Childish| Criminal Minds

5

JJ's boyfriend Will took JJ, Spencer, and Emily to the party. He didn't feel like going because he had to wake up early the next morning, so he left after giving JJ a kiss on the cheek.

It's rare that JJ sees Will because of how far away he lives. It's a forty-five minute drive from his town to theirs, but because he was already close he offered to drive them.

Over the past few days, Emily Prentiss Had slowly managed to get closer to JJ and Spencer. She was a good friend, now; someone they could rely on to make them smile.

Emily is talking about how she plans on sabotaging Aaron's relationship, and Spencer is rolling his eyes.

The music from inside can be heard from the sidewalk. Cat's house is certainly something. Even in the dark they can still tell. It's two stories tall with a gorgeous flower garden and a fountain in the front yard.

There are a few people standing around on the front lawn with red-solo cups in their hands, obviously wasted.

Spencer makes an audible squeak as JJ pulls him towards the front door. Emily follows close behind and JJ turns the knob.

The stench of alcohol is the first thing they notice. The music is so loud they can hardly hear each other.

"This is... nuts," Emily says.

"Hey pretty boy!" Spencer turns around to see Derek Morgan. "Are you deaf? Get over here!"

"Are you talking to me?" Spencer asks. Derek pulls Spencer into a "bro-hug" that Spencer stands stiff to.

"This is my friend Penelope," Derek says, gesturing to a cheerful Penelope Garcia. She smiles and waves.

"Have either of you seen Aaron?" Emily asks. Spencer gives her a slight nudge.

"I think I saw him out back," Penelope says. Emily wanders off to go bother Aaron, and JJ smiles and rolls her eyes.

"She knows he's taken, right?"

"I don't think she cares," Spencer says. Morgan pours something into a red plastic cup and hands it to Spencer, to which he takes with no intention of drinking.

Spencer is wondering where Cat is, but his question is soon answered when he sees her at the top of the staircase. She's wearing a formal black dress, and he notices her hair looks different. It has highlights now.

"Thank you all for coming!" Cat yells from the balcony, but nobody is really paying attention.

She walks down the stairs, directly towards the group of friends.

"Hey," Spencer says. JJ is talking with Derek and Penelope, leaving Spencer all alone with the girl he hardly knows.

"Spencie," she smirks. Spencer is trying to come up with an excuse to leave, but she pulls him closer to her. "You should loosen up a little bit."

"I'm good-" Spencer starts to say, but Cat undoes the top button of his shirt and smiles.

"What the fuck are you doing?" They hear. Lindsey Vaughn storms up to the two, ready to punch someone.

"I'm just talking with my friend here," Cat says.

"Don't talk to my girlfriend," Lindsey says. Girlfriend? Spencer thinks.

"Lindsey, honey, it's okay," Cat says. "He's just a friend."

Lindsey isn't happy, but she leaves Spencer alone. He takes this as his perfect time to leave, grabbing JJ's hand and pulling her into the nearest empty bathroom.

"This is nuts," Spencer says.

"It's not all bad," JJ says. "Derek and Penelope are pretty nice." She smiles, but Spencer can feel his heart racing.

"Okay- Cat Adams's girlfriend just tried to fight me and-"

"Girlfriend? Since when?" JJ asks.

"I don't know! I don't care. This is really stressful, JJ."

"I hate to break it to you, but Will won't be back for another few hours. Try to have some fun, if you can," JJ pats Spencer on the back, leaving him all alone.

Meanwhile, Aaron Hotchner and Haley Brooks are sitting with their legs dangling in the pool. It's quieter in the backyard, but it isn't any smaller.

There is a large pool and a hot-tub. A swing set is farther back by the fence that a girl and her boyfriend are sitting on.

Aaron and Haley have only been dating for a few days, but their relationship is strong. Emily is standing near the sliding glass door, sipping her drink while trying to come up with something to say.

Getting Aaron's attention won't be easy. She only has one class with him, and because he's an actor and she's a technician, their interactions are few and far-between.

Haley gets up to go to the bathroom, and Emily takes this as the perfect time to approach Aaron. "Hey!" Emily says, acting casual as she walks over to him.

"Oh, hey, Emily."

"What brings you here?" Emily asks. She mentally cringes as she realizes how dumb she's sounding.

"Is it just me or is Cat the only person who I haven't seen here?"

"I saw her in the living room talking to Spence."

"Spencer Reid? Isn't he the genius kid?"

"He could have graduated three years ago if he wanted to, so I'd say yes. I could introduce you!" She smiles. Aaron shrugs, getting up from the concrete and following Emily inside.

"Hey Spencer!" Emily yells.

He mouths a "Please save me" and Emily rolls her eyes.

"This is Aaron."

"Oh- hi!" Spencer says. Aaron smiles.

"Spencer, are you drunk?"

"Just a little," Spencer says. Emily sighs.

"Where's JJ?"

"She's with Derek I think," he says. "Can we leave? I feel like I'm gonna be sick."

"Yeah- I'll talk to you later Aaron," Emily says. Aaron smiles and Emily leads Spencer towards the front door.

Emily JJ and Spencer wait outside for Will's car. It's almost midnight.

"You actually drank?" JJ says. "That's so stupid."

"And you didn't?" Spencer asks.

"Well you're like.. a fetus."

"You're only six months older than me, JJ. I can do what I want."

JJ decides to stay quiet. He clearly didn't have too much; he's still forming coherent sentences.

She decides to talk to him about it later.

When Will finally pulls up, JJ slides into the passengers seat and Spencer and Emily sit in the back. The car ride back to JJ's house is tensely quiet, and the mental and physical exhaustion they feel is overwhelming.

When Will drops them off, Emily Spencer and JJ decide to put on a movie, and they fall asleep on the couch.

A/N: comment? vote? Please I crave validation.

Word count: 1088