For a moment being in her apartment again was oddly relieving and so was being alone. Well, not so much the alone part but being away from her friends looks of concern and them treating her like she was a victim.

Victim. The word still didn't sound right or at least it wasn't a word she would ever use in relation to herself. However, it was the one word she kept hearing over and over for the past few days even from the team who she considered her family. Even if they didn't say it directly to her she knew that was how they were seeing her now, as a victim.

Emily wanted more than anything for things to go back to how they were before. She was so goddamn tired of everything, the constant agitation, and paranoia she felt over the past few days. The feeling that Nathanial would come back in an instant wouldn't go away and she didn't think it ever would be.

The moment of relief ended in an instant as it hit her that she was alone, and it terrified her even though she didn't want to admit it even to herself.

"Come on you're being stupid Emily, nothing bad is going to happen." She the words aloud hoping they would comfort her a little bit. It didn't work. Emily walked over the sink in the kitchen and grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water before opening her bottle of pain meds and take one of the pills.

The silence was deafening and only seemed to make her more on edge. When her notification tone from her phone broke the silence, she jumped a little and even though it was irrational her gaze flicked across the room just in case. With a sigh she pulled her phone out of her pocket to see a text from JJ, "We managed to contact Charlotte's family, they will be here in an hour."

Good, she thought. Maybe being around her family will help the woman heal from all that has happened and move away from the idea of doing exactly what Nathanial wanted. Charlotte's freedom was the only good thing to come out of all of this. At least that was what she reminded herself when her head spiraled out of control and she couldn't stop herself from wondering how she could have prevented everything that had happened. Charlotte despite everything she had said to intentionally get on Emily's nerves deserved to move on with her life.

Not long after the first text from JJ did she receive one from Hotch telling her to get in contact with the therapist he had recommended for her to see. Apparently, the woman specialized in trauma therapy and was notable in the field for the use of multiple types of therapy outside of trauma. Emily reached into her pocket with the slip of paper with the number on it and stared at it for a moment before typing it into her phone figuring she better just bite the bullet on this one sooner rather than later.

The first time Emily was in anything resembling real therapy was after she had the abortion and her mother had miraculously noticed the change in her mood so in an attempt to look like a caring parent she had set her up with a therapist. Although, the sessions stopped after three months because her mother stopped caring if she went or not. Since then there were only a few sessions required to ensure she was fit for duty per standard procedure after the incident. Maybe, it would be different this time, either way, it was still another box for her to check before she could go back to work.

Emily scheduled herself for an intake appointment three days from now considering that was the earliest she could get an appointment. She wanted to get it over with as soon as she could and to have some control over her life again.

Emily spent the next hour watching tv at an uncomfortably loud volume to try and stop herself from thinking. It was all she could think to do to avoid thinking of everything that had happened and getting stuck in her head. Despite the volume, she had to exert effort in trying to focus on the show she was watching.

The knock on her door caused her to stand in an instant and her heart to start racing.

"Emily, I know you're in there" the blondes familiar voice caused Emily to relax a little bit. She walked over and unlocked the door.

"I brought take-out, I know I should've asked but I figured Chinese would be fine," JJ said.

"You didn't have to do that," Emily said and despite herself, she was glad it was JJ who was there even so that didn't stop her from questioning why she was here. "Thanks, though. Chinese is great." The smile that came to her lips was small, but it wasn't forced unlike most of the ones of late. Emily stepped aside to let the blonde in. "What are you doing here?"

JJ had walked inside and was already taking the boxes of take-out onto the table, "Well, I figured you'd be hungry, I know you well enough to know that the likely hood you'd remember to eat was slim. Plus, we haven't really spent all that much time together."

"So, this isn't just you being worried about me being alone?" Even though it was a question Emily's tone was defensive.

"Em, of course, I'm worried about you. After everything that has happened who wouldn't be? Look, I know talking about your feelings isn't your strong suit, but I just didn't want you to feel like you are alone, and I will be here if and when you are ready to talk about it." There was concern in the blonde's voice but there was something else a kind of softness to it.

Emily had to admit the idea of any more time on her own was rather unappealing even despite the worried looks she knew JJ would give her. JJ's concern in a way was different from her friends maybe it was because she had always been a bit more open with the blonde or at least felt like she could talk about anything with her.

A sigh escaped her lips as she thought for a moment debating if she should open up a bit more to the blonde. However, after spending all day talking about it she couldn't bring herself to talk about it some more. A part of her was just so tired of all the questions and everyone being unsure of how to act around her and she didn't want JJ to pity her more than she probably already did.

"I… I can't talk about it anymore today." Emily finally said breaking the silence and then added. "Thank you though, for coming. I don't really know if I could handle being alone for much longer." For some reason the last part made her feel a little bit vulnerable as though admitting that she couldn't be alone for long made her weaker than she already felt.

JJ walked over to Emily and went to pull Emily into a hug before pausing a moment before making contact with her as though she was wanting to make sure that it was alright. Emily nodded slightly before feeling her blondes' arms around her. At first, she tensed a little bit at the contact but quickly relaxed finding the hug rather calming and safe.