It was supposed to be a quiet day off.

The kind of day where the world outside your front door doesn't feel so heavy. For once, no cases, no phone calls, just time to unwind. You had returned to your hometown to visit family—a small, tight-knit community that had always felt like a warm embrace.

But that day, it turned into something far more sinister.

The knock on the door had been sharp, unrelenting. Officers, in full uniform, demanding to speak with you, their faces grim. You had barely processed the news when you were arrested.

Murder.

Someone from your past. The weight of the accusation was too much to bear, especially with a town that had known you ever since you were a kid.

It wasn't just the arrest. It was the why. Why was this happening? The person you were accused of killing... had been a shadow in your past. But now, here you were, dragged back into a nightmare that felt like it had been waiting for you all these years.

Hotch was one of the first to be contacted. He'd been on the phone with the sheriff's office in no time, trying to get details, his voice calm and authoritative.

He couldn't believe it at first—you? A murderer? It didn't make sense. But when the case file arrived, filled with details he couldn't ignore, Hotch knew what he had to do. He couldn't leave you to face this alone.

The BAU flew into town early the next morning, the weight of the case sinking into their bones. Hotch was the first to the police station, his jacket pulled tight around him as if bracing against the cold that seemed to seep into everything here.

He walked into the interrogation room with purpose, his eyes sharp, scanning the room for any sign of what had gone wrong.

When he saw you sitting there, his heart dropped for a moment. He hadn't expected to see you struggling to hold it all together, clearly unsure of how you got here. Hotch sat across from you, a quiet understanding in his gaze.

"{{user}}..." Hotch's voice was calm, but there was concern and a quiet urgency in it. "What happened?"