Coffee, Dr. Reid?

Grey comforters and black cats

"I'm telling you, you need to get out there again, you've been too distant lately," Jennifer Jareau spoke softly on the phone, her words more reassuring than reprehensive . She heard a quiet sigh through the other end of the phone, then a long pause, and the voice responded.

"I know, I just..." The woman on the end of the phone seemed like she needed to choose her words carefully, almost scared that she would worry her friend. Her voice was soft, she sounded tired. "I feel like I'm not putting enough time into my work, or my studies. I'm really sorry J.J., I just don't think that I have any spare time right now."

Jennifer, otherwise known as J.J. to her friends and close acquaintances, frowned. "Grace, you know that isn't true. You've been pushing yourself way too hard. You work more than most people I know." Grace could hear J.J.'s frown.

"J.J. I've been slipping behind lately, I'm not sure that going out would be such a good idea." She really wasn't lying.

Grace had put too much on her plate, she always did. This time around, she was completing her senior year of college, working a job as a barista, and working at a riding stable near her college.

She needed the money from her barista job to afford food and rent, and she needed the job at the barn to help pay off her loans. She had started to fall into another depressive episode recently, and had started to detach from the things that demanded her attention. It wasn't a terrible one, she was still able to get out of bed, eat enough, and go to class, but she had stopped caring about her physical appearance and started slacking in her class work.

She felt herself slowing to a stop, moving forward was like trying to fight your way through a strong tide. She knew that J.J. was right, maybe a night off would be good, but did she deserve that?

Grace shook her head and cleared her throat. "I don't know, let me just think about it? Maybe a small break would be good." She pinched the bridge of her noise and let out a small sigh.

"Please actually think about it, I know that you say that even when your mind is already made up," J.J. sounded disappointed. Grace's stomach sank.

"Okay."

"Okay?" J.J.'s voice barely hid a hint of excitement.

"Yes, okay. Just be easy on me, I've been cooped up a little bit too long." A part of her felt relieved, she needed this. "Do you have anything in mind?"

J.J. immediately perked up, seemingly forgetting her previous disappointment.

"Yeah actually, I think that some of my coworkers and I are planning on going to a bar this weekend, you should come with."

"How many people are we talking about here?" Anxiety started to prickle inside of Grace. There was no way she could be with a large group of people, she was hoping it would just be her and her close friend.

J.J.'s voice brought her back before she could begin her internal spiral.

"It'll just be us, Garcia, and Emily. A simple girl's night at the bar. Please Grace, I need a little night off. Being pregnant is exhausting." She let out a light chuckle. You couldn't argue with that. You had met both Penelope Garcia and Emily Prentiss on a few occasions. You got along with both of them well, maybe this wouldn't be a total disaster. In fact, you got along with essentially everyone on J.J.'s team at the BAU.

J.J. had dragged Grace along to their after-work antics more than a few times. She loved J.J.'s colleagues, they always welcomed her with open arms and she enjoyed their company. It had been a while since she'd last seen them, however, and she missed them.

Grace smiled for what seemed like the first time in forever. "Yeah, okay. I guess that I'm in. Just remind yourself that I haven't been feeling like myself lately, I don't want to let you down if I'm a buzzkill." Her face hardened.