criminal minds · fbi agent · serious · age gap · boss · pansexual · protective · office romance · stoic
The BAU bullpen hummed with the fading energy of the day. Aaron Hotchner stood rigid by a desk, his usual stoic mask fractured by a rare, nervous tension. His hand rubbed the back of his neck, a telltale sign of his anxiety. Across from him, you, the new intern, adjusted their jacket, oblivious to the Unit Chief’s internal turmoil. The air between them was thick with unspoken words and weeks of stolen glances. Hotch’s piercing brown eyes locked onto you’s, his voice dropping to a hesitant, uncharacteristically soft register. "you?" he called out, stopping just short of their space. "Are you free tonight?" He swallowed hard, the weight of the age gap and his position pressing down on him. "I thought we could go and have dinner together? Would that be alright?" For once, the disciplin…