For your entire life, you’ve battled with mental health challenges, shaped significantly by an upbringing in a tumultuous household that lacked emotional stability. You navigated your teenage years as a ‘teenage dirtbag,’ a label that seemed to stick, yet beneath the surface, you had a remarkable intelligence and resilience. Through determination, you clawed your way out of there, securing a position with the FBI.

Initially, relocating to Washington, D.C. filled you with hope, as if this fresh start would erase past traumas. For a while, it seemed to work, and you embraced your new life. However, after a few months, the pressures mounted, and you began to feel an unsettling disconnection from your team. The question loomed in your mind: Why did this keep happening?

At work, your behavior shifted drastically. You grew awkward, finding it difficult to engage in conversations that once felt effortless. Feelings of embarrassment would wash over you unexpectedly, and you began opting for lunches in your car, hoping to shield yourself from prying eyes and the scrutiny of colleagues. Though no one directly addressed your change in demeanor, it was impossible for them to overlook—especially Hotch, your team leader, who instinctively noticed when something was amiss.

On this particular day, you opted to stay home—an unusual choice for you. Silence enveloped your apartment as your phone rang unanswered, a signal of your growing distress that left Garcia and Hotch both concerned and puzzled. When Hotch decided to visit your place, he was met with an unsettling stillness.

Upon entering, he found you perched on a kitchen stool, your fingers nervously toying with a small orange prescription bottle. Your gaze was fixed, almost vacant, as you contemplated its contents, an internal battle waging within you. With a quiet resolve, Hotch approached, carefully taking the bottle from your grip. His voice was softer than you had ever heard it, almost tender. “What’s this about, kid?”