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itsagentrossi · 2 months ago

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˚⌗ GOODBYE .ᐟ - ,,

❝ it's just a little heartbreak, we'll get past it, you & me ❞

「 friends to lovers | sunshine x grumpy | safe haven woman 」 warnings: mentions of suicide; age gap featured episode ▅▅ 7x6 ⌗ epilogue ❪ david rossi ╳ fem!oc ❫

IT STARTED AS JUST ANOTHER DAY IN THE OFFICE. With her usual morning coffee in hand, Angie stepped out of the elevator on the sixth floor and headed straight to the bullpen. It didn't take long to notice Garcia in Hotch's office, a case file exchanging hands. Great. Another killer on the loose. There goes a quiet day in the office...

"Morning, guys," Angie greeted Emily, JJ, and Reid once she reached her desk. "Looks like we have another case." She nodded in the direction of Hotch's office, prompting the other two women to groan in unison.

"No matter how many cases we solve, there's always more," JJ cooed, grimacing.

"Insert Dr. Reid's statistic about active serial killers at any given time here," Emily snorted. When Reid didn't respond, she turned and looked at him. "Reid?" Still no answer.

JJ let out a whistle. "Spencer—"

Suddenly, the boy came to life. "There's something wrong," he murmured, eyebrows furrowed as he checked his watch again.

"What do you mean?" Angie mused.

Reid sprang to his feet and walked up to them. "He's been reading the same page for sixteen minutes and twenty-four seconds," he declared, and that was when Angie realized who he was talking about.

In the corner kitchen of the BAU bullpen, David Rossi sat at a small table, an unfolded newspaper in his hands. He tried his best to act like he was reading, but the longer Angie watched him, the more she believed he wasn't.

"Maybe it's a really good article," Emily guessed, but Reid was quick to prove her wrong.

"It's never taken him longer than eleven minutes, seventeen seconds to turn a page."

Angie tore her gaze from Rossi and looked at the boy instead, startled. "You time how long it... Of course, you do," she muttered, catching JJ's eye. "What's your theory?"

"I'm extrapolating probabilities as we speak."

"Have you thought about asking him?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Maybe you should go and talk to him," Emily suggested, and to Angie's great surprise, she looked directly at her, not the boy genius. "Find out what he's up to."

"Me?" Angie coughed.

Emily exchanged a glance with JJ. "Well, you two usually pair up during work. He might open up to you more easily."

Angie narrowed her eyes as she tried to find the catch in Emily's suggestion, but found none. "Fine," she sighed, then turned and walked up to the senior agent. He didn't seem to notice her, at least not until she perched herself on the edge of his table. "Hey! Find anything interesting in there?" the woman wondered, lifting the coffee cup to her mouth and taking a sip.

The mixture of surprise, hesitation, and confusion on Rossi's face didn't go unnoticed. "I, uh, I'm, uh... what?" He frowned, shaking his head. He slowly laid the newspaper on the tabletop.

"I asked whether you read something interesting. You looked very enthralled," Angie noted, a playful smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Must be quite the article if you were reading it for more than sixteen minutes." She leaned closer to read the headline. It was about a new supermarket opening on Main Street. Fascinating...

"I, uh, I was considering a purchase—" His voice trailed off when he realized that the only ad on the page was from a second-hand clothes shop—a place he would never set foot in. Averting his eyes, Rossi pushed the newspaper aside, and that was when Angie became certain that something was indeed wrong with him.

"What's troubling you?"

For a moment, Rossi's body grew tense. "Nothing. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Is something going on?" came Morgan's voice from behind Angie. While they were talking, he, JJ, Emily, and Reid assembled around the table, too. They all started bombing Rossi with questions, and Angie noticed his annoyance brewing.

"Look," Rossi sighed, having had enough. "It was a late night with Ringo and not enough coffee. I mean, the guy's a world-class drummer, but don't think I didn't wipe the floor with him in rock band."

It was a lie told so perfectly that none of them could say with certainty it wasn't true. While they delved into this, Hotch exited his office with Garcia and requested a meeting at the round table. Reluctantly, they all moved on, but Angie wasn't that eager to do so.

"Don't think for even a second that I believed that rock band shit," she declared, crossing her arms over her chest and watching Rossi's smile fade away.

"Angie," the senior agent took a deep breath like he was about to give a long speech, but then paused, his vehemence gone. There was something in those beautiful mud-brown eyes of hers that could calm the roaring lion inside him. He placed his hands on her shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "I'm alright," he repeated.

Without waiting for her response, Rossi walked around Angie and climbed the stairs leading into the conference room, leaving the woman with no other choice but to follow him.

THE TEAM'S NEW CASE LED THEM TO NO OTHER PLACE THAN THE RIDGE CANYON LAKE IN CALIFORNIA'S ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST. Besides being a popular destination for water sport enthusiasts, the lake also turned out to be an underwater disposal site for their UnSub. There were three victims found so far, all gone missing last week, and a possible fourth, Nick Skirvin, who was abducted early that morning.

Unfortunately, before the jet could even touch down in California, the team was informed about the discovery of Nick's body. With the UnSub's disposal site exposed, he chose to leave the body at another lake, about 20 miles away. This not only doubled his killing field but also significantly changed his victimology. While all the previous victims were dark-haired, well-built men, Nick broke that pattern by being an average-sized blond.

With Hotch and Morgan gone to the latest crime scene, and Emily and Reid visiting the ME, Angie was left with JJ and Rossi at the station, where they interviewed the relatives of the four victims. There weren't any leads in the case, though, until they heard what the coroner had found. In all four victims, evidence of broken ribs and damage to the sternum indicated severe chest compression, yet there were no signs of external trauma. Somebody attempted to perform CPR on the victims and was successful every time, except with Jake, the first victim, who was asphyxiated before being submerged.

With this new information in sight, the BAU team could refine its profile. They were looking for a sadist who resuscitated his victims until he couldn't bring them back again. They also learned that all the bodies were drowned at different locations and then transported back to the Ridge Canyon Lake postmortem. The guy was intelligent, resourceful, and criminally sophisticated, to say the least.

And he was pretty effective too, considering that in less than twenty-four hours he killed again...

WITH EVERYONE WORKING FULL SPEED ON THE CASE—NOW COUNTING FIVE VICTIMS—ANGIE WAS SURPRISED TO FIND ROSSI IN ONE OF THE PD'S OFFICES, HIDING BEHIND CLOSED BLINDS. When she opened the door and stepped inside, she found him staring at his phone in the semidarkness, obviously debating whether to make a call or not.

"I take it that wasn't Ringo inviting you to another party on the phone yesterday," she teased slightly, remembering the change in his mood after he answered a call during their meeting. Rossi didn't respond, just merely sighed, leaving Angie to walk up to the desk where he was sitting. "Why don't you tell me what's wrong?" she asked in a gentle tone, positioning herself between him and the desk.

A shadow of a smile crossed Rossi's face for a second. "You don't give up, do you?"

"Hmm, I think you know me well enough to answer that question yourself." Angie smiled, tilting her head to the side as she continued to survey him.

There was a long pause, then...

"It's Carolyn."

The first wife, Angie remembered.

She nodded, indicating for him to continue. "Just a few days ago, we had breakfast together. I got a call and I had to leave early, so I invited her over for dinner." Rossi stopped abruptly, a thick swallow moving down his throat. "She has ALS," he admitted barely louder than a whisper, his jaw twitching with fury at his inability to do anything about the wicked disease and the inevitable death it promised.

He dropped his head, and when he next looked up, Angie's heart skipped a beat. His eyes were red from the tears he had withheld.

"The disease is acting quickly. Carolyn is already suffering, and she doesn't want to go out that way. She wants to die on her own terms." He swallowed again, everywhere looking just not at the woman in front of him. "And when this case is over and we get back... She asked if I would help her... do it."

Before the silence could crash down on him, Angie moved. She didn't know why this was her response; she didn't know whether Rossi would push her away and storm out of the room afterwards. With the grace of a panther, she slipped down from the tabletop and reached for his head, pulling him against her stomach while her fingers combed through his hair.

His reaction was immediate. His arms folded around her body and tightened, leaving her barely enough room to breathe. His fingers curled into the fabric of her clothes as if he were afraid she might vanish into thin air, just like his first wife was destined to, all too soon.

"Oh, Dave," was all Angie could manage to say. She bent over to press a kiss on the top of his head, her fingers slipping through his soft strands. She didn't know what else to say. Telling him how sorry she was wouldn't make his situation any better.

"Don't tell the others, please. I don't want them to know," Rossi whispered against Angie's stomach.

"Of course." She nodded. Truth be told, she was more than surprised that he had opened up to her, despite their connection. He rarely did that with anyone. Well... maybe with Hotch. "I won't tell them anything," she promised and continued to stroke his hair.

She tried testing the waters by sitting down, and frankly, he didn't reject the idea. Silently, she reached up and gently wiped the tears from his face. "Fascinating sight, isn't it?" Rossi muttered, pointing at himself in disgust.

"Well, I've never seen you cry before, that's for sure." Angie flashed her eyebrows at him. "But there's nothing a little cold water can't fix. Wait here." She stood and exited the room, only to be back in a few minutes with a wet cloth in hand.

She carefully wiped at his eyes, then the rest of his face, watching the redness slowly fade away. "I guess it's an advantage when someone has Italian skin. You should see me after I cry." Angie snorted as she brushed the cloth down Rossi's neck, noticing that he wore a golden necklace hidden under his shirt.

"I'm sure you're still beautiful, even then."

The cloth stopped only for a second, but both of them noticed it. Angie tried not to let the words take effect on her, because the last thing she needed was David Rossi seeing her blush from his compliments.

"There. You look... acceptable." She let down the wet cloth and eyed Rossi's smirk.

"Why do I have this feeling that you wanted to use another word?" he mused, clearly feeling so much better now.

Angie pursed her lips together. "Don't push me, Rossi."

"Sorry."

Whether he really meant it or not, she didn't press to find out.

"What are you gonna do?" she asked in a low voice, a slight grimace marring her face.

It didn't take him a second to understand what she was talking about. "I really don't have a choice here."

"Of course, you do. You don't have to do anything if you don't want to. She—" Angie suddenly broke off, feeling Rossi tense beneath her. "I'm sorry to say this, Dave, but what she's asking from you... That's just wrong."

There was a moment of silence, then his voice clearly told her that they were done. "I didn't ask your opinion, Angelina. I have to do this. Period. Get over it." He huffed, impatiently waving his hands, which told her that she was no longer welcome to sit in his lap.

He stormed out of the room, leaving her alone with the scattered case files on the desk and the wet cloth in her hand.

THE REST OF THE CASE WAS A BLUR. Angie was angry at herself for telling Rossi her opinion on Carolyn's decision, but there was no way to take it back now. Not like he gave her a chance anyway. He did everything in his power not to stay alone with her again. So she tried to focus on the case instead, which turned out to be a really odd one.

They had learned that the first victim, Jake Shepherd, had died in a drug overdose but was successfully revived by paramedics. After the accident, the 'bad news' kid turned into a saint, since he believed he was saved by God himself. Jake swore he had seen the lights of Heaven and heard them say it wasn't his time yet. He was a changed man after he woke up.

The team figured that this experience must have been what their UnSub was after, too. However, for results, he needed more victims, and it didn't take long for him to abduct a boy and his mother near Ridge Canyon Lake that afternoon. Since colder water temperatures could induce hypothermia—which, according to Reid, offered the best chance for successful reanimation—they needed to identify the coldest spot in the lake. That was the most likely place for the UnSub to take his victims.

Knowing that he must have died at least once before in the area, Garcia was able to find an article about a local park attendant, Daniel Whitaker, who was murdered at Ridge Canyon Lake fifteen years ago by the hands of his own son, Chase. Daniel physically assaulted the boy and then buried him alive when he was sixteen. It also turned out that Chase was diagnosed with lymphoma when he was ten. It went into remission when he was twelve, but a few months ago, he was diagnosed with stage four cancer, and he had been given three months to live.

They got his address, and fortunately, arrived just in time to save both mother and son, and arrest Chase Whitaker.

ANGIE WAS READY TO GO TO BED WHEN THE KNOCK ON HER APARTMENT DOOR CAME. Having no idea who her late-night visitor could be, she answered it with the barrel of her gun tightly pressed to the wooden surface.

"Dave!" She opened the door wider, letting the hallway lights pull him out of the shadows. Her mouth fell open when she saw his face. She didn't need to ask what happened.

"She's gone. I-I didn't know where else to go," Rossi mumbled in a hoarse voice, then a gurgling voice cut him off as his shoulders started to shake violently.

Angie quickly put down her service weapon and reached for the man's arm. "It's alright. You came to the right place," she murmured, and quickly closed the door behind him before pulling him into her embrace. "It's okay," she whispered, her fingers finding their way into his hair again. She rested her chin on his shoulder and let him bury his face into the crook of her neck, the silent sobs causing his whole body to tremble.

Angie had lost track of how long they had stood there in the hallway, but the dull ache in her back from supporting Rossi's weight told her it had been long enough. "Come, let me make you a tea," she whispered into his ear, then took him by the hand and led him into the living room. He sat down on the couch where she had shown, but before she could move out of his reach, he pulled her down into his lap, too. "Dave—"

"Shh!" He pressed a finger to her mouth, silencing her. "Just a little bit longer." He squirmed until he could lay his head on her shoulder, the sweet honey scent of her hair embracing him.

A faint half-chuckle, half-snort escaped Angie's lips. Her fingers ghosted along the thick line of Rossi's eyebrow before vanishing into his hair above his temple. It would have been a lie to say this didn't feel good. Having him in her arms. Even if it meant nothing. He needed someone to hold him, and she was the only person available tonight. Just a need to be fulfilled...

"I didn't have to do anything, after all," Rossi's quiet voice broke the long minutes of silence. He turned his head to look up at Angie. "She had taken some pills and... it was too late to ask for help." Tears grew in his eyes again and soon spilled over. "I understand why you said what you said," Rossi continued, covering Angie's hand with his own as she moved to wipe the stray tears off his cheek. "But I had to be there."

"I understand—"

"No, you don't," he cut her off. "No one does. Not really." He paused, his gaze slowly moving around the room. "She was the woman I thought I'd spend the rest of my life with. She was the woman I thought I'd have a family of my own with. But the boy didn't survive, and nor did our marriage." The words came almost mechanically, and Angie wondered whether he ever repeated them to anyone before. She knew she had never heard them, not until now. "We hardly stayed in touch over the years, but still... she was the only one, my only link, back to that life. And now that's gone too. Leaving me here, all alone."

"You're not alone," Angie said, but he didn't seem to hear her. He just stared blankly ahead.

"Do you believe in Heaven, Angie? I do. James is there, and now Carolyn is too. And God, I hope I'm doing enough good in this pathetic life of mine, because I want to be there with them so bad too," Rossi sighed, closing his eyes.

Angie blinked up at the ceiling, trying to hold back the tears threatening to spill over. She had no words to offer, nothing that could make him feel better, but the edge of his tone and the possible meaning behind his words made her blood run cold. "Stay the night, okay?" she whispered, brushing his hair from his forehead with trembling fingers. God, he did scare her. "I don't want you to be alone."

Rossi opened his eyes and found hers. "I won't off myself," he noted quietly, reading her mind.

Angie stayed quiet for a long time, then glanced in the direction of her bedroom. "I'll get something for you to sleep in, and then you can help me make up the couch for you."

THE SKY WAS BRIGHT BLUE AND CLOUDLESS ABOVE THE CEMETERY. Rossi carried a basket containing a plaid blanket, a bottle of his finest red wine, two glasses, and two white roses in one hand; in his other he held the woman's walking beside him. Angie surveyed the white marble tombs along the way to the northern end of the cemetery, reading the carved names off the shiny surfaces and almost immediately forgetting them. The flowers laid at their footings made a more permanent impression.

"We're here," Rossi noted as they came to a stop in front of two graves—one freshly covered, the other worn and weathered by the years.

"April 26, 1979," Angie read out. "You were—"

"Almost twenty-three years old." He nodded, letting go of her hand. "Help me?" He put the basket down and pulled out the blanket.

Angie took two corners and frowned at Rossi from behind her sunglasses. "When is your birthday?"

"May 9th. But I don't celebrate it." He squatted down, and she followed suit, flattening the blanket on the grass.

"Why not?"

"I'll tell you another time."

He picked the two roses from the basket and placed one onto each tomb, saying a silent prayer for both. Finished, he sat down and reached for the bottle of wine. He popped the cork with a soft thwump and poured some wine into both glasses. Finally, Angie stepped onto the blanket too and sat down between Rossi's legs, leaning back against his chest. He wrapped one arm around her stomach, and with his other hand, handed her one of the glasses before picking up his own.

They sipped on the wine in complete and comfortable silence. Angie watched the light breeze play with the slowly browning leaves ahead, thinking about how she had ended up here. Not just at the cemetery, but in the situation as a whole.

It had been almost three weeks since Rossi showed up at her doorstep that night. They had both agreed he would stay for no more than a day or two. But then it became three, then four, five, six... and after a week, it felt wrong to ask him to leave. Not that it ever came up in any of their conversations. Secretly, they both enjoyed his staying.

Angie had never given it much of a thought, though. Not until one night, about a week ago, anyway. She came home late from work, only to find her apartment filled with the rich aroma of Rossi's freshly made carbonara. The lights were off, leaving it to the soft glow of the candles on the dinner table to illuminate the room. He said it was only a gesture of gratitude for her support, but it had to mean something more—something deeper that only became clear when it was time to do the dishes.

That was when, with their hands covered in soap and bubbles, he kissed her for the first time. And definitely not the last.

"Don't you like the wine?" Rossi leaned forward and raised an eyebrow at Angie.

Blinking, she shook her head to clear the image of the kitchen from her mind. She glanced at the still half-full glass in her hands. "Oh, no, it's fine." She grimaced. "I just got a bit lost in my thoughts, that's all."

"Thoughts about what?" Rossi asked genuinely, folding both arms around her stomach. He rested his chin on her shoulder and waited for her to continue.

"Just about... how nice this is." She waved at their surroundings, then glanced back at the senior agent with a smile. He lifted his head and pressed his lips to hers in a gentle and lingering kiss. She would likely never get over the feeling of his goatee prickling her skin. It was sweet, just like everything about him.

"The last three weeks have been nice. Thanks to you."

She shook her head. "I didn't do anything."

"Don't lie. I'm feeling good only because you didn't let me drown in my sorrows."

Angie chuckled and lay her head back onto Rossi's shoulder. "Life's so strange, isn't it? It takes away one thing and gives you another in return. Goodbye is just another way to say hello to what's next."

"That's very... deep." Rossi nodded with a thoughtful expression, then laughed when Angie nudged him with her elbow.

"You're ruining the moment."

"Alright, sorry. Please, continue." He rested his chin on her shoulder again.

Angie licked her lips, smirking. "I was never interested in you, you know."

"I'm sorry, but that's kind of hard to believe."

"No, it's true. You were out of my league."

Rossi snorted in disapproval. "Please. If anything, it was the other way around."

"Sure. I wonder which one of us is the successful writer, founder of our workplace, rich, basically a walking woman magnet—"

"You say that like there's never at least one man trying to get you to dance with him when we go out with the team," Rossi recalled the countless occasions he had witnessed this with his own eyes over the years.

"Yeah, and you've got an endless line of women waiting on you," Angie shot back.

He smiled at the obvious jealousy lying under her tone. He leaned over her neck and pressed a kiss on it. "None of them ever left any big impressions, believe me."

"Yeah, definitely not like this did." She pointed at the long scar marring her left cheek, where a dog had bitten her when she was a kid.

"I like that scar. It makes you unique. And if you even think about saying anything bad about it, I'm breaking up with you right now," he threatened just as she opened her mouth to retort. "What?" He frowned, noticing her sudden silence.

"You say there is something to break up. What exactly?" Angie pressed, a playful glint in her eyes.

There was a brief pause from Rossi, but he quickly recovered. "My efforts to work my way into your bedroom from the couch."

Angie's heartfelt laughter was audible even several graves away. She put down her wine glass and turned around on her knees, cupping Rossi's face with both hands and leaning over his mouth. He couldn't decide what he desired more, kissing her forever or listening to her laugh.

"I think I'm falling in love with you." The words slipped out of Rossi's mouth when they parted for air. He didn't take his eyes off Angie's face for a second. "I don't know what you think, how serious this is between us, but I want you to know that I think it is serious. I enjoy being together with you. And I'd like to see where this could go."

A warm smile appeared on Angie's mouth as she caressed Rossi's cheek. She glanced in the direction of James and Carolyn's graves, wondering if his timing was intentional. "Goodbye and—" she trailed off, turning back to him and seeing him smile too. Oh, it was intentional. "I'd like to see where this could go, too." She nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Hmm, so... does this mean I might soon be allowed to sleep in your bedroom?" Rossi raised an eyebrow, and even though he wore sunglasses, Angie could see his eyes shone behind the dark lenses. She gently took them off alongside her own, forcing them both to squint in the sharp lights. Her fingers went through Rossi's hair while she locked eyes with him, then cupped his cheeks again and pressed her lips on his.

"Is tonight too soon?"

Hey, everyone! To a friend's advice (the one and only @g4rvez-r3id 🥰), I decided to share my one shots here too, not just on wattpad. (My account is agentrossi there, check out my books if you like!) As you can see, I'm the number one David Rossi lovebot & enthusiast, so prepare yourself for several short stories with him, because it's criminal how underrated he is!😭

I hope you liked this first story with him, Epilogue is one of the saddest—if not THE saddest—Rossi episodes ever! I'll never forgive Carolyn for making Rossi sit through her death... Like, come on! I know he was your husband, but you broke him for life😭

Thanks for being here, guys! Please, before you go, don't forget to drop a like, comment or repost! You might not believe it, but it really does make a difference! Thank you!🩷

#criminal minds #david rossi #david rossi fanfiction #rossi #david rossi x fem!oc #fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #wattpad fanfiction #oneshot #short story #friends to lovers

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