#co-conspirators

You woke up in the morning to the smell of breakfast and the sound of Jack happily rambling about something. Letting yourself lay in bed for a moment so you could gain your bearings. You heard Jack talking about all the fun stuff you did with him yesterday. You smiled to yourself and quickly rolled out of bed. You immediately regretted it. Your head started to spin because you got up too fast. You wobble for a moment. When everything stops moving, that's when you start walking again. Checking the time, you see that Aaron had let you sleep in, and you both would need to go to work in about an hour. So you had to start getting ready. You grab some work clothes and towels before heading into the shower.

As soon as you got out of the shower, you started getting dressed and getting ready for work. With everything taken care of for a bit, the smell of breakfast hit you again. Your stomach growled, revealing just how hungry you were. You headed out to the kitchen. Jack was still happily rambling, and Aaron was attentively listening as he drank his coffee. You saw a plate sitting out on the table waiting for you. You hummed happily as you sat down. Jack looked at you with wide happy eyes, halting mid-sentence to address you, “[Y/N]!! Morning!!” Jack was so full of energy. You smile at him, “Good Morning to you too.” Jack looks at you, “I’m telling daddy about yesterday.” You lean over and quickly kiss Aaron on the cheek, “Thanks for making me food.” Aaron smiled and nodded. You look back over to Jack, “Feel free to continue telling him. I’m sure he wants to hear all about it.” Jack nods happily and starts talking again. You lazily eat as you listen to Jack go on.

You slept so well last night, and for so much longer than usual, you felt a tad groggy. That sluggish half-asleep feeling stayed with you as you continued to eat. Between being tired and how fast Jack was talking, you were only half able to keep up with the current topic. You started drinking coffee, hoping the caffeine would help get you back to normal. Luckily by the time you finished eating, you could feel your energy level rising slowly. Enough time had passed that it was time for everyone to get up from the table and rush around again. You take all the dishes and rinse them off before putting them in the dishwasher. Helping Jack and Aaron get everything together for school and work. When all three of you were set, you met at the door for a moment. You opened the door before giving Aaron a quick kiss. Jack bolted out the door excitedly, ready to start his day. You break the kiss, “See you at work.” Aaron offers a smile before nodding. Jack screeches to a halt, turning around and running back towards you and his father. Jack tackles your legs with a hug, “Bye [Y/N].” You chuckle and kneel, “Bye, buddy. Have a good day at school.” You return Jack’s hug, giving him a soft squeeze. When Jack lets go, the three of you split off separately on your different routines.

It had been a few weeks since the Monte incident. No one on the team had brought it up with you. But you knew everyone would take a mental note of your day off. While you all had a rule to ‘not profile each other’, it was also the team's biggest lie. Since you arrived earlier than everyone, it was easier to come back to work after taking a day off. Hotch showed up thirty minutes after you, and you both exchanged a smile before he strides into his office. Easily you were able to get back to work. However, as soon as the team started showing up, you knew that Hotch had told Rossi more about what happened than you thought. Which in turn meant Rossi, of course, had told the team about it. You appreciated their concern. You were just dreading what was about to happen.

One by one, each member of the team showed up for work that day. As soon as the elevator door opened, their eyes were on you. You did your best to ignore it, but it was hard when you could see in your peripheral vision that they were trying to ‘casually’ group together in the kitchen. When you finally couldn't take it anymore, you turned in your chair to look at them. You clear your throat very loudly to make sure you get all of their attention, “You guys having an interesting conversation?” All five of them go wide-eyed and stare at you for a moment. Emily is the first to speak, “I tried to tell them we shouldn’t talk behind your back.” Penelope scoffs loudly, glaring at Emily. Derek quickly steps in, “Hey now, it was all of our ideas.” Derek takes a few steps toward you, “We are worried about you.” You glared at everyone, “I appreciate the thought, but there is no need for it.” You decide to add, ”Am I not allowed to take a day off of work just cause?” Spencer quickly states, “One thousand four.” You give him a confused look. Spencer quickly noticed your confusion and went on to elaborate, “You've worked at the BAU for approximately one thousand and four days. Yesterday was the first day you took a voluntary day off.” You were taken aback and even scoff, “That doesn't sound right.”

You knew they meant well. Maybe you were getting a bit defensive, but all five of them confronting you about taking one day off seemed a bit dramatic on their part. You sigh and smile at them, “Thank you for caring so much. I appreciate it. I do.” You grab some paperwork off your desk, “I love you all…” You pause for dramatic effect, “Even though you each can be obnoxiously caring at times.” You chuckle to yourself as you get some groans and eye-rolls from the team. JJ gives you a matter-of-fact look, “That’s what family is for.” Everyone, including yourself, nods in agreement. You stand up, getting ready to go file away your paperwork. The group starts breaking off and going back to work. Derek gives you a loving clap on the back as he walks by. You make sure to tussle Spencer's hair as he passes you. After a few minutes, the only person left is Penelope, who had one hand behind her back. She speaks up, “I know you said you're fine and that it's not a big deal… but it is kind of a big deal. It was icky…” Penelope's whole body shivers. She makes a disgusted noise before finding her train of thought again, “So so icky. I mean with the…” She motions to your scar, “And then him…” Penelope makes slow stabbing motions with her hand towards her own side. If anyone else had brought this up, you might have been mad, but with Penelope, it was always hard to be genuinely mad at her about anything. You chuckle and then correct her, “Monte didn't stab himself. A real stickler for the details, he managed to get a hold of a gun.” You mime a gun with your hand before pointing it at your side. Penelope almost gasps. In one motion, she pulls the hand from behind her back and thrusts a box of treats at you, “I know you don't want me to make a fuss… and I’m totally not… I just happened to make like two dozen too many… And they coincidentally are your favorite.” You let out a happy sigh and hug Penelope. She hugs you back, “Hugs, these are what I’m good at.” You laugh and squeeze her. You may not have been big on hugging, but Penelope was the best hugger. So you waited until she was ready to pull away first. She hands the box to you again. You take the container and open the lid, inhaling the delicious scent, “Thank you. You're the best.” Penelope scoffs as she turns around, “Yes. Yes, I am.” You chuckle and get back to work.

Luckily today was more of a paperwork kind of day, so everything was on the relaxed side of things. You were able to text Aaron a few times, though he was busy tackling the mountain of paperwork that always lingered on his desk. Partway through the day, when you all are working on your own, your attention gets pulled to someone walking into the BAU. You would recognize that stern, authoritative walk anywhere, Strauss. She was on a mission, and it didn't seem to be a happy one.

When you see Strauss heading up to see Hotch, you know it's probably worse than you thought. Strauss even looked over at you before entering Hotch’s office and closing the door behind her. You lean back in your chair, “Shit.” The rest of the team had also noticed Strauss. Once you finish having a mini burst of anxiety, you join the team in trying to watch your two bosses talk through Hotch’s window casually. You bite the inside of your check and watch for a minute or two. There was a chance that she was only here for something boring and routine. But when you saw Hotch’s body language turn defensive, you knew this wasn't good.

You slightly get up from your chair, “Prentiss? Reid? Either of you able to lip-read their conversation?” Both Emily and Spencer give a half-hearted nod as their eyes don't look away from the situation. Emily speaks up first, “It’s about you…” Derek looks over at you from his desk, “Why would they be having a conversation like that without you.” You sigh, “Hotch wasn't thrilled after we were dragged in for that interview with Monte.” Derek nods very matter-of-factly, “Bossman never likes anyone messing with his agents.” Derek looks back up to the office. This time JJ looks over to you, “But Strauss already knows Hotch didn’t like the situation, so what is THIS conversation about?” You're about to respond, but Spencer beats you to it, “Hotch refused anymore visits with Monte.”

Derek intakes a sharp breath through his teeth, “Strauss never likes it when Hotch goes over her head…” You sigh and push your face into the palm of your hand, “Great… now Strauss is gonna have more reasons to hate me.” ‘Hate’ May have been a strong word, but Strauss, at the very least, disliked you quite a bit. It was primarily because of the whole issue with your verbal filter and not particularly caring about the chain of command if it came down to doing the right thing. Strauss was probably going to see it as a fault on your part. She might even think your ability to do your job was affected. Prentiss speaking drew your face out of your hand, “I think she said something about ‘time off’, but I didn't catch the whole context.” You furrow your eyebrows together and look back up at Hotch’s office window. It looked as though the conversation was wrapping up. Everyone else took this as a queue to sit back at their desks. You, however, wanted to be stubborn and choose to stay standing. Strauss finally stepped out of the office, leaving the door open behind her. With a scowl on her face, she made eye contact with you, but you made sure to defiantly hold her gaze the whole time until she was out of sight.

With Strauss gone, you started to weave around the desks to get to Hotch’s office. Before you could even make it to the bottom of the small flight of stairs, Hotch was in the doorway about to call you in. Hotch looked annoyed, but there was something under that. You almost thought it looked like excitement, but that didn’t make sense at the moment. He motioned for you to come into the room with him, confirming it was indeed you that both your bosses had just been talking about, “[Your Last Name].” You give a curt nod and walk through the door, going and closing the blinds. You probably wouldn’t have, but you did just have a refresher on how well your coworkers could read lips. You didn't feel like letting them read yours at the moment. Hotch closed the door behind you and made his way back over to his desk. You casually slid into the chair in front of him, “How mad is she?”

Hotch sighs, “Pretty pissed, to be honest, but nothing that won't blow over once all the official reports and requests make it to her desk.” You nod softly, putting your elbow on the arm of the chair and resting your chin in your hand, “What else did she talk about?” Hotch sighs and leans back in his chair, watching you, “Good or bad part first?” You scrunch up your face a bit, even shooting a glare at Hotch, “Bad first…” You stretch out the word, unsure if that's really what you wanted. Hotch makes a face, already knowing you wouldn't be happy with his reply, “You have to undergo another psych eval.” Your glare intensifies, and your groan, “I already went through one right after the whole Monte thing… They cleared me.” Your voice came out a bit whiny, but you couldn't help it. It had only been maybe two weeks since your last evaluation, so taking another one seems pointless. Hotch nods, “I told her that, but she seems to think you needing to take an impromptu day off is cause for concern. I tried to explain it wasn't, but…” You grumble and nod slowly. You weren't happy at all, but Hotch would just get into trouble if you didn't listen. So you wouldn't fight it, just deciding to suck it up and deal with it.

You let out a half-hearted huff, “I’ll do it… if only to keep Strauss off your ass.” Hotch smiles at you, “Thank you.” He sits up and puts his hands together on top of his desk, “Now for the good news.” Hotch almost looked like he was up to something, so you narrowed your eyes at him and waited for him to speak, “The whole team gets a week off.” You straighten up quickly, excited, “Really? I knew I asked you to figure something out. I didn't really expect it to work out.” Hotch takes mock offense, “Hey!” You chuckle and roll your eyes, “You know it's our job I don’t trust for days off, not you.” Hotch smiles and nods, “I know.” Your excitement was temporarily suspended when you came to a realization.

You look at Hotch suspiciously, “Why was that in the same conversation as the rest of that stuff…” Hotch’s face turns slightly guilty, “I may have countered that if Strauss is so concerned about one of my team’s mental wellbeing, then maybe she should make sure the whole team had some time to rest.” You glare at him, “You used me taking a day off as an excuse.” Hotch’s face quickly started to look concerned that you were mad at him. You think about it for a minute and then laugh, “Honestly, there are worse ways to earn some time off. I’ll take it.” Hotch looked relieved as he relaxed back into his chair, “I was hoping you’d be okay with that.” You think for a moment before asking, “What week?” Hotch frowns again, and you knew what he was about to say. You close your eyes and let out a soft sigh. You weren't mad. You understood the position Hotch was in and why it had to be added to the report.

When you told him you would call your doctor, you actually did. You even surprised yourself with actually following through with it. Half the time, your philosophy was that it wasn't a problem if you didn’t think about it. With how worried Aaron was, your stubbornness had quickly yielded. You had set up an appointment to have your scar fixed. It would either be removed or corrected depending on the doctor's official examination on the surgery date, which was about two weeks away. You had told Hotch, of course, mainly as your boyfriend, but you knew as your boss it was an essential piece of information that had to be added to the reports and your psychological evaluation. You didn’t plan to tell the team about it, but with it being in official paperwork somewhere, maybe you should. So with that information in play, you knew the answer to your own question just by the look on Hotch’s face. Strauss used that date as the starting point for the whole week off for the team.

You apparently had been silent for longer than you thought because you felt Hotch’s eyes on you as he spoke, “You know I had to put it into the report…” With a soft smile, you open your eyes, “I know. I’m not upset about it. It will give me the proper time to heal out of the field.” Hotch narrows his eyes at you, “I wouldn't have been letting you into the field that week anyway.” You laugh and scoff, “Like you could have really stopped me.” Hotch gets his stern boss face on, “It would have been an order. One that I would have to write you up for disobeying.” Though Hotch was making sure, you knew the rules, even with him being your boyfriend. He was very serious, and you couldn't help but smirk. Hotch glares at you, deeply setting a stern look onto his face. You grin at him, “And I would have put it in the special folder in my desk, with all the other write-ups you have given me.” Hotch’s sternness seems to be cracking, so you decided to add, “You have to admit, that's pretty much how we flirted before either of us knew it was flirting.” You could see the furrow in Hotch’s brow relaxing. You give him an innocent look, “You’d write me up. I’d be in trouble for a little bit, but after a week or so, it was like it never happened.” Hotch finally cracked and started chuckling. He plants his face into the palm of his hand, “Are there really a whole folder worth?” You laugh and nod, “Mhm.” His chuckle dies down, and he rolls his eyes as he sits back up, “I could fire you for all of those.” Hotch closes his eyes, and you can tell he is contemplating whether he actually needs to worry about this and its effect on his job in general. You want to interrupt his overthinking, so you laugh, “If it makes you feel better, it's not favoritism. You're this soft with the rest of the team being in trouble too. I just tend to get into trouble a tad bit more. I am the only one who saves them.” This seems to work for the time being. Hotch just opens his eyes with a halfhearted groan as he watches you. You stand up and walk around to his side of the desk.

Usually, you would have been more careful at work, but the blinds were closed. So was the door. You smirk at Hotch and shrug, “You’ll just have to make it up to me somehow.” He watches you and smirks back, “Is that so?” You give him a few small nods before leaning down and kissing him. Hotch kisses you back, even going as far as to grab your hips and pulls you down to him. You chuckle into the kiss as you end up half straddling him. You were a bit surprised that Hotch was the one who progressed the interaction further because he was the one always scolding you about sneaking around at work. Breaking the kiss slowly with a few small pecks. You only pull back a few inches away before whispering, “There are rules about this. We could get caught.” You mimic the stern tone he normally uses. Hotch rolls his eyes, even smirking as he groans at you, “I do not sound like that.” You grin at him, “You totally do. That was a perfect impersonation of you.” This earns you another eye roll from Hotch, followed by a chuckle. You kiss him one last time before starting to pull away.

Hotch’s hold on your hips tightens, trying to keep you in place. You playfully huff, “You're supposed to be the responsible one, remember?” Hotch has an extremely ornery look on his face. You feel yourself wanting to cave in. You have to physically shake your head to clear your thoughts, “If I thought we could get away with it right now. I would jump your bones.” This causes Hotch’s hands to tighten on you, “ And why wouldn't we get away with it?” Your willpower was wavering, but you knew right now this would get you caught, “Because the whole team is currently watching your office like a hawk trying to figure out what is going on.” Hotch lets out an annoyed growl. You lean down, giving him one last kiss before officially pulling away. Hotch lets go of you this time, just watching you as he leans back in his chair. You start readjusting your appearance, so it doesn't look like you were just making out with someone as you add, “If they so much as see a shadow of us fooling around, we are screwed and not in the fun way we want.” Hotch laughs and shakes his head at your joke. He starts fixing his composure as well. You offer Hotch one last smile before leaving his office.

While walking down the stairs, you look to your coworkers, “Guess who’s emotionally traumatizing situation earned us all a week off. I will be accepting ‘thank you’s’ in the form of treats or drinks the next time we go to a bar together.” Sure the event had taken a mental toll on you. It was serious but making light of the whole situation was how you would cope with it. Plus, all things considered, everyone on the team could use some time off. It had been a while. They needed it. So you were more than happy being the one who was the ‘excuse’ to get it for them. If their attention wasn’t already on you leaving Hotch’s office, it was now after that announcement.

Morgan and Prentiss are the first two to officially perk up. Prentiss tilts her head, “Was that the ‘time off’ that Strauss was talking about with Hotch.” You give a quick nod before adding, “Apparently, Strauss is worried that me taking a day off might mean I’m becoming mentally unstable or something.” You shrug, not exactly sure of her logic behind it. Morgan walks up to you, “Well, we all knew you were mentally unstable…” He playfully jabs as he claps you on the back. “And that was before the whole incident.” You roll your eyes, “Har… har… you're so funny. We can all see how hard you're trying to show you have both brawn and brains.” You tease Morgan back, he glares down at you, and you stick your tongue out at him in response. This causes Morgan to laugh loudly, “Just remember I can beat you up.” You nod your head in agreement, “I never said you couldn't.”

Prentiss slides over, “So what party plans do we have set up?” You look at her a bit confused, “We all literally just found out about getting a week off. How could we already have plans?” Prentiss and Morgan both scoff. Prentiss shakes her head at you, “We always have parties and fun times planned.” Morgan nods to back her up. It made sense that it was those two who would always have plans and be down to party. You sigh and roll your eyes, “Well, I, for one, am just glad for getting a week off in general.” Morgan and Prentiss were busy making plans, and you think even JJ walked away to call Will and tell him. But that left Reid, who you could feel watching you.

You whip around quickly, “May I help you, good doctor?” Reid studies you carefully, and you settle on staring right back at him until he answers. Reid finally speaks up, “First, you take a day off willingly. How you're excited about getting a week off… It’s very odd.” You walk up to Reid’s desk, “Don’t profile me. Not about this, at least. I just think a week off sounds nice for once.” Reid watches you, “You once complained for a whole plane ride because we were forced to take a week off.” You scoff, “You're exaggerating again.” Reid opens his mouth. You know that look on his face. He was about to regurgitate everything that you said during that plane ride, word for word. You make the gesture of covering his mouth without physically doing so, wanting to still respect his thing with germs.

Spencer takes the hint and doesn't say anything. You sigh, “Okay, I get it. It’s strange… but people are conundrums, myself included.” You hoped that would be the end of it, but Spencer just watches you again. You tilt your head curiously, “Yes?” Spencer looks at you, “A…” Spencer clears his throat and speaks quieter, “Are you okay?” You thought about lying, but just like Penelope, Spencer fell into a category of slightly softer team members. So you decide to answer him truthfully for the most part. You smile softly and give his hair a light tussle, “I am about as fine as one could be… given the situation.”

Spencer takes a moment before accepting this answer. You sigh and add, “I’m getting corrective surgery, and it just happened to line up with the days off that Strauss gave us. So that's why I am okay with this time off.” It wasn't the whole truth, but it was enough of the truth that you weren't technically lying. You could see Spencer’s brain working already. He speaks up, “Do you know what kind of procedure they will be performing? If it's the injections depending on the substance used, there have been adverse effects reported in about 63% to 75% of patients.” While you found the information interesting, you got worried about knowing the statistics for this kind of stuff. You could feel some of the anxiety starting already, but you didn’t want to interrupt Spencer. You weren't in a rush. He was constantly being interrupted by time constraints or by people who didn't want to listen at the time. So you were preparing yourself for any additional anxiety-inducing facts Spencer was about to tell you. He wasn't so wrapped up in his information dump yet that he actually noticed the change in your body language. Spencer immediately stops speaking and gives you a slight nod. He follows up with a soft smile, “If you need to talk to anyone…” He pauses. You were extremely grateful that Spencer refrained from continuing. Your mind was already giving you enough trouble about the whole situation without additional facts. Giving Spencer a thankful smile before you chuckle, finishing his sentence for him, “And I’ll kick down your door and come bother you with my problems.” Spencer's smile widens, and he nods at you. You give him one last hair tussle before walking away.

The rest of the day passes by fairly quickly. With you and the rest of the team making some semi-solid plans to have a party at Rossi’s during the week off. You couldn't help but nibble at the snack Penelope made for you. You wanted to talk about the week off with Hotch some more, but you had to wait until everyone left. You tried not to look too suspicious as you kept track of everyone as they started going for the day. You waited until you were 100% sure that no one else was left in the office, and you quickly trot up the stairs. Bursting into Hotch’s office without even knocking. He doesn’t even seem surprised. He was used to you entering like this. You dramatically flop down in the chair across from him, “What are we going to do during our days off? I wanna do something fun.” Hotch looks up at you from his papers, “You will be recovering from surgery. So we’ll be taking it easy.” You huff loudly, “But… We could do something fun instead of being boring.” Hotch just glares at you, staying firm on his point. You sigh and pull your own paperwork on top of his desk. You give one last attempt, “Aaron…” You make sure to pout overdramatically and stare him down. Hotch starts chuckling, “I think you picked the wrong partner if you wanted a ‘fun relationship’” You roll your eyes, “You’re plenty fun… most of the time… when your not making me follow stupid rules.” Hotch groans, “You could literally split something open if you overexert yourself.”

You scoff, “That’s if they do the thing with the cutting and stuff. It’s an outpatient procedure. I’ll be fine going right back to normal activity.” Hotch glares at you, “I overheard the phone call the other day. It could be outpatient, or you might have to stay for a few days. Either way, I’ll have to drive you home, or they legally will not let you leave the building.” You sigh and get a bit more serious, “That’s true… I didn’t put your name on the official paperwork, but you can still pick me up, right?” Hotch narrows his eyes at you, “...Yes.” You roll your eyes, “I’m not doing anything sneaky… I just worry about how good Penelope is… If we wanna keep this little affair a secret, then you gotta make sure the team doesn't have any way of finding out.” Hotch shakes his head at you, holding back a chuckle, “Don’t call it an affair… It makes it sound so much worse than it is.” You smile at him, “Fine, dating.” Hotch finally lets himself chuck as he nods, “Thank you.” You both go back to doing paperwork until you both eventually get too tired, and you end up going back to Hotch’s apartment with him.

You had only asked Aaron to pick you up from your minor surgery, but he insisted on driving you there as well. Part of you wondered if he thought you were going to chicken out and end up not going. You thought he was being a bit dramatic by driving you there, but as soon as you sat in the car's passenger side, you were glad that he was the one driving. Your hands were shaking, and you only noticed because you had looked down at your lap. You balled your hands into fists in order to stop it. You didn't understand why you were so nervous. It was just a simple procedure. You didn't even feel like it was that big of a deal. Aaron looked over at you while he drove, “Are you alright?” You scoff and nod dramatically, “Of Course. Why wouldn’t I be?” That little bit of attitude earned you a glare from Aaron. Which makes you feel a bit guilty, so you correct your reply with a sigh, “I’ll be fine… Just ready for it to be over.” Aaron doesn’t say anything. He just reached one hand over and held one of your still balled-up fists. You smile softly and start to feel yourself relax.

It was a quick drive to the surgery center. With an easy enough check-in, you and Aaron went to find a seat. The problem was waiting to be called back. All the sitting still and waiting put you on edge. You couldn't help but bounce your leg. Aaron placed his hand on your knee in an attempt to calm your nerves. It didn’t help that you still weren't sure why you were this nervous. You had surgeries before, so that wasn't the issue. After your most recent psychological evaluation, you understood how much the Monte situation affected you, but at the same time, it still didn't make sense to you.

The only thing that pulled you out of your own head was Aaron gently squeezing your knee. You give him a curious look. Seeing the scowl on Aaron’s face confuses you further, but then you hear the reason. A nurse calls out again, “[Y/N]?” They pause before looking at the chart in their hands. Between the nurse’s tone and Aaron’s scowl, you could tell that wasn't the first time the nurse had called for you. The nurse adds your last name in an attempt to clear up any shared name confusion, “[Y/N] [Y/L/N]?” You stand up quickly, “I’m here, sorry.” You make your way to the nurse. About to apologize again for your delayed response, you're stopped by Aaron speaking up right behind you, “One second, please.” He addressed the nurse. You turned around to look at him, confused. Aaron looked worried, “Do I need to go back with you?” You scrunch your face up at him, “I’m not a child.” Aaron sighs, “I never said you were.” He still looked worried. It's not like you hadn't seen each other in compromising situations before, so that wasn't the problem. It was just the thought of Aaron going back with you both comforted you and made you nervous at the same time. You quickly think about it, not wanting to take up more of the nurse’s time. You offer Aaron a smile, “I think I’ll be fine. Just be here when I get done.” His worried look on his face softens but doesn't go entirely away as he nods, “Of course.” You give him a quick kiss before finally going back with the nurse.

The nurse takes you back into the exam room. You have to take off your shirt so they can do a quick look over it before the actual surgeon gets in. Your odd nerves linger even after the nurse leaves. Luckily the surgeon doesn't take long to come into the room. Considering you don't care about scars in general, the conversation is relatively quick before deciding how to proceed. You just wanted the spot changed. You didn't so much care about how the scar looked after, as long as it no longer reminded you of that incident. The surgeon decides that the best course of action is to basically cut out your scar and pull the skin back together to make a straight scar instead of the more prominent, more bullet-shaped scar you have now. You readily agree to the surgery, and off you went. They put the anesthesia mask on you in the surgery room, and you were out like a light.

The next thing you remember is waking up slowly. Everything was so bright, and you had to cover your eyes a bit. You started groggily waking up. You were expecting to be alone or at least only with medical staff, but you heard a very familiar noise. The extremely annoyed but trying to hide it, noise Aaron made. While Aaron was annoyed most of the time at work and made all sorts of noises. You didn't even have to look over at him to know what he was doing. Aaron was reading a newspaper and groaning to himself about the errors. Inaccuracies in the crime section of the newspaper, to be exact. You couldn't help but chuckle as you turned to look at him. Which came out as a weird noise between the grogginess and your dry throat. Aaron immediately closes the paper, completely forgetting about whatever it was he was annoyed about mere seconds ago. He looks worried again, moving to the edge of his chair to be ready to help if need be, “Are you alright? Do you need anything?” A large smile spreads across your face, “It aggravates you every time you try to read those. So why do you keep doing it?” Aaron takes your first sentence as a sign that you're doing just fine. He smiles at you and rolls his eyes, “I have to stay on top of cases.” You chuckle again and start moving a bit, wincing when you move your side just right. The pain was tolerable, which was a good thing. You begin sitting up, “I thought you said you would be in the waiting room.” Aaron sits back in his chair and gives you an ornery look, “Well, you said you didn’t want me back there for the exam, but nothing about coming back here while you were recovering.” You let out a playful groan and roll your eyes, “I’ll allow it just this once.” You tease and decide to look at your side. It was bandaged up, so there wasn't much to see. You try to start trying to peel up a corner of the bandage, trying to see something. Aaron quickly speaks up, “They said to leave it alone.” You shoot him a quick glare, “I am leaving it alone. I just want to look at it.” You knew you needed to be careful, and you probably would have listened. However, part of you was nervous it wasn't going to look different enough, so you persisted. Aaron must have seen the worry on your face because he let you continue. You gingerly pull up the bandage until you can see your stitches. Your previous scar was now almost perfectly straight. It looked nothing like it did before. You let out a sigh of relief, deciding now you can relax and leave it alone. Aaron watches you, “Better?” You hum softly, “Much better.” He reaches over and lets his hand find yours. You return the gesture but start trying to work your way out of the medical bed.

Aaron glares at you, “You need to wait until the doctor takes a look at you.” You scoff, “We both know I’m definitely not going to just sit around and wait.” He narrows his eyes at you. To which you just smile innocently before continuing to stubbornly stand off the bed. Aaron halfheartedly groans and caves, helping you. He lets you use one of his arms for balance while he hands you your clothes with his other hand. You chuckle as you start steadily pulling on your underwear, “You gave up really easily.” Aaron shakes his head, but you can hear the smile in his voice, “I’m picking my battles.” Next, you pull on your pants, having to sit on the edge of the bed to get them all the way up your legs. Aaron helps you when need be, so you don't hurt yourself. You smile as you start sliding out of the medical gown, “I’m lucky to have such a sweet boyfriend to take care of me while I heal.” Aaron chuckles and teases you, “Very lucky” You use Aaron’s shirt to pull him down closer to you and kiss him. He gently kisses you back before helping you get your shirt on. Aaron makes sure you don’t overexert yourself, “Once the doctor clears you, we can go home.” You hum and sit back down on the bed, ready to wait.

It was the night of Rossi’s party. You had been healing well, and besides being a little slower than usual, you were functioning pretty well. Penelope agreed to drive you to Rossi’s, even though Aaron had to drop you off at your own apartment. Keeping your relationship a secret could be tiring, but it was worth it. Penelope picked you up and talked about how much fun the party tonight would be and how she was only going to drink a ‘reasonable’ amount tonight and not get too crazy. You didn't really believe her, and you're sure she would be staying the night at Rossi’s. You'd have to get a ride home with someone else. Hopefully, you could sneak home with Aaron without anyone noticing. Normally you would be drinking with everyone, but you were supposed to wait until a few weeks after surgery before having alcohol again. Since you haven't told anyone but Spencer about your surgery, hopefully, you'll be able to hide your lack of drinking tonight as well. You did bring a bottle of alcohol as a gift for everyone and as a potential distraction from the fact you weren't actually drinking.

When Penelope pulled up, and you both got out of the car. You could see that a few people were already there. You saw Aaron’s car and JJ’s, but Derek’s car was missing. He was probably running late so he could pick up Emily and Spencer. You let Penelope lead the way. She knocked a cheerful tune on the door. A moment later, Rossi answers the door, “Benvenuti!” Penelope tackles Rossi with a hug, “Hello!” Penelope just as quickly let's go and trots happily into the house. Rossi looks to you, and you chuckle, “Don’t expect me to hug you.” Rossi laughs and motions for you to come in, “Wouldn't dream of it.” You offer him the bottle, which he happily accepts. You nod to him before slipping into his house and joining the others. Penelope already has a fruity-looking drink in her hand with a colorful reusable umbrella in it, which she must have brought from home, or Rossi could have had them stashed away somewhere.

As you were looking around the room, you did everything in your power not to linger on Aaron too long. Everyone was far too sober for you to start slipping up already. You head over to the bar and make sure to mess with the right combination of bottles and containers before pouring yourself a non-alcoholic beverage. Penelope was already messing with whatever music Rossi had on with the help of JJ. Rossi scoffed loudly enough you all could hear him from the entryway, “That was a classic.” Without hesitation, Penelope retorts, “Classically boring.” Penelope was only satisfied when she found something that she could sing and dance to. Penelope was already thoroughly enjoying herself like she always did. You knew JJ would join in soon like always. You were waiting to have two or three ‘drinks’ because that's what it usually took to get you out on the dance floor with everyone else.

Moments later, you hear Derek barge into the area everyone was gathered in, “Sorry we are running late, pretty boy was fixing his hair or something.” Derek chuckles, and Spencer automatically glares at Derek, “Actually, it was because you refused to listen to the directions I gave you and got stuck in traffic just like I said you would.” Derek wipes around, “That's not at all what happened… right, Prentiss?” Emily just shakes her head and dodges around both men who stopped in front of her, “I just came here to have fun with my friends. Not get dragged into your bickering.” You chuckle as both Derek and Spencer now turn their halfhearted glares to Emily. The play fight is quickly interrupted by Derek noticing Penelope already dancing. Derek fakes offense, “Baby girl, you started without me?” Penelope doesn't stop dancing for even a second, “Beauty waits for no one.” Penelope giggled before adding, “Just think of it as me keeping the dance floor warmed up for you.” Derek grabs himself a drink before joining Penelope, “Well, I am truly sorry for making you wait.” Emily shortly joins the group, using JJ as her main dancing partner. Rossi had joined Aaron off to the side. Which left you and Spencer off in your own group.

Spencer had water in his hand and glanced at the drink in yours, “You shouldn't be drinking for the next two weeks.” The party was already loud enough it was easy for the two of you to have a private conversation of sorts. You chuckle, “The doctor said a week to two weeks, your rounding up. And shh…” You bring your finger to your lips as you shush him. Spencer gets very serious, “I can list off all the statistics-” You laugh and playfully roll your eyes, “You’re a great friend Reid, but I meant shush, I’m faking it.” Spencer softens up, “Ohh, good.” You were about to say something else to Spencer, but the song changes to something slow, and Penelope and Derek catch your attention. They are both partially grinding against each other. As soon as the slow song ends, you shout at them both, ”Get a room.” You immediately regret it as Penelope glares right at you and stares you down. She starts heading towards you with a determined look on her face. You sigh and chuckle, “Shit.” You automatically grab Spencer’s wrist, knowing that if Penelope was going to drag you onto the dance floor, you were taking Spencer down with you. Reid protests, “I can’t dance.” You shake your head, “Neither can I, but we are all going to look like idiots together." Spencer doesn't fight anymore, and soon enough, Penelope grabs you by the hem of your shirt and pulls you into the group to dance with Spencer trailing behind you.

It was always a good time with the team, not worrying about anything. You were having a lot of fun, but it was hard not to over-exert yourself, especially when Penelope was almost always at max energy level. You manage not to hurt yourself too badly, but you knew you would need a break soon. Luckily you found your chance when everyone who was dancing and drinking got too hot and decided to move the party outside where it was nice and cool. You stayed out there just long enough before downing your drink and using your empty glass as an excuse to break away from the group and take a short break. You stood at the mini-bar inside, which was luckily entirely out of view of anyone else, so you didn't have to fake what you were doing. You got yourself some more water and sat down on a bar stool for a minute. Suddenly you hear Aaron’s voice, “Are you alright?” You jump a little and then wince a bit before slowly rotating your seat around. You smile, “I’m fine.” Aaron furrows his brow, “Are you sure you did pop some stitches or anything?” You tilt your head and smile, “If I did, everyone would have noticed.” You motion down to your grey shirt, the bandages themselves were not visible, but blood would have very easily stained the fabric. He was worried, which was cute. Aaron narrows his eyes at you before suddenly leaning down and kissing you. You kiss him back for a bit, glad that no one else was around. You break the kiss first and chuckle, “Aaron… we are at a work party.” You playfully scold him. Aaron rolls his eyes but then smirks, “You kissed me at the last work party we all went to. So I think it's about time I paid you back for that.” You laugh and shrug, “Fair enough.” You offer him a playful look, “Think we could get away with more than a kiss? I mean, Rossi has more than enough extra rooms.” Aaron gives you another soft kiss before shaking his head, “Not with your stitches still in, and if we are both gone much longer, Spencer will notice.” You nod, chuckling as you slowly stand up, “True, harder to sneak around when not everyone is inebriated.” Aaron nods and follows you with his eyes as you start walking away, “Be careful.” You turn and smile at him, “Of course, Sir.” This earns you a glare with no real annoyance behind it as you smile back before leaving to go back outside to the party.

You could already feel yourself getting tired, and you just knew you would only really want to stay for a few more hours, so you don't overdo it. When you get back to the group, you walk in on the middle of a conversation. Emily comments, “I have Sergio. That is more than enough for me.” Penelope whines, “But come onnnnn… I have a friend who would be perfect for you.” Emily stands her ground and shakes her head, “Nope. No way.” You walked up just in time for Penelope to turn her efforts right at you, “What about you? I know this guy, and he would be perfect for you.” You laugh, “You literally just said the same thing about Emily. Penelope pouts, “All my friends are perfect in their own way, and all of my friends would be perfect for each other.” You shake your head, “I’m going to pass as well, thanks, though.” Penelope gets a drunkenly stern look on her face, “Just one date… when is the last time you went out with someone who isn't us?” You try to ignore the question, but the discussion about your love life gets Derek’s attention. He chimes in, “Yeah… The last time we heard you even going out with someone was like two years ago.” You glare at Derek, “And?” Derek narrowed his eyes at you. He wasn't quite drunk, but he was at least buzzed, so you weren't too worried as he stared you down, “Are you secretly dating someone then? Why wouldn't you want to go out with someone as cool as Penelope's friend.” You can't help but laugh, “Do you know the person too then?” Derek shakes his head, “Nah… but like the baby girl said, all her friends are cool.” You roll your eyes and shake your head. Emily decides to chime in as well, “I know some people you might like.” You facepalm as you laugh.

You know it was them drunkenly trying to help you out, so you weren't mad, but you didn't expect this. You lift your head back up, “That's it, you all are too interested in my love life. I am going to become a nun or something.” Apparently, it was time for almost everyone else to start picking on you as well. JJ chuckles, “You swear like a sailor.” You scoff, but before you can defend yourself, Spencer adds, “You're also too aggressive.” You glare at Spencer, which honestly just kind of proves his point. Emily smiles and shrugs, “You like the danger too much, just like me.” Derek grins, “You like your job way too much to ever leave us.” You chuckle and shake your head. Penelope finishes up by adding, “More importantly, you love us wayyyy too much to ever ever leave us, right?” Penelope looks at you with big, borderline tearful eyes. She clearly had too much to drink because, with the look on her face, you could have sworn you just told her you were quitting or something. You nod and give Penelope a loving pat on the head, “I love you all, and I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon.” This cheers Penelope up right away and tackles you in a hug. It takes every ounce of your self-control not to wince as you hugged her back. Luckily since Spencer knew your secret, he quickly helped you out. Spencer almost shouted out, “I thought this was supposed to be a party.” Penelope very quickly lets go of you and collects herself. Before immediately getting distracted by a song that starts playing and dragging you all back into dancing with her. You have just enough time to mouth a ‘Thank you’ to Spencer before you all get pulled away.

After a few more hours, everyone else starts to break off, getting too tired to continue. JJ is the first to go so she could get back to Will and Henry. Next is Penelope, who passes out right on the couch in the living room. Which is unsurprising when she partied this hard. You were pretty sure Emily and Derek would be up all night challenging each other to stupid things. Rossi was utterly unaffected by whatever alcohol he had consumed. Rossi also seemed unphased by whatever mess was now scattered around his house. Spencer was very ready to go home and relax. Since Derek was currently busy having a shot contest with Emily, Spencer didn't have a ride. Luckily Aaron hadn’t drank that much so he was safe to drive. Spencer asked Aaron first, “Hotch, Would you mind giving me a ride?” You were grateful for this because now you could ask Aaron for a ride as well, and it just looked like a coworker carpool instead of your way to sneak over to Aaron’s apartment. Aaron nods, “Of course.” Aaron pauses for a second before turning and asking you a question he already knows the answer to, “Are you staying at Rossi’s, or would you like a ride home as well?” You offer a smile and nod, “If you wouldn't mind. Home sounds great right about now.” Aaron nod’s and the three of you say goodbye to Rossi before heading out.

You sit in the back seat with Spencer just to further express the whole ‘coworker’ thing. Luckily Spencer didn’t live too far away, so it made sense to drop him off first, and then you and Aaron could just head back to his place. The car ride was pretty quiet, with Spencer casually back seat driving and giving directions even though Aaron knew where he was going. When Aaron stops outside of Spencer's apartment, Spencer lets out a big yawn before thanking Aaron and hopping out of the car. With that, you can relax a bit more. You decide to wait until Aaron stops at the next red light to jump into the front seat, which you choose to do by staying in the car and just squeezing through the middle console area between the two front seats before taking your place in the passenger seat. Aaron glares at you, “Careful.”

You sleepily roll your eyes, “I’m fine. You worry too much.” Aaron starts driving again and shakes his head, “You seem to forget you had surgery.” You chuckle, “I promise I didn't forget. I just am choosing not to let it affect how I do things.” He looks over at you, “Do you have that much of an issue just taking it easy?” Aaron sounded serious. You slowly turn to face him, tilting your head before raising your eyebrow. He turns to look back at you. You decide to respond and can't help but start to chuckle, “I’m going to go ahead and assume that you said that cause you're a sweet boyfriend and worried.” You pause and let your chuckle turn into a laugh, “Because I sure as hell don't think my unit chief Aaron Hotchner can look me dead in the face and say that like he has not literally ignored hospital and doctors orders to get back into the field.” Aaron opens his mouth to protest but realizes the point you're making. He sighs, and you see a slight ornery look on his face when he finally responds, “I am allowed to do that because I am your boss.” You laugh and scoff, “Sure… sure.” Aaron parks in front of his apartment, and he turns off the car. He turns to you and gets a bit more serious again, “Just try to be more careful... for me?” You start to blush and decide just to kiss Aaron instead. Once you pull away, you answer him, “I’ll try. Now let's get inside, and into bed I’m exhausted.” Aaron smiles and nods before you both get out of the car, ready to call it a night.

Continuation of Co-Conspirators –Part 1–Part 2–Part 3–Part 4–Part 5-Part 6*

You had initially gone to college for something completely different. Or at least you planned on using your degree for something else.  One of your classes had Jason Gideon come in as a guest speaker, which sparked an epiphany. So you picked up some extra classes and buckled down, reading as many books as you could on the subject, David Rossi’s books were among the ones you read. Whatever college social life you may have had was put on the back burner, so you could pour all your energy into learning. It took a lot of hard work, but you managed to do it. You wanted to help people. This seemed like one of the best ways you could do that. When you were ready, you pushed ahead and got an interview with the Behavioral Analysis Unit at Quantico.

    You had been beyond nervous. For the past few years, you had been training for this moment. So you steeled yourself before going into the FBI building. You made sure to wear something very professional, wanting to make an excellent first impression. Walking into the building was easy enough. When you got into the BAU area, you saw some of the other employees there. They were already watching you. It was easy to tell that they knew you were there for the job opening. While you walked up the stairs, you tried to absorb all the information around you. You reached the office and knocked on a door that read 'S.S.A. Aaron Hotchner', the man who would be interviewing you. You heard a voice call you in. You were thrown off when you entered Hotchner's office. He was older than you, but even with that scowl sculpted into his face, you immediately found him attractive. So that caused you to begin your interview precariously. You knew he was a profiler, so you did your best to bury your attraction to him. Agent Hotchner was your boss. You were going to handle this professionally. You closed the door behind you, "Nice to meet you, Agent Hotchner." You introduce yourself as you take a few steps closer before stopping a respectable distance from him. Hotchner motions to the chair on the other side of his desk, "Sit. Despite what the other profilers might say, I don't bite." You chuckle, moving to sit in the chair. Hotchner moved some papers around on his overflowing desk, “Hotch is fine.” He looked over what seemed to be your personal file. You weren't sure what to expect before you came here. There were rumors about the team and gossip sure. Agent Hotchner was supposed to be intimidating and mean. While he gave off those vibes at first glance, that wasn’t the feeling you got from Hotch when you took a second to read him. Hotch looked up at you from your file, “Your look qualified for the job, but you’re young. What makes you better for this job than other applicants with more experience.” You hum, quickly thinking to yourself. You make sure to thoroughly look around the room, trying to get every detail. You look back at your interviewer, “There are no other applicants.” You said with a very matter the fact tone. Hotch leans back in his chair, a ghost of a smirk on his face. “What makes you say that?” You sit up enough to get another look at the files on his desk, “All these files are paperwork for cases, the dates, and how they are labeled. Applications aren’t labeled like that.” Hotch narrows his eyes at you, signaling for you to continue. You smile, “You don’t have any other applications on your desk. Which means either I’m your last applicant or there were no others. ” You glance down at your watch, “Judging by the time of day, the stacks of paperwork on your desk, and the bags under your eyes, you don’t have a lot of time for interviews. This is why you’re doing this on your lunch break, and I don’t think you’ve actually eaten lunch yet. I imagine you would have scheduled all your interviews in one day to get it taken care of quickly. Limited time, limited people you are willing to bring in and try to fit into your already busy schedule. I'm guessing that I am the only applicant.” You pause and shrug, “I suppose I could also be the only application you deemed had enough potential.” Hotch leaned forward again, closing your file, “Can you start tomorrow?”

    You curiously peek at the papers on his desk. Interestingly trying to see if you missed anything as you respond, “I can start right now if you need me too…” You pause for a second, before looking back up at Hotch, “Was I right?” Hotch tucks your file away, “Yes.” You perk up. You had done exercises in classes and during training, but you always found them too easy. So being able to test your skills on something more challenging and being right was exciting, “Which one I am then? Only applicant?” You assumed you were the only one. Figuring if someone with more experience had applied, they would have easily won out over you. Hotch shakes his head, “The only file I saw with enough potential to bring in was yours.” You slowly stand up, making a curious noise. “Thank you, then.” You reach out your hand. Hotch raises his eyebrows and shakes your hand, “Don’t thank me yet, You'll still have to prove yourself in the field.”

    That was how you got your job with the BAU. To start out, Hotch partnered you and him together a lot, you were assuming it was a probationary situation. You did some cases with other people while you were learning. After you had been at the job long enough to handle yourself, you were still partnered with Hotch most of the time. Part of you chalked it up to the fact that you could handle Hotch’s grumpy and bully-like behavior. Quickly the whole team became your family. You spent most of your time at work, which meant you spent all your time with the team. You enjoyed hanging out with everyone on the team.

    Emily would help you learn new languages if there was time. You found it oddly soothing listening to Reid talk about whatever he was excited about at the moment, plus you usually learned something. Rossi shared a love for classic art, the two of you also shared a love of snarky banter. You and Penelope shared anything nerdy with each other, whether it was movies, shows, or comics. Derek would discuss books with you, and he would introduce you to new music. You were always happy to look at pictures of Henry while talking about family life with JJ. You and Hotch were workaholics together. Hotch got onto you about it a few times, but you always turned it back on him. It was hard to explain, you and Hotch kind of just gravitated to each other. There was always a calm mutual understanding between the two of you. Working so closely with Hotch didn't exactly help with your attraction to him. You were a professional. So you ignored it for the most part. You had resigned yourself to the fact that Hotch wasn't interested in you. Even if he was interested, he was such a stickler for rules that it wouldn’t matter.

    You had been good at remaining professional for a few years. However, you slipped up one night when you and the team went out to celebrate. A case had gone really well, and you all knew you deserved a break. Emily and Derek were the first two to get the idea rolling. Soon everyone was ready and willing to go, except Hotch. Since you both worked way too much when the team went out, it was usually down to either you or Hotch to be what Penelope lovingly referred to as the ‘designated buzzkill’. You agreed to go but kept wondering if you should invite Hotch. Reid quickly caught onto how you were glancing up towards Hotch’s office, “Shouldn’t we invite Hotch?” Everyone except you and Reid made a face. It was a collective look of ‘We could try, but he’ll just say no.’ Their skeptical looks sealed it for you. You moved away from your desk and to the stairs, “I’ll ask him.” Penelope let out an excited squeak, practically bouncing as she spoke, “You’re the only one of us who can speak fluent ‘Hotchner’. You can do it, sugar.” You chuckled and rolled your eyes as you walked up the stairs. You knocked on Hotch’s office door but didn’t even wait for a response before going right in. You and the team had only been back for maybe 30 minutes, and Hotch had already buried himself in paperwork. You walk over and sit in the chair in front of his desk. Hotch doesn’t even look up as he addresses you, “Yes?” You shift about in the chair using the sweetest voice you could muster, “We have all been talking…” Hotch looks up, cutting you off “A night out? I have paperwork.” Hotch had his scowl on, but it no longer affected you unless he was mad at you personally. You grin at him, “It will be fun.” Hotch just stared at you, waiting. You sighed and rolled your eyes quickly, dropping being overly nice, “Why do you make me do this?” Hotch leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. A smirk threatens to slide onto his face, Hotch still just stares at you. You glare at him, “Fine, you asked for it.” Hotch just waits, already knowing he pushed you to the point where you lose your verbal filter. While he had gotten onto you before for your lack of filter on cases, you think he enjoyed it when you spoke candidly in more casual situations. You point to his desk, “When is the last time you went somewhere that wasn't this building, the plane, or a company car?” Hotch goes to protest. This time you cut him off, “This stack of paperwork has been like this since you hired me... What two years ago now? You always do all your work. Go above and beyond. The files have changed, but the stack remains the same size. It can wait twelve more hours. At which point, you’ll realize trying to sleep is pointless. You'll come into work early anyway.” Hotch makes a face, doing what he does best and avoids the main parts of your argument, “It’s been two years and six months.” You open your mouth, ready to argue again, but are temporally confused. “What?” Hotch moves some papers around, “It’s been two years and six months since I hired you.” You gave him another confused look, “You remember how long it has been?” Hotch once again dodges the main issue. “Also, I’d like to point out that you also haven’t been anywhere other than here or on a case in a while, either.” You scoff, “I totally have…” Hotch rolls his eyes, “Sleeping in your car in the company parking lot doesn’t count.” You grumble and lean back in the chair. You decide to do what Hotch does and just avoid that statement, “What if I promised you I would help you with the paperwork after the teams’ little night out?” You could tell you were starting to win when Hotch sat up in his chair. Hotch motioned to the paperwork on his desk, “This is important.” You stand up and put your hands on his desk, raising your voice in a nonaggressive manner, “Mental health is important too.” You glare down at Hotch, “And I swear to god if I have to drag Reid in here and make you listen to the statistics about mental wellbeing and overworking yourself, I will be so pissed.” You get a bit more dramatic with your voice, “Aaron Hotchner, I already got that lecture from him the other day. If I have to listen to it again just to get you to go to the bar with us, I will.” Hotch puts his hands up in defeat before pushing himself away from his desk, “Please don’t subject me to that.” Hotch stands up, and you start grinning, “Thank you for caving.” You walk to the office door, waiting. When you looked through the window, the whole team automatically looked away. Trying to hide the fact they had been watching. You chuckle, shaking your head at how bad they were at ‘acting casual’. You walk down the stairs, “Stop pretending you weren't paying attention. Bossman agreed to join us.” Derek claps you on the back, “The boss whisperer has triumphed for us once more.” You roll your eyes, going over to your desk. “Why do you all act like Hotch speaks a completely different language?” JJ giggles, commenting, “Asks the only person who understands him half the time.” Hotch walks down the stairs from his office, “Let’s keep it that way. If the rest of you catch on, then I’m doomed.” You laugh. Now that you all were ready, it was time to go. The team went back to their excited chattering as you left the building as a group.

    At the bar, the team stayed together for the first few drinks. After that, though, everyone slowly splintered off on their own. You flitted from each small group for a while until like always, you ended up sitting next to Hotch. Hotch was nursing a drink while watching the rest of the team have fun. You ordered another drink. After a few moments of comfortable silence, you spoke up, “We are supposed to be having fun.” Hotch chuckles, “Is sitting over here with your boss your definition of fun?” You smile leaning back against the counter to relax, “Actually yes.” You take a large drink from your glass, turning to look at Hotch, “But you knew that already.” Hotch turns to face you, “I do. It’s the ‘why’ I could never figure out.” You laugh, playing with the small amount of alcohol in your glass, “You’re a profiler, you tell me.” Hotch glared at you before taking another drink. You couldn’t help the cocky look that fell onto your face. Hotch looks back out at the mixture of people floating around the room, “Really want to go down this road?” You scoff, getting another drink, “Hit me with your best shot Hotch.”

    Hotch motions to all the people mingling in the bar, “You’re as bad of a workaholic like I am. So you don’t have a personal life.” You make a fake offended noise, but let Hotch continue. “You find flaws in anyone who would be considered a potential romantic interest before even speaking to them. Convincing yourself, there is no use in trying.” Hotch glances back over to you, “It's why you like hanging out with me that I don't understand.” You cock your head, “I’ll answer that after I correct you on a few points.” Hotch crosses his arms, leaning back, waiting. You chuckle, “You guys are my personal life, my family. Your right about the romantic interest part, though... Hard to stay interested in someone when you can profile them in one glance...” You pause before knocking back your drink, “I like grouchy, serious people. Lots of nice silence that isn’t awkward gives me time to think. No bullshit, you’ll tell me if I did something wrong or whatever else. Plus, My mouth normally gets me in trouble but not around you. I can be a sarcastic asshole or brutally honest.” Hotch makes a noise, “Your mouth is a huge problem.” You nervously rub the back of your neck and chuckle, “I mean… I’ve at least gotten better when we are on the job.” Hotch smirks, “You have.” He pauses for a second, “What else? You’re leaving something out.” This is the point where you would usually come up with a convincing lie to hide the fact you had feelings for Hotch. You were a few drinks in. You could handle your liquor, so you weren’t drunk per se, but you had drunk enough that you didn’t really think about the need to lie. You smile to yourself as you let out a small hum, “Because… seeing a sullen person smile… and I don't mean smirking… a genuine smile... It’s a special thing to be able to see that.” You realized that was the first time you had said something like that or even admitted it to yourself. You let out a curious hum. Turning back around in your seat, facing the counter. When Hotch turned around, that’s when you notice the two of you were shoulder to shoulder now. You glanced over at Hotch. He had a real smile on his face. It made you happy seeing him like that. You forgot where you were and that there were rules against fraternization at work. Hotch was so close to you, so when your eyes met his, all logic left your body. You closed your eyes before leaning in and kissed Hotch.

    Hotch even kissed you back. It felt so right that you got caught up in it. Both of you kept kissing each other. That was until your brain quickly started to catch up to what you were doing. It only took a split second for your bliss to come crashing down. You had just kissed your very handsome, regulations focused boss. At a party with your coworker’s nonetheless. When you realized that you just put both your and Hotch’s job on the line, you pulled away. Hotch looked confused. You couldn’t tell if it was because you kissed him or because you stopped kissing him. Not sure what else to do, you decided to bolt. Digging cash out of your pocket before putting it on the counter to pay for your drinks. You avoid looking at Hotch, “I… I have to go.” You said it so fast it sounded more like one word then a sentence. You didn’t wait for a response. Booking it out of the bar and straight to a taxi to take you home. You were mad at yourself. You managed to stay professional for over two years. Then it only took one night out for you to ruin that. Though deep down, you knew the real reason you were so upset was that kissing Hotch had felt perfect, but there were multiple rules against things like this. You didn’t want to forget about that moment but thought it might be easier if either you or Hotch just forgot about it by the time morning rolled around. As soon as you went home, you went straight to bed, hoping to sleep it off.

    When you woke up a few hours later, you hadn’t forgotten. It was actually the first thing you thought about. Making you realize that maybe it was more than a crush you had on Hotch. You pushed the thought back in your mind and decided to just go into work. Knowing you couldn’t go back to sleep even if you wanted to. Even though you were walking into work a few hours before anyone else should be there, you weren’t surprised when you saw Hotch’s car already here. You had your fingers crossed that he had forgotten about last night, and you never had to think about this ever again. When you walked into the bullpen, you got your answer. Usually, when you came in early for whatever reason, especially helping him with paperwork, you would sit in Hotch’s office while you both worked quietly. However, today Hotch’s office door was closed. The paperwork you had promised to help him with was sitting on your desk. Last night may have just fucked up your usual routine and, even worse, a friendship. You sighed to yourself and just sat down at your desk and worked.

    Over the next few months, it only got worse. Where you and Hotch typically gravitated to each other, now you were both constantly apart. He no longer paired you two together on cases, never sat next to each other on the plane. The worst part was probably the early and late hours both you and Hotch always worked. You both were the only two in this part of the building at those times, and still, there was no real communication between the two of you. Just basic, stiff sentences. Neither you or Hotch talked outside of team meetings and cases. It was a shock to your system considering how close you two had been before that night at the bar. But you felt you had no one to blame but yourself. You also felt lucky you still had your job considering Hotch could have fired you.

You reached your breaking point one random morning after a few months of this. It just hit you how much you actually needed to know what was going on. You didn’t even care what the answer was, you just wanted to know. So while you and Hotch were still the only two at work, you barged into his office.  Before you could even get the door closed, Hotch spoke up, “Yes?” You closed the door and crossed your arms, “If you’re pissed at me, could you go ahead and just say so?” You shouted that louder than you meant to. Hotch furrowed his brow and looked right up at you. You didn’t give him a chance to say anything just yet, “I was really drunk, okay? So don’t think anything of… of…” You tried to think of what to call it because calling it a kiss reminded you how much you enjoyed it. You subconsciously touched your fingers to your lips. As soon as you noticed, you dropped your hand and continued, “that situation… It meant nothing.” You didn’t even believe yourself and knew that Hotch saw right through it too. As an effort to hide more of your feelings, you let out a loud, annoyed huff before standing there and staring at Hotch. Hotch narrowed his eyes at you, testing you. “Then why are you yelling at me about it?” You scoffed a few times before you started walking around. You stayed mindful enough that it didn’t look too much like pacing. You calmed your voice, “Because I feel like I’m in the dog house because of it. You stopped partnering with me, practically stopped talking to me altogether.” You sigh, “I understand you could have fired me for that drunken mistake. You didn’t, and I appreciate it. But if you really hate working with me that much now, just tell me.” Hotch leaned back in his chair and watched you. There was some emotion in his eyes you couldn’t pinpoint at the moment. It almost looked like he was amused as he spoke, “You weren't that drunk.” Hotch moves some papers around on his desk, “You know, normally anyone else on the team would think being partnered with me constantly would be the punishment. Not the other way around.” You think for a moment watching Hotch, “I don’t feel that way about it.” Hotch nodded, “I know.” He looked a bit too amused for your liking. So you started speaking louder again, "Look, I think it's a fairly simple question. Do you or don't you want me to work with you?" You paused, but your nerves got the better of you. You let out a loud sigh before adding mostly to yourself, “I knew my mouth would get me in trouble one day… this just isn’t the kind of trouble I thought it would be.” Hotch chuckles at your comment, “I’m not mad at you.”  You scrunch up your face, confused. Hotch’s voice turns more serious as he finishes, “I do want to work with you, but I separated us because you’re a distraction.” You glare at Hotch, “What the fuck do you mean a distraction?” At this point, you may not have been thinking too clearly because you automatically took offense. You fully turned to face Hotch, your body language and tone reflecting your irritation, “We have worked with each other for over two years. Suddenly I’m a ‘distraction’?” Hotch stood up, crossing his arms and staring you down. You dug your heels in, “Am I really that bad at my job that I’m affecting your or the team’s work?” Hotch started walking over to you, “Will you stop and listen to me for a second?” Hotch had raised his voice just enough to get your attention. It was stern with no real anger behind it. You let out an exasperated huff but stayed quiet. Hotch stopped a few feet in front of you. Even a few feet away, Hotch seemed to tower over you. The serious look that was normally stamped on his face was softer than normal, “You’re a distraction because I have feelings for you as well.” 

You falter for a second, “What?” Hotch lets a smile slide onto his face, “You heard me.” You take a minute to think it over, “Then why didn’t you say anything before.” Hotch shrugs, “You’re the one who ran, and I wanted to cover all my bases.” You glare at him, wondering if this was a joke. Hotch wasn’t one for jokes, so it was unlikely, but part of your brain wouldn’t accept he was telling the truth. So naturally, you challenge him, “Since when?” Hotch raises his eyebrows at you, “Does it matter?” You give him a firm nod. Hotch looks off to the side, “Longer than I would care to admit…” Hotch knew you wouldn’t be satisfied with that answer, so after a pause, he looked back at you with a smirk on his face, “The first time you yelled at me. I was able to see how passionate you were. It started then.” You start laughing, “Really? You also wrote me up for that.” Hotch nods, “It was still against regulations, so, Yes.” Hotch pauses, “What about you?” This time the laugh that leaves you is a nervous one, “Since my interview.” You rub the back of your neck, “Tall, Dark, and Handsome. What else can I say?” Hotch makes a curious noise, “I just read that as regular nerves, not attraction.” Hotch smirks at you, “If I had known you had such poor taste, I wouldn’t have hired you.” You scoff and roll your eyes, “Shut up.” You look out the window down into the bullpen below, “If ‘poor taste’ is liking a man who is constantly pushing himself to do the right thing and can be an ass at times because of that. Then sure, I have ‘poor taste’.”  Hotch scuffs, “The word I think you meant to use was jaded.” You smile, looking back over at Hotch, “Nope.” You say it very matter of factly, letting the ‘p’ pop as you speak. You tilt your head and give Hotch a cocky grin, “So you like being yelled at?” Hotch rolls his eyes, “Only when you're the one yelling. If I didn’t, I would have fired you by now.” You chuckle but then have a serious thought, “How much trouble are we in?” Hotch sighs, “None… at the moment, but if Strauss catches wind of this…” It was finally time for other people to start showing up for work, just some background workers. Drawing both you and Hotch’s attention to the window watching over the bullpen. You think, “So we don’t let Strauss catch wind of this.” You tap your foot on the ground. “Everyone on the team hates the bitch, but…” Hotch nods, finishing your thought for you, “But… If we keep it a secret from the team, it will at least buy us time.” Hotch glances at you for a second before looking back out the window, “What do you suggest?” You tilt your head from side to side as you think, “We build upon what the team already knows about… We have clearly distanced ourselves from each other. The team has noticed… So we make it seem like we are actually mad at each other.” Hotch nods, agreeing with you so far, “An event about two months ago that would cause this ‘rift’...” Hotch scowls while thinking about it. You laugh, “It is us we are talking about. There are too many things to choose from. The team knows you can be a hard ass, and they know I have a smart-ass mouth.” Hotch chuckles, looking over at you. Your eyes meet for a second, and you can’t help but smirk. “Are you willing to get this elaborate with lying to our friends and colleges?” You were joking at first, but you had a serious thought. Your tone quickly changed, “In all seriousness… I don’t want to put your job on the line… Don’t get me wrong I want this, but not so badly that I’m willing to risk your career without both of us being on the same page.” You look over at Hotch. He furrows his brow, “It’s not just my job. It’s yours too.” You let out a melancholy chuckle, “Im young, I haven't built up my whole career yet. I could find somewhere else to work.” Hotch shakes his head, “You’d be miserable.” You shrug and smile, “ ‘Miserable’ is a relative term.” Hotch’s frown sets in deeper on his face, clearly he was starting to rethink things. So you quickly spoke up, “I just want to make sure we are on the same page. I’m more than willing, but if you want to back out before we break any rules, I want to give you that chance.” Hotch stares at you for a very long moment, “What event are we going to use from two months ago?” You smile softly, relieved that he wanted to proceed with things. You thought, “I cursed out that cop which you got onto me for even though the guy totally deserved it.” Hotch smirks, “He did deserve it but still inappropriate.” You chuckle and nod, “We could use that… act like someone in the department complained about it more and is riding your ass about it. Could combine it with several other things for more drama or leave it at that.” Hotch nods, “We can work with that.” You move away from the interior window, “When everyone gets in, we fake an argument and let the team see it.” Hotch moves back over to his desk, “They will see it and shouldn’t ask too many questions about it.” You sit in the chair in front of his desk, “From partners to partners in crime.” Hotch glares at you and rolls his eyes, “Crime makes it sound much worse than it is.” You chuckle, “Fine. Why don’t we plan something fun then? Maybe it will make you less grumpy.” Hotch sits down, crossing his arms, “Something fun?” You roll your eyes, “A date. I mean, we literally put all this effort into the lie to cover up something that hasn’t even really happened yet.” Hotch smiles, “Tomorrow night, we are supposed to have it off.” You give him a smug grin, “It’s official, then Aaron, we're co-conspirators.” With a sigh, Hotch leans back in his chair. As he rubs his temples, you can see a large smile on his face.