(Y/N) smiled and left the bag on her desk. Spencer stared, curious and excited to know she shared that interest. Not that he didn’t know, she had told her five months earlier, over lunch. Spencer could tell the exact time and date of that day. That been the first time they had shared a meal ‘cos the rest of the team was in a meeting, and they were basically alone at the bullpen. After eating, (Y/N) suggested they’d get something sweet at the closest bakery and maybe also a coffee. To Spencer, that was pretty much their first date.

- “So, (Y/N), what are you going to do for Halloween?”- Spencer asked her as they walked to the subway after work. It had been a slow paperwork day, no case that took them outside the city.

- “I don’t know. I haven’t planned anything yet”- (Y/N) confessed and smiled at her friend- “Do you have any plan?”

- “No, nothing.”- he answered, mostly whispering.

- “What do you usually do that day?”

- “Not much. It depends. Last year I went to Edgar Allan Poe Shadow Puppet Theater.”- Spencer confessed, and for a moment, he got ready for the jokes and the teasing. That was, after all, the usual response to his planes.

- “You had a date?”- (Y/N) asked, intrigued.

- “No”- Spencer chuckled and blushed as he turned to (Y/N) and shook his head- “I went all by myself.”

- “I love horror movies. Last year I went to a reenactment of the 19th-century Phantasmagoria all by myself. None of my friends wanted to go with me.”

Spencer gasped. He had thought about going to that event but ended up deciding on the puppet show. Maybe they would have met. Maybe they could have dated. Maybe they could be more than just coworkers.

But none of that had happened, and there was no use in overthinking it. If only that were how Spencer’s brain worked. But it wasn’t. That night, he rolled in his bed, imagining all the things that could be different in his life if only he had picked phantasmagoria” instead of puppet theater.

- “Be real”- he cursed to himself and covered his head with a pillow- “Even if you had seen her at that show, you wouldn’t have dared to talk to her.”

And he was probably right. It took him two whole weeks to say hello to (Y/N) without stuttering. Two weeks. Imagine how awkward it had been for him to work around her on a case during that time. How would he just walk to her and say hello during a phantasmagoria? No way.

But that had to stop. They were friends now, good friends. Best friends. And Spencer loved (Y/N) more than he ever imagined loving anyone. If there was someone able to make him change, that was her. And that’s why Spencer Walter Reid had an epiphany at 4 am. He was going to ask (Y/N) out for a Halloween date.

Yes. He was.

Ok, he was going to do his best to do it.

Fine, he was going to overthink it for the rest of the month and probably chicken out by the 28th.

But he was sticking with his plan. He was going to do his best to ask (Y/N) on a date on Halloween.

October 28th

(Y/N) walked to the kitchenette in the bullpen to refill her coffee cup, and Spencer followed her in a matter of seconds. He had tried to ask her out at least ten times during that month, and every single attempt had ended up with Reid stuttering and rambling facts about Halloween.

- “Hey Spencer! here for more coffee?”- (Y/N) smiled at him and grabbed his cup, refilling it for him.

- “Thank you”

- “I’ve got some cookies if you wanna share them. I don’t know why, but I’m craving sugar with my coffee.”

- “Actually, that’s completely normal during the season. Our instincts tell us to store up during fall so we can survive a long, scarce winter. This is known as “chipmunk” behavior. A study had subjects keep diaries of every single morsel they ate and drank seven days a week for six years. And the team found subjects were packing in 222 more calories a day in autumn or an extra 20,000 calories over that three-month period. Fall eating exceeded winter by 11%, spring by 14%, and summer by 12%.”

Spencer stopped talking and realized (Y/N) wasn’t saying a thing. She just stared at him with a warm smile on her face.

- “So, yeah, it’s totally normal.”

- “So I’m a chipmunk”- she stated and chuckled- “It makes sense.”- Spencer just smiled and nodded.

- “Yes, you are.”

There was a deep silence in that kitchenette as the two of them stared at each other with silly grins on their faces. If life gave us clues, Spencer would have gotten a text message alerting him that was the perfect moment to ask (Y/N) out. Which, of course, he didn’t, ‘cos he was speechless.

- “So, what are you doing on Halloween?”- (Y/N) asked him- “Got any plans already?”

- “N… no”- Spencer stuttered, feeling the blush on his cheeks- “You?”

- “No. I was thinking this year might be nicer to stay home and do a movie marathon, give candies to the neighborhood’s kids.”

Reid felt his heart breaking with every word. She would never accept going out on a date with him if she didn’t want to do anything that day. It was a good thing he never got to ask her.

- “Sounds nice,”- he whispered and sighed.

- “Would you like to join me?”- (Y/N) asked and looked straight into her cup of coffee- “We could get a pizza, eat candies and do nothing.”

- “Y… ye… yeah. That sounds fun.”- Spencer flustered and smiled. (Y/N) felt the same. She actually felt back in high school with that entire conversation. She was so nervous about asking Spencer to her house, though they had literally had been there over hundredth times in the last ten months.

- “Great! it's a date! Do you wanna pick the movies?”- she smiled and watched him, nodding.

And just like that, Spencer Reid got himself a date.

October 31st

Spencer wiped the sweat from his hands on his pants one more time before knocking on (Y/N)’s door. There were kids in disguise walking around the neighborhood already. The young doctor couldn’t help but remember his Halloween days back in Las Vegas. He felt a warm tingling in his chest when he imagined living in that house with (Y/N), giving away candies to the kids, maybe having their own little babies. A domestic life. Being loved by (Y/N) and loving her every day. The only woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

- “Spencer? Can you hear me?”- (Y/N) waved, and he wiped his head around, surprised.

- “Sorry, I was… just thinking.”

- “Very concentrated, apparently,”- she added with a smile- “Come in.”

- “(Y/N)!!”- a kid ran to her door, followed by all her little friends- “(Y/N)!! Trick or treat!!”

- “Abby! you look so scary!!”- (Y/N) gasped as the girl spun around for her, showing her vampire disguise.

- “Thank you!!”

- “Don’t you think she deserves extra candies for that disguise?”- (Y/N) asked Spencer, who had been staring at their interaction with a warm smile on his face.

- “Yeah, she definitely does?”

- “Is this your boyfriend?”- the little girl asked, wide opening her eyes and staring at Spencer in awe.

- “This is my friend Spencer. Spence, meet Abby, my neighbor’s daughter.”

- “Are you dating?”- Abby asked again and stared at them.

- “No, Abby. We are not.”- (Y/N) confessed, and somehow, it actually bothered her not to date her best friend.

- “Would you like to go out with me, Mr. Spencer?”- Abby asked, making both (Y/N) and Spencer laugh.

- “I’m flattered, Abby, but I think you are too young for me.”

- “I’m five and a half!”- the girl was almost insulted.

- “And I’m twenty-six already. It’s a big age gap.”- Abby pouted at Spencer’s words, but her sadness faded away as soon as (Y/N) grabbed the candy bowl and gave him a massive amount.

- “Have fun, kids!”- (Y/N) waved as Abby and her friends ran to the next porch. She then closed the door and chuckled- “Sorry, she is little, but her personality is huge!”

- “Yes! I noticed!”

- “Sometimes I babysit her. I used to do it more often before joining the BAU,”- (Y/N) explained and walked with Spencer to the kitchen.

- “You cooked?”- he wide opened his eyes and noticed there were many dishes with Halloween-themed snacks.

- “I couldn’t help it. Last night I was on Pinterest, and one post came out... the next thing I knew, I had an entire Halloween board filled with snack ideas, and I wanted to try them out.”- she explained and smiled.

- “Everything looks delicious… and spooky.”- Spencer whispered, smiling. He looked at her and noticed how her cheeks were blushing with his words, making his heart skip a beat.

- “I’m glad. That was the idea.”

- “Now I feel bad. I only bought movies. If I had known, I might have attempted to cook something, fail miserably, and then buy something to bring.”

The way (Y/N) chuckled with his joke was all that Spencer needed to be happy. She was all he could ever need to be complete for the rest of his life. He just had to find the guts to tell her.

The first movie they watched was Halloween, the original Carpenter’s version from 1978. They sat on the couch, eating and making jokes about the movie.

- “Why does everyone who has sex in horror movies die?”- (Y/N) asked as they watched Michael slashing Lynda.

- “I guess that’s Michael's trauma.”

- “Not just in this move. In all the scary movies, it’s the golden rule: if you have sex, you die.”- (Y/N) turned and looked at Spencer.

- “Well, if we were in a horror movie, I would be the last one standing”- he joked and (Y/N) laughed immediately.

- “You and me both.”

They looked at each other, still smiling but not moving. Spencer just felt like everything in his body told him to lean in and kiss her. (Y/N) was thinking just the same. But would he reciprocate her feelings? Did Spencer know she had invited him over as a date? She had tried to make it as clear as possible, but she wasn’t sure Spencer had gotten the hints. She had literally said “It’s a date” when she asked her, but… did he get it?

The bell ended their moment, and (Y/N) stood up right away, grabbing the candy bag.

Spencer looked at her, giving away treats for the kids, and sighed. He loved her. There was nothing left but to gather the courage to tell her. Even if that meant ruining their friendship.

The second movie they saw was Carrie. (Y/N) remembered Spencer had told her he was bullied in school, and for a moment, she was scared that film could trigger unwanted thoughts and memories. But he suggested it. He said it was a horror classic, both the book and the movie.

But they decided to watch the remake. Spencer didn’t like it, but (Y/N) thought it was ok. She even jumped a few times, making Spencer chuckle.

- “Stop laughing at me”- (Y/N) argued as soon as she caught Reid suppressing the giggles.

- “Then stop jumping! It’s funny”- he answered, laughing.

- “Well, you better protect me if any psycho shows up!”

- “(Y/N) should I remind you, you are an FBI agent? you are trained to be on the field, and above all, I’ve seen you train with Morgan, and you were amazing.”

- “When did you see me train with Morgan?”- (Y/N) frowned, and Spencer didn’t know what to answer.

- “Well… I saw you once… you were at the gym… with Morgan. I wanted to talk to him, so I went to the gym… and you were there.”

The bell interrupted Spencer’s lousy explanation. He jumped from the couch and grabbed the bowl of candies.

- “I’ll get it!”

(Y/N) watched him go and felt how the butterflies in her stomach reached her chest too. Spencer smiled as he opened the door and gave a bunch of candies to each kid standing on the porch. She could perfectly imagine being his wife, living in that house, and having two gorgeous daughters, with long, wavy hair, like their father.

(Y/N) was in love with Spencer. But didn’t know how to let him know.

The third movie they watched was The Conjuring. Neither of them had seen it yet. They had run out of candies, so they turned off the lights and closed the curtains to pretend no one was home.

- “Ok, this one looks creepy.”- (Y/N) whispered, crossing her legs on the couch and hugging a pillow against her chest. Spencer looked at her for a moment, remembering a conversation he had years before with Morgan. He had said, and his brain quoted: “It (Halloween) does provide a pretty good reason to cozy up with a scary flick and a little Halloween honey.”

Spencer finally understood what he meant. So he did the unthinkable. He moved closer to his friend on the couch. That was it. That was all he managed to do. But that was enough to make him hold his breath, afraid he had scared her away.

Of course, he hadn’t. (Y/N) was excited to feel Spencer’s warmth next to her. She might actually pretend to be more crept out than she really was, just to get a little closer to him.

But (Y/N) didn’t have to pretend at all, she was terrified with the movie. She kept jumping and covering her eyes with her hands. Spencer wasn’t doing much better either, but he kept his cool and pretended not to be scared, just for (Y/N).

- “Oh shit!”- she murmured and turned to look away from the screen as Spencer quickly wrapped an arm around her, and she pressed her face against his neck- “Let me know when that scene is over”- she whispered and held his shirt tight. Spencer just nodded as a response. He wasn’t sure he knew how to speak. He could feel her breathing against his neck, sending shivers all over his body. Did he die and go to heaven? ‘cos he was sure that wasn’t happening in real life.

- “Is it over?”- (Y/N) whispered, feeling Spencer’s cologne all over her and his arm around her. She didn’t want to move from there, but she knew her friend wasn’t comfortable with physical contact.

- “Not quite yet”- he murmured and waited a few more seconds- “Ok, now you can watch.”

- “Sorry, Spencer. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.”- (Y/N) apologized right away and sat up straight, holding her pillow again.

- “You didn’t… I don’t mind… come here.”

And in what might be an effect of the adrenaline rush, Spencer Reid wrapped an arm around her, moving her closer to him. She carefully rested her head on his shoulder, feeling her heart beating so fast, she was sure it was about to burst.

- “Better?”- he whispered, and she looked at him, his lips inches from hers. Could she just kiss him? But, would he mind? Could he get mad if she did? (Y/N) felt like Spencer, running all the possibilities result of that action, when lips colliding against hers made her stop thinking.

Spencer Reid was kissing her.

She was caught off guard but quickly replied the kiss. It was sweet and shy, but it felt like the best first kiss she had ever had before. It felt like what a last first kiss should feel like, ‘cos from now on, she didn’t want to go on looking, she wanted to kiss him until her last day on earth.

Slowly, the kiss ended, and Spencer opened his eyes, scared of what might happen now. He didn’t really think about it. He just couldn’t stop himself when she was so close to him.

- “Yes, much better”- (Y/N) answered and giggled, leaning in and kissing him again. Spencer wrapped his arms around her waist as she did the same around his neck.

That second kiss was more filled with hunger and love. It wasn’t as shy as the first one. Spencer even dared to move his tongue between her lips, tasting her. She reciprocated and moved her tongue between his lips slowly. That was enough to make Spencer feel a little bolder. So he caressed her cheeks with both hands and then cupped her face, holding her in place until she gasped for breath.

- “I’m sorry,”- he whispered and pulled apart.

- “Why? For kissing me?”

- “No! No! No!”- Spencer quickly tried to explain- “I just thought I was hurting you...”

- “I just needed to breathe a little, that’s all,”- she replied, blushing- “You can kiss me some more if you’d like.”- the way she added those last words, almost embarrassed, was endearing.

- “If I’d like? I wouldn’t stop. Ever.”- Spencer quickly answered, leaning in and pecking her lips.

- “Then don’t stop.”- she whispered and kissed him, moving closer to him on the couch. So close that she was almost sitting on top of him.

Knocking on the door interrupted their make-out session. (Y/N) was now straddling Spencer on the couch, and his hands caressed her back as her fingers played with his hair.

- “Just ignore them. They’ll leave”- she whispered against his lips as Spencer just hummed and continued kissing her.

But the knocking didn’t stop. And after a few minutes, (Y/N) gave up and moved from Spencer, making him whine right away.

- “No, they’ll leave,”- he said, but (Y/N) was already at the door, him following her closely.

- “We already ran out of candies! Oh! Melissa! Hi! What are you doing here?”- at (Y/N)’s porch, her neighbor Melissa and her little daughter, Abby, looked at her.

- “I’m sorry to bother you, it’s just that…”- Spencer stood next to (Y/N) and looked at the woman and kid, trying his best not to look frustrated.

- “Hi, Mr. Spencer”- the girl waved.

- “Hi Abby.”

- “Is everything ok, Melissa?”- (Y/N) asked her, worried. Maybe this was about a case. Maybe something bad had happened to her neighbor.

- “Yes, everything is just fine. You are gonna think I’m crazy, but when Abby said you were here with a man, I got scared. I mean, you don’t usually hang out with…”- Melissa was embarrassed, to say the least, and she kept talking, not making things better- “You don’t usually bring men at your house, so I thought something bad might be happening, and I wanted to make sure you were ok.”

- “I told you he is her boyfriend, mom.”- Abby added.

Spencer blushed right away and felt (Y/N) holding his hand silently.

- “Everything is fine, Melissa. My boyfriend and I were just having a movie marathon.”- the way those words made Spencer’s heart skip a beat was incredible.

- “And we ran out of candies, so we decided to shut the curtains and turn the lights off,”- Spencer added, smiling apologetically.

- “I bet they were kissing,”- Abby told her mom, making (Y/N) giggle.

- “I’m sorry I bothered you.”

- “No, please, Melissa. Thank you for taking care of me.”

- “Yes, thank you!”- Reid added and waved as the neighbors walked away- “That was sweet,”- he said after (Y/N) closed the door- “The fact she cares so much for you.”

- “Yeah, I was thinking of all the times you’ve been here before, and she had to interrupt us the only time we have been making out.”- (Y/N) sighed and walked back to the living room.

- “We can always continue kissing.”- Spencer whispered and sat next to her, wrapping her body with an arm- “Or we can continue watching the movie.”

- “We should start over though, I don’t know what happened in the last forty-five minutes.”

- “I know. This happened”- Spencer grabbed her body and moved her closer to him as he pressed his lips against hers, making her giggle.

- “I meant in the movie.”

- “Nop, I have no idea what happened in the movie, sorry.”- (Y/N) continued chuckling with Spencer’s answer and rested her arms on his shoulders as she kissed him.

- “Wait, I have a question.”- Reid whispered and moved a little, still feeling her lips against his as he spoke.

- “What is it, Spence?”

- “Did you mean it?”

- “What?”

- “When you said I am your boyfriend,”- Spencer murmured and looked at her. She blushed and sighed, biting her lips.

- “Do you want to be my boyfriend?”

- “Are you asking me to be your boyfriend?”

- “Do you want to ask me to be your girlfriend?”- (Y/N) giggled and watched Spencer’s face blushing even more.

- “Yes, I want to ask you if you want to be my girlfriend.”

- “I do”- (Y/N) whispered and pecked his lips- “Anniversary on Halloween, that way you’ll make sure we won’t ever forget it. Smart.”

- “Yeah, I had it all planned”- Spencer smiled as he leaned in and kissed her one more time. Technically, he wasn’t lying.

General Taglist

@spenxerslut @ash19871962 @all-tings-diego @babebenhardy

@mrsobrien888 @archer561 @muffin-cup

Taglist Spencer

@calm-and-doctor

"I know, I'm late I'm so sorry." You mumbled trying to get to the empty seat next to Morgan as quickly and quietly as you could not wanting to draw any more attention to your late arrival, your eyes glued to the floor to avoid Hotch's disappointed gaze. You were rarely late but time had slipped away from you the night before, it was almost one in the morning when you realised you were still on the phone and you were in at eight for this case. Even the loss of just those few extra minutes in the morning seemed to have thrown you off your rhyme. All eyes were on you as you sunk down into your chair but you tried your best to avoid it. Instead, you directed your attention to the case, pulling your tablet out from your bag and loading up the file Garcia had forwarded to you.

You risked one glance up at the other members gathered around the table and you met Emily's gaze. The kind smile she gave you immediately put you at ease. She had a way of doing that, always making you feel comfortable no matter the situation. She was the one who had helped you adjust to your job at the BAU and she was there for you ever since. You smiled back before turning your attention to the case in front of you.

"Happens to the best of us Y/N, just don't let it happen again," Hotch said in that understanding yet firm tone he seemed to have perfected. It always made you feel like you were being scolded by your father. "Garcia, go ahead."

"Right! Of course Sir." She seemed to snap into action at that, immediately launching into a rant about the case. You listened carefully to what evidence had been gathered so far, typing up some small notes on your tablet as you did. Luckily this case was working up to be one of your less complicated ones. Not that anything was ever easy in your line of work but the profile and victimology were already starting to become obvious even just with a brief overview. You hoped that meant you would only be away for a couple of days, the team was only supposed to be working a couple of days that week but this case had changed that. Thinking you would be free at the weekend you had made plans for a date that you were not willing to miss. Not that you would ever admit to the others that you had a date this early into a relationship.

This relationship was a little close to home for the team - and most definitely against protocol - which left you nervous about telling everybody. You were positive they would be accepting but still, with everything being so new a part of you was worried. More than anything you just wanted this all to work out. Before you even realised the briefing was done and everyone was packing up their things.

"Wheels up in 30," Hotch announced before heading out of the room towards his office.

Once you caught up to the fact that it was time to leave you stood up from your seat and began to gather everything, both your personal belongings for the case and your thoughts about this whole situation. It seemed that everyone was ahead of you and had already left to grab their go-bags for the flight but then you felt a hand gently tap on your shoulder. When you turned around you were met with Morgan smiling down at you.

"What's got your head all in a spin sunshine?" He asked with a joking tone but you noticed the way he tilted his head ever so slightly watching carefully for a reaction. Morgan was always a good friend to you and you appreciated his concern. You had both clicked instantly when you joined the BAU and you relentlessly teased each other, always finding new ways to wind each other up. You were sure you drove the rest of the team crazy at times.

"I hate being surrounded by profilers." You laughed, honestly it was impossible to keep a secret in that place without someone finding out. "It's nothing honestly, just a late night and I forgot to set my alarm. I'm lucky I woke up at all."

"Hmm, right okay." Morgan nodded clearly trying to mask the fact that he did not trust your response. He leaned back against the chair next to you folding his arms over his chest before looking up to meet your eyes again, a smirk breaking out across his face. "So is "late-night" his first or last name? A nickname maybe?"

"Oh seriously." You scoffed rolling your eyes at his response with a poke at his arm. "Neither smartass. I don't have a boyfriend and I can guarantee that the only other person even remotely near my apartment last night was the takeaway delivery driver."

"Oh Y/N, I've seen how you've been acting recently. You have absolutely been getting some and I'm going to find out who it is." He promised quickly dodging the elbow you aimed at his side as you let out a shocked gasp at his comment.

Morgan had that all too familiar look on his face that you saw too often, the look that meant absolutely nothing was going to get him to give up on his mission. He was nothing if not determined, you had to give that to him. In the end, you decided that if he was so determined to prove his profiling skills and figure out who your mystery partner was you might as well have some fun with it too. After all, he was only half wrong in his theory and it would be hilarious to watch him chase the answer when it was just under his nose the entire time.

There was something about yourself that would be essential for Morgan while trying to figure this out that you hadn't yet told the whole team. It was something that you were still working to figure out yourself.

"You know what Morgan, you're on. I promise if you figure it out I'll be honest and admit that you're right." You smirked giving into his game. You held your hand out to him, the final sign that you were really agreeing to this bet.

"Oh, this is going to be fun." He chuckled reaching out to firmly shake your hand.

~~~

"Y/N!"

It had been about twenty minutes since your conversation with Morgan now and you were getting ready to fly out for the case. You were walking towards the elevator, the go-bag you kept in your desk in hand when you heard Garcia calling your name from down the hallway. You turned to see her hurrying towards you with a bright smile on her face. It wasn't unusual for her to come and say goodbye before a case, in fact, she did it almost every time but something told you she had another motive today.

"Here you go!" She said cheerfully handing you a warm cup of coffee in one of her brightly coloured travel mugs. "I know you don't do well with early mornings so I brought you a little pick me up for your flight out."

"Aw Penelope, thank you. I appreciate that." You smiled happily accepting the mug from her. You both stood there for a moment, Garcia gently nodding her head seemingly absentmindedly as she stared at the mug in her hand. It was obvious she wanted to say something else but was holding herself back. You waited, knowing she would break and ask any second.

"So who is he?" She asked finally looking up to meet your gaze again. Her face was lit up with the excitement of new office gossip. You were willing to admit that usually, you indulged Garcia when it came to workplace drama. Anytime you found out anything of interest you went straight to her office to fill her in.

"Oh, not you too." You laughed in defeat. Yep there it was, that was exactly what you were waiting for. You had no doubt that Morgan would go straight to her for help. "Did Derek put you up to this?"

"No! Well not really, I mean kind of. He may have asked me to do some discreet digging - which I'm now realising may mean not mentioning it to you - but I thought why not come straight to the source and ask you because I'm your very best friend and you always give me all your gossip." Garcia rambled her voice picking up speed with each word.

"Right." You nodded slowly backing up to hit the elevator call button. You were determined to win this and not give away any clues until the time was right but you knew Garcia would be able to see right through any of your lies. "I'll see you when we get back Garcia."

"Oh seriously! You're going to deprive me of the gossip?" She gasped giving you those puppy dog eyes that would normally trick you into talking.

"There is no boyfriend!" You protested, after all that wasn't a lie. It was the part Morgan was most adamant about but also the part he was most wrong about. "You're going to go and do your online digging now aren't you?"

"No." She said quietly once again dropping her gaze to the floor as she tried to avoid your knowing stare. Garcia was one of the worst liars on the team and the drop in volume as she spoke was one of her biggest tells when she was lying. "Only a little."

You shook your head, laughing at her constant need for information and turned around at the sound of the elevator finally dinging behind you. The doors slid open and you stepped instead hitting the ground floor button. Just as the doors started to close over in front of you Garcia waved her goodbye and disappear down the hall, no doubt to start her digging.

~~~

The desk in front of you was becoming littered with more and more old case files as the team connected the unsubs M.O. to more unexpected cases in the surrounding states. Your mind was buried in the task of trying to come up with a baseline for victimology and you had zoned out of everything else happening in the precinct around you. So much so that you missed the sound of someone approaching you from behind.

"Hey, baby girl," Morgan sat up on the desk behind you and tapped his foot at your chair so it spun you around to face him.

"No." You said firmly, that stubborn look on your face as you folded your arms over your chest. You leaned back in your chair quirking an eyebrow at the smug look on Morgan's face.

"What do you mean no?" He asked confused, taken aback by your sudden reaction.

"I mean no. No baby girl. You, Derek Morgan, have lost your baby girl rights since you asked Garcia to do some digging on me."

"Wait," Morgan's usual casual attitude slowly melting into concern. His hand's fell to his side in defeat when he noticed the annoyed look on your face. You tried your best to keep a straight face and not give the fact that you were simply teasing Morgan. "You never said I couldn't bring in back up."

"Exactly how many people have you asked about it?" You questioned now realising he had roped more than just Garcia in on your bet.

"Just Garcia and Reid. Well, JJ too and Rossi was in the room so he joined in." He admitted weakly. "But in my defence, Garcia told Reid, not me!"

"So everybody but Hotch and Emily?" You laughed finally letting your act break. Admittedly you were getting a kick out of just how determined Morgan was becoming with his investigation and it was amusing to imagine the team trying to figure it out while you knew who had more information than they were admitting.

"Uh-" Morgan hesitated for a moment, clearing his throat before he shifted awkwardly and rubbed his hand across the back of his neck. "I'm pretty sure Hotch knows too, and Emily just claimed she knew more than us and didn't want to help."

A smile that you couldn't hide tugged on the corner of your mouth at the mention of Emily's response. It sounded just like her and she was right, she really was the only one in the team that knew the whole truth. You fought back the fond reaction and hoped Morgan hadn't caught onto the meaning behind it.

"So, has all that extra help gotten you an answer yet?" You asked, already knowing from his frustration that he was no closer to finding out than he had been back at Quantico.

"No." Morgan sighed heavily with a shake of his head, the irritation of not knowing obvious in his voice. "I mean seriously woman how well are you hiding this mystery man?"

"I told you, you won't be able to figure it out. Especially if you keep with that line of thought." You chuckled. The subtle hint you dropped seemingly going unnoticed by Morgan. "Well, I've just been talking to them and when we get back to Quantico they're taking me out on a date. We're meeting at the office so I guess you'll just have to wait until then won't you?"

"Seriously?" Morgan sat up straight a wild grin breaking out on his face. He lit up with excitement like a kid at Christmas. "You're actually going to tell us who it is?"

"Only if you behave for the rest of this case." You threatened pointing a finger at him.

Morgan crossed his hand over his chest right over his heart and leaned forward to ruffle your hair. "Pinky promise, I'll be on my best behaviour."

~~~

The members of the team that had stayed behind to work on the geological were all gathered in the conference room, finally finding five minutes to grab lunch. When the phone in the centre of the table started to ring Derek leaned forward and hit blinding at it with his pen until he finally hit the answer button and heard the sound of the call connecting.

"Talk to me, baby girl." He grinned leaning back in his chair to sip on his coffee.

"Who's in the room with you?" Garcia's voice was laced with an unusually guarded and serious tone, the tone of voice she only used when she had learned something serious about someone involved in the case that she couldn't share with everyone.

"Uh, it's just me, JJ and Reid. What's going on?" Morgan frowned glancing around the table at the others.

"Okay, so I did that digging you asked me to." Garcia rushed, that familiar excitement filling her voice again as she came to life again. "And I found something strange, well actually the strange thing is I found nothing. You know me Derek I don't find nothing unless there is nothing to find. Y/N has no strange phone calls or credit card charges. I mean really the only people they have called in the last week were me, Hotch, Emily like six times and the sheriff's station for your case."

"How could they be dating someone and not calling them?" Morgan asked furrowing his brow in confusion. This wasn't the first phone call he'd had with Garcia about your challenge for him and they were both deep in thought about who it could possibly be. He tapped his pen absentmindedly against the table as he seemed to get lost in thought.

"Maybe, and I know this is a long shot, they're talking to them face to face like we did before technology." JJ gasped sarcastically, raising her hands like she had just something controversial. She'd been sitting on the sidelines of the bet simply listening to the debates and occasionally offering an opinion while also trying to keep the team focused on the case.

"Actually I was thinking about it and since Y/N has been leaving the office for lunch a lot more when we've been back at Quantico it's quite possible whoever they're seeing is on the same schedule as us for their lunches to line up. They could be seeing them at the office and that's why there's no phone trail." Reid explained without even looking up from the map he was analysing.

"Maybe it's Hotch." Garcia mused. Morgan could imagine the contemplative look on her face as she leaned back in her chair at Quantico.

Her comment had Reid finally looking up from the work in front of him to meet Morgan's confused gaze with a matching one of his own.

"Uh, no, I don't think so." JJ laughed at the matching expressions on their faces and her own amusement at Garcia's bizarre theories. Before Garcia could add any more to her train of thought or anyone could disprove her theory the door to the conference room swung open. You stuck your head around the door and smiled at the group.

"Hope I'm not interrupting. Rossi wants us now, I think we're ready to deliver the profile." You explained.

"You're not interrupting at all." JJ smiled back at you starting to clear off the table to follow you out of the room. "We'll call you back later Garcia."

"Later crime fighters." With that Garcia ended the call and everyone moved to follow you out to deliver the profile at the sound of the call disconnecting.

~~~

The case had finally finished up and you were exhausted, it was a long flight back and now you were sitting at your desk trying to get a head start on the paperwork. All day your mind was only able to focus on one thing, your date. If you were being honest you were only doing paperwork to kill time before you had to leave. You smiled to yourself as you glanced down and noticed the time in the bottom corner of your screen. The reservation was for eight and with the drive, you had arranged to leave the office at about seven-thirty. It was seven twenty now.

You shut down your computer and started to gather your things into your bag. You had left an extra go-bag under your desk with a change of clothes for the date since you knew you wouldn't have time to go home and change. Grabbing that bag you slung it over your shoulder, ready to change once you got to your car. Meanwhile, you could feel everyone in the bullpen watching you closely as you got ready. You spun your chair around to find the team crowded around Morgan's desk behind you. They were watching both you and the doors to the office, waiting for any sign of your date.

"Waiting for something?" You teased rolling your chair over to Morgan's desk to sit next to Garcia who had perched herself on the edge of the desk, a cup of coffee in hand.

"You said twenty past, I'm just trying to figure out if you lied to us or if they're late," Morgan shrugged watching you closely like he still didn't quite trust that you would actually tell them who you were seeing.

"They'll be here any minute now." The sound of the door to Hotch's office opening caught your attention and had you turning to watch him and Emily walk over to join the group. "Perfect timing."

You were sure that to the rest of the team your comment must have seemed like you were simply remarking that Hotch and Emily would now be here to see you off with your date but they missed the look in Emily's eyes. That look of knowing, the excitement that you were so familiar with. Your eyes locked with hers and a gentle look passed between the two of you. You stood then, sliding your chair back under your desk before making your way over to stand next to Emily.

"Ready to go?" Emily asked lightly brushing her pinky against yours before finding the confidence to slide her hand into yours, lacing your fingers together.

"Yep." You nodded squeezing her hand while staring up at her lovingly. It felt right to finally be going public with your relationship. You were quickly falling hard for Emily and you wanted everyone to know that she was the woman you loved, she was the reason you were so happy recently.

There was a sudden gasp from Garcia as she finally registered what was happening in front of her. She reached forward and grasped onto Morgan's upper arm, both of them sharing a shocked look. You watched as Morgan looked back at you and started to laugh.

"Oh very funny you too, you really had me there for a second." He said rolling his eyes sarcastically.

Emily glanced down at you and grinned while you tried to fight back the laughter that threatened to sneak out at Morgan's untrusting response. Out of the corner of your eye, you spotted Hotch similarly trying to hide the rare grin that broke out across his face. He shook his head slightly and quickly stared down at his hands schooling his features back into his usual serious look. Hotch had known from the beginning, you were never fully certain that he knew as he never brought it up and you never officially told him but something always told you he knew. After all, Hotch knew everything that happened in the BAU.

"Wait you guys are joking right?" Morgan asked, his uncertainty clearing rising as he looked around at everybody else to see how they were reacting. JJ just laughed at him, she'd had her suspicions from the beginning and wasn't one bit surprised. Garcia on the other hand was still in shock, her mouth hanging open as she sat there completely speechless. Reid was staring down at his hands with a furrowed brow trying to figure out how he could have missed the signs while you all worked so many cases together since you started dating Emily. Rossi seemed interested and yet completely unphased by the dramatic reveal, simply sitting at the edge of the group and watching it all unfold in front of him.

Instead of answering him, you decided to wrap your arm around Emily's waist and leaned up to gently press your lips against hers. Emily smiled into the kiss and you brought your free hand up to career her cheek. You pulled away and watched each other for a moment before turning and walking right out of the office - hand in hand - without another word.

Instead of answering you leaned up and gently pressed your lips against Emily's, bringing your free hand up to caress her cheek. With that, you turned and walked out of the office - hand in hand - without another word.

Everyone watched you both disappear down the hall towards the elevators in stunned silence as they processed the announcement.  Morgan gestured vaguely around the room waiting for someone to offer an explanation before dropping his hand to his side again.

"Did anyone know about that?" He asked finally breaking the silence that had settled over the room.

"What? That Y/N was gay or that they were dating Emily?" Hotch questioned.

"Both!"

"I've known that they were gay since they joined the team and I've known about them and Emily for weeks now. I mean honestly you lot call yourselves profilers, why do I even pay you?" Hotch sighed before walking back in the direction of his office to finish up the case for the night.

"You don't pay us," Rossi muttered under his breath as he watched Hotch walk away. He followed his lead shortly after and returned to working on his write up.

"Huh." Morgan nodded slowly. "Well, that was certainly an eventful night."

Reading his mind, you added, “You know, I keep telling you to just use a pencil so you don’t have those bothersome ink issues.”

You already knew what he was going to say. At the same time, you both chorused:

“That’s not the way to do it.”

“That’s not the way to do it. I know.” Shaking your head, you hopped off the top of his desk, removing the stopwatch dangling from around your neck on a lanyard and placing it neatly inside his cup of highlighters. “Don’t worry. We’ll get it tomorrow.”

He smiled and agreed. He might not have beat his record, but at least this morning wasn’t a total waste. He still got to hang out with you.

You picked up your almost finished cup of coffee and took a slow sip, savoring the last remaining bits. Spencer always made the best coffee in the world. You’ve asked him for his secret and he refused to tell you, mostly because he didn’t mind making it for you. In fact, for that exact reason, he didn’t want to tell you. Because then you wouldn’t need him to do it.

“Mm. I’ll bring the paper, you make the coffee,” you joked, bumping the side of his arm. Of course he was going to do that; it was your routine since forever. Each morning started the same.

You and Spencer would always arrive at the office twenty minutes early. Even though Spencer had subscriptions to every newspaper around town, you still brought one in, and while he was in the kitchenette making his top secret coffee, you waited for him at his desk. With your specially-made coffee in hand, you’d time Spencer while he worked, just to keep him honest about how fast he could really solve the puzzles.

It started because you didn’t believe him when he said he finished the Sunday puzzle – objectively, the hardest of the week – in roughly seven minutes. It seemed outlandish to you, but you’d only met him a few days prior and hadn’t yet learned not to question that kind of thing. So, the next morning you strolled up with the Times and challenged him to complete it. If he couldn’t do it in seven and a half, he was to buy you a cup of coffee. And if he did, you’d buy him one.

That day, he broke his record. He did it in six minutes and forty-two seconds. Still, he offered to pay for that cup of coffee.

And a routine was somehow born from that. Since then, he’s shaved his time down to five minutes and thirty seven seconds. You learned that his homemade coffee is better than anything, and stopped letting him buy your coffee in lieu of making them himself. There were days he finished the puzzle before you even finished your coffee. And days where the puzzle was forgotten entirely in favor of conversation.

There were also days where you’d compete to see who would finish first; Spencer and the crossword, or you and the coffee. Until you’d burned your esophagus one too many times trying to get ahead, and for your own good Spencer had to implement a rule against competitions.

Mostly, though, that extra twenty minutes before work was never enough. Making the coffee only took three, and doing the puzzle never took more than nine, and somehow the excess of eight minutes was always too short. Even with no coffee and no crossword, you’d stay at his desk until it was absolutely imperative to start working, or until Hotch came in and gave you one of his disapproving looks.

That morning, you had to leave Spencer’s side because Hotch called everyone in for an early morning meeting. One that you were already three minutes late to.

“So nice of you to finally join us,” Emily crooned as the two of you finally walked in, the last to arrive.

You playfully rolled your eyes at her, “Should be used to it by now.” It happened often enough that Emily’s quips were getting repetitive.

Hotch closed his eyes and sighed. “Your tardiness isn’t something to be proud of, agents.”

“Sorry,” Spencer whispered and walked around to the other side of the table, going for the usual spot in one of the two empty chairs that sat side-by-side.

Only to find a stranger already in it.

“Oh.” He took a step back, only now noticing the man sitting in his unassigned assigned seat. He blinked awkwardly at him, slightly embarrassed and confused. “Hi?”

“Did we miss something important, Hotch?” you laughed.

“Yes, actually,” he huffed, not finding humor in the fact that you routinely missed the beginnings of his meetings. “This is agent Luke Alvez, he’ll be joining us indefinitely.”

Spencer gave the new agent a shy wave, which was only half-acknowledged because you interrupted by placing a hand on Luke’s forearm and a very welcoming, “Hi, Luke, welcome to the team.” You flashed him one of your signature bright smiles, equally returned by Luke himself, and tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear. The two of you held eye contact for a prolonged second before returning to the room.

_

Spencer noticed it, but he didn’t mention it. At least not right away.

The introductions were cut short, Hotch gave the brief on the case, and the team packed into the jet. Spencer made it on last, and when he boarded he found out the repercussions of taking too long to decide which book to bring for the trip.

Luke had once again taken Spencer’s seat. No, it wasn’t labelled as his, but it was next to you, and that made it Spencer’s seat. He awkwardly shuffled past you and Luke, talking on your chairs side-by-side, and went all the way to the back of the plane.

He hadn’t sat on the tiny couch in a while, even though it was his favorite spot on the plane. Mostly because you preferred the seats and hardly ever agreed to utilize the couch unless Spencer had all but forced you into following him back there by refusing to sit in the normal seats. You had to, because he was the keeper of whatever book the two of you were reading together, and how could you make it through the trip without your in-flight entertainment?

He guessed he should enjoy being on that couch, but it didn’t quite feel as nice as he remembered it. He kept looking over to where you were sitting, his carefully chosen copy of Pride and Prejudice abandoned in his lap.

Luke sure seemed to pique your interest. You had one earbud in, and Luke had the other, while he showed you different songs on his iPod. He was talking excitedly about music, and Spencer could tell you were listening to every word of it, because of course you were. Spencer figured out early on that you were the rare type to actually listen to people when they talk, even if the things they’re passionate about aren’t of your particular interest.

Spencer waited a while, but thirty minutes later, you were still listening to Luke, who had now moved on to talking about his dog, Roxy. He wasn’t going to start your favorite novel without you, so he put it back in his satchel and kicked up both feet on the couch. He figured he might as well take a nap if he had nothing else to do with his time.

_

An hour later, he was woken up by a sudden weight on his lower legs.

“Hm?” he opened one eye, unfolding his hands from behind his head and propping himself up on them, still in a fog.

“Hey, sleepyhead.” Whenever he sat up like that, his tummy got a soft pooch to it, and you gave him a good poke there. His tum flinched reactively at the tickling.

When he realized it was just you, he laid back down on the seat, closing his eyes again.

“Wake up!” You poked him again, and again, until he had to open both eyes and slap your invasive hand away. To which you doubled down with both hands, index fingers leading the charge against his tummy in rapid succession, and he couldn’t get rid of them fast enough anymore. “Wake up! I’m bored.”

Spencer groaned loudly, stopping your assault by grabbing both your hands and finally sitting up. He moved his feet back down to the floor, gently tossing you off his legs in the process. No worries; that just made room for you to take a proper seat next to him instead.

“What book did you pick out for us?” you asked, cozying up to his side. Spencer smiled and reached down to his satchel, knowing you were going to love his choice. “Oh! My favorite!” you cheered, lightly clapping your hands together.

He grinned to himself, watching you look at his worn-in copy with so much excitement in your eyes. “I know.”

Stealing a portion of Spencer’s blanket and adjusting it so it laid over both of your laps, you rested your head on his shoulder and waited for him to begin.

“What are you waiting for?” You scrunched your brows when a full minute passed and he hadn’t started reading.

“Oh – I… I thought you were sitting over there,” he tilted his head to the side, where you previously had been enjoying Luke’s company.

“Yeah, but I missed you.”

Spencer’s imperceptible pout twitched into a smile at your admission. But he still wanted to pull your leg for abandoning him for Luke.

Even if, in reality, you had actually gotten there first and saved the other seat for Spencer, only to feel too rude to tell the new guy he couldn’t sit there when he boarded two minutes later, saw an empty chair, and sat down.

“Ohhh, Agent Alvez wasn’t holding your attention?” He said in a teasing tone, placing his hand on your forearm just as you did to Luke earlier, tucking a strand of hair behind his ears, and batting his eyelashes dramatically.

“I don’t bat my eyelashes like that.”

“Right, you just do everything short of that,” he laughed. You socked him in the bicep, not even feeling an ounce of guilt when he cried out and grabbed his arm in pain.

“Shut up and read, Reid.” He shook his head at your poor attempt at a play on words. An overused and unoriginal one, and yet he knew you still found yourself clever for it. You knew it was lame, but he still giggled, even if it was a tiny one that he stifled under a tight lip because he didn’t want to give you the satisfaction. You placed your head back on his shoulder as he cracked open the book and started on the first page.

–

With a big yawn, Spencer stood up from his desk and stretched his arms out, wiggling his toes and extending his fingers to re-energize his tired body, in need of a mid-afternoon pick up. It was a habit you got him into a while back. You noticed his ridiculous caffeine intake and suggested that he try alternative methods to upping his energy. Like a good stretch or walk around the room to get his blood flow going after hours of hunching over files.

So, he got into the habit of standing up to stretch, taking a quick lap around the room, and walking right into the kitchenette to make himself a cup of coffee as soon as that was done.

In return, you got into a bad habit of overconsuming caffeine, because each time he got up to make himself a coffee, he brought you one too.

While he waited for the coffee to drip into the pot, he passively tapped his fingers on the countertop and hummed a tune. He didn’t know the name of the song but it was something you played for him on your iPod, listening with one earbud each, on the way home from work the previous night.

He poured two cups of coffee; one for himself, and the other for you.

“Special delivery,” he sang softly, cautiously approaching your desk with over-filled mugs of hot liquid in each hand. He had an eye on the cups and another on the path ahead, terrified he was about to spill scalding coffee over both his hands.

“Oh, shit,” you said under your breath, sitting upright as you saw him coming. “I wish you’d asked, I already have one.” You regretfully held up a mug, still mostly full with coffee.

Spencer paused right in his tracks. He never had to ask if you wanted coffee. He just always brought it out, and you always took it without question. You also never bothered to make it yourself, because it was an unspoken agreement that Spencer would inevitably make it for the both of you.

So where did that cup come from?

“I didn’t realize you had some already.” He furrowed his brows, not sure what to do with the extra mug now. He even poured yours in the favorite mug that the two of you often fought over because he was in an extra nice mood. It was a pale blue and had tiny brown dachshunds all over, donning yellow raincoats, and sneakers just like Spencer’s.

“Sorry, angelface,” you pouted back. He looked so disappointed as he turned away, no doubt to go right back to the kitchen and toss your beverage down the sink, and you quickly called out, “Wait, no! Leave it, I’ll drink it.”

Screw it, you’ll take the jitters and a night of bad sleep if it meant Spencer wouldn’t feel so bad. He was instantly happier, smiling at you as he walked back to place the mug at your desk, slyly shoving the other cup aside so that his took the priority placement.

“By the way, you know you can just ask me when you want coffee, right? You don’t have to wait until I want one, or make it yourself.”

“I know,” you smiled. “Luke made extra, so he brought me one.”

Spencer’s lip tightened just a little, brows a centimeter higher on his forehead now. “Oh? Luke did, hm…” he mumbled, perhaps a bit snarkily, as he picked up the mug Luke made. “That was nice of him, but I guess you don’t need this now, anyways, it’s probably cold now and this new one’s much fresher.”

You chuckled softly and didn’t bother correcting him on the fact that Luke’s mug was very much still warm, and that you were still enjoying it. “Sure, Spence. Whatever you say.”

_

The coffee incident rolled right off Spencer’s back by the next morning.

Even he could recognize that his reaction may have been a bit childish. After all, it was only Luke’s second week with the unit, and he was just trying to make some new friends. Spencer figured that there really was no better person to know, nor easier one to befriend, than you, so he couldn’t blame Luke for trying.

That clarity lasted until he walked into the bullpen and found a new reason to be annoyed.

As usual, you were waiting for him at his desk, perched atop the wood with the morning paper rolled up in your hand. But not as usual, you already had a mug of coffee placed next to you. He had the sneaking suspicion that this one was also made by none other than Luke Alvez.

“Good morning,” you chirped, giving Spencer a quick peck on the cheek as he walked around the desk and took a seat in his office chair.

He grumbled it back, taking the newspaper from your hands and unraveling it on his desk, ironing out the rolled edges with a little more irritation than he’d normally have. As he searched for his favorite pen, he noticed you were already halfway through your drink.

No doubt that was going to cut down the amount of time that you could use the excuse that you were ‘still fueling up’ to justify loitering at Spencer’s desk instead of working. He tried not to roll his eyes at that fact and got to work on his puzzle without much chit chat. The morning routine was already off, anyway.

“No coffee this morning?”

“You have it, already,” he pointed out.

“I meant for you. You’re not gonna have some?” That was incredibly abnormal for Spencer. You couldn’t recall even one morning where you didn’t see him down some form of caffeine.

Spencer shrugged his shoulders. He didn’t really feel a burning desire to make coffee when it was only going to be for himself. “Eh. Maybe later.”

“Okay,” you frowned. Quickly erasing it for a smile, you picked up the stopwatch and slung it around your neck. “Ready to start?”

You gave him a little countdown and he went off reading the clues. He was uncharacteristically slow at it, this time around. By ten past the hour, he was only three-quarters done with the puzzle. You could practically hear the way Hotch was going to yell at you if he saw you still not working by this point.

The lines between Spencer’s brows were prominent as he concentrated far too hard on the clues he couldn’t solve. Pressing your thumb right over the deep crease, you reminded him to un-scrunch and relax his face.

“It’s okay if you can’t solve it, sweet boy.”

Spencer sighed, putting down his pen in defeat and leaning back in his chair. ”I don’t know why I’m off my game today.”

“It’s alright, we all have those days.” You ruffled the top of his hair before hopping off his desk, collecting your long-empty mug and returning his stopwatch.

“Wait, where are you going?” Those worry lines you just chased off came right back to his face. “I can still finish it!”

“I know, Spence. I don’t doubt you,” you reassured, but it felt like you were already halfway to your desk anyway. Which was all the way across the bullpen, way too far from Spencer’s cubicle. “But I really have to start work before we get in trouble again.”

He curled his lips to the side. You were right, it was twenty past the hour, and there was no viable excuse for you to stay any longer. Damn that empty cup, and damn him for being too slow.

Spencer gave the crossword one last, cursory glance. The remaining words were cruelly obvious to him now. He didn’t find a point in writing them in and completing it now, so he opened up the bottom drawer of his desk and tossed the paper inside. The metal filing drawer reverberated with a loud clang as he kicked it shut with his foot.

“Hey, ouch!” From the next cubicle over, Derek was leaning back in his chair to make sure Spencer could see him covering his ears with both hands. “Pretty boy, what’s with the loud angry noises at nine in the morning?”

Spencer didn’t dignify him with a response, grumbling and inspecting the stack of manila folders on his desk instead. Derek got up from his seat, walked over to Spencer and slung one muscular arm over his shoulders when he realized.

“Ohhh, I think I get it,” he teased.

“Get what, Morgan?”

“You’re mad because you’re lonely without your little work wife,” he chuckled, jostling Spencer’s shoulders playfully. Maybe, he thought, if he shook Spencer hard enough, it would knock his brain into place.

“My what?” Spencer had never heard of that term before. Solely based on context clues, he understood Derek was implying some sort of intimate relationship between himself and you.

“Your work wife,” Derek repeated. “You know – a woman, with whom you work, and are closer to than most people. Whom you happen to love, in your case.”

Spencer rolled his eyes and shrugged Derek off his shoulders. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?” Derek put up both hands defensively, slowly backing away from the hothead in front of him.

It was one of those things that didn't need to be said in order to be true. Everyone just knew it and accepted it as a fact; Spencer was in love with you, and more than likely, you were in love with him. Work spouses was just a cute nickname for what was really going on.

He had just turned his shoulder back towards his own desk when Spencer called out.

“How are we different from you and Penelope!?” Spencer barked. Derek turned back on his heel, smirking at Spencer. “Aren’t you two ‘work spouses’?”

“We are, Reid,” he smiled, thinking about the picture he had on his desk as evidence. It was of him and Penelope, walking Derek’s dog in the park. The picture next to it was of the two of them, plus Derek’s new girlfriend Savannah who had recently earned the Garcia-Stamp-of-Approval, out to brunch together. “And I love her, too. But the difference is that you are in love with your work wife.”

Derek snickered as he left for good, leaving Spencer to ruminate on that thought for a while.

As many pictures of Penelope as Derek had on his desk, Spencer had a few more than that. And far more brow-raising ones, like one of you baking cookies at Spencer’s house. With flour on your nose and chocolate chip cookie batter on your hands, slowly feeding it to Spencer right off your fingers.

_

Speaking of feeding Spencer, every day he brought a neat ham and cheese sandwich to work in his sack lunch. He cut the crusts off himself and split the sandwich down the middle with a diagonal cut. While you were originally a rectangle-cut person, he was adamant that triangle-cuts were the best shape of sandwich, and eventually you came to agree.

You always brought a salad with all your favorite things that could pass as nutritious. Wild greens, arugula, shredded carrots, goat cheese, and roasted beets. You even made the vinaigrette yourself, and packed it into its own tiny to-go tupperware so it could be mixed into the salad fresh at lunchtime.

And every lunch break, Spencer gave you one half of his sandwich, and you shared with him half of your salad.

What you’d both come to realize is that lunch is so much better with both. It’s the perfect ratio of leafy greens to delicious bread and cheese, and lunch no longer felt complete with just one and not the other.

And then.

And then of course, Luke Alvez decided to take you out for lunch, as if he had no respect at all for the sanctity of homemade, sack lunches. Or any sort of respect for Spencer, given that he’d now ruined the man’s meal by taking away his rights to a salad.

Sometimes Spencer hated how nice you were. Most of the time, he loved it, except for when it conflicted with his own personal interests. Of course you accepted Luke’s offer, and so he was eating his whole sandwich all by himself.

The entire balance was off – had it always been so hard to eat whole sandwiches without getting exhausted by them? Two halves was too much. Too much bread, too much ham, and too much cheese all for one person. There was a significant lack of leaves, carrots, beets, and you.

If he had to be honest, that last item was the real thing lunch was lacking.

He didn’t miss the salad at all. In fact, he actually absolutely hated that salad.

He hated beets and how they always overtook the entire flavor of the whole god forsaken thing. It should’ve been a welcome reprieve to go one day out of hundreds to not eat them. For some reason, he never asked you to take them out. He pretended to love them, to love the salad that tasted like wet Earth, and forced himself to eat all of it every day.

Because if he said he loved it, he figured, then you would share with him half of your salad. So that he could give you half of his sandwich.

That was the routine. It was simple, but it was sacred.

Everything you had together seemed to be sacred until the introduction of one Luke Alvez. Spencer tried to like him, really – Luke was incredibly kind, even to Spencer, from day one. But the fact was that Luke now held all of your attention, and that was beginning to be inexcusable. He messed with a man’s lunch, and that was over the line.

Spencer wasn’t even lying to himself about it anymore. He was seething as he stared at your desk – the only empty one in the bullpen, besides Luke’s – and chewed away at his boring ham and disgusting cheese sandwich.

_

It was impossible to tell what the final straw was going to be, but Spencer knew he was running out of them.

He was eavesdropping on you and Luke in the kitchenette across the bullpen. Laughing together, as if no one could hear you. As if no one would very specifically tune in to the sound of your voice and deliberately refrain from making any noises, not even sounds of breathing, in order to hear what you were saying. You two were just rubbing it in his face, now.

“Come on,” Derek nudged Spencer’s shoulder, earning an annoyed gruff when his concentration on your voices broke. “You really gonna let him move in on your wife like that?”

Spencer clenched his teeth. He knew Derek was just egging him on, but he still didn’t like what he was hearing.

It was ridiculous, and he knew that, to expect that you were never going to be interested in other men. Not that Spencer assumed that you were interested in him, but still...

He just felt like there was an unspoken understanding between you two. That you both had all the companionship you needed in each other, even if it wasn’t romantic. He had to find out the hard way that you didn’t feel the same, if you really were interested in Luke after all. The real kicker of it all was that he had everything Luke had to offer – same job, same intelligence, not the same muscles but he compensated for it with the history he had with you. He thought that would’ve at least given him a competitive advantage.

Spencer watched as you leaned in to Luke, putting your hand on his upper arm and smiling. Right before Derek interrupted, he heard Luke offering to drive you home. By the look of this, you’d accepted it, as if you completely forgot that you promised Spencer you’d take the metro home with him after work.

Derek was still watching it go down, brows raised at Spencer. His question still stood.

“No, I’m not.” Spencer’s nostrils flared out as he slammed his mug down on his desk, liquid sloshing around inside and threatening to spill over. He stormed right into the kitchenette, immediately drawing attention as he stomped up.

“Hey, buddy!” He tried to make his yelling voice sound big and tough, but it came off squeaky and unintimidating. You could tell what he was going for, though. “That’s my wife!” With that statement, you were less sure what that was.

“I – excuse me?” Luke crossed his brows in confusion. You mirrored his expression.

Spencer shifted on his two feet, finger still pointed at Luke in an accusatory manner. He was less confident in his rage than he was before he got there; suddenly aware that his outburst was lacking in context. He knew now that he probably looked insane. It still didn’t stop him from doubling down on his tantrum.

“You heard me.” Spencer crossed his arms over his chest. Standing straighter, he came to the happy realization he was about an inch taller than Luke. Before he could make himself into even more of a fool, you waved your hand to Luke as an apology for this inexplicable outburst.

“Spencer, can I talk to you?” It was rhetorical. You wrapped a hand tight around his upper arm, tugging him down an empty hallway and away from the invasive eyes watching the scene he just caused.

You had no idea what got into him then, but the feeling bubbling in your stomach was unignorable. You’ve never seen him act like such a child, no, a downright brat, in public like that. Much less with you on the receiving end of it. It was quite frankly embarrassing, on top of how confusing it was that he was going around calling you his wife?

At the end of the hall, you had him cornered alone. Just the two of you under the dim fluorescents. He evaded all eye contact when you tried to look him in the eyes, knowing you’d find the truth too quickly if he gave you the chance.

“Are you alright?” you asked, squeezing his arm much softer now. You were planning on chewing him out for what he just did. Really, you were going to lay into him for causing a scene like that, which no doubt was sparking up some rumors behind your back.

But somehow, that anger dissipated the moment you got him alone. Make no mistake, you were not excusing his rude behavior. But that little part of you that was always concerned about Spencer – because with him, there was always more going on under the surface – was impossible to shut up.

“No,” he admitted. “No, I’m not. I haven’t seen you in days.” Your whole face softened. It was so hard to hold it against him when he was so sweet.

“Spencer, you see me every day,” you reasoned. He bowed his head and scoffed, placing his hand at the dip of your waist and pushing you away from him. It was going to suffocate him to be so close to you if you weren’t going to understand where he was coming from. But even a few inches further apart, his hand was still on your waist.

“Not really. It’s not the same. You barely have time for our puzzles. You’re always next to Luke on the jet now. You started skipping our lunches, and now, you’re ditching me for a ride home with him.”

His words made you flinch. You noticed it yourself that you started spending a lot of time with Luke, but had no idea all those little things you’d been doing had added up to affect Spencer in such a way. Of all people, you should’ve noticed him being upset.

“It’s fine, I want you to do whatever you want to. But I miss you,” he added.

The part he didn’t want to say is that he needed to know if you missed him back. He didn’t want to call that into question, even if he really wanted to hear it.

Cupping his cheek in your palm, you leaned in and put a small peck on the tip of his nose.

“I miss you too, angel.” You rubbed your thumb across his cheekbone, watching his face light up.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Tell you what,” you smiled, tucking his unruly waves behind his ear, “let's take the long way home tonight.”

Spencer grinned from ear to ear. His hand slipped from your waist down to the free hand at your side, squeezing your palms together tightly as you led the way out. You planned to walk all the way home with him to make up for all those minutes lost.

“You know, I’m glad you said you want me to hang out with Luke if I want to,” you smiled, holding Spencer’s hand as you walked down the street.

“Oh, yeah…” He avoided looking at you. He didn’t think that one through when he said it.

“I’m probably going to hang out with him a lot for a bit.”

Spencer focused hard on looking ahead, the road seeming blurrier now. Shit, he really didn’t think it through.

“That’s great. You should do that,” he lied through his teeth. Only you would’ve picked up on that edge in his voice.

“Yeah,” you smiled, noting his thinly veiled annoyance. You wanted to believe for a moment that it was because he was jealous. Because if he was, you could take that crumb and turn it into a feast - a silent declaration of his love that you secretly hoped he had for you. “Because he’s been asking for tons of advice on how to get closer to Penelope.”

Spencer’s ears perked up. “Penelope?”

“Mm-hmm. Seems he’s been smitten with her ever since he saw her,” you smiled harder. So long as you didn’t know any better, he reacted that way because he loved you the way you wanted him to. “Only issue is, she’s a tough one to crack. So coaching him on Penelope 101 has been taking a lot longer than I thought.”

–

It seemed to pay off. Those weeks of neglecting Spencer and inadvertently hurting your best friend produced at least one positive thing.

Luke learned everything he needed to know about Penelope. He won her over, slowly but surely, thanks to your insider information. Still, he needed a bit of a wingman, so the first time he tried to hang out with Penelope outside of work, he disguised it as a group thing.

He invited you, Penelope’s best friend, to a weekend lunch with him and Penelope. You of course brought along Spencer, and tried your best to ignore the fact it felt like a double date. It wasn’t. Luke was on a date with Penelope, which she didn’t know about, and you and Spencer were just there to play along. That’s it.

On another plus side, Spencer seemed to like Luke a whole lot more now.

Luke and Penelope were fictitiously bickering over the lunch options - Luke argued that a blueberry scone was perfectly appropriate to order, and Penelope maintained it was strictly a breakfast item. She settled on an order of soup, to split with Luke for half of his sandwich. Luke might’ve learned that trick from an observation around the office, which you were oblivious to.

Moments before the food arrived, you tapped Spencer’s thigh, asking him to scoot out of the booth so you could go to the bathroom.

“You always do this,” he said exasperatedly. “Every time the food gets here, you have to go.” Being the polite man he is, Spencer always had to wait until you got back to start eating his meal. The number of times he’d had cold food was just too much, now.

“Just start without me, then,” you shrugged. It was a bodily response you couldn’t help. Spencer rolled his eyes, a smile betraying it, and turned back to the table as you walked off to the nearest restroom.

Even though he hated waiting, hated the fact that he’d end up eating cold food, he waited for you to come back. With his hands folded in his lap, patiently sitting in front of his tempting plate of french toast that was rapidly getting colder by the second.

Penelope made a happy noise around a spoonful of her soup, then noticed Spencer hadn’t touched his plate yet.

“Spencer, do you want to try a bite of this? It’s delicious,” she offered, shoving her bowl to him. She knew he wouldn’t touch his own food, but hers was free territory.

“Oh, no thanks,” his nose crinkled when he inspected the contents of the soup. “I don’t like beets.”

Penelope shrugged and took the bowl back, thinking nothing of it.

“You don’t like beets?”

Spencer whipped his head around. You’d returned from the bathroom just in time to catch what he’d said. He felt like a deer caught in the headlights as you stood there gobsmacked. “Spencer, I’ve been feeding you beets for two years…”

He swallowed the air in his already dry throat. You slid into the booth beside him, cornering him against the wall with the saddest look on your face. Completely betrayed by his confession. “I don’t understand, you don’t like them?”

Penelope and Luke must’ve looked between your face and Spencer, because they’d slipped out of the booth unnoticed.

“Well, no. It’s not that I don’t like them,” he laughed nervously. Your eyes only looked more disappointed. “Okay, I don’t like them. Are you mad?”

Confused, yes. But definitely not mad. “Why would I be mad at you?” you laughed lightly.

“Because I lied to you?”

“Yeah, about beets,” you nudged his side, “Not about something serious.”

Spencer laughed softly, holding his side as if it hurt when you bumped him. In reality, he was just pretending he could still feel your pressure against him.

“The only thing I don’t get is why you didn’t just tell me you hate beets. I would've taken them out.”

Now that was a thought Spencer didn’t have before. He shrugged his shoulders. “I guess I was afraid that if I said I didn’t like your salad, you’d stop wanting to share lunches with me. And to be honest, that’s my favorite part of the day.”

Time stopped.

“You ate a food you hate… for two years… so that you could keep hanging out with me?”

If he was any less nervous, he might've been able to figure out how you felt about that based on your tone or body language. But he was useless in that regard, squirming in his seat.

“I-uh-well,” he stuttered, whipping his head between looking up at you and down at the table as his upper lip beaded with sweat.

You had to take the plunge.

“You make bad coffee,” you gasped. You couldn’t hold it in any longer. He was so confused.

He wasn’t trying to be mean when he said he didn’t like your salad – it was just the beets!. Were you trying to get back at him? “I didn’t mean to make it sound personal, I just really hate beets –”

“No. No, it’s not personal,” you laughed awkwardly, shifting in your seat because your nerves creeped up steadily. “Your coffee isn’t as good as I pretend it is. I only say it’s great so that you’ll bring me coffee every day.”

You paused to creep your hand down to his, shaking a little as you tried to hold it. Your fingers stopped short of his, needing him to be the one to bridge that gap. “It’s fine coffee. Just fine. I think I convinced myself I love it because I really love…”

You looked at him instead. Hopefully he knew the end of that sentence without you having to say so. Of course he knew. Because how could he be your work husband and not know you like the back of his palm. His pinky inched toward yours, resting gently on top of it in the quietest declaration of love.

It didn’t need to be said in order to be true. You loved Spencer Reid; and if his willingness to eat his most hated food for two years was any indication, he loved you back.

Your faces drifted together, both feeling infectious smiles pushing their way across your cheeks as you neared each other. Finally meeting in the middle in a kiss that made you regret not doing it sooner.

-

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ok, hope you thought this was cute! i know it's such a *small* confession at the end, but i really wanted it to be ! driving home that point of, 'it doesnt need to be said in order to be true' lol.

thanks for being on my taglist <3 (tagging part two in a reblog). if your name is crossed out, tumblr won't let me tag you :(

if you wanna join, link is at the top here