A.N.- Hey! I hope you like it! Thanks for all the love on my story! You're all freaking fantastic! I was in mourning over losing Hotchner on CM last month, and I don't know if i can handle watching it without him. He may had done wrong but CM isn't CM without him. I am still hoping for a miracle, though! Happy reading! Love you all!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything... if i did I wouldn't have FIRED Aaron Hotchner like an animal!


What Could've Been

Chapter Five

"So what now? How long am I looking at?" She tried to keep her voice calm and collected, but it was as if she was standing in front of him on a cold winter's night.

"A long time. Twenty years, give or take if you don't take our deal."

"So, before you said you'd help me, right? Some type of deal, or something? How could you possibly help me? Why would you? I am a criminal."

Aaron scooted his chair closer, and leaned in. "If you reveal everything we ask of you, the deal is to come work for us. Here. With my team at Quantico. You'd be our Technical Analyst. Before you jump down my throat about 'pity' and 'feeling sorry for you', don't. We know how valuable your set of skills are in capturing the bad guys. They would have asked you with or without our history."

She couldn't speak. She didn't know what to say. Was he serious? Work for them? Work with him? This felt like special treatment, influence, and yet she knew he was honest about wanting her to work there. He never lied to her. Still, this was crazy. She had to be under the government's employ or be sent away to prison. Normally, this would be a no-brainer... however, working alongside an old love with a painful past every single day for the foreseeable future whom she never got closure from makes a girl tend to wonder if prison wouldn't be so bad after all.

Then it struck her. "You mean that they want to keep their enemies close, right? I mean, the government wants me here so they can keep a better eye on me, instead of getting out and repeating my mistakes."

Aaron smirked, and her body was humming with pain. Still, she kept her face blank. "See? You are already good at the job. Of course, that isn't what you'd be doing. You'd be working with us in collecting intel on the Unsubs we investigate. Please, Penelope, just think very carefully about this."

As he said that, he reached over and grabbed her fingers on the desk. The thrum of their connection sparked to life like it used to, and she couldn't get over how much she missed it. Her breath hitched, and he cleared his throat as he tightened her fingers for a moment before she slipped out of his hold. Too much. His touch was a drug, and she hadn't touched the stuff in years. She needed to break away to make sure she didn't find a way to slip out of her cuffs, yank on his tie and shove her tongue down his throat like the lady she wasn't.

She leaned back, and as she pretended to think, all the while she knew which choice to pick. She'd be an idiot to not take him up on their offer. Still... was she ready to be so close to him again? Could she work side by side with him, knowing his wife could show up or worse... their child? All she knew was that it would break her to see that. As much as she wanted him to be happy all these years, she couldn't bear to see it. Why wasn't their love enough? Why didn't they try harder?

How stupid was she to ever let this man go? Forever was within their grasp, if they weren't so blind. She wiped a tear, and looked down. "Deal."


They counted down the days until the Comic-Con convention in July, until they finally made it. They worked so hard, and spent so much time planning the trip they were in shock it was upon them. Penelope made a fake I.D. for all of them, since they were eighteen, not twenty one, and ordered the hotel rooms. Aaron and Sean covered the food and extra emergency money, along with fun money, covering souvenirs, costumes, and travel.

Everything was set. When they got on the plane, Aaron let Penelope have the window seat. "Thanks, baby. You can have it coming back." He nodded, and settled himself down. Sean was in the seat in front of Penelope, and he was vibrating with excitement, like a kid jacked up on Mountain Dew.

He couldn't wait to get there, and to be honest, they all couldn't. "So you haven't been in a plane before, Penelope?" Sean asked. From the time she had known the Hotchners', they had been on a few trips, and ones that Mr. Hotchner wouldn't go to. He would rather stay home, working than to have a modicum of fun. They asked Penelope to go to their trip to New York, once, but Penelope had to stay back because she got sick with a horrible flu.

"No. At least I don't remember." she said, her voice showing how nervous she was. She knew everything would be fine, but still...

"It's awesome. Here, take some gum. It'll help with your ears popping." he said as the plane began taking off. Sean handed her a piece of gum, and she stuck it in her mouth. It didn't help the nerves in her stomach at all, and she took deep breaths to ebb the need to vomit at bay. Aaron turned to her, and gave her a reassuring smile.

"We'll be there before you know it, sweetie. You can sleep if you want to." He lifted their entwined fingers, and kissed the top of her hand. She finally noticed it was in a death grip, and she let go sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Don't be. You are pretty adorable right now." She rolled her eyes at his small chuckle, and she rested her head into the crook of his neck.

It went fine, but Penelope had a hard time at first, getting her air-legs, or she supposed it was more air-wings then. After they were halfway there, she felt better. When they got to their hotel, it was bustling with people for the convention. People were already in their costumes, roaming the lobby, meeting people with similar interests.

They had two separate rooms, and Sean was disappointed his girlfriend and he broke up, but not devastated. She told the group that they were dumb to waste their money on a nerd-gathering, and that she wouldn't be caught dead being there. They were fine with her decision until she told Sean that she didn't like him going with Penelope without her being there. Needless to say, he dropped her off at the curb.

Penelope felt bad at the number of relationships she had cost him in their friendship. She could understand jealousy, but to be jealous when there was nothing warranted was just stupid. She was dating his brother for almost two years for crying out loud! Sean told her to pay no mind, and that if they can't deal then they are not worth his time. Women come and go, but his Penelope was forever. She loved that dork so much.

Their trip was a week long, and they had a million things they wanted to do. They saved every penny, and they were going to make the most out of the trip. They planned to sight-see San Diego all day, and some the next day. Comic-Con would start in a couple of days, which would give them plenty of time to see some tourist-y stuff before the real fun began. As they were in game-planning mode in the room on where to go next, Penelope fell asleep on the soft bed, listening to their soothing voices. Aaron and Sean didn't want to leave her, but she had been so exhausted, they would bring her a souvenir and a shirt from somewhere and take her another day. They left a note, and wrote their numbers down on a slip of paper so in case she felt up to coming, she could call and meet up.

Aaron unlocked the door with the card key, and was laughing to himself about Sean. It was great to have a day with just the two of them. They loved Penelope, but it was nice to talk just as brothers. Then again, ninety nine percent of their conversation was about Penelope or something she said so it was like she was there anyways. They missed her terribly, and couldn't wait to tell her how their day went. Aaron walked inside first, in case she was undressed before Sean entered.

"Hey honey! You get some good sleep? We went down to this boardwalk, and-" he stopped as he looked around. She wasn't there. Looking at the time, it was late, and he started to get worried. A knock rapped on the door, and Sean covered his eyes as he opened the door.

"Is she in your room, Sean?" He gave him a confused look and shook his head.

"I hope not, because I changed into my swim shorts without thinking about it. If she was there she probably got an eyeful." He laughed. Aaron didn't think it was funny. His girl was gone in a strange town and he was starting to panic. He couldn't think straight. He thought she would have called if she left the hotel...

Sean walked around, and saw a note by the phone. He picked it up, and read it. "Aaron... you may want to look at this."

He grabbed it, and it said: "Aaron- I'm outside for some fresh air. Meet me at the pier."

Aaron took a few deep breaths, and felt his heart settle for a minute. He knew he was overreacting, but he would never forgive himself if something ever happened to her.

"You better get down there. Maybe she wants to talk you into a couples' costume. I know she wanted to try. Be strong. Unless it's Han Solo and Princess Leia or Morticia and Gomez Adams."

Aaron raised an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms. "Morticia and Gomez?" Sean shrugged and smiled.

"That would be awesome! She brought it and everything. Imagine G. in that sexy dress! She would kill in it! So fucking hot. I saw it on her when she bought it. I know how good it looks."

Aaron narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. "Watch it."

"What can I say? Penelope is so fucking hot, man. Not that I have feelings for her, but you can't deny how sexy she is. You should see her when she lingerie shops."

Aaron threw his hands in the air, exasperated."Fuck, man. No wonder your girls always dump you because of her! Why the fuck are you with her shopping for something I rip off of her?" He knew there was nothing going on, but he basically said he got wood thinking of his girlfriend. Not okay.

Sean smiled confidently and stood up from the chair he was sitting on. "Easy, cowboy. We go so I can buy my girls something sexy, which she helps me with, and she tries hers on, hoping it enhances her smokin' body. I tell her if she looks hot or not." he stated simply, like it was the most normal thing in the world.

"You guys might need counseling. That's all I'm saying." He smirked as he walked to the door.

"You're welcome for that purple teddy, by the way!" Sean screamed out as the door shut behind him. He chuckled, and shook his head. Great, now he wanted to burn it. He loved that one too.

Walking down to the pier, it was a little chillier than it was when they first got back to the hotel. He had his sweater with him, and he pulled it on. He walked down, a little further, until he saw Penelope on a dock, wrapped in a shawl. He shoved his hands in his pockets, and walked up to her.

She smiled, but he knew it was her fake one. He hoped she wasn't mad at him for heading out without her. "Hey, Penelope! I was worried when you weren't up there."

She didn't say anything, but stared at the water. He didn't know what she wanted, so he scratched his stubble. "Did you want to go as Morticia?"

She looked at him, then, finally some true eye contact, and looked confused. "What?"

"Never mind. Something Sean said. You hungry?"

"No. Sean isn't waiting for us, is he?"

"Nah. He's heading down to the pool. He saw some girls head down there as we were coming up."

She nodded, and looked down. Her beautiful smile morphed into a grimace and she hugged the thin shawl tighter around her body. Oh yeah, she must be mad.

"Listen, I'm really sorry we went out without you, but you've been so tired and you were sleeping so peacefully so we decided to wait for your call. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings," he went off. He ignored her interjections, and even though he didn't regret it, he didn't want her to not enjoy herself.

"Aaron! No, I'm really happy you guys went out without me. I've been so tired, and that extra nap really helped, at first." She grimaced again, and patted the seat next to her.

He sat down, and he was close enough now to see the goose bumps covering her skin. "You cold? You want my sweater?" She protested, but he gave it to her anyway. He was cold, but he didn't want her to freeze. He had no idea how long she'd been there.

"Thanks."

"So... did you want to go swimming? Not here, because I want to keep my balls, but the pool seems warm enough." he laughed, but she didn't. Something was wrong.

"What's wrong? Do you want to go home?"

She shook her head, and when she closed her eyes, tears slipped onto his sweater she had on. "No. I don't want to go home." she said, trembling.

"Then what is it?"

She looked away from the black ocean, and into his eyes. "I'm pregnant."


Aaron's face went blank, and he turned the camera on. The red blinky light flashed in her eyes, and it was more nerve-wracking than before. Now she had to admit out loud what she had done. Taking a deep breath, he walked out for a second to retrieve some papers. She assumed details of her crimes as well as questions.

He organized them, and finally looked at her again. "Let's start at the beginning."

She told him everything she had done. Every illegal act she had committed, and even though she trusted him, she also knew she was telling an FBI agent all that she had done, and the fear that they would change their mind any moment and lock her up was in the forefront of her mind. She paused, to take a drink of water, and Aaron's business-like persona was starting to freak her out.

"So... we need to know more about that- your partner. Who is the King?" he sneered once again at the word and she could see how much it affected him.

"He wasn't a King, Aaron."

"We don't know what he is, so why don't you tell us." he snapped. It was clear that he was on edge, that he didn't like to talk about this any more than she did.

"He is-was my mentor. I learned a lot from him and I suppose I taught him a thing or two as well." Aaron's throat bobbed, and she noticed how tight he was clenching the pen in his hand.

"Well I need his name, and any information you have on him. I mean everything."

She turned her head away, and couldn't help but be nervous. This was her ex, about to explain her other person in her life, whether she wanted him in her life or not was beside the point. "I'm sure if you know me, you know him."

Aaron glared, and opened her file. "I want to hear you talk about him. I know he had everything pinned on you, and yet he is trying to protect you. I know that he tried hacking into our servers once you were apprehended. I know for him to go to that much trouble, he had to-" he stopped himself, and took a deep breath.

A tear slipped down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. She didn't want to cry about Shane. It wasn't even him she was crying about. It was a tear for herself, that she had to explain him, them together. It was something she had never any intention to do with Aaron.

Looking down, she stared at the gleam of florescent light on the metal desk and thought about what she could possibly say. What was the point in talking about him? He was a criminal, same as her and an artist with a keyboard. He was passionate, but only in his work. It was one of the things she admired about him.

Clearing her throat, she scanned her eyes around until she saw her reflection in the mirror. She could hardly recognize herself. "His name is Shane Wyeth. He is-was my mentor. I met him face to face about five years ago. Before that we corresponded for almost twelve years, I think in total now. Talking on webcams, messaging and calls."

Aaron froze, and looked up at her slowly. "What? Why didn't I know about him before?"

Penelope shrugged, and played it off like it was nothing, but inside she felt a pang of guilt for a moment before she realized she had nothing to feel guilty about. "You didn't know about him because it was nothing more than admiring each other's work. I remember I used to tell you that someone told me I had real talent, remember?"

As Aaron thought back to that dark time, she couldn't help but feel angry. "Whatever Aaron. I don't care if you remember or not. It's not like you took the time to ask me about my life around then anyways."

Aaron's eyes darkened, but he didn't say anything. So she went on. "He admired my work, and it spiraled into a competitive friendship. We had bouts of no communication for years, when I hit my all time low five years after-" her voice caught, and she felt a cold shiver run down her spine.

"We talked. It morphed into more. I was and am a criminal."

Aaron's eyes darkened, and as he looked at her, she swore they had a menacing edge to them. "What do you mean by 'more'?"


She bit her lip, and fresh tears rolled down. How she wished she could change this. This was never what she wanted for her own life, for his. She always dreamed about carrying his child, to have a whole van full of kids with the man in front of her, but not while they were in college. Eighteen, pregnant and still had another two years of school to finish at the minimum for her, more for Aaron.

"I don't understand. We were careful, right?" he asked vacantly.

She nodded, and cried into her hands. "We were! I'm so sorry."

His eyes were as stoic as they ever were when something bad happens. She had forgotten what they looked like, it had been so long since she'd seen those eyes. Vacant, cold, completely unreadable. Since they'd left the Hotchner's, his eyes had been so relaxed and happy. It was so amazing to see such a transformation in such a short amount of time in the car when they went on their road trip and ever since then. "Well, if we were careful, maybe you are wrong. Sometimes those tests can be wrong."

Shaking her head, she looked back to the water again. "It's true. When you guys left, I woke up a couple hours later, and ran to the bathroom and was sick. I didn't want to ruin our trip, so I called a cab, and went to the doctors. I wanted them to give me a pill or shot, anything to take away how exhausted I was. They ran a test, and up popped a positive test."

"How is that possible?" His eyes were still unreadable, and she wanted his reaction. She certainly had reactions, but she wanted to know what he thought. She could deal with anger, or denial, but this whole not reacting was too much.

"I asked the same thing. Apparently, my stupid sinus infection counteracted my birth control or something and I probably got pregnant that way." He remembered that time, and he vaguely remembered a rather rough night of sex, once she started feeling better, and they couldn't keep their hands off of each other. It was rough, and animalistic, and so intense he saw spots behind his eyes. They were thinking around that time in the future the condom may be unnecessary, since they knew they were disease free, and faithful. As Aaron took off the condom, it looked like it may had broken, but they didn't worry. Why worry when your girlfriend was on birth control?

"So, you're what? How far along, exactly?"

"Eight weeks, possibly? I don't know."

"What did you decide?" He kept his eyes to the ocean. He listened to the waves lap against the wood from the docks, and he thought of what he wanted himself. It was a woman's choice, but he believed it should be his decision as well. An agreement. All cases were different, and in this case two people made that child, and he would step up if the need came for it. Yet he wanted to be a part of that decision because it wasn't some one night stand. This was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

They talked about babies a lot, and when they wanted to get married. They said it over and over. Their futures mapped out, in precise order that they both agreed on how it could be. Out of school, things beginning to settle. No need for a house, yet but a nice apartment. Hopefully plenty of travel, or even abroad first. They talked about their future, and it was always crazy ideas to fill in the reality, because the truth was, there was nothing set in stone for plans. Only that they wanted forever. They had no idea where they planned to live, what careers they were certain with settling on, it was too scary to bring a child up in that.

Could they give their baby up? A part of both of them that had a whole life ahead of it, shipped off to someone who could take care of them better? Or worse, to terminate a child born from love? Could she really go through with it? This morning, she had no idea this little guy was in there, and now that she knows a part of Aaron is alive is inside of her...

"I can't get rid of it, Aaron. I can't." He breathed a sigh of relief, and collected her into his arms. He didn't know how much that meant to him until he heard her say those words. He loved her so much, and he didn't want her to have an abortion. They created someone. Together.

"I don't know what to do! I'm so sorry, Aaron, I just can't terminate it. I am so scared." she cried. He lifted her head up, and wiped her tears with his thumb as he cradled her head in his hands.

"Look at me. You don't need to be scared, I'm right here. We are going to get through this." As she looked into his eyes, she knew he was sincere, and it sent so much comfort to her heart. She knew him, knew he wouldn't abandon her, but people do weird things when life throws curve balls. She could see he wasn't vacant like he was before. Now he was serious, but she could feel and see how much he loved her.

"I love you. So much, Aaron."

"I love you, too."

As she stood up, he followed, and wrapped his arms around her shaking body. They had to go in soon."Do you think we could give this little one up? I mean, it's the only smart decision still on the table," she sniffed.

His heart sunk at her words, and he knew she was right. It was the only logical choice. It was the most selfless thing they could do, but when it came to her, he was nothing if not selfish. "Penelope?"

She shivered, and looked into his eyes. He swallowed thickly, and as serious as his eyes were, they remained so as his smile grew. "I don't think I can. I love you and I don't care about time lines or a perfect order. Well, some things I believe in, but what I mean is, is that I think that you and this little one are something I have been dreaming about for years, and you just came to me sooner than I expected."

"Aaron, but what about-?" He cut her off, as he backed away enough to drop to his knee. She gasped, and stared at him incredulously.

"I love you, and I know I always will. You are my best friend, and now my soul mate is going to be the mother of my child. I can't be any more proud or happier than I am, and it's because of you. I want our forever to start right now. Will you marry me, Penelope Claire Garcia?"

He could see love pouring out of her eyes, along with a crazy amount of shock. She had yet to breathe again, and as a few more seconds passed, shock switched to outrage. "Don't even think about it, Aaron Patrick Hotchner! If you want to stand upright for the rest of this trip you better not say that shit to me! I can't believe you!" she fumed. In truth, her heart melted and turned into a pile of goo. That was everything she wanted to hear, but that strengthened her resolve on the matter.

She turned away from him, and Aaron felt dumbstruck. That was not what he was expecting. He was hurt, and he demanded to know why she stomped on his heartfelt words and acts of love. Getting to his feet, he grabbed her arm. She twisted around, and he could see so much pain in her eyes.

"Why can't I? I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Penelope. Starting here. Tonight. Do you?" She gaped at his words, not knowing what to say.

"Y-Yes, of course."

"Then what's the problem?"

She felt her heart leap into her throat, and she wiped her angry tears. "Because I have been waiting for those words for five years! I didn't get to hear them like I wanted to! Like-Like you would have said those words to me, because you weren't forced into a position to marry me. Because you truly wanted to, not because now the process has to be sped up!" she cried.

"You think I don't mean them?" She looked away, and wiped her tears.

"Not like you would if things were different." she whimpered.

"That's just it. Things are different. I said them because I meant every word. I want to marry you yesterday, and the days before, but I knew if I said it as just me only loving you, you would have laughed in my face. You would have turned me down flat. Probably not because you don't love me, but because we're younger and still in school. So in a way, you'd be just as guilty of circumstance if you said no to me right now if you weren't pregnant."

Penelope mulled over his words, and realized he was right. "Damn it." She looked away, and her heart felt like it was going a million beats a second. She loved him more than anything, and she hoped he did still want to marry her. It was always something she wanted with him.

Aaron's smug smile made her want to slap and kiss him in equal measure. Damn him. "So... are you gonna say yes?"

She smiled, and rolled her eyes. This man could be infuriating when he wanted to be. "Ask me again. Please?" she asked sweetly.

"Penelope Claire Garcia? Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" He bent down on the dock, and kissed her ring finger.

She cried, and couldn't find the words. Nodding, she leapt into his arms. "I love you."

He smiled against her lips, and brought her forehead against his. "I love you, too. Let's just do it here. We have all the people we care about here with us. Please, baby?"

Nodding, she hugged him as if her life depended on it. She did feel bad that her brothers and Mrs. Hotchner couldn't be here, yet with a child coming, were they ever going to afford a decent wedding anytime soon? She didn't need much, a dress and a bouquet, compared to a hall, entertainment, dinner to feed a lot of people, and decorations.

"Tonight. Let's do it tonight. Let's drive to Vegas. It can't be too far." Aaron looked at her, completely shocked, and his heart was pounding so hard, all he could hear was blood rushing to his brain.

"Let's do this."

They ran to the room, and since it was time for them to meet up in the restaurant with Sean, they packed and ran to the restaurant inside the hotel. "Hey, guys! Took you long enough. I need to eat or I'm gonna pass out! Do you want seafood or..." he trailed off as he looked at their faces. They looked as if they were as high as kites, and yet there was an edge to their body language that worried Sean.

"Come with us, Sean. We have some news." Aaron grinned. He was beaming, while Penelope blushed darker than she had ever been before.

"Just settle his drink bill, and let's just tell him here. I don't want to go back up and down again. I am a little nauseous." Penelope grumbled. Aaron and Penelope sat down.

They told him, and Sean kept his face unreadable for a minute. His eyes turned to Penelope, and she couldn't contain her smile. Aaron was radiating such happiness, it took Sean's breath away. He was always jealous of their relationship. Not in a malice sort of way, no. It was more that he wished someone could love him like they loved each other. Their love was something he had never seen before, and he couldn't be happier for them, and for himself. His sister was now officially becoming a Hotchner, and now he was going to be an uncle!

"Are you fucking serious?" he screamed into the quiet restaurant. He leapt out of his chair, and hugged Aaron, congratulating him. He screamed his excitement, the public be damned. He turned to Penelope, and kissed her cheek before lifting her up in a hug.

"You're my sister now! Oh my God! This is insane! I am so happy for you guys!" They laughed, and Sean turned to the staring patrons of the restaurant.

"Everyone! Everyone! May I have your attention? I am gonna be an uncle and I am finally getting a sister!" he boomed. Everyone cheered, and some went back to their dinners.

Aaron grabbed Sean's arm, and dragged him out of the restaurant, and told him to pack a bag. "We are going to Vegas, and it is a long drive. You haven't drank tonight, have you?"

Sean shook his head, and ran up to his room. Penelope was wringing her hands, and she seemed lost in thought. Aaron walked up to her, and brought her hand up to kiss it softly. "Everything okay?"

She nodded, and it was plain to see it was forced. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

She looked down, and pursed her lips. "I am."

Aaron practically deflated, and she could see the hurt in his eyes. She knew she had to explain herself better. "Are we rushing? I mean, our biggest decision this trip was going to be if we were going to ask JK Rowling for her autograph or take a photo with her. Now we are running off and getting married. I don't ever want you to regret marrying me. I really don't want you to ruin your life because of me."

Aaron leaned down, and kissed her softly, but it was filled to the brim with love. She felt terrible, but she couldn't imagine ever hurting him. She would hate for him to regret anything about their relationship.

"How can I regret it if this is what I've wanted all along? I admit it, we're young, and it's going to be really fucking hard some days. I get it. I didn't ask you lightly. You're it for me. No one else. So if you want to wait to marry me for ten years, then I will wait for you."

She smiled, and rolled her eyes. "I love you. Of course I want to, and I'm glad you brought that up. We are young and it will be hard. Especially with a baby. It will be complete chaos and it will be a struggle. One that would be worth it."

He smiled, and held her in his arms, waiting until Sean got back. He came down, and they grabbed some cheap food as they headed to Las Vegas. It was a long five plus hour drive in a dingy rental car, but they were glad they were there.

Sean told Aaron to wait in the car, and find a chapel, while he got Penelope ready. Before he left the car, he rubbed his eyes. "What's wrong, bro?"

Aaron could see Sean was stressed out a little, and he watched as Sean ran a hand through his hair. "Well, we need to get her ready, see if we can find a dress, and I can't decide if I am the best man, or the maid of honor!" he freaked.

Aaron chuckled. "Does it matter?"

"Of course it matters!" Sean scoffed.

"Fine. You are my maid of honor. Alright, hurry up. I want to get married as soon as possible. Got it?"

Sean narrowed his eyes at Penelope's giggle, and he turned to Aaron. "Not cool, man."

Aaron looked at his watch, and turned to the both of them. "Call me when you bought the dress. I don't care what you wear, sweetheart. No matter what you will be so beautiful."

"I love you. We'll see you soon." They shopped, and she didn't find a cheap enough gown that looked remotely decent on her, so they decided to pick an alternative from her wardrobe but buy some new lingerie. She found one she knew would look hot, and didn't bother trying it on. It was probably one of the last pieces of lingerie she was going to buy for a while, so Aaron will have to like it whether he liked it or not.


She smiled self-consciously, and shrugged. "We fought against the system soon after he was gone. Only through corresponding notes in our work. Later we called and met up at coffee shops."

Her voice was tight, and he could see immediately that there was more to this. "How involved were you with him?" he asked lowly. He couldn't hide how jealous he was. How he wished he could have been the one to be there. To stop this before it got too far. Maybe he was giving himself more credit than he deserved. Maybe she would have always went through with these crimes, but to be honest the only difference would have been that he would have stuck by her side, kept fighting for what they used to have knowing what he knew now. How stupid and careless they were when it came to their happiness. If they had tried harder... if only pride and pain didn't get in the way... they should have held on tighter instead of letting go.

She tensed, and he thought she would have looked away, but instead she narrowed her eyes slightly at him, and her jaw tightened. "I don't see how that is relevant to your case, Agent Hotchner." she bit out. It was obvious she was uncomfortable, but he would find out, one way or another. Unfortunately, she was right, except for the fact that knowing they were in a relationship mattered in order to know how their relationship was. How he was with her.

"It is relevant, Penelope. It doesn't matter, I can tell that you were more than friends by reading your behavior."

She scoffed, and it gave him pause. She looked bitter, not smug or ashamed or anything else that may invoke a reaction from him. He knew the others weren't listening now, but he really hoped they didn't come back. He didn't want them to hear anything that would make her uncomfortable for them to know in the future. "Just tell me this, Penelope. Did he treat you well? Was he good to you?"

She tensed, and nodded her head a single time. "Yes." Lie.

Penelope didn't want him to know. She didn't want to say anything more about him at the moment. She wanted to get some sleep. "Aaron- Agent Hotchner? I really need some sleep. Can we discuss more later?"

He finally noticed the goose bumps on her skin, and how pale she looked. They had her detained for days, now. "Of course." He walked over, and uncuffed her wrists. She rubbed them, and he saw the blistered rings around her skin and he felt guilty. Maybe he should have brought the team to her city, instead of bringing her there.

"Listen, since I am working here now, can I have my purse?" she asked shakily. Her body shuddered, and Aaron picked up his jacket and threw it over her shoulders.

Looking up, her large doe eyes were like they were caught in headlights. "Thank you. Before it was warm, until I was being interrogated. Now I wish for the warmth again."

He smiled, and pulled her to her feet. "We have a hotel we can set you up in. Or... if you want you can stay at my house." he offered. She felt her pulse quicken, and her breathing hitched at the thought of how mortifying that was.

"I don't mind the hotel, or I can even get my own! I wouldn't want to inconvenience your wife or you by your ex-wife staying there until she gets an apartment. You'd have the couch with your name on it."

He smirked, and furrowed his eyebrows together. "What makes you think it's an inconvenience?"

Rolling her eyes, she huffed. "Aaron Hotchner you are as clueless as the day I met you. Trust me. I will only draw ire from your wife, because if I were in her place, you'd be in the hotel instead." she warned.

He laughed, like really laughed and she couldn't take much more. Her sleep deprivation was causing her to react in the most stupid of ways. She couldn't take much more of the past. It felt like it was killing her. He leaned on the chair she was sitting on, and gave her one of his lazy smiles once again.

"So you're saying that you won't stay at my house because my wife will throw me out of my own house? If she weren't there would you stay?"

His voice held a good amount of mirth, and she couldn't figure out why he was asking the twenty questions of staying at his place. Maybe he realized the absurdity of asking her to come to his house. Didn't he see she was doing him a favor?

She thought over the question he asked in her head for a moment, and answered, "No." Yes. Yes. Yes, yes, yes.


Penelope became Mrs. Penelope Hotchner at two fifty five in the morning, and Sean drove back as the happy couple made out in the back seat. Sean wiped some tears from his eyes as the vows were said. Aaron couldn't say his vows because his tongue was tied seeing Penelope wear the Morticia gown, with a white hydrangea bouquet. She curled her hair, and twisted some of it away from her face with a large white flower clip. She was a little gothic looking, but she pulled it off. Aaron wore a pair of black slacks he brought, and the black vest from his Han Solo costume, along with a navy button-up shirt.

When they got back to their hotel, they were all exhausted. When he woke up, Sean met some people from the convention, and found a beautiful young woman to bring back to his hotel room. Aaron and Penelope never left their room all day, and as the week went by, they had a great time. It had been a crazy week, and they had so much fun. It was the best honeymoon they could have asked for, and it was really special to have Sean there.

When they got back, they didn't know what to tell their families. Penelope told her brothers' first, and they were extremely upset. She explained what happened, and after telling them that they would have a bonfire to celebrate when Penelope and the guys visit her oldest brother soon, they stopped threatening castration. They understood, but they wanted to give her away, they wanted to give her heartfelt words before it happened, and they really wanted to threaten Aaron good and proper before she committed herself to him.

Telling the Hotchners' didn't go well either. They told Mrs. Hotchner, and she was a mix of emotions. Happy, ectstatic, and very sad. She was disappointed that they got pregnant, and hurt she couldn't be there, but she couldn't wait to hold the baby in her arms. When Mr. Hotchner found out, he was so angry at Penelope, that they hung up once he first began to swear on the phone.

They saved and pinched, and had to go move to family housing. It wasn't bad, and although quite simple, was a good size for their small, growing family. The medical bills piled up as she got bigger, but they tried to focus on buying for their little boy on the way.

It was a couple months until he was born, and they were so nervous, but so excited. They couldn't believe they made this little guy together, and every night Aaron read him a story before Penelope went to sleep. One night, he finished reading, and he heard her stomach growl. He looked up into her eyes and grinned. "Again?" he laughed.

She laughed along with him, and shrugged. "Your son is hungry, what can I say? This little monster you've made is ravenous."

"Monster, huh?"

Nodding, she pressed her hand on the baby, who was starting to kick on the side of her growing belly. His hand went to hers, and he kissed the spot he was kicking in softly. Looking up at her lovingly, he bit his lip and enjoyed the little movements against his palm.

"He is a little monster! Look at him kick! He will be a fighter, huh?"

Taking a breath, she sat up with more difficulty than she used to have. "I don't need to see, I feel just fine, honey. To be honest, I've secretly called him that since the stinker was hiding in the first ultrasound. Remember how long it took them to find his heartbeat? I almost had a heart attack!"

Aaron nodded, and laid his head against her stomach. "That was terrifying. I only remember the look on the doctor's face looking like someone kicked his puppy until he finally found it on the ultrasound."

A beat of silence happened before Aaron spoke again."You may have called this little guy a monster, but I called him a she until the twenty week checkup." he chuckled.

She melted at that. "I do want a girl, but we have plenty of time to work on another one. I want a whole mess of babies. With you." Aaron laughed, and he sat up with her and wrapped an arm around her so she could lean on him. It was getting late, and she had work extremely early in the morning.

"A whole mess, huh? I'm sure it would be if we had that many." he chuckled.

She nodded, and sighed contentedly, looking at her large belly. He put his huge hand over her stomach, and when he did that, she didn't look as big as she felt. He closed his eyes as he kissed her temple. "All I want in this entire world would be to have a beautiful mess with you, Mrs. Hotchner."

She kissed him, and just as quickly as his touch burned her, the kiss turned heated. He slid his hand down, and cupped her sex tightly. He couldn't deny seeing her swollen with his child turned him on, and to see how much she wanted him all the time got him rock hard.

She slipped her hand inside his pajama bottoms, grabbing his length tightly. "Babe, wait. I thought you were hungry."

She threw her head back as his hand grabbed a huge breast, and rolled it in his hand. She had huge tits before, and now that she was pregnant... "I am."

His dark brown eyes smoldered, looking black in the low lighting. He slipped his fingers under her slip, and she had no panties on. Long fingers slipped inside of her, and he kissed her neck. She was so wet and ready for him. He grunted as she slipped his pants lower, and he sprang out of his pants for a second before her warm hand wrapped around him again. She pumped him for a minute, watching as he lightly moaned against her skin. This was all she needed. She needed him and this little one.

He got on his knees, and grabbed her knee. "Turn around," he commanded.

She did as he asked, and turned her head to the side, looking back at him. He was shirtless in the first place, and his beautiful chest was covered in chest hair that finally grew in. It was so sexy and manlier than she thought it would be when she first saw it.

He took her roughly, his hands gripping her hips tightly, his mouth latched onto her skin. He loved this position, and loved to grab a fistful of her gorgeous golden hair, hearing her cries amplify. His fingers reached around, circling, pinching her clit, listening to her hot noises as he fucked her. Now that she was pregnant, there were really only two positions they could do comfortably, maybe a few more if she was in the mood. She screamed over his grunts and moans, and as orgasm after orgasm hit her, she could barely breathe. Aaron couldn't get enough of her. He knew how to make her scream, which was unappreciated with their thin walls in the dorms, and he knew just how to get her to lose herself. It was so beautiful to watch, like a masterpiece in front of his eyes.

When they finished, Penelope looked exhausted. He felt guilty, and it was made worse when he heard her stomach growl once again. "Your little monster is not too pleased with you. Did you hear him growling at you?" she smiled.

He pouted, and poked her belly softly. "Daddy needed sustenance too. I'm sorry. What does monster want to eat?" he asked her belly.

She blushed, and tapped her chin. "How about some grapes and some grilled-no, fried chicken?"

He wanted to give her a weird look, but learned the hard way that it wasn't the best idea to criticize her cravings. Her cravings were normal, but the pairings seemed weird. Once she asked for goldfish crackers with grapes and dipped them in ranch. That was the weirdest one for him. That got Penelope to become hysterical and Sean to come over to berate him for an hour.

Her pregnancy cravings aside, she was very sweet during the pregnancy. Very sweet. She wanted him near her all the time, or Sean had to come over to take his place. The week before, he was at work when he got a call from her while she had a rare day off. She was crying hysterically, couldn't get a word out, and his heart shattered hearing it. Sprinting home, he got there to see her lying on the couch in a ball. When he got her to calm down enough, he asked what was wrong. She cried again, and it went on for a half hour. When he held her, she sniffled, but calmed down. "What's wrong, love?" he asked.

She whimpered and pointed to the TV. "There was a terrible commercial on! There was a-a-a snowman, and he w-w-was frozen! He came inside, and melted once he ate his soup and it was a-a-a little boy all along!" She wiped her eyes, hiccuping.

He stared blankly at her, and said in a despondent voice, "The soup commercial with the Christmas song?"

Sniffling, she nodded. "I can't watch that one either anymore! I am running out of TV to watch, here Aaron!" She stopped watching most of her shows, since she always managed to cry about something on it.

"Leannan?"

"What?" she asked softly.

"I'm glad you're okay, but I was terrified to hear you cry over the phone like that."

As Penelope understood what he was getting at, she looked like she was about to cry again. He cupped her face, and focused her eyes on his. "Baby, I don't want you to cry. There is nothing wrong with getting upset, but why don't you wait to tell me until I get home, or you could tell Sean instead."

Penelope pouted, and looked innocently at him. "But I like to talk to you about that kind of stuff. Sean is just a mere mortal. He would not know how to make me feel better and make me laugh. Okay, he does make me laugh but he is no you."

"I know. I love that you need me, and I need you so much, but I need money more at the moment. Just only call in case of emergencies." Penelope blushed, and pouted.

"I'm sorry, you're right. Only emergencies. I will not cry wolf anymore. I love you."

"I love you too. Oh yeah... I know it is to you and me, but Doctor Who season premiere countdown calls and texts are not normal emergencies. You gotta cut back on those too." She scoffed, outraged, and crossed her arms.

"What's next? Baby name ideas?" Aaron gave her a sassy look, and bit her shoulder playfully. Flinching away from his teeth, she laughed and screeched as she tried to get out of the way, but her belly was making it difficult.

"Fine! Fine! I won't!" she giggled. He chuckled, and backed out of her space.

"I really am sorry, Aaron. I didn't mean for you to leave work. That commercial just really hit me. I'm not any different than I was before... right?"

Aaron knew immediately what he wanted to say. Yes. Yes you are. It's kind of adorable how you don't realize it. You are a completely different person. "No, not at all. Just a little more... emotional than you used to be."

"Strange. I feel the same. I need a nap. Come sleep with me." she smiled sleepily, and he hugged her tightly.

"Sorry, I can't. I have to get back to work after I make myself a sandwich. Tonight." Pouting, she nodded sadly. She was so cute it hurt. A little frustrating, but it was better than her being a raging bitch like he heard others could be. Aaron turned off the TV, and gave her a book to read, instead. Still didn't help.

"Poor Dobby!" Aaron heard in the other room.

When New Year's Eve came around, Penelope and Aaron welcomed Jacob Lucas Hotchner into the world, "Jack" for short. He was named after his great-grandfather, and her step-father's middle name, Jacob. He was seven pounds, nine ounces, twenty one inches long.

He was so beautiful, and Sean wouldn't stop holding him. Ever since he came into the world, with all of the testing and recovery, Penelope and Aaron had little amount of time to hold him yet. When it was time for delivery, she kicked Sean out of the room, but otherwise stayed with them the entire time. Sean camped out in the room with them even after Jack was born, and studied everything that the nurses taught them. He explained that he needed to know since he was going to babysit so much. Penelope had a nice pregnancy, and even though he was a tiny bit premature, everything worked out well.

"Sean, you have to let him go sometime," Aaron huffed. While it was endearing, it was starting to irritate them. They barely got to hold their little one yet, and they needed to just stare in awe for a while.

"I am giving him his warning now, because I don't want to hear as he gets older, 'Uncle Sean! I don't want to go!' I am telling him now that we are carving out a lot of serious male bonding. Someone needs to be that role model in his life, you know." he said, winking.

Aaron rolled his eyes and listened to his wife laughing. "Funny, asshole."

Sean gasped, and covered Jack's ears. "See? What kind of role model is that?" He clicked his tongue, and gave Aaron a scowl.

"Okay, enough. Go grab us some food, would ya?" He walked over, and grabbed his little boy in his arms. He was so beautiful, and tiny in his hands. He never felt happier. He had everything he wanted, right there in that room.

Penelope held out her hands, and Aaron smiled as he remembered just a little bit ago she had given him the most amazing gift of his life. Her tears streamed down her face, holding their beautiful child in their arms, and it was a moment that he would never forget. She looked at him with an exhausted smile, and she wept as she saw him hold him. "You're a daddy, Aaron." It was then that he really felt like a father, and all of the weight and responsibility of those words cut off his breathing. Yet, as he took a breath, he was now filled with a determination and deep unconditional love for this person he met only moment's ago. He never felt such joy.

He passed him off to Penelope, and she kissed his soft head. "He looks exactly like you, Aaron. Look, he even has dark hair." Dark, little fine hairs were poking up a little, and his wrinkly face was a lot like Aaron compared to Penelope. His eyes were a piercing cobalt blue, but that was most likely going to change. She had read that babies' eyes change color within the first six months. He was the spitting image of Aaron, and while she had hoped that were the case, it was kind of funny to see them next to each other. It was like looking into a fun mirror as she saw him close his eyes. He was so beautiful it hurt to look at him.

"This made the midnight cravings worth it." he joked. She rolled her eyes and set him on the bed in front of her. They could be discharged later, if they wished, and they were still deciding if they wanted to wait or not.

"How is it possible to love someone so much in just mere hours? No, seconds? Isn't that crazy?"

Aaron sat on the edge of the bed, and grabbed his tiny fist. "I know what you mean. Aside from our wedding, this is the most amazing day of my life. I could not love you more, Penelope." he leaned down, and kissed her softly.

"Now we have a big decision ahead of us." she warned.

Aaron looked at her quizzically. "Now we have to decide if we are one hundred percent ready to face the world, and bring him home now."

Aaron sighed. "Oh, good. I thought you were going to ask if we should circumcise or not." he laughed.

"Okay, two big decisions, then." she smiled.

"I say we don't circumcise. Let him make the choice when he's older." Penelope nodded, and agreed.

Penelope talked in a baby voice to Aaron, while she looked at Jack. "Let's go home, Daddy. Yes! We need to go home because otherwise those stinky nurses come and take me away and then Mommy gets very angry. We don't want Mommy angry, right?" Aaron laughed, and tucked her into his side. Kissing her hair, he rested his forehead on her head.

"Yes. We'll leave soon. I love you so much."

"I love you, too."


A.N.- Send me love! Thanks for reading!