#priorities

Also hope you're cozy and safe!

hello!!!! thank you for your kind words and for the ask <33 i hope i did this justice!! this is such a cute request!!

𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆

content warnings: dad!spencer reid x fem!reader, mentions of pregnancy, probably cringy toddler dialogue lol idk how to write kids

“Lucy, hold— baby, hold still.” Your voice drifted down the hallway just as the last drips of coffee landed in the pot, a beep signaling it’s readiness.

“No! No! OWWW, Mommy!” Your almost two-year-old shrieked in response. Spencer sucked a breath in, mentally preparing himself to help you any way he could. He quickly made your coffee in your favorite mug, exactly to your liking, and carefully carried it to the bathroom.

Walking in, it looked like a tornado had hit. Hair ties were strewn about the floor and counter. An unlabeled spray bottle lay on the tile, the lid unscrewed and leaking. Lucy was slumped in the chair you had placed in front of the mirror, crying those miserable, tired, toddler-tantrum wails you and Spencer had become accustomed to over the past couple of weeks. One single pigtail stuck lopsided off her head, rapidly coming undone from all her wiggling.

You looked defeated. Your hands were pressed to your eyes as you took several deep breaths to calm yourself.

Spencer sat your coffee on the counter and wrapped an arm around your shoulder, pressing a quick kiss to your temple. “Need a break?”

“I need to get her ready,” you groaned, scrubbing your hand down your face. Behind the exasperation, he could see defeat beginning to well behind your eyes. His heart panged.

He’d watched you during your whole pregnancy in the quiet, observant way he tended to do. He tried to cater to your needs as much as he could, but there was only a certain extent to which he could help aside from physically carrying the baby for you.

He’d watched you give Lucy life, and he’d watched you be her mom for nearly two years now. Nothing reminded him how much he loved you more than watching you care for your daughter, the kind, gentle love you had for her. With him having to take care of his mom for so much of his life, though he could never blame her for that, seeing you as a mother blew him away. He hated the idea that you didn’t think you were doing anything short of incredible.

“Go drink your coffee.” He murmured under Lucy’s incessant sobs. “I can do it.”

You scoffed, eyes teary. “Spence, you couldn’t even figure out your own hair until you were 30.”

“I can do it!” He insisted, picking up the disaster on the floor. “I’ll figure it out. Hair is kinda… science.”

Lucy, feeling ignored amidst the conversation, climbed out of the chair and threw herself at Spencer’s leg. She howled out a long “Daddyyyyyyyy!”

You looked at him, uncertain, gesturing to the pile of angry little girl wrapped around his ankle. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. Go. Sit.” He smiled at you and leaned down to pry Lucy off. She melted willingly into his arms, her sobs turning into little hiccups.

“Lucy,” Spencer whispered to her as you walked past, cup of coffee in hand, to calm down for a moment.

She quieted at his whispering, lifting her head off his shoulder to look at him.

A grin broke across his face before he could stop it. Whenever he looked at her too close, he could see the features she got from each of you, and it made his heart feel too full. This was your baby, and his baby, and it melted him. “Hey, baby. Why were you screaming?”

“All done.” Lucy replied, her voice still whiny with tears.

“Well, not yet.” Spencer tried to sit her back down in the chair, and she began to squeal, clinging to him like her life depended on it. He paused, exhaling softly. “Luce, we have to do your hair.”

“Nuh-uh!” She pouted, burying her face against him.

He sighed. “Okay, okay. Do you wanna sit in Daddy’s lap?”

A sniffle. A nod.

“Okay.” He sat in the chair with Lucy still fisting his shirt. He let her settle for a moment before turning her towards the mirror, then wrapped his arms around her, making eye contact with her reflection.

“Can I tell you exactly what we’re going to do? Will that make you feel better?” He asked. Lucy nodded.

Spencer picked up the hairbrush. “Feel this.”

Lucy gingerly took it from him. He placed his palm over the bristles, gently moving them back and forth. “See? It’s not pointy. You try.”

Lucy copied him, then turned, smacking him in the head lightly.

“Ow. Okay.” He removed the brush from her grasp as she giggled. “Daddy’s just going to be very gentle, okay? We’re just going to brush—“

Lucy interrupted him with a whine, squirming uneasily.

“It’s okay. Watch me.” He brushed his own hair for her benefit, fluffing his curls. She watched closely, enamored.

“Now, Lucy’s turn.” He brought the brush to her hair, gently moving it through. To his surprise, she didn’t lose her mind.

He carefully talked her through it, slowly brushing out the knots and pulling her hair into two semi-decent pigtails.

He smiled at her, eyes crinkling. “All done! Good job, Luce!”

“All done, Daddy!” She grinned. She hopped off of his lap, padding out the bathroom door and on to her next adventure.

That day, in between guest lectures, Spencer did some research. He watched Youtube tutorials, read articles, searched recommended brands. His brain kept flashing the image of you in the bathroom: hands over your face, shoulders tight, exhaustion you tried so hard to hide.

So the next morning, when Lucy toddled into your bedroom with bedhead and demands, Spencer kissed your forehead and murmured, “I’ve got it.”

You barely stirred before rolling back into the pillows.

In the bathroom, Spencer sat Lucy down and braided slowly, clumsily. But each movement was full of intention and love. He stopped to soothe her when she began to whine about sitting still too long or her scalp hurting, murmuring gentle reassurances.

Eventually, he looked up from his work to see you in the mirror, leaning in the doorframe of the bathroom.

Lucy giggled at her reflection. “Pretty.”

“You are so pretty, baby.” You said, walking in. She jumped up from the chair, practically skipping over to you.

“Daddy did it.” She announced proudly. You smiled at him, and his heart stuttered. That smile. He’d do anything for that smile.

He shrugged, a little shy. “They’re not the best, but—“

You cut him off with a kiss. “They’re perfect. Thank you.”

• get sexier

• always be funnier and hotter AND richer