A/N : My first multi-chapter Criminal Minds fic. This goes out to all of you who requested a multi-chapter after my oneshot (Maybe) , specially lolyncut. Hope you enjoy it.
Emily Prentiss made her way into the FBI Headquarters at a harried pace. She was already fifteen minutes late; any longer and Hotch would have her head. As she waited for the elevator doors to open, she cursed her recently acquired insomnia. She had been up into the early hours of the morning, agonizing over her ruined friendship with one Dr. Spencer Reid, and when she did fall asleep, she had manage to slumber through her alarm.
It was ironic really. Even when she had been away from the entire team, worrying constantly about them in Paris, she hadn't been this sleep deprived. But now that she was back, and the threat had been neutralized, the after effects of her decision kept her up almost every single night. The ever-present feelings of guilt and self pity she could deal with. It was the pain that was crippling her. Her famous skills of compartmentalizing had abandoned her, and Emily struggled to keep her feelings in check – and more often than not, tears at bay – on a daily basis. Half-heartedly she wondered how long she would be able to attribute the sudden bouts of frustrated tears to hormones. Not long enough, she decided. After all, she worked with the most skilled profilers in the country. And even worse, Spencer was usually the most perceptive towards his friend's demeanors.
Taking a deep breath, she made her way into the bullpen, her eyes immediately searching for the object of her ruminations.
Dr. Spencer Reid was seated at his desk, working his way through the many case files piled upon his desk, at a pace that roused both awe and jealousy in every agent in the vicinity if the looks they were throwing him were anything to go by. As usual, Emily couldn't hold back the smile upon seeing him, and the painful knot in her chest unfurled a little.
Sighing at her own pathetic self, she took her seat.
"Good Morning Reid."
'Morning" He didn't even look up from his file to offer her his trademark goofy grin, as he would once have done and her own smile faded immediately. It was the simple things like this that were giving her an ulcer. The Spencer Reid she had known would pull her into conversation as soon as she arrived in the office, happy to see his friend. But now, she would be lucky if she said more than two sentences to her all day.
"Any new cases?" she tried again.
"No" came his curt reply.
"Oh. Okay."
Reaching for one of the many files littering her desk, Emily accepted defeat. Momentarily, at least. It was obvious that he wasn't going to forgive her any time soon. And given the pain and frustration she had put him through, she knew that she probably deserved his cold treatment of her. That didn't mean that she was about to give up either. One way or the other, she was going to get her best friend back. Her barely hidden attraction for him made matters increasingly difficult. In fact, every time he brushed past her, or sat near her in the jet, he unknowingly set her fluttering.
It was a miracle that JJ and Penelope hadn't already picked up on her frequent R-rated thoughts. And it was a miracle that she was thankful for. Even if she had admitted her feelings to herself, she wasn't ready to share them with her self-appointed cheerleading squad. They would undoubtedly try to play matchmaker, and she wasn't quite ready to have her heart broken.
Ditching that particular line of thought in favor of the case files piled upon her desk, Emily reluctantly got to work, only looking up to answer Morgan after he greeted her upon his arrival.
/
It was almost lunchtime when Reid abruptly stood from his desk - paperwork obviously dealt with- and headed towards Rossi's office. The older profiler hadn't called him in and Reid wasn't one to spontaneously visit his co-workers for a chat. What was that about then? Tearing her eyes away from the now closed door Emily chanced a glance at Morgan to see whether he had noticed her stalking his Pretty Boy with her eyes.
To her immense relief, the dark skinned man too had his eyes trained on Rossi's office. As if feeling her gaze on his, he turned to her with a look that clearly conveyed his curiosity. Emily could only shrug in reply.
After a few more minutes of pointless gawking, both the profilers had about given up and turned to the case files in front of them when Reid emerged from Rossi's office. He made a beeline for his desk and packed up his messenger bag without sparing them a glance. Emily couldn't express her relief when Morgan finally snapped and asked the question that was on her mind as well.
"Hey kid. What's going on?"
"I'm taking a personal day. Days, actually. I have to deal with some stuff with my Mom. I'll be back in a couple of days." He didn't stop to offer his explanation or give them a chance to say anything. He just gave her a curt nod and patted Morgan on the shoulder before hurrying out of the bullpen.
Emily turned her attention toward her friend in an effort to ignore the acute pain that bloomed in her chest whenever the young genius was out of her sight. Derek Morgan looked like he did whenever he tried to comfort the many grieving relatives of victims that they met every day. In a word, he looked helpless.
"He shouldn't have to deal with this alone." He murmured vehemently. Derek had always been fiercely protective when it came to Spencer; their relationship was that of brothers. And Emily knew for a fact that it stung that the man he considered his little brother would never ask him for help, for anything, really.
"I know Morgan, I know"
With that, both of them dived back into work, neither willing to admit that it was the only way either could stop themselves from tearing after the man who held both their hearts, though in utterly different ways.
/
So focused was Emily in the file she had open in front of her that it startled her when Hotch called them into the BAU room, a different kind of urgency in his voice. Well, today was just one surprise after the other, Emily thought as she followed JJ and Morgan into the space allocated singularly for their team.
Taking her seat, she noticed that every one of them looked as clueless as she felt, and weirdly enough, that made her feel a bit better. Garcia had barely entered the room when Hotch asked stiffly.
"Where's Reid?"
"He's gone home to see his mother. He took a couple days leave remember?" it was Rossi who answered, prompting both JJ and Garcia to jump up with incredulous expressions. Obviously neither had known about their friend's plans and for some reason, Hotch's face became even grimmer when he realized that.
"I had a meeting with Strauss and the Director this morning concerning this team" he announced before either woman could voice her thoughts.
"Not again. What are we under fire for this time?" Morgan groaned, his thoughts perfectly in line with those of every other person in the room.
"This wasn't about the entire team. It was specifically about one member. Which is why this meeting is less about this team and more about this family." With this statement he had the absolute attention of the room. It wasn't often that their leader verbally made concession to the familial bonds they shared with each other. This was more serious than they realized.
"About a month ago all of you were asked whether or not you would like to remain with the team. The documents requesting reinstatement to the unit were to be submitted directly to Strauss. Which we all did. All of us except Reid."
With a weary sigh Hotch sank back into this chair as he let the rest of the team digest the news. Emily felt her heart drop into her stomach. Things were far worse than she had ever thought in her worst nightmares. She had let herself fall in the kind of love books were written and movies were made about, only to realize that there was a very good chance she had already lost him for good.
Emily jumped as Morgan shot out of his chair, fist slamming hard on the table.
"Are you telling me that we have lost Reid?" his question was little more than a growl at this point.
"I am telling you that the consequences of my decision from months ago are far dire than we ever contemplated. The Director called me in because he doesn't want to lose and agent like Reid. He is far too valuable to the bureau. He wants us to do all that is in our power to make sure that doesn't happen."
"Would Spence really leave us?" the insecurity and pain that laced her words didn't suit JJ at all. She would have thought it would be Penelope who asked that particular question.
"Most if not all government agencies are interested in him. The NSA and Fort Dietrich have gone so far as to offer him a position and salary of his choosing. If he doesn't ask to be reinstated, he still remains as part of the bureau until he makes his resignation official, but it also means other agencies are allowed to be more aggressive in their pursuit. Its' quite really a golden opportunity."
"He has withdrawn from us almost completely. I just thought he was coming to terms with everything and needed space. Some profiler I am" Rossi sounded almost disbelieving as he stated the conclusion that we had all come to.
"Of course he withdrew. He trusted us and you threw it back in his face." Accusation rang in Morgan's words, and though he didn't even look at anybody specifically, we all knew who he was referring to. Hotch and JJ flinched as though they had been struck, the guilty tears she had been holding in finally pouring from the media liaison's face. Emily pressed a fist to her chest in vain attempt to dispel the ache that bloomed there blinking rapidly to chase away the moisture that collected in her eyes.
It was Garcia who broke the downcast atmosphere in the room.
"Okay, so we need to do damage control. Come on guys, he hasn't left us yet! Some of us messed up – no offence Hotch – and we are all coming to terms with it. Reid is just a lot more sensitive to this kind of thing. We all know that. Sitting around being moody isn't going to solve everything."
"What do you suggest we do Baby Girl?"
"Power meeting at JJ's after work today. We're family. We can find a way out of this. Just as soon as the Priestess of All Knowledge comes up with a plan."
With that declaration Emily felt her heart grow lighter. If anyone could convince Reid to stay, it was Penelope Garcia. Emily allowed herself to hope, something she hadn't done in years, and prayed that Garcia was right.
A/N: Okay so I realize that some characters might be OOC. But I figure that the team is still reeling from Emily's return, and this was the way I needed them to be for this story. Please take the time to leave a review.