Summary: They say home is where the heart is. Can Emily figure out where her heart belongs?
Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of it's characters. I would love to own a couple of them but say I do not.
Home Is Where The Heart Is
It was New Year's Eve and Emily Prentiss sat in her seat, looking out of the small window on her right. The sun had set hours ago and now all she could see were the stars and clouds through that tiny window. It brought back memories for her, some not so good. Others were just a sad sweet reminder of the things she had given up on when she left the Bureau to take the position Clyde Easter had offered her in London. At the time she had thought it was what was best for her, now she wasn't so sure. She missed her friends, the people who had wiggled their way into her heart so seamlessly. The people who had quickly became her family, so much closer to her then her biological family.
It had been so long since she had been stateside, she hadn't even come home for the holidays when her mother asked her to. She didn't want to spend that much time with the woman to be honest. She would have loved to seen everyone again but she didn't know how she, or they for that matter, would handle it when she had to leave again. She didn't want to hurt them any more than she already had, so she just kept putting it off until one day she woke up and realized just how long it had been since she had seen the people that meant the most to her in this world.
Almost two years after leaving the BAU she was finally flying back to the States to see the only family she really ever had. It was bittersweet knowing she would see her friends again. She loved them with all of her heart but knowing she would have to say goodbye soon enough made her heart hurt all over again. She listened to the rain pounding against the planes exterior as her thoughts went to the people she wanted to see the most, Aaron and Jack Hotchner. She had talked every week with everyone on the team except Hotch. That's not to say that they had never spoken to each other, but not as much as she had talked to everyone else.
At first their conversations consisted of her checking on how Jack was doing in school and how work was going. She would tell him about how her new position was going running the London office. Things for them had changed in the past six months, ever since he had ended his relationship with Beth. He had said things just didn't work out and didn't elaborate more but Emily knew there was more to it than he was saying. She couldn't help feeling ecstatic when he had told her and that made her feel even worse because she was his friend and she should just want to see him happy. She did want to see him happy but she had never really liked her. There was just something about her that was off and the way she met him. You don't just go up to someone and guess that they are an agent because they wear suits all the time. A lawyer, yes and maybe even a politician being where they lived but not an agent. Beth had just alway rubbed her the wrong way. Oh, she had always put on her friendly face around her but it didn't stop her from disliking the other woman.
Emily's thoughts went back to her and Hotch's last conversation and couldn't help but smile. Out of the blue he had called her instead of her calling him. It had been way past midnight his time and he said that he had had a nightmare. He told her that he missed seeing her in the office every day and that he missed her smile and her laugh. She asked him if he was drunk and he laughed telling her no, that he hadn't been drinking. He told her that he had had a nightmare and just needed to hear her voice. She smiled at that. It made her feel good to know that he needed her, for something anyway. He had told her that he just missed her, a lot more than he thought he would have. They talked for over a hour and the way he had said her name when he had said goodbye to her had made her melt. It was low and different then any way he had ever said it before. That phone conversation had been more personal than any other they had ever had and was a big reason she was on this plane now. She wanted to see everyone but the only reason she was flying in was just to see the Hotchner men. She had talked to Jack almost every time her and Hotch talked. She missed Jack terribly and every time she had hung up the phone after talking to him her heart broke just a little bit more.
Her feelings for Hotch had never changed, she had always been attracted to the man, but her last six months in the BAU had made her realize that things had to change. She couldn't sit around pining over a man that she could never have, would never have. She knew that she had to leave if she wanted to keep what was left of her sanity and heart. She thought time and distance would help but she had been mistaken. They say time heals, well that was just bullshit. Time had just made the hurt more pronounced every time she stepped through the front door to her flat and having no one there to welcome her home. Home, that was a laugh. Home is where the heart is they say. London has never felt like home to Emily, only a place to hang her hat, as they say.
After hers and Hotch's last phone call she talked to Clyde and took time off and caught the next plane out. Now, in less than thirty minutes, the plane would touch down and she would finally be back where she felt at home the most. Emily thought back to the last time she had seen the face of the man she loved and how broken he had looked when she told him she was leaving. He had said that he understood and that they would miss her. She knew it was hard for all of them to say goodbye, but the hurt in Hotch's eyes almost made her change her mind. That was until Beth had run through the airport terminal toward them and apologizing for being late. He had actually told Beth to come and say her goodbyes too. A woman she hardly knew had ruined everything and that just cemented in her as to why she was leaving in the first place.
Emily heard the ding for everyone to put on their seat belts for their descent. She suddenly felt her stomach turn as the butterflies began to make theirselves known. She had not been this nervous since she had first walked into Hotch's office all those years ago. Emily had called the only person she knew who would keep the secret of her flying in and as she left the gate she looked around for that familiar face but didn't see him. She made her way through the terminal over to baggage claim and waited by the carousel until she saw her bags on the turntable. As she started to turn around she heard the familiar squeal of Jack Hotchner as he screamed out for her. Emily dropped her bags as she turned around, and none to soon, as Jack threw himself into her arms.
"Emily, your home!" Jack squealed as he hugged her tightly.
"I am. I missed you Jack." Emily said as she squeezed the boy in return.
"I missed you too Emily. Uncle Dave called and told me and daddy to come to the airport. He didn't tell daddy why and then we got here and we saw you and..." Jack rushed as he held on to his Emily.
"Jack, slow down buddy. Give her a chance to breathe okay." came the deep voice behind Emily.
Emily stood up from where she had been squatting in the floor to hug Jack and turned around slowly. Hotch stood there, smiling at the two of them. He moved forward and pulled Emily into his arms and hugged her tightly.
"It's so good to see you. I've missed you too,you know. Why didn't you tell me you were coming in the other night on the phone?" Hotch asked while he still hugged her.
"I didn't know until after we talked." Emily said as she pulled back and looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "I've missed you." she said as she hugged him again.
They stood there until Hotch felt Jack tugging on his arm, "come on dad, I'm tired and I want to go home." Jack whined.
"Oh my god, Hotch... I forgot about the time difference. Why did you bring him out so late?" Emily asked as she bent down to pick up the forgotten bags she had dropped.
"It's only ten Emily and Dave said we both needed to be here so here we are." Hotch said smiling a her.
Hotch took the bags from her and held them in one hand as he took one of her hands in his free hand while Jack took her other hand.
Hotch didn't drop her off at the hotel like she had told him to, he took her to his house instead. He told her it was stupid for her to stay at a hotel when there was room at his place for her. It was now going on eleven thirty and Jack had been asleep for at least thirty minutes. Emily now sat on the couch waiting for Hotch to return from the kitchen. She laid her head back on the back of the couch and sighed deeply.
"Is it that bad?" Hotch said as he came back into the room.
"It was just a long flight. I had a lot of time to think though. Hotch, you didn't have to bring me here. I could have stayed at the hotel like I had planned." she said without even lifting her head or opening her eyes.
"I know you could have Emily, I wanted you to stay here. I just want to spend time with you before you have to leave." he said as he sat down beside her on the couch.
In the background the TV was turned in to watch the ball drop in Times Square. Hotch turned the volume up just a little bit so they wouldn't miss the count down.
"That is sweet Hotch. To be honest, you and Jack are why I came back. I just needed to see you. After you called the other night... it made me start thinking harder about what I want." Emily said as she sat back up straighter.
"What is it that you want Emily?" Hotch asked as he turned sideways to face her.
"When I left... I thought I needed a change and well it turns out that it really hasn't changed anything. The new view from my flat window is different and the job is different but it hasn't changed my feelings. In fact, it has made it all that much harder. I thought the distance would help but it hasn't. I thought not seeing you everyday would help... it hasn't. I was confused but I'm not anymore. I know where I belong." Emily said as the tears flowed from her eyes down her face.
"Emily... are you saying what I think you're saying?" he asked her with a look of hope in his eyes.
"Yes, I am. I'm home. This is where my heart is. With you. It's always been with you Aaron." Emily said as she leaned over and kissed him tenderly.
In the background they both could hear the countdown starting. Hotch leaned back and looked into her eyes and Emily couldn't tell if it was her tears pooling in her eyes, or if he too had tears in his eyes. She reached up and confirmed that he too was crying.
"Welcome home Emily and Happy New Year." Hotch said as he bent down to kiss her again.