A/N: Here's next chapter. I hope you all like it!

Special thanks to jenny crum, snuggleUP and Christiangirl!

I don't own criminal minds!

Chapter 38: Broken friendship

The next morning, JJ broke protocol and decided to once again head to Langley. She wasn't supposed to. Collins had strictly forbidden her to set foot on any government property in case Ward was following her. But her anger was driving her so far past protocol that she couldn't care less. Whether or not Owen had a reason, he should've told her and she wasn't going to let him get away with it.

But as JJ entered the building she reminded herself to stay calm and collected. She was going to say goodbye to Emily first since she was leaving on her assignment. JJ had texted Emily and asked her to wait for her so they could say goodbye. Their friendship meant the world to JJ, so she didn't want to let her down.

JJ turned the corner and headed towards SAD. As always she took the same hallways and doors and eventually got to the right one and passed security. She walked inside the office and went straight for the bullpen. She searched the place for Emily, or any familiar face, but she didn't see anyone. That was until she looked over at Collins' office where he was speaking to Emily along with Clyde Easter and a few strangers JJ had never met or seen before. She sat down behind her desk when a thought suddenly hit her. She jumped up from her chair and walked across the bullpen and slipped into the office of their best technical analyst.

She stepped across from him as he sat behind his computer, typing away at his keyboard and ignoring JJ completely. ''Hi Todd,'' JJ greeted happily, hoping he was going to cooperate with her. Todd was known for his impressive skills when it came to technology, but JJ didn't exactly had a relationship with him. They said their hellos and goodbyes and that was about it. ''I need a favor.''

''I don't do favors.'' he said flatly, still staring at his screen as JJ moved closer towards him.

''Do I need to remind you that I outrank you?'' JJ asked, trying to intimidate him, which obviously wasn't working in her favor. She discovered that when he turned around with an unimpressed look on his face.

''Collins might be in awe of you, but I do not answer to you!'' he snapped.

JJ pushed him backwards in his chair, causing him and the chair to slam into the wall behind him. She stepped towards him and hovered above him. ''Look, Todd!'' she began angrily. ''I don't have time for this bullshit! This is a matter of national security and I need a favor!''

''Ok..oh okay.'' he said, his hands shaking as he stared back into JJ's eyes. They were filled with rage and caused him to listen to her. ''What do you need?''

''I need contact information of the hacker that found the pictures of Christian Ward.'' JJ said simply.

''Why do you need that when the agency can help you out?'' he asked in disbelief.

''Because that hacker friend of yours found Christian Ward in less than a day while the agency has been looking for him for months. We need more leads, and at our pace nothing is happening so I want to move things along!'' she explained.

''Okay,'' Todd agreed, knowing to never question JJ again. To him she had always seen like the beautiful CIA officer that everyone loved and fell for. To him she was typical, but now he was actually experiencing a different side of her. ''I'll let him know and then he will contact you.''

''He will contact me?'' JJ asked.

''That's the only way you can do business with him, believe me. I've known of him for over five years and I have never met him.''

''Thank you, Todd!'' JJ said politely, her head spinning. There was suddenly so much she needed to do, and it seemed like time was getting more limited with each minute that passed. She stepped back into the bullpen and at the same time she watched Emily and her boss emerge from Collins' office. She made her way towards the two who were in deep conversation, but Emily spotted JJ as she walked towards them.

''Hey,'' Emily greeted happily.

''Hi,'' she said and then she turned to Clyde Easter to whom she hadn't been formally introduced. So she extended her hand politely. ''Hello sir, I am Jennifer Jareau.''

Easter shook JJ's hand, admiring her beauty since the very instant he saw her. But that wasn't all. The name Jennifer Jareau had been quite dominating in the conversations he had shared with Collins. Collins insisted that she was one of the best he'd seen in decades, and if she hadn't been on assignment in DC, he would've asked her to join on the Doyle case. ''Clyde Easter.'' he introduced kindly. ''It's a pleasure to meet you, Jennifer. Your boss speaks very highly of you.''

''Well, thank you, sir. The pleasure is all mine!'' JJ said in return.

Easter turned to Emily. ''We'll leave in five minutes.'' he announced. ''Goodbye, Jennifer.''

''Goodbye, sir.'' JJ said as she watched him walk away, impressed by his presence. She then turned around and faced a laughing Emily. A wide smile was spread across her face, and two seconds later she was just outright laughing in the middle of the bullpen. ''What?'' JJ asked curiously.

Emily forced herself to stop, so she pulled herself together. ''He was flirting with you!''

''What? No!''

''Oh yes, he was. It was so obvious.'' she teased, but then it suddenly hit her why they were having their conversation in the first place. ''I'm sorry about questioning you yesterday concerning your choice to leave the CIA. It wasn't my place.''

''Emily, don't apologize for that. You were right to reason with me.'' JJ assured. ''The truth is that I would hate to leave this job because it means a lot to me, but it's not worth my happiness in the long run.''

''You're right. You have a chance at a normal life and you should take it.'' she encouraged. The hint of a normal life was what most CIA officers would run away from. But there were some, just a few, that got a taste of it and never wanted anything else. For JJ that seemed to be the case. ''I…uhh…I have to go.''

''I guess we'll see each other again when all of this is over.''

''We definitely will.'' Emily agreed, feeling sad that her friendship with JJ would be put on the backburner. She opened her arms and gave the blonde a quick hug and then pulled back. ''Good luck, JJ.''

''You too!'' JJ said. She then watched Emily turn around and walk out of the bullpen. It was sadder than JJ imagined. She had no idea what kind of case she was working on and if she was in any danger, she just didn't know. All she did know was that their friendship was real.

She then forced herself out of the spot she had been standing in for over five minutes. Once she saw the face that angered her the most in that moment, she had enough power to push herself into action. So she stormed through the bullpen and took Owen's arm and pulled him with her. She pushed him into an empty office across the bullpen and threw the door shut behind her.

Owen looked around him, smiling at the memory they both shared there. ''This is a little cliché, don't you think?''

JJ immediately knew what he was talking about. It was the exact same office where they had shared their first kiss. ''Get over it, Owen!'' JJ snapped.

''Geez, what's with the attitude?'' he smirked.

She marched forward and stepped right in front of him, looking into his eyes with anger. ''You put Aaron's apartment under surveillance?'' she exclaimed angrily, her voice loud and filled with rage. ''You broke his privacy! You went behind my back. I can't believe this, Owen.''

He stepped closer towards her but she immediately pushed him back with force. ''Try to understand…'' he tried to say but JJ interrupted him.

''No, you understand something…'' she began. ''Stay out of my personal life, Owen.'' she went on. ''I don't know if you did to lash out or out of jealousy. I don't care. You don't do something like this without my knowledge.''

''Your boyfriend is on our track, JJ!'' he shot back. ''He's still investigating Warren's death and he's also looking into Howard Schmidt. He might be making a connection between the two before we will have found anything!''

''What?'' JJ stuttered. Her concern about Hotch investigating Warren had disappeared when he told her that he was no longer investigating the case. She thought he was moving onto other cases. ''But he told me he's no longer working the case.''

''Well, he lied to you because his job probably required him to.'' Owen began. ''He was spotted at FBI headquarters every single day for the past three weeks.''

'''So he's working on the case fulltime now, just like us.'' JJ said in despair. ''This can't be happening.'' she breathed out, facing away from Owen. ''I don't know how to keep going on like this. I can't keep lying to him.''

Owen stepped around and then in front of her. He gently pulled her hands away from her face and forced her to look up at him. ''I didn't do this out of jealousy or to lash out, JJ. I did it because it's my job and we need to know what Aaron Hotchner knows. His case might lead to terrorism and the abduction of Howard Schmidt, but our case is so far beyond that. We need any information he has that we don't have. I won't apologize for simply doing my job.''

''I know. I get it and I'm sorry for yelling at you.'' JJ said and she was about to walk out of the room when he pulled her back inside by her wrist.

He cleared his throat, emotion filling his eyes as he looked at her. Sometimes he could swear to himself that nothing had changed. That they were still partners like before, and that JJ hadn't moved on with her life. But unfortunately for him, reality was different. ''JJ, there's something I need you to know.'' he started off gently. ''When we worked together, I knew there was always one thing in my life I could always count on. And that was you. I knew I could always count on your friendship, and I don't want that to change now, especially not after everything that has happened.'' he said. ''I want you to be happy and if he makes you happy than I won't stop you. But I can't stand that we're not friends.''

''Owen,'' JJ whispered.

''JJ, why can't we be friends?''

She sighed deeply, trying to find the right answer to his question. ''Owen, I care about you so much.'' she said emotionally. ''But I'm living a different life right now. For the first time in years I have a future and our friendship could be a threat to that, and I can't put that at risk. I'm sorry.'' she said with a pained expression. ''There are so many things I wish I could share with you, but I just don't trust you enough.''

''I understand where you're coming from. I betrayed your trust and I don't deserve any kind of relationship with you.'' he went on. ''However I do think that you owe this agency the truth.''

''What are you talking about?''

''You moved in with Aaron Hotchner, and you're planning on leaving the agency when this case is over.'' he summed up. ''Did I leave anything out?''

JJ was baffled, stunned emotionally. She couldn't believe he could've sunk any lower than he did in that moment. It almost felt like he was threatening her, and his earlier words vanished into thin air. She could no longer believe a single word that fell from his mouth. Somehow, Owen kept leading her back in and then all over again she believed him, and when she turned her back on him for just a second he proved what kind of man he was. He may have been the best CIA operative Collins had ever had in his division, but to JJ character was so much more important than skills and the job. And in her eyes, Owen had lost every good attribute she ever believed he possessed. ''I really can't believe that it has come to this.'' she whispered, her eyes watering. She pulled herself together so she didn't give him the satisfaction of falling apart in front of him. ''I presume you will tell Collins about this, and if so we're done!'' she said in disappointment. She threw open the door and stormed out, grabbing her belongings on the way out of the bullpen. And as she was exiting the building she couldn't stop to wonder what she had ever seen in Owen. Was he always so stern? Or was he trying to ruin her relationship with Hotch?

Whatever it was, she hated it. She hated that her once amazing partnership with Owen had come to such an upsetting end. And even though he was her handler on this case, she could deal with it. After all, she had much bigger concerns regarding Hotch and his involvement in their case. No matter what, she had to keep him away from Hawsawi and most of all, Christian Ward.