Disclaimer: I own nothing Criminal Minds related and the base of this story belongs to RoseLaurel.
So dontchafeel likedancing gave me a rather compelling incentive to update so here it is. XD
And thank you to the two people who have offered to beta for me. I need to reply to one person (I just haven't gotten around to it yet. xD;;) and the second person tried leaving me their email but it didn't go through.
And you know what I have recently discovered? Role playing. It is addictive and amazing and just where has it been my whole life? I'm extremely tempted to try and find a Criminal Minds one because it is simply fabulous. If anyone wants to point me in the right direction because I am pretty clueless, please, point away. xD
Reid didn't know what to think. He, for once, didn't know how to mentally process the events that had taken place.
Or event. It wasn't exactly plural, was it? After all, it had only been a single kiss, really.
But Hotch had kissed him. Actually kissed him.
Him, of all people.
And then he had sent him off to bed! Of all things! To bed!
And Reid had actually done as he was told because what else could he have done but comply when his mind had been completely frozen? Of course, as soon as he had closed the door behind him, Reid had been just slightly displeased with himself. In what world did walking out of a room after something like that seem like a good idea? Shouldn't they have, you know, talked about it or something? But he hadn't exactly been able to muster up the courage to go back.
Could he even approach the subject with Hotch later? Would Hotch even acknowledge that it had happened? But then… Hotch had been the one to kiss him. That had to mean something, right?
Gingerly Reid rubbed at his temple, wondering just what he was supposed to do.
This was ridiculous, really. He was a grown man. He should be able to handle something like this.
Except he wasn't even exactly sure what 'this' was. Even labeling it was proving to be difficult.
Not for the first time, Reid reached down to adjust his bag that sat on the curb at his feet. Apparently it was enough to draw attention to him, however, because the next moment Morgan was letting out an exasperated, "Reid, kid, could you be still for just a minute? Your bag isn't going to sprout legs and walk away, I promise." Morgan's comment was also enough to draw the attention of the rest of the group that they stood with.
Reid looked up towards the other male, giving a slightly sheepish, but unconvincing smile. "Yeah, sorry," but before anything further could be said, two standard black SUVs pulled up to take them to the airstrip and then it would be home.
But here came the tricky part.
Reid always rode with Hotch who in turn always drove one of the vehicles. Always. Reid couldn't recall a single occurrence that didn't have outside circumstances when he hadn't chosen to ride with him. Perhaps it was simply because he knew that he tended to annoy Hotch the least out of everyone – Hotch had always had an abundance of patients for him.
And like always, Hotch was waiting patiently in one driver seat whilst Rossi was behind the wheel of the other one. Much like his chose to always ride with Hotch, Reid always avoided Rossi's vehicle when he could simply because he knew that out of the group, he annoyed Rossi the most. He knew that Rossi cared for him, the entire team did, but Reid was never eager to press his luck with the other male who never seemed quite sure as to how to handle him.
But that was something different. Right now, Hotch was looking at him expectantly.
It should have been simple to just climb into his normal position in the back of Hotch's SUV. Easy-peasy. Maybe he might even race Morgan for the front. No problem. Nothing was different between him and Hotch after all. With that matter mentally resolved and laid to rest, Reid picked up his bag to follow after the others whom were already moving towards the vehicles in question. At the last moment, however, Reid rapidly found himself changing courses, making a desperate escape as if his life depended on it, and sliding into the back of Rossi' vehicle, bag clutched desperately to his chest which only caused him to slightly fumble with his seatbelt.
His change of seating wasn't immediately noticed until JJ moved to climb into the vehicle only to pause at the sight of Reid already occupying the other side. She paused, frowned, and took a glance at just who the driver was, as if she had been the one to make a mistake as to what vehicle she was about to climb into. Upon noting that no, she hadn't been wrong, it was in fact Rossi behind the wheel, she started, "Uh, Reid," but that quickly trailed off because what was she supposed to say? Why are you riding with us? Sure, because that wasn't terribly rude.
Reid resisted the urge to wince, instead smiling and asking an easy, "Yes?" now feeling Rossi's gaze on him as well. He should have just gone in Hotch's SUV. He really should have.
"Uh… do you want the front seat or should I sit there?" she finally inquired, but when Reid simply shook his head no, she offered a forced, in Reid's opinion at least or perhaps it was concerned, smile and went to move up front. Rossi, however, didn't hesitate like Reid was expecting him to; instead the oldest profiler simply put the SUV into drive and pulled out of the parking lot, leaving Morgan and a slightly baffled Prentiss to load into the remaining vehicle.
The ride was terribly uneventful, Rossi merely driving and JJ making idle chatter about Henry that Reid was all too happy to engage in. Rossi even inserted a polite comment here or there but for the most part he seemed content to merely drive. The one time that Reid did start to rattle out a statistic, however, he had received a rather stern glare through the rearview mirror from said older male that instantly caused Reid to drop off midsentence. JJ, in turn, had promptly scoffed at Rossi.
Now Reid sat on the couch of the jet, nose buried in a case file though his eyes did flicker up every once and awhile towards where Hotch sat in a chair also reading a new case file. As far as Reid could tell, the older male hadn't so much as looked at him once which was just a slightly irritating feeling to be honest.
Didn't Hotch want to know why Reid didn't ride with him? Did he even notice?
It was entirely irrational, Reid knew that, but at the same time…
Reid groaned aloud without meaning to and hung his head. He was being stupid.
"Everything alright, Reid?" Hotch drew softly, voice low least he wake one of the members of his team. With the exception of Morgan whom was wearing his headphones, everyone else was curled up somewhere trying to catch up on some much needed sleep, but Reid was faintly sure that Morgan too was also asleep. He hadn't stirred in quite some time after all. No one had slept well during the case.
Reid didn't look up, instead burying his face in his hands. It wasn't until Hotch prompted again, "Reid?" that the younger male realized that an answer was expected of him.
"Yeah, everything is fine. Just… tired," he offered though it was slightly muffled given the placement of his hands, but Reid really couldn't bring himself to care.
"You should get some sleep then."
Reid considered it for a moment before replying, "Maybe in a bit. I want to finish this case file."
There was some rustling, which Reid simply assumed was someone shifting to get more comfortable, but instead a moment later Reid felt the couch sink ever so slightly beneath a new weight. When no one said anything, Reid chanced a glance up and sure enough, there was Hotch sitting with his form partially twisted to face Reid, an unreadable expression on his face.
"You can finish paperwork later. That was a hard case, Reid. You need to sleep. After all, if I recall correctly, you didn't get much sleep last night." And there it was, so matter of fact. Reid felt colour rising to his cheeks ever so slightly at the memory. Didn't it affect Hotch at all? In addition, Reid was becoming rapidly aware of the fact that Hotch was sitting just slightly closer to him than usual, just enough for it to be noticeable but not quite enough that Reid could say for sure that Hotch had done it on purpose.
"Erm, right," Reid murmured as he focused his gaze away from the older male. "I'll… do that." And with that, Reid went to rise from his place on the couch only to be stopped midway by a firm hold on his arm. Baffled, Reid looked back towards Hotch. "Uh, Hotch?"
"Sleep here," Hotch stated simply as if it were the most practical thing in the world, which, Reid might point out, wasn't practical in the least. Just how was he supposed to sleep on the couch when Hotch was sitting there and showing absolutely no sign of moving?
When Reid didn't immediately reply nor move to either sit back down or pull away, Hotch gave the other's arm a gentle pull and Reid simply allowed his form to go with the flow. He ended up sitting terribly close to his unit cheif, legs lightly brushing against one and another. Reid shot the older male a faintly confused look but Hotch wasn't paying him any attention, instead pulling off his coat which was laid over the back of the chair that was within reaching distance. As Hotch adjusted himself so that he was leaning against the corner of the couch at a slight slant, Reid became abundantly aware of the fact that Hotch also intended to sleep on the couch.
Feeling his mouth go dry, Reid attempted, "Hotch, if you're tired too I can sleep on the chair or—"
"Don't be ridiculous. There is plenty of room for both of us. Besides, if I let you wonder off to the other side of the jet, you'll sneak in more paperwork."
While that wasn't exactly far from the truth, the fact that Hotch wanted him to sleep there… "Hotch, really—"
"Spencer, come here," Hotch stated with just a slightly firm edge to his voice as he raised his arm, a clear invitation.
Or decree. Reid wasn't exactly sure which.
Reid swallowed, eyes flickering across the unit chief's face for a moment before he slowly complied, shifting closer ever so hesitantly. Ever more carefully and completely conscious of himself, Reid tucked himself against Hotch, nestling against the warm and solid form. He practically jumped, however, when Hotch's arms came down and gingerly wrapped around him, pulling him just a smidge closer. Once he was quite positive that Hotch had no intention of moving his arms from their new found position, Reid allowed his head to slowly fall back against the other's chest.
If Reid were going to be honest, he'd have to admit to the fact that the position was oddly comforting. He closed his eyes and without meaning to, let out a sigh of content. The response he received was a soft but deep chuckle. "Comfortable?" Hotch drew gently.
"Mmhmm," Reid murmured, suddenly finding that he was exceptionally tired. But then, "What're the others going to think?" Despite that thought, however, Reid didn't show even the faintest sign of wanting to get up.
Hotch shifted ever so slightly once more and Reid felt the older male's even breathing against his ear. "What about them? Are we doing something wrong, Spencer?"
And for some reason those words were enough to send a tingle down Reid's spine. "N-no," he managed to stammer out a moment later, praying that Hotch hadn't noticed the sudden increase in his heart rate. "No, we aren't. We're just…"
"Going to sleep?" Hotch supplied lightly when Reid trailed off, and as Reid finally opened his eyes, sure enough, there was that same smug smirk toying at the edges of Hotch's lips.
"Yeah. Sleep." And that was all that the genius could think to say as he watched his boss's lips. Slowly Hotch leaned forward and Reid felt the heat rising to his cheeks as he became aware of the fact that all he'd have to do was lean forward just a few more inches to close the distance –
"Unless you'd prefer something else?" and Reid's eyes widened ever so faintly much to Hotch's utter amusement, but when Reid said nothing, Hotch merely smirked and leaned back into his original position. "You should get some sleep now, Reid."
Slowly Reid nodded before he too leaned back and nestled further against Hotch, fighting down the faint trace of disappointment that lingered.
When Reid awoke, he could feel the faint descent of the jet, an obvious sign that they were almost ready to land. He felt surprisingly warm, not only from the extra body heat pressed against him but also from a jacket, at least judging by the feel of the material, that had been draped over his torso at some point in time while he had slept. Though his body was just slightly stiff from continuously staying in the same position, he couldn't bring himself to care all that much. The arms holding him tightly were… nice for a lack of a better word. He didn't particularly feel inclined to break free from the entangling limbs. Reid couldn't even bring himself to be alarmed as he remembered the fact that they were Hotch's arms.
But none of that had been what had woken him up, however. Instead it was the hushed voice right beside his ear and an equally hushed, but clearly more upset, voice that was hovering just above where he sat. While he felt very much like he was eavesdropping, Reid got the distinct impression that it wouldn't exactly add to the conversation for the two males to know that he was now awake and so he simply laid there and kept his eyes closed.
"Hotch, what do you think you're doing? He's a kid and you're—"
"And I'm what, Morgan?" Hotch cut in quietly though there was no mistaking the almost lethal sounding edge to his voice.
"You're taking advantage of him," Morgan growled back, voice rising just a little bit in volume. "He trusts you; you're like his hero or something."
"Morgan, Reid is perfectly capable of taking care of himself and making his own decisions."
Damn right I am, Reid couldn't help but mentally add but by now he was thinking of a tactful way of informing the two males that he was awake. He didn't particularly care for the way that they were talking about him.
"I know that but sometimes he doesn't think."
"He's always thinking Morgan. Try again."
"You should know better: you're his boss."
And that argument caused a momentary falter because that had been the same exact argument that Hotch had said the previous night. Another moment passed before Hotch stated a quiet, "I am his boss, but we're not doing anything wrong," his grip on Reid's waist tightening ever so faintly.
"Doesn't look like it from where I'm standing. Hotch… how much older are you than him?"
And there was another falter but before either of them could say anymore, Rossi was clearing his throat ever so strategically, followed by a loud yawn. Reid wasn't quite sure just what to think but at least Morgan and Hotch finally had the good graces to cease their conversation through Morgan added a soft, "We're not finished Hotch."
