𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐘 𝐏𝐎𝐕
"Y/n, this is Derek Morgan," I said with a smile.
He immediately pulled her into a friendly hug that she happily reciprocated. "So you're the famous Y/n. Pretty boy has told me all about you." He said with a smile as he pulled out of the hug. Y/n looked at me confused.
"Spencer." I clarified for her. Huh, I didn't realize she and Spencer were that close...
"Derek actually used to be a part of the BAU, but he retired to be a dad," I said with a smile. I honestly couldn't have been happier for him. After everything he's been through, he deserves a life without the stress of this job.
"That's amazing," Y/n said with a genuine smile.
"Yeah, it truly is. My wife Savannah and son Hank are the lights of my life." He said with a huge smile. "Although, I don't really like getting dragged to fancy-ass Gala like this." He laughed.
"Savannah's a doctor and has a lot of high-profile patients, so she gets invited to events like this all the time," I said to y/n.
The three of us talked for the next thirty minutes. Derek and Y/n hit it off right away. I wasn't surprised, I don't think it's even possible for someone to dislike Y/n.
All of a sudden one of the ambassadors Y/n and I had talked to earlier tonight walked up to us. "Dr. Y/l/n, if you have a moment I would love to introduce you to someone. She's a big fan of the dissertation you wrote for your Ph.D." Ambassador Thompson said as he smiled at Y/n.
"Yes! Of course!" Y/n beamed. She looked back at me and I gave her a small nod that made her smile even bigger. I watched as she walked next to Ambassador Thompson, already saying something that made him laugh.
I couldn't help but marvel at her. God, she looked absolutely beautiful tonight. But it wasn't just her looks that amazed me, it was everything about her. I don't even know where to start, she simply just... amazes me.
"Oh my god!" Derek said with a laugh that immediately tore my attention away from Y/n.
"I never thought I would see this day." Derek taunted as I finally turned towards him.
"What day?" I said confused and now slightly annoyed.
"You're fucking whipped Prentiss!" He said biting back another laugh.
"What are you talking about?" I gritted out, even though we both know what he was talking about.
"I'm talking about Y/n! She has you wrapped around her finger." He said as he playfully poked my shoulder.
"What?! No, she doesn't!" I said as I glared at him. Although, I'm not sure who I was trying to convince more: Derek or myself.
"Oh, come on Emily! I may not be a profiler anymore, but I'm not oblivious."
"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, still trying to deny everything Derek was saying. He rolled his eyes.
"Emily. You just laughed at every single joke she told and you haven't taken your eyes off of her all night. For anyone else, I would say that's the bare-fucking minimum, but for you to do that, she must really mean something to you. I haven't seen you this happy and relaxed in a long time." Derek said softly, I knew he wasn't joking anymore. I stared at him in defeat. There was no point in denying anything anymore.
"Derek, I've known her for a month," I said quietly.
"So, what's your point?"
"My point is that I don't understand how she has such a hold on me. I mean, I barely know her." I said slightly embarrassed and slightly relieved to be getting this off of my chest.
"The heart knows what the heart wants Emily," Derek said softly. I looked down at my feet.
"But that's the problem, Derek. I don't trust my heart. Every time I do someone gets hurt and Y/n doesn't deserve that. She deserves someone that can make her happy and I'm just not the right person for that. I'm not the right person for anyone." I said quietly. Derek was silent for a minute.
"Are you done throwing yourself a pity party, Prentiss?" He said rolling his eyes. I was taken aback by his bluntness. "I-"
"No, I'm tired of you thinking you don't deserve happiness, Emily. You're making excuses and putting up walls because you're scared of getting hurt again. I get it, you know I do. I know it's scary to let someone get close to you, but you deserve happiness, Emily. You deserve to be loved and I will keep telling you that until you believe it." Derek said as he grabbed my hand. I stood there stunned. I honestly had no idea what to say.
I mean, he was right, of course. I was scared by how quickly I opened up to Y/n. I was scared by how easily I let my guard down around her. I was scared by how optimistic she was all the time, especially toward me. God, I really was bitch.
"Okay, even if something were to happen between Y/n and I, I'm her boss Derek," I said with a frown.
He let out a laugh, "Since when did you care about the rules? Besides, I thought you hated your job, so would getting fired really be the worst thing?" Derek questioned. I thought for a second and groaned. God, why does he always have to be right....
"Okay, moving on from that. Herein lies the next and bigger problem, I don't even know if she's gay! Or, even attracted to me." I said quietly, extremely embarrassed to admit this to Derek. He barked out a laugh and I scoffed at his amusement. "It's a real concern, Derek!" I said defensively.
"Emily! Don't even try and tell me that you didn't see her glancing down at your tits like twenty times during our half-hour conversation." He laughed. I glared at him. I mean, of course, I noticed but I had been staring at hers the entire night too...
"Okay, first of all, that doesn't means she's gay. Second of all-"
"Have you ever thought about just asking her?" He said cutting me off. I frowned at him, "I'm her boss, that seems highly inappropriate."
"Since when did you become so uptight? God, JJ was right when she said that you need to get laid." He said rolling his eyes. My jaw dropped. I made a mental note to kick her Pennsylvania ass the next time I see her for that comment. Wait, Oh my god, I really am uptight.
"Look in all seriousness, I want you to be happy, Emily. If Y/n makes you happy then I say fuck the rules and stop being scared of your own feelings."
I immediately threw my arms around him. I could tell he was taken aback at first but eventually, he pulled me in and held me tight. "I've really missed you, Derek," I said quietly. For the first time in a long time, I felt.... lighter almost. Derek always knew exactly what to say. "I've missed you too, Princess." He said rubbing my back.
All of a sudden I felt him freeze. "Hey, so not trying to ruin the moment but your mother is talking to Y/n right now." He said with a hint of concern in his voice. I immeditely pulled out of the hug and whipped my head in the direction he was facing. I watched as my mother said something to Y/n and could literally feel the tension between them from where I was standing.
Earlier this evening I had seen my mother walking toward us, which was why I left Y/n at the bar to intercept her. I really didn't want Y/n to have to meet my mother. So this wasn't going to be pretty.
𝐘/𝐍 𝐏𝐎𝐕
"You must be Dr. Y/ln." A woman said as she sat in the seat next to me at the bar. I had just finished talking to Ambassador Thompson's daughter and was getting a glass of water before heading back to Emily and Derek.
I turned my head to see who was sitting next to me and I froze. The woman in front of me was basically a carbon copy of Emily. Oh no.
"Yes, I am," I said politely with a small smile. Damn, If I thought Emily was intimidating, her mother could give her a run for her money.
"I am Ambassador Elizabeth Prentiss. Which, you wouldn't know because it seems as if my daughter has gone out of her way to keep us from the meeting." She said with a cold smile. I sat there frozen for a second. "Oh, It seems so," I said quietly, not exactly sure how to respond to that.
"Emily has always been quite difficult. I mean, I'm sure you know, you do work for her." Elizabeth said, her face stone cold. I stared at her stunned. How on earth could this woman talk about her daughter like that?
"She's not difficult to work with-"
"You must not know her very well then," Elizabeth said interrupting me. I looked up at her shocked. Jesus Christ, no wonder Emily's defense mechanisms are building up barriers.
"Let me tell you something about Emily," Elizabeth said coldly as she leaned closer toward me. All of a sudden I could smell the alcohol on her breath. I couldn't tell if her being drunk was a good or bad thing.
"I would love to hear what you have to say about me, mother," Emily said as she suddenly appeared behind her mother. Oh, thank God.
Emily walked in front of her mother and stood next to me. I could literally feel the tension between them and I was starting to get extremely uncomfortable. "You probably don't want to hear what I was going to say, dear. Although, when have you ever listened to me?" Elizabeth said as she took a sip of wine that the bartender had placed in front of her. I felt Emily stiffen, "We're not having this conversation here." She said coldly. Conversation? What conversation?
"Let's go Y/n," Emily said as she softly put her hand on my back. Oh. My. God.
I nodded and got up, hoping that my face wasn't already flushed. "Goodbye, mother," Emily said coldly as we walked away. Elizabeth didn't even try calling out after her daughter.
We walked through the crowds of people before I spoke up, "Your mothers, uh..." I trailed off, not exactly wanting to say what I was thinking because she was still my boss who could very much still fire me.
"A two-faced cunt." Emily said finishing my sentence for me.
"I was going to say a cold-hearted bitch, but that too," I said quietly. All of a sudden I heard her burst out into laughter. I was stunned, I don't think I've ever heard her genuinely laugh. I smiled to myself, I liked seeing this side of Emily. I liked it a lot. I liked it even more that I was the one to make her laugh...
Emily and I spent the next hour talking to more people before heading out. Once we got into the limo I wanted to pass out from sheer exhaustion. I have no clue how people attend events like these all the time.
"I want to apologize again for my mother's behavior, she usually doesn't act like that in public," Emily said once we were sitting. This was the third time this evening she's apologized. I could tell she was stressed about my interaction with her mother.
"Didn't you say over-apologizing is a bad habit?" I said with a small smile. Her face softened which made me happy.
"Seriously though, I get it. Mothers suck." I said softly. All of a sudden Emily looked at me differently and I immediately regretted saying the last part.
"I take it your mother didn't hug you as a child either," Emily said raising her eyebrows. I couldn't help but let out a laugh at her dry humor.
If I were talking to anyone else I would have changed the topic, but Emily was different and for some reason, I felt comfortable around her.
"I think she hugged bottles of alcohol more than me," I said with a sad laugh. I didn't want to go into too much detail and I also really didn't want Emily's pity.
"Oh, Y/n. I'm so sorry." Emily said softly and I could tell she truly meant it. I brushed it off.
"It's okay. I've coped with it" I said quietly. Emily must have sensed that I didn't want to talk about it anymore so she didn't press any further. Thank god.
"Too shitty mothers then." She said as she held up a glass of water that she grabbed from the minibar.
"Too shitty mothers," I said grabbing another glass of water and clinking our glasses together.
The rest of the ride was quiet, but it was a nice silence. If I wasn't so exhausted I could have sworn that Emily kept glancing at me but I brushed it off, it was dark anyway.
Once we got to my apartment building Emily walked me to my door. Before I went inside she held a gift bag for me. I looked at her confused, I didn't even realize she was carrying one.
"It's a thank you for agreeing to do this." She said as she handed me the gift bag, it was green, my favorite color...
"I- thank you," I said shocked. I was definitely not expecting this. She nodded.
"Good night Y/n." She said with a small smile.
"Good night Emily," I said. Our eyes lingered on each other for a moment before she turned around and started walking away.
As soon as I got into my apartment I slid down to the ground with my back leaning against the door. I was still trying to process everything that had happened tonight I almost forgot about the gift in my hand.
I immediately pulled the wrapping paper out to see the content in the bag. I honestly had no clue as to what Emily would give me.
I looked into the bag-
Oh my god.
They were cat toys, maybe around ten of them. But they weren't just any cat toys, I recognized them from a brand that makes their products out of recyclable materials. Although, I never bought anything from them because they were expensive.
I immediately dumped the toys out of the bag to look at them closer when I saw a card fall out. I picked it up and read it.
𝘔𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘐𝘷𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.
-𝘌𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺
I felt my breath leave my body.
Oh my God. She was listening to me during that car ride, I guess I had just assumed she wasn't because she never responded. She was listening to me...
Oh my God.
Oh my God.
I leaned my head against the door and closed my eyes. My mind was racing with memories. Emily putting the blanket on me. Emily's hand on my knee. Emily threatening someone for putting their hands on me. Emily's hand on my back. I could feel my heart fluttering
Is this what falling in love feels like?