A/N: Hey, sorry about the wait, but this is a good chapter.

Does anyone read those A/N? hehehehe

Thanks for the reviews and for reading it.

Till next time.

Season 3 Episode 5 = Seven Seconds

I left her apartment before she woke up the next day, we drank the whole night barely saying anything. I didn't want to talk, not about anything important, but it felt good to have someone there, just sharing a drink and enjoying the night.

We had today and tomorrow off and then it was the weekend so Haley was letting me take Jack until Monday, and I was ready to enjoy my time with him as much as I could.

I didn't really wanted to explain to her why and what the whole thing last night was about. I had taken it out on her, at the police station in Denver. I couldn't let her fall apart, I couldn't let her get broken. Broken agents left, broken agents burned out, and I wasn't going to let that happen to her.

I didn't know why that was something that I felt the need to address on the case, why I felt so strongly about. And so I decided not to, I felt compelled to make sure she was ok, and I felt comfortable drinking with her, for now that was all I was going to think about.

I got back to Jessica's house I wanted my day with Jack to start early, and starting with breakfast was a good thing. I had gotten a few pastries that the girls liked and some things for Jack.

"Hey, you are just in time for breakfast." Haley said opening the door and letting me through. We went to the kitchen and I got a pastry out and started eating it.

"Where is Jack?" I asked leaning against the counter.

"He is still sleeping, I think he might be getting a cold. So if you want to take him next weekend." She offered. She knew I hadn't ever taken care of Jack, while he was sick, by myself, and she was trying to give me a hand, but I was determined, I was going to be a dad, even if a part time one, I was going to be a whole dad.

"It's fine, I want to take him." I said smiling, I was feeling way much better, even though the last case was extremely difficult, and that it was probably going to take some time to get past it, we were all going to be okay.

"Aaron?" I looked at Haley and saw her looking at me with a strange face. "Are those the same clothes you were in yesterday?"

Crap.

"Uhn…yes?" And that was a great answer. Nothing like acting like a teenager caught by their parent, to your ex-wife.

"Aaron, I'm not going to be angry that you started dating again." It was a bit awkward, and with that phrase I knew that what we used to have was finally over. I didn't hurt as much as I thought it would, we had drifted apart a long time ago.

"Yes, I'm wearing the same clothes, but it's not what you think." She started laughing. "I went to have drinks with Prentiss and spent the night in her guest bedroom. That is it."

"Prentiss really?" We stood there on a very awkward pause.

"Haley…"

"That doesn't work on me anymore Aaron, we don't need to fight about it. About this." She said grabbing one of the pastries from the bag and jumping to seat on top of the counter.

"I just had to apologize and we started drinking, and I went to sleep, in the guest bedroom, end of story." I was going to regret telling her this, since our separation almost two months ago, I felt most of the time, like I was talking to my annoying little sister, and I already had a annoying little brother to feel like this about.

"Apologize?"

"Yes, I made a….. not nice comment and then did something stupid."

"Huh…. And the drinking, is that new?"

"We don't drink often Haley, no need for worries."

"Not often, does that mean you drank before?" Just before I had to answer that question I heard Jack calling for her.

"And I'm going to see Jack." I started walking in the direction of the bedrooms, This was a very odd conversation to have to your ex-wife about you subordinate.

"Hey buddy, let's get you into the shower." Jack had definitely gotten sick, and from the looks of things I would have to get him to the emergency room, his fever was high.

"Don't wanto daddy, I feel icky." He put his arms around my neck and I hugged him back, he was always so affectionate even when he was sick.

"I know buddy, that is why I want you to take a shower, to see if we can get your fever down. Okay?" He nodded and laid his head on my chest. I wasn't easy taking take of him when he was sick, but I liked it, I had never being the primary care taker before. If something was wrong, it was always Haley who took care of things, and it make me feel good that he wasn't against the change of me being the sole parent figure.

And just two hours later we were in the emergency room. Jack was clingy, upset, bored, and very, very sick. Apparently everybody else was too, as from the look of things tonight the room was full of people.

"Come on Jack, daddy needs to check you in ok?"

"Don't wanto." He had a firm grip on my neck and wouldn't let go, I couldn't even see where I was going.

"Buddy, we need to see the doctor, otherwise we can't get you better." And that made him burst out crying. Great work Aaron. "Buddy it's going to be okay." I sat in one of the chairs, and started rubbing his back.

"Don't wanto." I could hear him talking with his face hidden in my neck, tonight was going to be a long night.

I got him a little further down on my lap, and tried to fill the forms they had given me out, no such luck, as Jack kept squirming, whining and being irritated.

"Em'ly" To my surprise my very excited son screamed happily, for the first time in the last several hours. I looked up and sure enough Prentiss was sitting down in a chair in the other side of the room, with a red nose, a box of Kleenex in her lap, she had gotten sick.

She waved at us, but made no motion to get close, so I did, after all Jack was getting very cross over the fact that he couldn't get closer to her.

"You got sick." I said sitting down on the chair next to her.

"Hi Em'ly" Jack said shyly, since when was he shy?

"Hey buddy, did you get sick?" She asked, her voice clearly sounded nasal and rough, I should have made sure she took a shower sooner. Jack nodded at her.

"We will be here a long time." She warned me. "I came in half an hour ago and the guy that was next to me said he waited two hours." She started running her fingers through Jack's hair.

"Can you take him so I can finish this up?" I knew she and Jack got along fine, and if I didn't finish his file soon, we would never get out of here.

"Sure, come here buddy." Jack almost jumped from my lap and easily laid his head in her chest and got comfortable, I shook my head, he would get anything with those puppy dog eyes of him.

I started filling out the file and in between I would look over to make sure both of them were ok, after all Prentiss was sick too. She had rested her head on the wall behind her with her eyes closed, the only indication I had she was awake being the hand alternating between rubbing his back and his hair.

"How are you feeling?" I asked after having dropped Jack's information's with the nurse at the front desk.

"Nasally?" She said with a smile. "My fever was a little high, so I decided to come."

"Good. Isn't he too heavy? I'm finished with the file, I can take him back."

"He is fine, he is warm and cozy." She snuggled him, and he let out a deep breath, it was disconcerting how comfortable those two were together

"It's weird being the only one taking care of him, but it feels good that he didn't call for Haley."

"Hotch, is Haley out of town?" And just like that I opened up without realizing.

"We aren't together anymore." We stayed quiet for a bit, I had told Morgan already, but this was the first time I wasn't sugar coting it, we would eventually get a divorce.

"Oh Hotch, I'm sorry."

"Thanks."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"I'm just worried about Jack you know."

"You are doing a good job with Jack, he looks comfortable, with you." She finished.

"I hope so, I spend so much time away from him, the least I want is to is for all of this to affect him."

"He knows why you do this Hotch. You call him whenever we are away on cases, and I'm sure you do everything together when you are home."

"He likes to do everything together, even wanted to start shaving" He had come to the bathroom a few days ago and declared that he needed a shave. We both started laughing and Jack lifted his head from her chest.

"Hi" He said smiling.

"You confortable buddy?" I joked with him, he was completely attached to her, his legs around her hips, his arm over her shoulders and his head went back to her chest.

"Yeah, she cushy, like mommy." He smiled and hugged her. Prentiss burst out laughing and I could feel the heat on my face, he was starting the embarrass your parents face, and comment on your dad's subordinates female attributes seemed like a good place to start. God, she was never going to let me live this down.

"Okay, you can stop now." She was still laughing like there was no tomorrow. "The good honest opinion of a child, nothing can beat that."

"Well I'm just glad I'm cushy, nice to sleep huh honey?" Jack smiled and nodded his head. After some time he put his thumb in his mouth and closed his eyes, I put my hand in his head and to check on his fever, he was still warm, but nothing too bad.

And then things got worse, my hand brushed her, where Jack's head was. On the cushy mound. I thought my face would combust from the heat.

"Sir?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I was checking Jack's head, for the fever." She was trying to hold back the laugher, and I was almost angry with mortification.

"Just checking the cuchy?" She started laughing again, and I decided to get up and get us all some drinks, before she decided to start with the jokes. This was a nightmare, it had to be.

After what felt like a very long while Prentiss was called.

"Ms. Prentiss?" Emily quickly got up and we saw that Jack was asleep.

"Come on." She said.

"Uhnn.." What?

"Well do you want to wake him up?" She looked sick and tired, but still had a smile on her face. "And besides, you already felt me up today, nothing worse can happen." She turned around to follow the nurse.

"Fine, lets go."

The doctor was nice enough to also do Jack's consultation and then we were out of there, Prentiss had taken a taxi to the hospital, so the three of us went to the pharmacy together.

The two had a cold, nothing serious, so just some fever and cold medicine were and we were good to go. I drove to Prentiss apartment, she looked more awake then she had in the waiting room.

"You should have gone change clothes, like I told you to."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." She waved me off.

"Take Monday off."

"No."

"Prentiss.."

"No."

"Pre.."

"No! And stop insisting."

"Then stop being stubborn."

"Today is Friday, and there is a lot of time for me to rest and take lots of fluids, and therefore I'm not taking Monday off." She explained it, very sarcastically.

"You are a very inflexible woman."

"You just noticed that boss?" She smiled. "Thank you for the ride, and say goodbye to Jack for me, I hope he gets better soon." She got out of the car and looked at me from the passenger window that was open.

"Me too….. You were good with him, are good with him" Her expression was a little off, she knew I was going to address our elephant in the room. "I think you will be an amazing mother, I'm sorry for what I said and how I said it the other day. You have a way with kids."

"Bye Hotch." And with that she walked away.