Title: E is for Evaluation
Prompt by Anonymous
Author: Kuria Dalmatia
Rating/Warnings: R (profanity, sexual situations)
Characters/Pairing: Hotch/Reid
ARCHIVING: my LJ... anyone else? Please ask first.
COMMENTS: Part of the The Great A-Z Multifandom Drabbling Meme. Unbetaed.
Feedback always welcome.
DISCLAIMER: The Mark Gordon Company, ABC Studios and CBS Paramount Network Television own Criminal Minds. Salut! I just took them out to play and I promise put them back when I'm done. I'm not making any profit just trying to get these images out of my head.
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It wasn't the first time that Aaron set the dinner table with actual plates, cloth napkins and placemats; most of the time, it was Chinette in front of the television because they were just too tired to mess with 'proper' things.
It wasn't the first time Aaron poured the wine into an exquisite crystal decanter and served it in the matching goblets.
It wasn't the first time that Aaron made a full meal from scratch on a weeknight, even if the man's culinary skills weren't on the same level as his brother's.
It wasn't the first time that Aaron lit the taper candles and lowered the lights while they ate.
It wasn't the first time they had strawberries in bed.
It wasn't the first time they spent the evening making love—slow, sensual, generous…Aaron trying to last as long as he could—and then falling asleep tangled and sticky.
It was, however, the first time that Aaron did all of those things in one night.
Spencer also knew that breakfast was going to be an elaborate affair, judging by what was still in the fridge, even though they had to be in the office by eight in the morning.
It was only natural for Spencer to wonder what prompted Aaron to do all these things; after all, he made his living recognizing patterns and, well, this was a deviation from the normal routines. Spencer knew it wasn't an anniversary. It wasn't a prelude to asking Spencer to move in (he just couldn't and thankfully Aaron understood that), which also ruled out a marriage proposal (the FBI wasn't that liberal and neither one of them wanted to leave the BAU).
He went through his mental checklist on what had prompted such an overture from Aaron.
No recent near-death experiences.
No recent doctor appointments.
No recent…
Spencer shifted, working himself out from the sleepy yet possessive hold of his lover. He knew it would wake Aaron—everything did and it was kind of unnerving—so he turned and planted a gentle kiss on his temple. "Gotta…you know…go."
That earned drowsy chuckle because it was a little joke between them, how everyone seemed to think Spencer was prudish and didn't use certain phrases. He knew them, he used them occasionally in private, but in public, he preferred to be a bit more formal.
He was a federal agent, after all.
Aaron released him and was back to sleep almost immediately. Spencer got out of bed, pulling the covers up so that his side wouldn't grow too cold, and padded to the bathroom. Once he finished, he went out into the main area of Aaron's apartment and over to Aaron's desk. Aaron still kept a written appointment planner even though he was faithful about updating his Blackberry calendar.
If the planner was open to tomorrow's date, Spencer would look. If it wasn't, he wouldn't snoop. He might ask Aaron over breakfast. Might. Because there was the chance that last night was a random expression of love. Spencer sighed.
He looked down at the desk and then to the planner. Aaron's abbreviations were somewhat cryptic but to Spencer? It was one of the easier codes to break.
"ES-DsO-PE" was next to 9 AM
Spencer stared. Erin Strauss, Director's Office, Performance Evaluation.
"Fuck," he whispered. He clenched his hands to his sides. He shook his head. "Oh, Aaron."
He knew exactly what his lover was thinking: One last hurrah before the apocalypse.
The Team knew about them, of course. It wasn't so much because they worked with world class profilers but practically lived with them. Aaron and Spencer hadn't made an official announcement, but each member of the team tacitly acknowledged them in their own way. Spencer often wondered if the rest of the BAU knew, but Garcia reassured him as recently as three days ago that their relationship was still a secret.
That obviously didn't stop Aaron from worrying. Spencer knew if there was the slightest hint that Strauss knew, Aaron would call everything off. His lover had made that quite clear the first time they kissed.
What was Spencer supposed to say? My unofficial NA sponsor is higher on the food chain than Strauss will ever be and knows the political games she plays. Hell, he went so far as to saying 'Crucifying Hotchner and Gideon did her more damage than good' and added, 'She won't get past Assistant Director of the unit. Trust me. If Hotchner wants to leapfrog her, all he has to do is give the signal.'
Spencer let out a sigh and wandered back into the bedroom.
Well, if Aaron truly believed this was the 'last time', Spencer was going to make sure that it was a hell of a last time. He crawled back in bed.
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F is for Frown