Erin's heart had been in her throat from the moment she had heard about the unsub committing suicide in front of Alex and the rest of the team. And she knew that she had to reach out once more, to try and comfort her when they returned, even if she would be rebuffed once more. Still, she had to try. Even if Penelope and Jessica would say that it was madness. Finally, she received notice from David that the team had just entered the building, and she knew that it was her time to move into place, and gently tease the team as they entered the bullpen.

Smoothing her skirt, Erin made her way over to that room and took a seat on a currently empty desk, hoping the agent who was using it wouldn't mind her commandeering it for a few minutes. She heard, rather than saw, her husband first as the team left the elevator, and she got to her feet and moved into their line of vision as everyone stopped and stared at her in dismay. "I knew that I should have told the rest of you to head right home," David said, giving her a quick wink.

"Does this mean that we're heading out on another case already?" Agent Morgan looked so exhausted at that thought, and Erin suddenly realized that he was probably dealing with major jetlag, on top of the stress of this case.

She shook her head, a light smile curving her lips upwards in an effort to let them know that everything was going to be all right. "No, every last one of you deserve to spend at least one night in your own bed. Go home, rest, recharge, and I will see you back here in the morning."

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Agent Jareau gave her a quick grin before grabbing Doctor Reid's hand and fairly dragging him from the bullpen, Agent Morgan hot on their heels. David gave her another wink before following Aaron up to their offices, which left her alone with Alex. That was precisely what she wanted, but faced with her stony expression, Erin wondered if that had been a smart desire to have.

"I heard about what happened in front of you in Texas. I'm so sorry, you shouldn't have had to go through a situation like that."

"It's part of the job, Erin. But why do you care?"

She drew in a deep breath as she pursed her lips together in an effort to keep from crying. "I care because I still consider you my friend, even if you think that I am nothing more than a piece of gum on the bottom of your shoe. I don't want to think of you as hurting. And I really just want to support you."

"That is rich coming from you, Erin. You're the one who cut my rope on me, allowing me to fall while you continued to rise through the ranks of the BAU. Remember, I want nothing to do with you."

Alex brushed past her, close enough to where Erin could breathe in the scent of her perfume. And in that moment, she knew that no matter what Alex tried to say, Erin was still a part of her life, as the scent she was wearing was the one that she had given her once upon a time, when they were still close. That was the moment that she felt her throat begin to close a little with unshed tears, and she knew that she would never make it back to her office before breaking down completely, so she drew in as deep a breath as she could before heading up the stairs with as measured steps as she could muster, heading straight for David's office.

Without bothering to knock, she barreled right into the room, closing the door with a dull thud before leaning back against it in order to try and get control of her emotions once more. Vaguely, she could hear her husband calling her by name and nickname, but she couldn't find it in her to respond to him just yet as she pressed her hand against her face as the first sob tore from her throat. Moments later, she felt him come up in front of her and Erin leaned against his chest as she cried silently, her shoulders shaking. "Stellina, what's wrong?" he murmured in her ear as he gently guided her over to his sofa, pulling her down onto it before pressing her head back against his chest as he rubbed her arm in slow, gentle, strokes.

"I, I, I tried to reach out to Alex again, since I know that this case had to have affected her. I was expecting a curt response, but she totally froze me out, and said that she wanted nothing to do with me. I just…I thought it would be easier to make amends with her, but if she won't even talk to me, there's no possibility of that happening, is there? Oh, god, darling, this hurts so much worse than I ever thought it possibly could."

She curled her hand into the fabric of his shirt as she began to cry harder once more, barely able to acknowledge the feel of his lips brushing against the crown of her head. "You have to give her time, Erin. You aren't listening to the advice that Jessica and Penelope gave you, because your heart just wants to jump into something with her. You won't get the closure that you want if you keep pushing at things, because that will just cause Alex to go running as far away from you as quickly as possible. Please, Erin, for your own heart, give her space to breathe."

"I was going to, until the end of this case!"

He chucked her chin softly before pulling away from her so that he could look into her eyes. "So you need better impulse control. This is a new side to you, Erin."

"When it comes to Alex, my heart doesn't have control. I think that's because I know that I did treat her so badly, and since I've been with you, and we've had our children, I just want to be a better person for them. I want them to be proud of me and what I've done to make up for the sins of my past. Is that stupid?"

"No, Erin, that is not stupid, you just need to protect your newly tender heart a little better." She nodded as she leaned up and pressed her lips against his in a tender kiss. It was so nice to feel him smile against her lips, and so she allowed him to press her back onto the sofa, his hand slipping beneath her blouse in order to slide up her torso and cup a breast. This was the farthest she had ever allowed him to go while they were still at work, but it felt right in that moment, and she let out a little mewl of pleasure as he used the lacy fabric of her bra to tease her nipple into a stiff, aching, peak. "Do you want to take this farther, Erin?" he asked as he broke the kiss, and she panted a little as she shook her head.

"No, I want you to take me home and finish this. I want to forget about my mistakes this evening. I love you."

"I love you, too," he replied before giving her another, softer, kiss as he removed his hand from her breast before helping her to her feet and then righting her clothes and hair. "Now, let's get you home so that I can love on you, and maybe make your heart feel a little lighter." Nodding, she clasped his hand tightly as he guided her from the office, knowing that he was the only one who could heal her at this moment.