warnings: mentions of drug/alcohol addiction
"I don't wanna get up."
Spencer laughs softly, running his hands down Y/n's back. "You have to. We both have to."
"But I don't wanna," she mumbles into his chest.
"Why not?"
"Because I'm scared one of us is gonna get transferred if we tell Hotch," she mumbles.
"No one is gonna get transferred," Spencer murmurs.
She lifts her head up, setting her chin on his chest. "How do you know that?"
"I just do," he replies, brushing the back of his fingers across her cheek. "Trust me, baby."
She's quiet for a moment. "Okay, fine."
Spencer smiles, leaning forward to plant a small kiss on her lips. She grins before kissing him back, sighing as she pulls away. Spencer releases her and she sits up, stretching before getting out of bed. She heads into the bathroom first, and Spencer sits up, swinging his legs over the bed.
He gets dressed first, putting on a blue striped button up with a gray cardigan over it. He pulls on a pair of black slacks and mismatched socks before putting his Converse on. By the time he's done, Y/n comes strolling out of the bathroom, planting a kiss on his cheek as she goes to get dressed. A blush creeps to Spencer's cheeks as he walks into the bathroom, brushing his teeth and putting on deodorant. He runs his fingers through his hair, trying to tame the unruly curls.
After a few moments of trying to fix his hair, he strolls out of the bathroom, watching Y/n pull her heels on. She's wearing a powder blue button up, the sleeves rolled up, tucked into a pair of dress pants. She turns her head, grinning at him as she stands up. They walk into the kitchen, and Spencer fixes both of them coffee. She leans against his counter, watching him fill both to go cups, stirring the sugar in.
He turns to her, handing her the to go cup, his eyes flicking up to meet hers. "So, I have a question. It's gonna sound stupid but—"
"What is it?" She asks, taking a small sip of her coffee.
Spencer's face feels like it's on fire, and he clears his throat. "U-Uh, do you maybe wanna make it official? You know, be my girlfriend?"
"I thought I was already," she says, her lips turning up in the corners. "But, since you asked so nicely, of course I want to make it official."
Spencer lets out a breathy laugh, wrapping his arms around her waist. She giggles, meeting him halfway, pressing her lips against his. Their lips move together slowly, Spencer's hands squeezing her waist softly. After a moment, he pulls away, resting his forehead against hers.
"I love you," he murmurs.
"I love you, too," she replies, planting a small kiss on his nose.
His smile grows wider. "Come on, we gotta go to work."
He grabs his to go cup and his keys, and both of them walk out the door, Spencer locking it behind them. Y/n drives, and Spencer reaches over, lacing their fingers together as she pulls out of the apartment complex. He runs his thumb over hers, watching the way her lips turn up slightly at the corners.
As she pulls into the parking lot, a bundle of nerves gathers in Spencer's stomach. They're going to tell Hotch today—about everything. And he's not worried about getting transferred. Both he and Y/n have proved they're valuable assets to the team, he knows Hotch isn't going to transfer either of them. But for some reason, a weird sense of nervousness sits in his stomach. Y/n squeezes his hand as she parks the car, unbuckling her seatbelt.
"Ready?" She asks, biting the inside of her cheek.
Spencer nods. "Ready."
He leans forward, pressing his lips to hers for a moment before pulling away, grinning as he opens the car door. He meets her on the other side of the car, lacing their fingers together. They're telling Hotch—might as well let everyone else know, too. They keep their fingers laced together as they make their way up to the sixth floor. Y/n looks nervous as Spencer opens the glass doors to the bullpen, and she immediately grips his hand again.
She keeps her eyes straight ahead on Hotch's office, but Spencer notices the team looking. Garcia is sitting on Morgan's desk, both of them looking at Spencer and Y/n's joined hands. Spencer meets Morgan's eyes, and his best friend's lips turn up at the corners, giving him a subtle thumbs up. Prentiss and JJ are looking at both of them from Prentiss' desk, and Spencer meets both of their eyes before turning away. Rossi's in his office, so he can't really see the pair, but he knows the older man probably wouldn't be as shocked. He seems to know everything. He gives Y/n's hand an encouraging squeeze as they approach Hotch's closed door. Y/n breaks her grip on his hand, knocking on the door softly.
"Come in," Hotch's deep voice says.
Y/n inhales deeply before turning the knob to his door, both she and Spencer stepping inside. Hotch looks up from the stack of files on his desk, his eyes flicking between the two of them. Y/n gives him a small smile, clearing her throat.
"Can we talk to you, sir?"
Hotch nods. "Close the door, Reid."
Spencer shuts the door before walking over to the chair beside Y/n, both of them sitting next to each other. Y/n's hand finds his, lacing their fingers together, and Spencer tries to stop the small blush creeping into his cheeks. After a moment, Y/n clears her throat again.
"I wanted to talk to you about a couple things today," she begins, her eyes flicking up to meet Hotch's.
Hotch nods, his eyes flicking between the two of them. "Okay, I'm listening."
"Um, okay, well the first, I guess, more obvious thing is what's going on between Spencer and I," she says, her voice quiet.
"You two are seeing each other," Hotch states, matter-of-factly.
"Yes," Spencer says.
"For how long?"
Spencer looks at Y/n, running his thumb in small circles around hers. "It hasn't been too long. A few months."
Hotch nods slowly. "Okay." His eyes flick to Y/n. "You said a couple things? What's the other thing?"
Y/n swallows, averting her gaze. She's even more nervous than Spencer. Spencer squeezes her hand, her eyes flicking to him.
"It's okay," he murmurs. "You can do it."
She nods, turning her head back to Hotch. "When I started working here, I was a drug addict. And an alcoholic. I had been for a long time." Hotch holds her gaze, his brows scrunching together. "Spencer...he figured it out. And he...um....he actually saved my life when I overdosed." Her voice breaks slightly, and Spencer swallows the lump in his throat, trying to forget the night he found her unconscious on her bathroom floor. "I mean, he saved my life, full stop. He helped me get clean. He helped me through withdrawal." She turns her head, looking at Spencer, giving him a small smile. "And along the way, we, um, we fell in love. It sound stupid but it's true."
Spencer flicks his eyes to look at Hotch. Hotch meets his eyes for a moment before looking between the two of them.
"I'm happy for both of you," he says, his voice soft. "I...I realize that this team didn't help Spencer the way we should have when he was going through his addiction. And I don't want to make that same mistake again." His lips turn up into a small smile. "I need you—both of you—to know that we support you, one-hundred percent." His eyes flick to Spencer. "You've seemed happier the past few months than I've seen you in a long time, Spencer. And now I know it's because of Y/n. I had a feeling, but I wasn't for sure."
"Did you guys bet on it?" Spencer asks, his lips turning up in the corners. "You guys bet on everything."
Hotch is silent for a moment. "I owe Morgan five bucks." Y/n laughs, and Spencer grins. "But we are all here for you. All of us."
Y/n nods. "So...I-I'm not in trouble?"
Hotch shakes his head. "No, you're not in trouble. I wish you would've told me, but I understand why you didn't."
"What about our relationship?" Spencer asks, knitting his brows. That's the part he's worried most about—that they're going to say they can't be together. And Spencer can't do that. He won't do that.
"I'll have to talk to Strauss about it, but both of you are valuable assets to this team," he says. "But in the field, the team comes first. You can't be worrying about one another."
"I understand," Spencer says.
"Me, too," Y/n says, glancing at Spencer.
"Good," Hotch says, nodding. "Y/n, I'm glad you're okay. I'm glad you're clean, and I'm glad Spencer was able to help you."
"Me, too, sir," she says softly.
"Is there anything else you two need to talk to me about?"
Spencer shakes his head. "No."
"Alright." Hotch smiles softly at the two of them. "Go get to work."
Nodding, both of them stand, still hand in hand as they walk out of Hotch's office. Ignoring the stares from the team, Spencer pulls Y/n out past the glass doors of the bullpen into a small hallway. Y/n looks up at him, and Spencer breaks his hold on her hand, reaching to cradle her face in his hands instead.
"You are so brave," he murmurs. "You're so strong. And I'm so proud of you."
She smiles as she looks up at him, wrapping her arms around his torso. "Thank you. You...you make it feel like everything's gonna be okay. Like it's all going to be alright." She takes a deep breath, her eyes searching his.
"It is," he says, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "We have each other. That's all we need."
"I love you," she whispers.
"I love you more," he replies, grinning down at her.
She giggles softly as Spencer leans down, pressing his lips against hers. She kisses him back softly, and Spencer feels the warmth bubbling in his chest, the same feeling he always gets around Y/n. He loves her with his whole entire being. He can't imagine loving anyone else the way he loves her. And when he holds her like this, it's like he's holding his whole entire world in his arms. And he knows how cheesy that sounds—but it's true. She's it. She's everything.
There's a fine line between recovery and addiction. He used to walk that line by himself. All alone. But now? He and Y/n walk that line together, hand in hand. And he can't think of anyone else he'd rather walk it with. He can't imagine anyone else loving him or making him as happy as she does.
He pulls away after a moment, looking down at her. "Have I mentioned today how lucky I am to be in love with you?"
Her cheeks burn a light pink color as she lets out a breathy laugh. Instead of answering, she presses a kiss to both of his cheeks before kissing his lips again, softer this time. The kiss holds a lot of love—almost like she's trying to tell him how lucky she is to be in love with him, to be loved by him. She pulls away after a moment, her eyes searching his. Spencer runs his fingers through her hair, the two of them gazing at each other lovingly.
"I hate to break up the party," Spencer hears JJ says from behind them, "but we have a case."
Spencer turns his head, raising his eyebrows. "A case?"
"Mhm, a realtor was murdered in Buffalo. We're gathering in the roundtable room." JJ pauses, looking at the two of them. "You two are really cute, by the way. Emily owes me five bucks."
Spencer and Y/n laugh, and Spencer turns his head back to Y/n. "You ready?"
She nods. "Ready."
Spencer laces his fingers with hers. "Well then, let's go."
And the two of them, hand in hand, walk back into the BAU, ready to face anything life is willing to throw at them.
Together.
The End
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Author's Note
AH THE LAST CHAPTER!
I hope it wasn't underwhelming or anything. But I can't believe there's only the epilogue left. I loved writing this fic. And I sure as hell didn't think I was gonna get the response I did. Thank you all so so so so much for reading! It means so much to me that you all read my silly little fics and make me so happy :)
The epilogue will be up tomorrow, most likely. I have work tonight from 6-10, and I know I'm gonna be tired afterward. But again, thank you all so much for just being generally amazing human beings.
I hope you enjoyed the last full chapter! :) <3