"I'll see everyone tomorrow at ten!" Aaron called out as he disappeared into his office. It was still early enough in the day where he didn't feel comfortable heading right out, but he knew that he wanted to get over to see Erin before the day grew too late. After finishing his paperwork, he set it in a neat pile before packing up his bag and slipping out into the bullpen once more. As he looked over the desks, he could see that no one was truly paying attention to him. Smirking a little, he made his way down to the elevators and pressed the down button. Thankfully, a car arrived sooner than expected, and he stepped into it before pressing the button for the ground floor.

After getting into his car, Aaron tossed his bag into the passenger seat before pulling out into traffic and heading to the little flower shop that he had noticed on his way to the rehab facility. It was near closing time, so he hoped that he would be able to have something lovely made for Erin in the time that he had left. "May I help you?"

He looked up at the older woman and nodded. "I need a pretty bouquet to take to a friend in rehab."

"Oh, was she in an accident?"

Aaron nodded, thinking the small lie better than having this woman unknowingly judge Erin without comprehending the situation. "She's recovering, yes, and I would like something frivolous, in the best possible way. I'm not that concerned about price, though I'd like to keep it below a hundred, if possible."

"I think that I can pull together something lovely and whimsical for around sixty dollars. Do you have a colour scheme in mind?"

He gave the woman another nod. "Pinks, she prefers pinks. The softer, the better, with perhaps a few of those light purple roses included, too?" he replied as he gestured towards the refrigerated case behind her.

"I can work with that. Our card selection is along that wall, in case you want to include one."

The woman stepped away into the back of the shop, and once she was gone, Aaron ambled over to the card wall, taking a look at what was available. There weren't really any that caught his eye, and he hoped that Erin wouldn't mind not receiving a card. Ten minutes passed in a flash as he continued to look at everything that was available to purchase, and a small part of his brain wondered if he shouldn't be getting Erin a plant for her room, since she preferred bonsai or succulents in her office.

"All right, we're all set."

His head turned in the direction of the woman's soft voice, and he smiled as he approached the till, letting out a small sigh of pleasure as he took in the bouquet in the woman's hand. There was an elegant pastel blue ribbon tied around the stems to hold them together, and the blooms reminded him strongly of cotton candy. "This is perfect."

"That is what a florist loves to hear." The older woman gave him a gentle smile as he checked out, and then Aaron was headed off into the night once more, the bouquet resting on top of his bag as he completed his journey to the facility.

"You're here late, Aaron."

He looked up to see Lauren grinning at him, and he gave her an almost embarrassed shrug. "This case took longer than expected. I know that it's a lot to ask, but do you think that I could visit with Erin for a little while?"

She nodded as she gestured towards the large meeting room. "I'll send her down to you, if you want to make yourself comfortable in front of the fire."

Aaron gave her a small dip of his chin before making his way over to the sofa in front of the fireplace, relieved that it was free. Then again, he was later than normal visiting hours, so it made sense that no one would be there. As he settled into the sofa, listening to the comforting crackle of the fire, he thought about what they might talk about while he was there. He knew that he would have to let Erin lead the conversation, since this was a surprise for her, but Aaron hoped that they could find an easy conversation to fall into.

"This is a surprise."

He looked up at the soft sound of her voice, giving her a welcoming smile as he gestured with his head to the spot next to him. She nodded and took a seat before he handed over the bouquet, watching as she buried her face in the blooms and breathed in deeply. As he continued to look at her, he couldn't help but notice that she had started to cry, though he knew enough not to mention the tears, since she was still such a private person when it came to her feelings and reactions. "You sounded like you needed to see a friendly face when we last spoke, and since I'm so late, Jack will stay at Jessica's tonight, too. Or am I intruding?"

Erin glanced up at him, the combination of her tears and the firelight making her eyes sparkle a little, and shook her head almost imperceptibly. "No, I'm so glad that you're here. I have been lonely this past week for some reason, even as I've tried to speak up more in our group sessions, or with my counselor. I just can't seem to find the right words."

She scooted a little closer to him, holding the bouquet tightly to her chest as she allowed her head to rest on his upper arm. This spontaneous gesture took him by surprise, and Aaron tried not to stiffen in shock, as he didn't want her to feel like he didn't want her to do such things as she felt led. "Sometimes there are no right words to say that will adequately describe what our heart is feeling. And loneliness is one of those indescribable emotions, because it's different for all of us. Would you like to try and share your heart with me?"

"I'll try. Karen did get back to me, finally, and said that she understood how fragile I was, but that she was also fragile, too, and I couldn't let my fragility impact our relationship. That stung, but I tried to be understanding. Though that conversation only led me to feel more apart from everyone. Like I was stuck on a piece of ice that had broken away from the main sheet and was slowly drifting away from where anyone could reach me. Will you, that is, do you think you could throw me a lifeline?"

Her voice had quieted to a whisper by the last word of her sentence, and he nodded as he slipped an arm around her shoulders, allowing her to move her head to his chest as she contorted her body into a more comfortable position. "Yes," he replied just as quietly as he began to rub her shoulder softly. "I'm glad that I came here this evening, that I listened to my instincts."

"You have good instincts, Aaron. And I appreciate the fact that you do care enough about me to visit here, even though I've never done anything to warrant such kindness."

"Perhaps that's why I started to visit. Everyone needs compassion, and while I don't know your personal struggle, I know what it feels like to struggle. And I know that Gideon was there for Reid when he was going through his struggle as well. So if I get to be with you on this journey, even if it is in much different circumstances, it is a great good thing."

Erin lifted her face so that she could look into his eyes, giving him the softest, most open, look, and he couldn't resist leaning down and brushing his lips over hers in a gentle kiss. "I would hope that Jason never kissed Doctor Reid, since that would be a little questionable. Not because being gay is questionable, Tabitha's a lesbian, but because there was such a power imbalance between the two of them, since Jason was his mentor when he joined the BAU."

Aaron chuckled as nodded. "I know what you meant, Erin. Now, tell me a little more about Tabitha, and how you came to be so comfortable with who she is."

"All right," she replied as she rested the bouquet on the table in front of them before curling her hand in the fabric of his shirt as she started to tell him a little more about her youngest daughter, letting him in to her private life with every word she spoke.