Chapter 1: Sweet Dreams
Requested by scarletrosebloom on Tumblr.
Bedtime in the Hotchner-Prentiss household was never an easy time. Both Emily and Aaron were tired, physically and emotionally and at the end of the day, coming home to two little boys wasn't exactly relaxing. Shortly after coming back to the BAU, and eventually hunting down Doyle, Emily had filed for full custody of Declan. She figured since she had thought of the boy as a son for the brief time that they were together, she would be fit enough to raise him. He had seen a lot, but was surprisingly incredibly mature for his age.
Emily was in the kitchen, washing and drying dishes when she heard the noise of tiny feet hitting the hard wood floor of their house. Aaron had taken the boys upstairs about half an hour ago, and since then, it had been extremely quiet. It was too good to be true, and even Emily knew that it wasn't going to last long. "Jac- Jack, no. It's time to get your pajamas on," the giggles of the youngest Hotchner could be heard from the top of the stairs, and a frustrated huff soon followed. Emily laughed to herself, and as soon as she was done drying the last of the dishes, she made her way upstairs.
Hotch was standing in the middle of the hallway, spaceman pajamas hung over his shoulder, while he watched the two blonde boys run in a circle around him. His face was completely serious, and just the sight of Hotch being at a loss, made Emily laugh once again. Both Aaron and Emily were surprised at how well Declan and Jack got along. Normally when two children were put together, it took them awhile to adjust to each other, but they had immediately taken a liking to each other.
Jack was squealing and laughing as Declan chased him, his blonde curls bouncing up and down as he ran. Neither of the boys had noticed her yet, so when the time was right, Emily quickly scooped Jack up into her arms, which earned another loud squeal. "What are you two doing, hm?" she asked as Jack wrapped his arms around her neck, Declan coming to a halt.
"We're playing tag!" Declan informed her, an enthusastic grin tugging at his lips.
"But, bedtime was.." Emily checked her watch, before looking back down at Declan, "Forty five minutes ago."
"But, I'm not tired," Jack mumbled from her shoulder, his eyelids already drooping over his big brown eyes.
Emily laughed, and shook her head, looking from Declan, over to Aaron. "I think you are, kiddo. C'mon, let's go get into your pj's," Emily turned around and began to walk towards Jack's room, listening to the footsteps of Declan behind her.
Aaron took Jack, and got him into his pajamas, while Declan did the same and laid down in his bed. The boys had requested that they share a room, because they found it easier to sleep when they had somebody in the room with them. Aaron was busy fussing over Jack and making sure he was okay, so Emily took her time tucking Declan in.
"Good night, Emily," Declan stretched his arms out, silently requesting a hug. With a smile, Emily leaned down and wrapped her arms around his small, yet incredibly warm body.
"Night kiddo. Sweet dreams," as she pulled away from the hug, Emily placed a gentle kiss to the boy's head, before standing up. They usually didn't exchange "I love you's", but Emily was perfectly fine with that. She knew when the little boy was ready, he would say it.
She turned around to see Aaron standing in the door frame, nothing but a small smile on his face. She glanced over at Jack, who was now fast asleep, and turned their night light on, before shutting the lamp off.
An hour later.
Emily came out of the bathroom, brunette hair tied back into a small pony tail. Aaron was already in bed, case file in his hands.
"Don't you get enough of this at work?" Emily asked as she climbed into bed, plucking the file from his hands, flipping through it quickly before tossing it on the ground beside their bed.
"Just trying to get a head start," Aaron chuckled as he watched her, shuffling closer to her when she threw the papers onto the floor.
"You don't need a head start. It's late, and it's been a long day," Emily replied, as she pulled the blankets up to her chest, rolling onto her side so she was facing Aaron.
Like he did every night, Aaron wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her closer. Emily obliged, and rested her head against his chest, immediately taking in the faint musky scent of his body.
Silence enveloped them as they lay there, Aaron's fingers slowly trailing down her arm. Emily's breathing had began to slow down, and Aaron was almost 100% positive that she was asleep, but when he began to move, she stirred and lifted her head from his chest. "Sorry, babe. Go back to sleep," he mumbled, rubbing his eyes as he went to shut the light off.
Emily slumped back beneath the covers, a smile growing on her lips as she watched him. As soon as he was back in bed, Emily moved closer and rested her head on his shoulder, eyes open as she gazed up at him. In the darkness of their room, Emily could make out his feautres perfectly, and could see his chest moving up and down in the faint moon light that was shining through the cracked blinds.
"I love you," Emily whispered as she slouched back down onto his chest, his heart beating in her ear.
"I love you too. Sweet dreams," Aaron replied quietly, another deep breath leaving his lips as he shut his eyes, finally ready to go to sleep. And as Aaron drifted off to sleep, he thought about his life. His life with Emily, and their boys. It had felt like such a long time since he had been this happy, but Aaron would never regret Emily or Declan. Ever.
