Hey everyone, figured I'd post something cute to offset the sad fic I posted yesterday.
I love Emily and Jack interactions and this fic is basically just that. I might do a sequel because I don't think I can just leave Hotch & Emily the way I did. Let me know what you think?
I do not own Criminal Minds, I'm just borrowing the characters for my own amusement.
Please enjoy and review.
"Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls;
the most massive characters are seared with scars."
~Kahlil Gibran
Emily was waiting patiently outside of Hotch's apartment, arms occupied with case files he happened to forget at the office He had txted her and asked he if she mind bringing them over before going home. She hadn't minded one bit. She would appreciate it if he answered the door however. She knocked again and was tempted to just leave the files out in the hallway.
Truthfully, Emily could use the key Hotch gave her after Foyet's attack but she didn't want to startle Jack. Sighing in exasperation, Emily began to rummage around in her bag for her phone but stopped when she heard a voice from the other side of the door.
"Miss Em'ly, is that you?" Jack asked just loud enough for her to hear. Relieved that someone had heard her knocking, Emily almost didn't pick up on the fearful note in Jack's voice.
"Yes Jack it's me. Where's your Daddy?" Emily asked, her hand inching towards her gun on her side. If something was wrong, she only had a small window of opportunity to get in the apartment without causing a scene.
"He's in the shower, he said use your key." Jack replied, his voice quivering with obvious sadness. Emily wasted no time; she quickly unlocked Hotch's door and peered in. Jack backed away from the door slowly while looking down shyly. His eyes were a little red and Emily wondered what could've happened to make Jack cry.
Emily walked over to the dining room table and continued to survey the room carefully. She put the files down and let her bag slip from her shoulders, still tensed for action. Emily was always cautious when in Hotch's apartment: Force of habit since Foyet's attack. Seeing there was nothing out of the ordinary, Emily turned and looked at Jack who had locked the door behind her.
She figured as long as she was there a cup of coffee wouldn't be out of the question. Hotch wouldn't mind. Emily also hoped that by sticking around she could figure out what had Jack so upset.
Jack studied Emily as she walked into the kitchen. He quickly came to the conclusion that if Daddy trusted her enough to give her a key to their home that Jack could trust her too. He followed her into the kitchen to watch her. He wondered if she could answer his question.
Emily figured that Jack, like his father, needed time to warm up to her enough before saying what was on his mind. It always took Hotch some time to open up to Emily so she had grown use to waiting for someone to tell her what was wrong. Emily chuckled as she quickly compared father and son to a scared animal, searching for comfort from a stranger: They had to come to her, not the other way around.
"Miss Em'ly…" Jack began and Emily turned to look at the boy quickly before tending to her coffee. Emily figured he'd eventually tell her what was bothering him. Once she was done fixing up her coffee, Emily flipped around and let her lower back rest against the counter. She sipped her coffee expectantly and watched as Jack studied her. It was quite amusing. "You know, you can tell me anything Jack." Emily said deciding a little push wouldn't hurt. Jack looked down unsure of what to say, but Emily's words calmed his initial fear.
Emily took another sip from the FBI cup, which Emily found mildly entertaining. Suddenly Jack looked up and cried out, "I think my daddy's mad at me!"
Jack's lower lip trembled and his eyes began to tear up once more. Emily couldn't just stand there and let him cry so she placed her cup on the counter and opened her arms wide for him. Jack didn't hesitate. Emily rubbed soothing circles on the distraught boy's back as he cried silently in her arms. Emily's heart ached to see him sad so she picked him up and moved them into the living room where she could sit on the couch with him.
Emily smiled as Jack curled deeper into her arms once she sat down on the comfortable couch; gladly receiving the comfort she supplied. The T.V. was turned down low and was displaying some cartoon Jack had been watching before she came over.
Jack noticed how Emily smelled like vanilla and her arms were warm like his mommy's had been. He felt a rush of familiar calm embrace him like Emily's arms and his tears began to let up. Jack looked at Emily as she smiled at him.
"Now, why do you think your daddy is mad at you?" Emily asked curious. Emily was prepared to solve this problem any way possible. Jack looked down and began to wipe his face with his sleeve to which Emily pulled out a bag of tissues and began to clean Jack's face with them. He didn't fuss or fight her much to Emily's relief.
"Daddy got mad at me when I went into his room." Jack finally replied once Emily finished cleaning him up. Emily cocked her head to the side confused. As far as she knew Hotch had no definitive reason to be angry when his son entered his room. Hotch's response threw Emily for a loop; Hotch didn't get mad at his son. Everyone knew that.
"What was your daddy doing in his room Jack?" Emily asked figuring maybe Jack saw something he wasn't supposed to. A present maybe? Emily shook her head, there was not holiday that close by. Also she knew Hotch didn't have any company other than herself.
"Daddy was getting ready for his shower and I saw a bunch of marks on his tummy when he took his shirt off. Daddy saw me and yelled at me to get out." Jack mumbled feeling his eyes sting as he remembered how his daddy yelled at him. "Did I do something bad?" Jack asked Emily fearfully. His fists clung to Emily's shirt and Emily's frown disappeared as she realized why Hotch reacted the way he did.
Shaking her head Emily replied, "Oh no sweetie, you didn't do anything bad." Emily tried to assure the little boy as he buried his face back into her shoulder. "Then why did he yell at me?" Jack said and Emily closed her eyes, saddened by the hurt in his small voice.
Jack pushed away from Emily to meet her eyes. Jack had a wrinkle in his brow and Emily couldn't help but think how much he and Hotch looked alike, especially when puzzled. She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. She had not intended on ever having this conversation with Jack, but she couldn't just walk away without answering his question. He had a right to know.
Jack paid close attention to Emily as she tried her best to answer his question. He knew he could talk to her.
"Jack your daddy wasn't angry at you. He was just upset that you saw the scars on his chest." Emily said calmly. She figured the little boy had a scar or two, which kid didn't? It wasn't easy consoling a child when the reasons for something happening are not all that easy to grasp. Jack seemed to digest what Emily said to the best of his four year old mind's ability. He looked Emily dead in the eyes and asked, "Why was Daddy upset that I saw his scars?"
Emily chuckled at his typical response. Kids were known for asking 'why' and Emily was glad to see Jack was no exception to that little known fact.
"Because those scars make your Daddy sad. He doesn't want anyone to see them." Emily said feeling like she covered the gist of it. Jack nodded his head in understanding before asking another question.
"Why is Daddy sad about his scars? Was it the bad man, did he give Daddy his scars?" Jack hit the nail on the head with that question and Emily winced. Jack realized that at this point Emily would answer his questions; he liked Miss Em'ly because she didn't avoid his questions like aunt Jessica did.
Emily looked up and tried to fight off the few stray tears that were invoked whenever Foyet was brought up. Emily looked over to where she found Hotch's puddle of blood and shuddered. She figured it was too late to stop answering Jack's questions so she nodded her head.
"Yes Jack. The bad man-Foyet-hurt your daddy. That's why he was in the hospital a while ago." Emily paused and continued realizing that she had Jack's undivided attention.
"Those scars remind your daddy of the bad man and how much he blames himself for your mommy getting hurt." Emily said carefully not wanting to cause a fresh wave of tears from either of them.
"But it's not Daddy's fault the bad man hurt Mommy." Jack said loudly relying on his child based logic, which hadn't failed him yet. Emily nodded her head in agreement. Jack knew his daddy made the bad man go away; he didn't hurt his mommy, Foyet did. His daddy was a hero.
"Is that why Daddy's sad all the time?" Jack asked softly, looking down at his hands which Emily patted affectionately. "That and he misses your mommy." Emily answered honestly.
Jack laid his head on Emily's chest and took a deep breath. "I miss her too," he said calmly. Emily let her forehead rest against Jack's head and she hugged him closely. "I know sweetie, but you know your mommy is watching over you; your daddy too." Emily said trying to throw the boy a life line to hold on to: Some hope in this dark time.
"That's what aunt Jessica said." Jack replied smiling against Emily's chest. If Miss Em'ly said it then it must be true. Emily smiled, but didn't say any thing. She wanted to rest in the silence for a few more minutes before Jack managed to come up with any more questions for her or Hotch appeared. She wondered what his response would be if he could see them now.
Sure enough, Jack broke the silence with a question Emily hadn't seen coming.
"Miss Em'ly, do you have any scars?" Jack asked suddenly curious about the woman who held him securely. He leaned away from her chest and watched as her face screwed up in concentration. Emily paused and thought. She didn't know at the top of her head of any scars that she could actually show the little boy but when Jack's hand brushed her left arm she broke out into a smile. Nodding, Emily put Jack on the couch real quick so she could remove her jacket. Then she rolled up her left sleeve and proudly displayed the medium sized scar that marred her arm.
"Does it hurt?" Jack asked inquisitive and slightly hesitant to touch the mark. Emily shook her head and Jack gently touched the white line that fascinated him. "What happened?" he asked studying her scar intensely, causing Emily to giggle. Emily closed her eyes and thought hard about how to reply.
"A while ago Reid and I went to investigate a claim that kids were in danger. We met a man named Cyrus and we couldn't leave the compound where he was keeping a bunch of people. Well, Cyrus found out that one of us was FBI and he got very upset. He was going to hurt Reid so I told Cyrus that I was the FBI agent so Reid wouldn't get hurt. So Cyrus hurt me instead, but Dave and Morgan came to our rescue, along with your Daddy before I could get hurt more." Emily finished, her minds transported back to that compound and the pain she felt with each kick, each punch. She was grateful, Cyrus could've done much worse.
Jack listened to Emily's story and thought she was very brave for not letting Mr. Reid get hurt. She was a hero too. He traced her scar and then gave it a quick kiss like his mommy use to do for his boo boos. He figured it would help Miss Em'ly as well.
Emily's heart melted at Jack's gesture and ruffled his hair, causing him to laugh. Emily looked down at her watch and saw she had been there for almost a half and hour. It was time to head out. Jack seemed much better since they had started talking and it made her happy to know she was part of the solution to his previous sadness. She stood up, but Jack held on to her arm firmly, not wanting Miss Em'ly to leave him yet. He still had questions about his daddy and he like having Miss Em'ly around.
Emily thought for a second then sat back down, she figured she'd part with some words of wisdom.
"I'm going to tell you something my daddy told me when I was younger. He use to tell me that there is something beautiful about all scars of whatever nature. A scar means the hurt is over, the wound is closed and healed, done with. Scars show us that we survived; they tell us we are strong. I am proud of every scar I have on my body because they tell a story about a time I was strong: A story about how I survived something horrible. Never forget that Jack, never be ashamed of your scars." Emily said willing her words to reach Jack and hopefully, in time, reach his father.
Jack nodded and threw his arms around Emily, proving to her he was strong too. Emily smiled and pulled a small card out from her pocket.
"If you ever need any questions answered, or a really good bed time story, I want you to call me." Emily said. Jack took her card and beamed up at Emily who had slipped away to grab her bag. Jack raced after her.
"Can I tell my daddy what you told me?" Jack asked before Emily left the apartment. Emily turned around and smiled, "I hope you do and I hope you remind him every day that you love him. Even though your daddy is the strongest man I know, he still needs your help." Emily said kindly. She spoke straight from the heart.
"Will you help him too?" Jack questioned, hoping she'd say yes. Emily looked at Jack and then to Hotch who finally made himself known. He had a look in his eyes Emily had never seen and it gave her a good kind of chills down her spine.
Smiling at both of them, her words dripping with more than she cared to admit she replied, "Of course, there's nothing else I'd rather do." Emily winked quickly at Hotch, who smiled at her and shut his door behind her hoping one day he'd let her see his scars and she'd show him hers.
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Aw, Jack is so cute, no matter who writes him. Note: the quote that Emily's dad said "There is something beautiful about all scars of whatever nature. A scar means the hurt is over, the wound is closed and healed, done with." is by Harry Crews, I'm not that good. *laugh* I'm also working on yet another oneshot but I want to focus more on Days Go By for now. I plan on having my new oneshot and chapters 4-6 of DGB up by Friday so keep you're eyes peeled.
Peace out.