Chapter Text
-FLASHBACK-
- Hello.- Emily greeted when she heard the "Pass" from inside the office.
- Hello.- He returned his greeting looking up from his papers at the same time she felt those brown eyes had looked at her before.
I don't know what it is but I swear I'm feeling
déjà vu
- Agent Hotchner?- She asked him with a big smile.
- Yes.- He confirmed, standing up to be at her height. Aaron had a feeling that he had known her long before.
You're a stranger but feel closer
- I'm Agent Emily Prentiss.- She told him, putting the box with her belongings on the table to extend her hand, and as soon as she felt his touch, she couldn't help the shiver that ran through her spine.
- How are you? Oh, you're the daughter of Ambassador Prentiss, right?!- He knew her mother, but he also knew that he had never met Emily. That made the feeling even more inexplicable. - I worked in security tasks for your mother. - He explained while Emily nodded. - It was one of my first missions I think you went to Brown during that time.
- Yale, actually. I've been in the FBI for almost 10 years.
- Don't tell me more. Have become long for you?- He asked, raising his eyebrows as a sign of understanding.
He was even surprised to be able to make a joke. She aroused something in him that was not clear yet.
- Partly, sir.- At that moment they shared a smile, and both were sure that in another life they had seen each other smile more than once.
When I'm looking at you...
An awkward silence fell between the two as they stared at each other. Hotch had no idea what was doing the brunette in his office.
...swear I feel you in my memory
I think I've seen you in my dreams
Maybe you and I have history
- What can I do for you?- He finally asked her with total seriousness.
- Eh, well, I hope you can tell me where to put my stuff.- She replied, also seriously.
- Sorry? - Now he was really confused.
- I'm supposed to start here, at the BAU, today.- She explained to him the best she could. His serious expression made her a little nervous, and she took out her file to hand it to him.
- There must be a mistake.- He clarified.
- I don't think so, sir.
- There has definitely been a mistake.- At that moment she noticed a blonde woman who was informing him about a new case.- I have not approved this transfer, Agent Prentiss. I'm sorry for the confusion, but you've been misinformed.- Hotch told her as he returned the file to her and left the office.- I'm glad to finally meet you.- He said in the last moment.
-END OF THE FLASHBACK-
Now after four days she had known that they had returned from the case. And she was in that office again, sitting on the comfortable couch. Remembering every detail as if she had just lived it.
She was sure she had never seen him before, but Emily Prentiss had experienced the strong feeling that she knew him from another life, that Aaron Hotchner was her déjà vu. And she was scared.
Have we met before?
Maybe in another life I knew you
- Please tell me you haven't been there for the last four days.- He said as he looked at her surprised.
Hotch didn't know why but he had that feeling again.
- I heard you were coming back tonight and I decided to come and wait for you, sir.- She clarified.
- Did you hear that? How could you hear a thing like that? - He asked somewhat annoyed.
- Sir, this case arrived a few hours ago.- She said standing up and handing him the file she had been reading.
- I appreciate your interest, agent.- Hotch told her as he took the folder, without even looking at her. - But, profiling is a specialty. We cannot leave it in the hands of anyone who wants to try.
- The I-80 killer? The companions of Indiana? - The brunette spoke.
- Yeah, I read it on the plane.
- They are not random attacks. This guy is organized.- He finally glanced at her. - He's a white male, early thirties, and a fluent speaker, who even after 11 victims can still convince educated women who know there's a predator out there, to get on his car.- She tried to explain as best she could, avoiding letting him see how nervous her gaze made her, but without losing that security that characterizes her.
- How would you advise the police?- He knew just by looking at her that he wanted her on the team, but he had to make it clear that she had to work hard to get it.
- I'd keep an eye on “El Rancho”, a nightclub in Gary.- She replied as she walked around the table to get closer to him. - Thursday night is very popular with the girls. If you look closely, you'll see that 8 of the 11 victims went missing on a Friday morning. So he has his gloomy engine running on Thursdays.- He didn't stop looking at her. There was silence. - This isn't an attempt, Agent Hotchner... I don't know why my transfer was misplaced, or maybe you thinks my parents pulled some strings, which they didn't, by the way.- She stared at him.- I belong to this Unit. And all I'm asking for is a chance to prove it to you.
They tried to read each other for what seemed like an eternity that only lasted seconds.
- I still have to check all this. I'm not promising you anything. - He finally told her, he couldn't deny that the stubborn attitude of that woman had pleased him.
- Understood.- She clarified quickly.
Hotch had profiled her from the moment he'd seen her walk through the door. He'd known how determined she was, that her stubbornness would never leave her. That was something he could hate about anyone, but he knew he could never hate her, because simply in the first second he had looked at her, that feeling had arisen in him that he had lived her before, and that he wants her near.
Maybe if I try I'll see right through you
And I'll remember who we were
- We review new cases every morning at 10:00. The management forms are on the desk.
- You won't regret it, sir.- Emily said with a grateful tone. She gathered up her things and walked out, smiling and unconsciously biting her lower lip, a gesture that wasn't lost on Hotch.
Have we met before?
Maybe in another time I loved you
When he stayed alone he thought back to how she had made him feel, it was something inexplicable, something he had never felt before. Her gestures, her sweet voice, the small portions of her face, everything about her seemed both familiar and unknown. He thought of her and for a few minutes he forgot even about her wife, he loved Haley, but he couldn't stop thinking that maybe they were destined to meet.
Maybe you're the one that
I would run to
And just like him that night Emily couldn't sleep, it wasn't just the fact that she had gotten the job she wanted, it wasn't just that what kept her awake at night; she couldn't help thinking about everything she had felt with a simple look; maybe she was crazy or maybe her souls had written a story in another life.
Don't know why it's all a blur
I think I know you.