DISTRACTION | Spencer Reid Fanfic

18

My kitchen was a mess.

There were pots and pans everywhere.

Water was boiling over on the stove top. The cut offs of vegetables scattered over the table. Flour in plumes on the floor.

Beads of sweat formed on my head.

This was a bad idea.

We had landed back from a case in the late afternoon.

"Do you have a coin? Like a dime or something." Emily had nudged me on the flight back.

I had been deeply engrossed in a book that I couldn't wait to share with Y/n. "Huh?" I looked up from the crisp pages.

"They're flipping a coin to decide who has to have the bigger case file this week." JJ sat back in amusement.

"Oh yeah." I lifted up from my seat wriggling my wallet out of my pocket. I flipped it open, but Derek tried to snatch out my hands.

"Who's that?" Derek leaned over the table trying to pull the wallet towards himself.

In turn I pulled it towards me. "Who's who?"

Derek narrowed his eyes. "That's a picture of someone."

I slip out a dime and press it into Emily's hand. "No it isn't."

"Show me then," Derek dared me, once again trying to snatch it from me.

"No."

I think the simplicity of my answer shocked Derek. "No?"

"No." I flicked open my phone.

It had only been a week but not speaking to Y/n face to face had been hard. Seeing the victims dragged across the rough grassy terrain had just sparked memories causing a spearing pain through my head. It made it impossible to sleep. At one point I had found myself charging out of my hotel, trying to find somewhere that I could get relief from. An alley with a dealer. A hospital with a corrupt doctor. A lazy pharmacist. Anyone. But then I thought of the disappointment that Y/n would try to conceal. But I would see it.

I began typing out a message for her.

Pasta?

I saw the three dots appear at the bottom of the screen.

What? She replied

Will you have dinner with me today? If you're free.

I could always eat. Where are we going? I silently chuckled at her response. Little did she know what she was in for.

I was thinking that I could cook.

Really? I didn't know you could cook. The truth is I can't really. But how hard could it be to follow a recipe.

I'm taking that as a yes then? Tonight at 8?

Sounds good x

The corners of my mouth turned upwards into a smile.

"See," Derek exclaimed. He's smiling. AT HIS PHONE. Ya'll got to be seeing this."

"Morgan," Hotch warned Derek.

"But Hotch..." Morgan waved his hands in my direction.

But Aaron continued to look at him disapprovingly.

"Fine," Derek slumped back in his seat. "Fine."

I knew he wouldn't let it go so easily. He was swiftly on my heels when we disembarked on the air strip. "First rounds on you Pretty boy." He thumped my shoulder sending a twinge up my back and straight into the pain that was already radiating in my head.

"I can't, Sorry."

"Are you being cheap on us kid?"

"No... I just have plans. Next time?" I offered instead.

"Plans?" He was scrutinising me.

"Yeah... umm... I have to talk to... someone about this... thing... And ummm it has to be tonight... I mean today... you know... umm... I actually should get going. I have to make a quick pit stop at the store first." I rushed ahead, leaving Derek scowling behind me. It irritated him that I wasn't sharing this with him. It irritated him even more that he was profiler and he wasn't sure what he was picking up on.

Although the stopping at the store had originally been an excuse, I realised that what I had in my cupboards at home was a poor excuse for dinner, unless you counted countless packets of instant noodles, ramen and frozen pizza as adequate meal for someone that I'm supposed to be wooing. Which I did not.