A|N Aloha my dear readers! Have you seen the promo pictures for Closing Time? Ooh, I'm exited, I wonder what happens... We're all kind of weird here at FanFiction, putting our fave characters in danger. Oh well, here goes. Chapter 5~
JJ felt relieved when she got into her house. Well, it was really more of a small bungalow. She didn't spend much time in it anyway, so didn't put much effort into its decor. It still felt like she belonged there. Her office at work was where her real home was though, whether that be at Quantico or wherever her and her team were set up in the U.S. Home was where her team was, because her team was her family. The closest thing to one, anyway.
She glanced at the small clock on her dingy kitchen wall, 03.47 it read. She closed her solid door and bolted it. She turned around and leaned against the hard wood. She closed her eyes and let the sobs escape her. Tears fell like rain from her deep blue eyes. She felt herself sliding down the door until she was pratically sitting on the floor. Each sob she released racked through her body, leaving her petite frame in pain. She didn't stop, though. She was aware of the pain but didn't try to put it to an end. She just didn't care how much it hurt, she didn't care at all. Her ribcage felt ready to burst and each laboured breath she took hurt more than the last.
She only allowed herself ten minutes or so to wallow in her self pity. She still had work tomorrow and she had to make herself presentable, or at least as presentable as possable. Using her walking stick and the near-by coffee table, she hoisted herself to her feet. She felt a whimper escape her lips from the pain. JJ was just thankful no one was there to hear it. Hobbling to her small bathroom, she ran herself a shallow bath with all the soothing oils she could find in her tiny bathroom.
Removing her clothes, she was shocked to see the already-forming bruises on her chest and core. It was difficult to find a patch of skin her normal, pale skin tone. There was red, blue, purple and black colouring her body. She lightly ran a hand from one side of her core to the other. "Shit" she cursed under her breath as the pain surged and throbbed at her touch.
Slipping into the hot, steamy bath was painful yet releiving when her silky skin came into contact the soothing water. For the first thirty seconds or so her cuts and grazes stung like hell, but she ignored them until the pain faded into the hot water. Gently, she washed her acheing body. Letting the water wash that monster off her and soothing the cuts came easily. Leaning back, she filled up a beaker and rinsed the blood out of her golden locks, carefully avoiding the stitches in her left temple.
Once washed and dried she made her way to her bedroom. Looking at herself in the mirrror made her want to break down in tears once again. Her torso was covered in bruises, she had a split-lip, a large purple bruise right on her left cheekbone and the stitches on her temple were clearly visible. The team would see them, she was sure of that. Sure, she could call in sick, but it was a given one of them -most likely Garcia- would stop by. She could tell them it was contagious, though - like that'll stop them - she thought.
JJ took one last glance in the mirror moments after pulling into a parking space in the parking lot at Quantico. She'd managed to make a thick layer of foundation and concealer look reasonably natural. It helped, the bruises were almost gone, but she couldn't hide everything. Her stitches were clearly visible, and would definitely not go unoticed with her colleges, who were paid to be vigilant. She had left her bangs down though, they might help a little, or at least she hoped.
JJ felt some releif stepping out of her car, she'd managed the twenty minute drive to work without any dents, scrapes or scratches on her veichle. - Not bad, with a concussion - she thought. She made her way through security, it was almost completely empty, well, who in their right mind would want to go to work at 05:50 when they weren't due in until 07:00? She smiled at Margo, a friend who was obviously on security that morning. She smiled back pleasantly, too tired to notice JJ's wounds.
"Early today, aren't we? Some of us wouldn't mind the extra hour in bed, ya know" Margo said with a smirk.
"Paperwork won't do itself, and it's currently resebling Ben Nevis, sitting on my desk." JJ replied, reaching into her bag for her ID. It surprised her when she couldn't find it.
"Um, Margo, I must have left my badge on Friday, you know me." She knew this was a lie, she had it at the weekend, but it was just another wave in a whole ocean of worries.
"Don't worry about it, Seeya JJ" She said with a wink, letting her pass.
Dumping her bag on her desk she pulled out her compact-mirror and checked her make-up. She patted under her eyes, as though it would make the bags dissapear instantly. Once satisfied they weren't going anywhere, she looked around the office. She was the first one there, and it was 06:03, Hotch would be here soon. So, he'd be the first one to ask the questions then. She wasn't lying when she said she had paperwork to do, she literally had a mountain of it on her desk, the whole team did. She decided to sit down and make a start.
She was looking at the words, but she wasn't reading them. Nothing went in. Her mind was preocupied, she already felt a migrane beginning to throb.
"Hey JJ" Hotch's voice came from above her, disrupting her pointless efforts at paperwork. Startling her, too.
"Oh. Hi Hotch" she replied, hardly looking up from her desk. He moved on from her desk and into his office quickly, and a relieved JJ decided to start picking out a case to work. It was usually her or Hotch who picked the case, even though she was a profiler now, it was just how things worked. They shared out the terrors contained in each file they were sent, each one urgent. It was hard, deciding which one was more urgent, who they would save and who they would not. She wanted to save everybody, she really did, but there was always more suffering. Always.
Finally deciding on a very brutal case in Portland, she went to Hotch's office to present it, to get his aproval. She was reluctant, she wanted to distance herself from the whole team, but she also knew that was impossible. She knocked on his closed door, bracing herself for the dissapointment in his eyes when he found out how weak she'd been the previous night.
A|N sorry for the update taking so long! This is a long chapter, slightly boring, I think. I know I promised the team in this one, but next one I promise! Anyway, reveiws are much appreciated!