#she'll accept if Pat insists or repeats it

[sharpsuite]

❛ keep it. it looks better on you. ❜ (for ann)

↳ SOFT AND SWEET SENTENCE STARTERS

It's just a FUN THING to do, to have a girls night, and god knows they need deserve it after the hell of the Borderlands. ( And there's a grim thought that lurks - SHE HADN'T REALLY MADE IT HERSELF. She's alive, yes, and the normal people will never understand. But she didn't make it back the same way the others did.) So maybe Ann indulges in a bit more wine than she typically would and there's music and it's a fun time just trying on each other's accessories while some movie plays in the background.

Pat...definitely has significantly more than Ann does despite this not even being the full entirety of it. She's impressed by it. Some of them look like they cost more than Ann's own wardrobe. Not that Ann doesn't have her own nice pieces ; she does. But they're fewer. On the other hand, they're often also VINTAGE, ONE OF A KIND and possess details and craftsmanship ( and double functions) that many accessories today lack. She does have some new pieces. Ann lives for quality over quantity when it comes to much of her wardrobe and accessories. She needs durability and style, doesn't have the budget to replace things all the time or get new items. And she doesn't go out often - she's gone out more often with the others post borderlands than she had in several years combined prior to it. As much as she loves her job, it's not the most well paying. ( At least they were generous in giving her lots of time off to recover and paying for it. More than many got. )

It's not the flashiest piece of jewelry that is out in the room - not the biggest. It's elegant, sophisticated in its minimalism. Ann was simply drawn to it despite other pieces outshining it. Plus a NECKLACE is better ; she dislikes bracelets that get too close to her hands and she can't often wear them with her work. Ann lifts a wine glass to her lips and takes a sip before she admires the necklace in the mirror. It's pretty. She really DOESN'T want to know how much costs. Ann opens her mouth to compliment it - and ends up blinking in surprise at Pat's words. Hadn't asked, never intended to ask, and she wouldn't have dared to ask ever.

" Are you sure? " Ann asks, brown eyes shifting back to the reflection. It does look nice ; effortless like it was supposed to be there. " No- No, I can't. It's yours. " Ann quickly adds with a small shake of her head. Maybe anyone else wouldn't think twice given how much Pat has, GREED or DELIGHT on the forefront. " I can't do that. Trying it on is enough. " / @cartelheir

[the-average-melli]

PLA Fanfic: Hattie's abilities

Things were as they usually were at the secluded Diamond Clan Settlement—that is, until Hattie mastered the ability to walk. Melli laid out an assortment of snacks for his guests, who joined him for a hearty lunch. His guests sat around a table, munching on fresh yums. Melli didn't always have guests over, in fact, most of them came to visit his daughter. He still flexed for mental gymnastics and convinced himself that, just like the Massive Mass Outbreaks, people were flocking to him because his parenting was such an inspiration to all. Hattie joined the others, wearing only a cloth nappy.

“Hattie, darling? Where are you clothes!?” Melli swooped swiftly down to pick up the little one before anyone else noticed her waddling in half-dressed. The little girl whimpered as her father insisted on clothing her properly. “Here, darling. Put this on, please?” Hattie continued to fuss as her father pulled a miniature Diamond Clan top over her head. She flailed about and began to cry.

“Is everything alright?”

“Of course, it couldn’t be better.” Melli responded to the concerned guest as he picked up his daughter, who calmed down moments after he held her in his arms. “Come now, Hattie. No need to fret.” He dabbed the warm tears dropping from her reddened cheeks and kissed the crown of her little lavender head. The red tint disappeared from her face as she grabbed onto her father’s shirt.

“There she is!” One guest lit up at the sight of Melli returning with the child of the hour.

“And most importantly, here I am! No need to worry, for the Great Melli has returned unscathed!” The guests crowded around the smol bean in the larger man’s arms.

“Hey there, Hattie!” Hattie looked on with curiosity at the sound of the stranger’s voice; frightened, she then buried her head into her father’s flowing flambouyant locks.

“Oh, Hattie. Look!” Melli whispered into his daughter’s ear. “These people have come all the way just to see me! And... also you by extension!” Hattie babbled. “Hattie, darling? Say hi!” The child popped out from behind the security of her father's hairs.

“Hi,” she repeated the sound Melli mouthed.

“She reminds me a lot of you when you were her age,” a gentle voice from a woman with a partner pokémon Munchlax added. “She’s a shy one!” She waved at Hattie, who in turn flapped her arms trying to mimic the funny gestures these strangers were making. Melli plopped down next to his guests and propped his daughter up in his lap.

“She'll become stronger and more capable once she sees how strong and capable her father is!” He grinned from ear to ear, excited by the mere thought of Hattie learning to be more confident. At the back of his mind, he understood exactly what the woman meant by her comment. He didn’t want to remember the fact that he also used to be quite timid; he instead carried on, secretly praying to Almighty Sinnoh in his heart that Hattie wouldn’t get picked on for this shyness as he did when he was a little kid. Everything blossoms with time, he believed.

Hattie crawled out of Melli’s lap and explored the room. She noticed Skuntank curled up by the warm fire and joined him, patting his soft plum and creamy white streaks. “Fluffy!” The stinky pokémon purred with approbation as she ran her hands through the pokémon’s fur. A biscuit floated from the table Melli and the others sat around.

“What is...?” One guest caught this at the corner of their eye. “Is there a pokémon with psychic nearby or something?” The others peered around the room; the pokémon here didn’t seem to be using psychic if any of them did know how... The biscuit dropped into Hattie’s hands and she offered it up to Skuntank who was living his best life. He gleefully accepted the yum and nibbled on it.

“Hattie!?” Her father stared at her with wide eyes, baffled by what had just happened. He stared at the toddler lying next to Skuntank, then back at the basket from where the biscuit originated. “...” He must have been hallucinating. “It was probably a pokémon and nothing more,” he folded his arms decisively as if he’d completely solved the mystery with his solid deductive skills.

“The only moves I’ve seen this little guy use are rest, stockpile, and swallow,” the woman with the Munchlax laughed. Munchlax was vibing near his partner, content from the berries he was munching on. “I don’t think he could learn psychic, now that I think about it,” she shook her head.

“Leafeon can’t do anything like that either,” a young man dressed in distinct main-character garb and multi-coloured hairs that distinguished himself among the rest of the Diamond Clan members, noted.

Another biscuit floated from the basket, catching everyone’s attention. Hattie hopped up to her feet and waddled around as if she were trying to catch it. “No, no Hattie. You can’t eat that!” The biscuit fell onto the table as Melli picked up his daughter who wailed as she was collected.

“Why not? She’s old enough to eat ‘em isn’t she?” The man with the multi-coloured hairs wondered.

“Well—yes. But she shouldn't eat too many sweets!” The man handed Hattie the biscuit from the table.

“Here ya go, Hattie. Your daddy worries a lot, but one won’t hurt.” He smiled down at the crying child in Melli’s arms.

“Adamaaaan!” the Disney Princess on Crack whined more than the actual toddler. Hattie cheered up at the sight of the snack and giggled at the funny sound her father made. She swallowed it down like Munchlax and clapped. Melli sighed, supposing he’d let one slide.

“Well, what do we say, now?” He cooed at the little one wiggling in his lap.

“Aaaaad-maaaaaan!” Melli shook his head and corrected her as the others laughed.

“No, darling. We say ‘thank you!’ Let’s say ‘thank you!’”

“Tank youuu,” Hattie repeated.

“Very good!” He kissed Hattie’s forehead as she played with strands of his hairs.

“You’re very welcome!” Adaman nodded.

“I still can’t help but wonder what that was,” the woman said. “There aren’t any psychic Pokémon nearby…”

“Hmmm. Mai’s right about that,” Adaman agreed. “Let me try something out.” He pulled a shiny object from his pocket. “Look, Hattie!” He held out a gem in the palm of his hand; seeing the reflection of herself in the smooth mineral sparked the toddler’s interest. “Can you pick it up?” She gave a confused look as if she didn’t quite understand what he was asking. Melli stared as Adaman dropped the gem in front of Hattie. Hattie stretched an arm out to grab at it.

“Pretty!”

“Yes, pretty like you!” Her father agreed, bouncing her gently. Hattie clapped at the sound of her father’s flowery voice. The gem began to roll towards her. Everyone leaned forward with anticipation as it floated upwards; it fell into Hattie’s hands.

“Oh, my—!” The adults paused in disbelief as the little girl turned the mineral in her hands, fascinated by its lustrous coating.

“Has she ever done that before?” Mai wondered.

“Not that I’ve noticed,” Melli shook his head and watched his occupied daughter. He sat there, conflicted. Without thinking, he plucked the gem from his daughter’s hands. A pink tint flooded her cheeks as she began to sniffle and reach for it.

“That’s quite the ability. It’s almost like she’s a psychic-type pokémon!” Adaman laughed a little.

“Melli?” Mai checked in.

“...”

“What’s wrong?” Hattie began to cry.

“N-nothing.”

“You've become unusually quiet,” Adaman half-joked. The most boisterous personality in the room turned into the most hesitant, but pleas of the toddler snapped him back to reality.

“Oh, goodness!” He surrendered the shiny object to Hattie to quiet her down. “Hush, hush darling.”

“She can keep it, no worries,” Adaman smiled. The gem looked a lot like the one around Melli’s neck. Maybe that’s why she was so enamoured by it.

Later that evening the two guests set out to retire to their respective dwellings. “You behave now!” Adaman said, now at the doorway on the way out.

“She will if I have anything to say about it. She certainly will!” Melli responded, still supporting Hattie in his arms.

“I was talking about you!” Melli gulped, a sweat drop fell from his forehead. Mai and Munchlax followed the Clan leader in his footsteps out of the home.

“Take care. Thank you for having us!” She waved at the toddler, who continued to play with her gem. “It was such a pleasure to see you, Hattie!”

“Can you say goodbye?” Melli’s tone of voice softened as he encouraged Hattie, “Say bye, bye!”

“Bah-bah!”

“Good enough!” he gave her a gentle peck and waved. Hattie flapped her free arm, attempting to copy her father’s motions.

Melli closed the door and set Hattie on the ground. She wobbled to her feet and ran towards the bunk bed where she slept with her father each night. She stood on her toes as she slid the gem under the pillow.

“Pretty!”

“Keeping it safe, are you?” Melli sat on the bunk bed and helped the smol bean up beside him. “A great idea. When you have something special, you need to protect it to keep it safe.” He playfully tickled his daughter’s sides and added, “you are very special to me, so I want to protect you to keep you safe!” Hattie giggled and clapped joyfully as her father entertained her.

Melli fluffed the pillow and tucked his sleepy daughter in for the night. She curled up with a pokédoll plushie and dozed off immediately; she didn’t put up much of a fight as she usually would when it was time for bed. When he was certain she was down for the night, Melli stepped out for a moment of solitude. Skuntank accompanied him as he perched outside the façade of his humble home. “I worry a lot for Hattie…” He buried his head in his hands. “That… psychic… whatever-it’s-called makes her very different from others.” Skuntank nuzzled his friend as if to offer some form of reassurance. “I just don’t want her to be treated badly because of it.”

Melli and Skuntank stepped back inside. A single candle illuminated the interior. Hattie was sleeping soundly in the bunk bed. He shed his uniform, hung it up on a wooden post, and stored his boots by the front door before turning in for the night. Now wearing a soft undershirt and shorts, he climbed into bed with his daughter. Skuntank curled up by the foot of their bed in his own “nest” fashioned from bits of spare cloth and sheets. “Goodnight, darling.” Melli whispered to Hattie. “We’ll figure it out. Don’t you worry.” He blew out the candle.

[punkrockmads]

The Walking Dead Game Adventures

A Little Bit Sick

Luke glances down at his watch. 11:30am. Maddy is normally up by 9:00, but she hasn't left her room. Clementine walks into the living room, sitting down on the floor beside A.J.

"You okay?" Clementine asks, noticing Luke's curious frown. Luke looks up from the watch, offering the girl a small smile.

"Yeah, I'm good." He assures. "Just surprised to see Maddy isn't awake yet." Clementine looks at the stairs. He's right. She's usually up helping Kenny with breakfast by now. Kenny always insists he can do it himself, but Maddy enjoys cooking and baking so she likes helping him on the weekends.

"Maybe I should go check on her." Clementine says, putting a green crayon back onto the coffee table that is covered in coloring pages and crayons.

"That's okay, I got it." Luke stands up, patting her shoulder. "She's probably just sleepin' in." He climbs the stairs, knocking on the girls' bedroom. "Maddy?" He calls softly. "You awake?" When he doesn't get a response, he quietly walks in. Maddy is laying on her side, knees pulled up to her chest, shaking a bit. Luke walks over, instantly noticing the discomfort on her sleeping face. He crouches by her bed and tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, seeing how it sticks to her forehead with sweat. Gingerly, he places the back of his hand on her forehead. Maddy stirs in her sleep, but she doesn't wake up, thankfully. She's got a fever.

"Poor thing." Luke mumbles to himself. He pulls the blankets up to Maddy's chin, tucking her in before quietly leaving the room and closing the door behind him. He walks back downstairs, Clementine meeting his concerned gaze. "She has a fever." Luke explains, Clementine's expression turning to one of pity.

"Who has a fever?" Kenny calls, hearing Luke's comment from the kitchen. He pokes his head out of the entryway, holding a spatula that's partially coated in slimy, yellow eggs.

"Maddy." Luke repeats. "She ain't lookin' too good."

"Maybe she'll feel better if she draws with us." A.J. suggests. "Drawing always makes me feel better."

"That's a good idea." Luke says, smiling softly at A.J. "For now, let's just let her sleep. You can ask her later, okay?"

A.J. nods, a happy grin on his face. "Okay." Luke walks into the kitchen, rifling through the medicine cabinet.

"How bad is it?" Kenny asks, leaning over a pan of scrambled eggs on the stove. He moves to turn off the burner, setting a few plates on the counter.

"Nothin' terrible." Luke says, pulling out a bottle of medicine. "But she's definitely gonna feel miserable when she wakes up." He sighs. "Think it's that stomach bug A.J. caught a couple weeks ago?"

"Might be." Kenny sighs. "You wanna eat breakfast?"

"Nah, I'm gonna get meds and stuff around for Maddy." Just as Luke says her name, Maddy stirs awake, immediately running into the bathroom and puking. Kenny and Luke hear the commotion from downstairs. "I got it." Luke says, wasting no time rushing upstairs. Noticing Luke walking closer to the bathroom, Maddy moves to swing the door shut.

"Go away." She groans before continuing to throw up everything she had eaten the night before into the toilet. Luke ignores her, opening the door and sitting behind her on the cold tile floor. "Luke!" Maddy cries, shoving him with the little strength she can muster.

"Hey, I'm not goin' anywhere." Luke says, rubbing her back. "It's okay." Giving in, Maddy accepts his presence, letting her stomach rid itself of its contents. Hot tears pour down her red cheeks. Luke holds her hair back, a few strands of ash blonde turned brown after seeping up beads of sweat from her hairline. When Maddy finally gets a break, she falls back, leaning against Luke. Her body trembles as she wipes the tears from her face. Luke wraps his arms around her, kissing the back of her head.

"Luke..." Maddy sobs, wrapping her arms around his.

"Shh..." He coos. The poor girl feels horrible. "I've got you. You're okay." He rocks side to side gently, knowing that, if Maddy weren't sick right now, she'd probably be annoyed with him for babying her. "Do you wanna go lay back down?" As Luke asks this, Clementine walks into the bathroom. "Hey, Clem." Luke greets softly. "Can you get a wet washcloth for Maddy, please?" Clementine complies, silently wetting a washcloth before handing it to Luke. Luke wipes Maddy's forehead, the cool cloth providing her with some relief.

"Stupid question, but... how are you feeling?" Clementine asks, kneeling beside Maddy.

"Not very good." Maddy answers with a soft laugh. Luke smiles, happy to hear her laugh. She's gonna be just fine. He goes to stand up but Maddy clings to his shirt. "No! Can we stay here? Just for a minute?" Luke settles back against the wall.

"Yeah." He says. "You okay?"

Maddy nods. "I'm fine. You're warm." Luke chuckles. "Clem, I know what you're thinking. You can still go to Louis', I'll be fine."

"You sure you don't want me to stay?" Clementine asks, genuinely worried for her sister.

"I'm sure. Go see your boyfriend. Don't get pregnant, though." Maddy teases, trying her best to smile.

"Yeah, yeah." Clementine groans, rolling her eyes. She stands up, walking out of the bathroom.

"Hey, seriously! Don't get pregnant! I do not wanna be an uncle yet!" Luke calls after her. Clementine flips him off, walking downstairs and out the front door. Luke turns his attention back to the girl in his arms. "You wanna go lay down?"

Maddy nods. "Yeah." She says. "Can you stay with me?" She tugs at Luke's shirt. He knows she doesn't like to be alone when she's sick. It makes her feel stranded; helpless.

"Yeah. I'll stay with you." Luke assures, standing up and pulling Maddy to her feet. She wobbles a bit, but manages to stand on her own. "Need me to carry you?" Luke teases.

"I will end you." Maddy threatens. "I can walk." Luke stays close by as they walk back to Maddy's bedroom, just in case. Maddy crawls into bed, curling herself into a ball against the wall. Luke pulls the blankets over her, ruffling her hair.

"I'm gonna call my boss and let them know I'm staying home. Then, I'll come lay with you. Okay?" Luke looks down at Maddy, watching her eyelids fall shut. She simply nods, just wanting him to hurry up and call so he can come back and comfort her. After a few minutes, Luke walks back in with a bottle of pills and a glass of water.

"All good?" Maddy asks, referring to Luke's phone call. His boss is pretty nice about these things. Maybe because Luke rarely takes off work, anyways.

"Yep." Luke replies. "And now you're stuck with me all day." He chuckles. "Scoot." He nudges her over, sitting next to her and propping himself up against the wall. He hands her two pills. "Take these." Maddy does so, tossing the pills into her mouth and quickly chasing them with a small sip of water. She falls back onto her bed, head crashing against her pillows. "Feel any better?" Luke asks.

"Not really." Maddy sighs. "It's cool to think of all my little cells fighting off the bug, though. I bet they've got little katanas and black belts."

"You've been hangin' out with Louis too much." Luke teases, rolling his eyes. He reaches to grab the TV remote from the nightstand. "What do you wanna watch?" Maddy shrugs, moving to lay her head in his lap. She watches quietly as Luke flips through random channels to find something interesting. Luke stops on Cartoon Network, smiling slightly when he sees "The Amazing World Of Gumball" is on. What kid doesn't love this show? He looks down at Maddy, glad to see her peacefully watching the TV. He runs a hand through her hair, unknowingly helping to soothe her pounding headache.

"I'm tired." Maddy mumbles. "Kept waking up last night."

"Nightmares?" Luke asks, well aware of how bad they can get. Maddy shakes her head.

"Puking." She states, simply.

"Why didn't you wake me or Kenny or Clementine?" Luke wonders.

"Not a big deal." Maddy explains.

"Okay..." Luke says hesitantly. The two sit there watching cartoons for about an hour until Maddy's eyes fall shut and she falls asleep. Luke glances down at his little sister, making sure she's okay. Of course she's okay. As long as he's there, she'll always be okay.

[itsthestutterforme]

Coma (Aaron Hotchner)

Y/N falls into a coma after getting hit by a car that ran a red light. The team fears that she might never wake up.

--

Y/N and Hotch have been past lovers but they managed to find a common ground to keep a professional relationship at work. But when Haley died, the first person Aaron turned to was Y/N. He spent countless nights over her house and he didn't have to ask her to hold him. That became first instinct.

Their relationship remained platonic and professional, but they both knew that at the very least, they had each other. Two years have passed and Aaron has met Beth. He seems really happy and geninuely moving forward, but he didn't want to tell Y/N because he feels that she would feel betrayed in some way.

Rossi and Hotch talk about it on the way to the conference room. "I've seen Y/N care more about your wellbeing than her own. How is this any different?" Rossi asks.

"What if she distances herself because she feels that I don't need her anymore?" Hotch asks. "Well do you.. need her?" "Of course," "Why?" "I--" "Good morning, Hotch." Y/N greets as she walks up to him and hands him a cup of coffee that she got for him.

"I saw this and thought of you. I tried it before but I have a feeling that you can make one better." Y/N adds as she hands Rossi a pannettone, an Italian pastry. She smiles at them before walking into the conference room.

Rossi and Hotch look at one another and Rossi says, "Now I see what you mean," "She's just so.." "Perfect for you. You two are on the same wave length." "I lost my chance, Rossi." "You don't know that," "Is everything okay guys?" Y/N asks as she peeks her head out of the conference room.

"Yeah, we're coming," ""Just think about it," Rossi says as he pats Hotch's back. Hotch sits next to Y/N and she repeats, "You sure you're okay?" "Yeah, I'm alright." Y/N doesn't believe it for a second, but she knows that he'll tell her in his own time.

This particular case was dangerous because it involved a schitzophrenic Navy Seal with severe PTSD from his time in the field. Y/N had seen the unsub kill a child and she was dead set on getting him. She knew she should have waited for back up but she wanted to catch him before he kills someone else.

"I'm in pursuit of the unsub," I say over coms. "No, Y/N. You stay and wait for back up." "He's getting away, Hotch. I'm not going to let him kill another kid." Y/N looks both ways before crossing the street.

She dashes across the street when minivan runs a red light and crashes right into Y/N. Her body crushes the windshield as she rolls over the top of the car. The impact of her head smacking against the concrete sends her unconscious. The worst part about it was that Hotch and Morgan stopped at the red light across from Y/N. They watched the whole thing and couldn't do anything about it.

They had to wait for the light to turn green before they rushed over to her. "Y/N!" Hotch says with tears threatening his eyes. He kneels down next to her and presses his fingers to her neck. Mor-" "They're already on the way here," "Y/N, can you hear me?" "She isn't moving," Hotch says to Morgan. "She's probably unconscious," "Damn it! I told her to wait. Why didn't she listen!"

"Hey, yelling at her won't wake her up, man." Morgan states. "That car was going at least 60 miles per hour. There's a chance she's--" "Stop, Hotch. They're on their way. Relax," "I can't relax because I love her!" "I'm sorry, I'm.." "At least you finally admitted it." "She'll wake up, Hotch." Morgan adds as he pats his shoulder.

**

The doctor comes out to a very distressed team. He sighs as he stuff his hands in his pockets. "No, no, please, not again." Garcia says with tears leaving her eyes. "She made it off the operating table but she's in a coma. There's no telling when or if she'll wake up." The doctor explains.

"Come on, man. Don't dismiss her like that. She's strong and she'll make it through this." Morgan defends. "I really hope so," "'Can we see her?" JJ asks. The doctors nods and motions to the room where she was. The team slowly walks in and Garcia falls into Morgan's chest as she sees how many bruises Y/N had littering her face and body.

"Oh God," JJ says as she claps a hand over her mouth. Emily offers JJ a shoulder to cry on.

The only thing they could hear was the high pitch beep of the intubator making sure she's breathing correctly. As well as the beeps of her heart rate. "I can't, I'm sorry." Garcia says as she leaves the room and Morgan follows her. Emily and JJ left the room soon after. "Can I.. have a minute with her?" Hotch asks Rossi. "Of course," Rossi says before closing the door on the way out.

Hotch sighs as he sits down next to her. "I should have told you about Beth. But for some reason, I thought that I was betraying you so I held off and now you." He trails off as tears prick his eyes. "What am I going to tell Jack ab- he loves you and I have no idea what I'm going to do without you." He rests his face into her stomach and cries into it.

Over the course of two months, Y/N was still in a coma and Jack would always ask to visit her whenever he was sad. There was something about Y/N that just calmed him down. Anyone that went around Y/N would feel calm and collected, that's just the vibe she gave. Hotch would always visit her whenever he needed to clear his head, which happened more times than not.

Hotch was feeling angry the entire day because one of the nurses gave him a pamphlet that talks about letting go and accepting loss. Y/N wasn't dead, she was in a coma. There a chance of her waking up. Hotch thinks to himself.

"Hey, are you okay?" Morgan asks Hotch, pulling him out of his thoughts. "The doctor thinks we should pull the plug," Hotch says, clenching his jaw.

"They have no right to say that. It's been two months, not two years. There's still a chance for her!" Morgan snaps. "I know, but I'm.. what if she doesn't wake up." "Don't you dare give up on her, Hotch." "Believe me, I haven't and it cost me Beth." "Hotch-" "The little free time I have, I spend visiting Y/N. And Jack has been asking about her since the accident. Beth feels like we're shutting her out,"

"Are you?" "Not intentionally. I was just so used to Y/N. I feel like I've taken her for granted and there's no way of her knowing. It's been eating at me for months." "Hey, studies have shown that coma patients can hear people when they're under," "I don't know what I'm going to do, Morgan." Hotch runs a hand over his face and Morgan was about to say something when Hotch's phone rings.

"Hotchner," Hotch answers and his face softens when he hears the nurse saying that Y/N has woken up. Hotch decides to keep that information between him and Morgan. He didn't want the rest of the team distracted like he was. Images of Y/N smiling and the sound of her laugh echoes through his mind. She's awake. She's finally awake.

**

Y/N's POV

My throat still stings from the intubator rubbing against my vocal cords. The doctor insisted that I drink a lot of fluids and the nurses helped reintroduce my muscles to the different movements. And now they- my calfs in particular- are screaming at me right now. I look at the TV in the top left corner.

There was some cheesy hallmark movie on but my mind drifts off to hearing Aaron's voice. Hearing him cry. Hearing everyone cry for me was worse than getting ran over by a car. The sound of the doctor's voice pulls me out of my thoughts. "She said she wanted to speak with Agent Hotchner privately," the doctor says.

Seconds later, Aaron appears in the door frame. "Hi," I cringe at both how raspy my voice is and how painful it was to talk. "Hi," he whispers. "How's Beth?" "We separated a few weeks ago," "I'm sorry to h-hear that," I trail off into a cough and reach for my water. He rushes over to my side and hands me the bottle. A rush of seratonin explodes in my brain as the cold water soothes my throat.

"You shouldn't be talking. It's too soon." he says. "But I have so much to say," "Me too, but we have time. The team is really eager to ta-" "I saw a light," I interrupt as I see him advance for the door. He stops in his tracks and I continue, "The light was bright and warm.. and it smelled of vanilla oil and honey. Everything drew me to it and I was so close to it that I could almost taste it."

"What drew you back?" "You did," I watch as Hotch plays his hands on his hips and drop his gaze to the ground. He was trying to hide his tears. "I heard everyone but you and Jack were the most clear." Hotch doesn't say anything but I hear a soft sob leave his lips. "Hotch?" He shakes his head and I slowly move my legs over the edge of the bed.

I inhale sharply as my feet makes contact with the ice cold floor. I take the rack with my IV catheter attached to it and walk over to him in small steps. He finally looks up to see me standing and his eyes widened. "What are you doing?" He takes me into his arms and I softly moan at the warm radiating off of his body. "I'm tired of waiting," I explain.

I wipe the tears from under his eyes and hold his face in my hands. "The fear of losing you makes the blood run cold in my veins. The doctor wanted me to pull the plug and-" I shush him and he whimpers. "I'm here now, Aaron." I rest my face into his collarbone and smell his alluring cologne. "I'm so sorry that I doubted you and took you for granted. I-I love you so much," he cries.

"Marry me," I say as tears escape my eyes. His eyes snap to mine and my breath leaves my lungs. "Like I said. I'm tired of waiting. If I learned anything it's that life is short and I don't want to waste any more time not being w-". He crashes his lips against mine and I finally feel the air restoring in my lungs.

My eyes flutter closed as our lips move against one another. His tongue dips into my mouth and I groan against his lips. His hands slide down to my lower back and I pull him closer by his beck. He pulls away from me but I find myself following his lips.

"Yes, I'll marry you." "You will?" "Of course,". He rests his forehead against mine and I lovingly rub my nose against his. "Did I just hear a proposal?" Rossi says as he walks in. "Proposal?!" Garcia yells. "Finally!" Emily says and everyone filled into the room.

Hotch positions me so his chest and pressing against my back. His arms wraps around my waist and would occasionally kiss my temple. Everyone all tried to talk to me all at once, something that I truly missed. I don't regret running away from the light at all. This is exactly where I'm supposed to be.