Never been in love

The team all load into the jet – save for Hotch, who is taking the long way home. JJ, Morgan and Reid are laughing and arguing over whether it was better to have Reid drive them to the jet by following directions or if they should've let Morgan do it his way. Rossi follows suit, chuckling out a "now, now, kids" every now and then. They all settle on seats they find most comfortable, giving each other some space to relax and wind down. JJ puts her headphones on and leans her head back, closing her eyes. Across the aisle from her, the men settle into a conversation, the younger ones across each other by the windows, Rossi next to Morgan. Prentiss seats herself in the back of the plane and stares out of the window deep in thought.

Reid and Morgan would not let up their argument over whose way of driving is better. Rossi has found himself laughing along, yet slowly losing interest in the argument. Half an hour into the flight, he taps his hand on the table and starts pushing himself up while exaggeratedly whispering an excuse to get a drink. The boys barely even nod his way. Rossi walks toward the back of the plane, smiling to himself. It always cheers him up to talk about pointless things and just goof off with the rest of the team. He glances over at JJ, who seems to have fallen asleep. Her head is leaning in a direction that can't be comfortable for her neck, her mouth is hanging slightly open, and Rossi could swear he sees her drooling just a little out of the corner of her mouth.

He's approaching Prentiss' seat now, and he almost passes right by her, but something makes him stop. He looks back at her. Her furrowed brows make his brows furrow as well. She's clearly deep in thought, and it doesn't seem like a happy one.

"Want something to drink?"

This question snaps her out of her head, and she is visibly startled by the sudden voice by her seat. She turns her head quickly -a little too quickly, her neck protests- and stares right back at Rossi, eyes slightly wider open than usually.

"Huh- sorry, what?"

"I'm just gonna grab a drink. Do you want something?"

"Oh. Uh, what're you getting?" Rossi cocks his head to one side and gives her his 'are you really asking' -look. She gives an awkward chuckle. "Right. I'll have one too, thanks."

Rossi nods and disappears to the kitchenette. Prentiss shakes her limbs and tries to stretch a little. Her attempt is futile in the seated position, but it does make her feel at least a little bit more awake. She's just stretching her arms far above her head and leaning back as Rossi appears again, carrying two glasses of whiskey. She quickly returns to a normal posture.

"Just the drink or company too?" he asks, holding one of the glasses for her to reach. She hesitates, looking between him and the glass, but sighs in approvement and nods toward the seat opposite her as she takes her drink.

"The boys not entertaining you enough?" she tries to joke, taking a sip.

"Oh, you know how they get." Rossi's tone is dismissive. He takes the seat she nodded at and raises his examining eyes at her. He's trying to gauge whether he should ask her or not. She meets his gaze, lets out a shaky exhale and averts her eyes again. "Never been in love." He purposefully stresses every syllable of the sentence he repeats. Prentiss looks back at him and opens her mouth to say something in defence but comes up empty. Shara Carlino's words had hit something of a sore spot. Rossi raises his eyebrows at her, egging her on. She huffs out a frustrated scoff and smiles the way she does when she doesn't quite know what else to do. She settles for a continuous, defeated nod.

"Didn't have too much time for it, did I? Never stayed in one place long enough." Her tone is amused now, and she's trying to see if Rossi fill follow her into the joke. He doesn't.

"Haven't you been more stationary these past few years?"

"Oh yeah, working in the FBI makes it really easy to find and keep love. How long have you been with your wife?" Another attempt to turn it into a joke. Rossi chuckles a little at this, throwing a mock-reproachful look at her, but softening it then to a smile. She doesn't want to talk about it, fine. There's something about her laugh that makes him feel at ease, so he doesn't push it. He swirls his drink and fixes his gaze on his hands, which are resting on the table between himself and her. When he's not looking, the smile on Prentiss' face fades and she turns to the window again. They share a moment of comfortable silence.

"Somehow, I think it's better this way." Rossi weighs this statement in his mind for a bit before answering.

"What, never being in love?" Prentiss turns slowly to him and smiles dryly.

"Well, you've been married five times. Was it worth it?" His disapproval is less obviously a joke this time, which makes her stifle a laugh.

"Three", he corrects her poignantly. "And yes, it was worth it."

"Are you sure you were in love with the women and not just with the idea of being love?"

Rossi keeps his poker face, although he feels something inside him shift uncomfortably.

"I do love to love", he says lightly but doesn't look at her. She narrows her eyes, trying to decipher his statement, but finds it difficult since he's not looking at her. She lifts her glass to take one more swig of her drink but notices it's empty. She notices the same thing about his drink. She nudges his leg with her foot playfully, stands up and grabs both of the empty glasses. He keeps his eyes on her as she takes the empty glasses into the kitchenette and rinses them. She is startled by Morgan's voice. He reminds her to keep seated, they're landing! She takes her seat quickly and shares a glance with Rossi. She smiles at him and he smiles back, and both think there's something sad behind the other's smile. She studies his face for a few more seconds before looking out the window and seeing exactly how close to the ground they were. Neither of them had realised they started landing.