Title: Check Mate
Pairing: Reid/Lila, Reid/Elle (friendship)
Rating: T
Author's Notes: 1. There's a new Deal Breaker (DB) piece, involving Morgan this time, called Bombshells. Check it out! 2. I started a community so all the DB stories will be in one place. You can also check that out! 3. Review! I know I got my 3 lovelies who review everything, but if all you other silent people who are reading, I'd love to hear from you. Or if you don't wanna review, send me a message or join the community, even if it's to tell me it sucks. I don't bite, I promise.
Summary: Reid and Lila deal in their own ways after their vacation plans have gone wrong. 11th in L/R's section of DB, following Off Time and starting with Safely.

He spends his days with Gideon, playing chess. He still loses most of the time, but through the years he's gotten better. He beats Gideon more now than ever, but Spencer doubts that it's his skill over Gideon's distracted. Spencer's distracted too, if he admits it, but he doesn't. He's still trying to understand why Lila was so angry over something that didn't matter. Yes, he and Elle had a physical relationship at times, but they were just friends. If anything, Elle had always been more close to Morgan, they seemed to understand each other the best. He was never jealous of that and Elle was always made it clear that they weren't exclusive, not that he thought she and Morgan ever engaged in such activities as he did with her, but it was a possibility. Both parties were attractive and noticed each others attractiveness. Gideon clears his throat, it's his turn. Spencer looks at the board, trying to be 3 or 4 steps ahead, but it was hard today. He pushes his rook forward and his mind drifts back to his previous thoughts.

Lila was still in California, he figured, unless she had gone to Vancouver early, which was a good possibility, definitely if Dante was with her. There were 21 art galleries in downtown Vancouver alone. They would have plenty to look at. He had looked them up, in case the time they had spent together went well and she had invited him to go up to Vancouver. He obviously didn't need any of that information now. He pushes a pawn one space before moving to rest his head in his hands. It's a bad move he realizes after he does it, leaves his bishop open for attack which will give Gideon a chance to take his queen. He tries to keep his face neutral, maybe Gideon won't see it. But the man does.

"Check mate in six." His gruff voice says and Spencer sighs, laying down his king. He knows he's beat.

One wrong move, he realizes, can change everything. One wrong word, but unlike in Chess, he can't figure out what his wrong move was with Lila.

Criminal Minds || Check Mate

Elle laughs, loud and large, her water sloshing in her glass as he blushes, unsure of exactly why she's laughing at him. He picks up his own wine glass, filled with water, and sips. Elle had asked for the glasses, saying holding the glass feels nice, even if she can't find the Merlot she still craves everyday. He understands, he sometimes rolls the empty vials (that he found in his bag when he returned to work with a note from JJ that offers support) in his hands when he's stressed and wanting to use. It's calming in its twisted way. Maybe they just like to torture themselves, knowing what they can't have.

"Garcia said you'd be my little puppy?" She finally repeats the words that made her laugh and his cheeks only redden. "She really doesn't know you at all, does she?" She winks.

He clears his throat. "Should we order?" He doesn't want to take about his past sexual encounters in a crowded restaurant.

She smiles, amused, at his embarrassment. She used to be almost as bad as Morgan when she would tease him. She gets the waiter and orders the stuffed ravoli before looking at him, for his. He gives it to the waiter and once he's gone, she speaks again.

"I can see why she's upset. She's scared, or whatever, of your job, taking you away from her."

"Yeah, in the incident that there is an injury."

"No, amor, just taking you away. You doin' the dirty with a team mate before means you could do it again and the team already has so much of you, it's terrifying."

"There's no one on the team now that-"

She cocks an eyebrow. "Oh, chico, please. We all know that you have a thing for a Ms. Jennifer Jareau."

He flushes. "I… There might have been - That was a long time ago. She's like my sister."

She laughs as she lifts her glass and sips again. She sets down the glass and takes a long look at him. "It was, wasn't it?"

He looks at her confused and she smiles, a real genuine smile. "You've grown up so much, chico. It's good to see that you're doing well, even if you struggled there a little."

He smiles and nods a little. "You too."

She laughs again. "Oh, amor. I struggled more than a little." She winks at him, before they settled into a silence, both thinking of their past mistakes.

Criminal Minds || Check Mate

"I'm moving on. That's it. No more Spencer Reid. No more phone calls. No more damn days. He can go screw himself or that skany little FBI-wannabe skank! I don't care."

Dante stares at her and sips in drink as she slams down another shot. "Uh huh."

"You know that he was calling her the whole time! That she, " She drags out the word, "was 'helping him' too. I bet she was helping him. Hah. Ugh. I hate men, Tay. There's… skanky horrible people! We don't need them, right. We don't need anyone."

"Right." Dante says, wincing as she slammed the shot glass against the table. "Maybe that's enough, Lila."

"Did you know that they screwed after he saved her life! It's his thing, I guess. It's what he does. Saves the damsel in distress - but-but-but we aren't damsels in distress. I'm a strong woman, right? Right. I'm strong and I'm beautiful and… and.. I'm a fricking celebrity. Just because he was there and yeah, sure, he saved me - Mags probably would have killed me - but I coulda done it! I coulda talked myself out of it. I've seen Law and Order!"

Dante tries to hide his amusement. She was drunk. "Exactly, Little."

"What was my point, again? Oh! Right! I wasn't a damsel in distress! I didn't need his help, but it… it was the situation! The situation made him seem all charming and dreamy and he's not, is he? He's not! He's…. smart… he's really smart and scrawny! Okay,. He's not really that scrawny, he's got muscles under those bad clothes, Dante. Like… a swimmer or something, you know…long and lean…." She chews on her bottom lip. "He's kind of gorgeous, isn't he?" She sighs.

Dante laughs out right at her change. "Lila, you're drunk."

"I coulda seen him and JJ. I mean… we're both blonde.. She's pretty. I'm pretty. But.. Elle? Elle and I… She's like…so different. She's pretty, but…different. Do you think he doesn't think I'm attractive?"

"Little, you're a famous celebrity, a model even. If he doesn't think you're attractive, he's blind."

She smiles. "You're a good friend. You.. You don't think she's attractive right?"

"Of course not." He says, helping her out of the booth. "Now C'mon, let's get you in bed."

"I love him." She pouts. "I love him and he's off with-"

"Some skanky FBI-wanna be skank, I know, I know." Dante finishes the sentence for her, leading her to her car. There's press and he knows that there with be calls from Linda tomorrow, bitching about her image, but he's not worried about that right now.