𝐓𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐁𝐲 𝐀𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 | hotchniss

Did I 𝐜lose my fist around something delicate?

____

Present time

Her old team coming to DC, seeing them face-to-face made it even more real than she thought was possible. She had been avoiding that moment, but now she knew it was time.

She found the opportunity to start packing when Aaron entered the shower. To avoid wasting time thinking about how she would carry all of her belongings out of the house, she simply assigned herself two bags and filled them with as much clothing as they could contain. Emily didn't believe it was important anyway, as she might not even have the chance to actually regret leaving everything else behind. After making sure she took one of Aaron's shirts, she searched for a framed photo of Aaron and Jack that she knew existed because she had taken it.

That's where she spotted the small wooden box in the dresser, right next to the frame she was looking for. The box remained steady in her shaking hand— she knew what it was without even opening it. She felt like everything stopped, and she had all the time in the world to grieve about what she was losing: the beautiful ring hidden inside the box that she couldn't dare to open, and the proposal she would never get. Emily wiped her tears with her sleeve and buried the box back in the drawer, taking the photo and putting it in the bag.

She needed to leave, she needed to breathe, as she felt like the house was lacking the necessary oxygen. With quick, quiet movements, she zipped up her bags and hid them under the bed. She left a small note in the kitchen for Aaron to see after he finished his shower, telling him she was out to get some air and he shouldn't wait for her.

She left the house for the wind, circumstances, and an anonymous text message to lead her right to him, Ian.

____

Her spine throbbed at his touch. She knew it was him; she knew he was there before he even touched her. "You should know better than to keep a lady waiting" she said, stress and anxiety were filling her chest, but surprisingly and just like in their first meeting she didn't let it show.

He looked down at her with a smile. "It seems hypocritical, seeing as I had to wait 5 years" he remarked, sitting across from her. Ian was different, and it wasn't like she hadn't expected it. She just hoped she wouldn't notice that change so clearly, that he would look at her the same way he used to and give her the naive hope that it could end differently.

"Hello, Ian" she said, defeated.

Seeing him again, feeling him again, managed to do what all of his taunts, the flowers, the phone calls, and the eyes she knew were watching her had failed to do— completely confirm that it was real and made the fear dig inside her bones.

"Hello, Lauren. Oh, wait. Lauren Reynolds died in a car accident, didn't she?" He smiled, but there was no playfulness in it. She could see in his eyes that he resented her, that he held himself back from killing her on the spot, like she knew he was doing in his head like she knew he fantasized about doing for the last 5 years. But he was always patient when it came to getting even— payback, and she had a growing debt to him.

"What do you want?" It was a stupid question; she had the answer to it. Emily was aware it would come, his revenge for what she did to Declan. She just hoped he had done that already.

"You" he said simply, his smile widening when he saw the brief change in her expression. "Oh, not today. Don't worry about that. But soon" he chuckled. He knew the uncertainty was even bigger torture to her than any other punishment he would give her, even than death itself.

"I've got a glock leveled at your crotch. What's to stop me from taking you and the little ones out right now?" She asked, gripping her gun, reminding herself that it was there.