A/N: A nice, short and sweet chapter this week. Takes place between 5x01 - 5x02 for your reference :)

"Missing someone is your hearts way of reminding you that you love him." - Unknown

July 2009

Walking back through those glass doors brought Emily back to her first day of high school.

The walls were still the same light grey. Dishes untouched in the kitchen sink. The hustle and bustle that naturally coupled with the unit had yet to sleep; phones rung off the hook, and subordinates trampled around the room carrying odd documents. Yet, she couldn't help but feel like everything had changed. Like that feeling of growing older had taken the magic that came along with childhood.

Emily met Morgan in the kitchen as she usually did each morning, stirring up his first or second coffee for the day. He seemed tired even after two weeks off. It didn't surprise Emily, especially considering the emotional damage Foyet had inflicted upon the poor guy. Nobody really brought it up, but it was always in their minds that Derek could have died in one second if he hadn't blacked out that night months ago. And after what happened to Hotch, it made sense for that trauma to surface again.

"How's Hotch?" Morgan asked, genuine concern in his tone. Emily could only shrug as she grabbed a mug from the cabinet and scooped coffee in.

"Putting on a brave face," she whispered, not wanting to draw any attention to other passers-by. "I knew this would be no easy journey, but it's… It's hard. Not knowing how to help him or not even knowing when or if it will end."

"He's been to see a therapist?"

"Yeah… Who in the hell even knows how that will turn out. He went for his first session yesterday, and apparently, she just chucked him a diary and told him to come back in two weeks."

Morgan nodded with a quick quip of the eyebrow as he sipped out his mug. "Sounds like a phony."

"I don't know. Everyone says she's reputable. I think it's more the fact Hotch isn't ready to talk about it. After what he's been through, do you blame him?" Emily asked rhetorically, beginning to walk to her desk.

"That son of a bitch really knows how to fuck things up for people," Morgan muttered irately under his breath as he followed the brunette. "I feel so sorry for him, Prentiss. I really do. It's one thing to make it personal, but to involve Jack and Haley too." Emily watched as Morgan grit his teeth together. "That's crossing the line."

"I know. Me too."

2 long hours later, after meeting with Strauss to discuss the schedule and arrangements for the two weeks until Hotch returned, the team wasted no time getting stuck into their heavy caseload that had only seemed to build in their absence.

It wasn't until pictures of their crime scenes materialised on the screen that Emily realised how tranquil it had felt staying away for a couple weeks. She didn't expect the shock of suddenly being thrown back into the gore, mutilation and tragedy. It'd take a few days to get back into their usual rhythm. Maybe longer, given that Hotch was away.

The bodies of six men dumped in a river over three weeks had the team on their way to Southern Texas. From what they could profile, the unsub seemed textbook for these murders, overwhelming rage and similar physical victimology. The question of how these people were being targeted was another process. Garcia hadn't been able to find connections between the victims, but she was working on it.

After landing in Austin, Dave took Emily and started making their way to the latest victim's parent's home. They all hated making house calls, especially to the families who had lost so much. Prentiss equated it to pouring salt on their already bleeding wounds. But it had to be done.

"I never got the chance this morning to ask how you're doing?"

Lost in dreamland, the question took Emily by surprise. She sighed tiredly, biting the inside of her cheek. "I'm alright. Thank you for asking."

"Weird, isn't it? Not having him around."

"I mean… You could argue that it's peaceful too."

The comment made Rossi chuckle. "So, after spending two weeks living with him, you've had a taste of what it would be like moved in together."

Expecting there to be more, Prentiss shot the Italian a look. "And?"

"Well, you haven't killed each other."

"True." Emily half-smirked, distracting herself by skimming through the file on her lap.

"Do you wanna chat about it?"

"I…" She shrugged, breathing a heavy sigh as she fixed her gaze out the window. "I just never imagined that everything would get to this point. Where an unsub literally comes back for you and your family and endangers them. It's not supposed to happen."

Out of the corner of his eye, Rossi smiled sadly at her. "We never like to admit it, but we all sign up for that risk the day we join the bureau."

"Yeah." She paused, glancing out the window. "He's so broken, Rossi." She meant to say it with strength. Instead, it came out as a weak whisper. "He's only just starting to accept life after Haley. And now this. You gotta wonder what some people do to deserve all the heartache they receive."

"It's always good people," Rossi added, glancing down at the GPS.

"Somebody should change that."

"You know you can't fix him, Emily."

Prentiss was quick to retort, "in no way, shape, or form am I trying to."

"You went to Brian Ulrich's presentation on trauma response a few weeks ago, right?"

"I uh… Couldn't make it. Spencer gave me a line-by-line script when I came in the next day. Don't ask me to regurgitate it again."

"He explained how the brain shuts down after traumatic events. There are the advocates. People who share their experiences publicly and raise awareness in the hopes of preventing it from happening again. Then there are the bottlers, self-explanatory. Some go on to be counsellors, helping those who have gone through similar experiences. And finally, there are the people who haven't been harmed a scratch. Physically and psychologically."

"What name did they give to those people? The immortals?"

"Some psychiatrists have even suggested victims of PTSD who can't remember a single memory relating to their accident manifest trauma in the physical body. They believe cancers and diseases arise because of this. Whether you believe that Jargon or not, up to you."

Emily nodded. "Well, I wouldn't jump down their throats right away. The mind and body aren't as separate as what people have been brainwashed to believe. If there's one thing I've learnt in this job, the brain is the most perplexing organ to try and understand."

"My point is, Hotch has always been a bottler. And bottlers bury everything because it's the only way they know how to survive. People like Hotch don't want the world to pry things out of the bottle so soon. In a way, his trauma is keeping him all held together. And once he is ready to release it, everything will come loose, and he'll open up. All we can do is be there for him when it happens."

Staring off into space, the brunette silently nodded in agreement. "Is that really the best thing for him, though? I hate to say it, but as long as Foyet stays underground, we have no idea how long Jack and Haley will have to be kept away. It's not healthy whether he holds on to the trauma for a few days or months."

Pulling up to the house, Rossi parked the car and killed the engine before turning to Prentiss. "The thing that matters is that Jack and Haley are safe. If anything, the pain that's giving Hotch is motivating him to find the bastard. You have to trust he'll work his way through it, Emily. Just being there is enough for him."

She nodded, holding onto the files tightly in her lap. "Yeah… I just wish it was easier. For all of us."

"I get ya," Rossi answered, patting her on the shoulder. "Come on, lets get this show on the road and find this unsub."