April, 2006
"Hey, Baby Girl," Morgan poked his head into Garcia's office just as she was closing up shop for the weekend. "Do you know where Elle is? I've been trying to get a hold of her to see if she wants to go out for drinks with the guys, but her phone must be turned off."
"No idea, Peaches. I know that Reid is in Vegas, though, visiting his mom. She probably went with him."
"What?" Morgan laughed. "No way would he take her home to meet his mother. That makes them sound like they're a couple or something. Just because we're in a relationship behind the team's back doesn't mean that everyone else is too."
Garcia looked at him in surprise. "Do you mean to tell me that you haven't figured out that they're together?"
"They're what? No way."
"No?" Garcia plunked down in her chair and turned to the only computer that was still on. "Alright then, my love, let's just see who's right."
A few keystrokes and Morgan was face to face with evidence of two plane tickets for Las Vegas, Nevada, bought by Spencer Reid and Elle Greenaway.
"Okay, so she's with him. But that doesn't mean that they're a couple, Babe."
"Oh, you want evidence of that too? Well, let's just see what I can dig up for you."
A couple minutes of searching and Garcia grinned. "Got it! Junior G-man bought two dozen roses four days ago and had them delivered to El's apartment. How about that? Who knew Reid could be romantic?"
Morgan whistled. "Alright, I'm impressed with the kid. What else do you have for me?"
A little more searching and Garcia's mouth dropped open, eyes widening in shock. "Uh, Derek?" she asked slowly. "How about this?"
Morgan looked over Garcia's shoulder, scanning the information on the computer screen. "You're serious?" he asked, just as stunned. "This is for real?"
"Uh-huh. Reid paid for it just five minutes ago." Garcia nodded dumbly. "What are we going to do?"
"We, Baby Girl, are going to Vegas."
Las Vegas, Nevada
An hour previous
"Spencer Reid, this has got to be the most irrational thing that you have ever talked me into!" Elle Greenaway declared to her boyfriend of four months.
"There is nothing irrational about taking you home to meet my mother. If nothing else, consider it a long weekend vacation. We deserve one of those every once in a while, you know."
Elle laughed. "Does it occur to you that for the vast majority of the rest of the world, a long, stolen weekend in Vegas has an entirely different meaning then the one that you just presented?"
Spencer smirked. "Like losing your life's savings or eloping?"
"Hey, now there's an idea!" Elle said with a role of her eyes.
"What?" Spencer asked in surprise. "Eloping? Are you serious?"
"Maybe." She shrugged, taking his hand in hers with a small smile. "It's just thought."
"El, what about the team? The fraternization rules? Strauss."
"They wouldn't have to know we did it." She tried to rationalize.
"They're profilers, El. They'd figure it out within the space of a week."
Elle sighed. "That's true."
"Of course it is. I'm a genius with an IQ of 187. I'm always right."
Elle tried to jab her elbow into his ribs and Spencer laughed, reflexively jumping out of reach. "Let's not toot your own horn there, Doctor."
Spencer grinned, reclaiming her hand.
"You know," Elle noted. "When I found Mr. Right, I never would've guessed that his first name was 'Always'."
Spencer raised an eyebrow as they stopped on front of the Bennington Sanitarium and he opened the door for his girlfriend.
"Okay," Elle admitted entering the building with Spencer right behind her. "Maybe I would have."
Spencer nodded matter-of-factly. "You would have. But you were right about one thing."
"Oh? And what's that?"
He grinned at her, taking her hand again. "We could still make a long weekend of this. Just without doing anything totally drastic. Just be together in a nice quiet hotel room all weekend long. Sound good?"
"Very." Elle replied, returning his grin with a knowing smile.
"But first you meet my mother."
Elle took a deep breath, repeating nervously, "But first I meet your mother."
"It's no big deal, El, I swear. And I apologize in advance for whatever may or may not fly out of her mouth."
But it's no big deal?"
Spencer nodded. "No big deal."
Elle nodded and they continued on to Dr. Diana Reid's room in silence.
After a few minutes of introductions and making surprisingly easy conversation with Diana, Elle said, "Well, I think that I'm going to go get a soda; give you two a couple of minutes by yourselves. Be back in a few minutes."
And with that she disappeared in search of a vending machine.
"I like her," Diana stated as soon as Elle had left the room. "She's nice, and she's good for you. She's the one. I can tell."
"Mom, stop, we've only been dating for four months, and you only just met her. You can't tell that yet."
"Spencer," Diana answered, her expression and tone as if she was explaining to a much-loved child, which Spencer assumed he still was in her eyes. "I'm your mother. I know you better than you know you. And when I say that Miss Special Agent Elle Greenaway is the woman for my son, I know what I'm talking about. You're going to marry that girl, and soon. I can just feel it."
"You can feel it?" Spencer repeated, masking most of his skepticism.
"I'm telling you, Spencer, I'm right. I just know it!"
"Alright." Spencer smiled indulgently. "If you say so."
"I do." Diana asserted with a matter-of-fact nod.
"Soon, huh?" Spencer asked, the same smile in place.
Diana nodded. "That's what you want, isn't it?"
Spencer opened his mouth to answer, but stopped, thinking about the conversation that he and Elle had just had about eloping. It really wasn't that bad of an idea, now that he thought it over…
"Yeah, Mom, yeah it is." He answered thoughtfully.
Diana smiled. "Sweetheart, need I point out that you're in Vegas? There's no better place than this for a quick ceremony. Right?" Diana turned her gaze to someone behind Spencer, and when he looked, he saw Elle standing behind him, looking caught off guard.
"I think she's right." Spencer told Elle, squeezing his girlfriend's hand. "What do you think?"
Elle grinned, expression filled with anticipation at the impending adventure of it all. "Absolutely I agree."
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Diana asked, looking between the two of them. "Get out of here. "
Elle laughed, grabbing her purse as Spencer sprung up from the couch, and just like that they were gone.
Derek Morgan and Penelope Garcia made it to Las Vegas in what had to be a record amount of time. They headed straight for the hotel that Reid had been registered under. No one answered when they knocked on the door, so Derek went down and flashed his badge, getting the manager to let him and Garcia into the room.
"Derek, he's not here!"
"I can see that, Sweetheart." Derek sighed. He rubbed his eyes, looking around the room. "Okay, think, Morgan. There's got to be something to tell you where they're going."
"The nearest wedding chapel?" Garcia guessed.
A cursory scan of the room gave Derek nothing to go on, and he didn't really feel like he had the time to do a real search, so they headed to the chapel. And made another record in the time they took to get there.
Another flash of his badge and Derek and Penelope were told, "Yeah, they're in that room over there. Ceremony starts in about three minutes."
Derek nodded his thanks and hurried with Penelope to talk to his coworkers.
"What do you think you two are doing?" Derek asked upon bursting into the room with Pen.
Reid and Elle both jumped guiltily, whirling to face them.
"What are you doing here?" Reid asked sharply.
"Long story short? Talking sense into you two." Derek replied.
"We've thought this through, Morgan. You're not going to change our minds." Elle declared. "And honestly? I'm surprised that you and Pen didn't beat us to the altar, one way or the other. Considering the fact that you are together," Elle raised an eyebrow, demanding, "Aren't you?"
"Well…" Derek stammered, caught off guard by the switch in conversation topic. "Yeah, but… but we're talking about you two, not us."
"You could join us." Reid suggested.
"What?" Derek asked loudly.
"A double elopement in Vegas. That'll be a new one on the Bureau." Elle smirked. "Come on, don't you two wanna make Bureau history?"
Derek met Penelope's wide eyes. "What do you think, Baby Girl? You wanna get married?"
Penelope's mouth dropped open, but she closed it, thinking. "Yeah." She answered at last, a wide smile making its way across her face. "Yeah, I do. But just so you know, this is the most irrational thing that any of us have ever done."
"That's never stopped us before. Why start now?" Derek replied.
Here it is, as promised! "Thank you" to the people who had to wait for it. I hope you enjoy this, created per a challenge from Challenge King. Please leave a review! You'd make my daaaaaaay!:)
