Chapter Text
The dream became true 6 years ago; his little miracle was born in a stupendous condition, and his world expanded the moment he held that little girl into his arms for the first time.
Maeve Jennifer Reid was born on a windy day and was named after her mother and the best friend of the marriage. Unfortunately, not every romance story ends like you want. The same day he won the biggest gift life could gave him, he lost the woman he loved the most.
Happiness came with grief, and he didn't have the time to process both. The first months were hell; he couldn't even look at the baby in his house; it felt distant.
Spencer recovered emotionally after five months—months during which, because he wasn't alone, he was able to take the time to regain the strong mindset that defined him and to enjoy the new sparkle in his eyes. He had golden friends, he was grateful for JJ and Morgan being there; holding her daughter even when he didn't had the strength to do that without missing his wife.
Now, after 6 wonderful years. Maeve was ready for elementary school. Spencer thought it was stupid; he could do the teacher's job and he would be able to spend more time with her.
Time.
He was always lack of time.
But with the BUA cases, the paperwork, and his mother. Now he understood why Hotch would leave as soon as the clock struck 5, or why JJ never went out on weekends with him and Penelope during those days of “irresponsibility” that he had enjoyed and now looked back on with nostalgia. Elementary school was perfect for him and the development of independence, and Maeve wouldn't be alone; Michael and Hank would be there. And those were his nephews; it was perfect!
And Spencer wasn't nervous about her academic debut; Maeve was brilliant. His little genius. He was not only proud, but he was also the definition of the word when it comes to his daughter.
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Fridays were calm days; Spencer just needed to sign reports, and he could leave early. He was excited; Fridays were always playtime with his little girl; he loved picking her up from school whenever he could. And today was the new teacher’s first day. That was something he had to keep in mind if he wanted to find out who was responsible for his daughter.
He was already holding his briefcase when a call from Morgan put him on alert—something unusual given the odds, an anomaly. But nothing to worry about, right? He hoped so.
"Hey! Long time no see" his friend spoke with his usual playfulness
"We met yesterday in the school entrance-"
"Yeah, yeah. It's a greeting. Never mind; you should see your messages. Little Einstein is in a trouble"
Spencer heard laughter on the other side of the line. He hung up quickly and looked for the devil's technology. Yeah, he was more used to it; but he still had that habit to not check it continuously throught the day.
We request that a guardian or parent come to the school due to a report of misconduct...
"Shit", he read the rest, but he didn't care about details in that moment. "Shit, shit, shit"
"Hey, no swear words at home~" Emily appeared, but he didn't have time. He already left.
Spencer drove to the school faster than he ever had. His mind was rushing through every type of misconduct. Did Maeve talk back? A swear word? Did he said something innapropriate in front of her? Or maybe from Garcia or his mom? No, no. She was a good kid, the best of all of them. He took his time to always explain what is good and bad, her questions.
Derek waited for him outside at the school main entrance. Since the school couldn't get to Spencer, they talked to the second phone number Maeve was registered to: her godfather.
"Hey, look at that. It's a record"
"W-why are you so relaxed? It's misconduct! Something must be wrong, and most of the children who behave like that have been neglected and Maeve is definitely not–"
"Calm down, calm down. Look, she's inside; I already talked to her. It was just a little fight, but you must do your thing. Right?"
Oh, heavens.
"Right"
Before turning on the hallway, he heard another laugh from Derek.
"Oh, and no need to go on the teacher. Little new Miss Sunshine has claws, seems like she has everything under control"
Spencer would make sure that the new teacher knows that he can bite too, for sure. (If it's necessary) He felt tense, and he showed the gun a little bit more "just in case" he had to meet a violent parent, that made Derek laugh louder.
Maeve was sitting outside the classroom with Hank Spencer. She was avoiding his father's eyes, and that made his heart ache; she was ashamed of what she did; he knew that. She walked with little steps to him, looking for his hand.
"Am I in big trouble?"
"Darling... I don't know yet. Can you tell me what happened first?" he spoke with a soft tone, getting down to grab her shoulders.
"I hit a guy... because he made fun of mom...".
Sensitive topic there, his state of alert intensified; Spencer sighed, letting a deep breath out, and he nodded. She grabbed Maeve's little hand and walked inside the classroom where the other kid and his parents must be. He was ready to confront everything, to take out the laws if needed, to take action, everything!
He expected scolding, since so many children were being raised by idiots. But to his surprise, the woman's voice he heard wasn't just from a mother. It was also from the teacher.
"And how can you be so stubborn about that!? Your little "gentleman", must apologize too! Teach some responsibility!"
"You want to teach me how to raise my child!?"
Now he understood what Derek meant.
"Ah! You must be Mr. Reid"
The moment she turned around, he felt like he needed to take a break. Her change in tone and face was stunning. Her slightly tense tone shifted to a more cheerful and subtle one.
Something they had in common was that they expected to meet someone who looked older.
"Doctor Reid", he made sure to look sharp in contrast, especially to the little demon and his mother already sitting in front of the desk.
"Yeah... take a seat please"
"You are a menace as a teacher, letting this girl around hitting"
"Mrs. Donna. I'm talking", the woman in front of them spoke before he could. That was good, he was ready to throw poison.
The other lady went quiet with those wide eyes open like she was about to kill the Miss in front of her. He felt the tension and somehow the support from the teacher side.
"Now, I feel sorry that this was the way we had to meet, but I won't let this happen again without an advertisement and..."
"Oh, you shouldn't! Why on earth wo-"
"I'm talking".
She corrected the woman across from her again, this time in a more serious tone, her expression demanding attention. She looked sweet, and he liked the way she was handling this matter. The only thing that frustrated him was that obnoxious Mrs. Donna sitting next to him.
"I've spoken with both children. I want them to know that this is a first warning; neither of them would have a oficial report, and I hope it stays that way."
He slowly began to relax; Spencer nodded with the utmost calm, but on the other end, the same woman spoke up again.
“Oh! Don’t you dare threaten my little—”
“She’s talking.” He had to interrupt; he started to get pissed off about sitting next to that b word. He got scared a bit, maybe his hidden violence was the reason Maeve acted like that? He must make self-assessment later.
"Thanks. And to make everything clear, they apologized to each other. They are good kids."
The next 20 minutes felt like being trapped with a lunatic and a monk. Miss Sunshine was exactly what was expected of her name, but with more strength. After Mrs. Donna left with that horrible child, Spencer felt lighter; he survived a shot, however that lady was worse for sure.
The second thing in common was that they sighed at the same time.
That made the teacher chuckle, and she smiled more relaxed. Maeve looked at her instead of him, he felt betrayed for a second. That was actually a good thing. It meant that, in addition to the close-knit circle, she found a safe haven in her.
"Sorry we had to meet like this. You are the last parent I haven't met. I'm Miss Sunshine"
Now they chuckled at the same time. Spencer coughed, going back to the father side.
"But that boy made fun of a sensitive topic. I hope you can do something else and..."
"I know. Look, the only one who apologized was Ricky. Of course I said both to Mrs. Donna for her to leave you and Maeve alone; Maeve shouldn't have done that, but I understand she was just defending herself"
Maeve looked embarrassed, her eyes on the floor without looking at any of them. He would make sure to never forget that little demon in boy's appearance.
"Thanks", he started to stand up grateful for the empathy.
"And don't worry Dr. Reid, you have a wonderful little girl. She's really intelligent and well behaved, I wish her classmates were like that"
He felt proud; smiling cocky like a peacock showing its feathers. "Please, just Reid, or Spencer." They shook hands and it felt electric, their smiles contagious to each other.
"Have a great weekend, Maeve"
The girl nodded as fast as she could and smiled brightly at her, the sadness on her little face vanishing.
"And you're grounded. You know how to defend yourself from bullies without hitting. We practiced it!"
Maeve wanted to protest but she accepted, grabbing his father's hand to get out of the classroom.
Hank and Derek Morgan were sitting outside the classroom, waiting for them. Maeve ran to his cousin grabbing his hand to walk together to the exit. The other, smiled between confused and teasingly.
"So?"
"Miss Sunshine is appropriate. I approve her, she's classy and knows how to take control; she knows how to be careful around rudeness and that's good".
Derek raised his eyebrows more, his gaze getting intense.
"And? That's all?"
"And Maeve likes her"
"You are sooo boring"