𝐓𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐁𝐲 𝐀𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 | hotchniss

‏your integrity makes me seem small

____

Early hospital period

She was standing outside of his hospital room, Emily left the office to come and visit him she didn't even want to go back to work, especially because he had no one now, they didn't even update his mother and Sean, they were afraid it'll give Foyet new targets so she wanted to be his company, they both hated hospitals so staying at one alone would probably be terrible.

It seemed like Aaron didn't saw it like that, he wanted her to go, so she could help the team with finding Foyet and she couldn't refuse, besides he always preferred to pretend to be asleep when she was there anyway.

He was making a progress she saw it, the doctors saw it but for him it wasn't enough. And she hated to just stare at him pushing himself when he clearly needed a rest.

He fell around what seemed like ten minutes of practicing standing and walking around the room, she hurriedly entered the room "Let me help you" she said softly kneeling next to him

He acted like she wasn't there and kept trying to stand up by himself, she could see he was in pain and struggling "I'm fine" He refused to relay on her it was just standing it shouldn't be that hard.

"Aaron please your doctor said you need to take it easy" She said, afraid he will hurt himself, he tried standing up again and groaned as the pain hit him, he took a deep breath "Would you stop being so stubborn and just let me help you?" She asked annoyed, offering him her hand which he brushed off. Aaron took another try and managed to get up, breathing heavily and clinging to the bed. He hated the way she looked at him-
like he was a lost child. He could do this alone.

He hated the idea of her or anyone helping him do things he used to do independently, His behavior and insistence stems from the loss of it. Needing help in things like showering was hard for him to accept he no longer felt like himself, he was now a new version of himself a miserable, vulnerable and weak one. Every action he wanted to take took time, was painful and was associated with limited mobility and exhaustion.

"I told you..." he said still unable to regulate his breathing "I don't need your help." he finished, laying on the bed and closing his eyes. She moved to bring the water closer to him, pouring him a glass of water.

"I'm fine and I don't need your pity" he said finishing the glass she gave him, Emily frowned, the tears she believed will appear soon were gone before they even started to form "is that what you think I'm doing? Pitying you?" She asked, he didn't answer. Aaron just looked at her as if he was trying to decode whether she had any hidden feelings about his situation, like she was hiding what she truly feels.

"I care." She explicitly states "you're doing great even if you don't believe it but it's still early and I don't want you to push yourself unnecessarily. I'm not pitying you Aaron I can assure you that. I just don't want you to hurt yourself" she said

"I love you." She added, those three words summed it all up, Emily felt like he needed that reminder.

____

home

He hated to be back in that house, the wall might have been fixed the carpet was replaced but he knew what happened there and he knew that as normal as it all looked; it wasn't real. But the scars that were carved into his skin that night were. they were too real to disregard. his family was gone Jack was away and the man who did it was out because he couldn't stop him.

"How are you feeling?" Emily asked, ever since he was discharged from the hospital. Things have been... complex, he was still refusing her help she was finding her ways to help but at the same time she allowed him to make his choices, and respected them and his autonomy, she wasn't forcing her assistance on him, which he took notice of, still it was like he became indifferent, a stranger. it wasn't surprising considering everything that had happened...