It was sad, really. The two locals who were found dead had been in her classes all throughout high school and some of college. Albeit, she wasn’t on good terms with them— they were more outgoing and social while she was pushed around by those types in her school career, but it was still depressing to say the least.

She gnawed on her bottom lip as she made her way to her couch with the steaming mug at her fingertips. Looking at their pictures on the television made her stomach sink, so she turned it off.

Not even a second later, she heard her phone go off. Unknown Number. Now normally, Y/N wasn’t the type of girl to go around answering strange calls, but with her applying to several different jobs recently, she didn’t think twice about picking it up.

“Hello?”

There was the sound of breathing on the other end. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale.

“Hello?” She tried again, but to no avail, the breathing continued. Letting out a small sigh, she pinched the bridge of her nose. “Listen buddy, you’re about a whole area code off from the actual sex hotline, it’s an eight-hundred number.”

She hung up and put her phone down, but not even a moment later it rang again. “Hello”, she said in an exasperated sigh.

“Y/N.”

The voice she heard was the creepy fucking voice from Scream. Of course. Only one person in her life knew how the hell to freak her out, and that just so happened to be her ex.

“Oh my God, stop calling me. I have your number blocked for a reason.” Again, she abruptly hung up, but she didn’t even get to put the phone down before it started ringing.

Hitting the answer button to tell him just one more time to stop, she put the phone up to her ear when she heard the voice with a more convicted tone. “Don’t you dare hang up again.”

She was slightly stunned, but shook herself out of it. “This isn’t funny.”

“I’m not trying to be, sweetheart. I just have one question.”

“Jesus Christ,” she mumbled to herself, “what is it?”

“What’s your favorite scary movie?”

There was a slight pause on Y/N’s end as she rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Okay Ben, we broke up like eight months ago, this is getting kinda stalkerish.”

“Bzz”, the voice on the other end started, “wrong boy toy, it probably would’ve been him if he was still alive.”

A chill went down her spine. She took a moment to herself, calming her nerves before she made it towards the front door. “Leave me the hell alone.” Clicking the lock, she then went to every other door and window in her house, making sure those were closed and locked as well.

“But you’re so much fun to play with, Y/N.”

“Ben, I swear to God if this is you and you’re playing some sick joke, I will call the cops and get a restraining order on your ass.”

“How far do I have to go to prove this isn’t Ben?” The voice sounded angrier than before, causing Y/N to stop in her tracks.

“I- I don’t know”, she said in a soft whisper.

There was a pregnant pause on the other end before she heard the sadistic tone come through the speaker. “How about you turn around and find out.”

Y/N squeezed her eyes shut as silent tears slid down her cheeks. Slowly turning around, she started to open them, looking out the french doors that lead out to her patio.

The sight she saw made her drop the phone and gasp for air, letting out a strangled sob. She saw Ben. A very bloody and dead Ben sitting on the loveseat outside. Falling to her knees, she quickly hung up, and immediately called 911, getting any and all coherent thoughts out to the dispatcher.

—————

“Alright my spooky crime fighters, it’s that time of year.”

“The best time of year”, Spencer interjected, causing a small smile to appear on Penelope’s lips, but it quickly went away as she shook her head and handed out the files to everyone.

“Oh boy genius, I wish it was the best, but unfortunately Fall River has a prospecting serial killer on the loose.”

“‘Prospecting’”, Emily questioned, looking through the case file.

“Yes, yes, they aren’t classifying it as a serial killer because there have only been three murders and they aren’t too sure the last one was connected to the other two.”

“But the others definitely are connected”, Derek asked.

“Yes. Both Alicia Stone and Maxwell Brighton have approximately ten to fifteen stab wounds. The other murder, Benjamin Day, was also stabbed around that many times as well as having his throat slit.”

As Penelope clicks to the next slide of her presentation showing the pictures of the victims, Hotch tilts his head. “So why have they yet to conclude these are connected?”

“Benjamin was found in his ex-girlfriend’s backyard.”

“So she’s involved. Are they holding her as a suspect”, JJ asked, flipping through the file for the second time.

“She is, but not in the way you guys are thinking.” Spencer’s head whipped up, furrowing his eyebrows giving Garcia a questioning glance. “She received a sketchy phone call just moments before the body was found”, she continued, “in the police report she described it as ‘the taunting voice from Scream’.”

“The movie?”, Spencer asked, immediately receiving a head nod from Garcia. “If the same tone of voice was used for her as it was in the movie then we could assume more similarities will appear between the film and case. You said Benjamin was her ex, and in the opening scene of Scream the girl's boyfriend was dead outside her backyard.”

“Or maybe it was just a coincidence that they chose that voice modifier and it happened to be her ex?” Emily put the thought out in the open, receiving a head shake from Hotch.

“No, Reid’s right. The unsub is trying to reenact some sort of slasher fantasy. The voice and third victim are too similar to be passed off as coincidence. Garcia, tell the local police department we’ll help. Wheels up in thirty, it looks like we’re going to Massachusetts.”

They all nodded and got up, ready to disperse except for Spencer. He looked back at the file, reading for the third time when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Derek stood there, raising an eyebrow at him.

“You okay, Pretty Boy?”

Spencer gave a tight-lipped smile and shoved the file in his satchel, “yeah, I just hope for her case this does play out like the movie.” He saw the way Derek tilted his head in question as they made their way out of the conference room. “The main target was the final girl.”

Realization dawned upon Derek and he gave a slow nod before giving Spencer’s shoulder a firm shake and leaving the young genius to himself.

—————

There was a chill in the Falls River police department as Y/N sat at a table with a cup of steaming coffee in her hands. She’s been at the precinct since Ben’s body was found, feeling as though she had to look over her shoulder in her own home was the least appealing thing she could think of. And she wishes that was the worst of it all, but no, Detective Cooper told her she was going to be interviewed by “professionals”. She was going to have to retell that story for the third time in less than a week.

It wasn’t too long until she felt the detectives’ presence and when she turned her head, she saw what they were seeing. A group of about six agents walked in and made a beeline in her direction.

“I’m Agent Aaron Hotchner, the Unit Chief. You must be detectives Bradshaw and Cooper.”

“Yeah, I’m Vinny Bradshaw and this is Danny Cooper”, the older detective points at himself then the younger one next to him. His attention and pointed finger then went to Y/N. “And this is Y/N Y/L/N. She was the one who received the phone calls and saw… one of the victims.”

“Ms. Y/L/N we can assure you we’ll do everything we can to help you. These are agents Derek Morgan, Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi, and Dr. Spencer Reid. They’re the best of the best. We even have our tech analyst, Penelope Garcia, calling in to help.”

She gave a nod as she surveyed the group. The one he introduced as ‘Doctor’ was already looking at her intently. It was weird at first but also… comforting. She could tell he was determined. Determined to do what, she did not know, but she had a small feeling it was to keep her safe.

“Y/N is fine”, she said, clearing her throat, “just let me know what you need from me. I honestly don’t know how much help I—” She cut herself off hearing a voice calling her from afar, and when she looked past the suits, she couldn’t help but let a tiny smile filter on her lips.

“Oh thank God you’re okay. Y/N, I swear I honestly thought that bitch Courtney Sun from channel nine had gotten to you. She’s hounding me as if I know absolutely anything. She’s such a fucking—”

“Ahem.”

Y/N friend turns her head to Aaron Hotchner looking down at her, raising an eyebrow.

“Um, this is Alex Bryne, my friend. Lex, this is the FBI…” Y/N harshly whispered the end of her sentence, trying to get professionalism across to her friend.

Alex’s mouth made an “oh” shape and she nodded her head in understanding, quickly pursing her lips and facing the unit chief, giving him a dazzling smile. “You know how the press is. Vultures.”

“Trust me, we understand.” The blonde— Jennifer— responded, leading Alex into an even bigger grin.

“I like you guys. Anyway, I was just here making sure Y/N was safe. I’m gone one day for my brother’s wedding and shit hits the fan.” She rolls her eyes which causes Y/N to grin, but that grin quickly goes away once the woman introduced as Emily speaks up.

“So you have an alibi for last night but do you have one for the other two murders?”

Alex tilts her head and raises her eyebrows, “I take that back. I only like blondie over there. And once again, anyway, just give me the time and day and I most certainly have an alibi.”

“Alex is a law student. You’ll definitely find she was at the library or at home with her boyfriend.” Y/N gave the statement in a soft whisper, receiving a mouthed “thank you” from Alex.

“We just have to go through everyone”, the brunette defended.

“Emily, I think we actually determined how we’re going to pick out suspects.” The young doctor spoke with a blush, resulting in both Emily and Derek raising their brows at him.

“Reid’s right.” Derek says, crossing his arms and turning towards Alex, “we also need to talk to your friend… alone.”

Letting out a sigh, Alex gave him a nod. “If Agent Hot Stuff over here tells me to leave, I leave.” She turned to Y/N and gave her a tight hug before backing away. “Promise to call me as soon as you’re done.”

“I’ll call as soon as I’m out.”

She gives a tight smile before turning around and walking away, leaving Y/N to the two detectives and six agents.

There was a quiet moment before Aaron turned towards Cooper and Bradshaw, “Detective Bradshaw, can you take Rossi to the scene of Alicia Stone’s murder, and Detective Cooper could you take me and JJ to Maxwell’s? I’ll have Reid, Morgan, and Prentiss all stay back with Y/N.”

They all agreed with the plan, and Derek motioned for Y/N and the other two to follow him into the conference room, making her comfortable with discussing what had happened.

They all sat there for quite some time, giving Y/N the time and space to process everything. “Just give us anything you remember. The more the better, but we’re not going to push you.” She heard Derek say after about the twenty minute mark.

She let out a shaky breath, “Um, okay… I guess I was just watching the news and then I got called like, four times. The voice was one similar to the voice in the movie— Scream— and he just kept… playing with me, saying stuff from the movie and he didn’t want me to hang up until I saw… Ben.” She closed her eyes, trying to compose herself.

“What exactly was he saying that also happened to be in the movie?”

Y/N furrowed her brows, but answered Dr. Reid. “He said the ‘what’s your favorite scary movie?’ line. Nothing else other than him mimicking the body on my patio and the voice was similar”. She paused for a moment, biting her bottom lip before giving all of her attention to Spencer, “what does this have anything to do with—”

“Y/N, hey! I heard what happened. I hope you’re alright.”

All eyes from the three agents immediately went to the man who just walked in, making Y/N close her eyes, letting out a soft sigh.

“Hey, Joey… I’ve been better.”

“Who are you?” she looked over at Derek after he directed his question to Joey.

“Joey Stewart. I’m Y/N’s… friend.”

The way he said “friend” made something in Spencer’s stomach turn. He just met the girl and yeah, she was beautiful, and she was frightened, and some part of him wanted to have that hero complex around her, but the look of this guy… well, Spencer thought he looked too sleazy. And he was feeling this way before he looked over at Y/N to catch her reaction, but once he saw the uncomfortable shifting coming from her, he was going to do anything and everything in his power to make that go away.

“Well,” Spencer started, getting up to walk by the conference room door, “we had to send her other friend away so we could do some case work, so we’ll have to ask you to leave as well.”

The man raised his eyebrows and put his hands up, “okay, okay, whatever you say.” He then turned his attention back to Y/N, “I‘ll be in Danny’s office. Stop by before you leave.”

Once he was gone, Y/N let out the loudest sigh of relief she has ever heard. Yeah, Joey was a… friend. A friend she didn’t like to talk about.

“We should probably ask who he is and what your relation to him is.”

Once Agent Prentiss made the statement, Y/N winced, not wanting to get into it… but here she was!

“He is… a friend. He’s more of a friend to Danny— they were joined at the hip in high school, but we… hang out once in a while.” The term “hang out” made Derek chuckle, and she shot daggers at him with her eyes. “Listen, after my breakup I was pretty lonely and I wanted to keep any dignity I had left, so instead of going back to my ex… you can probably see where I’m going with this.”

“So you have sex with him on a regular basis?”

The doctor’s question made everyone’s eyes bulge, and after a moment, Y/N collected herself and let out a sigh, folding her hands on top of the table. “Are you slut shaming me Dr. Reid?”

The apple of his cheeks turned all sorts of red, and he immediately started to backtrack. “What? No- no, I- I was just asking a question because- because he could be a potential suspect and-“

“I think what the good doctor here is saying is that we just want to be able to rule people out when it comes to your case.”

Y/N gave a long and hard look at Derek before moving her gaze to Spencer.

“Yes, yes! And in the movie Billy Loomis was the main protagonist and he happened to be dating Sidney Prescott, so it could be—”

“Okay, stop. What do you mean ‘in the movie’? I thought you guys were trying to get to the bottom of this case.”

Derek and Emily’s eyes shift to Spencer, making him the one to explain his thought process. “Benjamin’s death was too similar to the opening scene in Scream for us to toss it out, plus with the voice modifier and the things he was saying to you… it’s a reasonable assumption.”

“My life isn’t some fucked up psycho slasher film! This is reality. Not a movie.”

“That’s what Sidney said in the movie—”

“I know what she said in the damn movie.”

“Alright, let’s calm down.” Y/N’s angry eyes flashed at Hotch the moment he walked through the door with the two other agents.

“I’ll calm down when your team starts taking this seriously. Again, this is real life, not a movie. Stop treating me as though I’m some babysitter waiting to be targeted by Michael Myers!”

“But you are targeted by someone who has been using Scream almost as a guide.”

“Okay, alright, I wasn’t going to say it, but I don’t need someone who looks like they work at— at Vest Buy to tell me my life is suddenly utter shit, because I know. What I need is for some FBI agents to do their damn jobs and catch the son of a bitch who’s killed God knows how many people by now.”

“I’m tired of being nice.” Derek stood up and crossed his arms, “if you don’t cooperate with us, we can technically charge you with obstruction of justice.” Y/N’s eyes widened a bit and sat back in the chair as he continued. “Also, this ‘Vest Buy’ worker will most likely be the agent saving your ass when you get yourself into trouble, so don’t think for a second that your best interest isn’t in his mind, because as crazy as this plan sounds, it’s the one that makes the most sense when looking at the big picture.”

Y/N was speechless. Like, actually speechless… and embarrassed. Never as a grown adult woman had someone talk to her like that. Like she was a child. Standing up, she cleared her throat and wiped and sweat that began pooling on her palms. “I’m going to… take a moment…”

The conference room was silent before Derek spoke again. “It needed to be said.”

“We know, Morgan.” JJ gave his shoulder a soft pat. It was obvious that he felt bad, but he was right. And the longer they took to get the small details, the longer it would take to get the unsub.

Spencer pursed his lips as more silence spread throughout the room, and he looked out the small window down the hall, seeing Y/N sitting on a bench. “I’m going to talk to her.”

“Spence, are you sure?”

He turned to Hotch, eyes set in determination. “I’m going.”

No one stopped him as he walked out the door and went straight to Y/N. When she felt his presence she slightly looked up before looking back at her hands.

“Are you going to treat me like a petulant child too?”

“I don’t know, are you going to act like one?”

The corner of her mouth lifted upwards, “touché.”

A beat passed and Spencer took the opportunity to talk. “How are you holding up?”

“You mean despite the fact that my favorite movie is now ruined because I’m living it? Oh, just peachy!” He stared at her, deadpan, and she bit the inside of her cheek, “sorry, being a bitch is a defensive mechanism.”

“I wouldn’t say you’re a… bitch”, the last word was hushed, him being uncomfortable with the term.

“I literally called you a worker at Vest Buy.”

“I’ve heard worse.”

“I-” she takes a second to look at him, blinking twice. “I thought that was the bitchiest thing I’ve said in years, and you’ve heard worse than that? Jesus Christ.”

He let out a sad chuckle, “I have… a lot of baggage.”

“Yeah, I… I don’t know how far you guys dug into police reports but—”

“We know… about your dad and what he did… to your mom.”

“I’m sorry.” She turned her head to see his questioning gaze, “I’m sorry because my life really isn’t much different from the movie right now and I totally didn’t trust you. You’re the professional, you know best. So, I’m sorry.”

Spencer locked his gaze with hers. “I’m sorry we bombarded you with this. We do this for a living and you don’t. We should’ve warmed you up to the idea.”

They share a smile and she waits a moment before getting up from the bench. “Alright, Doctor. Let’s stop apologizing to each other and try to get my life out of this shitty horror film.”

“You can, um, you can call me Spencer”, he said, standing up next to her and then walking back to the conference room.

“Spencer it is.” She gave one last smile before stopping in front of Derek, giving him an apologetic look. “I apologize for my behavior. I’m not meaning to impede on a federal investigation, I’m just having trouble dealing with all of… this.”

He gives her a nod and sits down, “no need to apologize. We’re just trying to keep you safe.”

“And I appreciate that. Really.” She looks around the room at all the agents giving them each a smile.

“Well it’s getting late and we can assume you haven’t slept much lately”, Hotch states, giving her a sympathetic look. “Most of us have come to the conclusion that the unsub won’t know that you’re home. Reid said to look at the movie and while you were taking a moment we’ve come to the conclusion that he’ll most likely assume you’re with a friend. It’s safest for you to be home right now.”

Y/N’s eyes flash to Spencer’s as soon as Aaron is done talking. “You’re sure?”

“It makes the most sense.”

Then that was final. She was going home tonight. Y/N gave them all a quick “thank you” before she grabbed her coat from the back of a chair and walked out of the department, but she stopped when she heard someone running behind her.

Spencer was there— out of breath, but with a small card in his hand. “This, uh, this is my number. In case you need to talk or if anything about the case comes up. Just call.”

She nodded her head and watched him give a thin smile before turning on his heel and making his way back into the building. She immediately pulled out her phone and added his number… straight to the top of her contacts.

—————

“I don’t know why you just don’t call one of those hot FBI agents to come over. I’m sure you’d fall into a coma after one of them diddled your biscuits.”

“‘Diddle my biscuits’? Alex, I just need some company, not, you know… company.”

Last night was… hard for Y/N. She wanted to go to bed as soon as she got home, but she got about three hours of sleep at most. Every little sound kept her up; the cars outside her window, the teenagers out on the street, even the random noises she’s heard in her house for years. It was all keeping her up. So sue her, she wanted her best friend around to make it less scary.

“Okay, I’ll be there in ten minutes. Maybe I’ll be able to bore you to sleep with all of the law shit I learned today.”

Y/N let out a cackle, “I’ll be waiting. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

She hung up the phone and leaned back against the couch, focusing on the TV as she waited. She knew Alex was never punctual, but when it was twenty minutes past the time she said she would be there, Y/N started to worry.

Getting up, she made her way to the kitchen with her phone, grabbing a glass and pouring some water into it. She was just about to press Alex’s contact when her phone started ringing. The same title of Unknown Number appeared at the top, and she quickly declined, only for it to reappear not even a minute later.

He wasn’t going to stop.

Taking a deep breath, she accepted the call. “What to hell do you want?”

“Is that how you answer the phone for everyone, Y/N?”

“Leave me alone.” She was frustrated. So frustrated.

“Why, so you can go back to your bitch best friend, or maybe your knight in shining bullet proof vest?”

“Just leave me the hell alone.” She dumped her water out and put the cup in her dishwasher. She was sick and tired of being in this narrative— the one where she was someone’s mouse.

“Who thought it was a good idea to have you back in the house where you saw your dead ex?”

All of her movements paused for a moment. “How do you know I’m home?”

There was a sickening silence before the sinister voice broke through her phone, “because I’m outside looking at the kitchen light on.”

She pulled the phone away from her ear and hung up, shaking thumbs immediately going to her first contact.

“Dr. Spencer Reid.”

“Could you please come and get me?” Her voice quivered over the line as she went around and locked all of the doors.

“Y/N, what’s wrong?” There was urgency in Spencer’s voice, and she could hear the faint sound of him talking to people in the background before there was the sound of him moving around.

“The— the uh, the guy, killer, unsub, whatever the hell you guys call him— he called. He— he said he’s outside and… and I don’t know what to do.”

“Stay in the house.” His words were direct, letting them out in a harsh whisper.

“What if… he gets in?” Tears were streaming down her face as she took in her surroundings, looking at any and every potential weapon.

“Then you find your way out as quick as possible, okay”, the sound of a car door shut in the background, and she heard the sirens going off, “run as far away and try to let me know where you are if you need to.”

“Okay”, her response was soft.

“We’re about five minutes away, just stay on the phone with me.”

“Yeah, yeah. I just— don’t… don’t know…” she began to trail off when she heard a light creak coming from behind her, and before she knew it, her hall closet door whipped open and someone wearing that fucking movie costume came straight towards her with a knife.

Letting out a scream, she dropped her phone, hearing a faint “Y/N, are you okay!” coming from the other end as she ran and skid down the hall.

The man behind her was catching up, fast, and she made her way up the stairs. Why was she going upstairs? She has no fucking clue. There were only two ways out of the house and he chased her in the opposite direction.

She ran into her room, barely shutting and locking the door on the masked man. The jiggle of the doorknob was throwing her off when she was trying to find a way from getting herself murdered. It took her a moment, but once she saw her window she went to open it.

She took a tentative step onto the roof and scanned the area for any safe landing. There was nothing to land on other than her old car that had been covered. That was going to hurt like a bitch.

She couldn’t do it. She had to find another way, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t because she felt the sickening hand grab her arm and yank her back towards the window.

With all her power and coordination, she jammed her other elbow back into his face, and he let go, causing her to fly forward. It looks like she actually was going to land on the car.

Landing on her back, the wind was knocked out of her, but with whatever adrenaline had been coursing through her body, she slid off the vehicle and began to run around front, hoping Spencer and the rest of them would be there.

When she finally made it toward the front, she suddenly wished she ran the opposite way. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see, couldn’t feel anything as she tried to process what was in front of her. Alex. Alex’s lifeless body laying there drenched in blood. Y/N wanted to cry, scream, throw up, all of it. She wanted to be away from the fucking killer that was probably exiting her house.

She had only been brought out her thoughts as she heard the sirens getting louder, and suddenly she saw Spencer flying out of the passenger seat of the SUV. She didn’t know her body was making its way over to him until it collided with his. Until his arms were tight around her.

“She’s dead. Oh, God, she’s dead.”

“Y/N, hey, Y/N, look at me.” Spencer brought his hands to her cheeks, bringing her head up. “Where‘s the unsub?”

“He- he was in the house, but she’s dead.” Loud sobs had left her body, and tears clouded her eyes.

“Who, Y/N?”

“A- Alex.” She buried her head in his chest, letting everything out. It turns out her house wasn’t safe for her by herself.

—————

Once again, the police department was chilly. But this time, it felt more like an arctic breeze. It reminded Y/N of what someone may describe as a morgue… where Alex was right now.

She only spoke to those one the BAU team. She only rehashed the smallest details to Spencer. She didn’t want to talk to anyone else.

“I got you a tea. I wasn’t sure if you liked anything in it so it’s just black.”

Y/N looked up at a disheveled Spencer. “Thanks.”

He took a seat next to her and let her decide whether or not they had a conversation. He wasn’t expecting anything from her, so he was surprised when she spoke so soon.

“She was my best friend. My only real friend.“

“I’m sorry, Y/N.”

She gave him a thankful smile. “I know you are… but I don’t want you to be.” He was going to question what she meant, but she cut him off before he had the chance to speak. “You’re sorry that your theory was incorrect. About whoever this is assuming I’m with a friend.” She watched his somber nod. “Well I think you were right. I think he saw that I wasn’t with Alex and he… killed her, then got to me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I didn’t… I didn’t hear anything outside. I didn’t hear her scream or even see her car.”

Realization dawned on Spencer and his face turned somber. He went to say more but Hotch walked up to them.

“We’re going to find a safe house for you to stay at. Give us a couple of hours and then we can—”

“No!”

“No?” Hotch questioned.

“No, I- I feel safer at my house.”

He gave a slow nod and he looked at Reid. “She’ll need someone with her twenty-four seven. Are you up for it Reid?”

Spencer’s head nodded immediately. “Yeah- yeah, I can do it.”

Aaron looked back at Y/N, “and you’ll have either Cooper or Bradshaw sitting outside at all times as well.” She also nodded her head. “But you can’t stay there tonight. They’re still processing everything. Tomorrow you’re free to be there.”

“Thank you, thank you.”

—————

The prior night was long. She stayed in the precinct and couldn’t sleep because of the thoughts of all of the people who have died. And despite the horrid memories she would associate with this house, she wanted to stay here for maybe one last time.

And it wasn’t like she was alone. She was with Spencer. On her couch. Watching TV. They started out on opposite ends of the couch, but as the night went on, they scooted closer to each other. She doesn’t know if it’s the proximity or the feeling that he just gets her, but she finds herself starting to talk about the one thing on her mind since this whole ordeal started.

“I think I’m going to sell this place once the case is closed.” She saw his head turn in her peripheral, so she continued. “I just… can’t live in the same house where I saw my best friend…dead.”

“Why’d you want to stay here instead of the safe house?”

She tucked her legs criss-cross and faced him. “This was the first house I moved into after college. The first place I made my own after my dad… murdered my mother.”

He cleared his throat and looked into her eyes, “I know you said that that makes you more relatable to the movie, but it doesn’t. You don’t have to place trauma in a category for it to be valid. Trust me, I would know.”

Y/N scooted closer to him, bumping their knees together, “how do you do it? How do you go out there every day and see the shit you see and just, move on, I guess.”

He bit the side of his lip and placed his elbow on the back of the couch, leaning on his palm. “You don’t. You never forget the victims or the people who barely survived. I wish I could move on. Would bring me a lot less nightmares.”

“Do you ever wish your life was different?” Their faces were closer now, and they could feel each other’s breath on their cheeks.

“Everyday. But then I remember that I also save people. Whether it be a potential victim or someone who needs real help before they hurt more… I save them, and that itself is rewarding.”

They were practically on top of each other at this point, and not a second later Spencer’s hand found its way to Y/N’s cheek. She leaned into it, and got closer to him, ghosting her lips over his until they both took the plunge, surging for each other’s lips like they were coming up from a lake for oxygen.

The kiss was heated, passionate, and sloppy. It was the perfect kiss for someone you barely knew. And as it progressed, Y/N found herself carding her fingers through his hair slightly tugging until she heard a light moan elicit from the back of his throat.

They found a rhythm with each other, and Spencer’s hands made their way to her waist, and they squeezed, and squeezed, and after another second or two… or three, he lightly pushed her off, pressing his forehead to hers.

“We were… It was- it had to stop.”

Catching her breath, she gave an understanding nod against his head. “No, yeah, you’re right. I’m sorry if I crossed any boundaries and if you don’t want to—”

“No! No, I wanted you to… cross those boundaries. It’s just, I’m on your case right now and it’s—”

“Unprofessional.” She finished his sentence and they both laughed, taking in the moment, but it was quickly swept away when the shrill of a ringtone went through the room.

Y/N tensed immediately, but relaxed when she saw it was Spencer’s phone. Not hers. She watched him answer it and a thousand emotions crossed his face. After about two minutes, he hung up after saying “I’ll be there as soon as possible.”

“What’s wrong?”

He hesitated before looking at the pleading look on her face, “um, Detective Bradshaw was found dead. Ten to Fifteen stab wounds.”

“Oh, God.”

“I, um, I have to go, but Detective Cooper is sitting outside right now. Hotch doesn’t want to tell him right now so he’s sending me instead of him.”

“No, no, that makes sense. Go. I’ll call if I need anything.”

He did his signature thin smile before leaning forward and placing a kiss on her forehead and leaving.

It was quiet in the house without him, even with the TV on, but she was startled when she heard a light knock on her front door.

Standing up, she slowly walked up to the main entrance, looking out at the peephole and then letting out a sigh of relief. She opened the door and gave the man in front of her a small smile.

“Hey, Detective Cooper.”

“Y/N, we went to high school together. You can call me Danny.”

She let out a small laugh and shook her head, opening the door wider so he could walk in. “Sorry, just trying to be professional.”

“Like I said, old friends.”

“I wouldn’t say friends.”

Y/N turned off the TV and made her way upstairs, having Danny follow her.

“Well then what did you call us?”

Going into her room, she pulled out some pajamas and threw them on her bed before leaning against her dresser. “I don’t know… we never really talked or anything.”

He scoffed, shaking his head. “I worshiped the ground you walked on, Y/N. Hell, I wanted to be more than friends.”

“Danny…” She looked down at the ground and he took a small step forward.

“How about after the case, we go out for a drink. Since we weren't friends in high school, we should be now.”

“Danny, I don’t know,” she brought her head back up to see him, but her eyes went wide as she looked behind him. “Danny, behind you!”

He furrowed his eyebrows and turned around, right into the masked stranger’s knife. This is not fucking happening right now.

The unsub moved away from Danny as his body fell and made a beeline for Y/N, but tripped as she knocked over her bedside table right in front of him, giving her room to run out and down the stairs.

She ran to her dining room and heard the heavy sounds of his feet hitting the ground behind her, and she made a split second decision to run into the kitchen, making her way back to the front door.

When she opened it, she stopped short though, coming face to face with Joey.

“Y/N, there you are! I was wondering how you’ve been holding up.”

Her eyes immediately flickered to left eye— the black eye. Her mind flashed to when she elbowed whoever was chasing her in the face. They would probably have a black eye.

Backing away a little she shook her head and tears began to pool at her eyes. “No, no, fuck you, Joey.” She slammed the door and turned around, almost right into Danny’s bloodied arms. “You’re- you’re alive?”

“Yeah”, he coughed for a second, hand going to his gun, “who was out there?”

“Jo- Joey. He’s out there and he has a black eye and I- Danny I elbowed the bastard in the face when he tried to kill me two nights ago.”

“Okay, okay, just… stay behind me.”

She did as told, and when he opened the door, he didn’t shoot. He didn’t do anything. He just… let Joey walk in?

Y/N backed away more, inching her way towards her kitchen and Danny turned around, now standing up straight with the widest grin on his lips.

“What quote did they use in the movie, Y/N? ‘We all go a little mad sometimes’?”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” She turned in her heel and started running towards her kitchen, and before she could reach any sort of door or window, Joey stopped her and pushed her against the counter, holding her there until Danny brought his gun up to her, pinning her there.

“Don’t run, Y/N.”

Joey laughed as he backed away, “Yeah”, he pulled out a small box from his pocket and brought it to his mouth, “don’t run, Y/N.”

She looked at Danny in shock, shaking her head. “You- you were stabbed, I-”

“Babe, don’t you remember the movie at all? Corn syrup.”

She looked between the two men as tears went down her cheeks, “what the hell do you want from me?”

“Why, your attention, of course.”

Joey laughed as he paced the floor, “yeah, I always had a thing for you, Y/N, I was just the lucky one who could get in your pants.”

“Yeah, yeah, lucky bastard.” Danny shook his head and rolled his eyes. “I was just… so mad at you for never paying attention to me. Thought those killings would get your attention. Joey here decided to be a good pal and help out.”

“But you’re going to kill me?”

“Oh course we are!” Joey threw his hands up in the air in frustration. “I swear, women are oblivious.”

“I wanted to make it just like your favorite movie, Y/N. Wanted it to be just like it.”

Y/N was so tired of this shit.

“What, you want me to say the fucking line, Danny? ‘No, please don’t kill me Mr. Ghostface, I want to be in the sequel.’ Is that what you wanted you fucking sociopath?”

“Y/N, oh Y/N. Watch who you’re calling the sociopath here. I’m not the one who watched so many people in my life die and then hopped into bed with the nearest Fed.”

Y/N backed more into the counter as he shoved the gun closer to her. “I didn’t hop into bed with him.”

“…but you wanted to.” The smirk he wore seemed to get wider and wider by the second.

“Just kill me.”

“You see we would,” Her eyes flickered over to Joey as he went over to the closet, “but we want you to see him die first.”

Y/N let in a sharp inhale. Spencer was there— all bruised up with duct tape on his mouth and hands. “Spencer!” She went to rush towards him, but Danny pushed her back into the counter.

“Not so fast. Here’s what’s gonna happen, we’re going to kill your little boyfriend here and then rough each other up enough to look like we tried to stop you, then, we kill you.”

“Everyone will think Little Miss Y/N went all Norman Bates, your split personality making you seem normal but you’re the psychotic murderer”, Joey said, piggybacking off of Danny.

“They’re all FBI profilers, they’d know if I had a split personality.”

“Fine,” he spits back, “then they’ll think you pulled a Billy Loomis. It is your favorite movie after all.”

“You sick fucks.”

She went to say more, but the sound of a car door slamming caused all of them to pause for a moment. Danny and Joey gave each other a look before walking towards the door, but coming back a second later.

“Okay, we don’t have much time so we’ll start with us first and then shoot them.” Danny turned towards Joey and grabbed the knife, throwing the gun on the counter across from them. It was so close to Y/N, yet so far. “You ready?”

Joey put his arms out ready for impact, “hell yeah baby!” The first stab towards him made Y/N shriek, and the second made her look away. “Okay… your turn.” She could hear the shallow breaths coming from Joey, and when she looked back over, she saw him weakly holding the knife.

They continued to go back and forth, stabbing each other until they had about five wounds each, but during that time she heard a small creak in the floorboard, and looking around the two bloodied men she saw Agent Prentiss sneaking up behind them.

And although Emily was as quiet as she could be, Danny stiffened his body before turning to face her. She immediately cocked her gun, but before she could say anything, Danny elbowed her arm, nudging it upwards and causing her to pull the trigger, the bullet hitting a mirror on the other side of the room.

Her gun fell to the ground and Danny tackled her, both reaching for the gun all while Joey was behind Spencer, coughing up blood. “Danny, I’m not feeling too hot.”

Y/N took tentative steps over to where Danny’s gun was, and as soon as she grabbed it, she ran back to her original spot just as Danny took Emily’s gun and gun-butted her, knocking her out.

He got off the floor as quick as he could and made his way back over towards the kitchen. Joey was on the floor by Spencer, letting out soft wheezes.

“Get the fuck up.” Danny’s foot nudged Joey’s side as he clutched onto it.

“I… can’t. You stabbed a lot deeper than we planned, Bud.” Joey sat up the most he could, and nodded his head towards Y/N. “Go shoot them so we can get fucking hospitalized already.”

Giving a slight roll of his eyes and a huff, Danny complied, going over to where he set the gun earlier, only… it wasn’t there.

“You bitch”, he gritted through his teeth, taking long steps towards Y/N.

She pulled out the gun from behind her back and placed her finger on the trigger. “What? This wasn’t your favorite part of the movie, Danny? The final girl getting her big moment?” He went to turn around and grab the gun that laid on the ground behind him, but she wasn’t going to let that happen. “Reach for it and I swear I’ll shoot.”

He put his hands up in surrender, “fine, fine. But do understand you killing me makes you just as much of a murder.”

“This is self defense.”

“And who’s to say all of mine weren’t?” He gave a little cough, blood dribbling down his chin as he continued. “You know, Bradshaw had a suspicion it was me, and was about to pull his gun on me. I was just… defending myself.”

“And all the other victims? Everyone else you murdered?”

“Well Joey‘s not innocent in all of this, you know.” He had the audacity to look at her with wide eyes, shocked that he was getting all the blame.

“Give up, Danny.” For a split second, Y/N thought her words worked. His arms went down and he left out a heavy sigh (she knew it was getting harder for him to breathe), but what she didn’t expect to see was a knife in his hand. And next thing she knew he was charging at her, knife held high as though he was going to puncture her.

But that never happened. Instead, she heard not one, not two, but three gunshots ring out. She didn’t even realize she fired the gun until his body dropped.

Everything felt frozen until her eyes locked with Spencer’s, and she threw the gun off to the side, making her way over to him.

Taking the duct tape off of his hands and mouth, Y/N could see Joey’s lifeless body laying not even three feet away from them, but she didn’t care. She got Spencer free and his arms immediately wrapped around her body.

“You’re okay, God, you’re okay.” Y/N sobbed into his shoulder as he ran his hand up and down her back.

“How- how did they get you”, she asked, pulling away from his embrace slightly.

“When I was walking out— I didn’t even make it to my car. Cooper and Joey ambushed me.”

“Jesus Christ. I-”

Y/N was interrupted by the sound of someone groaning, and when she and Spencer looked over, they saw Emily sitting up, rubbing where the gun had hit her head.

“Are they dead?”

Spencer let out a huff, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, Em. They’re dead.”

“Okay, okay.” Emily got up and kicked the knife away from Danny’s hand. Just in case. And then she walked over to Joey’s body, double checking his pulse. “The other’s are on their way. EMTs should be coming too. I was in the area when Hotch called and said you never made it back to the station so I came up here alone.”

Y/N nodded her head. More help was on the way. She was going to be okay. Spencer was going to be okay. They were going to be okay.

—————

She was sitting in the back of an ambulance being tended to when she saw Spencer walk up to her, asking the medics to give them a moment.

Neither one of them said anything for a while, soaking in the silence before Y/N broke it.

“You know, it’s funny… Derek said you were probably going to be the one to save my ass, but here we are… after I saved yours.”

Spencer let out a soft snicker, holding out his hand for her to take. “Well thank you for that. For… saving my ass.”

After both had quietly chuckled, they let a silence pass between them before Y/N squeezed his hand.

“Hey Spencer?” She watched his head turn up to meet her eyes and continued, “when you uh… when you go back home, do you think I can still use that number of yours?”

Red tinted his cheeks as he gave a soft nod. “Yeah, yeah, and um, feel free to call or text any time. I don’t, uh, usually text, but I can… for you.” It seemed as though his cheeks were burning even more before he cleared his throat and started speaking again. “And do you- do you think we could pick up… where we left off?”

It took her a minute to fully understand what he was referring to, but once she got it, she placed her hand under his chin and pushed his head up, bringing his lips closer to hers until they fully touched.

They stayed there— kissing— for maybe a minute or two, and once they pulled away, Y/N rested her forehead on his. “That was to hold you over until we really find the time to catch up.”

And in that moment, despite the wear and tear their bodies obviously took, neither one of them could be happier. Something new was starting her, something good, and Y/N would never admit it, but right here, right now with Spencer, felt like a movie. It was all one big slasher film with the happy ending. And in her mind, there was no room for a sequel. No loose ends, no big plot twist. Just her, and Spencer, and the end to the nightmare these last couple of days have been.

permanent tag list: @ssa-m-187 @openheart12 @boxofsparklingmuses @averyhotchner @sadqrose @hey-there-angels @muffin-cup @imhreid @spenxerslut @cal-ifornication @altsvu @reidingmelodies @madswonders @luvofyourlifeliv @spencers-dria @reidyoulikeabook @coffeeandendlesswords @alltooreid @laurakirsten0502 @reblogsoffanfics @spencerreid9

spencer x reid tag: @goose-eats-god

timothée came in, looking like he hadn't slept for a second, sat in the empty seat beside you, proceeded to chug an extra large coffee but crash immediately after

so he's just sleeping. right there. in the middle of the large and dim lecture hall.

and he's not your friend, nor have you ever engaged in a conversation

but hey, you're not an ass and this kids clearly tired so instead of waking him up you print out two copies of the notes

and once he wakes up at the end of the lecture you give it to him

he thanks you, obviously, but feels kinda shitty you felt obligated to do that

which you reassured was no problem, and that you really didn't mind at all

he never caught your name before you left :( sad boi

he's also very embarrassed because you're really pretty and smart. did he snore??? or drool????

he never really noticed how much your paths crossed until after then

you work at the cafe he goes to most mornings, he works at the bookstore you often come to in the evenings

he thinks he's slick but the boy finds stupid little ways to see you. he won't admit it, but come on,

you know there's no way in hell he actually consumes the amount of coffee he buys from you in a day

anyways you slowly become better friends over time in dumb n small ways

like once the professor went on a long ass ramble about some boring topic you didn't care about so you opened another tab on your laptop to netflix, and gave him an earbud

or when he wrote his phone number on the receipt of a book you bought

so of course you texted but were oddly nervous

"hi" you said

"hi :)" he said

the rest is basically history

you have drawers full of eachothers clothes at the others dorm in case you sleep over

you find yourself picking his sweaters out of that drawer far more than your own closet

he doesn't mind

finds it adorable quite frankly

type to get mad at you for staying up too late when he's literally the one who's waking up wayyyy later in the morning

such a hypocrite

you're technically not supposed to have boys in your dorm but you always manage to find a way ;)

he meets your parents at christmas holidays

they fake shocked expressions for days

but they love him, none the less

going to parties together. most the time you just end up on the patio talking about random shit and sipping on a drink but still

it's one good mf time

hand holding as you walk across campus

likes to listen to you talk about your degree and your future (loves when you talk about him being in said figure as though it's a given)

thankful as hell for his own irresponsibility because if he hadn't fell asleep you may have never started talking

studying and giving him a kiss everytime he get a question right

you usually end up cuddling rather than studying anyways

clichéiknowbutidontcareatthispoint