𝗗𝗢𝗡'𝗧 𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗘 | 𝘼. 𝙃𝙊𝙏𝘾𝙃𝙉𝙀𝙍

ten

Butterflies were not only embroidered on your dress, but in your stomach too. Flashing back to the night he confronted you, you recalled jumping into his arms and laughing, overjoyed he had finally asked. That one sole question you had been waiting for, that small ray of hope that had been finally set alight in your tummy was burning with a glow. Pale blue, the dress fell gracefully off your shoulders and hugged your waist as you wished he would. It fell just above your knees and you accompanied it with a pair of white heels, flowers crystallized around them and a diamond clip of butterflies holding back the left side of your hair.

Clutch or no clutch? You decided yes, to a small white purse, hooking it around your arm and standing in front of the mirror. Is he going to like it? He's never seen me dress like this before, god, I hope he doesn't think it's too much. Interrupted by a knock at the door, you broke the train of thought by setting down your purse and mellowing to where Aaron stood on the other side. It opened and he was there, his shirt tucked into some dark, fitted pants and brogues that were polished, just for the occasion. He beamed, he simply beamed.

'You look beautiful,' he gestured, making you look down as a flush of pink washed over your usually pale complexion.

'Not too bad yourself. You know, you remind me of someone,' you plagued.

'Oh yeah?'

'Yeah, like, the worst FBI agent ever. In history. Mhm.'

'Oh, well at least said terrible agent provides flowers...' he surprised, holding out a small bouquet of lilies, making you gasp.

'Lilies, I love them. I do,' you blushed.

'Yeah, it wasn't the only thing Spencer told me about.'

'What did he tell you then?' you finally understood.

'Wait and see,' and he opened the door; grabbing your bag, you left. The night was warm, and you walked side by side at first. His hands were resting in his pockets- he was relaxed, and you had your hands at the front of your dress, fiddling with them in nervousness. Some loud noise in the background made the two of you whip around, giving his hands an excuse to fly from his pockets and when reassured it was nothing, he let his fingers wander- searching for your hand to grasp. Once he found it, he intertwined it with his own and looked towards you, a little awkward, but you were staring at the moon. So big & so bright in the sky. Only three blocks away, a small and cosy Italian restaurant called 'Le Stelle' was waiting for you both; a small table at the front was reserved with a rose on a white cover. Hotch pulled your chair out gracefully.

'Thanks,' you smiled up at him, running your finger over the napkin swan in front of you, 'How did you find out about this place?'

'Garcia. She did a little quiet digging while we were in Florida the other day. I asked Spencer to ask you about two ideas after we spoke on the jet and he agreed,' Aaron grinned.

'So that was what you were talking about,' you laughed lightly, placing your gestured hand on the table. He offered out his own and you placed yours inside and ran his thumb over your hand. Swilling the glass around, red wine swished from side to side as the breeze was playing with your hair. Looking around, you saw some other people dining and some people walking out in the park; you saw them all without noticing that Aaron Hotchner was looking at you. His longing gaze was admirably fixed on your eyes, the way you frowned whilst people watching and how your fingers felt in the palm of his hand. 

'I'm so happy you're here,' he smiled.

'As am I,' you tilted your head to the side. When ordering, you made sure to get the steak Rossini (as no date would ever come between you & your love of food) and he felt obliged to do the same; you told him how good it was and he was feeling rather adventurous. Upon getting to know the real Aaron, and how laughable he could really be, he made the world's corniest dad joke- you were trying to suppress a smile. Erupting in fits of laughter, your date smiled so hard his eyes were nearly shut and you stared at him in awe. Walking with linked arms along the boulevard, you reached the pier where a theme park was dimly lit. Aaron kept leading you in that direction until you realised his plan.

'Can we go on the Ferris wheel?'

'Why do you think we came out here?' he sounded jokingly confused. You clicked your heels to the floor waiting in the line as creases surfaced at the corners of your mouth.

'I brought Jack here a couple of weeks back and I thought it was worth a try,' he looked up at the moon as you did earlier in the evening. The operator was a little too smiley for your liking, but you were too occupied in Aaron to care, and when at the front. Hotch knew you adored the sky and wanted to bring you closer than ever. Carriages were swaying in the soft wind and yours rocked a little; the breeze made goose bumps rise on your arms, or was that because Aaron was staring at you again?

'Are you cold?' he asked, leaning forward as the carriage jolted.

'I'm okay,' you lied, followed by you leaning into him as you reached the top. Music flowed gently from below and all you could feel at that moment was ecstasy. His arm curled around you and met your hand. Stars were dotted along the sky which was a deep blue- nearly black and the moon was guarding them all. Diana, goddess of the moon, blankets the sky with her cloak, you thought, whispering little phrases too inaudible for Aaron to hear. He turned his head to face you and planted a kiss on your forehead, just as he did in the hospital.

'Oh,' you said, pretending to sound sad.

'What? Is everything alright?' he sat forward slightly.

'You missed.'

'What?' he laughed.

'You missed,' but before you could finish, his lips met yours. They were soft, almost fragile. Placing a hand on his chest, you wanted to stay like that- maybe forever. Wondering how long he had wanted to do this, he broke away, somehow still in the moment. He looked at you, mapping your face with every freckle, dimple and especially those sea-green eyes that were glistening in the starlight. Much smoother this time, the wheel turned, and the sky became distant until you reached the bottom again, exiting the ride and heading home.

                     Twirling and spinning, you were both a little high off the night and laughed loudly, so everyone could hear the joy coursing through your veins. He saw you smile like no other time and realised his greatest mistake; why he didn't ask you sooner. Insisting on walking you up to your apartment, he was greeted by Salem, who was just as happy to see him. Hotchner stroked the cat as you offered him a drink; refusing, he unwantedly admitted he should head home. Before leaving, Hotch walked towards you and kissed you once more, and oh, how you should remember this night.

'Don't forget me,' you whispered into his ear, shivering the words down his neck. In no life would Aaron Hotchner forget this night. As the door closed without him in the apartment, your back hit it as you stood, having swallowed butterflies once more and hugging every moment of the night close- closer.

Aaron was making his way home smiling to himself, and once he reached his apartment, he nearly forgot that Jack was with Haley's sister for the night. The man was filled with pure happiness for the first time in a long while- nothing was on his mind but you. His head was woozy, more than likely due to the wine, so he propped himself on the arm of the sofa. Steadying himself...was he going to be sick or just pass out from the night? This never usually happened although he normally wouldn't do so much dancing. Initially, he was going to get a bottle of water but he never made it to the kitchen.