pj’s, no less.

A faint smile curves his lips. Dimples. “Mm, solidarity and all that,” he says. “Go to sleep.”

“Bet the nurses had a good laugh,” her words start to slur.

“Bet they did,” his teeth show, a small laugh escaping as pink colors his cheeks. “Now close your eyes.”

“Y’know, I’m starting to think you just don’t like me.”

“I love you,” he murmurs, dipping his head down to catch her lips. They’re warm; she tingles all over. “I just want you to rest up, okay?”

“I guess.” Emily whispers. Her eyes flick up to his. “Just don’t let go of my hand.”

Aaron threads their fingers together. 

“I won’t.”

****

Emily is in awe.

She’s sticky, she’s sweaty and numb, her legs useless, but she’s in awe. Her arms are full of her baby, the downy pink of her blanket rubbing softly against her arm. Lucy’s eyes are closed as she sleeps, quiet as the stillness of the room, and Emily can’t stop tracing the soft, miniature curve of her nose—her own nose, in a different face. 

“I did such a good fucking job,” she mumbles tearily.

Aaron’s lips press together, dimples blooming in his cheeks. “You did.” He nods.

“And you did, too.” Emily sniffs. She takes his hand and squeezes. “Thanks for my baby, Aaron.”

This time he does let himself laugh. “It was my pleasure, sweetheart.” He tucks stray bangs back behind her ear, escaping from the braid he’d put her hair in. “Believe me.”

Emily bites her lip between her teeth, a poor effort to conceal the bubbly giggle in her chest. It’s strange; she’s distantly aware of bone deep exhaustion, a heaviness lining her eyelids, but she looks down and feels floaty. Christmas miracle, Aaron had called her when she was placed into Emily’s arms, red and screaming.

She has to agree.

When Jack sits on the edge of her bed and holds his sister, Aaron’s hands supporting his, he looks up at her with wide eyes.

“She’s way cooler than a Nintendo.”

[elsie-talisman]

prepare for a mind dump… but if anyone wants to make these ideas into fan fictions please do so, and send me the link xxx

i have always been a hotchniss shipper, and i always will be.

BUT….

i have just seen an edit, and i dont know why its never clicked this way before, but i was slightly more convinced of canon gay emily

now don’t get me wrong! I love canon gay emily i truly have watched, and enjoyed, enough jemily, temily, penemily edits to be convinced that our girl likes to taste the rainbow! even when she was up in spokane with the ranger and her cameo in the spin off are a lil fruity

and we all know emily was written (or was planned to be a lesbian originally) which after watching this edit made me wonder when exactly this idea was squashed

i remember once reading they were going to have a scene of her waking up with a woman as the reveal (but i can’t remember if this was a fan idea or actually the plan)

but now I want to know if paget played emily with her sexuality in mind for a while … the scene in the edit from 2x12 seems like she’s actively against going with this detective (although one could argue this is purely from a post lauren/doyle perspective)

plus the scenes with the ranger and her scenes with derek in the early season could be re-read obviously (as people have done, especially with the ranger)

now sadly in 2x16 emily says her date was with a man, so the fantasy is slightly lost, but she could’ve been lying. we know she was raised with her cold/ strict upbringing. im sure emily knew from an early age her sexuality would be rejected by her family, and maybe like our girl frankie dart she liked to keep it all separate!

with the 2x16 deleted scenes in mind too i would’ve loved if they explored the demily romantic relationship, but with emily as a closeted lesbian

(side note, but those scenes and a few more early demily scenes have definitely lead me happily down that rabbit hole)

anyway imagine it….

derek doesn’t believe he’s good enough for emily, as he told reid, he finally shoots his shot and she turns him down

he’s hurt, she’s embarrassed and it’s basically awkward as fuck and the team aren’t sure why

eventually derek goes to emilys house to clear the air and she opens the door wide eyed and clearly scared of something, pretending she’s fine (this is still emily prentiss)

clattering heard from within her apartment and dereks like… oh, do you have company?

suddenly, a woman comes from the kitchen calling out to emily (probably calling her babe for the whole cliche)

emily is panicked derek goes wide eyed and the woman notices he’s there saying hello as emilys in full internal panic and then derek being the great guy he is exhales and introduces himself

fully accepting this significant fact about his friend without even blinking

…now he’s in on the secret

(we could even have a break up the team don’t know it was a girlfriend not a boyfriend then some jemily yearning)

(or instead of emilys apartment and some random girlfriend it could be the ranger in spokane in emilys hotel room)

[fuckyeahhotchniss]

🎄Fuck Yeah Hotchiness Holidays Event Announcement! 🎄

Get ready to celebrate the season with us! Between December 24th and January 1st, the Hotchiness Discord server is thrilled to host a special holidays event for both writers and artists. We've prepared daily prompts to spark your creativity and spread some holiday cheer!

Whether you're a seasoned writer, a talented artist, or just want to join in on the fun, we can't wait to see your amazing creations. Let’s make this a festive season to remember!

📝🖌️ Grab your prompts, share your fics and art, and let’s ring in the New Year together!

Tag us so we can find your works!

Happy Holidays and Happy Creating! ✨

[criminalmindsgonewrong]

someone to watch me die.

December 1997

read on ao3

[justagirl-purplejellosg1]

Holy crap I just had an idea for a Hotchniss take on an X-Files episode (well, the last scene of an ep) and I want it so bad but don’t know if I could do it justice by writing it.

[emilyprentiss-ily]

A new shade of red

tw: severe self harm, implied suicide, so much crying (be careful reading this<3)

summary: the team find emily and aaron’s daughter at her worst

wc: 2k

chapter: one | two

Emily couldn’t stop thinking about all the teams’ voices overlapping, their tones absolutely terrified as they panicked. In just a few short minutes, all their lives would be changed forever. Emily’s life as a mom would change, Aaron’s life as a dad would change. Their usual worries would be something else entirely.

“Hey, has anyone seen Lola?” Emily asked, her heart slightly racing as she looked at her team and her husband at the table, the volume in the room fading as they looked at Emily.

“I think she said she was going to the bathroom.” JJ answered, noticing Emily’s slightly wide eyes as she stood in front of them. The dark haired woman turned around, rushing down the hall to the bathroom, leaving the team looking at each other with frowns, confusion making it hard to resume talking about what they were just seconds ago.

JJ stood up, giving the team a small smile as she, too, walked down the hall, seeing Emily knocking rapidly on the bathroom door.

“Lola?” Four more knocks. Nothing. “Honey, you’ve been in there for a long time now.” JJ just watched as Emily breathed heavily, not being able to stand completely still. “Lola?” Two more knocks. Nothing.

Emily turned around, looking at JJ with a frown, her hands on her waist as she bit her lower lip. JJ looked at her with soft, slightly wide eyes. Emily exhaled. “JJ, I…” It sounded like she swallowed a cry. “I need you to get Aaron here.” JJ heard the desperation in her friend’s voice and she nodded, hurrying to get him.

Emily stayed there, continuing to knock, telling herself that her thoughts were wrong. That this wasn’t really happening.

After moments, that felt far too long, her husband was by her side, asking if she was okay.

“I’m fine, I just… you need to get in there.” Emily tried to open the door, mentally telling herself that maybe it would magically open. Aaron looked at his wife, seeing her eyes shining with slight tears. Her voice was laced with concern and her breaths were short. “Aaron, right now. Open the door. I don’t care how you do it, just get it open.” Her words were hurried and she got a glance of JJ fidgeting with her fingers, her eyes unsure.

Aaron grabbed the handle, crashing the side of his body to the door over and over again. It felt like forever until the door finally opened and Aaron was not at all nearly prepared for the sight he was exposed to. There she was, his 15 year old daughter, blood covering her whole arm, her clothes and the floor. He opened his mouth in a silent gasp as he rushed to her side, horrified by how pale she was.

Emily and JJ caught sight of the situation and their hearts hurt as they saw Aaron try to talk Lola back to consciousness. Emily covered her mouth, tears burning in her eyes the second her palm touched her skin. JJ was right behind her, tears watering in her eyes too as she fumbled to get her phone from her pocket. The seconds felt too many as her shaky hands failed her.

“One of you has to call an ambulance, right now.” Aaron called out, cupping his hands over Lola’s arm, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.

“I am. I am.” JJ’s voice trembled and she let out a relieved breath when she finally grabbed her phone, dialing 911. She grabbed Emily who had began depending on the wall as to not fall. Emily’s knees were weak and her body felt heavy as she felt an arm around her waist, pulling her away from the scene. Away from the image that was going to haunt her for years to come.

“How long, JJ?” The blonde heard Aaron ask.

“I don’t know. I’m trying to find out.” She inhaled, trying her best to comfort Emily who was seconds away from collapsing.

“Get me a first aid kit.” JJ didn’t know what to do. Her arm was beginning to hurt from trying to hold up Emily and her heart hurt as she couldn’t stop thinking about what was happening just a wall away. She couldn’t hear what the woman on the phone way saying, not clearly. She felt her lips move but she didn’t hear herself. She heard something that sounded like they were going to be there as fast as they could. JJ heard herself mutter a ‘thank you’ as she looked around for a first aid kit. She searched high up, seeing the green box she was looking for on a shelf. She reached up, her breaths uneven.

As soon as Aaron got a hold of the box, he immediately got to work, bandaging up his daughter’s arm, his chest hurting as he looked at his little girl, her face pale and head heavy.

“Lola, honey. I need you to look at me.” He said, slightly panicking as the blood seeped through the bandage. “Lola. Look at me.” His brown eyes met Lola’s dark ones. “Good. Keep looking at me.” He nodded, glancing at JJ who was barely visible behind the doorway. “JJ, get Rossi in here. You need to take care of Emily right now.” Aaron shouted, not sure if JJ even heard him through Emily’s sobs. There was no answer, but moments later, he heard hurrying footsteps and then David talking to the operator on JJ’s phone. Aaron exhaled, keeping light pressure on the bandage.

Without the phone in hand, JJ could finally keep her focus on Emily who was completely destroyed. In the corner of her eye, she saw Spencer rush in.

When Emily tried to go into the bathroom, JJ gripped her even tighter, keeping her away from the nightmare that was happening.

“No, no, no. Emily. Emily.” JJ softly spoke, her voice trembling as she lead the brunette out to the hall.

Emily leaned against the wall, hyperventilating as she slid down to the ground. JJ was right beside her, usually comforting words coming from her lips as her throat began to close up. They didn’t help much now. “Emily.” Her sobs were too loud. JJ placed her hands on Emily’s cheeks, caressing as she tried to initiate eye contact. “Emily, breathe. Emily. Emily. Look at me.” Emily looked up, her eyes carrying a certain heartbreak JJ had never seen before. Her feelings were overwhelming. “It’s going to be okay.” JJ nodded, Emily looked down, taking a short breath. “Look at me. Breathe.” Emily looked up again, her brown eyes staying on JJ’s blue ones.

“She looked like she was dead, JJ.” Emily was hysterical. The sentence made the blonde’s heart hurt.

“No, no, no. She’s not. She’s not dead. She’s not.” Emily just continued sobbing, placing her own hands over JJ’s.

“I can’t lose her. I ca—“ A sharp breath. “I can’t lose her, JJ. She’s my Lola. She’s my—“

“You won’t. They’re all helping her right now and an ambulance is coming. You will not lose her.” JJ heard her name being shouted and she panicked, not knowing what to focus on.

She quickly ran to the bathroom again, seeing Spencer in the doorway, looking at the scene with wide eyes. Quickly, she took a hold of his arms, looking into his eyes as she told him to go to Emily. He nodded, running out to the hall.

JJ exhaled as she rushed into the bathroom, seeing Lola’ scared eyes. JJ knew what the teenager needed.

Kneeling down, JJ placed her hands on Lola’s cheeks, looking into her misty eyes. The blonde tried her best to ignore just how much blood Lola was losing.

“Stay awake, Lola.” JJ chanted when she saw how Lola’s eyes began to slowly flutter closed. “Look at me. Stay awake.” JJ felt Lola grip her arm, blood smearing on her pale skin. There wasn’t much more they could do than internally pray that Lola was going to be okay.

Aaron had bandaged her arm and was keeping pressure on it. David had finished talking to the operator and now all they had to wait. It was the longest 10 minutes of her life. The longest 10 minutes of all their lives.

JJ’s eyes widened when Lola’s eyes closed completely. She lightly slapped her cheeks, chanting over and over again that she had to stay awake.

“No, no, no.” Her heart picked up speed for the thousandth time that night. “Lola. Lola. Lola. Open your eyes. Lola.” JJ teared up, she had never felt so hopeless and useless in her life. “Look at me.” The teenager suddenly opened her eyes, and JJ nodded in encouragement, never stopped looking into her eyes.

Lola’s vision was blurry when she opened her eyes. Her head was pounding and her ears were ringing. It took a while for her to realize who was in front of her. Her eyes finally focused after a while, seeing JJ looking at her with tears in her eyes. She felt the blonde’s hands on her cheeks, caressing lovingly, but Lola also felt how much they were trembling. Using all the little strength she had left, Lola weakly grabbed JJ’s hand, wanting her soft skin to be the last thing she felt, instead of her own blood, before she died.

A few beats and everything went black.

Now, as Emily sat in the hospital with the entire team there, no one speaking, she could not shake the thoughts of having to prepare to come home without her daughter. Having to tell Jack that his little sister had killed herself. She wouldn’t ever survive that. None of them would.

Emily closed her eyes, trying to get the thoughts to go away. She exhaled, gently squeezing JJ’s hand. The blonde hadn’t left Emily’s side since they arrived at the hospital.

Sitting in the waiting room was almost, selfishly, as bad as seeing her daughter on the floor. All the quiet, all the time to think about how long her daughter had been doing this. Emily didn’t miss the faint scars on her arms from what seemed like months prior to this. She didn’t know how they had missed it. Didn’t understand how Lola was in so much pain and they hadn’t seen it.

Emily felt a gentle squeeze back, but this time, it meant something more than comfort. Emily looked up, seeing a doctor walking towards her. She held her breath, putting her free hand where JJ and her were already holding hands, looking at the doctor with expectant eyes.

“Emily, is it?” Emily nodded, seeing Aaron come back from the bathroom. He hurried to Emily’s side when he saw the doctor. “We’ve moved your daughter to a ward.” The woman started. Aaron sat down next to his wife, Emily placing her head on his shoulder as they listened to the doctor, her hands still holding JJ’s tightly. “She’s just come out of surgery. She’ll need to be reviewed by psychiatry tomorrow morning.”

“Is she going to be okay, then?” Aaron asked, his voice hoarse and exhausted. Emily felt the way he sounded.

“We’ll know more tomorrow.” The doctor gave a comforting smile. “Do you want to see her?” Emily and Aaron both immediately nodded. Emily turned to JJ, giving her a small smile before she let go of her hand, feeling a small bit of emptiness at the loss of contact. Aaron placed his arm around Emily’s waist, both of them slightly shaking with nervousness as they followed the doctor down door after door.

Tears burned in Emily’s time again when she saw her daughter on the hospital bed. Seeing Lola so small and vulnerable, with a bandage covering her arm, made Emily quietly gasp. She was afraid she would never stop crying.

Aaron didn’t know what to feel. He didn’t know what to do. He was mad at himself for not noticing just how much his own daughter was suffering. He was sad for not noticing how much his own daughter was suffering. At the same time, he felt numb. The feeling of his daughter’s blood in his hands made him feel so many overwhelming feelings, but he felt numb at the same time.

Two chairs were placed next to the bed and the parents hesitantly sat down, looking at their daughter who was asleep. Emily grabbed her hand, caressing it and saw how many scars Lola had on her arms. Emily quietly whimpered and felt Aaron take Lola’s hand as well. She looked at him. The love of her life, and saw how much he was hurting too. She placed her free hand on his cheek, caressing it as a tear rolled down his cheek. Her thumb delicately brushed it away. She wanted to say something. But she didn’t know what. What are you supposed to say when your daughter slits her wrists?

“She’ll be okay.” Emily ended up saying. She wanted to take it back the second she began the sentence. Aaron said nothing, he just looked down at their hands. “Aaron, honey? Are you listening to me?” Her voice was gentle. “She’s going to be okay.” She didn’t know why she said it again. Aaron nodded, a slight, obviously unsure nod. “Honey… look at me.” He did and when he raised his head, Emily saw how much Aaron wanted to cry. Let it out. Emily prayed that he wouldn’t keep this in until he eventually broke.

Aaron stared at what could’ve been Emily’s face, but she was too good of a profiler to see that his eyes were resting at a spot just past her ear. Silence for a moment and Emily was afraid that she was going to have to beg him to talk.

“…I should have noticed.” The words came so unexpectedly that Emily barely registered what he said. She blinked.

“Aaron…” Emily cooed

“We’re profilers.” He scoffed, his shiny gaze slipping back to their hands. “We’re parents. I missed it.”

“We all did.” Emily spoke. It was true. It was most likely hopeful ignorance, denial. They had all noticed that something was off but they hadn’t given her more than invitations to talk. Aaron, at least, didn’t want to believe that it was anything too serious. He didn’t like to think of his children in pain, and he’d prefer to manipulate himself than to try and fix it. The guilt made him feel nauseous.

“I thought that after Reid, I would notice things like this. Notice if people weren’t okay and be able to keep a close eye on things.”

“She hid it well.” Emily spoke, voice unsure. The words were for her own benefit as well.

“Did she?” Aaron asked, his voice cracking in the slightest way as he looked up at his wife, seeing her hesitant facial expression. Emily didn’t know what to say, so she swallowed the thick feeling in her throat, looking at her daughter again.

Hours went by and the parents fell asleep. Emily was still holding her daughter’s hand, leaning her head on her husband’s shoulder. Aaron kept a hand around her as he leaned his head on hers.

Lola heard soft snores coming from somewhere. It took a moment for her eyes to relax at the harsh light that shone from the ceiling. She swallowed, her throat dry and sore. As soon as she noticed her parents, she felt claustrophobic in her body. She couldn’t quite move. She could wiggle her toes slightly and after a beat, she recognized her mother’s hand in her own. Mustering up strength, she squeezed slightly. The way her mother immediately woke up made Lola feel guilty.

“…Hi, baby.” Emily smiled, leaning closer to kiss Lola’s hand. Aaron also woke up when he heard Emily’s voice, looking at his daughter with so much sadness.

Lola looked at her parents for a moment before she turned her head as much as she could the other way, her feelings and memories catching up to her and she began to cry. Her face contorted into the most heartbreaking frown that made Emily’s heart hurt. She leaned closer, cooing.

“Hey…” She whispered, squeezing Lola’s hand tighter. “Hey, honey.” When Lola began quietly sobbing, Emily hushed her. Aaron placed his hand over Emily’s.

“I’m so sorry.” Lola whimpered, her chest hurting at all her family’s faces. The way JJ looked at her before she had passed out made its way to her mind.

“No, Lola. Don’t apologize.” Aaron spoke, voice gentle as he too, leaned closer.

“I’m so sorry.” Lola continued, feeling so utterly humiliated and embarrassed. She felt guilty for scaring everyone, and she did it all for nothing. It didn’t even work. She was still here. Still alive and with even more feelings of sadness.

“Sweetheart, listen to me.” Emily spoke. Lola turned her head, looking at her parents who seemed to do everything not to break down. “You have nothing to be sorry for. It is not your fault that you’re hurting, okay?” Lola still felt guilty, but she nodded, not wanting her parents to worry anymore. Although, she doubted they would ever stop worrying. They would never trust her to be alone again. She closed her eyes, wanting the ground to just swallow her whole. “We are here for you. Me, your dad, the entire team too. We love you so much, baby.” Lola swallowed her sobs, wanting to ask a question.

“Are you mad at me?” She whispered, her voice trembling. “Is the team mad at me?”

“No, no, no.” Emily shook her head, the concerned frown on her face that she so often had.

“No one is mad at you.” Aaron spoke. “No one. We’re worried, honey. We all love you and we care about you.”

“I’m sorry.” Lola spoke, she couldn’t ever apologize enough for hurting everyone like she did. Emily shook her head, her eyes soft.

“You have nothing to be sorry for.”

[sequinsmile-x]

Fortress

They made sure no one could call their professionalism into doubt and maintained a cautious and safe distance when they were at work. Their love for each other, the way they quietly cared for each other, was limited to looks and subtle nods across a room, a quick meeting of their eyes that reminded them they weren't alone. 

It made her all the more grateful for how they were at home.

AKA the one where Spencer needs a place to stay and ends up staying with the Hotchners.

-x-

Hi besties!

Today is...a rough day. And I'm holding space for all of you who are directly impacted by it. This is pure silly, fluffiness and I hope it makes you smile and provides a small distraction for you today.

This is very loosely based on a b-plot in a Bones episode - if you know, you know.

As always, let me know what you think <3

-x-

Warnings: pregnancy

Words: 4.1k

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

Emily yawns and rests her head on Aaron’s shoulder, allowing herself one last final moment where he is just her husband, and not also her boss, before the elevator makes it to the BAU’s floor.

“Tired?” He asks, turning his head to kiss her temple, and she grumbles, taking the opportunity to turn her head and rest her forehead against his suit jacket before she pulls back to look at him. 

“Exhausted,” she mutters, “And it’s your fault.”

She steps away from him as the elevator doors open, putting space between them as if no one knew they were married. She and Aaron had to fill out endless paperwork to continue working together after they declared their relationship, and they were careful. They made sure no one could call their professionalism into doubt and maintained a cautious and safe distance when they were at work. Their love for each other, the way they quietly cared for each other, was limited to looks and subtle nods across a room, a quick meeting of their eyes that reminded them they weren’t alone. 

It made her all the more grateful for how they were at home. How either one of them would wrap their arms around the other from behind when they were making dinner. How Aaron would curl up behind her in their bed, surrounding her with the warmth and love she couldn’t believe she’d once lived without. They were always touching each other, always within reach, and she loved it. Stored up all the bits of her husband that she could to keep close to her heart when she had to act as if he was just another member of the team. 

“Because it’s my fault we had to be here early because of my meeting?” He asks, looking around them to double check they are alone in the hallway, “Or because of the baby.” 

She shoots him a sharp glance, the blade of it dulled by the smile she can’t hide. She was only 7 weeks along. The news was still fresh, something that would pull a delighted smile out of her whenever she thought of it, her joy almost overwhelming every time it washed over her. 

“Both,” she quips, “And I can’t have coffee. That’s your fault too.” 

He holds the door open for her, smirking as he walks into the bullpen after her, “Sweetheart, you haven’t had coffee in years,” he says, but his smile drops when she throws him another glare and he clears his throat, “I mean, would you like me to make you a cup of tea?” 

“Nice save,” she replies, smiling as she dumps her bag on her desk and sits down, “And yes, please. Maybe I can trick myself into thinking it’s coffee.” 

He smiles and looks around the bullpen, checking once again to make sure they are alone, and he kisses her cheek. He places his briefcase next to her desk and squeezes her shoulder before he turns away, “One cup of tea coming right up.” 

“You’re the best husband ever,” she calls after him without looking back, blowing out a slow breath as she unlocks her computer, idly wondering how on earth she was going to make it through the day without napping. She’s about to open her emails, half a thought about a report she needed to finish for a recent case rolling around her head, when she hears two yells in quick succession from the kitchenette. She furrows her brow and jumps up, walking quickly towards the kitchen, “Aaron, what's…” she trails off as she sets her eyes on her husband standing with his hands on his hip, just a few feet away from the couch that Spencer was sitting on, a blanket over his lap and a pillow at the other end of the couch, “What’s going on here?” 

“That’s exactly what I was about to ask,” Aaron says, raising an eyebrow at Spencer expectantly. 

“My apartment building is being fumigated,” he replies, clearing his throat as he sits up a little straighter, his brain finally catching up with the fact his boss is standing in front of him, “I needed somewhere to stay.” 

“Wait, you’re sleeping here?” Emily asks, and Spencer nods, “Why?” 

He shrugs, as if the answer was obvious, “I had nowhere else to stay.” 

Emily’s about to ask why he didn’t stay in a hotel for a few days when Aaron replies instead, his hands still on his hips as he barely covers a sigh. 

“You can’t sleep in the office,” Aaron says, “How much longer is your building out of bounds?” 

“Until the weekend.” 

Aaron sighs again and turns to Emily, and she knows what he’s thinking, because she’s thinking the same thing. When she first joined the BAU, back when Aaron didn’t trust her and the team were strangers, she never could have imagined that they would become her family. That not only would she find the man she loves, the love of her life and the father of her children, but friends she’d do anything for. 

Even if it did mean blurring the already shaky lines between her home and her work. 

“You can stay with us,” Aaron says as he turns back to Spencer, “We have a spare room and it’s better than you sleeping here.” 

Spencer’s eyes go wide as he looks back and forth between the two of them, “Oh no, I couldn’t-”

“Spencer,” she says, cutting him off, “We’re not taking no for an answer. You can stay with us until your place is free to go home to.” 

He sighs and nods, “Okay. Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome,��� she says, turning to look at Aaron, “Did you manage to make my tea?” 

He nods and reaches for the two mugs he’d somehow managed to not drop when Spencer sat up from the couch and almost gave him a heart attack, “Here you go, sweetheart.” 

She smiles her thanks at him and turns to head back to her desk. She’s just about sat down when Aaron joins her, smiling softly as he grabs his briefcase. 

“Are we going to talk about the scream that came out of you when he sat up?” 

He sighs, failing to hide a smile, “I didn’t scream.” 

“Sure, honey,” she replies, winking at him, “Whatever you say.” 

___

By lunchtime, everyone knows that Spencer is going to be staying with them for a few days. 

Emily eats lunch with Aaron in his office. It was something that had gone from being something she liked to do to something that felt like a necessity. The smell of everyone’s lunch all mixing into one made her stomach turn, nausea she had to fight against so she could eat the plainest of meals to make sure she kept something down. 

She groans as she lays back against the couch in his office, her eyes drifting shut as she chews on a plain cracker, “This baby better be cute.” 

Aaron chuckles and rests his hand on her thigh, “Of course, she’ll be cute. She’s half you.” 

She opens her eyes and looks at him, “She?” 

He shrugs, smiling at her with a twinkle in his eyes that was usually reserved for home, “Just a feeling.” 

She chuckles and rests her hand over his on her lap, “Do you want to find out? When we can?” 

“Haley and I did with Jack, but I think that’s your decision sweetheart,” he says, squeezing her hand, “Since you’re the one who’ll be doing the literal heavy lifting.” 

She hums, “Good answer,” she smiles wryly, “I don’t know. Part of me wants to know as soon as I can. The other part of me…”

“Wants it to be a surprise?” 

She nods and she sinks her teeth into her lower lip, trying and failing to catch a smile that feels nothing short of ridiculous, “Yeah. And I don’t usually like surprises. But this would be the best surprise ever.” 

“We have time to figure it all out,” he says and he winks at her, “And I’ll follow your lead. No matter what.” 

She squeezes his hand three times, a silent way of saying I love you that they’d started exchanging a long time ago, way back when no one knew about them and he’d grab her hand under the table on the jet. It was something that was as precious to her as the words themselves, something that was just for them. 

“I should get back to work,” she says, smiling as she lets go of his hand, “We can’t have anyone claiming you’re showing favouritism.” 

He laughs and stands up at the same time as her, allowing his hand to skip along her lower back as she steps past him, “Between you and me, you’re definitely my favourite. Prentiss.”  

She laughs and winks at him as she opens the door, “You’re my favourite too. Hotch.” 

She steps out onto the walkway, but the rest of the team is too engrossed in their conversation to notice her there, all hunched over a piece of paper on Derek’s desk - apart from Spencer who is sitting at his desk, looking irritated. 

“I’m saying a month.” Penelope says, pulling $20 out of her wallet, “Here you go handsome.” 

“So baby girl has a month,” Derek replies, taking the money from her, “I’ve said two weeks. Rossi?” 

“Three days,” he quips, looking over at Spencer, his smirk visible from the walkway, “No way he lasts longer than that.” 

“Three days,” Derek says, taking the money from Dave, “What about you JJ?” 

“Forever,” she replies, smiling when Spencer tries to intervene but she cuts him off, “I think they’ll adopt him as their own and he’ll live with them forever.” 

Derek frowns, “I don’t have forever. The longest I wrote down is two months.” 

JJ rolls her eyes and slams her money on the table, “Then give me two months.” 

Emily’s mouth falls open in outrage and clears her throat, smirking when they all freeze and look up at her. “Do I get a cut? Considering it’s my life you’re betting on?”

“They said we couldn’t take part because we could sway it in our favour,” Spencer says, his cheeks pink with embarrassment.

Emily scoffs and walks down the stairs, “Well that’s not fair.” 

“Sorry, Princess,” Derek says, counting up the money on his desk, the amount letting her know that it wasn’t just the team who’d entered the bet - but the entire office, “Don’t hate the players, hate the game.” 

___

Emily sighs as she leans back on the couch, letting her eyes drift shut as she gives herself a moment to relax, blowing out a slow breath as she rests her hand on her stomach. 

“You’re sucking the life out of me, baby,” she grumbles, keeping her voice low just in case Spencer or Jack walk past the living room. She knew she was just at the start, that she had so much longer to go, but she was trying to soak it all in. This was something she’d convinced herself she’d never get to have, something that just wasn’t meant to happen for her. There were moments when it still didn’t feel real. Moments that made her almost want to wish time away so she could feel her baby move and kick so she had something tangible to show that this was happening, that she finally had everything she’d ever wanted. She smiles and runs her thumb back and forth over the skin just below her belly button, “But you’re worth it.” 

She almost falls asleep, the sound of Aaron cooking just in the next room, and his low conversation with Spencer who insisted on helping, the white noise that starts to pull her under. 

“Mom?” 

She snaps awake at the sound of Jack’s voice, and she smiles at him, “Hey, sweet boy, are you okay?” 

He nods, his eyebrows furrowed together, “Are you okay? You were asleep.” 

“Oh,” she says, shaking her head as she sits up straight, patting the couch next to her to convince him to sit with her, “I’m okay, I promise. It was just a long day at work.” 

He sighs and sits next to her, his head resting on her shoulder as he snuggles into her side, “You left for work early today.” 

“Exactly,” she replies, kissing his temple, “But I’m fine,” she pulls back to look at him, “How was school?” 

“It was good. We’re learning French, but I told the teacher you know it better than she does.” 

Emily chuckles at that, internally wincing as she thinks of the next parent-teacher conference, and she runs her fingers through his hair, “Well, maybe I can help you with your homework. And maybe if you ask nicely, Uncle Spencer can help you with your homework while he’s here too.” 

Jack nods, “Is he staying forever?” 

She laughs again and thinks of the conversation she’d overheard her friends have, and she shakes her head, “No, honey, he’s not staying forever. Just until his apartment is safe to go back to,” she explains, and Jack sighs, the disappointment in it forcing her to hide a smile, “Why? Do you want him to stay?” 

He shrugs, “I dunno. It’s kind of like having a brother I guess.” 

She has to stifle a sigh, has to stop herself from almost saying, for the second time that day, that Spencer was only 11 years younger than her, but she’s overwhelmed by a different thought. Ever since she and Aaron had started trying, she’d been worried about how Jack would feel about becoming a big brother. She never wanted to make him feel like he wasn’t enough for her, never wanted him to think that her not being his biological mother was a factor in the decision to have another baby. 

“Is that something you’d want?” 

He shrugs again, “I guess. Or a sister. A sister would be better.” 

She kisses his temple and hides a smile against his hair, “Well, I’ll see what I can do. But Spencer can’t stay forever,” she says, leaning in as if she’s whispering a conspiracy, wanting to move the conversation on so she doesn’t accidentally let something slip, “He has the same birthday as me, and I don’t want to share the cake you and Daddy make me every year.” 

He laughs, and the sound tugs at her heart, fills the space around it until she feels like she can’t breathe whilst she’s overwhelmed by love for him. She thinks she might start crying, her famous hold on her emotions already loosening because of her pregnancy hormones, her grip slipping more and more each day in a way that made her worry about what things would be like further along. She’s saved when Aaron calls down the hallway, letting her and Jack know it’s dinner time, and Jack runs off ahead of her, excited and already telling Aaron he wants to pick what piece of the lasagne he’s going to eat. It gives her a few seconds to gather herself, her eyes closed as she blows out a slow breath before she stands up. 

“Sweetheart?” 

She looks at Aaron and smiles, “I’m okay,” she assures him, her smile only getting wider as he gives her the same concerned look Jack had earlier, “Just tired.”

He nods, “Think you can manage some lasagne?” He asks, and she must go green, the wave of nausea she feels at the mention of it almost knocking her off her feet, “I made some plain pasta for you if you want it, I told Reid you’re coming down with something and don’t want to eat anything too rich. Or I could do some toast?” 

She smiles and walks over, wrapping her arms around him so she can kiss him. He wraps his arms around her too, taking the time to pass his hand over her flat stomach. She stamps her lips against his before she pulls back, “You’re the best. The pasta will be fine.” 

She leans in to kiss him again but stops when she hears a throat clearing from behind them, and she presses her lips together as she sees Spencer standing just a few feet away, a plate of dinner in each hand, his eyes slightly wide as if he’d walked in on more than them just exchanging a simple kiss. Aaron steps away from her like he’s been burned, his eyes also wide, and she bites back a sigh, irritation she knows isn’t strictly fair aimed at him and Spencer for the disruption to her affection for her husband. 

“I’ll go get your food, Em,” Aaron says, smiling tightly at her, a flicker of an apology in it as if he’d only just realised how he’d jumped away from her, “Why don’t you go and sit in the dining room with Jack and Spencer?”

She hums and narrows her eyes at him, letting him know he’s in trouble later, but then she nods, wrapping her arm around Jack’s shoulders as he stands next to her. Unlike his father, he doesn’t hide away from her affection in Spencer’s presence, and she takes that as a win. 

“Come on kiddo, let’s eat.”

___

She collapses into bed, half asleep as she lies right in the middle because Sergio is taking up most of her side of the bed. She has her arms wrapped around Aaron’s pillow as he gets ready for bed in the bathroom, seeking out the scent of him that remains on it. 

She knew they’d done the right thing taking Spencer in, that they couldn’t in good conscience leave him to sleep in the office, but she hadn’t considered the potential consequences. Aaron had kept a respectable distance from her most of the evening. She was used to it at work, but not here - not in their home. She knew he was private, she was too, but she hated the awkwardness she’d felt when he simply placed his arm around her shoulders when they all settled down to watch a movie.  

Spencer had sat next to Jack and told him all the inaccuracies in Finding Nemo, something that the little boy had enjoyed greatly. Occasionally, Emily would notice Spencer studying them, watching them in moments when he thought they weren’t paying attention, taking the opportunity to learn more about them in their own environment. 

She grumbles when she hears the bathroom door open, and she buries her face in Aaron’s pillow as he sits on the bed, the mattress shifting beneath him. 

“Sweetheart,” he says, pushing her hair out of her face, “If you move over we can cuddle.”

She hums and moves just enough for him to slip into bed too, curling around him the moment she can, her head on his chest and her hand she sneaks it under his t-shirt, “Your kid hates me.” 

“Jack?” He asks, furrowing his brows, and she scoffs, lightly slapping his chest as she mutters her response against him.

“Not Jack. The one living inside of me.” 

He kisses the top of her head and rubs a circle on her back, “The baby doesn’t hate you, Em. It’s normal to feel like this.” 

“I know,” she grumbles, “Doesn’t make it any easier though,” she tightens her hold on him, gets impossibly closer as she all but tries to climb under his skin. It makes him frown, concern sparking in his gut as he reciprocates, forever keen to make sure she has exactly what she needs.  

“Are you okay?” He asks, tucking her hair behind her ear as he encourages her to look up at him.

She shrugs, her cheeks burning now she has to think of a way to say it outloud, “It’s stupid.” 

“You’ve never been stupid a moment in your life,” he says, running his knuckles down her cheek, chasing the smile she tries and fails to hide, “You can tell me anything, you know that.” 

She sighs and she nods, “I just…missed you tonight. That’s all.” 

His frown deepens, “I’ve been home all night.” 

She shakes her head and sighs again, this one rattling around as it passes from her chest to his, “Forget it. Like I said, it’s stupid-”

“Em,” he says, stroking her cheek again, “It’s not stupid. Just…tell me what you mean?” 

“I…I’m used to having to try to act like we aren’t together at work. I’m not used to having to do it here. And with Spencer here tonight it was just…different. That’s all. I missed us being us, I guess.” 

He pauses, tries to figure out how to respond for a moment, and then he pulls her against him again, holds her as close as he possibly can, “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t mean to pull away like that. I’ll try and do better, and maybe we can tell him to stay somewhere else?” 

She shakes her head, “We can’t do that. It would be like kicking a puppy or something,” she mumbles, “Plus it’s only for a few days. I can make do. As long as we still have this.” 

He smiles against the top of her head, “We’ll always have this.” 

She tilts her head up to look at him, “Even when I’m the most pregnant person to ever exist and there’s a whole baby between us?” 

“Even then,” he says, leaning down to kiss her, “I’ll just hold both of you.”

She kisses him again, “Good answer. Again. You’re two for two, Hotchner,” she yawns, the sound turning into a moan as she buries her face in his chest, “As soon as I don’t feel like I’ve never slept a day in my life I’ll repay you in sexual favours.” 

___

The next morning, she walks into the office with Aaron and Spencer, and she actively ignores the smirks on their friend’s faces as they approach. 

“Oh look, it’s the Hotchner family,” Derek says, leaning back in his chair with a grin all over his face that Emily wanted to slap away. 

“Shut up, Derek,” she grumbles, something that only seems to pull another laugh out of her friends. 

“Wow, someone hasn’t had caffeine yet today. Want some tea?” Penelope says, a spark of mischief in her eyes, and before Emily can respond Spencer cuts in

“Actually, she already had a mug of tea at home which has approximately 75mg of caffeine based on the type of tea, so because of the baby it isn’t recommended that she has any more this morning.” 

For a moment, it’s silent. Quiet in a way it rarely was, before all of them, her and Aaron included, react in the same way. 

“What?” 

Spencer’s eyes go wide as he realises he’s said something he shouldn’t have, and he swallows thickly, “Well, you didn’t eat dinner last night, and you haven’t eaten lunch with us for over a week. And Hotch kept touching your…” he trails off as he points at her stomach, “I don’t think either of you noticed.” 

“You…” she trails off, shaking her head as she looks at her husband, knowing there was no point in trying to lie now. She looks at the team, their excitement barely contained before she sighs and nods, “Yes. I’m pregnant,” she holds up her hand to cut off Penelope before she explodes and pulls her into a hug, “But I’m only 7 weeks along,” she throws Spencer a look, “We weren’t planning on telling anyone quite yet.” 

JJ smiles, “Congratulations, Em. We’re happy for you.” 

“Thank you,” she replies, looking at Aaron again, smiling at the soft look in his eyes, “We’re happy too.” 

“Congrats, princess,” Derek says, placing his hand on her shoulder and squeezing before he turns to Dave, “I think this means you won.” 

Aaron frowns, “Won what?” 

Dave sighs and crosses his arms over his chest, “We knew you were pregnant, we put a bet on when you were going to tell us.” 

“What?” Emily says again, crossing her arms over her chest, “How the hell did you know?” 

“You practically turned green at the mention of Derek’s breakfast sandwich the other day,” JJ replies, shrugging her shoulders, “And you’re glowing.” 

She scoffs, “I think that’s the morning sickness,” she smiles, “But thanks,” she steps back so she’s close to Aaron, wanting him close by even if she can’t wrap her arm around him, “But you guys have got to stop placing bets on what’s happening in our lives. First on how long Reid was going to stay with us and now this.” 

Aaron tenses next to her, his shoulders tight as he looks at her, his confusion close to endearing when their eyes meet, “Wait, what?” 

[forhappysake]

[sunlightgalaxy]

Aaron

my gif | read on AO3

Aaron Hotchner x Emily Prentiss

summary: following a surprisingly emotional case for the usually well-tempered boss, hotch seeks out comfort in his favorite dark-haired agent, which obviously leads to a confession or two.

wc: 2335

warnings: none (?)

a/n: alternate ending to 7x10 the bittersweet science (the bloodlusting boxer). first fic i have written in two years pls be nice feedback is so appreciated xox enjoy!!

Any case involving kids is tough on the team, especially those who have one of their own. Factor in a young boy dying, however, and that’s enough to make move the usually stoic Aaron Hotchner to tears.

Which is exactly what was happening in that hospital room, Hotch having brought unsub Jimmy Hall to spend his last moments with his son. Standing far back enough to give the family some privacy, but still keeping an eye on the suspect of course, Hotch did his best to ignore the heartbreaking scene in front of him.

“You fought a hell of a fight, Ryan,” Hall spoke through sobs, his ex-wife a mess on the opposite side of the bed. Hotch felt it then, a salty droplet staining his face, and another one trickling to the floor. His expression never changed, however, doing as much as he could to maintain his professional look.

Emily and Rossi had met Hotch and Spencer at the hospital after learning of the outcome of Hall’s match, citing their presence as a second duo to help escort the unsub back to the precinct. In reality, Emily’s brain had gone on autopilot, creating such an excuse to mask her real reason for coming. She knew what Hotch would be feeling in those moments in that room, and she couldn’t bear for him to deal with it alone, if he even did at all.

Rossi didn’t mind this, of course. He always sensed the romantic tension between the two since his first day back in the unit, him and the other 5 team members having a bet going on how long it would take for the spark to finally be ignited. So, when he and Emily reached Spencer in the hallway outside of the Hall room, the three agents lined up against the wall.

Spencer made a bit of small talk about the case that had now begun the closing process, but in all honesty, Emily didn’t hear a word that was said. Her eyes were fixated on the man opposite the small pane of glass, his emotionless expression unwavering.

The three of them heard the unwelcome tone of the monitor flatlining, looking amongst each other solemnly. Minutes later, the door was opening as Hotch wheeled the unsub out of the room. Wordlessly, Rossi took the chair from the other man and begun leading him towards his own room, while Spencer brought his ex-wife in the opposite direction to console here. Aaron replaced Spencer’s position next to Emily on the wall, his eyes fixating on a painting across from the two of them.

“Rossi said he would take care of all the paperwork at the precinct and close up,” Emily spoke, turning to look at the man next to her. If she looked close enough, she could see the faint tear stain on his left cheek. “Let’s go back to the hotel, I’ll drive.”

Aaron nodded, wordlessly beginning to walk with Emily towards where she had left the car just hours before. Their hands found each other as soon as the hospital door closed, making both of their heart rates jump ever so slightly, though both would just chalk it up to the events of the night.

Aaron, ever the gentleman, opened the driver’s side door for Emily before slipping into the seat beside her. He wasn’t surprised by the blush creeping up her cheeks, he noticed it the first time he made the same gesture all those years ago. She turned on the car and begun the short drive back to their hotel. Classical music quietly played through the car radio, and Emily often turned to look at Hotch. She would see him staring out the window each time, but that’s because she was focused on the road each time he would steal a glance.

Soon enough, the pair arrived at the hotel, making their way to the elevator. The ride to the 12th floor was short, but felt like eternity for the two of them. Both lost in their own thoughts about love and life and death, neither noticed how close the other was until their arms brushed against each other. Aaron turned to Emily and looked down at her, a ghost of a smile on his face. A sad smile, but one nonetheless. She looked up, and he could sense the concern in her eyes.

“Thank you for the ride back, Prentiss,” he said softly, his brain itching to brush the fallen piece of hair behind her ear.

“You don’t have to thank me, Hotch,” Emily laughed quietly. “That’s what teammates are for.” She immediately had to hold back a wince at her word choice, knowing damn well she just friendzoned her boss. Then again, she didn’t feel as if this was the time or place to confess to feelings she’d been harboring for nearly five years. “Will you be alright tonight?” She asked to change the subject, out of concern for both her dignity and her boss’ mental state.

“I always am, Prentiss,” Hotch spoke as the elevator came to a stop. The two walked down the same hallway, Emily stopping at her door first. “Goodnight, Emily. Get some rest,” Aaron said softly, his hand brushing against Emily’s back in a way that toed the line of professionalism.

Emily did her best to not freeze at the touch of her boss in what some would consider to be quite a sensual spot. “Thank you, you too,” she managed to get out in a relatively normal tone. “Goodnight, Aaron.” Hotch gave Emily a nod before retreating to his own room, just a few doors down.

The first thing Emily did when entering her room for the night was turn the shower on and dig through her go-bag for the most comfortable clothing she could find. Hopping into the shower, she let the near-boiling water run over her skin as if she was trying to cook away the details of this case. After standing in the shower for what very well could’ve been over an hour, she stepped out and put on her clothes. She was just about to get into bed when there was a knock at her door. Assuming it would be JJ, she didn’t bother throwing on a hoodie before opening the door.

That felt like a mistake to her when she found Aaron opposite the door frame. It felt even worse when she became painfully aware that his eyes were briefly on her low cut, extremely cropped red tank top, which left hardly anything to imagination. And then she watched his eyes make their way to her low-rise sweatpants. Truly she could never feel more embarrassed than in that moment.

“Is everything alright?” Emily asked as she brought her arms up to her chest, itching to draw attention away from her. “Do we have another case?”

“No, no new case,” Hotch spoke quietly, meeting Emily’s gaze. “Do you mind if I just come in for a bit?” He looked away, almost embarrassed to be seeking out company from his subordinate at such an hour. Emily didn’t see it that way, of course, mainly because she could feel the emotions radiating off of Aaron.

“Of course you can,” she smiled and moved out of the way to let the older man in. Shutting the door, they both moved to sit on the edge of the king-sized bed. The pair sat in silence, but it was comfortable - neither felt any pressure to speak like they would if they were in the presence of anyone else. After a while, however, Emily wanted to say something, she just didn’t know what. She turned to look at the man next to her, who she found staring at the wall as tears slowly fell. “Oh, Aaron,” she sighed, putting her hand to his face and turning him to look at her. Her heart damn near broke at seeing him in such pain, the feeling reminiscent of when she had been there for him after he had lost Haley. She pulled him into a hug instinctively, his head seeking solace on her chest as she rubbed soothing circles into his skin. Neither were aware of the eroticism behind the position in that moment, both focused on the hurt and comforting in the present.

“I have no idea why this is affecting me so deeply,” Aaron laughed. “It’s not funny,” he added after seeing the woman’s puzzled look at his chuckle. “I usually have no true emotional reaction when cases involve kids, or the kids of unsubs, but this time I did and I can’t figure out why.”

His hands felt around until it found hers once again, the two of them grasping at each other like it was a lifeline.

“I think it’s because you saw that boy dying and it triggered you to think about what could’ve happened that day,” Emily said, looking at Aaron as he wiped a tear from his face. She didn’t have to specify what day or who could’ve died, they both knew what she meant.

“Doesn’t help that Dave’s been up my ass about dating too,” Aaron added, grabbing Emily’s attention even more. She couldn’t possibly figure out how that had to do with the idea of Jack dying. “He’s been pushing me to date since it’s been almost two years since Haley died, and I think you’re right, the details of this case must have triggered something in me.”

”Grief hits us in the least expecting places,” Emily commented.

“That it does,” Aaron agreed, turning his gaze back to the way. Emily did the same, and the two were silent again for a while.

“Rossi’s right though,” Emily said after a while, eyes staring at the same spot on the wall as the man next to her. “You probably should start dating again.”

“I’ve already had my eye on someone for a while,” Aaron said softly. This time it was him turning to look at the younger woman, using his hand to bring her head towards him before she even had a chance to react to his words. “And I know she’s been doing the same.”

“Really?” Emily asked, feigning innocence. “How do you know she’s into you?”

”There’s a reason they made me the leader of this team,” Aaron said, the insinuation that Emily doubted his ever so present profiling skills making her blush. “But in all honesty, she’s always there when I need her most, even if I don’t realize it myself at the time.” Emily smiled softly at that moment, her cheeks nearly burning as she used her free hand to fiddle with the waistband of her pants. “Plus, she loves to wear a certain red tank top on days when I have a perfect view,” Aaron added, making Emily laugh. His face moved closer to hers, as if asking for permission. Emily nodded and not a moment later, his lips were on hers, encapsulating them in a soft yet passionate kiss.

They broke apart after a while, when it got to the point when air became necessary. “Thank you,” Aaron smiled at her, wrapping his arms around Emily.

“For kissing you?” Emily joked softly. “I’m kidding, I know what you meant,” she added, pulling him into a hug. “I will always be there for you, no matter what.” Her hands ran through his hair, his making their way to the small of her back. “Would you like to stay the night?” She asked. Realizing how suggestive that sounded, especially after the past few minutes, she added quickly, “That way you don’t have to be alone tonight.”

“I’d like that, thank you, Em,” Aaron smiled. The two broke away, climbing under the covers. Their bodies drew to each other like magnets do to metals, reaching for each other until it was impossible to move any further.

“Is that really what gave it away?” Emily asked, moving her head into his chest as the two settled down for the night. “The red tank top?”

”Sort of, but it’s not what really confirmed my thoughts.”

“Well, what was it then?” Emily asked, wanting to know her tell.

”You called me Aaron today,” he said, planting a kiss to her temple. “Twice actually. You hadn’t done that since you found me in the hospital after Foyet got to me, and then again after Haley. And it slips out sometimes when we’re in private.”

”Oh,” Emily said sheepishly, a smile creeping up her face. “I guess I didn’t really try too hard to keep it professional.”

”Oh I didn’t mind one bit,” Aaron laughed, putting his arm around his girl, feeling her breathing even out as they both drifted to sleep.

***

”So, have you taken my advice?” Rossi asked, sitting across from Hotch on the jet. With the case closed and nothing but paperwork to look forward to at the office, the team resorted to their favorite pastime of gossiping. Today’s topic of conversation seemed to have focused itself on the boss man’s dating life, as it so happened to be recently.

“You’ll be happy to know I have a date on Friday,” Aaron said simply, his attention not leaving his paperwork. Emily’s attention was piqued, however, her eyes raising up from her book.

“Atta boy Hotch!” Morgan said excitedly, clapping Aaron’s back from the next seat over. “Who’s the lucky lady?”

“You hardly know her,” Aaron commented, eliciting a scoff from a certain blonde across the table.

“I saw what room you went into last night,” JJ said, causing eyes to fall on the only other woman on the jet.

“That was for work business only!” Emily exclaimed. It technically wasn’t a lie, he had come in to discuss the feelings regarding the case.

“Em, I saw him leave your room late this morning when I came back from the gym,” JJ said, eliciting a blush from the raven haired woman as she nudged her.

“Aw man!” Morgan yelled, drawing the attention to himself. “Penelope owes me 50 bucks!”

[ssaemilyhotchner]

there is so much i have said over the past decade about hotch and emily dancing at the end of 7x24, and yet still so much more i could possibly say.

i frequently come back to how it felt to watch this scene for the first time when the ep first aired - the euphoria, the grief, the claws around my heart.

it was, for me and so many others who were online at the time, the perfect embodiment of what shipping can be for people. the scene in question was, for all intents and purposes, the last time we thought we would ever see the character of emily prentiss again. and so if you really wanted to view it uncharitably, you could have seen that scene as the ultimate dashing of hopes that our ship would ever become canon. but by and large, that's just not how we saw it in real time.

instead, there was this sense of true joy, a perfect culmination, closure, bittersweet and blissful. closure to have gotten them acknowledging each other's tells. smiles, tenderness, attention. it's a date.

and then.

then we got hotch pulling emily to him. we got the juxtaposition of how he looks dancing with beth compared to how he looks dancing with emily - gone is the levity and in its stead is a deep intimacy, understanding, and gentleness that undergirds so many of their interactions throughout the series. (and again, you have to realize, this is before we knew what we know now - that emily would not just return but take up the mantle of unit chief at his request, that she would risk death for him and his son. we couldn't have imagined that then and it was still this clarion moment of yes, this is what we have been seeing all along represented in technicolor on the screen.)

i will always be silly about hotch and emily, but i will also always be so deeply serious about their pairing. i just love them.

[cloudlessly-light]

Could you write a story where Emily has self image problems and doesn't like looking in mirrors. When Aaron finds out gets her to sit against him facing a mirror, with her legs hooked over his. And then fingers her, but won't let her come till she looks at herself. And then after fucks her while making her look at them. The whole time he calls her his pretty girl, and tells her everything thing she does, and every part of her is pretty, with very dirty language.

The whole time Aaron his clothed and Emily is naked, Dom Aaron and Sub Emily.

Title: Right now you’re all that I need Summary:He never would have thought that she’d be insecure about her looks, she radiated confidence on any given day, demanded respect as she walked into a room. She was beautiful, stunning to the point of injustice in his eyes. And he often wondered how she couldn’t see herself that way. Word count: 4,1k Rating: Explicit Warnings: Smut, fingering, dirty talk, praise, praise kink, orgasm control, choking/breathplay, insecurities, self-esteem issues, mirror sex, Aaron is a talker in the bedroom, I don’t make the rules I just follow them

He notices it the first time only a few months into her joining the team, the slightly narrowed eyebrows and pursing of her lips as they stand in an elevator that has a mirrored wall. He doesn’t think much of it, after all it’s only there for a split second. But then he notices it again a couple of weeks later. She comes back with drinks and instead of sitting down at her original seat, she takes Derek’s empty one, he only notices when her shiny hair caught his attention in the mirror behind the bar and he realizes that she’s now sitting with her back to it, instead of facing it. He wonders if anybody else notices.  

But it’s subtle, how she manages to always stand facing away from her own reflection, a skill she must have practiced for years. And he still doesn’t give it much thought.

But then they start dating and he watches the way she scrutinized her face in the mirror as she’s getting ready for work, sees how she sometimes changes clothes four or five times before she’s ready to go out for date night. She tries to hide it, but he’s Aaron and he notices everything.

He never would have thought that she’d be insecure about her looks, she radiated confidence on any given day, demanded respect as she walked into a room. She was beautiful, stunning to the point of injustice in his eyes. And he often wondered how she couldn’t see herself that way.

They fall in love, and he makes sure to tell her she’s beautiful every day, but she would always brush it off, something that irritated him to no end. He couldn’t understand how she couldn’t see what he saw. He tried talking to her about it, and she would gently shut him down with a sad smile and soft eyes.

“I never liked looking at myself, I’m not sure why.”

It was a lie and they both knew it.

Things get a little clearer whenever her mother was around, which wasn’t often. But her subtle digs at her daughter didn’t go unnoticed and it is only Emily’s hand on his thigh, fingers digging into the muscle, that keeps him in control of his anger.

He spends hours trying to show her just how gorgeous she is, how unfairly perfect she is.

It doesn’t really work, so after trying to talk to her multiple times and trying to show her how beautiful she is, he comes up with something else instead. 

“Good morning, gorgeous.” He greets her as he sips coffee in the kitchen as he had waited for Emily to wake up.

“Morning.” She wasn’t a morning person but he still managed to put a smile on her face. She pressed a quick kiss to his lips before making a b-line towards the coffee.

Aaron took a moment to just look at her, hair slightly messy from sleep, one of his old shirts on her body, eyes still sleepy, she was stunning. Even on her worst days she was beaituful and he hated that she didn’t think the same.

“Did you sleep okay?” He comes to stand behind her, lets himself inhale the scent of her and smiles when she shivers at the way his stubble tickles her skin.

“Like a log.” She leans back against his chest, a lazy sigh leaving her as he noses at her hairline.

“Good.” He turns her head enough to be able to look into her eyes. “You’ll need your strength today, sweet thing.”

She catches on in an instant, the knowing smirk and dark eyes familiar and her breathing hitches.

They had fallen into exploration of kink easily, something Emily had always dabbled in and something Aaron had always wanted to try. Now, almost a year later it’s easy to fall into their roles when alone at home.

“Yes, sir.” Her voice is just above a whisper, already breathy and low and he smiles against her lips.

“Good girl.” He claims her lips in a kiss and his hands make their way under the hem of her shirt, fingers gentle against the skin of her hips.

The sound of his phone going off, breaks their bubble and forces them apart.

“It’s Sunday.” She sighs as she peers over his shoulder at his phone, a 911 from JJ.

“I know sweetheart, but we have to go.”

His plans would just have to wait until later.

Later turns into almost a week later, the case taking longer than any of them would have thought. But they fly home from New York and Aaron decides that the paperwork could wait until the morning. It was already late afternoon, and they’d all had a tough week. So he sends them all home, more than happy to get into his car with Emily and drive to their apartment instead of heading to the office.

“You’re planning something.” She says, her tone although teasing, still laced with curiosity.

“That’s not for you to worry about, pretty thing.” His hand falls to her thigh and squeezes. “You just need to be good for me.”

“Yes sir.” She catches the way he grins at her obedience and she feels herself shiver in excitement.

When they get home, Aaron is quick to start on dinner while she goes to shower, a habit she’s had for as long as she remembers. When she comes back wearing a pair of tights and one of his shirts, Aaron is just about to set the table. They eat together, talking about the week and office drama and Jack until their plates are empty and she gets up to load the dishwasher.

“When you’re done, come to the bedroom.” He husks and she feels goosebumps erupt on her skin in response to his dark look and his firm hold on the back of her neck.

“Okay.” She breathes and accepts the kiss he stamps to her lips before disappearing down the hall.

He makes quick work once he’s in the bedroom, grabs the large mirror that hangs on the wall next to their walk in and leans it against the wall facing the foot of the bed. When he sits down on the bed he can see himself perfectly and he smirks to himself.

Emily walks in only a couple of minutes later but stops when he lifts his hand.

“Strip, I want you naked.” He orders, eyes steady on hers. “Then you’re going to sit right here.” He pats the space between his spread legs as he leans against the headboard.

The flush on her cheeks creep down to her chest as she does what he says, eyes obediently on the floor. She leaves the clothes in a pile on the floor, something he knows she does just to irritate him, and if it weren’t for what he was already planning he would have given her a warning for that. By the time she’s crawling between his legs, he can already feel the uncomfortable confide of his pants against his hard cock, but this wasn’t about him so he would wait.

“Sit between my legs, pretty girl.” He helps her turn until she’s seated comfortably, her back flush to his chest. It’s only a second later that she notices the mirror and she tenses and he’s quick to wrap one arm around her, his thumb rubbing soothingly over her ribs as she twists around to look at him.

“Aaron…” She looks at him with wide eyes and parted lips. “What is this? What are you doing?”

“I think it’s about time you start to learn to see what I see.” He feels the tension in her body, can see the apprehension on her face and for a second he wonders if this might be pushing for too much too fast.

“I-I don’t think this is a good idea.” She feels anxiety knotting in her stomach as she gnaws her bottom lip. Her body is still twisted uncomfortably, hiding away from her own reflection to seek the safety of his body.

“Why not?” His voice is a low whisper, his eyes so soft and gentle, something he rarely was when they were doing a scene, but something she needed right then.

“I just, I don’t think I can.” She leans into his warm hand when he cups her cheek and she offers a small smile in return to let him know that she was okay, even through her uncomfortableness she was okay.

“How about this, you can close your eyes, but I want to be able to watch you? And if you still want to stop, we will at any point.”

The seconds it takes for her to think about it seems like an eternity.

“Okay.” She finally breathes and as she relaxes slightly, he does too.

“Good girl.” He kisses her softly and when she falls into him he lets his hands start to wander across her body, caressing soft skin and trailing over the familiar dips and valleys until her breathing is getting ragged and she willingly turns back so she’s seated against him.

Her eyes stay closed as he pulls her legs apart to rest over his own, spreading her wide for his searching hands and greedy eyes. When his breathing hitches at the sight she feels her cheeks burn from the exposure. Logically she knows he’s seen her in every position possible, but something about knowing he’s watching her reflection somehow feels more intimate than anything they’ve done before. But she forces those thoughts away and instead focuses on the way his hands feel on her body.

“You’re so pretty, sweetheart.” He breathes against her ear as he cups her breast in each hand, trapping her nipples and twisting slightly. “Perfect.”

Her back arches, pushing her chest further into his hands, a low gasp leaving her parted lips when he bites down on her earlobe. His hands are warm, the familiarity of his gun-calloused fingers soothing as he slowly moves them down her sides, then further down to ghost over her center. When he grabs the inside of her thigh hard she doesn’t expect it and a sound of surprise leaves her and she hears his snicker against her ear.

Everything felt heightened without her eyesight and soon enough she had forgotten about the mirror, her hips buckling slightly in search of his touch, his hands moving everywhere he could reach, except where she needed him.

“Fuck, pretty thing.” His voice is rough, a vibration against her back as he speaks. “That’s my girl, so needy.” His eyes are glued to her reflection, taking in her flushed skin and body that seemed to tremble with need, need for him. It’s a power rush unlike any other and when he licks the sweat of the skin of her neck she mewls his name, the sound is breathy and low.

“Please touch me.” She whispers when she feels one of his hands travelling up her thigh, up, up, up until his fingers are met by her slick.

“I am touching you.” He smirks at her exasperated huff, can see her scrunched eyebrows in the reflection, her eyes still closed, but more relaxed than they had been in the beginning. Her tongue peeks out to lick her lips and if he could he would have taken a picture of her like this.

It’s not until her hips jerk into his hand again that he takes pity on her. He lets one finger drag from her clit and through her folds slowly and Emily moans in response, her head falling against his shoulder. One of his hands move to her chest, pinching and tweaking one of her nipples again as he pushes his finger inside of her, giving her little relief.

“Fuck Emily, you’re so pretty like this.” He growls and she whimpers at the rasp of it. He pinches her nipple hard and she cries out, the pain of it making her clit ache with need. “My perfect thing.”

“Please, please I need more.” She feels his lips curl into a smirk against her neck, knew the slightly sadistic look in his eyes even without looking.

“Can you feel me sweetheart?” He asks and pushes another finger inside of her, hooking them inside of her and making her hips buckle and a moan to fall from her lips. “Can you feel how hard you make me?” He grinds the palm of his hand against her clit and her hand comes to grab his wrist tightly, her nails digging into his skin. “Looking at you like this, fuck you’re driving me crazy.” His hips rut up against her back, impossibly hard inside of his slacks.  

She tries to reach behind her to touch him, but he’s quick to grab her hand and hold it down against her stomach as his arm wraps around her middle to keep her still, his other hand starting to move faster between her thighs.

“Fuck, Sir I’m close.” She’s panting, her body covered in a thin sheen of sweat as he rubs his hand against her clit and his fingers scissors inside of her.

“I know.” He gasps at the way her walls are tightening around his fingers, her nails close to breaking the skin of his wrist as he brings her closer. “Open your eyes.”

She can barely hear him through the pleasure, her body searching for release as he keeps her tight against him.

“What?” She tries twisting in his grasp but he easily pins her.

“If you want to come, open your eyes.” He slows his movements, feeling her tense against him. When she lets out a sound somewhere between a whine and a whimper, he withdraws his fingers completely and instead starts to rub her clit in circles. “Or do you want to stop?”

“No.” She says quickly, her mind reeling from the orgasm he’s keeping just out of reach. But she can’t bring herself to open her eyes.

“You’re missing out, sweet girl.” He keeps the pressure on her clit light, the rubbing slow but steady, knowing that it would keep her on edge. “You look gorgeous, moaning so prettily for me.” His eyes are trained of her face, looking for any sign that they needed to quit, that he was pushing her too far, but couldn’t find any.

“Aaron,” She breathes, her tongue once again licking over her bottom lip. “Please don’t stop.” Like she knew his hesitation, her words keep him going, his fingers resuming to rub over her clit and his arm tightening around her middle to keep her pinned against him.

“Such a good girl, even when you disobey my order.” He hums against her ear, the sound amused and laced with satisfaction, because he knew she’d break, that she’d do what he asked of her. He thinks she knows it too.

Without warning he thrusts his fingers back inside of her, immediately drawing a high pitched moan as he sets a quicker, rougher pace. The arm wrapped around her loosens and he wraps his hand around her throat, applying just enough pressure to make her gasp.

“If I could, I would take a picture of you like this, use it as my phone background so show everyone just how fucking perfect you are. I’d use those pretty moans of yours as my ringtone, I’d display you for everyone to see, because you’re the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever fucking seen.” The slick sound of his fingers against her mixes with his words in her ears, pushing her toward the edge again in record time.

“Fuck, please Aaron please let me come.” She begged, swallowing desperately against his hand around her throat, her body slowly starting to shake against his.

“I’m the luckiest man in this world, getting to have you, to see you like this, wake up next to you every morning. You should be worshiped.” He keeps his eyes on their reflection, catches his own wild look of want as she squirms and gasps and moans as her pussy starts to clench around his fingers again. “If you only saw what I saw, if you knew how unbelievable you look right now, pretty thing. Come on, open your eyes, look at you, a fucking goddess who’s blessed my life.”

She can’t think, she can barely breathe, she had completely forgotten about the mirror in front of them. So she opens her eyes, and what she sees staring back at her is someone she doesn’t quite recognize, dark eyes and wild hair, cheeks tinted pink and puffy lips, she looks sexy, bare and exposed against his clothed body, his eyes just as wild and dark as hers, a look of want and desperation on his face.

“Good girl, fuck aren’t you so pretty?” His eyes stay on hers in the mirror and when she nods, he smiles. “Tell me you’re my pretty girl.”

“I-I’m your pretty girl.” She gets out through strangled breaths and he ruts against her back again. But she can barely focus on it, because his hand his tightening around her neck and his hand is moving faster between her legs, rubbing against her clit and adding a third finger, stretching her. And then she comes with a deep groan, back arching and hips grinding into his hand as her eyes stay on their reflection. Through the pleasurable bliss he’s creating she can’t look away, the vision of herself somehow making her come harder, making the power of her release even stronger.

“Good girl, my gorgeous thing, you did so good for me.” He mumbles against her ear as she calms, her body still twitching and eyelids heavy as she smiles lazily. It isn’t until she’s slumped against him, trying to catch her breath that he lets go of her neck and wraps both arms around her. “Are you alright?”

“I’m perfect.” She twists enough to kiss him. “Thank you.” She mumbles against his lips and he smiles against hers.

“We’re not done yet.” He kisses her again, deeper this time, his tongue delving into her mouth and she moans into it. “On your hands on and knees.” He mutters once they’ve pulled apart. “Facing the mirror.”

She does what he says, even though it feels a bit strange now, when the veil of arousal is lifted. Her eyes stay on the sheets, head down as she avoids looking up. She hears the sound of his zipper, feels one of his hands on her hip and then hears the low sound of relief from him.

“Eyes up.” He orders as he strokes himself, the tip of his cock nudging against her slick cunt. When she doesn’t do what he says he grabs a fistful of her hair and pulls her head back, the pained gasp from her like music to his ears. He searches her face for a moment, his eyes on hers in the mirror as he rubs his cock through her folds. “Should we stop?”

She knows that they would in a heartbeat if she asked him to, but as she looked at him she found that she didn’t want to, that whatever mental blockage that had existed for so long, suddenly seemed gone.

“No, don’t.” She whispered and she saw her body flushing with the request. He gives her another few seconds to change her mind, his hand loosening in her hair and eyes locked on hers. But she nods and it’s enough for him.

He’s still dressed in his suit, having only gotten his cock out through the fly of his pants and then having Emily completely naked while he was still fully clothed setting something off in him. He thrust inside of her roughly and a loud grunt left him at the sudden heat of her around him.

“Fuck yes, perfect thing.” He growls as his hands settle on her waist to pull her back against him, pushing so deep inside of her that he’s sure it must be uncomfortable for her. But she only moans, eyes rolling back at the sudden stretch of him. “Look at yourself when I fuck you, I want you to see what I get to see every time I’m taking you, to see why you drive me fucking insane.”

“Jesus Christ, Aaron!” She cries out at the rough pace he sets, her body quickly falling into her forearms to be able to take him. But her eyes stay locked on them, on herself. It’s hard to believe it’s her, she thinks, because the woman in the mirror was sexy, beautiful even. Her fingers twists in the sheets and her eyes move from her own flushed face to Aaron’s.

His jaw is clenched, a bead of sweat is rolling down his neck and disappearing under his collar, a steady stream of filthy words and low grunts leaving him. He looks powerful, she thinks, beautiful in his own way. Her train of thought is cut of by his large hand landing a hard spank to her behind and she moans.

“Fuck yourself on me.” He gets out through heavy breaths and stops his movements. He rests his hands on her hips and when she starts to push back and forth on him he smiles. “Just like that, gorgeous thing.”

She moves her body as quickly as she can, the heat of another orgasm slowly building by each deep fill of him.

“God, every part of you is perfect.” He almost marvels as he watches her body in the mirror, from the soft curves and pale skin to her face, her dark eyes wide and full of want and trust. “You’re getting close again, you’re getting so tight sweetheart.”

“Y-yes, fuck you feel so good.” She breathes and his fingers twitch against her hips.

“Go on, make yourself come.” He encourages her and she whimpers, her body stuttering slightly. He watches as she moves one hand from the bed to rub her clit and when she clenches around him his hips jerk forward, forcing a moan from her.

It’s not long until she’s right at the edge, and she can tell from the way Aaron is starting to thrust against her that he’s close as well. So she doubles her efforts, moves her body back against his as hard as she can and keeps her eyes on them in the mirror. When his hold on her turns bruising and he growls her name she comes again with a cry that she’s pretty sure the neighbors can hear. He starts to move, drawing out her pleasure until he comes deep inside of her, the heat of his release making her gasp.

He's jerking and twitching behind her through his own pleasure, her clinging walls massaging his shaft even until he’s softening and oversensitive. When he finally feels like he can breathe again he falls forward, almost crushing her between his body and the mattrass, but she doesn’t complain, only savors the feeling of his warm body and ragged breath against her.

When he rolls off her and onto his back, he’s quick to pull her with him until she’s laying on top of him.

“Your suit will be ruined.” She jokes dryly when she feels his release start to drip out of her and onto his thigh.

“It’s already ruined.” He smiles when she chuckles, his lips against the top of her head. “Besides, it was worth it. That was incredible.” He presses a kiss against her forehead.

“It was.” She agrees and she lifts her head enough to look at him. “So all the work you’ve been doing since we started dating finally paid off huh?” When he only gives her a blank look she rolls her eyes. “You aren’t subtle honey. But you should have known that they way to get through to me was by denying me orgasms.”

“Don’t be a brat.” He grabs one of her arms and pins it behind her back. “Or I’ll tie you down in front of that mirror with a toy between your legs and you’ll get to see just how pretty you are when you cry for me.” She doesn’t reply, but the way she’s biting back a smile and her eyes gleam with interest is more than enough for him to know, that it’s not a threat, it’s a promise.