New Hope

Chapter Eleven

A/n figured you'd all waited enough to read what's next. Ha, sorry about that. But over 6k reads??? That's insane thank you all so much. Please vote and comment. Comments tell me what you all like and keep me motivated. Thank you all for sticking around <3

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As the plane began descending for the landing everyone started packing up to hurry off. They were all antsy to get to work. Everyone except Zoraida. She pulled aviator sunglasses and a scuffed FBI baseball cap from her bag.

Morgan raised an eyebrow as she shrugged on a black bomber jacket. "What's with the new look?"

"We are walking into a hub of international cameras. Getting spotted in the background of someone's pic is not going to help my current situation."

"And your solution is no makeup and an old baseball cap."

"The goal is to be absolutely forgettable." Zoraida shrugged and pushed the cap over her head. "What's more bland and forgettable than another overworked, underpaid employ of big brother?"

Morgan nodded, scooped up his bag and headed to the front of the plane as the seatbelt lights came on.

"You can't be forgettable."

Zoraida looked at Reid, hand frozen mid air with her sunglasses. "What?"

"I'm not saying that you can't blend into a crowd. I'm sure you can. If that's your job then your great at it. Your amazing at anything you do. It-it's just that your-well- with or without makeup your too beautiful to be forgettable." He spoke so fast, stumbling over his words that it took Zoraida a few seconds to process the compliment. The nervous doctor's face turned redder by the milasecond.

But then her confused stare turned into a smile. "Thanks Reid. You're always too nice to me." She replied quietly while she slid her glasses on. Zoraida was glad her own red ears were covered by her hair when noticing Rossi and Emily watching them, the former smiling.

Before he could compose a response she nodded at the manila folder lying on the couch, "You done reading?"

"Oh." Reid hurriedly picked up the papers and passed then across the isle to her as if he'd forgotten it was there. "Yes."

There was a heavy silence. Reid looking from her bag where the folder now was on the floor back up to her. Then his eyes would follow the same pattern again.

"Ask the question Spencer." Zoraida said softly.

"Did you really become an informant at fourteen?"

Zoraida nodded.

"Do you ever," he paused, seeming to consider his words carefully, "regret it? Informing on your family?"

Zoraida shrugged, frowning for a second before her face became an emotionless mask. "No. What they did wasn't just illegal. But ethically and morally horrific. I did what was right, unlike them my soul is clean of that."

*** ***
Police station
*** ***

The team of the BAU walked through the bright hallway Zoraida next to Reid at the back of the pack. Reid's crutches slowing him down compared to Hotchner and JJ's brisk pace. Zoraida glanced down, seeing a giant cast on the injured leg.

"What'd you do anyway Reid?"

He raised an eyebrow, "To what?"

She gestured to the crutches as she gently shouldered a woman out of Reid's way. "To your leg."

"Oh!" She watched as his ears slightly turned pink again. "I had to -uh- go to the bathroom in the middle of the night."

Zoraida nodded, biting back a smile as Reid stared pointedly at the back of Rossi's head. "Before I could get to the light switch I tripped over a large stack of books."