Hi guys! Hope you're all having a great holiday season! I hope I can get a couple more chapters up before I start classes again and things surely get crazy. Some good (or maybe not so good?) news though: I have every chapter to the end all planned out. Including this one, there's about 11 more from here on out. I know I ramble so much sometimes and I say this all the time but thank you all so much for all the support with this story! I am honestly very proud of it and I know it's got some issues (and some typos I am honestly too lazy to fix—oops!) but I've been excited about this story since I started writing it. I'm sure you'll all like how this one ends, and remember there's a slight time jump! Thanks again for sticking with me, hope you guys enjoy! Xoxo

XxxxX

Summer faded into fall and before Emily knew it, she and Hotch had been together for almost three months. Things were great; they spent as much time together as they could. Emily tried not to impose on weeknights or Saturdays because she wanted Hotch and Jack to have time together, but more often than not she'd get a phone call and hear either Hotch or Jack's voice asking her to come over and she just couldn't say no to either of them.

Emily couldn't be happier with how things had progressed. She hadn't had a relationship like this...well, ever. She had expected it to be strange at first. They had been such close friends she was afraid that getting into a relationship would mess up what they had, but it had only made them stronger. After the first date, she'd called JJ and told her a bit about it, and ever since JJ always asked about them. It wasn't annoying at all, but Emily had always been very private. It was actually nice to have a friend that was so interested in her personal life and just wanted her to be happy. JJ always asked if they'd ever told each other "I love you" yet. Emily always had to answer that no, they hadn't. It had only been a couple months of dating, but Emily knew that she was falling in love with Aaron Hotchner. Though they hadn't said those three little words yet, Emily knew she loved him. She was pretty sure he felt the same, but she was trying not to stress over it. She was learning to take every day for what it was worth. Her life had spun out of control more times than she could count, and now she felt the most at peace she had in years.

She'd been reinstated into the FBI and she'd had several interviews with different departments, but nothing seemed to click. She was trying not to stress about it, she knew the right thing would come her way eventually. This year had taught Emily so much; some lessons she thought she'd learned long ago. Her job was important, making a living was important. But so was living. She was living now. She had a boyfriend who was nothing but amazing to her. He had a son she adored more and more every day. She was savoring the little moments and not focusing so much on the long term. She'd learned that sometimes in life, long term doesn't exist. So for now, she was trying to live her life as stress free as she could. It seemed to be working; her nails had actually grown out a bit. She couldn't remember the last time they hadn't been bitten down so far they would often bleed. Emily Prentiss felt good, she felt whole. And for now, that was more than enough.

Emily was currently putting away some laundry she had let accumulate; she wondered how she'd even possibly worn all these clothes in just a week or so. She was pulled from her task when her phone rang. She dropped a pile of clothes on her bed and went across the room to pick it up off the nightstand.

"Hello?" Emily asked with a smile, having seen the caller ID flash Hotch's name.

"Hi Emily!" Jack's voice said happily.

"Hey, Jack. What's up?" She asked, sitting down on her bed.

"You're still coming to my birthday party tomorrow, right?" Jack asked hesitantly. Jack was turning nine years old tomorrow, and he'd wanted to have his party at the zoo. Emily and Hotch had spent a lot of time planning it and everything was set for the next day, his birthday conveniently falling on a Saturday. Jack was so excited, he always asked Emily if she was coming every time he saw or spoke to her.

"Of course, I wouldn't miss that for anything." Emily patiently reassured him again.

"Cool! Are you busy tonight?" Jack asked quietly.

"For you, I am never too busy." Emily said with a smile.

She heard Jack giggle softly before he spoke again. "Well, Dad said we could go somewhere for dinner for my birthday and he said I could invite you as long as you aren't busy." Jack said excitedly.

"Sure, I'm just finishing up some laundry." Emily agreed happily.

"Yay! Thank you, Emily! Dad wants to talk to you now." Jack said as she heard the shuffling of the phone being passed.

"Hey," She heard Hotch's voice moments later.

"Hi," Emily replied, unable to keep herself from smiling.

"You're sure you're not busy? This is kind of last minute." Hotch asked.

"You're saving me from doing more laundry. I'd be happy to come, if you guys are sure I won't be imposing on anything. If you just want it to be the two of you that's perfectly fine." Emily said, though she knew if that had been the case Jack wouldn't have called to invite her.

"We'd love nothing more than for you to come with us." Hotch said, she could almost picture his grin on the other end.

"Well, okay then. Should I just meet you somewhere?" Emily asked.

"You can meet us at the apartment if you want. You might want to bring a bag just in case Jack wants you to stay the night." Hotch laughed lightly, though he was only half joking. Emily hardly ever just came over for dinner. She always stayed the night.

"In case Jack wants me to, huh?" Emily smirked.

"I wouldn't object to it, either." Hotch laughed.

"Okay, I'll bring some stuff. I can be there in…" she glanced at her watch. "A half hour?"

"We'll be here." Hotch agreed, and their call ended shortly after.

Emily abandoned the laundry on her bed, knowing she could fold and put it away when she came back. She changed out of her grey yoga pants and plain white t-shirt into dark jeans, a purple long sleeve shirt, black scarf, and black boots. She left her hair up in the messy ponytail she'd thrown it in earlier. She put on just a little bit of make up since she wasn't completely sure where they'd end up. Knowing Jack, he wouldn't want to go anywhere too fancy, but that kid was always full of surprises. She'd learned to always be prepared. She packed a bag with pajamas, clothes for the next day, and everything else she thought she might need. On her way out the door she grabbed Jack's birthday present just in case she didn't have time to come get it before his party the next day.

Exactly thirty minutes later, Emily knocked at the Hotchners' door.

"Emily!" Jack greeted her with his usual hug and smile. She returned it, always happy to see him.

"Hey," Hotch greeted her, kissing her quickly before taking her bag from her. Emily had left Jack's present in her trunk, knowing if he saw it now it'd be torture to make him wait until his party.

Hotch and Emily had told Jack about them being a couple right after their first date. Jack, of course, had been thrilled. Neither of them had expected him to be upset, but when Jack had smiled and hugged her tightly upon hearing the news, Emily couldn't help but feel relieved. She really loved being with Hotch, but she knew if Jack had any opposition, she'd walk away. Jack had been through so much in his young life, and Emily would never be able to forgive herself if she was the cause of anymore distress to him. But of course, she had worried for nothing and Jack couldn't be happier.

"Hey yourself," Emily replied.

"I'll just take this and then we can go." Hotch said as he walked off in the direction of his bedroom where he put Emily's bag down.

"So," Emily said to Jack. "Where are we going?"

"I don't know yet," Jack shrugged.

"Well, it's almost your birthday so I'm sure whatever you pick will be great." Emily smiled.

In the end, Jack picked his favorite pizza place, which came as no surprise to Hotch and Emily. Dinner went great, they laughed and talked and Hotch even got the staff to sing to Jack and give him ice cream. They'd been having so much fun that they hadn't even noticed it start to rain outside.

When they left the restaurant almost two hours after arriving, they were definitely not happy to see the cold, unwelcoming rain; especially since none of them had brought an umbrella. They ran as fast as they could to Hotch's car and jumped inside, Hotch immediately starting it up and cranking the heat up. It really wasn't that cold out, but with the rain it was much colder than they'd expected.

"Dad is it supposed to rain tomorrow?" Jack asked worriedly.

"I don't know, buddy." Hotch said honestly as he carefully started the drive home. "It wasn't supposed to tonight. We'll have to check when we get home."

"What if it rains out my party?" Jack asked, disappointment evident in his tone.

"Don't think like that, tomorrow will be great." Hotch encouraged.

"Yeah," Emily agreed. "No matter what happens you're going to have the best 9th birthday anyone's ever had." Emily smiled.

Jack just nodded and forced a smile, but both adults knew the boy was worried. Emily really hoped the rain would clear up because she knew Jack would be devastated if they had to move his party. He'd been talking about it for almost a month now.

As soon as they got home, Hotch checked the weather. Sure enough, at some point, the forecast had changed and now there was a chance of rain for the next day. Emily saw Jack's face fall and immediately she just wanted to make him feel better.

"It's okay, Jack. We'll reschedule it if we have to, but we'll just wait and see what it's like in the morning." Hotch promised as he hugged Jack close and kissed his head.

"I know, I just really wanted to have it tomorrow." Jack said sadly.

"You still might," Emily supplied. "If it's alright with your dad, how about tonight I make you a really cool fort and we'll watch a movie or two?" She offered, looking to Hotch who nodded in agreement.

"Can we sleep in it?" Jack asked.

"Sure," Emily agreed. "It'll be great." She smiled.

They all changed into warm, dry pajamas and Emily set to work on making the biggest, comfiest pillow fort she could make. Hotch made popcorn and Jack picked out some of his favorite movies. Though Hotch and Emily could tell that Jack was still worried about his party getting cancelled, before the first movie was over he was already laughing and smiling. They made it through two movies before all three of them fell asleep in the fort Emily made, Jack sleeping in between his two favorite people.

XxxxX

Emily woke up early; she sat up and looked around, her body stiff from having slept on the floor. She slowly rose and got out of the fort. She looked out the window and felt her heart sink a little. It was still pouring down rain. She noticed she still had at least an hour before Jack would stir, so she went outside and got Jack's present from the trunk. Today was his birthday and even if the party couldn't happen, she'd still make sure he got his present.

As quietly as possible she changed out of her pajamas that had gotten wet when she went out to her car and into a pair of Hotch's sweatpants and an old t-shirt, knowing that he wouldn't mind. She went into the kitchen and started making chocolate chip pancakes, because they were Jack's favorite.

She managed to get a batch done without waking up Jack, but as she was starting another, she heard Hotch's footsteps behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle and kissed her neck.

"Good morning," She whispered.

"Morning." He replied. "How long have you been up?" He asked, coming to stand beside her and help her.

"Maybe an hour." She replied. "I heard it raining and I knew Jack would be disappointed so I went out and got his present out of my car and I figured since I was up I'd make breakfast." Emily said.

"You're really amazing, you know?" Hotch said after a moment.

Emily laughed softly. "Don't forget it." She joked as she bumped his hip with hers.

They worked together making Jack a birthday breakfast with all the works. They were just about finished when they heard Jack come into the kitchen and sit down at the island.

"Happy birthday!" Hotch and Emily said at the same time, moving across the kitchen to properly hug him.

"Thanks," He smiled softly. "Guess we have to move my party." He noted with a glance out the window.

"I'm really sorry, Jack." Hotch said sincerely. The zoo probably wouldn't close due to the rain, but the party was going to be held outside and Hotch knew it wouldn't be fun for anyone. Not to mention they'd probably all get colds. "We can move it to next Saturday, okay?"

"Will you be here next weekend?" Jack asked.

"I can't promise that, but I'll do everything I can just like I always do." Hotch replied honestly. He wished she could promise he wouldn't miss it for the world, but if they caught a case within the next week he'd have to go. Jack would understand, though he'd be disappointed. Hotch just had to hope this week was a slow one at the BAU, because he did want to make sure he could be there. After all, Jack would only have one 9th birthday. He could swear Jack was growing right before his eyes, and before long he'd be too old to even want to hang out with Hotch.

"Okay," Jack agreed. "Can you come next weekend, Emily?" Jack asked.

"You bet, honey." Emily smiled as she ran a hand over his messy hair.

"Okay, we can change it then." Jack said.

"I'll call everyone's parents and reschedule it." Hotch offered. "Right after we eat this massive breakfast."

It didn't take long for Jack to start to feel better about not getting to have his party that day. He thanked Hotch and Emily repeatedly for making him such a nice breakfast and had already started planning out what else they could do today. After the kitchen was mostly clean again, Hotch started calling all of Jack's friend's parents. Emily took Jack into the living room and listened to him animatedly plan the day.

Though Jack wasn't too upset, Emily could still see the hint of disappointment in his eyes. After a few more minutes, Jack seemed to have run out of steam. He leaned into Emily's side and didn't say much.

"You okay?" Emily asked as she nudged him gently.

"Yeah, I just hope Dad doesn't get a case." Jack admitted.

"I know. I hope so too. It'll be alright." Emily encouraged.

"I know." Jack smiled softly.

"Hey, today is your birthday, you know. It wouldn't be fair to make you wait a whole week to get your present, now would it?" Emily asked with a raise of her eyebrow.

"Really? You brought it?" Jack asked, perking up a bit.

"Of course, I'll go get it and be right back." Emily said as she got off the couch and went into Hotch's room where she'd stored the small box.

She came back and handed the gift to Jack, who opened it excitedly.

He ripped off the paper and carefully took the lid off the box, picking up the paper inside and reading it carefully.

"Is this for real?" Jack asked with his signature toothy grin.

"It is! Whenever you want, you, your dad, and one more person can go to the zoo and an employee will take you around kind of behind the scenes and let you see where the animals go when they aren't in their habitats. You can even feed some and pet some of the ones that aren't dangerous." Emily said with a smile. She'd called the zoo not long after she and Jack had taken their trip, she knew if there was any way to give Jack a more hands on experience at one of his favorite places, she had to do it. Turns out they did have something like that, but it wasn't just for anyone. Once Emily briefly explained how much Jack loved it there, (and also used her name—something she always hated doing but for Jack she'd do just about anything) before she knew it she had a place for three people to tour the zoo's "backstage" essentially. She'd gotten three, but let Jack know anyone could go with him if he'd like to bring a friend over her. She wouldn't ever just expect to be invited everywhere all the time.

"Can you be the third person?" Jack asked.

"If that's what you want, of course. But if you'd like to take a friend that's perfectly fine, too." Emily let him know.

"I want it to be you. Since Dad and I always went and then we went, it can be like our place!" Jack said.

"That sounds great." Emily said, happy that Jack seemed so happy.

"Thank you, Emily. This present is really awesome!" Jack said as he hugged her tightly, throwing his arms around her neck.

"I'm so glad you like it!" Emily said.

They were quiet for a moment, Jack still hugging her. He pulled away and looked at her very seriously, giving her a look that mirrored his father's.

"I love you, Emily." Jack said quietly, as if he wasn't sure about it.

Emily immediately felt tears spring into her eyes. She fought them, though, not wanting Jack to think that wasn't okay to say.

"I love you too." She said sincerely, kissing his forehead and smiling when Jack hugged her again.

Little did they know, Hotch was watching from the kitchen door frame. He'd only caught a little bit of their conversation, but he'd definitely heard Jack say "I love you." It warmed his heart and almost made him cry. He loved that Jack adored Emily so much, and he loved that Emily reciprocated it so easily and so naturally. After everything Hotch and Jack had gone through, he wasn't sure how they'd ever get themselves back together. Sometimes Jack asked questions about Haley. He remembered her more than Hotch thought he would, but he didn't remember a lot about the day she died, which Hotch was thankful for. But he always hated talking about it. He hated that Jack had lost his mother so young, but he loved that Jack had someone like Emily to love him as unconditionally as his mother had.

Hotch knew he was in love with Emily. He'd known that for a lot longer than the few months they'd been together. He hadn't said it yet, and neither had she. He knew she knew, and he knew she felt the same. But watching her with Jack, trying to make him feel better and make sure he had a great day, despite the disappointment; he knew he had to tell her. It was time.

XxxxX

The three of them spent the day with Jack. They picked up a cake from the bakery down the street and ate it and ice cream for lunch. They left the fort up in the living room and spent practically all day inside it. They took turns playing video games with Jack, Emily getting way more into it than Hotch ever would have imagined. She and Hotch played three different rounds of Mario Kart, Emily beating him every time and making sure to rub it in. She went much easier on Jack, but she was relentless with Hotch. Somehow that made him love her even more.

The rain didn't let up much until dinner time, so the majority of the day was spent indoors. Jack seemed happy to play video games and card games with his dad and Emily. He tried (and failed) to once again get Emily to teach him poker. Though the day probably wasn't as exciting as Jack had hoped for, he seemed happy anyway. He was laughing and smiling and telling stories all day long. They ended the day with more cake and ice cream but not before eating macaroni and cheese that Emily made. It wasn't the classiest of birthday meals, but it was one of Jack's favorite foods.

They all watched a movie together before Jack went to bed, sleeping in his own room instead of the fort in the living room. After Jack had gone up to his room, Emily started undoing the fort. It didn't take her very long before she had the pillows in one pile and the blankets folded in another. Hotch helped her put everything away, and then he took her by the hand and led her wordlessly into his bedroom.

"What are you doing?" Emily laughed as he closed the door behind them.

"This," He said simply as he pressed her up against the wall and kissed her lips, feeling that familiar happiness when she kissed him back.

Somehow they found their way to the bed, neither of them were quite sure how; but when they broke apart they were sitting on the bed, as close as they could possibly get to one another.

Hotch lay down and pulled Emily down next to him, pulling her close. Their foreheads touched and he could feel her breath on his skin. He couldn't help but run his hand over her hair and gently pull her hair tie out; splaying the dark locks over the pillow her head was resting on.

"I love you." Hotch said softly, in a tone Emily hadn't heard before. It was so quiet and soft and so un-Hotch like she was wondering if maybe she was just hearing things. But his lips curled up into a smile and she knew she wasn't going crazy. He'd said he loved her.

A goofy grin stretched across Emily's face, tears welled in her eyes.

"I love you, too." She said back, her voice barely above a whisper as she leaned up and met his lips again.