__________
"everyone needs that someone.
___________
"BOARD GAMES, Spencer." Ivory
deadpanned, cheekily grinning at him because she was starting to understand what he was thinking of by the way his cheeks went pink.
"Ah. Right." Spencer said with embarrassment, chuckling off to the side. "Good. I-I didn't call you here to have sex with me, I hope you know that. No offense."
"None taken." Ivory said, although she was internally the slightest disappointed at his words. She knew that Spencer hadn't called her for sex when he did, but part of her silently hoped he was at least considering it. Or maybe, he just thought she was inappropriate.
"I knew you were going to say that, which is exactly why—well, you'll see." The woman stood up, grabbing her bag with her as Spencer followed her with his gaze.
"Where are you going?" He asked, suddenly afraid that she was leaving now that he had told her he didn't want to have sex.
"Where's your bathroom?" She asked him.
"Down the hall—" Spencer said, and the woman excitedly bolted away. He suddenly became nervous, wondering what exactly she was changing into.
When he heard the bathroom door open, Spencer saw the woman make her way around the corner, revealing herself to him. His jaw dropped to the floor, the reddest blush crawling up to his cheeks.
Ivory Arden stood there, her hands sassily placed on her hips and a smug look on her face. Spencer's gaze travelled up and down her body, completely taken aback.
The woman came out wearing a full on penguin onesie.
"Ivory, what are you doing?" Spencer asked, an uncontrollable grin making its way to his cheeks. He laughed with complete joy at the dumb look on her face.
"Don't tell me you don't like it." She said, narrowing her eyes at him with a stern look, as if to say 'compliment me right now or I'll kick you.'
"No! I love it. It's-it's cute." He stammered shyly, watching her walk back to the living room, collapsing onto the couch with a sigh as she sipped her wine, eyeing him with a smug look on her face. "Ivory, you're really something else."
"I know." She said haughtily, letting out a laugh.
"You're incredible." Spencer said in awe, the woman blushing.
"Feel better?" Ivory asked him, smiling as she crossed her legs, resting her arm on the arm of the couch.
"Already? Yes." Spencer said, his cheeks aching from how much he was smiling. The man snorted, covering his mouth to stifle his laughter as he watched her. "You look so funny."
"At least I have something going on for me. I don't like embarrassing myself in front of handsome men like you." She said with a stern gaze.
"Are you flirting with me while wearing a penguin onesie, miss Arden?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, I am flirting with you while wearing a penguin onesie. A truly confident woman rocks anything, my prince." Ivory smirked.
"You're too cute." Spencer flirted back, grinning. "Come sit here." He said, patting the empty space next to him. Spencer began feeling his stomach clench and his heart race as she stood up.
She smiled, making her way over and plopping herself next to the man. They sat a comfortable distance apart and Ivory looked up at him, noticing his messier-than-usual hair that put an even bigger smile on her face. Spencer's gaze was intense on her, making Ivory feel like the most important woman on this planet.
"Movie?" He asked her softly, grabbing the tv remote.
"Sure thing." Ivory replied, kicking her feet up onto the table. Spencer stared at her, raising his eyebrows with a chuckle. "What?" She asked him sharply.
"You don't waste any time getting comfortable." He noted, turning on a horror movie for the two to watch.
"I don't." Ivory told him, shuffling closer and staring up into his eyes with a testing grin. Spencer smirked, patting his shoulder for her silently. A laugh escaped her lips as she laid her head against his shoulder, her body tingling with how close they were.
A few moments passed, and Spencer was beginning to feel more and more at ease with her presence. She was so easy to be around, so easy to talk to. Regardless of how beautiful she was, it no longer made him all too nervous.
She was willing to come all the way here and put on a penguin onesie for him, for godsakes. Nothing appealed to Spencer more, not even sex.
He smiled, turning his head slightly to gaze down at her, the woman keeping her eyes fixed on the television, furrowing her eyebrows once in a while. Spencer's breath caught in his throat watching how her eyelashes fluttered with every blink, how her plump lips pursed to the side to reveal a small dimple on her cheeks.
Spencer blushed, smiling happily as he softly grabbed her hand, bringing it to his lap as he firmly held it. Ivory felt her heart jump in her chest, it wanting to break out of her sternum. She suddenly could barely breathe with him so close to her, praying to dear god that her hand wasn't pooling with sweat at the moment.
He played with her fingers, suddenly more interested in her hand than the actual movie. Ivory noticed this, letting out a delighted chuckle when he softly massaged her palms, softly rubbing his thumbs into them. She grinned—she couldn't stop. The feelings that this man made her feel; it was incredible to experience. It was unlike anything else.
She had truly, never felt like this before. And part of it scared Ivory, more than anything else. Because she wasn't supposed to fall in love; Ivory knew that she wasn't meant for it. She had already given up that part of her long ago.
And yet somehow, Spencer Reid was beginning to bring it all back. Making her feel again. Making her want to continue feeling like how he made her feel.
"Thank you for coming here." He murmured softly in appreciation, meeting her eyes.
"Thank me by continuing to do that." She said nonchalantly, and Spencer chuckled, continuing to rub her hand.
"I see why your clients like you so much." He said, making her smile.
"I try..." Ivory murmured softly. "But right now, I just enjoy being here."
He smiled, feeling giddy inside.
About two movies and four board games later, Spencer and Ivory were beginning to feel exhausted at the late night. But the two didn't want to sleep, nor leave the other; they were just merely enjoying their time together a little too much.
"You suck." Spencer murmured stubbornly, leaning his head back against the couch as he shot her an annoyed look.
"You're just pissed because no one has ever totally destroyed in Game of Life you like I have." Ivory boasted, cheekily grinning at his face.
"Oh be quiet. I can destroy you in many other activities, Ivory." Spencer shot back, rolling his eyes.
"Mhm. Like?" She asked him.
"Like..." He muttered, suddenly smirking at the obvious innuendo that laid behind his previous words. Spencer saw Ivory's expression morph into pure shock and mortification, stifling a cackle. "Chess."
Her face fell. "Oh..."
"What were you thinking?" Spencer asked, scooting closer to her and propping his arm up on the couch to stabilize his head as he peered at her with a smug look.
"Nothing!" She squawked, sheepishly smiling as she reached over, pushing his face away with her hand. "Stop that."
"Stop what?" He asked her, tickling her underneath her chin softly. Ivory rolled her eyes scrunching her face up in annoyance. Spencer laughed, and soon enough Ivory was drawn into the melodic sound.
Once the laughter died down, it was replaced with a comfortable silence, the two only merely gazing at the other. Ivory observed his face, noting the obvious joy in his face that indicated he was happy. She swelled with pride, glad to have helped the man. But she still saw a remarkable amount of pain in his eyes, a look that she would recognize if she looked at a mirror.
"Spencer, what happened?" She asked softly.
"Hm?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow.
"Why did you call me here?"
"I already told you, I was lonely." Spencer replied.
"You need someone to talk to though, don't you?" She asked him.
Spencer's face fell, and he sighed, suddenly interested in the couch below him. Finally, he nodded softly, biting his lip in shame. "Sorry."
"Why are you saying sorry?"
"Because you're my friend, not my therapist." He said, chuckling.
"I can be both." Ivory said softly.
"You're too kind." Spencer mumbled.
"Tonight was one of the best nights I've had in a very, long time." She said with honesty.
"Me too, Ivory." Spencer admitted, his heart racing again at her warm words. "I don't even know if $300 will even suffice."
"Spencer, I'm not letting you pay me." Ivory said, chuckling.
"Hm?" He cocked his head to the side. "Why?"
"Why would we dehumanize our friendship?" She asked him, and Spencer let his heart completely stop.
Soon enough, the world around him was beginning to fade, only revealing Ivory Arden in it. She was beautiful, her heart was beautiful, her words were beautiful. She was so good at talking, it made his stomach flip upside down whenever she said something sweet.
All this time, Spencer thought she was only here because she had to be.
"Ivory, I called you here late at night and made you play games with me. And you even wore penguin pajamas all while doing so. If I don't pay you...how can I repay you?" He asked softly.
"You don't. We're friends, Spencer. You're not my client." Ivory said in a hard voice, staring at him with confidence.
"...why did you come here though? Before this, we barely knew the other." He said softly, his voice laced with guilt.
"Because you're cute." She said, bluntly staring at him. "And...Spencer, I'm lonely too."
Spencer smiled, grabbing her hand softly, intertwining their fingers. He felt his head spin at the touch, every part of his body tingling with happiness. "Let's be lonely together." He said dumbly.
"I would love that." Ivory told him, smiling. "You know, I only take in older men as clients. It...sounds messed up, but if men like you came crawling to me, I think I would catch feelings too quickly."
Spencer nodded, chewing on his lip. "I understand."
"I'm not supposed to catch feelings. I'm not supposed to fall in love." She said softly, gazing at him.
"Who says that?" He asked her.
"Spencer, I'm basically a prostitute. I'm not meant to fall in love." Ivory said, her voice tinged with bitterness.
"You're not a prostitute. You're a woman, helping people everyday. You're like me. Don't objectify yourself, because you are so much more than that." Spencer said kindly at her, gripping her hand firmly.
Ivory felt her entire body rush with good emotions, his words meaning so much to her. She knew that she'd never forget them, even if she tried. "That means a lot to me." She said softly, dropping her gaze. "I never thought my life would turn out like this, you know?"
"Why?"
"I wanted to have a big future. I wanted to help others; but when my parents died, I couldn't continue with that dream. I didn't have the money to." She said sadly, chewing on her lip. "It's pathetic, isn't it? Using my body to cheat off others."
"I respect you, Ivory." Spencer said, gazing into her eyes with a deep compassion she had never seen ever in her life. "You're not pathetic. Your job—it doesn't determine what who you are. I know plenty of FBI agents that abuse their power to hurt others. Titles don't matter, and those stereotypes don't. You're you, and you can choose to do whatever feels right."
Ivory smiled—she couldn't help it. All her life, she had hid away from society, promising that she'd keep her profession a secret to her grave. When people found out; she cut them off—a reason why she was lonely.
But he didn't. He didn't make her feel guilty of anything. She saw the soft look in his eyes, and suddenly felt like everything was right.
"I'm the one supposed to be helping you." She chuckled ironically, shaking her head. "Spencer, you're amazing."
"Everyone deserves to feel and be accepted." Spencer said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. He furrowed his eyebrows softly, not breaking eye contact. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your parents?"
"Suicide. Double suicide." Ivory said softly, her tone laced with bitterness.
His eyes widened lightly. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. It was just scary that suddenly everything was falling apart, just like that." She said, furrowing her eyebrows. "I never knew why. I never understood."
"Is that why you're so kind to your clients?"
"Yeah. Because I want to know why they're miserable. So I can understand, somehow, why my parents did that to themselves." Ivory said quietly; chewing on her lip.
The fact was, she hadn't told this story—to anyone. Ever. Ivory didn't have time to talk about her own problems—who would listen to her? She was the listener, not the talker.
"Those experiences are what make us who we are." He said, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly, and then dropping again. "Even if it's painful."
"You've experienced it too." Ivory observed.
"Haven't we all?" Spencer asked her. "Otherwise, why wouldn't be helping people everyday?"
She nodded. "You're right."
Spencer smiled softly, gazing at her. He really, really, liked this woman. Enough so that he began to not care that she was already taken by so many others; he'd gladly accept that fact just to be able to be with her more. Spencer reached out, his hand softly landing on one side of her face, turning it to face his own. His fingertips buzzed at the her cold smooth skin, and he was soon addicted to her, softly caressing her forehead, then cheekbones, and jaw lastly.
Ivory blushed madly, her expression solemn as she stared at his loving eyes. She saw it—the look many men gave her when they wanted her. She saw the way his eyes were wide and hyper-vigilant, his pupils dilated under the bright light. She saw him bit down on his lip, face completely concentrated on hers.
And she loved it. Because it was Spencer Reid. She loved feeling like this, more than anything else.
But Ivory knew better than to fall in love with Spencer Reid. He was pure, innocent, and unconditionally loving. She was a sin, and other people's sins combined. She couldn't love one man, because she didn't have any left to give around.
But she wanted to love Spencer Reid—she craved it, more than anything else.
/