Disclaimer: I still don't own Criminal Minds!
A/N: This one is Hotch and Jack centered. Hope you like it!
Remember when we'd
Stay up late and we'd talk all night
For all the hard times in my life
Those nights kept me alive
-Those Nights - Skillet
"Daddy?" Little Jack Hotchner climbed onto the sofa next to his father, scooting closer until he was snuggled underneath the older man's arm.
"Yeah, Jack." Aaron looked down, tearing his gaze from the movie playing on the television and devoting his attention to the young boy who was supposed to be in bed asleep.
"Can I watch TV with you?" Jack's eyes stared up at him innocently, but he couldn't deny the hint of early maturity that had began making itself known the last few months. His son, like him, had experienced the loss of loved ones far too early then he should have and as time passed it began to show. Not that he wasn't a happy, innocent boy like all the others his age, but sometimes his eyes shined with a knowing glimmer that the other children had yet to acquire.
Looking down at those very familiar orbs he knew he couldn't deny his son such a simple request. Jack would probably fall fast asleep before the movie finished any ways. "Sure, buddy."
With that Jack leaned his head against his father's chest, his attention turning to the television as it lit the otherwise dimly lit room. Aaron's focus stayed on his son though. He suddenly had flashbacks to years ago, before he was a BAU leader and before the job started taking over his life.
He and Haley would curl up on their sofa and watch movie after movie until they both fell asleep on top of the other. They'd talk, they'd laugh, but more importantly they were just enjoying each other's company. As he began going up in rank and getting deeper into the darkness that surrounded his job those long nights began to become rare.
But the memories never disappeared. They were always there to remind him of his life away from work, to give him a reason to come home. Even now, with Haley long gone from his life, those special moments gave him a fondness to focus on when cases got too rough.
As he looked down at an already dozing Jack as the boy snuggled into his side, he realized he still had someone to share memories like that with. And to make new memories with.
A/N: Next chapter coming soon!
