Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds and all mistakes are mine. Enjoy reading!
The next morning Emily awoke in a similar position to which she had fallen asleep in. She was nestling against Hotch's left side with her legs bent along the sofa, shuffling closer to cuddle his warm body. Hotch's right arm was comfortably tucked under a stack of pillows and his legs were stretched out onto the coffee table in front. She sensed he was still asleep and wanting a little more time to embrace him, she closed her eyes and drifted away.
An hour later, Emily woke up again and noted it was time to get ready for work; having taken all the extra days off that she could. Reluctantly, she lifted Hotch's arm from around her and he stirred, opening his eyes slightly while he stretched.
"Time is it?" he enquired, yawning.
"A little after seven. I have to go get ready but you sleep for a while, I'll wake you when I'm ready."
" Mmhmm" Hotch replied, stretching and extending his hand towards her. Emily reached over and gave it a lingering squeeze before letting go and Hotch moved to lie down fully on the sofa.
After a while, Emily remerged and woke Hotch before going back to her room to get ready. Once Hotch had finished using the bathroom, he went to wake Jack but stopped just before the door when he heard him talking with Emily.
"I don't wanna leave Emmy, I'll miss you" he heard Jack whisper, melting his heart.
"Buddy you gotta go, or your dad will miss you. I'll miss you too but I won't forget the fun we've had this week."
"If you get lonely you can always call daddy and me any day this summer because I'll be at home and when I go back I finish school at 3 so if you call at four we can talk and on weekends we can talk too okay" Jack sniffed as he heard Emily console him.
"I'll call you every day and you can tell me all about your day and what new movies you've watched and it'll be like I'm just in the other room" Emily answered, reaching over to hug him.
"Love you Emmy" Jack whimpered as she pulled back and saw him cry. She could feel the tears emerge but attempted to hold them back before she wouldn't be able to stop them.
Wiping the tears from his eyes, she responded, "I love you a lot Jack-Jack; you're my favourite buddy and don't forget that, okay?"
"Kay Emmy."
Hotch quickly left from around the corner, not wanting to impose on their moment although he became teary; unable to imagine the moment when he'd have to say goodbye to her.
He made his way to the kitchen, boiling the kettle for the pair as Emily emerged from the spare room.
"Hey, since it's the last day I thought I'd make you a meal for a change. How does chocolate chip pancakes with a strawberry compote sound?" Hotch asked over his shoulder while he gathered the ingredients.
"That sounds wonderful Aaron" she replied, quickly wiping her eyes before making eye contact.
An hour later, the three were eating breakfast at the dinner table and discussing the highlights of their trip. Jack had chosen the London Eye since it felt like he was flying and the M&M World because it was chocolate heaven, while Hotch enjoyed the view from the Shard. Emily stated she couldn't pick since the whole time they'd spent together was magical, which earned her a hug from Jack.
"Okay buddy, we have to wash up and leave soon, because Emmy has to take us to the hotel to get our things then to the airport."
The trio unwillingly cleaned up and got ready before Emily gathered her work bag and the trio headed towards the hotel. There, Hotch and Jack packed their things and changed clothes, before checking out and hailing another taxi towards the airport. Jack huddled towards Emily's left side on their journey and she wrapped an arm his lower back; her hand dangling near Hotch's leg. He reached over and held her hand with his left hand and the three remained connected for the duration of the ride.
Once they arrived, Hotch retrieved the luggage from the boot of the car and they made their way to the check in desk. While Emily waited, she observed the individuals at the security gate further down saying goodbye to their loved ones and an uneasy feeling entered her stomach. It was the same one she had when she left, however this time the ones she loved were leaving her.
As Hotch returned, he stated that they had twenty or so minutes to kill before he and Jack had to go through and they browsed around the shops outside, hopelessly avoiding the inevitable. Twenty minutes later, they slowly walked towards the security gate and Jack turned to Emily, hugging her middle. She crouched down and hugged him tightly as he began to tear up.
"I had the bestest week ever Emmy, better than Billy I promise. I'll miss you loads."
"I'm glad buddy and I had the bestest week too. I'll miss you loads and loads more but don't forget what I said earlier, okay?" He pulled away and nodded, before turning to hug Hotch. A moment later, he let go and Hotch took a step towards Emily and pulled her hands into his.
"Thank you for everything this week. You've gone above and beyond to make it so much fun for Jack and I. This has been one of the best weeks of my life Em." Hotch murmured, trying to get it all out before his eyes would start watering.
"Thank you for the surprise Aaron. This has been without a doubt the best week of my life; spending it with my two favourite guys" she replied, eyes crinkling at the corners as she looked at Jack and smiled.
Emily let go of his hands and pulled him in for a hug, wrapping her arms around his neck firmly while he did the same around her waist.
"Words can't describe how much I'll miss you." She whispered in his ear, tears falling on his shoulder.
Hotch firmly closed his eyes while breathing in the scent of her, not wanting the moment to end. He desperately wanted to convince her to get on the flight with him, to forget London and come home but he couldn't.
"I miss you already." Hotch simply replied.
The two pulled away and Emily dabbed at her eyes in attempts to prevent her make up from smudging while Hotch turned towards the security section, partially to check the time and wipe away his tears.
"Hey buddy, it's time to fly now." Hotch faced Jack again, trying to sound enthusiastic although even he knew he wasn't fooling anyone.
"Kay daddy. Bye Emmy." Jack waved at Emily and she responded as Hotch gave their passports and tickets to the security guard.
"Take care guys, have a safe flight and let me know when you land."
"I will Emily and you take care of yourself too. Don't forget what I said last night; call me any time."
A moment later, they made their way through the security stop and both parties waved at each other until they were parted by divider screens.
Five weeks later
Hotch had been tidying the living room after JJ, Henry and Will had come over and the boys were playing with Jack's collection of dinosaurs. As he was gathering the toys into a storage box, he noticed two or three which didn't belong to Jack including one of two space ranger's Henry was never without and texted JJ, who said she'd be around to pick them up later.
It had been five weeks since Hotch had left London and although not a moment went by when it didn't hurt thinking of Emily, Jack was back at school and he threw himself into cases, the BAU family and Jack to take his mind off things. The two had exchanged casual texts, not straying far from what they'd been doing with their days as the more expressive the texts got, the harder it was to concentrate on life.
It was quarter to seven on a Sunday evening when Hotch's phone rang. The caller ID wasn't available but Hotch answered anyway.
"Hey, it's me."
He inhaled deeply upon hearing her voice. "Emily, hi. Your number didn't come up so I wasn't expecting it to be you."
"I'm using a temporary phone at the moment. How are you?" He noticed she was outside with the faded sound of cars and people in the background, probably on her way home from work or a social meeting.
"I'm well, how are you? Is everything okay?"
"I'm just on my way home and I was thinking about you. I've been thinking about things recently, well everything and also nothing at all. About the choices I've made like leaving the team and coming to London. I knew I had to to figure things out, but there are so many things I'm just unsure of." Hotch's heart pounded as she spoke; noticing the hesitation and anxiousness in her voice.
"Unsure of what Em?" he asked, trying to remain as casual as possible.
"Just everything. But mostly you, and the way things were left between us."
Hotch was intrigued and confused by her confession of emotions. He wasn't sure what she was getting at and maybe the wine he had with JJ and Will was clouding his diverting his mind to the best case scenario. His train of thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the doorbell. JJ. He made a mental note to have words with her tomorrow as he had to put his conversation with Emily on halt. Gathering the bag with Henry's toys, he made his way to the door.
"Can you hold on for a second? Henry left some toys here and I think JJ has come back to pick them up." He opened the door and noticed her clutching nervously at the sides of her coat.
"Hi," she spoke softly, dampness filling her eyes.
"Emily." He whispered; stunned.
Dun dun dun! This has been my favourite chapter yet because there's so much going on and I love suspense.
I've been thinking about the timeline of this story and it may be a little hazy so; Hotch and Jack went to London in the first week of August and came back in the second, and the second part of the story is set mid September. (Note: I stretched out the story since Emily left in the first chapter in May because it fits better with the rest of the story.) reviews are love!