Gentle Epiphany // Criminal Minds

Chapter Two - Pretty Boy

♜ Spencer ♜

There are a handful of things I truly like, Chess, Literature, Math, Coffee, Science Fiction, Halloween, and Daphne Moore's smile. She usually shys away from most people, keeping her head buried in a new book each day. I don't think I've ever met another person who reads more than me. Currently she's reading another fantasy book, a few weeks ago she went through an impressive collection of gothic fiction. My mother would find her rather fascinating.

Things I've noticed about her since she started working at the BAU, her notable funky sock collection. Today she has the Mona Lisa on her socks with her platform vans. She uses flowers as bookmarks, she quietly snuck out during lunch on one of our cases to go pick bluebonnets in Texas. Prefers to sit on anything that isn't a chair, usually she finds her way on the table so she can spread crime scene photos out around her. She will fake an accent to relieve tension, so far she's done a spot on British, French, and Irish accent. I'm hoping she will do a Russian one soon. When she's nervous she will do double finger guns then blush immediately after. And lastly she hums songs randomly throughout the day, I don't think she realizes she is but none of us will stop her. Her voice has a quiet beauty about it, one we all enjoy listening to.

I hold my jacket close to my body as we follow David Woodland, Heather's brother through the hallway towards the open dining and living room. Daphne walks closely behind me like she always does with Morgan or me. There is a golden retriever in the living room waiting, he instantly barks when I walk in making me flinch for a moment.

"Sandy...no...no..." David tries to get the dog to stop barking at me.

Daphne's eyes light up as she smiles, "May I?" She questions gesturing to the dog. David nods his head before she gets on her knees to scratch behind the dog's ears. Sandy seems to like her, I don't blame the dog...Daphne has this calming presence about her.

"I'm so sorry." David apologizes for the dogs outburst.

"No, it's ok. It's what we call the Reid effect. Happens with children, too." Hotch explains trying to reassure David that it's fine. I would argue that children like me just fine but based off his analysis apparently they do not. Daphne looks over her shoulder at me with a smile that does something funny to my stomach. I'm still not really sure what that particular feeling means but it happens a lot around her.

"I'm Agent Hotchner, this is Special Agent Dr. Reid and Special Agent Moore." He introduces.

"You look too young to have gone to medical school." David looks at me in surprise, I'm use to that look of disbelief.

"They're P.H.D.s. 3 of them." I correct him walking further into the room with Hotch.

"Are you a genius or something?"

"I don't believe that intelligence can be accurately quantified...but I do have an IQ of 187 and an eidetic memory and can read 20,000 words per minute." I explain to him getting a blank stare in return.

"In other words, yes he's a genius." I try to hide my smile when she uses a Russian accent when she calls me genius. I've been waiting a few months for that, after I realized what she was doing and why.

"Sandy you get lots of attention...don't ya." Daphne smiles wide, her tone climbing higher and her worlds slower in a voice that's attractive to dogs.

"Yeah, Heather loves this dog. I feed her when Heather's away. Usually she's fine, but lately, she won't eat. It's almost like she can sense something's wrong." David mentions looking between Hotch and Daphne. He's wrong, it's not a sense thing.

"Not sense. Smell." I correct him, "Our apocrine sweat gland releases secretions in response to emotional stress." I explain further while walking around the room looking for anything of interest.