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It wasn’t often Aaron let people see his emotions. He preferred to hide behind a facade, a mask. Where people couldn’t read his emotion, he’d rather seem stoic and angry than vulnerable. There was something about vulnerability that made Aaron feel wrong. Most of the time anyway. He let himself be vulnerable with you.
“Alright, we aren’t going to get anything more done tonight,” Rossi said, “None of us have slept since we got this case.”
Hotch looked at the file, not wanting to leave. He gave a small sigh, he knew Dave was right, “Alright, let’s go back to the hotel to get a good night’s sleep and pick up where we’ve left off in the morning,”
Everyone gave a nod before beginning to pack their stuff up, ready to head back to the hotel, more than happy to get some sleep. You do so reluctantly, knowing the likelihood of a decent night’s sleep was unlikely for both you and Aaron. Kid cases always hit the team hard. Hotch in particular, you knew it reminded him of what could have happened to Jack with Foyet. You also knew that he desperately tried to hide it from the team.
When you all piled into the SUVs Rossi let you sit in the front, you gently placed your hand on Aaron’s, giving it a small squeeze before moving to place your hand back into your lap. You didn’t want to push it and make him uncomfortable in front of some of the team. Aaron’s hand caught your wrist gently, settling it on his thigh. He clearly needed the comfort that your touch brought him. You knew the others in the car saw it, it was a bit hard to miss. No one commented on it though. Besides, you were eighty percent sure you could feel Rossi’s smirk from the back seat.
The ride to the hotel was silent, Hotch pulling up at the same time as Morgan, parking next to each other. Everyone was too tired to speak, they simply made their way to their hotel rooms. The hotel itself wasn’t too bad, it wasn’t the worst place they’d stayed in, although it wasn’t the nicest place either.
You and Hotch were sharing a hotel room, the team pretty much knew the two of you were a thing - you hadn’t formally said anything, but you didn’t do much to hide it either. They had very apologetically explained that two of you would have to share a room - something about a local market that drew in people from surrounding towns (you hadn’t been paying much attention). So the room kind of went to the two of you as default. Not that either of you were complaining.
Hotch stayed at the back of the group, rather than the front where he would usually walk, he wanted some time to think, to ease his mind. To try his best to forget the horrors of the case for the rest of the night. Ensuring to walk at his pace, you softly intertwined your fingers. You all said a brief goodnight to everyone before walking into your rooms, promising to meet at seven for breakfast the next day.
You gently took the briefcase out of Hotch’s hand, putting it at the end of his bed. “Aaron,” You said softly, gaining his attention. “Go have a shower, get into something comfortable, alright?” Aaron gave a soft nod, gathering his pajamas before heading into the bathroom. He was exhausted, running himself into the ground for the past two days. You have no idea how he was still walking around.
You flicked the kettle on, rummaging through your bag you pull out two mugs and some tea bags (as well as some sugar) and make two cups of tea. You make the tea to both your and Hotch’s liking before placing it on the bedside table in between your beds. Hopefully it would help him relax. Cases involved with children hit everyone hard, including yourself. But, you didn’t mind putting your feelings on the back burner to help Aaron.
A few minutes later, Hotch stumbled out of the bathroom, still towel drying his hair, a pair of loose pajama bottoms and a baggy t-shirt. You gave Aaron a small smile as he sat on his bed. “I’ve made some tea,” You said, “I’m just going to have a shower and then we can relax, alright?”
You grabbed your pajamas before heading into the bathroom. You showered quickly before drying yourself off and slipping into your pajamas (spiderman themed) before walking out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom. Ignoring the way water dripped from your hair, narrowly missing your eyes, you walked over to Aaron, sitting beside him. “How are you feeling?”
“Worn down,” Aaron answered quietly, reaching for the tea and taking a small sip to test the temperature.
“You work too hard and don’t give yourself enough breaks,” You said warmly, gently rubbing your hand up his arm. Leaning into the touch, Aaron gave a half smile.
“You’re a very caring man, (Y/N),” He hummed, you shot him a grin kissing his cheek.
“Aren’t you lucky?” You chuckled. “Tell me what’s going on in the head of yours,”
“He’s killed so many children… I can’t help but feel like I’m not doing enough,” Aaron mumbled, rubbing a hand over his face. You take his hand, pressing a small kiss on his palm, holding it lightly in your grip after.
“Hey, you can’t run yourself into the ground,” You said, “You’ll make yourself ill. Then you won’t be able to help anyone,”
“I know,” Aaron sighed, “But I feel like I should be doing more,”
“You always give all you can,” You pointed out, “You can’t do much more than that,”
Aaron smiled, taking a sip of his tea and gave a small hum, “You make a very good cup of tea,”
“Why thank you,” You grabbed the remote, turning the TV on before laying down on the bed. “What do you want to watch? Take your mind off of things,”
“I’m not bothered,” He said with a shrug, lowering himself down beside you.
“Hmm, how about Friends?” You suggested, “That’s always a good comfort show,” Aaron nodded.
“Sounds good,”
“Great,” You replied, selecting it before putting the remote down. “Come on,” You open your arms out, motioning with your hands for Aaron to come closer.
“What?” Aaron asked, raising an eyebrow.
“What do you mean ‘what’? I want to cuddle, get over here,” You laughed, Aaron rolled his eyes but did so. Smiling to yourself, you press Aaron’s back tighter to your chest, resting your head in the crook of his neck. “I love you,”
“I love you too,” Aaron mumbled, “So much,” Turning and placing a tender kiss on your forehead.
“Don’t worry, we’ll catch the unsub,” You reassured. “Let’s get some sleep,”
Soon enough, friends faded out into the background as you both drifted off to sleep in each other’s embrace.