A/N: Hope you enjoy the new chapter. : )
Where you used to be, there is a hole in the world, which I find myself constantly walking around in the daytime, and falling into at night. I miss you like hell.
-Edna St. Vincent Millay
-Present Day-
Everyday life without Morgan seemed to be increasingly more normal. There were still nights when Reid would wake up thinking that Derek was lying next to him only to find that the space was empty. Reid had always been a light sleeper but for some reason when Morgan was asleep next to him Reid found that he could sleep through anything. Since Derek left he would wake up if a single drop of rain hit his window.
"Hey Clooney." Reid said as he swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached out to pet the dog. Just one more thing Morgan left him to deal with. It's not like he actually cared about watching after the dog. Clooney seemed to understand Reid almost as much as Morgan himself did. While most dogs would bark at Reid, Clooney would always sit quietly and rest his head on Reid's lap. The dog barked, panted and ran around in a few circles.
"Want to go for a walk?" Reid asked knowing that Clooney always moved like that when he wanted to exercise. At the word walk he jumped up and liked Reid's face.
"Alight, I'll go get your leash." Reid smiled and walked over to the drawer where they – he – kept the supplies for the dog. When he had clipped on the leash he and the dog casually walked out the door. For such a large, high energy dog he seemed to know that Reid wasn't athletic. When Morgan walked Clooney they would sprint; Reid and he slowly meandered.
After the first ten minutes it quickly occurred to Reid that he had neither eaten nor drank anything yet that morning. When his stomach became unbearably loud he decided that maybe he should stop by the coffee shop on the corner of the street to grab a quick breakfast.
"Clooney, will you be okay if I tie you up outside?" Reid asked and then smiled when he remembered something Morgan had told him months earlier; anyone can talk to a dog and look completely sane – as long as they know the dog won't actually answer them back. Reid petted him on the head, tied his leash around a pole outside and then went into the shop.
"Good morning." A cheerful teenager greeted. That's why he never went to chain coffee shops, they employees were never happy but at local places they always seemed so happy.
"Hey." Reid smiled back.
"What can I get you today?" She said her smile still displayed across her face.
"Can I have a plain coffee and muffin?"
"What kind?" she asked and Reid bent down to gaze at their selection.
"Blueberry. Did you know that blueberries are believed to prevent cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer's, Native American's use them in many of their medicines for coughs as well?"
"I didn't know that." She said smiling and giggling at his random fact, "But that is very interesting."
"They also help eyesight." The girl smiled again and Reid enjoyed the small interaction. He hadn't made someone smile since Morgan had left. "Blueberries are also…do you hear that?" A loud howling interrupted him. Reid whipped around to see Clooney jumping and yelping at something that was across the street.
"Excuse me." Reid said before running out the door to see what was bothering him. When he reached the dog he stroked his head but the dog continued to jump, "Hey Clooney, what's wrong?"
After realizing the dog wouldn't calm down Spencer tried to see what had aroused him. He followed Clooney's eye of sight until he saw what the dog had been eagerly barking at. Derek Morgan. Reid jumped up from where he was kneeling next to the dog.
"Derek?" he yelled across the street. It was him, he was positive, that had to be him. There was no answer, no acknowledgment.
"Derek?" he called again this time louder than the time before. "Can we please just talk about this?" Morgan looked at him from across the street but didn't say anything. Then, as if Reid wasn't even trying to talk to him, Morgan got onto his motorcycle and sped off.
"Wait!" Reid shouted but he knew nothing was going to be audible over the roar of his machine. Clooney let out one last bark but then settled back down as if nothing had ever happened. Reid let out a giant cry and then tried to recollect himself before reentering the shop.
"Sorry about that." He said opening the door and walking back in. The worker at the front had a distressed look on her face. The coffee and muffin were waiting on the counter for him.
"Thank you sir, have a nice day." She seemed sincere but years of profiling led Reid to believe that something was bothering her. A boyfriend maybe? No, that was his problem. He decided not to pry and left without saying another word. On the way home Reid pulled out his cellphone. He searched through it until he found the name he wanted, and then he began to type. I don't know what I did to make you leave so quickly but we can work through this, I promise. Love you till the end of time! He waited for the screen to say "message sent," before continuing to walk home.
-January 4th, 2010-
Reid was having a bad day. Awful was more like it. At five o'clock he had woken up with the worse headache of his life. Water and aspirin usually helped, but those were at least twenty feet away and he really didn't feel like moving. After ten minutes of lying in bed and realizing this headache wasn't one he could will away Reid finally decided to get up. He groaned, rolled over and threw the hand that was draped over him off of his body.
"What's going on?" Morgan asked jumping up in bed at the sudden motion.
"I'm getting aspirin." Reid moaned; Morgan slid his eye shades away so he could see what was going on. "And water. Are you feeling better?"
"Yeah, much better. Just like you said two days of rest and that cold was gone. Do you need help?" Morgan asked as he watched Reid stumble towards the door.
"I don't want to open my eyes because the light is too bright, I'm trying to navigate with them closed." His hands were stretched out in front of him. Morgan laughed as he saw Reid reaching for the bathroom door.
"Wrong way Pretty Boy, come back to bed, I'll go get it for you." Reid smiled lightly and happily climbed back into the cozy bed while Morgan got up and left the room. After a minute or two Morgan walked back into the bedroom and handed Reid two pills and a glass with cold water.
"Thanks." Reid mumbled as he swallowed them, his eyes still shut.
"Anytime." Morgan said as he leaned down to kiss the young genius' forehead. When his lips touched the skin he lingered for a few before pulling away, "You feel a little warm. Is it just a headache that's bothering you?"
Reid nodded indolently and before Morgan could ask him anything else Reid had drifted back into a solid slumber. Derek climbed back into bed, turned off the lamp and also fell back asleep.
"Shit." Reid yelled jumping up in bed and turning on the light, "What was yesterday?"
"The third." Asked Morgan sitting up quickly as well.
"Oh no. Are you serious?" Reid asked as panic filled his voice.
"Yeah, what's up?"
"I didn't call her."
"Call who?" Morgan asked not understanding what was going on.
"My mom. January third is the day my dad left and I always call her just to make sure she's doing okay." Reid got up and started pacing the room.
"Just come back to bed, you can't do anything about it now." Reid sighed; Morgan was right. This would have to wait until morning. So Reid climbed back into bed for the second time that night and once again drifted back into a deep sleep.
At seven o'clock Reid got out of bed and started getting ready for work. The headache had returned and he groaned inwardly not wanting to draw attention to his ailment. At half past eight he and Morgan left the house but had to double back when Spencer realized he had left his bag on the kitchen table. The trip took them an extra thirty minutes causing them both to be late. When they finally did arrive they were immediately called into the conference room – coffee would have to wait.
After being briefed on a new case the team was given two hours to prepare. Reid took his time to grab some office coffee. Of course, because today just was going to be difficult, Reid spilt the coffee not only on his hand but on his shirt too.
"Agent Reid, please try and wear clean clothes to work next time." Strauss said as she walked past the boy. No, today wasn't his day.
Then a couple hours later Reid found himself on a plane with a sickening sore feeling in his throat. His neck felt stiff and it hurt no matter which way he laid.
"You okay there?" asked Morgan noticing his discomfort.
"Yeah, fine." Reid brushed him off and rolled again on the couch. Still he wasn't able to get comfortable.
"Reid, what's the snow like this time of year in Arizona?" Rossi asked.
"Depends on where." Reid said turning to face him. He tried to hide a wince as he adjusted his body.
"Phoenix."
"Nonexistent." Said Reid as he closed his eyes.
"Let's review…case, I want…Morgan…" Hotch began to speak but Reid found himself falling in and out of consciousness and unsure of what his boss was saying. Before he knew it he was completely under.
"Reid." A voice startled him awake and he jolted upright and looked around the cabin. Everyone was staring at him. "Reid, it would be really great if everyone on this team participated on this profile instead of using their paid time to take a nap."
Hotchner's harsh words frightened Reid but he knew that his superior was right. He shouldn't be sleeping right not but he found it hard to stay awake. Still getting yelled at by Hotch was one of his least favorite things and he decided that he could push through it, if nothing else because he didn't want to get yelled at again. Everyone had gone back to looking at the file except Morgan who remained looking at Reid.
What's wrong? Derek mouthed.
Nothing, headache. Reid mouthed back and pointed to his forehead. Derek got up and moved over to the couch and sat next to Reid. Nobody seemed to notice or care. Morgan took out the legal bad he was given for the case and scribbled something down and then nudged Reid. He got the hint and then casually dropped his head to look. Do you have a stiff neck along with the headache?
Reid nodded and then Morgan wrote something else down. Same way my cold started, we probably shouldn't have made out.
Reid took out a pen and wrote something back. Take it back, I don't want it. Morgan smiled and reached his hand out until it gently intertwined with Reid's.
Just when Reid thought his day was looking up it took a turn for the worse when he finally got a chance to call his mother. Diana spent ten minutes yelling at him about the importance of family and responsibilities before she practically hung up on him. He felt like crying, he just wanted the day to be over. His phone vibrated in his hands and he looked down to see what the screen said. One new message – Derek Morgan.
Some days just suck but things will get better soon. Tonight we can go back to my room and talk. Love you till the end of time!
That last sentence was something new. Morgan had never said it to him before in message or in person but he liked it – he loved it. It quickly became the thing they said to each other at the end of every goodbye, goodnight and phone call. It was their perfect way of knowing the other always loved him no matter what.
A/N: Thoughts? Suggestions? : ) Review if you get a chance, I love the feedback.
