Chapter Text
It was cliché.
Way too overly ridiculous and cliché and Spencer shouldn't be fixated on the way this stranger's hands fumble over his pockets or the way his posture straightens when he finds out he left his wallet somewhere. The dark tuffs of hair cascading over his eyes as he peers down at his pockets, confusion licking his brows as he let out a nervous chuckle shouldn't elicit these... feelings.
But it was happening, and Spencer let it happen.
"Don't worry-" Spencer chimed from behind the man whom he suddenly felt a need to protect, "I've got it." His nerves were tensed as he brushed past the stranger with almost a strained smile. He felt nervous but tried to talk as smoothly as he possibly could.
This man was a mere inch shorter than Spencer. Dark brown rims framed stunning green eyes as he turned to peer at Spencer with a look of shock - ready to deny Spencer's kind offering - but he was too late as Spencer pulled cash from his wallet before he gave a curt nod to the cashier while speaking quickly, "Medium black, extra sweet."
The cashier, a pretty woman with straight blonde hair tied up in her worker's hat, rose painted eyebrows up at him as she asked slowly, "How much is extra sweet?" A hint of irritance found its way into her voice as she peered between the two men who had just met.
"Ten sugars sounds... extra sweet," He mumbled. It wasn a shy, knowing mumble as a smile grabbed the corner of his lips briefly.
Spencer chuckled lightly while anixety bubbled beneath his chest as the purple of his scarf tickled the back of his neck, "Precisely so, thank you." His senses were starting to feel overwhelmed as coffee pots beeped behind the counter and door chimes rang throughout his skull with a violent intensity.
What is happening?
The cashier held back the roll of her eyes as she directed her two customers to the waiting area. She squinted slightly with some curiosity, though. It was peculiar the way the two were standing.
They stood quietly. Spencer felt his heart thud loudly against his chest and if he weren't so profoundly smart he would almost think the stranger next to him could hear the loud thuds as they punched his rib cage. Spencer let out an audile shakey sigh as he brought his hand up through his hair - breifly glancing at the man waiting for his coffee next to him. Spender could feel his blood tingle in his veins and such a thing hasn't happened since - since her.
Maeve.
Spencer's eyebrows slowly drew together as he pictured her face. Fear stricken - beautiful.
Maeve was special and smart and - gone. For years now.
Spencer shook his head as he squeezed his eyes shut. He's accepted the terrible fate that was Maeve's, but it still hurts his heart. He turns his attention back to the stranger in attempts to distract himself. He swallows thickly as he loosens his scarf from around his neck.
People rarely captivate Spencer Reid.
Spencer knows all about the mathematics behind what makes a person beautiful down to direct equations - but this - this is different. It's not that this stranger next to him is sculpted like a God - nor is he ugly like a demon from hell.
Spender rubs his chapped lips together. Time felt slowed as he peered at this man beside him from the corners of his eyes.
On this stranger, one of his full eyebrows sits slightly higher than the other and a single freckle marks on his right cheek slightly below his eye.
Spencer tilted his head slightly as he glanced at the dark cardigan covering this man's arms where he assumed costilations of other freckles reside. He clenched his jaw in short intervals as his heart raced.
"Medium black, extra sweet," A new worker called out with flirtatious twist.
Spencer smiled briefly as a thank you - still not quite understanding flirting. His hand shook slightly as he retirived the coffee before stealing a glance at the stranger while turning to leave.
Spencer didn't step a single step before the stranger stuttered out, "Ah- wait. What do I owe you?"
Spencer shrugged as cooly as he could muster, "It's-" He paused as he nearly choked on his tongue, "-not a problem." Spencer felt his eyebrows curl in on themselves in confusion.
The stranger scoffed slightly. His shoulders seemed tense and a weary smile danced on his lips. He was like Spencer. Nervous.
The likelyhood of this is insane.
"It's fine," Spencer gestured, "I assure you -" He felt his phone vibrate harshly in his pocket. "I've got to go, uh - I hope you enjoy your coffee!"
"Michael!" the man called out as Spencer turned around. The stranger cleares his throat before adding, "My name is Michael..."
Spencer paused in his spot. He licked his lips thoughtfully before letting out an all too nervous chuckle without looking back at The Most Stunning Man he's ever seen, "M-Michael. Have a good day."
Michael.
When Spencer made it out of the coffee shop and back into the familiar surroundings of the B.A.U., he paused his movements. He stood there peering down at his cup as he inhaled slowly, his eyebrows scrunched together and his lips turning up ever so slightly.
Michael's voice was sweet and soft and somehow it reminded Spencer of honey and warm summers spent in meadows.
---
The coffee was terrible, but it was convenient and right outside his home away from home. Sometimes the office coffee tasted stale and bland, so Spencer needed something just slightly more horrible to remind his taste buds to appreciate what he has available to him.
He quietly turned the cup between his lanky fingers as Garcia presented a case to the Team. He peered over the case files - a family annihilator hit Texas three times within the last two weeks. The UnSub was escalating and surely experiencing some sort of psychotic break by the growing number of stab wounds on the female victims.
It was strange and intriguing and everything Spencer would love to dissect if he hadn't had his heart ripped from his chest and thrown into a pool of unwanted feelings and... wonders.
Luckily, there had been a list of suitable UnSubs complied already.
Unluckily, by the looks of it, the killer won't stop until he's caught.
---
"Michael," Spencer mumbled unknowingly to himself as he tapped his fingers on the sides of the hours-old coffee cup he brought onto the plane with him.
He peered down at the case files with a firey intensity. He wanted nothing more than to interact and possibly speak with this Michael again. He calculated the odds and they weren't good. Spencer is a regular at the barely average coffee shop, so he would have noticed this man before. From his groomed appearance - although, hair still slightly astray - fluffy, one might call it - and book bag hanging off his slightly broad shoulders to his button up cardigan that nearly matched Spencer's and his expensive glasses frame told Spencer he is for the most part an organized man. He spoke softly and stood with a readers slouch. Spencer deduced he must have worked in a library or book store - but one he's never seen before. He could be a teacher perhaps, possibly a professor? Questions and answers ran through his brain as he tried to categorize his work from his near lack of outside social life. This was distracting and the tapping on the cup turned escalated into nervous energy being expelled through turning the cup on the table in careful intervals.
JJ's voice ran through his ears, "Spence? Spencer-" JJ snapped in front of him.
"Wh-" Spencer stuttered as he looked up to see many pairs of eyes on him. He blinked expectantly.
"Are you okay? You're spacing out," JJ asked before tilting his head toward the coffee cup, "And.."
Spencer hummed with furrowed brows as he quickly sputtered out, "I got something." Anything to digress from the thoughts cluttering his mind sounded amazing to him.
"Got something?" JJ repeated.
"Well, go on," Emily's voice rang through his ears from his left.
Weird feelings.
"Yeah, look at this," Spencer began. His sentences came out in a rush and he fumbled over his words maybe a little too frequently. His composure was slightly compromised. His hands wobbled slightly against the marker he pressed to the map on the table. He explained his geological profile, "The UnSub's comfort zone is between Fort Worth and Arlington. Now, if you look at the mothers, they all look pretty similar. Blonde hair, blue eyes, fit, and most likely confident. He probably hunts for these families in parks. Pictures from the crime scenens all indicate the child played some sort of sport..." Spencer drabbled on as the team listened closely before he started to ramble a little too much about the percentage of kids to soccer moms.
"Reid," Emily cut him off before starting to list off orders, "Luke and Matt, go to the crime sences. JJ try and talk with anyone who knew the families, and Reid, Rossi, and I will make base at the police station."
Reid hummed softly in acknowledgement before sitting back in his chair. He brought his finger up to rub them over his eyes as he pictured that nervous smile pull at Michael's lips. He pinched the bridge of his nose and before JJ could even ask he just countered, "Headache."
"Too much caffeine, Spence," JJ chuckled and she leaned back in her chair pretending she didn't have a cup of coffee literally sitting on the table in front of her.
"Actually," Spencer began, "Caffeine can be a headache trigger or headache inhibitor. Before a headache or migraine, blood vessels tend to enlarge. Caffeine contains “vasoconstrictive” properties that cause the blood vessels to narrow and restrict blood flow so caffeine can aid in head pain relief. When caffeine is added to the combination of acetaminophen and aspirin, the pain relieving effect is increased by forty percent." Spencer reached for his bag as he spoke, pulling out a pill bottle for emphasis and shaking it, "Now if you'll excuse me." He got up to walk towards the back. He pulled a water bottle from the small fridge and swallowed two pills gratefully.
---
The case wasn't exactly hard to solve. The killer was a local coach gone completely rogue over his obsession with his own mother rotting his brain to nothing but madness and chaos. The case was somewhat of a win. The team had saved the lives of three people, but the UnSub committed suicide by cop.
Spencer wasn't too overly perplexed as he sat on the couch in the back of a the plane with a book nestled in his hands. He wasn't reading it though as he peered at the mass of words on the page. Just looking.
He was trying not to think about this - this stranger - this man - but as he eyes graced over the page no new information entered his brain. He slunk down into his seat with a heavy sigh. He felt Emily watching him out of the corner of his eye before he finally heard her familiar voice softly speak to him, "Reid, are you doing okay? You seemed distracted today."
Spencer turned his gaze to Emily. She looked tired and probably needed a good nights sleep. Spencer's eyes flicked to the other sleeping members on the jet before he dropped his book and curled his legs up to his chest as he mumbled, "I'm... not sure."
Emily sigh as she tilted her head. Her youngest agent always seemed to have some sort of troubles running around his head. "You know you can talk to me, right?"
Spencer's lips twitched into a sour frown, "I've just been ..." He paused.
Spencer's nose twitched as he avoided eye contact. He thought for a moment before mumbling, "I've been thinking about Maeve."
He felt Emily's body language shift from across from him, a more sympathetic aurora wrapping around her body.
What he said wasn't a lie, technically, but he really didn't feel like exposing himself just yet - especially since it's about a man rather than woman. Plus he'd rather not have anyone snooping in anyone's business.
"Spencer.." Emily mumbled slowly as her eyebrows curled together. She wasn't there when he really needed her back then, but she could here for him right now.
Spencer picked at his shoes as he spoke quietly, "I know she's gone, and I accept that. It's just," He paused as he buried his face into his knees. A bitter smile grew on his face while tears brimmed the backs of his eyes as he whispered. "I'm lonely. Lonelier now more than I've ever felt, I think." It took every ounce of his will power to stop his voice from wavering.
Spencer just wanted someone to hold. He wanted to cook and care for someone. He wanted to love someone unconditionally but it's hard when you're like him - and seeing that stranger in the coffee shop reminded him of these feelings he tucked away so deeply.
Emily looked at Spencer with a worried frown before reaching across the aisle and dropping her hand onto his knee, squeezing it as she said, "Well, I wouldn't say you're alone because you have us, Spencer, - but I understand." She retracted her hand and leant back in her seat as she watched Spencer carefully.
Spencer let out out a shaky laugh into his knees, "I know that." He blinked away his tears before looking up at Emily. He swallowed before mumbling softly, "Thank you."