First of all, let me apologize because I had to delete ad repost the story, so here we go
The Arranged Marriage
-Chapter One-
Disclaimer: I don't owe Criminal Minds; I only owe the stories in the world I created.
Chapter 1: Just a rich Girl
Spring 1999
The first time Aaron Hotchner meets Emily Prentiss he is convinced that she is an entitled, spoiled rich kid who sees the world as her personal playground. He has always hated wealthy people and there is a reason why; he has zero-tolerance for people who feel they are above others. Throughout his life, he has had many encounters with overly wealthy individuals, and he knows just how to deal with people like them. But the Prentisses are just a new version of royalty, the kind he is not comfortable with.
The only reason why he puts up with this is because just got appointed to the FBI not even six months ago. This is his first assignment, and the overachiever in him knows that this is just temporary. It doesn't make any easier to do the job, but he is happy where he is with his career, this is just the cherry on the top. The head of security for the pontifical ambassador Prentiss might sound like an easy job, after all, security clearances aren't that big of a deal, any law enforcement official can do it. But working directly for ambassador Prentiss is a promotion on its own. Not the good kind
She is well known and highly respected, and it will get Hotch exactly where he wants to go, but there is always a downfall to things. Dealing with an arrogant, elitist, ambitious condescending woman is not something he was expecting, so he is going to try his hardest to impress her. But within an hour of working for her, he wants to strangle her, she is egotistical, rude, heartless and demanding, a classic narcissist.
He has been working for the ambassador for about six weeks now, for the most part, she is out of his way, she only really talks to him in the morning and nightly meetings. He is proud of himself, he is doing great so far, everyone says so, even his direct supervisor. Everything is going great until he meets her and his life changes forever
He comes to work one morning and she is just there, having breakfast with the ambassador, a young woman, she can be older than eighteen, perhaps nineteen. He doesn't even realize she is the ambassadors' daughter until they are formally introduced, and is not the lack of psychical resemblance that throws him off. But the dark painted nails, the purple strikes, on her large raven hair, and ripped jeans. He spots the nose ring immediately, everything on her attire screams trouble.
"Agent Hotchner meet my daughter, Emily"
He has always been a gentleman so he reaches to shake her hand "Is a privilege ma'am"
She so much as glances at him barely acknowledging him, she stands from the table and slowly walks to the sink, setting her plate down.
"I won't be home for dinner mother" she announces and walks out of the kitchen without even looking at him.
"My daughter, she is difficult" is her lame apology "Please don't let her deter you from doing your job" the woman mimics her daughter's behavior and she leaves with a final order for him "Morty will fill you in what is for the agenda today"
Later when Morty, his supervisor, warns him about the teenager and her attitude; is when he realizes his job just got more difficult. Haley has never been a difficult woman and he is happy with that. Later that evening when he is about to go home he runs into her one more time is late, and she barely parks the car before she stumbles out laughing and dropping her keys on the ground. He knows right away that she is intoxicated, and he can smell the weed even from far away.
"Did you drive like that?" he feels stupid asking the question but he does anyway, she blinks a few times, her dark eyes glaring at him.
"Shouldn't you be checking the doors or setting up the alarm?" her tone is cold and he fights the urge to just call her a brat, but he makes the mistake to open his mouth
"I take your mother knows you smoke weed?"
"I take you need your paycheck to pay rent?" she flashes back defiance shining through her eyes
"I am just doing my job" he offers lamely when he really wants to show her some manners
"Why don't you keep doing that then and mind your own business" she doesn't even wait for a reply she is already walking towards the mansion and he stands there wishing he didn't actually need this job.
The very next week he is at Yale, he is supposed to give this speech for a Procedural Law class, a favor for a friend, a former prosecutor he really respected asked him to. He can't say no, he is not a particular fan of speaking to a room full of students, rich entitled students for that matter, but agrees anyway. When he spots her right in the front row of the classroom, he doesn't believe his eyes, so he makes brief eye contact with her.
Either he is imagining things or she just there just to get under his skin, which makes sense given she goes to Yale, going to stalk his class is something she would probably do. The purple strikes are gone from her hair and she seems more like a young lady, an ambassador's daughter, just wearing leggings and a sweater dress and boots.
He wants to ask her to leave the classroom but he is not going to let her get under his skin, so he starts the lecture and pretends like she is not even there. But it is hard, what is with this girl anyway? she is just a rich entitled girl, beautiful of course, but a privileged teenager who was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She takes notes or at least pretending to be taking notes, but other than that she says nothing or does nothing to get his attention. When he finishes the lecture he watches as she packs her stuff away, and he fights the urge to roll his eyes, not entirely sure why he is so annoyed with her.
"Aaron I really appreciate you doing this" Edward Stiles says
"Edward don't even mention it, is my pleasure" and it truly is an honor Stiles is one of the best prosecutors in the history of D.C.
Stiles makes some small talk about the lecture while Hotch is packing his stuff away, from the corner of his eyes, he watches as she heads for the door.
"Excuse me just a second Aaron," Stiles tells him and as he turns to face the young woman "Miss Prentiss do you have a minute?" she is just as impressed as Hotch is, but she only hesitates for a second before she approaches the professor.
"Thomas, my teacher assistant is leaving at the end of the semester, and I was wondering if you would consider applying for the position?" he announces as he hands her an envelope
"Are you serious?" she asks, her tone is so much softer than what Hotch heard last week, and she is even more beautiful than he realized, the black big eyes, ivory skin, and rosy lips are inebriating.
"I know you only have a semester left, but I figured I asked anyway, you don't have to do it, I was just keeping you in mind," Edward says
"No Sir, umh its an honor is just...why me?" she asks looking around briefly glancing at Hotchner wondering if he had anything to do with this but how could he?
"Why not you? Miss Prentiss, you might have not noticed but you are an incredibly talented young woman, please think about it" he insists
"I definitely will, thank you Mr. Stiles" she smiled confidently and then she turns towards Hoch himself "Have a good day Agent Hotchner" and she is gone
"Teacher assistant? Really? he asks raising his eyebrows "She is not even twenty-one"
"Well I am not asking her to serve alcohol Aaron, I am asking her to do school work, grade essays and maybe help students with assignments..." Edward laughs
"You are asking an eighteen-year-old to help you grade essays?" Hotch cannot believe what he is hearing
"She is nineteen, and she has probably turned in better papers than my forty-year-old adult students, she is one of the brightest kids I ever worked with"
"She just doesn't really scream Phi Betta Kappa" Hotch reasons
"She is too good for them" he waves "She has a 4.13 GPA and she is taking advanced classes already; the girl will have a doctorate before she turns twenty-five"
"She is nineteen" Hotch laughs at the hyperbolic
"And she graduates this fall, she will probably have her Masters finished when she turns twenty-one"
"How is that even possible?"
"I told you" the older guy insists "She is gifted, she is taking the maximum overload of classes Yale allows and she is doing beautifully... she is just a very bright lady and outstanding student"
Aaron doesn't say anything else, he doesn't know how is that even possible, the girl he met last week was wearing purple hair stripes, and dark painted nails, and was high as a kite acting without a single care in the world. This girl who Stiles is describing is an honor roll student who was about to graduate and perhaps obtain a Doctorate before he even makes it to BAU, this cannot be the same girl he met last week.
"And if you insist on continuing to make assumptions about my character, I'll advise you only this: assume you will always be wrong."― Tahereh Maf