Author's Note: While I was listening to Coldplay's song, "Fix You", it inspired me to write this story.
Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.
"If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It's the worry that gets you, not the lack of sleep." ~Dale Carnegie
Prentiss tried her best to forget that dark night in that cold warehouse in Boston back in March, but she couldn't forget that night. No matter how hard she tried. She was excited to be home with her team. The team was the closes family, she's ever had and that is the only thing she really wanted, when she was in hiding seven months ago and now that she's home, she has her family back, but she seemed like she was missing something in her life. She felt tired, but she couldn't sleep because every time she closed her eyes her mind would wonder back to that dark night in Boston. It was like her mind was stuck in reverse and re-living every detail of that night back in March.
Prentiss got out of bed and put a pair of jeans on and a t-shirt on, and then a pair of her tennis shoes on, she own. She walked out of her apartment, to her car.
She got in her car, but didn't start the car, she just sat there. She didn't know where to go at first because the team decided to go to the bar, out for drinks on a Friday night, except for Hotch. He didn't want to go out for drinks. He just wanted to get home to his son, so Prentiss decided to go to Hotch's.
~.~.~
Hotch was lying on his sofa, watching the end of some late show, when he heard a quiet knocking on his door.
At first he didn't know, who was at his door, at this time of the night. It was nearly one in the morning, then he heard a quiet voice calling his name softly through the door in fact, he knew that voice from anywhere?
He rose quickly from the sofa, after recognizing the voice, and realizing that she wasn't fine because she wouldn't be here at this time of the night, if she was fine.
"Emily!" Hotch exclaimed once he'd disabled his alarm and opening his door to reveal a weary looking Emily. "What are you doing here at this hour? Are you alright?" he asked her all at once.
"I can't sleep and I didn't know where to go, since the rest of the team is out drinking." Prentiss answered quickly.
"Do you want to tell me what's keeping you up tonight?" Hotch asked, with a worried look on his face.
"Every time I close my eyes, my mind goes back to that night in Boston." Prentiss said with tears glistening in her eyes.
"Does it have to do with Doyle, and what he did to you?" Hotch asked seeing that she had tears streaming down her face.
"Yeah. And everything he did that night to me in that warehouse." She confessed to him.
"Emily, he can't hurt you anymore. Doyle is dead." Hotch reminded her.
"I know he's dead. It's just that when I close my eyes, I see him." Prentiss whispered, sounding scared.
"What's Doyle doing every time you close your eyes?" Hotch asked her.
"He's branding me, or he's beating the hell out of me, and when he stabbed me with that wooden table leg, but you know what scares me the most, when I close my eyes. Hearing his voice and telling me that I'm going to suffer the way he suffered." Prentiss revealed to Hotch, with tears still streaming down her face.
Hotch hated what that bastard did to Prentiss, making her suffer and still making her suffer when she closes her eyes at night.
He didn't know what to do for her at this moment, so he did the only thing that felt natural at that moment, he carefully wrapped his arms around Prentiss, and pulling her close to his chest, letting her wrap her arms around him in return and crying on his chest, as Hotch planted a soft kiss into her hairline.
Hotch wishes he can tell her that it does get better, but does it really?
"Do you ever see Foyet, and everything he did to you, when you close your eyes?" Prentiss whispered after a while, as she pulled away from Hotch's warm embrace and looked him in his eyes.
"Sometimes." Hotch replied.
"What helps you forget Foyet, on the nights you see him, when you close your eyes?" Prentiss asked.
"Come on, I will show you what helps me." Hotch said, as he took her hand into his hand and lead her down the hallway in his apartment.
~.~.~
Hotch took Prentiss right to Jack's room.
"Coming in here and watching him sleep." Hotch informed her, giving her a small smile.
Prentiss just stood there beside Hotch, with tears in her eyes, watching Jack sleep.
"Emily, are you okay?" Hotch asked after a while, seeing tears in her eyes.
"Yeah?" Prentiss said with tears still in her eyes.
"But what is it?" Hotch asked, looking a little worried.
"I was just thinking that I don't regret telling you, or anyone else on the team about Doyle, when he escaped from prison because Jack, or you probably won't be here today, or everyone else on the team." Prentiss whispered to him, with her tears now pouring down her face.
"And I don't regret my decision either. Saving you because I wasn't about to let you go." Hotch whispered, as he wiped her tears off her face.
After a few minutes they stepped out of Jack's room, into the hallway.
~.~.~
"I should go now." Prentiss said.
"No, you can sleep here. It's nearly two in the morning. You can have my bed and I will take the sofa." Hotch told her.
"I have nothing to sleep in." Prentiss told him.
"I can give you something to wear to bed." Hotch said.
"Okay." Prentiss said.
Prentiss followed Hotch into his bedroom.
"I have a pair of sweatpants you can wear and I don't think I have any t-shirts clean at the moment, so you have to settle for one on my dress shirts for now." Hotch said, as he handed her the clothes.
"I can settle for that. And you don't have to sleep on the sofa. You can sleep in here I don't mind." Prentiss said, as she took the clothes from him.
"Are you sure you don't mind me sleeping in here?" Hotch asked her.
"Yeah, I don't really want to be alone." Prentiss revealed to him.
"If you don't want to be alone, I will be right next to you then." Hotch said, giving Prentiss another rare smile.
"I would like that." Prentiss said, before she went into the bathroom to change.
She came out of the bathroom with Hotch's sweatpants on and buttoning up the last four buttons before the collar on the shirt he gave her to wear to bed.
"Is that the brand?" Hotch asked seeing the four - leaf clover on her chest.
"Yeah, that's it." Prentiss said softly, trying not to cry.
"I'm sorry, if I upset you." Hotch said, as he went over to her and comforted her.
"I know you didn't mean to upset me. It's just that I didn't want anyone to see any of my scars that came from that night." Prentiss whispered to him.
"Emily, you were beautiful before the scars and you're still beautiful now." Hotch told her, as he pulled her close to him.
~.~.~
As they lay in Hotch's bed, together that night, Prentiss lying with her head on his shoulder and her arms on his t-shirt clad chest near his heart, and Hotch lying with one arm wrapped firmly around her waist and the other one on top of her hand that was near his heart.
"Did you mean what you said early about my scars?" Prentiss asked softly.
"Yes, I did. And I personally think you're beautiful, no matter what." Hotch said looking into her dark brown eyes and giving her a soft kiss on her forehead.
"You're not too bad looking yourself." She said, giving him a soft smile.
"Oh, really!" He said, breaking out a dimple.
"Yeah!" Prentiss said, just before yawning.
"Why don't you go to sleep now?" Hotch said, after seeing her yawn.
"I don't want to go to sleep because I'm afraid I will go to that night." Prentiss said.
"Emily, I'm going be right here if you get scared." Hotch told her.
Prentiss was finally sleeping that night, knowing that if she got scared, Hotch would be there.
Hotch laid there watching Prentiss sleep. He was glad that she was finally sleeping and not scared right now because if she does get scared tonight he was going to be there for her.
"A friend is one of the nicest things you can have, and one of the best things you can be." ~Douglas Pagels
THE END.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed the story, and one more thing if you have the time, can you please leave me some feedback. Please?