Chapter Text
The feeling of cold brick through his thin undershirt sent shivers down his spine. The lit cigarette he was sucking on contradicted this and filled him with sort of warmth, an altogether peaceful moment.
Currently the team was on a case in his hometown, Vegas, and it was taxing his brain rather highly. It hit almost too close to home.
Socially awkward, loner-type, teenage boys being lured with promises of romantic encounters, but being rewarded with rape and murder. All the boys were aged from fifteen to seventeen, and were held for one week. It was all around a terrible situation and it had Reid on edge.
So in order to take off the edge, he grabbed his pack and his lighter and headed out to the station's garden area, abandoning his work shirt and vest so it wouldn't absorb the smoke's acidic scent. He normally didn't smoke when the team was around or when he was on a case, but he needed something to clear the fog from his brain and the blurriness from his eyes. As he pulled the column from his lips he cast a soft chuckle throughout the small garden when he realized the irony of that thought.
'Inhaling smoke to clear smoke,' a smirk pulled at his diamond shaped lips and he rolled his eyes.
Puffing out a small cloud of smoke, he pulled out his phone; A text from Penelope.
'MORE CASE INFO BOY WONDER. GET YOUR CUTE BUTT IN THE MEETING ROOM'
'Well it was nice while it lasted', he thought as he eyed the soon-to-be butt of his cigarette, 'it was nice to see you again.'
Leaning over to the trash can to his left, he stubbed out the last of his stoke in the tray atop the bin and leaned back into the brick wall behind him, closing his eyes, to let the smoke settle into his lungs for a minute. When his minute was over, he sighed and pulled himself off the concrete bench and stumbled his way to the back entrance, simultaneously pulling his Altoids out of his pockets and popping one into his mouth, pocketing his pack and lighter. He stopped by his temporary desk to put his work shirt and sweater back on, as well as spray on a small bit of cologne to mask the scent of cigarettes.
When he entered the meeting room he expected to be hit with a wave of depressing dead teen information, not an enlarged Garcia on a TV screen yelling at him with his team crowded around him with all eyes on him, minus Morgan who went to get coffee.
Definitely not what he had in mind.
"Spencer Elijah-Christopher Reid, what on planet earth are you doing smoking?" Garcia’s voice echoed off the walls in the small room. Some of the team snickered at the use of his full name. He just sighed.
Spencer closed his eyes and took a deep breath and braced himself for his lecture, "I know for a fact that you know how deadly those things are and-" and this was the point where he opened his eyes and spaced out, making sure to throw out a "yes Garcia" or "I know that Penelope" every now and again so she would know that he was still listening. He didn't need a lecture on not listening, either, he was twenty-nine for God's sake, he knew he shouldn't smoke and he should know how to listen. He was always a doormat, well until he got with Derek.
Speaking of Derek-
"What would Derek think, huh? That his boyfriend of a year and a-half smokes and he didn't know it? Spencer, we love you, all of us, and the last thing we need to know is that you could possibly get lung cancer because of those things.” She sucked in a deep breathe. “We just worry."
"Yeah, Spence, we just worry about you because you're like our little brother and we don't want to see you sick and in pain." JJ piped in from the front of their little group.
"I honestly didn't have you pegged as a smoker, Reid. Wouldn't have guessed it for a thousand years." Rossi tacked on from the back.
"Well since we're coming clean about my personal life, would you believe that I'm mostly covered in tattoos?"
Spencer knew it wouldn't ease their mind about his smoking habit, but it would draw attention away from it.
"Oh my gosh baby genius! I want to see them! Where are they? How many are there? Does Derek know about them? Have you and my chocolate thunder-" It worked, thankfully.
"Garcia!" Reid was becoming flustered, this wasn't what he meant to do. He just wanted to get less personal, not more. "You all can see them when we get home, two full arm sleeves and two full leg sleeves, plus a back piece and scattered chest pieces. Yes, Derek knows, and I won't go into that."
The team looked at him like he had he was pregnant with Derek's kid and they were getting married, except for Hotch who had a glimmer of a smile dancing on his lips. But before Reid could diffuse the situation, Derek just had to walk into the room. Of course.
Just as Reid put his crimson face into his hands and shook his head, Morgan asked, "What'd I miss?" Clearly lost as to why the room held so much tension and shock.
As per usual, Penelope burst the room's bubble of shock with a boisterous,"Did you know Spencer's covered in tattoos chocolate thunder?"
Raising an trimmed eyebrow, he replied with a confused, "Yeah, why baby girl? You didn't know?"
"Derek, sweetness, if I knew I wouldn't have asked."
Wrapping a muscular arm around poor Spencer's waist he joking replied,"Well he is. My rainbow boy's a walking coloring book." He snickered.
Jabbing his elbow into Derek's side, Spencer muttered a quick, snarky, "Thanks babe."
In order to wrap up their quick nose-dive into his personal life detour he reminded them that he could see all his tattoos when they got back. Everyone just nodded and went back into work mode with Prentiss mumbling a quick, "More motive to get home."
Spencer sighed again. At least they didn't bring up his smoking habit in front of Morgan, that was the last thing he need Derek to know.