AN: Okay, and now that I have this chapter finished I can get some sleep before going into work tonight. I hope you all enjoy this chapter as I finally get Reid into the story - yes Morgan is involved too (I can't help myself). Though I would like to get at least one more chapter up tomorrow I'm not promising anything so Happy Holidays to all my readers and I promise to finish this as soon as possible.
Never having been one for shopping, Rossi couldn't help but wonder what had made him think this was a good idea. Here he was, standing in the middle of the crowded mall, looking down at the paper angels he held in his hands. He had told the lady running the booth to just give him six random angels, not about to take the time to pick out his own. Still, that left him with actually shopping for the gifts.
~I should have brought one of the women along with me ~, Rossi thought as he shuffled through the cut out angels again. What little Christmas spirit he had been feeling this year was rapidly leaving him. The best-selling author was convinced that the mob of people around him was sucking away any Christmas cheer he might have been feeling. ~ I should have given money to the Children's hospital and let them buy toys.~
"David Rossi? This is the last place I expected to see you." The familiar voice of his raven-haired teammate floated to him through the crowd, though it took several moments for Rossi to pick her out. By the time he had Prentiss was speaking again. "Are you here for a book signing?"
"No, and keep it down in case people start recognizing me and asking for autographs," Rossi admonished her, as Prentiss joined him by the ornamental tree that decorated the mall corridor. That was the last thing he needed - people deciding that one of his novels would make a better gift signed.
"Then what are you doing in a mall? I thought you had Garcia do all your Christmas shopping for you? Which by the way, I adored the lovely silk scarf you got me," Prentiss said, referring to the present that had been waiting on her desk when they had returned from their last case.
Rossi grinned sheepishly. "Never been one for shopping," he commented ruefully. "Which is why I don't know why I ever thought this was a good idea," he added, holding up the paper angels.
Prentiss took a moment to look closely at what he was holding. Having picked an angel from the tree herself while finishing her Christmas shopping, Prentiss recognized them immediately.
"Aww that is such a sweet thing for you to do. You'll make some kids very happy."
"That was the plan, although I'm at a loss as to where to start fulfilling these requests."
Prentiss smiled. It wasn't often that she was able to do something for her older co-worker and after the little things she had known him to do for her and others, she was more than happy to be able to return the favor.
"Then let me lead the way kind sir," Prentiss told him, slipping her arm through one of Rossi's.
Rossi quickly got over the surprise of the gesture and let himself be led through the mall by his raven-haired teammate. In no time she had helped him fulfill the requests on the paper angels, as well as do her own shopping along the way. Rossi felt relieved as he saw the makeshift station with the paper angel tree come back into view.
"Thank-you for your help, Emily," Rossi said after turning his angels and corresponding purchases over to the ladies running the event. "If it weren't for you, I would probably still be standing in the middle of the mall wondering where to start."
Prentiss laughed at the image that formed at that comment. "You did look a little lost when I found you. I take it shopping malls were never your thing."
"Not if I could help it. Besides, handing a women a credit card and telling her to go pick out something she likes is so much easier than trying to find something she likes."
"And none of your marriages worked?" Prentiss asked lightly.
"Sadly no. Guess money really can't buy happiness. Do you have any plans for the rest of the night?"
Prentiss shook her head in response.
"Let me buy you dinner as a thank-you, then."
"Well, the thank-you isn't necessary as I was happy to help out a friend but dinner would be nice."
"Wonderful. I know this nice little restaurant not far from here. You'll love it!"
"Sounds great," Prentiss said, falling in step with Rossi as he headed for the exit of the mall.
Even without setting his alarm clock Spencer Reid awoke at about the same time he did every morning. Though he was on vacation from work, his body apparently didn't want to let him sleep in. Climbing from bed, he turned off the alarm he had set for two hours later so he wouldn't be late picking up Morgan. His friend was heading back to Chicago during his vacation time and had asked for a ride to the airport. After taking a few moments to stretch his sleep stiffened muscles, Spencer padded toward the bathroom. At least he wouldn't have to rush to get ready.
Reid lingered longer in the shower than he normally did, letting the hot water cascade over his body. The hot water felt good compared to the cold December temperatures they had been having. Even Ohio had been frigid and more than once Reid had found himself wishing their last case had taken them somewhere a little warmer.
Finally stepping out of the shower, he reached for his towel to dry off. The room was hazy with steam from the shower and the genius found himself taking his time finishing his morning routine knowing that even the heated apartment air would feel cool when he first stepped from the room. Eventually he had no other choice, and Reid left the cozy warmth of the bathroom and headed for the kitchen.
After starting the coffee pot, Reid went about making himself breakfast. He kept it simple, scrambling some eggs to make an egg sandwich with. He didn't linger long over the simple meal, and soon Reid was leaving his kitchen and heading for his desk in the living room, his second cup of coffee grasped in his left hand.
With plenty of time on his hands, Spencer Reid settled down at his desk and pulled out a couple of sheets of stationary. His letters to his mother recently had been short, due to the demands of his job, and he planned on making up for that with today's letter. He had thought about flying out to Vegas during his time off but decided against it. His mother had never been a big fan of Christmas, the holiday actually being the source of one of the earliest arguments between his parents that he could remember. Going to see her now would be no more special than if he went a month from now. What would be different though would be the fact that seeing the other families trying to make the holiday as special as possible for their loved ones would remind him of something else he had missed out on. He was well aware that his life was far from normal even without any reminders.
By the time he signed his name to the letter, he had filled three pages with his tiny handwriting. Slipping it into an envelope, he glanced at the clock on his wall. Leaving now would mean arriving a bit early at his friend's house but he didn't think Morgan would mind. After addressing the envelope, Reid donned his coat, hat, scarf and gloves, grabbed his messenger bag and the letter and headed out the door.
Twenty minutes later, Reid was standing on the front steps of Morgan's townhouse. The familiar ring of his friend's doorbell was followed closely by the sounds of a barking dog. With his hands in his pocket, Reid found himself taking a step back from the door.
It wasn't long before Morgan was opening the front door, one hand on Clooney's collar.
"Hey man, come on in," Morgan greeted, stepping to one side to give Reid room to enter. "I'm almost ready. Just give me a few minutes."
"No rush," Reid replied, stepping cautiously past Clooney. "I'm early, so we've still got time," he added as Morgan shut the door behind him.
Reid looked around the living room. Though he and Morgan had hung out after work recently, it had been awhile since he had been in the other profiler's house. Despite the fact that he was spending Christmas in Chicago with his mother, Morgan had decorated his house for the holiday. Christmas lights lined the inside of the windows, two stockings hung from the fireplace below the garland, and an artificial tree stood in the corner. A string of Christmas cards hung along the one wall.
"If you're going away for the holidays why did you bother to decorate?" Reid asked, as Morgan ordered Clooney to go lay down and then headed in the direction of the stairs.
"Because in this line of work I've learned there is no such thing as guaranteed time off and if I got stuck here in the D.C. area for Christmas then I wanted a tree. Besides, it helps set the mood," Morgan replied as he walked up the steps.
"Set the mood?" Spencer commented quietly, as he continued to look around the room at the decorations. He didn't get it. For the most part he just thought all the decorations that people were putting up was a waste of time and money, not to mention some of them were just downright tacky.
Spencer walked over to the fireplace and looked at the stockings, which according to the tales told to children, were supposed to be filled by Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. He knew for a fact that Morgan didn't believe in Santa Claus, so why had he hung the stockings. As he stared at them, he noticed that each one had a name on them. One said Derek while the other one said Clooney.
"He hung a stocking for his dog?" Reid questioned silently to himself, even as he questioned his friend's sanity. He remembered Rossi's comment on their last case about the holiday bringing the crazy out in people and wondered if this was an example of that.
"Oh, before I forget, the wrapped present on the coffee table is yours and isn't to be opened until Christmas Day," Morgan said as he came back downstairs carrying two duffel bags and a small suitcase.
"But we already exchanged Christmas gifts," Reid replied, glancing toward the afore mentioned present before looking at Morgan, the question clear in his eyes.
"True, but like I said, that one is to be opened on Christmas. I know you're not much into the holiday beyond what you do to humor us, but I figure the more we try to involve you in holiday stuff the greater chance you might finally get what Christmas is about."
"Christmas is a manifestation of consumerism. It's an opportunity for card companies and stores to make a profit as people spend money they really don't have. Not to mention by perpetuating the myth of Santa Claus and his reindeer we are sending the message to children that it is okay to lie if it makes someone happy."
"You were one of those kids who tried telling other kids at school that Santa wasn't real, weren't you?" Morgan commented, placing his bags on the floor by the door.
Reid nervously scraped the toe of his left shoe against the carpet and stuffed his hands in his pocket as he looked down at the ground.
"I thought so," Morgan replied, crossing the room to the coffee table. He picked up the wrapped gift and held it out to his friend. "Don't worry, I didn't spend money I don't have on it, and I think you'll really like it. And with any luck it might whittle away a bit of that holiday black cloud that follows you around."
"Thanks," Reid mumbled as he took the gift from Morgan.
Morgan smiled. Being friends with Reid could be strange at times but it was totally worth it.
"Just let me make sure Clooney has enough food and water until Garcia stops by later and then I'll be ready to go," Morgan told him, heading for the kitchen, leaving Reid alone in the living room looking from the gift in his hand to the tree and then to the stockings hanging over the fireplace. Despite all his book knowledge Reid just couldn't grasp what people found so special about this particular holiday.