A/N: Thanks to everyone who has already left reviews! I hope this chapter does at least a small bit of justice to you all.

Chapter 2

He looked anxiously at the time. In a few minutes, the team would be gathering for lunch. They already made plans for Mexican take-outs today. He gathered up his bag and jacket as he quickly walked toward the BAU's sad excuse for a "kitchen". He would just grab a bottle of water then quickly head outside for the walk he usually planned during this time. If he moved fast enough, he would be out of the building before anyone could notice him. When the team asked him why he didn't have lunch with them, he would just say "oh, sorry, it must have slipped my mind. I got caught up in thinking about this new Indian restaurant I've wanted to visit. Maybe next time?" And the team would look at him oddly but then shrug it off and go back to work. Then he'd be safe…until the next time.

He was putting the water in his bag and heading out the kitchen when he nearly collided with Aaron Hotchner. His boss raised an eyebrow at him. "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"Oh, um, nowhere. I was just about to…get some fresh air." The last part was said unconvincingly and he mentally kicked himself for not being a better liar. He knew there was no way anyone would believe that, let alone a profiler.

Hotch gave him a questioning look, but did not comment on his obvious lie. "The team is about to order lunch. You might want to be there when we do or else Morgan will order for you. And I don't think the two of you share the same preferences." Hotch moved from the doorway so Reid could go before him.

Reid swallowed nervously. "Um…thanks…for warning me, but…um, I-I'm really not hungry at the moment." Hotch gave him a disbelieving stare. "B-but I'll make sure to be there the next time the team has lunch." Hotch continued staring. "Um, s-so if you'll please excuse me…" Reid tried to hurriedly walk passed Hotch but he stopped when he felt a hand catch his arm.

"Reid…" He turned to look at Hotch who now held a look of concern. Reid, however, took it as pity. "Listen, I don't know what's going on with you but I know that something is not right. Did you think no one has noticed you skipping lunch for the past three weeks?" Hotch let go of Reid's arm, hoping Reid would still listen to him. "This isn't healthy, Reid. You're losing weight. You can't afford to stop eating."

Reid's eyes widened at him. 'He said…I'm losing weight. He noticed. That means…it's working! It's actually working!' Reid felt a wave of joy go through him. 'Finally, some results!'

"Reid, you're an intelligent young man. I know you know the dangers of not eating enough." Reid blinked. He had been so wrapped up in the idea of him finally improving that he'd forgotten Hotch was still speaking to him. "So, why don't you come and order your food, so everyone can stop worrying about you?"

'Worrying about me? Great…now I've gotten the entire team worried. I always have to cause trouble for everyone, don't I? Hmm…well, I suppose it won't hurt just to order something, so long as it gets the team off my back.'

He gave a nod and a small smile. "Yeah…okay." He swallowed again as he went to where the team was waiting, Hotch following shortly behind. 'Besides…I could probably think of a way to get out of this. Maybe say I got the wrong order…or I could do a sleight of hand trick with my food to make them think I'm eating it.'

Reid sat next to Morgan at the table in the conference room. Prentiss was just finishing her order as Hotch took his seat next to Rossi on the other side of the table. Hotch looked at Reid for a moment as though he expected the younger agent to run away. He then turned toward Garcia to give his order, afterwards engaging in a conversation with Rossi about something only the two of them could possibly be interested in.

Reid was the last to order. He cleared his throat and licked his lips nervously as Garcia waited patiently. "Um…" He quickly thought about Mexican foods that held the fewest calories. But he furrowed his eyebrows in frustration when he realized that this was a restaurant he'd never been to before. He didn't know what they had to offer.

"I don't…I'm not sure what to order. I don't usually eat Mexican foods." He looked hopelessly at Garcia who seemed ready to go into a full explanation of the many Mexican foods he could choose from.

It was then that J.J. intervened. "Don't worry, Spence," she said, winking. "I've got you covered." She then proceeded to whisper something in Garcia's ear that made Garcia smile brightly and nod in agreement.

"Ooooh, I think Reid'll like that." Garcia giggled as she wrote down the order and then pulled out her phone to call Comida de Amos.

Ten minutes later, the team was reaching into bags to find their individual foods. Reid looked appalled when he was handed his meal. He was given a plate of enchiladas that were SMOTHERED in cheese and sauce. 'At LEAST 650 calories.' Then Reid was given a bowl of Mexican rice. 'That looks a little more than a cup, so around 200 calories.' Reid nearly panicked when he received the final part of his meal: a large order of Frozen Mocha Coffee Coolatta. 'WHAT?! THIS ISN'T EVEN A MEXICAN DRINK! I don't even want to THINK of how many calories are in THAT. Over 800, I'm sure!'

As everyone ravenously began to consume their food, Reid stared at the meal before him. 'No. I can't do it. I can't eat this. It's too much. Over 1,600 calories in one meal. ' He looked at the enchiladas then at the rice and finally the coffee. That coffee. Never in his life did he think he would come to hate coffee as much as he did now. But then again, never before in his life had he realized just how much uglier he was making himself every time he swallowed the fattening, sugar-filled drink. He shivered at the memory of how much he used to drink it. He mentally thanked J.J. for making him see what he was. He could always count on her. Even though he became disheartened when she started dating Will. 'It's for the best. There's no way someone so beautiful would settle for a hideous thing like me. And yet, she was still nice enough to go to that football game with me. I could never be as amazing as her. I could never—'

"Hey, Reid." His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Morgan call his name. He looked at the agent who, for some reason he couldn't comprehend, always looked out for him. "You okay?" Reid blinked. "You haven't eaten so much as a bite."

Reid looked back at his food. "Um, yeah…I'm fine. I'm just not hungry." He looked up to see Hotch staring at him, and he tried to suppress a shiver as he turned back to Morgan.

"Come on, man. You've gotta be a little hungry." Reid swallowed hard. "How do expect to build up any muscle if you don't eat?"

Reid opened his mouth but then shut it as he realized something. 'He's right. Being skinny isn't the same as being fit. He's trying to help me. He's telling me that if I want to be attractive I need to lose weight WITHOUT completely giving up protein. That's it, then. I'll keep improving but I'll get protein supplements—maybe whey protein pills—to build muscle. Perfect!'

Reid smiled softly. "You're right! Thanks, Morgan."

Morgan smiled back. "No problem, Kid."

Reid looked back at the food, his smile fading. Even though his food held protein, it wasn't worth the calorie intake. He looked up to see Hotch still occasionally looking at him. He knew Hotch wouldn't leave him alone until he ate something. There was no way out of this. Reid sighed in frustration, feeling trapped and helpless. He opened the container of Mexican rice and slowly lifted up a spoon.

'1,600 calories. That's only slightly less than what my recommended daily value is. I didn't eat anything this morning. And I won't eat anything tonight. 1,600 calories. I can burn it all by jogging approximately four hours. I could jog home after work, rather than take the train. That should burn around half the calories. Then I'll jog around my neighborhood until I've burned the rest.' He hesitantly raised a spoonful of rice to his lips. 'Or…I could get rid of it all at once. No, no! I can't risk doing that at work. If anyone caught me, they would know just how pathetic I am.' He emptied the spoon into his mouth and slowly started to chew. 'I'll jog home. Then I'll get rid of what's left.' Reid swallowed, instantly feeling fatter as he did so. He looked up at Hotch again, who seemed content with his actions and had gone back to enjoying his own meal as the rest of the team started a conversation about the budget cuts. No one knew about the internal war that was going on inside Reid with every bite he was forced to take. Nobody could hear his cries as he choked down every scream within himself with a sip of liquid fat.

He was halfway through his meal when he could no longer eat anymore. He felt bloated. He felt sick. He felt fat—extremely fat. He tried to bear it but after a few minutes, it became too much. He needed to get rid of it now.

Reid abruptly stood up, looking and feeling ill. Everyone gave him worried glances as he quietly said "excuse me" and rushed out of the room. He all but ran for the restroom, trying not to attract too much attention but also trying to get there as soon as possible. He couldn't wait another second; it had to be now. He dashed into a stall and slammed the door, not bothering to lock it. Reid immediately poked a finger down his throat and spent the next few minutes retching violently until he was sure it was all out of his body. He then shakily stood and flushed, glad to thinner again.

'But not thin enough.'

He paused when he realized it wasn't his own thoughts that said it. 'Oh, no…am I hearing voices?' He had a brief moment of panic before reasoning that it was likely his conscience telling him the truth about himself. He was not crazy.

He opened the stall door but was startled to find Morgan standing there with a worried look on his face. 'DAMN IT! I knew I should have been more careful!' he thought.

'Pathetic!' he heard his "conscience" whisper.

"Reid…? Are you all right?" Concern was evident in Morgan's voice but the younger agent only heard disgust.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine." Morgan gave him a disbelieving look and he swallowed anxiously. "I, um…My body doesn't react well to certain foods…and…whenever I eat anything too spicy…it tends to come back up." He gave nervous false-chuckle. "I didn't think the enchiladas would be too bad. It's my fault. I should have warned Garcia and J.J. about this before they ordered for me." He swallowed again. "I'll be fine once my stomach settles."

Morgan continued looking at Reid for a moment. It was when Reid thought he could no longer maintain eye-contact that Morgan finally nodded and said, "Well, then, you should be more careful about what you eat, man."

Reid offered a small smile and muttered, "I'm trying to", as he made his way to the sinks. As he rinsed out his mouth, he thought of how close he'd come to being caught. He needed to be more careful. He couldn't have more of Hotch watching him eat or Morgan questioning him in the bathroom. He promised himself he would try harder without raising unwanted attention.

As everyone finished their lunches and returned to work, Morgan cornered Hotch.

"I think there's something wrong with Reid," he said simply as they watched the sickly-looking agent shuffle through paperwork at his desk.

"I know." The two shared a serious look before Hotch told Morgan to come to his office and tell him everything.

A/N: Phew! This chapter took longer than I expected to write, but I had to keep doing research on things Reid would probably know. Anyway, I hope this chapter went well and pleased everyone. You all know what to do now for the next chapter. I bet you all have some really great ideas! And I'm sorry if I'm not able to fit them all into the story, but I'll do my best.

REVIEW RESPONSES:

Guest: I hope Morgan finding him in the bathroom is good enough. I don't want him to be caught just yet.

Love Of Blood: Thanks! Although, I really am no expert on eating disorders (maybe more like someone who seems like an expert because I know a tiny bit more than the average person). So I am sincerely sorry if I'm not the most accurate. If I do get something blatantly wrong, feel free to correct me and I'll try to fix it.

Jeid Spoby Delena: Well, on a team of profilers, someone is bound to notice something. At the very least, Hotch and Morgan certainly have. And I'm not a romance writer, so there won't be any major shipping in this story. But I do hope you caught the bit about Reid being upset when J.J. started dating Will. I think I'll make it seem like Reid has (or used to have, I'm not sure yet) a crush on J.J. rather than writing a full love affair.

CM44: I wasn't sure what kind of "moment" you wanted, but I hope the one at the beginning was enough to quench you thirst.

sandra. johanssan .144: Sorry, I actually didn't check my mail for reviews again until I was finished with this chapter (which took about THREE HOURS!). Otherwise, I would have found a way to incorporate your idea about Reid fainting into this chapter. But I'll definitely make sure to make that happen later on in the chapter.