She was expecting the call. Very much so, actually. Her phone's ringtone had been turned up for the past three weeks and she eagerly had waited on the edge of her chair for her favorite song to ring through the air.
She had received the phone call at approximately, eleven o'clock, and having always been a woman of punctuality, the Emily Prentiss was sure to call to reserve her seat on the hop on the next flight Virginia nearly as soon as she had hung up the phone. Having been eagerly awaiting this particular phone call, the raven haired woman had already had the travel agency's phone number on speed dial, knowing that just as surely as she would be on time for this special moment, the delivery process was unpredictable.
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
The hot water had just began to cascade over her shoulder length hair as she stepped into the shower, when she heard her cell phone begin to ring with the oh so familiar ringtone set for JJ specifically. Without any form of hesitation, Emily was out of the shower, the water still running and her watery footprints leaving a trail around the house as she practically slid to the phone, answering it with the slightest tones of anticipation, nervousness and excitement ringing out through her voice. Of course it was Will on the other end of the phone, the footsteps echoing through the speaker of the phone indicating to the former criminal profiler that he was pacing the hospital halls. A smile drew across Emily's lips immediately at the thought of the new addition, and all of the elation that her team back in Virginia must have been feeling. "Will? I'll be on the next flight over."
From the moment JJ had called her, Emily had been practically bouncing with elation and even started planning all sorts of interesting scenarios through her mind; birthday parties, hair colour, baby names, room colours, and once (completely oblivious to the idea of time zones due to her overwhelming excitement) Emily had even called poor JJ at two in the morning Virginian time to explain how she had kicked Sergio out of the spare room to prepare for the baby. Had anyone dared step into the spare bedroom at this point, they would be flustered with large abundances of baby supplies, ranging from boxes of diapers, a large crib, a jolly jumper, a plethora of toys and so many clothes that you would think she was preparing for triplets. Of course, JJ had been stubborn and refused both Henry and Emily's pleas to define the gender of the baby, repeatedly stating, "It is more fun this way, you two!" and when Emily had crossed her arms and pouted defiantly, JJ had worked up enough courage to release a giggle and declare that Emily was much worse than Henry on the subject.
12:15 am
Emily frantically checks her watch, wearing it all too familiarly on the inside of her wrist. With a subdued groan, she taps her foot against the noticeably filthy carpet of the airport before standing to her feet and beginning to pace. The waiting area, lined with seats, remains surprisingly empty, and Emily can't help but think back to when her last time waiting for a flight was. After ten minutes of thinking on the seemingly ridiculous subject, the flustered woman releases an unintentionally loud huff and decides that the last time she had stepped foot in an airport and waited for a flight was nearly three weeks ago on a trip to Rome requested by her mother. If it was up to Emily, she would never set foot in Rome again, possibly not even in Italy again, for all the memories surrounding it sent her mind into a flurry of migraines, her stomach into a knot of sickness and her body even ached at the thoughts. Matthew. Acceptance. Sex. Acceptance. Abortion. Acceptance. It's odd, however, because for the first time since being in Rome with Matthew, Emily actually felt accepted somewhere with someone. A Miss Jennifer Jareau had taken Emily under her wing for the first few months of Emily's employment with the BAU, and the dark-haired beauty couldn't have been more thankful.
"You don't choose who you fall in love with."
It wasn't until a few months into Emily's placement at the BAU that JJ noticed the way Emily looked at her; the stolen glances when no one else was looking, the unnecessary touching of shoulders, knees, and backs on Emily's part. It wasn't as though she could help it, but it took nearly no time for Emily Prentiss to fall in love with Jennifer Jareau, another woman and co-worker no less. The blonde had completely captivated Emily from the moment they were introduced to each other, and it was only a matter of time until the younger agent slowly began to develop feelings for Emily, as well.
"It's called 'catching feelings', Jennifer." The sixteen year old girl crosses her legs as she plops herself neatly down on her bed, patting a spot next to her. In nearly no time, a younger blonde girl, only ten years old at the time, hoists herself onto the bed and looks up to the older girl, nodding her head with wide eyes as blue as the ocean. "But, you see, you don't really get to choose who you catch feelings for, Jenny. It just sort of... happens." The older girl pulls the younger close and kisses the top of her head, Jennifer giving a small nod as she replies with a sigh after absorbing the words of her older sister. "Just promise me one thing, sissy. Just promise me that when the time comes and you catch feelings for someone, you don't throw them away. You hang onto that person for as long as you can, okay?" Both girls automatically hold up their pinky fingers, and young Jennifer begins to giggle as they link.
Having been lost in her memories, Emily looks up and sees that the others waiting to board the plane were in line, causing her to grab her small bag stuffed with clothing for a possibly extended stay. As Emily walks to the woman and extends her arm holding her passport, another smile spreads wide across her face at the thought of seeing a certain blonde haired, blue eyed agent.
For the duration of the seven and a half hour flight, Emily sits back in her seat and reads a Kurt Vonnegut book, although never really being able to keep her mind trained on the words of the pages. As she sits back, her black hair rubbing against the seat, she absentmindedly chews at her already stubby fingernails in fear. Emily knew that JJ had told her about the pregnancy first, perhaps even before Will, in fear that something would happen. After JJ's case in Iraq, Emily knew that her blonde haired friend was terrified of losing another baby, and to have to break the news to the people she had already told would be devastating, so to be completely sure, the pair had kept the secret to themselves. When the soon to be mother of two decided to spill the beans to the team, the first thing Penelope Garcia said was, "We need to call Emily!" But of course, having already known for a month and a half, Emily and JJ had to curb their laughter over the phone about Emily's so called 'surprised voice'.
"The worst thing I did was let her go, Beverly." Emily huffs and shakes her head as she practically plops next to the redheaded woman sitting on her dark leather couch. She had been in London a mere two weeks before the agent, by the name of Beverly Pearson, approached her and asked if she wanted to get a cup of coffee (in merely a friendly way, of course). It only took Emily Prentiss two months to open up to the woman, her kind eyes speaking wonders although her mouth stays shut. "I loved her. Hell, I love her. And now she is married and has a baby and..." Emily silences herself by raising the wine glass back up to her lips and taking a long sip. "I shouldn't have taken the job offer. I mean, had I told her how I felt maybe I could have stayed but..." As Emily looks to Beverly again, she releases a loud breath and says the words aloud for the first time in her new London home. "I am in love with Jennifer Jareau."
Emily's feet can't move fast enough as she runs off of the airplane, apologizing to those she accidentally runs into or bumps in the process. At this point, she wasn't concerned about the others but was merely racing the clock as she runs through the corridors of the airport, eyes glued to the face of her watch nearly the whole time. Once through customs, Emily with her messy hair runs to a taxi as she gives the driver the address to the hospital where Will had told her to arrive at. Tired, half showered and disheveled, Emily sits down and rips at the skin surrounding her fingernails, causing crimson blood to drip onto her black trench coat for the duration of the taxi ride. The vehicle comes to a slow stop and Emily throws a one hundred dollar bill in the man's direction while jumping out of the taxi and running inside with her bag, approaching the nurses' desk in a panicked rush.
"A... Umm... A Jennifer... Jennifer Jareau?" Hardly managing to get the words cohesively through her mouth Emily looks to the nurses expectantly and quirks an eyebrow, only one inquiry hanging on her lips after she composes herself, "Well? Did I make it?"