"Fear doesn't prevent death,
it prevents life."
[Naguib Mahfouz]

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Emily asked, surprised to see JJ standing outside her apartment.
"I came bringing gifts! Some groceries - so you don't eat take out each meal - and some stuff to help you pass the time," the blonde woman said, shrugging and smiling to her recovering boss "Mainly books, Reid suggested to me some of them."
"Ah, you're upgrading my forced homestay, thank you. Please, come in, make yourself home as always," Emily walked away from the door with the help of her crutches and made herself comfortable on the couch, followed by her friend. Three days had passed since she was discharged from the hospital but still got tired quickly if standing on her bad leg for too long, especially after a rehabilitation session. "What are you doing here in DC? The case we got called up this morning is in Tulsa, isn't it?", she took the case files that were on the coffee table, "I was just about to read all the details Garcia sent me."
"Actually, I'm not working on this case with the others," JJ nervously tucked a lock of her blonde hair behind her right ear "I took 14 days off."
Emily's eyes opened wide as she closed the file and put it down on the couch, "SSA Jennifer Jereau took 14 days off work on her own initiative! What? Is the world ending?"
JJ chuckled as she sat on the armchair across Emily, "I just thought I needed a break, I'll help them with paperwork when they'll be back since you're still on home rest. Besides, next week is Henry's birthday and he will be happy to have me all day long, without any phone ringing interrupting us. Also, there's this friend of mine who's recovering from a gunshot and she could use some help."
"Oh, really? Does this friend happen to also be your boss? Does she have to worry about this leave of absence by any chance?" Emily questioned playfully, already worried but trying to keep a light atmosphere.
"She is indeed my boss, she is the best boss ever to be honest. And no, she doesn't need to worry, I'm good." JJ smiled at Emily, happy to see that she looked better day after day.
Emily, on the other side, was not that happy; something was bugging her since that morning. A memory, or most likely a dream, had surfed that night and now she could not think of anything else. Yes, it was just a dream she was repeating to herself since she got up. And yet, it was so vivid.
"Planet Earth calling Agent Prentiss, are you there?" JJ waved her hand in the air, trying to get Emily's attention back. Emily smiled at her, "Sorry, I'm here. What did you say?"
"Nothing important, where did you go right there?" the blonde asked, sensing something was off.
"Ah, never mind it's just a dream…" she trailed off and quickly thought what to say to change the subject, "So, what's the plan for Henry's birthday?"
"Changing subject, uh? Alright, just know I'm here if you want to talk about it," JJ smiled and waited a while before speaking again, "Anyhow, I'm taking Henry and his best friend to the amusement park that's just outside the city. He said he-" she was interrupted by Emily who clearly had something else in her head that she had to say. "Did you say something to me after I got shot? Before the EMTs got in?" Emily finally got the courage to ask that.
"What do you mean? I said to you a lot of things, I tried to keep you awake but you lost consciousness almost immediately. I don't remember what I said…'' the blonde trailed off. If she was to be honest, she did remember the exact words she had said but it was impossible for Emily to remember, she was already unconscious.
"Oh, it's just that I-" the two women glanced at each other for a few seconds, before Emily cleared her throat and awkwardly looked away, "Never mind, I must have dreamed it."
The awkward silence lasted a minute too long and made the two agents uncomfortable; they both knew there was something the other wasn't saying, maybe out of fear to lose each other. JJ eventually got up from where she was seated and spoke first "I gotta go picking up Henry from soccer practice, you take care okay? And call me if you need anything, seriously." She gave a kiss on the cheek to Emily and got out of that apartment a little too fast, not giving Emily time to even say a "Thank you, bye," that the brunette muttered to herself anyway.
JJ rushed out of the building and into her car, dropping her head on the steering wheel. Why? Why am I acting like that for God's sake? Why can't I bury my feelings about Emily like always? Why am I crying in my car, unable to move? Why am I stuck in my head? Why am I so afraid? Why do I feel something is missing in my life?
The sound of an ambulance siren in the distance snapped JJ out of her thoughts; she wiped away the tears and started the engine, finally driving away.

That moment of hesitation in JJ's moves wasn't missed by Emily who was watching her friend's car from her apartment's window; what's wrong with Jennifer? Gosh, what's wrong with me? Is my life-lasting crush on my best friend coming to the surface again? I mean, I did hear Jennifer say that "I love you", but what if it all happened in my head? And even if it was real, she surely meant that in a friendly way. Yes, Emily sentenced in her head, Jennifer is straight, we are best friends and I'm also her boss! She didn't mean to say that in a romantic way so just stop it. Stop it.
Emily forced herself to stop thinking about Jennifer and those words, to stop thinking about Jennifer's body and how it would look like a magnificent statue from an Italian museum when she was naked, with her golden curls framing that beautiful face and falling down up to her chest, covering her breasts just enough to - gosh, I said stop it. Picturing your friend and coworker naked, what am I thinking.
Well, one thing was saying to stop and another one was actually to stop the flow of thoughts that was clouding her mind and judgment; she could not afford that, she was Unit Chief of the BAU, she was supposed to be objective, clear-minded and professional. What would the FBI's Director do if only they knew what was in Agent Prentiss' mind?
Yet it was difficult to not fall again into the dangerous territory of her feelings for JJ since she was stuck in an empty apartment for at least another two weeks, alone with her thoughts.
Okay, I must do something to distract myself. With this latest statement, Emily opened again the file of the current case and tapped a few buttons on her cellphone. "Good afternoon EP, second of her name, empress of the BAU and supreme mother of all girl's nights, what can I do for you?"
As always, Garcia's manners made Emily roll her eyes but also curl her lips in a smile, "My Penelope, why don't you fill me in on the case?"

A/N - Ciao Belli, I'm back! Hope you enjoyed this chapter
even if it's a transition one, a bit of a filler!
Reviews and suggestions always appreciated!