Spencer Reid One-Shots

The slightest changes

SUMMARY:
Since the day Spencer met Y/N, he's had an undeniable crush on her. It seems that everyone has noticed the changes in Spencer's behavior and outfits - everyone except for the woman he wants to be noticed by.

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For as long as Spencer had been with the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, he was judged a lot by how he chose to dress. A lot of officers and other people have often commented that he looked more like a teacher's assistant, rather than an FBI Agent. Add to that the constant teasing he'd endure whenever he'd even slightly change his outfit. 9 times out of 10, Spencer would try a new look or style, but ultimately go back to what he was familiar with, even if that style often caused people to judge his abilities.

This time was different. He'd change his appearance, hell, even his behavior if it meant people wouldn't automatically judge him. And, if his changes caught the attention of a certain female within the team, he wouldn't mind.

Like all goals wanting to be achieved, Spencer started off small. At first, he made small adjustments that wouldn't be immediately obvious, as to not cause any teasing which would affect his confidence.

The first time he tried to change his outfit, he simply bought a new tie. Thankfully, no one noticed, and if they did, they didn't say anything.

Once the small changes had stuck, - e.g. a new tie, some new mismatched socks, etc. - Spencer tried to step up the changes. One day, he showed up to work and tried to ignore the fact that he hadn't put on a sweater vest.

"Were you in a rush this morning?" Emily asked as Spencer sat down at his desk.

"No...why?" Spencer knew why Emily was asking him that question.

"You've got a jacket. You've got a tie. But you're missing a sweater vest." Emily noted.

"Oh, I'm, uh, trying something different by not wearing one." Spencer chuckled.

After a few weeks of not wearing a sweater vest, Spencer stopped wearing sweaters to work in general.

6 months went by and every couple of weeks, Spencer would do something to alter his appearance and behavior. By the end of 6 months, Spencer had stopped wearing sweaters or sweater vests. He rolled his sleeves up more often and didn't wear his watch over his jackets. He got a haircut which prompted a funny reaction from Hotch.

"Well, hello." Emily smirked as Spencer sat down at the conference room table, putting his messenger bag down.

"What, did you join a boy band?" Hotch furrowed his eyebrows at Spencer's new haircut.

"No." Spencer shook his head, quickly glancing at Y/N who had clearly seen the new look and tried not to smirk.

Behavior wise, Spencer mostly worked more on shortening his responses to questions. He would listen carefully during conversations at work, or during case briefings to identify just how much information he needed to give without earning 'shut up' looks from Hotch or Derek.

He kept his rambling to a minimum, only talking about certain topics when he was asked about them, once again not wanting to earn the awkward 'shut up' look.

Up until today, Spencer hadn't completely changed his appearance. The haircut was the only major difference, but even then, he decided to go a bit shorter. Every day, he chose something about himself to change. If he got a positive response from Y/N, or the other members of the team, he'd remember that for next time. If he got a negative response, he'd do something difference.

Finally, it was time to fully change his appearance and (hopefully) stick to it. On Sunday afternoon, he got his hair cut even shorter. Now, the sides and back were almost shaved off and the top of his hair was short. It looked different, but good.