#WHERE IS EMILY'S EMMY

[bonescaps]

[hamable]

I need Brennan to win an award. I need the world to know how exceptional a storyteller he is. How do you plan something like this?

I’m suddenly seeing the rat grinders as a sort of self insert for him. Not character-wise, but as tools for writing a mystery. Usually you start with the solution and work backwards. Brennan had to concoct this solution and prepare for every possible thing that the best DnD players he’s ever known might do to crack his story wide open. He needed an entire party of character foils whose primary goal was to cover their tracks and account for periphery details to outsmart The Bad Kids. An unfathomable amount of work to be able to tell this story at the pace it’s being told.

I found myself remarking earlier in the season how much planning and foreknowledge he had to have to have the variety of dome projections from @caitmayart he does and now I realize that’s just scratching the surface.

[hookechoes]

"you actually died?" reid literally became a five year old child in that moment, god

[meazalykov]

winner winner

emily fox x actress!reader

summary: your girlfriend is surprised when you mention her name at an event

the lights are bright as you sit at one of the front tables at the emmy awards, heart racing as the show plays out in front of you. 

your castmates are scattered around the table, all smiling and laughing between segments, but you can’t shake the nervous excitement settling in your stomach. 

you’ve been nominated for best actress in a drama series, and even though everyone keeps telling you how deserving you are, you can’t quite believe it.

you glance down at your phone, where a string of texts from emily fill the screen. 

emily: good luck babe!!!

emily: i'm so proud of you already

emily: everyone's watching here, don't stress <3

you can practically see her excited smile behind the messages, and it makes your heart swell. she’s back in london, watching the ceremony with her arsenal teammates, and just the thought of her staying up late to support you calms you slightly.

“you ready for this?” one of your co-stars leans over, nudging you playfully.

you give them a tight-lipped smile, fiddling with your rings. “as ready as i’ll ever be.”

the presenters return to the stage, and your category is announced just an hour after the show began. 

you try to focus on your breathing as the nominees are listed, your name flashing on the screen alongside clips from your show. your heart pounds in your chest, and then—

“and the emmy for best actress in a drama series goes to... y/n l/n!!!!!”

the world goes silent for a moment as you register the words, and then it hits you all at once. you’ve won. you can’t stop the grin from spreading across your face as your castmates erupt in cheers around you, hugging you tightly before you make your way to the stage.

the applause is loud, the lights almost blinding as you step up to the microphone, holding the emmy in your trembling hands. 

you glance out at the audience, overwhelmed by the gravity of the moment, and then you begin.

“wow... okay,” you laugh breathlessly, trying to calm your nerves. “i did not expect this, so i’ll try to keep it together.”

the audience chuckles softly, and you glance at your cast sitting at the table. “first, i want to thank my incredible co-stars. this show would be nothing without you guys. you’re all so talented, amazing, and supportive, and i feel so lucky to have worked alongside you.”

you take a deep breath, emotions catching up with you. “to my parents, thank you for always believing in me, even when this career felt like a far-fetched dream. and to the crew, the writers, the directors—everyone who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make this show come to life—you’re the real heroes tonight.”

you pause, feeling a lightness in your chest as you approach the end of your speech. “and last but not least... emily,” you say with a smirk, eyes twinkling. “she knows what she did.”

the audience bursts into laughter, and you can already imagine the chaos that line will cause online. 

you grin wider, feeling a surge of warmth as you picture emily blushing back in london. 

“seriously, though, emily, your support means the world to me. i couldn’t have done this without you too.”

you finish with a few final words of gratitude before stepping off the stage, your heart still racing as you return to your seat, clutching the emmy tightly. 

your phone buzzes in your lap, and you can already see the notifications piling up—fans reacting to your speech, people congratulating you. but there’s one message you’re waiting for.

meanwhile, in london, emily sits wide-eyed in front of the tv, surrounded by her arsenal teammates—leah, katie, caitlin, kyra, and lia.

when your speech finishes, the room erupts.

“she mentioned you!” leah exclaims, clapping emily on the back.

“emily too,” katie teases, mimicking your voice with a grin. “you’re famous now.”

emily buries her face in her hands, cheeks burning red. “oh my god, stop!”

“that was so cute!” kyra says, nudging emily with her elbow. “you didn’t tell us she’d say something like that.”

“i didn’t know!” emily protests, still flustered. “she’s just—ugh, she’s amazing.”

“so when’s the wedding?” caitlin jokes, and everyone bursts into laughter, including emily, though she can’t hide the proud smile spreading across her face.

hours later, you finally return to your hotel suite, the weight of the emmy still surreal in your hands. 

as soon as the door shuts behind you, you dial emily’s number, eager to hear her voice.

she picks up on the second ring. “hey, you.”

“hey,” you grin, sinking onto the couch, exhausted but exhilarated. 

“did you watch?”

“of course i watched! you were incredible, y/n. seriously, we’re all freaking out over here.”

“you’re freaking out? well, i’m not surprised– you were probably blushing.” you laugh. 

emily groans on the other end. “i knew that was coming. you couldn’t resist, could you?”

“nope,” you reply cheekily, settling deeper into the cushions. “but i meant it, em. your support really does mean the world to me. i wouldn’t have gotten through any of this without you.”

there’s a pause on the other end, and when emily speaks again, her voice is softer. “that’s sweet of you to say. i’m just so proud of you. i knew you’d win.”

“i still can’t believe it,” you admit, glancing at the emmy sitting on the table across from you. “it feels like a dream.”

“well, believe it,” emily says with a smile in her voice. “you earned it.”

you close your eyes, the sound of her voice easing the whirlwind of emotions still swirling inside you. 

“i can’t wait to see you when i get back to london.”

“me neither,” emily replies. “but for now, just enjoy your night. you deserve it.”

you smile, feeling a warmth spread through your chest. “i love you, em.”

“i love you too.”

as the call ends, you look around the quiet room, the emmy glinting in the soft light. you smile, happy to be a winner and to have a winner supporting you back home.

masterlist

[trashogram]

He Chose You (Pt. 10)

Lucifer/Reader: Lucifer chooses you to be the mother of his child. Rated E for Explicit.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 13.5 | Part 14 | End

Everything was white. Pristine white. 

You couldn’t be blind, but no one would blame you for entertaining the idea as nothing but white stretched beyond your gaze.

Unending white. 

Uncanny. White. 

“Hello?” You asked the white abyss. Your call echoed out and back in, the way you imagined sound would echo in a canyon. 

“Hello!” 

You screamed, jumping up at the new voice coming from somewhere high above you. You tried to pinpoint where it came from, staring up at what you hoped was the sky before things slowly materialized. 

Pastel pinks, oranges and soft blues bled into the white, adding definition to what had once been literally nothing. The whiteness remained in the shape of buoyant, fluffy clouds pillowing all around you. 

“Over here!” The voice chimed. “Oh no, here! You’re getting warmer! Almost there!”

After circling around like a dog after your own tail, you finally found the source. Behind you rose a ginormous golden gate, gleaming beneath an electric-looking, all-seeing eye.

 And at its entrance towered a gold and platinum podium. 

A very… well, there was no other way to say it — a very white man with swooping blond hair eyed you from the top of the podium, grinning from ear to ear. 

“Hiya! Welcome!” The man said. “You’re right on time!” 

“Uh, okay…?” You replied. 

Without a hitch, the blond lifted up a large tome and began flicking through the pages. In the meantime, you stood there awkwardly, a question on the very tip of your tongue. 

“Wh-um, where am I, exactly?” You finally asked. 

“Why, you’re in Heaven of course!” He stated jovially before turning the book around and tapping on a name. “This is you, correct?”

Your name stared back at you in a glowing golden font, all pretty and shiny — 

And underlined? 

“Yeah.” You blinked. “Wait, did you just say Heaven?”

“Mm-hm, yep! And if I could just get you to stand right here at the center of the platform, that’d be great.” 

An elevated slab of pure gold rose from the clouds beneath your feet a little ways ahead of you. Timidly, you made your way over and onto the platform as instructed. You were pleasantly surprised at the instant warmth that met the bottoms of your bare feet. 

“Pe-rr-fect!” With a flap of suddenly conjured wings, the gatekeeper floated down to hover right beside you. “Now, we just wait for Emily. She should be here in 3, 2, 1… .5 — ”

A loud clang startled you out of your skin for the second time, and you whipped around to face the woman that had spontaneously appeared in front of you.

She panted. “Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry! I didn't mean to be late!” 

The golden gates pulled back to reveal the white-haired newcomer in all her splendor. This other angel was bedecked in a floor-length white gown to match her downy-white hair and periwinkle-grey skin dotted with white freckles. A halo hung over her head, casting an eternal light over her large, bluish eyes that sparkled with mirth. 

Like the gatekeeping angel, her wings flapped behind her, but you noted how they seemed to flutter nervously. Or perhaps excitedly? 

“Welcome to Heaven!” She opened her arms toward you. “We’re so glad you’re here! I’m Emily, but you can call me Emmy, or E, or Millie. Whatever you want!” 

You waved dazedly. “Hi.” 

Emily stopped short of touching you, despite looking like she was about to wrap her arms around you in a hug. Instead, the angel bit her lower lip as she stared at you. 

“I really am sorry I was late. I got caught up talking with Sera, making sure everything was all ready for your arrival.” She gushed. “Thank you for greeting her, Peter!” 

Peter brightened. “Of course.” 

Emily turned back to you, buzzing with anticipation like a bumblebee. “Anyway, I’m sure you have tons of questions! No worries at all! I’m here to give you a tour and show you around your new home!”

You cautiously took the hand offered to you, and let yourself be led through the golden gate. 

— 

Heaven was very beautiful, and very clean. The polished golden floors and beautifully-crafted architecture, complete with smiling people of all races, sexes and species didn’t unwrench you from a nagging sense of confusion however. 

“Um. Emily?” You asked your companion — well, one of your companions. Peter had elected to join the two of you on your tour, commenting that he’d gotten someone to cover his eternal shift at the gate for the next few hours. 

“Yes! Yes?” She smiled at you encouragingly. No doubt, your silence, while it had not stopped her constant chatter, had been a downer in as far as engagement. 

“I’m… dead. Right?” You asked. “I mean that’s how one gets to Heaven, so obviously I am… right?”

The mood turned down at that, with Emily turning morose. “Yes, I’m afraid so.” 

“Okay, good. I mean — I’m dead, but I’m having a hard time remembering h-how it… happened.” You admitted, embarrassed. And a little afraid, if you were honest with yourself. “Is that… normal?”

Emily and Peter stopped on either side of you, twin looks of confusion on their poreless faces. 

Peter was quicker to recover. “Oh that can happen sometimes! Dying can be a very traumatic thing for the soul.” 

Emily seemed hesitant for the first time since you’d met her, but with a look from Peter, she seemed to gain resolve. “Yes, yeah. Lots of people forget… but you’ll remember in time, I’m sure!”

“But wait!” Emily gasped. “We could ask Sera about it!” 

She clapped her hands together joyfully, while Peter’s expression teetered on uncertainty. 

“Uh, Em? I don’t think —” 

“We were headed her way anyway.” Emily nodded as if affirming her own plan. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to help us figure this out!”

The angel yanked you forward in her quest to get to Sera (whoever that was) and had you stumbling on pure fluff to catch up with her. 

Many angels raced to get out of the way as Peter called out in alarm, but apart from shouldering a particularly tall angel clad in a chasuble, you were unable to stop or slow down. 

—

“Hello child.”

The Seraphim (“Sera.” Emily had urged) was so large that you had to crane your neck up to see her face. 

She was beautiful in the most ethereal way. To look upon her was to look at a celestial body and feel your own insignificance dragging you down and swallowing you whole. 

Your surroundings — a gold and white antechamber with delicately carved archways and a grand war table in its center — did not help. 

Emily laid a hand on your shoulder with concern before you realized that you’d been paralyzed by the scene before you and had yet to say a word.

You stuttered a hello, and Sera’s stoney face softened into an understanding smile. “Be not afraid, my friend. I mean no harm.” 

You returned the smile, albeit shakily. 

Emily squeezed your shoulder. “Sera? We have a question.”

The Seraphim gestured with open palms. 

“Well, we were going around Heaven, and just kind of talking before um… well…”

“Emily, dear. Please speak up.” Sera’s command was gentle but firm.

Emily bounced in her spot, unable to keep herself from floating up from the ground. 

“Shesaysshedoesn’trememberhowshegothere!” She blurted out.

You and Sera both stared at Emily for a long moment, trying to process what exactly she had said. Sera had opened her mouth once more before the grand entrance into the committee room was slammed open and all heads turned to the unwelcome sound. 

The angel with the chasuble came barrelling in, and the omnipresent sunlight that touched everything around you glinted off the sharp black horns winding down from his skull. Or was it a skull? The face of this particular angel looked odd to you, with its smooth, glassy surface and flickering pixelated expression that replaced natural features like lips, cheeks and a nose. 

Their appearance looked at odds with everything else you’d seen in Heaven, regardless of the holy garbs they wore. Everything, while somewhat fantastical on the basis of it actually existing, resembled the organic and natural, and this figure stuck out like a sore thumb in comparison. 

“What the actual fuck? She’s actually here?!” The abrasive, aggressive voice that came out his digitized face shook you from your musings. 

You shrunk back toward Emily and Sera, instinctively trying to get away from the rapidly approaching figure that also towered over you. He glared in your direction, as if you were an insect he wanted to squash, and only when you lost the nerve to meet his gaze did you realize there was another angel behind him. This one wore a similar face, though they were smaller, slimmer and straight-backed. They wore darker vestments and jet-black horns as well, with wings nearly as jagged and hardlined. 

“Adam,” Sera greeted hesitantly. “I don’t believe you were summoned.” 

“Why is she here?” ‘Adam’ demanded, as if the Seraphim had never spoken. His companion stood firmly just a pace behind him, arms behind their back. 

Their combined presence was so off-putting, and your brow furrowed with mounting confusion. Sera’s shoulders slowly rose and fell as she sighed, disapproval in the hard line of her mouth. 

“That was part of the agreement.” 

“Uh, yeah — with the Devil!” His demeanor completely threw you off, so much so that you didn’t catch the full extent of what he’d said. “Who the fuck keeps their end of the deal with that asshole?”

You couldn’t hold back a scoff of disbelief, even as your confusion deepened. ‘The devil?’ 

A hand wrapped around your forearm, making you turn to look at Emily, who’d once more moved beside you. Her ire was clear, though much less contained than Sera’s. “Who are you to question Divine Judgement?” 

Adam laughed condescendingly. “Do you know who you’re talking to? I’m the fucking CEO of Divine Judgement, kid!” 

“We are literally judges, juries and executioners in Hell.” The other angel chimed in, flat and resolute. The smirk that curved her stitched lips gave away some covert sense of satisfaction in that statement. 

“Executioners?” Emily’s voice rose a few octaves. “What’re you talking about?” 

She was legitimately bewildered. 

“Enough.” Sera stepped in. “Adam, this has never been, nor was it ever, a debate. If you have a grievance, you can take it up with the counsel at a later date.” 

“My ‘grievance’ isn’t gonna fucking wait for this bitch to fuck shit up!” Adam pointed at you with a poisonous claw. 

“Excuse me?” You demanded in sheer disbelief. “Who do you think you are?!” 

The grin Adam shot you was more a bearing of one’s teeth, which further threw you for a loop as, again, his face was completely digital. “I’m fuckin’ Adam. The First Man. The Original Dick. I’ve been here since the fucking beginning. I earned this shit.” 

“Who do you think you are?” He asked, advancing on you. “You think you can whore yourself out to the worst being in all of Creation and still take up space in Heaven? Are you fucking kidding me?” 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Your gaze narrowed, a stark contrast to the whirlpool of thoughts swirling in your mind at his accusation. 

“HA! Seriously?” His face was mere inches from yours. “What? D’you open your legs for fuckin’ everyone? Have a hard time keeping track of all the brats you pop outta that used vag? Guess so, if even dying for one doesn’t ring your fuckin’ bell.” 

“ADAM!” 

Adam’s sharp grin dropped, expression dawning from stunned to petulant as Sera’s thunderous exclamation reverberated through the vast space between your unusual group. You swore the clouds trembled beneath your feet, but it was hard to care too much with the insinuations that had been thrown at you rattling within your being. 

Dying for… 

“Charlotte.” Your eyes widened to the size of saucers. Air escaped your lungs - which shouldn’t have been possible, but you were already dealing with one crisis upon the epiphany of what you’d been missing this whole time. 

A blitz of images and sordid emotions saw you struggling, legs falling out from under you as the weight of how exactly you’d died forced you down. Emily’s distressed cry sounded from above you, melding with Lucifer’s frantic pleas for you not to go as life drained from your body. 

The Seraphim’s shadow engulfed your broken form while you panicked on Heaven’s floor. 

—

Lucifer sat hunched in his chair, your cold, lifeless hand hanging in his. 

Charlotte had stopped crying and presumably gone to sleep. He hadn’t put up any fight when Cass took her to a crib set up beside your… your bed.

That was who knows how long ago. And apart from Cass coming over the check on his daughter, the elderly worshippers had left him to grieve in peace. 

The King had tried to convince himself to get up. He needed to take Charlotte and leave. Go home. The sight of you in death was unbearable — but he could not move. 

He couldn’t leave you, even if you were no longer there in spirit. The You he loved the most, your soul, was gone and had been gone for some time now. 

You had gone to the one place he could not follow. 

Lucifer’s hanged head slowly rose. His thoughts were starting to become more coherent — what if you hadn’t gone where you were meant to? 

Heaven was a paradise bound by rules, but it was also a cold bureaucracy where things could fall through the cracks. 

And any dealings with him — Heaven’s sworn nemesis — were likely to be one of those things. 

Slow-building anger replaced the gold in his veins as Lucifer considered that his own Deal was not met. If it wasn’t, that meant you were down Below, alone and afraid and suffering. 

The Devil’s claws cricked, fist clenching as he glared at the wall opposite him. 

He would not let you Suffer. Not you. Never you.

And you weren’t here anymore. He needed to know where you’d gone. Now. 

Rising from his seat, Lucifer laid your hand at your side and ignored the tears that stung his eyes at the sight of your ashen face. 

He touched your brow, lingering only to memorize the way your lashes rested against your sinking cheeks before turning to Charlotte’s cradle. 

She was sleeping peacefully, unaware of his anguish, of the great loss that not only he had endured but she as well. It made Lucifer’s heart ache. 

He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. 

Then, with a sudden snap of his fingers, Lucifer conjured the presents he’d made especially for her. 

The twin goats appeared, suspended in the air behind him. Lucifer didn’t bother to turn until their bodies were triple their original size, fur changing from felt to coarse fiber, eyes glowing as they were transformed from button to bonafide, and their bat-like wings began to beat at the air, blowing back the gossamer of Charlotte’s bassinet. 

Lucifer looked between the two magicked goats after kissing his daughter’s fragile head. 

“Stay here and protect the baby.” He ordered. “Charlotte is your top priority, do you understand?” 

The two creatures nodded simultaneously, determination set in their naturally adorable maws. 

“If anything happens, just bleat, and I’ll be back in the wink of an eye.” Lucifer’s wings extended and propelled him upward with a great stroke. 

The King of Hell disappeared through an enormous portal, sparking and swirling reddish-gold before vanishing behind him. 

*** Tag List: @crescent-z, @for-hearthand-home, @undertale-is-sansational, @loslox, @navierkalani, @yaimlight, @ivoryviness, @crystalplays28, @flowerempress, @wally-darling-hyperfixation, @altruisticradiodemon, @moonlight-readings, @halparkebitch, @charliecharlie65, @sockgoblin, @cocomollo, @caniseethefourthsword, @squeegeeclean, @crow-twink, @an-emovision, @marydragneell, @lafy-taffy, @fandom-imagines1, @loquacious-libra, @glowymxxn, @avadakadabra93, @froggybich, @hamthepan, @ukor02, @adaizel, @boogiemansbitch, @vinillies, @lbcreations-blog, @thesoundresoundsecho, @serenity-loves-red, @alientee, @aquaamythest96, @0strawberrysorbet0, @fluffy-koalala, @washeduphazbin, @rebecca-hvnstn, @velvette3, @kermitdafroggy, @wpdarlingpan, @apatcheworkofproblems,

[perfectly-imperfect82]

Is that a kid? - Daycare

“What happened?" Mini asked the daycare worker after she rushed here being told she needed to come pick up Harper

"There was a small incident"

"What happened?" Mini demanded again, starting to get frustrated at the no explanation over the phone when they called and now

"Harper bit another child" she stated only causing her to be confused. Harper doesn't bite people, she never has.

"Where is she?"

"In the timeout corner" she said walking that way, Mini following right behind him

"Why is Emily with her if she is in timeout?" Mini asked, noticing Emily sitting next to Harper holding hands

"The only way to calm them both down was if we kept them together" he said

"Harper" mini said

Harper rushing to her mom once she saw her. Mini kneeling to get eye level with her to talk to her but was thrown off by her stoping right in front her

"Emmy has a owie" Harper whispered to her to mom causing mini to look at you but not seeing anything standing out

"Where?"

"Head"

"Come here" mini said to you as you slowly walked towards her

"Can you turn around so I check on your owie?" Mini asked as you looked at her hesitantly

Mini fondly watched as Harper grabbed your hand and guided you closer to her mom

"Look" Harper said holding your hand as mini looked closer, gently moving your hair so she could see the red bump on your head.

"Does it still hurt?" Mini asked causing you to shake your head no

"Okay" mini said turning you around, "you two say here. I'll be right back"

Harper reaching for Mini as you looked at her wit widening eyes

"I just have to talk to your care worker really quick. Why don't you guys play while you wait" Mini said, directing you guys to the blocks near by

Anger filling her since the worker didn't mention you were injured

Taking a deep breath to stay calm around you two, "can you tell me how Emmy got her owie?" Mini asked Harper, knowing you wouldn't speak

"Mean boy hit her with block. I bit him" Harper said with an angry face before looking at you, "I protect you" Harper pulling you in a hug that you softly returned. Mini now understanding why Harper had bit the boy, to defend you.

"I'm proud of you for defending Emmy. But next time we find an adult and tell them, okay?" Mini said causing you two to nod

"You two stay here" Mini said as she went to find the day care worker

"Did you know that Emily was hurt?" She asked causing the care worker

"She's hurt?"

"Yes, the boy Harper bit hit Emily in the head with a block. There is a small bump there. Harper shouldn't have bit the boy but you need to have a talk with him about hitting people" mini said as she care worker started to look embarrassed

"Of course. I'm sorry we didn't catch that"

"Have you contact Emily parents?" Mini asked

"No"

"I'll be picking up Emily with Harper" mini said as care worker nodded

Mini quickly calling Caitlin to explain what happen and to meet them at the ice cream shop a few streets over.

"Let go girls" Mini said, grabbing both of your hands, "We are going to get ice cream." This getting smiles from the two young girls

"Mommy and mama?" You asked looking up at Mini

"They are going to meet us there" mini said causing you to nod then start talking to Harper as you guys walked to the ice cream shop

[gallaghersgal]

i've been thinking sm about how lip wanted to be a dad so bad and how it would be soooo different if he had a girl who treated him right and was loyal and sweet

“emmie girl, are you excited to see daddy?”

your daughter squeals and babbles, “dad-dy!” her little hands waving in the air, one grasping onto your chin. you look around the commons, sighting a familiar head of messy curls and heading over to him.

“who’s that, hm?” you ask little emily, pointing out her daddy where he sits at a table outside the student center. as you get closer your daughter recognizes lip, squealing and squirming to be put down so she can run to him. you smile.

“go get ‘im emmie,” you murmur, pressing a quick kiss to the crown of her head before placing her steady little feet on the ground. she toddles over with adorable determination, shrieking in excitement until lip’s head is turning at the commotion. his jaw drops slightly and his eyes light up, flitting from his baby girl up to you, then back down.

"da- da-ddy!" emily stumbles on her path but lip catches her easily, lifting her up and spinning her around.

"what's up eminem! how's my girl, huh? didya miss me?" he smothers her little face with sweet kisses, listening to the sounds of her baby giggles. the two of them are so sweet, lip and his baby girl. he loves her so much. you know how much he misses his sweet emily- and you too- when he's away at school.

"look!" emily points with one pudgy finger at the bandaid on her knee. "kitty!"

"aw, y'scraped it sweets?" he asks, ever attentive. emily nods her head, grabbing onto his curls. "lemme kiss it better." he flips emily on her tummy, holding her secure and high above his head. he blows a raspberry on the squish of her knee, them smothers her with sugars.

"ducky ducky!" emily points at you, holding her little stuffed duck. it was a present from her daddy, and she never went anywhere without it.

"yeah? y'want ducky?"

you smile, coming to his side and placing ducky in her waiting hands. lip hikes emily up on his hip, kissing her, then ducky on the head. one strong arm wraps around your waist, pulling you in to press one final, sweet kiss to your temple.

"thank you baby. jus' what i needed, time with my girls.

end.

[purplesimmer455]

Later that night at the Hecking-Feldman-Chen-Liao household, Megan takes Emily with her to visit her older sis Mia in Brindleton Bay. She and her wife Tess are giving each other space as they figure things out in their relationship, so she didn't come with them. While Megan hugs her oldest nephew Morgan, Emily hugs Megan’s sister, her auntie Mia. "You've gotten so tall, Emmy." Mia says, hugging Emily tightly. Emily grins, hugging her auntie back. "I know." She says.

Emily sighs as her auntie smooths back her hair and gives her a concerned look. "Everything okay?" Mia asks quietly. "Yeah, it's just my moms." Emily murmurs and Mia nods, glancing at her sister. Megan is talking to Morgan and looking cheerful but her eyes look so tired and her smile doesn't fully reach her eyes. "I'll talk to her," Mia says to Emily, who gives her a grateful and relieved smile and another hug.

Megan and Emily head inside, and Megan goes to see her niece Kristina, or Tina as the family calls her, and her youngest nephew Owen. Megan blinks back tears as Owen snuggles into her, remembering her own three babies at that small stage. She gets a lump in her throat as she thinks of Tess, how amazing of a wife she is, and how happy they were when they got married. Now, they're arguing all the time, and she and Tess are both so exhausted and tired. Megan knows it's her fault, she fell for her ex Iseul and let it get to the point where she was emotionally cheating* with Iseul. She snaps back as Owen asks her to play with him, and she smiles. "Sure, nooboo." She says.

[junabyclairo]

hiii i have a carmy request

kinda confusing but basically reader was in a past relationship and has a child with ex. reader meets carmy and they start dating but carmy dosent know about the kid. just like carmy finding out that reader has a child. something about carmy as a stepdad just really gets me ahahah

ooooorrr

also carmy as a stepdad 😭 but more angsty this time

reader and carmy are having a big argument and hes shouting really loud. readers kid hears and gets really scared and starts to be super afraid of carmy. part of it could be him trying to like rekindle his relationship with the child.

THEY MIGHT SOUND SUPER DUMB IM SO SORRY THESE HAVE JUST BEEN ON MY MIND

the first one lives rent free in my head i've thought about it so much.

like, imagine meeting carmy at a bar or something, where you catch his eye looking just beautiful from the other side of the room. and maybe things get a little... steamy... with heavy making out and spending the night at his apartment.

after a couple weeks of hanging out - even starting dating, you finally decided to tell him about your daughter.

"carm? i have to talk to you about something real quick." you say, extremely nervous to tell him.

"yeah baby? what's up?" he responds, also nervous on what you were going to tell him. were you going to break up with him? were you already with someone? god, what could be wrong?

"um-" your voice quivers, "so, you know how we've never really been at my place, right?"

"yeah," god he's sweating so much, what's wrong?

"well, um-" you sigh, on the verge of tears "i have a daughter, her name is emily- or emmie." you let out a breath, relieved you finally told him.

"really?"

"um, yeah. she's about 15 months at this point, she's really calm and sweet, i think you'd like her. if, of course you want to stay with me." you laugh the last part out, half thinking that he'll stay with you, half thinking he won't.

"why wouldn't i stay with you? i really really like you, you having a kid isn't going to change that." he stands up in front of you, going to give you a hug. he knows you a little too well.

[sequinsmile-x]

One Last Souvenir From My Trip to Your Shores

“Come on, Derek, it’s my job and Aaron knows that. And it’s not the first time I’ve had to flirt with an unsub. It’s not like I’m going to sleep with the guy.”

He scoffs and shakes his head, putting the coffee pot down with more force than necessary, “It wouldn’t be the first time you did that either.” 

A thoughtless and unkind comment from someone she's always considered a friend makes Emily feel like she's right back at the start.

-x-

Hi friends,

Well, this one has got away from in a way that a fic hasn't in a LONG time. This was meant to be a one shot, and then a long one shot, and then I got to what should be the halfway point and almost 6k words in and I knew I had to turn it into two parts.

This was inspired by a comment on an older fic of mine where Derek brings up Emily's brand mark scar, and a post from @ friendsbuffays on twitter.

Part two will be up early next week.

As always, let me know what you think <3

-x-

Warnings: None

Words: 5.8k

Read over on Ao3, or below the cut

Emily yawns as she waits for her tea to be ready, groaning as she rolls her neck, an ache she couldn’t quite shift pulling in it as she tries to wake her body up before she leaves for work. She rubs it and smiles when she hears thundering footsteps in the hallway, and she raises her eyebrow as Jack runs to the kitchen. 

“Morning, Emmy.” 

“Good morning, Jack,” she says, wrapping her arms around him as he hugs her. She pushes his hair back from his face and raises her eyebrow at him, “I seem to remember your Dad having a rule about no running in the apartment.” 

Jack smiles sheepishly at her, “Sorry, Emmy. I was just excited to see you.” 

She hums and leans down to kiss his forehead, “I know, sweetie, but we don’t want you to hurt yourself,” she squeezes him closer again, “Now, eat your breakfast. I poured you some cereal.” 

His eyes go wide with excitement as he sits at the kitchen counter, “Lucky Charms?” 

She shakes her head, “That’s a weekend cereal and we both know it,” she smiles and pours milk into the bowl in front of him, “Do you want some juice?” 

He nods, his response muffled around a mouthful of Cheerios “Apple.”

“Apple, please,” Aaron says as he walks into the room, earning an eye roll from his girlfriend and a nod from his son.

“Sorry,” Jack corrects himself, “Apple juice, please Emmy.” 

“Coming right up,” she says, reaching into the fridge to get some for him. She smiles as Aaron wraps his arms around her from behind and she leans into him, turning her head to capture his lips in a kiss, “He’s already the most polite kid in the world, honey,” she says, kissing him again, “You can let the odd thing slip by.” 

“Force of habit,” he says, and he kisses her again and she pours Jack a cup of juice, smiling at him when he continues to eat like he’d never been fed before in his life. She rubs at her neck again and Aaron furrows his brow, “Is your neck still bothering you?”

She nods, “I think it’s your pillows,” she says, scrunching her nose up as she admits it, “It doesn’t happen when we sleep at mine.” 

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he says as he presses his hand against her neck, his thumb rubbing away some of the ache there. She rolls her eyes at him lovingly and grabs his hand, making a point of kissing his knuckles before she lets it go. 

“It’s not your fault,” she says, smiling as she wraps her arms around his waist, “Plus, overall your bed is better than mine anyway.”

He furrows his brow, “You have a top of the line mattress that probably cost more than I earned in a year at my first job,” he says, smiling when she does, “And Egyptian cotton sheets.” 

“While that may be true,” she says, leaning in to kiss his cheek, “Your bed has you in it more often than mine does. Making it a much better bed.” 

He’s about to respond, to say he feels the same, when Jack’s spoon rattles in his bowl, “Finished!” 

“Okay buddy, go brush your teeth and then it’s almost time for school.” Aaron smiles and turns to look at his son. Jack nods and starts to run away, coming to a stop as he turns to look at them, an apologetic smile on his face as he makes a point of walking at a normal pace as he carries on. Aaron looks at Emily with a soft and fond smile, “That look was all you. He never used to do it before you started spending more time with him.”

She hums and laughs, “Well, looks like I’m a great influence on both of my Hotchner boys.” 

“Yes, you are,” he leans in to kiss her, his lips barely brushing hers before his phone rings in his pocket. He smiles apologetically at her and pulls his phone out of his pocket, barely acknowledging Penelope’s name on his screen before he answers, “Hotchner.” 

“Good morning, Hotch. We’ve had a call from the police department in Worcester, Massachusetts asking for assistance. A third victim has been found this morning and they believe it’s all the same killer. So he’s-”

“Officially a serial killer now,” Aaron says, sighing as he pinches the bridge of his nose, “Okay, we might as well meet at the jet as soon as we can. Could you-”

“Let the pilots know, inform the airstrip and the rest of the team?”

He smiles, “Thanks, Garcia.” 

“Do you need me to tell Emily?” She asks, clearing her throat, and he can picture the smile on her face, “Or do you have that covered,” she clears her throat again, “Sir?” 

He looks at Emily and her smile lets him know she’d heard their friend and he can’t help but smile too, “Yes, I have that covered.” 

They’d been together for three months, but the team had only known about them for two weeks. It was still new to their friends, still fresh in a way that made everything he and Emily did of interest to them. He and Emily had settled into it now, had found their place in each other’s lives and they loved each other. They’d said as much - exchanged the three little words that carried more meaning now than they ever felt like they had before - and despite it still being early days he saw everything with her. Saw her in every corner of his future. 

“Excellent. Give her my love and I’ll speak to you when you’re all on the jet.” 

“Thanks, Garcia.” He says, and Emily smiles at him as he hangs up and she kisses his cheek, her hand on his back as she tries to seep out the tension she can feel building there, “It’s going to be an interesting few days.”

“We’ve been to work since we told them,” she says, “Apart from a few comments from Derek and the matching heart mugs Penelope left on our desks they’ve been fine.” 

“It’s the first case we’ve worked though.”

She hums and wraps her arms around his neck, pressing her lips together as he tugs her closer, his arms wrapping around her automatically, “Think of it this way, we can arrive at the jet together because we no longer have to pretend we didn’t spend the night together, and you’ll no longer have to sneak out of my room at the crack of dawn so the others don’t see you.” 

He smiles at that, and it makes her heart swell in her chest, love for him filling the gap she thinks might have been made for him and his son, “Well I do love a lie in when you’re in bed with me.” 

She rolls her eyes at him and stamps her lips against his, “Come on, we’ll get that son of yours to school and we might have just enough time to get coffee on the way to the jet.” 

He kisses her and squeezes her hip, tapping his fingers against her skin as they slip under her shirt. Three short taps that had become a code of sorts that they exchanged when others were around. Fingers tapped against hands as a file was passed over, or a shoulder when a coffee was slipped in front of the other. A way of saying three words when they couldn’t actually say them. 

It’ll be alright. 

I’m right here. 

I love you. 

“I love you too,” she says, capturing his reply in a kiss, “Now let’s get going.”

“Yes ma’am.” 

She throws him a look over her shoulder as she steps away, “Don’t call me ma’am.” 

___

“Our guy has a type.” 

Emily hums at Dave’s comment, flicking through the images on the tablet in front of her, trying to see past her similarities to the victims as she tries to focus on the crime scenes, “All of them were dumped in alleys.” 

“Which would suggest the unsub considers them disposable once he’s done with them,” Derek adds, flashing a look at her before he looks down at his tablet, his own recognition of her similarity to the victims obvious, “I wonder if they look like someone in his life? His mother? An ex maybe.” 

“My money is on his mother,” JJ says, settling into the bench seat next to Spencer, her tablet sandwiched between her arm and a cup of coffee from the galley in hand, “These guys always seem to have mommy issues.” 

Aaron slips into the seat next to Emily and places two cups on the table - a cup of tea for her and a cup of coffee for him. She smiles as he reaches into his pocket to pull out two Splenda packets, packets she knows he must have brought from home because they were never in the galley, and he slides them over to her, a sparkle in his eyes just for her when they briefly meet hers. She squeezes his thigh in silent thanks under the table, and it’s only when she looks over the table at Derek and Dave to find them staring at them that she realises they’ve all gone quiet. It had happened when they’d boarded the jet too, and Emily would guess that they’d all watched them get out of the same car back at Quantio’s runway with the same level of interest as they had now. 

“He is allowed to make me a cup of tea you know,” she says, rolling her eyes at them all, and she lowers her voice to a whisper as if it was a conspiracy, “He is my boyfriend.” 

Aaron sighs next to her, “Em.”

The use of a nickname in itself draws a smile out of JJ and Emily shrugs, her smile slightly mischievous as she rips open the packets of Splenda and pours them into her tea, “What? They were staring, and I thought we were past the zoo exhibit stage of it all.” 

“It’s just nice to see you both happy, that’s all,” JJ says and Emily finds her smile getting wider as she looks at her friend. The topic of her and Aaron’s relationship was first on the list at the most recent girls with JJ and Penelope, and whilst she dodged answering the questions she knew would embarrass Aaron she gave them an insight into their life together that they didn’t have before. 

“Thank you, JJ,” Aaron says before he clears his throat and reaches for his tablet, “Now, what have we learned so far?” 

She knows the moment he sees what the rest of them already have, how he freezes for a second, something so brief she knows only she has picked up on it, when he flicks onto the photos of the victims. She reaches out for him under the table again, her hand on his thigh as she taps three times against his leg, saying what she couldn’t with the others around them. He places his hand over hers and squeezes, a silent thank you before he removes his hand again. 

When they land, Aaron asks her to go with Derek to speak to the family of the first victim whilst the rest of the team split off between going straight to the precinct and seeing the most recent crime scene. She almost argues with him about it, since Derek had been standoffish at best with her ever since they told the team about their relationship, but she stops herself, well aware it would likely only add fuel to the fire. 

She rolls her eyes as she watches Derek get into the driver's seat by force of habit but she doesn’t say anything, deciding it wasn’t a battle worth fighting. She blows out a breath as she climbs into the passenger seat and clips her seatbelt into place, and then she turns to look at him, furrowing her brow when she just finds him looking at her. 

“Is everything okay?” She asks, and he clears his throat before he starts the car. 

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

Her frown deepens, “With this case?” 

He laughs humourlessly at her obvious attempt to change the conversation's direction, her attempt to give him a chance to not ask the question they both know he’s really asking. “With Hotch.” 

She sighs and presses her lips together, her teeth clenched as she suppresses the anger she feels rolling through her. “Yes,” she says, her voice measured and steady, “I’m sure.” 

“I just don’t see it,” Derek replies as he drives, “You’re too different. He’s so serious and you’re…” 

He drifts off and she stares at him, her gaze burning into his side as he drives, “And I’m what?” 

He sighs, “You’re just not.” 

Her anger is replaced by a fierce type of protectiveness that only Aaron and Jack can bring out in her even though she tells herself Derek doesn’t mean anything by it. She would have once thought Aaron was terminally serious too before she knew it was a mask he wore to protect himself. He was so much more than the front he put on for the world, so intelligent and kind and soft in a way she never wanted to live without again. She liked to think that’s what made them work as well as they did, they both hid behind a mask they’d learnt to wear since they were children. Their parents were as different as their childhoods had been, but they’d handed them those masks nonetheless, one switched together with violence and indifference and the other with expectations that could never be met. 

She forces a smile that she hopes will bring the conversation to an end, her expression as fierce as she would allow it to be in the current setting, and she clears her throat.

“We’re more alike than you might think.” 

___

After two days of working on the case, they have a suspect, but only circumstantial evidence. Ever since the jet they’d been talking around the fact she looked a little too much like the victims, and no one was willing to bring it up. It starts to drive her crazy because she’s sure if she wasn’t dating Aaron someone would have suggested what felt inevitable by now - that she was used as bait to get a confession out of the guy, or at least help get them more evidence than they had. 

It’s why she suggests it herself. Why she pushes past the rolling nausea in her gut at the thought of it and shakes her head when Aaron tries to suggest they try something else first. Mostly, she thinks she brings it up first so he doesn’t have to, so he isn’t the one asking her to do something they both know she struggles more with now than she used to, the scars Ian left behind burning with a phantom itch as they all agree it’s the best idea they have. 

She goes to get a coffee, sure it could do no harm to her already shaky nerves, but she’s beaten to it by Derek. She smiles tightly at him as she approaches the kitchenette, “Can I have some of that?” 

“I thought you were off coffee,” he says, and she nods, her lips pressed together as she leans against the counter. 

“I am, mostly. But it’s going to be a long day so I need all the help I can get.” 

He sighs, “Are you sure you’re okay with this?” 

She nods, unsure of who she’s trying to reassure - him or herself, “I wouldn’t have suggested it if I wasn’t.”

For some reason, it seems to be the wrong thing to say. The look he’d given her in the car the other day flashes across his face and he scoffs, shaking his head as he finally pours his coffee.

“And Hotch doesn’t mind you flirting with another guy?” He asks, his tone one that she recognised. He was agitated, annoyed at something or someone, but she wasn’t entirely sure why. 

“He may be my boyfriend but he isn’t my owner. This isn’t the 1950s,” Emily forces a chuckle and swallows thickly, desperate to brush his behaviour under the carpet until they were home and she could get her head around it a little more. “Come on, Derek, it’s my job and Aaron knows that. And it’s not the first time I’ve had to flirt with an unsub. It’s not like I’m going to sleep with the guy.”

He scoffs and shakes his head, putting the coffee pot down with more force than necessary, “It wouldn’t be the first time you did that either.” 

It feels like all the air has been sucked out of her lungs as well as the room around her while his words sink in. Her chest feels hollowed out and it collapses in on itself, giving way under the weight of the insult from a man she would have once considered her closest friend. 

She thinks he must be shocked by what he’s said too, because his shoulders go tight and he freezes, his eyes wide as she steps back from him as if she’s taken a physical blow. She breathes out a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob and she shakes her head at him. It all falls into place. His overcorrection when she came home from Paris. His attitude towards her relationship with Aaron. 

“Forget the coffee,” she says, turning to leave, and it seems to break him out of whatever trance he’d fallen into. 

“Wait, Em-”

“No,” she says, louder than she means to be, drawing attention from Aaron and the rest of the team, and she blows out a shaky breath, “You don’t just get to say something like that and pretend you didn’t.” 

She walks away, her eyes burning with tears she won’t allow herself to shed, and she doesn’t have to turn around to know Aaron is following her. She finds an empty hallway ending in a supply closet and she walks into it, her hand immediately against a shelf as she supports herself. She closes her eyes and then looks up, desperately trying to make sure she doesn’t cry, and she waits for the door to close behind her. It’s a small closet, so she can feel Aaron standing behind her, the comfort she so desperately wanted just out of reach. She knew she couldn’t have it yet, knew that if she collapsed into him like she wanted to she would never pick herself back up in time. She blows out a breath and turns to look at him, and his visible concern only deepens when he sees how upset she is. 

“Sweetheart, what happened?”

She shakes her head and swallows thickly, “I can’t…not here.” 

He furrows his brow and he plays over what he’d seen in his head again, brief glances of a conversation she was having with Derek before he heard her shouting at him. Her voice raised in a way it rarely was with someone she cared about. He steps towards her and she steps backwards, her back colliding with the shelving unit behind her, and he stops. 

“Em-”

“Aaron, please,” she says, reaching out and linking her hand through his, drawing whatever strength she can from him through the simple touch of his palm against hers, “Not here. When we get home. Please.” 

He nods, despite everything in him screaming to know what is wrong right now, the ever-increasing feeling that he needed to tell Derek off burning in his gut, “What can I do?” 

“Don’t put me with Derek for the rest of the case?” She asks, sure it’s overstepping, that she’s taking big, leaping bounds over the line they’d drawn between their personal and professional lives. But he nods without second thought, like he’d give her the world if she asked for it right now, and she loves him for it, “And don’t talk to him about it either. Just…I’ll tell you when we get home.” 

Aaron nods and squeezes her hand, letting his thumb run over the back of her hand to stop himself from pulling her into a hug he knows she wants but won’t let him give her right now, “Whatever you need.” 

She smiles tightly, Derek’s words on a loop in her head that she can’t escape from, and now all she can think about is if Aaron had ever thought that way too. If he’d ever looked at her and seen her past decisions written all over her skin like some of them literally were. 

The thought breaks her heart, and makes it hard to let go of his hand, even when Dave knocks on the supply closet door and tells them it’s time to go.

___

He takes her request to not be with Derek for the rest of the case seriously. Once the case is over, once she’s managed to get a confession out of the man they’d known all along was the unsub, Aaron makes sure she’s sat with just him on the jet home. Any attempt Derek makes to speak to her is blocked by either her or Aaron, even though he still doesn’t know what’s wrong. When they land she still seems sad, subdued, and it makes Aaron want to demand an answer from Derek but he knows Emily wouldn’t thank him for it. So he waits. He waits and sits by her side and provides whatever comfort she’ll accept from him and when she lets him carry his bag to the car without question it only makes him worry more. 

“Jack will stay with Jess tonight, right?” She asks and he nods, reaching out to put his hand on her thigh as she does up her seatbelt. 

“Yes, it’s too late to go get him now. Shall we go to yours?” He suggests, only shifting his focus away from her to turn the engine on, “Save your neck from a night with my pillows.”

She chuckles and nods, her real smile flashing across her face, “My main complaint about my bed is you not being in it, so if you’re there it’s perfect.” 

“Your place it is,” he says, squeezing her thigh again and she doesn’t think she’s ever loved someone more when he doesn’t say anything else, when he doesn’t push or ask questions as he drives them to her place. He doesn’t ask anything when they get to her apartment or as they get changed out of the clothes they’d worn a few hours too long either. He waits her out, doesn’t try and push her into anything and it makes her want to talk to him about it even more than she had all day. 

She feels heavy when she sinks onto the couch wearing an old t-shirt of Aaron’s and a pair of leggings. Her heart feels heavy as it sinks into her stomach, the weight of Derek’s words, the weight of what he clearly thought of her, making it hard to breathe. 

“I ordered from that pizza place you like,” Aaron asks, and she looks up at him, the sight of him in sweats and a t-shirt enough to spark warmth in her belly no matter how brief. 

“Thanks, honey,” she says, offering out her hand to him, “Come sit with me for a bit.” 

He does it without question, rounding the couch to sit next to her, making a point of leaving some space between them when she doesn’t immediately lean into him like she usually would. His resolve starts to shake, cracks appearing throughout it as the need to know what had upset her starts to break free. 

“Sweetheart-”

“Derek said something earlier,” she says, her eyebrows furrowed as she turns so she’s facing him, her side pressed against the couch as she focuses on a loose thread sticking out of the back of it, “He…” 

He waits for a few seconds before he says anything, but when she doesn’t carry on he prompts her, his hands in his lap so he doesn’t reach out for her, “What did he say, Em?” 

“We were talking about what I did today, and he asked if you minded if that I had to flirt with another guy,” she presses her lips together and blows out a breath, “And I joked that it wasn’t like I was sleeping with someone else. And then…” she shakes her head and chokes on a sound she can’t name, everything she’d been feeling all day stuck in her throat, “And then he said it wouldn’t be first time I’d done it.” 

Aaron was used to anger. He’d grown up around it, had learned the feeling of it and the repercussions before he truly understood what it was. It’s familiar as it burns through him, his jaw drawn tight with it and his hands in fists in his lap as he tries and fails to contain it. 

“I’ll kill him.” 

She smiles softly at him and picks at the thread on the couch as she shakes her head, “I don’t need you to fight my battles, Aaron. I need…this. You,” her smile turns sad, “And what good would you be to me if you were in prison for killing our friend.” 

He hums, biting back a comment that he didn’t feel very friendly towards Derek right now. He remembers a conversation he’d had with Dave not long after Emily’s funeral, the older man’s lips loosened by whiskey and grief as he told Aaron everything Derek had said in Emily’s old place when she was going after Ian by herself. Derek had always been quick to anger, quick to judgment before he had the whole story, and it made Aaron angry even then when Emily had simply been his friend. 

She deserved more than judgment and condemnation from someone who had never had to make the choices she’d made. 

“I guess I just never thought it bothered him like that,” she says out loud, more to herself than to Aaron, but she sees something flash across his face, something he can’t hide from her, and she frowns, “What?” 

He sighs, sure it would do no good to tell her, “Em-”

“Please tell me.” 

He swallows thickly and nods, “When you were missing and you went after Ian by yourself we were trying to follow your tracks. When Dave and Derek were at your place looking for information, Derek said…some things about your relationship with Ian.”

She huffs out a humourless laugh, “Because I had sex with him?” 

Aaron nods, “Yes.” 

She shakes her head and wipes a stray tear from her cheek at his honesty that was as brutal as it was loving. 

“Does it…” she trails off, the question she isn’t sure she wants the answer to dying on her tongue, the taste of it bitter as she swallows thickly. She hugs her knees to her chest and wraps her arms around them, desperately trying to cover herself up even though she’s dressed. Even though Aaron has seen her naked countless times already. Even though every time he touched her he did it with such reverence that it made her ache, a gentleness to it that she doesn’t think she’d ever experienced before him. 

The first night they slept together she hadn’t thought about what he might think of her sleeping with Ian. He’d only crossed her mind as Aaron undressed her and the scars he’d left behind were slowly revealed, places where her skin had healed but she hadn’t yet on display for the first person other than her or a medical professional. Aaron had simply kissed her scars, the sensation strange and half numb, and moved on as if they were just another part of her, a point of interest on the landscape of her body in amongst a dozen others. She’d never worried about this, never thought about what he would think about the choices she’d made before she even knew him, but now it’s all she can think about. Derek’s thoughtless and unkind comment rolling around her head and destroying everything else in its wake.

“Does it what, sweetheart?” Aaron asks, purposely not reaching out for her, his hand twitching in his lap as he actively reminds himself to respect the boundary she has put between them. She’d already had so many things taken from her by other people, so many decisions made about her life without her consent and he wasn’t going to do it anymore than he already had. 

“Does it…bother you?” She asks, looking up at him, her jaw set so tightly he thinks it might shatter, as if she’s preparing for what she’s already convinced herself will be his answer, “That I had sex with Ian? Does it bother you?”

She regrets asking the moment she sees hurt flash in his eyes, something he tries and fails to hide from her as quickly as it happens. She couldn’t remember when she started to be able to read him like he was an open book. It went beyond the skills she had for her job, beyond things she’d learnt to read about other people’s behaviour. It was as if everything about him was written on paper only she could see, as if she’d been made to read it and learn all there was to know about him. She knew he could do the same with her, that he knew her better than anyone ever had and the thought no longer scared her. 

She wanted to be known by him for the rest of her life. 

“Em,” he breathes out, her name like a prayer as he silently begs her to believe him, “I promise you that it doesn’t bother me.” 

She looks up at him, unaware her gaze has drifted again, and she furrows her brow, the heartbreak she’d been preparing herself for halting so quickly it makes her breathless, “It doesn’t?” 

He shakes his head and turns his hand so his palm is facing upwards, offering it out to her - his comfort - and leaving her the choice of if she wants it. She grabs his hand, presses her palm against his larger one, and tangles their fingers together, the spaces between his seemingly made for hers. 

“It doesn’t,” he says, his voice soft but firm, a perfect example of the contradictions that made up the beautiful man she was in love with. All of his softness wrapped up in a tough exterior she couldn’t believe she once couldn’t see through. 

“Why?” She chokes out, unaware she was going to speak at all, her throat tight with everything she hadn’t expected to feel when she first woke up that morning. 

It makes him angrier at Derek than he already was, makes a protective streak he’s sure she wouldn’t thank him for burn through him, forcing his grip on her hand to tighten. He shifts closer to her, his side pressed against hers and his arm around her shoulders, and she sinks against him, seeking out the comfort he knows she doesn’t know how to ask for yet and that he will always have waiting for her. 

“Because there is nothing you could do that would make me any less in awe of you and your bravery,” he says as he kisses her temple, and the gasp she lets out is something he feels rather than hears. He wants to take away all the hurt everyone has ever caused her but he knows he can’t, just like she couldn’t take away all of his, but he can do this. He could hold her and see her through it all, be her port in a storm until the water was calm again. “And besides, we all have exes.” 

She laughs, the reaction he’d been hoping for, and it surprises her. Makes her chest ache as it pushes itself past ribs that weren’t expecting it. She looks up at him, her smile shaking and her eyebrow raised, and she’s somehow more in love with him than she was just a few moments ago. 

“Yeah, but they aren’t all terrorists, honey.” 

“I think that depends on who you ask,” his smile turns mischievous, and he winks at her, a wryness to his voice that she would never have expected from him when they first met. He leans in and kisses her, and it’s what makes it finally sink in, what makes her believe him with all her heart because he kisses her just like he always has. He rests his forehead against hers as he pulls back, “I mean it, Em. It doesn’t matter to me. It never has, it never will.”

“I love you,” she says, cupping his cheek to drag him in for a kiss, hoping he doesn’t taste the relief on her tongue and mistake it for a lack of trust in him. 

“I love you too,” he replies, stamping a kiss against her lips that is interrupted by a knock on the door, “That will be the pizza. I’ll get it,” he kisses her cheek, the salt of her tears catching on his lips, “Why don’t you go wash your face? You’ll feel better for it.” 

“Thank you,” she says, squeezing his hand and hoping he knows she’s thanking him for more than just the pizza, but for the way he loves her and for just being him. 

“Anytime, sweetheart,” he replies as he squeezes her hand back. There’s another knock on the door and he shakes his head as he stands up, “That pizza boy who has a crush on you just halved his tip with his impatience.” 

She chuckles as she stands and heads towards the bathroom, “He doesn’t have a crush on me.”

He hums to himself as he grabs his wallet from the table, “He absolutely does,” he mutters, distracted by getting the correct money and the paused conversation with Emily, well aware the upset caused by Derek wasn’t healed by his reassurances that he didn’t feel the same way. He pulls the door open without looking, a note already offered out in his hand, “It’s $20 in total, right?” 

“Hotch?” 

He looks up, his grip on the money tightened by the anger he hadn’t tampered down as successfully as he thought he had when it all comes rushing back as soon as his eyes meet those of the man who had upset the woman he loves. 

“Morgan, what the hell are you doing here?”

[daisyblog]

"I'm here for your girlfriend"

Our Story Masterlist A/N: Read Love At Wembley first Summary: Harry reads a sign about YN during Wembley Night 3

YN was stood to the side of the stage with Anne, Gemma and Des, along with Brad and Jeff. Since Harry and YN had returned backstage, with YN wearing an engagement ring Anne hadn't stopped hugging her or gushing over her ring. The whole atmosphere was different tonight, Harry was beaming on stage, YN's smile hadn't left her face, Harry's family felt extra proud and even more proud that their son and brother had finally popped the big question.

We've been doin' all this late night talkin' 'Bout anythin' you want until the mornin' Now you're in my life I can't get you off my mind

Can't get you off my mind Can't get you off my mind I won't even try Can't get you off my All this late night talkin'

After Harry had finished performing Late Night Talking, the fans cheered and tried grabbing his attention by waving, to which he would smile, wave, and give them a thumbs up as he walked around the stage. YN watched from her position between Anne and Gemma, wondering how she got so lucky in life with Harry, and now she got to marry and spend the rest of her life with the man she fell in love with at eighteen.

Taking the microphone from the stand, Harry began walking closer to the edge of the large stage. "This is the part of the show where if you have a sign...now's the time to hold them up". The fans began to cheer and hold up different signs, and tried to get Harry's attention to read theirs. Harry looked around until he saw one that caught his eye.

"Hello..what's your name?...Yeh you" Harry spoke directly at a fan that was near the front of the stage, causing the fans around her to jump with excitement. "Emmy?..No..Emily?...Give it up for Emily everyone". The stadium cheered in response, before Harry began to speak again. "Emily your sign says..I'm here for your girlfriend" Harry read the sign, a big smirk covering his face, before he looks over in the direction where YN is standing and he can see her laughing along with his Mum and Gemma.

"I have some news for you Emily...I actually don't have a girlfriend anymore" Harry spoke out to the crowd in front of him, causing the fans in front of him to look wide eyed and Emily's jaw dropped. "I arrived here this afternoon with a girlfriend...but I'm leaving with a fiancée". Harry never predicted the chaos and the cheer that sentence would cause, but here he was standing in front of thousands at Wembley Stadium announcing his engagement.

"Sorry..I can't hear you Emily...How did I propose?" Emily had asked Harry from where she was stood at the front of the barricade. Harry chuckled to himself "Do you all want to know?". The crowd went wild, obviously wanting to know how the couple got engaged. "Okay..okay..I'll tell you". Harry walked to the opposite side of the stage where he could see YN, standing with his family. "I'd actually had the ring a while...but the moment never seemed right..yah know...but Wembley has always been special to me..to us...If I didn't audition that, I would have never met the girl of my dreams" making the crowd cheer and awe. "So before you all joined us tonight...YN and I were sharing this special moment on the stage, where I'm currently standing...and I asked her to marry me...so after this tour, I'm gonna go on a little break and who knows..maybe I'll be a husband when I return" Harry smirked after his lengthy speech, to which he ended with blowing a kiss in YN's direction and sending her a cheeky wink. "I want to dedicate this next song to my future Mrs Styles...everybody this is..Love of My Life...sing it with me"

YN's Stories:

Tag List: (let me know if you would like to be added) @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @harrys-flower @platinumbarbie143 @frickin-bats @harrysbbyh0ney fanfictioncafe lilfreakjez jerseygirlinca iamahallucinationnn @chronicallybubbly @goldensunflowe-r  @walkingintheheartbreaksatellite @kaverichauhan @peterholland04 @panicattheuc @indierockgirrl @hittiesontour @or-was-it-just-a-dream

[seramilla]

Carmilla was honestly half a second away from ripping apart the Vees where they sat smugly at her table in her building.

She was getting so damn tired of their shit.

"Mama." Odette drew her attention and Carmilla looked at her eldest who was holding her phone to her ear.

To the other overlords confusion the three Carmines spoke in rapid Spanish to each other before Carmilla sighed and nodded.

Almost immediately the door burst open and a small winged body came rushing in, a phone in her hand.

"Mama! Mama!" The little one said brightly and it raced up to Carmilla who smiled softly and crouched down to scoop up the toddler.

"Hello there my little angel. Why did you steal Mommy's phone?" Carmilla asked easily plucking the cell from the girls hand and the toddler giggled.

"I gotta call before I barge in. And I need mamas help!" The toddler said and Carmilla was suddenly a lot more serious and her eyes moved over the child before glancing at the doorway.

"Need my help with what Emmy? And where's your mommy?" Carmilla asked and the little angel pointed out the door she ran in through.

"Mean man tried hurting me. Mommy was beating him up. I wanna beat him up too but I need help." The toddler said and Clara snorted at that but hurriedly muffled it.

"I see...well how about mama goes and helps mommy while you stay with your hermanas hm chiquita?" Carmilla asked and the toddler beamed and nodded and was in Odettes arms.

"I'll be right back. I just need to go help my wife murder someone." Carmilla told the other overlords before she was out the door and there was silence for a long moment.

"Did she say wife?" Vox asked slowly as he looked at the others who nodded dumbly.

"Ay the woman's got another brat?" Valentino asked in disbelief as he looked at the toddler.

"Hi! I'm Emily! Are you some of mamas friends?"

Carmilla and Sera tag-teaming to murder a guy who threatened baby Emily is giving me LIFE! 😂😂

This is one of those situations where Carmilla is so petty, she gaslights the Vees into believing she's had a wife and third child this whole time. Vox and Valentino eventually just think they've gone insane, because no one else is backing them up!

Carmilla and Sera walk in with the corpse of the demon they mauled, and Vox and Valentino are just sweating bullets for the entire meeting. The demon isn't even recognizable anymore. Zestial takes the dead guy somewhere, for...reasons only known to him.

The Vees are reminded that day why they never try to mess with Carmilla. Or Zestial, for that matter...the old-timer is so cryptic and creepy. He gives them the heebie-jeebies. He could also probably snap them out of existence with a gesture. So of course Emily takes to Zestial like a fish to water, and he is equally protective of her.

[kittenfangirl20]

Queen Adam Au Part 6

Velvette was throwing material around her fashion studio, she needed to find the perfect material. Not just any will do.

If she was going to gain favor with the Queen of Hell, Adam Morningstar, then it needed to be perfect.

For months Velvette had been keeping an eye on magazine articles about what Adam would wear and not long after those items would become hot commodities.

She wanted that monetary profit.

Vox walked in narrowly avoided getting his by a bag of glitter.

Vox: Vel, what fresh Hell is this? You're making a mess.

Velvette: I want to make the most perfect dress for the Queen. If Adam loves and buys a dress from me we will be rolling in it more than we are now. He's a fashion icon, anyone worth their shit wants to look like him.

Vox sipped his coffee: That would be a great help. Has he bought anything of yours in the past?

Velvette deflated a bit: No, but that just means he hasn't worn a true fucking masterpiece yet!

-

Adam yawned, it was so early and he had to feed his babies. He went to the nursery to get the twins.

Adam: Good morning my little beauties.

He picked up Ariel first and sat in the rocking chair while he breast fed his baby.

Lucifer came in a couple minutes later: Hey, need any help?

Adam: You can burp her so I can feed him.

Lucifer: Okay, come here my beauties.

Lucifer took the baby and gave Adam a kiss. He burped his little girl as Adam picked up Adrial and fed him.

*Adam was so happy over the fact that Lucifer was not only an amazing husband, he was also an equally amazing father as well, fatherhood was just as important to Adam as motherhood was, he was the father of humanity after all, he prided himself on the fact that Eve praised him for being such a good father, Adam fully admitted that he had a praise kink which both of his spouses took advantage of, he then realized something, he hadn’t seen Emily all day*

Adam: Where is Emily?

Lucifer: Now that you mention it, she hasn’t left her room at all.

Adam: I hope she isn’t sick.

*after the babies were fed and burped, Adam went to check on Emily, she was frantically running around the room looking at the dresses Adam helped her buy and trying to figure out what wig she should wear or if she should even wear a wig*

Adam: Hey Emmy, are you alright?

Emily: Everything has to be perfect for my date with Satan tonight………… Oh no, you’re going to give him the shovel talk now.

*Adam smirked*

Adam: Yep, I mean what kind of older brother would be if I didn’t. I am the second most powerful being in Hell and mom would be disappointed if I didn’t give him the shovel talk.

*both suddenly got quiet, they still hadn’t heard about what happened to Sera after Emily fell, Lucifer was constantly sending messages to Heaven through Heaven’s Embassy demanding that they give him an answer about the head seraphim and the status of former Sinners who became Winners*

Emily: I still miss mom.

Adam: I do too, remember when I got sick and she bought me Muffin to help me feel better.

*Adam’s favorite giant lion plushie was now also the favorite of his kids*

Emily: Yeah, she also made the best cakes and muffins for us as well.

Adam: I am proud to say those cakes and muffins contributed to my chubby gut that Luci loves so much.

*Adam proudly pat his stomach*

Adam: I do hope you have a wonderful date and I am still going to give Satan the shovel talk.

*at the Vee Tower Vox and Valentino sat on the couch watching Velvette working so frantically*

Valentino: I don’t get why she is so obsessed with making the Queen so happy especially since he played a part in me losing my best star to Heaven.

Velvette: Fashion is everything, fashion is life. Everything Adam wears becomes the next sensation. You will thank me when my outfits earn so much money for us.

Vox: She does bring up a good point, gain the favor of Queen Adam and you are all abound Hell can talk about.

*Valentino just stared at the both of them wondering why they were acting like they didn’t orchestrate a smear campaign against Queen Adam because Manmon and Lilith hired them to, he didn’t care one way or another, he liked being a scumbag that others feared, in fact he thought that his Adam/Alastor porn was his best work yet, it was too bad that the people of Hell didn’t see it that way since they were so obsessed with their pretty Queen sadly Lucifer had ever copy of the porno destroyed aside from the one secret copy Valentino owned which he sadly couldn’t sell because no one dare buy it, well at least he could watch it and pleasure himself to it*

Valentino: You two have fun obsessing over the Queen of Hell, I am going to work now.

@things-arent-what-they-seem66

[sinner-obie]

*A little trip was in order it seemed, and Emily looked forward to being in hell once more. She made special preparations, doing her best to hide her halo and angelic nature as she and Obie would be surveying the land purchased in advance.*

*She kicked her feet as an anxious excitement began to thrum in her chest at the idea of seeing the 200 acres she’d gotten. So much space! They really had a chance to do something good here! Her fingers tapped against the counter as she waited in the lobby for Obie to arrive for their less-than-normal appointment.*

(( @ask-emily-em-emmy ))

*Outside of his obligations, Obie hadn’t left his flat much since Peyton had told him she wasn’t interested in a relationship. Getting out of bed only to work, play basketball, and go back to bed was getting old. Perhaps this little field trip with Emily would be just what he needed.*

*He walks into the lobby of the Embassy where she waits for him. He waves, and tries to match her bright smile the best he can.*

Hey, good morning! -🐻

[cloudlessly-light]

Hi I was wondering if you could do a fic where they’re away on a case and emily sneaks into aaron’s room cause no one knows about them yet. Then the next morning the team discusses how there was a really loud couple and then somehow they find out that it was Emily and Aaron. I really hope that made sense.

I love all you’re writing btw you’re amazing ❤️

A/N: Posting the last chapter early because I’m going away for a little bit and I wanted to finish this before leaving. Thank you to everyone who’s read and enjoyed this story, you guys all make me so happy! Especially thank you to everyone who's encouraged this story even when our idiots truly have been IDIOTS haha

Title: Love like mine (12/12) Chapter title: Baby, you’ll never find a love like mine Summary: He wasn’t a cheater. Until her. Word count: 2,5k Rating: Explicit   Warnings (for this chapter): Smut, oral, fluff, feelings

She’s running late for a day of shopping and lunch with Penelope and JJ. She’s running late because Aaron had kept her in his bed for longer than necessary, both of them enjoying their free Saturday before Haley would be dropping off Jack. And now she was rushing to get her things together. Maybe that’s why she doesn’t look through the peephole at the sudden knock, something she usually always did. But not this time, instead she swings the door open and comes face to face with Haley, the other woman looking just as surprised as she felt.

They had been good at avoiding each other, something Emily hadn’t wanted but understood why Haley didn’t want to see her. They had been divorced for six months, Aaron and Emily had been together for close to two now, and Haley had made her feelings clear about the situation. Not that either of them blamed her for feeling the way she did.

“Haley.” She says and she hears Aaron’s steps pick up.

“Hello.” She shifts Jack on her hip, hugging him closer even as he squirms. It’s tense, the two women caught in a stare.

“You’re early.” Aaron is suddenly there, breaking the silence and Jack immediately reaches for him.

“Daddy!” He squirms out of his mothers’ arms and runs to Aaron who picks him up in a hug.

“Hi buddy.” He kisses his son’s head and puts him down.

“Hi Emmy.” The three year old immediately pads over to her and she squats down to be at eye level.

“Hi Jack.” She smiles and Jack grins back before throwing his short arms around her in a hug.

Haley watches the whole exchange with a sinking feeling. She knew that Emily had been around her son, her name being thrown around in the midst of Jack’s talking. Logically she knew that the other woman was good with children, that Jack wasn’t in any sort of danger, but the pang of anger in her chest as her son happily reached for the other woman made her heart hurt.

When Emily stands back up she feels the hate directed towards her, something she wished wasn’t there but knew she couldn’t change. What they had done to Haley was wrong, to some something unforgivable. All she could do was to wish that somehow Haley would find some way to accept Emily in Jack’s life. And that would take time.

It was strange, thinking of herself as part of a family, something she just a year ago wouldn’t even have dreamed off. Something she had wanted but never dared to hope for and instead she had stuck with flings and one night stands. But now she was with Aaron, the words love constantly on the tip of her tongue but something she hadn’t said out loud yet.

“Well. I should go.” Haley’s mouth turns into a thin line as she looks between the two of them.

“You don’t have to go, I’m on my way out.” She says, knowing that Haley and Aaron usually spent some time together to talk about next weeks schedule and playdates when she dropped Jack off. “Please stay.”

Haley sighs heavily, about to decline but Jack’s voice stops her.

“Mommy stay.” The three adults look down at the child who’s happily playing with his toy truck on the floor, too young to understand the complicated relationship of his parents, too innocent to feel the awkwardness in his home.

“Okay I’ll stay.” She hangs up her jacket and leaves her purse on the side table. She ignores the way Aaron squeezes Emily’s hand as she tells them bye. Most of all she ignores the feeling of Aaron having found the woman he would spend the rest of his life with. She silently wonders if either of them had realized the same thing.

*

After that first meeting things had gotten slightly better. Haley didn’t avoid Emily the way she previously had and Emily relaxed a little when she was around Jack and Haley together. It wasn’t easy, but they seemed to find some sort of middle ground of acceptance.

“Jack loves you.” He says as they drive off, having just dropped him off at Haley’s after another weekend spent with them.

“Really?” She rolls her head to look at him with a smile and his hand squeezes her thigh.

“Really.” He smiles back and he sees the way her cheeks heat slightly. “How could he not?”

“You’re so cheesy.” She rolls her eyes at him but has to bite her bottom lip to keep from beaming. There was something about the way he was looking at her, like she was something fragile, something worth protecting, that made her unable to look away from the darkness of his eyes. She knew it was coming before he said it and she readied herself for what she would say, words that she still haven’t said out loud but knew she wanted to tell him.

“I love you Em.” He watches as she draws a breath, the sound almost shaky and her hand lands on top of his on her thigh.

“I love you too.”

To them, that was everything.

*

They’re in Oregon, another case closed but unable to fly home due to bad weather conditions. It forces them to stay another night, which in turn forced Emily to sleep alone in her room. Only, she couldn’t seem to relax, her body and mind craving the man just three doors down the hall. They had a rule, she knew that, and yet she didn’t care when she slipped on a sweater that was his, way too big on her and then knocked on his door.

“Emily, what’s going on?” He drags her inside quickly, eyes moving through the corridor but finds that she’s alone. He didn’t care much if anybody saw her, but it was her decision to wait to tell the team and he wanted to respect that.

“I-” She stops herself from continuing, suddenly feeling silly. She wasn’t needy, she never had been before, but then he looks at her with an arched eyebrow and a small smile and she chuckles. “I didn’t want to sleep alone.”

“I had been thinking the same thing.” He wraps her arms around her the moment she steps into his space. Her chin rests against his chest and he presses a kiss to her forehead.

“We’re disgusting, aren’t we?” She teases and he smiles with a low hum.

“Maybe.” He drags her shirt off her and bites back a groan at the sight of her tiny sleep shorts and pink tank top, one of the thin straps falling off her shoulder. “So this is what I’m missing out on when we sleep apart huh?”

“I can’t very well sleep in one of your shirts in case I need to room with JJ.” She backs away from him, her hand in his as she tugs him along until her knees hit the back of the bed.

“I thought you wanted to sleep.” His voice drops lower as she sits down on the bed, her fingers hooking in his pajama pants and tugging them down his hips along with his boxers.

“Later.” She breathes as she slips from the bed and to her knees. “Right now I just want you.”

“Alright sweetheart.” He groans at the first swipe of her tongue, his hand quickly gathering her hair in a ponytail to be able to look at her face. Her mouth is so hot, so wet around him and he swallows hard.

She gets him hard quickly, sucking his cock until he’s leaking precum and snarling her name through clenched teeth. When he pulls her up to stand she barely gets the gasp out before he’s kissing her, his rough hands pulling at her clothes until she’s as naked as he is.

“On your back.” He breathes and watches with heated eyes as she lays down, legs spreading and showing her already wet center. His knees will hurt in the morning, but he doesn’t care as he kneels on the floor and drags her pliant body to the edge of the bed. When he licks through her slowly she moans and her hips rock against his tongue. Then he flicks her clit and she gasps his name as she leans back on her elbows, head falling back.

“Just like that.” She pants as he continues to lick over the sensitive nub. When he pushes two fingers inside of her and sucks her clit hard she comes with a loud grunt, the sound low and breathy as she trembles for him.

“You’re so pretty when you come for me.” He growls as he lifts her higher on the bed and pushes inside of her before she’s really even come down from her euphoric high.

They fuck hard, forgetting where they are as the bed rattles and moans and groans and grunts are muffled into each other’s skin. He makes her come again, then lets her ride him until she’s coming for a third time. When he pushes inside of her from behind she’s trembling and whimpering, overstimulated and exhausted as he groans his pleasure against her ear, voice thick with unrestrained want.

“Come inside me baby.” Her fingers twist in his hair as she holds his face against the back of her neck. “Make me feel it.”

The deep growl that rumbles in his chest when he comes only a few minutes later sends her over the edge again, the mix of him pulsing inside of her and the sound of his voice forcing another orgasm through her.

She gasps for breath as his hands turn gentle on her body, his lips tasting and kissing the bruise he’s sucked into her shoulder, tasting the sweat on her back as he licks along her spine. When they fall asleep it’s tangled together, sated and exhausted.

She is woken up by the sound of his alarm and she grunts when she looks at the time.

“It’s too early.” She complains and he grunts against her neck, his arm tightening around her middle momentarily.

“You need to get back to your room before everyone wakes up.” He reminds her, voice raspy and thick and she finds herself pushing her body against his in response. But he’s right, and she drags herself out of bed, dresses slowly as he watches her with heated eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that.” She tells him as she pulls the sweater over her body. “Or I’ll end up staying here.”

“I know.” He accepts the kiss she presses to his lips and lets his hand wrap around the back of her neck for a moment, keeping her close. “See you in a couple of hours.”

“Love you.” She kisses him again forces herself to stand back up and head to the door.

“Love you too.” He promises right before she disappears out the door. He doesn’t realize he’s still smiling when he lays back in bed.

*

“Did you guys hear it?”

“It was so loud.”

“Yeah I did not need to know that people were getting it on at 1am.”

Emily walks with Dave towards the team with her overnight bag thrown over her shoulder. Her body was still aching from him, the hickey on her neck covered with make up and a high collared shirt, and she still wanted more, couldn’t wait until they got home so she could have him again.

“Morning.” She seems to be interrupting the conversation, three sets of eyes all looking at her.

“Did you hear the couple on our floor too?” JJ asks but before she can respond Spencer starts talking.

“You must have!” When she looks at him he looks close to traumatized and she bites her cheek to keep from commenting.

“I must have been asleep.” She lies and it’s Derek that catches the way her tone shifts just slightly.

“There’s no way.” He tells her. “There’s no way you slept through that.”

Beside her she hears Dave chuckle, but otherwise stays quiet and for a second she wants to strangle the older man.

“Good morning.” The sound of Aaron’s voice causes her to turn around. “What’s going on?” He asks as all of them turn to look at him, different expressions on their faces.

“There was a super loud couple on our floor last night, they were going at it like rabbits.” JJ says and when Aaron’s eyebrows raise in surprise the blonde zeroes in on him. “You didn’t hear them?”

“Uhm, no. I must have been asleep.” He looks between each member of the team, tries to keep his face as neutral as possible but he can feel the way each and every one of them catches on as their eyes start to shift between himself and Emily.

“You were asleep?” JJ smirks at her unit chief who clenches his jaw as he swallows. “You woke up from the sound of Morgan dropping a file once. You’re telling us you slept through that noise?”

“I guess I was tired.” He lies but he knows there’s no point.

It’s Derek that dares to voice it, his eyes boring into Emily’s and when her face flushes he knows and he grins at his friend.

“I knew you were getting some!” He laughs and JJ and Dave join him.

“Morgan.” Aaron warns but the other man doesn’t seem deterred.

“How long has this been going on?”

“Does Strauss know?

“What’s going to happen with the team?”

“Pen, you will not believe what’s happened.”

“I knew it!”

The questions seemed endless, mixed emotions from all of them but they had expected nothing less. At the end though, their team seemed happy for them. It was going to be an adjustment, but later as they watched Aaron and Emily on the plane, no longer hiding as she leaned against him, all of them realized that they hadn’t seen either of them so content before.

JJ smiles as she watches them from across the plane. She knew Aaron better than most people thought, and as she took in the way his thumb traced gentle circles on Emily’s upper arm, she noticed the way he looked happier than she’d seen him in years.

Spencer spent most of the flight back home trying to recount every interaction between them, figuring out that they had started seeing each other before Aaron’s divorce. He has mixed feelings about that, but he wouldn’t judge, not when he saw the way Emily smiles as she looked at Aaron.

Derek spent the flight texting with Penelope who was going insane not seeing the couple with her own eyes. But he sneaks a picture of them to send to Penelope and that picture is the first one that’s ever taken of them as a couple. It will be framed and stand on Aaron’s desk next to the one of Jack.

Emily is asleep against him when Dave comes to sit across from him, a glass of scotch in each hand. He hands him one of the glasses and raises his own in a toast. “It’s about damn time.”

[woso-fan13]

Sicktember 2023: 30 (uswnt)

Patient 0

It wasn’t your fault. Technically, you are the only person that the blame falls to, but you didn’t mean for everything to happen. You had felt fine when you had left for camp and when you arrived. You didn’t start feeling sick until dinner on the first full day, but you blamed the headache on the lack of water that you had consumed that day. 

Waking up the next morning, you knew that this wasn’t caused by a little dehydration. This was, without a doubt, a nasty bug. 

You were determined to keep this to yourself in all ways possible. You didn’t want your teammates to know that you were sick, but you also didn’t want to get them sick. The best way to accomplish both of these things is to hide from everyone as much as you can. 

You had some pretty good excuses over the next day, insisting that you needed to complete a lengthy assignment for school and spending a lot of time in your room. You also claimed that you wanted a little extra practice time, allowing you to get out of the locker room before everyone else arrived and stay on the field until you were sure everyone had changed. It was draining, but it was for the best. 

—-

On the third day, an unstopping knock sounded on the door. When you heard the voices on the other side- Emily and Kelley- you knew that they wouldn’t stop knocking until you opened the door. 

Unwrapping the blanket from your body and pausing briefly to try and make yourself look less ill, you make it to the door and open it. You stare at the women on the other side, an eyebrow cocked in question. 

“Hey, nugget,” Emily says, pushing past you and walking into your room, “we figured you could use some company tonight.”

You protested, assuring the women that you were busy while trying to hide the rasp in your voice. The two women ignore you and settle on your bed anyway.  

“Yeah, yeah,” Kelley rolls her eyes, “I’ve heard, you’re swamped. But you know what I think?”

You shake your head slightly, unsure as to where Kelley is going. 

“I think it’s all a lie. What do you think, Sonny, is Y/N lying to us?”

You try to protest but Emily interrupts you, “she obviously is. I mean, look at her.”

“I think you’re lying,” Kelley continues, “because it’s summer right now. So I know your fall classes haven’t started, and I know that you weren’t taking any summer classes. So you obviously aren’t working on something for school. All of this brings up the question of why you’re lying.”

You stay silent, your eyes suddenly finding it necessary to study the carpet on the hotel floor. 

Emily decides that she should also chime in, “at first, we thought you were just being a little shy. But, come on, when have your name and shy been used in the same sentence?”

Kelley continues the conversation, “Then we thought you might be working on a surprise or a prank or something, but you can’t keep a secret.”

“And then,” Emily pauses, “we figured it out.”

“You’re sick, kiddo,” Kelley says bluntly. 

“No, I’m not,” you insist much too quickly for someone telling the truth, “I’m totally fine, I’ve just been busy. But I’m completely, 100%, totally healthy.”

Kelley snags an arm around your waist, pulling you to sit between the two women on the bed, “it’s okay if you’re not.”

And the dams had burst, as you began crying. The two women hold you tighter, whispering calming words as you allow all of the emotions from the past few days to escape. 

“Shh, buddy, you’re okay,” Emily soothes, “we know you’re feeling a little sick, but you’ll feel better soon. I promise.”

“It’s not that,” you whimper through tears, “I- I just don’t wanna be alone anymore.”

Somewhat confused by your confession, the women share a look over your head. Kelley pulls you to completely rest against her, dropping a few kisses to your hair. 

“You don’t have to be alone, that’s why Emmy and I are here. We’re going to snuggle up and watch a movie before bed, you’ll be right between us.”

“But I can’t, cause then you’ll be sick.”

Oh. 

That’s what you had been afraid of. 

“Oh, bug,” Emily says sadly, “we don’t care if we get sick, that’s okay.”

“But you’ll get sick and then everyone will get sick and it will all be my fault,” you force the words out through tears. 

“You’re not going to be patient 0, Y/N/N, I promise. And even if you are, no one will be mad,” Kelley reassures you. 

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure. Remember when you got really sick at camp last year and ended up in the hospital?”

You nod, thinking about the endless wait in the ER as your sick lungs struggled to breathe properly. 

“Do you remember how you got sick?”

Again, you nod. 

“Do you blame me? I was the first one in the team to get sick and I was your roommate. Was it my fault you got sick and were in the hospital?”

You frantically shake your head no, “of course not, don’t be ridiculous. You didn’t mean to get me sick.”

The women fix you with identical looks, clearly telling you to take your own advice. And you do, slumping fully into their embrace with a sigh.