【 𝙱𝙻𝙰𝙸𝚁𝙴'𝚂 𝙿𝙾𝚅】𝙾𝙲𝚃𝙾𝙱𝙴𝚁 𝟼, 𝟽:𝟹𝟺 𝚙𝚖. 𝙱𝙰𝚄
Aaron and I follow the team into the bullpen, go-bags in hands and over shoulders as we just landed. My boyfriend leads me up to his office but before we can head inside, Penny walks toward us, a beaming smile on her face and a vase of orange roses in her hands.
"I have a delivery for the beautiful Dr Thorne," She hands me the vase and I grin up at Aaron, pulling him down for a kiss.
"Thank you, querido, I love them," I kiss his cheek but when I pull back, he isn't smiling.
"I... I didn't buy those," Aaron informs me and I look down at the vase confused, my excitement dissipating.
"Did the person who sent it leave anything?" I ask, looking at the flowers in my hands, "A card or a return address or something of the sort?"
"Address? No. But there is a card at the top of the vase on the front there," Penny points at the vase and I tilt it up a little, seeing the card taped to the top edge and taking it off, holding the flowers in one arm while I open the little card.
"Seven AM?" I read out what is written on the card, the two short words confusing me a great deal as I look up at my boyfriend, "What the hell does that mean?"
"No clue..." Aaron shakes his head before turning to Penelope, "Garcia can you give us a moment?"
"Sure," She nods, turning around and hurrying down to the others while my boyfriend looks back at me.
"Do you think they're from him?" I ask, getting more anxious the longer I stare at the bouquet.
"I don't know who else they could be from. And the note, 'Seven AM.', probably holds significance with him. You two could have crossed paths at that time or you could have spoken to him or even just looked in his direction," Aaron explains, beginning to play with my hair. I just hum in response, trying to think back, "He also clearly has an understanding of flower meanings seeing as he gave you ones that signify desire."
I look up at him, "I have a book on flower meanings on my nightstand. He must have looked through it when he was..." I can't bring myself to finish the sentence, finding it a bit hard to breathe. A sharp pain rips through my sternum, feeling as if someone's trying to pry it open.
"When he was in your apartment?" Aaron finishes, reaching out to take the flowers from me, "I'll deal with these, okay? You wait right here." I let him take them, watching while he walks down through the bullpen to the kitchenette. He pulls out the card, and then the flowers before tipping the water down the sink and throwing the roses in the trash. Rinsing out the vase, he dries it and grabs the card, sliding the small card into his back pocket, walking back up to me, "Do you want to keep the vase? It's quite nice." I shake my head and he shrugs. "Maybe Garcia will like it. Oh well, we'll figure it out later." Aaron deposits it in his office for the time being before rejoining me once again, offering his arm to me. "Shall we, my love?"
I nod and we make our way toward the elevator, down into the garage and into his car, soon enough driving toward my complex, taking the elevator to my floor, walking down the hallway and into my apartment. Kicking off my shoes, I turn the heater on and the alarm off, moving straight to the kitchen. Grabbing two glasses, I hold them up and glance at Aaron, reaching for the bottle of bourbon on the counter, "Want some?"
"I'll have a little bit, sure," Aaron nods, joining me in the kitchen and looking through the pantry for something to eat, "What would you like for dinner?"
"I kinda feel like pizza."
"Pizza sounds really good right now," He chuckles, closing the pantry doors and coming to stand behind me, his hands rubbing my arms, "Barbecue chicken and cheesy garlic, both with cheese crust and garlic bread?"
"Am I that predictable?" I laugh, sipping my drink and handing Aaron his.
"Sometimes, yeah." He sips the golden liquor before grabbing his phone from his pocket and dialling our favourite pizza place while I walk over to the couch. While Aaron orders dinner, I swiftly set up a blanket fort and begin looking for something to watch. "Alright, should be about 15 minutes. What are we watching?"
"Dunno. There's a new movie on Netflix called The Outfit and it looks pretty cool. Wanna watch it?" I look over at my boyfriend as he sits down next to me, shuffling closer to him and snuggling into his side.
"Sure," He nods after reading through the brief description of the movie. I play the movie and we get a couple of minutes in before there's a knock at the door, Aaron crawling out of the fort to get it. I can hear him talking with the delivery person and paying them before closing the door, walking over to the fort again and crawling in. I grab the two large boxes from him so that he can actually get into the fort without falling over and set them in front of the coffee table, taking another sip of my bourbon as he sits next to me, putting the garlic bread with the pizza. We open the boxes and he sighs, "Shit, we forgot plates. One second, my love."
Aaron kisses me quickly, getting back out of the fort while I hastily slip out of my jeans, sweater and button-down, taking my bun down and undoing my bra clasp, slipping the shoulder straps off and pulling it out the arm hole of my tank top. Aaron opens the 'door' of the fort, his face flushing immediately at my sudden change in appearance, "I didn't realise we were getting naked."
"I regret today's outfit choice. By midday, I was craving to get out of it," I explain, smiling at his sheepishness.
"Do you want me to grab your sleep shirt?" Aaron asks and I smirk.
"Only if you come back in just your boxers."
He laughs softly, "Deal, mi amor." I patiently wait as Aaron once again leaves the fort, picking my phone up and bringing up my group chat with my brothers.
~~~
𝙽𝚘 𝙶𝚒𝚛𝚕𝚜 𝙰𝚕𝚕𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚍
𝟿:𝟶𝟹 𝚙𝚖
Blaire
BROTHERS ASSEMBLE!!
Claude
Heyo Blaire!!
Jaz
Yo yo yo Hermano! How r u??
Dev
Sup B :D
Blaire
Pretty tired lol. Just got back from a case. Wbu guys???
Jaz
Good, been busy with work.
Claude
Also good. Studying a lot for exams still.
Dev
Tired but good.
How did the case go?
Blaire
We caught them. Turns out it was partners, not just a single UnSub. Aaron and me r having pizza and movies tonight :D
Dev
Good that it ended well :) Pizza and movies are a great way to relax after the shit you guys see.
Jaz
I don't know how u two do it. Looking at such gruesome stuff every day...
Blaire
You guys know why I do it.
Claude
We do, but it doesn't stop us from worrying about you and your mental health. Just because you're older than us, doesn't mean we don't worry.
Blaire
I know, but you really shouldn't. I know how to handle myself and I have people around me who have my back out there. I trust them.
Jaz
Blaire, u could have the whole US military protecting u and we would still be worried. A welcome hazard of being your brothers <3
Blaire
Awww u guys r so sweet <333
Dev
<33
Claude
<33
Blaire
U guys free tmr??
Dev
I am, yeah.
Claude
Sí, hermano :) What did u have in mind??
Jaz
Yep!
Blaire
Jack's coming home from his camp tmr afternoon and I was thinking of taking him to the zoo. Would y'all wanna come with?
Claude
Sounds great!!
Jaz
Sure :D
Dev
Yeah, what time??
Blaire
We haven't decided yet as it'll depend on when Jack arrives at the school but it should be somewhere around 1. Aaron and I will come pick u up.
Jaz
Sounds like a plan, B!!
Dev
Can't wait! Cya then <33
Claude
Seeya tmr Blaire <3
Blaire
Night hermanos!!! Love u all so so so much <33333
~~~
I look up at Aaron who's sitting next to me, only now realising he's come back, "Hey, sorry, I was talking to the boys. They're gonna come with us to the zoo tomorrow after we pick Jack up from his school."
"It's okay, Blaire. I know you haven't had much of a chance to talk with them the past couple of weeks," Aaron smiles, handing me my sleep shirt to change into, "Talking to them regularly is important to you so I'm happy to wait. You don't get to see them every day like you do me."
"Dios Mio, you're so sweet," I smile back at him, putting my phone down and kissing him before pulling my tight tank top off, replacing it with the very big, very loose shirt, "Babe?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think Ms Springer would hate it if I went to pick Jack up alone tomorrow?" I ask with a sly smile, cuddling into his side.
"Yeah. Yeah, I think she would," Aaron returns my sly grin, kissing me, "And I think it's a lovely idea to do just that."
"Perfect." We return to watching the movie, grabbing a couple of slices of each flavour of pizza and idly sipping our alcohol as we watch. Turning to my boyfriend, I heave a sigh, "Aaron?"
"Yeah?" He meets my gaze with tired eyes.
"Do you think we'll get him?" I ask, looking down and fiddling with the hem of my shirt.
"Blaire, you know we will," He assures me, his hand coming into view as it cups my cheek, turning my head to face him again, "Nothing is going to happen to you. I promise."
"Thank you. It means more than you will ever know that you are here with me through this."
"You never need to thank me for being here. It is an honour and a privilege to be with you. In good times and bad," Aaron smiles at me softly, my eyes closing as he presses a delicate kiss to my nose. I keep my eyes closed while I reach out to him, gently pulling him over to lay on me, "Deep pressure?"
"Mhmm," I nod and Aaron lets his entire body weight rest on me, hugging me tight, "Gracias, mi amor." As soon as Aaron rests his weight on me, the pain in my chest begins to alleviate and I relax beneath him.
"Of course, hun." We resume watching the last few minutes of The Outfit, before choosing a movie called My Name is Vendetta.
"This one's in Italian, do you want me to set the audio to English or just put the subtitles on for you?" I ask, looking down at Aaron.
"Wouldn't you need the subtitles too?" He asks, confused.
"No, I speak Italian."
"You speak Italian?"
"Fluent, yeah," I nod.
"Just the subtitles are fine, love. Before we start though, do you want another drink?" Aaron asks, kissing my exposed collarbone.
"Sí, a Billson's, por favor," I smile and he gets up, slipping out of the fort to grab us some drinks, returning a few moments later.
"How many other languages do you speak, Blaire?" Aaron asks me, settling down next to me again.
"Including English, Spanish and ASL, eleven."
"Eleven?" He looks at me in awe and I nod.
"ASL, English, Russian, Italian, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Latin and Korean."
"You know you're the most amazing person I've ever met, right?" He smiles and I look down, shaking my head.
"Did you forget about Reid?"
"Baby, I said most amazing. Not the absolute smartest. Don't get me wrong, you're incredibly smart and definitely smarter than Reid in some areas," Aaron smiles fondly at me, moving to straddle my hips as I usually do to him. He lifts his hands to my face, hovering just above my skin, "May I?" I nod and his fingertips make contact with my cheeks, my eyes fluttering closed and my body relaxing at his touch. The pads of his thumbs trace my eyelashes, one moving down to ghost over the scar on my cheek. "Blaire?"
"Yeah?" I begin to open my eyes but Aaron's thumbs push them gently closed again, returning to my scar.
"How did you get this?" He asks softly, his fingers resuming their exploration of my face.
"Leo..." My voice comes out in a choked whisper as I remember the night I got it, "He was so angry."
~~~
【𝙰𝙰𝚁𝙾𝙽'𝚂 𝙿𝙾𝚅】
Blaire's eyes scrunch a little and they take a shaky breath in, their sudden grasp on my thighs making me look down, their fingers slipping under the hem of my boxers. I return my gaze to their face when I feel something warm and wet touch my thumb, seeing a tear has slipped from their eye.
"Baby, I'm right here, okay? I'm here with you. You're safe," I assure softly, kissing their forehead, "Open your eyes, Bug." Blaire's lips press into a thin line as they shake their head. "Please, baby, I'm right here."
"Shhh, he's here..." They whisper, warning me and bringing a hand up to shush me, placing it loosely over my mouth.
"The only one here is me, Blaire. Open your eyes."
"I can hear him. Throwing things. Yelling. Screaming at me. He's angry. So, so angry."
"Why? Why is he angry?" I ask carefully, wanting to know more.
"I forgot it..." Blaire's voice is so fearful, so quiet I can barely hear it.
"Forgot what?"
"I forgot to get his cigarettes. He gets mad when he doesn't have them. He- he..." They begin to hyperventilate, nails digging into my thighs as they squirm beneath me.
"Blaire, what does he do?" I question, anger bubbling up in my chest at their hushed words.
"He has a knife!" They whisper, more tears slipping from their eyes.
"Baby, please, open your eyes," I cup their face in my hands urging them to open their eyes, "Please, Blaire." My partner finally does and the fear in their emerald eyes breaks my heart. "Oh, baby, come here." I raise to my knees and wrap my arms around their waist, pulling them from between my legs to hug them tight.
Blaire's limbs clamp around my body as they sob against my neck, hands grabbing at me to somehow get me closer than we already are even though it's not physically possible. I plant delicate kisses all over their shoulder and neck, slowly rocking back and forth to soothe and calm them, whispering assurances to them. We sit for over an hour before Blaire's shaking and sobbing subsides, making me lift their head from my shoulder to see that their gaze is on the TV.
"Bug?" I say softly, their hazy eyes meeting mine, "You okay?" Blaire opens their mouth to speak but nothing comes out except a soft, choked noise. They close their mouth when they find they can't speak, leaning down to rest their forehead on my chest. "Bug I'm so sorry he laid hands on you. I'm so so sorry."
My heart breaks further when Blaire mutters, "It's my fault... It's all my fault..."
"No, Bug. None of what's happened to you is your fault, do you hear me?" I take their face in my hands again, pushing curls from it and staring deep into their eyes. "A very, very important person once told me, 'I know it's hard, but you've got to try to not blame yourself because that will only do you harm,'. That person is wise beyond their years and their advice has helped me more than they know."
"They sound it," Blaire's lips curl slightly into a smile.
"They are, and it's one of the reasons I love them so so much."