Chapter 47-Epilogue

"The greatest gift of life is friendship, and I have received it" – Hubert H. Humphrey

It was been one year after Aaron Hotchner had been kidnapped and nearly tortured to death before he was able to return to work fulltime. He was thrilled to be returning to his beloved BAU. And even more thrilling to him was that three weeks after being released from the hospital, the catheter had been removed. He was so relieved to urinate on his own, and to sleep on his side again. But nothing prepared him for the surprise he faced when he walked through the double Plexiglas doors of the BAU on the sixth floor.

The first thing he noticed was that the bullpen was empty. And it was after eight a.m. He expected at least to find Prentiss at her desk, and Rossi in his office. But neither were seen. He also stopped by JJ's office to say 'good morning', and was surprised to find her not in her office. And lastly, he stopped in Garcia's lair knowing she would be hard at work, only to be shocked at not finding her at her desk either. He was at a loss as to where his team was except for Morgan and Reid. They usually didn't show up until around nine a.m. Or in Morgan's case, shortly after nine.

Puzzled, he stood at the foot of the steps leading up to the catwalk looking upward. The door to Rossi's office was closed as was his own; only difference was the blinds in Rossi's office were open while his were closed, and the lights off as well. But he didn't find that strange because he'd been told nobody had used his office while he was gone.

With a shake of his head, Hotch walked up the steps and to his office. He gripped the doorknob, opened it, and reached for the light switch.

"Surprise!" was heard when the lights came on in the office.

Hotch froze in the doorway. His entire team was in his office, smiles on their faces and applauding. Hotch's cheeks turned crimson, and he sat his briefcase down on the floor. One thing he hated was to have a fuss made over him. Even a small one.

Rossi stepped forward and enveloped his best friend in a bear hug, a huge smile on his face. He patted the younger man on the back.

"Welcome back, Aaron," Rossi said pulling back. "About time you got your lazy ass in here." The others, including Hotch, laughed.

JJ, Prentiss and Morgan stepped forward separately, each giving their boss a hug which he hesitantly returned. Both Prentiss and JJ also gave him a kiss on the cheek. When it came to Reid, the young man stepped forward, and hesitantly wrapped his arms around his boss as if not sure what to do. He knew his boss did not seek out contact. Hotch, sensing this, hugged Reid hoping to relax the man. The younger man's body soon relaxed against his. Garcia, on the other hand, hurried forward and wrapped her boss in a bone-crushing embrace, and pressed her lips to his cheek. Hotch had a bit of trouble breathing because of the embrace and hugged his tech analyst. He then struggled to free himself which did not go unnoticed.

"Baby Girl, let the man breath," Morgan chuckled. "He's liable to end up back in the hospital with broken ribs this time."

Garcia released Hotch and stepped back. "Right. Sorry, sir. I'm just so glad to have you back. I hope I didn't hurt you, because I wouldn't want to do that so soon after you just got out of the hospital. I mean…I wouldn't want to hurt you in any way, and if I did…"

Hotch held up a hand. "Garcia, it's okay. You didn't hurt me." The tech analyst let out a deep breath and smiled.

When he stepped further into his office, Hotch noticed the banner hanging from the bookcase behind his desk. It read: 'WELCOME BACK, HOTCH'. But it was what sat on a shelf of the bookcase that caught his eye. On a shelf beside a framed photo of Hotch and Jack, was a little troll with hot pink hair and a bright red dress.

"Betsy," Hotch remarked with shock. "But how…" He had completely forgotten about the little troll in his go bag.

"Blame me, Aaron," Rossi admitted. "Haley told me you said you wanted to bring Betsy to work with you when you got back. So I had Haley take the troll from your go bag and give it to me. I thought I'd surprise you as I figured you would forget."

Hotch chuckled. "Dave, I should have known. You always had a thing for the ladies. Even those with hot pink hair and big eyes." Everybody laughed.

Rossi smirked. "Yeah, but Betsy is more your kind of woman, Aaron." He reached for the little troll.

"Hands off, Rossi!" Hotch protested. "She belongs to me!"

"Take it easy, man," Morgan said with a smirk looking at his boss. "Hotch, when did you become a player?"

Hotch arched an eyebrow. "Me? When did you?"

Morgan feigned embarrassment. "I'm not a player."

"Uh huh," chimed in JJ, Prentiss and Garcia together as they exchanged looks.

"What are you sayin'?" asked Morgan looking at the women.

"Classic Narcissist," Prentiss admitted sarcastically.

"Definitely," JJ added.

Hotch began to feel badly for his subordinate and figured he'd better change the discussion.

"What's all this?" he asked, as his eyes fell on the food and beverages displayed on his desk.

"We wanted to celebrate you coming back," Garcia explained. "I guess I kinda overdid things. I mean, when I'm excited, I kinda go bonkers with my baking." The tech analyst noticed her boss pause, and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I'm sorry if I overdid it, sir," she added bowing her head.

The corners of Hotch's mouth curled upward. "You did just fine, Penelope," he said. "Thank you."

Garcia lifted her head and smiled looking into her boss's dark brown eyes. "Welcome back, sir."

"Thank you, Penelope, and thank you everybody. I didn't really expect any of this. And let me add that I am delighted to be back with the BAU. For a while, I wasn't sure I would ever see this place or any of you again. But thanks to all of you, I'm alive, and for that, I will be forever grateful to all of you. You are not only my friends, but you're my family as are Jack and Haley." Penelope wiped tears from her eyes by sliding one hand under her blue eyeglass frames; the others looked at their leader with smiles and moist eyes.

Hotch gestured to all the goodies Garcia had prepared. A smile appeared. "Now I suggest we all partake of these goodies Garcia prepared before they spoil."

Everybody grabbed a paper plate, plastic utensils, and began to put food on their plates, while Rossi and Morgan poured juice for everyone. Then everybody sat around and enjoyed the delicious food, and had a good time.

Sometime later, Hotch's desk had been cleared of the leftovers so he could get to work. He was now seated behind his desk reading reports before he signed off on them. He was so involved in what he was doing that he didn't notice someone walk into his office until he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat. He looked up and saw Rossi in the doorway, leaning against the door frame, hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans.

"Something I can do for you, Dave?"

Rossi stepped into the office without waiting for an invitation, and closed the door behind him. He sat in one of the two chairs facing Hotch's desk, and crossed his legs. He clasped his hands across his stomach.

"I didn't want to bring this up in front of everybody. But how you doing, Aaron? Really."

"I'm fine, thanks," Hotch replied.

Rossi nodded looking as if he was thinking about what he wanted to ask next.

"That's not what I mean, Aaron."

Hotch put down his pen, sensing where this conversation was heading. He clasped his hands on top of the open file in front of him. "If you want to know something specific, Dave, just ask me."

"How are things between you and Haley?"

Hotch's cheeks turned crimson. "They're okay," he replied softly.

"Just okay?" Rossi's eyebrows arched. He could see Aaron was embarrassed about discussing something so private and personal. "Talk to me."

Hotch looked at his friend. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

Rossi grinned. "Nope. You might as well tell me because I'll find out one way or the other and you know it."

Hotch let out a deep breath, and studied his friend's eyes. He could see worry and concern.

"It took some, uh…adjustments on our part," Hotch explained with an embarrassed expression. "But we found a new way to show our love for each other. I mean, yes, I got rid of the catheter. But the other thing hasn't changed or improved. But things couldn't be better between us."

Rossi smiled. "Good boy." He slowly got to his feet but maintained his focus on Hotch. "I'm very happy for you, Aaron. I really am. You deserve it. Especially after what you've been through, and how long it took to come back from it."

Hotch averted his eyes from Rossi, and looked at his own hands instead. "Thanks. It's been a year and I try not to let myself think about it anymore. I'm still hoping things improve. But if they don't, there's nothing I can do about it except move on and live my life as best I can."

Rossi nodded his understanding. "That's all any of us can do really," he added. He walked to the door and gripped the handle. "Care to join me for a drink later? My treat."

Hotch smiled. "You're buying, I'm drinking. Maybe we should invite the entire team?"

"Good idea. We can celebrate your recovery. You being able to return to the field. And you and Haley being together. I'll catch you later." He opened the door and left the office.

Now alone, Hotch thought about his friends and what had transpired during the past year, and how far he had come in his recovery. And how different things might have been if his team had been only a few minutes late.

You're a lucky man, Hotchner, he thought. You have close friends who love you. And a wife who loves you enough to stay with you despite everything. What more could a man ask for or want. He picked up his pen. But instead of returning to the open file in front of him, he gazed out of the venetian blinds at his team in the bullpen. He sat down the pen again, got up, and walked out of his office. As he walked along the catwalk, he paused midway and leaned against the railing, hands gripping the railing so tight his knuckles turned white.

"You okay, Aaron?" asked Rossi who approached and stood beside him, concerned. He had seen the pensive look on his friend's face. Hotch looked over at him. Then he studied the individual members of his team. Garcia was chatting with Morgan who laughed at whatever she had said. JJ and Prentiss were talking with Reid and seemed to be enjoying themselves. None of them had noticed their leader watching them.

Hotch didn't know if he'd ever be able to properly thank them for what they had done for him. They had searched for him, and refused to give up until they had found him. And afterward, they refused to let him wallow in pity because of a serious injury. All he knew was that he felt closer to them then he had before that. He turned back to Rossi and had a relaxed look on his face.

"Everything's fine, Dave," he said with a smile. "In fact, things couldn't be better."

The End