I'm so incredibly sorry about going AWOL on this story for so long. I would've had this up sooner, but one day while writing it my laptop randomly shut down, and I lost all my progress, and I kinda lost my motivation after that. That's not really an excuse, but I just thought I'd tell you. But don't worry, I won't ever abandon this.

A massive thank you to everyone who has stuck with me. I love you all, and I really appreciate your support.

Chapter 5: Let's Go Get Away

Aaron thought for sure he would be the first person awake in the morning. In high school, he always made sure to get up with more than enough time to dress, eat breakfast, and head to school. There were countless days where he had to care for his brother Sean before leaving, and the extra time was often needed. That habit became ingrained in him, almost like second nature.

He really didn't think vacation would be any different. He had set an alarm right before succumbing to the softest bed he had ever lain on the night before, and figured that he would have to wake Derek and Spencer up when the alarm failed them.

Aaron let out a low groan, slowly forcing himself to come to. He lifted his head, blearily looking to the digital clock on the nightstand. 9:12. He was suddenly very glad Emily made him change their meet-up time.

"Good morning," a quiet voice said from the corner. Sitting up more, Aaron spotted Spencer curled up on the couch. A thick book was open on his lap, and he was already dressed for the day. "I turned off the alarm when it went off. You looked like you could use some more sleep, so I figured I would wake you in a few minutes."

Aaron raised an eyebrow.

"Did you really bring a book that large on vacation?"

Spencer blushed, his expression sheepish. "It's really good?"

Aaron chuckled, climbing out of the bed and moving toward the bathroom. Derek was still sprawled across the other one, dead to the world.

"Can you wake Sleeping Beauty over there?" Aaron called over his shoulder.

"Do you really think he'll listen to me?" countered Spencer.

"Touché."

Aaron stepped back out of the bathroom and approached Derek's prone form. He assessed the situation carefully, walking around to the other side and back. Spencer shrugged when Aaron gave him a questioning look.

"Do what you think is best, but don't get killed," he advised. Aaron glared at him before turning back. He hesitated before launching himself up on top of Derek. The dark-skinned teen let out something that was a cross between a yelp and a shout, eyes opening to comical proportions. He smacked Aaron upside the head and elbowed his side.

"Not cool, man!" he wheezed.

Aaron laughed as he rolled off the bed, landing on the ground with a thump. Spencer hid his wide grin behind his book.

"Sorry, Derek, but we need to get ready."

Derek threw a pillow at Aaron. "Maybe, but there are other ways to wake a person!"

"I'll be sure to dump water on you tomorrow," Aaron tossed out over his shoulder, finally moving into the bathroom. Derek scowled at the closed door.

"Payback's a bitch!"

"Well, well, well," Emily called as the boys entered the dining area, "Look who finally decided to join us!" The girls were already seated at a table covered in breakfast food. The boys' eyes all lit up at the sight.

"It's Derek's fault," Aaron and Spencer said in unison. Penelope smacked her boyfriend. Derek's mouth fell open.

"Excuse me? I don't think you were all dressed and ready to go when I woke up, Aaron."

Spencer looked up from where he was pouring a cup of coffee. "Oh, no, Aaron woke up only a few minutes before you."

"Spencer!" Aaron hissed. Derek looked triumphant.

"Aww, did someone oversleep?" Emily cooed, leaning towards Aaron. He rolled his eyes and sat down next to her, grabbing a bagel as he did.

"Fine, maybe I did, but at least I was up before Derek."

Derek looked like he was about to interject again, but JJ spoke up before he could.

"Okay, team, what do we want to do today?"

"Beach!"

"I wanna explore the resort a bit."

"Can we please go shopping? Please?"

"I think there are some activities we could try, like jet-skiing or parasailing."

"There's a museum not far from here…"

Everyone was speaking at the same time, trying to make their wants known. JJ let out a moan and rubbed her forehead.

"Okay, okay! Calm down!" They stopped, and JJ smirked. "Let's try this again. What do we want to do today? And please, one at a time."

"First of all," Derek said, cutting Emily off as she had just opened her mouth. She shot him a glare. "I heard Boy Genius here say something about a museum, and I'm vetoing that right now."

"But Derek, you don't understand-"

"I understand it just fine. We're in Florida on Spring Break. There will be no educational activities on this trip."

"At least not today," Aaron said.

"Okay," Spencer mumbled. He fixed Derek with a pointed look. "So what do you want to do today?"

"Beach," Derek replied simply, leaning back in his chair. "We're still tired from traveling, I think we should take it easy."

"But the beach is gonna be there every day," Emily chimed in. "Don't you want to see what the resort is like? See what stuff is here?"

"The resort is gonna be here every day too, Em."

"But it is our first day," JJ pointed out. "Perfect time to get a feel for the area."

"Thank you, JJ."

"Baby Girl, what do you want to do?" Derek turned to Penelope, who offered a sheepish smile.

"Shopping."

"No," everyone answered.

"At least not today," Emily said. "I'll gladly go tomorrow, or some other day."

"Hotch, were you talking about jet-skiing and stuff?" JJ asked. Aaron nodded.

"Yeah, but I'm thinking we should tour the resort, and then just hang on the beach. Easy day, nice day. It would give us time to just relax." He looked around at the group. "That is, if everyone is okay with it."

"Sounds good to me," Emily replied.

"I suppose that works," Derek said with a fake air of being irritated. JJ shoved his shoulder, and he pinched her side in response.

"Okay, children," Penelope said. "Let's go check out paradise!"

Penelope was right: The area really was paradise. The water was as blue as the sky, and the sand was a perfect white. People were out and about, roaming the beach and perusing the shops down along the Pier Park, which was a long street lined with shops and restaurants.

"Isn't this wonderful?" Emily sighed, snuggling close to Aaron. He had an arm wrapped around her shoulders. Up ahead, JJ and Spencer were walking hand-in-hand, and Derek and Penelope had their arms linked, talking at a hundred words a minute.

"Yeah," Aaron replied. A smile crept up on his face. For the first time in months, he felt content. Happy. Relaxed. There were not enough words to describe exactly what he was feeling, but it was nice.

"Yeah?" Emily parroted, a teasing lilt to her voice. "That's it, just yeah?"

"What do you want me to say, Em?"

She leaned into him dramatically. "Oh my god, Emily, this is the most amazing vacation ever, I could not be happier, you're the best girlfriend in the world to have organized this."

Aaron smirked. "One, I would never talk like that and you know it, two, you're not the only one who organized this."

Emily snorted. "Don't I know it. My mother owns my soul until the day I day. And probably after."

Aaron kissed her temple. "But it's worth it, right?"

Emily surveyed her friends, all bouncing with excitement. A tingling sensation developed in her stomach as she remembered that this was the first time they had seen each other in months. When she remembered that they were her family and they were all together.

"So worth it," she admitted.

"Ooh, guys!" Penelope called. She pointed eagerly to a colorful boutique on their right. "I know we said we would just look around, but… please?"

"Go ahead, Pen," Emily said. Penelope let out a squeal and dashed into the store.

"Wait for me!" JJ kissed Spencer's cheek and rushed after Penelope. Aaron raised his eyebrows and turned to Emily with a pointed look.

"Are you gonna go too?"

Emily smiled guiltily and pecked Aaron on the lips before following her best friends. Aaron smirked and shook his head. He joined Spencer and Derek, who were both staring at the store with dumbfounded expressions on their faces.

"Girls," they all said in unison.

Nearly twenty minutes later, the girls emerged from the boutique with numerous bags dangling from their fingers. Penelope had the most, of course, and upon reaching the boys, she rummaged around in one and produced a sparkly scarf. With a flourish, she draped it over Derek's shoulders.

"Beautiful," she declared. Emily burst out laughing and took a picture on her cell phone.

"Send that to me," JJ demanded. Emily tapped the screen for a moment before grinning triumphantly.

"Done. I sent it to you too, Pen."

"I hate all of you," Derek grumbled, though he didn't touch the scarf.

"No, you don't," Penelope sing-songed.

"How many clothes did you guys just buy?" Spencer asked.

"I only got a shirt, I swear," Emily said, holding her singular bag up.

"A few shirts, a necklace, and a dress," JJ recounted, peering in each bag.

Penelope grinned sheepishly. "We'll just figure it out later."

"Mama, you're crazy," Derek said, sliding his arm around her waist.

"Mmm, but you love me for it."

"That I do," Derek declared before kissing her square on the lips. Emily made a gagging noise.

"Ewww, kissing," she said as though she was a five-year-old who believed in cooties. "That's sooo gross."

"Oh, shut up," Derek said, pulling away. "Like you and Aaron don't suck face in front of us all the time."

"Aw, don't say 'suck face'," Spencer said, his face screwed up in disgust.

"People say that all the time."

"Doesn't mean they should," Spencer muttered.

"Okay," Aaron said, getting everyone's attention. "Where to now?"

"Can we go back to the resort so I can drop all these off?" Penelope asked, shaking her new purchases.

Derek clicked his tongue. "You should've thought of that before you bought everything."

Penelope looked indignant. "Oh, come on! They were calling to me! And there was a sale!"

Derek laughed. "Don't worry, Pen, I was just joking."

"Let's head back," Aaron said. The group turned and began to make their way back to the resort.

Upon returning to the hotel, they all gathered in the girls' room to figure out their next plan of attack.

"Can we please hit the beach now?" Derek asked, flopping across one of the beds. "It's so hot outside, and the water looks so nice." He stared at all of his friends. "All I have been dreaming about for the past…" He paused to count. "Eight months is the beach, and now that I'm here…" He gazed at everyone imploringly.

"You know guys," Emily said slowly. "This may sound crazy, but I think there's a chance Derek wants to go to the beach."

"Nah," Aaron said. "He's just being dramatic."

"Is today 'Shit on Derek Day'?" Derek moaned and buried his face in a pillow. "You guys all suck."

"Okay, okay," JJ said, hitting him lightly with a pillow. "Let's go to the beach."

"Finally!"

"You know," Spencer said thoughtfully, "this is almost exactly what happened in our room this morning. With Derek lying on the bed and all."

"Oh, if you want exactly…" Aaron leapt up and pounced on Derek, much to the amusement of everyone else.

"Did you actually jump on him?" JJ asked in astonishment. Derek shoved Aaron onto the floor.

"Yes," he wheezed. "Yes, he did."

"I wish I could've seen that," Emily remarked. She grinned slyly. "Oh, wait…"

"If everyone isn't out on that beach in five minutes I'm killing you all!" Derek announced, exiting the room with a slam of the door.

"I think he's PMS-ing," Emily said in a stage whisper.

"You know," JJ said, "for someone who was so eager to get to the beach, Derek sure is taking a long time."

The three girls had gotten their swimsuits on quickly for Derek's benefit, but he – along with Aaron and Spencer – were nowhere to be found.

"Maybe he's taking a crap," Emily suggested, sliding her sunglass on.

"Ewww, Emily!" Penelope covered her ears and stuck out her tongue.

"What? You do know he does that sometimes, right?"

"Yes, of course, but that doesn't mean I want to hear it!"

"Okay, ladies," JJ cut in. "Let's find a nice spot on the beach that'll make Derek nice and happy."

The girls stepped onto the sand and wove their way around bikini-clad women and sunburnt men. It was almost noon now, and the beach was packed with people. Finding a spot was difficult, but eventually they found a clear area to set up camp.

"How cold do you think the water will be?" Penelope asked as she spread her towel on the ground.

"Eh, probably not that bad," JJ replied with a shrug. "Either way, it's so hot that the cold will be nice."

"I think I'm gonna work on my tan first," Emily said.

"What tan?" JJ joked. Emily flicked JJ's ear before adjusting her own towel.

"I think you look beautiful enough without one."

Emily jumped and turned to face the person who had spoken. A boy who looked to be a bit older than her stood a few feet away. He wore only swim trunks and a self-satisfied smirk.

"Oh," Emily said awkwardly, glancing at her friends. They seemed just as uncomfortable as she was. "Thank you, I guess."

The mystery boy walked closer and held out his hand. "Ian Doyle. And just who might you be?" He had an accent of some kind. Irish, Emily realized.

"Emily," she said curtly, ignoring the hand. That just seemed to spur Ian on.

"Emily…" he repeated slowly, drawing out her name. "No last name?"

"Not one you're gonna get."

Ian smiled, which was really more a bearing of teeth. "You've got fire. I like that."

"I'd like it if you left my friends and I alone."

Ian glanced at Penelope and JJ, who both glared at him. JJ looked like she was ready to punch him.

"Of course, dear Emily." He waved. "But I will see you again, I hope." He turned and walked away, though he looked back every few steps.

"In your dreams," Emily muttered.

"Okay, that was hella creepy," Penelope said, settling down on her towel. "You're my favorite person, Em, for shutting him down."

"Boys like him need to be shut down," Emily said. "If I ever see him again, it'll be too soon."

"See who again?" Aaron asked, walking up with Derek and Spencer in tow.

"Some guy just tried to hit on Emily," JJ said. "Don't worry, Hotch, she rejected him so fast."

"Good to know," Aaron said. He smiled at Emily. "Though I wasn't worried. I trust you."

Emily felt a smile of her own burst forth. She slid her fingers into Aaron's and squeezed.

"Come on," she said, nodding towards the water. "Let's go swim."