I found a spider in my bedroom and KILLED IT! Then I started thinking about our boys and who the spider killer in the relationship would be. I figured, ya know, Morgan's always the tough guy defending Reid. Morgan needs a weakness that Reid can defend him against.
"None but a coward dares to boast that he has never known fear." Ferdinand Foch
Morgan and Reid were excited and elated beyond words. After two years of dating the two were finally moving in together. Morgan hadn't felt right about bringing Reid into his bachelor pad; he didn't want his lover to ever feel like a guest there. Reid's apartment was much too small for two. For these reasons the two men were on this very day doing some minor renovations to the three-bedroom house that they would call their home. Three bedrooms may have seamed like a lot, but Morgan had insisted on a guest room and Reid had insisted on a library/office.
Reid was taking measurements for the built-in shelving they were planning to build in the room that was to be their office when suddenly he heard a loud crash and a long string of profanity that would have shamed a drunken sailor. Reid let his tape measure clatter to the unfinished hard-wood floor and ran to the bathroom where his soon-to-be domestic partner was installing a new counter top.
"Derek, what happened? What's wrong?" he demanded in sheer panic, thinking that the other man may be hurt.
"I...I'm fine, just-" Morgan interrupted himself with a sharp intake of breath and practically jumped backward, almost colliding with Reid.
Reid stepped in front of Morgan, who seamed to be grateful for him to do so. "Derek, what on earth are you so-" And then he saw it. Resting atop Morgan's toolbox was quite possibly the largest wolf spider Reid had ever seen.
Instead of backing away as Morgan continued to do, Reid leaned forward and regarded the arachnid with interest. "The wolf spider of the family Lycosidae is one of the most common and diverse types of spiders in the world. Most species have an average body length of approximately one half inch. However, the one we see here, female judging by the swelled abdomen, has a body length of almost two inches. She's absolutely spectacular!"
"SPECTACULAR!?" Morgan shrieked, making Reid jump, which in turn startled the spider inside Morgan's toolbox. "It's disgusting is what it is. And don't call it a 'she.' What are you trying to do, humanize the thing?"
"Derek, I don't understand why you're so alarmed. Despite being commonly confused with the brown recluse, or 'fiddle back,' the wolf spider is generally harmless to humans. They rarely bite and even when they do, the worst to be expected is some swilling, minor burning, itching, and occasionally a small pustule formation. In rare cases necrotic wounds have been reported, however, even these events have never been medically proven to cause permanent damage. Besides, you restore and renovate homes all the time. Surely you've encountered hundreds of spiders in your life."
Morgan sighed and he ran his slightly shaking hand across his scalp. "Look, I don't care how 'harmless' you say those nasty creatures are. They're disgusting and I hate them! I fumigate every house before I lift a single board so when I see spiders in my properties, they're almost always dead or dying. I don't know how on earth that freak of nature surv-" Derek paused. "Did it seriously just crawl inside my toolbox?"
Reid grinned tightly and nodded.
Morgan opened his mouth to speak but stopped and inhaled sharply. Reid looked toward the toolbox to see the enormous spider crawl out and scurry across the floor toward them.
"Spencer!"
"Don't worry." Reid raised his foot and stomped down on the arachnid, causing a squishing, crunching sound that made Morgan cringe. Reid looked back up at Morgan. "She's dead now."
Relief visibly came over Morgan. "That was nasty. Disgusting. Absolutely repuls-"
Reid interrupted Morgan's tirade. "Are you arachnophobic, Derek?" he asked, no way in a teasing manner, but out of curiosity and perhaps a bit of concern.
Morgan was about to protest, but knew that it was no use to lie and slowly nodded. "Please promise me you won't tell anyone. And I mean ANYONE."
"Of course," Reid assured and with a few steps closed the short distance between himself and his lover. He wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him close. "And I also promise to stomp as many spiders as you need me to for the rest of my life."
Morgan returned Reid's embrace. "Thank you, Spencer. I love you so much, you know that?"
Reid smiled and nodded. "I love you too. So promise me something in return."
"What's that?"
"I'll take care of all the spiders if…" Reid stopped a moment and cringes slightly at his own thought, "…you take care of the mice. Deal?"
Morgan smiled back and planted a chaste kiss on Reid's forehead. "Deal."
"I believe that every single event in life happens in an opportunity to choose loveover fear." Oprah Winfrey
So was it good and great and cute, or was it as disgusting as a spider? Only one way to let me know. There's a comment box at the bottom of the page that really wants you to type stuff in it!
