A/N: Thank you guys for your wonderful reviews. So glad to know that there are still people reading this. Thank you!

Don't worry, this is not a Doyle arch variation. In this AU, the Foyet and Doyle dramas never happened. Emily Prentiss is my favorite character and as a fan, I was actually hurt when they wrote that for her exit episode. So no. No Doyle. I also personally think that there are already a ton fanfics with the Doyle arch inserted into them. I loved all the ones that I've read and I love how creative all the writers get in doing various alternative endings into them.

Anyway, here's a little fluffy/happy chapter for ya'll. We're nearing to the end of this story so I hope you guys stick around! xx

"Dad, I want to cut my hair." 10-year old Maya nonchalantly announced to everyone at breakfast. It surprised Hotch and Emily, but not that much. She's growing up, and this is the age when they start to actually care about how they look, so they understood.

"Are you sure? I thought you liked having long hair?" Hotch, still focused on his breakfast, so as not to make her feel embarrassed.

There was a pause, to which he thought Maya was preparing a full-blown argument as to why she wants to cut her hair. "Mom liked my hair long." She said quietly, as if it will get her in trouble.

Oh. That made sense. He suddenly realized what his daughter really was doing. She was moving on. Moving on from a very tough time that no child should have gone through. Moving on and gaining her life back. And if cutting her hair would mean cutting out the demons from her life, then he's all for it.

"And besides, it's very hard to manage now that it's long. Mom used to brush and style it but you know.." She continued as if she needed to justify to her father why she wanted a haircut.

"Maya, you don't have to justify a haircut to me. Not unless you shave it all off, but I doubt you'll do that. So, yes, you can have your hair cut."

"Hmm.. Now that you've mentioned it, shaving it off would mean less shower time and one less thing to manage. I'm considering it." She said with a serious look on her face.

"Ooh! And once you shaved it, they'll ask if you want your head dyed. I've always wanted to try it. Wanna do it today?" Emily ask her.

"Awesome! Can I, dad? Purple and Teal would look good."

"Maya." He warned, looking at her with a stern face, which made everyone laugh.

"I'm kidding, dad!"

He shook his head. God help me with women.

/

"You okay? You look like you got pale during breakfast?" Emily giggled. They were all getting ready to go out for the day. Emily wanted to take Maya to her hairdresser, while he and Jack would hit the mall while they wait for them.

He gave Emily a loving look. God it was so hard to frown at her, especially when she laughs. He looked at her, brushing her hair. Then he realized how domestic this was – getting ready together. And he likes it. He really does.

"And you weren't helping" He said in a mocking tone.

"But I was being honest. They really asked me that one time, and I've honestly considered it. If I wasn't working for the FBI, I probably would've done it."

He sighed and shook his head. Oh Emily. "I guess I'm still having a hard time accepting the fact that she's growing up. She's 10, of course she'd start to care about she how looks. She'll probably ask me for a wardrobe revamp sometime soon. I mean, c'mon, I feel like yesterday she was still drinking from a sippy cup and now… oh god" He suddenly.

"What?" Emily asked, still focusing on fixing her stubborn hair. "What is it?"

"I'd have to have the talk with her." He said with a mortified look on his face. He started pacing the room. "I can't. How am I supposed to..? And bra shopping? She wouldn't do that with me. I mean, I'd go with her but she'll probably be embarrassed. Oh no. No."

Emily walked up to him and held his arm. "Aaron," she started softly, "listen. You and Maya have the greatest father/daughter relationship I've seen, and that's because you do not hesitate to communicate and you do not hesitate to listen. Same goes for her. At this point in her life, it's very important to keep that communication open. Don't be embarrassed talking to her about that stuff because then she'll be embarrassed too. Just be the cool dad you are, okay?"

"Okay." He sighed, calmness suddenly washing over him. He did not even realized he was panicking, if that's even possible. "Okay."

Emily snorted, "look at me giving you parenting advice as if I've had ten children." She said, her tone fading. But she shrugged it off and gave him a smile. "But just stay calm, okay? Maya's a smart girl. She probably knew how the reproductive system works before she turned 8."

"Em."

She laughed, "Sorry. All I'm saying is, it won't be difficult for you because she already understands what is happening. And you don't even have to have the talk with her yet, at least not this soon. But if you need some help, I'm here."

What an angel. "Thank you." He said, and she could see the sincerity in his eyes and she couldn't help but smile.

"You're welcome. Now come on! You have little excited monsters waiting downstairs." She said, tugging his hand.

"Wait a sec." He pulled her back to him. He looked intently into her eyes, and for a moment – just in that moment - Emily thought he was going to kiss her. And god was she ready. But he didn't. Instead, he gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I mean it. You're doing so much for us. Thank you."

She can't say she was disappointed though. They weren't there yet. And Hotch is a gentleman. Kissing her at this moment would mean that they'd need time to talk, which they don't have as of the moment. So she understood. Though, she's certain it would happen, she wished it'd be some time soon.

/

To say that Emily was excited was an understatement. She has been meaning to go to her hairdresser for the past months, but a lot of stuff had happened. And now, she gets to go and bring Maya too. Even though what they'll have was just a haircut and a short treatment, it was already a great time for both of them.

As for Maya, well, she's never been to a real salon before. Her mother used to cut her hair, saying the hairdressers cost too much even though she's sure her mother goes there at least twice a month. So, she was just as excited as Emily, and probably even more nervous.

A nice-looking woman with long, ash-gray hair in perfect braids greeted them as they enter. By the looks of it, she and Emily has known each other for a while.

"And who is your beautiful friend over here?"

"Nika, this is Maya. She wants to get her hair cut today. Maya, this is Nika, my hairdresser."

"Hello, there. Nice to meet you, Maya." She offered her hand to shake, which Maya gladly took.

"Hi, Ms. Nika. It's nice to meet you too."

"What a lovely girl" she said to Emily.

"She really is." Emily said proudly, almost sounding maternal.

"C'mon. Jackie will lead you to your seats."

A couple of hours later, Hotch spotted Emily and Maya walking towards them hand in hand, sporting wide smiles on their faces. For a moment, he pictured Emily being a part of their family officially. Seeing her with his daughter made his heart leap. She had a certain a glow in her.

"Hey guys!" Emily greeted them.

"Dad look at my hair!" Maya said proudly, showing her knew shoulder length hair.

"I know! You look beautiful in short hair." He said. Then he looked at Emily, "And you look beautiful, sweetheart." He said quietly.

Emily gave a shy smile. There was no drastic change in her hairstyle. All she had was a trim and a little treatment. Hotch knew that but still he complimented her. Always the sweetest man. "Thank you."

"Can we go to the park now, Emmy?" Jack asked impatiently.

She knew Jack must have been getting impatient. There's only so much a 4-year old can do at the mall. So she hoisted him up and settled him on her right side. "Of course we can, buddy. Thanks for being good and waiting for us. But we have to make a stop for food first. How does Subway sound?"

"Yes Subway!" Jack cheered.

Realizing that he still had that picnic blanket in the car from their beach trip, Hotch suggested a little picnic at the park with their Subway take-outs. And of course, who could turn down a spontaneous picnic at the park on a lovely day? So here they are, happily sitting on their blanket and munching on their sandwiches.

After a while, the kids was finally allowed to play at the jungle gym. "Make sure you stay where we can see you." Hotch reminded his kids.

"Yes, dad." They replied in chorus.

"And be careful and look after each other." He continued.

"Yes, dad." They replied again. Emily just watched in amusement but she understood that with a job like theirs, Hotch would be a little more protective of his kids. Who wouldn't be?

The two of them just remained seated as they watched the kids play, basking in the unusual peacefulness of the outdoors.

"I'm really happy today." He heard Emily say. He looked at her, her head on his shoulder as she watch the kids, his hand enveloping hers.

Her declaration made his heart leap. A happy Emily is what he strives for whenever they were together out of work. So he kissed the top of her head and said, "Well, I'm glad." Then he shifted and kissed her forehead. Looking directly into her eyes before saying, "seeing you happy makes me happy."

That made Emily's eyes burn, tears threatening to fall. Never has she had a man that puts her happiness first – that puts her first. Never has she had a man that was willing to do everything for her. In her past relationships, when the man would realize how incredibly independent she is, they'd start to pull away, to stop caring. But this man right here was as stubborn as she is, and she was thankful for that because he's never given up on her. Just for the fun of it, she likes to think that he's too stubborn to do so. If given the chance, she'd like to have him in her life forever. But there's still too much to consider. They haven't even talked yet, no advances whatsoever. But in this moment, Emily wanted to say it. She wanted to say she loves him, that she wants him in her life, that he's the one for her. And in this moment, she almost did. Almost.

However, their moment was cut off when a brunette woman who looks to be in her twenty's holding what seemed to be a vintage polaroid camera approached them.

"Excuse me. Sorry to interrupt."

"No problem. Can we help you?"

"I was actually taking photos of the scenery using the polaroid for my photography class, and I didn't realized that you two were in the shot. And here." She said, handing them a polaroid photo in black in white. "I thought it was a too beautiful moment to just waste it for my class."

They both smiled when they looked at the photo. It was the exact moment when Hotch kissed Emily's forehead. It was very beautiful indeed. Like the ones you see on a Hallmark postcard.

"This is a beautiful shot. Thank you so much." Emily said.

"Yes, thank you. We appreciate it, really. It's beautiful." Hotch added.

"You're welcome. You two have a great day. You're a beautiful couple, by the way, aesthetic-wise and all." The girl said and walked off.

Neither of them corrected her that they weren't a couple, nor did they had the chance to. But they didn't mind.

"Would you like to keep it?" Hotch asked.

Emily took a moment to consider. "Yes, I'd like to keep it, if you don't mind." She said softly. She thought that if they couldn't be a couple in real life, at least she can pretend that they were whenever she looks at this photo.

"Of course, I don't mind, sweetheart. You keep it." He said to her.

God he really needs to stop with these endearments and these sweetness and stuff, Emily thought. Otherwise, her heart might just explode.

"I think about it, you know?" He said after the silence became unbearable. His heart suddenly thumping.

"What?"

"Us being a couple."

She gasped. She never thought that he would. "Aaron." She whispered.

It was now or never. He shifted so he was facing her. He took her hands in his and look directly into her eyes. "I do think about it. And I've come to realize that, if you're ever feeling the same way, it's not an entirely absurd idea. If you ever feel the same way, I'm willing to fight tooth and nail to make it work. And if you'll let me, I would like to take you to dinner. Let me do it right, because you deserve so much more, sweetheart."

"Aaron, I-" She stuttered, suddenly at lost for words. How was she suddenly lost for words? Good lord, this man is making her feel so many things.

"I'm not pressuring you into anything, Em. If you don't want to, we can always forget this moment ever happened and we can just go back to the way we were."

"No"

"Oh. Okay then. It's alright, sweetheart. I'm sorry."

Emily chuckled. "No, I don't want to forget this moment. And how does Friday night sound?"

Aaron gave her that full smile that she loved. "Friday night sounds perfect."