Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.
Anger is just a cowardly extension of sadness. It's a lot easier to be angry at someone than it is to tell them you're hurt." – Tom Gates
o o o o
24 March, 2008
Dr. Spencer Reid sighed and rubbed his eyes before he got out of the car and grabbed the bouquet of flowers sitting in the passenger seat. He was in the doghouse and he knew it. He was supposed to go to the Easter service in Williamsburg with his girlfriend Calliope Sellers and her family yesterday as well as the traditional large-scale Easter egg hunt and lunch that the Sellers family hosted at Dahlia in the afternoon. Unfortunately, that never happened because he, along with the rest of his team, were stuck in Winthrop, Maine on a case that they hadn't solved until early this morning. His Calliope was usually rather lenient about when his job kept him away, but this time she was livid.
He really couldn't blame her either. Apparently, she'd spent the day explaining to everyone why he wasn't there and listening as Brenda Sellers, Calliope's grandmother of sorts, disparaged him and lectured Calliope on how it was simply inexcusable for a person to miss something they were expected at and had made a commitment to be at. Spencer felt like dirt for being the reason she'd had to endure that. Ringing the doorbell, he waited until she opened the door wearing the pajamas she probably hadn't changed out of this morning.
Calliope's face was twisted in anger as she crossed her arms across her chest and glared at him.
"I'm sorry," he said immediately. Calliope didn't say anything, but turned and walked away, leaving the door open in what he assumed was an angry invitation inside. Spencer closed and locked the door before chasing after her. This was going to be exciting.
"Sweetheart –"
"Don't you dare 'Sweetheart' me!" Calliope turned on him as he put the flowers down on the counter. "And don't you even think of making that puppy dog face!"
"Calliope, I'm sorry."
"Yeah? So I am! You know how many times I had to explain why you weren't there? No, you don't! Because you weren't there!"
"I'm sor –"
"A hundred and twenty seven times! And that's only counting the fifty-six times I had to explain it to Mammy as once!" Calliope bulldozed on, ignoring his attempted apology. "This one old bat from some Smithsonian committee accused me of making you up! Not to my face, of course, because that would be rude and pretentious rich people aren't rude. That's against their nature; they just tell everyone else about their little suspicions as to why their hosts' date is missing. I spent the entire day listening as groups hushed and changed the subject when I walked up. And Mammy, oh she just made yesterday a freakin' picnic! 'Callie, he's not good enough for you. You need to find someone of your class, someone who belongs in our social circle. Someone who will be able to be there for you all the time. Someone who you won't have to worry will be killed by going to work.'"
Even second hand the words pricked and hurt. So that's what Brenda Sellers thought of him. He had gotten the feeling at the New Years Eve party that she hadn't approved of him, though she hadn't said anything. He had suspected that's how she felt about him, but hearing his fears confirmed sunk his heart. What if Calliope started to agree with her?
"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry."
"I told you not to 'Sweetheart' me!" Calliope shook with anger as she bent down and pulled off her shoe, throwing it at him.
Spencer ducked and shoe clattered to the ground behind him. The heel of her second shoe clipped his shoulder and he winced. Women's heels hurt.
"You completely mortified and humiliated me!" Calliope continued yelling as she stalked away, throwing shoes at him as she came across them lying on route to the backyard.
"Calliope," Spencer had trouble keeping up with her as he had to duck and evade flying shoes every few steps. "Calliope, please."
Spencer ducked a rain boot and side stepped the second one before following her out the back door onto the porch. She was bending down to pick up the bright purple Crocs she wore as gardening shoes when she missed a step and tumbled down the stairs to the grass, her head landing hard against the stones that lined the flower beds that framed the porch.
"Calliope!" Spencer ran down the steps, and knelt next to her. "Are you okay?"
"Get away from me!" Calliope threw the Crocs at him and tried to scuttle away but couldn't seem to get her arms and legs to work together. Spencer sighed and gathered her into his arms easily, ignoring her angry protests. He held her until her angry tone began to soften and she started to cry.
"I'm sorry, Sweetheart," he whispered into her hair and squeezed her tight. "I'm so sorry."
He couldn't understand her as she tried to speak through hiccupping sobs, so he just let her cry into his sweater, ignoring the uncharacteristically cold March air as it seeped through his clothing and chilled his skin. Eventually, the sobs subsided, replaced with the occasional sniffle and hiccup.
"I'm sorry, Sweetheart. I wanted to be there. You know I wanted to –" Spencer stopped abruptly to look at his hand. "Calliope, your head…"
"My head?" Calliope touched the back of her head, seeing sticky, red blood on her fingers when she pulled her hand back. She glanced over and saw the smallest amount blood on the rock where she'd hit her head. "That's weird. I can't feel it at all."
"Get dressed, Calliope. I'm going to take you to the hospital."
"No. Spencer, I'm fine. I can't even feel it, so it can't be that bad."
"Sweetheart, you're bleeding from the back of your head. I'm taking you to the emergency room."
"I don't want to go to the hospital. They're going to cut a giant chunk of hair off. I don't want to have a giant chunk of hair missing. I love my hair! It's the only pretty thing about me! I haven't cut my hair in three years, Spencer! If I go to the hospital, they'll ruin my hair."
"You'd rather risk bleeding to death or getting an infection then have some hair missing for a while?"
"You make it sound so vain when you say it like that," she grouched as he carried her inside to her bedroom. "Fine. I'll get dressed. It's cold outside."
"Sorry, Sweetheart."
"I want you to know that I don't like you very much right now."
"I know, Sweet Girl." Spencer sat down on the bed and held her securely in his lap, kissing her forehead. "I'm sorry, Calliope."
"Stop apologizing and kiss me."
Spencer smiled at the odd request, but did as she asked. One hand tangled in his hair and the other wrapped around his waist. "I missed you, String Bean."
"I missed you too. And I'm sorry I wasn't there."
"I know. I know it wasn't your fault you weren't there. I was just angry and hurt and…" Calliope sighed and leaned against him. "I'm sorry I threw shoes at you."
Spencer just started laughing.
A/N:
Happy Easter!!
A bunch of people have said that they wish they could be friend with Calliope and now you can! Calliope Sellers now has a twitter account and her username is twosamuse. Add her and she'll add you. =]
This is an out-take from my multi-chapter Mystery Muse which focuses on Spencer and Calliope. It takes place right before chapter four. So, if you like this and want to read more, that's where you find it. Along with almost all my other one-shots, which are S&C-centric.
Anyways! Thanks for reading, I hope you liked it and, if you liked it or hated it, tell me what you think!
Love, Thalia