Paranoia - s.reid

Halloween Honey

Liz raced back to the mall, possibly even faster, completely ignoring the screeches and curses from the two men in the car.

Hotch made Liz question Katie's cousin, rather than the uncle probably because he was aware of the wrath the man would face.

Her and Spencer walked into a room, their eyes landing on Katie Jacobs' cousin, Jeremy. They sat down across from him. "Hi, Jeremy, I'm Liz. I think you've already met Spencer." She smiled. "Did you find Katie?" The boy questioned.

"Jeremy, how old are you?" Spencer leaned forward.

"13." The boy narrowed his eyes, shaking his head slightly.

"You know, when I was 13, I was starting to notice girls, too. I was curious, but I was really awkward. So it was super hard for me to talk to them, and I found that incredibly frustrating." Spencer's lips curled into a tiny smile when Liz quietly giggled.

"He's not wrong." She piped up.

"Why are you telling me this?" Jeremy slouched, he was beginning to grow self conscious. 

"Because I think I understand you. You're in the arcade. Pretty girl walks in and you're distracted by the scent of her hair, right? Happened to me with Liz." She knew what her boyfriend was trying to do. He was trying to make the boy comfortable, make him feel like he was talking to a laid back set of parents. "Honey, I think it's different with a 22 year old than it is with a 13 year old." She teased.

"No, I think it's the same. Am I right, Jeremy?" Spencer looked back at the boy.

"I guess. So what?" He shrugged.

"So, you're becoming a man. Believe it or not, it happens to all of us. There's nothing wrong with that at all." Spencer continued to smile, his hand subtly resting on Liz's thigh as she smiled too.

"Never said there was anything wrong with it." Jeremy murmured.

"These video games that you play, allow you to explore your violent side. When I was your age, I played a lot of video games too, and I'm aware that just because we played violent games doesn't mean we replicate what happens on the game in any fashion. You're intrigued, right?" Liz leaned forward, placing her hand on Spencer's as he leaned back on his chair. "Jeremy, have you experimented yet? You know what I mean."

"Shouldn't you be looking for my cousin right now?"

"We are looking for your cousin right now." Spencer voiced, eyebrows raised.

"Why are you asking me these questions?"

"Why are you avoiding them?" Spencer countered, watching the boy deflate slightly. Liz decided to instill the smallest amount of fear. "Jeremy, do you know what I do for the FBI?" She asked.

"No."

"I study human behavior. Like the way you're pushing your chair away from me, It tells me that what we're saying is making you uncomfortable, like you're trying to distance yourself from me. Maybe from what I'm capable of reading about you." She tilted her head, waiting for a response.

"Whatever." Ah, classic teenage comeback.

Liz smirked. "You bite your inner cheek. It's a nervous tic, like you're holding on to something. You're doing it right now. I think you're doing it because maybe you remembered something more than what you told us."

"No. I told you everything." His response was quick and almost defensive.

"I don't think you told us everything. I think something else happened inside that arcade. Something you haven't told anybody yet." Spencer couldn't say anything else because Liz's phone went off. "Sorry, I have to take this. It's Hotch." She got up, putting the phone to her ear a few steps away.