Saving Drew Patterson *A Tale of Love and Crime* (Spencer Reid/OC and the BAU)

Trouble in Love

My apartment was warming up as the heater finally decided to cooperate and do its job.  Slipping on some low waisted grey sweatpants and a light blue baggy shirt, I grabbed my favourite cream coloured fuzzy blanket, and settled down with a copy of The Forgotten Garden.  I had just bought it from the bookstore a few days ago, but I hadn’t been able to read it.  As I curled up on my slightly dysfunctional brown coloured couch, my fingers brushed over the cover of the book.

“Do..  uh… Would you maybe wanna go get a coffee or something?” he asked, his tenor voice soft and careful.  It took me a second to react, mostly because I was completely stunned.  But when I did, I broke out into a big smile, and grabbed hold of the wrist of the hand that was holding mine, hoisting him out of the chair.  He laughed softly at my enthusiasm, tucking a strand of his own mousy brown hair behind his ear.  

“Sounds like a plan, Doctor,” I said quietly, being careful not to disturb Hotch up in his lair-looking thing he called an office.  I leaned down over my desk, scribbling the last few notes on my paperwork before signing it.  When I picked up my files, he was doing the same, and together, we put them on the stack to go to Hotch in the morning.  Then I walked back to my desk to grab my purse, while he grabbed his messenger bag.  

“So what is that book you were reading?” I asked as we made our way towards the elevator.  A small smile played at his features as he pressed the button on the elevator.  

“The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton.  It was actually rather good.  You should read it sometime, Miss 17,000 words per minute.”  My eyes widened in surprise.  He had been snooping through my file…

“Yeah, whatever, agent,” I teased as the elevator doors opened and I stepped inside.  

“Hey, that’s doctor to you!” he said, pretending to scold me. 

Ismiled as I woke up from the memory, and flipped to the first page.  This book was actually going to take me a couple hours to finish.  Especially if I wanted to really absorb the emotional quality of the text.  The new book smell filled the air as I flipped through page after page, getting up only once for peppermint tea in a TARDIS mug.  

One hour and 327 pages later, there was a knock on my door.  I raised an eyebrow as I peaked over the top of my book at the door.  My next move was to glance at the wall clock across the hall.  It was eleven twenty.  Kind of unreasonable for guests.  I shrugged, sticking a Harry Potter book mark in the page, and tucking the novel under my arm as I got up from the couch.  My bare feet tip toed across the cold wooden floor to the door, and I looked through the peep hole.  

Spencer was on the other side.  His cheeks were littered with tear stains, and his whole body was shaking.  

“Oh my God,” I groaned, struggling to open the lock fast enough.  When I finally managed to get the damn door open, I came face to face with him.  He was trying to stop crying, but it obviously wasn’t working.  “Spence, what’s happened?” I asked, grabbing his arm and pulling him gently inside.  He took a deep breath to try to compose himself.  

“Drew… I’m sorry.  I….  I was feeling bad, thinking about Emily, and you, and I didn’t want to go to JJ again.  I didn’t know who else to come to-”

“Spence, look at me,” I ordered him firmly.  His wide doe eyes met mine, glassy with tears.  “You are always welcome here.  No matter what.  Do you understand that?  If you ever need anything, I’m here, okay?”  His lip quivered, but he managed a small,

“Okay.”  I gave him a sad smile, and wrapped my arms around him, holding him close.  He buried his face in my neck, his arms holding me close for all it was worth.  I stood there for a few moments, letting him adjust to this new level of trust we had seemed to leap into with both feet.  After a moment, I moved us to the couch, and slipped his shoes off, giving him my blanket to use.