Cruel - Criminal minds enemies to lovers

Worse than strangers

Days had passed since the team had their first and last sight of Athena Adams, of their Athena.

For the most part, the group kept themselves busy; diving into theories of who was framing her, of who could have hurt Morgan's mom, using Athena's half-filled file of horror that turned out to be her own history.

Hotch found himself delving more into where she had been for those 5 days instead of the case like the others; of what she had done, what had happened to her- whatever it was, it had changed her in a way he wasn't sure she could come back from.

Morgan on the other hand, expectedly so, failed to distract himself in the team's shared workaholic tendencies, instead only focusing on her, on focusing on Athena in the now; where she was, where she had gone, why she had left into nothingness from the office 7 days before.

"Morning handsome" Garcia's bubbly voice barely dragged him from the last known location of her tracking device still at the office, turning to see his brightly dressed friend shaking her office door.

"You okay there, baby girl?" 

"Yeah, my stupid office door is just jammed- care to put those muscles to good use?"

"Only because of that compliment" he joked through the slight sting of his cracked lips, twisting the stubborn handle before pausing at the hushed whisper on the other side of the door.

"Did you leave a computer on?" He went to turn to Garcia before his eyes froze on the broken stiletto heel jammed into the keyhole- immediate recognition sprouting in his pained chest.

"Take your keys out" his barked demand jumped his friend as he banged on the door, a tone shift that felt almost desperate, "Athena! Open the door!"

"B-break it down! You have my permission!" Penelope's startled voice didn't dare question his assumption of who was in there, if anyone at all, as the sounds of files transferring sped up and computers roared.

"Stand back!" He threw his shoulder into the door twice before it smashed just as the computers swirled to a stop, both stumbling into the empty room; exactly how Garcia had left it.

"That's not possible" Morgan marched to the keyboard, fighting the insanity in his stomach, the fear that it was winning, terrified that the shadows would turn to her too, something he could never touch, "there's no other way out of here- I heard her!"

"Derek, honey, have you been sleeping-" Garcia's gentle hand on his shoulder was no match to the hair rising on the back of his neck, forcing him to turn sharply from the woman comforting him to the one woman who could.

Athena froze halfway on her way to sneak out from behind the door, catching his eyes with a genuine stare before a cheeky smile plastered along side a wink; just as she raced out of the room.

"Athena!" Morgan was out of the door before Garcia could turn around, following a still limping Athena as she skidded at the elevator where the security were waiting to go on break, doubling back on herself just as they turned.

"Fuck-" Her voice somehow laughed and winced as the same time, inches away from crashing into Morgan before she slipped to the floor, quickly skidding under his legs towards the BAU office, "-I hate Mondays!"

"Athena! Get back here!" Morgan continued to chase, a chase that felt familiar, a chase that he didn't enjoy now.

"Morgan, what is going- Athena?" Hotch slammed back into his door as she rushed past him to the briefing room quickly followed by him and the rest of the team who surrounded the door.