Chapter 2: Edgy With a Side of Awkward

The parents of the girls had taken it upon their selves to invite the agents over to Spencer's house for dinner. They were all pretty OK with it, but annoyed to even begin to describe how angry Hanna was with the idea. "Mom," she hissed at her mother as they stood in the kitchen.

Her mother was busily wrapping a dish of tortellini and salad. "I don't want to go!" "They're going to be helping you out, Hanna. The least we can do is repay them," her mother calmly said to her.

"Repay them for what? Disturbing the peace? Mom, we're innocent and we can -." Her tantrum was interrupted by the loud clang of the fork in her mom's hand being slammed onto the counter.

"That's enough, Hanna! Do you want to go to jail? Do you want to go to jail for a crime you didn't commit? I know you're innocent, but you cannot prove that on your own and if proving you're innocent means that the FBI has to come into our house and live with us, then for God sakes, we will let them!"

Hanna pursed her lips and stared at her mother in shock. Very rarely did she ever raise her voice at her. "Fine, but don't expect me to trust them," Hanna snapped and stormed off to meet her friends at Spencer's home.

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"Have those guys questioned you any since they got here?" Aria asked Spencer, folding her leg under her and settling back onto Spencer's bed. Spencer shook her head. "I haven't even seen them, but apparently once this dinner's over they'll be going home with you and those other two will be staying here with me."

"God, why are they even here? It can't possibly be for our protection. No one knows what we did," Hanna exclaimed. "Ssh," Emily quieted her down. "'A' does and if we're not careful, so will they and everyone else."

"They already think we're guilty for something we didn't do. We don't need them to find out about something we did do and then get locked up for it," Aria whispered. "Well as long as we keep our mouths closed we'll have nothing to worry about," Spencer said and snapped her head up at the sound of her mother calling them down to dinner. The agents were here.

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"So, Hanna, I hear you love to shop," J.J. started conversation as she cut into her grilled chicken. "Yeah," Hanna replied disinterestedly and popped a grape tomato in he mouth. An awkward silence fell over the table. The girls looked around at each other. "Hanna goes shopping all the time," Hanna's mom said. "She can never get enough clothes." Hanna rolled her eyes, throwing Spencer a dirty look when she kicked her under the table.

"You're on the swim team at your school aren't you, Emily?" Prentiss asked her and smiled. Emily's head snapped up at the mention of her name. "Um, yeah." "She's the star of the team," her mom proudly stated. Emily gave another shy smile and the let the awkward silence continue. "Agent Reid, how long have you been with the FBI? You look so young," Spencer's mom said.

"Dr. Reid and I've been with them for…a little over five years," he cautiously responded, noticing Hotch's brief stern glare. "Ah, a doctor?" she continued to prod. A look of wonder twinkled in her eyes. "Not a medical one. I have several degrees in mathematics, sociology-." "Reid," Morgan interrupted him. "I…um…have a lot of degrees," he said pathetically.

Spencer's mother nodded understandingly. "Such a bright boy. You could probably teach Spencer here a thing or two. She's top of her class, but she needs to work a little harder." None of the profilers missed how Spencer slightly tightened her grip on her fork. "Spencer," Aria whispered soothingly rubbed her leg under the table. Her grip on the fork loosened.

"I'd be happy to take a few tips," Spencer flashed a fake smile. "Wonderful," her mother cheered and smiled delightfully at her daughter. The tension in the room between the families only rose throughout the rest of the dinner. All of the girls were pretty grateful when they could all go to their separate homes and relax.

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"You guys can stay in here," Spencer handed Rossi and Reid their pillows and blankets for the barn. "Thanks," Rossi said and gently took them from her, then handed a pair to Reid. "No problem," she softly said and turned to leave. "Have a good night."