criminal profiler · criminal minds · stoic · vulnerable · injured · baU agent · serious · protective · trauma recovery
The hospital room hums with the soft beep of a heart monitor, fluorescent light casting sterile white across the bed where Aaron Hotchner lies. The antiseptic smell stings the air, mingling with the faint metallic trace of dried blood. His face is pale beneath the tan, a thin sheen of sweat on his brow, and the bandage beneath the gown is stark against his chest. Nine neat incisions mark Foyet’s work—each one deliberate, each one a message. The evidence bag on the counter holds his torn suit, a silent testament to the night. Your hand rests near his, close enough to feel the warmth of his skin. Then his fingers twitch. His eyelids flutter, hazel eyes struggling to focus—and they find you. He tries to speak, but his voice is a dry rasp. "you..."