HOTCH POV

As he walks down the streets of Chicago, he enjoys the fresh air and sunrise before him. When he sees a sign in the distance that says "Denny's Diner", he is almost astonished that the diner does, in fact, exist. He thought for sure that Emily was lying to him. He's relieved and is proud of Prentiss. Maybe she did eat. It's not until he approaches the diner close enough to read what's on the door that he sighs and puts his face into his hands.

"Monday thru Friday – open from 6am to 3pm"

It's Tuesday today. It is 5:45am right now. She probably didn't know that the diner was closed until 6 am. Prentiss lied to me, right to my face.

Something in his heart knew that this sort of thing would happen, but Prentiss is one of the most honest and loyal people he had ever met. Why is food so important to her that she'd lie through her teeth to her supervisor? Hotch knew that he knew the answer to that question. He had just been denying it for quite sometime, refusing to see his colleague in distress. He didn't want to believe any of the negative things. In other words, Hotch was in denial.

She'll be here any minute, he thought to himself as he found a bench across the street to sit on. He wants to see how she'll react.

Around 20 minutes later, a puffy-eyed Emily Prentiss walked towards the diner. She didn't notice the park bench with Hotch on it as she walked up to the door of the diner. What he saw next was definitely a first for him.

The Ambassador's daughter, the Yale graduate, the FBI special agent, and successful Emily Prentiss started cursing at the top of her lungs for a good minute not caring who heard her when she realized the diner was not open. She'd never acted so rashly in public, in all the years he knew her.

She suddenly looked overwhelmed with anxiety and she put her hand to her chest. She clenched her fists and sat at the bench right in front of Denny's. Catching her breath, I heard her say "What have I done?" as she burrowed her forehead into her arms.

It wasn't until 2 minutes later when she finally looked up. When Emily saw Hotch, instead of running away, she quietly got up, crossed the street, and sat right next to him.

They said nothing for a few minutes, until Emily said "I'm sorry you didn't eat breakfast. You must be hungry."

Anger boiled inside Agent Hotchner. How could she have the nerve to say that to him? Prentiss has put him through an emotional hell, and she apologizes for HIS lack of eating.

He didn't intend for his voice to sound so bitter when he said "You should be, too."

He looked up at Emily then. Her mouth was agape, and her eyes wide surprised by his tone. Her vocal cords couldn't muster the ability to reply, what was there to say? Prentiss wants to deny the hunger. Oh, she wants to so bad, but she doesn't. Something stops her. She just sighs. He has a right to be angry, she tells herself. She's been such a pain to look after, and she's ruined his life for the past 7 years.

At that moment, there are no longer any boundaries that hide her emotions. No more masks to hide the pain. No more fronts. Her walls are suddenly coming crashing down. The expression on her face is no longer placid and stoic, and her eyes are flooding with emotion.

She sees that anything she denies now is a disrespect towards Hotch; the most selfless, genuine man she's ever met. Hotch deserves the truth, he deserves to know what she's thinking, for once. She looks him straight in the eye, and is brutally honest with him for the first time in a long time.

All that comes out of Emily's mouth is "You have no idea."

So much angst, its hard to write! Reviews and comments, please?