The rain is a steady downpour that soaks you, and you swear you can feel it in your bones. It feels like the world is crying with you, matching the ache in your chest as you stand under the dim streetlight, waiting. The sound of footsteps approaching through the puddles catches your attention, and you turn to see Aaron Hotchner, his figure silhouetted against the night. His usually composed expression seems to be gone, a painful grimace on his features.

You knew this moment was coming, but nothing could prepare you for the sight of him like this––looking so incredibly broken. He stops a few feet away, and you can see the lines of stress and pain etched into his features. He’s holding an umbrella, it’s hanging limply at his side. Like he can’t bring himself to care.

“Aaron…” You say, almost drowned out by the rain. You step forward, trying to close the distance between you, but he steps back. You swallow.

“Don’t,” he says, his voice strained. “I—I can’t do this anymore. Haley… she knows.”

The words hit you like a punch to the gut, knocking the air out of your lungs. You had always known this could happen––but hearing it, knowing that Haley, his wife, is aware, makes it real. Painfully real.

“She thinks… she thinks we’re getting divorced because of us,” He says, his voice cracking. “And maybe she’s right. Maybe if I had never—” He cuts himself off with a huff, rubbing his eyes with one hand.

“Aaron, please… don’t do this,” you plead, your voice trembling. “We can figure this out. We can—”

“No.” He shakes his head, his hair clinging to his forehead. “I can’t do that to her, to Jack. I can’t be the reason my family falls apart. I won’t.”

Your breath catches painfully. You’ve known from the beginning that he was a man of duty, of responsibility, and that his family would always come first. But knowing it doesn’t make it any easier.

“But baby, I don’t wanna say goodbye,” you whisper, the words slipping out before you can stop them. They hang in the air between you, a desperate plea.