And here it is, the last chapter of the story. There will be an epilogue to follow shortly, one that involves the whole BAU family. I can't believe this story is already finished! It's not perfect, but I'm kind of proud of it since it's the first multi-chapter story I've written. And I especially want to thank you guys, especially those of you who never fail to comment on a single chapter- you know who you are and I just want you all to know how much I appreciate every single one of you for sticking with me through this! I hope to include some tie-in one shots, since I've kind of fallen in love with this fictional family. If any of you guys have any prompts feel free to send them to me!
One more thing, I just googled marriage laws in DC regarding getting a marriage license and having a "courthouse wedding," So I hope this is accurate! Okay, enough of my ramblings. Enjoy!
-kbrewster.
"So," Gabby said as Emily and Hotch tackled cleaning up the kitchen while the dishwasher hummed lowly.
"Hm?" Emily asked, busy wiping down the counter by the sink.
"Are you and Daddy getting married today?" Gabby asked.
Emily glanced over at Hotch, who then took over the conversation.
"I don't know, we still need to talk about that, I guess," He told her honestly. They definitely knew they wanted to get married, but there was the matter of telling everyone else. And whether or not they wanted a bigger wedding with all their friends, or just a simple courthouse ceremony, with no one there but Emily, Hotch, Jack, and Gabby.
"Well," Gabby said. "Talk about it!"
Hotch laughed at her as he lifted Gabby up and sat her on the counter so the two of them were eye-level with one another.
"We'll talk about it in a few minutes, okay? I promise. Then we'll let you know what we decided before we tell anybody else," Hotch told her.
"Even before you tell Jack?" Gabby asked.
"We'll let you tell him, that sound good?"
"Yeah!" Gabby agreed happily. "I still think you should get married today," she added with a smile.
"You're a persistent little thing, aren't you?" he joked.
"She gets it from you," Emily chimed in as the dishwasher finished it's cycle. She pulled the door open and began putting dishes away.
"Like you're not persistent," Hotch quipped.
"Okay, she's got it from both of us, that means she's going to win every argument. Always," Emily laughed.
"You're probably right," Hotch smiled as he put Gabby back on the ground. "Why don't you go to your room for a little while so we can talk about the wedding?" Hotch said to the girl.
"Can I go in the living room with Jack instead?" she asked quietly. "I don't really want to be by myself..." she added.
"You can go with Jack," Hotch told her, as Gabby ran out of the room in search of her older brother.
"Do you think she'll be okay?" Emily asked, biting her bottom lip.
"I do," Hotch reassured her. "She's actually done really well so far,"
"You're right," Emily said. "I didn't think either one of us would get any sleep last night. But we did,"
"You both might have a bad day here and there. But I think you're both going to be just fine," Hotch said, enveloping Emily in a tight hug. They pulled away, just enough so that their foreheads were touching, arms still wrapped around each other. They didn't talk for a few minutes, just simply enjoyed being with each other.
"So, about this wedding," Emily said, breaking the silence.
"How do you want to do it?" Hotch asked her. "It's up to you. I want it to be whatever you want,"
"You know," Emily started, letting go of Hotch and sitting down in a chair at the kitchen counter, as Hotch followed her actions. "I used to dream about our wedding. It was always a huge blowout- kind of like a party. I always pictured it outside, with all our friends and family. Gabby as the flower girl, either Jack or Henry as the ring bearer, depending on their ages when we got married. I pictured everyone together, laughing, dancing, having a great time... but," she stopped, chewing on her lip again.
"But?" Hotch asked, taking her hand in his, running his thumb across the back of her hand.
"But now, I don't really want that. I just want it to be us. I want it to be simple. Of course, I'd like to at least tell Garcia about it, maybe. And obviously JJ. But as for a massive ceremony that would take months to plan, I don't want to do that. I just want to marry you. I want to be a family," Emily told him. "If that's what you want," she added quickly.
"That's what I've wanted for ten years," Hotch confirmed, a smile stretching across his face. "We'll have to get a marriage license, but that shouldn't be too difficult. Then we have to wait three days," he informed her. "I looked up marriage laws last night," Hotch admitted when he saw the look Emily was giving him. She simply nodded and smiled at him. Then he stood from his seat, pulling Emily up lightly by the hand.
Emily's smile never faded as she placed a hand on his chest. "Three days simply might kill me," she joked before their lips met in a kiss.
"Why don't you and I go fill out all the paperwork today? Jack can stay with Gabby. We can also go shop for rings, if you'd like," Hotch suggested once they broke apart. "We can also see about getting Gabby's name changed as soon as possible,"
"I love the idea," Emily said happily as they walked into the living room, hand-in-hand.
"Are you getting married?" Gabby asked excitedly.
"We are," Emily told her.
"But there's some paperwork we have to fill out, then we have to wait three days. So the actual ceremony will be Saturday," Hotch added.
"Yay!" Gabby cheered as she jumped from her spot on the couch next to Jack and threw her arms around her parents.
Hotch and Emily relayed the information regarding their plan for the day to Jack, who agreed to stay home with Gabby while the two adults began the necessary arrangements for the wedding.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Hours later, Hotch and Emily found themselves in a jewelry store, looking for the most perfect wedding rings they could find.
Honestly, Emily couldn't care less what rings they decided on. Sure, rings were important. They signified they were together, they were married. She didn't want to disregard them completely, but to her, simply being together was enough for her. As a couple, they had been put through more than any couple Emily could think of right off. They hadn't seen each other or spoken in ten years, and yet when she and Gabby returned to the States it felt like no time had passed at all. She couldn't explain it. All her life, Emily had felt out of place, like no matter how hard she tried, she'd never feel like she belonged anywhere.
Then she met Hotch. They might have started out on somewhat rocky ground,but as time progressed, so did their friendship. It seemed he always knew when she needed someone, just like she somehow always seemed to know when he needed her. Somewhere between late night phone calls, to dinner dates, to simple days at Hotch's old apartment with Jack, they fell in love. Love Emily never thought she'd find. She had a family, a family who she'd do anything for, that she loved with everything she had.
"Em?" Hotch asked for the third time.
"What?" she asked, shaking her head slightly, pulling herself from her thoughts.
"I said, what do you think about these?" he asked, pointing to two very bright, shiny wedding bands.
"Ooh," she said. "Those are really nice,"
"Just nice? I want you to love them. We can keep looking," he suggested.
"Wait," Emily said, pulling Hotch back by the arm. "I do love them, they're gorgeous. But I was just- I don't know, thinking about us. I don't want to say the rings don't matter, because they do. But you matter more. You and our two wonderful children," she told him honestly. "Whatever rings we get will be perfect," she added with a warm smile.
"You're right," Hotch agreed. "Absolutely right. Well, while you were off in LaLa Land, I may or may not have done something that may or may not embarrass you right now," he added, a sly smile forming across his face.
"What?" Emily asked, utterly confused at what the man was talking about. The next thing she knew, Hotch was down on one knee in front of her, pulling a little black box out of his pocket. He opened the box to reveal the most beautiful diamond ring Emily had ever seen. It sparkled beautifully in the light. It was modest, though. It wasn't flashy and extremely girly, two things Emily was neither of. Despite her hatred of showing emotion in public, she felt herself already beginning to tear up.
"Aaron," she choked out. "You didn't have to-" but she was cut off. It was probably for the best, she was sure if she started talking now, nothing would make sense.
"Emily Prentiss," Hotch started. "I know you don't need an audience for this, I know we've already decided when we'll get married. But I want to do this for you. Nothing about our relationship has been traditional. Not in a long, long time. But we're back together now, for real this time. There's nothing either of us need to worry about except Jack and Gabby. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, Emily. Maybe that's a very cliché way of putting it, but it's the truth. I can't imagine living one more second of my life without you in it. I love you, Emily. Will you marry me?" he asked, his voice beginning to crack as well.
By now, the tears were falling freely down Emily's cheeks. She wiped at her eyes before saying. "Of course I will marry you, Aaron. I love you," she managed to say, as Hotch put the magnificent ring on Emily's finger, her hands shaking wildly as he did so. He stood, having no time to say anything else before Emily pulled him in for a kiss- quite possibly the best one between them thus far.
When they broke apart, only then did they realize almost the entire jewelry store was clapping and cheering for them. Emily laughed, taking Hotch's hand in one of hers, using the other to wipe at her eyes again. They waved to everyone, and Hotch bowed dramatically, eliciting a light, happy laugh from his now fiancé. They exited the store, still laughing as they walked down the street a ways to their car.
"You really didn't have to do that, you know," Emily said once they were in the car, headed back home.
"I know," Hotch smiled, taking one hand off the wheel, placing it over Emily's.
"Thank you," Emily said sincerely. "I just hope I can do something that sweet for you in return someday,"
"Don't worry about it," Hotch told her. "You've already given me everything I could ask for,"
"We're getting really sappy," Emily said jokingly, her sarcastic attitude never failing to shine through.
"Okay, okay, I'll stop," he said, as they drove home in a very comfortable silence.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"What does one wear to a courthouse wedding?" Emily asked three days later as she opened the closet. Of course, she had gone shopping the day she and Hotch applied for a marriage license for a dress for herself and Gabby, but being incredibly anxious and indecisive, she wasn't sure if what she picked was the best choice.
"What about that really pretty red dress you bought?" Hotch asked.
"It's red," Emily pointed out. "Wedding dresses are supposed to be white. I obviously wasn't thinking when I bought this," she said, pulling the dress out of the closet.
"Emily," Hotch said. "It's your wedding. Wear whatever you want, whatever color you want. You'll look beautiful no matter what. You could wear your pajamas, if you wanted to,"
"You're just being sweet," Emily said, laying the dress down on the bed, sticking a thumbnail in her mouth to bite as she pondered over her dress choice. She spun around, heading back into the closet, pulling out three more dresses she had. A couple Garcia had bought when she went on a shopping spree for Emily and Gabby on her first visit, and one Emily had bought as sort of a back up dress in case it was needed.
"Will you please help me pick one?" Emily asked, her nerves completely taking over.
Hotch looked the dresses over a moment. He really didn't care, he knew she would look stunning in any of the different dresses there. "I still really like that red one," he said, knowing how much she loved the dress.
Emily picked up the dress, inspecting it thoroughly once again. It was subtle, not too showy, but something dressy enough she would feel like she was actually at her own wedding.
"Why don't you try it on for me, and we'll see how you like it then?" he asked her.
"Okay," she agreed, disappearing into the bathroom so she could try the dress on and see herself in the mirror.
When she emerged, Hotch found himself mesmerized at her beauty. She had already done her hair and her makeup. Her long, dark hair cascaded down her back, beyond her shoulders in beautiful, thick curls, standing out on her pale complexion. Her makeup was simple as always, but stunning nonetheless. In that moment, he'd never seen her look more beautiful. The straps on the dress were thin, the hemline hung just below Emily's knees. The dress was tight, but not too tight. She looked absolutely perfect.
"Well?" Emily asked, growing anxious at Hotch's silence.
Hotch blinked a few times, bringing himself back from his thoughts.
"Em, you look... gorgeous," he stressed the word, though even that wasn't enough to accurately describe how she looked to him. "You have to wear this dress,"
Hotch moved closer to the love of his life, taking her hand in his. He spun her around a few times, then dipped her backwards as if they were ballroom dancing. He kissed her passionately, pulling her back up with him.
"If you absolutely insist," Emily whispered.
"I'm resisting every urge to rip that dress off you and take you on the bed right now," Hotch informed her.
Emily giggled a little. "Save that for the honeymoon, killer," she winked. "Enough about me, what are you going to wear?"
"Why don't you pick it out?" Hotch asked, motioning towards the closet. Emily nodded, and inspected all his clothing carefully. She settled on a pair of dark jeans and a black polo.
"Jeans?" Hotch questioned.
"I like the way they make your ass look," Emily half-whined. "And the shirt makes you look sexy. It'll be fun to take them off later," she told him seductively.
"Fair enough," he said, changing quickly, finishing up his normal getting ready routine.
A few seconds later, they heard a small knock at the door.
"Come in," Emily said, not surprised to see Gabby and Jack on the other side.
"Wow," Gabby said excitedly. "You look so pretty, Mama!" she said, jumping up on the bed to stand eye-level with her mother. "I like your hair," she commented, playing with the ends of Emily's hair.
"Thank you, sweetheart," Emily told the girl. "You look very pretty yourself. Do you like the dress I picked out?" Emily asked, referring to the purple and white frilly dress the girl was wearing.
"I love it! It's purple," she said dramatically. "It would be a crime not to love it,"
Emily laughed. "You're looking very nice yourself there, Jack," she told the teenager, who donned nice jeans and an orange shirt.
"Thanks," Jack smiled. "You really do look very pretty," he added.
"You guys are making me blush," Emily said.
"What about me?" Hotch asked, feigning hurt. "Does no one think I look pretty?"
Gabby laughed. "Daddy, if you looked pretty, that would be weird. You look handsome," she stressed the word, as if Hotch had never heard it before.
Everyone laughed again, and all four of them wandered down the stairs and out to the car, where they all ended up at the courthouse.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
With all the necessary paperwork in hand, Hotch and Emily finally found themselves in front of a judge, Jack and Gabby standing off slightly to the side. Their appointment had been set for two o'clock, but being a courthouse, they'd had to wait an extra half hour. But here they were, finally about to be wed.
"Do either of you have a preference as to who goes first?" The judge asked them, once everything was in order and ready to go.
"You go first, Em," Hotch said, to which Emily nodded.
"Alright," the judge started, clearing her throat before turning towards the audience of three witnesses. Neither Emily nor Hotch could tell you what the woman said to start their little ceremony. They were lost in their own thoughts, looking right into each others eyes, though they had been told they were supposed to face their makeshift wedding guests. Neither of them cared, though as they turned to face each other, reaching out to hold each others hands right as the judge began to speak.
"Emily Prentiss, do you take Aaron Hotchner to be your lawfully wedded husband? To live in the holy estate of matrimony? Will you love, honor, comfort, and cherish him, forsaking all others, keeping only unto him for as long as you both shall live?"
To Emily, the words sounded faint, distant even. She took a deep breath and nodded, managing to speak the words, "I do," with a smile, as Hotch squeezed her hand a little tighter.
The judge then turned her attention to Hotch, asking him the same questions he asked Emily.
"I do," he said happily.
Finally, the judge asked for the rings. Jack was much too old to be considered a ring bearer, but he had been holding onto them for the time being, so he handed them to the woman who distributed them to the couple.
"Aaron, place the ring on Emily's finger, then repeat after me," she instructed. With shaking hands, he placed the gold band on Emily's ring finger.
"With this ring, I thee wed..." the judge started, and Hotch repeated her.
"Wear it as a symbol of our love and commitment," she continued, Hotch repeating her. Emily followed the same procedure, placing the ring on Hotch's finger and saying the same lines.
"By the power vested in me by the District of Columbia, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride," she said happily.
As they kissed for the first time as husband and wife, Hotch managed to life Emily into the air, honeymoon style. He carried her out of the room, Jack and Gabby trailing closely behind them.
He didn't put Emily down until they reached their car, where he gently set her down by the passenger door.
"I love you," he said into her ear, just loud enough for her to hear.
"I love you, too," she said just as softly as he had.
"Congratulations, guys!" Jack told them, hugging them both as he did so.
"Thank you," they said happily together.
"You're married!" Gabby said happily, throwing her arms around Emily's waist, then also hugging Hotch who picked her up and spun her around, making her laugh.
"So are we Hotchners now?" Gabby asked excitedly.
"We are," Emily confirmed. Emily's name had changed with her marriage, and Gabby's name would change once the new birth certificate was sent to their house. The birth certificate was just legal proof, though. To Emily, Gabby had always been a Hotchner through and through.
"Yay!" Gabby said excitedly as they all piled into the car, prepared to go celebrate.
"I know my birthday isn't until December, but I think I know what I want," Gabby said randomly once they were on the road.
"What's that?" Hotch asked, glancing in his rearview mirror at the happy girl.
"A little brother or sister! I mean, I know I have Jack, but I wanna be the older one!" Gabby requested, practically jumping out of her seat.
"Oh my Lord!" Emily proclaimed. "I don't know about that, ma chere. I'm not as young as I used to be,"
"That's okay, you're not that old. Your hair's not too gray yet," she joked.
"Hey!" Emily said. "But seriously, what about a puppy?" she suggested.
"A puppy would be cool..." Gabby considered. "But I still want a baby brother or sister," she said quickly.
Emily and Hotch laughed, as their hands clasped together again. Whatever happened in the future- their future, would be just that. Their future together, as a family. Just where they belonged.