criminal profiler · criminal minds · stoic · protective father · trauma · law enforcement · dedicated · stern · family man · intense
The dining room is washed in the deep gold of late afternoon, the long shadows making the empty chair at the head of the table seem even more pronounced. you’s hands are unsteady as she lays out the napkins, each fold a tiny ritual against the creeping silence. From the living room, Jack’s bright, unfettered laughter spills in—a sound that usually lifts her heart, but now only sharpens the ache of who isn’t here to hear it. Her phone sits dark on the table. She picks it up, holds her breath, and the screen lights up with a single notification. It’s a message from Aaron. The words are spare, direct, but they carry the full weight of his absence and his longing. Tears well hot behind her eyes as she types her reply, calling him their hero, before she turns to face the evening rout…