"Do you ever think about the future?"

"Hmm?" Aaron answered, looking down at the folder in front of him. They were on a case in Ohio, but they really had no leads to look into, nothing to do – something both frustrating and relaxing.

"Do you ever think of the future?"

Aaron looked up at Spencer this time, "What do you mean?"

Spencer grabbed a folder, looking at it only for show. Perhaps trying to make this conversation seem not as important as he wanted it to be, "The future. You know, after the Bureau. What happens when the team starts breaking apart, not able to work as field agents any longer. When the team isn't so family-like anymore. When new probationary agents file in, taking our place until I'm the only one left, surrounded by new faces."

Aaron set his file down, "Are you afraid I'm going to leave you?" Spencer went to answer, but got cut off, "Are you afraid the team is going to leave you? Sure, we might move on. We might break up and the team won't be 'the team' anymore. There will be new faces – there are always new faces. But we'll always be here – together. The team is too close to leave and never look back. When we leave and go our separate ways, we'll still be together," Aaron reaches out, placing a hand over his lover's heart, "We'll be together in here. And us, we'll always be together."

Spencer obviously still has doubts when he opens his mouth again, "But look at what happened with JJ. What if Strauss does that again? What about Emily? Something like that could happen at any moment. Hell, someone could be hurt right now. It's just - " he sighs, "This job is so unpredictable, I just can't believe we'll all make it through it alive."

Aaron leans over and places his hand on top of Spencer's, "Spencer. Of course it's possible. Loosing our lives is possible in a job like this. But what happened with JJ, I should have fought more. We're a team, and nothing is going to break us apart right now."

Spencer pauses, then says, in the smallest voice possible, "But what about us? What if Strauss finds out about us? We won't be able to work together any more. We'll be split apart."

Aaron glances around before pulling Spencer into an unoccupied back room where he kisses him breathless. They both pull away panting. Aaron looks into his lover's eyes, just starring before pressing their lips together once again, "We're not being split. No way. Not us. Not anyone. Not anymore."

Spencer sighs, "I love you."

Aaron was about to say the words in return when his phone rang, "Hotch. What is it? Okay, Reid and I will be right there." He turned to speak to Spencer again, "Morgan says Stacy's awake. And remembers who killed her friend."

Reid sighed. He followed Hotch not only through the door of their hiding space, but into the future. The unknown. And to Spencer Reid, the unknown was the scariest thing in the world.