Paranoia - s.reid

Red Dress

The pedophilia case had been closed and Liz felt a sense of tranquility as she sat in Hotch's office doing paperwork.

"How're you and Reid?" She brightened up at the mention of his name, making Aaron Hotchner's heart sink a tiny bit. "We're good. How are you and Haley? Heard you guys were going through a rough patch."

"We're trying. This job, it takes so much energy and time from me." The man responded, exhaustion evident in his voice. "How do you and Reid cope with the constant life risking and all?"

"I don't know. But what I do know is that you and Haley are going to be fine, Penny and I have been through worse and we work together." She smiled.

"What do you mean?"

"When I miscarried, Penny and I had no physical contact at all for a month. Refused to touch, I can't tell who refused, though. We barely talked. I would fall asleep on the couch, but if I did go to bed I'd be far away from him. I began packing my stuff away, too."

"You live together?" Hotch had no idea why he was so interested in Liz's personal life, even if he did care for the girl deeply. "No, I have a friend who checks on my apartment a lot. I stay with Penny a lot. Like all the time."

"Why didn't you go back to your apartment?"

"Didn't feel like home anymore. His apartment felt like home, even if I hate the brown furniture." Liz shrugged, a small smile on her face. "When I miscarried, one day the cramps and the pain were too much for me. They were so painful I couldn't even shower properly. So I layed in bed and contemplated calling Penny. But I didn't, because at the time he'd been spending extra time at the office to give me space, I didn't want to interrupt him. So I called my mother and she drove here, stayed for a bit and then left. She didn't provide the same comfort Penny would've. My point is, don't let this job suck you in to the point where it looks like you don't care, or it's all you care about. You deserve to be happy, Aaron, and I don't think this job is giving you the right kind of happiness."

"Thank you, Elizabeth. Really." They smiled at eachother, their eye contact breaking when Liz's phone went off, signalling a text from Spencer.

Time to head home?

"I gotta go. Penny's waiting for me." She smiled, gathering her things.

-----

A couple of months had passed. Liz and Spencer sat in an Italian restaurant, dressed in some of their finest clothing as they celebrated their one year together. "Ellie, I need to ask you something." The girl nodded, as Spencer stood up, kneeling in front of her on one knee. She gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth.

The entire restaurant's eyes were on them.

"Ellie, you're the light of my life. From the moment I saw you, I knew you were the girl I was going to marry. I don't have a ring yet, but this just feels right. Ellie, will you marry me?" All Liz could do was smile, nodding as she hugged the boy.

"Free dessert for the happy couple!" A waited cheered, setting a small cake on the table. 

"Mission accomplished." The couple grinned, digging into their dessert. It was a thing the couple liked to do at different restaurants, pretend to get engaged and then get free dessert. They were never serious about it, though. They continued to dig into their dessert until Liz's phone rang. "Sorry, baby. Do you mind if I take this?"

"Don't worry about it." The doctor smiled.

"Elizabeth Bundy."

"Hey, it's JJ. Are you out celebrating one year with Reid, and your birthday which happened three months ago?"