Great Loss (a hotchniss story)

trapped

"I know, I'm here pretty late," he says. "I just thought you might need this."

It was Emily's coat from the night before. "I was looking for that."

Hotch hands it to her. "You—um threw up on it in the car and I forgot about it till I got in the car this morning. I had it dry cleaned within a couple hours. I would've brought it earlier but I was stuck at work."

"Come in, it looks like it's about to start raining," Emily motions. "You still do paperwork on your days off?"

He nods. "It stacks up everyday."

They both walk to the kitchen. "Do you want a drink?"

"No thank you," he says, looking to his right. "You watch Moana?"

Emily walks over to the couch to set her coat down. "No but your daughter does. Keep your voice down because she's right here."

He slowly walks up and looks at the mini human holding a stuffed animal, her bottom half covered by a blanket. "We watched movies the whole day. But I'll just take her into my room."

Hotch nods as Emily picks her up. He stops her in her tracks and gives Athena a kiss on the head. "Good night."

He then sits himself onto a chair next to the white island. It becomes awkward for a couple minutes, as Emily seems like she's taking her sweet time, to avoid him. Soft footsteps finally approach the kitchen.

Upausing the movie, the only sound was a gentle one coming from the TV.

"So... do you remember anything from last night?" Hotch asks. "You were pretty wasted."

Emily pauses the movie with the remote in her hand. "What are you really doing here Hotch?"

Hotch sighs. "Why do you keep calling me Hotch? Aaron's just fine."

"No thank you because Aaron reminds me of the past, so I think I'll stick with Hotch," Emily snaps back. She presses play to continue the movie.

"Do you still want me to explain myself? Emily I was upset that you didn't talk about the offer with me. Can't you leave things in the past?" Hotch explains.

The remote is then picked up again and Emily pauses the movie. "We'll see."

After a couple seconds, the movie plays again. Moana begins to sing.

Hotch didn't to argue with her, especially since their daughter was in the house, along with other people.

"So I was looking at a case, and I was thinking if you could consult it?" Hotch shared. "I understand if you don't."

Emily missed working. Getting out of the house for the first time (for hours) was a thrill. Imagine how she would've felt if she were in a different city, trying to find an unsub.

"Um sure. I might be a little rusty though," Emily replied. She tried not to give an answer right away.

Hotch nods. "Can you come in early? This might be the case I present tomorrow afternoon to the team."

She agrees. "I'm getting a little tired. And since you want me to be there early, I should head up stairs and get some rest."

He realizes what she's trying to get at. "Yeah of course, Jack's waiting for me anyways. I'll see you tomorrow."

They both walk to the front door. "See ya."

Hotch then leaves, leaving Emily leaning on the door.

It's just Hotch. You need to be nice to him, he's your daughter's father and a colleague. You're just consulting on a case.

Emily grabs her coat from the couch and turns off the TV and lights. She walks upstairs and gets ready for bed. She reminds herself that her daughter's right next to her. She finally falls asleep.