Prentiss stepped outside of the house and shivered at the cold breeze. It was dark and windy outside, no doubt mirroring how she felt. Behind her, Hotch was wheeled out on a stretcher, being comforted by Morgan and Rossi. She should have been by his side, but Rossi's insistence of her being checked by paramedics won. Now bandaged up, Prentiss stood outside in the quiet neighborhood in nothing but a dress.

She took a step to join her injured teammate in the ambulance, but saw that it was full and ready to go. As it slowly pulled away, JJ and Reid came up to Prentiss from behind, JJ saying, " We can take one of the SUVs and meet them at the hospital, Emily."

Prentiss numbly nodded and said, "I need to tell him how I feel." Reid draped his jacket on Prentiss' shoulders and asked, "Tell who what?"

"He'll die…" Prentiss stammered, "I can't have him dying…." JJ took Prentiss' hand and called out, "Emily? Look at me." When the agent finally did, JJ said, "Hotch is strong- he's…he's still alive and that's all that matters right now. Let's go so you can tell him and get your fairy tell ending."

Reid, still confused, asked, "JJ, what does Emily need to tell Hotch?" Prentiss stepped away from the pair and slowly walked towards the SUV. She could hear JJ say, "You don't know?"

"Of course not, what's going on?"

"Emily is in love with Hotch." Prentiss stopped in her tracks, feeling happy over JJ's comment. She was so in love with him that she wanted to scream it to the heavens.

"Really?" Reid asked, taken aback, "Since when? How did I miss this?"

Over by the SUVs, Prentiss chuckled to herself. Oh, Reid.

Greenbaugh Medical Center- Albany, NY-2 Hours later

"Family of Aaron Hotchner?"

Prentiss looked from her shoes to see a doctor standing near the emergency room entrance. The man seemed impassive, confusing the five agents and technical analyst on the tone of the news he was about to deliver.

"That's us," Rossi called out. He reached out a hand to the physician, who quickly shook it. Rossi than placed his hands on his hip and asked, "Just give it to us straight, doc."

"Well, Agent Hotchner is alive. His injuries are extensive- the worst is his ankle. It appears to be shattered- broken bones, tendons, ect. He'll be taken into surgery to fix his ankle along with his lungs, which are causing his irregular breathing. Agent Hotchner also has multiple lacerations, second degree burns all over his body, and also appears to be dehydrated and hungry. That-"

"You need to run an sexual assault evidence collection kit on him," Reid said," The number of sexual assault cases of male victims reported-"

"Kid," Morgan said softly, instantly silencing Reid. The doctor continued, "Don't worry, a kit was done and sent over to Albany police."

At that moment, Prentiss' mind traveled back to when Stanley had tased her on the way to the house, causing her to pass out. Was I raped then?

JJ gave her a nudge to focus on the doctor. The man said, "Thank you for the concerns regarding the SAE kit. However, that isn't my biggest concern. Your teammate is conscious, but stone silent. During our first examination, he was extremely tense and quiet. Is that normal for him?"

"Not at this degree," Rossi answered.

"I see. Well, we can discuss options regarding his mental state after the surgery. Agent Hotchner will be taken up to surgery in twenty minutes. Do any of you want to see him?"

Everyone's eyes immediately fell on Prentiss. She nodded slowly before saying, "I need to discuss something in private with you after I see him, doctor, and I need Agent Jareau with me while I do it." The physician nodded before responding, "Fine."

Prentiss slowly rose to her feet before a wave of exhaustion hit her. She had been up for almost a day now; from working at the police station to being rescued by Morgan. The agent felt a wave of self-pity before she remembered Hotch. The poor man was dehydrated, severely injured, and sleep deprived.

The agent followed the physician into the Emergency Room with JJ. JJ was confused on her need to be there, but a part of her suspected that she was brought in for support. When the physician and the agents arrived at the door to Hotch's room, the physician motioned inside and said, "Be gentle with him."

They found Hotch lying on a hospital bed, slipping in and out of consciousness. JJ put a hand to her mouth in shock at the Unit Chief's appearance; as his eyes drooped close every few minutes, Hotch would let out a wheeze even as he was intubated. Prentiss approached Hotch's side and saw his tear strained cheeks. She placed a hand on Hotch's cheek and whispered, "You're ok, Aaron. I'm so proud of you- we all are. You're so brave, Aaron…..It's one of the many things that I love about you."

Prentiss bent down and kissed his forehead. "I love you, Aaron, and ….you can't die on me, ok?" She sadly nodded at Hotch's confused expression seconds before he drifted back to sleep. The physician, who had been standing by the door, called out, "Agent Prentiss? They're going to take him up now."

Prentiss nodded and stepped out of the room with a silent JJ. The physician asked, "What exactly did you want to ask me, Agent?"

"I need you to do a SAE kit on me," Prentiss said in a calm voice. Inside, she was battling every nerve in her body that was telling her to cry. Next to her, JJ touched Prentiss' arm. "Emily…..did they get to you?"

"I think when the Dents were driving me to their home, Stanley raped me. I was actually passed out in the back, but when Reid mentioned the kit for Hotch, I just….you know."

"Of course," JJ answered. The physician pointed towards the a room down the hallway. "Why don't you head over to room 6 and I'll alert a nurse that you two are coming."

"Thank you, doctor." JJ and Prentiss started walking towards the room, JJ watching her friend the entire time. After a minute of silence, JJ said, "So you really love him."

"I do," Prentiss answered.

"I kind of had a feeling," JJ joked. She turned around to see Prentiss suddenly stop in her tracks and drop her head. Prentiss then started to cry again, exclaiming, God, I'm so emotional!"

"Emily, you've been through a lot lately. It's alright-"

"I know that-it's just…I'm so scared! I'm scared for Hotch's health, I'm scared for the results of this SAE test and I'm scared that he's going to be so screwed up after this that he won't be able to love me back!"