AN: Read Creep before you read this. It'll make more sense.
Slowly but surely, Aaron Hotchner was giving up.
His resolve was weakening. His willpower was fading. His obstinate determination to leave the younger man alone- to let him make the first move, if any were going to be made- was being slowly crushed, like a soda can in a trash compactor.
No matter how much he tried to deny it, Aaron noticed the signs. He didn't return a glance from Reid with a curt nod, he sent it back with a slight smile. Aaron knew that to all who knew him, the team especially, were aware that a smile from him was the visual equivalent of a bear hug. Like the one Spen- Reid had given him when he found him in the graveyard. Aaron could remember it as though it was happening, the feel of the long, thin arms around him, the chill of Reid's cheek on Aaron's neck. He'd enjoyed it even then, so relieved to have his... his... he didn't know what. More than coworker, not quite friend, but somehow more important to him than both- back where he belonged, safe again. He was loath to admit just how often he found himself remembering that recently.
He continued his mental tally of the boy's gestures, the counting of cups of coffee offered and numbering the quick peeks at him that Reid made when he thought no one was looking. It became a game to Aaron, almost, telling himself that the third time he looks at me on this plane ride I'll smile. Then he'd shake his head and bury it in another case file, pretending that knowing Spencer would look didn't make him want to smile.
Sometimes he thought that out of all the team members to get a soft spot for, the young Dr. Reid was the best. He would be far to polite to reject Aaron in disgust (if Aaron ever asked, which he told himself quite firmly would not happen), he was quirky to the point that it bordered on weird, meaning he had a smaller pool of potential somethings to pick from. Simple math- the fewer people competing, the higher the chances of Aaron winning. If Spencer ever realized the affection was mutual, something Aaron highly doubted. Profiler though he may be, the kid was kind of dense about social situations. Then again, he was a genius. Maybe when he realized his own feelings, he'd looked up the body language signs of those being returned. Maybe Aaron had already been caught in the act and Reid was just heightening the suspense. He could see it in his mind: Reid marking the revealing signs in his little notebook, a superior smile on his face as he planned exactly when and how to come out of the shadows, the quintessential evil genius.
Wishful thinking. Spencer wasn't that devious- he would come out and say it to Aaron if and when he gathered the courage. He was too forthright, too unembellished. What you saw was what you got with Spencer Reid.
And Aaron liked what he saw.
AN: When I write these, it starts with one sentence that just gets stuck in my head. So, if you want to influence how this little series thing goes, you could leave me a sentence. For example, this story was inspired by the first sentence.