The world continues to turn
Rating: T...maybe
Genre: Romance, slice of life
Summary: Just a little pointless fic on a relationship between Derek Morgan and Spencer Reid. Established relationship.
AN: Don't hate me for this.
There were regulations in professions about relationships within the workplace. Friendship was good: it reinforced the team dynamic and ensured loyalty among members. Romantic relationships were discouraged: it clouded judgement, caused people to react hastily without thinking; endangered lives. At the FBI, personal relationships of the romantic kind were not looked upon friendly by the supreme authorities. If they knew about any kind of indiscretion between employees, those employees would be separated and would never work together again. End of.
That's why relationships had to be kept secret, under the table; off the cameras. When working in the field, agents had to forget that at any moment the person they loved could be shot and killed; kidnapped and abused; tortured and traumatised and get their job done. When in the office, looks across the desks, slight touches, coffee breaks together had to be avoided because, especially at the BAU, there were good profilers and profilers could spot a relationship a mile away.
Derek Morgan and Spencer Reid had learned that, as much as you try to not express the deep emotions welling within, you cannot hide love from your co-workers, especially when they knew each other as well as they did.
Emily noticed first that when they went out for drinks, after a case or just whenever, Morgan would either decline or he would spend less time on the floor and more time at the table, sitting next to Reid just a little bit too close to be proper.
JJ noticed when she asked Spencer to look after Henry that Morgan would usually be there when she and Will got home. There were only so many case files that Morgan would need help on while Spencer was babysitting her son, or away from the office in general.
Rossi noticed when Reid and Morgan would stick closer together wherever they could. Like a magnet to a metal (AN: I'm aware not all metals or alloys are magnetic), they'd sit together on the jet, eyes focussed on one another when making an explanation as if seeking reassurance or approval.
Hotch noticed because there wasn't much he could do not to notice. He'd tried to ignore the worried glances when either one was sent to check out a suspect or sent into a hostile situation. When they'd leave the office together instead of separately because Hotch knew Reid didn't take nearly as long to finish paperwork and Morgan didn't need Reid's help.
Nothing much got passed Penelope Garcia. If she hadn't noticed the world would be ending. It didn't take a profiler to see the way Reid held himself with more confidence; more assured in himself. Morgan seemed calmer, happier. Like the world had suddenly righted itself. They both seemed happier, truth be told, and Garcia was happy for them.
If her chocolate thunder god was happy with her Junior G man, that's all that mattered.
JJ didn't mind that Morgan came over and helped Reid babysit – she knew that it was safer for Henry if there were two of them there and Morgan liked Henry, so it didn't really matter. She added a few extra dollars at the end of it, just so Spencer knew that Derek helped too and that she didn't mind.
Emily wasn't concerned with what Reid and Morgan did outside office hours, and neither was Rossi. If they got the job done, the same as always, they could do whatever they liked. Besides, Rossi was the reason the fraternisation laws were there in the first place, it wasn't like he cared.
Hotch was the most concerned with the new developments. He hadn't been blind to it, he'd just decided not to see it. However, now that it became impossible to deny (if there was plausible deniability, if Hotch didn't know about it, his superiors would be putty to denial) Hotch needed to confront Morgan and Reid.
That's why he called them into his office.
"You are both talented and unreplaceable agents of the BAU," Hotch began flatly, "and if there is anything that I have come to understand is that this team is a family that together can do almost anything. I would not like it if my team were to be split up. With JJ gone, we need to stick together..." he eyed them carefully, willing them to understand before he had to say it out loud.
Morgan had his arms folded defensively, frowning at Hotch. Reid stood with his hands in his pocket, cheeks slightly hued, clearing his throat occasionally. He was nervous. Hotch didn't want to make this confrontational. It wasn't what this was; more like a friendly intervention.
"What exactly are you taking about Hotch?" Morgan asked, voice defensive. Hotch sighed.
"What you and Reid do outside the office is your business, and thus far it hasn't interfered with the quality of your work," he began, "I am unaware of how long this has been going on and I don't care how long it lasts. All I'm asking is that it remain a closed issue. If your work doesn't suffer, then there is no reason for Strauss or anyone else to start asking questions. Do you understand?"
"Perfectly," Morgan's posture had relaxed slightly. The threat was over. Reid nodded.
"Yes Hotch," his voice was slightly pitched, kind of choked.
"Good."
"We've been careful haven't we?" Spencer asked as Derek unlocked the door to his home. Spencer still had his apartment, but he didn't use it that much. There wasn't much left at Spencer's place – just a few appliances, his couch, things he couldn't move gradually from one place to the other.
"Yeah...but you knew it was only a matter of time before they found out, right?" Derek asked with a small smile. Spencer nodded, pulling off his bag, coat and shoes while Derek went to feel Clooney.
"I know they're profilers, but Hotch?" Spencer sighed, going to the bedroom to change. Derek came up from behind him as he took off his shirt and held him, resting his chin on Spencer's shoulder.
"Hotch is just trying to smooth everything out for the bureaucrats so we don't get separated," Derek murmured, pressing light kisses to Spencer's shoulder. Spencer leant his head back, giving Derek greater access to his neck.
"I know, but the probability of this being kept withi-"
"The chances are fine, Spencer," Derek sighed. "They're our friends, our family, they won't do anything that could harm the team, or us, unless we do something stupid first. Which we won't," Derek spun Spencer around in his arms, pulling the younger man against him. Spencer wrapped his arms around the older man.
"I don't want to lose what we have," Spencer murmured, pressing his forehead against Derek's. Derek smiled a reassuring, bright smile that made Spencer's heart melt, even after all this time.
"You won't," Derek pressed his lips against Spencer's, chastely, purely. "I promise," He kissed Spencer's forehead and pulled away.
"I'll get dinner, you have a shower," Derek walked out of the room towards the kitchen. Spencer stood in the middle of the room for a second; fingers unbuttoning the rest of his shirt as he wondered how he got so lucky.
He wasn't the kind of person people noticed at first. He was tall and awkward, but if he didn't open his mouth a start rambling quotes and statistics, he could be easily absorbed into the crowds. Socially, he was a misfit; academically, he was outstanding. He made people feel inadequate in the intellectual arena and he alienated people with it in the social one.
He loved his family at the BAU because they didn't hate him or reject him for his talents. They embraced them, embraced him. And it helped build his confidence in himself. Derek helped build his confidence in himself. Helped him see himself as someone worthy of attention and affection; love even.
Derek came back into the bedroom and noticed Spencer was still standing there with his shirt hanging off his shoulders, staring absent-mindedly into space.
"Hey baby boy, what're you thinkin' about?" he asked softly with a smile. Spencer looked up at him, eyes slightly wide, cheeks slightly red, at being caught zoning out. He smiled nervously.
"Nothing much," he replied with a smile, grabbing a towel out of the closet and going to the adjoining bathroom. Derek sighed and went back into the kitchen.
Sometimes communication channels were difficult to open. They were two different types of people, who, if not for their job, would probably never even look twice at each other. They weren't totally without their similarities; they both liked food, only Derek couldn't describe exactly what it was made out of.
They could talk, could spend hours together, time elapsed with mindless chatter that they didn't even realise until suddenly it was 10 pm and they'd been sitting there for two hours. But getting Spencer to discuss his innermost thoughts was hard. Not that Derek was into sharing either, but the sentiment was there. If Spencer needed to talk to him, he'd be there.
He'd always be there.
Spencer didn't have many people like that. Derek had high school friends, academy friends, FBI friends. He had a lot of people, including his family. He knew if things went wrong he'd always have a large support network. Spencer didn't have that, so Derek tried to be there when the younger man needed him.
Like after JJ left and Spencer felt abandoned (again) but someone he cared about. Like all the cases they worked where Spencer felt a little too close to the unsub and began to question himself. And Spencer was there for him. They were each others' rock, their strength, their comfort.
"Mmm, smells good," Spencer said with a smile, delight in his hazel eyes. He was dressed in a loose fitting shirt and track pants, hair damp from the shower. Derek smiled back.
After dinner Derek worked on some extra case files while Spencer read a book that would help him with his latest paper.
There were times when, though seeing Spencer work his way through a four hundred page book in 10 minutes, sometimes the chronic page turning was a little irritating. Especially when Derek was struggling to get through one.
Derek leant back and yawned. It had been a long day. Shorter than some, but paperwork never did get his adrenaline running, so he was always left feeling a little run down after a whole day of it. Spencer, however, looked wired. He stood up from the table, disturbing Clooney in the process, though he really shouldn't expect to sleep peacefully at someone's feet, and went to the kitchen for a drink.
Beer or coffee, he couldn't decide.
"If you want to finish the paperwork, don't have that beer," Spencer called out from the lounge area. Derek sighed.
"You know me too well pretty boy," Derek laughed and felt content at hearing Spencer's small laugh. Then he got an idea.
He went back into the lounge room and draped himself over Spencer's shoulder's, nuzzling Spencer's hair and kissing his neck.
"How about giving me some incentive to not have that beer, hmm?" he grinned into the Spencer's shoulder. The young genius sighed and put the book down.
"I could think of something," he smiled, getting up off the couch. Then he walked to the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee.
"Not what I meant,"
"I know."
God's he was going to pay for that one later.
Later on that night, at one in the morning, Spencer and Derek laid awake in one another's arms after a gratifying round of lovemaking. Spencer had his fingers intertwined with Derek's, observing his partner's features in the dark. Neither could sleep. Something needed to be said.
"I love you, you know that right?" Derek whispered softly, sincerely. Spencer nodded.
"I love you too..." his voice trailed off.
"But?" Derek asked, fingers tracing invisible patterns on Spencer's back. Spencer shivered and Derek pulled him closer.
"But what about when...something bad happens. Statistically the likelihood of serious injury is increased with law enforcement professions and I...the probability of me having paranoid schizophrenia..." Spencer sighed and shook his head, clearing his thoughts, "I just want to know if you'll still love me no matter what happens."
He liked having these conversations in the dark. It made him feel less self conscious about the tears in his eyes, or biting on his lip.
Derek leaned in for a soft kiss, trying to communicate all his love in one small, tender moment.
"I'll love you until the world stops turning," he whispered against Spencer's lips. The genius was about to comment but his lips were once again claimed in a kiss, this one more passionate, more dominating.
And then Derek's phone rang. The Caller ID said Hotchner. He groaned and flipped it open.
"Yeah?"
"We've got a case," he sounded tired and worried.
At this time of morning, it had to be bad.
"We'll be right in." He shut the phone and pulled himself away from Spencer, whose phone rang a second later.
Yeah, this one was going to be bad, but that's a story for another time.
***Fin
Argh...that's the most I've been able the write in one month (probably shouldn't have been watching Criminal Minds though that time, but oh well). Drop a review...if you want.