Patron Saint of Lost Causes

chapter 20: crybaby

She put her things away at her desk and took off her blazer, rolling her sleeves up to her elbows. It didn't take long before students began to file into the library; James and Dave walked in with cup trays from the Honeybean in their hands. "Coffee two days in a row?" Alex said. "What's the occasion?"

"Dave wanted coffee, and I gave in to peer pressure, and then I figured it wouldn't be fair if we didn't bring drinks back for everyone else," James grinned. He set his carrier down on the table and placed a cup in front of Spencer, then handed her an iced chai latte.

"Did you get him decaf?" Alex asked. "Please tell me you got him decaf."

"It's a hot chocolate," James reassured her as he pulled out a cold brew cup and set it down at Hotch's usual seat.

Dave placed a little paper bag in front of Spencer. "Please eat that, passerotto," he said. "You barely ate anything at lunch."

Spencer made a face, but peeked inside and brightened. "Thank you!" he said, plucking gingerly at the cupcake wrapper.

James ruffled his hair lightly. "The haircut looks good on you, kiddo," he said.

"It's a lot easier to maintain than long hair, I have to admit," Spencer said. He tore off a bit of the pink-frosted cupcake and popped it in his mouth. "It's a lot less tangled."

His sunburn was faded now too; spots of white peeling skin and a brand new crop of freckles scattered over his nose and cheeks were the last reminders on his face. But she'd seen him wince on more than a few occasions, so the burns probably still lingered on his shoulders and back.

Hotch walked in and threw his backpack down on the floor. "Guess who has detention?" he said.

"You?" Dave asked as he set up his macbook.

"No, Prentiss," Hotch said. "Turns out she hasn't done any of her trig homework since the semester started."

"Oh, yikes," James said. "That's not good."

"She's been in a bad mood for a couple of days now," Dave said. "Hayden invited me to a bonfire on Thursday night, maybe I'll take Emily along with me. That might cheer her up."

"That seems like the opposite of a good idea to me. She needs to stay and get her homework done." Hotch paused and looked down at the cold brew on the table. "Is this for me?" he asked, surprised.

"No one else drinks that stuff, so yeah, I guess it's yours," Dave said.

Hotch picked it up and surveyed it warily. "There's nothing in it, right?" he said. "No sugar, no milk?"

"Nope, just cold bean water," James said. "How can you drink it like that?" Hotch just shrugged and downed a quarter of it in one gulp.

Alex got up from the table. "I'm going to go shelve for a little bit," she said. "Call me if you need me."

Spencer tilted his head back. "Do you need help? I can come with you," he said.

She bent over him and kissed the tip of his nose. "No, stay here and do your homework, and eat your cupcake," she said. "I'm sure Bubba and Jamie can help you if you get stuck on proofs."

"Why can't I help?" Dave protested. "And why don't I have a cute nickname?"

"Because you can't do math without a calculator, and you don't strike me as the cute nickname type," Alex said. "I'll be back."

She grabbed the cart and dragged it along with her up and down the aisles. It was easy, repetitive work, and she never minded it. Shelving was almost meditative after a long day of classes, a steady rhythm and a comforting sense of order as she put each book back where it belonged. The pins in her bun were jabbing into her scalp; she idly picked them out one by one in between books.