#malú | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

saiilorstars · 1 year

Text

All the Time

Fandom: Criminal Minds // Hotch x OFC

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag @arrthurpendragon @anotherunreadblog @maaaaarveeeeel @stareyedplanet @foxesandmagic @averyhotchner

If you’d like to be a part of this OC’s work/edits, let me know

A/N: This has been sitting in my drafts since Christmas and internet sucked so

The first time they met, it was interesting, and fast. It was so fast that he didn't really have time to process the encounter until afterwards.

He was on his way to pick up a few things from the grocery store — the one day he had open with Jack had to be paired with their favorite lunch. He was just about to go into the store when a woman came zooming out and crashed into him. Whatever was in her bag flew out and hit the ground, some jars even smashing. There went some marinara sauce splattering in the process.

"I am so sorry!" The woman was in a rush to pick everything up. Everything about her screamed 'I'm late' — Aaron didn't even bother asking if he was right.

He bent down to help pick some of the groceries up, the savable ones anyways. He was sure that she wouldn't want the opened box of pasta anymore.

On that, he was wrong. The woman reached over to snag the box up, slamming it shut without a care for the pasta she had lost in the process.

"No, no, leave it there! I got it!" She exclaimed when he tried reaching for the box of cream cheese. She snatched it off the ground as well. She was zooming again. "I got it! It's my fault! I'm sorry!"

"It's really alright," Aaron tried to say but the woman was already halfway standing up, mumbling (in a rush) about how late she was and all the things she still needed to do.

"No, no it's not," the woman said fervently, "And I'm very sorry but I have to go now!" And just as she moved to stand up, Aaron did the same and so they bumped into each other again.

The woman felt something hit the top of her head and dropped her purse, losing a few things in the process. In turn, Aaron felt something hard hit the tip of his nose that then reverberated through the rest.

"Dammit!" the woman exclaimed. She reached down for her bag but Aaron had already beat her to it. He had grabbed her bag and the things that had fallen. "Seriously, thank you, I gotta go!" The woman grabbed the purse from him and bolted from her spot. She was so fast that she didn't hear Aaron calling her about a missing bracelet she left behind. It was a simple silver thing but hers nonetheless. He presumed the big 'M' dangling was the first letter of her name.

Now he was left with a bracelet and a hurt nose…and no idea what had happened.

~0~

He forgot he had stuffed the bracelet into his pocket, deciding to figure out what to do with it later. That 'later' had been forgotten and when he wore the same pants to work a week later, the bracelet fell out. Rossi had several questions about the bracelet and the mysterious 'M' behind it.

It brought in the rest of the team as well, but all Aaron said is that it was a long story and one that had no purpose anyways. He stuffed the bracelet into his back pocket and proceeded to forget about it again.

He only remembered it when it fell out right before doing the laundry. At that point, he left it on his dresser. He felt a bit guilty for thinking about trashing it. So, the bracelet remained on his dresser, untouched, for weeks after that.

~0~

Two months later, they met again. This time, things were only slightly different. The woman — M — wasn't in a rush. She was simply ahead of Aaron in line, getting her coffee. Upon turning around, she crashed into Aaron again and dumped half of her coffee on him.

"I am so sorry!" She exclaimed immediately, jumping back instinctively as the warm coffee splattered on her wrists. It was nothing compared to the white shirt Aaron had decided on for that day. "I'm sorry! I'll get you a — hey…" She stopped when her eyes finally rested on him. Recognition filled her. "It's you."

Aaron was a bit more preoccupied finding napkins to dry himself up. A nice elderly woman sitting behind them offered him the napkin dispenser at her table. "Thank you," he told the woman kindly then proceeded to pull out a bunch of napkins from the dispenser. There was no way in hell the stain was coming out right now.

And of course it was at that moment that the barista called his name for his drink.

M turned around to the counter and, making the connections, reached over the drink. She dumped her own coffee in the trash and cleared her throat before she offered Aaron's drink to him. "So, I guess I owe an Aaron a huge apology…" She said with gritted teeth, feeling absolutely horrible.

Aaron could tell once he actually looked at her. It was the same woman — M. What were the odds?

"I'm so sorry," M reiterated, "I really — I should really watch where I'm going, I know…" She sighed, "Please, bill me for that dry cleaning."

"I'm okay," Aaron ultimately said for M's sake. He could hear the desperation in her voice. The coffee wasn't that hot anyways…

"No, you're not," the woman said with a shake of her head, "I just dumped hot coffee on you. You should be mad. I crashed into you a while back too, remember?"

A small chuckle slipped out from Aaron. "Yes, how could I forget?"

M scrunched her nose. "You caught me on a bad day then. It was my sister's birthday and I was put in charge of dinner and I never get put in charge of anything with my family and the one time they did, I was so late but—" She stopped with a big gasp, her eyes widening. "You don't care about that. You care about your stained shirt and ruined morning."

"Actually, all I care about right now is my morning coffee," Aaron remarked, dabbing the last wet coffee on his shirt. The stain would stay but at least his skin wouldn't burn anymore.

"Oh!" M remembered she held his coffee and held it out him. "Yes, your coffee, of course. Take it before I ruin it too."

Aaron took his cup with a small smile on his face. M was genuine, at least. He walked over to the nearest trash bin to drop all the napkins he'd used them returned to M for his coffee. "What about yours? Can I buy you one?"

"Me?" M blinked then fervently shook her head. "No, no! I dumped mine on you. I should be paying and I want to, so bill me for the dry cleaning. Do you want cash?"

"No," Aaron chuckled, "I'm fine, really."

M sighed. "Seriously, just bill me. I'd feel a little less bad if you did."

Aaron wouldn't accept. He instead offered M another cup of coffee with the idea that it would make things slightly less bad. M ultimately agreed just to ease her conscience.

Although she wasn't sure if sitting down at a table waiting for him to bring her coffee was doing anything to ease her guilt. It should have been the other way around.

Aaron came by with another cup for M and sat down with her. "Caramel latte."

"Thank you," M said, truly grateful as she took her new cup.

Aaron watched her carefully then while she drank her coffee. It was only now that he was truly getting to study her.

She was light skinned and average height which, to him, was still a decent difference. She was able to hit his nose with the top of her head, after all. She had plump cheeks and soft pink lips. Her eyes were a dark brown, just like her long dark brown hair that cascaded down her chest. A couple strands were misplaced, no doubt from their shaky meeting. She was dressed casually — perhaps it was her day off as well.

"You know, I ordered your drink but I had no idea what name to give the barista," Aaron remarked. He thought about the bracelet still sitting on his dresser. M.

M smiled lightly when she lowered her drink. "Malú," she said, thinking it was the least she could do for him. "Now you have the name of the culprit for your stained shirt. Seriously, bill me. Malú Ayala."

Malú Ayala. For some reason, Aaron wanted to remember the name for days to come.

And maybe he would.

"And I know your name," Malú reminded him, tilting her head at him, "Aaron. Sorry for everything, Aaron. You really had some bad luck meeting me. Promise I'm not an absolute disaster all the time."

"I didn't think you were," Aaron said, smiling with her, "You seemed late the last time we met."

"Mm, and today? Stupid, maybe."

"Harmless mistake."

Malú scoffed. "Say that to your shirt."

"It's dry now," Aaron said, patting the front of his shirt. Maybe it humid but she didn't know that. She looked miserable enough.

Malú shook her head. "You're kind, Aaron. Anyone else would have thrown their coffee at me. You seem to have a lot of patience."

"Really? That's what I seem like?" Aaron was amused with her presumption. A low level profiler and she didn't even know it.

Malú nodded her head, her eyes really starting to look at him. "Yeah. You didn't even show any rational emotions back there, nor the last time. It's okay to be mad, you know. I totally deserve it."

"Accidents," Aaron reminded her, "Besides, it's all fine now. I'm fine. Are you?"

Malú started to smile the more she considered her current position. Having coffee with a handsome man who just so happened not to hate her for ruining his morning? "I'm fine too," she ultimately agreed. "Thank you for the coffee." She picked up her coffee to drink from and hide her flush in the process.

They spent the next half hour conversing about mundane things like what they were doing today and what they liked to drink at coffee places…but it was somehow the most relaxing, good time they had in a long time.

Aaron most felt pure hatred for his demanding job when he saw the message that Penelope Garcia had sent him, alerting him of a new case the BAU needed to handle. "I am so sorry, but I have to go," he told Malú who couldn't look more disappointed.

She quickly recovered and put on her best smile. "Right, of course."

"It's my job — this happens all the time," Aaron said in a rushed manner as he put his phone away and grabbed his coffee from the table. "It pulls me away from many things."

"It does?" A smidge of hope sparked in Malú's eyes. So he wasn't changing his mind about her and didn't hate her? Because she certainly didn't hate him at all.

"Yeah, all the time," Aaron nodded, getting up from his chair, "But, uh, listen, there's a bracelet, um…I kept your bracelet."

"What?" Malú blinked, confused.

Aaron had no idea how that happened — since when did he stumble over his words? He shook his head and tried again. "The last time we met, you dropped your purse and you left before I could tell you that you dropped your bracelet. A silver one with an 'M' charm."

"Ooh," Malú laughed softly, and Aaron couldn't remember when someone's laugh had sounded so sweet like that. "You have my bracelet? That's great! My best friend gave that to me. We have matching ones. She has the first letter of her name on her bracelet."

"I have it, um…do you think you want to meet again to take it back?"

"Just for that?" Malú said rather boldly, at least in her opinion. She just couldn't help it. Half an hour was not nearly enough time to spend with him. She needed more.

"Well…" Aaron swayed his head, "I wouldn't mind…I mean we could…have lunch? Or dinner maybe?"

That was exactly what Malú wanted to hear. She couldn't agree fast enough.

So when Aaron left the coffee shop, he left so with a date for the upcoming weekend and a wide grin on his face.

~0~

It was hard to hide the truth from the team, especially Rossi. The man knew what was going — had a suspicion — from the get. Aaron could dissuade the others' accusations but not Rossi.

"What's her name?"

"How'd it happen?"

"How are you feeling about it?"

This was the first time he was going to see someone after Beth moved away. There was a lot to think about but surprisingly, Aaron couldn't really think of anything that could persuade him not to see Malú again. He looked forward to seeing her that weekend, as did Malú.

~0~

Malú was up and ready for her date. She picked out the best dress she could find in her closet and put herself together in record time only for her to get a text from Aaron saying he had to cancel — reschedule was the word he used. Work was keeping him away for the weekend.

Malú hated that she had not asked what exactly this job of his was but nonetheless she swallowed her disappointment and replied back to Aaron that it was fine and she would wait for that Monday he promised.

Monday came, and he never sent anything. Malú waited the whole day before calling it quits at seven. Her best friend, Celia, warned her that it was the beginning of the traditional "ghosting". Malú was so disillusioned. She hadn't taken Aaron for that kind of man. He seemed sincere.

They're always sincere, Celia had said aith a roll of her eyes.

On Tuesday, Malú tried her best to forget Aaron altogether. Clearly, he was not interested anymore and so she should move on. She didn't need the bracelet anyways. Celia promised her they would get new ones instead.

Celia also warned Malú to go ahead and erase Aaron's number as well.

If you keep it, it means you still think he's going to call.

If it was the other way around, Malú knew she would be telling Celia the sake thing. Tuesday night, she erased the number (after Celia practically held a gun to her head, but it was erased). She also forced Malú to block the number before, just in case.

Needless to say, there was no way she could communicate with him again. She had no idea where Aaron lived, worked or — and this really made her feel so stupid — even knew his full name!

"Good," Celia had said then, "It'll make it easier to forget him. A total stranger. There's tons of them out there."

Malú thought very differently but she didn't say anything. Instead, she focused on not feeling as glum as she did.

~0~

Thursday, Aaron was beginning to lose it. The case lasted much longer than he thought it would and it didn't even finish the right way. The unsub got away but not without making a promise to the team that he would be back for all of them. Great.

Aaron tried texting Malú several times with no response. He switched to calls but the same thing happened. No doubt, Malú had grown tired of waiting for him and was now dodging his calls. A perfectly rationale response, but not the one that Aaron had wanted.

"Find her," Rossi had suggested the idea like it was the most logical thing in the world.

"I don't know where she lives," Aaron reminded him, keeping his voice hushed despite being in his office with the door shut.

Rossi looked at him like he was genuinely stupid. "Gee, it's too damn bad that you have no way of finding out someone's address — oh wait…" He made a gesture towards the bullpen out the window.

Aaron shook his head. He was not bringing anyone in the team into this. Malú was his secret and he liked things the way they were. But then again…there would be no secret if there was no more Malú. There had to be some middle ground somewhere.

And Rossi found it.

Friday night, just before she left, Rossi caught Penelope at the elevator.

"I thought we were done with the case," Penelope led the way into her office.

"We are. This is for another case," Rossi explained. "And I need an address."

"Oh, do you mean that other guy?" Penelope swallowed hard. She hated unsubs to begin with but even more the unsubs who managed to slip away. "You think this is an accomplice?"

"Just give me the address, alright? And don't tell anyone else. This is on a strict need-to-know basis, got it?"

"Yes, sir," Penelope nodded firmly and asked for the name she was going to he searching for.

Malú Ayala.

Penelope found her in a snap. "She's local! What are the odds?"

Rossi merely nodded and asked for Penelope to send the address to him and Hotch — covering the basis.

Aaron got the message instantaneously. He gripped his phone in his hand amd stared at the address in bed that night. He couldn't decide how best to proceed. He liked Malú, he really did, and it was so strange knowing all he had was a half hour with her.

The things they talked about were ridiculous, now that he looked back on it. He was pretty sure he had asked her what she thought of the weather that day. At least asking for her favorite drink was a bit less embarrassing. But that was the point. Such mundane things and yet it just made him grow fonder of Malú. Even disastrous as she claimed to be, Aaron couldn't think of anything else she should be. He needed more time with her. A half hour, an hour, etc.

~0~

Sunday morning he was free. Jack had a play date and the BAU was off. It was perfect. He just had to be fast before any one of those things changed.

He found the address easily and went up to the right apartment. One knock, two knocks, three knocks, four—

"Alright, I get it!" Malú snapped when she flung the door open. "Oh…" She blinked at the sight of Aaron. "How on earth did you find me?"

Aaron went straight to business. "Can I talk to you please?"

"Mm, I'm not sure I can…"

"Why not?"

"I promised my best friend I wouldn't. You left me hanging for a week," Malú frowned. "Celia made a point. You were ghosting me."

"No, no, I wasn't," Aaron promised her that it wasn't like that. "It was my job — it always does this."

"Really?" Malú raised an eyebrow at him.

Aaron sighed. "Malú, something important about me is that I don't like people who waste my time and as a courtesy, I don't waste someone else's time either. I don't want to waste your time. Please, can I explain what happened?"

Malú leaned rested her cheek against the wooden door, drumming her fingers up and down. "Fine…but only because I want to know what happened." And she really missed him, however ridiculous that sounded.

"Thank you." Aaron walked into the apartment and turned to her. Malú then gestured him towards the couch where they could sit together and talk.

"Okay, so what is it?" Malú asked, trying her best to sound as disinterested as possible. "Lost phone? No battery?"

"It's my job," Aaron reiterated like he had from the start. Malú would give him points for at least being consistent. "I work for the FBI. I'm the Unit Chief for the Behavioral Analysis Unit. A huge detail about this job is that I'm on standby a lot of the time, if not most of the time. I have to travel nationally, for days, sometimes longer. And it's terrible but it is what it is and I can't change it. I love my job. I do. That Saturday, I was still in Wisconsin and I didn't get back until Monday night. It was a hard case and I didn't even get to close it."

"You seriously work for the FBI?" Malú blinked a couple times, dumbfounded. Of all the things he could have said…

Aaron nodded. "Yes."

"For how long?"

"Too many years to count."

"Woah…" Malú slowly pushed herself up from the couch, still mighty shocked.

"Are you alright?" Aaron watched her intently. "Was it too much?"

"N-no, I, um…" Malú swallowed hard, "I'm beginning to think maybe this isn't a good idea."

"What? Why not?" Aaron nearly frowned.

"Because you're — you're FBI. I don't think…I don't think I'm what you're looking for," Malú said, bringing her hands to her chest, "I work for a school district. You…you want more."

"More?" Aaron smiled lightly.

"You know, someone more up on your level?" Malú took a seat on the couch again, facing him. "Thanks for explaining things to me. I believe you. You should go, though."

"Not if it's because you think I want something more out of someone," Aaron said, "I've been trying to get ahold of you for a reason. I'm just sorry that this is what I have to offer."

Malú couldn't decide what to do. He seemed sincere, but what if in the long run he grew tired of her?

"I'm not sure, Aaron," she admitted, "Maybe…maybe we should just slow down here. I'm going back to school, actually, and if your schedule is as hectic as you say it is, maybe going on a date isn't what we need right now."

"Malú, I don't want to waste your time, so I'm telling you everything right now, the way it is. You can take your time to think about things but I'm not leaving until you have no doubt about what I want."

Malú discovered how intense of a look Aaron could have. She found herself nodding, feeling like she was transfixed by him. And so goes Celia's words…

"You work for a school district?"

"Yeah," Malú nodded. "And you for the FBI?"

"Yes," Aaron nodded, "And I also have a son."

"Oh." Malú's eyes widened.

Aaron expected that reaction. Perfectly normal. "I would rather you know that now. Cards on the table."

Malú respected him more for that. "Okay. You…have a son. What about the mother? Is she still in the picture?"

Aaron lowered his head. That was a gateway question and he had no idea how she would react. "No…she, um, passed away a couple years ago."

"Okay…" Malú felt a twinge of guilt for asking. "I'm sorry about that. Aaron, you don't have to give me your whole life story. I'm not heartless. Your job is heavy, and you travel. I got it. You don't need to tell me everything about yourself, okay? You're not in trouble…anymore…"

Aaron cracked half of a smile at her, prompting Malú to do the same thing. "I like hearing that," Aaron admitted, "Is there any chance you would reconsider rescheduling our dinner?"

Malú's shoulders rose together, clearly unsure of the answer. She thought it was sweet of him to come all the way here to tell her everything about him so that she could make a conscious decision. He was right. He was laying out the cards on the table for her to see them clearly.

He was straightforward, and she admired him for it. He wasn't here to waste her time, just like he said.

"Is…there a chance you might cancel that too?" She asked as a final test.

Aaron ultimately nodded at her. "Perhaps, yes," he answered honestly.

Malú grew more fond of him at that moment. You totally want to date him. Yes, she did but she also wanted to stick to what she had said first and keep things slow because she wasn't sure if she could handle this kind of situation.

He was predisposed to canceling dates, outings or just any plans in general because of his job. He was on standby and she had never been with anyone in that situation.

"I don't want to waste your time either," she said quietly, letting her shoulders fall slowly, "So how about a middle ground for now."

"What are you thinking?" Aaron asked, curious of her idea. It wasn't a definite 'no' and he could work with that.

"Let's not do dates right now. Let's…let's just see each other when we can," Malú said, sighing, "Because I don't know if I can handle losing dates left to right. I just don't know, I'm sorry. You can totally walk out right now and not feel guilty about it. I know it's stupid, like I'm dragging you down an uncertain road…I told you that you might want more out of a person based on your job."

"None of that is true," Aaron said calmly, looking at Malú with a genuine smile, "A job does not define the person you are, and trust me my job is very much about defining things. I accept your offer. I think it's a good idea because I wouldn't want either of us to lose time."

"Are you sure?" Malú had to ask twice before she could begin to believe it.

Aaron nodded. "It's not the first time. I've had relationships end because of the crazy schedule. My job is high maintenance and I understand that it's not for everyone. I wouldn't want to put you in that kind of situation if you don't want it."

"Okay then…" Malú bit her bottom lip, "Well, if you have the time right now…wanna have some breakfast? I was sort of eating before you got here."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that…" Aaron grew confused when he checked his watch and saw it was well past noon. When he met Malú's gaze again, she was smiling bashfully.

"I like to sleep in a lot," she confessed, causing a laugh between them, "I'm not a morning person at all."

"But you said you worked at a school district? Those jobs usually start early don't they?"

Malú let out a heavy sigh, confirming the answer. Aaron smiled more.

"Got it," he nodded.

"So…breakfast?" Malú asked again.

Aaron agreed. "Breakfast."

And that morning, they had a nice breakfast together with a deeper conversation about Aaron's high maintenance job that would keep him away for days. Malú wanted to know exactly what she should expect in the future.

~0~

A month passed by and while nothing explicitly changed between them, both Malú and Aaron didn't want to let the other go. It was their individual secret from each other, never knowing that each one felt the same thing.

There were no dates, not officially anyways. There were casual outings whenever Aaron returned from a case. Malú learned to measure the typical time between cases, though sometimes there were back-to-back cases that kept them apart for weeks. Those were the harder times, especially when she was at school as well.

Aaron, in turn, learned Malú's schedule very early on. She worked from seven to three at the school district and on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, she went to school in the afternoon. Malú wanted to become a school psychologist. It was her absolute dream and that dream tended to have some downsides for them both.

For one, sometimes when Aaron was free, Malú was not. She was buried in schoolwork. She was cramming for exams or doing projects. Sometimes, she was just too exhausted from school to do anything. Aaron understood her and tended to leave her to rest. What he wanted to do was make her comfortable but that…that would involve certain liberties that he did not have.

They danced around the fine lines of friendship and an actual relationship. Sometimes, there was a hug that lasted longer than it should have. Other times there were kisses on the cheeks that were a bit too close to each other's mouths. The hand holding was one of the harder ones. What kind of hand holding was reserved for friends and which one was for a relationship? Neither one knew. Fingers brushed against each other's hands when they handed each other things, when they cooked together, or when they walked alongside each other. It was hard being with each other but it would be even harder not to be with each other. That was the silent agreement between them. Both preferred to leave things as they were rather than lose it all.

Sometimes, sometimes they would slip. Neither one complained about it.

One special morning, Malú woke up with a missed call and a text message from Aaron. She nearly fell out of bed when she read the message.

I think I'll be free for a bit this morning. Any chance you don't have plans this hour?

Malú couldn't text back fast enough. She jumped out of bed and went straight to her closet to pick out the best clothes she had. It was a special day indeed and it was even more special now that she got to spend a small part of the day with him. She had to be fast to get to him before the opportunity slipped away.

It was ironic that she got to the coffee shop before him. She didn't mind; she checked her phone just to make sure a case hadn't come up all of a sudden to pull him away. It had not.

She heard her name and, like a child, flipped her head back with a wide grin on her face as Aaron approached her table. Yeah, she felt like an absolute giddy kid.

"Hi!" She stood up from her seat to greet him. A hug and a kiss on the cheek was always a must, even if it was a terrible taunting crumb of touch between them. She would take it. Aaron would too.

"You look beautiful," he remarked, gazing at her and her soft purple dress she wore. The clothes, the makeup, the neat and prim hair — she was heavenly. "Happy birthday."

Malú grin widened more if it was even possible. "Thank you."

They sat down together and ordered something light and quick — they didn't know how long they had today.

Without a hint of a word or anything leading towards it, Aaron took out a small black box from one of his inside pockets and placed it on the table between them.

Malú's eyes widened at the gesture. "Oh…you didn't…you didn't have to get me anything."

The present was getting to see him today at all. She was convinced that with her luck, he would have had a case early on today so the most she would get was a phone call wishing her happy birthday. Getting to see him in person, have breakfast together was the best present she could have gotten.

You're way too deep in. It was a thought that regularly came to her, one that she couldn't deny anymore.

"It's tradition you give a present to someone on their birthday," Aaron said casually, sliding the box towards Malú, "And I think you're going to like it."

"Is that a fact from your profiling skills?" Malú smirked. "Or are you just that confident in your present-buying skills?"

"Can it be both?" Aaron asked swiftly, making Malú laugh.

"With you, I suppose." Malú reached for the box, already feeling her face flushing under Aaron's constant stare. She just couldn't grow used to his intensity.

She heard the click of the box when she opened the lid. Inside, she found a silver bracelet with a bright jade gem at the center. Looking closer at it, there were smaller jade beads adorning the chain, each one sparkling under the light of the shop.

"Curse you and your profiling skills and confidence," Malú mumbled under her breath, but Aaron still heard her perfectly.

He smiled, perhaps smug, but who knew. All he knew right now is that Malú loved her gift and that's all that mattered.

"Thank you for this. I love it," Malú said softly. "Where'd you get it from?"

"During a case a couple weeks back," Aaron replied, "You said jade was your favorite color."

"Yeah, in passing," Malú said with an embarrassed laugh to follow. In truth, she was touched with the gift. If he had bought the bracelet a while ago then it meant he saw them still being in each other's lives now.

"Can I put it on you?" Aaron motioned to the bracelet. Malú could nod faster. She chuckled and handed him the bracelet then held her wrist out to him.

He brought the bracelet around her wrist, subtly taking note of her warm skin. She couldn't stop staring at him no matter how much she tried (although she didn't try that hard). Her face grew warmer the more seconds passed with his soft fingers brushing over her skin. What she would give to have those hands touch other parts of her.

Aaron snapped the bracelet hooks together and pulled his hand off Malú's wrist. "What do you think?"

Malú immediately smiled. "I love it, Aaron. Thank you." She leaned over the table and kissed his cheek. She couldn't, and didn't, ignore the warmth on her face. "But you really didn't have to give me anything. Having breakfast with you is enough."

Her words brought a smile out of Aaron, along with a similar warmth. He would say the same thing to Malú if roles were reversed. Time wasn't a luxury for them so they learned quickly how to value it. Still, he would gladly buy her gifts if it meant getting to see her smile as much as she was right now.

Later on, they were walking down the street hand in hand, neither one commenting about the fact. They talked about what Malú's day was going to look like. She knew her best friend was planning a party for her tonight. That was something to look forward to, especially when she knew it would most likely be just her going.

Sometimes, Malú regretted the grounds she had set with Aaron.

They both knew what was happening when Aaron felt the buzz of his phone in his pocket. Malú silently sighed and watched him take out the phone to read whatever message was waiting for him.

Aaron didn't even have to explain it. He lowered the phone and looked over at Malú, apologizing.

Malú put on her best smile for him, just like she always did when it happened. "The present was getting to see you today," she assured him.

"I'm still sorry," Aaron reiterated while he put his phone away. "I wish—"

"I know—"

"I really wish I could—"

"Aaron," Malú wrapped an arm around his, forcing him to stop and look at her, "I know," she reassured him. "It means a lot that you want to spend today with me, trust me. I get it. You have other things to do, other responsibilities."

Aaron nodded slowly. He met her gaze with his own, taking her in for a new memory he would take with him and use when the case inevitably got dark. He found he did that a lot lately.

Malú smiled warmly at him. "Thank you for all this." She slid a hand over his cheek and leaned up to kiss him on his other cheek.

Aaron turned a bit quicker when she drew back. Her lips briefly met the corner of his and if it wasn't for time running out again, perhaps one of them would have acted on it. It was a moment that neither one would forget for a while.

~0~

The months to come were getting harder and yet somehow lovelier too. It was harder in that each time their schedules conflicted with each other's, the pain it brought grew stronger. They ached for each other, whether they were simple miles apart or states apart.

And it was lovelier in that even though they saw each other for brief moments, they still grew closer. Walls were beginning to dwindle.

Aaron started telling Malú more about his son. He found it was getting easier talking to Malú about Jack, about their lives and what he felt at times. He knew his personality was usually closed-off and so far Malú didn't seem to mind it. He wanted her to know that he was trying to change that.

Malú loved seeing him try. It warmed her heart. And she loved learning more about little Jack. He sounded like an adorable little boy. When it was Jack's birthday, she gave Aaron a gift for him.

You don't have to tell him it's from me, she clarified when she handed the gift over to Aaron. I just thought it was a cute book to read at bedtime.

Aaron ultimately decided to tell Jack who had really given him his new book — which turned out to be a series of children's bedtime stories. It was the shortened version, of course.

A friend of dad's works at a school district so she knows all the best books.

Jack had loved the present and now required that at least one of the stories be read to him each night. Seeing his son love something so small from Malú made Aaron consider the idea that the rules of their 'relationship' (which wasn't really much of a relationship) had finally expired.

One morning, he woke up with all the intentions of facing Malú and telling her exactly what he felt. Unfortunately, that same morning the BAU had an urgent case.

Still, he left a voicemail asking Malú to call him back. He intended on making his feelings known no matter what. She just didn't call that morning. The case was local which gave a lot of opportunities to keep calling and leaving messages. Part of him began to worry, drawing his attention away from the case until something sparked and fueled that concern.

"Hotch!" Morgan called twice before Aaron finally placed his attention on the case.

"What was that?" Aaron straightened in his seat. The others who sat around the conference table watched him curiously. It wasn't like him to space out.

"We got a call," Morgan repeated just as Penelope hurried into the room.

"Alert! Alert!" The blonde exclaimed. "We got an incoming message and you guys are going to want to see this!" She quickly set her computer up with the screens in the room so the others could see.

A series of video feeds started popping up on the screen, all of different yet very familiar people. Everyone was stunned and very soon began to feel dread creeping up on them.

"That's Will and Henry," JJ scowled, rising from her seat. Her husband and son were playing soccer in their front yard.

Aaron froze as well when he saw his own son on one of the screens. Jack was walking with his aunt to school.

"The unsub is following people we know," Spencer remarked, eyes flickering from one screen to the next. "Across states." Because he then saw his own mother on one of the screens.

"We need to set security details on friends and family," Rossi said, glancing at Aaron for his input.

Aaron was still watching the screens. Already he felt the ire washing over him knowing this unsub had been watching his son. But then his attention was drawn to another screen thanks to Spencer pointing out that amongst their friends and family, there was one woman none of them recognized.

"I want the security detail to bring everyone here," Aaron gave the order.

"Here?" Penelope looked at him with widened eyes. "Everyone?"

"Local ones," Aaron clarified, "We'll alert the respective precincts for Reid's and Morgan's families but everyone else needs to be here. Now." He stood up from his chair and grabbed his phone out of his pocket as he stormed out of the room. He couldn't dial any faster.

'Hi! It's Malú! Leave your message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!'

Aaron could only control his breathing so much when he died twice and Malú still wouldn't answer. "Malú, please call me as soon as you get this," he left his voicemail in a rush. If he had any luck, even just a sliver of it, Malú would be able to pick up her phone and tell him that she was alright.

~0~

There was chaos as each family member was brought into the building. Unanswered questions, fear and of course the sweet blissful innocence of the children who had no idea why they were being brought into their parents' work.

"It's just for a couple hours, buddy, okay?" Aaron promised his son in the solitude of his office.

"But what's happening?" Jack insisted on the proper answer. "I thought I was going to school."

"You will, tomorrow," Aaron nodded, "You get to take a break today."

"In here?" Jack looked around the office curiously. "Can I play on your desk?"

Aaron smiled lightly. "Sure, just don't write on any of my papers, okay?"

Jack grinned. "Deal!" He even shook hands on it then hopped off the couch and dashed for his father's desk.

Aaron breathed a little easier knowing Jack was alright and completely unaware of the danger he'd been in. He rose from the couch and walked over to the windows giving a perfect view of the bullpen. He saw the other families with the team, each one trying to get some answers. He was glad to see everyone was alright but his mind hadn't stopped wondering about—

Two officers walked in through the bullpen doors leading a dark haired woman inside.

Aaron rushed out but not before posting an agent in front of his office to keep an eye on Jack. He then hurried down the small steps leading to the bullpen.

Malú saw him seconds before he reached her. "Aaron, what's going on?" she whispered to him, her eyes seeming permanently wide.

Aaron couldn't help it. He hugged her first, startling Malú and the rest of his team who'd begun to watch them curiously. "You weren't answering your phone," Aaron spoke beside Malú's ear.

"Yeah, I was in a long meeting today at the district," Malú explained, pulling away from him. "What's going on? These officers just showed up at my job telling me I had to come to the FBI? Why am I in the FBI right now?"

Aaron thanked the officers and pulled Malú with him towards the first empty office he came across, which so happened to be Rossi's. He shut the door and pulled the blinds down. "It's a situation that we are handling."

"Situation?" Malú raised an eyebrow at him.

Aaron nodded. "Yes, my team and I stumbled across an uunsub — a murderer who's taken it personal against us. He's been…" He knew this was going to be hard. "Uh, he's been watching my team's friends and family, including mine."

"Oh…" Malú started blinking rapidly, her mind going in the same pace. "L-like…l-like me?"

"Yes, like you," Aaron nodded once again, "I don't know how long it's been going on but I promise you that I'm going to make it stop. You just have to stay here in the meantime, okay?"

"What—"

"You'll be safe here," Aaron promised her. He walked up to Malú, cupping her face gently. "Just promise me that you'll stay here until I come back."

"Wh-where are you going to go?" Malú asked, already frightened. It was ironic that this is what had frightened her — the fact that Aaron was about to go into the unknown and not the fact that some stranger had been watching her.

"To go catch this guy," Aaron said, "So promise me that you'll stay here."

"Okay, yeah," Malú nodded fervently, "Whatever you need. I'm not going to make it harder. But you promise me something right now."

"Anything."

"You gotta promise me that you're going to be careful. I know you're like mister big shot around these parts but you still have a son to look after, right?"

Aaron smiled lightly. "Yeah, I know. He's here too. Everyone's families are. So…stay, alright?"

Malú reassured him that she would listen. Aaron still cupped her face and for a moment, it seemed like he would lean over. Malú would have welcomed it. A knock interrupted them, however. Aaron had just let Malú go when Rossi opened the door.

"We may have something," he informed Aaron, indicating it was time to go.

Aaron begrudgingly walked away from Malú, stopping at the doorway to look back at her. Malú encouraged him to go, promising again that she wasn't going to leave until he returned.

~ 0 ~

Spending your time in the BAU when you weren't an agent was actually very boring. Malú found that out quickly. She was free to go into the bullpen, into the conference room and virtually any room that was within the BAU's floor…but none of it was very interesting. She was bored out of her mind and that was a horrible thing to think of knowing the situation was terrible.

She came across a blonde woman who was dressed pretty brightly for a BAU agent. She quickly introduced herself as Penelope Garcia, who was a technical analyst.

"Is everything going on okay with, um, the team?" Malú asked nervously.

Penelope nodded at her. "Yeah, um, they're okay. You…you're…you're Hotch's friend, right?" She remembered Malú's name coming up in another investigation but now she suspected it had been more of a personal search.

"Uh, yeah, a friend, yeah…" Malú pursed her lips together, "Um, I don't mean to be rude but…is there somewhere I can…"

Penelope understood Malú perfectly. She herself didn't like the gray walls of the BAU. "You know, Jack's here too."

Malú remembered that detail as well and instinctively looked around. Penelope took that as a sign to bring Malú over. Malú didn't have the opportunity to admit that she had never even met the boy when Penelope brought her into the office.

"Hey Jack," Penelope greeted the boy when she strode into the office. "I brought you some coloring sheets and, guess what?"

"What?" Jack happily took the papers from Penelope's hands.

"One of your dad's friends is here to see you," Penelope said with a wide grin on her face.

Malú was cautiously standing by the doorway, watching the exchange silently. Already she could see some of the resemblance between Aaron and his son.

Penelope glanced back at Malú and motioned her to come in. "Maybe I can get you guys something to drink, and the bad stuff we have around here. Yuck!" She shuddered and Jack chuckled.

Malú managed a smile too. She liked Penelope indeed.

"I'll be back!" Penelope promised and hurried out of the office.

Jack then looked at Malú with the curious eyes that only a child could have. "Hi, I'm Jack. Are you friends with my dad?"

Malú nodded and walked a few steps in. "My name is Malú."

"Oh! You gave me a book for my birthday!"

Malú's eyebrows raised. "You know about that?"

"Yeah, my daddy told me that you work at a school so you know the best books in the stores!"

Malú chuckled. "He said that?"

"Aha! And guess what? I have that book in my backpack. It was share day at school today…" Jack hopped off the chair and hurried to the backpack beside the couch.

"I'm sorry about that," Malú said, deciding to walk over to the couch, "Maybe you can share it another time."

Jack shrugged and pulled the book out of his backpack. "Do you want to read with me? I'm practicing."

Malú smiled at the boy. "I would like that, yeah." She took a seat with him on the couch. "Do you practice at home too? You know that's very important."

"Yeah, my daddy says the same thing too," Jack nodded, "I read every day for 20 minutes. They time it. I can't tell time yet."

Malú laughed softly. "Right. Well, do you have a favorite story so far?"

"All of them," Jack said with a sheepish smile, "I love my book. Thank you for buying it for me."

Malú started laughing when Jack hugged her out of the blue. She gasped then, slowly, hugged him back. Everything she had heard about Jack from Aaron had made her grow fond of the boy but this small moment made her love him. She would gladly read to him all day if he wanted.

~ 0 ~

It was late in the evening when Jack had fallen asleep. He rested on Malú's lap. Penelope had come in several times to check in on them and offered Malú a blanket so she could rest as well, but Malú preferred that Jack get a blanket instead. She wouldn't be able to sleep until she knew that Aaron was alright.

And the hours become agonizingly long when she heard no news about the team. All she had was her mind and her dark thoughts. She became restless, so much that in the end she had to slip away from Jack before she accidentally woke him up. She made sure he was comfortable on the couch and that the blanket covered him up well then proceeded to pace back and forth. Her legs would be sore for sure.

Malú heard commotion out in the bullpen and felt her heart hammer within seconds. There were so many things that could have gone wrong and they were all coming to her.

What if something happened to the team? What if Aaron got hurt? What if he got hurt and he wasn't coming back? She would never see him again. All that time, however little it always tended to be, would vanish.

Malú gulped. Had she screwed up? She was the one who told Aaron they couldn't be anything except friends. For all she knew, that had been it. There was nothing else to come and that…that hurt so much. She felt tears welling in her eyes.

"Oh my God," she barely stifled her sob. She couldn't take it and dashed towards the door. At the same time, the door opened. Malú almost bumped into Aaron himself.

He looked at her with wide eyes, a disheveled appearance that only led Malú to wonder what he had to have faced before this.

"It's okay, you're safe now," he told her. "You're—"

Malú crashed into him with a hug. "Thank God! I was beginning to think the worst!" She clung to him perhaps in the most uncomfortable way but neither one minded.

Aaron held her tightly as well. He was relieved knowing she would go home safely tonight. "You're okay. I promise you'll be okay now. He's gone."

Malú looked up at him, her eyes still teary. "You? How about you? Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"No, no, I'm okay. I'm good, I promise," Aaron said, cupping her face. "You're free to go now. There's agents ready to take you home."

"Just like that?" Malú blurted, unable to stop the hurt that came with the implications of his supposed alleviating news.

Aaron grew confused. "That's…that's what you wanted, no? What we both wanted?"

Malú swallowed hard. That made sense, but it was no longer the only thing she wanted. "I spent the whole day with your son," she said, stepping back and gesturing towards Jack sleeping on the couch. "He is perfect…like his father." Aaron managed to smile a bit. "You told him about me. You never mentioned that."

Aaron nodded silently. "I didn't want you to feel like you had to meet him. I understand what you want and why. I would never want you to feel like you had to do something out of politeness."

Malú looked at him with soft eyes. "I would love to spend time with you and Jack." She slid her hands over his cheeks and brought him to her lips for a kiss.

After the day he had, Aaron had the quick sense to respond. He'd imagined the moment so many times before and Malú was the one who initiated it? It was even better.

Malú pulled away first and only because she remembered they were not alone, despite the third littlest member being fast asleep. "Go home with your son," she whispered to him.

"What?" Aaron's first thought was that Malú had changed her mind or this had just been a bittersweet way to say goodbye. Already he looked helpless.

Malú smiled at him again, caressing the sides of his face. "He missed his dad all day. He should wake up knowing that you're both at home. But come see me right after, okay?"

The way Aaron looked at Malú was asking her if she was serious. Malú laughed quietly, not wanting to wake Jack up.

"Things can't stay the same anymore," Malú admitted, sighing, "I know what I said before but I…I went insane not not knowing if you were coming back. I felt even worse knowing how much time we wasted. I-I know that it's not when I say things can change but if you're open to discussing it again…"

Aaron grabbed her head and kissed her again. They lingered over each other's lips for a moment.

"And just so we're clear, it's anything you want," Aaron said, earning a small chuckle. "I have no problem following you."

Malú flushed. "Then we can continue this tomorrow. And just so we're clear, the rule is that from now on, you have to kiss me every time we're together. If Time isn't a luxury, then we'll have to take advantage of it."

Aaron nodded on the spot. "I can live with that arrangement." He kissed her again then brought her into a hug.

#ocfairygodmother #fd: criminal minds #criminal minds #cm #aaron hotchner #aaron hotchner fics #aaron hotchner imagines #criminal minds fics #criminal minds imagines #cm fics #cm imagines #hotch fics #hotch imagines #oc: Malú #oc: Malu

45 notes · View notes