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It was the end of the after in Washington DC. Like every december, it was cold and a thin layer of snow was coving up the parks. JJ was looking out the window, admiring the sunset, trying not to think about what was about to happen.
She slightly jumped when she felt two hands on her waist and a head resting on her shoulder behind her. She let out a sigh, and her whole body, every single muscle relaxed.
“Don’t be nervous” whispered Emily.
“I can’t help it”
“She’s gonna love you, I promise”.
JJ tried to believe her girlfriend, but knowing that she was about to meet Elizabeth Prentiss terrified her. “But she’s fancy, and I’m not and I’m probably going to mess up and she’s going to hate me”
“No you won’t, I promise. It’s just dinner, I know my mom can be really intimidating, but deep down she’s nice”.
“You’re lucky I love you” said JJ, turning around, smiling at her girlfriend. Emily’s stomach flipped, she couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have JJ as a girlfriend. Her smile was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, and she couldn’t wait to see it everyday for the rest of her life.
“I know, I love you too”. She softly kissed her.
“Careful, lipstick” said JJ
“Oh yeah, of course, we should probably go anyway if we don’t wanna be late”.
They left the house a few minutes later. They were gonna meet Emily’s mom at a fancy restaurant downtown, which didn’t help JJ with her stress.
They parked the car nearby and entered the restaurant.
“Good evening, how can I help you?” asked the restaurant host, with a bright smile.
“Good evening, we have a reservation” said the brunette, smiling back.
“Can I get your name?”
“Prentiss”
“Party for three?”
“Exactly”
“The other person isn’t here yet, let me direct you to your table”.
The two women followed the host to their table. They waited for about ten minutes, JJ was still incredibly nervous, she kept shaking her leg, trying to calm herself down. Emily noticed it and put a gentle hand on her thigh, which made the trembling stop “Breathe” she whispered.
It was at that moment that Ambassador Prentiss decided to make an entrance. She looked beautiful, elegant, intimidating as usual. JJ suddenly got up and almost hit the table, she tried to make it look as if it didn’t happen, but both Prentiss women noticed it and chuckled.
“It’s an honor to meet you Mrs Prentiss” said JJ, extending her hand towards the woman in front of her.
“Please call me Elizabeth.” Elizabeth shook JJ’s hand before turning to her daughter “Emily”
“Mother”. For a second, JJ thought they were going to shake hands, but Elizabeth gave her a small hug.
“Shall we sit?” asked Elizabeth.
“Sure” answered Emily.
They all sat down and started looking at the menu.
“So, Jennifer, you work with my daughter?”
“Yes, I’m an agent at the BAU too, I used to be the communications liaison.” said JJ
“Isn’t it kind of unprofessional to date a coworker?”
“I-” JJ started choking on her water. “I get why you would say that, and at first I was reluctant to actually get into a relationship with her because of that, but sometimes, like Pascal once said, the heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing”
The waiter interrupted them : “Can I get you anything to drink?”
“I’ll take a martini, extra dry” said the Ambassador, closing her menu.
“For me it’ll be a glass of Sauvignon Blanc” said Emily, with a perfect accent, as usual.
The waiter wrote the orders before turning to JJ “What about you Ma’am?”
“Vodka”
The waiter was confused “Just...vodka?”
“Yup, just vodka, please”.
“Okay, coming right up”
The waiter left to get their drink while Emily laughed discreetly.
“Do you drink alcohol like this often?” asked Elizabeth, raising an eyebrow.
JJ’s face turned completely red “No no, I don’t, it’s- Just on special occasions”
It only took the waiter five minutes to come back with their drinks, having dinner with an ambassador could have its advantages.
JJ drank her whole glass immediately, she needed alcohol if she wanted to survive the evening.
“So, Jennifer”
“Again” whispered JJ to herself.
“What?” asked Elizabeth
“No, nothing”
“So, Jennifer, Emily told me you have a son?”
“Yes, his name’s Henry, he’s almost five now”
“How adorable. Does he have a father?”
“Mother! That’s private” said Emily, visibly mad.
“It’s okay Em, yes he does, we’re divorced and we share custody of Henry”.
Once again, the waiter interrupted them. “Have you made your choice?”
“Yes. I’ll take the seafood pasta” said Elizabeth
“I’ll have the salmon” said Emily
“And I’ll just take a ceasar salad”
“Noted” said the waiter before turning around and leaving.
“You drink a lot, but you don’t eat a lot, don’t you” said the ambassador, looking at JJ.
“Okay, that’s it, bathroom, now” said Emily, standing up. Elizabeth followed her as they entered the bathroom.
“What is wrong with you mother?” asked Emily. This time she was actually pissed off.
“Nothing, why?” Elizabeth crossed her arms, looking at her daughter.
“I’m tired of your little games, why do everytime you talk to someone you have to start an interrogation?”
“I just want to get to know her”
“No you don’t, you just want to sabotage my relationship and scare her away” Emily chuckled sarcastically “You know what? I actually like her, for real, I’m in love with her, and I’m not going to let you destroy it with your questions. JJ is perfect the way she is, and you’re going to stop judging her like you always do with everyone around you. We’re going to go back out there, we’re gonna have a nice dinner, and if I hear any more questions like that, we’re leaving and you’re not gonna see me again for a long time, okay?”
Elizabeth was speechless, Emily had never stood up like that to her. “Okay”.
They came back to the table, the waiter had already brought the plates. They started eating in silence.
Elizabeth was the one to break the silence “So, Jennifer…” Emily glared at her mother with a fierce and serious expression. Elizabeth cleared her throat. “Did you always want to work in the FBI?”
JJ was surprised by the question, she expected another judgment from her, but it seemed genuine. “For as long as I can remember, yes, I’ve always wanted to help people, so that’s why at first I started working as the communications liaison, I was the one talking to the families, really helping them. And then it didn’t seem like enough, I wanted to really be on the field, that’s why I became a special agent”
“Interesting”
“What about you? Did you always want to work in diplomacy?”
“Not really, I wanted to become a teacher, but I changed, and I like what I do”
“It’s what’s most important”
“I agree”.
Emily smiled at the sight of her mother and her girlfriend actually having a nice conversation. Dinner went great, and at the end, as they were about to leave, Elizabeth asked.
“JJ? Can I talk to you for a second?”
JJ looked at her girlfriend who said “I’ll go get the car”.
JJ stayed behind with Elizabeth.
“I- I actually wanted to thank you”
JJ frowned “For what?”
“I’ve never seen Emily so happy. The way she looks at you, the way she smiles, I’ve never seen that before with her. You’re special, and I’m really happy you two found each other”
“Oh, wow, I didn’t expect that. Thank you”
“And I’m sorry for all these invasive questions earlier”
“It’s okay, you want to protect your daughter, I get that. After all, I’m a mom too”. Both women smiled at each other.
“You know, I hope someday I’ll get to become your mother in law”
JJ stopped and smiled. “It might be sooner than you think” said JJ with a wink. “Goodbye Elizabeth”
“Goodbye Jennifer, it was a pleasure to meet you”.