Pulling on her coat, JJ shivered from the cold weather. She was waiting in line inside the coffee shop. Emily hadn't come yet. Hopefully, she was coming. JJ's thought process began to run. What if Emily changed her mind? What if she's resenting JJ now because she put her at arm's length? What if–

"Hey," Emily's voice cut through her thoughts, politely smiling at the other woman. "Sorry, I'm late. No excuses, I promise."

"No, you're good." JJ gave a nervous smile back, gesturing at the menu near the front counter. "I haven't ordered anything yet. Choose whatever you want, my treat."

Emily nodded, adjusting her own coat around her. "Um, the same as always, just decaf."

JJ raised an eyebrow in confusion. Emily usually liked caffeine. "Decaf?"

"I quit caffeine," Emily quietly admitted. "It helps me stay more focused at work."

JJ gave a small sympathetic nod. The woman at the counter waved and greeted JJ next in line. JJ gave her their orders, and waited to pick them up. After grabbing their drinks, they decided to sit outside of the coffee shop.

Each woman didn't know what to say or who was going to speak up first. Emily sipped on her coffee, while JJ nervously tapped her fingers on the side of her cup. Chewing on her lower lip, JJ finally caved in and began to speak.

"What did you want to-"

"I'm sorry-"

They both started simultaneously before Emily gestured for her to talk. "Go ahead."

Giving a small smile, JJ nodded. "I just wanted to say, I'm sorry. I acted like a jerk since you came back, and you don't deserve that."

Emily shook her head and waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, no. Don't apologize for that. Look, I'm sorry, JJ. I didn't mean to hurt you, and I'm sorry that I did. I wanted to tell you what was going on, I swear, but I couldn't risk you getting hurt. You're– you mean a lot to me, JJ," Emily said, whispering the last part.

JJ nodded in understanding. "I know. Emily, I was scared. I don't know what I would do without you in my life. I know you did all of this for Declan. You wanted to keep him safe, protect him, I understand that. I'll admit, I was hurt that you shut me out, but you did what was best for Declan. You did what was best for the ones you cared about, and that's what you did for the team. And Henry, too."

She gave some thought into what Emily had done, what she had to sacrifice in order to keep everyone away from harm. Though dangerous, it was an admirable thing Emily had done, and JJ was starting to realize that now.

"Henry missed you," JJ whispered, causing Emily to look up. "He'd always pretend you were there playing with him."

Close to tears, Emily smiled. "I missed him, too. I missed the both of you so much."

"I read the letter you wrote," JJ said, barely meeting her eyes as if she could see right through the blonde. "And everything you gave me in that box, I kept it all. Just couldn't bear the thought of not having a piece of you somehow."

Emily nodded, suddenly becoming shy and putting her hands inside her coat pockets. "Um, this might sound crazy, but I listened to your voicemail when I was in hiding," she shyly admitted.

JJ let out a soft chuckle, and her cheeks colored lightly at the thought. "If it's any consolation, sometimes, I'd sleep in the sweaters you gave me in that box."

"Sounds like you've done a lot better than I have," Emily said, starting to smile when she saw JJ do the same. The tension between them began to break, and the two women felt that things might be looking up, for now, at least.

JJ scratched her head and took a deep breath. "Look, I really want to catch up with you on everything that's happened. I know things haven't exactly been… right between us."

Emily quietly agreed with her. "I want that, too, but I don't know where to begin. There's so much to talk about, and I feel really bad about shutting you out before. I don't want that anymore. I just want for us to be okay, and I promise to tell you what's happening, if something's troubling me."

JJ shook her head, wanting for Emily to take a second to breathe. "Emily, stop that."

"No, I want to do this," Emily continued, cutting her off. "I want to make sure everything's-"

"Emily, stop," JJ firmly said, and the other woman finally stopped, looking at her in confusion. "Look, I want for us to be okay, too, but it's going to drive you crazy if you're focused on what I want. Yes, I want to be there and understand how you feel and what you did, but I hate seeing you hide from me when something's bothering you. Don't ever feel like you have to do things just because people expect you to. That's not what I want. What I want is for you to let me in."

She reached over the table and grabbed Emily's hand, which was already resting on top of the table. "I want to see the real Emily Prentiss," she whispered. "No guards, no walls built up. Just you."

Emily looked down at their hands, and saw JJ's thumb rubbing her knuckles. It was a thing that the blonde always did whenever she saw Emily having an inner battle with herself. It always calmed Emily down, which was what JJ figured she needed to let her know she was good.

Emily felt herself being brought to tears again. She hadn't expected this type of response — or care — from anyone, especially not after what happened in the last seven months. This made her appreciate JJ even more, despite everything. "I don't know what to say."

JJ gave a small smile. "You don't have to say anything."

Emily nodded and returned the smile. "Thank you."

Everything grew silent between them, and they took in each other's words and their presence. Emily noticed that JJ hadn't retreated her hand back. Instead, she was holding her hand across the table and still rubbing her knuckles with a thumb. She felt her heart begin to swell with emotions she can't begin to explain, but she knew they had to be good and positive ones.

A/N: Next chapter will be focusing more on Emily and Henry.