*TW- mentions of having an ed*

"Emily, there's someone here to see you." a nurse said to Emily. Emily sighed and reluctantly rose from her seat.

"I'm really not wanting visitors today." Emily said, annoyed.

"This person seems excited to see you." the nurse said.

"Whatever," Emily mumbled. She took her to the visitation area, and Emily immediately perked up when she saw that it was Brandi. "Hey you!" Emily said as she hugged Brandi.

"Hey! How have you been these past three days?" Brandi asked.

"It's been tough, but I'm managing. I'm hoping I'm going to be out soon." Emily said.

"Well don't rush it. If you do, then there's a high chance you will be back here." Brandi said.

"I'm not sure about that." Emily replied.

"It's a possibility though. I'm just speaking from experience." Brandi said.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked, now wanting to know more.

"After I came back from combat overseas, I wasn't doing well. I saw a lot of things no one should ever see. I was depressed, and I started using food as a comfort. When I felt I wasn't depressed anymore, I decided to apply to Metro. However, I started comparing my body to the women there, and I developed an eating disorder. My captain noticed it and made me go to an institution. I said what they wanted to hear so I could get out. I ended up being back within a month. All I'm saying is that you don't want to rush anything. Get better now so you don't end up like me and be here multiple times. I don't want to see that happen to you." Brandi said.

"Why do you care so much about me? I'm nothing special." Emily said, not trusting that Brandi actually cares.

"We may not have known each other for very long or met the standard way. But you are special to me. You have the most beautiful soul, and I don't want to see that be ruined by someone who claimed to be your friend. I may want to be more than friends, but your recovery is much more important than a relationship right now. I don't know if you would give me a chance later down the road, but right now I just want to be your friend. I want to be that person you can go to without judgement, and be a safe space for you. If that's something you want, of course." Brandi explained.

"You're not gonna leave me?" Emily asked, her voice cracking a little bit as she geared up.

"Of course not. I'm going to be here for you every step of the way no matter the time of day. Even if it means I stay with you at your moms' house when she's not there." Brandi said. Emily shed a tear before giving Brandi a big hug. She then started full-on crying. People were staring at them, but she didn't care.

Two months go by before Emily is released from the institution. Brandi visited Emily nearly everyday as well as Elizabeth. The team, aside from JJ, visited as often as they could. Spencer visited her more than the rest, though. "Mom!" Luca shouted as Emily walked out of the institution.

"Hey peanut!" Emily said with the biggest smile.

"I'm so glad you're okay." He said as he hugged her.

"Me too. You can't get rid of me that easily." Emily said jokingly.

"Oh I know. I need to come clean though. Even though I don't like JJ for what she did to you, I still see Henry from time-to-time because he's like a little brother to me. I hope you're not mad at me." Luca said.

"Of course I'm not mad. I know JJ did a terrible thing, but I would never punish Henry for her wrong doing too." Emily said.

"I'm glad you're not mad. Now who's this Brandi girl that I hear grandma talking about that's visiting you?" Luca asked.

"She's just a friend, I promise! Even if I wanted to date her, she agrees that my recovery is more important than a relationship right now." Emily said.

"Well I want to meet her. I like her more than JJ right now." Luca said.

"I'm sure you will eventually. I know she wants to meet you too." Emily said.

"Do you think we could get ice cream or something? It's Spring time now." Luca asked.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind that. I'll ask her." Emily said.

"Can you call and ask? I'm sure she's given you her number." Luca asked.

"You're not going to let this go until I do, will you?" Emily asked him.

"Nope." Luca said with a smile. Emily chuckled and pulled her phone out until she realized it was dead. Luca handed her his phone, and so Emily dialed Brandis' number. Yes, she had it memorized.

"Hey! I'm so sorry to bother you, but my son really wants to meet you. He wants to know if you'll get ice cream with us sometime since it's Springtime now." Emily said.

"Sure! I'm actually off today, so if you're able to we can meet up at the ice cream place on Jefferson." Brandi suggested.

"Yep, we will meet you there in about 20 minutes?" Emily asked.

"Sounds great," Brandi said. "I can't wait to meet him!"

"He's excited to meet you. See you then!" Emily said.

"Well?" Luca asked.

"We're meeting her in 20 minutes at the ice cream place on Jefferson." Emily answered him. He excitedly rushed Emily to the car and drove to the ice cream parlor. They waited about 10 minutes before Brandi showed up.

"Hey you!" Emily said with a smile on her face.

"Hey!" Brandi said and hugged Emily.

"Brandi, this is my son Luca. He's quite eager to meet you. Luca, this is Brandi." Emily said.

"Nice to meet you!" Brandi said.

"You too. You're so pretty!" Luca said.

"Well thank you! Shall we get some ice cream?" Brandi asked.

"Of course!" Emily said, and so they walked over to the window to order. Right as they were done ordering, they heard a little voice shout 'Luke'. Emily knew that was Henry's way of saying Luca. She also knew that meant JJ was there.

"Hey buddy!" Luca said and crouched down so he was able to hug Henry. Emily didn't look behind them so she didn't have to see JJ.

"Emmy!" Henry shouted and hugged Emily.

"Hey Henry!" Emily said as she hugged him.

"I missed you." Henry said.

"I know, bud. I missed you too." Emily said.

"Do you not love me and mommy anymore?" Henry asked with sadness in his voice.

"Of course I still love you. But mommy and I just had a little argument is all." Emily said.

"Do you still love mommy?" Henry asked.

"Um, well-"

"Moose tracks waffle cone." a worker called out. That was Emily's. She mentally thanked the worker before walking to the window and receiving her order. She thanked the worker and walked back to Henry.

"I'm not sure, Henry. But I think mommy may want to get some ice cream." Emily said.

"Okay. Hi! I'm Henry!" Henry said to Brandi.

"Hi! I'm Brandi!" Brandi said before Henry rand back to JJ. Emily didn't even acknowledge JJ; no looking at her or eye contact or anything. "He's adorable." Brandi said with a little chuckle.

"Yeah. He's also a ball of energy." Emily said with a laugh. They sat down at a table, and Luca asked a bunch of questions to Brandi. Emily learned a lot about Brandi including her taking the sergeants exam in a month. If she passes, then that means she would be the first female sergeant in metro police history.

JJ kept looking over at Emily and wondered if they would ever speak again. She wondered how she was able to move on so quickly. She didn't know for sure that Emily and Brandi were together. However, the way they looked at each other, she knew they most likely were. That definitely hurt knowing Emily has a possible new girlfriend.

A/N

Hey guys! I hope you like this chapter!