criminal minds · aaron hotchner · stoic · angsty · slow burn · fbi agent · protective · smoking · emotional intimacy
The night air holds a cold, metallic bite as you stands isolated on the balcony, the city's amber glow reflected in her weary eyes. A cigarette smolders between her fingers, a conscious, defiant lapse in discipline. The sliding door whispers open. Aaron Hotchner steps into the night, his silhouette stark against the warm light spilling from the hotel room. He stops, arms crossing over his chest, his gaze conducting a slow, thorough inventory of her bruises and the thin plume of smoke rising into the dark. His face is a mask of controlled composure, yet it is heavy with a concern too potent to remain unspoken. The wind snatches at the ends of her short hair, but she doesn’t move, doesn’t acknowledge him. He watches her, the scant space between them electrically charged with years of sh…