So, after telling a few people that I would write a sequel of sorts to "Not So Typical", I finally was able to do it!
So I really hope you all enjoy it like my first one.
Please, review.
I really enjoy your comments. =)
Oh, I don't own Criminal Minds or "Complicated" by Carolyn Dawn Johnson no matter how much I wish I did. =(
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Well, I admit that I've seen you watch me
from the corner of your eye.
Oh, it's so confusing,
Yeah, I wish you'd just confess.
But think of what I'd be losing,
If your answer wasn't yes
"Complicated" -Carolyn Dawn Johnson
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He was stuck.
To any passerby it would look almost comical. There he was, in his commanding suit and shined shoes, standing with his fist extended but still not touching the door. His fist was just a breath away and he couldn't move. Hotch had literally become a statue. If only those serial killers could see him now. He had chased some of them, shot them, helped bring them to justice and the simple act of knocking on a door had him petrified. But it wasn't just any door…it was her door. Emily Prentiss was the reason her was currently standing outside of her door, torn between knocking and running. Not literally of course.
Rationally speaking, he shouldn't be here. He was her boss, she was his subordinate…it just wasn't professionally possible to enter any sort of romantic relationship with her. Though, thoughts of being with her plagued him day in and day out. It was the possibility of what had seemed so unrealistic only days pervious that had him acting so irrationally. That, and the way she had said his name on the plane ride home after their unusual conversation. It was one conversation he played over and over in his mind, wishing he had said more.
It wasn't just the way she said his name that brought him to her door. Her eyes, those hypnotizing dark pools of brown, had held something. An important emotion that Hotch couldn't ignore anymore: one that he knew was reflected in his own. It didn't help that he had caught her looking at him many times since then. She would always look away and try to hide her growing smile. His heart stopped every time as hope roared in his chest giving him a slight "bounce in his step" as David had uncannily noticed a few days ago. He needed to know; needed to know if there was any chance that flash in her eyes was real and not a part of his overworked brain.
Seizing that normally present courage by the tail, Hotch took a deep breath and felt his knuckles rap solidly on her door and he waited. He wouldn't let the little voice in the back of his head, telling him he was acting foolish, influence his behavior. Though, he wasn't acting like his normal self. After David's comment he realized his mask might be slipping. For some reason though, that was the least of his concerns. His first and for most had just opened the door and was staring at him in mild shock. 'Here we go' he mentally braced himself.
"Hey" Emily said trying to suppress her shock at seeing Hotch on her doorstep at this late hour. "Hey, can I come in?" he asked. Emily suddenly flashed back to the first time he had asked her that and smiled. Just like before, she stepped out of his way and watched as he walked in. Emily shut the door and turned to see him staring at her. It didn't unnerve her like it would've in the past, but it did confuse her. "Is something wrong?" she asked him, staring back into his eyes. 'Of course she'd assume I was here because of work' Hotch realized. He sighed but before he could reply Emily gestured to the couch, "Would you like to sit down? Or would you like a drink?" she asked remembering the tiny bit of proper hospitality she was taught.
"Sure, um do you have any coffee?" Hotch said deciding to do this right. Emily smiled, and made her way to the kitchen. "Sure do. I was just about to have a cup before you knocked." Hotch walked over to her couch as he tried to gather himself. He wasn't exactly sure what to say. Sure, give him a serial killer and he can talk to him or her for hours; interrogating them til they crack. Emily wasn't a serial killer though and he wasn't here to interrogate her. He hadn't been in this position since Haley. 'That ended well' he thought grimly and almost didn't see the cup Emily was currently dangling in his face. "Oh, thank you." Hotch said sheepishly taking the cup from her. He almost missed her smile, almost.
They sat in silence drinking coffee next to each other on her couch. Emily's mind was abuzz with possibilities. 'Could he really be here for…us?' she pondered. 'No' the cynical part of her mind reprimanded. Emily had already accepted that she was more than infatuated with her cold and yet surprisingly affectionate boss. She had been dropping subtle hints for the past week, since the plane ride. She figured he would've picked up on them by now, he was a profiler after all. She was pretty sure the others might have figured it out, or at least had their suspicions. David especially. 'I'll have to be more careful around him' she mused. 'Wait, what if Hotch did pick up on them…and he's here to let me down softly? What if he's here to reprimand me for my less than professional behavior towards him on the plane?' Emily suddenly though horrified.
Hotch noticed the sudden look of panic in Emily's eyes and decided to speak up. "I guess you're wondering why I came here tonight." he said putting his coffee cup down on the table in front of him. Emily gulped and copied his movement. "Yes sir." she replied quietly. Hotch, deciding to seize the bull by the horns, reached over and gently took her hand in his. "Please, call me Aaron. I'm not here for work Emily…" he stopped unsure of how to continue. Emily looked up, her mouth slightly agape. She couldn't believe he dropped some of his professional barriers like before. She looked down at their hands and she felt her eyes begin to water ever so slightly. 'Could it be…?' she wondered.
Hotch took a deep breath as he felt her squeeze his hand. Suddenly, his irrational fear when he was standing outside her door seemed impossible to believe. He had been holding this back; it was his fear of that emotion in her eyes that postponed this moment for too long. Not wanting to waste another moment on words unsaid he brought his other hand to her chin and gently pushed it up until their eyes met. It felt like someone had reached into his chest and grabbed his heart as he saw the traces of moisture in her beautiful eyes. "Aaron." she whispered, fear and another emotion laced in her eyes.
"I know Emily, I know." Hotch said gently cupping her face. Emily couldn't stop them; she just blinked and watched as his eyes followed the single tear that caressed her cheek. Hotch wiped her tear away and felt her lean into his touch. This was a big step for them. Though at that moment it felt like a leap into the unknown. Haley hadn't ended well, she hadn't understood him. Not like Emily did. The only time Emily let herself be truly vulnerable was with Jon, and that really hadn't ended well. There was so much at risk, but they didn't care. They wouldn't care. This was what they wanted, what they needed. Ask anyone on their team, and they'll say it's what they deserve.
Hotch couldn't stop himself as he leaned in closer. Tension hung in the air, intoxicating them, calling to them. Just like their lips. Emily's eyes fluttered close as his lips finally grazed hers. Emily pushed herself closer to him, needing to feel the warmth radiating from his body. Hotch snaked an arm around her hips, pulling her onto his lap slowly refusing to end their kiss. Once air was needed, they broke away. Not moving faces far they gazed into each other's eyes and felt smiles creep onto their flushed faces. Aaron leaned in again and kissed her with more passion this time, desperate for her. Why had they denied themselves this for so long, they will never know.
Emily felt her laughter push through her lips as his fingers traced her side, memorizing her constitution. "You're ticklish?" Hotch asked breaking away to see her face. Still smiling, Emily replied, "Yes. Very." Hotch smiled, "Where else are you ticklish?" he asked raising his eyebrows in his trademark fashion. Emily grinned at him; a grin that gave Hotch shivers down his spine. "You'll just have to figure that one on your own Agent Hotchner." she replied and pulled him back into another kiss.
There was no pressure, there were no phones ringing off the hook, there were no files piled up at the door. There was only them and that emotion coursing though their veins. Love. It's as simple as that. Not so complicated after all.
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You have not idea how much I tried to make this as good as I could possibly make it.
I really wanted to convey how they don't have to doubt 'that' emotion.
It's gonna be hard, and they know that but they don't doubt how they feel about eachother.
So I hope I didn't disappoint anyone, and that you all enjoyed it.
I promise there will be more with Hotch&Prentiss, I just can't leave them alone.
