Hello everyone! I meant to get this up earlier in the day, but it's been a rough day. We had to put my dog down today :(
I'm unsure right now if this is going to be a one-shot or a two-shot, depends on reviews and my motivation level.
Thanks for reading!
Emily Prentiss had done a lot of thinking over the past few days about how to tell her friends she was leaving them so soon after she had returned.
She'd asked Morgan to get everyone to the round table. This was going to be one of the hardest things she'd ever done, but she just didn't feel like she fit in here anymore. She loved her team, but something about being back didn't sit right with her.
She took a deep breath and headed to the round table where she knew everyone would be waiting for her.
When she entered everyone looked confused as to why they were there. She looked at each of her team members. Derek Morgan and Aaron Hotchner already knew what was coming, but she was afraid of how the others would react.
She didn't sit down like the rest of them, instead she just stood in the doorway. Everyone stopped there conversations and turned to look at her. Her eyes met Morgan's as she moved further into the room. She didn't say anything right away, she just stared at them.
"Emily, are you okay?" The one who'd spoken was Reid. They'd always been close and she couldn't bare to look at him.
"You know I love you guys, but I've made the decision to leave this team. I was offered another position in London and-" she didn't even get to finish her explanation before she was interrupted.
"But you just got back! You can't leave...we need you here." Reid said, extremely upset.
The most surprising reaction however came from Penelope Garcia. "No!" She was already crying which was inevitable, but then she did something unexpected. Garcia got up and walked out. She'd expected a reaction like that from Reid, but never from Garcia.
"Garcia wait, I'm..." Emily tried to call after her friend, but she was already out of sight.
Morgan stood and Emily held up her hand. "No, I'll talk to her. Let's just give her a minute." Emily wasn't sure what to say to her team. They meant the world to her and she wished she didn't feel like she had to go.
Nobody was saying anything. After a minute of everyone just staring at her, Reid stood and went straight to Emily. Reid immediately pulled her into a warm hug. She hugged her friend back tightly.
"We'll miss you Emily." He said quietly. She knew he wanted to talk more about it, and she made a promise to herself that she would talk to him privately.
"I'll call all the time and you can visit me anytime you want. You're always welcome. It's a long flight, but if you ever need me..." Reid pulled back and nodded.
"Emily, why don't we have one last gathering at my house tonight to celebrate your new job." David Rossi finally spoke.
"I'd like that." She said smiling.
"Jack already has a sleepover planned for tonight so I'm in." Hotch chimed in.
She wished JJ were here, but she'd taken a few days off for a mini honeymoon with Will. Emily had made sure to fill her in on everything before she'd left. She'd been the most understanding out of any of them. She hadn't questioned her or gotten super upset. She'd just supported her decision.
"I'll be right back." She promised everyone.
Emily stood outside Penelope Garcia's lair, as she'd always called it...at least in her head. She watched her friend who was busily straighten things up, but clearly not actually doing any work.
"Garcia, can we talk?" She asked stepping inside.
"Was this the thing?...the thing that you wouldn't tell me at JJ's wedding?" Garcia stopped moving, but didn't turn around.
"Yes." Emily answered without hesitation.
"We just got you back Em, I can't lose you again." Now she turned around and Emily could see the tears streaming down her friend's cheeks.
"No honey, you're not losing me. You can still talk to me all the time. I'm just going to be a phone call away. You can teach me how to use that FaceTime thing." Emily said, moving closer.
"It's not the same. It's just like when JJ left. How can the team function without you?" Emily reached out and took her hand.
"What if we made a plan? Every other month one of us will fly out and see the other. I know it's not perfect, but we'll make it work. I need to settle in the first few months, but we can set a date for me to come back and visit."
"If I don't hear from you on the first of every month I will find you Emily." Garcia promised, just as she'd promised JJ a few years back when she'd left the BAU.
"Oh I don't doubt that." Emily laughed and Garcia pulled her in, hugging her tight.
"I'm going to miss you so much." Garcia was struggling to hold it together. It was always hard when someone left. They were a family. "And I'm going to miss Sergio of course."
"I'll make sure he's apart of these FaceTime calls." Emily promised. "We're all getting together at Rossi's tonight, are you in?" She asked, pulling away from her friend, but still keeping a hand on her arm.
"Of course, wouldn't miss it."
"Are you ready to go join the others?" Emily asked.
Garcia just smiled and held out her arm. Emily linked arms with her friend and together they went to join the rest of their team.
I might write the scene at Rossi's house, but I'm not sure yet. Please let me know in your reviews if that's something you'd be interested in reading.
