"...Ive detoxed on Royal Pains. Your welcome :) Now, Im going to start working on AI again! YAY!..."

A Vulnerable Place

Spencer Reid kept his eyes downcast, staring at the drink in front of him. He had lost count of how many he had had, but he knew it was a relatively high number for him. He rarely drank, and when he did, it normally meant that something was really upsetting him.

Aaron Hotchner watched as his subordinate sighed, his eyes dark and miserably. He could tell that he'd been crying, but he didn't know why. They had caught the UnSub on their latest case with a minimal death toll-two, one victim and the UnSub himself. The UnSub had been torturing men who cheated on their wives with other men, but he only killed one- the man who his own wife had cheated on. He let the other victims free; deciding that his life was over, he killed himself after committing the murder. All in all, things worked out well. Many more people could have been killed, but they managed to escape that scenario. Hotch wasn't going to rule their last case out of the possible reasons he could be feeling 'low', though, so he decided to sit down next to him and try to get him to talk.

"What's on your mind?" Hotch asked.

"I have an IQ of 187, can read 20,000 words per minute, and have an eidetic memory." Reid sighed. "I have a lot of things on my mind; you must be more precise."

"The one that's bothering you."

"I don't think you want to know about that one." .

"I beg to differ."

"You always do." Reid muttered back. It was obvious by the look on Reid's face that he hadn't meant to say it out loud, but he had, and now he'd have to look at the outfall of it.

" 'The hell is that supposed to mean?" Hotch asked. He turned his head sharply to watch Reid.

"I'm sorry." Reid said instead. "I didn't mean anything by it."

"Yes, you did. And now you're going to tell me what." Hotch paused, waiting for an answer.

Before either of them knew what was happening, Reid leaned forward and kissed Hotch long and hard. Hotch embraced the kissed, even going as far as to pull the younger man off his chair and onto his lap. Reid didn't fight it- he was done putting his emotions aside. He reveled in the moment, not wanting it to end. He pulled himself closer to Hotch, suddenly glad that they had a booth seat. He wanted Hotch to hold him, to tell him that he would make him feel better, but he knew it was too soon for that.

Hotch had been expecting Reid to answer with his lips, but he just wasn't expecting it to be a kiss. He didn't even realize that he was supporting the kiss, but he couldn't find it in him to stop it. So he let Spencer come closer to him, his lips shaking almost as hard as his hands were. Suddenly, it all seemed to be too much for Reid, and he broke down. He started crying, his entire body shaking by now. Hotch held him closer, stroking his hair and whispering that it would be all right.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm not...not used to this." Reid whispered weakly.

"Don't apologize, Spencer. It's not your fault." Hotch replied. "How about we get you home?" Reid nodded, and he helped Reid stand up. Together, they walked toward the car...

When Hotch reached Reid's apartment, he suddenly felt very possessive of Reid. He pushed the younger man down onto the bed and held him closer than before to him. Reid nuzzled his head into Hotch's chest, letting the older man devour him. Hotch pulled a blanket over the shivering man as he huddled closer and closer to him. Reid felt like he just couldn't get close enough to Hotch no matter how much he pushed closer to him. He let Hotch hold him tighter, knowing that they were both emotionally unstable and vulnerable.

He didn't want to talk about how much their last case had gotten to him- how much it made him think about his feelings for Hotch and how dangerous it would be if he gave into those feelings. He didn't want to talk about how much he wanted, no needed, Hotch. And Hotch didn't want to talk about how lonely he was since Haley died, or how much he needed someone to hold at night. Hotch didn't want to talk about how he had had feelings for Reid just as long as the younger man had had them for him.

So they laid down on the bed, motionless and silent. And before they knew it, they were sound asleep...

"...Not what I expected, but when is it? :) R&R?..."