Disclaimer - All recognisable characters belong to their original owners. I do not make a profit from writing this; I simply do it for my own amusement. No copyright infringement intended.

WARNING: Minor character death.

Don't Leave

They were having breakfast at his place. Luke had it all thought out. He would state the case as to why she should live with him. He had his points clear in his head; first of all, they spent a lot of time together already, he was at hers or she was over here, they may as well move in together; second, his place was closer to work (only marginally but he'd take whatever he could at this point); third … he really liked her.

"So… Chica," he began, swallowing a mouthful of coffee. "I was thinking about the other day… when you were late for work…"

Her green eyes were bright as she looked at him.

"Well…" He cleared his throat.

And then the doorbell rung.

Luke's brow furrowed as Roxy went to the door and started barking.

Then a separate bark sounded from the other side of the door and Luke knew exactly who was intruding on his morning.

"Phil!" he greeted as he opened up the door and Roxy ran out to greet Lou, the two dogs jumping with excitement.

"Hey man, we thought you could use some moral support." Phil stepped to the side - yes, stepped, since getting Lou his progress has increased and he was now well enough to walk, albeit with a cane - and revealed Lisa stood there, holding some bags.

"I've got coffee and bagels."

Luke felt himself panic because this was not how this morning was supposed to go.

"What?" Phil asked.

Lisa turned and Luke realised she recognised Penelope's car from the night of their date. "She's here?" Her eyes went wide and Luke could see excitement cross her face.

"Yes… I was going to do the thing…"

Realisation dawned on Lisa's face but Phil just snorted.

"You can do it later, I want to chat with Penelope Garcia."

Luke's protests when unheard as Phil pushed past him and into the house, Lou and Roxy following him. Lisa gave him a sympathetic smile and a quick pat to his arm before she followed.

Fifteen minutes later and they were all seated around the breakfast table, Luke's heart fluttering in his chest.

Roxy and Lou ran past and into the garden which made Penelope smile.

"I'm so glad we managed to find her a home," she told Lisa and Phil.

"She's great," Phil said as he shifted in his seat to get a better look at Lou. "She's the reason I get up in the morning."

"Aww," Penelope fawned. "You should bring her around more often, it's clear that Roxy likes her."

All four of them watched as the dogs ran and jumped in the garden, their lithe bodies twisting as they shot from one end to the other.

"Will you be here?" Phil asked causing Luke to choke on the sip of coffee he had taken.

"Um… I don't know…" Penelope trailed off as she looked at Luke.

"I think what Phil meant to say, was do you think we could have breakfast together again?" Lisa asked.

Luke sent up a silent prayer that she was here.

He looked at Penelope's face, clearly she wasn't buying what Lisa had said but she was too polite to say otherwise.

"Yeah." Penelope smiled. "I'd like that." She gave Luke a shy smile before looking down at her plate.

Luke sent a glare at Phil's way but his friend just shook his head and chuckled.

The conversation flowed easily for the next twenty minutes until both Penelope and Luke's phones went off at the exact same time.

They shared a look.

"We've gotta go," Luke said.

Phil and Lisa both ushered them out the door, promising to clean up breakfast and get Roxy all settled before they left.

Penelope and Luke each took their own cars to the BAU with Penelope driving around the block just so they wouldn't arrive at the same time.

When they were all seated in the conference room, Penelope walked in, tablet in hand. She let her hand lightly touch Luke's shoulder before she went to the front of the room.

Luke looked down and smiled.


If somebody had told him that this morning would be the last time he would have seen Phil, Luke would have laughed.

Penelope's hand ran through his hair as the other one gently stroked the skin on his chest under his t-shirt.

He was resting against her, his whole body sagged against hers on the couch. His eyes were blurry and he had been staring at the same spot for… God knows how long.

Penelope was silent. She had been since he, her and Lou had returned to his home. Even Roxy had sensed something and hadn't been her usual exuberant self. She, along with Roxy, had settled on the floor.

Penelope had her head rested against Luke's and every now and then she would press a kiss to his temple.

"I'm here," she whispered to him. "I'm right here."

He threaded his fingers through her and turned his head slightly.

"Don't leave," he whispered. "Please don't leave."

Her arms tightened around him and in a soft voice she told him, "I'm not going anywhere."

His vision blurred even more until tears fell down his cheeks and sobs rocked his body so hard he couldn't breathe.

But Penelope kept her word. She didn't leave.

Kind of a heavy one but necessary. I hope you're all doing well.