Chapter Text
PROLOGUE:
"Aria." He said when he finally saw her. She was lying on the ground, unmoving with a knife lodged into her lower abdomen. "No, no, no. Don't do this to me." He pleaded as he moved closer to where she was, placing his gun back into its holster. He kneeled beside her, placing his hand on her abdomen, hoping to stop the bleeding from the stab wound. As he applied pressure she gave a small grunt of pain and briefly opened her eyes to glance at him as he spoke into his mic. "This is Hotchner. I need a medic now! South side of the basement." He said as he looked from the wound to her face. "Hey" He said with a small smile. She frowned at him, wondering if he was really there or if she was just imagining it.
"Aa...ron?" She asked softly.
He nodded. "Yeah. It's me. I need you to hang on, okay? The medics are on their way. You're going to be fine." He tried to reassure her as his voice wavered slightly. "You have to be. I can't lose you too." He added, softly as he continued putting pressure on her wound, willing the medics to get there faster. He wanted to pull out the knife but if he did, she would probably bleed out before the medics got there. He couldn't risk that happening.
"I'm sorry." She said, snapping him out of his thoughts.
"You have nothing to be sorry for. I just need you to hang in there a little bit longer." He said as he heard the ambulance sirens.
"I c...an't." She managed to gasp out between breaths. "Hurts." She added as her eyes started to flutter shut.
"Aria. Aria! No, no! Hey, stay with me. Please sweetheart. Just stay with me." He pleaded. "I need a medic now!" He yelled, trying hard to keep his emotions in check.
"He's still here." She said softly as she opened her eyes again, slightly. He turned back towards her with a frown.
"Who?" He asked.
"Myers." She stated. But before he could ask any further questions, he felt a blow to his head from behind which caused him to fall beside Aria, slightly dazed. "No!" He heard Aria shout. He shook his head, fighting to stay conscious. He had been so distracted when he found Aria that he didn't even think to clear the area first. He tried reaching for his gun, but Myers grabbed it first, throwing it across the room.
"You can't save her." He taunted
Chapter 1: I watched it begin again
She slowly made her way into the huge FBI building, unsure of whether or not she should be there in the first place. He probably didn't even want to see her. Not after the way she lashed out at him a few days ago. She immediately erased the thought from her mind. No, he would want to see her. She just had to apologise first. Good, she thought. I can do this.
She waited impatiently for the elevator doors to open. As they did, she quickly stepped through the doors and let out a relieved sigh seeing that it was empty. It was the perfect opportunity to gather her thoughts. She nervously picked at the visitor ID badge on the edge of her shirt while she was trying to calm herself down. Why was she so nervous? It's not like she was seeing him for the first time. She thought he was pretty cool the first time they met. Until she found out whom he really was.
The elevator ding interrupted her thoughts as the doors opened onto the sixth floor. The Behavioral Analysis Unit was bigger than she thought it would be and she instantly started to feel nervous again, just when she had begun to relax. She carefully stepped out before the doors closed behind her. She had gotten this far. There was no backing out now. She looked around the open space hoping she would spot him before she had to go any further, but no luck. He was probably in his office working.
She opened the glass door and walked in, slowly scanning the almost empty room. All she saw were a few agents working quietly at their desks. Not wanting to disturb them, she quietly backed out of the room towards the door and just as she was about to turn around and leave, she bumped into a petite blonde agent with blue eyes.
"Oh my God, I'm so sorry." She said quickly, feeling like a total idiot for not looking where she was going.
The blonde agent picked up the file that she dropped and said, "No worries. It was an accident." She smiled as she observed the slightly nervous teenager who looked about sixteen.
"I'm Agent Jennifer Jareau but everyone calls me JJ." she said with a smile.
"Aria… Marano" the teen said slowly, returning the smile.
"So Aria, what brings you to the BAU? Looking for someone?" Agent Jareau asked.
She hesitated for a moment before replying, "Uhm, yeah. I was actually looking for Agent Aaron Hotchner. Do you know where I can find him?"
"He's probably in his office. I'm actually headed there now, I can show you were it is."
"That would be great. Thanks."
She followed the young agent through the glass doors, across the bullpen and up the short steps leading to his office, pausing as JJ quietly knocked and entered.
"Morning Hotch. Here's that report you needed me to finish from the Davidson case." She told her boss. He looked up from his desk.
"Morning JJ. Thanks. I'll have a look at it as soon as I can." He said before returning to the stack of files on his desk. He seemed somewhat distracted. She nodded and was just about to leave when she remembered the other reason why she came to his office.
"Oh, and Hotch, you have a visitor. Shall I send her in?" JJ enquired.
"Yes. Go ahead" He replied without looking up. JJ motioned for her to enter the office. She walked in slowly, not knowing what to expect.
Hotch glanced up. A surprised look crossed his face as he quickly stood up from his chair.
"Aria." He said with a softened face.
"Hi, Aaron." She said softly.
He stared at her in disbelief. What is she doing here? He wondered.
"Is everything okay?' He asked her.
"Yeah, fine. I just wanted to talk." She replied.
He nodded, then realized that JJ was still in the room. He walked around his desk to stand in front of it then looked at her.
"JJ, this is Aria." He started.
"Yeah, I know. We just met outside." She said, noticing how nervous he had become.
"Yes, of course. Will you let me know when the rest of the team gets here?" He quickly changed the subject, hoping that JJ didn't pick up on his sudden uneasiness. She nodded and smiled slightly, sensing that he wanted some privacy.
"It was nice to meet you, Aria." She said, turning to the teen.
"You too, Agent Jareau." Aria replied with a small smile. JJ left and closed the door behind her.
With just the two of them in his office, Aria suddenly didn't know what to say. He stared at her, seeing how nervous she was as she ran her fingers through her hair. The room was silent for a moment as she thought of what to say. He spoke first.
"Did you tell her who you are…That you're…?"
"No…" She said quickly shaking her head. "I'm guessing you didn't tell anyone?" He shook his head and looked almost sad.
"Me neither." She said softly. He stared at her, unsure of how to respond. She looked up at him and said, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come here. You're busy. I'll just leave." She said quickly.
He looked at her, clearly confused by what she had just said. She was about to reach for the door handle when he suddenly snapped out of his thoughts, pushed himself off his desk and gently grabbed her shoulder before she could leave.
"Aria, wait. Please. I don't want you to leave." He said. She turned around to face him but found it hard to look him straight in the eye.
"Why did you come here?" He asked. She looked up at him and he could clearly see that something was bothering her.
"It's nothing." She said looking away from him.
"If it was nothing, you wouldn't be here." She looked back at him, contemplating whether or not she should just tell him. Apologize, and get it over with. She walked to the window, crossed her arms over chest and gazed out. His eyes followed her, trying to figure out what she was thinking.
"I wanted to apologize…" She finally said, slowly letting out a shaky breath but still looking out the window. He knew what she was referring to but found it odd that she wanted to apologise.
"What for?" He asked frowning.
"Last week." She said, and then turned around. "I acted like a brat and it was unfair of me to lash out like I did. I'm sorry." She slowly looked at him and bit her lip, waiting for him to respond.
He smiled slightly and shook his head. "You have nothing to apologise for." He let her know.
She frowned. "So, you're not mad?" She asked, slightly confused.
"No, of course not. Why would I be?" He asked surprised.
"Cause your daughter's an awful person." She said and then looked away. A small smile appeared on his lips.
"Hey…" He said moving closer towards her until he stood facing her with his hands on her shoulders. "You're not awful." He told her.
"But the things I said… to my mom…and to you…I feel really bad about it." She walked over to the sofa and sat down. He followed her a few seconds later.
"You were upset. Maybe even in shock. I know I was." He said sitting down.
"Really?" She replied turning to face him. He nodded.
"Finding out that I have a daughter, after all these years… It was definitely something I hadn't expected." He told her.
"So, you really had no idea I even existed?" She asked. He shook his head. "I'm sorry you had to find out like that." She said sincerely.
"Me too." He replied. They sat in silence for a while, both feeling a bit more relieved now that they had gotten things out in the open.
There was a knock at the door, jolting both of them out of their reveries. He stood up and then told whoever was at the door to come in.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt but the rest of the team's here except Morgan. He called and said he had a flat but he should be here in the next fifteen minutes or so." JJ informed her boss.
"Okay that's fine. Have Garcia meet me in the conference room in ten so we can review the next case." She nodded.
"Thanks JJ." He said.
"Sure." She smiled then left.
She stood up from the couch and walked towards his desk glancing at the photos on it as he closed the door behind JJ. "Is this your family?" She asked looking at him.
"Yes…" He answered, slightly tense. "That's Haley and Jack." He said softly.
She smiled. "I should get going. My next class starts in thirty minutes." She let him know. He nodded, trying to hide the disappointed look on his face.
"I know you're probably busy but I was wondering if we could maybe have dinner sometime. Or go see a movie." He smiled.
"I know it sounds pretty cliché but I really want to get to know you better. And I promise not to come between you and your family. That's the last thing I want." She continued.
"I'd like that. And you don't have to worry about coming between me and my family because you are family." He stated. That made her smile.
"I still have ten minutes free. You sure you don't want stay a while longer? I know for a fact it takes you less than twenty minutes to get to school from here so you won't be late." He said.
She smiled. "That's true, but it's bad enough I bothered you at work, I don't want to take up any more of your time. You're obviously busy." She said.
"It's no bother at all. I'm actually glad you came. I know it wasn't an easy decision to make."
She looked at him with a frown. "Wait, how did you…" She paused then came to a realization. "Right…I forgot I was talking to a profiler." She said with a small smile.
He chuckled. "Well, I am good at what I do. But seriously, I appreciate the effort." She nodded. "Can I at least walk you out?" He asked.
"Aren't you worried your team might ask questions?" She enquired trying not to smile. "Since they have no idea who I am and considering what you all do for a living they'll probably figure it out before you tell them." She continued.
"Are you sure you're not the profiler here?" He asked with a smile. She stared at him, waiting for an answer. "I can handle my team." He said simply.
"Okay, then let's go." She replied with a smile.
"After you." He said, holding the door open for her. She walked out passing him and waited as he closed the door behind them.
He walked closely beside her, almost like he was trying to shield her from his team. He knew that they would be curious as to whom she was, but he wasn't ready to tell them just yet. They were currently in the bull pen, huddled together as if they were discussing something interesting. They immediately broke apart and pretended to be working when they saw their boss leave his office with a brunette teenager. None of them had seen her before but there was something familiar about her.
Aria walked next to him, trying to keep up with his pace. He seemed like he was in a hurry. Maybe he wanted to get rid of her before his team could ask questions. Maybe he was ashamed of her. Don't be ridiculous. She thought. He's glad you came. He said so himself. They reached the glass doors and he held one door open, waiting for her to pass him before he walked through. She was relieved no-one had stopped them but also found it strange. She tried not to read too much into it. They looked like they were busy and probably didn't even notice her.
They reached the elevator and he pressed the down button before she could.
"Are you sure you don't need a ride to school?" He asked as they waited.
She took her car keys out of her jacket pocket and held it up for him to see.
"I think I'm good…" She said with a smile. "But thanks."
"You're driving already?" He asked half surprised.
"Well, I am sixteen so…yeah…" She replied. "Don't look so worried. I've been driving for nearly a year without any problems. I even know how to change a flat tyre." He chuckled at the last part which caused her to laugh as well.
The elevator ding interrupted their moment and she suddenly didn't want to leave. She looked at him and could tell that he didn't want her to leave either. "I guess that's my cue" She said with a half-smile.
He nodded. "So, I'll call you as soon as I get back from Arizona." He said as she entered the vacant elevator and pressed the ground floor button.
"I'll be waiting." She said with a nod.
"Goodbye Aria." He said as the doors began to close.
She smiled and waved but the doors closed before she could say goodbye.
Goodbye Aaron. Goodbye Dad.
"I've been spending the last eight months, thinking all love ever does is break, and burn and end, but on a Wednesday in a cafe, I watched it begin again" Taylor Swift - Begin Again