The Stars | Aaron Hotchner

Chapter 26: Of Saturn

You were going to introduce Aaron to your family by bringing him to your siblings' birthday party, which you were currently driving up to New York for. The BAU had had a long case and a difficult caseload in general, enough so that Strauss had designated the day as a paperwork day. Fortunately, that allowed Aaron to be free for the day as he used one of his long overdue vacation days.

The party was going to start around noon, and as the drive to New York was about four hours, you and Aaron had agreed to meet up at your place where you would drive up to your parents' place and he would drive back.

By the time you arrived, the party was in full swing as you came a mere five minutes late. Everyone had stopped what they were doing and stared as Aaron stood tall beside you. After a few moments of silence, your mom came through the living room from the kitchen and greeted you with a hug.

"Y/N! I didn't think you guys would be able to make it!" She was shorter than you, so seeing Aaron Hotchner get caught off guard as she hugged him was a good surprise. He returned the hug, of course, but his head snapped to you with a questioning tilt. You smiled at him, and your mom answered his unasked question. "I'm a hugger, Y/N's boyfriend!"

"Boyfriend?" Your dad called out to you from the hallway that led to the bedrooms. He came out with a stern expression and a confident walk, which your mom stepped back at to allow him to greet you. You tried not to giggle at the intimidating aspect of your father, as you knew he was mostly all bark but no bite. Usually. "Now see here, young man—"

Hotch seemed taken aback and responded before he could apply a filter to his thoughts, "Young?"

Your dad eyed him, looking up as Aaron was still taller, "Yes, young, I got more years working for our country than you've been alive, boy," Aaron straightened up at the comment, out of respect instead of intimidation with his height. "Now, as I was saying, you've got my little girl's heart in your hands, something no man's ever done. Boys, and girls, yes, but no man," both men looked at you for the next part, "Or woman, has had the privilege of her love outside this family. I reckon you figure out what that means, and you do your damn best not to fuck this up for yourself, but especially for her, understand?"

Aaron's hand found yours, giving it a gentle squeeze as he returned your dad's cool gaze. "Yes, sir. It is my honor, to be here, and to be with your daughter."

Your father scrutinized Aaron for a few more minutes, his entire demeanor changing once he deemed your boyfriend suitable. "Well come on in, we've got a whole feast lined up and you've gotta meet everybody!" He led both of you in toward the kitchen as your mom linked up with him, giving him a peck on the lips. You shrugged at Aaron before pulling him inside by the hand, one of the kids closing the door behind you and locking it. The bustle of the house returned as everyone stopped to say their hellos to the both of you before continuing on.

You arrived in the kitchen, where several of your aunts and uncles and their parents were prepping different lunch dishes as other relatives carried them outside to a buffet style setup. As you caught up with one of your cousins, you great aunt was shoving food toward Aaron for him to taste, forcefully enough that he separated from you as he attempted to catch the fork that was falling from his mouth. You laughed as you caught the tail end of the interaction, Aaron nodding when asked about the flavor by your great aunt and smiling politely at her as he removed the utensil from his mouth.

Before you could rescue him, one of your younger cousins latched onto his side as his sister chased him. Aaron instinctively held the child in a half hug as he kept the fork above his head, so as not to stab anyone. Your siblings saw you were home through the window and pulled you outside, so you threw a panicked smile as Aaron was also dragged off by the children. You hoped he would be alright as you turned your attention to your brother and sister, the twins you were celebrating today.