Erin had already left for work the next morning when Dave had stepped out of the shower, and he smiled to find that she had left him a fresh pot of coffee and set out one of the muffins she had baked after supper the previous evening. After filling up his travel mug, he drank what remained of the pot while scrolling through his messages and emails. He groaned a little at how many there were, knowing that it was the direct result of ignoring them all weekend, instead focusing on Erin and Alex, but he still shuddered to see that he had twenty texts and fifty emails to get through.
Once that was done, he glanced at the clock on the stove and saw that he had to get moving, otherwise he would be extremely late, and he shoved his phone in his pocket before picking up his briefcase, fresh go bag, and coffee, jogging out to the garage and backing out of his spot. He wondered if Erin had gotten a ride with Penelope, or if she had called a taxi, since there her car was still at her home, but knew that he wouldn't have an answer until he had a chance to talk with her. After parking, he hurried over to the entrance of their building, knowing that he only had a few minutes to get up to the bullpen and still be considered on time. Thankfully, his usual guard was on duty and waved him through while giving a wry look at his watch as Dave shrugged and fairly jogged over to the elevators, managing to squeeze onto one that was headed up.
His phone started to vibrate against his leg as the car rose, and he frowned a little as he transferred his bags to his left hand and pulled the device out. Still frowning, he saw that a number of texts from his team had started to roll in, and most of them said the same thing – Did you know about this? – with no other indication of what that enigmatic this was. He tapped his foot rapidly as he waited for the elevator to reach the sixth floor, and then he was tumbling out with a few of the others, heading into the bullpen and looking around for his team. They were nowhere to be found, and his pensive frown deepened as he went up to his office and put his things away before grabbing his work tablet and heading for the conference room, hoping that the others were already there.
"Did you have a good weekend?"
Turning his head, he saw Agent Anderson there, an open smile on his face, and Dave nodded. "We did. Erin really needed that time away. But where is the rest of my team?"
"They're holed up in Penelope's office, well, except for Agent Hotchner. He hasn't come out of his office yet this morning, even though there's a briefing that needs to be conducted."
Dave narrowed his eyes as he looked at younger man, watching him blanch. "Erin didn't mention anything about a briefing."
"Head into Penelope's office, and you'll find out why."
Those cryptic words further piqued his interest, and he nodded as he walked the last few feet to that door, letting himself in. Everyone was already gathered around her desk, talking animatedly, but that conversation soon fell quiet when they realized that he had now joined them. "Don't let me stop you from talking."
"Did Erin tell you what she was doing this morning?" Penelope asked as she popped to her feet, taking hold of his hand and dragging him over to her sofa and pushing him to sit down.
"Tell me what? All I know is that I have a bunch of cryptic texts from you and the brief conversation that I had with Anderson. Care to fill an old man in?"
Penelope's eyes widened as she nodded, looking at Derek, seemingly for support. "It's your story to tell, Baby Girl. You were the first one to know, after all."
"That's only because I arrived here first, and saw the memo in my email. Really, Rossi, you need to keep up with that!"
"I read them this morning, before I left!" he protested, listening to her chuckle a little. "Now, I take it that this memo was about Erin?"
She nodded and then rubbed her lips together a few times. "As of this morning, Erin is no longer our acting Section Chief. She is taking over that role with the International and Red Cell teams, whilst their Section Chief will be taking over her role. I don't know much about this Matteo Cruz, but JJ says that he's a fair man. We're going to be meeting him in thirty minutes, as he'll be leading our briefing and introducing himself at the same time."
Dave opened his mouth to reply when her office door opened once more, and all heads turned to look at who was joining them. Hotch sheepishly stuck his head in the door and gave them a tight nod before turning his focus onto Dave. "I take it that you're hearing the news, Dave. A head's up might have been nice."
"For me, too, Hotch. This is the first I'm hearing of it." His friend nodded, and Dave took a deep breath. "How about we talk in your office before the briefing begins? Since I have just as many answers as the rest of our team."
Aaron nodded again, and Dave reached out and squeezed Penelope's hand before getting to his feet once more and going over to the door, following Aaron to his office. "Erin didn't let you know that this was her plan?" he asked as soon as Dave had closed the door, and he shook his head as he took a seat in front of Aaron's desk, folding his hands across his stomach as he looked at the man he considered his best friend.
"We talked last night about it happening soon, but I had no idea that this was her timetable. I know that she wanted to remove any hint of impropriety with our relationship and her overseeing our team. I know that she genuinely cares for every one of us, but she was willing to sacrifice that comfort to make things look better. And she really wants to make certain that things between us are good, especially now that she and Alex have reconciled. She doesn't like there being such anger between us."
"I don't like there being this anger between us. I know that you've been trying to help her get better, but it…"
Aaron broke off, and Dave frowned sadly as he waited for a few beats. When it looked like he wouldn't finish his thought, Dave decided to prod him a little. "But what, Hotch?"
"It seemed like you were going to forget about us all when you and Penelope turned your focus on her. I wish that I could take back the harsh things that I said, because I was unnecessarily cruel to her and you. Do you think that she'll forgive me?"
"There's only one way to find out. Care to join me in her office?"
"Of course." Hotch's face relaxed a little, almost smiling as they rose to their feet and headed out of the bullpen. He nodded to Chief Cruz as they passed each other, and the man gave them a questioning smile in return. "We'll be back in a few minutes, Sir, and then we can go through introductions and the briefing." He nodded and then they were continuing on to Erin's office. Helen was behind her desk, typing away at her keyboard.
"Is she on a call?" Dave asked as she looked up at them, an apprehensive look on her face.
"No, she's free. Is everything all right?"
"It will be, Hotch just has something to say that should have been said weeks ago. Hopefully, I'll see you tonight when I pick Erin up to head home." She grinned as she nodded, gesturing towards the door. He crossed in a few long strides and entered the room, smiling softly when he saw that Erin was reading through a file, her reading glasses having slid to the end of her nose. "You look delicious, Topalina," he said before remembering that Aaron was at his side. She giggled and blushed as she sat up, pulling the glasses off her face as she looked at them both. "I'm just the page boy here, Aaron is the one that has something to say."
Erin nodded as she twirled her glasses around with her hand, her expression closing off as she focused her gaze on him. "Yes, Agent Hotchner?"
"I have a few apologies to make, Erin. I treated you quite badly when you were going through the worst time of your life, and even though I have experience with grief like that, I still treated you like you were scum. There's no excuse for my behavior, other than I was a jackass and unable to look past my own nose. The incident with Reid has colored my perception of those who deal with addiction, and I lashed out from a mistaken belief that you were struggling once more. And you were, just not in the way that I assumed. I'm sorry that I hurt you so deeply, and I'm sorry that I tried to ruin your reputation once more, after you fought so hard to rebuild it. I know that you won't be able to look at me the same way for a while, but I hope, for Dave's sake, that we can get back to some level of friendliness in the near future."
"That's all that I wanted to hear, Aaron. I know that it has weighed heavily on David's heart that you've been so angry with him. I'm tough, I can handle a little misplaced ire thrown my way, but you're David's best friend. For his sake, I am more than willing to rebuild this bridge between us that's fallen into disrepair. And I believe that having a new Section Chief for your team will help with that endeavor." Erin's smile wobbled a little as she rose to her feet and stretched her hand out across the desk. Aaron hesitantly clasped it before they shook firmly, and Dave couldn't keep the grin off his face as he patted his friend on the back. "Now, if you want to wait for David for a moment, I need to speak with him in private."
"Of course, Erin."
There was a small twinkle in Aaron's eye as he moved past Dave and out into the outer office, leaving him alone with Erin. "Well?"
"I know I should have told you that this was the plan, but everything snowballed after I emailed Director Shepherd last night. I don't think I'll be seeing you tonight, as I took a look at the case you'll be working on, but I am looking forward to you being home. So, before I send you off to that briefing, lean in." He did as told, and then Erin closed the distance between them, brushing her lips against his as they sighed in unison. "I love you, and I will pray for your safety while you're out in the field. Give my love to Penelope."
"I will, Erin," he murmured in reply before kissing her once more and then leaving the office to join his best friend, looking forward to the briefing and then to the time when he could be home with Erin once more.