CHAPTER 96
JE VEUX SEULEMENT OUBLIER…
"Can you do me a favor, Angela Hunter?" Emily asked as they got in the car.
She had avoided eye contact with Angie pretty much the entire time they spent in the orphanage, even when they both played the same game with the kids. They were both really good at playing games, especially mind games, so Emily had figured that eye contact would only take away from the thrill.
That, and also the fact that she was upset, the entire time. She just didn't want it to show in her eyes, if Angie caught a glimpse. Emily refused to communicate non-verbally with her. Of course there was the whole "Angela wants to be a profiler" side to the story, so the girl managed to learn so much about Emily Prentiss, either way.
"Yes, of course I would, Emily Prentiss." Angie said politely.
"Don't mention…this…" Emily trailed off, unable to find a word to describe what had just happened. "…to my team. Please?"
"They don't know!?" Angie did not mean to sound so surprised, but she couldn't help her tone of voice.
Also – this looked like something Emily was very passionate about. It surely was a big part of her life and her monthly routine. Angie had heard how incredibly close Emily Prentiss was with her team members, so it was weird to now learn that none of them knew about this big chunk of Emily's life.
"They don't have to know everything about me." Emily said lamely.
"Uh, yeah they do!" – Angie thought to herself without saying a word out loud.
If she were a colleague of Emily's she'd want to know everything about her. She'd take offence in learning that Emily had hidden such a huge part of herself, for so long.
"Do I?" Angie challenged out loud, keeping her previous thought to herself.
So far it seemed like Emily had no problem sharing very personal things with Angela.
Emily, in turn, found herself feeling like she was completely naked, in front of a stranger. She had taken the imaginary lairs of clothes off, one by one, until there was nothing but Emily Prentiss left.
"This week, you do!" Emily replied calmly.
Angie smiled and enjoyed the faint music that Emily then played in the car. It was a CD of old French chansons, sung by people whose names the youngsters, about Angie's age, would not have even heard of.
"Je ne veux pas travailler…Je ne veux pas déjeuner…" Angie's soft singing voice sounded so quietly as she chanted along with the current song. "Je veux seulement oublier…"
"What do you want to forget?" Emily looked at her for a second.
First of – the girl knew Edith Piaf, which made her even more amazing in Emily's eyes. Secondly, she had just sung a part of the lyrics that say she'd like to forget something. And she had sounded genuine about it, unless Emily was reading way too much into the song.
"Things…" Angie shrugged. "Memories…" She then added, until the statement sounded suspiciously much like something Emily had said to her earlier that morning.
"And people?" Emily rose her eyebrows. "What about people? Want to forget anyone in particular?"
Angie's usual confidence was not showing. It never really did, when she was around Emily. It almost seemed and felt like Angela was a completely different person, but inside the same body, with the same face.
"Mhh. I'm not sure. I'm still trying to figure it out." She replied vaguely.
It wasn't a good enough answer for Emily. She would have to repeat that question, maybe a few days later.
"Welcome to the BAU lair!" Emily said cheerfully, as soon as the elevator doors opened and she found herself back home – the place she considered her home anyway; with Angie standing by her side.
Emily took a step forward, but Angela was immobile for a long moment. Turning around to check on her, Emily noticed a smile on Angela's face. A smile of hope. Not so much of happiness. There was some melancholy behind those bright green eyes of hers. And yet, she smiled.
Instinctively, Emily extended her hand for Angela - she figured it might be easier for the girl to transition from her Trainee life into a real, actual FBI office setting, if someone was holding her hand, walking her through it.
And it was.
Angie held Emily's hand willingly. At first she had done so only because she couldn't find the strength to walk on her own. Something about that place was tripping her.
And then, she held onto Emily's hand as they walked across the bullpen. It was a warm hand, a firm grip, but yet a soft one. And still, one that felt like it wouldn't slip away from Angie's hands. She remembered people with such grips – they were some of those shadowy figures in the mental images she had seen an hour ago when she had checked out of the reality for a moment. Grips, as good as Emily's, had once held Angie's hand, warmed it, given her hope and promising her everything she ever wanted in life.
Those grips had then loosened and slipped off, disappearing into the darkness. They had left Angie broken.
Realizing that, she instinctively let her hand slip away from Emily's. She'd be damned if she let another person hold her, only to leave her in the end. So, she pulled away first.
If Emily knew what was going on in Angie's head at that moment, she'd draw a never ending series of parallels between the two of them, when it came to running away before getting hurt.
"Guys, this is…" Emily started, wanting to introduce Angela to her team members, all of whom had their eyes glued to the beautiful young girl who had walked in with Emily.
However, she was interrupted before she could even utter the girl's name.
"My favorite future profiler!" Rossi was the first one to go greet Angela and it gave her so much satisfaction. She had some sort of an obsession with that man and she was not afraid to confess to it.
"Hello Mr. Rossi. It's an honor to be here, where it all started; with you, who started it!" Angie said politely, trying to sound calm, collected and professional. How could she possibly hide her true emotions, remained a secret. On the inside she was bursting with joy. David Rossi…the David Rossi had spoken so highly of her he remembered her name and he had smiled instantly when he laid eyes on her. Angie could not remember a time in life when she had felt more proud of herself. This was it. This was amazing and this was so worth it all the sleepless nights, with a book in hand. This was worth memorizing every word in each one of this books. This was Heaven and Angie was now living in it, temporarily. She'd get to see this man each day, for the next seven days. This was so worth it.
David appreciated the throwback and the fact that this girl had done her research. Yes, she was shadowing the current Unit Chief, but it was flattering that she knew the BAU had actually been founded by Rossi.
"Hello, it's so nice to see you again!" Reid jumped up from his seat, recognizing the girl who had asked him to do a lecture on geoprofiling. "I've been thinking about you! There is a really cool seminar soon, about two hours away from here. It's in a University and I've been invited to speak. I can bring a plus one. Oh…that sounded wrong. I mean, it's just a seminar. If you're interested, we can go. I think you'll love the topics, so I wanted to ask you to come with me." Reid said frantically, hoping this wasn't coming off as a lame attempt to flirt with the girl, which most certainly was not his intention.
His colleagues smiled, because Reid never usually invited people to his seminars. He'd go on his own, because no matter how many times he had asked the team, they had come up with excuses not to go. And when they actually went, they had been forced to fake interest so that they wouldn't hurt his feelings. The fact that he was aware of it all along was what hurt him the most. So at some point he just stopped extending invites. And it wasn't like him to invite strangers to tag along, so Angela must have made a pretty good impression on him during his two lectures at the Academy.
"The only thing I like more than seminars, are free seminars!" Angie smirked. "I'd more than love to go with you, Dr. Reid. Thank you for kindly extending the invite."
"She called me Dr. Reid! I like her!" He said happily to the first person he found by his side, who turned out to be Luke.
"Oh, I know!" Garcia ran over to the side of the bullpen, where everyone was now basically ganged up at, eyeing Angela up and down.
"I know!" Garcia continued. "You're the cutie-pie who complimented my shoes during the hearing. Thank you! You have no idea how much they hurt, but hearing they look good made me wear the pain like a champion!"
"You are welcome. I'm pretty sure I already love everything about you." Angie smiled, adoring everything about that woman – from her overly puffed up hair all the way down to her pair of extremely tacky pink and purple shoes. She especially loved the excessive amount of glitter on the heels. She'd never be able to pull those shoes off, but Garcia was doing an amazing job at making them look just amazing.
"Okay, I love her and she must to stay!" Garcia concluded after hearing how Angela spoke to her and about her.
"That's right - you're the kid who took Fowler down!" Matt remembered now.
"I didn't do it. Karma did." Angie smiled brightly.
"Guys, this is Angela Hunter, she's one of the Academy Trainees and she has so kindly asked me to be her mentor for Big-Little Week. So, she will be spending quite some time here, at the BAU. I'm sure in no time you'll get used to seeing those emerald eyes around here." Emily finally presented her to the team, officially.
"Those eyes, alright…" Luke muttered subconsciously, while eyeing Angela. He hadn't meant to be so vocal about his thoughts. Matt nudged him, hoping that would make him shut up and make less of a bad impression.
"Well, hello you…" Angie had noticed the way Luke was checking her out and it did not bother her. At all. She knew how to handle a hungry Latino man. Plus, she'd never back down, especially not for a man. So, mimicking the game his eyes played on her body, she checked him up and down before she spoke again.
"You can call me Angie…" She added with a playful wink.
Angie then made rounds, shaking everyone's hand, just because this would make the meeting a bit more official than the little verbal communication they had already made.
It felt weird, on both sides.
Angie already knew about the BAU people thanks to her stalking ways and they had already met her a few times – at the Devil Child bar, during the hearing and, some of them, even in the classroom.
And yet, it felt good to be officially presented to the team, by their leader. It almost felt like Emily was making her part of the team as well, at least for the week to follow.
"Oh, goodie, we have a Mini Prentiss now!" Garcia said happily.
Angie gulped and looked at Emily.
"The official name of this week is Big-Little Week. The Academy received a lot of crap about that name - people say it sounds like an initiation game at a sorority…" Emily explained. "So us Agents just started referring to our Littles, the Trainees, as our Minis instead. That also backfired, as some took offence and thought us Agents were being rude and belittling the Trainees. So now we just don't know what to call you. Plus, I've never really done this, so I'm even more confused…"
"You've never participated in that week? How come nobody ever requested you?" Angie asked in disbelief.
Yes, she might have had a severe case of obsession and deep appreciation for Rossi, but she also found herself having a mild case of platonic infatuation with this Emily Prentiss woman now, too. Naturally, this was evident in the way she spoke about her, even the way she simply shot her glances every now and then, as if to check if she was still there, by her side.
"Oh, they did request me. It's just that…" Emily sighed before she continued. "No Trainee has ever felt like the right Mini for me, so I turned all of the requests down. Not to sound conceited or anything, but I just didn't think they'd be able to keep up with my hectic schedule and their own training schedule, so early in the Academy."
"Ah…" Angie did not believe that for a second. Emily must have had a better reason and it was only a matter of time that Angie would find it out.
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, we have a pretty loose schedule this week. Only two morning classes are obligatory, but other than that we are free to skip classes so we can follow our Agents whenever we want to, just as long as we read up all the new material we've missed out on. And, not to sound conceited, but I'm a distinctly above average intelligent person, so I probably already know most of the theory anyway. So, it would really be my pleasure to learn some action from you now, Emily Prentiss." Angie said calmly. Somehow, she managed to not sound conceited about it, too.
"Oh, I love a young person who is not afraid of their intellect!" Reid smiled brightly, hoping this girl would be as good as she claimed she was.
"Welcome to the BAU, Angela." Rossi said, giving her a warm welcome with open arms. He already adored this girl, her charisma and her brain, but most of all – her enthusiasm and the passion she had shown in profiling.
"Sorry I'm late…" JJ muttered as she walked in. It was lunch time now and she hadn't even contacted anyone, nor replied to their messages and calls, all morning.
It was different with Emily, who had officially taken the morning off, on the 6th day of each month. She did not have to reply Tara's phone call earlier and she wasn't supposed to give answers to anyone.
"JJ, you need to inform me when you are taking personal time off, you know that." Emily said as the Unit Chief.
"Other than that, I hope everything is okay and you know if you ever need something, you have all of us you can turn to." Emily added, now as JJ's best friend.
Sometimes it was hard for her, having to make a distinction between the two roles she played with her team and it was especially hard when it came to JJ.
"Yeah, thanks." JJ said weakly.
Ever since Will's insecurities had blown up in her face, JJ had not been acting like herself. The day after she had stayed over at Emily's, she had taken some personal time off and nobody knew the reason for that.
"All of you, plus one, I see…" JJ eyed Angela curiously, only seeing her in profile.
They were not on a case, so this could not have been a witness, waiting for interrogation.
Looking at the girl more closely, JJ realized she knew her.
"I know you…" JJ half smiled, as soon as Angie turned around and JJ looked in her eyes.
"Trainee Angela Hunter. It's nice to meet you. I'll be following Emily Prentiss around for a week." Angie spoke before JJ could continue her sentence, almost as if she was afraid what JJ might have said instead.
"You're the one who got us rid of Fowler." JJ said, but there was something about this girl that seemed familiar, apart from that. Maybe she was remembering bits and pieces from the night at Devil Child bar – JJ had been more than drunk, so it was plausible she didn't remember everything.
Angie shrugged casually. She hated taking credit for things.
Angie had shaken everyone's hand and had looked everyone in the eyes, while meeting them. Everyone, but JJ. Somehow she distanced herself from JJ from the second she saw her enter the bullpen, physically taking a step back, as soon as she had turned around and seen JJ there.
"Now, Angela Hunter, we usually start our days with coffee and breakfast and a quick gathering in the meeting room. Since today starts at lunch time for me, we are going to get some food and then we'll discuss possible cases before we continue either with paper work or working on a case if we choose one to take up on." Emily broke the awkward silence between JJ and Angela. Someone really needed to do it.
JJ was still eyeing Angela with curiosity. Angela, however, was looking around the bullpen, pretending like JJ was not even there.
"Okay. There is a cool healthy place just between your campus and mine. They have sandwiches with avocado and quinoa salad." Angie smiled brightly, to which most of the guys laughed, leaving her confused.
"You see, the BAU is all about pizza – all day, every day." Emily pointed out.
"Oh, I love pizza!" Angela was happy that finally, after all the healthy food she had tried to consume, she now had a legitimate excuse to eat what she really wanted to eat.
"Rossi, JJ, Garcia, would you join Angela and I, in my car? The rest of you guys will fit in the van with Luke." Emily suggested and Angela was beyond excited. It would be her second time off campus, in just half a day. This was great.
Rossi sat in the passenger's seat while Angela was in the back, between JJ and Garcia. She noticed how Rossi shot her a few glances, using the rear-view mirror of the car. His curiosity was well masked. Same could not be said about Garcia, who spent the entire time bombarding Angie with questions.
"How is the Academy nowadays?" Garcia had started.
"Tough, but not impossible. It's more about the psychological endurance for me, than theory. I came very well prepared. The first few classes were a total snooze fest." Angie laughed.
"Any hot trainers?" Of course Garcia would ask that question.
"Hmm, just one, but he's married. Plus, I'm not looking. And it would be weird, so…" Angie shrugged.
Had she dropped Morgan's name, all Hell would break loose. The BAU still had no idea he was back in the city. In order to keep it that way, he had come up with the name DeMo for himself, a combination of his first and last name, so he'd fly under the radar for as long as possible. He only ever spent a couple of hours there, twice a week, and he was always just hanging out around the Academy Campus, avoiding the main building and all the designated parking areas, for Agents. So far he had managed to not tip anyone off.
"What's your favorite color?" Garcia continued asking.
"Sparkles. Anything that sparkles is just awesome." Angie said honestly. She wouldn't wear too many things with sparkles, but if it were something to lounge in at home, or wear to sleep when nobody is looking, it would be sparkly like it was Vegas all day, every day.
"Good. I love sparkles too. And Unicorns and tea mugs and pink and fluffy things and hair spray and I love Grease!" Garcia kept on adding to her list until she was short out of breath.
"Oh, Grease is my favorite musical!" Angie's eyes lit up. A huge smile formed on her face and Emily could not help but check it out, in the mirror. Seeing Angela instantly brighten up, made Emily smile as well.
Rossi, sitting next to Emily, was now busy profiling her, and not the new girl.
JJ had recently tried desperately to make Emily smile. And she had succeeded, occasionally, but all of the smiles were fake or rather - forced.
Yet, this one now was full of light. It was genuine. It oozed warmth.
"I used to go see it in a theater close to where I lived. It was on for a whole year and I must have seen it at least fifty times. We'd always dress up and do our hair like the girls from the show and we'd sneak our own snacks in and we'd sing along with all the songs. I bought all the merchandise possible and I even made friends with some people from the cast. It was great!" Angela suddenly lightened up even more. It was as if she had flipped a switch and turned into a bubbly monster, quite like Garcia.
"We?" Rossi caught on that slip.
"Yeah. I went with that one person. It was a long time ago." Angie flipped the switch again, now relaxing against her seat and being significantly less bubbly.
"Sounds like someone special in your life." Rossi continued.
"Mhh, yeah. They were. Until they left." Angie decided to be honest. Vague, but honest.
Rossi then shot a glance at Emily whose tongue was now licking her bottom lip.
Emily was the master of leaving and they all knew that. If Rossi could make her connect the dots and show her just how much leaving someone hurts, testified by Angela's current confession, it would be a win in his book.
Emily was painfully aware of his game and that was why she refused to grace him with a glance. She had the perfect excuse of having to drive and be careful on the street, but he knew exactly what was on Emily's mind.
Or at least he thought he knew.
"JJ, everything alright there? You're quiet." Emily changed the topic.
"Mhm." JJ muttered, keeping her eyes on the road and giving Angie and Garcia the shoulder, which was something JJ would never do to anyone, out of respect.
Her phone had also buzzed a few times and had been ignored until the point where she had switched it off completely.
Emily was terrified to even ask what was going on. JJ was not being herself and that troubled Emily. However, JJ was somewhat like Emily – when things were tough, she needed her space. She'd initially push people away, before she'd finally cave in and confine in the person she feels most comfortable with. That was usually Emily.
Arriving at the pizza place first, they chose their table and waited for the rest of the team before placing the order.
"Diavola, con tantissimo formaggio. Grazie!" Angie said to the waitress after figuring that this was an Italian restaurant, held by Italians.
"Uh, okay Mini Prentiss." Luke pointed out and he confused Angela.
"It's all Emily ever eats." Rossi elaborated.
"Ha! Seriously? Emily Prentiss likes it hot? Humor me!" Angie shot a glance at Emily, sounding a little bit sarcastic.
"Yeah, she flipped a switch and stopped experimenting with toppings once she found hot salami and cheese. It's weird, she started eating that right after she came back from the dead…uh, I mean from Paris. It's not a popular topping there. They don't even eat pizza there. Wait, do they?" Garcia ranted.
"Yeah, she came back a different person after Paris…" JJ said weakly and it was pretty much all she said during the entire lunch.
"How so?" Angie asked curiously, her eyes piercing through Emily, making it impossible for her to avoid such a direct question.
"Guess Paris changed me." Emily shrugged and lost her appetite in the process.
"What about Paris changed you?" Angie would not drop it. She kept on nagging, with that innocent look on her face, while sipping on a glass of Coca Cola.
"Things…memories…" Emily started saying a line that Angela had already heard.
"People?" Angie finished that line, along with Emily.
They spoke in perfect unison, the timbers of their voices complementing each other to the point of perfection - Emily's hardcore Unit Chief authority-infused voice and Angela's young, innocent, vibrant, tender voice. They were the perfect match. Too bad only Angela was into analyzing voices, so she was the only one who realized that.
Emily nodded, confirming it one more time.
"Sounds like Paris really did a trick on you, huh?" Angie kept on pushing it.
"It did. It still does…" Emily was now regretting her choice of a drink. A bubbling drink wouldn't help her calm down the daemons that were now brewing inside of her, unless it was a bottle of champagne that was bubbling.
"It's alright. You have all these amazing people in your life now." Angie's hand pointed across the table, showcasing the entire team.
"Yeah, that's not how it works. Once you love someone, you don't just get over them. You can't magically replace them with anyone else." Emily's sudden heartfelt confession startled her team. She had been so reserved and quiet recently and yet, there she was, speaking openly about the darkest time of her life.
They all figured she was speaking about Ian Doyle and none of them dared to comment on that.
"Not to say that I don't love and appreciate each one of you, guys." Emily felt the need to say it out loud, as her previous words might have been interpreted the wrong way.
JJ shivered, remembering Emily's love letter from some man, named Richard. She was now in the shittiest situation, where she knew something so personal about Emily and yet, she could not admit it to her. On top of her own family drama, JJ now had that to worry about and it was driving her insane.
She interpreted Emily's words differently. She spoke about Paris and loving someone, but she never said if she meant her post Ian Doyle healing period or her recent trip to Paris. Could it be about this mysterious man who wrote her the letter? Was Emily heartbroken over getting dumped?
Rossi was always able to pick up on the bad vibes among the team and he knew that pretty much everyone was feeling a bit uncomfortable now. So, he did what he found suitable and that was to change the topic.
"E quindi, parli italiano?" He asked Angie, wondering if she really spoke Italian or maybe she was just able to order in Italian and sound like she was fluent.
"Un pò, sì." Angie said humbly, to which Emily scoffed.
So far Angela had been extremely modest about everything, so saying now that she only spoke a little Italian might turn out not to be the case.
"Have you ever been in Italy?" Rossi asked again.
"Yeah and, no offence, but I'd like to forget all about it." Angie winced, clearly harboring negative feelings towards that country.
"None taken. I love Italy, but I know it's not always ideal…" Rossi said while sipping on a glass of water. "What made you dislike it?" He added, curiously.
"The wrong boyfriend, or rather- a very stressful, emotionally draining relationship with a very bad guy. And I also had a very stressful job that ended on a very sour note, with the very wrong people…at the very wrong time." As Angela spoke, Rossi profiled her as someone who was extroverted, only to mask up a certain loneliness inside - a mysterious person who would fool you, replying to your questions with a million words, while not revealing the true answer. A skilled liar. If she were already an Agent, Rossi would have no doubt that she would be an undercover Agent. And a damn good one, too.
And yet – there she was…a twenty-three year old girl with a bright smile, even brighter green eyes and a small bow in her hair. She looked so cute, so young, so innocent.
Why did Rossi feel so attracted to her? In a strictly platonic and professional way, of course. He simply could not get enough of this girl.
"What is your favorite movie?" Matt asked. He had a taste for action movies while Tara and Rossi adored old Hollywood movies.
"I don't have one." Angie shrugged.
"Get out of here." Matt laughed genuinely. "How come?"
"I don't watch TV and I barely ever go to the movies. I do it only when I'm forced to and I can't get away with it. I mean, I guess I might enjoy the cinema, but it's not something I'd intentionally go spend my money on." She replied honestly.
"What's your favorite music?" Luke took his turn to ask her a question. He loved music and he was always curious if he could connect to people through music. It usually backfired because his taste was quite specific and pretty much nobody knew the Latino singers, groups and songs he'd rave on and on about.
"Ok now, I cannot reply that question too easily. I love everything – from old French chansons, you know, songs by Edith Piaf, Dalidá, Joe Dassin, Charles Aznavour, Charles Trenet, Lucienne Boyer…to old school hip hop and r'n'b and I'm not talking some lame new artist. Oh, no! I'm talking Salt'n'Pepa, Boyzone, DMX, The Sugarhill Gang, The Notorious B.I.G., Cypress Hill, Coolio, Missy Elliott, Mary J. Blige, Tony Braxton, Ja Rule, Lauryn Hill and yeah, okay, I love me some Will Smith, shirtless…what now?" She chuckled.
"I also especially love Jamaican Dancehall. As far as my Country music taste goes: Shania Twain, Sara Evans, Tim McGraw, Mark Wills and a bunch of others." She stopped for a second, to catch her breath.
"Now, about oldies, I love Whitney Houston, Cher, Ace Of Base, Roxette. Bands? Westlife, Blue, meh, not much of a band groupie, but I like those. I'm a sucker for Tony Bennett and some good quality jazz music, with a glass of fine French wine, dim lights and a great book in hand." Another pause for a breath, as she was not yet done talking.
Rossi smiled, hearing his favorite singer's name – Tony Bennett. Everyone knew that Rossi was borderline obsessed with his music.
"And Salsa - Puerto Rican or Cuban, I love it either way. Maybe throw in some sexy bachata vibes, some sensual kizomba, too. But if I really have to get it going, it's always Reggaeton and Dembow, don't judge me." She chuckled, blushing lightly. Her taste apparently varied from sophisticated to downright dirty style. She loved it.
"For the record, my favorite singer is Jennifer Lopez." Angie added.
She had a bit of an obsession with the singer. She'd listen to lots of old music, but her favorite singer of all times was . Somehow she could identify with the struggles the singer must have had – born in the Bronx, making her way up to Hollywood. Angie had always been a fighter, doing anything she possibly could, so she would make something good out of herself, get places, be respected, be smart, be confident, and then maybe one day she would be an inspiration to some young girl out there who would want to grow up and be just like Angela.
"Boricua!" Luke smirked contently. Angie's favorite singer was from his native country – Puerto Rico. Plus, this girl mentioned Reggaeton and Dembow, which automatically made Luke like her even more. Down and dirty was his preferred style, both for dancing at a club and other things, too.
"Ya tu sabes!" Angie chuckled, shooting Luke a glance and blushing a bit.
"Hablas español?" Luke was impressed. They have just learned that she knew a little bit of Italian, but did she know Spanish better?
The team appreciated a good linguist. So far Emily held the record when it came to languages, information and first-hand experience with foreign cultures.
"Un poquito…" Angie said shyly, making him believe she only knew a little bit of Spanish, too.
Emily scoffed once again.
"She's all mine!" Luke smirked, directing his statement to the team. So far Angie had the most in common with him.
"Do you like cars?" Tara asked, hoping she'd meet her match in Angie.
"Not the tiniest little bit!" Angie laughed while making space for the waiter to put down the pizza he had just brought her.
"I'm told to be a good, stable driver. I drive safely and I'm good at parking…apparently. But, God, I don't enjoy doing any of it. I find driving boring and way too static for my active taste. I'd be surprised if I passed the tactical driving test at the Academy. I suck at tactical, it's ridiculous, even the trainer has it out for me. He thinks I'm the biggest loser in the world. Plus, I know nothing about cars. And soccer. Or math. And I'm the worst in arts and crafts." Angie added, making Tara frown.
Tara had been waiting for so long, to find someone who'd love to spend time with her, repairing that vintage car in her garage. Well, it wasn't going to be Angela.
"What subjects do you excel in?" Reid waited patiently for his turn and now that she mentioned the Academy, it was the perfect timing.
"I'm good at most. I try really hard to keep up with the classes I'm not too good at. But I've almost completely given up on tactical driving. It makes me want to yank chunks of my hair off my scalp. I hate it. For the record, I do not have trichotillomania." She rolled her eyes and Rossi could not help but notice something about that. She had done it in the same identical way that Emily always did - with a one and a half roll, accompanied by a silent Diva-like sigh of desperation.
Reid noticed something else – this girl knew the right medical term for the disorder that makes people pull on their hair. He could not be more impressed with her.
"I really like Ballistics, I love guns. But not in a weird way. Obviously." She then continued. "I love the physical preparation we're getting. It really helps me focus on my weak points and get stronger and faster. I really like the laboratory stuff too, but that's not what I'd end up doing here, at the FBI."
"And what is it that you'd like to do here?" Rossi asked.
"The thing I'm best at, in the Academy." Angie replied, once again, very vaguely.
"And what is that?" Rossi wouldn't let go until he had his answer, or rather – a confirmation on what he already suspected.
"The thing I'll apply for, when internship time comes around." Angie smirked.
If she didn't want to give someone a straight forward answer, she simply would not do so, no matter the tactics they'd use to extract information out of her.
Plus, she never even mentioned her profiling classes, intentionally. Rossi and Reid, having taught her in the Auditorium, already knew about that interest of hers.
"Yeah, you're definitely a Mini Prentiss…" Rossi murmured, giving up on trying to have a conversation. Clearly, Angela liked games. So did Emily.
"It would be an honor if I was." Angie smiled and saw Emily shift in her seat.
"You have to see my office. I have so many cute tidbits." Garcia had waited way too patiently to have her turn to talk to Angie again. Since JJ was more than keen on skipping out her turn and preferred staying quiet instead, Garcia jumped at the opportunity to speak again.
"Cool! Do you have one of those cute reading lamps that change colors? I do! And mine has tassels, it's the tackiest thing you'll ever see. It's adorable!" Angie chuckled.
"Oh, why do you only have to stay with us for just a week? It's not enough!" Garcia had about a million things in mind – things she'd like to show Angie, things she'd like to teach her.
Everyone chimed in, pouring all sorts of information at Angie and promising her things they'd teach her.
"Okay, I think you guys are forgetting that she is my Mini. I'd be the only one doing the teaching." Emily could not help it - at some point those words, however jealous and possessive they made her sound, just rolled off her tongue.
"Okay, Mama Bear!" Garcia laughed, but Emily's facial expression showed just how little she enjoyed being called that.
"Oh sorry. I did that thing where I overstepped the boundaries again, didn't I?" Garcia looked down and decided to put all of her energy in cutting her pizza in perfectly even pieces, so she wouldn't feel compelled to speak again.
Angie then learned one more thing about Emily Prentiss – children and parenthood were an extremely touchy topic.
"Guys, give her a break. You're smothering her." Emily pointed out a few minutes later, as everyone but JJ were still all over Angie.
"Oh, I'm fine. I can handle myself." Angie informed Emily with a smile.
She had a mind of her own and she always handled her own stuff. And yet, she found it really endearing that Emily was looking out for her.
"But you've barely touched your food." Emily pointed out.
It was true – in between all the chatting, Angie had only taken a few small bites of her pizza. She had been way too interested in getting to know the team. It was impressive for someone who was so determined not to let anyone in, not to get close to anyone.
"I can't wait for the seminar!" Angie leaned across the table at some point, looking at Reid.
"Neither can I." He said with a full on nerdy smile.
JJ noticed how excited Reid was. She hadn't seen him open up with any other girl, as much as he did with Angie.
Overall, everyone loved Angie's charisma and her character. Maybe Bryan was right when he once told her that she was extremely relatable.
"I need to go…" JJ said at some point, after checking her phone for the hundredth time, regretting having switched it back on. "I'll run an errand and I'll catch up with you in the office in an hour or so."
"No, JJ. You're taking the rest of the day off. We will see you tomorrow morning." Emily stated.
"I don't need the day of-…" JJ started to speak, but got cut off instantly.
"This was not a suggestion, Agent Jereau. I will see you tomorrow at nine, in my office. Have a good day." Emily said, this time sounding stern and cold. It was the only way JJ would learn her lesson.
"Ugh!" JJ walked off and called herself an Uber, regretting not talking her own car to the restaurant, so she could leave when she pleased.
"A little harsh…" Rossi pointed out.
"Yeah, poor JJ…" Reid looked put the window, following JJ's movements until the moment she got in her Uber and disappeared. His heart was broken, seeing his best friend suffer and exclude herself from everyone in such an obvious manner. She had never acted this way before.
"She needs to learn that acting like a child won't fix her problems, especially when she does it with the only people who would never cause her harm. I can understand her distancing herself from us as her friends, but skipping work without notice and then being mentally non-present is just unacceptable. If we were on a case right now, her behavior might cost someone's life. A day off would serve her well. Sooner or later she'd crack and she'd come crying to one of us. She needs our support, but first she needs to drop the act and come ask for it." Emily's words made sense. Sometimes they had to show each other tough love.
"Must be fun being part of a team of profilers…" Angie commented, her face filled with terror.
The ease with which they spoke about JJ and analyzed how they needed to handle the situation, was something new to Angie. It sounded both cool - them knowing what to do; and terrifying.
"Maybe one day you'll know what it is like." Rossi smirked, wanting to provoke her to admit what he already suspected.
"Maybe…" Angie smirked right back in his face.
He wasn't going to be fooled by her beautiful eyes and genuine-looking smile. That girl screamed Profiler, since the moment he had spotted her in class. According to him, she didn't want to confess her desire to be a profiler earlier, as she didn't want to come off too confident, or maybe to get judged and micro analyzed by the profilers themselves. And it was a smart choice for her to dodge his question about the internship.
Also, it pained him to remember that this year the BAU no longer had the opportunity to welcome an intern.
"What's your favorite thing about the Academy?" Tara asked another question.
By then, everyone had finished their food and drinks and were now waiting for the bill before they'd leave.
"I like how it brings people together. And I don't just mean friendships. I guess right now I'm constructing relationships with people who would, potentially, be in my life for a long time. We've been told to respect everyone, as we never know who would save our ass out on the field, one day. I mean, I already respect people, but it's cool to be part of an organization that teaches respect, team work, discipline, courage, integrity." Angie replied briefly and grabbed something from the small bag she carried around with her.
The waitress just brought them the bill and Angie waved a food ticket at her.
"Excuse me, do you accept these?" She asked, but the waitress shook her head.
Angie then grabbed some cash from her bag, but before she could put it on the table, Emily put her hand over Angie's.
"Lunch is on me." Emily stated.
"No. I pay for myself. I mean, thank you, but no." Angie tried to hold her ground, even though she knew that the twenty dollar bill in her hand was one of the last ones in her wallet.
"I don't mean for you." Emily slid her card to the waitress. "I'm paying for everyone."
"Prentiss…" Luke tried to argue, but Emily would not listen.
Everyone suspected that Emily had, after all, suggested a cut to her salary, due to the budget cuts. It wasn't in the file JJ had written, the one Garcia had falsified and the team had forced her to turn in, but Emily had her ways. She'd happily deprive herself of something if it meant that her team would have it all.
Inevitably, Emily covered the bill and they were on their way back to the office.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
"Ducksdragonfly" I'm glad you enjoy that :)! Cases are obviously important, stressful, time-consuming, etc...and I'll mention cases and some specifics about cases during the story, but I won't go into full details. I focus on the relationships within the team, their lives, thoughts, what they go through and how they help each other out, as this is what I really enjoyed on the show (other than the cases obviously, because I'm obsessed with criminology lol). I like both seeing their struggles and their goofy fun times, as I believe they need to unwind hard, after everything they do on the job. I like the team dynamics and I'd like to believe in real life such work teams with strong bonds really do exist. Moreover - the insane female characters' bond and friendship, without the cattiness, jealousy and backstabbing = GOALS! Yes, they argue (which might be the case in the next few chapters), but ultimately it's about the way they handle such situations.
"rmpcmfan" Nora is a cutie pie! She has in common with Angie the fact that both have been through something traumatic that led them to refuse to let people in! Emily worked her magic and managed to help Nora get back to normal (talking again, smiling, laughing, playing with the kids), so now Angie needs someone to do the same magic trick on her when it comes to trusting people. Yeah, Nora let Angie in very quickly! Angie has the ability to connect to people easily, to make them feel at ease around her.
No, this isn't the case Emily struggles with. This one hit the BAU hard, no doubt, especially with a small child involved. Emily took care and made sure Nora would be safe with Mrs. Vallard until a family adopted her. However, another case involving "a girl" was what upset her so much, a month ago (you will learn about it, too).
YES, I can finally confirm the reason why Emily's finances have been tight lately is because she's been giving a huge chunk of her salary to the orphanage! Even bigger, after that upsetting case. She knows her money is better spent on the kiddos, rather than new shoes and handbags.
Trust me when I say this: you have NO idea just HOW hard those words ("Nobody really wanted me") hit Emily! She is clearly going through a VERY emotional phase right now and bottling up everything...until she explodes. (She won't always be so upset, lol, I have sweet stuff waiting for her later on).
As for Angie's background - it's a complicated web of events, facts, relationships and emotions and it will unravel slowly. In respect to what is going on in the next chapters, more is revealed about Angie. Indirectly! Angie is like Emily - she won't utter a word, she'd admit to nothing! There will be flashbacks and I'll explain her inner thoughts in indirect speech, so the readers can know, but the characters won't have a clue. I'm mean :P LOL!
"zhangxinna" You're so sweet :)! Thank you, Angie learned a LOT about Emily during the orphanage chapter! Also, the readers learned that Angie is very good with kids and she loves them! Haha, Emily, Angie and Nora - 3 generations of Prentiss awesomeness? Imagine that, lol :D ! And yup, Angie and Emily have a lot in common, but are opposite, when it comes to things such as leaving/being left, hurting/being hurt. Not even "opposite", but more like - on the opposite side of those feelings, if it makes sense. Don't worry, this is just the beginning of the Angie/Emily rollercoaster ride lol. You have NO idea what's about to happen from this point on...I mean, put two extremely opinionated, smart, strong women in a friendship together and expect the world to explode! Maybe one of them (if not both?) will change something for the better? Maybe in a way they can help each other out with their inner daemons? Also: Yes, the 6th is a VERY important number for Emily and it does have to do with a child, that's all I can say at this point :P
"sweetkid45" I'm going with the original s-xual orientation for each character, as seen on the show. Later in the chapters you may learn who has been a bad girl/boy in their younger years hehe, but both Emily and JJ are straight and VERY much into guys, as in the show :P Also, Angela is straight, even if she still thinks "boys are yucky" LOL! And thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter :)!
