[✓] 𝐶𝐼𝑁𝐷𝐸𝑅 | 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐈𝐃

𝟖 | 𝐍𝐎 𝐖𝐀𝐘 𝐎𝐔𝐓 | 𝟏/𝟐

— 𝒞 —

𝐖𝐀𝐋𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 bullpen, Charlie immediately became suspicious when she noticed a few members of the team crowding around her desk.

Maybe it was to talk to Spencer, she figured, since his desk was pushed against hers. Though, she quickly receded that conclusion as she realized that Spencer was a part of the group, whose other members were Morgan, JJ, and Emily.

"What are you guys doing?" slowly asked Charlie as she approached.

They all turned to her, and she wasn't all too trusting of the grins on their faces.

Morgan was the first to speak up, "Mornin' . . . Charlotte."

Charlie's nervous smile instantly faded. The nine-lettered name caused blood to suddenly pound in her ears. Caused her heart to suddenly thud in her chest.

If there was anything she didn't want the team to find out about, it was that.

Every call of that name was a reminder of that night. And that was a night she did not need to be reminded of.

Yet it was beginning to present itself to her mind, and the distant screaming in her head that was growing louder was something she was eager to get rid of.

How had they even found out what her full name was? Hotch was the only one that knew, and she was sure that he hadn't brought it up in conversation.

It was then that she noticed the envelope in Morgan's hand, and she silently groaned.

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked JJ with a playful smile. "It's a nice name! I have an aunt named Charlotte!"

"Yeah, what, was it too girly for you?" teased Emily. "Charlotte isn't all that bad. It's pretty."

Charlie's first reaction was to cry. She instead swallowed that down, choosing to maintain a little bit of dignity.

Unfortunately, that redirected itself into anger.

Charlie snatched the envelope from Morgan's hand, crushing the paper a little, and muttered, "Why the hell were you looking at my stuff?"

Morgan's grin immediately faltered, and he exchanged furrowed eyebrows with the other three as Charlie crossed over to her desk and dropped her purse beside her chair. "Sorry, I just noticed and—"

"No," she interrupted, not even bothering to see who the letter was from before shoving it into her drawer, "that's my privacy! I don't go checking your name on your fucking mail, do I?"

"I didn't—"

"Just forget it, okay?" she sighed as she sat down, her anger now simmering down and being replaced with a somewhat hazy feeling that made her movements feel a little more sluggish. "Please, just . . . never call me that again."

"Charlie," Spencer said hesitantly, glancing at the others who were all staring at her with concern, "it's not that big of a deal."

She took a deep breath before looking up at him. "It is to me."

"Why?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"But—"

"Now now, Reid," murmured Emily, and he gave a mute nod.

As they all muttered their "Sorry"'s and headed back to their desks, Charlie buried her head in her arms and took a few deep breaths.

The sounds around the office had suddenly tripled, and their volume maxed to a hundred in her ears. The footsteps around her, the clicking keys, the chuckles in conversations all worsened her growing headache.