#jealous hotch

[sirpotys]

Ian won't approach Emily in Aaron's presence.

[moonlightspencie]

Sleepover

Description: Hotch wants the reader, but doesn’t know how to tell her. Maybe a night in will be of some assistance.

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x fem!Reader

Warnings: none (but this is full of domesticity, jealous!hotch, mutual pining, and so much fluffy fluff)

Word Count: 4.9k

A/N: originally posted on tumblr. then it resided on ao3. now it’s back on tumblr. (fun fact: it’s my favorite hotch fic i’ve ever written and my second favorite story i’ve done of all the fandoms i’ve written for. hope ya like it still)

If there was one thing Agent Aaron Hotchner was not, it was unprofessional. But, oh. If there was ever a time he wanted badly to be unprofessional, it was this moment right now. Y/N stood next to him, leaning in close to whisper in his ear as they stood in the kitchenette, looking out into the bullpen.

“You look exhausted. You need to go get sleep.”

He glanced down at her. His face was so close he could almost feel her breath on him. It was everything in him to not lean in and—

“Hotch, seriously. You can’t even focus for more than a minute at a time,” she laughed, shaking her head.

“I’ll be fine. It was just— a long case,” he finally managed.

She turned away, arms crossing. “You need rest. You beat yourself up more than anyone during this one.”

“I have a little boy at home to take care of before I can even think about sleep.”

She sighed, turning fully to face him. “Hotch.”

“Y/N,” he retorted.

“Fine. You know what?”

He turned towards her, arms crossing to mirror her.

“What?”

“I’m coming home with you.”

His heart stopped and face dropped. It took him a moment to process what she’d just said.

“Um,” he took a second to clear his throat, “I—Excuse me?”

She laughed, music to his ears. “That sounded so inappropriate. I’m sorry. I mean, I’m going to come watch Jack for you. You’re gonna get rest.”

“I’m your boss.” Hotch watched her face for a moment. “You don’t need to watch my son while I sleep.”

“You’re also my friend, and I’m offering my time, you’re not taking it. Besides, I’ve watched Jack a hundred times before.”

He only sighed, looking back over the bullpen, now nearly empty.

She turned again, leaning over. “You’re not gonna win this one.”

“Fine, but you need to get sleep at some point, too.” He looked back to her. “As soon as Jack is asleep, I want you to get rest yourself.”

“Will do, boss.” She smirked.

“Okay, go get your things, we’ll leave in a few minutes,” he said, watching her for a moment as she walked off.

She went to her desk, beginning to pack up what she needed, but not before Derek had to come over to stir things up.

“Hey, pretty girl,” he said, leaning against her desk on one arm. “Leaving so soon?”

“Soon?” She laughed. “We just had a hell of a case, I’m getting out of here.”

“Oh, man.”

He shifted, crossing his arms over his chest and sat against the desk.

Hotch walked towards his office, trying not to watch the pair talking. He tried to not pay attention how she smiled at him as he spoke, and how he always seemed to have the right words to say to get her to laugh.

“Why, what’s up?” She slung her bag over her shoulder.

“I was thinking about going to the bar. Wanted to know if a pretty lady wanted to tag along.”

Hotch threw his things in his bag quickly, trying to not think about Y/N talking to someone much younger… Childless… Not a widow. Someone he knew she’d be with more easily.

“Oh, so you only wanted me around for my looks, huh?”

He laughed, throwing his head back a little. “You’re worth a lot more than just that, sweetheart.”

“Aww, such a sweet boy,” she said, griping his shoulder. “I got some other plans for the night, though.”

“Oh yeah? Doing what?” He straightened up with a smirk.

“Ready?” Hotch asked, walking up behind her at the desk.

“Yeah, let’s go,” she responded, turning towards him.

Morgan’s face was stuck in a state of shock.

“Whoa, now hold on—”

“I’m going to watch Jack,” she said, cutting him off with a chuckle. “Don’t get too riled up, now.”

He smiled, almost laughing. “Alright. I’ll see you two tomorrow.”

“Goodnight, Morgan,” Hotch said with a curt wave. Y/N followed his lead, and then they were on their way out.

“So,” Hotch started as they stepped out of the elevator and walked outside. “You and Morgan?”

Y/N raised her eyebrows in shock. “What?”

They began walking to his car.

“Are you two… Because there are some forms you’d really need to sign if—”

“Hotch,” she stopped him, standing by the passenger side door as he waited by the drivers. “That is so not happening.”

“Okay, I just…” he trailed off with a shrug, opening the door as she did and getting in.

“He’s a flirt. There’s nothing going on between us.” She settled into the seat, buckling up. “Besides, I’m too busy trying to take care of you.”

She laughed and he couldn’t help himself but to join in. He pulled off, and started towards home.

“Thank you, by the way, for doing this,” he said, not daring to look at her with how nervous he suddenly felt about bringing her to his home.

“I just want to make sure you’re taking care of yourself.”

“Jack is going to love this.” He chuckled, turning down his street. “He really looks up to you, you know? Thinks you’re hilarious.”

“Well, he’s not wrong. I am pretty funny.” She smiled. “I am, admittedly, a little sad I only get to hang out with him for a few hours, though.”

“Yeah?” he asked, pulling into the lot of the apartment complex.

“Yeah. He’s a great kid.”

As much as he didn’t want to admit it for how childish it felt, he got butterflies this time when he turned to look at her. Before he could think about it too much, he turned the key and opened the door. She followed suit, walking behind him until they reached his door. He opened it for her, and she looked around.

“His aunt should be dropping him off here in a few minutes,” he said, closing and locking the door behind him. “If you’re hungry or need a drink, you’re free to get anything from the kitchen.”

“Thank you.” She smirked, watching him. “Why don’t you go get ready for bed?”

“I will.”

He chuckled, feeling like a little kid with the way she spoke to him. Then he paused, considering something for a moment.

Apparently the moment was longer than he realized.

“You got something on your mind?” she asked.

“Would you like to stay here for the night? I have a guest room, and this way you won’t need to catch a ride home. I could just take you to work tomorrow.”

“Oh,” she said, glancing down at her bag. “I don’t have anything to wear. I mean, I have my go bag at my desk that I could always use for an emergency, but for the night—”

“If you need something, I’m sure there’s something of mine you could…” He paused, realizing what he was saying. But before he could backtrack, she had to go and flash him a smile again.

“If that’s okay with you, it’s okay with me.”

“I’m sorry if that sounded inappropriate, I—”

“Did you not hear me agree?” She laughed. “You worry too much, boss. Now go get dressed.”

He nodded, turning for his room. She walked over the couch in the living room, sitting down and leaning her head back. It wasn’t long before she heard a bedroom door open, and there stood the great Aaron Hotchner in an old t-shirt and baggy pajama pants.

“That’s a good look on you,” she said, looking up at him from where he sat.

He felt a blush creep onto his skin, and tried really hard not to think about it. He walked a little closer as she stood up, handing her a nearly folded pile of clothes.

“I brought you these. The shirt is extra baggy and comfortable, and hopefully the pants will fit well enough. They’re adjustable.”

“Thank you so much, this’ll be great.” She smiled up at him. “Room is down the hall? I’d like to get dressed and set my bag in there before Jack gets here.”

“Yes, right across from his room.”

“Okay, sounds great. Now, you go to bed. I’ll be here.”

He gave her a slight smile. “Right. Thank you, again.”

“You know it’s no problem. Now, goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” he said, walking off.

She grabbed her bag and the clothes, walking off towards the guest room. She set her bag down near the door, closing it to dress. She stripped out of her work clothes, slipping on his t-shirt first. She took in a deep breath and smiled: It smelled like him. She finished pulling on the pajama pants and made them comfortable as needed.

She grabbed a makeup wipe out of her bag and wiped her face, calling it good for an unexpected night out. Then, she heard a knock at the door. She walked out, looking through the peephole to see Hotchner’s sister-in-law Jessica standing outside with Jack. Y/N opened the door.

“Hey!”

“Y/N!” Jack squealed, throwing his arms around her. “What are you doing here?”

“Dad needed to get some rest, sweetheart. So, we get to hang out for the night,” she said, looking down at him with a hand rested on his back. “Thank you for bringing him.”

“Anything for my little man. It’s good to see you again,” she said with a smile, accepting a quick hug from Jack before he bolted off.

“You too, Jess. Have a great night.”

She waved a goodbye and was out the door. Y/N locked everything back up, and popped her head into Jack’s room.

“Hey, buddy.”

“Hi!” he said, turning around from where he stood at his dresser. “I’m gonna get dressed for bed. Then can we watch a movie? I already ate at aunt Jess’s house.”

“Yeah, of course, little man.” She nodded. “Do you want to go in the living room or…”

Jack paused, giggling. “Why are you wearing dad’s clothes?”

“I’m staying the night, bud. I needed pajamas.”

“You are?” he asked, eyes wide. “Can we go watch the movie in your room?”

“Yeah! Why don’t you finish getting dressed and brush your teeth, and then you can come in, okay?”

“Okay!” he exclaimed, quickly grabbing his clothes.

She turned, walking across to hall and into the guest room. She pulled the covers back, crawling underneath and switching on the T.V., finding her way to Jack’s Netflix profile, smiling at some of the shows he’d been watching. She picked an old movie she loved as a kid. It wasn’t long before she heard a door open, and little footsteps whipping around the other side of the bed. He crawled up under her arm, pulling blankets up to cover him.

Jack was watching intently, the movie only half over, when the creaking of another door piqued their interest. Hotch’s head popped into view a second later.

“What are you doing up?” Y/N asked.

“Couldn’t sleep.” He gave a shy smile, then turned to Jack. “How are you doing buddy?”

“Y/N said she’s staying over!”

“Yeah, she is.” He smiled, stepping inside the room. “How’s the movie?”

“I like it a lot. Come watch!” Jack said, patting the bed next to him.

“Buddy, I’m not sure that’s—”

“Please, dad?” he pleaded.

Hotch looked to Y/N, almost asking permission without saying a word. She nodded. He shuffled a little, hesitantly walking around the bed to Jack’s other side. He lowered himself on the bed, pulling the covers over his legs. Jack slipped out from under Y/N’s arm in favor of leaning on his dad’s shoulder. It wasn’t long before Jack was snoring, and as Y/N looked up to see if Hotch thought it was just as cute as she did, she noticed he’d fallen asleep, too. They looked so sweet sleeping there together that she couldn’t help but pull out her phone and take a picture. She set the phone on the nightstand, making herself more comfortable as she focused her attention back on the movie.

Early morning light filled the room when Hotch woke up. He glanced down to see his son cuddle up against him and smiled. He was still fast asleep. Then, he looked up. Y/N laid asleep, her body curled up on her side, facing him and effectively caging Jack between them. Her breath came soft and even, and he admired how she looked in his clothes as he saw her in the light for the first time. She was so close, and he longed to get closer, but couldn’t think on it long before her eyes started fluttering open.

“Hey,” she greeted, voice soft with sleep, and a tired smile gracing her face.

“Hey,” he said back. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep in here.”

She chuckled, rubbing her eyes. “No, it’s fine. I think he was happy to have you here.”

Hotch smiled, looking down at his son. He was out like a light.

Y/N leaned over, gently kissing Jack’s forehead before slowly and quietly getting out of bed. Hotch watched her, heart aching at how much he wished all of his mornings could start this same way. He shifted out of the grip of his son as she stretched out at the end of the bed, leaving the room with her.

“It’s still early,” he said, walking to the kitchen. “Are you hungry?”

She trailed behind, taking a seat at the counter.

“That depends. Are you gonna make me breakfast if I am?”

“If you’d like.”

He smirked at her, and she smiled back.

“Tell you what, you work on the food, I’ll get coffee started,” she said, getting up and walking towards the counter.

He wordlessly agreed, pulling out some boxed pancake mix and stovetop sausage links. She removed the old coffee filter from the machine and set in a new one, filling it up with grounds. Hotch mixed up the batter quickly, heating up a pan.

The coffee pot filled, and pancakes were formed. Y/N poured two cups, preparing one to her liking and one to Hotch’s. Then, footsteps came shuffling into the room.

“Morning, sunshine,” Y/N said to Jack, smiling at him. “You want some juice?”

He nodded sleepily and climbed up onto a chair at the counter. She poured him some orange juice and set the cup down in front of him. He took a sip, watching his dad finishing up breakfast.

“Is that pancakes?” Jack asked, trying to peek around to see the pans.

“It sure is,” Hotch replied, throwing some pancakes on a plate and pouring out a few more.

Y/N set down the two coffee mugs on the counter, and took her place next to Hotch to move the sausage links around in the other pan.

“Almost done?” she asked him without looking up.

He moved the rest of the pancakes to the plate.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” she said, glancing over and turning off both burners.

Hotch grabbed three plates, setting them down next to her so she could split up the sausage links. As soon as she was done, Hotch set to putting a few pancakes on each plate, and Y/N grabbed butter and syrup out of the fridge. He prepared Jack’s for him and set the plate in front of him with a fork. He then waited for Y/N to start the working on her own before he prepared his. She took a seat first, leaving a seat in the middle for Hotch. They ate quietly, sharing a few words when Jack wanted to talk about what he got to do at school the day before, and what he was looking forward to for the rest of the week.

“Hey,” Y/N, nudging Hotch’s arm as she pushed her plate away from her. “Could we get to the office a little early? I’m gonna have to get dressed there since my go bag is there and all.”

“Of course.” He nodded, sipping at the last of his coffee. He then turned to Jack. “Can you go get dressed to go to school, please?”

“Yeah,” he said, hopping off the stool and running off towards his room.

“I think I’m gonna put on my stuff from yesterday till we get there,” Y/N said, sliding off of her stool. “Not sure walking into the office in your pajamas would be a great look.”

“Maybe not the most professional outfit,” he agreed, laughing a little as he walked around the counter, putting dishes in the sink for later. “For the record, I think you look beautiful.”

She paused, feeling heat rise to her cheeks and butterflies in her stomach.

“Thanks,” she said quietly, arms crossing over her chest. “Looks better on you, though.”

And with that, she left to go change. Hotch waited in the kitchen for a moment, almost in shock, before heading off to his room to get ready for the day.

It wasn’t long before they were both showered and ready to go, Jack practically running out the door when his aunt arrived to take him to school. Hotch and Y/N drove to work in a comfortable silence, only the sound of the radio playing low. They arrived at the BAU, and went straight inside. Hotch went to his office, and Y/N was reaching for her duffel bag when the glass doors opened.

She looked up, not expecting anyone else to be there so early.

“Hey, what are you doing here? We don’t start for another half hour,” she inquired.

“Just needed to get some work done early. But I could ask you the same thing.” Derek smiled at her, then glanced at what she was wearing. “Hold on, aren’t those your clothes from yesterday?”

He inched closer, a slight smirk on his face.

“Yeah, I was just about to go change.” She held up her go bag.

“Mhm.” He crossed his arms. “What happened to just looking after Jack for a while? You decide you were finally gonna get after—”

“Derek!” she interrupted, laughing. “No! I just stayed the night with Jack in the guest room.”

He raised a brow. “And that’s all? Baby girl I know you’ve had a little crush on Hotch since you walked in here.”

She bit her cheek, looking away for a moment. “You’re nothing but trouble, Morgan.”

“You didn’t answer the question.”

He stepped closer.

“Okay, fine.” She huffed out a sigh and lowered her voice. “We had breakfast this morning, with Jack.”

“And?”

She paused. “He also slept with me and Jack, but it was an accident. He didn’t mean to fall asleep there. We didn’t even touch one another, it was totally platonic.”

“Well, I am sure Hotch wouldn’t be sneaking into bed with me if I was watching his kid.”

“It wasn’t like that,” she said, shaking her head. “He’s totally not into me. You know how he is with work policy, and besides he is way out of my league.”

“You need to think a little higher of yourself.”

“Yeah, whatever.” She laughed again. “Now, out of my way so I can get dressed. I don’t need any more questions from the rest of the team.”

“Alright.” He stepped back holding up his hands.

“And Derek?”

“Yeah?”

“Do not tell anybody.”

She pointed a finger in his direction as she spoke. He only chuckled, taking a seat at his desk.

She went to the bathroom, changing out of her old clothes and throwing on some new ones suitable for work at the office. She put on a little makeup, threw on some deodorant, and called it good. She stepped out to a slightly more full bullpen, only a couple more people had arrived. She shoved her go bag under her desk, and walked over to the kitchenette table where Derek, Hotch, and Emily were talking.

“How’s it going, guys?” she asked, taking the seat next to Emily, across from Morgan and Hotch.

“Talking about yesterday’s case. The daughter of the last victim made it safely to her grandparents’ house,” Emily said, sipping at a mug of coffee.

“That’s awesome. I’m glad she had them to go to,” she said, leaning forward on the table.

“You need coffee?” Emily asked, looking to Y/N.

“Oh, no thanks. I got my share this morning.”

“Yeah, I’m sure you did,” Derek said, holding back a smile.

“Morgan.” Y/N glared at him.

Hotch caught her eye for a moment afterwards, questioning. She slightly shook her head in amusement.

“What happened?” Emily asked, a curious smile on her face looking between Y/N and Derek.

“Nothing, he just doesn’t understand boundaries,” she said with a pointed finger. “Trying to blow things way out of proportion as always.”

This time she glanced at Hotch first, rolling her eyes a little. He smirked, looking down at his hands.

Emily watched the little interaction with interest.

“Does it have something to do with these two?” she inquired, looking back to Derek.

Y/N and Hotch spoke over each other.

“Nothing happened,” Y/N muttered.

“What?” Hotch questioned.

Derek looked to Hotch. “Can we go talk?”

Hotch furrowed his brow. “May I ask what about?”

“It’s nothing. It’ll just take a couple minutes.”

“Alright,” he said, standing up and nodding a quick goodbye to Emily and Y/N.

Derek followed after, throwing a devious look Y/N’s way.

Emily leaned over, speaking more quietly. “Something I should know about you and Hotch?”

“No,” she chuckled. “Derek is just… Himself.”

“Something had to have happened.” Emily turned in her chair, and made Y/N face her. “Spill.”

“I went to watch Jack last night so Hotch could get some rest. We had breakfast this morning with Jack, and he accidentally fell asleep next to Jack and I while we were watching a movie.” She sighed. “I told Derek, and now he’s freaking out about it like something happened.”

“Y/N. You slept at his house.”

“To watch his kid.”

“Wait, you said he fell asleep next to you and Jack.” A smile crept on her face. “Was that on a couch or in a bed?”

“Emily,” she groaned.

“Y/N!” Her eyes went wide. “How can you still think he’s not interested in you?”

“He’s not.”

“You’re both blind.”

Hotch led Derek to his office, only leaving the door a little cracked.

“You wanted to talk?” he asked, leaning against his desk. Derek stood in front of him.

“Yeah. About you and Y/N.”

“Morgan.”

“Hotch, I know you don’t want to admit it, but I know you’re into that girl.” Derek crossed his arms over his chest. “She told me about last night and this morning.”

“She was watching Jack. Nothing more.” Hotch shook his head. “This isn’t an appropriate conversation for work.”

“Work doesn’t start for another ten minutes.”

Hotch only stared.

“Look, I just think you should ask her out.”

“I’m not going to do that.”

“Why not?” Derek let his arms drop to rest on his hips, tilting his head.

“I’m her boss,” he replied, straightening up.

“But what is really the harm in trying?”

“She’s—” he started, and then paused, shaking his head.

“She’s what? Amazing? Gorgeous? Smart?”

“She wouldn’t be interested in someone like me. So, it doesn’t matter anyways,” Hotch said, glancing down. “We start the day in 5.”

“Great, that’s plenty of time.” Derek paused a second. “Why would you think she’s not into you?”

“I’m— I have a child, and I’m a widow. She doesn’t need all of that on her plate. Plus, she’s young. She’d be better off with somebody your age,” he said, looking up again to catch Derek’s eye.

“Man, you are so blind.”

Derek chuckled, shaking his head.

The day started as usual. The team had a briefing, and then went to work at their desks for a while. Today was going to be a slower day, and everyone seemed to be thankful they could get home at the end of the day. At lunch, Y/N noticed Derek and Emily talking quietly: she thought it was awfully suspicious.

“Hey, you two,” she called out, walking over to Emily’s desk. “Why are you being so quiet, it’s weird.”

Derek glanced up. “Nothing.”

Y/N narrowed her eyes, turning to Emily in question.

“Don’t worry about it, it’s nothing.”

“You two are bad liars.” Then, she had an idea. “Hey, Reid.”

His head popped up, looking to her. “Yeah?”

“You’ve been sitting here next to them, what are they talking about?”

He looked lost, glancing around. “I—Uh… I have no clue.”

“Now, see, you I believe,” she laughed, ruffling his hair as she went past.

He frowned, quickly smoothing it back out. She headed off towards Hotch’s office instead, trying to ignore the whispers that has started back up.

She knocked quietly on the open door.

“Hey, you busy?”

She popped her head in to see him eating a sandwich at his desk.

He shook his head, swallowing a bite. “No, come in.”

She closed the door and went to sit at the chair by his desk.

“Derek has been weird all day. What did you guys talk about earlier? I can’t get an answer to save my life.”

His eyes went wide.

“What?” she questioned, noticing Hotch going more on-edge.

“Uh, it was— It was nothing. Just a work thing.”

“You know, you’re a really bad liar, too.”

He chuckled, looking away. “I just don’t think this is the right time to talk.”

She furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”

He glanced up at her, looking her in the eyes, searching for an easy answer.

“It was just— It was about last night. And this morning.”

She groaned. “Great. I knew I shouldn’t have told him anything.”

Hotch just sighed, looking at her.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think he’d say anything,” she offered as an apology.

“No, it’s okay. It’s just that…” He let out a slow breath. “He brought up something that I think I want to talk to you about. I just didn’t know how to say it.”

“Okay, what is it?” she questioned, straightening up in her chair.

“He, uh, brought up everything from last night and this morning. And he brought up how that’s not something that I would normally do. Or something you would normally do.”

“Oh. I didn’t mean to make you uncomf—”

“No, it wasn’t that. It’s just,” he paused, watching her for a second. “I need to know if you feel the same way about me that I feel about you.”

Her heart was racing and heat rose to her face. She was breathless.

“W-what?”

“I’m so sorry, I know this is inappropriate, but…”

“What are you asking?”

“I just need to know how you feel. About me.”

He looked at her, almost pleading for the answer he deeply wanted.

“I’m— I think you’re amazing. I think you’re a wonderful father, and I’ve never met someone who makes me feel the way you do,” she began in a ramble. “I didn’t want to say anything because I know you’re so out of my league, but after talking to Derek this morning, and Emily, I just… I don’t know. I want to hope.”

Hotch furrowed his brow, and Y/N took in a breath, ready for rejection.

“You think I’m out of your league?”

“I mean… Yeah?” She tilted her head. “You’re really incredible.”

He couldn’t help but smile.

“Y/N, for profilers I don’t think we’ve been very good at reading one another,” he said quietly. “I thought I was the last person you’d ever be interested in.”

“What? Why?”

“I’m a widow, I’m older than you, I have a son…”

“A son that I love. I’d do anything for that kid.”

“I know.”

He smiled again, watching her. She couldn’t help but to smile back.

“As for the other stuff, I couldn’t care less. You’re so much more than that.”

“Really?”

“Really,” she continued to smile at him. “We really are pretty dumb, huh?”

“Very, apparently,” he agreed with a nod.

She checked the time. “Lunch break is almost over. I better go.”

He nodded again. “Yeah. Talk more later?”

“Of course.”

She waved a goodbye, walking towards the door. With one hand on the handle, she felt something grip her arm and spin her around. She was met with Hotch’s lips on hers, a kiss that took her breath away. They broke apart after a minute, both smiling like giddy teenagers.

“When I tell you that’s all I could think about doing this morning…” she began.

“Me too,” he agreed, looking into her eyes as his hand stroked her cheek. “Especially when I got to wake up to you in my clothes. It was killing me.”

She giggled, leaning in for one more kiss. It was slower this time, more gentle. She backed away afterwards, just enough to be able to speak against his lips.

“I think maybe we should thank Derek and Emily.”

“And let them feel like they won?”

“Good point.”

He let her go to get back to the bullpen, but as she attempted to turn the handle of the door, she was knocked back into his chest. Of course.

“You’re welcome,” Derek said with a smile after assessing what must have just happened.

“You don’t get credit for this,” Y/N laughed.

“Mhm. But it’s totally on me,” he said, raising a brow. He started walking back out, but not before… “Don’t you two take too long in there.”

FULL MASTERLIST

[show-your-fangs]

lil request of some jealous hotch maybe👉🏻👈🏻 i’m kinda picturing moments aaron getting all jealous and taking the matter in his own hands and teaching reader a lesson🫣😫

this is so fucking good, and coincidentally will be chapter 28 of moments 👀 (it involves a toy, a bed, and a few hours)

so instead please enjoy secret relationship hotch becoming jealous of his baby being hit on by some dude at a bar while the team is out, and then proceeding to finger her under the table

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x BAU!Reader

Words: 1.8k

CW: 18+, nsfw, mdni.

Tags/warnings: established secret relationship, jealous!hotch, possessiveness, pet names (baby, good girl), sir kink, groping, teasing, dirty talk, fingering (f receiving), exhibitionist kink, public sex, aaron basically fingers you in a booth in a bar.

Disclaimer: YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO REPOST MY WRITING ANYWHERE ELSE WITHOUT MY CONSENT. REBLOGS ARE ENCOURAGED THOUGH. YOU MAY NOT FEED MY WORK TO ANY AI DATABASES OF ANY KIND OR TO USE MY WORKS TO TRAIN AI. FUCK AI.

Aaron had never been more thankful for the low light of Shaw’s, thankful that the shadows that lingered all around them obscuring his hot, red ears from the agents around him. He wasn’t embarrassed by any means, no, he was livid. 

They were all staring and snickering about you, leaning over the bar as you waited for the drinks they’d all made you go get just so that you’d be forced to talk to the cute guy that had been making eyes at you all night. 

When you’d told them that you hadn’t noticed, they all scoffed and rolled their eyes, telling you that was the reason you were still single. But none of them knew, they couldn’t have, that the reason why you hadn’t seen him staring was because you only cared about one man’s eyes on you – your boss's.

He was rendered completely useless, unable to do anything about him, unable to leap to his feet, stalk across the bar and make him stop talking to you, before swiftly dragging you to the bathroom and fucking you silly until the only thing you could think about was his cock. 

He knew you weren’t doing it maliciously. There wasn’t a single bad bone in your body. It wasn’t your fault that he found you attractive, wasn’t your fault that Emily was determined to get you laid, wasn’t your fault that you were making him so unbelievably jealous that he couldn’t think straight. 

He almost let out a sigh of relief when the bartender slid five drinks on the counter in front of you and you skillfully grabbed all of them in your hands before quickly making your way back to their table. 

“So?” Emily asked the second you put the drinks down, everyone reaching out to grab their glass and the scoop of your flirting.

You shook your head. “Eh, not for me.”

You slid in next to Aaron, uncharacteristically so, and yet it didn’t seem anyone noticed, still too focused on you to notice how Aaron’s body had relaxed beside you. 

“That’s not for you?” Emily shockingly pointed back at the blonde guy at the bar who was now engrossed in conversation with another beautiful woman. 

“Nope,” you simply stated, not giving her anything to continue prying. She scoffed then, unbelieving. 

“Can we go dance now?” Penelope whined again and Morgan immediately began pushing Emily out of the booth so they could get out. 

You took a sip of your drink as you watched them scurry towards the other side of the bar, hand in hand, but not before they dragged Emily and JJ along for the ride. It was just the six of you now, Spencer having left earlier in the night and Rossi not even entertaining the possibility of getting wasted with you on a perfectly fine Friday night. 

“Have fun,” you joked, Emily poking her tongue out at you and you returned the gesture. “Get her to relax a little and leave me alone, JJ!”

Aaron took a swing of the cold beer he’d been nursing since you got here an hour ago, trying to play it as cool as he could, disinterest being what would maintain your relationship private, until you were finally alone.  

He set the glass back down on the table before his hand came down on your thigh, slapping it slightly, the coldness of his hand mixing with the sting on his action. Your gaze snapped to his, shocked, scared, ashamed, while his remained dark, glossy, enraged.

He was jealous, so unbelievably jealous he couldn’t even hide it. Your breathing picked up, your heart practically rattling against your chest, your mouth going dry with anticipation.

“Just out of curiosity,” he whispered, slowly running his hand up towards your heat. “What is your type?”

You slumped back in your seat, back pressed tightly against the plush cushions of the booth, acutely aware of where you were and the fact that your closest friends were dancing just behind you. 

Thankfully you were hidden away, obscured, but there were still a lot of people around, a lot of bodies that could turn to you at any moment. 

“I asked you a question, baby,” he snapped, grip tightening unbelievably close to where you needed him. 

“You,” you swallowed thickly. “You, sir.”

The pockets of haziness, of blurred lines and dark corners were finally working to his advantage as he draped your left leg over his lap, opening you up under the table to gain easier access. 

You couldn’t help but dart your eyes around the room once more, desperate to make sure that no one could see you like this.

“Don’t look at them, look at me,” he commanded and you swiftly obeyed, turning your hazy eyes back on his, the fire burning in them almost mesmerizing, holding you hostage. His hand slid off your leg, swiftly cupping your crotch tightly. “This belongs to me,” he squeezed. “You belong to me,” your eyes were glossy with tears now. “No one gets to touch you, ever, no one gets to flirt with you, no one gets to so much as look at you, do I make myself clear?”

You whimpered pathetically, nodding your head feverishly, and yet it only made him squeeze harder, bordering on painful. Your brows furrowed, confusion at his continued roughness making a single tear fall down your cheek.  

“Apparently I wasn’t clear enough,” he spat, his fingers skillfully pulling your panties to the side. His cold fingers were immediately met with wet warmth, your clit practically on fire as he began to tease it, never touching it long enough for you to feel anything other than frustration.

“No, sir, please,” you sobbed, your hand wrapping around his wrist, but instead of trying to force him off you, you tried to get him to touch you where you wanted him.

“No?” he repeated, incredulous. “You’re not mine?”

His movements stilled then and yet you continued to grind yourself against his palm, against his fingers, against him. Whatever shame, whatever fears you had about getting caught, about someone seeing him touch you seemed to have evaporated as the desire to finally come undone took over.

“Such a greedy girl,” he groaned in your ear. “Even when you’ve been bad and I’m trying to punish you, you still have one thing on your mind.”

His other arm wrapped around your waist, his hand tightly gripping your left hip to pin you back down to the seat and keep you there, unable to move yourself where you desperately needed.

It was like a spell lifted then, your face immediately flushing crimson as you were reminded of where you were and just how exposed you truly were, even in the low light. Your head fell into the crook of his neck, face buried into his shirt in shame. 

Your shame only spurred him on, his movements picking up once more, his fingers running along the entirety of your slit, collecting your slick, making sure to never touch your entrance or clit.

“Next time a guy comes up to you, what are you going to say?” he asked, bitter, condescending, mean. 

You couldn’t breathe much less think about what you wanted to answer, too concerned by trying to act as normal as possible. 

He landed a slap against your clit then, perfectly timed with the music around you, the instrument solo drowning out the sharp sound. You moaned, quickly biting into his suit jacket to further muffle the lewd noises spilling out your mouth. 

He gave you a second to allow the shock to sharpen your senses, his fingers returning to their previous movements casually as he scanned the room, making sure you hadn’t drawn any attention to yourselves. 

“Next time a guy comes up to me,” you managed through ragged breaths, bravely lifting your head so your gaze could meet his. “I’ll tell him I’m not interested.”

“Next time some guy comes up to you,” he seethed in your ear, low and terrifying. “You’re going to tell them your boyfriend doesn’t like to share,” he emphasized his words by finally sinking his fingers into you, coaxing a whimper from your throat. “And they should probably leave you alone before he comes back.”

He curled his fingers upwards, hooking them against the spot deep inside you that always made you come undone in seconds.

“Yes, sir,” you smiled brightly, the fact that he’d called himself your boyfriend fully processing through your fucked out brain. 

“Good girl,” and with that he let loose, his fingers thrashing inside you, not even building up to his big finale by sliding them in and out of you first. 

You held his stare, your mouth opening for silent moans, for restrained whimpers, for jagged breathing. He didn’t stop, couldn’t stop as the song your teammates had all been dancing too was quickly coming to a close. 

Your hands wrapped around his shirt, bunching it up and wrinkling it. That’s how he knew you were close. His thumb returned to your clit, rubbing fast circles over it. Your walls began to clench around him, your hips began to sink themselves farther into his hand. 

“Cum, baby,” he whispered into your ear, soft yet commanding.

It all came at you too quickly, the tension in your body snapping sharply and out of nowhere. Wetness dripped out of you and onto his hand as your body shook against his steady frame. His grip around your waist tightened slightly, bringing your body against him to help keep you stable.

He looked back at his subordinates still twirling around to the final chorus of the song, distracted enough for him to chance it. He leaned forward and placed a delicate kiss to your temple, slowly retracting his fingers from you as he reached over to grab a napkin. 

Even in the low light, in the darkness, he could see his hand glisten with your slick and a proud smirk enveloped his lips. You were still curled against him as he did his best to clean you up, to get rid of any evidence of what the two of you had just done. 

He bunched the napkins up, swiftly pocketing them before he set you back down on the seat, a respectable distance away from him, and wiped your face clean of your runny mascara. Almost as if he’d timed it perfectly, four bodies approached your table. 

“Are you okay, sweetness?” Morgan asked you as they returned to the table, definitely noticing your flushed face.

You nodded, not daring to make eye contact as your heart continued to race, the aftershock of your orgasm still rocking through you.

“I think she’s had too much to drink,” Aaron told him, concerned softness lacing his words, like a boss taking care of his employees. “I’m gonna take her home.”

He didn’t even have to prompt you to follow before you were sliding off the booth, your legs barely keeping you up. He followed quickly after you, hooking his arm around your back before you could collapse, leaving your untouched drink on the table in front of them. 

idk what it is about these two but they really like going at it in public

tags: @canuck-eh, @ssamorganhotchner, @criminalskies, @xladyxdreamer

[greg-montgomery]

rewatching 9x5 is not for the weak

[emberfrostlovesloki]

Day One, One Day [Hotch x Reader]

Photo credits: Left (@hazelwoodhandmadeuk) Center (@milla984) Right (@xjackxv)

Prompt: The reader is called to join the BAU from their team to help them solve a string of kidnappings and murders in a high school. To say the reader's first day and the case was eventful was an understatement, and Aaron can’t help but be drawn to the new face, even though he shouldn’t be. 

Pairing: Aaron x genderneutral!reader. The reader uses they/them pronouns 

Category: angst/comfort 

Word Count: 15K

Content Warnings:  kidnapping, mention of smothering, teen death (nothing explicit [three victims]), unwanted attention, imprisonment, mention of the foster care system, mention of abuse (not specified [reader]), tight space, possibility of being shot [Hotch], death by gun (unsub), language, bruises, mention of snuff films and porn [not explicit]. If I missed any, please let me know 

A/N: Hi loves! Here is another fic based on the amazing @imagining-in-the-margins January/February Writing Challenge. The prompt was to describe the character’s first day at the BAU. This fic came about because of the reader being flustered while meeting Aaron for the first time. And then the jealous!hotch got added which is an absolute favorite trope of mine. I had fun navigating the ins and outs of this fic, and I hope you like it too. It's another long one, so grab a cup of tea/coffee/whatever you like and settle in. If you do enjoy this fic, likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated! I hope you’re having a great start to your weekend and thanks for reading.  Love Levi - ❤️

List with all stories 

_y/n_  your name 

_y/l/n_ = your last name 

_________ = the nearest FBI field office to you. 

y/e/c_ = your eye color (aka brown-eyed, green-eyed, etc.)

_c/t_ = coffee of tea 

_c/s_ = cream or sugar (if you take neither in your tea or coffee, just ignore this one) 

_y/f/c_ = your favorite color 

Aaron had been CC’s on an email from JJ, as he drove toward the normal coffee shop that he stopped at before the office. He was slightly annoyed. The email indicated that the new agent. Agent _y/l/n_ was running late. If there was anything that Hotch didn’t like, it was tardiness. He hardly accepted it from his team, let alone a new agent just joining the BAU. While Aaron moved his car forward at the green light, _y/n_ was angrily saying, at their car, “Just start gosh darn it!” _y/n_ wasn’t one to let anger get to them, but today was a big day for them, and they needed their car to start five minutes ago. It didn’t help that it was so cold outside that _y/n_ felt like their fingers were freezing off. They had taken off their gloves to try and fiddle around with their engine. Even though _y/n_ was by no means a mechanic, they had hoped that a YouTube video and the willpower to try restarting their car would be enough to get it going. Unfortunately, _y/n_’s self-reliance wasn’t working out in their favor. Just as _y/n_ was going to call an Uber or Lyft to take them where they needed to go, a strong voice called out, “Hey. Is everything alright?” _y/n_ looked up at the tall stranger. He was dressed appropriately for the weather in a puffer jacket, gloves, a scarf that obscured some of his face, and a grey hat. Although the man was well-layered, he seemed put together. His outfit, unlike many _y/n_, had seen in the thirty minutes of hoping their car would cooperate, was put together. It looked expensive. _y/n_ would normally be weary of strangers. They’d seen enough bad things happen to people who seemed helpful at first but turned out to be monsters later. However, the seriousness in this man’s deep-set eyes and demeanor had _y/n_ reconsider in this rare case ._y/n_ normally liked to be independent, but their lack of car knowledge and need to get moving stat had them reply to the man’s question, “Not really. My car won’t start, and I need to get going. I was about to call a Lyft actually.” The tall, _y/n_ estimated, middle-aged man, stepped forward and said, “Mind if I look under the hood for a second?” _y/n_ stepped back from the infernal machine and said, “Knock yourself out. I can’t figure it out.” With a determined look, the man stepped forward and leaned down a bit to see if there was any issue with the car. 

The first thing he noticed was that heat was radiating off the engine even in the freezing weather. Of course, engines were hot, but not this hot. Aaron from a few close calls in his youth, had a good idea what the issue was.” He turned his head to the person, just as he was about to ask them if they’d replaced their coolant recently, recognized them as the last-minute agent he and JJ had selected yesterday afternoon for the latest case. He hadn’t realized it was them before because agent _y/n_ of the Crimes Against Children Unit was wearing a thick coat and their face was flushed from the cold. It was clear that _y/n_ hadn’t realized who he was yet either. It was so rare for Aaron to come across someone else in the FBI who didn’t know who he was, even if it was just for a minute or so. Hotch couldn’t help but notice how tense and anxious _y/n_ appeared to be. Aaron had been very hesitant to add a new agent so abruptly, but given the fact that five teenagers had gone missing from a public school in Texas, it seemed prudent to have someone who worked well with children onboard for the case.

Having to interview teenagers took a whole other set of skills than dealing with adults. JJ and Garcia did a fast but thorough scan of the possible agents that would fit the bill. The best fit for an agent that wasn’t actively on a case had been _y/n_. Hotch reluctantly signed off on it for JJ. Now that _y/n_ was standing in front of him, he decided to perform an informal test of their personality. Once _y/n_ recognized who he was, they would change. People always changed around him. He often found they became more closed off. Aaron stood straight and asked in a neutral tone, “You said you need to get going? Something happening this morning for you?” _y/n_ let out a measured breath and said, “Well it’s supposed to. This rental car kind of threw a wrench in everything though. I already sent an email explaining the situation to the people I’m working with, but I haven’t gotten a response yet. I hope they’ll understand, but I don’t want to hold anyone up. No matter what this is on me” Aaron nodded at _y/n_’s clear discretion. He asked, like he didn’t know already, “Is it a new job? What is it you do for work exactly that makes you need to email these people?” _y/n_ looked over at him. There was a flash of something in their eyes, but _y/n_ remained cool and said, “Not a new job exactly, more like a new team.” _y/n_ didn’t mention anything about the nature of their work, which Aaron appreciated. Given _y/n_’s attitude and choice of responses, Aaron let _y/n_ know exactly who he was by saying, “Well, I think I can help you. Maybe not with the car unless you’ve got some coolant back there. But I can give you a ride to work.” _y/n_ took a step back at the odd statement. This man seemed so normal, but again, seeming like anything didn’t mean much in their line of work. _y/n_ asked with caution, “Pardon me?” _y/n_ was ready to run or scream if this went bad. Now _y/n_ wished they’d had their gun on them and not in the glove box of the car. Hotch noticed the split-second change in demeanor with Agent _y/n_ taking on a defensive stance, even if it was masked as calmness. Aaron couldn’t help but applaud the instance change. It showed they were quick. Hotch clarified by saying, “I can drive you to work because my name is Aaron, Hotchner.” He flashed his badge to reassure them. Once _y/n_ looked at the badge and looked Agent Hotchner in the face, their eyes grew wide with awe. _y/n_ wanted to hit their head on the palm of their hand with how dumb they had been for not noticing. Agent Hotchner didn’t seem like the person to be easily forgotten. y/n_ composed themself and quickly said, “I am so sorry Agent Hotchner. I didn’t mean to hold you up, nor did I expect to meet you before our planned debrief this morning.” Hotch raised a hand. He was still slightly amused by the whole situation. However, he didn’t let that show as he replied, “It’s alright. You just killed two birds with one stone. I’ve met you now, and I can get us both to Quantico without any delays, but if we want to get there promptly, we should go now. I’ll give you a minute to get your things.” Aaron knew the traffic would get terrible if they didn’t leave soon. _y/n_ nodded and quickly pulled their go bag from the back trunk. They then grabbed their case files and gun from the front glove compartment. Even though _y/n_ wasn’t a part of the BAU, they often joined other teams than their own on cases that needed a CACU agent’s skill set. Given that fact, they already knew how to pack a go bag and get moving quickly. In under a minute, _y/n_ clicked the lock on their car and followed Hotch toward his car in the lot. 

As they started driving, _y/n_ reflected on the whirlwind of yesterday. They had just finished a case with their team in Kentucky. Their team had been in the office late, trying to finish up their report as thoroughly as possible. The Trafficking case had been difficult and dealt with lots of parties, so _y/n_wanted to give themself time to fill out the forms accurately but with concision. That task had taken longer than _y/n_ had expected. _y/n_ had rubbed their dry eyes when the ping of their email sounded. _y/n_ turned to their work computer and a message marked urgent was in their inbox from their supervisor. A twinge of panic hit _y/n_. They rarely interacted with their supervisor Most of the time, meetings, instructions, or the rare reprimand came from their Unit Chief, Agent Smith. With hesitation, _y/n_ clicked the email afraid that they’d made some mistake or something else._y/n_’s eyes grew wider and wider as _y/n_  read the contents of the email. It read: 

To: y/n_cacu@fbi.gov 

From: JessicaPola@fbi.gov 

CC: JeffinerJareaubau@fbi.gov, AaronHotchnerbau@fbi.gov, DrakeSmithcacu@fbi.gov 

Subject: Transfer Request 

Good morning, agent _y/l/n_. We have an urgent request for you. The Media Liaison for the Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico has requested your presence to help with the team's current case. You are requested to come as quickly as you can. You have been selected due to your team's case status, and your intimate knowledge of crimes against children. For more details about this choice, please contact Jennifer Jareau [CC’d]. For issues with travel and expenses, please contact the Travel Resource Office. I have already contacted your Unit Chief, and let Agent Smith know of this temporary shift of teams. Be safe, and good luck. 

Supervisor of the ________ Field Office, Jssica Pola. 

_y/n_ didn’t know that to think for a moment. To be joining the famous BAU team on a case felt otherworldly. It didn’t seem like a thing that could ever happen to them. One, because they were a relatively new agent, and two, the BAU was too important to need someone like them to help on a case. But _y/n__ practical side kicked in quickly. There would be time to think later. Now they needed to work. _y/n_ quickly emailed Drake and then spent more time emailing the BAU’s liaison about the details of the case. Only a few minutes after _y/n_ had sent that email, Agent Jareua replied with a couple of attachments including details on the current case and the BAU team. _y/n_ quickly finished booking their red-eye flight to Virginia at 1:00 a.m. before thanking the agent and noting that they would be in the Quantico office in the morning. _y/n_ had to quickly pack up and go home to get things for their absence. Once this was done, _y/n_ moved to the airport. They tried to relax, but the prospect of getting to work with the BAU kept them up. The team was legendary. And that was justified by the sheer amount of high-profile arrests the BAU made. _y/n_ ended up looking at the folder with the team’s information to refresh their memory of who was currently on the team. _y/n_ had met Agent Morgan and Agent Reid while they were a N.A.T., but the mercurial and stern Unit Chief had been gone on paternity leave while they were finishing up their training. But _y/n_ didn’t need to see Aaron Hotchner to know who he was. Apart from his team being praised constantly, his leadership after Gideon stepped down from the role of Unit Chief was unmatched. As soon as _y/n_ opened the file on the plane, they felt the exhaustion come on like a wave. _y/n_ closed the file and put away their phone, leaning into the tiredness that overwhelmed them. y/n_ would take the sleep now because there wasn’t going to be much later. When they landed in Virginia, it was 5:00 a.m. and an hour's drive to the Quantico field office. _y/n_ chose to rent a car and not spend a fortune of the FBI’s money on getting a ride share. That turned out to be a mistake, as _y/n_ nearly got to the office. _y/n_ had pulled into the parking lot of an unassuming coffee shop. They needed the caffeine for what was to come. When _y/n_ had returned to the car, it would not start. There was no getting the engine to rev to life. Thus, why she was in the passenger seat of Agent Hotchner’s car. _y/n_ didn’t try and give themself too much grief about not recognizing the man in the driver’s seat. They reminded themself that they’d never seen him in person before and that they hadn’t fully looked at the team folder Agent Jareua had sent them. 

Aaron could sense that _y/n_ was thinking. He cleared his throat and said, “Well, we might as well get the debrief done now instead of waiting to get to the office. That way the team can jump right in once we arrive.” _y/n_ nodded. They noticed the shift in Aaron’s attitude. A shift from one of apparent amusement to one of professionalism. Here was Aaron Hotchner _y/n_ who had expected to meet in the office. Hotch kept his eyes on the road, and said, “You’ve probably heard all of this before, but we take these things very seriously at the BAU. First, we work as a team and a unit. Keeping ideas to yourself doesn’t solve the issue. If you have an idea I recommend you share it with everyone. Second, you run things by me or someone on the team before you do them. Third, nobody gets over-involved with the witnesses or families. Fourth, we integrated with law enforcement and didn’t overstep. Fifth and final note, the actions of anyone on this team, permanent or temporary reflect on the FBI as a whole. I don’t tolerate bad behavior or ethics. Do you understand?” _y/n_ nodded. Here _y/n_ saw the dedicated leader of the BAU. _y/n_ understood that a man in Agent Hotchner’s position had to be firm, strong, and have rules, especially for young agents who just get added to a team that was well-oiled and worked well as what seemed like a machine. _y/n_ spoke up and said, “I understand Agent Hotchner.” They wanted to add, “I won’t let you down,” but from the reputation the BAU had, maybe they would. _y/n_ didn’t want to dwell on it too much. They didn’t have to, as Hotch added in a voice with a hint of warmth, “And, if you have any questions, you can ask me, or anyone on the team. Things move fast in the BAU, and it’s fine if you need clarity.” _y/n_ nodded and replied, “Thank you, Agent Hotchner.” _y/n_ reflected on the hot-then-cold nature of the man beside them. _y/n_ realized that perhaps that was why he was respected. Agent Hotchner was as stern as he needed to be, but underneath that facade, he was a caring man. Even if he tried to hide it. He made it part of his job to hide it. _y/n_ felt oddly warmed by the idea, but _y/n_ waasn’t so naive to believe this assumption. They’d need to see Aaron with the team to confirm their suspicion about his character. After all, he had been profiling for over half their life, _y/n_ wasn’t going to trust their judgment on a skill Aaron Hotchner had perfected. 

Hotch looked at _y/n_ and commented, “You’re team does good work. Difficult work.” Aaron wasn’t exaggerating. He couldn’t imagine having to work on crimes dealing with children in every case. To him, it was the most disheartening thing in the world. He was jaded enough seeing the killers he did. Having to do that with children specifically put his stomach in knots. He assumed it was because he was a father. When Jack came home with a runny nose he was instantly on high alert. Aaron took a moment to wonder if many of the agents in the Crimes Against Children Unit had children. He knew Agent Smith was married, but was unsure if the man had children. For some reason, Aaron turned his face to _y/n_, who was silently running their thumb over the pads of their other fingers in a gesture that might be nervousness. Internally Aaron thought, “They seem too young to have children.” His eyes glanced at _y/n_’s left hand. There wasn’t a ring there. Hotch snapped his eyes back to the road, not sure why he’d taken that internal tangent. He reminded himself of the no profiling agents rule, but when a new agent joined the team, even if it was just for a case, it was hard not to. That was why he did debriefs with new Agents. He did them firmly so he could get a natural read on their reactions. He did this to introduce himself to the agents and set the strict guidelines he asked his team to follow. Even with that plan in place, Aaron still found it hard to not try and read agents. He gave a small sigh and shifted his attention back to work, as they pulled into the bureau parking lot. Aaron took his reserved spot on the bottom floor of the parking garage. 

_y/n_ and Aaron grabbed their things from the car, and _y/n_ said, “Thank you for the ride, Agent Hotchner.” Aaron nodded and said, “You’re welcome.” The unlikely pair moved inside and Aaron was greeted, and greeted by many important Unit Cheifs. _y/n_ recognized many of them and had to act cool as they entered the building. It was a nice space. Clean and bigger than _y/n_’s field office. _y/n_ had to make sure they kept their face neutral and did not look like a kid in a candy store. This was a privilege, not a present. Once through security, Aaron led _y/n_ up to the BAU. As they rode up the elevator, many famous agents entered or left the metal box, _y/n_ continued to realize just how big a privilege this was. In their mind, _y/n_ swore to do their best while working with the BAU. To learn and grow from this experience. Even though _y/n_ felt inexperienced for this role, it was still a chance to gain new skills and learn how the most famous unit in the FBI worked. From their brief interaction so far, Aaron Hotchner seemed like a big part of that answer. Once they were on the BAU floor, they walked into the bullpen. _y/n_ noticed Agents Morgan and Reid right away. There seemed to be an electric energy in the air. Even with that being the case, there was a familiarity in the room as well. The way Agent Morgan was leaning on Agent Reid’s desk, and a stunning brown-haired woman, who _y/n_ assumed was Agent Prentiss, was standing nearby laughing at whatever Dr. Reid had just said. That kind of levity didn’t happen on their team. Lost in their thoughts,_y/n_ startled slightly as Hotchner called them saying, “Agent _y/l/n_.” _y/n_ perked up and realized that the Supervisory Special Agent had moved to the short staircase leading up to the upper level of the floor. _y/n_ snapped back to themself and quickly closed the gap between them. At the top of the stairs, they were met with a blond woman who stepped out of an office door saying, “Hotch, did you get my email about agent _y/l/n_?” Aaron nodded and said, “I did. Agent _y/l/n_ is here now.” JJ’s eyes widened as Hotch stepped aside and she saw _y/n_. The Media Liason looked over at Aaron with questions in her eyes, but he shot her the “It’s a long story look.” JJ gave a tiny nod of acknowledgment and instead of speaking to Aaron, stepped forward and extended a hand toward _y/n_. _y/n_ took the offered hand as the woman said, “Good morning, Agent _yl//n_. I’m Jennifer Jareau, media liaison to the BAU team. We spoke yesterday over email.” _y/n_ nodded and said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Jareua.” Aaron cut in for a second with a comment directed at JJ saying, “Let’s meet in conference in ten minutes.” JJ nodded and turned her attention back to _y/n_ saying, “Well now that you’re here, let me give you a quick tour. Sorry there isn’t time for you to get comfortable, but things move fast on this team.” _y/n_ nodded and followed as JJ showed her the break room, restrooms, a spare desk as well as a giving very brief history of the BAU team. At the end of the tour, JJ took _y/n_ to the conference room. Aaron was already there. An extra chair had been added to the table. JJ said, “You can sit at the end there. The team will be here in a minute.” _y/n_ nodded and took a seat. Aaron’s eyes briefly flashed to theirs. _y/n_ pulled the folder in front of them open and immediately realized that it was the folder JJ had sent last night. Even though _y/n_ hadn’t had much time to read over the file on the team, they had thoroughly read the case notes so far. The details were unfortunately familiar. That dull sickening feeling had washed over _y/n_ as they had processed the information and started taking notes. 

The sound of the door opening pulled _y/n_ from their thoughts. The rest of the team, plus Penelope, traipsed in the room. They all stopped momentarily, as they realized someone new was there. Hotch called them all to sit down, and he stood at the front of the room with JJ. He spoke in his normal, professional voice. Aaron said, “Everyone, this is Agent _y/n_, _y/l/n__ from the Crimes Against Children Unit out of _________.” The team looked at them and _y/n_ raised a tentative hand and waived. Everyone responded, and Rossi and Penelope specifically said, “Hi” and “Hello.” When Aaron cleared his throat, everyone looked back at him. He continued, “You’ll understand why I’ve asked Agent _y/n_ here in a moment.” JJ used the clicker to change the slide. Five teenagers' photos were displayed. JJ said, “Two days ago, five children in Dearborn, Texas, ranging from the age of fifteen to seventeen, went missing. All one day apart. All of the parents made a fuss, but one family did. The incredibly rapid disappearance of a group of children was shocking. The media is all over it, and many are panicked.” Hotch stepped forward, and JJ clicked on the next slide. Some graphics and information were on the slide, and Aaron said, “Two of the five children were found drowned in a nearby lake the following day. However, the mortician ascertained that the victims were dead before being dumped. They believe that the victims were smothered within hours of each other. One of the children, Kaden Morris, appeared to be beaten, but the other victim, Victoria Cross, had no signs of abuse. The next morning, a third body was found. Eli Perry is the oldest of the children. With Eli, there were defensive wounds and the same manner of death. None of the children had been sexually abused. The thing is that all of the victims, those that are deceased and the two that are possibly still alive have in common is that all of them go to the same high school. Also, they are all children in the foster system. The fact that there are two large overlapping factors is unique. Even with these things tying the victims together, the police in Dearborn haven’t gotten any leads despite a desperate plea from the foster parents and the police for information. So, we were called in to figure out what’s happening and try and get to the victims before anyone else is killed or taken.” The room was silent for a second, and Aaron could feel the tenseness in the room. With everything happening so quickly, along with the intricacies of the information involved, Aaron said, “It’s a long flight to Texas, so let’s save reading over the files from the jet. Wheels up in thirty.” 

Between the debrief and boarding the jet, _y/n_ was greeted by the team. Again they had to contain their excitement, as they got to shake Derek and Rossi’s hands, along with meeting Emily, Spencer, and Garcia. Once _y/n_ had shaken Deek’s hand, they said, “Agent Morgan…” Before they could say anything else, Derek said, “It’s just Morgan. It’s nice to meet you too.” The pleasantries only lasted a few minutes as everyone grabbed their bags and got ready for the jet. _y/n_ quickly called the rental company and explained how the car had died and where it was. They were assured that the car would get picked up or towed and that the rental company would be in contact once they had more information. On the jet, _y/n_ found a place near the side of the main few rows. Once the plane had taken off, the team took a few minutes to read over the case file and current information before the ideas started flowing. Ideas ranging from the unsub to the victims were varied. Things like the possibility that the victims may have tried to run away, or that the unsub was a peer. _y/n_ wasn’t sure about either of the assertions and said, “If the victims were trying to run away wouldn’t the unsub keep moving on? Why drop the three bodies off at the same place? They could have possibly crossed multiple state lines by now. Why stick around and do it again.” Rossi nodded and said, “_y/l/n_’s right. Also if the unsub has multiple victims, then they have to have a place to keep them. A home, or someplace where they can isolate themselves without being noticed. A trucker or good samaritan who offers to give a kid a ride doesn’t have the sort of space on the road. Spencer also noted that the rate of killers that are peers was so low that it was unlike, though not impossible. Reid stated, “Psychopathy or anger issues in adolescents don’t normally come to a head until their early twenties. So it’s unlikely that the unsub is another teen. Also, it takes a lot of force and desire to smother someone. Unless we’re speaking of a very large teenager, it’s unlikely they’d have the strength or willpower to follow through with one, let alone two killings. As the team, plus _y/n_, kept bouncing ideas off of each other Aaron listened and observed. Even though Agent _y/l/n_ was new and temporary, they seemed to blend well with the team. Unlike some more unfortunate temp transfers. _y/n_ was offering helpful information about the experiences children go through as well as statistics about the foster process. Information, that apart from Reid, the team didn’t know. _y/n_ had a deep wealth of knowledge about the system and how it worked for and against the kids in it. _y/n_ also didn’t butt in on conversations. Agent _y/n_ seemed to have picked up on the rhythm of the team’s conversation and added their thoughts at a helpful time. Each time _y/n_ spoke up, Aaron found his eyes in that direction. He told himself that he was just looking because _y/n_’s calm, steady voice was new, and he couldn’t help himself. That might have been part of it, but there was a certain draw to the younger agent that Aaron couldn’t seem to refuse. It had happened before he’d even known they were an agent in the parking lot of the coffee shop. Hotch let out a sigh and moved his gaze elsewhere. There wasn’t time to get distracted. Not now. And given the fact that _y/n_ was on another team and that he was a senior agent, there wouldn’t ever be an occasion to think about it further. The latest thought wasn’t even a conscious one. Just something Aaron’s subconscious stopped from sending to the forefront of Aaron’s mind. 

While Aaron was trying not to look at _y/n_ too much, the _y/e/c_ed agent was having the same issues. As exciting as it was to be next to Agent Rossi and Agent Reid, _y/n_ couldn’t help but look at Agent Hotchner. They were comforted by Hotch’s stern demeanor. The way he kept composted, and most of all his intensity. The way the man focused on things meant all of his attention was on the case. There was no wavering or distraction. Just the thing in front of him. _y/n_ got that from Drake too, but their Unit Chief was younger than Aaron by five years or so and hadn’t quite gotten to the point where he was that focused yet. Drake is a great team leader, just not quite Aaron Hotchner. _y/n_ averted their eyes as Agent Hotchner seemed to turn his head in their direction. The plane ride was long, and after two hours, _y/n_ got up to make a cup of _t/c_. At the Keurig as _y/n_ was preparing the hot drink, Emily stepped out of the bathroom, running her hands on her slacks. The woman smiled at _y/n_ and asked, “So, how are you liking it so far?” _y/n_ offered back a small smile and said, “It’s very interesting. I’m learning so much. I think I’ve heard more theory in the three hours I’ve been on this team than the twenty weeks I did in Virginia.” Emily nodded and said, “I understand. I felt the same way you did when I joined the team. Sometimes the best way to learn is to just do the thing, but that’s hard in a job like the FBI. We can’t exactly have unqualified agents on the field.” _y/n_ nodded, stirring in _c/s_ into their styrofoam cup. _y/n_ bit their lower lip for a second before acknowledging their hesitation, saying, “Honestly I’m not sure why I got picked to join y’all on this case. There are senior agents who could have been called.” Emily pondered the statement and replied, “I can’t tell you for sure _y/n_ some of it may be that more senior agents need to be around if a case on your team comes up.” Prentiss realized that she just essentially said that _y/n_ was a junior agent. But Emily added, “But these choices are well thought out. Of the pool of applicants, you were the best fit based on your performance and the cases you’ve completed. Temporary transfers to the BUA aren’t just a guessing game. JJ and Hotch picked you for our skills. You never have to question that.” Em paused for a second and added, “And for my part, you’ve fit well with the team so far. Some folks are far too shy, starstruck, or intent on making an impression. You haven’t done that.” 

_y/n_ smiled softly and said, “Thanks, Agent Prentiss.” Em smiled and replied, “It’s just Emily. And no need to thank me.” With that, Emily slipped past _y/n_ and back to her seat. _y/n_ felt a rush pass through them. They were both flattered at the compliment and a bit concerned that Emily had felt the need to reassure them. _y/n_ didn’t want to seem desperate or in need of reassurance. With a sigh _y/n_ moved back to their seat, more determined than ever to be an asset and not a weight to the team. As the jet continued its journey to Texas, _y/n_ listened and learned as the team worked every angle possible. When the plane landed West of Houston, the team rallied and got ready for the case ahead. 

The BAU was met by local law enforcement, and they piled into the SUVs and made it to the Dearborn police station. Once there, Aaron made quick introductions and then asked for a space to have the team work on building a profile. Once the slightly more private space was provided, Aaron said, for _y/n_’s sake only, “Let’s gather some evidence before we start building. We’ll split into teams. Myself, Agent _y/l/n_, and Reid will go to the school. Rossi and Derek, you take the dumpsite and then go to the hospital. Lastly, JJ and Prentiss, see if you can get in contact with the victims' families. Give them a preliminary interview. Any details they can recall will be valuable.” Everyone nodded and moved to their respective roles. _y/n_ moved into the backseat of the SUV while Aaron and Spencer sat in the front seats. Hotch looked in the rearview mirror and said, “Agent _y/l/n_when we’ve made contact with the school administration I’d like you to give an address to the students if the principal will let you. You have more experience in this field than either Reid or I, and I assume the student population knows more than they might be letting on.” _y/n_ nodded and said, “Of course, Sir.” _y/n_ was relieved to be helpful and be able to contribute in some way to something that they were used to dealing with -- the younger population.

Once the trio arrived at the High School, they parked and moved to the front office. After flashing all of their badges, the group was led to the main office. The Vice Principal, Stevenson, and the principal, Jackson, met the team with appreciation. Hotch introduced everyone and the principal said, “Let’s speak in a more private space.” The agents moved into a smaller, closed-off room with the senior staff of the public high school. Principal Jackson, who was in a wheelchair said, “Agent Hotchnerwe need help. Half of the parents are calling for the school to close for a week. The abductions have stirred everyone up, no thanks to the media circus.” Hotch nodded and said, “We can understand your frustration, Principal Jackson. We hope to be as unobtrusive as possible. However, if we could hold an assembly in the afternoon, we think we could glean a lot of information from the student population. Often students know of events that they might not even know about.” Jackson nodded reassuringly and said, “Anything you think can help. Agent Hotchner, I’ll indulge anything. I just want the rest of our students home safe. This school has a significant amount of students who are dealing with difficult situations, either with parents, poverty, drugs, or crime. This leaves many of our students in the foster system. I lead a support group on Fridays during lunch to try and help them as much as possible. Keeping a school like this up with a good ranking is hard when no one seems to care about us or our students.” Hotch started tapping his forearm. He realized that the man was steering the conversation away from the missing kids and that Jackson was rambling. Spencer caught onto this too, and when the principal paused, Reid said, “Well you’re certainly involved with your students. I’m sure they appreciate that. Now could you give us more details on the students that were killed and those that are still missing?” _y/n_ noticed how excited and happy Jackson got when he got praise which was an odd reaction given the terrible circumstances. Agent _y/l/n_ turned their gaze to Hotch to see if he noticed it too. Aaron’s face was set in a frown, and his features were tight. He didn’t look overly enthused by the man sitting in front of them. After a half-hour of rambling about how wonderful, kind, and resilient the missing and dead students were, Aaron couldn’t take it anymore, thanked the Principal, and led _y/n_ and Reid away to a private room to make a plan. It was clear that they all felt the Principal’s reactions and emotions were odd, but no one addressed that right now as they might be overheard. Instead, Aaron said, “Agent _y/n_ I want you to give the address this afternoon, given this is your area of expertise. Reid, until the assembly I want you to look through the files of the missing and deceased students and see if there are even more connections between them. I’m going to go and speak to the teachers who had those students and see if they can add insight. With the tasks assigned, everyone started their work until the assembly. 

An hour later, the whole school assembled in the auditorium. Aaron chose not to stand on the stage, as he didn’t want any of the students to feel intimated or pressured in any way. He realized he could give off a solemn attitude that didn’t always fit well with adolescents. And standing where he was, he could watch for any major reactions in the audience. Aaron listened as the principal spoke about the fact that school was still planned for tomorrow because the board of regents still hadn’t met for an emergency meeting, but “We’re trying to as soon as possible. To our faculty and students, thank you for your calm and respectful response. We have two FBI agents here to give you a little talk.” The man motioned for Spencer and _y/n_ to step forward. _y/n_ stepped up to the mic and said, “Thank you, Principle Jackson. As Principal.Jackson said, my name is _y/n_, and this is Dr. Spencer Reid, and we’re both members of the FBI. We’re here to try and find out what happened to your classmates and friends. At times like this, it can be a very painful and scary thing. Even if you don’t know the missing students. It’s okay to have big emotions around what’s happening. Please know that there are people who care about you. If you ever feel unsafe or need someone to talk to, you can speak to a teacher or counselor. You aren’t wasting space or time. Your feelings are valid. Now, if you’re someone who knows Kaden, Victoria, Eli, Baker, or Shyann, we’d like to ask you some questions. You won’t get in any sort of trouble for speaking to us. We actually think that you might know something that we don’t. So if you’re one of those people, before you get dismissed today, please talk to a teacher. Thank you.” _y/n_ gave a little wave, and they and Spencer moved off the stage toward Hotch. As Jackson gave the release for the teachers and students back to the classroom, Spencer quietly asked, “Anyone stand out in the crowd?” Aaron nodded no and said, “No one that I noticed. The kids seem genuinely scared though. And the faculty too.” Hotch’s eyes flushed from Reid’s to _y/n_’s, and he said, “Good job with the announcement. You described the situation with the weight it deserved without putting anyone in a panic. Hopefully, some of the victim’s friends will be willing to speak with us after school.” As the trio waited for the final bell to toll, Aaron called the other BAU teams to see what progress they’d made. Rossi and Derek had found some pink insulation flakes where bodies had been dumped which proved the teens had been kept in a house or business. As Hotch was talking, _y/n_ said to Spencer, “Because these kids are all in the foster system, do you think the unsub is trying to save them somehow? The system’s not perfect and a lot of bad things can happen to those kids.” Reid nodded and said, “It’s a good point. We might try looking at caregivers like nurses or counselors. People who might know that abuse was happening at home.” A short while after this conversation, the bell rang. Only a small group of seven teens came to see the agents. Jackson had three classrooms set up for each agent to use. For the next two hours, each agent would speak to a kid and ask them questions about how they knew the victims, any behavior change, or anything odd. Hotch took special note that the first victim had started to withdraw from the football team which had been his life most of high school. Large shifts in behavior or interest could mean something significant. Aaron made a note to speak to the football coach as soon as possible. 

Eventually, there were only three students left. _y/n_ finished their last conversation first, and once the student had gone, wandered into the hall. _y/n_’s eyes were fatigued, and they closed them and stretched. A semi-familiar voice saying, “Any luck from the kids?” from behind _y/n_ had them snap around. Principal Jackson was approaching them. _y/n_ sighed internally. Jackson gave them the creeps. Also, _y/n_ couldn’t talk about what the children had said to them. _y/n_ quickly fixed their face of annoyance and just said obliquely, “Oh, you know, we were just chatting.” Jackson pressed further and said, “Oh come on, you can tell me. If anything, I should know as their principle.” _y/n_ looked away from the man’s gaze for a moment, his lingered. After a micro-second, _y/n_ looked at the Principal again and said, “We were just talking. But I’d like to hear more about that support group you run. That sounds like a very kind and beneficial thing you do in your scant free time.” _y/n_ said this as a tactic. They remembered how animated Jackson got before while talking about himself, and they needed to throw him off the interview thing. _y/n_’s plan worked like a charm. The man thanked them profusely for noticing his “good deed” and jumped into what he did, and how he helped these struggling students. As the man talked for what felt like an eternity, _y/n_ noticed the man’s eyes lower to a place that made _y/n_ highly uncomfortable. _y/n_ looked around the empty halls. They wished there were other people around. However, Jackson had suspended all before and after school activity and let the teachers head home directly after contract hours to be with their families during this stressful time.

_y/n_ hoped Hotch or Reid would come out soon. They had an idea that if either man joined them, Jackson would stop ogling them while lauding his service. _y/n_ felt that the man in front of them wasn’t fully acclimated to social situations which was odd given his job. Jackson was and had acted like a teenager with a total need for validation. This was proved correct as the man bizarrely said, “You see me in ways others don’t Agent _y/n_. Can I give you my number?” _y/n_ jaw dropped at the audacity of such a question. It was also at this very moment that Aaron stepped out of his classroom. He heard the comment and instantly looked over at _y/n_. Hotch, unfortunately, misconstrued the situation, as _y/n_’s back was to him and he couldn’t see they were shocked, and they put off face. Nor how they shook their head no as the man slipped his number into their palm. It didn’t help that Aaron was tired and stressed about the rapid taking and dumping of the teenagers. Also, his odd feelings toward _y/n_ in the parking lot, jet, and even as they were standing around in the auditorium were coming up again. The issue was that Aaron didn’t want to have to think about the feeling. In his head, the feeling didn’t exist, but now that they were twisting into disappointment at a clear breaking of boundaries annoyed him even further. Hotch called out to the principal to ask about the football coach to distract himself from the growing disappointment he felt. It didn’t help _y/n_ was too shocked to move which Aaron read as reluctance to look at him which would mean they had something to hide. Although none of this was true, _y/n_ was embarrassed and their face felt warm from the ludicrous ask by Principal Jackson. When Aaron was done with his question with Jackson, he called _y/n_’s name. It was harsh with a hint of bitterness underneath it. When _y/n_ turned and walked toward him, they slipped the number in their pocket. Aaron thought for sure he saw hesitation in their face, and he grit his teeth. The small amount of admiration that someone so young who had joined the team and seemed to do well with it up to now felt crushed for Aaron because they were possibly flirting with someone involved in the case. He thought he had a better read on people, and _y/n_ was now baffling him. Aaron would have said something about how inappropriate their actions were, except Spencer left his room and at that point, they should head back to the station to regroup. In a clipped tone, Hotch said, “Let’s go and catch up with everyone.” 

As Spencer and _y/n_ followed behind Aaron, they could both sense he was angry but neither understood why. Spencer shot _y/n_ an inquisitive look, but they just shrugged their shoulders as bewildered as Reid was at the change in Agent Hotchner. In the car, Spencer tried to cut the tension by talking about the case and those they’d talked to. Reid said, “I was surprised that there were so few people that showed up to talk to us. There didn’t even seem to be people there who just wanted attention.” _y/n_ nodded and said, “I’m not actually. Given the information we knew about the victims, they all seemed like wallflowers. Given that, plus the fact that foster kids move around often, face a hard life, and have a probability of trauma in their past, they might find it hard to make friends or put down roots at school or home.” Hotch, who was wearing his sunglasses to mask his emotions shot _y/n_ a look from the rearview window. _y/n_ met his gaze and again felt that he was disappointed in them. _y/n_ tried not to fidget as they continued driving on the busy road. Aaron put his eyes back on the street and felt confused again. Now _y/n_ was acting like an intelligent well-seasoned agent with their head on straight. Not someone who would take a number from someone possibly under investigation. He realized as a few minutes had passed, that he’d only caught a snapshot of the conversation, and he wasn’t getting their side of the story. However, that didn’t mean that he didn’t have to ask them about it which he wasn’t looking forward to. The tension lingered in the car even as they all talked about what they’d learned and how odd Principal Jackson was. At the man’s name, _y/n_ cringed. Aaron stated to everyone, “Jackson just started the support group this semester, so it seems like he could want to be involved in some way. Involving himself in the scene and the victims like most unsubs do.” The desire to go back to the scene of the crime and watch the suffering of those being impacted was a need for most of them. After this, Spencer added the theory that the unsub might see themselves as saving the victims from a bad situation and trying to offer them something better in their eyes.” _y/n_ added, “If that’s the case,  the victims have to know this person well. To trust them, and once they realize what’s happening they panic? Try to leave which the unsub wouldn’t like.” The conversation kept going until they all reached the station. 

Inside, the trio was greeted by the rest of the team. Before anyone had the chance to share, Aaron said, “Agent _y/l/n_, I need to speak to you alone for a moment.” Those words had the team quiet instantly. If Hotch called you into a space alone it wasn’t good unless you were Haley before the divorce. _y/n_ couldn’t stand the silence, even for a moment and softly said, “Sir.” Aaron walked to the empty, windowless file room, opened the door, and let _y/n_ go in before him. Once the door was shut in the small, stuffy room, Aaron turned and he said bluntly, without preface, “Were you flirting with Principal Jackson at the school.” Hotch sounded stern and disappointed and _y/n_’s eyes went wide. They weren’t sure how he’d read that uncomfortable situation iso incorrectly. _y/n_ wanted to clarify that that was not what had happened and said, “No, Sir. I would never do that on a case.” _y/n_ didn’t add that they hardly ever did it off a case either. Hotch still looked unconvinced and asked, “Then why do you have his number in your pocket right now? Why were you so flustered when you turned around?” Aaron could feel that unexplored emotion bubble up in him again, and he said those questions with more bite than he intended. _y/n_ took a visible step back from him, and they looked slightly hurt. Hotch looked at the ground for a second realizing he’d been too harsh. He dropped his arms from his chest and tried to appear more relaxed. He looked back at _y/n_ and said, “I’m sorry that I said that like I was accusing you and not asking you, _y/n_. This case is messing with my head. Would you please give me the context of what happened?” Aaron watched as _y/n_ relaxed a little and then opened up about the man’s bizarre and downright threatening behavior. Hotch felt bad once he’d heard the full story and said, “I’m sorry, _y/n_. For acting how I did and that you were put in that situation. Even if Jackson isn’t the unsub, he certainly is strange.” Hotch’s comment and the tone he used while saying it had _y/n_ let out a chuckle that made Aaron feel warm in the chest. He couldn’t help but give a ghost of a smile that things seemed smoothed over. As _y/n_ looked at Aaron they said, “Thank you for listening to me, Agent Hotchner. For letting me clarify.” Hotch felt an internal tug on his ribs in the center of his chest before saying, “Don’t mention it, and you can call me Hotch. Now let’s get back to the team.” Hotch turned to the door and missed that _y/n_ was flustered again, but not in an uncomfortable way. In a pleasant way. As both agents emerged from the room, the team looked over to them. Hotch’s soft, “I’ll make sure you’re not alone with him in the future” had _y/n_ nod.

That scene, and Aaron’s soft, almost protective tone, told the BAU that whatever issue had brought the two into the files room had been resolved. Everyone let out a silent sigh of relief. As much as the drama was interesting, it was never helpful on a case. Once the duo was back, the team jumped into the day. Everyone got caught up with all the details. The major updates were that JJ got a press briefing out and set up a better tip hotline with Garcia ready to tap and trace in a few seconds if a useful call came in. Rossi and Derek’s find of the insulation. Emily and JJ noted that all of the families seemed appropriately worried and concerned about what had happened and there didn’t seem to be any indication of abuse at the families' homes. Then there was the odd behavior of Jackson, but it was too early to assume that he was the unsub. However, that didn’t mean he didn’t bear looking into it. From the information the team gathered, they made the basic profile that the person was likely a white male in their mid-thirties or early forties with the possibility of it being a woman. The unsub had to own or rent enough space to keep at least two teenagers at a time. They likely had a savior complex and experienced trauma in their childhood. They were strong enough to kill a high school football player who fought back. It was also likely that the unsub was trying to keep track of what the police, and now the BAU were doing to keep one step ahead of them. This was the profile that Aaron gave the police. He didn’t tell the officers that the unsub was not good at what they were doing. They might be strong, but they made mistakes. The impulsivity of killing two people in one day and dumping them at the same spot was reckless. Also, the insulation was something a more experienced kidnapper would get rid of. The team hoped that the unsub would mess up enough to leave a big enough clue behind to be found. The teams paced and worked and profiled and took unhelpful tips from the hotline. And after another two hours, Aaron called it for the night. It was 12:30 a.m. and he knew having the team even partially rested would give them a good start in the morning. 

The Comfort Inn and Suits was not far from the police department, and the tiredness hit the team like a brick. Aaron, Rossi, and Derek drove everyone to the motel where they had to call an attendant to check them in. There weren't rooms near each other at the motel, so everyone went their own way to sleep or keep working. _y/n_ got to their room and set down their things. As they changed into more comfortable clothes to keep working and look at the case from their area of knowledge. As _y/n_ took off _y/f/c_ blazer, Jackson’s number fell out of their pocket. _y/n_ felt embarrassed all over again which kind of pissed them off. There were so many other things to be angry and upset about. The victims, the families, everyone worried sick, and here they were feeling flustered because of some man. _y/n_ shook their head to clear it. They needed a boost and the vending maching in the lobby called them for something sweet and salty. _y/n_ got up, slipped on shoes, and moved downstairs. As _y/n_ was paying for a soda and bag of chips a familiar voice asked, “You holding up okay, kid?” _y/n_ looked over to possibly the most famous member of the BAU and honestly said, “Agent Rossi. I don’t know. I think I could be doing more. I feel like my head’s all over the place. More than usual.” The thud of the soda can and chips at the buttom of the machine made _y/n_ stop talking. They realized they were oversharing to the most important man in the FBI. Dave didn’t mind, and he responded, “I can imagine why. You’re on a new team with all new dynamics ot figure out on a difficult and emotionally draining case. My mother, bless her soul, she always told me, ‘Everyone has a day one, one day.’ And from what I can see, you’re doing very well on your day one on the BAU.” _y/n_’s eyes widened at being told that after the days events. They couldn’t stop themself from saying, “But I made Agent Hotchern upset.” Dave waived a hand and said, “Lot’s of things make Aaron upset even though he’ll hever admit it. And he’s clearly not upset at you anymore. Give yourself some slack kid, and an hour of sleep if you can.” Rossi half turned indicating the conversation was coming to a close and _y/n_ finished it by saying, “Thank you, Agent Rossi.” Dave nodded and walked to the front door to get something he forgot in the car while _y/n_ took their snacks up to their room for a few more hours of thinking. 

In his room, Aaron had taken off his tie and suit jacket. He also undid the top two buttons his his shirt. As he sat at the desk and switched the lamp on, his mind momentarily flashed to the encounter with y/n_ in the file room. He couldn’t get his anger or the way they’d stepped away from him out of his mind. Aaron knew there were more important things to think about, but he knew his mind couldn’t be fully on the case if there was conflict or tension on the team. Tension he had started. He replayed the memory again in his head to pinpoint what the issue was so he could move on from it. He had over reacted. He knew that. Aaron didn’t like that _y/n_ had moved away from him with a tiny flicker of fear on their face. Like he might do something to them. Provoking that response from a fellow agent was unacceptable to him. He didn’t know _y/n_’s personal background well. He’d only read up on their case work and the remarks made in their most recent reports. He didn’t have time to learn more about _y/n_  than that before addeding them to the team. After all, that wasn’t his job. If it was anyone’s job, it was _y/n_’s Unit Chief. But the interaction this afternoon had Aaron thinking that _y/n_ had some painful experiences in their past. Then again, most FBI agents did, but Hotch rarely saw such a visceral representation of that. Another thing that bothered him was _y/n_’s response to his apology. Their small voice saying, “Thank you for listening, Agent Hotchner. For letting me clarify.” All that statement could mean was that someone hadn’t listened to them before. And Aaron knew that was how bad things kept happening. That was why questioning victims was so important. Hotch made a plan to apologize to _y/n_ again in the morning, and he felt for now, he’d have to leave it at that. It might never be the right place or time to ask _y/n_ anything more about their reactions. They were a temporary agent, and his feelings for them, whatever they were would never be fulfilled or reciprocated. With that in mind, Aaron jumped back into the case work. 

The next morning, at five a.m., the worst happened. Another body was found, this time in a differnt location, a popular park, and another teen had been taken. The town was in even more of a panic even though the victims were very specificly targeted. The Education Secretary of Texas, Mike Morrath, had to step in and override the district and close all schools for the remainder of the week. With that being the case, Hotch had the team split up. He and Derek would take the latest scene of the dumpsite while Rossi and _y/n_ would head to the school and see if there were any clues there as the latest victim, Tim Groff, had been one of the students Spencer had interviewed yesterday. JJ and Emily were going to speak to the new victims foster family as well as the partents of the deceased. Everyone moved effienctly and as soon as _y/n_ got to the school, they asked to see the security footage which _y/n_ asked Garcia to analyze. Particularly footage of the parking lot and front door where cameras were trained. One thing Aaron, _y/n_, and Spencer had found out yesterday in the interviews was that all of the victims so far had their own cars or got picked up from school. None took the bus. So the teens were either taken from home, which seemed unlikely given how concerned the parents were, or school. School was the likely answer. If they had been taken from the high school grounds, _y/n_ hoped that the tech genius could help. _y/n_ had found out about Garcia’s amazing abilities online and with a computer on the flight too Texas when she’d crunched massive amounts of date, given to her by Spencer at a mile-a-minute, in minutes. To say _y/n_ had been impressed was an understatement. After _y/n_ had sent the hours of footage from the school systems to Garcia, they approached Spencer who was interviewing Jackson for any possible leads. Jackson was much like he had been yesterday. As the interview wrapped up, Jackson turned to _y/n_ and said, “Agent _y/n_ may I have your card or something in case I need to speak to one of you if I think of something new during the day?” _y/n_ frowned and replied in a restrained tone, “Agent Hotchner gave you his card yesterday,” in an attempt to rebuff any inappropriate behavior on the Principal's part. Reid caught onto their play and quickly pulled out one of his FBI cards with his name, email and work phone and said, “Here, have mine.” Jackson frowned and took it with a snap before looking at _y/n_ and said, “I’d feel better if I had everyone’s number. In case I can’t reach one of you fine folks.” _y/n_ sighed and handed their card over. Not because they wanted to, but to shut the childish man up, and so they and Spencer could keep looking for things out of order at while speaking to other faculty members. Once the duo were out of earshot, Reid asked, “What was that all about?” _y/n_ sighed, shrugged, and said, “I wish I could tell you, Reid, And that wasn’t even the worst of it, but that conversation can wait till later.” Spencer nodded and they moved down the hallway a little faster. Spencer did note that the principal had been highly agitated that school had been cancelled which was shocking to him given the fact that school appeared to be the most dangerous place for the students. _y/n_ agreed. None of his made sense. 

Everything and everyone got thrown off the rails, however -- even Penelope's analysis of the school footage -- when an anonymous tip came in from someone saying they were the killer and had the rest of the victims. This sent each member of the team rushing to the address that Garcia had picked up from the trap and trace. It was not what the team expected given the information they knew about the profile. The address led to an apartment complex and not an isolated home. The team surrounded the unit. With a hand signal, Derek, and Aaron broke into the unit, and the team plus police followed. Inside the dimly lit bed room, Derek found a twenty-year-old man with bad teeth playing some videogame with a headset on. It was almost comically easy it was for Morgan to tackle him to the ground. The man shouted in protest and said, “What the hell, I didn’t actually do anything. What the fuck man.” Derek pulled the man named Gerret, to his feet placing cuffs around his bony wrists saying, “Well I don’t know if you know if or not, but taking responsibility for a crime, even if you didn’t do it and interfering with a federal invesitagation is a federal offense. So say good by to Call of Duty and get ready to spend some time with some real criminals behind bars.” Morgan got the un-unsub out of the house and into a police cruiser. Even thought it was very, very unlikely that the man was responsible, the team did a quick scan of the apartment. Reid sent Garret’s IP to Penelope who was quick to confirm that the man was as serial troll who had swatting charges, doxing attempts, and one successful bomb threat to the public library in town. Outside, Aaron was talking to an officer and started to grow frustrated with the lack of leads even though all the information seemed right in front of them. He thought back to the principal and just how odd he was. Deep down, even though he might not have the reason to yet, Hotch felt that Jackson was the man behind all of this. Hotch wondered if the facade of strangeness was a way to get others to think him incompetent of such a crime. _y/n_ who had looked at the contents of Garret’s room stepped out for a breath of air. Hotch motioned them over and asked, “Anything in his room?” _y/n_ replied, “He had what looked like possible snuff films and hours of violent porn, but I don’t know what you expect from an edgelord that makes it into adulthood.” He’s not our guy and never has been. He’s certainly not a good guy, but not ours. 

After that two hour distraction, the team got back to the precinct. Everyone was annoyed and one edge. Especially Aaron. He paced and stated, “What it is we’re missing. We should have everything. What’s missing?” Hearing this, Rossi said, “Mayby we do have everything we need.” Hotch looked over at him unasumed and said, “What do you mean by that, Dave?” Rossi replied, “Now that we have someone in custody, we can play them off the unsub. Sure, Garret’s a nobody, but the unsub doesn’t know that. Hold a press conference and say we got the guy. That he killed the victims because he thought it was fun. It gave him a rush. If the unsub has a savior complex, he’ll have to call and correct us. He won’t be able to help himself.” Hotch nodded. It was a good plan and direct contact with the unsub might give them the final push they needed. Aaron got the filmed segment set up with JJ and the local television stations. It would take place inside the precinct's front room and they’d flash a mugshot of Garret on the TV screen to make sure the unsub saw how wrong the BAU had gotten it. They would run the segment on prime time at seven p.m. when the station had the most viewership. As the team prepared there was a tense anticipation. _y/n_ paced and got a text on their phone. _y/n_ pulled it out and it was from Jackson. They sighed not having time for his nonsense. They clicked off and silenced their phone, as they watched JJ film the press release saying, “I’m happy to announce that with the help of the Dearborn Police Force and the FBI’s involvement, we have been able to apprehend the man behind the abduction and killing of three Dearborn High School Students. Now the location of the still missed students is unknown, so an intense search is being conducted at and near the perpetrator's apartment. The man behind these killings is Garret Gripe. The FBI was able to get a full confession from the man who said he did it because he hated kids and couldn’t stand it when he found them living a better life than his own. The main takeaways are that this community is finally safe again thanks to the hard and tireless work of the police. 

The cameras stopped rolling and Rossi moved toward JJ saying, “Great job. If this doesn’t get the unsub angry, I’m not sure what will.” JJ gave a small smile and replied, “I only hope it works. KSAT10 said that it will be a half hour before it airs. They need to make sure the audio is clear.” Aaron nodded at JJ. The plan did work. It worked to a T because twenty minutes after the press briefing aired, the tip line got a call. Aaron set Garcia up for the trap and trace and then picked up the line and put it on speaker. A muffled voice on the other end of the line shouted, “You think a child, a child could do what I do? A punk ass kid would hurt them! You’re all idiots. ALL OF YOU! You didn’t catch anyone and I’m going to keep taking, them forever.” The person on the other end of the line had yelled so much that he had to take a few deep breaths. Hotch looked over at Spencer who was on the line with Penelope. Reid held up five fingers to indicate five seconds more. Hotch didn’t want the unsub to hang up in a rage and said, “Why do you need to take them? What is it that you’re keeping them safe from?” The muffled voice said, “You’re the smartest man in the room Agent Hotchner, why don’t you figure it out? Or Dr. Reid, or Agent _y/n_? You’d like to, but you can’t, can you? You’re just as stupid as everyone else.” With that the line went dead. The specific call out for himself, Spencer, and _y/n_ upped Aaron’s suspicion about Jackson. Spencer took off the headphones and put Penelope on speaker as Hotch asked, “Did you get it, Garcia?” There was mad clicking of keys and then she said, “Yes. Just in time.” Hotch nodded and said, “We need the address, Garcia.” Some how the typing sound increased and Penelope said, “And the address is… 527 Humphry Drive. It’s a big house and lot. Owned by… one… Van Jackson.” Hotch stood and ordered the team to move out which they all did quickly running to the SUV’s.  

The Sherrif and five cop cars followed behind them as the team sped onto the road. On the radio, the Sherrif said, “You really think Van’s our guy? How can he take out kids when he’s disabled?” _y/n_, who was in Aaron’s car clicked the radio and said, “He gets in with them. Get’s to know them and make them trust him. Get into his car even.” Hotch nodded and asked, “What’s his story? Who is Van Jackson?” The Sherrif replied, “It’s can’t possibly be Van. Everyone one loves Van.” Impatient, Hotch said, “Yes everyone loves him, but who is he?” The Sheriff sobered and said, “Well he’s a bit of a local hero. He was born and raised here. Had a trouble childhood but made it out through a sports scholarship for football. He made it to the semi-pro’s joining the Capitol City Bison team in Austin as a linebacker. He made a good bit of money. He went into education and came back here. A year ago he got into a mountain bike accident and broke his back. It was really tragic.” Hotch could only think the tragedy was the dead chidren, but he didn’t voice that. Instead he shifted his thoughts to those who were still alive a possible trapped in the unsubs home. Aaron radioed the team and said, “Remember, there are still possible victims inside. Jackson might try and use them, so don’t shoot unless you have a clear shot. If not, don’t shoot. Use the profile. He need attention, feed into that.” The other two cars rogered that and soon after with a screeching halt, they arrived at the large, and fancy house. 

The house seemed quiet, with all the lights off and no sound coming from inside. However, the Principal’s car was parked out front, and the team took a stealth approach. Hotch indicated for Spencer and Emily to search outside. The rest of the team slipped into the home after breaking down the door as quietly as possible. He motioned for Rossi and Derek to take the upstairs and attic, and that he and _y/n_ would take the downstairs. All throughout out the house there were accessibility ramps for anyplace there were stairs. There was even a lift to get to second story of the house. This all matched up with the fact that Jackson was in a wheelchair. In the living room it was all quiet until there was a soft sob from somewhere either in the walls or close by. _y/n_ and Hotch froze. _y/n_ had good hearing and pointed toward the bookcase which is where they thought they had heard the sound come from. Aaron approached the shelf and looked it over in the dark of the room. As the felt along the side of the shelf he felt a gap and then a hing. Hotch motioned a swinging door, and _y/n_ moved behind him. They would have called for back up, but the sound would give them away. Hotch pulled out his side-arm along.  _y/n_ did the same. They both kept them pointed at the ground. Aaron pulled at the side of the shelf and it swung open silently. There was a light on at the bottom of some steep stairs. The steps were so steep in fact that they couldn’t see to the floor beneath. Without much choice, Aaron and _y/n_moved down the steps with Aaron in the lead. At the bottom of the stairs was a very small room and at the end, standing up in what seemed liked a modified crawl space, was Jackson and the latest teen to be take. The man had a gun to the teens had and tears were streaming down their eyes. Jackson said softly, “Do anything rash and he dies. And not a pretty death.” Aaron and _y/n_ nodded and they both dropped their weapons on the ground. They both noticed the pink insulation on the wall. Johnson turned his gaze to Agent _y/n_ and said, “Back up the stairs and close the door and then come back down. Keep your hands on your head at all times or I’ll kill him  and Agent Hotchner.” _y/n_ looked at Hotch and he gave them a slight nod. _y/n_ slowly and deliberately moved up the stairs, There was a button to close the door, and _y/n_ pressed it with their elbow. As the door closed, _y/n_ felt for a moment like they were being placed in a tomb. With the door closed, the sound of their breaths could be heard, showing just how soundproof the space was. _y/n_ turned around and then walked back down the stairs. 

When _y/n_ was next to Aaron, Jackson moved forward with the teenager. When the intimidating man reached the guns on the floor, he bent down with a bead still on the high schooler. He took Aaron’s gun and then pointed it at the Unit Chief, pushing the student aside. Jackson’s anger was building, as his nostrils flared. Hotch took a reassuring tone as he said, “You don’t have to do this.” Jackson’s face reddened, stepped forward, putting the gun an inch from AAron’s face. With such a deadly weapon so close to his head, Hotch managed to keep his cool. This fact bothered Jackson and he said, “Still the tough guy. Well, let’s see how tough you are with your brains on the walls.” This statement gave _y/n_ an in and they said, “You can’t do that Mr. Jackson. Van.” The man turned his furious gaze from Aaron to them and said, “I don’t think a whore who doesn’t text me back deserves a word, but tell me why not because I’m killing you next.” _y/n_ swallowed, and Hotch realized that his life was in _y/n_’s hands. _y/n_ tried to take all their training, everything they’d learned on their team and with the BAU, and went on instinct saying, “Because there are children in the room. Because you saved them from violence and you want to help them, and if you blow Agent Hotchner’s head off in front of them, what would that do to them then? What damage would they incur?” _y/n_ could see a tiny moment of hesitation in Jackson’s eyes, but he tightened the grip on Hotch’s gun anyway. _y/n_ took another breath and said, “You saved them and gave them a better life with a parent that loved them. Why throw that all away for this?” The instant Jackson hesitated the second time. Hotch pushed the gun up to the ceiling and Jackson fired hitting the light. The room went dark and the teenagers screamed. _y/n_ took out their phone. They could hear grunts and punches landing, but mostly it was the high schooler’s screaming. When _y/n_ managed to use their phone light to find their gun and shine the light at the writhing mass on the floor, it was too difficult to tell who was who. The sound of gunfire had _y/n_ cringe and hope beyond hope that it had been Jackson who got shot. For a second there was just heavy breathing in the blankness before _y/n_ asked, “Hotch?” The reply of “Yeah,” almost made _y/n_’s knees weak. But just for a second. They then quickly ran up the stairs, opened the door, and shouted for help. 

The next three hours passed by more normally than _y/n_ would have imaged for such a dramatic ending to the case. That was because they were doing what they did best, comforting those who had been taken. Even in shock _y/n_ provided what comfort they could, getting blankets and water. _y/n_ then intercepted the set of foster parents and told them what to expect, and how to act to best be reunited with their kids. And Aaron watched as the coroners placed a sheet over Jackson. He’d know the shot was clean because he’d pinned the man to the wall with nothing between Van's body, and he was glad that it had been in the dark because the aftermath hadn’t been pretty. The teenagers were escorted out of the room by _y/n_ before light had been restored to the room. And somehow, as if time warped around them, the team was back in the jet at around 4 a.m. headed to Virginia. Even though everyone should have been exhausted, there was still energy on the plane as so many aspects of the case still didn’t seem to match up. They all wanted some closure. The discussion started when Derek said, “So why fake the disability? Why choose to be in a wheelchair for over a year? Did he have Munchenson’s syndrome or something?” Emily replied, “He would have faked more illnesses than that if he had Munchenson’s. I think it was because he was a complete egomaniac. He couldn’t stand to not have the attention be on him.” Spencer added to this line of thought, saying, “More than an egomaniac, he probably had histrionic personality disorder. He not only felt like he needed to be the center of attention, to him he had to be the center of attention.” Hotch who was sporting a few bruises to the face, nodded and said, “He couldn’t keep playing football forever and just being generous and well like in town wasn’t doing to for him anymore, so he facked the back injury and everyone believed him. But then that grew old and his aspirations got bigger. He needed something new. He must have seen something in the first victim and thought that he could save them. Be a hero.” Morgan was still a bit hesitant to believe such a thing and said, “But does that happen? I mean, it did, but what’s the precedent?” _y/n_ now spoke and said, “Sherri Papini for one. She faked her own kidnapping with the help of an ex-boyfriend. She was a pathological liar and felt she deserved the attention.” JJ asked the next question to _y/n_ and the liason said, “_y/n_,” they were all on first name bases now except _y/n_ still called Aaron, Hotch, and Rossi, Rossi, “Why did you think to bring up violence when you were trapped down there. How did you know that would stop Jackson?” Everyone’s eyes turned to _y/n_ and they felt a bit uncomfortable under the gaze of the whole team. _y/n_ didn’t want to fully admit that it was a guess on their part, but ended up being honest, saying, “I wasn’t fully sure it would work. But a comment the Sherrif made about Jackson having a hard upbringing made me think it might stop him enough to think. Violence doesn’t always have to be physical either it was the broadest term I could think of instead of abuse. I think that when Jackson is under stress he becomes emotionally stunted somewhere in his past. Somewhere painful. That’s why he acted so strangely while we were around. So I tried to use an easy concept like a child might.” The team processed the information and nodded. Dave said, “Well whatever the cause was, you did good, kid. We’ll never know the whole truth, but at least the town is free from his reign of terror.”

Everyone agreed and then soon after the tiredness came now that they’d talked it out. So people grabbed blankets and sleep masks and soon the cabin was mostly quiet. Only _y/n_ Aaron and Rossi were still up. _y/n_ was sitting on a chair on the far side of the jet looking out the window. Aaron could see they were deep in thought, a slightly troubled look on their face. He moved closer, and once he sat across from _y/n_, he said, “What’s on your mind, _y/n_?” They turned their head toward Aaron and said, “That town is never going to be the same again. Those children in Jackson’s Friday group, or those who survived, I don’t know what’s going to happen to them.” Hotch nodded but didn’t say anything. He could tell that _y/n_ would say more, and after a few seconds, _y/n_ added softly, “Jackson really thought he was doing the right thing. He thought he was saving those kids. It’s hard for me to reconcile when someone’s good intentions cause so much harm.” With the last sentence, Aaaron saw _y/n_’s eyes slip away from his and to the side. To some point on the jet’s wall. Hotch could tell with that sentence and _y/n_’a avoidant gaze that they weren’t just thinking of Jackson anymore. They had that look of going back into painful memories of one’s own. Again, the fact that Aaron didn’t know what had happened to _y/n_ in their youth ate at him, so he softly yet firmly said, “They were still wrong. He was still wrong. Good intentions don’t make a thing good. In time, people may come to understand that.” _y/n_ had turned their head back to look at him, and Aaron saw the tears welling in their eyes. _y/n_ said, “I hope so.” Hotch nodded, pulled a tissue from his pocket at handed it over to _y/n_. _y/n_ took it and rubbed it under their eyes catching the falling saline droplets that threatened to mar their face. Hotch shifted forward ever so slightly in his chair. He felt the tug and emotion in his chest again as he asked, “Do you want to talk about it?” He wondered now if _y/n_’s Unit Chief had ever asked them this. Had noticed the pain lingering under the surface of _y/n_’s skin. _y/n_ thought about it and shook their head no. They weren’t quite ready to have that conversation. They did say, however, not even sure why, “Maybe some other time?” Again, Aaron nodded. He briefly looked around the cabin and suggested, “Maybe you should try and rest? There’s still a few hours until we get back.” _y/n_ nodded and slumped over in the chair saying, “Thanks, Hotch,” as their head landed on the armrest. 

Aaron moved to the back of the jet and made a cup of coffee before moving back next to Dave. He was still upset that he hadn’t figured it out sooner. Couldn��t have saved the last victim when the unsub had been right in front of him the same day. Rossi had watched the whole interaction with Hotch and _y/n_ and found it highly interesting. Aaron was not always so gentle. Hotch had been acting a bit strangely the whole case around Agent _y/n_. Rossi had a feeling he knew what was going on, but was going to wait for the right time to say anything about it. As Hotch sat across from Dave in the small space, he couldn’t keep his despairing thoughts to himself as he said, “How did it get so bad? I was pretty sure I knew it was him. And I think _y/n_ knew it was Jackson too, but I got angry and someone else died, and he was right there?” Rossi could see that Aaron could talk this way, in circles, for hours if left undisturbed. So Aaron’s friend laid out the facts as clearly as possible. Dave remembered that Aaron had once been a young agent too as he said, “Aaron, we had no right to search Jackson's house until we got the call. You might have just thought he was a weird man. There are lots of weird people who don’t turn out to be killers. And, the Sheriff said they had all had a meeting at Jackson’s house three days before we got there and no one saw any kids or heard anything. They had no clue the people they were looking for were under their feet. Plus we were almost working with two personalities. Not Dissociative Identity Disorder or anything, but there was the egomaniac and the child. The child in Jackson was disorganized and needy, and you don’t expect that from a grown man. It was a weird case. Plus we had a new agent in the mix.” When he spoke about _y/n_, Rossi looked at Aaron and gave him that look. Hotch rolled his eyes and said, “Dave, please, not this again.” Rossi shook his head and said, “It’s been a year since Haley left, Hotch. You’re allowed to look at someone attractive.” Aaron scoffed and said, “Dave _y/n_’s not even a part of the team. Once they get to Virginia, they’ll go back to the _______ field office. It’s not that I don’t find myself attracted to them, but that I can’t. I just can’t.” Rossi shook his head and just said, “Aaron, at some point you’re going to have to give yourself grace. Not just on the case, but about how you feel too. You’re only human after all.” The conversation ended there and the jet continued its silent journey home. 

The team took the rest of the day off, and _y/n_ got a motel. They would need to finish their forms and turn them into Hotch before returning to their team. The following day, _y/n_ got a temp desk which only reminded them that this thing, being on the BAU, was temporary. Even though the case had been very stressful, _y/n_ was already thinking about how they would miss this team and all that they’d learned at the BAU. As it turned out, despite all the hype and fame that the team received, they were still just agents. The best agents, but they acted like people and that had only added respect for the team in _y/n_’s eyes. At the end of a long day of writing, _y/n_ moved to Aaron’s office. _y/n_ knocked, then entered the lamp-lit space. Hotch’s dark eyes found theirs, and they both felt something between them. _y/n_ quickly averted their gaze and moved toward the desk. _y/n_ had looked away when the feeling started, not because it wasn’t enjoyable, but because it was, and _y/n_ was sure there probably wasn’t supposed to be feelings. Hotch cleared his throat and said, “Are you finished with your file?” _y/n_ looked at him again and extended the manilla envelope, saying, “Yes, Sir.” Hotch extended a hand and took the folder from theirs. Aaron said deliberately, thinking of what Rossi, and had said, “You did a good job on this case, _y/n_. If another case mostly involving children should come up and you’re available, I’ll ask for you again.” From Hotch, this was high praise, and _y/n_’s eyes widened. They responded, “Thank you, Sir. It would be an honor. I understand why this team is held in such high regard. Thank you for having me.” Aaron nodded and asked, “When’s your flight back?” _y/n_ looked at the clock on the wall and said, “Eight p.m. I should probably go straight to the airport. I checked out of my motel this morning.” Aaron nodded and said jokingly, “Please tell me you’re not taking another rental?” That made _y/n_ laugh. It was bright and happy, and it warmed Aaron to hear. _y/n_ shook their head no and replied, “Not this time. I’ll call an Uber or something.” Hotch frowned slightly and looked at his watch. It was already five and the traffic would be awful this time of the evening. Not only would it take over an hour to get to the airport, but it would cost an arm and a leg as well. Aaron said, “I can drop you off. It will be quicker and it won’t be a hundred dollars down the drain.” _y/n_ raised a brow in surprise and said, “Are you sure?” Aaron nodded, and as he stood he became even more sure as he said, “Yeah. I’m sure.” When Hotch held the door open for _y/n_ they looked at him while walking out. This time _y/n_ didn’t turn their eyes away from him as a ghost of a smile formed on Aaron’s face. In the car, they both felt very differently than the last time they’d driven together. That had been out of need, this was something else. As _y/n_ sat, they considered how somewhere in the future they would be back helping the BAU again, and the feelings they both had for each other, whatever they were to become when they met Aaron again, well, only time could tell.

______________________________________________________________

Tag List: @geminitapestry @criminalskies

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[tortoiseworld]

unit chief aaron hotchner how do u get ur bottom lashes so defined do u use a serum? a certain mascara?

[thisgirlisonfayeeer]

BABE WAKE UP, NEW TG PICS DROPPED

(📸 Thomas Gibson's Instagram)

[ladycaramelswirl]

Hi Hotch readers, holding you hostage for a vote again.

I added an original character to add a jealous Hotch scene in a Hotch x reader series and now the backstory is so long 🫠 (but I promise it makes the whole story better, it’s just that one chapter is very reader + OC centric)

(I’m so sorry for the tags, I know this isn’t what you’re looking for when you search them 😭😭. I just don’t know how else to reach the people who read them)

update: fuckkkkk skwiwhsv just spent hours writing a whole plot just to realise at the very end that I have a better idea? And the plot is totally unnecessary? I hate it here 😭

[alachii]

just as we joppin, i’m screamin and cryin we scryin

[bau-drabbles]

WE NEED THE JEALOUSY SMUT WIRH HOTCH PLEASE ON GOD 🫠😩😮‍💨💗💗

aaron hottie smut won obvs 😌🤞 so don't worry bae, it'll be posted v soon! i just gotta edit it and add a few things. i can't promise it'll be good but at least i tried :") 🤍

[sirpotys]

García: Emily is so beautiful and perfect.

Hotch: Yeah, She is

García: I want to kiss her, I'm going to kiss her.

Hotch: No, you will not. You won't kiss Emily

García: What, why not? You're being homophobic boss.

Hotch: I'm not homophobic, you can't kiss Emily for the simple reason that she's my girlfriend.

García: ...Oh, Well, I'm not a jealous girl.

Hotch: García!

[lavenderspence]

jealous hotch is a sight to see, but adorable when a little clueless

hii dollface, would u write smtg abt hotch being jealous?

like he's trying to hide it from making the team notices when he saw some officer flirting with r?

no pressure in writing, lovey. change it however u want or ignore it if u dont feel like writing it (i completely understands u 🤍)

my love this has lived in my brain so relentlessly <3 i hope you love it!!!! thank you for requesting!! wc: 1.7k

It is incredibly easy to like her.

She’s charismatic in a way that’s almost universally appealing, and he’s memorized the shape of her wide grin. She smiles with her whole face, and Aaron hasn’t really spent too much time trying to make people smile. He’s had success in some ways, but when she smiles at him there’s something in his chest that burns in achingly lovely way. 

At first, he had assumed her kindness was a way to win him over. In her first week, she had noticed there was a rip in his tie (which he’s not sure how could even happen) and she’d whipped out a pocket sewing kit, repairing it. 

He tries not to think about the fact that she’s beautiful. She is, though, in spirit and in appearance. He’s an expert in controlled presentation, but to some extent she must know that’s he’s fond of her. 

When they’d first met (which he can still picture in his minds’ eye- her oversized sweater tucked into her tailored pants, the purple lipstick adorning her beautiful smile) he’d tried to keep his distance. It’s easy to romanticize her, and being her friend felt a little impossible when seeing her as more felt so inevitable.

This plan did not go well, and Aaron had officially tossed it when one day, the babysitter for Jack fell through when he was halfway around the world. She’d picked him up from school and tended to him, and Aaron had come home to a blanket fort on his kitchen floor, and a happy little boy who wanted her to come over every day. 

So it's a little hard to ignore how much he adores her. 

She doesn’t normally want to come out to the scene and they usually don’t require it, but they’re going out to a place she spent most of her twenties, and she knew people in the local PD, so Aaron had asked her to come. 

She’d done so without complaint, although he knows she doesn’t sleep well on the jet. No one knows where the nicer pillows and blankets came from, and Aaron would prefer it that way. 

Anyway. 

The bullpen of this department is chaotic and a certain caretaking is living at the edge of Aaron’s consciousness, a protective desire to keep her from the loudness and violence that she’s typically protected from. 

He’s still thinking this, when he hears her voice over the chaotic hum of the department. 

“Oh my god, Logan!”

Her voice is joyful, and when Aaron turns to see who she’s looking at, it’s an agent. He can tell that he’s not a police officer for many reasons- the fact that he’s got a long, shaggy haircut and a 5 o clock shadow and a leather jacket on his shoulders. The local police would be too strict, and he must be some kind of different authority to be allowed to be here.

He hears the stranger call her name back, and they hug. 

It’s a quick thing, but imbued with deep fondness. Aaron’s not sure he’s ever hugged her for more than a second- just a congratulations when his commendation came in. She’d smelled like roses. 

Now, she’s hugging Logan. 

“Hotch,” she says, a smile still in her voice, “This is Logan! We went to graduate school together. He’s brilliant, I can’t believe he’s down here.”

Her voice is seeped in admiration, and Aaron feels an ugly amount of what can only be described as jealousy. 

“Great to meet you. You’re the unit chief, yeah?”

“SSA Aaron Hotchner,” he offers the man a curt nod, “Have you met the team?”

He goes through the motions of introducing him to the team- he greets Reid with a warm smile and tells him that he’s read his papers. Logan compliments Emily’s shirt, and Morgan’s watch. 

He’s incredibly charismatic.

Is Aaron charismatic? He doesn’t think so. His team, who probably adore him as much as anyone could, still note that he can be harsh, prickly. He never smiles, he knows. He lacks expressiveness. Logan is all fluid movement and easy conversation, and when he takes the jacket off, Aaron sees a great deal of tattoos on his forearm, his sweater sleeves slid up. 

He’d smile for her. 

What should be a good thing, but hurts- Logan is an excellent consultant profiler. He’s thoughtful and helpful and she has an easy rapport with him. Aaron- he’s so bad at talking to women. 

She makes Aaron feel like he’s good at it though. When they drive together, the conversation is easy and feels nice. It’s like sunbathing, basking in the light of her attention and intention. 

With the help of the man that Aaron has decided he hates, the case is finished up quickly. 

He can’t shake the thought they’ve probably dated. It’s not his business- this crush, although this word feels inadequate for the intensity of the way she makes him feel. It’s a private thing he’s never going to act on- he’s older and her superior, and besides- 9 stab wounds and a lifetime worth of issues is a million times less appealing than someone like Logan. Young, exuberant probably not too afraid to ask for what he wants.

“Drink tonight?” Logan asks the team, and a chorus of yes’s and please’s echo through the emptying bullpen. 

“Raincheck,” she says to Logan, “I’ll see you next time I’m in town, yeah?” She beams at him, hugging him in a quick-but-too-long-for-Aaron’s-taste motion, and the string in Aaron’s chest that feels like it’s been pulled all week threatens to pull him under.

After everyone files out, she offers to help him fill out paperwork in his office. It’s just like her, so kind and sweet. Spending her free time filling out reports to make his workload go easier.

About a half hour of amenable silence passes, before Aaron chooses to speak.

“So, you and Logan.”

“He’s great, right?”

Regrettably, Aaron agrees.

“He seems very kind.”

“Yeah, he and his fiancee are really fun. They travel all over, kite-board and do tons of adventure stuff, he’s pretty awesome.”

A moment passes.

It’s like a balloon losing air, the feeling of relief taking the place of panic.

“I thought you two were romantically involved.” He doesn’t know how to verbalize things casually. If he lets it up, he might do something dangerous like tell her that he wants to be someone who romances her, wants to be the person who kisses her after dates and holds an umbrella over her head when she’s caught in the rain. He wants to be what she comes homes to, and it’s a confession living in the back of his throat, threatening to escape at every moment. 

She sucks in a harsh breath, and he wonders if it’s a misstep to have told her- it’s not a confession, really. It sounds like one though- why would he care? What makes it his business?

“Not that that’s relevant to me,” he stammers, “You’re free to engage with whoever you’d like-“

“I know, Hotch.” She doesn’t grace him with his first name, but her voice is fond and warm, her doe eyes meeting his. He likes it, he decides. 

“I’m not seeing him,” she continues, her body shifting to face him, “I think he’s a little…casual for me.”

He thinks of Logan’s leather jacket and unshaven face, rugged appearance and compares it to how he presents himself- clean cut and sharp lines, his suits tailed to fit him like a glove. 

“You prefer something a little more…dignified?” He hears himself say with more confidence then he feels- her implication is clear, but he wonders if he’s mishearing it. 

She tips her head back and he hears her lovely laugh ring through the air like something sacred, and he waits to hear her response. 

“I don’t know, I just know that I’ve been liking this guy for a while,” she muses, looking down at her fingernails, “But he hasn’t seemed to pick up on any of my hints.”

On one of his braver days, he’d told her that he liked that purple lipstick. He hasn’t seen her without it since. She’d always been so kind to everyone that it was hard to notice when her treatment towards him was special, but he thinks it might be. How quick she offers to help with Jack- gives away a Saturday evening to spend with him, even though she sees too much of his face at work.

Her friend from grad school offered to get drinks, and she’s here, telling him what she looks for in a guy.

He tries to be logical about the whole thing, but it’s a bit hard- she’s funny and warm and Aaron loves being around her- loves her company enough to maybe ask for more of it. 

“If this ‘guy’ did like you,” he murmurs, intentionally not meeting her gaze, the precision of which is boring a hole into the side of his head, “How would he go about that?”

He’s not sure what the point of being coy is now, but he can’t seem to stop. He does look down to her and meet her eyes. 

“I think I’d probably corner him,” she says breathlessly. They’re quite close together, now. He wonders if she likes his aftershave. She tugs a hundred through her hair, a nervous but incredibly attractive gesture, “Y’know, if everyone we worked with went to get drinks, and it was just us. If he was amenable to that.”

“If he was amenable to that.”

A rush of emotion licks up his spine- it’s fun, flirting with her. The creep of warmth on her cheek, how her fingers are brushing hers. 

“I think he might be.”

Purple lipstick, rose perfume mixing with the scent of expensive aftershave- he thinks he might be able to kiss her, now. He’s never been good at knowing when to take the jump, but this is something he can do. He can let her know that he wants it. 

She reads him well enough, it turns out, and she kisses him. It’s a surprise and he is so rusty at this and yet- his hand stand on the small of her back, pulling her in and he can feel her lovely smile against him. She’s warm and joyful and she’d kissed him, and all he could do was lean in-

“I think he might be too.” She says, significantly less color on her lips, and more on his, he imagines.

She doesn’t have to wonder, though. When Aaron kisses her again, he decides- he will make her incredibly certain of his affections. 

[greg-montgomery]

just thinking about aaron giving you a dip kiss at your wedding 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[emberfrostlovesloki]

Aaron Fic Poll

Photo credit @pennyspearl

Hey all! I have a small question for you. So I have had an idea for a hurt!aaron fic for some time, however, last night I had a new idea of golfer!aaron and it has been playing through my head for some time. They both sound like such fun to write and they are very different vibes. Therefore I thought I'd throw it to you to decide. The hurt!aaron has an independent!strong!reader. And the golfer!aaron fic has jealous!aaron and smart!reader.

Please vote below. The poll will be up for twenty-four hours. Feel free to share if you like and thank you for helping me out. I hope you have a great start to your week - Love Levi ❤️

Tag list: (🩷) @tgskitten @geminitapestry @silk-spun @alicewonderao3

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[luveline]

𝗕𝗢𝗠𝗕𝗦𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗟 𝗔𝗨 ᥫ᭡ 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗡𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗜𝗗

˗ˋˏ ʚ♡ɞ ˎˊ˗ Spencer thinks you’re a total bombshell —confident, high maintenance, and so, so pretty. you find yourself similarly obsessed with your dorky, handsome genius.

you meet Spencer and call him beautiful you witness Spencer and Lila Archer you make Spencer jealous you hold Spencer’s hand after his abduction you come for a teasing visit your drunken flirting almost kills him you invite a struggling Spencer over for dinner your motorcycle jacket winds Spencer you and Spencer share a room in Alaska Spencer comforts you after a hard case Spencer gets his boyband haircut Spencer stands you up you take Spencer’s hand when he’s distracted you comfort Spencer on the brink of tears you’re jealous of Spencer and a girl at the bar Spencer reassures you that he likes your flirting Spencer loses his mind over your dress it’s Spencer’s fault when you get hurt Spencer tends to a bad wound you assure Spencer he’s your type you’re hurt by a rude police officer Spencer realises you really truly like him Spencer tortures you, for once don’t think I don’t like you you and Spencer have your first kiss Spencer calms you down when you’re nervous you and Spencer miss you first date Spencer sees you undone for the first time you freak out after being held hostage you’re obsessed with Spencer and his glasses Spencer takes care of you when you’re sick Derek catches you at Spencer’s apartment Spencer calls you a pet name for the first time you and Spencer are interrupted good luck Emily catches you and Spencer in a heated kiss you drunk brag about your new boyfriend you’re secure in your relationship you get your period Spencer likes that you’re high maintenance you get very hurt in the field Spencer watches over your recovery you have your first big fight, you can’t sleep Spencer allots time for your morning kisses you take the leap and ask the big question Spencer returns from prison Spencer struggles to adjust after prison you and Spencer talk about JJ

you comfort Spencer after Maeve

you find out that you’re pregnant together you show Spencer your new necklace you tell the team that you’re pregnant Hotch gives Spencer some paternal advice pregnant!you feel like you’re not yourself you have an angry hormonal meltdown pregnant!you falls down Hotch checks in on pregnant!you and Spencer your daughter is just like you, Spencer loves it Amy video calls you on a case Spencer is wrapped around Amy’s little finger Spencer and Amy take care of sick!you you and Amy visit Spencer in prison

[imagining-in-the-margins]

CM Friends with Benefits

Hey everyone! Thank you so much to everyone who joined us. I am so happy to share everyone’s hard work. If you have a oneshot or masterlist you’d like me to add, please send me a message - new additions are always welcome.

SFW S.R./Reader

Cuddle Buddies by @foxy-eva: (Fem) Spencer misinterprets the meaning of friends with benefits (having a friend to cuddle is, in fact, highly beneficial).

Play Dates by me: (GN) Reader learns Spencer hasn’t had many dates and offers to share several Play Dates.

Astraphobia by me: (Fem) Reader and Spencer share their embarrassing fears.

The Only Exception by me: (GN) Reader is beginning to believe in love again.

NSFW S.R./Fem!Reader (18+)

It’s Too Cliché by me: Reader and Spencer are the worst at being friends with benefits.

Damaged Goods by @foxy-eva: The belief that they were both undeserving of love led Spencer and Reader into each other's arms.

Yours by @aliteralsemicolon: Spencer never thought he’d be lucky enough to find Reader.

Heavenly by @dudeitiskarev: Reader confesses that she's a virgin, and she asks Spencer to be her first.

Wildest Dreams by @ghsface: It was a one night thing.

Crawling Back to You by @incognit0slut: Reader never planned on having a fling with her brother's friend.

A Kindness You Can't Afford by @mercy-burning: It started as 'stress relief between co-workers,' but now Reader can't help herself.

Relax, I've Got You by @reidmotif: Reader isn't great at handling stress. Luckily, Spencer knows how to make her feel better.

I'm Your Fluffer by @reiderwriter: Spencer is Reader's boyfriend without the benefits.

Second Chances & Something More by @reidsrambles: Reader is stunned when her former FWB shows up at her job nearly a decade after ghosting him.

Even more fics and pairs below!

I Won't Let You Forget by @reiderwriter: Reader wakes up with no memory of begging her long-time work crush to sleep with her.

Down Bad by @samuel-de-champagne-problems: After seeing that her ex boyfriend is engaged to his “rebound girl”, Reader finds herself missing the sex.

Safe Place by @sinfulspencer: After a hard case, Spencer takes comfort in Reader's body. 

Casual by @waywardxrhea: Reader thought that her sexcapades with Spencer had meant more to him.

Goddess, Soft by @none-of-your-bullshit: Spencer gets jealous.

Lost Time by me: Reader and Spencer spend their mandatory leave on vacation. As "friends."

NSFW Other xReaders (18+)

Passionate Reunion by @badathumanemotions: (Emily/Fem) Reader's in town on business and takes the opportunity to reconnect.

Stepping into Desire by @badathumanemotions: (Emily/Fem) Emily decides to wear heels and a tight skirt to catch the attention of a certain co-worker.

Medicine at Midnight by @pkg4mumtown: (Hotch/GN) A night out with the team leads to either the best or worst mistake Reader could have made.

Sneaky Touch by @tjwritesfanfics: (Hotch/Fem) Hotch is only a man and maybe Reader should wait until they get home to tempt him.

After Hours by @badathumanemotions: (Emily/Fem/Spencer) The trio has an arrangement.

Down by the River by @tjwritesfanfics: (Joe Joe - RV) Reader knew they couldn't stay with him forever, but at least for one night they could pretend.

Character Pairings

Time for Talk by @vaguelyclevermatters: (Rated T, Demily) Emily was hungover after a night in Vegas but the team seems fine. She must've gotten up to something (or someone) the others didn't.

Now or Never [Ao3] by @masterwords: (unrated, Hotchgan) An exploration of Hotch's agreement with Derek during his divorce.

Untitled by @siyvaruli: (Hotchgan) Derek discusses his situation with his sisters.

Just a Booty Call by @the-queen-and-the-king: (NSFW, Hotchniss) What was Emily supposed to do when she and her boss suddenly break every rule during an investigation?

Harder to Hide [Ao3] by @vampireids: (NSFW, Spencelle) After dying in Georgia, Spencer visits Elle to tell her he finally understands.

Gold in the Summertime [Ao3] by @justjasper: (NSFW, Derek/Elle/Spencer) Instead of the Fisher King, the BAU gets their two weeks vacation, and Reid goes to Jamaica with Elle and Morgan.

Until I See You Again [Ao3] by @leahseclipse: (Moreid) Spencer and Morgan had an arrangement, but it all changes when Spencer's feelings start to grow.

What's Wrong with Being Confident? by @baubeautyandthegeek: (Blake/Strauss) JJ wonders. Spencer answers.

Only Bought this Dress So You Can Take it Off by @baubeautyandthegeek: (Elle/Ilsa) The two share a night together.

Happy reading!

P.S. If I missed your fic or you have a new one to add, feel free to send me a message. I would love to add it!