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As Prentiss steps out of her car, she can already see the clusters of families standing around in the parking lot. Not too far away from them, the children are already dressed in their soccer uniforms, warming up for their game on the field.
Ducking back down to her car, she reaches across the driver’s seat to the passenger side and retrieves two yellow paper bags dotted with white stars; one with a small tag that reads ‘Henry LaMontagne’ and the other ‘Jack Hotchner’. With a bag in each hand, Prentiss uses her foot to kick the door shut behind her.
Although she’s only been standing in the parking lot for a couple of seconds, she can already feel the sun beating down on her sensitive skin; never has she been more grateful for JJ’s constant nagging about sunscreen application. It feels like the hottest day of the summer and she’s sure by the time Reid arrives, he will have read dozen weather reports to back up her claim.
Prentiss maneuvers past numerous trophy wives and bored looking husbands to make her way over to the metal bleachers. As she looks over the tops of their heads, she tries to scan the rows to find any familiar faces.
“Emily!” she hears someone call out.
Near the top of the bleachers, Prentiss spots Will standing up from his seat as he waves to get her attention. She can’t help but notice that there isn’t anyone else up there with him.
Oh no.
It’s not that she hates Will. She doesn’t.
It’s just rather awkward to try and maintain a conversation with a person when you essentially stole their girlfriend from them.
In Will’s defense, he’s never outright called Prentiss a homewrecker. In fact, he’s always so kind and courteous to her; Will invites her and JJ over for dinner with him and Henry, he always asks about her wellbeing when he calls JJ for whatever reason, Will even had Henry bring her a gift for Christmas when he was staying with his mother for the week.
He may not have called Prentiss a homewrecker but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t believe it. It doesn’t mean that the thought isn’t somewhere in deep recesses of his mind.
Usually, Prentiss doesn’t have to stress over talking to Will but that’s only because they always have JJ or Henry there to act as a buffer between the two of them and stop a potential conflict from arising.
Now, however, JJ is nowhere in sight, Henry is out on the field, and Prentiss is a moment away from fleeing the scene.
The only reason she doesn’t is because she doesn’t need Will talking to JJ about how her girlfriend ran like a mad woman before their son’s soccer game.
Prentiss takes in a deep breath as she climbs the steps, making it to the top far quicker than she wanted to. Will motions for her to take a seat next to him with an easy smile. Once she’s sitting, Will bumps shoulders with her good naturedly.
“Hey,” she greets politely as she sets the gift bags down by her feet, “Where’s JJ?”
“JJ forgot to buy the brownies for the potluck after the game.” he answers with a little laugh, “And now she’s probably speeding down the roads to get here in time.”
His slight at JJ’s driving loosens up the knot in her chest but, not by much though.
“What about the others?” she asks, for the lack of anything better to add.
“Aaron and Spencer are getting the Gatorade from the car. Dave’s on the sidelines, helping the kids warm up,” Will informs as he points to a far away figure that Prentiss assumes is Rossi, “Penelope and Derek are running late because they woke up with hangovers from their alcohol binge last night.”
She lets out a chuckle at Garcia and Morgan’s predicament. Why on Earth they decided to go out to bars the night before a children’s soccer game, Prentiss will never know. She’s just glad that she decided to turn down their offer.
As Will picks up a water bottle from the ground, he glances over to the yellow gift bag near Prentiss’s feet.
“What’s that?” he asks curiously before unscrewing the cap of the bottle.
“Um, it’s, uh, it’s a gift,” she says, “For Jack and Henry.”
“That’s so sweet, Emily.” Will practically coos, “You didn’t have to do that.”
“I wanted to.”
Although Will flashes her what she would consider a sincere smile from anyone else, Prentiss cannot help but wonder if he’s having any of those thoughts about her being a homewrecker right now.
His hands reach for the tops of the gift bag labelled for Henry but before he touches it, he looks up at her.
“May I?” he asks, waiting for permission.
Prentiss nods.
As he pushes past the sheets of colourful tissue to get to the actual gift, Prentiss grows more anxious with every passing second. Her back goes ramrod straight. She begins to rock herself gingerly as she smooths her palms down her thighs.
She watches as Will pulls out the Lego set with gentle fingers.
There’s no real reason why Prentiss had bought it. She had been simply wandering through the mall when she spotted the set displayed in the window of some toy store. From the moment she casted her eyes on it, she felt some inexplicable pull to purchase it. For two weeks it had sat on the floor of her closet until Prentiss could find an excuse to give it to the boy she had in mind.
“My God, Emily.” he breathes out.
Her stomach drops. Her hands stop moving.
“Is it bad?” she questions urgently, “Because I can return it, if it—”
“No, no,” Will interrupts gently, “It’s just that Henry’s been raving about this exact Lego set for the past month.”
“He has?”
“I thought JJ would’ve told you.” he mumbles to himself as he stares at the box, “God, it’s perfect. He’s going to love it.”
He looks up from the gift to give her another one of his grins and a wave of guilt courses through Prentiss.
How could she have ruined this man’s family?
“I’m sorry, Will.” she blurts out.
“Pardon?” he asks as he places the box back into the gift bag.
“I’m sorry for everything,” she explains as she waves her hand between them, “For the whole thing between you, me, and JJ.”
As Will sets the bag back down on the ground, he shoots her a puzzled look. His brows furrowed together, while he’s deep in thought.
“You’re not seriously apologizing for dating your girlfriend, are you?” he asks.
“I, uh, I…” Prentiss stammers as she searches for the right words, “Yes?”
“Listen, Emily,” Will begins to speak as he turns to face her, their knees knocking, “I loved JJ, and I still love her, as the mother of my child. And I know she loves me too because I’m the father of her kid too. We parted on good terms.
“You shouldn’t feel guilty about being with her.”
Will grabs her hand between the two of them and gives it a gentle squeeze.
Not for the first time, Prentiss can understand why JJ used to be in love with Will. He’s a good guy. He’s one of the best guys Prentiss knows.
“You don’t think I’m overstepping right now?” she asks, “I mean, I’m at your son’s soccer game.”
“Because he wants you here and so does JJ, and so do I.” he reminds her with another squeeze of her hand before letting it go.
“You do?”
“Course I do,” he reassures with a chuckle, “I have a feeling you’re going to be staying awhile.”
Although her face is no doubt red, she returns Will’s smile with a nod. She’s saved from having to respond by JJ’s sudden arrival. Her hands are full of store bought brownies and her car keys.. The strap of her purse is starting to slide off her shoulder. The only thing taming her hair is a pair of sunglasses perched at the top of her head.
“Hey guys,” she says a little breathless as she sits down beside Prentiss, “I’m not late, am I?”
Both Will and Prentiss shake their heads, their eyes bright with amusement at JJ’s disheveled state.
“They’re still warming up.” he informs her.
“Oh thank god.” JJ lets out as her shoulders finally sag with relief.
Without thinking too hard about it, Prentiss wrestles one of JJ’s hands free from the container of brownies, and does something she never used to do in front of Will; she plants a soft kiss on the back of it.