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date night
Aya and Spencer were on a proper date. She was wearing a dress and heels. He was wearing... well, his typical dress shirt and tie. They were sitting in a private area of a fancy sushi restaurant, courtesy of the Queen.
There were, of course, guards stationed at the entrance to the private room, but they faced away and stayed just out of sight of the two doctors.
Spencer held his glass up. "A proper date with the most beautiful woman in the world."
A bright smiled adorned Aya's face as she tapped her glass to his. "And the most handsome man I've ever had the pleasure of laying my eyes on."
Spencer blushed a bit as they took a sip from their glasses. "Did you know the French and German believe if you don't make eye contact while drinking after a toast, you'll be cursed with seven years of bad luck in bed?"
Aya giggled. "I did. I think I was fifteen when the Prime Minister of France first told me that."
His jaw dropped a bit. "I always forget you've met world leaders."
"I always forget it's a big deal that I have, honestly. It's my job to know everyone and their family and all that."
"Do you have someone who tells you any information you might forget?"
"I mean, technically, yes. Dan is expected to inform me of information I need to know about those I meet. But I also try to remember myself."
"Bet you wish you had an eidetic memory like me," he teased.
Aya smiled. "I bet you'd be great at a Christmas party."
Spencer blushed a bit. "Maybe."
"Enough about that though," Aya said, leaning on to the table, her hand in his on the table. "Tell me about baby Spencer. What was being a child genius like?"
He looked down at the plate. "I was bullied a lot as a kid, but nothing about my child was particularly fascinating."
Aya cocked her head a bit at him and raised their hands to her lips. She placed a whisper of a kiss onto his knuckles. "Tell me when you're ready."
He nodded. "You are so incredible, Aya. I don't know how I got so lucky."
She blushed this time. "I'm the lucky one, Spence. You are absolutely wonderful. You're handsome and so smart, but you already knew that, right, baby?"
Spencer gave a dopey grin, but the waiter came to the table with their food before he could respond.
"Thank you so much! This looks phenomenal," she told the waiter. "Please give my compliments to the chef."
The waiter nodded and walked away.
Spencer looked at Aya and could only think about how incredible the woman in front of him was. She could be an absolute nightmare, but she was kind and caring. She was polite to every person she met and chose to work as a forensic scientist to help people. She was amazing.
Aya noticed Spencer staring at her and nudged her foot into his Converse-clad foot. "Eat, höpönassu."
"What'd you call me?"
"Höpönassu," she told him. "It's a pet name, roughly translating to silly face, I guess."
"Finnish, right?"
Aya nodded.
"The official languages for Otharia are Finnish, French, and English, right?"
"All of the country speaks Finnish and English, but majority of the providences also teach French. We were originally colonized by what is now Finland and France, which caused many wars between the two."
"Tell me more," he said, putting his chin in the palm of his hand. "I love it when you teach me new things."
Aya laughed. "Otharia was granted its freedom in 1918 after France's economy was destroyed and Finland lost a great deal of land at the end of World War I. My great great grandfather was made king when we gained our freedom."
"Your great great grandfather? Just two greats?"
"Well, yes. Grandmama is already 65 years old and my great grandfather only was able to serve for a decade before his death. But his father served from 1918 when he was 25 to 1959, when he was 66. My grandmama's father served at age 30 to 40 when he became very ill and stepped down, giving my grandmama the throne at 25. He died a few years later. My mother was supposed to take the throne when Grandmama wanted to step down, but she abdicated two months after my birth."
"Wait, what?"
"Hm?" Aya took a bite of food.
"Right after your birth?"
Aya nodded, putting another bite of food into her mouth before Spencer could ask another question.
Spencer took the hint. "So Christmas party? Am I getting an invite?"
Aya grinned. "I don't know if you're ready for that, lutunen."
"Oh, I'm ready, baby. I'm going to show all those diplomats why they need profilers."
Aya giggled. "I will get you an invite, Doctor Reid."
"Thank you, Doctor Finnick Graham, Princess of Otharia."
Aya beamed. He always referred to her by her degrees — the title she felt she earned — before her royal status. She loved it. She so often heard Princess instead of Doctor and every time he said it, her heart skipped a beat. Which of course is impossible, but Aya couldn't think of another way to explain it.
"How was your food?" Spencer asked.
"Oh, phenomenal. Yours?"
Spencer pushed his plate forward and leaned across the table to grab a small bite off her plate. Aya did the same.
"Oh that's good," she said, grabbing another bite.
