And If I Fall, Let Me Part I: At Your Service - A. Hotchner x OC & Jemily

What is left after adrenaline?

"In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you." Deepak Chopra

Aaron Hotchner would describe himself as resilient, someone who was usually in control. He had learned to combat fear, or to at least knew enough techniques to push it away in situations like these. Yet, when he heard Alex's voice through the earpiece, telling them JJ and her were approaching the Unsub, when he heard a shot outside, Aaron Hotchner forgot to breathe for three solid seconds. When his eyes met Emily's, he knew she felt the exact same. They didn't need any words. The second Alex's command to follow came through, and the two of them jumped into action.

"I have the keys," Emily yelled in his direction, sprinting down the stairs. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Reid running up to them, Dave and Morgan on his heels.

"Rossi and Morgan are going to take the other one," he explained, panting. Hotch didn't fully acknowledge it, his focus on getting into the car as fast as he could. Emily opened the car and slipped into the passenger's seat, the key already put in.

"Where do I go?" he pressed out, stepping onto the gas. The brunette, fumbling with her earpiece to find their own frequency, gestured in a general direction.

"Penelope, where are they now?" she asked, the urgency in her voice making Hotch realize he wasn't the only one losing it right now. JJ is with Alex.

"They're coming up onto a big intersection, I can see them on a traffic cam. They're on his tail, and some traffic stopped but I don't think-"

He wasn't sure what sound reached his ears first, or if all of them did. A loud explosion ripped through the air, the soft "oh my God" from Garcia, and a gasp from Emily, Hotch really couldn't tell. It all made his heart stop, and again, he had difficulty remembering how to breathe.

Four days, he thought to himself, it had been four days of feeling different. Four days of an illusion. Was it over before it began?

****

Alex's scream was the last thing JJ heard before a body rammed into her, pressing her to the ground. Instinctively, she pulled Alex's head deeper into her chest, trying her best to cover her ears a little. Not a second too early.

Behind them, the wreck exploded into the night, ripping half the truck with it. The sound echoed through the street, and all JJ could do was cling to the other woman, hoping they were far enough from it. She heard a rain of plastic, ash, and glass behind them, the smell of burning gasoline almost making her gag. For four more seconds, none of them moved, hoping this would be it. Cautiously, as if she couldn't believe her luck, Alex moved a little, lifting her head up.

"You okay?" she whispered, as JJ let her hands sink away from Alex's ears. She nodded slowly.

"Are you?"

The blonde exhaled shakily and pressed herself up, giving JJ a little more breathing space.

"Fuck," Alex coughed, "This is now how-"

Out of nowhere, a pair of cuffs appeared around her neck, and she was ripped back, leaving JJ still on her back. The gasp sounded through the street, and before she could really comprehend what was happening, Alex was being pressed against two strong legs.

"You stupid little bitch," the man hissed at her, and it was all JJ needed to move. Without a second thought, she pulled out her gun and aimed. Her shot rang through the night, as Jackson Foreman stopped in the middle of his movement. Slowly, his body fell backward, taking Alex with him. His body made a disgusting smacking noise when it hit the ground.

"Alex!" JJ yelled, scrambling to her knees. The other woman, panic written all over her face, was a little bit faster. Coughing violently, she turned onto her stomach and crawled away from the dead body underneath her. When JJ reached her, she had managed to sit up onto her knees, her shaking hands ripping at her blouse.